Requiem

[Michi]

The winds sang no more that sweet requiem as razor sands that once battered against the landscape had hushed. The mournful cries of the last Sunahoshi stifled. It would have been a quiet end for a long, tragic story but this story would not slip silently into the night. There was a woman ambling through the sands, her feet bare. It did not seem to bother her that the hot, white sun scorched her flesh and the earth beneath her. She was searching for Godsfall, a site relegated these days only to children's stories that told of the 'great' day Primus defeated the 'evil' Ancient overlords. For most, these were probably stories of fiction, and in many cases the accounts were no more than such, however such a place did exist at one time or another. It was the site of a slaughter. It was where her brothers and sisters perished in what would be forever remembered the turning point of the war.

She knew the way. Despite the ever shifting dunes and the years derelict, this one location would be forever seared into her memories. She stopped eventually at the foot of a great red mesa. This was the place, in fact that was where she stood. That was where they fought. This is where Primus won. She took a sharp breath in through her nose as she ran her hand across the smooth stony face of the mesa, polished to a glisten by the maelstrom. The ground shuddered and the sands shifted beneath her feet, sifting through the earth to discover the desert's secrets. There were no bodies, such was never left behind by an Ancient. They returned to the element from which they were bound to in nature and existence - herself to the sands, Fuujin to the storm, Homura to the flame, some to shadows and others to flora. The one truth every Ancient knew was that everything was alive but here everything seemed so dead. A blade was unearthed, as was a breastplate. Damaged and forgotten over an eon, there was nothing special about either artifact besides the markings. Flame Court. Three others were pushed to the surface, each embossed with the same graven images.

By now they all would have cycled, perhaps several times over. The question was: to where did they go? It was a query that had remained unanswered for so many years. Sousuke stated that Fuujin and Homura were not killed but rather 'erased' by Primus' weapon. Humans... where their strength failed, their ingenuity and treachery knew no bounds. That would explain why her attempts to hasten their revival nearly costed the Queen her existence. She planted her hand on the ground and watched the earth split. The deep darkness below held no mystery as the sounds of a groaning earth reverberated and returned to her mind's eye a view of what the terrain hid from view. There was nothing, not a single Ancient. Not a single body. The ground fell into itself, leaving a scar in the terrain. "He was wrong," Shiori murmured out loud. She remembered them. She knew them still. Her small hand balled into a fist, her nails dug into her palm leaving a trail of cuts. They existed in her memory, therefore they were not gone entirely.

She did not expect to find anyone in these badlands, yet there was still idle hope. She required the isolation this battleground offered for a meeting. Sousuke as of late has chosen curious company, one such would be Lord Senju. His chilling aura reminded her of Mikaboshi's, but further still he seemed to have an unending supply of allies that came from the ether. She did not know who he was truly, only his stated associated with Kohonagakure, a rumored doomed village. A coup d'état perhaps? She was never one for foreign affairs unless they mattered to her directly. She had left a message for the foreigner, despite her cousin's rage his social responses were always delayed. She was not a known criminal just yet but it would only be a matter of time if his callous consideration of independence meant anything. It was just a bit of paper given to a scrappy youth with directions simple enough: give this to the titivated silvery man. Both physical attributes fairly uncommon in Sunagakure less one considers the upper echelon. He was likely nobility given the title 'lord.'

Find me at Godsfall.

~ Suna

The note was simple but it garnered more information than most would readily consider. It was also for the sake of assurances. A 'friend' of Sousuke in this coming war would be no friend of hers, further his offer might be as simple as a 'trap' to gain favor with the riled Kazekage. Here in this isolated place she would know if he came alone. If he came with friends. If he brought the Steward. Her ears strained as she listened into the wilds, the simple drone of life and death from afar. She was also curious to know if he would bother, such a place so far out of the way. Was he too trusting, coming to this wild and far place without allies knowing where she stood and what she ate. Was he truly interested in something, there were limits to charity and even curiosity. A day's trip at best to come this far. Idle inquisitiveness without a personal need would only take one so far. If he did not come, it did not matter. She would call on him again from a closer vantage point, knowing then that he had little or nothing to gain in his interest.

For now she simply waited.

WC: 947
MFT

 

[Senju Kazuki]

Entrance Theme

Find me at Godsfall.

~ Suna

A small and simple message was all that Kazuki received from a small and simple courier. The words were few but the message crystal clear and critical. The Overlord of the Senju Clan was about to embark on a journey from which he could not return unscathed. There was this chance of death, no matter how small it was. He was going alone, as alone he could be though, to face an Ancient, whose hatred for mankind had only grown in recent years. In fact, such growth had known an exponential leap in recent days due to a confrontation between Takahashis. Shiori, now revealed as Mother Suna, Sand's revered figure as the forefront of Humanity's freedom over their Ancient Overlords, argued and eventually declared war on Sousuke and Sunagakure as a whole. Although the White Wolf held his allegiance with Sand and Takahashi Sousuke, they were not full enemies still. Their fate would be sealed at the end of their meeting. He was about to tread deeply into enemy territory, but the gains of such venture promised to be plentiful. The Silvery Haired Man's main motivation was the desire to study and learn more about the Ancients from a living Ancient. Books and scrolls could only help you to a certain extent and, as such, field studies were the optimal course of action when attempting to acquire information. Shiori represented something few humans ever had, the chance to see an Ancient feeding and what that entailed for them.

If one was to consider what the former Sennin could do with souls and what apparently mankind's old enemy could, a link could be formed. The reason for such similarity was currently unknown. Perhaps Reaper was part Ancient. Perhaps he was a full Ancient that somehow had lost memories of his entire life, since the inception of the Wind Country till now. Mayhaps he had developed an ability that had been reserved for an ancient race but no longer. Answers he did not have, but he was going to sought them. For now there was a war to win and meeting with Shiori was part of the plan for victory. Kazuki was going to offer her something. Something he hoped she was not going to refuse. Something she badly needed. In return, he hoped to learn as much as impossible. Including glimpses of her war plan. But whatever gains he could collect, it was still too soon to know. Sousuke knew what the Overlord was going to do, but he did not know when or where. Secrecy was needed. His experience as former ANBU Sennin told him that the less the Steward knew, the less he had to worry. And if his mind was free, the faster he could forge that god killing weapon.

And so the Silvery Haired Man traveled to that cursed land that was Godsfall. The final battle place where Humanity emerged victorious. An interesting choice from Shiori's part, but irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. He went alone, but not exactly. One day of journey was nothing for him. Just like with Suna before, the hot sun, the torrid temperature and the hot ground seemed less than a slight nuisance to the White Wolf. Not because he had a supernatural ability to shrug off the heat, but because his naturally exuded a chilling aura wherever he went. And that meant it was Spring to him right now. And it was this coldness that Suna would feel first, if she cared to listen to the earth. His presence was usually felt first and later seen. First the cold, then the howl of the wind, even if there was none to begin with. This was followed shadows flickering whenever he was around as if they had gained sentience just because he was there. And then there was that faint scent of death that seemed to follow Reaper wherever he went. The last one was not always discernible, but for an Ancient, it should be easy to pick up. In fact, albeit ignorant of the fact, it was easy for him to be mistaken for someone else that she deeply knew. The so called Mikaboshi. It would seem they had uncanny similarities and if Shiori deeply missed her brother, Kazuki's presence could lead her to think he was him. An illusion easily dispelled once she was able to physically see him.

