[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Having been given a job by the kage of a different country, to anyone else, was probably an honor beyond honor. For Yakitsukeru it was a chore combined with an excuse. A chore, because frankly had Kizumi not made it enticing then she absolutely would not have agreed even if she was specifically asked to go on the mission. Here she was though, on a port preparing with the crew to ship the boat back over to Rice-Wine country. A grumpier look in her eyes, but she couldn't actually be too mad. The people on the crew were partially survivors from the village from before and they were rather kind in that regard. On another hand, she had a reason to not be in Konoha for even more time. A detachment as much as was allowed was preferable to her after all. Sadly she was not completely detached though, having been in Kumogakure for other business Mairasu had been more or less dragged into this by the young vipress because travelling across a continent sounded awful... they also had to reach Snake Country soon for some reason or another. Mitsuda would meet them there, but that didn't include the two apprentices. They had to make their own way over there as well. Looking over at where Mairasu was likely also loading the last few crates Yakitsukeru would sigh, she really wished he would have taken her deal as she had originally presented. Men were fical idiots. A bell ringing would denote their departure. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

This was not how the boy thought his next steps as an apprentice would start: loading a ship for an overseas voyage to help out the Raikage. He had been granted permission to go to Kumo for a joint mission with one of their genin but had somehow managed to get roped into this with Yaki who had also been in the village; if he didn't know any better Mairusu would have felt that this was a set up and the only reason he didn't was due to them having to meet Mitsuda in a different country which happened to be on the way so passage was gained in exchange for their services. How the man was able to set that up he didn't know and the genin was far too afraid to ever ask him.

Carrying the last bit of cargo onto the ship Mairusu would hear the ringing of a bell that signaled that the ship was soon to depart. Setting the last box down in its appropriate spot the boy would venture off to find his fellow apprentice all the while taking in their home away from home for the next little while. He had never been on a boat this big and honestly the only time he had even seen one that comparable was that time he and Shigure blew one up. Fun times.

"Sounds like we're all set to go..." A pause. "... What are we going to do, again?" He'd ask the girl sheepishly once he finally found her. It was tough to tell whether Yaki didn't look like she was very enthused because of the mission they were about to embark on, his presence, or if that was just her general disposition. It was no secret that she had not been pleased with him refusing to concede the eventual sage position to her but Mairusu was here to stay and how true would her drive continue to be if the spot had been virtually given?

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Mairasu's approach and words weren't that hard to catch as she had taken a seat on the deck against one of the side rails. Looking up and over at him she would stretch a bit before indicating that he should probably join her in taking a seat. A light tap on the deck to pull the young sage out of the way of the still busy crew as they worked on moving off of the coast. Setting her largest scroll to her side she would look over the crew, if Mairasu got close enough to talk she would cup a hand to hide her mouth even more behind her scarf already blocking her speech, "Dropping you into the middle of the ocean wasss the original plan, but I think sssaving you for the sssnakesss isss sssmarter." Yakitsukeru would pull away and snicker for a moment before shooing her own joke, obviously entertained on her own end here. A side of her, that may have been surprisingly normal to Mairasu, but a side that she showed to no one. Humor was a thing for friends that cared, and she didn't have those. Mairasu was the closest that she would likely get as well, perhaps that was why she was willing to be more relaxed with him on occasion, though it never lasted. "We're going to ssseek out some martial art sssectsss to try and convince them to work with Kumogakure for something. I can't really disssclossse more until we get to the martial artsss templesss," Yaki would state as the settled back into her seating and looked over at Mairasu, "Worried, Dasai-Kun?" TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

For a girl who could barely tolerate his presence Yaki sure did like to joke around a lot, well maybe not a lot but she had more chuckles at his expense than one would think an angry snake girl would have the stomach for. "Riiiight. Well, don't be too upset when I come back king of the snakes. There may or may not be a place for you in my empire." Mairusu would reply as a sly grin crossed his features. Looking out from their seated positions on the deck it at first seemed rather chaotic with all the people and cargo moving around but with every box placed and rope tied off things were coming into shape rather well.

The true answer worked to jog the boy's memory and the meeting between themselves and the Raikage played back in his head. How they had gotten roped into some weird martial arts thing was still beyond him and there were still a lot of details he wouldn't be privy to until they reached their destination but he supposed that being able to see some people who were really good at hand to hand combat was kinda cool. Mairusu was by all means average at that stuff but he knew that being well rounded could only help in his shinobi career.

