Bandit Leader

Zetsume woke up with quite a wide smile on his face. He received a mission letter last night saying that he is going to go on a mission with Sanosuke. The mission stated about a small bandit group held up a couple of miles outside of Kumogakure. Naturally any mission that could help Kumogakure, Zetsume would gladly take. Yet, he has never been on a mission with another Kumogakure ninja, he would make notes of anything he may learn from him. All he really knew of the ninja was that he was a jounin and that he has completed some of the most intense missions. He had high respect for this person and wished that he could prove his worth on the battlefield. After eating a much needed breakfast, Zetsume gathered his Hishou and quiver that consisted of twenty iron arrows and twenty rubber tipped arrows. The Hishou was a family inheritance and he valued this bow because it was one of the last things he had from his family. It meant everything to him. After closing and locking the door he set out to wait for Sanosuke at the gates of Kumogakure. He sent a message to him saying that he would like to meet up at the gates since it seemed the most optimal spot. The cold air brisked his cheek as he walked to the gate. He did not know how this mission would end up but he knew that he would have to try his best. He sat down on a bench that was near the gate and awaited the arrival of his partner on this mission. While he waited he wondered what kind of ninja this Sanosuke was. Was he talkative, was he quiet, was he as skilled as the rumors claim. All of these things ran through his head while waiting. Though the chance to prove his Kyujutsu skills could bring some honor to his clan. That in itself was gratifying.


327/1500 WC

Loud snoring could be heard from the cave where Sanosuke usually did his sleeping at. It was his home and although normal people lived in apartments, houses or even penthouses Sanosuke didn't particularly mind living in a cave. In fact, Sanosuke had discovered this cave by himself as ways to live. Also he even fought a bear for the right to live in this cave at the age of 14 and ever since then it was his home. The most impressive feat was that he was able to fight the bear and only got away with a giant bump on his head. Sanosuke bought furniture for his cave and all so that it would look more like a home. Sanosuke had to admit that he had a real knack for organizing furniture correctly. The sleep he was in was so comfortable too, it was rare for Sanosuke to get comfortable on the bed he bought. Lately on the beds he would sleep in on missions on distant lands, they would be unbelievably soft and comfortable.

Then tweeting occured that disrupted his sleeping patterns. When he opened his eyes lazily, he saw a messenger bird that was poking the side of his head to catch his attention. "Okay, okay!" Sanosuke growled and got the message that was on top of the messenger bird's head. With the message in his hands, the bird flew away. It turns out that it was a mission with a chuunin to stop some thieves that were killing some merchants. The chuunin wanted to meet him at the village gate, and so after he got dressed Sanosuke traveled there and found the chuunin there waiting. The chuunin had brown hair and wore a black coat lined with fur. The bow on his body made Sanosuke smirk in interest. Hmmmm, interesting. A kyujutsu specialist, haven't seen one of them in a while... Sanosuke thought.

"Oi! Are you Zetsume?" Sanosuke called out as he approached the bowman at the village gate. A breeze of wind hit Sanosuke's face; this resulted in Sanosuke slipping his hands inside the pockets of his midnight blue short sleeved overcoat that he wore overtop his chuunin vest.

367/1500 words

Zetsume was twiddling his thumbs together while waiting on the jounin. Then a voice called out to him "Oi! Are you Zetsume?". It did not take long before he was there which was a relief. Zetsume never did have much patience, he needed to work on that. He walked over to the jounin giving a slight nod on his question before replying "Yes I am. My name is Zix, Zetsume. I am a chuunin in this fine village. thought it is a bit chilly today. Are you Sanosuke, the jounin that is joining me on this mission?". He always never did like long introductions, his mind usually stays on improving Kumogakure. The longer they waited there the more people could have gotten hurt. This was always in the back of his mind though he did not want to be rude. The man was about his height. He looks like a close range fighter, would be more of an advantage to let him take point while i support from the back., He thought to himself while looking at the man with a half smile.