Kazuki eventually spotted her at the foot of a great red mesa. Apparently alone. The Overlord stopped five meters away from her. His face showed nothing but a sea of calmness. "Greetings Mother Suna." he declared as if he was greeting a long lost friend and they were about to take a cup of coffee together. "I come with glad tidings. I have an offer for you." he noted. The White Wolf then moved his arms as if he was opening a cape he was not wearing at all. Instead his shadow rose from the ground and grew larger. Without warning six bodies were expelled from it. Six, gagged, rope tied, full samurai suit worn, still living human males. "I have heard you are famish. Lunch is served." the Silvery Haired Man calmly announced as his shadow receded. Would she accept such offering?

 

[Nanashi]

For the past several days, the Nameless had kept a constant watch upon the Senju clan leader via one or another of their bodies. Able to be in up to four places at once as they were, it had not proven terribly difficult to keep at least some degree of surveilance upon the man. Though they could not prove it as of yet, they did not trust the Overlord's purported good character, as claimed by Toraono-sennin. For all they knew, and certainly they suspected, the man was still in direct supervision of Hizashi's efforts and activities. Given that suspicion, it was with utmost urgency that the Assassin followed the silver-haired Senju into the depths of the desert. The Darkling Flame kindled about her feet and hands and optical obfuscating jutsu in place, the ex-Konohan looked like nothing so much as another patch of wavering heat distortion among the many the afternoon heat had sent wafting from sand to sky.



As the tomoe-bedecked rinnegan tracked the man into an area of complete and utter desolation, her mind ran through the potential moves and countermoves which remained within her ability to enact against him. She scowled with a paranoid irritation at the realization that he had not come to meet with the Garden operatives, but instead a red-headed, barefoot woman which loaned memories from Toraono Kuro named Takahashi Shiori, a relative of the Steward's. Leave it to the Senju to continually plot and jockey for position within any hierarchy they encountered. After all, their clan motto very nearly was Power at any price.

Gazing briefly about the space, she felt an odd chill run down her spine. The place had a cyclopean sense of gravitas and import to it, somehow. It felt and looked like a place where grand events occurred, a fulcrum about which histories pivoted.

It was a place where gods wept and cursed the world itself.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KQdmUd5Jwk​

<i></i>

As the Senju lord began to speak, the words the Assassin's sharingan read from his lips immediately altered the aspect of the deal going on at present. Mother Suna was the name of the deity which her borrowed memories indicated many in Sunagakure fervently prayed to and believed in. Personally, she'd thought the whole matter a great deal of creation myth nonsense, but that the Senju chief had called Shiori that meant one of two things, for he and his were not a clan given to flights of fancy. First: this Shiori was the selfsame entity the villagers prayed to. Two: she was insane and thought herself to be, and the Senju was hedging his local bets, attempting a favor for the Steward, or felt that she represented enough of a potential advantage to indulge her delusion.

 

[Michi]

The autumnal chill in this arid landscape heralded the arrival of her... brother? Her breath escaped from her pale pink lips in a puff of fog and her skin became like goose-flesh. She clapped her hands together and breathed deep into them, sharing the heat from the core of her being. It was similar, but it was not him. Queer, this would not be the first time she felt this series of sensations. This was however, not one in the same. The howl of the wind was not a precursor of the Deep Court Lord, yet the storm now that she took a moment to recall the peal of thunder that came in the foreigner's wake the last time she encountered the Steward's most recent ally. Her ears saw before her eyes would, her audial sense never lost to her even in this time of disability and weakness. It was not Brother Shadow, it was the foreigner. The shadows danced beneath her feet, they flickered and mocked yet the sun was high in the celestial spaces. These shadows that did not belong.

She stood there in wait, curious that he came. She wondered if this remarkable human specimen came here to kill her at the site so many of her brethren had also fallen. He could try. She stood in place, the wind to her face a cold displaced chill that seemed to roll of the young man in his presence. He did not come alone. Her expression did not betray her as she listened to the Senju's cordial greeting.\

"Greetings Mother Suna."

"You came," Shiori replied stating the obvious. Her ears listened for a heart, to the sounds of his stomach contents churning, to the numerous clicks and ticks of his blood vessels. Her pale blue eyes scanned his body to see if this was an optical illusion that she could immediately discern. She took a half step forward into the bitter chill, yes it came from him still. She was curious about this man. About his sudden friendship with her profligate 'cousin' and his uncanny aura, about his willingness to traverse the wilds in response to such a simple note. She wanted to ask him all of this and more but she did not have the opportunity to do so, the Senju came with gifts.

"I come with glad tidings. I have an offer for you."

Shiori slid her feet into a defensive stance, her arms moved in graceful half crescents. The winds were visible, just for a moment. Like streams of color, energy and light. Her fingers twitched in rapid succession while a shadow on the ground twisted and writhed into a shape large enough to consume either of them whole, or rather in this case disgorge a sextet of men. To each man their own kink. Shiori stopped immediately, her hand still raised and her visage incongruent. She was confused by his choice of allies, the bound and gagged kind tend to be less than effective. The winds ceased, the hush would make it so that Kazuki could hear his own heart and each passing breath as it expanded his lungs beneath his breast. "Seven coadjutors?" She stated out loud, counting the one hidden in the distance. Shiori relaxed her arms, still tense and cautious regarding this stranger her expression softened but the befuddlement was obvious.

Was he a friend of foe? She did not care for the identities of the bound and gagged men, at the moment they were nothing more than spectators. "What offer?" She asked, her word laced with curiosity as the moments passed rather than tension.

"I have heard you are famish. Lunch is served."

Shiori's eyes darted in the direction of the spectator and back to the ground where these men laid. Still armored, but securely bound. She did not recognize their regalia. She did not know their murmurs or their grunts. She did however recognize that scent, she crinkled her nose. That would be one of the many reasons nobody should want to become a Medic. "All of them?" She verified, partly curious about the Senju's friend. Was the mobile one off-limits? She reached down to touch one of the samurais.

Spoiler

[3:14:46 PM] Team Evil: quick question so I know what to write: if she asks if she is being given all of them are you going to say 'yes' or are you going to be specific that it is the SIX men on the ground
[3:15:31 PM] João Gonçalves: Just the six men

If Kazuki had stated that all were hers to consume, she would pursue Nanashi. She was always partial to 'fast food.' There was also something about the prospect of the hunt that seemed to rile her. She knelt beside one of the men, her flesh fell from her hand as if it was fractured porcelain revealing a ghostly hand made of what could only be described as crimson and golden sands being carried by the winds. Her other hand which appeared to still be made of flesh and bone reached behind one of the struggling men and lifted him inches from the ground. "I would like to think it would hurt less if you did not move," Shiori cautioned matter-of-factly. With a swift and likely painful motion her hand broke through the man's armor and reached deep into his chest, where his heart should be but when her hand emerged that was not what her diminutive fist possessed but rather something tiny yet brilliant that could be held in the palm of one's hand. A soul, albeit a rather tiny and barely satisfactory one at that. Strings of gore still connected the Ancient Queen's hand to the now deceased samurai. She released her hold on the captive and his body, now seemingly hollow hit the ground. The armor was empty, less the rattle of bones, the samurai's armor was now half-filled with sand. Shiori popped the small dislodged hunk of life in her mouth like some would pop a breath mint. The face of the man beneath the armor could be seen within her own for a mere moment before it faded away.

