Ninpocho Chronicles

Ninpocho Chronicles is a fantasy-ish setting storyline, set in an alternate universe World of Ninjas, where the Naruto and Boruto series take place. This means that none of the canon characters exists, or existed here.

Each ninja starts from the bottom and start their training as an Academy Student. From there they develop abilities akin to that of demigods as they grow in age and experience.

Along the way they gain new friends (or enemies), take on jobs and complete contracts and missions for their respective villages where their training and skill will be tested to their limits.

The sky is the limit as the blank page you see before you can be filled with countless of adventures with your character in the game.

This is Ninpocho Chronicles.

Current Ninpocho Chronicles Time:

Monkey Madness [SSM Series]

Saitou Rei

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For as long as anyone can remember, bands of macaque monkeys have inhabited the various ancient temples surrounding the Monastery to Raiden. The monks who live in the monastery and care for the temples have long learned to live in harmony with the simians, and often those who visit from afar are equally as fascinated with the temples' inhabitants as they are with the ancient structures themselves. Lately, however, many of Raiden's devotee's have noticed a shift in the monkeys' behavior. Having become increasingly more aggressive with visitors and worshippers alike (to the point of having to close a number of the temples to the public), the Kaibutsu Hunters have been invited to determine the cause of this change. The only condition the monks requested: none of the monkeys may be harmed.

- - -

Aggressive monkeys? The Windrunners and Godslayers had laughed; ever since the attack in the Dragon Tooth Pass, the recently formed office of the Kaibutsu Hunters had been flooded with requests from people all over Lightning Country who didn't understand the true nature of monsters. They thought of the giant lizard that had attacked, and thought any animal showing even mild aggression must be some possessed, other-worldly beast. While it was true that these types of monsters lay in hiding among them, they were not the primary concern of the division. This was likely the natural course of an invasive species finally finding strength in its numbers. And so they had decided to send a single Croweater out for an easy mission. There was of course the possibility that there was more to the story, and given the high population of macaque monkeys combat was not an option if that were true. This was to be a simple scouting mission, nothing more.

The journey to the top of the Monumentum Deo would be a tiring one, but thankfully not lonely. While this type of work could easily be handled by a single Croweater, there was a new Genin Prowler who had recently joined their ranks. The boy needed to learn the ropes, and so had been assigned to shadow Reicheru on this mission. Yamazaki Hayato was the boy's name; short and quiet, but well-trained and good-natured. The two chatted as they traveled, mostly Rei asking questions about the recent graduate's academy days. The two connected in being tinkerers in mechanics, though Reicheru admitted this hobby of hers had fallen largely by the wayside. In contrast, calling Hayato a tinkerer was probably an insult. His eyes lit up as he talked about some of the things he'd built, his familiar enthusiasm finally putting the pieces together of a mystery that had been dancing in the back of her mind: his family name had rung a bell when she'd seen it on the file, but she hadn't been able to place it until now.

"Are you related to Yamazaki Mitsuo by chance?"

"Ah yeah, that's my old man. How do you know him?"

"I wound up in the hospital not too long ago, he was a big help."

"Oh, I'm glad. He really cares a lot about his work…"

The younger boy paused, then opened his mouth again with his head cocked like he wanted to ask a question, but as he did the two Kumo shinobi were greeted by a voice in the distance. "Greetings! My apologies, but unfortunately these temples have been temporarily closed to the public…" a man of about middle age appeared at the top of the path, his clothing minimal but sufficient for the tundra-like conditions of the Monumentum Deo. "Oh, I'm sorry," the man quickly offered at the sight of the pair's Kumo headbands. "You must be here for that very reason. Is this your whole team?" The elder man's gaze shifted behind Rei and Hayato, a glimmer of concern rising in his eyes.

"Yes sir. My name is Nanjirou Rei, Genin Croweater of Kumogakure's Kaibutsu Hunters, and this is Yamazaki Hayato, Genin Prowler." Rei offered the monk with a bow, her voice strong and confident in hopes of alleviating the man's fears.

It didn't seem to help. "I see… I had hoped there might be more of you… or you know, someone with more experience.." Hayato gave Rei a sympathetic glance, but the kunoichi smiled at the man. "Don't let our age deceive you, sir. We were both present at and fought in the Kaibutsu Attack in Kumogakure, and have been members of the division nearly since it's inception. I promise you, you're in good hands, sir…"

The monk seemed to suddenly become aware of his rudeness, quickly introducing himself with a bow. "Gaju, it's a pleasure to meet you Rei-san, Hayato-san." Straightening himself, Gaju rubbed the back of his head. "Some of us have been staying here at the base of the Mountain to intercept tourist and worshipers who did not hear about the closure of the temples. Please, come rest yourselves for a bit. I will notify Monk Chiro that you've arrived - he will have further instructions for you."

