[Yuie Junichi]

Just walk beside her? She seemed nervous at him being behind her, not quite in her line of sight. He wasn't totally sure he understood why, but he nodded. Maybe it was a good idea. If the two of them were standing side by side, it meant they only each had to watch half as much space, keeping their attentions on a more select number of areas since the space between the two of them wouldn't be a point of attack by an enemy.

...Unless the enemy burrowed under the ground, he supposed, anxiously looking down at the trail between the two of them. No, that was really unlikely. Most bandits didn't have extensive shinobi training and wouldn't be able to pull something like that off.

The hill gradually transitioned into a rockier slope, more difficult to climb. Junichi was good with his balance now, but he still hadn't learned that tree climbing technique. In very unconventional fashion, the water walking technique had come to him much more easily and he could do it more reliably than he could cling to walls. If he tried to climb up that way, he'd probably fall, so he needed to be very careful. He stuck close to Momo's side, just in case.

Luckily, the path soon broke, and just ahead there was a beautiful bloom of flowers. It was gorgeous here, a moment of peace among stress. Junichi kind of wished he could show his auntie. Momo wandered ahead to get to work, surprisingly diligent, and Junichi was ready to stand guard until she called for him.

He approached to watch.

"Do you... want to show me how to harvest the flowers?" He asked. He wasn't sure what he needed to pay attention to here, since he also wanted to keep an eye on their surroundings. It was probably important to learn, though. If something bad happened, he might need to know how to gather them.

[Takehara Momo]

"Aren't you curious to learn?" Momo wasn't sure whether or not she should be treating her rank advantage as a reason to treat Junichi as a student. Granted she'd consider the implications of him saying no, she'd hope he wouldn't as she hadn't planned to give him a choice. She'd be too shy and cautious to speak up quickly and stop a reply. Instead she'd wait for a reply and simply worry he wouldn't be curious, she definitely didn't want to bump heads.

"... It's important to absorb all the information you can when you're young. Besides, I'd like to do a little scouting. So we're quick to move and if need be I can be first to act." Momo felt pretty good in her words, despite her words ending with a slightly gulp. As it took a lot of her focus to truly speak with a sense of confidence and control. "Eh-hmm.. so when harvesting these flowers, what's important is a sticky substance found within the stem. So when picking them you'll grab them as close to the base of the stem as possible, then twist to pinch the stem from dripping. Finally cut the side of the pinch closest to the dirt to get the most stem."

Momo would make sure she explained with both words and slow actions. Upon completing she'd put it away in a specific container of her herbs bag. Waddling a bit back, she'd pause and gesture for him to do the same. As soon as it was clear he had it down, she'd pop up to a stand leaving her herb bag on the ground. As she'd draw her bow and an arrow, before wandering to the outskirts of the tree's around them. Figuring out the animal paths to this location, as well as trying to look for signs of others having passed through.

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

She was right, he should be curious to learn. Having additional knowledge was never a bad idea. And if he knew what flowers to look for and how to properly harvest them, that meant that one day he could lead an excursion like this, maybe. Definitely not without more extensive studying than a single time doing some flower-picking, but if he wanted to be the best shinobi he could be, he needed to put in the effort?

...Did he want to be the best shinobi he could be? That was a complicated subject. He wanted to be good at his job, that much was true, so he decided not to overthink it and agree to learn, nodding to Momo.

Junichi came closer to watch her work, carefully observing all the steps. Pinch, twist, sever, store. That didn't seem too complicated. He was good with various menial chores superficially similar to this at the family business, like packing packages and twisting them closed, so he figured he could do it.

"Alright. I'll take care of doing some," he agreed.

He got to work, carefully taking the flower and pinching it as close to the ground as he could, twisting the stem, and cutting it loose. With the motion becoming more familiar, he tried to up his efficiency by using one hand for each flower. It was a little clumsy going at first, but as long as he did the same motions at similar times he could do it.

As Momo began to explore to look for signs of others' passing, she might note a few things. Animal footprints alongside some boot prints. A distant rising smoke - like there might be a camp somewhere nearby, though the smoke was thin, as if the group who had been camping there had already put the fire out. That might mean they were on the move.

[Takehara Momo]

Momo didn't know exactly what to expect of bandit opposition. If they weren't shinobi, she didn't really fear a run in, especially not for herself. She'd look back at the genin gathering the needed herbs from this location, she knew a few places to get the rest of the herbs. This was by no means a one way only situation. Granted bumping into the bandits could be incredibly helpful to the nearby village, it could possibly save innocent lives. There'd possibly be a letter from their leader speaking of the good they'd done.

