[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." FIRST CHUUNIN MISSION It was finally time to take on a mission, his very first since his promotion to Chuunin. True, he was no stranger to leading a group of people, and he had been responsible for them on a B-Rank mission before, when he was still a Genin, but being a Chuunin added a new layer of responsibility, and now he could be assigned as the leader of people he had never worked with before, which was the case right now. He was assigned one Genin to accompany him in this mission, a rather fresh one at that. "Rindou Seba, uh? His file doesn't say much, but it's a good chance to get to know some of the newer Genins. With my new job at the academy I will be able to know all of them moving forward, but there's certainly a gap I need to fill." he thought to himself as he walked out of the Hokage Building with the mission scroll in hand. According to the Jounin who assigned him the mission in the absence of the Hokage, the Genin was also being informed of the mission, and Shigure asked him to be informed to meet up with him at the gates of the village. On his way there, Shigure stopped home to pack a couple lunch boxes and seal them inside some of the scrolls he carried with himself, so that it wouldn't occupy a lot of space and would stay preserved thanks to the fuuinjutsu. This quick stop would likely allow Seba to arrive at the gates before Shigure, unless the Genin was going to be late. In any case, Shigure got the the gate maybe ten minutes after the scheduled time, and if the boy was already there - he knew his likeness from his file - he would wave to him with a large smile on his face. "Seba-kun, sorry I'm a bit late. Were you briefed on the mission at all, or just informed to meet me here?" he asked. Shigure was wearing his official ninja attire, with the flakjacket and all, so it was quite clear he was the Chuunin who was to be in charge of the mission. He looked friendly enough, and rather informal despite being a Hyuuga. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission Meeting at the gates [RINDŌ SEBA] [379 words]

[RINDŌ SEBA]

Seba knew when it was time to joke around and when it was time to be serious. Catching cats for the Hokage? Maybe a more jovial attitude is alright. For actual combat while he's still unproven and wet behind the ears? A bit more stoicism and alertness than usual wouldn't hurt.

He wore a large dark cloak over his drab garments, light and breathable, he knew the port city was the destination so thick material that'll soak up water was a  no-no. 

His blade, standard tools and all accompanied him. The early start was no sweat for him, his sister's snoring meant that sleeping in wasn't on the cards even if he wanted to. 

Standing by the gate, awaiting a superior for his mission, made Seba stop for a moment, he was actually a shinobi now. 

A flak-jacket donning  youth (albeit a youth noticeably older than him) seemed to fit the bill of Shigure. "No worries Hyuuga-san, better late and prepared than early and rushed. And yeah, go to the ports, intercept bandits messing up fishing routes. I'm still pretty much a novice, so I'll just follow your lead.".


Hyūga Shigure  

LAIKA OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." PREPARATION AND INFORMATION Seba looked rather young, and he was shorter than Shigure, but that sword of his meant he was at least competent enough to not injure himself with such a dangerously looking blade, and that gave Shigure some peace of mind. His response also gave the indication that he was likely mature beyond his years, and the Hyuuga couldn't agree more with that. "Wise words. I see you already have the mind of a full-fledged shinobi." he complimented the boy, widening his smile and nodding to Seba. He had indeed being briefed on the mission, which saved Shigure the time to explain it, so they could start heading towards Port City. "Then let's get going, we can talk on the way." he stated. Without further ado, Shigure walked out of the village and leaped towards a branch of a tree nearby. "If you have any trouble keeping up the pace, let me know. No use wasting all your energy before the mission, but we do need to get to Port City quickly." with that being said, the Hyuuga started heading towards the east at a moderate pace for a Chuunin, which was a bit more intense for a Genin, but not too much that Seba would drain his stamina if he kept up with the Hyuuga. As they left the Hidden Leaf behind them, Shigure would speak to the young boy again. "I take you are a kenjutsu specialist? What else can you do?" he asked Seba. It was important for them to know what each other could do - at least in broad strokes - so they could plan accordingly. "I specialise in Taijutsu and I'm a capable tracker. I can also use Fire and Wind Release, and I'm somewhat competent with Fuuinjutsu." he quickly added. That was a big simplification of what he could do, but it would help Seba have already an idea of his overall style and what kind of jutsu Shigure might have on his arsenal. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission On the way to Port City [cloudse] [334 words]

[RINDŌ SEBA]

Internally Seba cheered after he had regurgitated a random phrase he had heard from one of his uncles, yet he could take the credit for the wisdom. He gave an 'aye' as they began trekking out to their mission location.

