Airi walked around with much more confidence than she did even a week ago. She had recently survived the training that all Anbu had to face. With her success in the harrowing going even better than expected, along with the rigorous physical and mental training she received she came upon a power she had never seen before. This gift…no this skill she had was still very new and very weak but it could lead to her coming into her own and really making a…well not a name but corner of the shinobi world all her own. With this new ability she aimed to take Taijutsu farther than anyone had yet done and with that in mind, she felt like she could protect anyone and everyone. Whether or not this was true was beside the point, for Airi she now finally saw the path forward. She could actually see a road before her now and with that…she could focus on it and travel it with all her might.
Having the trainee mask on made things…less fun. She could never see what face people were making but if anyone could see hers she would be smiling. A nice confident expression. She was fully ready to do anything that her higher ups were going to throw at her!
A few minutes later her mood would shift south…
“Nineteen…you are now going to make up for past failures. We would like to ensure you that the only reason you are getting a second chance is by technicality and you sudden progress in personal achievement. If you fail this mission you would be removed as a trainee and brought to the main branch. We will also have to take care of some of your memories so make certain you are one-hundred percent satisfactory this time…do I make myself clear.”
Airi swallowed slightly. “Yes Sir!” As the man moved over and brought the scroll over to her and declared, “Read it!” As the man walked back Airi quickly undid the scroll as she read it though he began to speak. “We have considered it and decided to give you a mid-class B-rank missions. You have one major target to remove, the rest should be dealt with but we also do not expect you to bring something back of everyone. The ones who attacked the monastery were a small band of Bandits who worked for a larger group. We desire the head of the group…and you young nineteen will be the one to bring it back or perish. The Anbu will not so much as care if you return empty handed. You may travel however you like…make haste before that Intel become irrelevant and you have to search for them. Airi bowed deeply before rolling the scroll back up and then turned and left the room. As she made her way down the hallway she could not help but stare at her hands…they would become bloodied by the end of this…was she ready for that? She could only hope so.
Airi made it a frequent visit now to hop on top of a train. Since she was doing this as nineteen she did not think a masked person sitting in a train car would keep her presence a secret. While she could also just travel as Airi then that would leave a trail that could make someone ask questions if they really wanted to. So to answer she would be somewhat cold wrapped up in her cloak traveling to the spine of the world and hopefully fine the mercenary encampment that would lead to…more than likely her first of many deaths. If there was anything she could really think of was that at least these men were not innocent. That was a line she figured she could never cross. These men did everything from drugs to murder to trafficking. Needless to say it would be a benefit to wipe them from the earth…
Even as she thought that and told herself it was right she could still feel her hands tremble at the thought. Maru-san…I will not hesitate like last time…I promised you would I do would my very best. They would not send me to my death if they did not think I had the ability…the question here was did she have the resolve.
Climbing the spine of the world proved to be a task that was not terribly difficult for a skilled shinobi…the main problem came with time and leaving no trace. Airi was well acquainted to the water walking technique and snow was even easier to do this with than water. Airi was able to full run across the snow at a rather healthy speed. She pushed chakra into her anbu garb to allow it to turn to the soft whitish blue of the snow. She left no footprints and made no noise as she made her way forward. She would only stop if she started to breathe a little hard so as not to even give a hint of warmth raising into the air. She wanted no one to know she was coming…this would be a perfect…flawless mission.
Eventually she saw the powerful storms off to the east…she was thankful they were not located on the Thunder Mountains. It would add a whole new layer of difficulty but at the same time putting a base in there would be nearly as impossible to maintain. Shaking her head though she allowed this pause to only last a few moments before she would suddenly vanish again.
Looking over the encampment Airi could not lie that she was a little impressed…this place was made out of wood and stone and yet it looked like a very small city or village. Since this place was not moving Airi decided to take a day just to watch the comings and goings. She had hunted on her way here but a day without eating was nothing in comparison to the Anbu training. As she looked down it appeared that getting through the gates was not happening. Thankfully though the bandits of Deo had taught her something about falling with style. Airi then decided to wait until just after dusk to make her move. She needed to finish this within one night and without anyone getting any messages out. While it might not feel like a failure in her mission specs it would still weigh on her to know that…someone escaped.
Day would to turn to night and then night would fall…
When the howl of wolf came out is when Airi leapt into the air and jumped beyond the walls and into the encampment. She was now not using chakra on her outfit so that way she could blend into the shadows. Airi had been taught how to take out encampments. Once you started you need to move quickly and without error. The second a body was found or someone did not check in you started your timer. Only one person in this encampment should even be remotely capable of manipulating chakra. If she was never found out…this would be cake. Airi relaxed herself as she felt the flow of her chakra like Hira told her to. She shifted into a stance and controlled her breathing perfectly. She felt like her eyes would be glowing if anyone could actually see them…no longer holy but a deep blue. “First Gate: Gate of opening…”
Airi was not flying through this place as efficiently as a fully developed shinobi. She took out the top guards first only knocking them out. Her goal was leaders…she did not have to kill…not yet…right? Knocking out each with a smile combo brought the night to deadly quite. It was not until she heard a voice that she knew her timer had started.
