[Gima Taro]

Taro stared up at the sky as rain fell onto his face, walking alongside the man who was to be their escortee. 

His body was on what needed to be done, but truth be told, his mind was more on his training. The traits of a rat were many, and part of his training meant getting access to that which made a rat a rat. Powers beyond that of a normal human. 

For one, senses. Rats were known to have some of the greatest noses in the world, far beating even wolves and other such smelling animals. Indeed, a rats sense of smell was not only powerful, but able to be adjusted- They could smell if someone was sick. They could smell the intent of someone's pheromones'. They could smell poison and even latent diseases. This, combined with their incredible levels of hearing... It was a curious, but interesting thing- A sensory sort of ability that could potentially make Taro impossible to sneak up on. Some scents never went away, after all, even if you scrubbed them clean, and rarely was someone truly silent.
 
Just as much that though, Rats are known as a rather agile species. Quick on their feet and able to twist and contort their bodies in different ways, such abilities could easily turn your average shinobi into a flexible machine- Bending oneself in ways that, really, shouldn't be possible. Breaking the limits of how far someone can bend or dodge. A good thing to keep in mind when your sense of smell was enhanced.

What was the last one, though... He just couldn't put a finger on it.

Not that it all really mattered right now, he was just lost in his head. The mission here was rather simple. Escort this... Inventor guy to the country border. Easy as pie. There were rumors that there might be some bandits or something, but Taro wasn't too concerned. Really, he couldn't imagine why someone would want this guy dead or kidnapped. Maybe money? 

Regardless, he was fully geared and kitted up, his blades sheathed as he stretched out loudly, glancing over towards Mimi.

"You uh... Sense anything?" She had the better sensory skills right now, after all, and they had been walking for a good distance. Ah yes, almost forgot to mention.

Mimi was with him. He had told her he'd let her help him practice, and to top it off, they rarely spent enough time together... If any at all, so...

It was nice to drag her out with him on this mission. She was a good hang out buddy- Someone he could understand and talk to. And a darn good kunoichi, from what he'd heard.

[miyake mikio]

CONSEQUENCES BE DAMNED A clear plastic umbrella adorned with two sparkly pink cat ears twirled beneath the falling rain as Mikio jumped from puddle to puddle. She cackled joyfully as her bright yellow rain boots were splattered with mud, while Azuki and Maru—both terribly fastidious, hygienic creatures—looked on with a mixture of horror and disdain. Azuki flanked the escortee, while Maru was glued to Taro’s side, seemingly in apology for the damage he’d inflicted on the boy during their more recent interaction. Her claw-blades were mounted to her wrists but retracted for the time being. If not for the Amegakure hitai-ate mounted firmly upon her head, she would have looked for all the world like your average schoolgirl, complete with stockings and cozy, oversized jacket. The inventor they were escorting looked dimly horrified at the prospect of being protected by a genin and this girl, even moreso when he found out that she was the senior of the two, but what was he to do except accept his fate? At Taro’s question, Mikio bounded over to him, lifting her nose high in the air to sniff-sniff for anything suspicious. "Nope!” she said cheerfully, "but Mimi’s senses are just kind of average unless Mimi is fully transformed! Maru, do you sense anything?” The younger puma was the more adept hunter of the pair; though he lacked his mother’s years of experience, he had keen senses and a strong prey drive. After nudging Taro’s leg affectionately the puma took off ahead of both of them, presumably to do a bit of scouting on their behalf. Thoroughly muddied and enjoying herself in the rain, Mikio took up Maru’s abandoned post at Taro’s side, marching solidly alongside him. "This is fun!” she said. "When was the last time Ta-ko and Mimi went on a mission together?” They must have, from the time that she was a ride-along for genin team three… though Taro had been on team three for only a brief time after Mikio transferred to Ame, so it may have only been once, if it happened at all. She was excited to see him in action! Gima Taro -- 355

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

[Gima Taro]

He had been on one mission with Mimi before, but as he recalled, it was rather calm and unassuming. His eyes drifted over towards the schoolgirl dressed catgirl, a soft smirk on his face. It was hard to keep a stoic face when Mimi did things like that.

