[Uchiha Hotaru]

Over the course of miles, savannah land became spotted with acacia trees that pointed yellow-green leaves towards the sun’s rays like an umbrella. In the distance a thicker woodland was ahead as the land sloped gradually upwards. The mountains of Tsuchi were visible in the distance, dwarfing the lonely mountain that rested in their destination in Hayashi no Kuni.

Go Mujina and Hotaru were still in Tori no Kuni, where colorful birds chirped as they passed under the shade of the acacia as they made their way towards the forest. Beyond the trees themselves, there were various patches of shrubs throughout the region. The most exciting thing so far had been a pesky ocelot trailing them for a mile or so, but the feral feline had decided that they were not worth the trouble.

Hotaru was wearing the white robes that he often did when he was representing Tori no Kuni. They were nobleman’s attire with intricate stitchings with flowing sleeves. He found the clothing useful for concealing his weapons easily. He hadn’t really broken bread with the woman he was traveling with yet. Normally he tried to handle things on his own. One of Tori no Kuni’s council wanted to hire a shinobi village to take care of the bandit problem. Pitching to them that he could handle it was a hard sell, but they agreed to it when he suggested bringing in an independent that would be much cheaper to hire. Still he was weary of the wanderer, if only because he worried that Konohagakure would catch up to him one of these days.

Travel was interrupted by something in the far distance, almost mistakable for a trick of the eye cast by the heat of the sun. It looked like a group of people moving towards them. As they got a bit closer on the horizon line, it was apparent that it was no illusion. A group three people on horseback were galloping towards them.

"Highwaymen,” Hotaru said to Mujina. "Prepare yourself.”

He began drawing senbon from within his kimono as he waited for them to get closer.

🗡️

[Go Mujina]

[attr="class","sidetxt1"]i look at you, looking at me [attr="class",sidetxt2"]and the face that i see is my own. [attr="class","sidetag"]Uchiha Hotaru

[attr="class","bodytxtt"]Mujina walked alongside the loyal servant that the councilman had sent as her partner in relative silence. She’d never been overly talkative but without her brother at her side she had been even more terse than usual. He seemed rather mild mannered for a shinobi, his gentle spirit showing through even in the quiet moments if she was not deceived by a handsome face. And he really was quite attractive. She’d often found herself forcing her attention away from the nobleman as they walked along. She trusted him up to a point. The councilman had vouched for him but she’d been caught unaware before and she knew the life of a mercenary could become complicated very quickly. It’s why she avoided this sort of work when she could but the due date for the ransom on her mother and sister was quickly approaching and honest work didn’t pay well enough on its own. "So soon?” Mujina leapt into the branches of a nearby tree both for a better vantage point and to avoid the reach of the approaching cavalry. She retrieved her bow and notched an arrow, pulling back on the string as she aimed for the throat of the nearest rider. He was in range. Mujina let her arrow fly. [attr="class","cranecred00"]MADE BY CRANE

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[Uchiha Hotaru]

Mujina’s arrow struck true, hitting the rider dead center. What was strange though is that there wasn’t a reaction to the hit from the rider at first. As the horse drew neared they would slump forward and fall on the ground, revealing themselves to be a stuffed ragdoll. The horse would continue on without the rider as if it were fleeing, but as it got closer it a bit of smoke would clear in a puff and a shirtless bald man with red tattoos running down his face and chest would appear with a hatchet in each hand in place of where the horse was.

He rushed towards Mujina, but Hotaru moved in the way with and parried his attacks with a white gunbai. The man swung savagely, pressing hard against Hotaru’s defense. It was apparent that this was likely one of the lieutenants of Ōtakemaru who had been trained to use ninjutsu.

The two other riders circled around them from a medium range. They each had bows in hand and drew arrows to fire. One arrow moved towards Hotaru’s blind side, while the other went to strike Mujina. Hotaru managed to catch a glimpse of the one heading towards Mujina, and swung his fan to give a torrent of air to push it off course.

Without Mujina’s intervention, however, he’d likely be struck by the arrow aimed at him.

🗡️

[Go Mujina]

[attr="class","sidetxt1"]i look at you, looking at me [attr="class",sidetxt2"]and the face that i see is my own. [attr="class","sidetag"]Uchiha Hotaru

