Mission Briefing :

Osamu awoke to the sound of the heart monitor to his right. He opened his eyes to the bright florescent lights; he was clearly at the hospital. "I see you're awake." A tall handsome man with long dark hair approached, Osamu did not recognize him. "My name is Daichi, I'm the newest medical ninja on staff. You've suffered some puncture wounds to your left arm, as well as some internal bruising. I'd tell you to take it easy for the next couple weeks but I've been asked to deliver this to you" The man handed Osamu a small note with a wax seal with the symbol of Suna upon it. "You did excellent work taking down that kunoichi young ninja..." Osamu began to blush. "It appears the intelligence division was able to decipher map you looted from Yuko's corpse" Daichi explained as Osamu read the note. "It appears they require my abilities once more..." Osamu muttered. "I have to recommend that you sit this one out ninja. Your injuries are considerable and it could prove very dangerous to set out on another mission so quickly" Osamu smiled slightly. "I appreciate your concern Doctor but I have little choice.   We've finally located Suzu, and I have a bone to pick with that woman. We have a small window of opportunity to apprehend this witch, and we must act now. I can only imagine what experiments she's currently conducting on her prisoners; if any of them are still alive we haven't a moment to waste." Daichi shook his head and sighed. "It appears I've been assigned a partner...The Special Jonin Kenshin. I am to meet him at the city gates tomorrow at dawn. Her complex has been discovered under the door to hell." Osamu exclaimed.  "I realize my words of warning will do little to deter you. But be careful ninja" Daichi said with a smile before picking up his clipboard and leaving the room.

Osamu splashed water from a nearby basin upon his face, his arm and side aching slightly as he moved his body. He pulled up his hair and looked at the time. It was 1:00 A.M.. Osamu lied back down upon the bed, taking a deep sigh, hoping to catch a few more hours of sleep before he set out for the village gates to meet this Kenshin.

As the sun crept over the desert horizon Osamu gathered together his supplies. He fastened his black feathered cloak tightly to is body and set out for the city gates.

Word Count:388

The sun shown brightly in the sky as it's heat radiated on the village below. Tan colored sand decorated the ground plainly as a ninja laid on one of the near rooftops. Forest green eyes looked up to the few clouds that were scattered across the beautiful sky. His equally green hair moved gently in the breeze as he sighed with relaxation. His bow and arrows sat propped up against a wall about five meters from his person. It was a normal day for Kenshin. Not much was happening, and he liked it that way. Since his promotion to Special Jounin, he didn't have much time to relax as he wished. Hell, he didn't even know why they promoted him. It's not like he actually tried. However, it wasn't something he could argue, and so he simply accepted it. He blinked to clear the pointless thoughts out of his mind, choosing to become lost in the vast blanket of blue that covered the sky. It was a wonderful day, at least in most places. Sunagakure, however, lacked the beauty to prove it.

Suddenly, movement could be felt and his eyes darted to the south east. His body tensed, but soon relaxed once again as he saw that it was simply a messenger ninja. The man with sandy blonde hair and typical ninja said nothing, but handed a scroll to Kenshin. The Mori clan member simply nodded as the man once again disappeared into the sand around him. Sloppy hands unraveled the scroll awkwardly. Kenshin's eyes read with a bored expression, sighing as he read through the orders he had just received. A full briefing was inside the scroll, which was unusual for Suna. It meant that either the situation was dire, or that they trusted him. Either way, it was just another mission that would be a hassle. He was to meet someone named Osamu at the village gates. He walked over to his equipment and put it on, adjusting them until they felt comfortable. He then jumped off the building in the direction of the gates. Couldn't he just relax?

Word Count: 358

Osamu made his way toward the gate, a handsome young man in green could be seen in the distance. "Greetings Kenshin. My name is Osamu, and it looks like we're going to be working together for a while. I'm a shaman who's been tracking this witch for some time. Our abilities are similar in nature; she was once a part of our order decades ago. She murdered my sensai...I've taken down her henchman Yuko but I imagine this Suzu's powers are far greater. She's had years to hone her skills. Not to mention her complex is likely beset by a myriad of traps. If we simply barge in we'll certainly be killed...we'll have to prepare an infiltration strategy." Osamu pulled out a small scroll from his ruck sack, placing it upon a nearby street table. He unwraveled it, revealing a map of the desert surrounding Sunagakure, and the far off door to hell. "The complex is located to the south of the Iron mines. It's underground but there should be an entrance hatch located in an abandoned warehouse" Osamu articulated pointing to the location of the warehouse on the map.

