[Insert Witty Title Here][Private]

[Okibi]

"Seven do this on purpose."

The ride from the Grand Palais had been rather uneventful, and within the time it took them to get to the tower Okibi had garnered a thought. She glared at Seven as she slipped off his back and onto the roof of the Kazekage tower, where theyd made their landing. Seven returned her glare with an even look. "What are you talking about?" he asked, sounding just a little too innocent. Okibi growled as she fell to her seat on the roof.

"You bring us here cause you want tell on Okibi! You gonna tell Sogay!" She declared, crossing her legs as she pointed a clawed finger at her canine friend. Seven said nothing and just looked away, as though he didnt understand her.

Okibi turned her look on Shiraha and lessened it considerably. No need to make him think she was angry with him. "Sit." She said, motioning to the ground in front of her. This was as good a place as any for them to eat, even if she was going to have to face the firing squad afterwards. After Shiraha got off his back, Seven came around to curl up behind Okibi and nudged the side of her head with his nose. She didnt look at him, determined to stay mad at him.

"He would have found out sooner or later. Best to let him hear it come from you." The dog explained. Okibi's frown deepened and she pointedly ignored him.

"So, Cheeta. Why you sing for money?" She asked quickly, obviously changing the subject. She adjusted the way she was sitting and winced when the cold of her forgotten forehead protector touched her lower back. She pulled it out, looked at it momentarily, and then set it on the side. "You not ninja?"

(Sorry its sooooooo short, but I was having a hard time coming up with something for this first post! Itll get better from here 8D.)

 

[Suika]

“Kazekage Tower...”

The whispered words that escaped Shiraha's lips sounded a bit marvel-stricken. He had never really visited the establishment before nor ever came close to it, so landing on top of it was, at that moment, a lot to take in. It's architecture was grand and its size unrivaled. It was a fitting place for their village's head to call home. Speaking of the Kage, what was his actual name again?

After the group had landed, Shiraha leaped off of Seven and landed smoothly on his feet. He fixed up some ruffled parts of clothing from the ride and prettied himself before continuing. “This is neat.” he stated out loud as he was lost observing his surroundings. He felt like a kid at some type of museum – a really cool one, that is (not the ones that bore you to death). Getsurei, on the other hand, appeared unimpressed. The ghostly wolfdog stood besides his human and shot him a look. “Do you think it's appropriate for us to be up here? Seems kind of disrespectful if you ask me.” After all, this was a major landmark for Sunagakure. It wasn't expected for people to just spontaneously land on top of it and have a casual picnic.

“Nah, we're good.”</B><i></i> he responded in a passive tone that was just low enough for Okibi to not overhear. Besides, she seemed preoccupied with her dog.

The girl turned towards him and motioned him to sit. She looked a little upset, probably due to Seven's indirect threat to spill the beans of their little adventure to the 'so-gay' character Okibi mentioned earlier. Was this guy or gal some authority over her? Shiraha assumed so; it was apparent in the discomfort shown by the kunoichi from the possibility of being told on. Though, it was weird how this person resided within the Kazekage Tower. Was he or she a staff member of some sort? Not that it mattered.

Shiraha lied out the table cloth on the surface below revealing the wide assortments of steaming meats that he managed to collect before high-tailing it out of Niku's. There were turkey legs, steaks, ribs, and other varieties of cooked dead animal. They were still warm luckily; now was the perfect time to dig in.

And so he did!

“Itadakemasu! Dig in, Okibi-san!”<i></i> he shouted as he sat indian-positioned and began to eat. He was a bit sloppy due to the high anticipation of this very meal, but managed to avoid any food-to-clothes contact. He remained unstained throughout.

He listened as Seven gave Okibi a remark about 'him' founding out sooner or later. So 'so-gay' was a he. Shiraha frowned alongside the girl, and with his mouth stuffed and a turkey leg in his hand, butted in and added his own input. “Chill, Seven. It wasn't even her fault.” he swallowed his chewed meat for the rest of his words wouldn't sound so muffled and continued. “Besides, I'm the one who started it. If anyone I'm to blame. Not that it matters; it was fun!”<i></i> He didn't care what 'so-gay' thought of him, either. That man had no authority over him (or so he thought).

Getsurei kept silent as he lied besides the young dark-skinned man. He found no need to add input towards matters so trivial.

Okibi was quick to change the subject and lightened up the mood a bit. She asked an insightful question that wasn't asked often of him. It required a complex explanation, but he decided to answer simply. “Well, I do it because that's what I love.”<i></i> he rubbed the back of his neck and grinned enthusiastically. “My dream is to become Sungakure's finest popstar! Sounds funny, but it's the truth.”<i></i> It was a silly thought to many, but it was what he wanted. The life of a shinobi just brought too much heartache. He glanced at the headband that Okibi had brought out randomly, and pulled down the right side of his robe revealing a Sunagakure headband wrapped around his arm. He pointed at it and continued. “Yup, I'm a ninja! A Chuunin, at that. I've just put my shinobi duties aside as of late to focus on accomplishing my musical goals.”<i></i> It was only partially the truth, and he didn't feel like revealing his reasons entirely; it was too touchy of a subject. Plus, he didn't want to kill the positive vibe they were now sailing on.

<B>“How about you, Okibi-san? Judging from that headband I'm assuming you're one as well?” It wouldn't be surprising. After all, the girl looked pretty tough for her age. “Any fun missions lately?”

Oh, missions. How he missed those... well, not really.

Getsurei eyes were shut, but he kept one eye slightly open out of curiosity on how this conversation would escalate. “Hopefully Okibi won't press the subject too much. This is kind of a tender spot for the Rara-kun.”<i></i> And by tender, he meant extremely.

[Continued from here. (For reference)]

 

[Okibi]

As the eats were spread out on the table clothe that Shiraha pilfered, Okibi didnt need to be told twice to dig in. She was just as famished as her friend, if not more so; growing girls needed much sustenance! She spotted an extra rare steak and snatched it up, tearing into it like it was made of paper. The bloody juices ran out of her mouth like water, dripping down her chin. If there was anyone sitting in that circle who was being messy, it was Okibi. She'd never been much of one for table manners. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as she chewed a mouthful and offered the rest of the large steak to Seven. He took the meat gingerly between his jaws and set it between his paws so he could enjoy it slowly. The dog had much better manners than his human, funnily enough.

He chewed on the steak in a dainty manner as Okibi went about picking out a small looking bird to try. His glowing red eyes rested on Shiraha as the boy seemed intent on taking all the blame for what happened back at the restaurant. Seven didnt believe for a moment that Okibi didnt have anything do with the riot that broke out, and was certain that Shiraha was covering for her. He looked sideways at Okibi, but decided to question her about it later. The topic of conversation had already been tactfully changed by the purple maned child.

Okibi tore off a piece of the tiny roasted quail and hummed happily as the new taste coated her tongue. It was very similar to desert chicken! She listened with one ear as Shiraha answered her question, half her focus set on cleaning the small bird bones. She set the meatless pieces on the side after she was finished, and turned all her attention on Shiraha now that she was a little satiated. "Okibi just passed test. Not go on any missions yet." She explained. Her face twisted and she swatted at the air in front of her face, as though swishing away smoke. "We not talk about Okibi! We talk about Cheeta."

Seven listened intently as his human did something that she'd always done best: push. She'd never been known for her tact when it came to social situations, and that applied even now. Seven could sense that Shiraha's situation might be a sensitive one, and he wasnt dense enough not to have realized once of the reasons why the boy might have been singing in the street for money. Okibi, on the other hand, wasnt very good at picking up on subtleties. She was one of those people that had to be told.

Well, who was he to stop her from asking anyway? Perhaps, if things started getting a little touchy, he would step in. Maybe.

"You not answer Okibi's question. Why you sing for money?" Okibi asked persistently. She leaned forward and rested her hands on her knees, letting her hair fall over her shoulders. "You ninja, but not do ninja jobs." Slowly, the puzzle was piecing together in her minds. You could practically see the wheels turning in her head. "You not have money." It was a statement, not a question. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously on Shiraha's face. "Where you sleep Cheeta?"

As his girl was distracted with hounding the white haired boy, Seven turned his attention to the ghost wolf that watched the interaction with one eye open. He whispered, hoping his human would be too preoccupied to hear. "You let me know if this goes too far. I'll try to stop her. I cant make any promises though."

 

[Suika]

Shiraha continued to dig in to the variety of meats that were placed before him as he listened intently to the purple-haired girl. His and Okibi's mannerisms were quite similar at this point; this took away any self-consciousness that could have stricken the young man due the messiness of his eating. “Congrats, Okibi-san!” he announced as she mentioned her promotion into shinobihood. He was hoping to expand on that, but the kunoichi was a persistent one.

“Damn...”

