[Akira]

another beautiful day inside the real village of Takigakure, and as one of the few true havens left there were really restrictive with their entry and exit requirements. It was needed, to maintain order and peace.

There were quite a lot of messages this time. Hotarubi wasn't struggling with the weight, but it was going to tipple if he didn't- he stumbled, and his arm would elongated to widen like a fan in order to stop them from hitting the floor. "Be careful!" one of the desk bound shinobi would appear from around the desk with a wheelchair in surprising speed and vigor.

"I got it," Hotarubi spoke through gritted teeth as things were being arranged, and then bound. Eventually, a large backpack that took up the entirety of his backside - from his tail bone to the crown of his head. Any turning would need to be done by physically turning around, jt was the opposite of movability. Even if he wasn't always the most personable, bright or friendly person he could absolutely get a job done. The man had been absolutely pounding out missions. Day and night, with chakra being his only bar of stopping he had been taking on absolutely everything he could. "Is there anything else?" Hotarubi asked the shinobi still stood- err- sat there.

"No. That's all. Have you got the list of deliverees?" Hotarubi would fish around his pocket. "Yes. I won't lose it." He looked through them, but also followed up with a question. "And this symbol - the triangle. This is where they've got to get a signature right?" "Right. And it goes without saying that you have to use the approved routes. To minimise your chances of any detection from chakra sensory, you also have to have this seal applied." Hotarubi looked over as the man sifted tbrough the documents on the desk alongside the other bits of equipment. "Oh yeah?" Hotarubi looked over and didn't think much of it and began to take the paper. "Apply it like this?" "Right. Just on."

Hotarubi did exactly that and he felt his body constrict - his natural state was earth, that much was fine but the chakra flowed through everything. "This is...?" Hotarubi enquired. "Right. A chakra sealing seal." Damn. The only inkling of annoyance that was evident was that he did a deep breath. No doton to help this time, then. "I'm off. This is the other pack for the Genin?" Hotarubi would walk to the side of the table, one hand over the pack (even though it was hoisted on both of his shoulders. "Yes." "I'll take it. Can I get the other seal?" Hotarubi quickly signed for it, oocketed the other list, the other seal and picked uo the bag to temporarily hoist it over his other side.

If it hadn't been apparent: he was a strong guy. And with that the Chunin exit the building to wait for Midori. Midori... was not a name he knew or respected. The clan name? Sure. There weren't that many clans in Takigakure no sato. But to figure out who? Well. That would require him to wait and ask at the doors of the building inside the true village.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

Signed and Delivered
Mission Rank: C
NPC Required: NPC[Optional]
Random Mission Scenario: Enabled
Description:
Messages between Takigakure and it's artificial village counterpart help to ensure that none are ever made aware of there being a second village. As such, many within the village send messages through secret channels to keep loved ones and friends aware of their status. The mission here is to take a package that is meant for one of the many players within the fake village and ensure that it gets to them safely.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori is already on her way to the courier office when she sees some oddball of a man carrying two giant, heavy-looking packs, almost like rucksacks, and he was approaching rapidly. This was certainly odd, and she stops in her tracks. She's already dressed for shinobi work, having been signed on for a mission to deliver packages from the real Takigakure to the people in the decoy village outside of the caves; her black and green catsuit with its form-fitting appearance would allow her to move quickly, and although she had her weapon pouch on her waist with the Hung Gar rings inside, she didn't really think they would be going through too much combat. Still, they were good to have around, just in case. She prepares to get out of the other person's way, though, since there's no need for them to run right into each other, until she realizes he's actually heading straight towards her.

She's about to tell him to get lost, more due to a reflexive desire to be left alone, until she remembers that she's supposed to be going on this mission with a partner, and this must be him. Does that mean the entire rucksack is part of the packages that she's supposed to deliver? Midori can already feel the soreness in her shoulders, and she hasn't even picked it up yet, but there's not much she can do about it for now but to accept the job, especially since it's going to mean she's going to get paid.

"Oh, Hagoromo..."