"Ah that's right I remember now. Weird that we got roped into it instead of Kumo just sending some of their own people." The boy replied still curious as to how that whole series of events turned out. "Wait, what did you just call me?"

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Yakitsu would roll her eyes at the return comments as she listened to Mairasu talking about being 'the emperor of snakes'. Like he was the person with a good relationship with real snakes. She had a connection to them that went well-beyond the typical appreciation for their beauty and danger she would prove it to him later. One of her goals was to tame a few of the snakes that were in Snake Country when they eventually arrived after all. Following suit she would laugh as Mairasu caught on to the nickname she had chosen for him right then. "Dassai-Kun. The fact you need me to repeat it sssaysss all I need to know dork," Yaki would say with a shrug and shake of her head, "Anywaysss, itsss becaussse I wasss expresssly asssked and you were nearby ssso I chossse to volunteer you. Aren't I nice? There should be sssomething nice after we finish the requessst as well for you. I'm certain." Im truth that was a lie actually. The young viper had no clue what kind of reward would be given that was compensation for literal teaching from the Raikage on a personal level. That was something that just was not heard of in an official capacity, so whatever it was that Mairasu got she hoped it was good. She had tried to argue for him a little bit. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

As much as the person may have irked him Mairusu had to admit that the name was kinda catchy. Dassai. Felt unique, rolled off the tongue pretty well, too. Maybe he'd introduce himself like that a couple times while on the trip and see how he liked it, after all the only person who knew him all the way out here was Yaki so it wasn't like he'd be just springing the new name around his friends and family back in Konoha. With that said, the genin still wasn't gonna give Yaki credit --out loud at least-- but it was a cool gesture or whatever.

In regards to the more pressing matter, however, it seemed that sheer happenstance was the only reason Mairusu had been dragged along on this voyage across the sea. The genin had been assigned on a joint mission with one of Kumo's genin that just so happened to end around the same time Yaki was to set sail and in their infinite wisdom the Sage had probably decided to send them both to keep them on even-ish ground training wise. They didn't seem like the type to enjoy repeating themselves which would have surely happened if Mairusu were to be in Konoha and Yaki off elsewhere for however long this was going to take.

Honestly the boy would have liked little else more than continuing his training. They had bested the giant red snake and were officially apprentices of the Snake Sage, so this seemed like a pretty abrupt detour. However the talk of a reward did make him curious. "Riiight, well I would hope there's one for crossing the ocean. I really don't even know what's on this side of the map to be honest." Mairusu replied. "How are we even gonna pass the time? Once the port gets out of view there's gonna be nothing but water in every direction. It's gotta be soooo boring."

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Yakitsukeru had to roll her eyes, but it was actually fair. Water was boring for nature, especially from above the boat. Perhaps they would have an easy enough time that they could just train the entire time that they were out here. Training was incredibly tedious though if it was not met with breaks. For Yakitsukeru that usually meant breaks to study scrolls and the like, but something told her that calligraphy was not the answer choice for her companion. "Sssoundsss like a persssonal problem honessstly. Thisss will be awful if your jussst going to complain the entire ride. If you want to train then I can help with that at any time. Ssspare me the dramaticsss though," Yaki would reply with a shrug. Looking out and over the sea. The port was definitely shrinking as they got deeper into the sea. Conversation withholding Yaki had taken to reading on the deck for what would be the next few hours before the duo would be more or less retiring. It wasn't a particularly interesting time over the course of the next day, and less so the first night. However, that wasn't an issue of the whole trip. On the second night an alarm would be raised as the duo would be awoken by one of the Kumo shinobi who had boarded with them. There were pirates on the horizon and they needed to prepare for engagement. This elicited a yawn from the young viperess herself as she slipped into her haori and grabbed most of her scroll explosives. It would be somewhat of an expensive loss, but she could make most of her tags back over the course of the rest of the trip so she wasn't crying over it. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Well so much for Yaki being at least a little fun considering their situation, it was one thing at home when there was a near endless amount of stuff to get into but out here with nothing but salt water to keep them company Mairusu thought there may have been a chance that his fellow apprentice would lighten up a bit yet she remained resolute in her ways of being a bit of a stick in the mud. No matter, Mairusu would simply have to make his own fun! But how was the question of the hour. He could work on some raiton jutsu that he was still getting down pact but that letting off lightning bolts probably wouldn't make the crew too happy. Hmmm, maybe the captain would let him steer the ship for a bit?