She kept poking at his most sensitive areas, and his ego wasn't doing too well as a result. I mean, what did it matter? Sure his current path wasn't the most stable, but that was life. He was going to make it big time anyways, too. He was sure of it. He gave Okibi a face, but regardless, she didn't seem take the hint. As the girl continued, he winced endlessly as each word felt like a dagger to his pride. It's not like she was being spiteful, dishonest, or cruel; rather, it was the opposite. Her honesty stung him like the application of alchohol on a wound. Reality itself was a concept he tried to avoid, but she made doing so difficult.

Then Okibi asked the golden question. It was a question that tore through the veil of his fabricated bliss.

“I sleep...” he was lost for words, and paused as he struggled to continue.

Getsurei, who was pretty concerned at this point despite his uncaring demeanor, opened his closed eye and turned his attention towards him human. At that moment, he could imagine the little hamsters in Shiraha's head scampering around frantically in search for some type of answer to the girl's question. He also knew that, at this moment, the dark-skinned youth was finally gaining awareness to the unfortunate truths of his present condition and situation - unspoken truths such as the level of his poverty or the fact he practically lived the life of a bum. This sparked a bit of anxiety in the ghoulish wolf. He eyed Seven, who assured him that he'd attempt to refrain his human if this dragged on.

He replied with a nod. This was going too far...

Was it time to step in? “Seven, would you mind pulling your human back now-”

The wolfdog's words were interrupted by abrupt, cocky laughter emitting from none other than Shiraha, the man put into the spotlight of this topic, himself. “Has he gone mad?” Getsurei shot a look at the boy as if he finally lost it, but such was far from the actual case. Well, somewhat.

Shiraha stood himself and continued laughing with a confident smirk painted across his face. His expression showed no more signs of discomfort. He gave Okibi a thumb's up and responded with an assured tone. “Don't worry about me, Okibi-san!” he began stretching as he continued. “Perhaps I haven't clarified. I sing for money because my dream is to become a pop sensation – an idol. Shinobi work is nothing but a distraction from this. You have to start at the bottom to make it to the top!” He then sent a playful wink her way. “Besides, I got what it takes. Don't you think?” </B><i></i> It was more of a rhetorical question.

He rubbed the back of his neck and awaited a reply. Getsurei sighed in response to his partner's rambling; he was obviously delusional. “He's probably attempting to protect what's left of his ego; however, why do I have a feeling there's some truth in his words...”

Shiraha dusted himself off and glanced at the food. All of it was gone now; he and Okibi had swallowed it all up as if some vortex or black hole. His stomach was finally satisfied, though, so he was content. Time to clean up! He gathered the table cloth and wrapped it up; he'd toss it somewhere soon. After, he attempted to divert Okibi from the conversation at hand.

“I might not have any solid place to stay right now, but I can handle it.”<i></i> he smiled appreciatively at the girl and pointed towards the ground. “Thanks, Okibi-san. I appreciate your concerns and the food you treated me to. Just don't worry! I got everything under control.”<i></i> It was a lie, but he wouldn't admit otherwise anytime soon. <B>“Anyways, I still owe you a song request! Should I perform it here, or should we finally go visit this 'so-gay' guy and I'll perform it then? I'm actually pretty stoked to meet him!”

It was the truth. He really did enjoy meeting new people, and it'd be interesting to meet someone who worked for the Kage. He probably had a lot of insight and experiences to share; plus, the more publicity he got for his musical career, the better.

Getsurei nodded off the whole conversation and was prepared just to follow the party wherever they decided to go. He tried not to meddle with these type of things, especially in his current form. It was kind of hard to, anyways, since the only ones that were able to hear him were Seven and his troublesome human. Not that he minded.

 

[Okibi]

As the quiet stretched and it seemed like Shiraha was unable to find an answer for Okibi's question, Seven began to wonder if perhaps his human had done what he feared, and gone a little too far. One of his ears turned in Getsurei's direction as the ghostly canine started to ask if he could rein her in, but in truth it wasnt necessary. He'd already planned on doing so. The giant lowered his snout to the girls ear and whispered.

"Dont you think you've pestered him enou-." He was cut off when Okibi rose a hand and covered the end of his maw. She still had her eyes trained on the struggling Shiraha, waiting for an answer. Obstinacy had always been one of her strong suits. Seven let a sigh out through his nose and gave Getsurei and apologetic look; he did say he couldnt promise anything.

But it seemed as though his interention wasnt needed anyway, as Shiraha suddenly rose to his feet and began to laugh. The confidence in his voice was very much at odds with the doubt that had been there just moments ago. He sounded almost... cocky. The spectacle made the large doberman raise a heavy brow.

He couldnt see it, but Okibi had both of her's up in her hairline.

She was rendered pretty much speechless with Shiraha's sudden change in demeanor. While he didnt seem like the quiet type, up until that point she hadnt pegged him for being the boastful type either. The girl blinked owlishly as the white haired young man jabbered. She could admire his drive to see his dream made real, but at the same time, was rather turned off by the way he chose to ignore his duties. He was reduced to using his wonderful talent to scrape up money on the roadside, where people didnt even stop to admire his gift! If he at least did his job, he wouldnt have to end up starving like he had today!

As Shiraha bent over to pick up the now empty cloth, Okibi's nose twitched; there was a stench on the air around her new friend that just couldnt be mistaken. It didnt escape her how he started to emit this smell just as he was telling her that he 'could handle it' and that he 'had everything under control'. Her previously raised brows lowered into a scowl as she named the stench in her mind: dishonesty. She didnt know why he was lying; there was absolutely no reason that she could see for its necessity, but she knew she wasnt about to let him get away with it.

When finally he was done yammering after asking her about the song request and meeting Sousuke, Okibi slowly got to her feet and dusted off her backside. Seven watched her rise with a wary eye, unnerved by her uncharacteristic silence. It was so unlike her to sit quietly and listen to someone talk as much as Shiraha just had. Usually she would either get bored and wander off, or interrupt in the middle. That she actually let the boy finish worried him. What was she concocting? He got to his feet as well and bent his head forward to pick her forehead protector up with his teeth. It would end up left behind if he didnt grab it. He then trained his attention on Okibi and Shiraha, waiting for what would happen next.

Still scowling, Okibi placed her hands on her hips and gave Shiraha a long hard look. After what seemed like minutes, she spoke up. "You lie to Okibi." She stated. She then lifted a hand and pat the side of her nose with her pointer finger. "Can't trick Okibi's nose." Then, suddenly, Okibi marched forward and snatched the bundled up cloth from Shiraha's hands and tossed it to the ground. It could be dealt with later, but right now she had more important things to take care of. With determination she reached out and took one of the boys hands and held it for a moment, just looking at him. Then, she squeezed it tightly (enough so that Shiraha wouldnt be able to escape) and started hauling him towards a door that lead to a staircase that would take them down into the tower.

"You owe Okibi song, yes, but Okibi not want it now. Okibi will tell Cheeta when she wants it, and will take it then only." Her words came out quickly, as though she had to match the pace of her feet as she nearly flew them down many flights of stairs. Seven followed in hot pursuit, but at a slower pace as it was hard for his large form to fit into the stair well. His human was getting further ahead with her fleet feet, even while she was dragging Shiraha.

After another few flgihts, Okibi came to a sudden halt on a landing and stood in front of a door. She looked at Shiraha over her shoulder, giving him a very serious stare. "Until you pay Okibi back, you stay with her, Seven and Sogay." She said with finality, and with that, pushed on through the doors, never letting the grip she had on his hand up. Now that she had less corners to take, Okibi picked her pace up into a run. It was as though gravity itself was helping her float over the floor and down the hallway. She let her nose lead her where she had to go, and in almost no time found the doors that lead to Sousuke's lab. Without a second thought, or any thought at all really, Okibi threw the doors open and stormed in, dragging her (unwilling?) friend along.

"SOGAY!" She yelled at the top of her lungs.

[MFT]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

The Steward was lying down on the floor in his office. It was not often he would do this only under the most abhorrent state imaginable. Bored. The Steward was told to relax and rest from his task in the hospital. It was something he didn't like talking about as he faced an entity that even he was loathe to admit had the capacity of being something other than fiction. The Steward had in essence given the medical tower, enough power to last ten life times. That was an achievement. The building wouldn't be under threat of power outages or backup power running dry at least in his life span. The Steward would continue to work on improving the power core. Currently it was functioning at four hundred percent capacity. Not too bad, if the Steward could say so himself.