Word Count:179

Kenshin moved in a lazy fashion, at maybe half speed. He was never really in a rush for the sort of things. There was no point in getting worked up over a simple mission. After about ten minutes, he jumped off the last rooftop to meet Osamu on the ground. Dark hair draped over the ninja's hair with piercing green eyes flashing through the strands around his face. He started to speak, further debriefing the mission before them. It seemed that this witch was someone who was not to be toyed with. He would keep that in mind later on. As his partner pulled out a scroll, it revealed a map of the area that they would infiltrating. A sea of sand covered the area with various abandoned warehouses sprinkling the map. Iron mines could be found on the left portion of the map and the door to hell on the far right. Below the iron mines were their target. A complex that was long abandoned to any activity, or so most thought. It seemed like this mission in particular would force him to at least act invested. His partner sure seemed to be.

"Thank you for the information. How do you suggest we infiltrate, or would you like to get a closer look before making plans?" Kenshin faked interest, making sure to be convincing with his tone and facial expression. It wasn't that he didn't want to help this man....well maybe it was. He just wanted to return to relaxing. The sooner they got this done, the faster he could do that.

Word Count: 625

Osamu looked at Kenshin, raising his eyebrows and grinning, clearly aware of Kenshin's disguised apathy. "Let's stop roughly a half mile from the abandoned warehouse, we'll see what we're dealing with then. Let's head out." Osamu rolled up the scroll and tossed it into his bag, securing it tightly. He took a deep breath, and darted out of the gates into the desert sands.

A small sand storm washed over Osamu as he dashed through the desert dunes, his partner beside him. They'd been traveling for hours through the scorching winds before Osamu spotted something odd in front of him, buried in the sand. "Wait up!" Osamu screamed to Kenshin against the wind and sand. Osamu approached the bizarre spectacle, removing a piece of purple cloth only to reveal the head of truly hideous creature. Part of its body was buried under the sand. Its face was partially removed, its neck sewed carefully to its torso which had two sets of arms and legs attached to it. The smell was rancid, and Osamu struggled not to vomit. "(gulp)...Kenshin you should come take a look at this" Osamu said, pushing the creature on its side with a broken branch partially buried beneath the sand. Osamu was nearly speechless as examined the nightmarish abomination. "What macabre madness is this?!"

As Osamu continued inspecting the creature, it began to move slightly. Osamu stepped back, dropping the stick which he was using to maneuver the corpse. Suddenly, the eyes of the partially decaying creature began to light up with a pale green energy which began to surge throughout the creatures body. It suddenly rose on four human legs and leaped forth towards Osamu, revealing 2 pairs of massive blood stained claws which the creature thrust in his direction. Osamu immediately slammed his hands together as a surge of wind chakra rushed over him, blowing his hair and cloak about violently as he formed the Cyclone Shell. The shell immediately shattered as the creatures razor sharp claws collided with it. A gust of wind expanded outward with the explosion of the shell, causing Osamu to flip backwards and land upon his feet. "Kenshin watch out!"

Cyclone Shell:

Chakra:190/200

As Osamu gathered his belongings and got ready to head out, he spoke of the plan for the upcoming travel. "Sounds good." Kenshin replied with a slight nod if his head. A few moments afterward, the duo darted out of the gates and into the vast desert that surrounds Sunagakure no Sato. Considering the fact that Kenshin wasn't very social, not much small talk was made between the two. Osamu seemed to be focused on the job at hand. The vast desert seemed to go on forever as well, making this mission hot and a hassle to say the least.