The next day or so was excruciatingly boring and any time the boy wasn't getting in some type of training or staring off the side of the ship for a sign of anything interesting he was sleeping. The gently rocking of the hammocks oddly helped him sleep a bit better and during a particularly awesome dream the genin was startled awake by an alarm before being notified that there were pirates incoming. If Mairusu hadn't been half sleep he might have cracked a smile at something finally happening. He had dealt with pirates once before on a mission with Shigure but the element of surprise had made it so there technically wasn't any engagement so Mairusu wondered just exactly what they were like.

Hastily putting on his shoes and grabbing his munitions pouch the genin would follow Yaki and the Kumo shinobi to their stations. He wasn't sure what their role would be in all this but figured that being shinobi would have them face to face with the pirates to keep the crew (and ship) safe.

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

The state upstairs, honestly was not that interesting. There were pirate ships on the horizon and for it to be of any real threat it would need to get through the multiple shinobi on board. From just a view from the main deck it looked like some shinobi had already set one of the ships ablaze and it was sinking faster and faster as it went. She was pleased with this development since it meant that she didn't exactly need a real hand in what was going on or the attempts to fix it unless they kept getting closer. "They may not even need usss for thisss Mairasssu-Kun. Hurry up here ssstill, caussse I don't trussst randomsss to watch my back and I'd rather you not catch a random cannon ball below deck," Yaki would call out down the hatch that she had already climbed from. Mairasu had taken only a little longer, but Yaki had a tendency to be incredibly quick on her feet when she needed to be. Taking her large scroll she would unseal a log from it and set it on the deck. A few handseals later and she would set up a Kawarimi, just in case as she anticipated the ship's approaching. Four ships still on the horizon as the front of the lot sunk. Which was good, since that ship had been massive in comparison to the other four which were slightly bigger then fishing vessels. Their approach near to them saddling the merchant ship they were upon. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

As he climbed up the steps leading to the deck of the ship the words of his fellow apprentice were almost hushed compared to the sight of the blazing ship that was sinking in front of them. He was immediately reminded of the time he and Shigure had blew up a ship belonging to a small band of pirates off the coast of Fire Country. Their results were a lot more explosive in nature and they had gotten out of dodge before getting a chance to watch whatever was left of the ship sink beneath the waves so this was actually pretty cool. Still, the still looming threat of the other four ships snapped the boy back to reality.

"While that'd be nice, I wish they would have just let us sleep if they didn't need us." Then came the possibility of getting hit with a cannonball while below deck. "Actually you're right, cannonball to the face would not be fun so up here is just fine." He was thankful that Kumo shinobi had been stationed for the ride over because otherwise the crew would have surely been looking at the two genin to take the lead on this. Granted, the sailors had surely dealt with this on other voyages so they could probably hold their own to a degree, but with this many ships they'd definitely take all the help they could get.

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Yaki watched the fire work its way across the boat with a deeper level of fascination. It was always her favorite method to rely on explosive devices, and as long as it was the other ships she could blow up as much as she wanted. The four small ships couldn't turn away now though and they were approaching incredibly quick. Yaki glanced at the path of the ship they were on turn so they didn't immediately get caught, the crew unfurling sails so they could speed up to stay safer from ther incoming impact. "I wouldn't expect to call thisss sssituation sssolved yet Dasssai-Kun. I think they will be expecting usss to break down the shipsss and if thatsss the cassse then we need to choossse one and ssstick to it," Yaki said picking out a few hakku-gu and handing one over to the boy to throw for her at the first of the approaching ships. Watching alongside one of the two readied teams as the boats got closer and closer. When she was certain that the bombs would reach, Yaki would throw the first of her bombs, then a second and third, hoping Mairasu would follow as she set off the bombs approaching the ships deck. Hot oil spraying as it lit on fire on the deck of the small cruiser vessel. It wasn't sinking, but it was damage done, an older shinobi weaving a giant wind blade to strike a hole in the side of the same ship - sealing its life. The second on the side they could see was still coming though. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

Well it was wishful thinking to hope that they'd be able to take it easy for the remainder of this engagement and part of him hoped that the marauders seeing their lead ship sink beneath the waves would make them think twice, but as the other ships continued to close in it became clear that wasn't the case; they did still have the numbers advantage over all so there was still a chance in their minds that the operation could be salvaged and now they had a bit more incentive to see their fellow pirates deaths not be in vain.

Listening to Yaki speak on how the crew expected the two genin's help with taking down the other ships Mairusu would readily accept one of her bomb pots and chuck it at the same ship she did and while the detonations themselves were average in size, the very flammable oil that was sprayed everywhere saw to it that the ship was engulfed in flames in mere moments. An aiding futon attack from one of the Kumo shinobi blasted a hole in the ship and between the sea water that was rapidly filling the vessel from the side and the raging flames on deck it was safe to say that ship was out of commission, too. "Maybe two ships down will make the others change their minds?"