When the term "keep up the pace" was mentioned, immediately the competitive itch that laid at the back of Seba's brain began to feel a lot more fierce. "I should be good, this sort of thing is right up my alley.".

While he might be a smidge over-energetic at times, Seba knew to keep his mouth shut and put on some focus as they left  the leaf village further and further behind them. 

It wasn't until they were comfortably departed that either of them spoke, Shigure was trying to get the younger one to speak up about his skillset.

He allowed Shigure to elaborate before he spoke, nodding as he was informed about the Chunin's skillset, "I am a general weapon specialist, but usin' a sword is my approach, hard to find a lot of Genin who can use ninja tools like me. Plus I'm pretty good at using Fuuton to help me move and enhance my stuff.

How you think we should approach any conflict with enemies?"

Seba would turn to Shigure while they approached Port Country, with a few thoughts of his own that he wanted to reaffirm or change based on what his superior said. 




Hyūga Shigure  

LAIKA OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." WEIGHT OF A LIFE Seba seemed to be doing a good job at keeping up with the Hyuuga, so he felt more at ease; seemed like he was a competent Genin, even though he was fairly young. "Definitely better than I was at his age." he thought to himself, cracking a smirk in the corner of his mouth. Shigure didn't have any ill feelings whenever he saw people displaying more potential than he did, it was quite the opposite, for it filled his heart with hope that the new generation would make the Hidden Leaf Village an even better and safer place to live. As he expected, he was a weapon specialist with a focus on swords. He also could use Wind Release, and used his chakra nature to enhance his body. "Clever. That's part of the reason why I trained until I could use Wind Release. It's quite useful for physical fighters like us." he added with a firm nod. Then, the boy asked him how they should approach the bandits and Shigure frowned his brows, considering it for a moment. "If we can arrest them, we should do that, but if that proves dangerous, don't hesitate in killing them." he said, until he noticed something, turning his face so he could see Seba's reaction. "I mean... Have you killed before, Seba-kun?" it was an honest question; some people didn't have a problem with taking a life, whereas some other people found the idea abhorrent in its nature, such as his former teammate, Wahei. In any case, it was important that he was ready to do what was needed, and Shigure also didn't want him holding back and risking getting himself killed instead. Ultimately, their lives were more important than the lives of those who chose to follow a dark path of crime. It was a pragmatic view of the world, but one that was necessary considering the nature of their work as shinobi. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission On the way to Port City [RINDŌ SEBA] [329 words]

[RINDŌ SEBA]

Seba started off high and mighty from the praise he got from his superior. He was no brown-nose but who doesn't like being complimented? That soon came crashing down as the tone got a lot more drab. 

There wasn't some inherent sanctity to life Seba held that made him apprehensive about the taking of a life, it was more about answering the question itself. It was a fact he knew that he felt uncomfortable saying. 

"To speak frankly, I don't mean it in no like edgy way... but I dunno. I've never killed but... I'm not too apprehensive about it either. I'll try not to mess things up". It was a shrewd answer, less bombastic than usual for Seba. He didn't play to tone often, but this felt like an appropriate time. 

Whether he had the mettle, or if he was ready were questions that could only be answered in practice. For now, he quietly followed behind his superior and tried to keep his eyes and ears open, although considering Shigure was a sensor was there really a point?