She's interrupted by the other shinobi running right up to her, and she flips her black hair over her shoulder, fixing him with a harsh neon green gaze from both eyes. Despite her desire to curse him for taking on this much delivery work, she grabs hold of the pack that's loose on his shoulder, twisting it around to catch it on both shoulders with a hard grunt as her body takes the weight.

"Urgh! What a way to meet someone... I'm Midori, and that means you must be Hotarubi. Are we delivering bricks or something?"

[Akira]

The Chunin would have asked her - and with the first person to arrive and the first person for him to ask it was all but anticipated that he would ask her first. "Are you -" And he was cut off with her pulling the bag from him. It was... an interesting choice. Being in his relative safety of the village it was not his first thought to yank it bank, but allowed the woman to take her backpack.

To her point, he made a grunt of amusement, a light perch of the corners of his lips turning up. The weight didn't bother him at all, and that was her view on being human. "I'm Hotarubi." That was it then - they could set off. The man instead chose to cross his arms.

His eyes ran from her emerald eyes down her body, her curves, to her feet as she equipped the second backpack with some quite brazen obviousness.

Was that?

"It's just some raw materials, a few letters, few packages." Hotarubi's gaze could be interpreted as a few different things, based on his monotonous face - it wouldn't surprise him if she interpreted it as a judging gaze and based off what was about to come out of his mouth, it would not have been a surprise. "We aren't swimming. The one piece is not necessary." But for once, it had actually been attraction - but given he had such little experience with the opposite sex it would be no wonder that he would come across as being standoffish, and he had needs and desires that outweighed that of a social life - of which he had none.

For now, his gift to her was not interpreting her words as being insubordinate. "You need to apply this." He pulled out a seal for her to use: wherever she chose. "A chakra sealing scroll. For... anti-sensory stuff. Makes us look like civilians, I suppose?" He would be intent on setting the lead - but maybe as a leader he should let her take the lead? Ugh. Pruning himself being the best commander there ever was when the wars came to pass. But hey - the money was good too!

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori stares at him when he introduces himself, as though he didn't hear her assume his name. There were only two names on the mission paperwork anyways, and one of them was hers. Of course, if her assumption had been wrong, she'd be stealing from some random passerby with two giant rucksacks full of what felt like bricks, which would certainly be odd, but she didn't put much past Takigakure people at this point. She frowns as well when instead of getting a move on like she'd expected him to, Hotarubi stays where he is and crosses his arms while staring at her, and she crosses her arms as well, though with a bit more struggle thanks to the pack's straps tugging so harshly on her arms and shoulders. Her frown just turns into a wide-eyed glare, the kind of thing one usually sees on a woman before she might cut off a piece of his anatomy, when he tells her that "the one piece is not necessary" because they're not going swimming.

"It's a very good thing I'm not wearing a swimsuit, then."

Of course, Midori doesn't go straight to actual threats of violence or violence itself; after all, Hotarubi is a Chuunin and outranks her. She might have threatened another Genin, as long as she thought she could get away with it, but she wasn't about to try that on a Chuunin. Before she can go and start to insult his own clothing, she's mentally interrupted by him producing some kind of seal meant to hide their chakra in the fake village. Midori wants to complain that there's no reason to do so, and that fake Takigakure even has some real ninja that mostly just mill around, but she decides that there's no reason to do so, since she's not going to need to use chakra for this mission, most likely. She sighs in defeat, then grabs up the seal, pulling the left glove off her right hand in order to apply the seal across the back of her right hand, and she feels a momentary pull from the seal as it sucks in her chakra, making her feel a bit weaker, though with how volatile her chakra is, it also feels a bit... freeing? She didn't need the constant focus in order to keep her chakra in check with the seal on, at least, so she doesn't immediately remove it, and instead pulls the glove back on over her right hand.

"Fine, then. I guess we should be off, then? I can't believe these really are filled with bricks..."

[Akira]

Hotarubi quite clearly got her facial expression and was able to comprehend it with all of the expectation of a woman scorned and he ignored it all the same. Only a light smile came to his face. "Good." Hotarubi would wait for her to administer the chakra sealing tag, much like his own. Whether or not she liked it was up to her, but she and he were getting paid and the earthen-body was all too happy to take money for a place he was already going to to go to today.