Suddenly, Osamu's voice broke the monotony of the trip, telling Kenshin to hold up. He stopped only see something sticking out of the ground. Osamu uncovered it to reveal a hideous creature. It matched the description of the monsters that have been reported, immediately alarming Kenshin. As he was about to speak to Osamu, telling to be cautious, a purple energy covered the beast and spring it to its feet. It charged Osamu with red claws that were stained with the blood of its victims. Ken shins hand snapped to his bow and an arrow from his quiver ,aiming directly at the ugly target. Fortunately, Osamu countered the attack with a unique shell of wind that destroyed the claws on impact. Kenshin took this opportunity to launch a counter attack of his own. He charged the arrow with Raiton chakra before releasing it. It crackled through the air as it sunk into the target, causing it to roar with pain. Unfortunately, an arrow to the side wasn't enough to put it down. "I got your back Osamu, let's put this thing down." Kenshin replied to his warning as he reached for another arrow. This was already becoming bothersome.

Word Count: 927

Chakra 240/250:

Osamu beheld the creature as it shrieked in agony, Kenshin's arrow embedded in its side. Osamu responded quickly, weaving a few quick signs and forming chakra into the shape of two murderous crows, which he sent speeding in the monster's direction. The Ghost Crows soared through the air before puncturing the creatures skull through its eyeballs, one after the other. The creature croaked as it vomited blood, falling to the desert sands.

Ghost Crow:

Chakra:180/200

The flesh began to fall off the creatures bones, rotting at an accelerated rate, leaving only an abnormally large heart behind which continued to beat. The heart was dressed in a series of amulets, with a seal embedded in the center. Osamu approached the heart, pulled out a sharpened shuriken and drove it deep into the swollen organ. As he did so, a blue transparent material began to ooze from the wound, revealing itself to be the bound spirits of the victims involved in the creation of the bizarre creature. "Thank you for your help Kenshin, you're talented with that thing" Osamu said panting as he pulled Kenshin's arrow from the creatures abdomen. He pulled some flesh off of the arrow and put it in a small glass vial which he immediately sealed off and tossed into his rucksack. "So these are Suzu's abominations. Such forbidden jutsu...it appears she's been using shamanism to somehow use spiritual energy to animate these fleshy constructs...I have no doubt we'll encounter more as we get closer to the complex. We should ensure we puncture the hearts, only then will we truly set Suzu's victims free" Osamu articulated as he wiped the creatures blood off his hands. "It worries me that we're seeing these creatures this far away from the Door to Hell. We're a little less than a day away from the complex. We should set up camp in the nearby rock formations; we can set out at dawn."

After traveling for a couple miles Osamu descended into the shade and cover of the rock formations. He tossed his supplies onto the ground and pulled some twigs he'd collected on his journey and began to start a fire. He moaned in pain as he twisted his side. "Damn...I still haven't totally recovered from my previous mission. My battle with Yuko was pretty brutal" Osamu said as he slowly lowered himself down upon the backside of a stone formation.

Showing impressive battle skill, Osamu quickly threw a few hand signs before creating a couple of dark colored birds. From the look of them, they would be a crow of some sort. The attack landed perfectly as both of them pierced the monsters eyeballs. It screeched loudly, sending a shiver down his spine as it expelled blood through its mouth and crashed to the sand below. Kenshin raised an eyebrow as it rotted at an incredible pace, leaving nothing behind but a heart that was large in size. Osamu retrieved his arrow and handed it to Kenshin, causing him to look it over before placing it back in the quiver. After a minute or two of inspection, his partner stabbed the heart with a shuriken, releasing a ghastly blue liquid. Osamu immediately started to speak, explaining the mechanics of the spells used to create such a creature, as well as complimenting his work with a bow. "I appreciate it. You are skilled as well." Kenshin replied simply as they made the plan for the night.

They decided on a nearby rock formation, planning to set up camp for the night and head for the complex come dawn. Osamu also expressed some worries about the distance they were from the complex. "She most likely set this up as a trap for any surprise visitors. We will mostly likely see more of these as we get closer to the target. No need to worry though, we are fully capable of handling it." He said actually trying to comfort the ninja. Usually, he would care, but he had to make sure Osamu was focused and confident going into this, if they wanted to come out alive. They left for the rock formation, making it within an hour or so. Osamu started to build a fire and Kenshin simply sat down on a rock. Not long after their arrival, his partner spoke of a recent battle and the condition he was in because of it. "Is there anything that you can tell me that might better our chances?" He asked genuinely curious. He didn't want to die after all.

