Weaponry and Puppetry [private]

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke was in one of those odd moods. No. Not odd. Terrible. He was in a terrible mood. Ennui. It was the most deplorable of states. Sousuke had to combat the problem of ennui. He had to. Or else he might lose his mind. With some effort Sousuke had figured a way to combat ennui. It was to do some experiments. Sousuke wheeled out of the Kazekage tower a metal clone which he had constructed on a stretcher. Ever the mad scientist, he was going to try something out that involved technology. Metal clones were construct from the use of chakra, they were constructs of chakra and a material. In Sousuke's case he could make clones out of various elements, but in his case he preferred the metal element. In times past, he could easily convert earthen techniques to metal techniques, but that ability was no longer in his repertoire.

Sousuke worked on the metal clone. Ever the tinkerer. In order to combat his boredom, he thought it might be possible to convert a clone that was born of elemental chakra into a puppet. Clones were sentient, sort of. They could perform lower level techniques. The idea here was to attempt to push that further by changing the weaponry they had. Add a flame thrower, or two. Add the capacity to use firearm weaponry, which Sousuke was now taking the time to understand now. With various clicks and whirls, he added the flame thrower to the shoulder. The metal clone looked at his creator, and then the shoulder cannon. There was extra weight maybe too much. Sousuke's eyes narrowed as he looked at his now pinned metal clone. "Get up. It's not hard."<i></i> He told his construct. The metal clone would attempt to get up, but then it simply fell over and hit the ground. Sosuke rubbed his temple. He watched as the metallic clone fell apart. It was now just a pile of metal. Sousuke kicked the junky bits. "Try ... try ... again."<i></i> He considered reforming the clone, but figured he ought to at least try to understand the 'new-er' found weaponry being firearms. Sousuke reached for a pistol and took the weapon awkwardly. He dissembled the weapon and placed the bullets on the side. This was a tricky weapon. Some had gotten it to fire out elemental rounds, other merely used metal orbs, and sometimes others had it fire rubber.

 

[Kazu]

Takeyashi was heading above ground to file a report for his most recent mission. It had been a trivial matter, just a simple reconnaissance mission around the Sunagakure border, but it was still needed for him to fill out a formal report. So, begrudgingly, he was making his way above ground towards the Kazekage Tower. One of the few buildings to be newly rebuilt on the surface, the young man had to admit that it was rather annoying to have to go so far out of his way to perform his duties. Why couldn't there be a secondary mission office located below ground? That way shinobi wouldn't be forced to make such an annoyingly out of the way trek. He wasn't in charge of these things, though — until such a time as he was, he'd dutifully follow his orders.

Covering his eyes from the blinding sun as he climbed up out of the vast cave network that was Sunagakure, the young man looked towards the Kazekage Tower. He was enjoying the view for a moment, when the doors opening caught his eye. He saw a man wheeling a table out of the building, with what appeared to be another person laying on it. Curious, the young man made his way closer so that he could get a better look. It wasn't until he was about thirty or forty feet away, however, that he recognized the man bending over the table: it was his Kazekage, and presiding commander-in-chief. The young man tensed up a little bit, having only encountered the man once before when he attempted to escape from a hospital room prematurely. He wondered if the Kazekage would recognize him? Approaching his commander, the young man stood at attention before him — it would be rude to not show respect for the Kazekage before entering the building.

"Good morning, Lord Kazekage." As he stood there, he had a chance to look a little more closely at what it was the man was working on. Takeyashi saw a scrap of metal pieces on the ground, and what looked like a menagerie of weapons scattered on the table. He didn't quite understand what was going on, nor did he understand why the Kazekage was doing this all outside. His face probably looked rather confused and quizzical, and he kept glancing down at the gadgets and weapons laying around. The Kazekage would have to be some sort of machine in order to not notice the young man's curiosity.