"Consider it as training." Hotarubi would walk past her and they could be very much on their way. There wasn't an expectation of relative danger but their route had been selected for them. The man pulled out a page from his pockets and came to a stop. "We're going through..." He turned to one direction. Then the other. "Two.." He was gathering his bearings. "Morido river entryway... two klicks north of here. That's an underground place - muddy. Then Two Chome riverway, it's an underground passage route. Opens up into some small caverns, likelihood of bats and snakes there I'd assume." Not that Hotarubi was worried, but some of them could be absolutely deadly. Others - not so much. As long as there was light the more nocturnal ones would likely keep away from it.

"Tell me about you, Midori- you prefer san? Kun? Chan?" Hotarubi would set an easy pace for her, considering that he was not encumbered at all and was not receptive to the thought. "I didn't see you at the exams and surely a woman... your age.. would have thought to apply?" The pink-mopped boy was trying to be understanding, to be 'better' - though it didn't help that his voice and background inferred a level of arrogance. Hotarubi's understanding of who she was, was very limited. He had been given a name, rank... and yeah. That was pretty much it - it was the 'need to know' basis and even the Chunin didn't need to know anybody outside of his own team. But it made no sense to him, she wasn't a child - and .. sure, maybe she was about the same age? But he wasn't around the academy for a few years and she might've been a part of that time frame where he wasn't in the academy.

But he didn't stay long the second time around. Their area would twist from buildings to less stone as the surrounding appearance began to morph seamlessly between the jungle and the buildings. But the marked degredation of stone turned to plant as they walked. Just over a mile would take some ten minutes for them to arrive anyway - so why not chat in the mean time? Hotarubi had been particularly on his own lonesome outside of his own missions, and so relied on them (missions) for a source of social interaction. It did ease his boredom - the one that couldn't be itched by fighting and training!

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori sets off after Hotarubi as he explains the route they'll be taking to get the supplies and the packages to the right people, ensuring that they'll get what they need. The caverns of the Waterfall Village were labyrinthian, which might be a really effective defense to keep the village hidden, but was certainly confusing for anyone that hadn't been in the real Takigakure for very long. If she had to live in the decoy village, she'd likely have been bored out of her mind, but the one and only truly hidden village was, in a way, much more exciting. She's almost smiling at being told that they might have to contend with some snakes and bats, but the very slight upturn of the sides of her mouth are gone again immediately. Bats and snakes aren't really all that exciting for her, although she doesn't really like snakes to begin with. Just because the village had several ties to reptiles didn't mean she had to be their best friends.

"Well, if we see one and it gets hostile, I'm sure the big strong Chuunin can take care of it."

Then the conversation switches over to be about Midori herself, something that the kunoichi isn't entirely comfortable with, but she's got to answer these kinds of questions sometime, and during this boring mission wouldn't be the worst time to discuss it with someone.

"Just Midori thanks. No need for stuffiness while we're on a mission. And no, I didn't join the exams. I was busy hastily learning the Kesshoton meditation method."

Midori can't help but to grin darkly to herself as she remembers the other clan members of the Netsu clan clomping around in suits of armor that was meant to channel their Plasma Release, looking at her with jealousy, and perhaps a bit of unease, when she was able to walk around in much less restrictive clothing, looking almost like a normal person. If someone sees a Takigakure clan member in a suit of armor, they're likely to assume they're a member of the Netsu clan, but Midori could be any ninja.

"Which is why I'm not going to rust on you. But no, the Kesshoton meditation takes a long time to train, and it needed my full focus and attention, so there wouldn't have been time to join the Chuunin Exams or the war for me. I would have been a liability in the war anyways, since I didn't even have any Netsu armor."

[Akira]

"Uhhuh." Hotarubi made no promises (obviously he didn't need to because everything would cower in fear before him.) "Same." Hotarubi was just a fine name: unlike Nageku who would call him all assortments of names which deeply bothered him, since he was able to get under Hotarubi's skin all too easily. It was a comfort name.

But, she explained, and as they walked his face would peer into thought. "Ah." Plasma. Kesshoton. "Like a slimy energy beam?" He'd wanted to understand and from the position of being thoughtful Hotarubi didn't know what it was, and it seemed like if it was plasma, it held suiton. Suiton was a problem: and Hotarubi was looking at it through the lens of whether she was a threat or not to him and right now it seemed like it could have been.

