[Deleted]

meet a monster

Finding a single Souzouteki in a stack of Souzouteki's was not easy and it was that which perhaps it made the most sense this Nukenin chose to stay in Tsuchi no Kuni. And even lesser still, was his target a loaned contract from another village - but it was all in good time.

His leads had taken him closer to southern Tsuchi no Kuni, in an enitre country, that if they tried making moves to leave the country it would lead them to him. Hopefully. Isshiki had gone by himself, a test if you will. It was his first time doing contracts that didn't exclusively end in helping Takigakure.

Ut would help him though, he was dressed like a Shinobi: but without his ANBU mask at present. His dark burnt skin would show through on his face because if there was anything he was: a good guy was not one of them.

And that was precisely what he needed or wanted to look like when drawing out another bad one. His Takigakure hitate squarely on his forehead this time, he was here to deliver. But, the known jnformation was that they used Ninjutsu and Fuinjutsu - as well as a particular style of ink manipulation - but he had little idea what that truly meant. If he were dealing with a squiddy person, he supposed he would need to keep his mouth shut.


He had finally arrived to a village by use of a steady pace. Good lord he felt tired, mentally speaking - physically, there was no change since he had left but in some loss of chakra. It was time to find out the lay of his land first!

[LazyNeko]

Modding is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Souzouteki Hachiro, a chuunin of Iwagakure with no critical leaning or major ambition that would see him defect. Despite the motivation being unknow he had still defected, though it had been both nonviolently and a subtle affair. After a mission he simply hadn’t returned and it hadn’t been until he had resurfaced a few months later in Tsuchi no Kuni amidst shadier elements that he had been branded a missing-nin in true.

Not much was known about the end goal but it was suspected that Hachiro was involved in a raising smuggling ring. His use of his clan hijutsu and his specialties in both Ninjutsu and Fuinjutsu were making him a vital part, if intelligence was correct.

---

Located in the east of Tsuchi no Kuni the locals would readily claim that Inaba was a sleepy town with not much interesting happening in it. The considerable amount of merchants and travelers that passed through it would claim otherwise and so would the entertainment district there. Despite that the town wasn’t famous, more popular as in insider kind of thing. Merchants, in the know so to speak, knowing it was a good place to pass by.

There were places a person could visit while in the town. For example, the shopping district was a good way to see what sort of items might find themselves being sold deeper into Tsuchi no Kuni or outside of it as well. Naturally there were a lot of taverns and inns one could visit for information, though the west part of the town was where the locals usually visited for drinks while the south side held the outsiders.

Of course, a town wouldn’t be complete without its Red-Light district and while obvious, in a way, the bar there did offer a quick access to seedier corners of the town. Finally, there was of course a police force that patrolled the town, a source of information but also tougher to crack.

---

Hayatoru, Kazuki

[Deleted]

meet a monster

Well, that hadn't panned out.

Isshiki had started at the south of Tsuchi no Kuni and his leads led him nowhere, until he had received word of a possible sighting - such things were likely to not pan out, since everybody looked like everybody. Eventually he happened upon the city of Inaba.

Isshiki's choice of hunting in the day time was to ride in plain sight, and he had not chosen any clothing that would separate him from the others. Obviously, his face and clearly burnt body would raise questions - marking him as a Ninja, he supposed. But, that was a part of the fun! Nobody knew him. His night time choice, that was, the elements of assassination would be held for a time in which he could actually hide his identity. But, his Shinobi elements were still strapped to his persons - and as he got through the town, was unsure of where to start.

He hadn't travelled so far into Tsuchi no Kuni before anyways, so he had brought some things with him to at least do some shopping here. Isshiki chose then to go to the markets. "I love this!" Isshiki was bright and joyful, having happened upon a stall of small trinkets and carvings, he held up a jade at arms length - or at least, he thought it was a jade by its particular color, with the Iwagakure insignia on it. "What's it mean?" A trinket of good luck, perhaps? His burns were numerous - running all the way across his body and it would be visible for his shirt didn't cover the forearms.