Junichi might be able to fend for themselves fine. Momo would probably be skilled enough to keep him safe even if he wasn't. Her hand tracing over the footprints, she'd see the blood on her claws in a flash. The gurgle sound of that annoying brat, the cataclysm that ended her mothers life. The bandits weren't her mission and the biggest risk in all of this was herself. This was what the pain in her heart told her, so she'd look to the smoke and think about the path they'd taken.

"You almost done?" Momo asked after giving a fair amount of time for the Yuie to pick this areas plants. "We're going to head that way next, we'll need to move along the cliff edge. If you don't know tree climbing yet, I'm going to ask you hold my hand as we travel. I am incredibly well balanced on that type of terrain, so you'll have nothing to fear in my hands." Momo would assure the genin, she'd have the utmost confidence in this plan. If they were by any means rushed, she felt she could easily carry the boy and move along the stepper rocky path. No way a bandit could simulate her goatlike maneuverability. She was also choosing a longer route going the exact opposite direction it seemed the bandits had gone.

If this boy saw the darker side of her, he might be scared and say something to superiors. She didn't need that type of heat on her.

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

Momo inquired if he was almost done and he nodded, double-checking that he had obtained a sufficient supply of the herbs. He wanted to be sure this trip was worthwhile. Already his fingers were tired, but he knew that they were far from done with the mission and there would be a lot more herb picking to do. That was alright. Junichi was used to manual work like this from working at the clan business.

Her next plan was to move to another area, though she specifically pointed out a route away from the bandits. Junichi had been focused enough on the plant picking that he hadn't noticed the smoke in the distance, so he didn't notice her choosing this route. Still, it seemed a little like an odd one, choosing a path along a cliff.

"I don't know tree walking yet," he admitted. "I've been working on it, but I can't hold it for very long..." And he's sure if he was in an emergency situation, focusing to do it would be nigh impossible. The idea of holding someone's hand while on official business embarrassed him a little - but he had to admit that he was inexperienced, and Momo was in charge. So if it was the best way, he wouldn't protest it.

After securing the herbs, he stood up straight to offer her his hand.

[Takehara Momo]

The herbalist wouldn't fully get the embarrassing nature of her plan. She'd be too focused on her own rationalization, so when he reached out she'd take his hand firmly. She tried to not really squeeze, as she'd know all too well her strength stimulated was more than normal folks. Granted she didn't plan to focus her chakra into her arms at all, instead she'd focus it to her feet and legs. If Junichi paid close enough attention he'd see the shape of her stocks change.

She'd use her Onigo bloodline as little as possible, it was hard to stimulate the transformation and not heighten the ease of her mood shifts. Places like the rock side she was planning on taking them though was relaxing, it was her favorite place to be actually. Granted in Amegakure it was more like chipped concrete on building sides or loose screw on a steel beam. Either way the precarious nature didn't bother her. It was usually a place without other people and she really enjoyed the escape from all those prying eyes.

Too focused on the path she'd be taking them, she'd only seem to look towards the different thin juts of rock. Typically looking for easy enough spots for the genin to fit a whole foot and more, but after finding those spots she'd watch his footing too. Using her friend hand to point out the best places to put his feet. In doing so she'd constantly shift herself to a spot that seemed completely without footing. As though she was abusing invisible platforms. Granted if the rock ever did give way under her she'd just activate tree-climbing.

If Junichi though lost his footing, she'd tighten her grip and it'd come almost painfully. As her arm would seemingly bulk up and her hands momentarily taking an almost clawed look. Granted if such a thing occurred she's swing him in front of her, yank him up into her free arm, then began to quickly descend the rock face to the bottom. As a shinobi he might of been able to survive a tumble down, but in Momo's arms he'd be carried down with impeccable ease. Once at the bottom she'd let go of the boy or his hand and then wave him on ass if nothing.

"We should be able to find the next ingredient around tree's like that, it'll be a bright violet colored flower." Momo explained pointing to a nearby tree which had no flowers around it. They'd sadly have to move through the tree's with more hope than guarantee. This was considered a much rarer ingredient than the last. Though Momo was confident they'd find enough around here.

SPOILER: Click to show

Mightest Goat | Onigo KKG #1
Treated with Chakra as an infant, Momo's bodies reaction was to channel that through her bloodline. Forever scarring her with Onigo appearance of a warped skin, eye and hair color, as well as two goat like horns protruding from her head. She's however not as skilled as one might think for someone so early indoctrinated into bloodline ability. The major downside of this clan is using it's power causes one to also lose their sanity. Thus Momo whose constantly in a battle to not transform has relatively awful control in comparison to most of her clan.