"That's armor?" He looked back, maintaining a light pace ahead of her on account of his strength unhindering his load and speaking with some incredulousness. Earth was armor. Metal was armor... skin tight body conforming goodness didn't constitute armor. Her confidence in saying that out loud though did give him enough pause to think there was some bite to the bark. But, hey - it wouldn't beat the Yamakira special. "You're alright. I uh... I wasn't in either as well. But I quickly made up for time lost." He spoke, first from a point of being talktive, to quickly adding on at the end that it wasn't because he was weak! Even though the reason he'd not been in the academy years prior to have met Midori likely to be because he was bullied out of the academy by other Yamakira students.

The land was turning less into buildings and more into open jungle with the space between houses becoming more and more literal. That was the difference just a mile in the right direction made as they spent moving away from the hidden village. But the remnants of the old, muddy river in its seasonal downturn was becoming evident on their left hand side, the exit route would become more obvious as the path between the 'road' and the 'river' collided. This route was not available during other points of the year where the caves would be flooded. Not unless one had a rebreather: but even then, materials being delivered, letters weren't any good with water. It would be a simple enough journey for them as they carried on their single path.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori pauses for a moment, but hurries back to catch up from her momentary stumble when Hotarubi dares to call Kesshoton a "slimy energy beam". She's actually grinding her teeth to make sure to calm down before she jumps down his throat on that one. But a long, slow breath later (made difficult with the backpack pressing down her shoulders and somewhat limiting her ability to lift them and fill her lungs), she's able to calm herself a bit more and answer without resorting to even more aggression. She was finding that she didn't really hate Hotarubi, he was just kind of... well, annoying to her.

"It's not slimy at all. It's a concussive energy force."

Then again, why was she telling Hotarubi anything about this? The Netsu clan didn't need to tell all their secrets to outsiders, even if they were members of Takigakure as well. Then he seems interested in the armor, instantly putting her even further on guard from these prying questions. She narrows her eyes at him as he turns around to face her and pace his way backwards, making the carrying of such a heavy load look easy, especially compared to her. While she was a bit stronger than the average Genin with no training in Taijutsu, she didn't find it quite so easy as the higher ranking ninja, clearly. But then the Chuunin changes the subject back to the war and the exams, since he didn't participate in either one, just like her, although he'd clearly gone and worked enough to get to the higher rank. He looked somewhat familiar, but she'd been somewhat busy in the Academy as well. She might have even been one of his bullies, but if she had been, he didn't seem to recognize her, which would be all for the better.

With their gradual escape from the more urban areas, Midori is slightly more on guard, though she only really has to worry so much about the wild animals. There's no such thing as human enemies for the most part in the tunnels of Takigakure, though the forests could certainly pose a deadly threat if they completely let their guard down. But then another curious thought crossed her mind, and she felt she deserved to get an answer for unasked questions that she should have realized at the time were too open to not question.

"Well then, why didn't you join the war or the Chuunin Exams?"

[Akira]

Concussive energy force. Like Raiton, then. Hard lightning? He was having a hard time understanding it. Whether or not it bothered her did not register to him, he who was maintaining a slightly faster pace and was trying to navigate more than talk. But even deep down, he felt good knowing that a Netsu were likely... not a threat. He hoped - because one couldn't know. Finally - they came to a stop as he roughly thought they were there and on their path began looking over the sides. "Ah." he pointed. A gape in the side of the path they walked on, underneath them - where if the water was up and in you wouldn't have been able to tell and kept on walking.

The man jumped down into the formerly wet, but now dry and muddy area - planting downward with some force with a deep thunk that resounded because of his overwhelming weight. The man would take a moment, unperturbed by dropping a few further inches into the floor, and would 'schlop' his way underneath the road they had been walking on to where this grate had been.

"I did. That's why I'm a Chunin." There was a sort of flat tone from her of '?' At the same time, she might've noted it was with a sharp intonation at the end..but he hadn't really answered her about the other half: skirmishes. Hotarubi was not strong enough at the time and he didn't want it reminding him, not willing to hear that little nugget of feedback. He didn't mind her asking questions so long as he liked the questions!