[LazyNeko]

Modding is so troublesome But I guess I’ll do it.

Hiroto was your average stall owner of Inaba and that is to say he had a wide variety of goods to sell and could always count on being able to restock them. Of course, as it was the norm, he never asked too many questions about where exactly the merchandise had come from or it’s authenticity. Not that he would ever say that aloud.

So far, his day had been average, with a bunch of tourists falling for the usual tricks. Things changed though when a shinobi of all people decided to browse his wares. Hiroto was no stranger to them, considering how often some passed through Inaba but that didn’t mean he would let his guard down.

The burns covering said shinobi didn’t help nor the fact his headband was that of another village. Now Takigakure were considered allies but Hiroto had heard rumors about how crazy some of them could be, the stories he had heard from the Civil War were quite something.

Refocusing on what the Taki shinobi was holding, Hiroto cleared his throat before explaining. "Well, what your holding is Nōhime ornament. Said to have been crafted by just using dust release and used to decorate a lot of places with big Nōhime influence by particular group of that clan. Was big with the Loyalists but as you can imagine fell out fashion after the civil war. Mostly used as paper weight these days.”

Scratching his beard for a moment Hiroto threw a curious glance and the shinobi before continuing "Now, most of my stuff is petty trinkets but if you are looking for something more up your speed well Akio down north of the main street is your man. Heard he recently got his hands on some premium shinobi items after winning an action on missing-nin gear, if he Is to be believed.”

Most of the time Hiroto would have tried to make visitors actually buy something from his wares but well shinobi were trouble and he’d rather redirect the fire towards Akio.

---

Hayatoru, Kazuki

[Deleted]

meet a monster

Isshiki was a purveyor of history. He loved the ages of war, how they came about; the politics behind it. It kind of tied in with his other hobbies rather well. "Certainly, thanks for your candour." Isshiki grinned. "I'm on holiday, though, so that might have to wait. I like to save my shenanigans for when I'm on the payroll. But thanks!" Isshiki continued grinning. But, he continued without failure to go through the things the man was selling. Isshiki asked what the cost was for the original trinket and paid it. Whether or not it was authentic was of little merit to him. "Holidays are for fun." Isshiki's voice and intention seemed all too positive, juxtaposing against his intensely burned face, white teeth glaring out at the world.

"I'd would have liked to be a Nōhime. A strong clan. Royal clan. In another life, perhaps." Isshiki knew of their huge war efforts and how they were spoken about in a level of reverence and dismay.

Though, it was a bit more than he would have liked to have paid for any object and knew it would have come out of his eating habits; he always brought money with him wherever he went because before when he was human, tended to have a voracious appetite. He still did - but not for food. Not anymore. Now it was just 'mission collectibles' like a little side quest of his own.

Still, the man (who he had not cared to register beyond his own care to investigate) had given him something to follow for more hot goods, which he had understood in rather plain terms. If there was truth to it, he would find out. Ideally, his impassioned language

Still. Isshiki knew the effect he had on people on account of his appearance, only if they knew what was underneath. He would wave the man goodbye, heading north. Perhaps trinkets of hot value had persuaded Isshiki? The stall owner might've never known. Did he go straight to the northern side of town? Yes. Because he wanted to be quicker than the whispers that criminals tended to have, with networks and jutsu.

And word of the burned man would spread quickly: not because he was just a shinobi who happened to be from an allied nation because he was assured there would be many. No, because faces that appeared quickly and prodded too deep would find shallow sources of information.

So, he went for the most innocent looking person of them all in the stalls in the northern side of main street. The seediest face? No. But, fronts were just that. Fronts. Isshiki began looking again, just as he had with the same enthusiasm as before "Konbanwa~" Isshiki would give no indication that he had been sent there by ... what was his name?

The guy south of there, with whom he had bought an all too expensive trinket.