"Mmm..." Her standards had diminished in terms of taste, a soul like that samurai's should have tasted like cardboard but for a woman who had only taken seven... rather eight in the past three decades, it was delectable. She looked up at the Senju, expecting to see an expression of horror. She did not know the man, not at all. She was in a way testing him to see where his moralities lay. It would not bother her if he was disgusted, he was the one that brought them here in the first place - sacrificing his own kind to a person who he saw declare war on humanity not long before. Perhaps he subscribed still to the lore that she was a god, something that she unlike some Ancients took offense to. She did not want to build a legacy on a lie, she was a Queen in her own right as a product of her true strength and skill. Not... never a god as written by some romanticist.

"But aren't you hungry?"

 

[Senju Kazuki]

Shiori showed a defensive posture which was to be expected. In fact, Kazuki half expected some hostility from her part, but luckily it received little in the department. Yes, there was one crucial moment that could led to the downfall of every plan he had concocted, the moment where his shadow rose from the ground and six men came out from inside. Suna clearly assumed a defensive stance and a tiny show of light versus shadow took place. It all calmed down eventually but time froze when the former Takahashi questioned the Silvery Haired Man with something. "Seven coadjutors?" he wondered. The White Wolf only brought six with him. If she was counting seven, then either she had flunked at math, or there was someone there with them. Someone unintended. A spy. He was about to clarify her when she inquired him yet again. The six or seven tributes issue was immediately forgotten as Reaper explained what those gagged and bound men were. "All of those six, yes. I came alone. If you are counting seven, either you are counting with me, or there is someone else near us. And since I came alone, it means we are being spied. There is a chance this seventh presence is a product of a random coincidence, and not of thoughtful consideration. We should do something about it. If you can sense its presence, perhaps it is within your power to bring him, or her, here. But please eat, enjoy your meal. We will deal with our little fly later on." the former Sennin explained. He had been careful in reaffirming he had come alone. This new presence was a nuisance to his plans, although if played properly, it could lend itself perfectly into his plans.

It was feeding time then. Nothing could prepare Kazuki to what he was about to watch on the first row. Nothing but his own hunger that is. It was surprising to see Shiori's hand to shed the skin and show an interior made of crimson and golden sands, forever in perpetual motion. Using a still solid appendage, Suna grabbed the first tribute and rose it from the ground. The sandy hand then swiftly pierced the fallen samurai's armor and grabbed his heart. As she extracted her hand from the man's chest, something else came along. Not his heart, but a tiny and brilliant object. One not accustomed to such things would mistakenly take it as a marble with inner and self sustaining lighting. But to others like the Overlord of the Senju Clan, this strange and shiny object was a Soul. Throughout the years, Reaper had taken its fair share of souls. In fact, it could be said he had capture more than his fair share, but his perpetual hunger forced him so. And that inner host he carried swelled and swelled. Unlike the White Wolf which would simply absorb the soul into his inner core, through his skin, Shiori actually ate it. She tasted the tiny soul with clear glee. She then eyes the Silvery Haired Man probably searching for a reaction to what he had just witnessed.

If she expected horror to be shown on Kazuki's face, she would be sadly mistaken. This freak show that his black irised eyes had just seen, was strangely familiar to him. Yes, expected something else, perhaps something more gruesome. But alas, it was fairly familiar to what the Overlord had been doing all those years. It was a very curious coincidence, that an Ancient and one Human had the same ability or necessity. Or a coincidence it was not. Since that dreaded encounter in the hospital that Reaper had considering the thought that he was part Ancient. If not entirely Ancient. After witnessing this his uncertainty decreased. Yet, he still had no proof to claim otherwise. And then came the million dollar question. "But aren't you hungry?" He was always hungry, now matter how much souls he absorbed. He was like the Orochi of old, endless hunger. But unlike the deadliest of the Ancients, he had learned how to control said yearning, how to harness it. The former Sennin smirked, a curious question from her it was. "Me? I am always hungry, although it is a different kind of hunger. Or so I think. But even so, I brought those six, now five, men for you and you alone. Please feast, regain your strength. We have a visitor after all, and you should greet it with an empty stomach" he calmly answered. Yes, refusing to consume a soul right now was the best for him.That question was either booby trapped or had a concealed test. They were playing a game of chess and both players were moving pawns for now.

 

[Nanashi]

As the...being meeting with the Senju leader spoke of seven additionals to the meeting, the Assassin slowed her breathing, mind racing through a series of conclusions. The Senju had not realized he'd been followed. But somehow the creature across from him had detected her. Given the lack of doujutsu on display by those other than her, that meant the Sand Elemental had some non-visual sense with sufficient precision to have pinpointed her. Hearing? Smell? Some sort of extended sense of touch through the very physical stuff of her namesake? Regardless of how, the fact remained. Expanding her eyes into her three-tomoe'd Mangekyou, the crimson flowing in from the pupil of her rinnegan as the rings and many tomoe melded together into three immense tomoe which flowed in a continuous wheel. She would miss no details of the exchange before abandoning the location.

Still. She scowled her contempt at the messy, haphazard manner in which the eldritch entity removed soul from body. So bloody, so ineffecient. Admittedly, her own experience in such amounted to having forcibly pulled free the possessing spirit of a Jinchuuriki, an act whose repurcussions she was certain had yet to be fully felt. That spirit-beast remained out there, and she would have to deal with it, she was certain. That remained a battle for another day, however. For now, there was the matter of the enforced human sacrifice being enacted here. She listened as the Senju outlined his summation of the creature's count, correctly surmising an interloper. To feed souls to such a being, it transgressed beyond mere mortal horrors. Murder, torture of the body, these were far, far lesser crimes to that. At least a clean death or dirty one involved a peace afterward. Not so for the consumption of souls. It ran contrary to what her instincts screamed for her to do, and she held no love for her former home's chief foes, but there were things one could and could not do while yet retaining one's humanity. This was such a case.

Her hands racing through the seals, she reached up and bit a bloody gash in her thumb, slamming it to ground and sending a spiderweb network of seals radiating out from the point of impact before the immense, broad-mawed form of the gedo mazo appeared in an immense discharge of white smoke. Releasing the shroud holding her from sight, she intoned simply and clearly, "You may have no depths to which you refuse to sink, Senju, but I will not permit you the parceling off of human souls to feed the hunger of this washed-up former force of nature." As she spoke, the Gedo Mazo's immense maw fell open, reaching out with its barbed tongues to cleanly tear the souls from three of the five remaining bushi, leaving them dead in an instant.

 

[Michi]

"All of those six, yes. I came alone. If you are counting seven, either you are counting with me, or there is someone else near us. And since I came alone, it means we are being spied. There is a chance this seventh presence is a product of a random coincidence, and not of thoughtful consideration. We should do something about it. If you can sense its presence, perhaps it is within your power to bring him, or her, here. But please eat, enjoy your meal. We will deal with our little fly later on."

The Kohonan replied. "Seven," she reaffirmed as she lost interest in the remaining quintet on the floor. A guttural sound reverberated from her lips as she looked out into the wilds. The remaining samurais had a stay of execution it would seem. She cocked her head to the side and summoned the fragmented human facade to return to her naked hand. Her innermost being screamed for her to continue, she had been starved for so long. "I can wait," she added. She had the constitution of a monk in many ways, able to deny herself sustenance despite her maddening desire because she coveted something more than physiological need. "Besides, I miss the hunt," she admitted. Her recent taste of souls only stoked her desire.