Hotarubi would finally move under and out of the twilight of the Takigakure's thick canopy. It would give way to a grate that moved on one hinge and away from them as it opened. An underground tunnel that immediately seemed to droop downwards - but was lit. There were noises of water, of rock and general sound - a droning noise that Hotarubi suspected was his own ears.

A movement made him tense: and it was just a mice. A few mice... actually.. Hotarubi's eyebrows, or whatever they were: furrowed. "Odd." It wasn't really a place that he thought he'd see them. Hotarubi would let Midori in, and then shut the grate behind them - leaving it to her to drive forward if she so chose, or if she waited for him to continue he would do precisely that. Otherwise, they were now moving at a slow incline downward.

However - as they moved, the sound of noise seemed to grow louder. Mice: more mice. The squeaks, and the noise against cold, hard concrete as their little nails seemed to clip against it. "Hope you aren't too squeamish..." His voice resounded across the concrete and although he wasn't loud: she would hear it easily enough.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori is, in fact, quite confused, since Hotarubi wasn't externally communicating quite so clearly about his statements, making it seem as though he'd not joined in with the war or the Chuunin Exams, then apparently reversing course and also saying that he had. It was almost as though he'd meant to confuse her, but it made the black-haired woman frustrated. At least she was able to hold in her frustration, or at least only take it out on the mud that was now under her feet as she'd slipped down under the path to follow the Chuunin deeper into the cave tunnels past the grate. She was disgusted with the mud, but she was at least able to keep moving in order to keep her boots from sinking too far into the mud. If she stays still too long, the mud might just slip down into her boot, and if that happens, she'd likely have to leave it behind. While she follows after him, she hears him remark that something is odd, and she narrows her eyes, though in the low light of Takigakure's tunnel system, she can't really see all that well.

"Odd? What's odd?"

Midori reaches over and grabs one of the hanging lights, tugging hard on it and causing it to drop down in order to light up the ground, and although the light given off by the piece was still somewhat dim, it at least provides enough light to be able to see by with it so close to the ground. And she suddenly wished she hadn't done so, seeing all the mice scrabbling along the walls and over the mud, to and fro around them and avoiding being stepped on. But Hotarubi's statement that he hopes she isn't too squeamish makes her put on a brave, if disgusted, face. Although she despises rats, she could tolerate them. As long as they didn't actually touch her. The squeaks and scrabbling only gets louder as they travel through the cavernous snaking tunnel, and the Genin becomes more worried, like she has a rock in her stomach weighing her down, but she just pushes faster, until she moves past Hotarubi. While she'd only just met the Chuunin and his weird avoidance of certain topics was so strange to her, she also didn't want him thinking that she was some kind of weak-willed maiden.

"More squeamish of you than the rats... Let's get a move on."

[Akira]

When enquired Hotarubi what would share was on his mind. "There's a lot of animals up ahead." Hotarubi would not bring into detail how he knew that - but wanted to give her a heads up all the same.

"She bites!" Hotarubi cheerfully supported her outburst. Though she'd said something quite rude, it didn't seem to bother the man. He had learned to become a leader just a little more as a ops team leader. And his version of teaching? Be stronger - and take initiative. Her deciding to take the lead was great in his eyes. "To think that I thought all Genin were

He hadn't enunciated because he didn't want to provide the playbook: his ability to sense things: the tremoring he felt around him was much larger than what he had expected. The lack of light did not stop him from navigating down the walkway and broke immediately into cave - a greater part of the cavern and the warmth of yellow would rain down on the area. The noise was audibly quite loud now and the flap of even bats could be heard as well. Hotarubi looked around, trying to find their destination as he didn't anticipate it being easy. "So... we're looking for a hidden walkway that's hidden by a wall, we'll have to go fiddle around because apparently it's difficult to see from the front on unless you're up close." Hotarubi would stand still - and then clap once. His eyes closed: and if she turned with it, she would at least get an idea that he'd had some sort of sight. Hotarubi on the other hand though was having a hard time.

