1 A New Reason to Fight [Private] Sun Jun 09, 2019 11:28 pm
Jerrick
D-rank
The air back in the Land of Lightning brought back old memories. The place of his old stomping grounds. He hadn’t stood on this country’s soil in years. He remembered his former service to the daimyo of this land. His service was abruptly ended when he became a prisoner of war. He never bothered to return to the service of the lord. It was surely pointless at this point. The memory of his imprisonment and the fact that his nation didn’t do anything to rescue him caused him to spit on the ground. The body he spent years training had wasted away. Some of the muscle tone had been returned, but it was nothing like it was before. It was a shadow of what it was and he came to accept that. There seemed to be nothing that could get in his way of returning his body to its former glory. Though, it was a struggle. It was like his body was rejecting going back to its former state. The strength he had previously attained also seemed to a far cry from what it was. Jerrick just shook his head and continued to move forward up the road. He made his way toward Kumogakure no Sato. It was a village that he had yet to visit since his official release from the Daimyo’s service.
The mission he was tasked with a simple one. The Tsuchikage had sent him and a number of others out to recruit mercenaries for Iwa’s cause. He took pride that the Tsuchikage would choose him. Jerrick wasn’t sure if Lord Tsuchikage knew about his family ties. It may have been simpler for Jerrick to send a letter to his father asking for troops. Why not recruit his own clan to help fight for Iwagakure? The thought crossed his mind a few times, but his father may have said otherwise. His father still had control of the clan and he didn’t want to try and invade on whatever his father had planned. A while back he was given a letter that a Kumo nin had visited one of the fortresses and asked the Shinkai for assistance with the former Lord Hastur. The Shinkai didn’t have to lift a finger as the Raikage died without their assistance. Jerrick wondered how he was going to accomplish this. He knew of other mercenary groups that were probably begging for work. At least he had a back up plan if this one didn’t work out. Jerrick was trying to establish a base of operations on the northern shore of Tsuchi no Kuni. That hadn’t been working out as well as he had planned, but he figured that he could ask the Lord Tsuchikage for permission. Next time he saw his leader, he would definitely ask.
Jerrick started to see the gate of Kumogakure appear in the distance. The gate had no improvements since the last time he crossed it. He had almost forgotten how beautiful the village was. There wasn’t much time to gander around at the gate and get all up in his nostalgia. The mission was to be his primary focused. Anything that deviated from that would have to wait. Jerrick would have to muster up where in the village he would go first. He wanted to go the bar. Bars were pretty good places for mercenary recruitment, but it was a bit too early in the day for that. Jerrick decided that he would need to find a place where he would find recruitment fairly simplistically. The thoughts that he had started to travel to the underground fight clubs. Him and a few soldiers had some fun back in the day. A few spots like that were spread out in certain locations. Some mercenary groups recruited from the fight clubs and it was probably his best bet. So, it was going to be his first stop. It was time for him to make his way to a fight club. Funny thing is the closing one just so happened to be a bar. For some reason, he didn’t think about it before.
It took a short walk as there was a seemingly large store front bar. The sign at the front said “open” and he stopped short of the double doors. The doors caused him to sigh. He loved to fight, but he didn’t have a plan if he was beaten to a pulp. Without thinking about it twice, he opened the door on the left while adjusting his travel bag. Looking around the bar, there seem to be a good number of people here. It wasn’t something he was used to seeing during the middle of the day. That was unless he ended up in the wrong bars within Iwagakure. The bar was awfully well kept than what he last remembered. The place normally had broken chairs and tables from fighting, but he wondered what had changed within the last eight years. Well, he figured that he would sit down and see what he could hear. He didn’t care for drinking when he had a mission, but Lord Tsuchikage didn’t necessarily give him a time frame. There was a brief sigh as he made his way to a stool and placed his bag onto the closest one next to him.
The Shinkai placed both his elbows on the counter as he locked his fingers together. His nose slightly rested on his knuckles as he started to get lost in thought. It was as while before the female bartender addressed him. He quickly snapped out of it as he looked at her. The woman was a lot shorter than he was and she was just the way he like his woman. Jerrick smiled slightly at the dark haired woman that stood across from him. The lady had to only be a couple of years younger than of him. It had been awhile since he had spent time to talk with a mature woman. His mind had been caught with training that he didn’t even think about possibly finding an equal. Though he loved the company of woman, he needed to stay focused. Jerrick would also need to stay attempt to not draw too much attention to himself. He found it a good thing that he never got around to getting a shinobi headband. Jerrick also made sure to wear a long sleeve shirt to cover his tattoos. The one thing he couldn’t hide was his body size. Though, he didn’t really hold a candle to the size of the Tsuchikage. The Shinkai was probably one of the biggest people in here outside of the bodyguard that sat in the corner. He remembered the hulking man from his past. It brought him some closure that somethings here didn’t change.