[ooc: Sorry for the wait. Also, for ease of RP, my character is dressed in the clothing mentioned in my profile. No cloak is being worn, so my Hachiashi arms are visible.]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke in a matter of seconds reassembled the hand gun turned and started firing at a target dummy. He had already refilled the clip. He opened fire. Each shot resonated as he emptied the clip. He would then turn to the Spiderling and talk. “Do you wish me a good morning, or mean that it is a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?”<i></i> He would inquire cold and mechanically. He frowned slightly. He would looked left at the target dummy which was now filled with smoking holes. He would exchange glances between it and Takeyashi. The man was not immediately aware of his curiosity. Sousuke was after all part machine. His left arm was mechanical.

Wait. That was not the best way to do this. Sousuke would snap his fingers. There was something in the eyes of the young man that Sousuke was trying to figure out after a few moments. He would begin to pick up on it after a few moments. "Oh. Oh. Yesyesyes. You're wondering what is going on aren't you Takeyashi?"<i></i> Sousuke would recognize his man. He made it his business to know everyone in the village. "I am attempting to acquaint myself with modern technology."<i></i> That was an understatement of sorts, merely this was the first time he tried to figure out firearms. He would twirl the weapon around in his index finger. "This is a pistol. It fires out little metallic balls, fireballs, and other elemental balls or orbs if you prefer. They make use of powders to work. Like an arrow and bow, but smaller and easier to conceal. This weapon can change the face of our killing methods. It ... curiously ... has become the most common weapon used by civilians who have connections with those of organized crime."<i></i> He stated. He stopped twirling the weapon and would throw it at the genin to look at. "You place a clip into the handle. A clip is like a quiver of arrows, except smaller ... and contains far less projectiles."<i></i> He explained. "You may be at an advantage with using this weapon as you have multiple hands to reload the weapon accordingly and to open fire."<i></i> It was true, he could carry two pistols and reload with his other two arms, and then finally carry a pair of daggers. "The pistol was designed for long ranged combat, but if someone were to get up close it would make the shot more dangerous but then one ran risk the danger of being disarmed."<i></i>

MFT 439

 

[Kazu]

The Spiderling was rather shocked when the Kazekage unloaded his entire clip of rounds into the target dummy some ten meters away. He hadn't expected the man to just start firing like that, and it had really caught him off guard. Unbeknownst to Takeyashi, his Kazekage must have been formally trained in the arts of war — the commander in chief for all of Sunagakure capitalized on the Spiderling's disoriented state by asking him a bewildering, and maybe even somewhat pedantic, series of questions. Still a little stunned from the rapid fire of the pistol, the young man had difficulty getting a well worded sentence out of his mouth. "I, uhm...I suppose all of them? I guess?" Takeyashi's face scrunched slightly into a confused and altogether thoroughly off-put face, although he did his best to not offend his leader. Luckily, it seemed as if the Kazekage wasn't quite as robotic as the young man might have originally thought. Having noticed the young man's discomfort, the stoic leader began to explain himself. He even seemed to remember Takeyashi's name, which surprised the young man slightly. It really shouldn't have, given the eccentricities of the Kazekage, but still.

As the leader of the Sand Village began to explain himself, Takeyashi wondered if this was the man's first time actually handling one of these weapons? As an active military personnel, Takeyashi had been introduced to these weapons a few years ago. Their use hadn't really become popular until a couple years ago, however. They were powerful, yes; but, their inaccuracy was a bit of a deal breaker for most. What was the point of a powerful weapon if it couldn't hit anything? Takeyashi had always preferred his bow and arrows, but he understood how some people might want to use these modern gadgets. He listened patiently to the Kazekage explaining their use and function, trying not to give away that he knew full-well how to use them. When the Kazekage suggested that the young man might be better suited to using them, he politely smiled and responded. "Thank you Lord Kazekage, I appreciate your praise. Personally, I prefer the old ways of combat. No matter how powerful these weapons may be, I prefer the precision of my bows." Respectful, yet honest. That was the way Takeyashi acted.