“Oy! Where you boys at? Why hasn’t anyone reported in!?” A single man with three followed came out of the middle tent. The silence unnerved them and the thought of what was coming unnerved her. “Boy’s…do not fan out…I think we have company.” How right he was…one looked bigger more durable…another looked fast and agile…the final one looked like a range combatant with a bow…the leader himself was a dual wielder…he was going to be the one she had to ensure to kill.
Airi launched herself…a very quick powerful strike and the ranger fell. Airi wasted no time as the noise caused the other three to turn. She delivered another series of fist into the fast one. Last thing she wanted to do was deal with someone who could escape her vision quickly. “DIE YOU!” Airi saw the large man barreling towards her…it was funny…what you considered fats and slow when raised by shinobi. This man was nothing more the muscle and fat…airi ran towards him slipped under him and did a quick sixteen hit combo. As the man fell he landed sideways…he was still not unconscious and as Airi quickly moved forward the man looked at her scream, “PLEASE NO I HAVE KIDS!” Airi swung her fist and punched the man hard in the jaw…he looked knocked out…he fist though had hesitated…she did not mean to actually hit him…all of these men had families…children…could she become the one who caused so much pain? What about the pain they caused? How was she supposed to pick?
Hesitation and indecision clouded her as she turned and saw yet another pair of blades come down. As she slipped on the snow when backing up saved her as the blades cut through her mask only barely grazing her face. Airi pushed off the snowy ground and righted herself. She felt the mask fall off and streak of blood fall down her face…quick assessment was to let her natural healing factor take care of it. As her mask fell and the hood blew back with a gust of wind they looked eye to eye at each other.
The man seemed chipper all of a sudden. “Oy…wee lass…I’ve errd of yea fore…it was…ohh yes…Airi-chan ehh?” Airi’s eyes grew a little wider as he said that. “See we received a report. Talked about how a girl almost got her arm cut off taking out the leader we set up in Deo. Latr we uncover a girl shows up wit a messed up arm and helping out the monks? Seemed suspicious to me…so tell you what? You walk away…an we dun hunt down your loved ones…savy?”
Airi closed her eyes and felt her fist curl up…she should never have been exposed…she felt the chakra bubbling and as she opened every last gate she opened them…she felt herself move within the blink of an eye she was behind the man…he had no hope of even setting up his guard. She absolutely needed to end him…otherwise…everything she loved…her wrist bladed extended. As the blades clicked into place she opened her eyes…he dropped his blades but was squirming…blood ran a river down her and she felt bile rise her throat…she wanted to remove the blades but not realizing her chakra gates were still on full blast her sudden movement caused the blades to effortless glide and allow the head to fall to the floor. Airi’s hands shook as she looked at the headless man…it was…so much messier than she though. A flash of a child’s face crossed her mind and she turned…the sickly liquid leaving her body as she felt her meal of yesterday return to the fresh air.
The smell of blood, piss, and excrement following up with the bile she ejected caused herself to get sick again. She shivered as she curled up on the ground. “I can’t do this…I can’t risk them…I need to stop…” Thoughts rushed everything from the homeless man and his taunts to this guy saying that he knew her name. Was she in too deep? No if she reported it and said she would have children with a shinobi she could get out right? Right!? RIGHT!?
Pain ejected into her back and she gasped…as she looked down she saw an arrow point coming through her side. As her head slowly turned she saw the larger man…the one with the family…looking pleased. “Take that lass! Now I am the king of this castle. My kid will be eaten well from now on. Hehehehe.” He had a crossbow in his hand…he shot her…when he asked for mercy and she gave it…
Airi felt a peaceful cord snap within her as her eyes almost hollowed…this is what mercy brought her…twice in a row. Airi grabbed the arrow and broke it…flinching in pain. The man growing more concerned as she pulled the other end out of her back. Slowly her blood stopped flowing and looked over at him. “I get it now…I am so sorry for judging you…everyone…Mercy does have a place in this world…in this life…” Airi body flickered behind the man and as her screamed Airi took her hands and as she was trained snapped his neck. “A quick…painless kill…that is a shinobi’s true mercy.”
Airi’s hands did not twitch now…as she looked around the camp…she knew what she was supposed to do…what counted as success. These men…were un-salvageable. With a sigh she would swiftly move about the place and cover it red with blood. She would burn the place, confiscate anything she could carry of value that mattered and then left…right as dawn approached.
