[Shizu Amaya]

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take me where the dark things are

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The port of Kirigakure was filled with people shouldering past each other, despite the barely risen sun. Fishmongers had only just finished setting up their stalls with the leftovers of yesterday's catch stacked on piles of ice. They called out their discounted prices, trying to make room for today's catch. Sailors yelled at one another on ships, preparing to set sail in just a few moments. [break][break]

Amaya watched the city from the rails of the modest freighter bound to Kaminari no Kuni. Sailors rushed to get various building materials aboard; loading planks of wood, steel beams, and the like. The should be ready to set sail within the hour. Amaya had never left Mizu no Kuni. The thought was admittedly intriguing, but his chest was not aflutter with excitement. It was only work, afterall. The crew had been tasked with setting up trading posts between Mizu no Kuni and Yuki no Kuni. The shinobi would assist, but their main purpose was as escorts. Two others would join him. People he had no knowledge of, save for the fact that one would be from the land of snow itself.[break][break]

"Oy!" A sailor called up, "Give us a hand will ya!" The man gestured angrily at the piles of material yet to be loaded.[break][break]

Amaya lept down from the railings and began loading the materials along with the sailors.[break][break]

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[Kiko]

Tag: Shizu Amaya nue masahiko Title: Humble Beginnings Hex: e85fb0 Summary: Kiko does what Kiko does best. She boards the ship and waits patiently, allowing her accompanying genin to do the heavy lifting. ♥ Full-size Pic ♥

Komatsuzaki Kiko Shinigami-chan, the true head of the waruichi clan This would be Kiko's first mission since her promotion to Chuunin. To some, that would be truly exciting, or a great milestone in their career, but to her it was just another day. Certainly, it was better to be a chuunin than deal with the stuck up members of her clan looking down on her for being a genin, but even that was a mere annoyance rather than an actual problem. But it was progress, and that was important. Progress was something she could appreciate. They were to set sail and assist in building some outposts for trade and the projection of power, but progress was slow. Both on the final objective and preparing to sail. Kiko made her way across the docks towards the ship that they would take to sea. She was not in a hurry. She could see that the ship was not fully loaded yet. As she prepared to board, one of the workers demanded assistance from someone - anyone.   A genin, one that Kiko was unfamiliar with, but understood would be part of the escort group with her and another allied shinobi, moved to assist right away.  Kiko considered. She could help, too, but it might diminish his contributions and thereby earn his ire. Was it worth it? She didn't care if they departed a little bit later.  She stepped onto the ship and moved past the hustle and bustle to stand out of the way and observe. The Shinigami of the Mist wasn't the type simple dockworkers would demand aid from, but they might not all recognize her, either.

Temp by Ai Made Just for Fair ♥

[nue masahiko]

FEAR IS THE MIND-KILLER

Masahiko had already been traveling for some time, as he was the party’s lone representative from Yukigakure—necessary for the purposes of the mission, in the spirit of international cooperation or something along those lines. All quite sensible, and naturally he had full faith in the Lady Fifth’s vision for Yukigakure’s future… but, truly, he wasn’t built for all this seafaring. There was barely a moment to rest, as the timing of his own ship’s arrival coincided with the scheduled beginning of the mission, and as soon as Masahiko stepped foot onto the docks he had to inquire directions to the northbound ship that he was newly assigned to. The planks of the dock were unsteady beneath his feet, solid ground uncomfortable in the aftermath of international travel, but he kept his composure and his balance well enough as he was gruffly navigated to his destination. Two Mist shinobi, both seemingly a little younger than Masahiko himself, were already at the ship. One was helping load up, while the other patiently waited to the side. "Good morning,” he said as he stepped up, carefully tying his long hair bag with a thin strip of cream-color cloth. He was an average height, but had a slim frame, and certainly didn’t seem well-suited to heavy lifting; despite this, he shook the wide sleeves of his pale blue robes back from his forearms and gamely joined in the effort to finish loading up the ship. "Apologies for my lateness, my ship only just arrived. Nue Mashiko, of Yukigakure. I’ll be traveling north with you both.”

