[Ronin]

The villagers were surprised at Shō's speedy return, and more so at the bandit whom he had brought in tow. A crowd quickly gathered as the Kiri nin explained to the village chief and gathered villagers of his plan on how to infiltrate the bandit base and bring the thieves to justice. He would probably be disappointed to see that the villagers did not seem to care that the incapacitated fellow was a civilian. From their expressions, body language and whispers, it was almost certain that violence was intended for the man.

His question about the apprehension of the bandits was answered almost too quickly to have been given more than a cursory thought. "There is no hope of them being integrated into the village. They are robbers, and we will punish them as befitting robbers," the chief said darkly. "They will be executed, and their bodies hung up, so that people will take note and nobody will ever attempt to steal from us again." There were obviously mixed reactions coming from the gathered crowd, but no one said anything out loud. Whatever Shō did, after he had left the presence of the village chief in order to rest for the upcoming task, a middle aged fellow approached him furtively. "Excuse me, ninja, can I have a word? I think you need to know something important. You may have seen that some of us weren't pleased at the chief's intended treatment of the bandits. That's because the bandits... they were once members of this village. There was a misunderstanding, people got hurt, and they were forced to go into the forest. But I think it's unjust to kill them. They aren't violent. That strange brat that leads them just puts us to sleep with his magic, and when we wake up, our stores of food are reduced. They take no extras, only food, and they hurt nobody. I may not like them for stealing my food, but I don't think I'd be able to sleep knowing that they got killed when they were forced from the village by our current chief, and even up till now, have never really harmed us."

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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Maintaining a stoic facade despite the inner turmoil, Shō acknowledged the village chief's decision to impose a death sentence on the bandits. His training as a shinobi had conditioned him to accept harsh realities, even when they went against his own sentiments and values. He replied to the chief with a simple, "Fair enough." concealing his true feelings beneath a calm exterior.
[break][break]
Afterwards, Shō was approached by an adult villager who shared a hidden truth behind the bandits' story. The man's words confirmed Shō's instincts - the bandits were not as they seemed. In Shō's eyes, they were villagers who had been pushed into thievery by circumstances beyond their control. He nodded in understanding as the man revealed this information, and he couldn't help but inquiry the man about the root cause of the misunderstanding that had led to the bandits' banishment.
[break][break]
With the newfound knowledge, he returned to the village chief and explained that in order to execute his secret plan, he would need to keep the captured bandit alive for the time being. Shō departed from the village, leading the bandit away from the looming threat of execution. In hindsight, he blamed himself for bringing the bandit back to the village without a complete understanding of the situation and promised himself not to repeat the same mistake.
[break][break]
Once safely within the forest, Shō took a brief respite while waiting for the bandit to awaken, if he was still unconscious. His intention was to engage the captive in conversation, extract valuable information, and share his plan for infiltrating the bandit base and attempting a diplomatic resolution. He hoped to end the conflict without bloodshed, and to achieve that, he needed to learn the reasons behind the bandits' exile, the source of the conflict, and whether the bandit could arrange a meeting with their leader. Depending on the bandit's responses, Shō planned to utilise his shapeshifting abilities to infiltrate the leader's residence, incapacitate him if necessary, and initiate a dialogue aimed at resolving the situation peacefully.
[break][break]
Regardless if the Truth Cursing Seal was still effective, Shō, committed to handling the situation with sincerity and diplomacy, decided not to use it again. This gesture was intended to convey his genuine desire for open communication and resolution. He hoped that the bandit would reciprocate this sincerity.


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Gurē Shō – 384 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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SPOILER: Click to show

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[Ronin]

Sho's question about what had caused the misunderstanding in the village was met by a momentary silence. "Uh, I'm not sure I should be telling you this," the villager said, obviously hesitating, "but it was due to some leadership succession issues. The former chief of our village died last year, and we usually have the village elders elect whom we intend to be the next chief. So there were two candidates: our current chief, and this young lady who was actually quite charismatic and wise for her years. The man who became our chief initiated a smear campaign against her, claiming her husband was a criminal, because he had history as a ninja. I don't know the details, but things got violent, the woman got killed, and her followers got thrown out of the village." The man looked around furtively. "Nobody must know I told you about this." And with that, he was off.

Shō arrived not a moment too late, as, when he returned to the village chief, he saw the man was already in the process of working up a mob to perform the execution. Unwilling to antagonize a Kiri ninja, they let him leave with the bandit, who had awakened by then, and was all too eager to be led back into the forest and away from his likely demise. Once back in the forest, the bandit seemed reasonably offended at having been assaulted the way he was, but took note of the removal of the Truth Seal with some approval.

"If indeed you want to solve this matter peacefully as you said, then no hiding or deception. You'll have to come with me to our hideout and talk to our leader, with no tricks. I know you could have probably killed our leader with the way you were able to get into and out of the hideout, so I'm willing to cooperate, if you promise to be fair and not side with the villagers without hearing our plight." If Shō agreed, the bandit would lead him back to the hideout, making signs along the way. By the time they arrived, practically everyone in the hideout would be waiting for them. At the fore of the small crowd stood a boy, with an angry look on his face, and his hands already in a seal. A middle-aged man leaning on a crutch had a hand on the boy's shoulder.