Word Count: 1,283

Osamu glanced at Kenshin in agreement. "It was likely a trap." Osamu paused for a moment, gazing at a small locust resting on a nearby cactus. He closed his eyes, tapping into his kekkei genkai. Upon opening them, his eyes took a cat like appearance, as he began to whisper to the small insect.

Kekkei Genkai:

Chakra: 190/200

"I've implored this locust to inspect the area." The locust scurried into the desert sky towards the horizon. "Hopefully we can gain some idea of the terrain and avoid any obvious traps. I feel you deserve to know who exactly we're up against Kenshin. Witch ninja like Suzu and I manifest our powers by tapping into the spirit world, and manifesting this energy in the corporal world. This form of ninjutsu, while considered dark, isn't in itself evil. Because of its outer-worldly nature however it can be easily corrupted; shamans can use this connection to the spirit world to bargain with or enslave demons and other dark entities in the pursuit of power. All too often, these witches find themselves fools at their own game, often corrupted or possessed by the very demons they sought command over. Our order forbid such Jutsu long ago. Those who violated this ancient precept were excommunicated from the order, and stricken with a nightmarish hex which ages and withers the body and mind. Suzu was such a shaman. After unsuccessfully launching a coup against our order over 100 years ago by summoning our ancient enemy Tenma, a sadistic demon oni, she was banished from our order and forced to wander the world alone sickly and in solitude. How it is that she's resurfaced with such formidable power is unfounded. She's a powerful demonologist, it's likely she's being aided by demons. Why these bizarre macabre experiments however I remain unsure." Osamu removed some of the gauze wrapped around the wounds on his side and repacked it, pouring rubbing alcohol over the wound, cringing in pain. Osamu proceeded to pull out a small charm made of sticks and small bits of bone bound together by tightly woven thread. "I discovered this on Yuko's corpse, it's likely a charm used to disarm the traps in Suzu's complex but I can't be sure. It's possible our ecounter with that abboration has already informed Suzu of our presence; we'll have to proceed with caution" Osamu fumbled the object between his fingers before tossing it back into his rucksack. "Get some rest Kenshin, we'll need our strength for the battle ahead." Osamu took of his shirt, revealing his lean body, wounds on his side. He splashed a small amount of water from his waterskin pouch onto is face, hair and chest, before tying up his long locks of black hair, removing his geta sandals and lying back down upon his cloak which was functioning as a blanket upon the sandy ground.

As Kenshin sat there listening to the story, he became more and more intrigued by this person. To think that a group of Shamans still existed was enough to keep him listening. The mechanics of the jutsu were unique to these people. He had never seen such jutsu in person before, so he had to stay aware at all times if he wanted to survive. As Osamu pulled out a trinket, he began to explain its possible purposes. If it was the key to traps, it would be a massive help in the success of this mission. He also noticed the wounds on his partners body. Unfortunately, he didn't have the knowledge of medical ninjutsu to help the man . He simply joined Osamu in getting comfortable, lying down on the sand to try and get some rest. "Thank you for the information. We will defeat her." Kenshin stated as he looked up at the night sky. He definitely would not be able to sleep because of their earlier encounter, but he could at least formulate plans while he had time.

Word Count: 1,464

Osamu rested within the small encampment, his cloak draped around him to keep him warm in the desert night. It had been several hours since they rested. His eye creaked open, awakened by what sounded like footsteps. He gazed from beneath his cloak, Kenshin could be seen several feet away resting upon the ground near the fire-pit. Suddenly the footsteps grew louder. A surge of adrenaline rushed through Osamu's veins as he flung his cloak from his body and jumped to his feet in a defensive position. "Kenshin I think we have a problem...". Amid their small encampment were three aberrations, one composed of two female heads with a long serpentine body made of bone and cartilage, the other two resembling small blood thirsty over-sized lizards, with multiple arms and claws, their eyes red and glazed over. Osamu slammed his hands together, weaving several quick signs. A pale green chakra extended from his fingertips into the shape of 9 inch claws.