Shizu Amaya Kiko -- 263

LAIKA OF THQ

[Shizu Amaya]

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Kiko nue masahiko

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take me where the dark things are

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Amaya unloaded his last armful of building materials. He brushed his hands off against his thighs. The rest of the crew was rushing to finish the final preparations before setting sail for Kaminari no Kuni. They gathered around Komatsuzaki Kiko, a woman he knew only by name from their debriefing. The dark-haired woman wore a shockingly fine silk kimono, something common amongst the Waruichi. No doubt that she counted herself among them. Their Yukigakure counterpart, the jounin Nue Masahiko. A man Amaya would describe as pretty with his soft features and mint-coloured hair tied back. And lastly himself, the runt of the mission. [break][break]

Over the years, a gnawing sense to prove himself kept him from accomplishing anything. He would not let those voices get in the way this time around. On paper, this mission was a simple one. There was nothing to prove. He had been chosen for this mission and he would return with it completed. Nothing more, nothing less. Yet a small voice told him this was a test that he would surely fail. [break][break]

Masahiko introduced himself and Amaya met him with a level stare. The Yuki-nin's voice had almost a melodic quality to it, as pretty as the face itself. Mashiko seemed kind enough to make a bearable trip to the Land of Lightning. Amaya had a feeling this Kiko would be quite the opposite. She had not lifted a single finger in assisting the crew. Amaya never thought of himself as above others, likely this woman would have a personality which would chip away at his nerves.[break][break]

"Shizu Amaya," he added curtly.
[break][break]

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[Kiko]

Tag: Shizu Amaya nue masahiko Title: Humble Beginnings Hex: e85fb0 Summary: Kiko introduces herself, and cautions her teammates against wearing themselves out or getting injured. ♥ Full-size Pic ♥

Komatsuzaki Kiko Shinigami-chan, the true head of the waruichi clan Kiko waited patiently. She could have helped, but that was not why she was here. Someone avoiding the work may have looked a little more guilty than she did, but Kiko had quite plainly been tasked with the protection of this voyage and nothing else, and unfortunately, she was prone to taking things quite literally. Besides, she was a "medic", and far from physical strong. Without exhausting her chakra, she'd have been little help, and then she'd have to spend time recovering. She saw no benefit to the mission to help shave a few seconds off of their waiting time. Masahiko's arrival implied that they were ready to begin, at least as far as the shinobis' mission was concerned.  He set about helping with the preparations without hesitation. She knew little about either of her teammates, but hoped that whatever exertion they were undergoing at the time would not hinder them later if an emergency arose. After her introduced himself, Kiko did the same. "I am Komatsuzaki Kiko of the Waruichi. It is a pleasure, I am sure." Oddly enough, for Kiko, she was quite literally guessing it was a pleasure, because she was not the type to feel such a thing, only understand that she should. "Try to be careful, and not wear yourself out. We are here to protect this ship and it's crew, and if you are injured or too tired to do so we may fail."

Temp by Ai Made Just for Fair ♥

[nue masahiko]

FEAR IS THE MIND-KILLER

Introductions abounded, though this was a quiet group, it seemed. Which wasn’t a bad thing, necessarily; he was used to spending most of his time with people of few words, though admittedly Isao tended to be more verbose with people he was comfortable with, and Kazu had broken out of his lazy shell as of the last few months. Times were changing, but Hiko could still appreciate the quiet. There wasn’t much left to do, and certainly nothing that would impact Masahiko’s stamina too negatively, but he received the advice as it seemed intended: a simple reminder that they had a job to do outside of heavy lifting. "Evergreen advice, Komatsuzaki-san,” Masahiko said, his lips curved into a small, polite smile. "Thank you.” The curt young man accompanying them seemed duly unimpressed, but Masahiko wasn’t especially concerned so long as he wasn’t going to pick a fight with their teammate—which seemed like a possibility, but hopefully not an inevitability. With the goods loaded, Masahiko craned his head in search of the ship’s captain—an older man who was directing the builders and sailors to their respective positions. "Captain,” he called, lifting a hand. "Your Kirigakure and Yukigakure honor guard are present, ready whenever you are to depart.” He looked back to his companions, that same ever-pleasant smile on his face. His eye was drawn to the Kiri man—dark eyes, dark hair, a brooding expression. Hiko’s mind cast back to his impromptu not-a-date with Kurai, and he wondered briefly if this was a common aesthetic in this country. "I feel the odd man out, I have to admit,” he said. They didn’t seem familiar with each other, but it was worth asking: "Have you worked together before? I’d hate to interrupt an established team dynamic.”