That stated though, she's still incredibly skilled with the part of her she can transform. Her arms stiffen and bulge with the might of her bloodline, as the nails on her fingers become more claw like and merged with the hand. This allows her to have an incredibly easy time plucking the string of her bow, to rip forth some of the most powerful draw string strengths. As a chuunin she's also begun slowly, but less successfully transforming her feet, so she can almost stand like a mountain goat. Using only the smallest amount of space to perch herself giving her odd vantage points.

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

As the two of them began to step across the precarious terrain, it seemed like the woman's legs shifted. He might not have even noticed, if he didn't have to look down so much to watch where he was going, but once he saw it he couldn't help but keep seeing it. A shifting of her stance, like... her knees shifting back? It reminded him of a goat, though he wasn't exactly sure. He shouldn't stare anyways, even if he was deeply curious. Kenichi probably would've blurted some kind of question, but Junichi held his tongue, focusing on the climb.

He stepped where he was directed, moving cautiously so that he could balance on the footholds without troubling Momo. By contrast, she seemed capable of standing on almost nothing at all. Was she using her tree walking technique, or did the changed physiology have anything to do with it? He didn't know a lot about that kind of stuff... He felt like there was so much in the world he still needed to learn and he didn't even know where to start. When the terrain got tough, he tried to focus chakra to his feet, but just like in his practices before then, he couldn't quite manage it, and instead had to rely on the painful squeeze of Momo's hand on his. Ow! She was a lot stronger than she looked!

Luckily he didn't stumble enough to need to be carried, since he was a very cautious individual. The last thing he wanted was to fall.

When they were finally down, Junichi breathed a sigh of relief, shaking out his hand and fixing his glasses.

"I need to practice that more," he mumbled. He had been having a hard time with it, but him and Kenichi hadn't been practicing together since their argument, and Kenichi was always the one who helped him learn the techniques he was struggling with...

Momo described the next ingredient they'd be looking for, and Junichi nodded, moving forward to begin picking through the trees, trying to find the flowers.

"I've worked with flowers before sometimes," he told her, keeping his voice hushed. Any time he was in the woods, he felt the need to be quiet. "Not for medicine, but for... soap. Getting the fragrances for it ready. I think my brother would know more about this kind of thing..." He spotted what looked like a lone purple flower and knelt down by it. The question was, was it the right kind?

[Takehara Momo]

Momo would nod her head to Junichi as he'd admit to likely needing to practice this. "Balance is good for shinobi, though tree climbing would work at the cost of more chakra." The chuunin would explain in a very plain and soft tone, her eyes seeming to look off a bit. She wanted to keep an eye on the surroundings of where they came down to. If lucky she'd spot a flower herself, but her eyes didn't and her head still considered turmoil. Certainly they avoided the chance of it, so she should be able to focus.

Nonetheless the Amegakure goat simply remained vigilant of her surroundings. She tried to also keep tuned into what the Yuie spoke, she didn't know if making soap fragrance and medicine were at all similar. Mostly cause she didn't know what that processed involved on the soap end. However cooking sometimes related and that was something she knew existed as a comparison. "That's interesting, I wonder what similarities the two hold. I've never made soap or thought about it's creation." Soap was pretty readily available, so she'd never needed to make it.

Though a part of her questioned if she should know how to make soap. Soap was pretty important to medical shinobi, but luckily her thoughts were distracted by the discovery of a lone flower. She'd approach the tree and investigate the flower, it was what they'd been looking to find. However it's color was a bit duller and it was a lone flower. "This is a pretty old specimen of our flower, we'll most likely spot a bit brighter shade. I almost feel bad plucking it, but we just need the bud of these flowers and we'll need more than one for sure." She'd state pulling out small clippers, waiting for Junichi to be able to watch if interested. This had no complexity to it, a quick clip to the stem right below the bud and it'd drop into a jar.

SPOILER: Click to show

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

"With our kekkai genkai, it's really easy," Junchi informed her. The clan could produce all the soap they wanted so long as they had the energy to do so, without really having to think about it. "Uhm, but before I could use it, I learned how to manually make soap the way the people without Jōton do. It's kind of dangerous. You have to heat up this dangerous chemical and then mix it with oil and stuff, and then mix in colors and fragrances. That's where the plants come in, mostly - grinding them up for fragrances. But you have to be careful, or they can make the soap not set right, or..."