The problem though was the foe he faced. It was an ethereal entity. In children's stories they were called ghosts, and oftentimes they were vile spirits. The foe that Sousuke faced had several characteristics of a ghost. Would he not admit to having best a ghost. Ghosts were fictional entities, they had no place in the realm of logic. Or did they? The Steward finally broke his boredom by working on his mark one face plate. He was adjusting some of the sensors to detect heat readings, or for the Steward's purposes a lack of heat readings to bipedal or quadpedal forms. Once completed the Steward placed the mark one face plate on. He watched as a life form or deadform appeared in the lenses. The Steward's eyes narrowed as he got up still keeping an eye on the form in question. It was quad-pedal. He activated his mark one armour which encased his frail form. By this time Okibi was present. She was shouting at his name. The Steward held his index finger up to his mouth plate. "We're under attack by phantoms again... I won't let this one mess with another of my power sources nor will I allow it to bring harm to anyone. Plasma-photon: level four stun."<i></i> The Steward held his palm to where Getsurei's form was. He opened fire with a plasma palm blast which sliced through the roof. The Steward's armoured hands crackled with electrical chakra for a moment as he readied himself. The Steward would then throw himself upward through the roof breaking through the roof attempting to grab a hold of Getsurei relying upon an electrical grip as a physical one would not work on a spectral being. He would attempt to grab the beast by the head and keep its maw closed. "Phantom-animus you have five seconds to disperse or else I will upgrade my weapon systems to force dispersal."

 

[Suika]

Convinced that Okibi bought his little act, Shiraha turned towards his wolfdog and gave him a discreet wink. He then faced the girl, but to his surprise, she seemed extremely unconvinced. She claimed that she had smelled his deceit. “What the... she can do that?” Preoccupied for a small second, the Chuunin examined his own nose. Why couldn't he do that?

He chose not to respond to that comment; anything he would have said at that point regarding the issue would instantly be discredited by the discerning purple-haired kunoichi. Instead, he willingly handed her the tablecloth she took from him and awaited instruction for their next course of action. Getsurei, who remained unphased, was ready, too, to follow his human anywhere he ventured to.

“Ow.” was the word that escaped his lips when Okibi firmly grasped his palm. His hand felt like a small animal caught by an unbinding snare; their was no way he'd get out of her grip (not that he'd attempt to). “Don't worry, Okibi-san. I don't plan on leaving your side 'till my debt is paid!”</B><i></i> He gave her an assured grin, but it was quickly interrupted by a quick tug towards the stairs.

And down they went!

The flights of stairs downwards felt endless, but they soon ended up in front of some door. Before he could question their location in correlation to 'so-gay's' office, Okibi made it known that Shiraha wasn't go anywhere until he had fulfilled his promise. He replied with a nod, which was followed by the tightening of her hold as they dashed from floor to floor. Shiraha allowed himself to be dragged, but stumbled a few times along the way due to not anticipating Okibi's hastened pace. The girl was fast!

Finally, they appeared in front of another door. The pink-eyed girl started to shout out 'So-gay's' name like no ones business as she busted through his door and brought Shiraha alongside her (with Getsurei closely behind him).

Once inside, the dark-skinned youth was taken back a bit. A semi-frail man rose from the floor as a peculiar armor of some sort encased him. The man's focus, or rather 'so-gay's', seemed as if on the ghoulish canine that stood calmly near his human. Was he able to see him? The man continued to ramble on about some phantom, and not only that, but he appeared as if he was entering an offensive stance. A visible chakra formed at the palm of his hands and headed right towards Getsurei!

“What the fu-”<i></i> Getsurei stepped to the side out of reflex; he did not fear getting injured due to his ethereal form. No form of attack was able to affect him – or so he thought. The man's energy blast managed to slightly graze the tips of the apparition's fur as they clipped off into nothingness. How was this possible? “Welp, time to go up!”<i></i> The wolf proceeded to jump upward through the roof in attempts to avoid conflict. Perhaps Okibi or Seven would pacify the man and stop any further actions against him?

Boy, was he wrong.

Before Shiraha was able to even fathom the situation at hand, the man in the suit broke through the wall and started wrestling his wolfdog! He cursed out loud, effortlessly yanked his hand from Okibi, and started to form seals. “Bastard! Away from my dog! I'll kill you!”<i></i> He hadn't realized the girl was probably clueless towards the whole situation; she couldn't even see his departed wolf! Well, not yet, at least.

His arms and claws began to crystallize with multi-colored crystals as he readied himself to destroy his partner's attacker. 'So-gay' would pay!

Meanwhile, Getsurei attempted to bite his attacker's face (athough Sousuke tried to restrain it) and was physically able to wrestle him. It was shocking the man had the ability to somehow materialize him, and slightly impressive. The wolf didn't have time to marvel at such a concept, though. This man meant his utter demise! <B>“Unhand me, you armored villain!” the phantom dog managed to snap as the man tried to contain his jaw. The man appeared unwavering, and gave the wolf five seconds to 'disperse' before he forcefully made this happen. “I c-can't-” his words were cut off by the man that held onto his mouth. He continued to struggle and use all his mights to get the armored guy off him; however, the seconds dropped down fast.

A second before the fifth, Shiraha shadow danced besides Sousuke and used Zantetsuken on him with his crystallized claws in order to tear his armor in half and remove the man off his best friend (an attempt, that is). He wasn't going to lose Getsurei – not today and not ever! Never again.

“Get away from Rei-kun! I swear I'll wipe you off this earth if you harm him.” Shiraha seemed furious – mad, even. His eyes grew feral, and his canines grew sharper than ever. At this point, he wasn't beyond murder; he started to lose all sense and slowly submitted to his animal instincts.

If the armored man proceeded, so would he to ensure his canine's safety. Getsurei fought the man, too, and continued to wrestle for his dear life.

“Off me!”

[MFT]

 

[Okibi]

The moment Okibi made it into the room, she realized something was off. Sousuke had his armor on, and that meant he was either about to test something, or something else was about to go down. It appeared it would be the latter, as her teacher/father person was suddenly firing a palm blast in there direction after first mentioning something about phantoms. Okibi was barely able to keep herself from shrieking, not out of fear, but surprise. "What hell Sogay!?" She shouted, but her exclamations fell on deaf ears as Sousuke was suddenly flying through the roof, leaving a rain of debris behind him.

Had the man completely lost his mind?

She was about to turn to Shiraha and apologize for the mans very rude behavior when the white haired teen suddenly ripped his hand out of her grip and chased after Sousuke, shouting all the way. Okibi was left bereft, and just a little confused. He'd yelled something about his dog - the 'ghost' one he'd told her about earlier if she had to guess - but what did that have to do with Sousuke suddenly going bonkers and shooting his weapons at them? Was his insanity being affected by Sousuke's new lack of screws?

Okibi inched forward after the dust and debris had settled and looked up through the hole that both Sousuke and Shiraha had gone through. Should she follow them? While part of her was quite curious about what was going down, the other didnt want much to do with their screwy business. Maybe if she just waited a while they would come back to their senses?

Yeah, as if she was patient enough for that.

Just as she was about to leap through the hole and follow her companions, Seven burst through the door to Sousuke's office, panting slightly. "Damn stairs." he muttered, trying to catch his breath. He could traverse the building tops of the village just fine, but apparently he couldnt handle a few flights of stairs. Okibi rose her eyebrow at him as the large canine came to stand beside her. He looked up through the hole, now just as confused as she was. "What happened here?" He asked.

Okibi shrugged and made a slight growling noise, just a little frustrated. "Okibi not know. Everyone going crazy." She looked back up through the hole again. "We follow. Come!" And with that, she leaped upwards in pursuit of Sousuke and Shiraha.

Seven sighed heavily and slumped. "I just got down all those damn stairs." He muttered, and then followed his humans lead, barely squeezing through the hole Sousuke made.

When she reached the roof, Okibi whirled around looking for the humans, and caught sight of Sousuke with his arms wrapped around something she couldnt see. Her eyebrows rose again as she observed, and was soon joined by Seven. The canine came to stand beside her and also watched as the steward struggled with Getsurei (whom he could see). Okibi muttered something, making the dog look down at her. "What he doing..."

Just then, Shiraha appeared beside Sousuke and reared some rather lethal looking claws (at least she thought they were claws), and attempted to tear into the man. Okibi jumped slightly, feeling her protective instincts loom up within her. This always happened when anything or anyone threatened Sousuke (aside from herself), but she found herself torn. Did she attack her new friend to defend her packmate? Even if he was well capable of protecting himself? What did she do? Why was everybody going nuts!?

Seven frowned as he watched things play out. If this persisted, he feared more damage would be done to the tower. He was still feeling bad about the hole he'd put into the side of it, so he didnt want to see much else happen. Oh, and of course he was worried for the humans too. Someone could seriously get hurt! "Okibi, perhaps we should step in." He suggested to his human, whom he noticed look rather unsure of what she should do. She didnt reply, but simply continued to watch.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

BG Theme

The Steward's battle with the canine led him rolling around on the top floor of the Kazekage tower. He was evading snapping jaws. The Steward for a small man was holding his own quite well. "Unbent agent, I had expected more of you to come but not so quickly. I undid your insectoid companion with some difficulty. Are you just reckless or do you lack a higher form of intellect? Kal'kous was smart enough to hack the medical security system. You're just blatantly trying to hide in plain sight."<i></i> Sousuke slammed the canine's head against the stone surface. Before doing so he made sure to charge his hands with electrical chakra to give the phantasm a jolt upon impact. The Steward's voice was cold and mechanical. All the time he was thinking of things he could do to cripple the phantom faced. He didn't want this one to disperse. He attempted several blows to the mid section and side joints. "Identification complete. Threat Level three, significantly lower... than Kal'kous."<i></i> The Steward attempted another electrical fist to the muzzle. A single plasma needle formed from Sousuke's wrist which expanded past his middle finger. "Let's see if your susceptible to elemental-primed acupuncture incapacitation."<i></i> Before the Steward could find out he was now being assaulted by another.