They all broke off into lots of areas: and mapping them all immediately would be easier said than done. But while there wasn't a time limit he didn't want to be down here all day. "There's definitely a lot of mov- get off." Hotarubi pulled a rat off him and threw it hard, which it would fly against a wall and scarper off, which, for some reason jumped at him. He had not realized the rat had tried to bite.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori herself has to exert more force to get her feet moving through the thicker mud until they come out into a much wider cavernous area, somewhere more open that would at least allow her to try and avoid the rats a little bit more, although they seemed to be even more numerous in the cave. Now there were bats, and Midori brushes her fingers through her hair as she glares up at the ceiling a little, as though daring one to drop down and entangle itself in her lustrous locks. Still, she shuffles forwards while Hotarubi remarks that they're looking for a hidden walkway, and that it's not going to be all that easy to see it. She frowns as he closes his eyes and claps, the sound echoing off the walls of the cave and even waking the bats, though they don't seem to move much. They're either too tired to make much movement or they just don't really care that much about the humans so far below them and not really able to reach them from this distance. The Genin doesn't say much, but internally, she's asking herself what meditating is supposed to accomplish in finding the hidden walkway they need to be able to reach the fake Takigakure.

While she's aware the job doesn't really have much of a time limit, Midori is still fairly impatient, but she figures Hotarubi has something up his sleeve with the meditating, although it's hard for her to not laugh at him when he gets interrupted by a rat clambering over him, requiring him to grab it and throw it against a wall, where it then runs off. Despite this humorous moment, the Genin is also realizing that the rats are giving her boots some curious prodding as well, and she kicks one away before she backs up as some of them approach her boots again, moving in closer to the Chuunin as she pulls her right glove off, feeling anxious with all of the rats getting more aggressive, but not wanting to risk failing the mission by removing the chakra seal on the back of her right hand.

"What's with these rats? I swear, the next one that tries to bite my boots is gonna get a stomping..."

One indeed tries, and Midori makes good on her word, although she does somewhat regret the damage to her boot, since it's going to need cleaning, and she'll have to be the one to clean it.

[Akira]

Hotarubi grunted in response as he placed a hand to one of the walls: hoping to get an idea of their direction - looking up and around in lieu of actually using his eyesight. It wasn't anything to be worried about, and as then went about trying to find a place he wasn't able to quite get a feeling for what it was... but it was danger. And then he closed his eyes: the noise was growing louder - the scurry of rats. So many rats. It would become deafening before long. They were heading in fast.

Hotarubi was able to react first. It was like a flood, and heading right at them. "Take off your seal!" Hotarubi yelled through his gravelly teeth. He ripped his own off and would not hesitate and chakra came flooding back through his system as the regulator was removed. Was he in trouble? No. Would he be in trouble for a Genin getting killed under his watch? Yes. He would have rather tried to re-apply it or get in trouble for not following true protocol if it meant that he was successful in his mission. Hotarubi would run in front of Midori, using the opportunity of his senses to react before she did and giving them both the forewarning.

His form began to grow larger and wider, and when in comparison to the cavern they were in his form was beginning to take up majority of the cavern - it was monstrous. But monsters met monsters: and his form would block a large portion of them from having access to Midori's very real human body.

His body began to knock against the cave as his enlarged size took the brunt of the rats to begin with - the scurry seeming to treat Hotarubi more as an earth obstacle and mistaking his form - but only for a brief moment - as something edible. Hotarubi would be swiping at them. They were too many for him to have accurately gotten all of them and so they would burst past his form. "I'm not in danger! Use what you gotta!" Hotarubi roared as he attacked the mindless creatures. If they had fire - that would have been extraordinarily helpful and he hoped that Midori had something he did not. So he swung and flailed his arms out as he crushed whatever he could get his hands on, while the however dozens upon dozens tried breaking past the gaps in his earth and the natural cavern.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Doton: Henkei [Earth Release: Metamorphosis]
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium-High, Depends on user’s resulting size
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: Doton
HANDSEALS: 0
DESCRIPTION:
This technique is the perfected version of Doton: Karada Chōkoku. The user channels chakra throughout their entire body and sculpts it into whatever they desire as long as they have enough material to achieve it, then hardens it to solidify the final form. Forms assumed using this technique are much harder and more durable than their default forms, making them stronger as well by default. This is due to the increased chakra in their systems along with increased density from the compacted stone and dirt. Its full potential can be best brought out with Dōka and Ōka. The most famous form assumed by Yamakira clansmen is that of black demons with large teeth.