“Sir, may I help you?” the woman asked.
“Ah yes. I would like to get some whiskey. Anything dark.” Jerrick responded. A thirst started to develop as he started to feel a need for a drink.
“Oh you seem like a top shelf kind of guy.”
“You have quite an eye. I don’t need anything that exquisite. I’ll take the basic amenities.”
“Thanks, how about one drink on the house. Jerrick?”
“How do you know my name?”
“You wouldn’t forget a familiar face of a fellow clansmen would you?”
Jerrick’s face looked like he saw a spectur. The woman did look quite familiar and he, at first, couldn’t put his finger on it. Then he remembered her face back within his former unit as well as a young girl that he occasionally spent time with in his younger days. He couldn’t believe that he would see this woman again.
“Freida, how have you been? It’s been ages.”
“I’ve been doing quite well. I’ll get you a drink and then we can talk more privately. There’s something that you maybe able to help us with.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Freida placed a mug onto the bar and poured warm whiskey out for him. Jerrick put the mug to his lips and slowly sipped the brandy. It was excellent. Freida definitely knew how to settle a Shinkai’s soul. The whiskey was one of his favorites. When he saw the bottle being poured, his heart had prematurely jumped in his chest. This was something good that he took in. Jerrick felt a little better with whiskey in his belly. It was definitely a prize. The idea of him completing his mission seemed to give him inner strength. Though, he was concerned about what was requested of him. He found it strange that he was asked after not seeing a woman who he had spent significant time just asked him for help. Whatever it was, he would need to see what was up. Freida was a strong and passionate woman. Now that he thought about it, she was probably one of the bravest in his unit. He also had some questions to ask her, but he figured that he could wait.
After finishing his drink, he nodded to her and another bartender took her place as they left the main area of the bar and went into the basement. The basement was quite packed. It was a lot deeper than it was the last time he remembered. He wondered if they made it deeper on purpose. Freida led him through the basement that had quite a few individuals that loomed around the poorly lit area. Jerrick new none of them. There faces were cold and yet calculated. Jerrick made sure to make eye contact with them. It was to give them the impression that he wasn’t to be toyed with. Plus, he wasn’t sure of the company they kept down here. As he walked, he could barely make a sizeable octagon fighting ring. It definitely wasn’t the same one he fought those many years ago. The place had changed and it seemed like it was for the better.
The dark haired woman led him to a large office space. A few individuals stood talking to each other quite aggressively. The door behind them closed as he looked back and noticed the man’s clothes. It was similar to his current tunic. Looking forward, he noticed another man he hadn’t seen in awhile. The man stood about 6’9 with dark skin. He wore heavy armor and wielded a great sword. The man’s hair color matched his own only thicker. The man’s hair was locked and hung down over his shoulders…Lord Ulgon. The man was just as scary as he was back when he saw him a few years back. He really questioned what was going on. Questions started to flood his mind about what was truly going on. What was he doing here. He hadn’t spoken to the man in what seemed like forever.
“Suzerain Ulgon and Commander Anzu, I present Lord Jerrick of Kaminari...excuse me...Tsuchi no Kuni.”
“Thanks you, Freida. It’s been a long time since I last saw you, my son,” the large man stated
“Father. Commander. It’s good to see the both of you. It’s kind of early for the joint clan meeting isn’t it?”
The commander smiled slightly before she started speaking, “We’re not here for that cousin. There is a different matter we need to bring up. It’s about the things happening in recent events. Each Hidden Village seems to be conquering land. We’ve pretty much stayed out of the fight so far. You know we’ve had a hand in the black market for awhile. Though, it seems like it may be time for a change. Years have kept our two halves of the clan apart, but we’re thinking about having an amnesty and joining the two together.”
“Join the sects? I was originally going to ask Father when about setting up a base in Tsuchi no Kuni, but this seems like it may interfere with that.”