Still she needed to know, who or what this Senju was.

"Me? I am always hungry, although it is a different kind of hunger. Or so I think. But even so, I brought those six, now five, men for you and you alone. Please feast, regain your strength. We have a visitor after all, and you should greet it with an empty stomach"

He did not want to break bread or rather souls with her. She shook her head as she replied, "you are a strange ...human." She paused before she called him such, she would have thought him otherwise. "I thought you might have been," she stated almost wistfully "...nevermind." She had a human to catch in a game of spider and blow torch. It was then that the spider decided to crawl out from its hole.

"You may have no depths to which you refuse to sink, Senju, but I will not permit you the parceling off of human souls to feed the hunger of this washed-up former force of nature."

A guffaw rattled through her lips. "Former," her voice cracked as she laughed. "A sentimental choice I assure you, but no worries little spider... humanity no longer has my consent to survive." She warned, her hands readied in front of her. She did not wait for the Senju's word, this spider was not one of his or that was what he claimed. Over the desert in a flash of air, wind and sound she stopped abruptly in front of this unfortunate woman. "Hollow slivers... fragmented and poor," she mused as she summoned a tendril of sand that attempted to ensconce the unfortunate witness.

OC: I am fine with an RP event but if at any time you would like a B mod I consent to it but I would rather let you and Kazuki RP out whatever story it is you have brewing here. I will only give you violence you OC ly want and find excuses even if they are pretty butterflies to walk away.

 

[Senju Kazuki]

"I thought you might have been...nevermind." she said. "What? An Ancient like you? I have no answer for such question. Yes, I have abilities that are not common on this world. In fact, I would call them quite rare. And strangely enough, abilities we seem to share. Does that make me one of your kind? I do not know, can you? Is there a way to verify if one is an Ancient? Perhaps you, one of them, know and have a way for that. Care to share? It is within my interest to know the truth about myself, even if the answer might be dreadful." Kazuki noted. Yes, he deeply desired to understand why he shared those abilities with one race whose sole intent seemed to be humanity's destruction. Did that make him less human? He knew he had lost part of his humanity long ago and some recently, but what if he was not human to begin with? Would his allegiances change with the truth uncovered? No. Ancient or Human he was the same. Unfortunately, the seventh presence decided to make itself known to the general public. A voice reached them. A familiar voice, one that the Overlord had heard rather recently. But one that also evoked the feeling of home within himself. This one was from Konoha. This stranger warned them that whatever was happening with them would be permanently stopped and to do so, an Outer Path was summoned.

This immediately revealed the newcomer possessed the Rinnegan. And he also knew the White Wolf was a Senju. A spider, though, should never mess with Death. Shiori, mad with hunger, or simply mad, was the first to react. A step flash later she was right in front of the Assassin and already trying to ensnare it with a sand tendril. Not bad stuff but there was a huge tower of mass to tackle down. Pitch black chakra was sent to the ground forming a runic circle near the Outer Path. Wind picked up sand as something humongous came from the pits of the world. What this creature was, was not easily discernible until the sand could settle. Although sand natives could be misguided and think the so called mythic Sandworms had come to life again. The Silvery Haired Man knew what he had brought upon the face of world. Something massive, strong and quite capable of tackling down something as big as an Outer Path. "I AM STRAGAAAAAA." the creature announced to the whole world with a booming voice. "Straga take the Outer Path down." the former Sennin calmly ordered. The humongous demon simply dashed forward, moving through the floor and clotheslined the Path. Then he simply fell over it, blocking Nanashi's summon with its own massive frame.

With one problem contained it was time to join Mother Suna and perhaps prevent the murder of someone not intended. Entering his own shadows, Reaper would emerge at Shiori's side, facing the Assassin. If the voice remembered him of Konoha, the face confirmed it. He had seen it before. There was no way to mistake it for someone else. "I have seen you before. You are from Konohagakure, I am certain of that. What I would like to know, before I send your Outer Path into oblivion, is why you are spying on us? I am a patient man, but my colleague here is on her last threads of patience. I urge you to answer quickly unless you wish to learn, first hand, why this place is known as Godsfall." Kazuki noted as thunder and lightning began showing up.

 

[Nanashi]

"No worries little spider... humanity no longer has my consent to survive."


As the tendril of sand reared back, the Assassin shook her head in pity, pointing out to the Ancient that, "This place alone is proof we've not needed your kind's consent for anything for a long time." When the lash of sand landed, it struck the side of a kawarimi target, which promptly exploded as the explosive note attached to the stump was triggered by the impact. Elsewhere, the Gedo Mazo was tackled by some immense monstrosity summoned by the Senju, but it simply lashed its tongue past this Straga creature, securing the souls of the final samurai in its gullet before dissipating into a cloud of thick, white smoke, the dead warriors' souls in tow. From the spot several feet away she'd shifted to upon being attacked, she reached out a hand and made one of the fundamental forces of the universe sit down, shut up, and do her bidding. The immense creature which had called itself Straga wasn't so much ripped from the ground as he suddenly fell upward into the sky, its own personal gravity having been reversed and heightened. As it fully cleared the earth and reached a height deemed sufficient by the red-haired killer, she again reversed its gravity, slamming the immense creature to ground with an earthshaking impact.

Meeting the former Sennin's eyes, the Assassin refuted the Senju's threat."It's called Godsfall because her kind,"</B><i></i> She indicated Shiori with a jerk of her head, "bit off more than they could chew, and this was where they paid the piper." Having said that, her Mangekyo suddenly strained to open wider yet, and a trickle of blood started to run down her cheek before the world disappeared in its entirety.

The next thing the Konohan veteran knew, he was in an empty, featureless void, a white plain with nothing to see but the tree, the original Senju tree, to which he was bound and held immobile by huge bands of iron which seemed to have been hammered into the immense bole. Before him stood the red-headed Uchiha from moments before. Pacing, she stopped to stare him right in the eye. "I will give you one chance to answer me honestly. Perhaps you will not appreciate it, but I control this place, so I could make reticence cost you dearly."<i></i> She crossed arms bedecked in blue, nearly-invisible flames over her black garb's chest. <B>"What are you doing here, and what do you know of Hizashi's current whereabouts. What, if anything, does this have to do with his current attacks?"

 

[Michi]

OC: I am actually working next 5 days and Reiko has my comp most of today. So I will address the before the round in a round a give you guys some uninterrupted alone time.

IC:
There was a way to know. While there were parallels that could be drawn between various members of courts, skills can be learned or mimicked. Bluster alone was not enough. Ancients and humans differed fundamentally -- they lacked the unbridled potential of humanity, Ancients came from the natural world while humans were in and of themselves an independent entity, and finally they lack 'choice'. They, being herself and any other living Ancient did more than eat, sleep, fight and fuck. They were products of a design far outside their authority and control. "A discussion for another time, Shiori replied. It was likely, nay probable that he had a fragment of Ancient within him, but that did not necessarily make him an Ancient. That could make him a target in fact, but no need to consider the worst case scenarios just yet. There was the more likely fact that he might be a half-breed -- there was a time when members of the courts had their way with the first men, the coupling not necessarily consensual. Their reasons varied from carnal desire, to boredom, curiosity, to the attempted creation of a demigod. This was not her personal practice but she could not speak for every member of her court.

Then there was the interloper...