However, there was one mystery left unsolved. Looking down to the scraps of metal that were once the clone, Takeyashi's eyes narrowed slightly in thought. After a moment, he cautiously worded his question. "Lord Kazekage, there seems to be one more mystery at hand." He motioned towards the metal scraps with one of his arms, in case his commander didn't pick up on the target of his visual gaze. "I'm not quite sure what these firearms have to do with clones. Do you think you could enlighten me?" Takeyashi wasn't a book-reader. There were many others who possessed sharper wits, and more advanced intellects than he. He wasn't stupid, but he generally stuck to the things he knew. He knew the land. He knew how to track enemies. He knew how to wield a weapon. He knew how to protect his village. But the things that the Kazekage was tinkering with? He didn't know these. He would need explanations, and looked to his leader for them.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

"These are a very different type of clone I am putting together. Think of it more like a puppet."<i></i> The Takahashi were for the most part puppeteers. There was the odd exception, of one or two Takahashi in two to three generations that did not have what it required to use them properly. "My father controlled his puppets either psionically or he was using magnets."<i></i> Sousuke's expression almost seemed to sour as he spoke of his deceased father. He never did have a funeral for him, because there was no body. It was a message in the Black Blade that contained the message. The ever so slight melancholy seemed to be stricken from the record as Sousuke returned back to the subject. "The idea here is to have my ... automaton, as I will call it be capable for combat using different means. I abhor mysticism. Mainly because ... most of the rules and logics that apply under that school vastly undermine the rules and logistics I operate in."<i></i> He paused for a moment, "On the flip side, I suspect a many deal of mystics hate technology. I don't use the mystic arts to combat my foes. I make use of technology. I make use of suits that refract light to provide invisibility as you have seen before. I make use of suits that weigh hundreds of pounds to deliver crushing blows. In the case of the former the application involves fragmented mirrors and a leyline system which uses chakra as the means to power it. It can get exhausting at times, but it works. Illusions can only work for so long."<i></i>

He would pick up the automaton bits and place it on the table and began reconstructing it. Various clicks and whirls were heard. He would hold out his metallic hand and he would begin to emit heat. Sparks would fly as Sousuke made his work quick. "Automatons are limited to what they can use technique wise, but if I could get it to make use of present tech ... it would prove a challenge to our foes. Firearms are damaging yes, but precession is required. Unfortunately it is taking quite a bit of time to get my constructs to make use of them, and to acquire my precision. "<i></i> He would grab a wrench and begin loosening the nuts that kept the chest piece in place. He would remove the plate and reveal a chakra crystal inside. "Trying to get them to last longer too is harder. They have a limited proximity which I am trying to surpass. This model can get roughly one hundred feet from me, and then it begins to have issues in trying to make it use present tech. My mastery of metal is a proximity thing. The closer it is, the easier it is to be controlled. I do have a bunch of my armours being on standby for being catapulted or springboard launched from the Kazekage tower. Once it meets the proximity requirements I can usually have the armour called to me, and then I can warp its design accordingly."<i></i> He motioned to his office. "Is any of this making sense? I get so wrapped up in this, it ... doesn't get described in a way that... makes the most sense. It's like having an Alpha Driver ... no that analogy does not make sense either."<i></i>

 

[Kazu]

The young man's eyes looked glazed. In the wake of the torrent of information, only made worse by the inclusion of highly specialized jargon, Takeyashi had gone into a sort of "information-overload-shock." While the words coming from the Kazekage's mouth made perfect sense to him, Takeyashi was a much simpler man. Guided by emotion and instinct more than logic and reasoning, the Kazekage's thought process was little more than a complete enigma to the spiderling. When the Kazekage stopped to ask if the young man was understanding anything, he simply shook his head once or twice blankly. "Uh, my apologies Lord Kazekage...I can't really keep up with everything you're saying..." Wracking his brains, Takeyashi didn't want to look like a total fool in front of his commander. He needed to piece at least something together in order to not look like a complete moron. Scratching his head and massaging his temples to try and relieve his tightly furrowed brows of their pressure, Takeyashi began to very carefully pick his words. "From what I understand, you're trying to make a permanent clone, right? Like, it can think for itself and can use jutsu and such?" That was a vastly dumbed down version of what was actually said, and was missing quite a few key points that the Kazekage had brought up. Still, for the young man that was a pretty good job of keeping up.