The commander and the suzerain looked at each other. It was rare that the two of them were in the same room. The fact that they brought up joining the sects even temporarily must have meant that things were a lot worse than he knew. Jerrick hadn’t been keeping up with the world’s events. He only told one person about him traveling to Kumogakure. That individual must have relayed the message to his father, but that didn’t explain the presence of the commander. Jerrick wasn’t sure on what he should ask next. It was definitely interesting to see both of them here. It also made him wonder about the whereabouts of his sister. He hadn’t seen Ragna or heard from her since Sunagakure was wiped off the map.
“Jerrick, we understand that you were looking for mercenaries to join your cause. I have actually offered men from one of the mercenary units I control. They’re not from my unit. I will need them to help protect our assets. We’re not too sure of any of the village leaders and how they will act in the future. There is no way that we are openly saying that we can solely support each other. Though we’re talking about joining the sects, we can’t leave our respective locations...unoccupied.”
“I see. I appreciate it, father."
“Also, I approve of your request to put a base in Tsuchi no Kuni. Just let me know the details later on."
“Sure thing, sir.”
“Jerrick, I will also send mercenaries that I have stationed in Mizu no Kuni. Like the suzerain said, we can’t openly fly our flags. The mercenaries we’re sending will have a few are from our blood. The others are merely canon fodder and only seek ryo. We’ll give you a letter of approval from both sects to your Tsuchikage with our alternative seals. Building a base in Tsuchi no Kuni will provide us with more movement in the world. You do have a sharp mind. Oh yes, you will also be taking my half-sister Freida with you as well. She’s going to help keep the mercenaries in line.”
“I appreciate the assistance, commander. What else did you need from me?”
“We need to you help with the extermination of a gang. It was said that there are some jashinist that are still around that are causing trouble for our convoys. It would be easy enough to request a mission to oust them, but it could take months for it to get approved since Hastur is dead. We already have the details about their camp. It’s deep within the mountains. We’re sending in our clansmen to help, so don’t get discouraged. Destroy their camp and take no treasure. Purge everything. Do well and I may even make you a jarl within the clan. Though, I would like to see you make jonin before I do this. Show me your true power.”
“A...jarl?! Father...I’m not sure what to say.”
“Say nothing. We’ll convene with you later. Get some rest and take a load off. We plan to strike tomorrow.”
Jerrick looked to Freida as they both placed their fist against their chest in a salute exited the room. Jerrick continued to converse with Freida. They both exited the bar and started to take a stroll around the village. As they walked, Freida informed him of what happened to her after both of them became prisoners of war. What happened to her was gruesome. The thought of it ticked Jerrick off a bit caused him to crush his canteen in his hand. It just reminded him of the torment and the pain he himself went through. Jerrick and to tell himself that it was over and he didn’t have to deal with that ever again. He also needed to take a break. As he walked, he noticed a shinobi with a leather kasa while carrying two katana on his side. A long ponytail could be seen from underneath the kasa. Walking with the shinobi was...a tiger cub?!
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The mission he was tasked with a simple one. The Tsuchikage had sent him and a number of others out to recruit mercenaries for Iwa’s cause. He took pride that the Tsuchikage would choose him. Jerrick wasn’t sure if Lord Tsuchikage knew about his family ties. It may have been simpler for Jerrick to send a letter to his father asking for troops. Why not recruit his own clan to help fight for Iwagakure? The thought crossed his mind a few times, but his father may have said otherwise. His father still had control of the clan and he didn’t want to try and invade on whatever his father had planned. A while back he was given a letter that a Kumo nin had visited one of the fortresses and asked the Shinkai for assistance with the former Lord Hastur. The Shinkai didn’t have to lift a finger as the Raikage died without their assistance. Jerrick wondered how he was going to accomplish this. He knew of other mercenary groups that were probably begging for work. At least he had a back up plan if this one didn’t work out. Jerrick was trying to establish a base of operations on the northern shore of Tsuchi no Kuni. That hadn’t been working out as well as he had planned, but he figured that he could ask the Lord Tsuchikage for permission. Next time he saw his leader, he would definitely ask.
Jerrick started to see the gate of Kumogakure appear in the distance. The gate had no improvements since the last time he crossed it. He had almost forgotten how beautiful the village was. There wasn’t much time to gander around at the gate and get all up in his nostalgia. The mission was to be his primary focused. Anything that deviated from that would have to wait. Jerrick would have to muster up where in the village he would go first. He wanted to go the bar. Bars were pretty good places for mercenary recruitment, but it was a bit too early in the day for that. Jerrick decided that he would need to find a place where he would find recruitment fairly simplistically. The thoughts that he had started to travel to the underground fight clubs. Him and a few soldiers had some fun back in the day. A few spots like that were spread out in certain locations. Some mercenary groups recruited from the fight clubs and it was probably his best bet. So, it was going to be his first stop. It was time for him to make his way to a fight club. Funny thing is the closing one just so happened to be a bar. For some reason, he didn’t think about it before.