[attr="class","bodytxtt"]Mujina narrowed her eyes as her arrow pierced the it’s target. Something wasn’t right but the mystery was revealed before she had time to fully appreciate the cunning tactic. The horse transformed as it came upon them, leaving the pair duped a second time. The wanin steeled herself mentally to engage in close combat but her partner beat her to it, leaving her to deal with the other two riders. Hopefully, they’d sprung the trap early on and there wouldn’t be any more tricks because detecting that kind of thing was more Kotobuki’s bailiwick. She loosed an arrow to intercept the one headed towards hotaru, striking the shaft and knocking it off course. They clattered to the ground harmlessly. Mujina who had been focused on protecting her brother turned her head just in time to stare down the head of an incoming arrow. Her eyes widened and she ducked behind the cover of the tree as she was saved by a gust of wind from Hotaru’s fan. She caught the man’s eye and offered a nod of mutual respect. She was grateful for the assist. Mujina clipped the end of a spool of steel wire into the fletching of her arrow before stepping out and aiming out over the branches at the nearest approaching cavalry. If she hit, she would channel raiton chakra through the wire and into whatever she’d hit. Hopefully it wasn’t another dummy. SPOILER: Click to show NAME: Kangekiha no Jutsu [Inspiration Wave Technique] RANK: C CHAKRA USAGE: Low CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu [General] ELEMENT: Raiton HANDSEALS: 5 DESCRIPTION: After the handseals are completed, the user will generate a large amount of Raiton onto their hands which could be discharged onto a person or object they are in close contact with. The electricity from this jutsu has enough power to intensively damage and electrocute the opponent. Due to it's short range, conductive materials are often used to lengthen it's range, and even improve the electrical power of the technique. Methods such using streams of water or ninja wire are common ways to improving the jutsu's range. [attr="class","cranecred00"]MADE BY CRANE

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[Uchiha Hotaru]

Hotaru grit his teeth at the relentless attacks of the lieutenant. When he telegraphed a powerful attack the Uchiha suddenly kicked forward into their chest and then jumped into the sky, pushing a small breeze beneath his feet to further propel upwards with his loose fitting clothing flowing.

From his sleeves he flicked forward a senbon into the man's right arm that was embedded into the joint. His arm flopped forward and he dropped his hatchet, leaving him with just one. The man cried out in pain and rushed towards Hotaru with his good hatched raised up, slicing down and nicking him on the leg as he was landing. The fallen shinobi grunted and elbowed the man in the face before back pedaling a few feet away.

Meanwhile, Mujina's wired arrow embedded itself into one of the mounted archers. As electricity poured through and shocked the man, the horse he was riding whinnied and bucked the man off, further damaging him by trampling over his fallen body as it started to flee.

The other archer's eyes widened and he began to kick his horse in the side. He began turning around and fleeing back towards the forest where countless bandits lurked. If he were to warn them that capable mercenaries were coming the mission could get much harder.

🗡️

[Go Mujina]

[attr="class","sidetxt1"]i look at you, looking at me [attr="class",sidetxt2"]and the face that i see is my own. [attr="class","sidetag"]Uchiha Hotaru

[attr="class","bodytxtt"]The wanin cut the line and leapt down from the branch, grabbing ahold of the reins of the spooked horse and running alongside it in such a way as to slow its momentum as it pivoted around her in a wide loop. Mujina ran a hand along its mane before hopping into the empty saddle. She urged the beautiful black beast forward in an attempt to catch up to and come alongside the other horse that was still headed deeper into the forest. As she rode, Mujina glanced over her shoulder at Hotaru’s opponent and quickly notched another arrow. She shifted her upper body and took aim. It took a moment of trailing the target with her bow to switch the nature harnessed in her chakra from raton to doton but as soon as she did she released the arrow. The simple projectile aimed at the back of the axeman’s head was imbued with the properties of rock and stone, making it impact more heavily than an arrow normally would. Mujina hoped she could knock Hotaru’s opponent unconscious at the very least while she caught up to the fleeing bandit. As she neared him, she would switch from the bow to her kama and prepare to slash out at him with a hooked scythe. [attr="class","cranecred00"]MADE BY CRANE

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[Uchiha Hotaru]

Mujina's arrow fell low, hitting the lieutenant in the back of his left leg with a horrific sound of a grunt mixed with meat and bone giving way to the arrow head. Hotaru managed to back away once again and started weaving hand seals.

He leaned forward exposing his mouth from its usual place sheathed behind his high collar. Smoke began to escape his lips, and then a torrent of flame licked out from his mouth as he opened it, painting his grey eyes with a dancing phoenix of crimson. The fire streamed forward and formed into a ball that sped towards the hatchet wielder. Impacting his body and burning the yellow grass around it, they fell back onto the ground twitching and shrieking in pain. Their skin was blistered and broken. Hotaru blew a puff of wind with his fan in order to disperse the smoke, hoping to minimize the chance of observation. Fires were not terribly uncommon out here in these dry lands.

Mujina managed to catch up with the fleeing bandit, burying her kama into the small of their back and knocking them from the mount. The horse trampled their left leg as they fell stuck in the saddle with the other foot for a few meters until the bucking back and fourth caused them to slip out.

Hotaru took a moment to bind the wound on his leg, leaving Mujina with a decision to finish the bandit off or perhaps question them. Though it hadn't been apparent from afar, the bandit was a woman wearing thick animal skins with muddy warpaint smeared on her cheeks and dirt caked in her short brown hair.

"Do it then," the wounded woman cried in a hoarse voice. She was laying on her back, spitting towards the wanin. The horse had trampled her left leg, breaking it and making her odds of escaping impossible. If Mujina got too close, the bandit would try to stab her with a small knife that she was concealing in her hand.