Taro really was thinking he was starting to have a soft spot for this girl, and not just for her adorable choice in clothes. She was just generally very... Joyous, to be around. Kind, but still vicious. Loyal. Something Taro greatly respected. Loyalty was important to him, after all, as someone who was loyal to the death himself.

"Mrm... The last time? It must have been quite a long time ago... Probably before I er, started my training." He shrugged.

"I don't think it matters too much though. It's just nice to be out here with you. You look good, by the way." A flash of a smile at her outfit before he stared forward.

"That said, we should keep our ears open and noses in the air. I know it's easy to get complacent but... This is a mission, and on a mission, we should be prepared for anything." Taro took his missions very seriously, in truth.

But that went without saying. Taro was a very careful person, and took his job as a Shinobi dead serious. It was partly why his Sensei picked him out as a student. When the chips were on the table? You wouldn't find a more loyal, stronghearted Shinobi in perhaps all of Amegakure.

And that meant keeping his head on a swivel as well, watching for potential movements in the trees, or anything off- Genjutsu could always be at play, after all.

"So. Whats the plan if we do end up getting attacked? I assume you know my fighting style..." He did have that new practice to work on. But did she know about that? He'd probably have to act like a normal Shinobi here, and not use his Sage abilities, as he hadn't really explained it to the catgirl.

And I mean, it wasn't like she was watching him train or anything, right?

[miyake mikio]

CONSEQUENCES BE DAMNED Mikio’s vain attempt at racking her brain for the memory of that one-time long-ago mission with Taro was utterly sidelined by the compliment he paid her, which sent her into a fit of preening and posing, excitedly showing off that her skirt had pockets (!!) and that her stockings made it so that her thigh-sheath of kunai didn’t slip-slide while she was running or jumping around. Fashionable and practical! \ "Mimi is always prepared,” she said, nodding sagely. "Maru will come back if he finds anything fishy, and in the meantime Mimi and Azuki and Ta-ko will be extra careful to keep Inventor-san safe.” Though she wasn’t as outwardly vigilant as Taro—her head was most certainly not on a swivel—pink ears were perked for any sound of unusual activity, including the warning signal that her normally-silent predator-companions knew to alert if something was going wrong. Mikio did know Ta-ko’s fighting style! And it certainly wasn’t because she’d been spying on him and his rat-sensei in the stinky dirty sewers! "Ye-eeeeee-ees,” Mikio hedged, shifting her weight anxiously from side to side. "Of course Mimi knows Ta-ko’s fighting style! From the mission, and from team three training! And from nothing else at all!” Phew. One lie, expertly executed. He wouldn’t suspect a thing. "If we get attacked the plan is to kill the attackers,” Mikio added as an afterthought. The inventor made a strangled noise somewhere in the back of his throat, so she amended: "Kill or maim, but the main thing is keeping Inventor-san safe!” Gima Taro -- 262

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

[Gima Taro]

Fashionable and practical? Dang, she really was prepared. Taro also knew she was paying more attention then she'd let on. After all, she was still a Shinobi- A Chuunin at that. Taro was still just a Genin. You didn't become a Chuunin by accident, you had to be one hell of a strong Shinobi.

Which is to say that Taro wasn't worried that Mimi would get distracted or lose sight of the mission goal, if it came down to it. She worked hard, even if she goofed around a bit, and Taro could appreciate that side of her.

She pointed out her knowledge of his training, and his eyebrow raised a perch above the rest, as he stared holes at this silly cat.

"Uh-huh... Then, whats your battle tactic? And what do you think mine is?" He would test this. See how much she knew. If she did know more than she let on, that was fine, he'd deal with it later, at least he could practice his skills.

If she didn't know? Well, then he'd just tell her the usual stuff. He was a determined fighter, but still learning the style of hit-and-run. If he wasn't using his Sage abilities, he was still one hell of a dangerous Shinobi.