He trailed off, getting sheepish - this wasn't really what the mission was about, and rambling about the family business felt embarrassing in the way that being a Yuie generally made him feel embarrassed. It reminded him of being in the academy and being treated like he would never be as effective a shinobi as a spa attendant.

He watched carefully as Momo clipped the bud, noting where she positioned the clippers, how she collected it.

"Do you want me to take care of gathering again? Or do you want me to keep watch?" He asked. His vision wasn't exceptional, so maybe he wasn't as good a watchdog as an adept archer like her, but he would still take whatever role he was given.

[Takehara Momo]

Momo couldn't help on her medicine having a somewhat subpar attention span. She'd do her best to listen to what the genin was explaining of their family art, it was pretty intriguing to her. Sadly in a single blink she'd feel just a bit lost in the context, her attention slightly drifting to the background. Then her mind refocusing on a question now clearly directed to her.

"Uh-, yeah, it'd be best you keep gathering and I'll keep watch." Momo couldn't help feel a tinge of guilt, as based on her last move to shift them down the rock side. The chances they'd be bumping into trouble around her or soon seemed unlikely. It'd mean her role presently was unnecessary, but if she was wrong it'd be better her guard was raised. Besides the logic to continue having one of them on guard made sense to her. With the sparsity of this resource, she could walk a wider perimeter and try to spot out the best route back.

Her eyes and ears as alert as she could manage, it was feeling closer and closer to the time she'd want to medicate. However she'd hold off to attempt to hold a better focus. Not gathering, she could have her bow drawn. Tugging back the string and taking aim every few moments helped her stay calm. Helped her be focused and not slip into her typical rage.

SPOILER: Click to show

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

Keep gathering. That was fine by him. Junichi was good at manual work and he was good at hunkering down and getting stuff done. He liked to think of himself as someone really observational, someone who was good at picking up little details even if he didn't have great far-sight without the glasses. He kept his eyes on the ground, scanning for the flowers they needed. Bright pops of purple would be what he was looking for the most, wanting to make sure to find fresher ones rather than older samples when he could help it.

With a bit of practice he got slightly better at identifying the plants on sight alone and managed to start making good progress, clipping flower buds and collecting them in with the others for the return trips home. He had to shake out spiders a few times, but for the most part the actual collecting was uneventful. He looked up at Momo every once in a while as he worked.

She was scouting around a lot, occasionally raising her bow. She seemed anxious. Had she noticed something wrong that he hadn't? He looked out into the forest as well, frowning.

"...Do you think we're going to have any trouble with those bandits?" He asked her. Should they try to help take care of them? They didn't have a way of knowing how many there were, though. That might be a bad idea.

[Takehara Momo]

The chuunin didn't like the question thrown her way, she wouldn't look over. She could her the concern or doubt, it was mildly aggravating to her. To be watched over and to lack the trust of her subordinate. The goat knew they weren't always the best at emotional rationality. Her bloodline gave her a creeping disposition, so she would take a breath and quickly remind herself the real threat. Herself.

"No, I can handle them... it's just, ..." She didn't know if it was best to be honest or if she simply was best lying. Silence certainly wasn't the right approach. "I'm working to get a promotion, if a genin was injured under my watch it'd set me so far back." It wasn't a lie, but it avoided the whole her being the bigger risk. "If we get jumped promise me you'll do everything to just escape with our herbs uninjured. I'll handle the rest, okay?" Momo was speaking seriously and sternly. Her attention however never leaving the environment around them.

Her mind attempting to side focus on targeting out movement, her archery instincts swiftly adjusting the bow. She walked almost like a crane hunting and her sudden shifts of targeting seemed almost animatronic. A mobile turret simply ready to deliver a sudden and life ending blow. "How's harvesting going, what've you gotten so far?" She'd ask looking for a relative number of buds gathered. A progress report to hopefully ease her tension further. Her awareness growing, as well as her emotional instability.

SPOILER: Click to show

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

Momo seemed a little tense, not looking at him when she answered his question. Was she really concerned? Or...

When she answered in full, he was glad she was honest. Even still, it made him feel a little bad. She didn't know him, so she had no reason to trust in his abilities at all. So she had to be afraid that he couldn't take care of himself and he'd mess things up for her. Was he more of a burden than a help on this mission? Was she annoyed that he was here?

His negative train of thought was broken by her asking for a status update. He held up the buds he'd managed to collect so far - quite a few considering the time they'd been here to gather. The jar was almost full, maybe three-fourths. He really did excel with manual labor like this, translating his anxiety into productive energy.