"Since you look like the closer range fighter, I will cover you if you take point.", he said with an outstretched arm toward the gate. He wanted him to lead, if they run into any confrontation it would be easier for Zetsume to cover fire while he moved on. closer the gap if needed. It was just a better strategy to let him take point. Sometimes even the smallest details could be of use. "Oh by the way, my elements are Raiton and Katon if it helps in battle. Just thinking ahead you know?:, He asked in a weird tone. Maybe it would help in battle or maybe not. Zetsume was quite not used to having someone on his side during missions. He would try to do his best though.

"Are you ready to set off?"

646/1500

"Yup that's me! Sanosuke Flynt, reporting" Sanosuke nodded with a smirk and did a playful salute. He was able to size up the chuunin that he was to be traveling with. SO he had to take down some bad ole thugs with a guy like him, and as a bowman this Zetsume looked rather skilled. Speaking of which, when Sanosuke thought of the plan of how to organised Zetsume already thought of a plan that Sanosuke was about to say. If Sanosuke was at point then they would be able to effectively block out any fighters. Zetsume would be able shoot arrows to close the distance between Sanosuke and him, that was good considering that Sanosuke wasn't much for long range fighting. "Right I'll take point. Let's get this show on a road shall we?"

Sanosuke started to make his way to the general location of the thieve's hideout. These guys were killing merchants and had to be stopped, though running wouldn't make much of a difference since they were approaching the camp. Expecting that Zetsume was following him, Sanosuke decided to strike up a conversation with his new partner. "Listen Zetsume, we're gonna see if we can solve this thing diplomatically. If we can get them to surrender then that would be great, so how about you let me do the talking okay? If anything happens then we're gonna have to fight; I'm going to be relying on that bow of yours for covering fire since I'm not much on the long range fighting.

(OOC: Sorry for the late reply, I was busy)

Zetsume was glad to hear that the jounin was going to take point. In the end it would have just made the mission a lot easier. Then again any tactical person could have thought of that. He expected no less from this jounin. Zetsume decided to follow the jounin outside. While they were on their way toward the claimed hideout of these thieves the jounin sparked a conversation. Though Zetsume never did really like talking it seemed what the jounin had to say made sense. Sanosuke said "Listen Zetsume, we're gonna see if we can solve this thing diplomatically. If we can get them to surrender then that would be great, so how about you let me do the talking okay? If anything happens then we're gonna have to fight; I'm going to be relying on that bow of yours for covering fire since I'm not much on the long range fighting." Zetsume listened to what he was saying without interrupting him. Zetsume had respect for this man. Once he was finished speaking Zetsume replied to his words. "I do not wish to kill, though if it is their lives or ours I will not hesitate to kill.", he meant it to. He did know that the first strike was initial in a confrontation. Solving this matter without killing could be favorable for the village. Though this gang has been known to leave blood trails. The blood was that of their village. Though deep down he did not know if he could help himself if he lost his "cool". He knew his skills with Kyujutsu was that to be admired and that he could support easily with this jounin. Then a plan came to mind. "How about when we find the encampment of these thieves I will let you do the diplomatic talking. I am not so good with words especially towards those who have hurt people from our village. I trust that you can go in solo with me in the back. I will be hidden within the trees. If two people showed up they could feel threatened and become more hostile. If one shows up they could listen before attacking. Though this is all theoretical. Do not worry at the first sight of trouble I will already be ready and at an optimal height to support fire.", Zetsume really did not like the idea of him going in solo, but a surprise attack could be in our advantage. It would be harder for them to dodge his arrows if they did not know there was another ninja. They could get cocky that Kumogakure sent only one ninja to dispose of them. All of these factors could result in the mission going better. Since Zetsume was not a close-range fighter it was just smarter for him to be hidden within the trees rather than standing behind him. Plus the advantage of being in the trees would make his shots easier because of height and concealment. He hoped that this would become a very important factor on this mission.