Nope.

From the other side came another ship acting as if they hadn't just witnessed two of their comrades vessels be taken down in mere moments. They were a brave bunch, if a bit foolish, but they had to be taken down all the same. Fishing some kunai and explosive notes from his pouch the genin would take a couple moments to attach the notes to the tail end of his throwables before launching them at the side of the approaching ship. They wouldn't catch fire or anything of the sort on account of all the water sloshing about, but a decent sized hole would be a nice start to crippling the ship and create an opening for any follow up attacks.

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Mairasu was catching on to what Yakitsu was attempting to impress upon herself and her comrade in arms and nature. If you didn't have the fire power, you simply needed to find it elsewhere. It was a simple tactic of adaptation, and explosives were pretty damn adaptable if you could work them into your combat style, even if they were pretty hard to keep from having bad backlash on friendly fire. Regardless, Mairasu had done a fantastic job as Yaki unfurled her massive scroll further and unsealed a log covered in paper bombs. Taking it to the side of the boat and tossing it with all her might behind it towards the holes in the side that her fellow sage apprentice had made. Yaki would watch it land inside rather narrowly. She had expected to miss, all truth be told, but this was a good turn of luck. Setting off the paper bombs on the log the deck of the ship it had been in would rip as the bombs all went off at one time. That ship was now on a timer, and if they played it right the next would be too. Turning she would pull out a set of what looked like paper shuriken, but were infact just very carefully folded paper bombs over shuriken. Holding out a handful to Mairasu to throw in case he didn't have more. She only needed a few explosives anyways, "Help me throw thessse at the lassst one? It should be all we need to sssink the lassst ship over there." TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥

[Hiesin Mairusu]

TAKE ME TO VALHALLA WHERE MY BROTHERS WAIT FOR ME

He wasn't sure what the follow up to that holes blasted in the ship would be, but it certainly wasn't going to be from him. He had a few jutsu but none that would really help in this situation lest any of the maurauders actually found a way on board. His training had been to deal with people, not ships, so having the exploding notes definitely helped but that was about it. Thankfully, and unsurprisingly, his fellow apprentice had just the trick in the form of a big log covered in paper bombs. "What the--" The boy muttered as he watched Yaki hurl the big piece of wood into the previously made holes and after the being set off would blast the ship into pieces. Three down.

Mairusu was afraid to ask if she had another one sealed away and had little time to do so before being handed a handful of what looked to be wooden shuriken. Closer inspection would show them to be real shuriken just covered in exploding notes, because of course they were. "Do you actually know any jutsu, or is it all just explosives?" The boy asked only kidding just a bit. Thinking back on it he was hard pressed to find a moment where Yaki had performed an actual technique, even in the fight against that giant snake it was just bombs and flammable oil. Strange.

Oh well, it had worked for her then and was working for them now so no need to get bent out of shape about it. With his handful of explosive wrapped shuriken Mairusu would aim for the last remaining boat and launch them aiming to once more hit the side. Putting big holes in ships seemed a surefire way to all but cripple them, and at the very least would leave them vulnerable for a follow up attack.

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WORDS ● Tateyama Yakitsukeru ● NOTES

deltra of gangnam style

[Tateyama Yakitsukeru]

Yakitsu would not immediately gratiate Mairasu with a response to his question that he had for her. She had other things to do first, they both did so they could go back to relaxing aboard the rest of the trip. Taking the projectiles and throwing thems so they would embed into the last ship she would form one more handseal and watch as they would set off the first shuriken into the second shuriken then a third and fourth. Setting the side of the ship on fire even as it seemed to keep turning like they were going to leave. "I know the basssicsss needed to graduate and I learned a few sssimple fuinjutsssu sssealsss and the sssummoning jutsssu. I, however, think its a fool's errand if you solely rely on jutsssu and don't progress your basssic ssskillsss firssst. Fundamentalisssm isss my creed after all," the viperess would answer her teammate honestly. Finally having the freedom to do that aboard the vessel. The last ship still mid turn to leave as the ship went up in more and more flame. The job was done and they could finally settle down the chunin on board likely to take care of anything left over by the two. "Come on letsss get back to resssting before we have to get up and train Mairasssu," Yaki would state as she stretched and headed back for the hatch they had been down inside of. TAGGED | Here NOTES | Here MUSE | Sealing You In Sound

AI ♥