As she traveled she said nothing…she moved through the shadows. She did not cry and did not eat. When she got home…she would cry…when she got home she would get depressed. When she got home she would get over it. She was in this now…she considered changing her name…who knew what she would do. The only thing she knew she wanted was someone to talk to…and someone to hold. She wanted to be a child again and be held…but it would not happen. She needed to become an adult now…
She would become a shinobi…
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Word count 2325
Having the trainee mask on made things…less fun. She could never see what face people were making but if anyone could see hers she would be smiling. A nice confident expression. She was fully ready to do anything that her higher ups were going to throw at her!
A few minutes later her mood would shift south…
“Nineteen…you are now going to make up for past failures. We would like to ensure you that the only reason you are getting a second chance is by technicality and you sudden progress in personal achievement. If you fail this mission you would be removed as a trainee and brought to the main branch. We will also have to take care of some of your memories so make certain you are one-hundred percent satisfactory this time…do I make myself clear.”
Airi swallowed slightly. “Yes Sir!” As the man moved over and brought the scroll over to her and declared, “Read it!” As the man walked back Airi quickly undid the scroll as she read it though he began to speak. “We have considered it and decided to give you a mid-class B-rank missions. You have one major target to remove, the rest should be dealt with but we also do not expect you to bring something back of everyone. The ones who attacked the monastery were a small band of Bandits who worked for a larger group. We desire the head of the group…and you young nineteen will be the one to bring it back or perish. The Anbu will not so much as care if you return empty handed. You may travel however you like…make haste before that Intel become irrelevant and you have to search for them. Airi bowed deeply before rolling the scroll back up and then turned and left the room. As she made her way down the hallway she could not help but stare at her hands…they would become bloodied by the end of this…was she ready for that? She could only hope so.
Airi made it a frequent visit now to hop on top of a train. Since she was doing this as nineteen she did not think a masked person sitting in a train car would keep her presence a secret. While she could also just travel as Airi then that would leave a trail that could make someone ask questions if they really wanted to. So to answer she would be somewhat cold wrapped up in her cloak traveling to the spine of the world and hopefully fine the mercenary encampment that would lead to…more than likely her first of many deaths. If there was anything she could really think of was that at least these men were not innocent. That was a line she figured she could never cross. These men did everything from drugs to murder to trafficking. Needless to say it would be a benefit to wipe them from the earth…
Even as she thought that and told herself it was right she could still feel her hands tremble at the thought. Maru-san…I will not hesitate like last time…I promised you would I do would my very best. They would not send me to my death if they did not think I had the ability…the question here was did she have the resolve.
Climbing the spine of the world proved to be a task that was not terribly difficult for a skilled shinobi…the main problem came with time and leaving no trace. Airi was well acquainted to the water walking technique and snow was even easier to do this with than water. Airi was able to full run across the snow at a rather healthy speed. She pushed chakra into her anbu garb to allow it to turn to the soft whitish blue of the snow. She left no footprints and made no noise as she made her way forward. She would only stop if she started to breathe a little hard so as not to even give a hint of warmth raising into the air. She wanted no one to know she was coming…this would be a perfect…flawless mission.
Eventually she saw the powerful storms off to the east…she was thankful they were not located on the Thunder Mountains. It would add a whole new layer of difficulty but at the same time putting a base in there would be nearly as impossible to maintain. Shaking her head though she allowed this pause to only last a few moments before she would suddenly vanish again.
Looking over the encampment Airi could not lie that she was a little impressed…this place was made out of wood and stone and yet it looked like a very small city or village. Since this place was not moving Airi decided to take a day just to watch the comings and goings. She had hunted on her way here but a day without eating was nothing in comparison to the Anbu training. As she looked down it appeared that getting through the gates was not happening. Thankfully though the bandits of Deo had taught her something about falling with style. Airi then decided to wait until just after dusk to make her move. She needed to finish this within one night and without anyone getting any messages out. While it might not feel like a failure in her mission specs it would still weigh on her to know that…someone escaped.
Day would to turn to night and then night would fall…
When the howl of wolf came out is when Airi leapt into the air and jumped beyond the walls and into the encampment. She was now not using chakra on her outfit so that way she could blend into the shadows. Airi had been taught how to take out encampments. Once you started you need to move quickly and without error. The second a body was found or someone did not check in you started your timer. Only one person in this encampment should even be remotely capable of manipulating chakra. If she was never found out…this would be cake. Airi relaxed herself as she felt the flow of her chakra like Hira told her to. She shifted into a stance and controlled her breathing perfectly. She felt like her eyes would be glowing if anyone could actually see them…no longer holy but a deep blue. “First Gate: Gate of opening…”
Airi was not flying through this place as efficiently as a fully developed shinobi. She took out the top guards first only knocking them out. Her goal was leaders…she did not have to kill…not yet…right? Knocking out each with a smile combo brought the night to deadly quite. It was not until she heard a voice that she knew her timer had started.