"How about when we find the encampment of these thieves I will let you do the diplomatic talking. I am not so good with words especially towards those who have hurt people from our village. I trust that you can go in solo with me in the back. I will be hidden within the trees. If two people showed up they could feel threatened and become more hostile. If one shows up they could listen before attacking. Though this is all theoretical. Do not worry at the first sight of trouble I will already be ready and at an optimal height to support fire." Sanosuke chuckled softly and then stopped walking so he can face Zetsume so that the genin would stop walking behind him to prevent him crashing over Sanosuke's body.

"Nah, I want you by my side. Sanosuke said and clamped his hand on the chuunin's shoulder to assure the chuunin. He could see that Zetsume was thinking very hard about the mission to see what could go wrong. "There are somethings you can't predict man. That's one lesson you'll find out one day. Now then let's give this diplomacy a shot without any sneaky ploys, okay?" He wasn't much for shocking the enemy with things like this, it would be best to talk to him on equal grounds. If things went down, he'd protect both him, Zetsume and the security of Kumo merchants with his life.

Sanosuke had stopped while they were very close to their destination, and turned to face Zetsume. At first he was confused by what the jounin was doing. His first thought was maybe he defected to the other side. Then he spoke "Nah, I want you by my side." while clamping his hand down onto Zetsume shoulder. This shocked him because he did not expect the jounin to treat him with such respect. Zetsume meant to follow the jounin to show superiority and now he is saying he wants Zetsume to be by his side. A small part of him smiled at the kind act. Before Zetsume could speak Sanosuke spoke again "There are somethings you can't predict man. That's one lesson you'll find out one day. Now then let's give this diplomacy a shot without any sneaky ploys, okay?". It is true in this world things happen for no reason. If you try to think of even a million different ways something could happen, there is always that one chance that everything you thought was wrong. He knew this from the death of his childhood friend and his old lover. He had never thought that would have happened even though it did. Zetsume gave a full smile before talking again "I must say you are not all what i had expected. It seems you have more honor than I do. I would have just killed them and marked it off as non-negotiable reasons. Seems that in this mission, I actually did learn something from you."

Zetsume was now walking side-by-side with the jounin. Not out of rank respect, but out of respect for one another. He was not quite used to this but he will adjust. Upon walking into the encampment he could see eleven people. Ten were standing around one man basically praising him. He had to be the leader. Zetsume stayed quiet while he let the jounin try his "diplomacy". Though at any moment Zetsume was ready to kill on will to save this jounin he had gained respect for.

"State your buisness or get out, Kumo dogs!" the leader barked while sitting on a chair that looked as though it was stolen. Now Sanosuke wasn't one to make rash accusations, but it was obvious that he stole this chair, or at least this chair had seen some violence that was most likely the fault of this thug leader. It left Sanosuke only to guess that he stole the chair from a merchant and most likely killed him. The thought made Sanosuke's blood boil, but he did a good job at masking his anger. When he took a single second to calm himself down, Sanosuke looked at him and rose his hands to show the leader that he meant no harm. Sanosuke trusted that Zetsume would pick up on what he was doing. This was the first step of negotiating, to insure that both parties were not frighten.

"We're not here to fight, just to talk. Sanosuke tried to explain.

The thug leader snorted and ordered that his men to calm down. "What do you want here, if you think that we will turn ourselves in with "diplomacy" then you're wrong kiddo!" the thug leader yelled out. Shouts of agreement came from his men. This really wasn't making his decision easier, how rowdy they were acting made it seemed as though at any second they would pounce on Sanosuke and Zetsume. It would turn this discussion of peace to an all out brawl. He had to stop this from happening; and then an idea popped into his mind in a snap.