As the Kazekage proceeded to open up the chest cavity of the broken clone, a chakra crystal was revealed to be the main driving force that was meant to keep the construct alive. Science and theories were far out of Takeyashi's domain; however, he did have some input to give. Maybe it wasn't the kind of input that the Kazekage was looking for or would value, but it was something. Staring into the chakra crystal as he spoke, Takeyashi's voice seemed almost sad as he spoke. "Have you tried giving it a purpose? Like, a will to live?" It might have seemed like a weird musing to a man of science, but Takeyashi spoke with conviction. This was something he truly believed in. "I mean, you can't just expect your creation to live for no reason. It needs a motive, or a dream, that will keep it going. It needs to have some sort of a will to survive the harshness of life, right?" Snapping back to the present, he realized how candidly he'd just spoken to his leader. Embarrassed, the young man quickly bowed while blurting out some words of apology. "I mean, er, not to be rude, though! I'm sure you'd already thought of that, Lord Kazekage! My apologies for speaking so flippantly!"

[ooc: Short post is short, though there wasn't really much for me to do this round.]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

When Takeyashi spoke of not being able to keep up with his train of thought, he would merely nod his head. He expected this. "Very few can."<i></i> He then presented Sousuke with his version of what he understood what Sousuke's goal was. Sousuke ultimately nodded his head. Well, he couldn't keep up with everything but he was capable of understanding the core of it all. That was impressive. "Each clone can use its own basic set of jutsu, pending on the element is is created from. It's a very limited scope, but yes you've got the gist of it."<i></i> He would nod his head now. "Full marks."<i></i> He added.

Upon remarking about the concept of purpose and a will to live Sousuke would curiously place his index and middle fingers in his mouth. He let out a whistle, a loud one at that. This would require something of an example. At the sound of the whistle, a rather well kept, charming, and handsome looking husky would come dashing out of the tower. The husky would stop and look at Sousuke, and then would turn her gaze over to the Spiderling. The canine would turn her head slightly and tilt it. She would bark at Takeyashi a greeting as if to say 'Well, hello. A pleasure to meet you.' Sousuke would motion to the canine. "I did it once upon a time ago. Give a machine purpose. Kitchy, or Kitchenzilla used to be a mechanical T-rex, of sorts, but as you can see now... she makes a most excellent Husky dog. The purpose of her was originally to keep my from a brooding depression, and to develop personal and social skills. I suffered from high anxiety. Long story short, I created a puppet with a wildlife power core, that had the characteristics of a dog. Said entity was then subjected to Vita-Rays and become a flesh, fur, and very organic canine."<i></i> Kitchy in response to this would let out another bark, as if to affirm it. He would frown slightly as Takeyashi had apologized to him. "Oh it's fine. There are certain things that I would ... restrict myself to doing. For the good of others."<i></i> Sousuke would pause for a moment. "Bringing life into this world not through the use of a female is ... a ... curious thing. I suspect that some would consider my actions monstrous ... but Kitchy is quite a lovely animal. Pet her if you wish. She like most people."<i></i>

"The will to live, it is a compelling thing that pushes people forward isn't it? Each and every single one of us, we are driven by it aren't we?"<i></i>

 

[Kazu]

It seemed the Kazekage was not as formal as Takeyashi had believed him to be. While the chain of command and respect for ones leaders were built into his own brain, he was slowly learning that not everyone felt the same way. His commander-in-chief, for instance, seemed to not care one bit for the strict hierarchy that Takeyashi saw so naturally. It was disarming and a tad uncomfortable for the young man, but he tried to relax at the urging of the Kazekage. When the man called over the dog and began explaining its origins, the Spiderling was hesitant for a moment. This seemed like a very unnatural thing to do, and he'd expected the creature to appear a bit more otherworldly. And yet, it looked and acted just as playfully as any other dog did. He tentatively held out a hand to pet the creature with as the Kazekage continued. "Yes, sir. A will to live is very important." He allowed his mind to surrender itself to other thoughts, having reached the extent to which he was able to contribute to the conversation. He wasn't a scientist, nor was he a doctor or even a philosopher. He was a shinobi, to be used how his leaders saw fit. Nothing more, and nothing less. If he was unable to be useful here, then his presence would not be missed. Right?