“Oy! Where you boys at? Why hasn’t anyone reported in!?” A single man with three followed came out of the middle tent. The silence unnerved them and the thought of what was coming unnerved her. “Boy’s…do not fan out…I think we have company.” How right he was…one looked bigger more durable…another looked fast and agile…the final one looked like a range combatant with a bow…the leader himself was a dual wielder…he was going to be the one she had to ensure to kill.
Airi launched herself…a very quick powerful strike and the ranger fell. Airi wasted no time as the noise caused the other three to turn. She delivered another series of fist into the fast one. Last thing she wanted to do was deal with someone who could escape her vision quickly. “DIE YOU!” Airi saw the large man barreling towards her…it was funny…what you considered fats and slow when raised by shinobi. This man was nothing more the muscle and fat…airi ran towards him slipped under him and did a quick sixteen hit combo. As the man fell he landed sideways…he was still not unconscious and as Airi quickly moved forward the man looked at her scream, “PLEASE NO I HAVE KIDS!” Airi swung her fist and punched the man hard in the jaw…he looked knocked out…he fist though had hesitated…she did not mean to actually hit him…all of these men had families…children…could she become the one who caused so much pain? What about the pain they caused? How was she supposed to pick?
Hesitation and indecision clouded her as she turned and saw yet another pair of blades come down. As she slipped on the snow when backing up saved her as the blades cut through her mask only barely grazing her face. Airi pushed off the snowy ground and righted herself. She felt the mask fall off and streak of blood fall down her face…quick assessment was to let her natural healing factor take care of it. As her mask fell and the hood blew back with a gust of wind they looked eye to eye at each other.
The man seemed chipper all of a sudden. “Oy…wee lass…I’ve errd of yea fore…it was…ohh yes…Airi-chan ehh?” Airi’s eyes grew a little wider as he said that. “See we received a report. Talked about how a girl almost got her arm cut off taking out the leader we set up in Deo. Latr we uncover a girl shows up wit a messed up arm and helping out the monks? Seemed suspicious to me…so tell you what? You walk away…an we dun hunt down your loved ones…savy?”
Airi closed her eyes and felt her fist curl up…she should never have been exposed…she felt the chakra bubbling and as she opened every last gate she opened them…she felt herself move within the blink of an eye she was behind the man…he had no hope of even setting up his guard. She absolutely needed to end him…otherwise…everything she loved…her wrist bladed extended. As the blades clicked into place she opened her eyes…he dropped his blades but was squirming…blood ran a river down her and she felt bile rise her throat…she wanted to remove the blades but not realizing her chakra gates were still on full blast her sudden movement caused the blades to effortless glide and allow the head to fall to the floor. Airi’s hands shook as she looked at the headless man…it was…so much messier than she though. A flash of a child’s face crossed her mind and she turned…the sickly liquid leaving her body as she felt her meal of yesterday return to the fresh air.
The smell of blood, piss, and excrement following up with the bile she ejected caused herself to get sick again. She shivered as she curled up on the ground. “I can’t do this…I can’t risk them…I need to stop…” Thoughts rushed everything from the homeless man and his taunts to this guy saying that he knew her name. Was she in too deep? No if she reported it and said she would have children with a shinobi she could get out right? Right!? RIGHT!?
Pain ejected into her back and she gasped…as she looked down she saw an arrow point coming through her side. As her head slowly turned she saw the larger man…the one with the family…looking pleased. “Take that lass! Now I am the king of this castle. My kid will be eaten well from now on. Hehehehe.” He had a crossbow in his hand…he shot her…when he asked for mercy and she gave it…
Airi felt a peaceful cord snap within her as her eyes almost hollowed…this is what mercy brought her…twice in a row. Airi grabbed the arrow and broke it…flinching in pain. The man growing more concerned as she pulled the other end out of her back. Slowly her blood stopped flowing and looked over at him. “I get it now…I am so sorry for judging you…everyone…Mercy does have a place in this world…in this life…” Airi body flickered behind the man and as her screamed Airi took her hands and as she was trained snapped his neck. “A quick…painless kill…that is a shinobi’s true mercy.”
Airi’s hands did not twitch now…as she looked around the camp…she knew what she was supposed to do…what counted as success. These men…were un-salvageable. With a sigh she would swiftly move about the place and cover it red with blood. She would burn the place, confiscate anything she could carry of value that mattered and then left…right as dawn approached.
As she traveled she said nothing…she moved through the shadows. She did not cry and did not eat. When she got home…she would cry…when she got home she would get depressed. When she got home she would get over it. She was in this now…she considered changing her name…who knew what she would do. The only thing she knew she wanted was someone to talk to…and someone to hold. She wanted to be a child again and be held…but it would not happen. She needed to become an adult now…
She would become a shinobi…
[Topic entered and left]
Word count 2325