“Get away from Rei-kun! I swear I'll wipe you off this earth if you harm him.”

Sousuke didn't detect Shiraha until he cried out and attacked Sousuke. The Steward tried to move out of the way but Shiraha clipped his lower midsection. The Steward felt the impact, but didn't really show any form of pain. He merely kicked off with his feet which went right through Getsurei since his feet were not charged with electrical chakra. The Steward first tried to elbow Shiraha and then attempted to grab him by the wrist and twist accordingly to incapacitate him for a moment. "Threat level increased by four. Psych profile undetermined, but I have underestimated you Unbent agent. In addition to be a Spectral Animus you are also a Mind Flayer concurrently. How many minds have you enthralled or ensorcelled?"<i></i> The Steward ignored Shiraha. "This one seems most willing to do your bidding, Okibi seemed to be less afflicted. Does it break from a forced physical recalibration? Or does it break once you have been terminated?"<i></i> A darker realization hit the Steward. What if the enthrallment didn't break upon termination? "I am loathe to employ a complete medical mental resoc through a Yamnaka. It may have to be done though."<i></i> The Steward turned his palm upon Shiraha his palm charged again. "Stun."<i></i> The Steward would then attempt to blast Shiraha with a very low level stun plasma blast to last mere seconds.

The Steward would then run through more hand seals again to electrify his hands to allow him to make contact with the phantom beast. He paused though for a moment. The Steward's glass lenses focused upon the form that made up Getsurei. Its form further appalled him as it became very clear it was canine. At close range, the former wasn't clear, nor could the Steward fully identify it. He would need to upgrade the lenses to detect the form at a faster rate. "Scum. Did you absorb Number Seven first? You will pay for that."<i></i> The Steward summoned his ebon blade. He charged it with electrical chakra. The black blade sparked and the Steward was again on the move. He brought the blade to his side and charged first trying to grab Getsurei and then taking him with him for a twenty-five level trip off of the Kazekage tower. During that the descent the Steward would take to slashes trying to critically wound the beast. "Where is your carapace? I want to see that violet taint of yours so I can properly dissect you accordingly."<i></i> The Steward had not felt such a thing as he previously made contact, in fact he found the phantom to be ... alot like Number Seven in texture.

 

[Suika]

Shiraha continued his strike on 'so-gay', and managed to scrape parts of his armor. Unfortunately, it had no real affect, and the man did not appear phased. The dark-skinned youth readied himself for another strike, but the duo's aggressor reached out for Shiraha and temporarily incapacitated him with a wrist lock. Well, partially. The Chuunin sent a punch his way with his other hand in attempts to knock his face out, but barely managed to miss. Getsurei, who was a bit preoccupied defending himself from electrical currents, continued to snap at his attacker with brutality. 'So-gay' didn't know when to give up!

“And Okibi thinks I'm crazy. This guy takes the nutty cake!”</I><i></i> Shiraha growled and continued to claw at the man ferociously and ignored his random, insane mumblings. The ghostly wolfdog, contrary to his human, tried to reason with the armored guy. “I don't know what the hell an unbent is, and Rara-kun is no agent of theirs! We are not affiliated with whatever group you're talking about.”</B><i></i> His words were ignored, and the man soon sent a stunning ray at the white-haired shinobi.

“Dammit!” Shiraha cursed as his body froze still for a few seconds. This left enough time for his wolf and the crazed 'so-gay' to roll off of the Kazekage Tower and plummet downward. “Seven is over there, damn you!”<i></i> barked Getsurei as he managed to avoid a few attacks from the man. Some of the attacker's strikes hit, and they were painful as heck. The wolfdog cried out, and this threw his human's emotions over the edge. “Rei-kun!”<i></i> he shouted as he gained mobility and formed seals. Suddenly, twin obsidian dragons formed from non-existence. They were grand in size and were devastatingly heavy; their appearance had already caused dents on the roof of the Kazekage Tower. Shiraha jumped on top of one and commanded them downward. “Let's go!”

The twin dragons spiraled down the tower towards the battling apparition and iron man. It's crystalline body slid against the outside of the tower and severely damaged many parts of the establishment. It was a bit overboard for the situation at hand, but the thought of losing his companion again made the Chuunin lose most sense. Plus, it was always better to intimidate the enemy with awesomeness!

Shiraha managed to catch up with the duo and sent forth his dragon to attack the man. While this was being done, he ran alongside the other and tried to separate the two. <B>“Let go of my dog, jerk!”<i></i> he exclaimed as his diamond claws attempted to press into the man's armor.

<I>“Where's the Kazekage when you need him? You'd figure he'd be out here assisting us with all this commotion!” Shiraha growled some more as he continued his attempts to separate the battling pair. He just wanted Getsurei out of there and safe. “Off me!” snapped the wolfdog again. “Heavens, man!”<i></i>

This situation was all too crazy. It could have been avoided, too, but Okibi's friend insisted on being a loon who attacked innocent ghost dogs. Speaking of which, where was the girl?

 

[Okibi]

Things were getting out of hand way too quickly, and if something wasnt done, they were going to end up with a real mess on their hands. Okibi hated to admit it... but the fighting had to stop. But what was the best way to do so...? Her claws dug into her palms as the girl tried to think of a way to intervene in the pointless fight happening before her. A part of her just wanted to jump into the fray and let loose, but that would probably just add fuel to the fire. For some reason, it seemed that Sousuke thought she was being 'mind controlled'. Surely an act of violence would only solidify such a notion.

How to do this?

As Okibi fought with herself, Seven watched the battle with growing anxiety. He had a distinct feeling that something bad was about to hap-

And thats when Sousuke and Getsurei went over the edge of the tower. With wide red eyes, Seven dashed to the far edge and looked over. The Kazekage tower was by no means a small building, or even an average sized one for that matter. It was incredibly tall. A fall from such heights could cause some serious damage! Okibi was soon at his side, as she had also seen what happened, and shouted. "Sogay!"

The sound of crushing rubble gave the two a start and they both turned around just in time to see two enormous, dark crystalline dragons rear up and charge their way. "Duck!" Seven yelled as he covered Okibi's form with his own. The dragons, along with Shiraha, went sailing over their heads and down the side of the tower, in hot pursuit of Sousuke. Once they were gone, Okibi squirmed out from under Seven and jumped into the ledge of the roof. Her face twisted with anger as she finally decided on what she had to do. "This so stupid." She murmured as she smacked Seven on the shoulder. With a poof of smoke, his canine form disappeared and was replaced with a large, humanoid one. She pulled on the lapels of his snazzy jacket and made his seven foot tall frame stand beside her. "Okibi get Sogay, you try calm down Cheeta. If he not listen, just try hold him."

With that, Okibi flew through a few hand seals and launched herself down the side of the tower. She ran with gravity downwards, and increased its pull to make her go faster. In the short time that she'd conversed with Seven, her friends were already more than halfway down. She was going to have to kick things up! She doubled the pull of gravity around her, and could barely keep her feet in contact with the tower. Now that her gravity was almost four times that of which was pulling on Sousuke and Shiraha, she was quickly gaining on them. In no time, she passed them.

However, the ground was rising up awfully fast. There would be no room for error!

Just feet from the ground, Okibi dispelled her gravitational jutsu and held herself to the wall, waiting. She looked up, just a bit anxious as Sousuke's falling form drew closer. Just then, one of the Shiraha's black dragons lunged at caretaker, and she knew that she had to act. Her white haired friend wasnt making anything easier for her when he tried once more to slice at the steward with his clawed hand. Thankfully, that was when Seven made his move, having made his way down the tower by digging his claws into the side, using sheer strength to keep himself from succumbing to gravity. He jumped from the tower and attempted to tackle Shiraha off his obsidian creations. He grabbed onto the boy with his enormous hands and tried to grapple him into submission as they fell to the much closer ground.

Nodding, Okibi did the same thing as rocketed at Sosuuke just as his body was lined up with her. She tackled him out of the way of the oncoming dragons and sent both of them flying. They would sail horizontal to the ground for a good few yards before skidding and rolling over its surface. When they came to a stop, Okibi latched onto Sousuke's armored neck as though her very life depended on it. If nothing else, she could at least stop him this way. Whether he tried to remove her or not, she would not let go, and surely he wouldnt continue to fight if she was in his way. "Sogay stop fighting! Stop and listen!" She yelled, demanding.