It took a short walk as there was a seemingly large store front bar. The sign at the front said “open” and he stopped short of the double doors. The doors caused him to sigh. He loved to fight, but he didn’t have a plan if he was beaten to a pulp. Without thinking about it twice, he opened the door on the left while adjusting his travel bag. Looking around the bar, there seem to be a good number of people here. It wasn’t something he was used to seeing during the middle of the day. That was unless he ended up in the wrong bars within Iwagakure. The bar was awfully well kept than what he last remembered. The place normally had broken chairs and tables from fighting, but he wondered what had changed within the last eight years. Well, he figured that he would sit down and see what he could hear. He didn’t care for drinking when he had a mission, but Lord Tsuchikage didn’t necessarily give him a time frame. There was a brief sigh as he made his way to a stool and placed his bag onto the closest one next to him.
The Shinkai placed both his elbows on the counter as he locked his fingers together. His nose slightly rested on his knuckles as he started to get lost in thought. It was as while before the female bartender addressed him. He quickly snapped out of it as he looked at her. The woman was a lot shorter than he was and she was just the way he like his woman. Jerrick smiled slightly at the dark haired woman that stood across from him. The lady had to only be a couple of years younger than of him. It had been awhile since he had spent time to talk with a mature woman. His mind had been caught with training that he didn’t even think about possibly finding an equal. Though he loved the company of woman, he needed to stay focused. Jerrick would also need to stay attempt to not draw too much attention to himself. He found it a good thing that he never got around to getting a shinobi headband. Jerrick also made sure to wear a long sleeve shirt to cover his tattoos. The one thing he couldn’t hide was his body size. Though, he didn’t really hold a candle to the size of the Tsuchikage. The Shinkai was probably one of the biggest people in here outside of the bodyguard that sat in the corner. He remembered the hulking man from his past. It brought him some closure that somethings here didn’t change.
“Sir, may I help you?” the woman asked.
“Ah yes. I would like to get some whiskey. Anything dark.” Jerrick responded. A thirst started to develop as he started to feel a need for a drink.
“Oh you seem like a top shelf kind of guy.”
“You have quite an eye. I don’t need anything that exquisite. I’ll take the basic amenities.”
“Thanks, how about one drink on the house. Jerrick?”
“How do you know my name?”
“You wouldn’t forget a familiar face of a fellow clansmen would you?”
Jerrick’s face looked like he saw a spectur. The woman did look quite familiar and he, at first, couldn’t put his finger on it. Then he remembered her face back within his former unit as well as a young girl that he occasionally spent time with in his younger days. He couldn’t believe that he would see this woman again.
“Freida, how have you been? It’s been ages.”
“I’ve been doing quite well. I’ll get you a drink and then we can talk more privately. There’s something that you maybe able to help us with.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Freida placed a mug onto the bar and poured warm whiskey out for him. Jerrick put the mug to his lips and slowly sipped the brandy. It was excellent. Freida definitely knew how to settle a Shinkai’s soul. The whiskey was one of his favorites. When he saw the bottle being poured, his heart had prematurely jumped in his chest. This was something good that he took in. Jerrick felt a little better with whiskey in his belly. It was definitely a prize. The idea of him completing his mission seemed to give him inner strength. Though, he was concerned about what was requested of him. He found it strange that he was asked after not seeing a woman who he had spent significant time just asked him for help. Whatever it was, he would need to see what was up. Freida was a strong and passionate woman. Now that he thought about it, she was probably one of the bravest in his unit. He also had some questions to ask her, but he figured that he could wait.
After finishing his drink, he nodded to her and another bartender took her place as they left the main area of the bar and went into the basement. The basement was quite packed. It was a lot deeper than it was the last time he remembered. He wondered if they made it deeper on purpose. Freida led him through the basement that had quite a few individuals that loomed around the poorly lit area. Jerrick new none of them. There faces were cold and yet calculated. Jerrick made sure to make eye contact with them. It was to give them the impression that he wasn’t to be toyed with. Plus, he wasn’t sure of the company they kept down here. As he walked, he could barely make a sizeable octagon fighting ring. It definitely wasn’t the same one he fought those many years ago. The place had changed and it seemed like it was for the better.