Because they usually lived in the temples themselves when they were away from the Monastery, the shack Gaju led them to had every sign of being hastily built. Straining under the pressure of the snow that had collected on top, Rei and Hayato exchanged a concerned glance. Inside, the place boasted no creature comforts. No furniture, the only cooking equipment being a fire pit in the center of the room that also served as the area's heat source. A kettle of tea was coming to a boil as they walked in. The now trio indulged in the hot drink, warming their core as they waited for Monk Chiro to arrive. Eventually the older monk arrived, essentially going over the same information they had already provided to the Kaibutsu Hunters. "So nothing had changed in this area at the time that the monkey's behavior began to change?" Reicheru questioned. "No environmental changes, no new personnel arrivals…?" The wheels in her mind spun, thinking back on a specific report she had seen from one Hyuuga Honnou -- mysterious figures disappearing into the mountains amidst the chaos. Gaju moved uncomfortably where he sat. "Not exactly personnel, but…"

- - -

"What on earth made them think that wasn't important to include in the request?!"

Hayato's usually mild-mannered nature began to unravel the moment he and Reicheru were alone. The kunoichi simply shrugged - she had long grown accustomed to the ineptitude of people. "They see people come through all the time, and really that's not their concern so much as the temples themselves. I can see how that could get missed." Gaju and Chiro informed the shinobi of a woman who had come through the mountain not long after the attack. At first, she had been lost in their memory as one of many tourists, worshipers, miners and researchers that passed through these parts. In the days following their report, however, the oddity of the woman's behavior reminded them of her odd request: to visit the Temple of Cercopes. 'Though old, it is not the oldest, nor is it all that large. All knowledge of it has been lost - even its name is modern, a tribute to the macaque who congregate there - and the structure has not been well preserved. No one wants to go there.' Chiro had explained. At least they had a more definitive starting point now, and had been given permission (albeit begrudgingly) to humanely capture one of the simians for study.

It wouldn't be long before the shinobi came across the first macaque monkeys. Rei signaled for Hayato to stop, and the two observed a pack of five monkeys cleaning one another and sunbathing atop a garden of boulders. "I've read that though macaque adapt well to almost any climate, they originated in warmer temperatures and enjoy sunlight. If we can find another spot like this one, I bet it wouldn't be long before a few of them made their way there… but how would we set…" As Reicheru whispered, Hayato had already begun rifling through his bag of tricks. "Not a problem. I can set a trap if we find a spot." Rei smiled at the Genin. "Perfect, let's head--"

Before the words could leave her mouth or her body begin to move, suddenly there was a blur and a loud screeching as one of the macaque dropped down in front of her. What she couldn't see from a distance, Reicheru now saw in the creature that hung in front of her -- an odd distortion of the normally adorable simian breed: sunken face with bloodshot eyes that bulged, elongated teeth and claws, and an odd crawling sensation in its fur that reminded her of the way the slime oozed and wriggled about on King Maji. Though the creature lunged at her just after dropping, the Nanjirou was just barely able to dodge out of its way, sending it tumbling onto the ground behind her. Unfortunately, the commotion drew the attention of the other monkeys, and before they knew it the Genin were dashing what seemed to be deeper into the mountain. The macaque kept on their heels, their hooting and screeching surely drawing the attention of every one of their kind. "Over here!" Hayato shouted, veering off at a sharp angle. In a few bounds, Reicheru saw what Hayato was leading them towards -- a sudden clearing before a canyon that plummeted nearly two-thousand meters below.

Hayato tossed a mechanism at her, one he'd shown her on the hike out there. The boy wasn't sure if she would even need it, but better safe the sorry and separated. Without a word exchanged Reicheru understood, and in unison the duo ran straight at the cliff without breaking stride, propelling themselves off the edge and shooting the grapples into the cliff-face on the opposite side. Even the repurposed ninja wire rocketed them (well, her - Hayato's experience with the tool taught him how to prepare to transition into a run) into the side of the rockface on the other side, Rei couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as she looked back at the angry horde of mutated monkeys gathered on the other side, their numbers only growing with each second that passed. Still, this whole episode had put them even farther from their target than they had been, and with a great number of eyes on them. It was time to regroup and re-strategize.

- - -

"All set?" Reicheru asked as Hayato arrived at the meeting point they'd established that morning. After the chase scene, they had decided to set up camp to allow the monkey troupe time to chill out and disperse. Not having the ability to lay a finger on those little devils made this whole ordeal a bigger pain than it needed to be, and had prompted a discussion between the shinobi over whether placing them under a genjutsu would be technically a breech of the contract -- ultimately, they decided it would be a last resort if things got out of hand. The next morning, Hayato set out to set up the trap they had discussed the day before in hopes of at least one specimen falling victim in the time it took them to get back to them temple, scout it and return.