"Well then how about a challenge, a bet if you will." Sanosuke inquired with a smirk. The eyebrows of the thief leader rose in curiosity. Then he pointed to Zetsume with his thumb. "I bet that my friend here can shoot and arrow 500 meters away and another arrow that would slice the previous arrow in half. If he can't do it then you can take my life, I won't even fight back." For added emphasis, Sanosuke took the sword that he had on his back and tossed it on the ground. With a smirk Sanosuke looked at the baffled.

"Come on you big ole thug, I'll even let your men pick the target." Sanosuke said. It was a gamble and Sanosuke was sure that he would follow the deal.

When they had arrived Zetsume really did not like how the whole situation looked. They looked as though they were just living off of what they stole. What a sad life they must live, he thought to himself. Then the bandit leader spoke with much vile in his throat "State your buisness or get out, Kumo dogs!" This angered Zetsume because it was not his place to call us dogs. He was the one stealing from helpless people to satisfy his own need for greed. Though he kept his mouth shut while Sanosuke spoke "We're not here to fight, just to talk", when he put up his hand Zetsume did the same in the same friendly manner with an odd smile on his face. Though while all of this was going on Zetsume was making note of the exact positions of all the bandits. Knowing how they moved, what kind of weapons they had, and if they had some people hiding in the background. From what he could see, it was only these eleven people.

"What do you want here, if you think that we will turn ourselves in with "diplomacy" then you're wrong kiddo!"the thug leader yelled out. Zetsume noticed how rowdy they had became and went to reach for his bow but stopped when Sanosuke spoke again about a challange. It seemed that this bandit leader liked to hear such things. He implored Sanosuke to go on. "I bet that my friend here can shoot and arrow 500 meters away and another arrow that would slice the previous arrow in half. If he can't do it then you can take my life, I won't even fight back.", was the jounins request. Zetsume was almost in awe that he would put his life on the line like that. What made it worst was that he threw away his sword. He seemed to have complete faith in Zetsume. He will make sure not to let him down.

After the last reply from Sanosuke which was "Come on you big ole thug, I'll even let your men pick the target." the leader seemed to be even more interested in this duel. His men began to stare at Zetsume. It is true that he was not as big as them but he had great eye sight and had been practicing with the bow since before he could speak. It is easy to hit one target from 500 meter but making the same shot in the same spot twice would prove difficult. Though there are many factors he must take into account before he made the shot. After a small group meeting the bandit leader once again spoke. "Ok I will accept this offer. My men have chosen the spot, he will mark it to where you are to shoot. If you try any funny business I will rip out your throats. Though if you make this seemingly impossible shot, what do you want in return?". Zetsume noticed that this man had some shred of dignity and finally spoke "We wish that you move as far away from here as possible leaving the people of Kumogakure alone."

"Deal", he replied before ordering his men to mark the tree that was off in the distance. It seemed the whole world would be on his shoulders at this moment and he would not fail. He could always use chakra arrows to make them fly better but they might see it has a sign of hostility. Zetsume drew an arrow back and let it fly. To his own amazement it actually hit the center of where they marked the tree. His men looked baffled at this shot. "Now, once more", the leader replied. This shot was the deciding shot, the moment of it all. There was a slight breeze now going through the forest. Zetsume knew all about how the wind could mess up a single shot. The wind was blowing softly to the right. He moved his aiming slightly to the left. After he let the shot go, just as predicted it landed splitting the first arrow in half. Zetsume jumped with joy with his fist held high and screamed "YES, I DID IT!", then looked back at the group of bandits.

It seemed that the leader intentionally made the shot longer than 500 meters but it was still not out of his range. They had rigged this thing so that they would lose, they wanted the life of the Jounin and were now furious that he actually made the shot. Zetsume stopped moving when he noticed them grabbing their swords all except the leader. If they were to strike then all of this was for nothing. Shit, he thought to himself while looking at the jounin, hoping he had the words to move these people because right now they look like they wished for them to be dead.