"I think I have a lot now. I've mostly been focusing on the younger ones, like you said," he said. A few of the slightly older specimens might have scooted in with the rest when he wasn't sure, since he didn't want to end up with a really small supply by being completely picky, but he'd also been trying to keep quality control in mind.

"And, uhm... I'll definitely run if the bandits show up...," he assured her. "I faced a group of them back when the subway got taken over, uhm, at the beginning of the year... so I do have experience dodging them." He hoped that would be some comfort.

[Takehara Momo]

Momo would do her best to put on a smile, as she'd be shown a very good harvest. "Good job!" Her reaction complemented by a slightly shaky thumbs up, but it might of been unnoticed, as her previous disposition was that of anxiousness. Hopefully the genin would be sold on that theory alone.

They'd only have one ingredient left to gather and she'd have a decent idea of a couple few places. One in particular would be perfect as it'd be taking them back towards the village and still a little bit away from where she felt she'd track the bandits too. Albeit the location she'd be thinking of was quite the small cultivation likely available. She felt for this mission they wouldn't need a lot and if it was the only thing a little short it'd be easily forgotten.

"We're almost ready to go back home, we've just got one more resource to get." She'd somewhat happily exclaim, as she'd feel they were closing in on a mission well done and without any troubles. She'd wave on the genin to follow then in a hastening pace proceed to the location she had in mind. She didn't realize how much she picked up pace, as she somewhat naturally gained a boon as the drugs effects on her body wore away more and more.

What she'd bring the genin to wasn't what she expected and it'd be a pretty peculiar spot. A large clearing and a somewhat big whole, as though something massive had been uprooted and removed. A very literal sentiment, as a massive fallen tree had once laid here. A fungus, the last ingredient needed, grew beneath it's decaying roots. It'd however been removed for some path to be ran and or for the wood of the fallen ancient.

Momo didn't come upon this scene with happiness or calmness. Instead her head seemed to almost bobble as her eyes expanded. The few other locations she could think of, it'd either be quite the hike or. She'd peer in the direction she'd pretty confidently guessed the bandits would of gone. She breathed heavily gritting her teeth together, they'd seem perhaps larger and more sharp. Similarly with the nails on her hands and toes. It'd not be all too apparent especially for someone who didn't know her, but it was happening.

Retrieving a container from her bag for the mushrooms she planned to cultivate. She'd look to Junichi another anxious smile, as sweat slightly dripped down her brow. "I-eh... I - I need you to take what we've gathered and go to the small town from earlier... Wait for me there until no later than dusk, if I haven't shown then go back to Amegakure. If you use the east trail back, it should be completely safe." Momo would explain her plan, then if there wasn't any pushback proceed to head towards what was likely the bandits camp location.

SPOILER: Click to show

Words. -- Tags. Yuie Junichi Notes. Notes go here wheee and you can get as long or as short as you want because it doesn't matter. And do you wanna know why that is? Is it because you think this scrolls? Well you'd be right. It does scroll. Pat yourself on the back my good man. You are smart. Smart little man.

Template by Kuroya of THQ & GS.

[Yuie Junichi]

Momo was satisfied with the gathering job he had done, telling him that he'd gathered enough and it was time to move to the final resource that they needed to scour for. She gave him a trembling thumbs-up, though maybe she was just nervous about the potential bandits, or was simply stressed about her promotion in general. In any case, he nodded and got up, traveling alongside her to the next location.

She moved quickly, picking up her pace. Even though she was somewhat short, she was still a fair bit taller than Junichi himself, so he had to put in work to keep up. It was lucky he exercised a lot and could maintain a decent pace for a while, so at least he wasn't too winded. Still, he needed to catch his breath for a second as they approached the next spot.

A... a hole in the ground? What exactly would they be looking for here? He didn't know what to make of it. Maybe something deep in the soil, or-

He looked up at his mission leader and she didn't seem particularly pleased. Grit teeth, tension in her body. Was it just his eyesight playing tricks on him, or were her teeth kind of sharp?

She instructed him to go back to the village. Clearly she wanted to do something dangerous. Should he leave her alone? But he needed to listen to what she was telling him, be a good subordinate. It left an unsettled feeling in his gut, trying to decide what the better option here was. If only he had a shadow clone technique or something...

"Uhm... Okay. I'll head back to the village," Junichi said, taking the other procured resources. "If you're not back by dusk, I'll send help for you, but please... don't do anything risky alone." He gave her a little bow.

Then he'd follow her instructions and be on his way, following the east trail that avoided the bandits as much as possible, remaining stealthy and moving quietly. He worried about her the whole way back.