As Seven tried to deal with Shiraha, Okibi looked in his direction and nodded. She wasnt about to point. "Seven fine. He right there, hold back Cheeta, Okibi's new friend. Okibi not know why everybody lose minds, but Sogay need stop! Okibi not want Sogay and Cheeta fighting!" It was such an odd statement, coming from the girl who was well known for having an impulsiveness for violence. That she had to be the voice of reason there... it was such an odd turn of the tables.

Seven spoke up from where he was, grappling with Shiraha. His voice came out strained from the effort, but there was no denying that it was Seven's voice. "We met these two while we were at the Grand Palais, Sousuke." He explained. His mention of 'two' made Okibi raise an eyebrow at him. What did he mean, two? The dog in human form continued, "Shiraha here aspires to be a musical sensation, but his current situation is not very stable. Okibi wanted to have him stay with us." He looked up in their direction. "Gesturei, over there, is the spirit of his deceased canine companion. In life, he was to Shiraha much the way I am to Okibi." He explained further, hoping that this was getting through to his armored friend.

"He is capable of little more than maintaining his existence. No one is being controlled Sousuke."

(Im not sure what happened to Getsurei during all that... o_o)

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Once Shiraha began to damage the tower with his ebony dragons, the Steward turned Shiraha to top priority. The Steward with his free hand made a fist. Several gears began shifting as the Steward prepared his own devastating technique to reduce Shiraha to a molten primordial puddle. It was with great regret he was doing this, but it had to be done as the very Kazekage Tower was under threat of destruction. A spectral orb appeared in the Steward's hands as he began to charge as he was descending. The Steward began calling upon forces that even he had only began to understand when he combined high levels of lightning and fire chakra when he formed the plasma element. The technique was condensing the lightning elemental to its finer element being the sheer heat of a lightning bolt. In tandem this was going to be combined with natural heat of fire jutsus. The Steward concentrated upon a focal point in the spectral orb which was going to be the most concentrated heat zone of the jutsu. The Steward himself did not know what was the temperate of the jutsu itself, but it certainly challenged the legendary Uchiha techniques.

The Steward held his palm with the orb facing Shiraha. The focal point in the orb began to grow in size as it tried to contain the heat inside. By this time Okibi had latched onto him which the Steward had not foreseen as he was so deeply concentrated on this jutsu. Okibi broke his concentration completely and the orb dispersed into nothingness. A black hole appears inside the orb and consumed the heat focal point and the orb itself. The Steward panicked as Okibi would still not let go of him. Even when they landed, she kept hold of him. The Steward tried moving forward, but he just couldn't. Instead he did what Okibi told him to do which was to listen. This simple command gave Sousuke pause, wasn't he the one usually telling Okibi to stop and listen? His ward explained to him that this boy was her new friend. The Steward was silent but he was listening. The gears in his armour was shifting as he turned his head over to Shiraha. The Steward exchanged looked with Okibi and Shiraha. The Steward blinked. It made sense, but why was it so hard for him to grasp. The Steward then turned his gaze onto the phantom animus. Oh yes. That thing. Even that thing was shortly explained by Number Seven who the Steward was very contented to hear from. "That thing over there is not quantified by meta-physical limitations. It's not obeying natural alamagous physical hierarchical order in the third limitation."<i></i> The Steward had to rewind for a moment again. He looked at Okibi, then to Number Seven, then to Getsurei. "It's self sustaining core attribute is a negative sixth stage cold state, and a shadow elemental third stage invert. It can't possibly be a true phantom animus of the first level, that's not possible that's children's fiction."<i></i> The Steward stated as if he expected anyone to know what he was talking about. Again he took a moment to stare at Number Seven and Getsurei. "It has to be ... no. You're standing right there. They don't absorb hosts without them being alive... "<i></i> The Steward then finally looked at Shiraha and then at Getsurei. "No... that can't be right... that's not ... possible. It can't be."<i></i>

Number Seven then explained exactly what Getsurei was. Number Seven put into words what Sousuke's scientific explanation would have if they had properly understood the realm of meta-physical duality existence. Again gears were shifting about as the Steward turned his gaze back to Getsurei and Shiraha. "..."<i></i> The Steward began to retreat towards the fence with Okibi still attached to him. The Steward virtually positioned himself at maximum distance between himself and the ghost dog, without leaving the Kazekage tower grounds. "Maybe if I close my eyes and power down, he will be gone. A proper Phantasm Animus do not exist. They are fictional entities for the purpose of entertaining young children in the form of a story."<i></i> The Steward's armor powered down and his lenses went dark. "I am going to reboot the system, and that thing will not be there."<i></i> The glass eye lenses turned on again to a bright yellow. The Steward slowly turned his head to find Getsurei still being there. "I do not like this. I have been further compromised than I originally thought I was. It is not natural for things to be reanimated, it happened in the Grand Palaias, but that remains off the record. That event has been stricken from the record, and marked out. I did it personally with a very thick black marker. My father pleaded me not to burn the--"<i></i> Sousuke stopped talking as he was speaking of a matter of state that should have remained silent.

Something normal was then discussed being Shiraha and his lack of self sustainability due to him being a musical artist. The Steward remained still maximum distance away from him as Getsurei was still in the area. The Steward did not deactivate his armour. It made him feel safe at the moment, especially with something not easily explainable. "Yeeess... I do believe that you are indeed in control of your own will. That was a ... poorly made assessment of the situation. I... I... have possibly been in combat with things that are not easily explained to those of ... I can certainly explain them unlike a certain Phantasm Animus that ... ... remains diagonal from my current position."<i></i> The Steward looked from Okibi then to Shiraha. "Musician? Stay with us? He just did damage to the tower, and possibly broke all the windows in my office. Why would he want to be a musician? He's capable of higher combat but certainly not on my level or that of Lady Azame. A musician's success is all dependent on repetitive lyrics or music that if given enough time will annoy the general populous."<i></i> The Steward crossed his arms.

 

[Suika]

BAM! BOOM! BAM!

And the action continued! Well, all until a spunky purple-haired kunoichi and her humongous mutant doberman decided to intervene. It was a relief they did so, too!

Just as Shiraha was about to strike the armored steward with his heavy, sharp claws, and just as that very man charged a potentially devastating laser at him, Seven tackled the dark-skinned youth back as Okibi latched herself onto the 'so-gay' guy. Shiraha cursed under his breath and attempted to still inch as close as he possibly could towards his canine's attacker; his fury was strong and his adrenaline was pumped way too high. Despite this, Seven's evident strength within his human form was more than enough to hold him back from further conflict. “Let go, Seven!”</B><i></i> he growled. Getsurei was still in danger!

Well, not really. Okibi now had total control of her friend; however, Shiraha was too panic'd to notice.

Getsurei, who took advantage of their new friends' interception in the battle, managed to escape the electrically-charged grasp of his attacker and hopped besides his human's side (and Seven's). Although he was still fairly ticked and a little injured from this spontaneous 'jumping', he was still slightly concerned about the tower's condition and what it would potentially cost them if his partner further damaged it. “Rara-kun, I'm here now. Call off your jutsu!”<i></i> he announced in a firm, loud voice. Shiraha, who was still caught by fear's grip, was wide-eyed and shook his head. “No, Rei-kun! I won't let him take you from me!” The wolfdog apparition sighed in response. It was assuring that his human had his best interest in mind, but now was the time to chill.

“Rara-kun, Okibi and Seven have this under control now. No one's going to take me from you – trust me. Rather, trust them, our new friends.”<i></i> It was pretty odd of the ghoulish canine to even claim anyone as mere acquaintances, much less friends, so this came as a shock to the Chuunin who struggled from Seven's restraint (even to Getsurei himself). This brought him at more ease, and although wary, finally submitted to his wolf's request. “Your right, Rei-kun.” He turned towards Seven and gave him a nod. <B>“Sorry, Seven.”<i></i>

And just like that, the struggle was over. Suddenly, the obsidian dragons that were once wrapped around the tower burst into dusts of ebony, and Shiraha landed on the ground below alongside the two dogs. His pupils returned to its former relaxed state, and his canines reverted back to normal size. The wolfdog grinned in response; his human showed extreme maturity in this situation by taming his feral fury at initial request. It was very admirable.

“Good job, Rara-kun. Proud of ya.”<i></i> Shiraha, whose attention was still focused on 'so-gay' and Okibi, just gave him a somber nod in response. The man before him, though, seemed as is if he was lost in thought or something.

It was apparent that 'so-gay', now identified as Sousuke by Seven, was very confused at this point as he tried to process Getsurei's existence, especially as Seven began to explain the situation. Speaking of the now human doberman, the bluntness and eloquence of his words made Shiraha cringe a little. The dog's realist explanation of the musician's status stung his ego a bit (like Okibi had earlier), and the words seeped deeper into his brain. “I guess I'm not doing so hot as I thought...”<i></i> he glanced downward to the side. Reality was a punk.

Wait, Okibi's intention was for Shiraha to stay with them?