Thunk

Thunk

These were the sounds of an arrow hitting its target 500 meters away from his comrade Zetsume. The sound of another arrow being launched and hitting its same marked could be heard. The arrow seemed to have pierced the other arrow thus splitting it in half easily. Sanosuke smirked at the accuracy of the chuunin. To be perfectly frank he had no idea he was confident in Zetsume's ability. There was only a small shred of doubt in him, and in case he couldn't do it then Sanosuke would handle the situation easily. But for a second it looked as though his ace in the hole wouldn't be needed.

Sanosuke couldn't be any wrong and suddenly he was surrounded by angry thugs and theives who seemed to be acting alone and not at the demands of their leader. This was bad indeed, they were in the heart of the thieve's hideout and Zetsume was showing signs of anxiety. Sanosuke couldn't blame him, they were in the lions' den. Cold metal slid against his neck and rested there against the jounin's jugular. When Sanosuke looked down he saw as though he was being held at knife point by the leader. This was just great, it seemed as though the leader was going back on his word just because Zetsume made the greatest trick shot he's seen in person.

"And here I thought that you were someone of your word" Sanosuke said bitterly and let out a sigh. They were gonna have to do this the hard way after all. Looking over to the anxious chuunin who was looking at him for advice, Sanosuke gave his comrade and weak smirk. "Zetsume remember my advice where I said you can't predict anything, well here's a perfect example"

"Well I am a man of my word. I will leave the people of Kumo alone, but first I want your head. Then I shall lea-" the thug leader didn't get to finish his sentence as blood trailed down the corner of his lips. The thug leader backed away weakly to see what happened. When he looked down, he saw a gaping hole in his ribs. When the thug leader looked at Sanosuke, he saw that the jounin's hand was glowing with blue chakra that extended to a long sword on his hands. The thug leader tried to get a word in but blood shot out of his mouth and then he collapsed. The thugs looked at Sanosuke in shocked and then roared in anger to attack Sanosuke and Zetsume.

Taking a steep dive, Sanosuke rolled over on the ground to recover his sword that he discarded. After taking his sword, Sanosuke grabbed the hilt of it with both hands and drew out the blade from its sheathe. Once it was out, Sanosuke slashed down 2 thugs that were getting close to Zetsume. "Take them down" And with that order, Sanosuke dashed at the hostile thugs that were left over to defeat.

Chakra 295/315, Jutsu Used:

They advanced forward with murderous intent in their eyes. He was nervous from the amount of people but most of them looked like they had no armor whatsoever. This would prove to be vital in his situation. The Jounin tried to test the leader's pride with the comment "And here I thought that you were someone of your word", he then turned to Zetsume to remind him of what he said earlier "Zetsume remember my advice where I said you can't predict anything, well here's a perfect example"

Zetsume was slightly more panicky now, this did not seem like an optimal situation to be in. Surrounded with the leader waiting to kill us both. He stood there and before he could finish his sentence of "Well I am a man of my word. I will leave the people of Kumo alone, but first I want your head. Then I shall lea-", there was a blade sticking straight through to his ribs. There was much blood.


Zetsume noticed that the Jounin managed to kill the leader without him noticing. He was not to sure how he did it but knew that now was not the time for questions. Without thinking Zetsume began to use his Narakumi no Jutsu (Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique), on the closest one to him. Watching him scream in horror at the murderous scenes. Zetsume could see the jounin fighting to his left and decided he would take the four that were charging in on his right. He could see that they had no range projectiles and this would make this attack much simpler. Zetsume stood his ground and used Shi No Yoake (Dawn Of Death). His goal was to shoot it as a shot-gun whenever they got close. Once the four were in optimal range he let the shot go watching it spread into a hundred different arrows. At the range that they were in roughly 15-20 arrows pierced the four that were running at him to the right instantly knocking them over killing them almost instantly due to how many holes were in them. There was much blood on the ground after that attack. If they would have had some range projectiles using that move would have been much more difficult.