More aware of the repercussions of not moving as stealthily as possible, the hunters slowly and quietly made their way toward the abandoned temple, finally making it there with little trouble or inconvenience. Perhaps too little? The temple ruin was located in one of the more heavily forested parts of the mountain base, leaving less snow but also less sunlight. Arriving at what appeared to be a pile of rubble with what looked like a bastardized Classical Kumogakurian script engraved on the surviving walls, one thing the two took immediate notice of was the absence of macaques. Hadn't the monks said this was their central hub of sorts, part of the reason no one visited it anymore? As they neared the center of where the temple once stood, the Mark of the King on Reicheru's chest began giving off the familiar burn that indicated something inhuman was nearby… along with something else. Something was off; there was more here than met the eye. "Cancel," Reicheru muttered as she made quick hand-signs - a simple yet invaluable jutsu. Hayato followed suit, and suddenly a whole new world opened up to the shinobi.
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A winding path leading to a beautiful marble belvedere. As the two meandered toward it, Hayato turned to his partner. "How… did you sense this? My mom's a Yamanaka… I'm no stranger to genjutsu, and I didn't even know… it's no wonder the monks didn't know either…" Reicheru dodged the question, pointing toward the true Temple of Cercopes further down the valley that was visible only from the center of the belvedere. "There." They looked at each other - should they go in? Should they report what they found and let a higher ranking hunter handle it? Did they even have enough to report yet? As the senior member of the team, Rei narrowed her eyes as she looked at the temple. "We still don't really know the cause, and that's what we came for. Something is fishy, but… what? Our answer has to be in there."

Staying alert, still very on edge by the absence of any monkeys, Rei and Hayato entered the temple. The beautiful marble structure was inscribed with the same version of Classical Kumogakurian they had seen outside, illuminated at first by the small flashlight photo jutsu Rei's palm emitted. At first. In the distance, a rumbling like thunder drew nearer and the sound of hooting and screeching became clearer. Suddenly, torches mounted along each side of the wall were engulfed in flame and the doorway blocked by an army of monstrous macaque monkeys - yet, they did not attack. A deep laugh tumbled out of the darkness of the heart of the temple before a pair of golden eyes were illuminated by the torches. "Shinobi? How interesting. How bold." This elicited a rumble of approving hollers from the simian vanguard.

"What was that?" Reicheru's partner had gone pale, his green eyes wide in fright and confusion. The kunoichi's heart sank, realizing quickly the immensity of the predicament they had been placed in was a direct result of her leadership and decision making. This was no place for a fresh academy graduate - they needed to get out of here.

After Hayato spoke, one particular macaque screamed from within the crowd. "Oh really? That one? Very well," the voice responded. A 'snap' echoed on the temple walls before suddenly Hayato was launched backward before the feet of the monkey hoard, trapped and tangled in a mesh wire trap launched out of the darkness with a swiftness that even the Nanjirou had not anticipated. "How does it feel, to be on the other end of your own trap, hunter?" Hayato struggled against the wire as Reicheru rushed to his aide.

As the Reicheru rushed to cut through the trap with her kunai, the voice drew nearer and the rumbling of hooting from the monkeys grew louder. "It might be implausible for the humans to believe that shinobi would get themselves killed hiking in the mountains… I could wipe their memories… but if they broke through the first illusion there's no saying they won't do so again. Alright, better safe than sorry. Finish them." With those two words, thundering howling echoed through the structure and the macaque who had gathered at the door and scaled the walls began to descend on them. If she didn't do something, quickly, this would be the end - there were too many of them. Throwing her kunai down and making hand seals with gritted teeth, Reicheru unleashed Ambiance of the Forbidden: a blast of tornado-like wind that exploded from the center outward, pushing back the horde just as they neared. Most of them were pushed so far as to clear the doorway once more, while those coming from the ceiling had been launched into the marble. Woops. Oh well.

At the outburst, the end of the temple hallways was finally illuminated with fire. There, atop an ornate throne, sat the golden eyed beast: a red-furred monkey of greater stature than any of Kumogakure's shinobi, adorned in gold-plated armor and crown, staff at his side. Both enraged and curious, the Monkey King stood from his throne to his full height, a giant standing at nearly nine feet. Adrenaline outweighed Reicheru's fear as the mark under her collar pulsed.

"Come out of hiding, have you? Sorry it won't be quite as easy as you expected to finish us. Should have done it yourself."

The Monkey King's head titled at her words, an expression of shock washing over his face. "You can understand me? That would explain a lot. You could have been interesting… but if you insist." Raising his staff, the Monkey King made a slashing motion in their direction that unleashed a tidal wave of fire that stretched the whole span of the hallway. Repeating the hand seals from a moment ago, Reicheru's wind blast opened a hole in the wall of fire as it reached them, prompting a smirk from the girl. "You're sure not a fast learner, are you?" However, her jab was left before an empty throne. Having used the first attack as a diversion, the Monkey King appeared behind the kunoichi positioned between her and her partner, still only half emerged from the trap. As his staff came down toward the back of her head, the Nanjirou's Mark screamed at her and she drew her blade in famous Nanjirou iaijutsu fashion to block the attack.