He quickly shot an unsure glance at his dog who responded with a similar expression of his own. How could he possibly accept something like that? The last thing he wanted to do was burden his new friend. Not that he had enough time to contemplate the issue, for soon enough Sousuke added in his own words.

The steward appeared somewhat regretful, maybe embarrassed. Getsurei remained a little bothered, but sympathized with the guy a bit. If one saw a ghost or some other unknown entity, it wasn't too peculiar to react with a flight or fight response. The man just responded with his instincts, something the wolf was all too familiar with. Shiraha, on the other hand, was still a bit butt-hurt. It didn't help, either, that Sousuke went along with the whole 'musicianship is useless' concept. He gave the man a look and responded with a semi-serious demeanor.

“Seven is correct in what he says. My name is Shiraha, Chuunin of Sunagakure and musician.”<i></i> he cleared his throat and tried to sound as assertive as possible. He wasn't naturally so, so he had to put a deal of effort into it. It probably would have been apparent to anyone who had an observant eye. “Career and lifestyle choices aside, I don't like how you treated Getsurei. He did nothing to you, and although his presence may be freaky to those who can see him, it's no excuse to randomly attack him, especially since he didn't pose any threat to you.”<i></i> It was really hard to keep angry at the man who acted so scatter-brained, and hints of friendliness attempted to escape his lips. He tried his best to ignore this natural impulse.

“I apologize for what I did with the tower, but it was all natural reaction provoked by your hostile actions.”<i></i> he sighed. He didn't like feeling angry. “I'm still pretty confused as to what happened, but I'm willing to give you the benefit of the doubt. I ask, though. Please apologize to Rei-kun; he deserves that respect.”<i></i> It was more of a request than statement, and his tone hinted strong desire for this to be met. It was almost a desperation; he cared too much for his partner's well-being and dignity to be his passive self in this situation.

Getsurei turned his head towards his human somewhat taken back. “Rara-kun, it isn't necessary. Don't get me wrong, I'm still pretty pissed, but I'll live.”<i></i> Shiraha did not waiver to his words, and looked forward towards Sousuke in silence as he awaited a response. He even shot a glance or two at Okibi two from time to time in curiosity as to what she thought of the matter. She was probably just as bewildered as the man besides her.

The chaotic situation at hand was finally calming, but he just needed this apology as a token of resolve. Hopefully they'd move this conversation inside soon; the outside setting of the tower still looked like a war zone!

 

[Okibi]

As his struggle with Shiraha lessened, slowly Seven let go of the boy. He watched with a warm heart as Getsurei calmed the raging teenager, much the way he had to do with Okibi in the past. It made him feel good, to see another pair that was very similar to him and his human. His attention was pulled away from the reunited duo when Sousuke, who was still being impaired by Okibi, starting spouting science vocabulary in an attempt to explain the ghost dogs existence. Seven couldnt help grinning when he saw the affect that the sudden turn had on Okibi's face. She never could stand Sousuke's science jabber for long.

"Some things just cant be explained, Sousuke." He said to the steward, humor evident in his voice.

Okibi shot Seven a look, knowing what he was laughing about. Her face screwed up unpleasantly, and she wished she could let go of Sousuke so she could cover her ears. If he kept at it, Sousuke was going to end up giving her a headache with all his yammering. But, since she was still latched onto his front to keep him from attacking, Okibi had no choice but to take the full brunt of his verbosity. 'Screw it, if I have to take this, Im gonna be behind him.' She thought to herself as she monkeyed herself up and over Sousuke's shoulder. She made herself comfortable on his armored back, now riding him piggy back style.

"It's okay Sogay. Everybody going crazy these days. Seven too, apparently." Okibi said, all seriousness, as she pat his helmet. She still couldnt see or hear Getsurei, so she could only assume that everyone was losing their minds. Obviously, she was the only sane person left in the area. Seven made a face, slightly unhappy with his new plight. He knew speaking out about Getsurei was going to land him in the loony bin with the rest of them. Oh well.

"What Sousuke says is true. To become a self reliant, successful musician your music would have to become popular with the people of the village. Seeing as how we found you in the street singing for change, I think its safe to say you havent reached that stage yet." Seven said, looking down at Shiraha. He knew he was being brutally, perhaps even harshly honest, but he felt that the boy had to hear it. Having a dream, an aspiration, was never a bad thing... unless it put your own health at risk. Okibi rose up on Sousuke's shoulders, lookin on from above his head.

"Cheeta not belong on street! Is stupid. You come stay with us, do real job, and play music on side!" She declared. She then looked down at Sousuke and rattled his helmet with her arms. "Okibi buy Cheeta lunch, so he owe her song. But Okibi not want it yet. He live with us until debt repaid, yes?"

From across the way, Seven threw in his two extra sense. "I think it's only the least you could do, Sousuke, considering you did attack Getsurei without any provocation."

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"I didn't attack Getsurei due to a lack of provocation."<i></i> Sousuke argued. He pointed back to Getsurei. "By natural order, he should not be here. It's a matter of Poruma's State of Existence Theorem. She wrote that by right non-existential high beings will attack due to an equal absolute hateful nature of things in the opposite realm. You nor Okibi were there when I called the Code Yellow at the Toraono Engagement party."<i></i> The Steward sighed. He really didn't walk to talk about this, but no one would understand him otherwise. "From my limited experience with the reanimated or phantasmal, you have oh ... I don't know? Three milliseconds before you get attacked or something else gets attacked? It makes sense that I acted the way I did which is in accordance of Poruma's State of Existence Theorem."<i></i> Sousuke explained. "I suppose though, there are exceptions and this is one of them. An exception occurs once in one thousand-six hundred and seventy occurrences as per the..."<i></i> Sousuke paused again. "I am sorry... but I do have my reasons for acting as I did. As the Steward Kazekage and Guardian Protectorate of the realm in absence of a Sunahoshi, I must respond to all threats and future threats."<i></i>

The Steward rose up. "I suppose now I can safely make the conclusion that Getsurei is ... mostly safe."<i></i> The Steward listened to how Okibi ranted that everyone was going insane. The Steward made a conclusion from that being that Okibi could not see Getsurei. The Steward headed towards the Kazekage with Okibi on top of him. It looked like a few times he was going to tip over. He didn't though. "I'm going to fix the fact you cannot see Getsurei Okibi."<i></i> The Steward walked off to the side and reached into his lab coat removing a set of keys on a ring. He went through them and picked out a copper key. He opened up a panel on the side and pressed a green button. The side of the wall went up revealing a door. The Steward inserted the key and turned three times. Once done he lifted the door up and went inside. The room was all dark and smelled of iron and steel. "There it is."<i></i> The Steward saw something in the darkness and grabbed a rope. He began to struggle. "Always a little heavier..."<i></i> He said as he struggled slightly as he began pulling it out. The sound of wheel turning could be heard as Sousuke pulled forward. Eventually he made it out of the room after some effort. What he was pulling out was draped by a large table cloth. "Please don't mention to Mother that I used this table cloth. I didn't think she would miss it."<i></i> The Steward once he got the mystery item out closed the door, locked it, and closed the hidden pannel. He again went to pulling the wheeled object underneath the cloth towards the company of Number Seven, Shiraha, and Getsurei.

The Steward still with Okibi on his shoulders pulled back the cloth revealing his ongoing project: 7.1. The Steward merely shrugged his shoulders. "It's a shame we cannot get the mental uplink helmet to fully record Number Seven's thinking habits."<i></i> The metallic canine looked more threatening this time due to the larger cannons now present on the shoulders, as well as ones on the sides of the hind legs. "I upgraded the senbon cannons to 3 millimeters, and the cartridge to contain five hundred. I also imputed an anti-photon cannon upgrade too, with a homing arrow system to track chakra entities. The paws now contain a higher temperate plasma claw. This is heavy metal in the extreme."<i></i> The Steward began to de-weaponize the weapon before everyone as they continued to chatter. "So. Okibi bought you lunch. That was nice of her. I myself cannot cook, but I too rely on the charity of others. House Toraono has a habit of sending me weekly food supplies in the form of sandwiches. They are most delicious I assure you."<i></i> Sousuke spoke as he took apart the shoulder cannons. Next he worked on the paws removing the plasma core. "I'm not quite sure why you all resort to forms of names in place of their fuller versions. It is not insulting to be called Rei instead of Getsurei? Okibi has a habit of shorting names too, but she's that much less formal, which I am ... fine with. I myself wouldn't have it though. You should honour the ancestors who have named you so. Granted my name has a longer version too ... being Takahashi Sousuke the third, titles, titles. It's not the titles being cut off that bothers me more of the simplification of the name. Unlike Okibi, who is rapidly progressing, you Shiraha seem to have a fuller and complete master of the common language. Is it me or just people aren't formal or is it the simple fact that one's parents do not teach them the fullest and complete form of addressing one proper?"<i></i> By this time the Steward had removed even more weapons from 7.1. They were really beginning to pile up.