Wraith Claws:

Chakra:190/200 Osamu's face was beset with anger, as he dashed towards the small lizard like abomination, leaping and spinning to the left as he approached it, his claws outstretched. The blades drilled into the small creature's flesh, severing its sewn on head clean off its body. Osamu let out a howl of rage as he gazed at the serpentine beast in front of him.

Kenshin's eyes were open and darting around within a minute of hearing the footsteps. As they approached, Osamu noticed and called out, warning of the attackers. With fluid motion, Kenshin was on his feet and his now was in his hand. With lightning quick speed, an arrow was snatched out of his quiver and pulled up to the bow. The time it took to aim and release the projectile was less than a second as he watched the arrow soar through the air and fly towards the second small lizard like abomination. As it lanes int the eye of the creature, a shriek could be heard that would shake the very soul of any ninja. The rituals and torture that thing must have endured was more than Kenshin could imagine. With out hesitation, another arrow was already aimed for the lizard's heart. Being careful to hit his target, Kenshin released the arrow. As it soared through the air at blazing speeds, it seemed to gain a burst of speed halfway to it's mark. This was a signature move of the Mori clan, the Arrow Gust Technique.

In what seemed like an instant, the arrow pierced deep into the animal's torso, causing the screeching beast to slowly become less noisy. It stumbled for a few moments before crashing to the desert sand below, covering it in that same blue liquid that meant the ending of it's miserable life. Kenshin turned his attention to the bigger monster with two heads. This would be interesting. "Let's do this. Take the lead, I will cover you." Kenshin spoke with confidence and authority as he reached to grab another arrow. This was not going to stop them.

Word Count: 1,752 (Completed)

Chakra 225/250:

The serpent like creature hissed as its neck elongated, flying towards Osamu, its gaping jaws wide open. As the creature's fangs collided with Osamu, creating a cloud of smoke as the creature bit into a piece of cactus which pierced is mouth; the substitution jutsu was successful.

Chakra 185/200:

Bewildered, the creature was unable to predict Osamu's attack as he fell above the creature onto one of its three heads, sinking his claws into its neck rendering it useless as it turned a pale grey color and fell lifeless to the sands as the other two hissed violently. The ground beneath Osamu and his companion began to tremble, as large spines and claws began to rise from the sands, revealing hundreds of the mutilated abominations. "Finish it Kenshin and run towards the methane lake to the west! There's no way we can take on all these abominations at once. We should be close to the complex, I've got a plan!" Osamu shouted to his companion as he pulled his claws from the creature's limp neck. He gazed into the distance seeing the door to hell on the horizon, the smell of the methane veins and lakes filling the air.

Word Count: 2351 (Completed)

The archer's expression only showed determination as his feet left the sand below with a cloud of the gold dust exploding where he once stood. As he dashed forward toward the creature, he heard Osamu's voice ring out through his mind. He nodded, pushing to maximum speed as he appeared close to the creature. Slamming his hands and Raising his hands in a single fluid motion, a gust of wind was expelled from his palms. Only a few feet away from the hideous enemy, the attack landed with great accuracy, it sent the creature back a few feet, managing to cause damage to it's face in the process. Using Futon techniques in a sandy environment also meant that some of the grains would be picked up by the gust, temporarily blinding the creature. Kenshin took no time to hesitate as he drew the arrow back with his bow and let it pierce into the opponent from point black range. Slowly, that same blue slime crept from the darkness of it's chest.

Kenshin quickly pulled out all of the arrows in the arrow and set them back in his quiver. As he turned to the direction of the compound, he dashed off in hopes that Osamu truly did have a good plan that would save their ass. The situation was not ideal, to be sure. He furrowed his eyebrows in deep thought as he moved at full speed, dodging the spikes that rose from the ground. As he approached the designated area, He turned, drawing another arrow and aiming it to cover Osamu as she came up. He was vital to the mission's success, meaning that Kenshin had to be absolutely sure he was healthy enough to fight the sorceress that lied ahead.