The Monkey grinned, pressing down on his staff and forcing her to use both hands to press back against it. With his free hand, the Monkey King reached out and snatched the scarf from around her neck, revealing the red seal King Maji had left in lieu of her death. "Shame. You really could have been interesting. But you've seen too much, and now I know that genjutsu won't work." Leaping back, the Monkey King placed his staff into the belt on his back and began a flurry of hand seals. The marble ceiling above Reicheru and Hayato and the sediment above it began to crack and crumble before giving way to an avalanche that would surely crush and bury them. Hayato finally pulled free from the chakra-infused net, but too late. Rei's grey eyes met his widened, desperate green ones as she dashed toward him. There was no time for words; she had to protect him. The distance to the door was too great, and the avalanche too great to simply push him out of the way. 'I'm so sorry…' were what Reicheru thought would be her final thoughts as she instinctually threw her body over Hayato in spite of it not being enough to protect him. In a moment, the place they once stood was covered in debris and rubble up to the ceiling.

- - -

A few days later, Yamazaki Hayato sat in the office of his commanding Godslayer.

"She kept talking back to the thing, and it kept… I don't know, almost like they were having a conversation, but I couldn't understand him. He wasn't hooting either, like the macaque. It was… I don't know, like an other worldly language."

The Godslayer nodded, jotting notes on the back page of a file. "How exactly did you say you two got out of there again?"

Hayato looked nervously down at his feet before locking eyes with his commander. "It was all Rei. She… changed? I don't know how to explain it… like, a layer that looked like flesh-colored stone grew around her, and this… webbing? But it was crystal-like… this crystaline webbing just shot out like a dome around us. I'm sorry, it's just that I've never seen anything like it before…"

"Yes, well as you know she doesn't remember, having lost consciousness. But that's helpful, thank you Hayato."

The Genin raised his eyebrows in concern. "Is she alright?"

The Hunter set his pen down before giving the boy a smile. "She'll be just fine. As for you Hayato, some people might come asking you about what happened. This is something that the division has been keeping tabs on, and too much information circulating could cause issues with our work here. If you could keep what you say about this incident to a minimum, we won't have a problem." He waited for Hayato to indicate he understood before continuing. "Given the change of circumstances, your mission rank and pay will be adjusted accordingly. Keep up the good work."

"Yes sir. When will we be sent back?"

A pause. "Hayato, we appreciate the work you and Rei did, but this is above your pay-grade."

Hayato fidgeted in his seat. The day he and Rei had met Monk Gaju, she had mentioned being a patient of his dad. Thing was, his dad was a research medic. He didn't have patients. The boy asked Mitsuo about it as one of the first things after he got back, and was given a vague answer about kaibutsu chakra testing -- probably more than he should have said, but in the comfort of his own home he'd given it little thought. "Sir, with all due respect, I may not know what's going on, but I saw what she can do. She knew where the temple was, she knew where the monster was when he attacked, and most importantly she can understand it. Rei needs to be on the next team. And I…" Here, his passion and confidence faltered. "…I can help. I was there."

The Godslayer pursed his lips a moment before answering. "Alright Hayato. That's a bold request, but I'll keep it in mind as we discuss the team this afternoon, but that's all I can promise. Thank you again," with that, he motioned toward the door.

[TWC: 3,688]
 
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Saitou Rei

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After the discovery of the existence and location of the Monkey King (the target alias given to the mysterious leader of the monster macaque dwelling in the Temple of Cercopes), discussions on how to move forward were divided. There were many voices that sought simple destruction of the temple and everything in it, while others saw such a course of action as a wasted opportunity to learn more about their enemy -- especially about the woman who the monks had mentioned, to see if any connection could be made to Hyuuga Honnou's report from the Gate Attack. It was clear from the reports that the macaque had been 'infected' with the symbiote, but how exactly that worked remained a mystery. Still, it was agreed that the power the Monkey King was reported as having was deemed too dangerous to bring into the village or leave unchecked.

Ultimately, one Godslayer brought forward the suggestion of Prowler Yamazaki Hayato -- take Croweater Nanjirou Rei, who seemed to be able to communicate with the beast. She would travel with three Godslayers who would incapacitate the Monkey King and restrain him with a chakra-blocking collar from Kumogakure's prison, at which point she would gain as much information as possible by any means necessary. The greenlight was given to terminate the target as a last resort at the discretion of the leading Godslayer, but the order not to maim the infected macaque remained.

- - -

"You sure this is a good idea, bringing her along? She's just a Croweater, after all…"

Arriving a few minutes before the designated time, Reicheru overheard Saito Oguri's voice as she opened the door to the equipment room behind the Kaibutsu Hunter offices. There, the tall and rugged Hyuuga stood rummaging through a closet filled with various traps and poisons. In the corner of the room, Kobayashi Benii, a small but fiery kunoichi with cropped dark auburn hair, was wailing away on a training dummy while the boys finished gearing up.

"Seems weird to me too man, but if Kosho-san said she's good, then she's good. Not much we can do about it anyway," Benii said with a shrug before throwing herself into a perfect roundhouse kick, sending the dummy to the ground with a thud.