Shiori moved fast, her feet slid over the sand as she attempted to ensnare the girl. The ground was marred with the writings of a forgotten civilization. A behemoth was summoned, in the path of her tendril that writhed and twisted around the massive summon only to break a log in twain. An explosive note already attached, the sign of a strategist. A burst of flame and light destroyed what remained of the log. Shiori did not bother stepping back, the damage a pittance in comparison to her natural restorative properties. Her skin darkened and scaled by the heat over her forearms, her flesh remained intact.

Foolish or more likely suicidal, the interloper brought up Godsfall. A sardonic smile escaped her lips. "Yes, of course, she replied with a bored tone. Remedial prancing about between herself and the Senju who emerged at her side. Shiori watched with an idle interest as her meal was snatched away. "You seem to know each other," she announced stating the obvious. She did not care for his choice in alliances thus far.

Assuming that the Senju did not reply to her observation, already trapped in the woman's insidious gaze. Shiori looked at both the man and the woman who donned the legendary rhinnegan. She stepped between them both, neither of them were looking at her. She had questions still for this Senju, questions she was too polite to ask without knowing his apparent power-set but it would seem that this mouthy pest has given her an opportunity. She paced around the Senju, taking in what he appeared to be. The man who appeared prematurely silver, dressed as a dignified Lord, sought the men with the greatest power and influence to forge alliances. She was curious about him. She was also curious about what the twat knew as well. This was also her opportunity, so still and oblivious. Fine... She would use this as an opportunity against them both. The Sand beneath the foreign Lords feet started to churn before it started to climb... Then it fell away. Waste not. Want not. Her lips parted as she instead started to case a genjutsu of her own through song. Her word was that of subjugation. Her melody and her will. A tree would wrap and twist about their limbs as the song reached their ears. The rising soprano that crashed to a low baritone with a flick of the tongue and a rumble of her breast.

Actions: Tree Binding until successful via song to make the genjutsu an AOE. Sorry Kazuki, did not plan to tie you up so soon.

--- done via a phone, Reiko had the comp all day. Gen I my top stat. Ironic that it is not Nin. -----

 

[Senju Kazuki]

"Fine, let's deal with our present issue then." Kazuki muttered after hearing Shiori stating that was a discussion for another time. Suna's bondage attempt was proven rather ineffective in stopping the Assassin. She managed to ensnare booby trapped kawarimi target which exploded on her face. Along the way, the Overlord calmly watched everything as if he had no active role on what was going on. His beast tackled the Outer Path but it was also an ineffective action. The Gedo Mazo successfully extinguished the remaining sacrifices for Shiori. 8 humans and one Ancient began that conversation and they had been brought down into 2 humans and the same Ancient. Such a pity to waste perfectly good sources of souls. The Assassin proved himself to be resourceful as using Gravity Ninjutsu, he pulled Straga up and allowed it to fell on the ground. A small earthquake was created upon the demon's impact on the earth. As the dust and sand settled, it was no longer visible. Having done its purpose it was no longer needed, ergo, the White Wolf had sent it back to hell.

Mother Suna made a statement that also served as a question. The Silvery Haired Man began to answer it only to fall short mid sentence. "We are both from Konoha and I have...", if it were not for the Assassin's Tsukiyomi, he would have finished with "... seen him rather recently in Sunagakure." But he fell prey to the Uchiha's ultimate genjutsu and so could not. A split second later he was strapped into the Senju's Sacred Tree by iron bands in the middle of a endless white plain. The Uchiha Sennin was in front of him, pacing around. Eventually he stopped and stared at Reaper's soul piercing, black irised eyes. "I will give you one chance to answer me honestly. Perhaps you will not appreciate it, but I control this place, so I could make reticence cost you dearly." he threatened him. The former Sennin silently stared back and calmly shurgged his shoulders as if he was saying "MEH".

"What are you doing here, and what do you know of Hizashi's current whereabouts. What, if anything, does this have to do with his current attacks?" Senju Hizashi. Now that was a name he had not heard in a long time. But why would this nameless creature would be after him? Was he a former experience? Or perhaps someone closer, say, son? Why not both? It was quite interesting. Of all places, here and now, a stranger talking about a Senju. "My reasons for being are my own and I have no need or desire to share them with you. I know you are from Leaf and if you're asking about him, then you have some sort of relation with him. Let me tell you what I know about Senju Hizashi. That has-been Orochimaru pretender that always tried to outperform me but failed every single time. Always trying to be better than me but always unsuccessful. Poor man, I would pity him but I don't much of that inside me. Are you telling me he is alive after all? I lost track of him after we left Konohagakure, once the Samurai overran it. Never once he tried to make contact and return to his clan. And now you telling me he is, not only active, but attacking you?". Kazuki shook his head in disbelief. The guy had just signed his death warrant. Not only he had shown the Sacred Tree to an outsider of the clan. Since it was quite clear the Assassin was not a Senju, but the guy had also forsaken in clan. It was a double betrayal. And there was only one way to deal with that. Death. "I have no idea of who he is or why he is attacking you. But I do know one thing and it is quite certain to happen. I am going to find him and I am going to execute him. He knows the price to pay for betrayal and he will pay it." Reaper declared. There was no way to mistake his words for a joke as his face was deadly serious.

 

[Nanashi]

As he listened to her speak, the Assassin had taken full advantage of her Mangekyou to read the reactions and micro-expressions of the Senju clan leader. From both the calculating nature of his speech and the dispassionate nature of his reactions, she quickly surmised that like Hizashi, Kazuki was a sociopath. Not surprising. The clan rite encouraged the sort of behavior, cold rationality, and manipulation that a sociopath would find themselves already adept at from a life of navigating a world where most thought in terms of intangible feelings. She also realized that Hizashi's Garden and its attacks were news to his clan leader. He reacted strongly, in as much as such one could, to the presence of the tree, regarding it before speaking of a death warrant on Hizashi. Her lips thinned at his proclamation that he would kill her target. She listened to him speak, then changed the world they inhabited.

No longer was Kazuki bound to the tree. He stood alone, unbound, on the infinite plain. Before him, the Nameless Assassin stood backlit by black flames, surging about the form of the Senju's tree. "You will do no such thing. Your clan has robbed me of enough already. Take his death from me or interfere with or harm me in my pursuit of him in any fashion, and your clan will have no safe haven in Sunagakure. Before you think to kill me, know that I have insured that the Steward will know of your clan's weakness in the event of my death. Interfere in any way, and you will see all your works and all you value burnt to ash about you." Finishing that, she emptied the entire space of everything but Kazuki and the echoing sound of her voice. "Just stay out of my way."


And then the Assassin and Kazuki were both back in Godsfall. At that moment, the Nameless shinobi became aware of an utter inability to move their body. They could not move any of their bodies. That simple fact ruled out any sort of taijutsu. And ninjutsu wouldn't have the sheer range to span the miles back to where some of their bodies were in the village. That left some sort of Genjutsu as effecting them.

 

[Michi]

Waiting for Kazuki's post because I do not know the success of my actions.

 

[Michi]

She continued her siren's song.

"How churlish," Shiori commented when she saw the spark return to their eyes. She had left the village and traveled miles from Sunagakure to take a value assessment of the Kohonan only to have their exchange interrupted and herself excluded from the exchange. Not to mention the quidnuc's choice words that had not been forgotten. The stranger perchance did not truly grasp the disparity in power between them. Shiori was not some rusted relic that would soon be buried in the sands nor was she the benevolent deity some celebrated.

Her melody persisted as a low melodic hum.