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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Shō listened carefully as the villager revealed the cause of the misunderstanding in the village. It was a story of power struggle and manipulation, resulting in the banishment of the current bandits. He nodded in understanding and whispered a brief, "Your secret is safe with me." before the man departed. Returning to the village, Shō intervened just in time to prevent the imminent execution and finally escorted the bandit away from the village.
[break][break]
As they stepped into the forest, a conversation unfolded between Shō and the bandit. Upon hearing what the bandit had said, Shō nodded and apologised. "I'm sorry." Shō expressed his regrets and offered an apology, recognizing that he could have handled the situation more adeptly. However, he stressed the importance of moving forward toward a peaceful resolution. "Yes, let’s resolve this peacefully, no tricks, no deceit. I would appreciate it if you could lead the way."
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With a commitment to finding a peaceful solution, they continued their journey through the forest. Shō ensured that the bandit remained untied as a gesture of goodwill. After a while, they reached the bandit hideout. As expected, a commotion had arisen due to the missing bandit's return. Shō immediately identified the young boy who appeared to be the leader, poised in a combat stance with his hands already forming seals.
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In an effort to de-escalate the tension, Shō raised both his empty, unarmed hands as a symbol of non-aggression. Calmly, he announced, "I come in peace. Let's settle this peacefully, shall we?" Entering their hideout without prior preparation was undoubtedly a risk, one that Shō understood all too well. However, it was a calculated risk he was willing to undertake in the pursuit of a peaceful resolution, something he had yearned for throughout his life.


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Gurē Shō – 294 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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SPOILER: Click to show

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[Ronin]

Although there was quite a lot of palpable tension in the gathered crowd, no one did anything overtly hostile. The boy, even though his hands were in a seal position, seemed to ease up slightly when Shō raised his hands as a sign of intended goodwill. But the boy did not drop his hands. "How can we believe you?" the boy asked. "Were you not employed by the village to the east to get rid of us?" He turned slightly to look at the man who had a hand on his shoulder. "I told you we should have stolen more than just food from them." The bitterness was evident in his voice.

The man responded by giving the boy's shoulder a soft squeeze, before looking at Shō. "You must forgive Harusame for his skepticism," he said, "but we have been through a bit. I am Murasame, and I serve as one of the councilors of this little settlement. Apparently, you do seem to have some notable skill, as I hope I'm correct for assuming that you were responsible for the temporary disappearance of one of our sentries, yes? If this is the case, may we know what you want? And why you're talking with us, instead of trying to kill us?" One of the bandits yelled out something about Murasame being too kind to potential enemies. The man simply smiled. "There is a great deal of wisdom in kindness," he said, before turning to the Kiri nin. "You believe so too, don't you?"

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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The tension in the hideout appeared to slightly ease, with the young boy still maintaining his stance. Shō saw this as a positive sign, a glimmer of hope in their interaction. As he approached the assembled bandits, he found himself surrounded by scepticism and a flurry of questions and conversations. It was entirely understandable, considering he was an outsider, a shinobi, and someone who had incapacitated their sentries. Trust was in short supply, especially after they had experienced betrayal before.
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Shō cleared his throat to signal his intent to speak and hopefully garner some momentary silence. "Hi." he began, his voice calm and measured, "I understand there are many questions. Please, remain calm, and I will address them all, though we must prioritise due to our limited time. I'd answer them all if we could afford it." He placed his right palm over his chest and offered a slight bow as a sign of respect. "I'm Shō, a shinobi from Kirigakure."
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Starting with the most pressing question, Shō continued, "Yes, I was assigned a mission to deal with the bandits who have been harassing this settlement. However, the context is crucial. From the information I've gathered, it appears that the elders were the initial aggressors, and you all have become victims in this situation. Therefore, I've chosen not to eliminate the bandits but rather to rectify the initial mistake. I believe the Mizukage would endorse this decision if he were here." He paused briefly before adding, "Two wrongs don't make a right, but considering the low level of crimes you all had committed, I believe there's room for forgiveness."
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Shō then directed his attention to Murasame and posed a question, "Why don’t I kill you all? Hmm… Why do you choose not to kill the villagers?" After a brief silence, he addressed his core belief, "I've always believed in many things, but violence isn't one of them." Shō paused for a moment, allowing his words to sink in before proposing, "Let's all sit down and discuss a plan to reconcile the village and put an end to this conflict, shall we?"

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Gurē Shō – 351 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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[Ronin]

The boy, Harusame, seemed offended upon hearing Shō state that they had committed crimes, even though the Chuunin had stated that they were not egregious. "We haven't committed any crimes!" he said heatedly. "What would you have done if you had people to take care of, and you were unfairly ejected from your home after having your mother killed?!" He turned his head slightly to give Murasame a sidelong look. "If we had killed them, there wouldn't have been anyone to report us for being fairer to them than they have been to us." A few bandits grunted their consent.