"Yeah, I guess," a third voice called from behind one of the shelves. "If things get sketchy though, I won't hesitate to get her out of the way."

Nakamura Jihei emerged at the same time that Reicheru entered the room. The green-haired Jihei was placing several scrolls onto his belt before sensing the new presence and going still as his eyes met her own. His two teammates followed his gaze to also fall upon Rei, an awkward silence filling the room. And there it was -- Reicheru's first impression on the Kaibutsu Tría.
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Kaibutsu Tría said:
Kobayashi Benii -- Genjutsu specialist. Secondary earth ninjutsu. Kaibutsu kill count: 162
Saito Oguri -- Unarmed taijutsu specialist. Secondary traps and poisons. Kaibutsu kill count: 158
Nakamura Jihei -- Seal and barrier specialist. Secondary fire ninjutsu. Kaibutsu kill count: 162
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The three Godslayers were known for their incredible cohesiveness as a unit, having worked well together since their Academy days -- a strength that was honed and magnified after being placed on the same Genin team. After their Chuunin examination, the trio had begun to catch eyes in different fields and were briefly divided into different fields of specialty. After King Maji's attack, however, like many others the three were driven to support the fledgling Kaibutsu Hunter division. Reunited, the three quickly rose in their new ranks despite their relative youth. Oguri was both barely the oldest as well as the only one to have pursued a Jounin exam, which stuck him with the role of being considered the leader of the group - at least on paper.

"I'm Nanjirou Rei," breaking the silence, Reicheru introduced herself with a bow. "It's an honor to be working under you three. I promise, you don't need to worry about me -- I made it out of there once, and that was before we knew--"

"Unconscious." Jihei's dry tone caught the Nanjirou off guard. "You made it out unconscious." When she'd seen his picture in the mission briefing file, the only thing she could focus on was how much he looked like Uchiha Takeshi. She'd forced herself to push it away then to focus on the mission, but the cold sternness in the boy's voice brought it back and seemed to intensify the resemblance. Jaw tight, Rei fought through her discomfort in search of a response.

"Ji-kun, that's rude--" Benii started to reprimand her teammate before the shinobi placed a hand up in defense of himself.

"I'm just saying, the circumstances surrounding your encounter with this monster are pretty unclear. I'm not doubting your ability, Rei. I get the thought process - you've got something special going on that none of us bring to the table. I just don't want us to forget that while seemingly helpful, that 'X factor' is also an unknown to each of us on this team and we need to be ready for the unexpected. I just wish they'd tell us more…"

Oguri and Benii nodded, and Rei did the same. It seems they'd been informed that Rei knew no more than the rest of them; that would certainly make the journey there less annoying. Oguri placed a kunai he was holding in his holster before straightening up and clearing , throat. "Alright, let's finish gearing up. We should get going if we want to make it up the mountain before dark."

- - -

Their journey into the Spine of the World was largely, and thankfully, uneventful. They passed the place where her caravan had been attacked on the mission she subbed for Maikeru, reminding the kunoichi of how treacherous these passes could be and to keep her guard up. Monsters were not the only evil things this mountain had seen.

As they walked, Rei absent-mindedly fiddled with the necklace adoring her neck. The half of the Uchiha-clan symbol Maikeru had gifted her was usually hidden behind her father's scarf, but even after she'd lost the latter to the Monkey King she continued to wear the charm openly. It rested just above the red ouroboros etched into her skin, the Mark of the King, barely concealed by her high-collared shirt. While it was certainly not a secret that something had happened to her and Maikeru -- heck, her estranged boyfriend practically flaunted his own branding -- during the Gate Attack, many of the details were being help under wraps at the Main Branch Sennin's request. Rei had found her life easier if she hid the thing, prompting less questions so she could spend less of her time thinking about it.

"So, that's it huh?" Benii's big blue eyes had caught sight of the seal as they walked. "Is it true that you and Akira are dating? I've never actually seen you two together, so I assumed it was just a rumor that cropped up because of your… you know, shared circumstances."

"Yeah… it, it's complicated." Rei's hand rested on the necklace once more. She wondered how Maik was handling his own Mark. The comments he'd made about 'the things the voices were telling him to do' replayed and echoed in her mind every time she thought about it. She'd only gotten inklings of what he was talking about, the blood lustful whisperings in her fight with Nozomi being the most prominent… until her fight with the Monkey King. In those last moments when she threw herself over Hayato, in the moments after emerging from the Temple before collapsing, she heard it clear as day. "There's so much more to this - there's so much more to you now. Just accept it… we're not going anywhere."</I><i></i>

- - -

"So, this is the place?" Oguri asked with a raised eyebrow as the four Kumo shinobi reached the ruins of the Temple of Cercopes; or at least, the public ruins.