It is considered the perfected version as it can work on the entire body at once instead of just parts of one’s body. However, it can only copy the form and not the color as its colors are entirely limited to shades of brown, gray, and black unless they absorbed some form of colourful stone. They do not get any special benefits from imitating anyone else’s form either aside from proportional strength and durability increases according to size.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]

[Netsu Midori]

Midori is somewhat surprised with Hotarubi's sudden yell to take off her seal and his movement to stand in front of her, somewhat blocking what little field of view she has, but she obeys instantly, tugging her right glove off and the seal with it just in time for the flood of sewage rats to come upon them. With no time to waste, Midori performs a quick series of four handseals and gathers Kesshoton chakra around both hands, causing both hands to be covered in bright neon green light that brilliantly lights the cavern around them, fully revealing the great swarm for both of them while also likely surprising the rats that had spent their lives in dark and dank caves between the false village and Takigakure proper. Midori uses this Kesshoton chakra with impunity, smashing away what rats manage to get around Hotarubi with concussive blasts that knock them back into the stone walls or crushes them against the floor.

With the Chuunin providing Midori with enough protection to keep her from a direct hit by any of the rats, Midori is hard at work ensuring that Hotarubi isn't getting flanked by any of the rats, blasting them with a surprising amount of force for her size, as her Taijutsu is being enhanced by the concussive forces of Kesshoton chakra. The swarm lets up just enough for Midori to replace the glove back on her right hand so she can continue to smash away at the rats and stomping down on the few that try to get to her feet. Her lithe form definitely helps, allowing her to strike back against the opposing force in ways that would be surprising for a regular human. With the numbers of the swarm dwindling, the rats seem to find that their prospective prey isn't worth the attempt, with the rodents slowing their assault, then stopping, and then eventually dispersing and retreating. When Midori no longer sees any stragglers coming after her, she stops the flow of Kesshoton chakra to her fists and sighs, flipping her curvy black hair back over her shoulder as though the danger they'd both just faced had been nothing.

"I really hope the pay for this mission is worth it..."

[Akira]

For as quick as it started, it also ended as such: though there had been a wave of them there hadn't been any registered problem in this vicinity. Not enough that it would've warranted its own C-rank mission to exterminate them. Between blocking the space between himself and Midori, and then using his body to crush anything and everything - the blast of noises would send all of the bats flying and the rats eventually scurrying as they broke apart from the rat pack - the hive mind to fear for their own survival.

For all intents and purposes, he had not managed to pay enough attention to Midori: she had not made any noise to signify that she needed help and his size was too large to turn around in the cavern so unless she needed it he kept up his own melee.

But, it did die down. Hotarubi would focus and feel them all dissipate into the world - and his form would begin to become smaller once again. The large humanoid creature eventually reformed back into its human size and then into the features of Hotarubi again, for him to finally turn around. Disgust plastered to his face. He deeply sighed, looking to the floor. The bag he'd used - the straps had snapped when he grew larger. Shaking his head, he picked it up with one hand and wrapped the straps around his hand as he lopped it over his shoulder with the one hand. "Agreed." It was an opportunity to survey and she didn't seem harmed. "You good?" Hotarubi would wait for the briefest of confirmations and then began to walk. In all of their noise, he'd also spent a moment identifying the route they'd came from, and it seemed to be along the right path.

"Good job." Hotarubi would say as he started in front again. The chakra seal that had been applied laid in the dirt. Their history lessons had made it clear that the density of chakra in the great tree made it all but impossible - so this was, in Hotarubi's eyes, an unnecessary precaution. Unfortunately, the cavern did not seem to break out into any new area yet and it would be a while, for which every once in a while Hotarubi would clap a hand along the wall, and a ring would crack against the peripheral acoustic vision he had.

[googlefont=Open+Sans]