🗡️

[Go Mujina]

[attr="class","sidetxt1"]i look at you, looking at me [attr="class",sidetxt2"]and the face that i see is my own. [attr="class","sidetag"]Uchiha Hotaru

[attr="class","bodytxtt"]Mujina turned her horse and leapt down to approach the fallen bandit. Although, she was a hunter with enough experience not to get within striking distance of a wounded creature. She sheathed her scythes and drew her bow once more, the implication being that she would shoot the bandit if she tried anything funny. She glanced at Hotaru in her periphery just to make sure he was alright. The bandit he’d been facing turned extra crispy in a blast of flame, the heat of which caused the tips of Mujina’s hair to curl. So, he was a real shinobi, huh? She didn’t really know what to do with this one but she guessed Hotaru might so she decided to wait for him. They might be able to get some information from her but the wannin didn’t have a clue how to go about doing that. Killing the highway bandits that had attacked was self-defense but this would be different. She didn’t want to torture the poor woman more than was necissary for the safe completion of the job. She was hesitant because the bandit didn’t pose much of a threat at the moment but didn’t seem close to giving up or remorseful either. "Hmm…” She mused, trying to sound more menacing than she felt. "What should we do with this one?” [attr="class","cranecred00"]MADE BY CRANE

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[Uchiha Hotaru]

Hotaru brought his hand to the wound on his leg with a needle. He formed a thread made of chakra out of it and quickly ran the sutures through the wound on his leg to bind it together. He hadn't numbed the pain at all, but he had done first aid on himself enough to be used to the feeling of the needle. After tying it off he walked away from the scorched earth stepping over the charred body in front of him.

The bandit woman lay broken on the ground, closing her eyes as Mujina drew her arrow. Her hope to sneak attack them if they drew near was dashed. She grit her teeth and breathed heavily with fear.

Hotaru approached at a walking pace. Her eyes slid towards him as he drew nearer. He looked down and thought about the person for a moment. They likely came from a bad situation, so he didn't blame them for their choices... but they were far too old for him to wipe a significant enough portion of their memories without driving them insane. Letting them go wasn't a good option either, because they could bring more misfortune to others and create more conditions that created people like her.

Without hesitation, Hotaru drew a senbon and drove it skillfully through the base of their skull. Striking hard and fast enough to sink it into their brain, it was as if he had hit an off switch. All that Mujina would likely see was a brief flick of the wrist and a small rupture of blood from the back of the bandit’s head.

"Let’s go… leave the horse,” Hotaru said as he began rushing forwards into the forest. This mission was one of annihilation, pawns were of little value to its completion and he wagered that the time it would take to interrogate them wasn’t worth the information they might have known.

🗡️

[Go Mujina]

[attr="class","sidetxt1"]i look at you, looking at me [attr="class",sidetxt2"]and the face that i see is my own. [attr="class","sidetag"]Uchiha Hotaru

[attr="class","bodytxtt"]Mujina inhaled sharply as the woman’s suffering was ended in one swift flick of Hotaru’s wrist. The wanin lowered her bow and just stared at the woman for a moment. It had been mercifully quick and she didn’t question Hotaru’s decision; she’d been a criminal. So were you at one time. A nagging voice in the back of her head reminded her she’d been born into the Go family. Had this woman been driven by circumstances that were equally out of her control or had she chosen this life? She would never know. The horse let out a snort as Mujina began to back away into the forest to follow Hotaru. She could tell he didn’t want to be abandoned but there was no way she could ride him through the dense underbrush. "I’m sorry.” She whispered as she turned and ran to catch up with her partner. He moved quietly through the trees and the wanin attempted to do the same but there were a couple of times her foot landed on crunchy sticks and dry vegetation. Her heart leapt into her stomach each time. How did he move so fast without making a sound? She wasn’t sure where they were going. She was used to tracking animals but this was different. Hotaru seemed to know where they were going because he moved with purpose. She’d just have to trust his instincts for now. [attr="class","cranecred00"]MADE BY CRANE

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[Uchiha Hotaru]

Through the forest they went, there were signs of foot traffic and littered beaten into the path that Hotaru was following. He slowed his pace to a walk, worried that they might be caught off guard. The direction they were headed was towards a lonely mountain in the forest. A dwarf in comparison to those in the land of stone that lied beyond it.

The mercenary wasn't trained in silent killing, which was to be expected. Still, she came in handy in the battle and he could risk doing this mission solo. If he lost the benefits of stealth deep in this territory with some of the bandits having shinobi training it could be bad. Not only that he wanted to encourage the Land of Birds to utilize people who were not village affiliated.

"As you walk, pay attention to the path in front of you and avoid fallen branches and other hard vegetation," Hotaru offered as unsolicited advice. After several more paces forward. So far they didn't seem to be noticed, but he could see nets placed along the ground and partially covered by leaves. Traps meant for an animal to step on to disturb the net and activate a counterweight to pull them upwards to hang in the tree. "Food has gotten more scarce because of their numbers, which is why they are growing bolder by the day…”

🗡️