Shizu Amaya Kiko -- 295

LAIKA OF THQ

[Shizu Amaya]

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Kiko nue masahiko

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take me where the dark things are

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Amaya leaned against the ship's railing as the other two went about their introductions. He passively listened as he watched them with a stony expression, only interested in the barest of details they offered. Waruichi, Kiko and Nue, Masahiko. He knew barely more of the Waruichi than he did this Yukigakure shinobi.[break][break]

Amaya nodded in feigned agreement when Kiko advised them to conserve their energy. In his opinion, the small task he assisted with was negligible at best. Nonetheless, he decided not to mention it. Amaya knew better than to disagree with the type of person he took Kiko to be. It was worse to be an idle hand, and the three of them were more than capable.[break][break]

The vessel finally began to disembark, leaving the village behind. Soon enough, the crew would be surrounded only by the endless blue sea and sky. Amaya had never been on such a voyage despite living on an island nation. Whenever he boarded a ship, the land was never out of sight.[break][break]

Masahiko asked the two Kirigakure shinobi if they knew each other. Amaya shook his head, catching the foreigner's gaze and holding it briefly before passing on to the Waruichi. He examined her quickly only to confirm that he did not recognize her face at all.
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[Kiko]

Tag: Shizu Amaya nue masahiko Title: Humble Beginnings Hex: e85fb0 Summary: Write them here! Box will expand downwards with words. ♥ Full-size Pic ♥

Komatsuzaki Kiko Shinigami-chan, the true head of the waruichi clan Evergreen?  Kiko had never heard the term used in such a fashion and it took her some time to come to a conclusion on what Masahiko meant. It seemed to imply something better than worse, so she let it be that. There were not many that knew Kiko very well, but those who did understood she wasn't the best judge of character, nor was she the type to really pick up on social cues. If anything, she was emotionally dull and unreceptive, but even she could see that there was some heavy tension building in the group. Unfortunately, she had no idea how to handle such a thing, and decided to just leave it alone. They were, after all, about ready to depart. Masahiko had taken the liberty of notifying the captain that they were prepared to go and would provide guard duties as contracted, so Kiko didn't have to worry about any of that, either. When Masahiko spoke up again, Kiko turned her attention to him.  "I have never worked with him before," Kiko glanced in Amaya's direction. "I am not familiar with him, either. To me, you are both strangers, as I assume you are to each other."

Temp by Ai Made Just for Fair ♥

[nue masahiko]

FEAR IS THE MIND-KILLER

The ship departed, rocking gently with the relatively calm waters. Despite the relative placidness of the sea as they left port, however, Masahiko found himself fighting back a wave of nausea. No matter how many times he made the trip to and from Yukigakure, it seemed he never got used to sea life. Perhaps the denizens of Mizu no Kuni were simply built differently. He took a slow, quiet breath, trying to settle his stomach as he waited for the feeling to pass. Amaya lived up to his first impression of being the stoic, silent type, while Kiko’s odd, stilted formality led him to wonder vaguely just how comfortable the young woman was with casual socialization. Despite this, and the nausea that refused to subside, he tried to keep the conversation going. "We’re on even footing, then,” he said, looking between the two. "In that case, perhaps it would be prudent for each of us to share a little about ourselves, in the event of bandits on the open seas?” He offered up a wry smile, though the effect was diminished as he was looking rather distinctly green around the gills. "I’m a combat medic, though I’m also relatively adept with genjutsu. Not your first choice for a frontliner, I’m afraid, but I can make do.”

Shizu Amaya Kiko -- 216

LAIKA OF THQ

[Shizu Amaya]

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Kiko nue masahiko

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take me where the dark things are

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Unfortunately, Amaya's skillset didn't lend itself to combat on the water. His signature fighting style would only inhibit his teammates on the vessel; without it, he was a fish out of water. Amaya would need to make do with what he had. He had no doubt that he was still an asset in the case of bandits, but if he could use his Black Smog, mere bandits would be of no difficulty.

[break][break]

Masahiko introduced himself as a combat medic. The almost angelic-looking man seemed to fit the role perfectly with the softness of his personality. Amaya was surprised to learn he was also a genjutsu specialist, to some extent. Something quite rare to find. A combat medic was always valuable, but Amaya wondered how he'd fare in direct combat. The man was a jounin, so there was no doubt he could handle his own against pirates. Kiko, on the other hand, is a Waruichi. He had seen their abilities in action before.

[break][break]

"I also specialize in genjutsu and blades, as well," Amaya added. He had decided to leave out that his abilities would be hampered by their setting. Amaya was already the least experienced of the bunch and did not want to give them a reason to worry about him more than they likely already did. He questioned what he would do in case of an attack, probably rely on his blade more than anything else. Amaya hoped the other two were more suited for battle on the sea than he was.

[break][break]

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