The dark haired woman led him to a large office space. A few individuals stood talking to each other quite aggressively. The door behind them closed as he looked back and noticed the man’s clothes. It was similar to his current tunic. Looking forward, he noticed another man he hadn’t seen in awhile. The man stood about 6’9 with dark skin. He wore heavy armor and wielded a great sword. The man’s hair color matched his own only thicker. The man’s hair was locked and hung down over his shoulders…Lord Ulgon. The man was just as scary as he was back when he saw him a few years back. He really questioned what was going on. Questions started to flood his mind about what was truly going on. What was he doing here. He hadn’t spoken to the man in what seemed like forever.
“Suzerain Ulgon and Commander Anzu, I present Lord Jerrick of Kaminari...excuse me...Tsuchi no Kuni.”
“Thanks you, Freida. It’s been a long time since I last saw you, my son,” the large man stated
“Father. Commander. It’s good to see the both of you. It’s kind of early for the joint clan meeting isn’t it?”
The commander smiled slightly before she started speaking, “We’re not here for that cousin. There is a different matter we need to bring up. It’s about the things happening in recent events. Each Hidden Village seems to be conquering land. We’ve pretty much stayed out of the fight so far. You know we’ve had a hand in the black market for awhile. Though, it seems like it may be time for a change. Years have kept our two halves of the clan apart, but we’re thinking about having an amnesty and joining the two together.”
“Join the sects? I was originally going to ask Father when about setting up a base in Tsuchi no Kuni, but this seems like it may interfere with that.”
The commander and the suzerain looked at each other. It was rare that the two of them were in the same room. The fact that they brought up joining the sects even temporarily must have meant that things were a lot worse than he knew. Jerrick hadn’t been keeping up with the world’s events. He only told one person about him traveling to Kumogakure. That individual must have relayed the message to his father, but that didn’t explain the presence of the commander. Jerrick wasn’t sure on what he should ask next. It was definitely interesting to see both of them here. It also made him wonder about the whereabouts of his sister. He hadn’t seen Ragna or heard from her since Sunagakure was wiped off the map.
“Jerrick, we understand that you were looking for mercenaries to join your cause. I have actually offered men from one of the mercenary units I control. They’re not from my unit. I will need them to help protect our assets. We’re not too sure of any of the village leaders and how they will act in the future. There is no way that we are openly saying that we can solely support each other. Though we’re talking about joining the sects, we can’t leave our respective locations...unoccupied.”
“I see. I appreciate it, father."
“Also, I approve of your request to put a base in Tsuchi no Kuni. Just let me know the details later on."
“Sure thing, sir.”
“Jerrick, I will also send mercenaries that I have stationed in Mizu no Kuni. Like the suzerain said, we can’t openly fly our flags. The mercenaries we’re sending will have a few are from our blood. The others are merely canon fodder and only seek ryo. We’ll give you a letter of approval from both sects to your Tsuchikage with our alternative seals. Building a base in Tsuchi no Kuni will provide us with more movement in the world. You do have a sharp mind. Oh yes, you will also be taking my half-sister Freida with you as well. She’s going to help keep the mercenaries in line.”
“I appreciate the assistance, commander. What else did you need from me?”
“We need to you help with the extermination of a gang. It was said that there are some jashinist that are still around that are causing trouble for our convoys. It would be easy enough to request a mission to oust them, but it could take months for it to get approved since Hastur is dead. We already have the details about their camp. It’s deep within the mountains. We’re sending in our clansmen to help, so don’t get discouraged. Destroy their camp and take no treasure. Purge everything. Do well and I may even make you a jarl within the clan. Though, I would like to see you make jonin before I do this. Show me your true power.”
“A...jarl?! Father...I’m not sure what to say.”
“Say nothing. We’ll convene with you later. Get some rest and take a load off. We plan to strike tomorrow.”
Jerrick looked to Freida as they both placed their fist against their chest in a salute exited the room. Jerrick continued to converse with Freida. They both exited the bar and started to take a stroll around the village. As they walked, Freida informed him of what happened to her after both of them became prisoners of war. What happened to her was gruesome. The thought of it ticked Jerrick off a bit caused him to crush his canteen in his hand. It just reminded him of the torment and the pain he himself went through. Jerrick and to tell himself that it was over and he didn’t have to deal with that ever again. He also needed to take a break. As he walked, he noticed a shinobi with a leather kasa while carrying two katana on his side. A long ponytail could be seen from underneath the kasa. Walking with the shinobi was...a tiger cub?!
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