Zetsume did not even bother to check to see if the jounin was alright. He knew with his sword capabilities that he could finish off the remaining 3. His eyes were focused on the one that he used Narakumi no Jutsu (Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique). That man was cowering in the back afraid to even stand up. Zetsume sighed before kicking him hard again a pressure point in the neck in hopes that it would make the man pass out. Once the man was incapacitated he looked up to see the work of the jounin. He shouted playfully "Need help over there?"

"Need any help over there"

"No I got it hold on..." Sanosuke replied as he got ready. When Sanosuke handled the two that was at Zetsume's side he went to handle a squad of 4 thugs each with a rusty sword. These guys were not experienced with the sword at all. After how Sanosuke easily butchered their leader and 2 members of their gang with ease. And the other 4 that Sanosuke had to deal with. Holding his sword high above his head, he swung his sword 4 times rather swiftly so fast that none of the men had a chance in hell to stop his sword from coming down on them. When he sheathed his sword, the bodies of the men collapsed dead.

"Yeah I got it" Sanosuke said and walked over to the body that Zetsume knocked unconscious and handcuffed the thug. "We'll bring that guy to Anthos' Keep.

Chakra 285/315, Jutsu Used:

Zetsume expected no less when he heard the jounin call out, "No I got it hold on...". The jounin displayed a great Kenjutsu style before Zetsume's eyes. He was astonished at the speed of the jounin. He began to wander what would happen if they fought. Could he dodge my arrows with that speed... he thought to himself when he saw the events. It was rather brutal but the members met their end quick and painless, just rather brutal.

"Yeah I got it"

The jounin sheathed his sword and walked over to the one he has captured. Zetsume really wondered what to do with the man, then the jounin spoke, We'll bring that guy to Anthos' Keep.". His words were true that would be the most optimal spot just in case he had any information, though he did just look like a normal ignorant bandit who just killed for the fun of it. He killed the people of his village....

"You know, he does not look like the type to have information, plus if he did manage to hear something then he more than likely has already forgotten. I really do not think carrying him all the way there would be the trouble for how minimal his information could be. He will just clutter our jails with his violence. We should just kill him now and end his suffering before people of our village have to pay the price.", Zetsume meant the words he spoke. This man could just become another enemy later, people like him have given up their right to live when they chose this life style. It was the noble pride in Zetsume that drove him to this conclusion. This bandit hurt the people of his village, this is unforgivable. Zetsume pulled back an arrow. The man was only feet below Zetsume, this shot would kill him from this range. He could pierce his heard. "Do you want to do the killing blow?"

Sanosuke had just finished clamping on the handcuffs on the unconscious thug when he saw that Zetsume notching an arrow into his bow so he can aim it at the unconscious man. Sanosuke had thought about just killing the thug, but he couldn't have done it. Sanosuke would easily kill him if the thug was conscious without any sort of guilt, that was because he knew that the thug had an equal chance of fighting him. But this thug was unconscious, without any way of being able to defend himself. That was the life of an executioner and Sanosuke was not going to take the life of someone who could not fight back.

Sanosuke gripped on the bow of Zetsume that he had aimed at the thug. "Even though he's just a prisoner, he deserves to be sent to prison so he can stand trial for being a member of these murderers. Sanosuke said as he hoisted the man up. "I believe in second chances. Maybe, when he gets out he might be able to atone for his sins""

Zetsume understood the words coming from the jounin but did not want to accept them. He had a different idea of Justice. Either people were with you or against you. They could simply lie and kill you the next day. It would be impossible and improbable to know what this mans intentions are. Though he did not want to disobey a superior official. Zetsume gave a slight nod of acceptance before speaking.

"You can go on ahead, I am going to bury these bodies so they can have a peace at mind. The sooner he gets back the better I guess. Was a fun mission. I hope we can do another again."

Zetsume did as he said and properly buried each member. He gave his respect before heading home. He learned a little from this jounin though he wished he could have learned more. It was already dark before he got home. After taking his gear off he fell right to sleep without a worry in the world.

-done-