The Steward turned to Getsurei, "Alright so... Getsurei the Eidolon I would like for you to attempt to ... inhabit this shell. I once remember my mother telling more stories about how ... ... ... "<i></i> The Steward's eyes flashed brightly. He seemed to be like a deer caught in the headlights. He still couldn't believe he was even doing this, but this was for Okibi's sake mainly. "... beings of a phantom nature can possess things. I've made it safe for you to do so of this shell."<i></i> The Steward reached into his lab coat and removed a pad of paper and a pen. "Commence when ready. I do want to see this for myself."<i></i>

 

[Suika]

After some scientific explanation from the steward before them, an apology was finally given. It was what the Inuzuka had wanted, but what followed the apology threw him off completely. With an ever-gradual increasing twitch and his mouth slowly growing agape, Shiraha threw his hands in the air and yelled out. “K-k-KAZEKAGE?!” He almost passed out. Getsurei gave the man a nod in acknowledgment of his apology, but deep inside mirrored the same reaction as his human. The man who had attacked him was the leader of this village? He didn't know whether to be complimented or disappointed. Nonetheless, his human continued to react as the wolfdog appeared seemingly unaffected.

“Kazekage-sama!”</B><i></i> the dark-skinned youth gave him a slight head bow. He was a bit shocked, but more-so than that, embarrassed. He couldn't believe he used one of his most devastating jutsu against the head of their village! Granted, the Kazekage kind of earned that particular treatment due to his aggressive approach against Getsurei, but this minor revelation still caught him off guard. He didn't dwell on this much further, for Seven continued to press the issues concerning the musician's lifestyle. The teen remained silent through the doberman's lecture; he couldn't argue against the truth. In many ways, Seven sounded a lot like Getsurei did. The ghostly dog had given him the same speech countless times. Hearing it from another put it into perspective more. Though, part of him still didn't want to accept it. Why was he so stubborn?

Okibi added in her own two cents and sent out an offer that gave no room for refusal. “Okibi-san...” Shiraha muttered softly as he stared at the girl with appreciative disbelief. He was touched, but at the same time was equally as turned off to the idea. As much of him that longed to deny her in attempts to protect his ego, he couldn't bring himself to it. The young man, instead, flashed the purple-haired kunoichi a smile as a small playfulness coated his pupils.

“Well, you better request a song soon, then. Eventually, as my popularity grows, I'm gonna have to live life on the road and go on tour!”<i></i> he then gave the girl a wink. “Until then, I'm a man of my word. I won't let you down.” Shiraha's expression softened, and he gave her a head bow. “Thank you, Okibi-san.”

Getsurei observed the situation with a bit of a joy erupting from his usually grumpy expression. It warmed his heart to see the generosity and kindness of Seven and Okibi. Anyone who treated his human so awesomely was worthy of his eternal respect. He just prayed that the white-haired shinobi wouldn't screw it up somehow. “I'll make sure he doesn't cause trouble for you two. Let this not be a burden on your part.”<i></i> he stated plainly to his fellow beast. That's all he'd have to say on the topic for now.

As this appreciation-fest ensued, Sousuke seemed preoccupied retrieving some type of large object from his lab. It was covered by a tablecloth, and it instantly caught the duo's attention. What the heck was underneath? The Kazekage unveiled the covering and revealed to the group a giant mechanical wolf-like robot with intimidating weaponry attached and other metallic parts that were difficult to identify.

“Woah.” <i></i>

Both Shiraha and Getsurei stared at the metallic model in awe. Sousuke created this? He truly was magnificent. The man then continued to start tinkering with it and created conversation as he did so. The dark-skinned shinobi, who remained trapped in wonder, answered half-interestingly as he observed the Kazekage de-weaponize the robot. “Well, it's safe to say I didn't have the best upbringing, but Rei-kun and I just use nicknames when addressing one another as terms of endearment. It's been like this as long as I could remember.”<i></i> That's all he had to say on the issue. He was definitely way more interested in what the man had in store for them.

Finally, Sousuke was done doing whatever he did to the mechanical masterpiece. He approached Getsurei and instructed him to possess the metal canine robot and use it as a vessel to gain a physical form. It was true that phantoms in folklore and stories were known for their abilities in possession, but he hadn't really ever tried it out. “Kazekage-sama, I'm impressed.”

Getsurei circled the mechanical dog and sniffed it curiously (even butt-sniffing. It's a habit). One would assume it wasn't safe considering his whole chaotic fiasco with the man, but he felt no ill-intention from him. The steward appeared genuinely interested in how this would pan out, and honestly, the apparition felt the same. He gave Sousuke a nod, took a deep breath, and turned towards his human. Shiraha gave his canine a smile and thumb's up as for assurance. “Don't worry, Rei-kun. You got this!”

Without any more hesitation, the ghoulish wolfdog literally hopped into the mechanical being. Nothing in particular occurred for the first few seconds, but as soon as that tiny fragment of time passed, the robot began to shake. It's eyes began to glow a ghostly white, and the same runes that were marked on Getsurei's body were now emblazoned on the model. Soon, he turned his head towards Sousuke, and in the same tone of voice as his previous form, spoke.

“I feel... great.” he played around with his new mechanical joints and scratched the surface below him with his metallic claws. He even bounced and pace to test out his new found physical mobility. <B>“I feel awesome!”<i></i> It was actually the first time that excitement had entered the wolfdog's voice, or rather, the first time in front of the crowd before him. Shiraha grinned excitedly and clapped. Sousuke was a genius!

Getsurei wasted no time. He turned towards Okibi and gave her a bow. “It's nice to finally meet you, Okibi. I'm Getsurei, and yes, I also think they're all still slightly mad.”<i></i> It was his attempts in being humorous, but overall, it was just nice to have a physical tone that was even heard to those not spiritually aware.

This truly was momentous.

[MFT]

 

[Okibi]

Seven listened patiently as Sousuke tried to explain his reasons for attacking Getsurei. In all honesty, the dog didnt buy any of it, but in the long run that didnt really matter. It was Getsurei who'd been affronted violently, not himself. If anyone had the right to be bothered (and that was putting it light) it was the ghost wolf. However, seeing as how Sousuke did bring himself around to apologizing for his actions, Seven did hope that the air would lighten. Slowly, it seemed like his hopes werent going to be let down.

Both Seven and Okibi were thrown for a small loop when Shiraha's attitude toward Sousuke drastically shifted. They didnt know if it was because their human friend apologized for his transgressions, or if it was because his true identity had just been revealed, but nonetheless, they found the change startling. Seven was elated to see things turning out well, but Okibi was almost bothered. Sure, she wanted the two to stop fighting, but Shiraha was going to let it go just like that? He could forget about his anger so easily?

Why couldnt she have such an ability?

Okibi didnt have long to mull over such thoughts as things rapidly progressed. It was then that she realized for the first time exactly what Shiraha called Sousuke, and her mouth twisted in an amused grimace. "Sogay not like being called that." She said, referring to the title of Kazekage. She didnt quite understand his insistence on not being called that, but didnt much care about it either; she only ever called him Sogay.

Things took another turn when Shiraha suggested she pick a song fast, because his popularity was going to grow. The girl snorted loudly and rolled her eyes. "Because Cheeta so popular already." She said sarcastically, returning his wink obnoxiously. Perhaps it was a bit harsh as far as jokes went, but Okibi wasnt known for her tact. All while this, she held fast to Sousuke's neck, dangling down his back like a sock monkey. Even when he started making his way toward the tower, she clung to him. Once inside his secret room place, Okibi realized she might make things easier for him if she were to get off... the load he was lugging out seemed fairly heavy.

Bah, he could handle it!

So, she sat there comfortably while Sousuke dragged his cloth covered mountain out of the tower and back to Shiraha and the two dogs. When he revealed it, Okibi sat up a bit straighter on his back, recognizing the metal construct. Across the way, Seven took notice as well and made a face. "You were still working on that? After what happened last time?" He said, voice laced with incredulity. Who could blame him for feeling that way though? The last time they tried to operate the metalic puppet they'd blown a hole in the side of the tower.

His rhetorical question was ignored as Sousuke started to remove the numerous weapons that the puppet boasted, while making chit chat at the same time. It was quite an interesting site, seeing as how Okibi was holding on quite steadfastly, even though Sousuke had to maneuver any number of ways to reach all the weapons on 7.1. One of the comments the armored man made caused the girl to growl slightly and push away from his back so she could glare at the back of his head. He'd said that unlike her, Shiraha had a complete understanding of the common language. Apparently, he had a horrible memory, as she demonstrated for him not long ago that she in fact could speak exactly the way he could. She simply chose not to on a regular basis.

With a huff, Okibi pushed and sprung off Sousuke's back, flipping through the air to land next to Shiraha. She crossed her arms with a pout and glared into empty space. She didnt see any point in bringing up the matter, as it was quickly being bypassed. Sousuke just never realized when he was being insulting towards her. Or perhaps she was just too sensitive when it came to his perception of her intelligence. Yeah, that was probably it. Seven gave her a look, which the girl duly ignored. She just needed a moment.