The eyes the impetuous girl. She sought anything that would identify her as a denizen of Wind Country -- the regalia of a Sunan shinobi, the symbol of an honored house. Was she sent by Sousuke? Was she an ally of the Senju? Just a petulant jackanapes allowed to venture too far into the badlands alone? "Do you happen to know a... Sousuke." She finally inquired with a half smile. Her word choice particularly important here in terms of civility but the reason why immediately followed. "My disreputable cousin," she exhaled. Assuming the answer was 'yes' even if it was 'no' because who did not know the Steward? There was only one correct answer, but that was the point of the query was to know the response of the troublesome girl. While it would not deter this immediate conversation it would alter future communications. She wanted the girl to know of their relationship, she wanted the girl to know that she was not a friend to the Kazekage. In fact, she was about to screw over the Senju Sennin.

And the gentle aria escaped her lips still.

The Senju was the object of her... enthusiasm. What was he? This silver haired and tongued foreigner who quickly became a trusted member of the Kazekage's inner circle. Kazuki was a charismatic man, abnormally so. Upon his initial encounter with the Steward she recalled her cousin's suggestion to unite their clans through marriage. She paced around the foreigner, unable to appreciate him up close so fully in the past during their brief meetings. He was lovely for a man, but she did not believe he truly was simply a man. "You bring friends to the desert," she shook her head in a tasking manner. She was rather confident that he did not bring the girl. However, the fact remained that this girl might still be his ally. His lover perhaps? A friend? Family member? Someone sent by the Steward to keep an eye on them both? There was a way to force the Senju's as well as Nanashi's hand. "This dalliance was intended to be more intimate... I am disappointed," she feigned a frown.

Her bitter song rang out.

She turned back to Nanashi. "I was hoping for some alone time with my future husband," she added. "And I have recently discovered that I can be a rather jealous woman." There was something to be learned here, perhaps even by the participants -- who was on who's side? She was certainly opposed to the Kazekage, but she could not knowingly say the same for either of the 'people' before her. "Considering how I have fallen from our Lord's grace," she stated sarcastically. "Our affair was intended to be a private one," she explained. It was a cruel statement to make considering the fact that she knew what it would mean for the Senju. For a witness to claim that a confidant of the Steward's was not only meeting, sacrificing men and allegedly in some form of relationship with her would not bode well for the newly rising power. The answer that Nanashi would provide would be an interesting one. Would he share this information with the Kazekage? Would he set this man up to take a terrible fall, truth or not. No enemy would even question the opportunity. An ally, however might refute her claims. A lover would most certainly do so.

"His choice in women confuses me," she pretended to pout as she turned her attention back to the normally cool and collected Senju to adjust his collar. Shiori's song was no longer intended for Nanashi's ears. "We have much to discuss, including but not limited to the fact that I do not expect him to take additional lovers without me there..." she sighed with her back to Nanashi. "I hope to not see you again," the announced as her voice lowered almost a full octave.

[Note: She released Nanashi if Nanashi had not escaped already. Kazuki she has not released and it is as always his choice if he stays the way he is or not.]

[Note 2: In short, she is claiming Kazuki is on her side to determine if Nanashi is a friend of the Stewards and/or a friend of Kazuki's]

 

[Senju Kazuki]

A split second later and Kazuki was no longer bound to the tree. It would seem his words had stroke a nerve on the Assassin. It was her that was somewhat inside tree and she spoke. She told him she would not allow the Overlord to take Hazashi's life because that was her job. She had been robbed of much by the Senju Clan and she would suffer it no more. "I do as I please and neither you, or anyone else, has any say in that. Do you think I care how Hazashi dies? I only care that he dies. Either by my hand or yours, or anyone else's. And if I move to execute him there is nothing you can do about it. Do you think I fear you, step daughter of Hizashi? I could snap your neck before you could even realize it. The sole reason you are still alive is because I have no desire to extinguish you. And don't even think you know a thing about my clan. Only a true Senju truly knows our we operate and you are not. Everything you think you know will be proven false later on and all these threats will come to bite you." the White Wolf replied before the end of the Uchiha's ultimate genjutsu. If he had any hopes of moving his body, they were utterly destroyed as the Silvery Haired Man found himself tied up to, yet another tree. Again he understood he was under the effect of another illusion. There were no trees before and certainly there were none now. This was the work of Mother Suna.

The former Sennin remained motionless, as he had been forced to, and calmly listened to her words. He could break free at any time, but why waste this opportunity to learn as much as he could without moving a muscle. Suna questioned him why he had brought a friend to desert, only to claim this dalliance was meant to be more private. "Dalliance? What kind of game is she playing now?" Reaper wondered. The more Shiori talked the more it seemed she was trying to tease the Assassin into revealing something. Perhaps whose side she was on. One thing Suna had claimed was entirely incorrect. Yes, this meeting had supposed to be private but not secret. If she was trying to imply Kazuki was acting behind Sousuke's back, then she was going to be sorely disappointed. The Steward knew what the Overlord was doing. Yes, he did not happily agree to it, but the Purple Haired Man understood it was necessary for the well being of their future.

"Oh my choice in women upsets you? Perhaps you should educate me on that subject when we have the time." the White Wolf calmly remarked. Things were apparently light so far, but Suna was certainly decided on ending this affair with the Assassin rather soon. Her last sentenced could be practically taken as a veiled threat. The former Sennin stared at Hizashi's step daughter curious to see how she would reply. Would she dare to attack? Was she aware she was swimming in shark infested waters? That she was a squid facing two big, white sharks? "I would go away if I were you. If you wish to kill your father, you will have to survive this day. Your current course will not end well." Reaper advised her. This was done on concern of the Assassin's well being, but rather on not wanting Shiori to take a soul as strong as the girl's.

[MFT - 594]

 

[Nanashi]

The Assassin listened to the malcontent ancient speak on, outlining a story which, given the evident disparity between it and the manner of interaction between the two of them, the blind false-goddess was clearly lying. Not bothering to waste time responding to a question that everyone in Sunagakure could answer in the affirmative in one fashion or another, she continued her mental dissection as the red-headed songstres, clearly enamoured with the sound of her own voice, kept up her recitation of self-evident falsehoods. She spun more of her tale of assignation in the desert, but whatever tryst this was, clearly romance had not been the intent. As she was released from the binding grasp of the tree, the Black Swordsman, safely ensconced in the weapon-training grounds of the Toraono dojo, began the handseals to summan all of their selves to that spot.

"Your presence was irrelevant to my purposes here. I have no interest in the ramblings or relationships of an inhuman relic. Besides, you're a terrible liar. But then, one cannot expect a blind creature to understand the nuances of human body language. Nor would I would care if your fib were fact. Kill him, copulate with him; I will not care either way. He did not have the information I sought, so he is useless to me. Your game is irrelevant, godling." Turning to Kazuki she shook her head. "Senju, remember my warning. His blood is mine to shed. Interfere at your own peril."

And with that, she vanished in a puff of billowing white smoke, as if a contract beast had been banished or a clone had been dispersed.

[topic left]

 

[Michi]

The strange irony of being bound twice by one's mind. It was quite the marvel that the Uchiha assassin not only seemed to avoid such disgrace but that she also knew that she was blind and that everything she said was a lie. That was the only reason she could think of to let the Assassin leave with her life, the transfer of misinformation. She wondered if the Assassin knew that Shiori had no murderous intent at the moment for truly no discernible reason beyond perhaps the fancy, promise or want of some god-like writer that had stretched the will of their character beyond reason as it was to allow this Assassin's escape and to shatter the fourth wall. All the same, the writer's word is as good as law and the assassin would be given the chance to escape.