Standing up from the artificial canine, the young man addressed his superior respectfully. "Sir, is there anything else that I might be able to help with? If not, I'm afraid that I will be of no more help to you. Perhaps it would be best for me to move out of your way so that you can get your work done..." The six-armed young man waited there for an answer, one way or the other. He certainly needed to still fill in his mission report, but perhaps he was needed in a way that he didn't yet know? He would leave the decision up to his commander.

[ooc: IC I felt that my character would be trying to leave if he wasn't able to be more of a help at this point. Would love to keep going, just wanted to keep my character's IC actions in consideration.]

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Kitchy would accept the pat, and would then get up on her hind legs to give Takeyashi a lick on the cheek. The canine seemed most comfortable with the many armed youth. The canine beamed and seemed to be just very happy to make another acquaintance. Sousuke noticed a hesitancy in the Spiderling. He shook his head, it was not disappointment of anything of the sort. "I know it's hard to believe at times. Our lives are rather complicated."<i></i> Sousuke would look to his mechanical arm and this his real arm. He was going to question the Spiderling if he ever had the same experienced he had being that ... he was disintegrated and then put back together because of Uri's power set spiraling out of control.

Sousuke responded to Takeyashi's question, "Technically yes."<i></i> He answered, "You see, you've helped me help you understand something that has been a curiosity and a focus of mine."<i></i> He added, Sousuke would motion to the direction of where the Orders buildings would be. "The Orders."<i></i> He would say at first. "You see I've been working to establish them further, and I've noticed you have yet to ... assign yourself to one of them yet. The "<i></i> He would make a few motions with his hand and the metal clone that was being worked on would close up the rib cage, get back on its feet and would walk its way back into the office but not before carrying with it a large number of the weaponry Sousuke was trying to put on it.

"I highly doubt you are an Oracle. Like myself, you're one for action for the most part. I do partake in theory, but I prefer training and simulations. Given your lack of ... interest in my field of work being the machinery, building, and designs I have come to the conclusion that you are not a Journeyman which is what I am. Not all of us are ... into making automatons we also design and produce buildings and weapons."<i></i> That would bring them to the final Order, the one that Sousuke felt that the Spiderling belonged to. "It is my opinion, take it as you will, that you should join the Rangers. While you do excel in ranged combat, there is more to it. You are a tracker, and a survivalist by nature."<i></i> He would ring his wrist at this point as he looked to Takeyashi to opinion.

 

[Kazu]

The young man listened intently to the Kazekage's words. When he first began to speak of the Orders, Takeyashi was rather confused and unsure where his commander was going with this. Everyone knew of the Orders, but they never really talked about what went on inside the buildings. With trepidation in his voice, Takeyashi decided that he'd follow his superior down this conversational rabbit hole. "I'm not entirely sure what the Orders have to do with me, but if you insist..." The young man listened to the Kazekage, hearing him out and considering the organizations that he'd laid out before him. Among the Orders were three groups: the Oracles, the Journeymen, and the Rangers. The Oracles were an old order, dedicated to the preserving and sharing of knowledge. Takeyashi wasn't much of a book smarts shinobi, preferring to go with his gut rather than his brain. The Journeymen were an interesting order, promoting the industrial crafts — everything from metalworking to clock making could be found within this order. They were tinkerers by nature, which unfortunately was well outside of the young man's sphere of interest. But the last order, the Rangers, sounded pretty good to the young man. Trackers and hunters, foragers and survivalists: this was the place for Takeyashi. The young spiderling was a natural at survival skills, and he had always been first in his class when it came to tracking and hunting. Perhaps the Kazekage was onto something here. "You may be right, sir. I can't say that the Oracles and Journeymen are boring; though, I also can't say that I'd be particularly enthralled to join their ranks. The Rangers sound like they'd be right up my alley."