Her personal moment was quickly interrupted however when the giant metallic copy of suddenly came to life and started moving around. Okibi started just slightly, having been completely out of it when Sousuke was talking to the unseen Getsurei. She'd completely ignored the man, chalking up his comments to his insanity. But how could she ignore a 'puppet' moving... and talking all on its own? She blinked owlishly as the creation approached her, greeted her 'finally', and introduced itself as Getsurei. For a few moments, all she could do was stare.

And then she suddenly turned to Sousuke, still crossing her arms. "You change puppet Sogay? Can move on own like Kitchy now?" She asked.

Seven palmed his face with a gloved hand. Obviously getting Okibi to believe in Getsurei and as a byproduct, their sanity, was going to be a little harder than just giving the ghost wolf a fake body.

[MFT]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Once Getsurei had made contact with the shell of 7.1 the Steward removed himself from the immediate vicinity in a phase movement. In fact he moved himself to the roof of the entry point to the Kazekage tower. The Steward sat there making notes, and hoping no one was going to miss him. An extreme hesitancy came over to the Steward when dealing with things that should not be. That and the Steward for all his mental prowess was still not the most socially graceful person due to a childhood autism that he had never quite gotten over. Shiraha had become far too interested in Sousuke to the point where the Steward wasn't comfortable. Shiraha took to shouting his name not once but twice. The Steward hoped that he wouldn't be spotted so easily as he took to the rooftop and sat there making notes. The Steward tapped the side of his faceplate to make future conversations seem disembodied. "I'm not technically the Kazekage, I'm the Steward first and foremost. Council decided to hyphenate my title, because they wanted to give the Stewards more power in the absence of the Sunahoshi. Not that we needed more power, I suppose they wanted us to sign in place of the Kazekage-proper."<i></i> Sousuke explained. He continued to make notes about the possession of 7.1 and how it adopted Getsurei's voice.

Okibi's sarcasm was completely missed by Sousuke. The Steward paused, "I'm slightly confused. Is Shiraha popular or not? This is so confusing. Does Shiraha live under threat of death because he's made some form of bad music that has annoyed the masses? Is his singing voice akin to that of a young female girl? Is this why he lives on the street?"<i></i> The Steward stopped writing and stared down. "It could be entirely possible..."<i></i> The Steward honestly didn't want to hear his singing voice then. Sousuke continued making notes about Getsurei in the mean time. "Oh, and Number Seven I did not forsake this project. I still intend for it to be a big success. Not on a mass production level of course. At least now I'm getting the full mobility test that I wanted to get earlier. So far everything is going at optimum level. Ah... and no Okibi. This is not quite like Kitchenzilla. Think of it like this... "<i></i> The Steward paused and thought hard about the matter. "Imagine for an instance, my mother having the ability to gain control of you. Your will would be displaced and replaced with hers and she would be able to move your body with her will. In this case 7.1 has no will of its own. Instead of this being a very bad scenario for 7.1, it is most fortunate for Getsurei as now he has a ... body to prove his own profound existence to you."<i></i> The Steward wondered if he had explained this correctly and most accurately.

"You should have explained the concept of possession using the story I told you when you were little."<i></i> Came the voice of the Steward's mother who was standing above the Steward on another rooftop. Chiyoko peered down and snorted. "My seals detected something from the nether present. Kuro isn't the only one to have seals about detecting things."<i></i> She folded her arms and inspected Shiraha and the possessed 7.1. The Steward and his mother exchanged glances. "You can't remain hidden forever. Isn't it time for you to go back down and socialize some more with Okibi's friend? It isn't often she brings one here."<i></i>

"I'll go once you go down first."<i></i> Sousuke responded.

Chiyoko placed her foot out as if to make the jump but she realized Number Seven was present. The older nin had gotten used to him to some extent, but still he gave her the creeps. "No... i think not, the roof seems quite nice. Good spot to pick my son... for the act of chilling that is."<i></i>

 

[Juzo]

Raijin was nearby and making an expression somewhere between pained remorse and total disbelief. For whatever reason the Kazekage was on the roof as was his mother. Luckily there were enough tops to the Kazekage's building for the bodyguard to approach in much the same way. Albeit we would have used the door if he hadn't heard so much commotion up above. Now that he was closer he could see Sousuke being yelled at by his mother. It was almost too painful to interrupt but it was important after all.

So he moved closer, not bothering to use unnecessary stealth, and he cleared his throat rather loudly. "Sir, there is a message from Kirigakure for you......"


"......I hope I am not interrupting something important here."

It was hard to say what was going on but he didn't bother with speculation. Such things were dangerous for a man of protection.



[thread ninja]

 

[Suika]

Shiraha's head tilted somewhat when both Sousuke and Okibi corrected him on the title of his name. He didn't like being called Kazekage? He was either extremely modest or truly didn't fancy the name. Either way, it was a bit endearing. He always figured the Kazekage would act as some hot shot. He had every right to, anyway, but it was refreshing that he didn't. “Sousuke-san, then. My bad.”</B><i></i> He smiled, but his joyful expression was then completely wiped off from the same two. He flung his arms up and shouted defensively.

“Pft. I'm definitely popular!” he barked out more, this time looking up at the steward. “And my music doesn't annoy people! I'm as talented as it gets!”<i></i> he growled as his ego swelled. Getsurei would have normally pacified the young musician, but he was too preoccupied with his new metallic figure. He acted as if a child at a candy store. He paced back and forth, hopped, rolled, and ran circles. He felt awesome.

Shiraha raised an eyebrow as the purple-haired kunoichi still had her doubts regarding the existence of his ghostly wolfdog and the sanity of the men present. She also mentioned something by the name of 'Kitchy', which he figured by now went by a different name considering her humorous tendency to give everything a nickname. Seven did not look pleased by her reaction, and although Getsurei was caught up with his new physical form, he, too, sighed. “Okibi-san...” the Chuunin muttered as he was about to explain, but Sousuke took the liberty in explaining. It was a good thing, too, because Shiraha had no real good example.

“Yeah, like that!” he announced in affirmation to the Kazekage's words. He gave a simple nod, though, Getsurei wasn't too sure if she'd buy it completely. “Okibi-san, you insult me if you think I'm just a mere mechanical personality created by the Steward over there.”<i></i> He paused for a few seconds, trying to piece together what he would say next to explain himself. “Ok, let's say I am just a robot created by Sousuke. How would I know that you and Seven met Shiraha, my human, as he played music on the streets of Grand Palais? Or that you two escaped a food fight at Niku's that you both mischievously caused and then retreated here with the assistance of Seven? I was present for each event, but you couldn't see me considering my ethereal form.”<i></i>

Shiraha stared at Getsurei as he explained himself in amazement (and not noticing that Getsurei practically ratted them out regarding the food fight). “Rei-kun is so smart. He's definitely the brains to my beauty!”<i></i> he thought playfully and laughed quietly to himself. “Anyways,” asserted the wolfdog as he approached his white-haired human, <B>“that's the last time I'll explain myself. If you still don't believe us, then Okibi's sense of understanding is more questionable than the sanity of everyone here.”<i></i> The wolfdog huffed and turned his head away, and the Chuunin gave the dog a frown. “Okibi has great understanding! Don't be mean, Rei-kun. We're the ones that look like the weirdos here with all this speak of ghosts and other mumbo jumbo!”<i></i>

Shiraha gave Okibi a small head bow and an apologetic grin. “Rei-kun is the grumpy type – don't mind him. He's just a little upset you haven't acknowledged his existence. Although he'll claim I'm the prideful type, he's equally so, in a sense. He'll just never admit it.”<i></i> The metallic wolf growled at his human's words. He was not prideful at all!

As this all occurred, Sousuke remained on a rooftop seemingly preoccupied. Shiraha glanced upward and gestured him in a friendly-manner. “Sousuke-san, come chill with us down here!”<i></i> The man looked as though he was chatting with someone else possibly, which made sense due to the extra scent he's been smelling. Just then, though, another unknown scent entered the scene at the Kazekage's location. A man of a giant-like structure appeared from the blue.

“Who's he?”<i></i> he asked out loud in the direction of Okibi and Seven. “Another one of your friends?”<i></i>

He appeared out of no where. Though, Sousuke was the Kazekage. It probably wasn't an unusual sight to see shinobi appear out of the blue in need of his presence. “Busy, busy job... eck.” It was then he decided he'd never be Kazekage, despite the likelihood of it being offered to him anytime in the near future zero to none. The workload must have been annoying!

Also, there was probably no time for music or play, either. Being a Chuunin was the most content position to be in. Perhaps the best.

Getsurei gazed curiously up towards the new presence as well. Hopefully the matter at hand was just something minor. He had dealt with enough trouble for one day.

[OOC: Sorry for the extremely late post! Been busy with midterms and have been fighting illness! Posting should be back to regular now. Thanks!]