"Yeah. It's about ninety meters north," Rei pointed between two dilapidated walls. The mark was itching its familiar itch. "It's concealed by a powerful genjutsu." "No kidding," Benii replied. "I'm not picking up anything, you sure it's a genjutsu?" the younger kunoichi nodded. "I'm not entirely sure what kind, or how it works. There may be something on the ruins, or in the trees. I doubt he was waiting for us the first time to cast anything, though it's possible given that a macaque Hayato trapped was here -- released by the others and returned with the warning of our presence, we guessed. But he shouldn't know now…"

Oguri's brief stint in the ANBU had proved quite useful in improving his and now his team's ability to move undetected. As they all performed the Cancel jutsu, they maintained the Active Camo technique they'd taught Reicheru along the way. Once again, the place was eerily silent. "No, he knows." The Mark pulsed, responding to her anxiety but also to the energy around her she now knew to be more aware of, confirming her suspicion. "This place is a breeding ground of macaque monkeys, but just like last time, I don't see any. Not one. They're waiting for us." Her lips and mouth suddenly dry, Rei looked to the Godslayers for direction.

"Well, we knew this was a possibility." Jihei sighed as his hand flitted to his belt. "Doesn't change much, except Rei should stay here and alert us to any traps that might be waiting for us when we try to leave. Can't say I'm a big fan of fighting fire with fire, your specialties could have been of use-" Holding a single scroll between his pointer and middle finger, he smiled at Oguri and Benii. "-but we should be fine."

And so as the three entered the true temple Reicheru was left to wait, anxiously waiting for any sort of distress signal to come across the headset. Thirty minutes passed, and the itching of the Mark was beginning to become enough to drive her mad. So much so, that she would have run into the temple within mere minutes had it not been for the trio's reemergence - a fourth figure among them. A man.

- - -

"He was just… waiting for you?" Reicheru asked quietly, her slate grey eyes peeking back to the red-headed man sitting restrained in a chair a few yards away. They had reallocated to an old ANBU stomping ground in the mountain, a room hidden in a passage known only to those who had served in the corps. The plan had been for Benii and Oguri to immobilize and incapacitate the Monkey King, and for Jihei to trap him in a seal for transportation. What they had found instead was nothing more than a man sitting on the temple throne, waiting for them and willingly restrained. While the three had spent their thirty minutes debating where the Monkey King had gone and if they should trust this servant, with one look in his golden eyes Reicheru knew the truth -- the Monkey King sat before them in human form.

"He asked for you by name. Well…" Oguri paused, looking to his teammates.

"He asked for Reicheru." Popped out of Benii's mouth, catching even her by surprise.

Jihei's green eyes narrowed as he looked at the Nanjirou. "What's that about?" Barely concealing the accusation that hid beneath the surface of the question, Jihei leaned forward to bring his face closer. "You said there was a Monster here. Well, where is it?"

"Ji-kun…" Benii reminded him.

"No, none of that. Don't you think it's odd? Strange that a simple Croweater supposedly made it out alive after coming face to face with a ruling kaibutsu with no knowledge of how it happened? Weird to find nothing more than a man, and a temple with no infected monkeys? She didn't even give us her real name; if she's really from Leaf like he says, how do we know she's not here trying to start some sort of incident with her friend?" The shinobi nearly shouted now. Clearly there was something clawing at him beneath the surface, but Reicheru couldn’t deal with that now.

"Jihei." Oguri's commanding tone cut through the tension. "I told you, his chakra is different. Just like a monster's. You can't trust what it says. You trust me, right?" The green-headed lad looked to the ground in embarrassment. "I don't get it either. But our orders are to get answers," with that, the Hyuuga looked at Reicheru. "So let's get 'em."

- - -
[lb2][/lb2]
Reicheru entered the make-shift interrogation room the Monkey… Man? was being held in, her Mark pounding in her chest like a heart beat. Oguri, Benii and Jihei stood ready on the other side of the glass.

"Well I was right - you certainly did prove to be interesting, Reicheru." The golden eyed man commented as she sat, his tone calm and even.

"Who are you?"

"You can call me Basalas. I'm known to some as the Monkey King, though I'm sure that title would have Maji-sama rolling in his… grave."

Rei swallowed hard at the mention of the Monster King. "So you are the same Kaibutsu from before."

A chuckle. "Of course. You should be familiar with my kind, if that Mark means what I think it does. Oh, that reminds me, I believe this belongs to you…" With that, a shackled hand reached out as far as it, and with a snap a familiar tattered red scarf appeared in his hand. 'Well good to know the chakra restraints mean nothing.' Reicheru thought uneasily with pursed lips. As if hearing her thoughts, Basalas said "Ahh, don't worry, that's about the end of the line. Quite effective, this uhh…. what do you shinobi use this for anyway, torture? Knew you liked to duke it out and twist the odds in your favor, but this seems a bit far doesn't it?" Wrinkling his nose and narrowing his gaze, the condescension oozed off the Hanyo's tongue.

"So, Basalas, what exactly are you, and what did you do to the Monastery's macaque?"