Lightning Release: Wrath of the Lightning Army Training: 297/1,500

Chakra 210/250:

Osamu had to cover his ears as the serpentine creature shrieked in agony, its face thrashed by a series of cuts and Kenshin's arrow embedded deep in the creatures bewitched heart, the blue liquid spilling forth upon the ground. Kenshin had slain the tortured creature . Osamu looked over his shoulder behind him as the army of aberrations rose from the sands. He could smell the methane on the air. He tore a piece of cloth from his shirt and wrapped around his nose and mouth creating a sort of makeshift mask. "This way!" Osamu darted toward the large methane vein roughly a mile ahead of them, stretching across the desert in a river of yellow and black. He sprinted as fast as he could toward the methane river which was contained by a natural stone dam, preventing it from flooding the desert valley. The smell of the gas became increasingly pungent as Osamu and his companion approached its bank, the army of hundreds of aberrations chasing them from behind. It was becoming difficult to breathe. As he approached the dam he observed the massive boulders in order to locate a weak point. After searching for several seconds he located a massive crack in the center of a supporting boulder. He knew that if he attacked it with enough force, it may give way, breaching the dam and flooding the small valley with methane.

Osamu took a couple deep breaths before amassing a large amount of chakra, and condensing it in to the shape of a single skull. A deep humming noise filled the air as the bright white projectile took shape, his hair and cloak blowing about from the chaotic energy. Once fully formed, Osamu forced both hands forward, releasing the Demon Skull projectile which darted toward the large stone, thrashing about sand in its wake. With a large crashing noise, the projectile collided with the boulder, dispersing its energy throughout causing the large stone to crumble into pieces. The thundering sound of boulders crashing upon one another was nearly deafening as the dam burst apart letting lose a massive flood of black liquid which rained down in their direction. "RUN!"

Demon Skull:

Chakra:170/200

Osamu slammed his hands together, taking the shape of pitch black crow in a flash of black smoke, and flying toward the skies, dodging massive globs of methane which spilled forth from the demolished dam. He flew over the plateau on the other side of the river adjacent to the massive flood of methane which poured forth into the valley and onto the army of wailing aberrations. Retaking his human form mid air, he drew several flares from his ruck sack, and struck them against the back of his heel, igniting them in a flurry of sparks. Landing upon his feet, he ran towards the ledge of the stone, gazing into the valley below. Surging with adrenaline, Osamu flung the flares over the edge. Wasting no time to watch them plumet toward the methane river below, Osamu bolted in the opposite direction of the river, anticipating the explosion that was to come.

Transformation Technique:

Chakra:165/200

After a few seconds of sprinting, a silence swept over the valley for but an instant. Suddenly, an ear shattering clamor could be heard from behind, as the river overflow of methane lit up in a fiery cascade, lighting up the night sky and filling the air with the scent of newly formed glass and molten flesh. The massive inferno let out a shock wave of energy, knocking Osamu off his feet and forcing the air from his lungs as he tumbled upon the sandy ground. The explosion caused several more of the massive boulders supporting the dam to crumble, releasing even more of the toxic river onto the aberrations below. Gasping for air, Osamu rose to his feet and gazed behind him and his companion towards the firestorm and pillars of smoke behind them. He looks upon his left arm and right leg; massive blisters from the intense heat caused Osamu to cringe his teeth in pain. He returned his gaze towards the desert ahead, revealing a small collection of tall abandoned buildings surrounding metal warehouse which was to contain the hatch to the hidden lair. At long last, the Witch Suzu's sinister compound had been discovered.

Enervate Training Word Count:644/1500

As Kenshin watched his partner follow him, he saw his line of sight. He was looking at a odd natural dam, which hid the pungent smell of methane. As the man built up chakra to break the dam, Kenshin immediately moved towards a safe plateau. He moved as fast as his body would allow as he tried to get as much distance as possible. He bounced from rock to rock as he continued to climb up the rock form. By the time he reached the top, he saw a crow fly from above. He smiled as his partner was that very crow and returned to his human form. Throwing a flare at the black mass, they darted off once again, waiting in anxious tension as they waited for an explosion that would shake the are around them. Along with the ear splitting screeches, a powerful sound of explosion rose from the valley. A massive fireball rose up, blaring heat all over their bodies. After a few moments, it subsided. Kenshin sighed in relief as his emerald green eyes looked to the abandoned buildings before them. The witch would know of their presence now, so this became a bit more difficult. Kenshin grimaced as he raced forward. It was time to end this.