Kazuki went on to say identify the girl's quarry as her father. She was also given an identity - step daughter of Hizashi. She was unfamiliar with the name, never one to concern herself with foreign politics. She scarcely knew the story of Kirigakure and Kohonagakure's destruction, only that it happened because there were a number of unpleasant men and women who came to Sunagakure in the wake of such devastation. She stood there patiently, allowing them both the opportunity to say their part. Another insult heaped onto the last, Shiori tapped her foot. The writer was not going to let her act. Her Earth Court limit certainly would not have provided the mouthy girl any security and that was without consideration of the heart she had stolen. The heart that allowed her to defy her nature. That allowed her to choose.

When the girl left in a huff the tree faded away, the twisting branches became slack and no longer did hold the Senju. He was a beautiful man, that was certain but she was more curious than enamored by the mysterious Lord. "Are you injured?" She asked, making a feeble attempt to conceal her minor concern that failed likely upon query. She let out a sigh. "Now that she is gone," she looked out into the vast emptiness that was the desert. "You mentioned an offer... not a gift," Shiori reminded him, referring to one of the first things Kazuki said to her ...I come with glad tidings. I have an offer for you... I have heard you are famish. Lunch is served.

"I also have a question for you. A question about your Kohonagakure,"</B><i></i> She exhaled, the sound of her voice seemed akin more to the breeze than the sound of a woman. <B>"Were you able to fight those samurais or... were you so compelled to make those who harmed what was yours hurt after the war?" The question was perhaps odd, but it was very specific. The Earth Court had a limit -- they were neutral arbitrators. Survival of the fittest was their mantra, while they never sought the heat of battle unlike Homura nor did they lord over all that was beneath them like the Solar Court they were powerful in their own right. Godsfall was a battle of fate, one that would determine who was fit to thrive. Who was fit to rule. Despite her deepest desire and sympathies for her brothers, she was tethered to her nature and could not intervene unless she and her court was directly challenged or offended. Man back then knew this, her Court remained spectators until their Ancient breathren's numbers dwindled to such a low that they would have been overwhelmed by mankind and that they were. She survived, but only after watching everyone and everything she ever knew and cared for destroyed utterly. Her children never returned from the crimson and gold dust that painted the desert. She hated humanity and wanted to make them hurt as she had, it was when they destroyed her court that they declared war on her centuries ago. But she was alone. So utterly and completely alone.

The time the followed Godsfall was a time of celebration for the many tribes of man. She watched as they drank and they fucked. She watched as the wilds grew overbearing. With Primus dead, there was no man to rule and the great tribes fragmented. Some returned to their nomadic roots, others became an agrarian culture, others sought to advance technology and others subscribed to the ways of old - to the first of the first men. She came to them, this broken humanity and it was then that her celebrated legend began. She fought the son of Primus. She won, but she did not take his life. Rather she stole from him his legacy but the early tribes of man did not see it this way when she infused the young heir of Primus' fabled potential with her very essence. Weakening her in doing such, she would break this paragon of human potential by making him a servant of his own people. Yes, a ruler has power but he is first and foremost a man of his people, entrusted and given the duty to provide and protect them. She ensured that it would not be his hands but rather these sands that did such. To a spectator it looked like a gift. She made the son of Primus stronger than he ever was and this was true, he was but his potential would be wasted. Primus was a gladiator. A man who knew how to use his hands and he did so. Once he was given a blade to wield he was unstoppable. His sons and daughters would share this potential and in the long run being alone she would not be able to defend herself forever against them once humanity multiplied unrestrained. She needed time, time for her brothers to re-cycle. Time for her children to return. A time that it would seem would sadly never come. The son of Primus, armed with the ability to control the desert -- he did such. He moved mountains, made great valleys and was a 'master' of his own domain and from there the Sunahoshi legacy was born. A wasted potential because something more aesthetically appealing but by far less fearful was put in its place.

"Did you start the war?" She asked, her mind muddied in thought and memory. "Did you feed a small scuffle and force it to grow? Do you seek the heat of battle still?" She asked, the words important once again. The Flame Court sought battle in everything. It was an addiction for them where bloodshed was all they knew. All they desired. Much like the destructive properties of a flame in and of itself they sought destruction and pain but they also realized that everything could not be destroyed so utterly, because then there would be nothing left to feed the flames. They fought each other. They fought the weaker and lesser courts. They forced others to fight and with a voyeuristic glee witnessed the fray. They truly could not stop themselves but some hid it well. It was their limit and their addiction. She had only seen this Lord Senju four times counting this meeting. She did not know where his servants came from or if he possessed the cruel intent of the Flame.

"Why have you allied yourself with my 'cousin'?" She then asked, but this question was not nearly as precise as others. "Do you plan on replacing him so that you can lord over this domain?" She asked but this question was far from specific. Any man or woman could have a desire for power. "Is that how you got rank in your own clan?" She inquired calmly still as if she was reading from a list of questions. "The rank in your own village?" Even if the answer was 'yes' to everything it truly did not tell her if he was anything more than an ambitious man. Even a pattern could suggest no more than this. "Could you kneel before any man. Not would you but could you under your own power?" That was the flaw of the Solar Court and Fuujin. He was the most powerful among them but he also possessed a fatal flaw -- his hubris. He sought control and dominion and he had no qualms sharing this information. He had no qualms reminding everyone that he was the most powerful. That he was in control. That he was the King. was she his Queen? ...never. There were some family members that you dealt with only on holidays -- he was among them. He was not capable of subterfuge, his pride would never allow it. Perhaps if it did, the fate of their kind would have been different.

She had more questions to ask, more to be answered. Perhaps some to be ignored.

Actions:
Tree Binding released - cannot keep you tied up forever. =( I have a feeling Mrs. Kazuki would have a problem with that!
Nanashi has been allowed to leave topic
Success to Kazuki if he chooses an offensive or defensive action. You have not been given a chance to make any actions and the two you made were essentially ignored (Straga because of the illusion) or was eliminated pretty quickly (all your samurais were taken away) and you should have a moment for something and you are my PL so it would be a feasible outcome of success.

 

[Senju Kazuki]

And after the Assassin left their presence, Kazuki was finally freed of Shiori's genjutsu. Or perhaps he had allowed both of them to have their way just because he was studying where would they go if given free reign. So far everything was almost normal. But now that he was not under the effect of any ilusion, capable of independent movement, things with Shiori were marching again. "Hardly! I am not even certain if she had any possibility of hurting any of us. It was a waste of time and food though." the Overlord replied upon an inquiry if he was injured by Suna. Most of the White Wolf's nourishment for the Ancient was gone. If needed he could bring more, but hopefully that would not be necessary.