The more the young man began to think about it, the more he agreed that this was a perfect direction for him. The idea began to cement itself in his mind, calling to him more and more tantalizingly. Maybe he wanted this more than he'd realized? "I'd be happy to consider it, Lord Kazekage. If you think I'd be a good fit there, then there must be some truth to the idea." Takeyashi was starting to get excited now. He wondered whether the Kazekage was going to personally introduce him to the head of the Rangers? That would be so cool. The young man was trying his best to contain his excitement, waiting to see what would come next.

 

[Takahashi Aki]

Sousuke would nod, another correct assessment made. He watched as Takeyashi seemed to grow excited about the prospect of being a Ranger. It was subtle, but Sousuke was a man who could pick up on the small details. Twitches, small grins, everything. "You can express that excitement if you wish... more readily or what have you. Even I am prone to excitement, I just showcase it in different forms... or hide it better than others."<i></i> Sousuke would add. This was coming from a man who had perhaps too tight a control on himself. He didn't smile. He didn't laugh, much. Love? Well. Self-realization of certain things put an end to that. Virtually the Kazekage merely had his dog these days, he could not really have relationships without endangering the other party. The problem of becoming far too self aware. He was perhaps too much by the books, or tightly knit. On occasion he did drink, but for the wrong reasons. It probably stood to reason that if one were to cut Sousuke they would find metal instead of bone within his frame. Some foreigners would consider the Kazekage a machine, and certainly they did as a man named Enzeru was convinced that upon a time Sousuke was an automaton who wore flesh for armour. Perhaps there was some truth to that... considering another member from mist thought that if Sousuke was stripped to the bone he would still being wearing a metaphorical mask.

"The leader of the Rangers is Senju Kazuki. He shouldn't be too difficult to locate. He's one of my sennin. He's ... a cold individual I'm told. You might want to bring some extra clothes when visiting him. He has an effect on people chilling the air."<i></i> Sousuke would look down at himself. He was immune to the effects, and oftentimes he wondered why. Perhaps Sousuke's mind knew it was a trick that could easily be bested by extreme mental training. "The former leader of the Rangers was an Inuzuka who ... retired early in life. I suspect she ... met a man or something of the like which caused her to rethink her path in this life."<i></i> It was Amaretsu who came to him with more information as she was opening up various hidden caches in the city during the Cabal invasion. Sousuke had some knowledge of the Rangers but it was certainly further developed. "That being said, I do outfit the Rangers from time to time. They are agents of keeping the balance of the natural world. Balance is paramount, would you not agree?"<i></i>

 

[Kazu]

Takeyashi's stomach dropped a solid foot or two at the mention of the Sennin's name. "Did...did you say Senju Kazuki?" Oh Mother Suna, why do you curse your child so? The spiderling was still recovering from his last encounter with the shadow man. Quickly snapping out of it, Takeyashi set all of his fear and trepidation aside. If the Kazekage wanted to introduce them, Takeyashi would not stop him. He was, however, incredibly thankful for the shift in discussion back towards the logistics of being a ranger. Takeyashi was about to really delve into the subject, when the sun began to peek out from around the side of one of the buildings. The light found its way straight into the young man's eye, alerting him to the very real passage of time. Takeyashi had been talking for way too long! The young spiderling waited until the Kazekage was done before speaking. "Indeed, sir. I agree, balance is important with these sorts of matters." The young man paused politely, acknowledging the end of that conversation. He would then continue to speak, bringing the conversation towards the direction he needed it to go. "Sir, I've thoroughly enjoyed our conversation. However, I'm afraid I really need to turn in this mission report. Can we continue this discussion another time?"

Assuming he was allowed to leave, Takeyashi would head into the Kazekage's Tower in order to finish his task. If he was commanded to stay, he would obviously do so. However, he had a feeling that wouldn't happen.

[ooc: Topic Left unless Stopped.]