Lightning Release: Wrath of the Lightning Army Training: 507/1,500

Osamu approached the small village of vacant buildings. The roaring of the flaming river could be heard in the distance behind them. Osamu entered the warehouse cautiously expecting some sort of trap. The small wicker amulet he'd looted of of Yuko's corpse began to glow a bright purple. Suddenly, a massive symbol became apparent on the ground, glowing itself before fading away, revealing a long dark staircase which descended into the basement floor below. "I suspect we just evaded a nasty hex. It was likely a genjutsu charm created to delude a victim into believing he was being pecked to death by a murder of crows. The mess I made back there surely hasn't gone unnoticed, we'll have to hurry." Osamu descended down the stairs before stopping abruptly before the last step. Voices could be heard from down the corridor below. Osamu clung to the side of the wall within the shadows as they passed by. "There's been a disturbance at the black river dam! Acolytes have already been sent out to investigate but whoever is involved most likely intends to infiltrate this facility and interfere with our mistress's research! Defend the compounds, we must anger the mistress while she's so close to restoring our lord" an old feeble man uttered to a young acolyte as he made his way down the hall into the darkness. Osamu whispered quietly to himself 'our lord?"

Enervate Training: 917/1500

He slipped into the hall which was illuminated by a series of torches.  He checked door after door, revealing mostly empty cells until finally he came upon a black insignia written upon the wall. The wicker man once more flashed bright purple, lighting up the insignia on the wall and revealing a hidden room. It was full of medical tables, cluttered with bizarre medical equipment and shamanic objects. As he continued down further into the room he observed 6 large test tubes containing test subjects. As he examined them closer he noticed one man was medical ninja Goro who went missing seven months previously, the other Lady Haruka, a weapons trainer at the academy who disappeared roughly the same time. Osamu's face filled with surprise. He began to feel around the chamber, desperately looking for some way to quickly free them. Eventually he discovered a large lever underneath the side of the cell. He pulled it forcefully, causing the glass panels to open. Water gushed onto the floor along with the two limp bodies. They began to cough, regaining some semblance of consciousness. The man grasped Osamu's arm tightly, and began to plea with him,"You don't have time! Hurry! Continue down the hall to that mad woman's inner sanctum! She is nearly finished, she must not be allowed to complete the ritual!" Osamu dashed down the hall towards the inner sanctum. In the center of a large circular room stood a collection of medical test tubes filled with bodies surrounding a single woman in a white medical jacket disecting what appeared to be a corpse on the counter.

Enervate Training:1157/1500

"Well well Osamu, you're more resourceful than I had anticipated.That little stunt you pulled at the dam was most impressive." The woman uttered with a cruel smile. "It's over Suzu. This madness ends today" Osamu proclaimed. "Silly boy you just don't understand what I'm doing do you." "I don't care care what you're doing you psychotic bitch! You slayed my sensei in cold blood, and you've defiled my people." The woman began to laugh hysterically. "I'd nearly forgotten about that. Your master put up a good fight, but yes, in the end my powers were to great. You traditional Shamans cannot fathom the powers I've acquired, the secrets I possess. You see for the past 5 years I've dedicated my life to the arcane science you see before you, seeking to create a physical vessel worthy of my true form. For years I attempted to develop the perfect body, conducting experiments by combining the various body parts of local villages from Sunagakure. While nearly all my attempts were unsuccessful, they were not in vain. Alas my great work here is nearly complete. The only missing ingredient...is you Osamu."

Osamu's face was striken with shock as he took a couple steps back. Suzu began to laugh hysterically. "It was I who trained you in the Shamanic arts after the death of your sensai. Several years into my research, I discovered that I would require the spirt of a Shaman who was ghost touched; capable of your nightmarish visions. Only then would my vessel be able to withstand the magnitude of my growing powers. It was then that I pretended to save you from Yuko's wrath, and disguised myself as the dead Shaman queen Hama. Your spirit would require training and your control over your shamanic abilities would need to improve before you could be of any use to me. So I sent you on a quest for your Sensai's killer, only lead you right back into my clutches. You shall become the vessel of my rebirth young shaman! You should consider it an honor."


Enervate Training: 1515/1500 Complete