The question sati n the back of his head but it stopped weighing so much on Seba's mind, he was good at honing in and cutting out the fat that clouded his mind, moreso cause he hadn't learned a great way to handle issues that seemed insurmountable to him at a young age. 


Hyūga Shigure  

LAIKA OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." PORT CITY Shigure heard his answer with a serious expression on his face. He exhaled sharply and then responded. "I've killed many people before... I can't give you a number, because honestly I lost count. But it's something that changes you on the inside. And it's not easy, to take a person's life... If you find that you can't, and you are in dangerous situation, retreat and I will take care of it. Ok?" he wanted to make sure the Genin wouldn't hesitate and get himself injured or killed, so as long as he could follow those instructions, it would probably be fine. With that being said, they focused on heading towards Port City. It would take them a couple days to cross the country to the east, and the two would camp and take turns on the watch, but the roads were quite safe; bandits knew better than to attack shinobi in a main road of the Land of Fire. By the third day of their mission, the two would arrive at Port City. It was vibrant city, yes, but they wouldn't have much time for sightseeing for the people who hired them were already waiting at the entrance. He was an older man with a long, white beard, wearing a sailor's hat and quite concerned look on his face. "Oh, thank goodness you arrived! We were attacked two days ago and we lost all of it... We are struggling with that, we need to get some fish in the market... Please, take care of it." the chief fisherman begged. Shigure nodded to the man. "Sure thing, let's sit somewhere and we can discuss what's going on more thoroughly, alright?" he said and the man nodded. "Please, follow me." he said, heading to a building nearby. The building was similar to a large warehouse, where they also repaired fishing boats and such. The man went to a room in the back and held the door open so the Shinobi could go inside and sit. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission Arriving in Port City [RINDŌ SEBA] [337 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." INFORMATION Once inside the warehouse, the sailor sit down by a table and started explaining what was going on there. "They attack us usually at sunset, when we are coming back with the fish. They are numerous and have plenty of weapons. We tried to fight back a couple of times, but we ended up just losing men, hence why we sought the help of the Hidden Leaf. You are our last hope!" the man said, sighing and lowering his gaze. Shigure nodded to the man, understanding the situation. "Well, don't worry. The Hidden Leaf will take care of it. When is the next boat departing?" Shigure asked. "Tomorrow at noon." the sailor responded, and Shigure nodded once again. "Perfect, I will meet you then by the docks." and with that, he got up from the chair and gave a short bow to the elderly man. "Thank you so much." and with that, they parted ways for the day. Shigure went to an inn where he would rest, and he told his teammate to stay put in Port City in case something happening, especially because he didn't know how to use the Water Walking Technique, and he would rather not risk his life in case of an accident. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (8/15) Going to the inn to rest [N/A] [215 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." ANOTHER VESSEL The next day came and Shigure got ready to meet up with the clients by the docks at around noon. Leaving Seba behind, the Chuunin headed there alone, ready to set sail into the ocean. Once he arrived at the docks, he was greeted by the same old man, who informed him that the preparations were completed and that they could depart now. Shigure got aboard the ship and they departed into the horizon. After sailing deep into the ocean, the fisherman went on with their work, while the Chuunin sit by the deck and enjoyed the scenery. When the sun started to set, the elderly sailor came to Shigure and informed him that it was getting close to the time of the attacks and the Chuunin nodded, telling everyone to hide inside the lower deck and leave him alone up there and they did so. Frowning his brows, he activated his Byakugan and scanned the area, finding another vessel approaching from the southwest. As it approached and entered the range of his doujutsu, he better assessed the situation, noticing that the pirates had around ten men at their disposal, all armed with weapons such as swords, spears, and bows. Shigure took a deep breathe, readying himself, and before the ship got to close, he leaped into the water, using his Water Walking technique, and marching towards the boat to intercept them. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (9/15) Found the vessel with the Byakugan, jumped into the ocean and used water walking to approach it [N/A] [252 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." CHOICE In a short spam of time, the Hyuuga got to the enemy ship, and they failed to notice him because they were not expecting someone to be literally running on the water to invade their ship. Once he was close to it, he leaped from the water to the ship, using the Tree Climbing technique to easily climb the vessel and land on the deck, surprising the people there. "W-who are you?!" a man asked, pointing a spear towards Shigure, to which he responded with a glare with his intimidating eyes with the bulged veins in his temples. "I'm a Leaf shinobi, and I came here to give you a choice: you can either surrender and accept the fact that I will take you to jail, or you can resist and risk losing your li...!" before he could continue, one of the archers tried to hit him from behind with an arrow, but he quickly dodged it with his sharp reflexes. "Well... Choosing the hard way, uh?" and as he said that, four other man came to attack him with their weapons. They swung their blade and thrusted with their spear, but their attacks were all stopped by what seemed like an invisible force. "Hakkeshou Kaiten!" he exclaimed as he started to rotate at an incredible speed. His body became obfuscated by the sheer dome of chakra coming from his technique, and the four man who attacked him were all launched out of the ship and into the water. Arrows came, but they were all useless against his technique, and once he was done with it, he leaped up the mast, using Tree Climbing once again to run all the way to the top. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (10/15) Used Rotation to block the attacks, sent 4 of the bandits into the water, ran up the mast. [N/A] [304 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." FIRE Up the mast, Shigure started waving hand seals, and once he was done, placed one of the hands near his mouth. "Katon, Endan!" and from his mouth, a big oil-based fire ball was spitted out, hitting the mast and the deck, and setting the ship on fire. The bandits there started to grow desperate, while the archers continued to try and hit the Hyuuga from behind, to which he dodged by leaping down, landing near the fire, but avoiding it. "It's like this bastard has eyes in the back of his head! I can't hit him!" the man uttered in frustration. Knowing they were pretty much doomed at this point, the remaining men tried to at least take him down with them, and one lancer came with a thrust. Shigure quickly dodged that and closed in, hitting the man's heart with a palm strike, which made his heart stop. Another one came swinging his blade, to which the Hyuuga also dodged, placing his friend's body in the way. "Dammit!" the man exclaimed, but those were his last words, as the Hyuuga closed in again and hit him right in the chest, making him fall limp on the floor like a sack of potatoes. "Only the archers left." he took a mental note. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (11/15) Used Fire Ball to set the ship on fire, landed back on the deck and killed two of the bandits. [N/A] [234 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." AGILITY The archers started firing arrows as fast as they could, and even for someone with sharp reflexes as Shigure and with a developing agility, he had to keep his focus to avoid all the projectiles as he ran towards his attackers. Some of the arrows came dangerously close to him, but his body was starting to learn how to move in a more agile way, needing way less momentum to change his directions, which allowed him to use side steps and quick motions to stay safe. "This is where I'm still lacking..." he realized, but he would continue to train to develop that side of him, so he could become a more complete fighter. Once he got in range, he hit one of the archers in the chin, sending him to the water unconscious, he would not survive this. After the first attack, he spun his body and hit another one's arms with a heel kick, prompting him to drop the bow. The other two, noticing a ranged weapon would do them no good, drew knives and engaged Shigure from both flanks, while the other one took a step back to prepare for the fight. Shigure began using his reflexes and agility to avoid the attempts at stabbing him, moving his body away from the blades quickly, and then shifting directions almost immediately. It was straining to do that, he noticed, but this battle was almost over. With his palm strikes, he dodged their fifth attempt to stab him and immediately countered by hitting their wrists and forcing them to drop the weapons, leaping upwards and kicking them in the face, sending one of them into the water, and the other one into the burning deck. Catching on fire forced that one to jump into the water to try and save himself, leaving Shigure to face the last remaining bandit alone. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (12/15) Using his reflexes and agility to avoid the attacks and counter, only one enemy left in battle condition. [N/A] [331 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." LAST CHANCE "Bastard! You will pay for this!" the last remaining bandit promised, but they both knew that this promise was void, and just an attempt from the man to go down showing some bravery. Shigure sighed and shook his head, assuming his fighting stance once again. The man juggled his knife from one hand to the other and after a few seconds of studying, he dashed towards the Hyuuga. When he got close, he attempted a feint and flipped the grip on the knife, aiming for a stab to Shigure's flank. The Hyuuga was not tricked by it, however, and used his agility to move his body out of the way with grace, spinning around the man and moving to his back in an instant. With a single palm strike to the back of his neck, the man was knocked unconscious and fell down on the burning ship. The survivors, in the water, started throwing curses at the Hyuuga, saying he would sink with them, but he responded to that by leaping into the water, and standing atop of it with the chakra in his feet. They looked shocked at that display of ninjutsu and the Hyuuga looked at the survivors. "If you survive this, reform your ways. If we hear about you causing problems again, you will be joining your comrades at the bottom of the sea." and with that warning, he started moving away, but one of the man still found the guts to throw one of the spears at him, which forced his body to once again rely on his reflexes and agility to pivot and leap backwards, avoiding the attack and landing behind the man who tried it. "Wrong choice again." he said in a rather ominous tone. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (13/15) Shigure avoids the knife attack and knocks the man unconscious. Once back in the water, he warns the remaining bandits, but one of them decides to try a last, desperate attack, but Shigure uses his agility to avoid it. [N/A] [333 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." SAFE AT LAST With a quick move, Shigure hit the man with the Gentle Fist right on his head, and he quickly sank down the ocean floor. This was enough for all the other survivors to lose any fighting spirit they had, but Shigure glared at them to make sure. "Are you satisfied?!" and silence, as the people there tried to find planks of wood to float. Shigure shook his head and finally started heading back to the fisherman ship, leaving the remaining bandits there to try and survive on their own, and hopefully reform their lives. It didn't cause him any pleasure to end lives, but he could do this for a greater good, and unfortunately, it was not like the Land of Fire had enough prisons to hold all the criminals who disturbed the peace in the country. After a few minutes, Shigure arrived back at the ship, and upon coming to the deck, the fisherman slowly opened the door, peaking at the outside to see who it was, and sighed in relief when they saw the Hyuuga. The elderly man walked out quickly and bowed to the shinobi. "I assume it worked out well?" he asked, and Shigure nodded. "I don't think they will bother you again, the few that remained." he responded, which was immediately understood by the man. "Thank you, Hyuuga-san. We will finally return with fish to sell. And the hope that our supply line into the ocean is finally safe again." and Shigure nodded to that. With that being said, he sit down on the deck and waited for their return to Port City. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (14/15) Shigure returns to the fishermen boat [N/A] [278 words]

[Hyūga Shigure]

"cutting the lines". "No matter how many people you may lose, you have no choice but to go on living." MISSION COMPLETED Once he was back at Port City, he bid his farewell to the clients and went back to the inn to pick up his stuff. His former teammate had already left, so the Hyuuga took his time to sit by the desk and write down his report for the mission. It had been his first mission as a Chuunin, so he was happy about that, and it was a successful one. He also got to face real combat for the first time since the Chuunin Exams, and he did well, despite the unfortunate fact that he had to take some lives. Still, his body was becoming stronger and developing quite well. His agility was evolving at a slower pace than his speed, but he would continue to work hard on that so he could become a more complete fighter. Once the report was completed, he rolled up the scroll, placed it inside his flak jacket's pocket and hit the road back to the Hidden Leaf Village. The trip back was uneventful and he arrived within two days, filling the report with the Hokage's office and getting his payment. He was looking forward to the next mission, which would be coming up real son. His life as a Chuunin was going to be quite the busy one. "So what if it seems hopeless? If it were me, I still wouldn't give up. Embrace your dreams. And, whatever happens, protect your honour as a Shinobi, for the price of freedom is steep." C-Rank Mission (15/15) End post [N/A] [221 words]