"Do to them?" Basalas feigned hurt. "I didn't do anything to them more than what was done to you or me. I'm a Kaibutsu, as you Kumo nin would call us. A recipient of a gift that you shinobi would probably kill for if you understood it. But alas, you don't, and so kill because of it. To destroy it. That's why I wanted to speak to you in this form, you're all so much more comfortable with what you understand, what you're familiar with."

"We're not the ones who came knocking first; you can thank your King for that." Even as she spoke, Reicheru remembered the vision she'd stolen, the rage of the King against humanity for taking his parents from him. Doubt began to creep up through the Mark with an intensity she'd not known before.

"Justify it how you will. That's not what I'm interested in--"

"Well it's what I'm interested in, so how about you tell me more about what you're suddenly doing out there in the temples."

A dark laugh escaped Basalas' lips. "In the Temple of Cercopes? Named for the twin mischief makers of the forest, Basalas and Achemon, the 'tail-men' of old? Isn't it obvious?" The fire in his eye dimmed, like an ember doing a slow burn. "We just live there. Have for a millennia. Is that a crime? My, the ignorance of humans! The naming may have been accidental on their part, but the monks may as well have screamed it from the rooftops and planted a flag for us."

Though the revelation of how long these creatures had been living in secret among them gave the kunoichi pause, but nevertheless she continued. "You're dodging the question. I thought you came to have a conversation? If you've been here so long, why did the macaque only just start getting aggressive? Does it have to do with the woman who came to the Temple? Is that this twin you're talking about?"

Another laugh, this time even more sinister. "I did come to have a conversation, you're right. You want to know the truth?" Basalas leaned in until his chains clinked against the metal chair, and then some until they cut into his skin. "We are tired of hiding. We have tried to live in peace with you humans, and it's never worked. Why do you think the Temple is so hard to find? The only thing we have to hide is ourselves. But no more. The woman you seem so concerned about was a simple messenger, to tell us about poor King Maji who fell to his own softness. We will not make the same mistake. And you…" lifting a hand, the Monkey King pointed his index finger at her Mark. "…should listen to what's being offered to you. You've tasted it, seen a mere glimpse of what it's like. It's so much more. You have a gift, and because of it you're just like us. Forced into hiding. Into shame. Into fear. It shouldn't be that way. It doesn't have to be that way."

Suddenly, the three Godslayers burst into the room. "Rei, get back!" Benii yelled, her hands flowing with the seals for Bedrock Coffin, shooting layers of rock up around Basalas in a pyramid up to his neck. What Reicheru hadn't noticed as the Kaibutsu spoke was the black slime crawling up his back. It had positioned itself under the collar upon its host just before being trapped. "Cute. Good effort." Basalas grinned before the rock began to glow a warm red from the center. The symbiote had destroyed the collar, and as the rock became molten and flooded the floor around him, Basalas now took the form Reicheru had first seen at the Temple of Cercopes - a regal humanoid simian, clad in golden armor.

"This one proves it. He doesn't trust you." Basalas spoke now in the tongue only Reicheru understood, pointing at Jihei. "He fears you. He knows you're different, but doesn't understand how. You're stronger than him. You shouldn't have to hide because of him." People like him. Reicheru looked at her green-haired teammate, who stood dumbfounded at Basalas' transformation, and saw only Takeshi. From his looks to his condescension to his paranoia, Reicheru saw only the man who'd ruined everything for her. The type of man who'd brought her only misery.

Raising his staff, the Monkey King smirked. "Let's eliminate him, shall we? With a flick, Basalas's staff released a wave of fire aimed at the trio identical to the one he'd used against her several weeks ago -- the one used as a distraction. Jihei's face lit up by the ominous light of the fire, suddenly Rei saw something different. She watched as his gaze moved first to Benii, then Oguri, then herself. Fear, and regret, and determination. In a fraction of a second, the green haired lad moved to stand in front of them all in a protective stance. As Jihei responded in kind with a fire jutsu to cancel out the one barring down on him, Rei lunged at him and tumbled onto the ground below, preventing him from being swallowed up by the lava that suddenly burst forth from the ground below.

"No? Alright." With the room blown apart, the space they stood in was reduced to little more than a hollowed cave in a mountain pass. A familiar rumbling started above, the whole scenario practically identical to how it had gone down before. The only difference was the conflict that had welled up inside the kunoichi about her Mark, about the power she knew it had and the potential she had to wield it. How it had protected Hayato, not hurt him. Her mind being so focused on it already, that this time when Reicheru stretched out her arms to protect her friends, she remembered.

As Hayato had described, a rock-like, flesh-colored layer of she didn't know what grew around her, bursting from the mark under her collar all around her body, up onto her face like a mask. Additionally, she felt her body change - her muscles contorted and grew, her nails grew longer, her eyes saw more keenly. Though she couldn't see herself, she was reminded of the vision from her recurring night terror, of her looking like some sort of monster wreaking havoc on Kumogakure. From that shield burst crystal-esque webs, joining together to create a dome around her and her teammates.

"What…" Oguri's startled reaction was interrupted by a quick tap tap tap. "You still awake in there?" Basalas chimed from the outside.