"I also have a question for you. A question about your Kohonagakure... Were you able to fight those samurais or... were you so compelled to make those who harmed what was yours hurt after the war?" she would inquire. It was an interesting question and the answer even more curious. A proper explanation would require time and there was no point in standing for so long. A small feat of concentration later and the Silvery Haired Man would be seating in a finely crafted, wooden chair. In front of him another one could be found, waiting for Shiori. "We might as well seat. My answer might take a while." he noted as he gestured her to seat. After intertwining his fingers, resting his left ankle on top of his right knee and staring at the horizon for a beat, he would start his tale. "I think it is best I explain what happened so you can truly grasp everything. Simply put the Fire Daimyo declared war on the shinobi of the Fire Country. Konohagakure had just overcome a civil war and we had an invading army at our doorstep. There was little time to prepare and, as you can imagine, we were in a complete state of chaos. Facing a superior numbered army of Samurai was not our biggest threat however. With those we can deal, and usually, we are stronger than them. The Fire Daimyo discovered the secrets of a mythical Kinjutsu that had leveled Leaf a long time ago. This technique is known as the Red Rain Kinjutsu and consists on an endless pour of chakra sapping water. If you are exposed to it, you will be constantly drained of what allows you to fight back.". Reaper paused momentarily just to switch his leg's position. "I was no exception. Even if I have a secondary resource pool at my disposal, even I cannot fight for long without utilizing my chakra. The only thing we could do was gather the survivors and flee. Along the way I've found four of the Daimyo's lieutenants and was forced into combat. In the end I managed to win mainly due to sheer luck. They had messed with an abstract entity that eventually betrayed and so I emerged victorious. Against all odds. And yes, my heart is filled with revenge. I will make the Fire Daimyo pay for all that he has done to me and my kin. I will claim his life and his soul and he will suffer my wrath for all eternity. There will no eternal rest for him, only endless torture and servitude.". The former Sennin did not know if that was what Shiori was hoping to hear, but it was the truth and he had no reason to lie to her.

"Did you start the war? Did you feed a small scuffle and force it to grow? Do you seek the heat of battle still?. She questioned him again. Changing the position of his legs yet again, he would begin answering. "No. As I have told you, he started the war. He bombed the Hokage's office when I was inside it. I survived due to certain abilities I posses, otherwise I would not be seating here right now. But he took the first move, not me. I will bring war upon him but on due time. Right now it would be a suicide and I have no interest in dying. The only thing I seek is revenge and the restitution of my home. Nothing else matters." This one was simpler to answer. The Overlord was no warlord. He had no interest in battles, unless he was on a mission, being attacked or after a soul. Every other time in between he was content on pursuing other things that did not involve such violent practices.

And then she threw a flurry of questions. The Silvery Haired Man listened to each and everyone of them. He calmly pondered on each before answering them all in one go. "I have allied myself with your cousin because I need allies. My clan also needs a safe haven where we know we won't be attacked by worthless samurais. A place that we can find peace and grow back to our previous splendor. A place where we can plan our next move. Do I plan to have them stay permanently in Sunagakure. I don't think so, Konohagakure is our home and it is where we belong. Until we can reclaim it, we will stay in Sand. I have no desire to run Sunagakure. There are some in my clan that would think twice about murdering the Kazekage and attempt to claim that title, but I am not one of them. Like any of my kin, power is something I seek everyday, but I am after a different source. Village's ranks matter little to me. Ironically, I got the rank of Overlord after I have killed my father. But I did not do so because I desired to lead the Senju, but because he had to be put down. Incidentally, I was the strongest Senju back then and so I was named their leader. The rank of Overlord always goes to the strongest Senju." he noted as he paused momentarily. "The ranks in Konohagakure are given based on merit and experience. Just like in Sunagakure I suppose. ". Reaper paused again because he had reached Shiori's last question and, coincidentally the most critical, or so he was led to believe. "Can I kneel before any man? Yes and no. I have no qualms in kneeling before another, but only if he has proven to be superior to me. We Senju value strength, it is no shame nor against our creed to kneel before someone stronger.".

He could not hope to feel that this series of questions were a test. He was being tested, but on what?

 

[Michi]

He was uninjured. That was good. She did not know what the girl had done to the Senju. She had questions for the silvery man, she wondered upon wonder if he was under one of her own. The hollow sense that came with loss and loneliness was like a cancer rotting her away from the inside. Everything tasted like sulfur and ash, the world only shades. She wanted desperately some sort of affirmation. To know one of her children had survived. One of her brother's children survived.

She was hopeful when a chair was created. She was hopeful when it seemed as if he was searching for an explanation. She sat in the chair and studied his face, his attire. There were dozens of courts. So many limits. He defied her hopes, her great expectations. Her face dropped, her visage was painted with sorrow and her heart ached. She let out a shuddering sigh as she fought back a wave of emotion to maintain a facade of neutrality and stoicism. "I hoped... she admitted. "Nothing strange. You bleed blood. You suffer from no compulsions?" She listed calmly but there was a sound of defeat within those words. She shook her head, it was an idle hope. She leaned her head against the back of the chair as if in thought.

"I am tired," she confided. She wanted his answers to be different, she was tired of being alone even when in a room full of people. "I thought you might have been one of mine," she continued. "Humans took everything from me, she reminded herself out loud steeling her resolve. It was her sentiment that caused her such pain. Her sentiment for Homura and Fuujin that reduced her to dust. It was her maternal sentiments that caused her heart to break a thousand times as she watched her children die. And her heart broke again every day that they refused to rise. It broke when she chose a child of her own, only to have him misplaced by the careless Steward and again it broke when he callously told her that he thought Makeinu dead. It broke when Sousuke rejected her as a woman and as an Ancient. There should not be anything left to ache but it did still.

"If you are not one of us... And you have allied yourself with Sousuke, then... Why have you come?" Had he come to kill her? Betray the Steward? Unlikely. Learn her weaknesses to gain further favor and alliance with the Kazekage? Perhaps.

WC: 422
MFT

 

[Senju Kazuki]

Shiori accepted Kazuki's chair. She waited for his answers and the more he spoke the lower her head became. "I hoped..." she stated. "You hoped I was one of your kind, perhaps even of your own court." the Overlord noted only to be confirmed by Mother Suna's following words. "I thought you might have been one of mine...Humans took everything from me". "Perhaps they did, but from what I have gathered, Ancients may have been the cause for humanity's revolt. You enslaved them. It was only natural a revolt was bound to happen sooner or later. You can argue an ant has no quarrel with a boot, but after being stomped a few times, more and more ants will come until the boot was swarmed. Did any Ancient ever consider peaceful coexistence with humankind? Before they came to be you did not need souls for sustenance, so it was your fault for becoming addicted to them. Not that I can blame you for such addiction thought." Reaper would state. Yes, he was on the same boat as the Ancients. Requiring souls because it was mandatory for him now. He did not grow like so. There was once a time where he was blissfully oblivious to that power hunger and the need to satiate it with captured souls.


"Do I think I am an Ancient? I have no idea. I was born Human, of that I am quite certain. My desire and need for souls was not born with me. We Senju go through a transformation. Some change little, others change deeply. I was one of those that was modified intensively. Perhaps we are all freaks, but even in that freak show, I am unique. No one has ever showed the same hunger as I do, not ever. I have the same soul hunger as you." he declared while pointing to Shiori. "A human should not be going around sucking other human's souls. I have abilities that you have, undoubtedly, felt by now. Feats that I am almost certain your kind as shown before. I can safely say I am not entirely human anymore. Perhaps I am an Ancient that was dormant and was awoken during my change. Perhaps I am what people would call a Half breed and it explains why I share your abilities but not your limitations. Or mayhaps I am the result of what could have happen if Ancients were able to coexist with Humanity.".

"You are the only living Ancient I know, you alone may have the answers I seek. That is why I am here. To learn what I really am." he stated. Reaper was ready to pay for that knowledge, but Mother Suna did not need to know that just yet.