"Get out of here," Rei urged her friends, intuitively knowing how to create an opening in the dome's structure where it faced the cave opening to the outside. Reluctantly, the three made there way out of the room and down the pass, at which point Reicheru dropped the Chrysalis and turned to face Basalas in her new form.

"Ahh, good! You had come so close before, I'd hoped that would jog your memory."

"You'll regret having done that," Reicheru chided. "They're not what you think. I'm not what you think."

With a sigh, Basalas narrowed his eyes. "You really are interesting. Stupid, but interesting. I suppose, I have no choice." With that, the Monkey King spread his arms and the slime that had hidden in his armor began to spread across his body. As it did, his armor began to crackle in much the same way the molten rock had until it crackled and fell from his body. His mane grew and fire spouted from his head, and the already nine foot beast grew at least another foot, threatening to break through the cave's ceiling. "I came all the way here, may as well make it an even match."

Somehow, this did not seem even. Though Reicheru had grown nearly a foot herself without realizing, it didn't compare to the enormity of the Monkey King. Yet, as she stared down the fiery beast, comfort came from and odd place. "There's more to you now, and we're not going anywhere." The voice of the Mark reminded her again. Taking up a fighting stance, the two monsters charged and began a battle that would shake the very core of the mountain.

Eventually, the two would rocket out of the cave and into the valley the pass opened to. The King flung the debris at Reicheru, whose new form absorbed the shock and began to adapt to his attacks; each time, the warning her mark gave her was quicker, stronger. "He's tired," it whispered, <I>"The collar had a greater affect than he's letting on."<i></i> And so, Reicheru did what Nanjirou do best - she evaded. As Basalas grew angrier with every miss, his rage fueled his fire and his attacks grew larger, more desperate.

Finally, Reicheru saw her opportunity. When his flame was at it's hottest, she called, "Benii, now!" The Godslayers were deserving of their title, as they hadn't left in fear - they'd seen the problem their presence in the cave created but saw the opportunity of an open field and waited. Suddenly, the ground where Basalas stood turned to quick sand. As he sunk, before he had time to respond Reicheru flew through the seals for Vacuum Sphere - a wind jutsu that could either protect those inside like a barrier, or suffocate any unfortunate victim. Too blinded with frustration to react more quickly, Reicheru watched as Basalas was trapped by the two barriers, his flames slowly eaten away as the oxygen was ripped from his body. Trapped up to his knees in the quicksand, the weakened Kaibutsu fell backwards as his form shrunk and took on human properties once more. Then, finally, the black slime began to creep out into view.

"Now!" Jihei called. In unison, Reicheru dropped the dome as Oguri and Jihei descended on the targets, making contact with their palms to complete the sealing jutsus they'd begun. In a moment, both the Monkey King and the symbiote were sucked away into the scrolls Jihei had prepared.

"We did it," Benii exclaimed with a smile.

"Now what? You said before if he was only incapacitated you doubted that scroll would hold him for long," looking to Jihei, Reicheru expressed her concern that they weren't done yet.

"No worries, we radioed in, ANBU have given us access to a full chakra suppressing room not far from the base of the mountain. We can be there in no time." The boy paused as they all breathed a collective sigh of relief. "Listen, I'm sorry, about earlier. You really saved our butts back there, we owe you."

"Feeling's mutual. I couldn’t have kept going at it with him forever." Of course, there was still the elephant in the room - her. Reicheru looked down at her deformed hands. Now how was she supposed to change back…

"You okay Rei?" Oguri asked, seeming like he wanted to lean in and grab her arm but also not sure if he should touch her in this form.

"Yeah, I'm totally fi--" before she could finish her sentence, the kunoichi fell to her knees as her body returned to its normal form. "I uh… I could sit for a minute… that'd be nice…"

- - -

'It's about as we thought; the abilities aren't identical, but strikingly similar. The forms are certainly different, something to look into. Still lacking complete control of the transition, but making quick progress.'

Kaibutsu Hunter Kosho Izumu found himself once more in the Main Branch office in the Torre Celeste. He finished writing a portion of a report meant for Kagetsu Yuii before being handed another titled 'Chuunin Exam Evaluation'. "Your thoughts?"

Kosho nodded. "I'd give the same recommendation for her that we gave the boy, since that seems to be working out well and given their similar and unique situation. She was scheduled for an exam already with the others ready for promotion from the Gate Battle, but this should more than suffice."

"Chuunin and Godslayer then? I do hope you're not getting soft…"

With a small smile, Kosho flicked the report intended for the Sennin. "Feel free to ask Kagetsu-sama if she thinks that's the case. But I'd stake the division on it -- heck, I kind of am, aren't I?" With a shrug, Kosho signed the evaluation sheet. "Ultimately, it's up to you. Do what you want. Just don't squander the potential you're being handed with very little being asked in return, eh?"

[Abomination get!]
[Chuunin Solo Exam]
[TWC: 4,457 / 1,000]
 

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