The bandit leader turned to look at the Chuunin. "Left to some of us, we'd have done so. We didn't kill anyone, because Father suggested we not do so." Murasame gave a tired smile. "I, for one, am pleased to suggest that we cooperate with Shō-san here, seeing as he is just as willing as I am to see all this come to a more peaceful resolution. But remember what I told you, Harusame, when we voted you as our leader. In the end, it's what you choose to do that we will abide by. But you will have to shoulder the regrets, if there are any."

The boy was quiet for a while, then he nodded, before turning to Shō, gesturing towards one of the makeshift huts. "Very well, let us sit and discuss on how to move forward." There was a bit of chaos, as people sought to ready the meeting shelter, but to be fair to them, it took less than five minutes for chairs to be set in the hut, and cups of water placed for those who would chair this meeting- Shō, Harusame, Murasame, and two other adults, who made up the rest of the bandit village council. The rest of the bandits filled whatever space remained in the small hut, or stared in through the windows. "Do you have any suggestions to resolve this? The people of our village have been unwilling to talk with us since we were expelled."

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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Shō's choice of words seemed to strike a nerve with the young boy, and a storm of anger flickered across his face. Despite this, Shō managed to maintain a calm demeanour as he responded, "I truly understand your frustration. I've been through worse during the Civil War." His voice carried a weight of experience, and he briefly allowed himself to drift into memories of the horrors he had witnessed - bodies scattered, houses ablaze, and the unrelenting brutality of war. With effort, he forcefully snapped himself back to the present.
[break][break]
Taking a deep breath, he continued, "To be honest, I might have made the same choices if I had no other options. But violence would always be the last resort for me." A faint, understanding smile touched his lips. "I'm relieved that you resisted resorting to violence as well." His words seemed to soothe some of the tension in the room.
[break][break]
Shō was then led to a small round table, where he sat with the presumed highest council of the bandits, including Harusame and Murasame. The atmosphere grew more intense, but Shō remained composed. He briefly wondered how the higher ranking seniors, elders or Lord Mizukage might handle this situation, but he knew he had a responsibility to act in the best interests of peace.
[break][break]
A question from the elders pulled him back to the immediate task at hand. "Yes, of course." he replied, placing both palms firmly on the table, before clasping them together tightly. "We will enter the village and rectify the situation. It's as simple as that." He then revealed his village headband from his pouch, the silvery plate was carved with the symbol of Kirigakure. Pointing at the symbol, he said, "As a shinobi bearing this headband, it's my duty to bring peace and justice to people in this country."
[break][break]
With a light shake of his wrist, he produced a small map from his sleeve, quickly unrolling it to reveal a rough layout of the village. "We will infiltrate the village directly, compel the chief and elders to hold a public trial with all of you. To resolve this scandal, we must start from the root. Also, the infiltration would be done using genjutsu, we'll try to minimise direct conflict." He turned to face the bandits once more. "I'm certain not all the villagers harbour ill will toward you. Most of them are likely just afraid of the chief's authority."


[break][break]

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Gurē Shō – 404 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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[Ronin]

Harusame almost didn't seem convinced by the Chuunin's response at having gone through worse during the Kirigakure Civil War. But he looked at Murasame, who had a faraway and pained look in his eye. Clearly, the man had memories of that event as well, memories which had left their scars, mental, and most likely physical ones too. On seeing the expression on Murasame's face, the boy's own face, hardened by a scowl, mellowed, and he simply nodded to acknowledge the Kiri ninja's words.

As the meeting proceeded, the question on how to deal with the present situation was attended to. There was a loud murmur which arose when Shō set forward his plan for bringing resolution to the village vs bandit problem. Obviously, there were mixed reactions. If Shō paid attention, he would hear some people commending his choice of a straightforward and potentially speedy approach, and yet others would sound unwilling to just go walking into the village, seeing as they were not certain to be met with anything but hostility. Still, the general consensus seemed favorable to Shō's plan. It appeared that most, if not all, of the bandits, were tired of their present condition.

The elders huddled together for a bit to do some deliberations of their own, then they finally seemed to reach an agreement. "In the absence of better plans, we'll go with yours," Harusame said. "But it would be best not to bring everyone along. If the plan works well, we will send for them. Myself and one of our councilors will go with you. The others will stay behind to await word of the proceedings. Please let us begin when you are ready. I know some very good genjutsu, in case we'll need that to get into the village."

It was all in Shō's hands now, as Harusame and the other elder stepped up to proceed with the plan.

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

[nospaces]

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Help Us[break] 「Personal Mission」[break] C-rank

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Shō patiently awaited the council's response. He understood the gravity of their decision, such matters would require careful consideration, hence he did not rush for their decision. To give them space for their deliberations, he took a few steps back, allowing them to discuss privately.
[break][break]
After a while, Harusame, the leader of the bandits, provided his response with a positive nod in favour of Shō's plan. However, he added a condition that only a select few would accompany them to the village. Shō, in return, agreed with a light nod. "Of course, that is a wise plan." Looking at the young kid, he couldn't help but notice the potential leadership qualities in him, despite some imperfections on some occasions. Shō was confident he would be a great leader someday, regardless of what happened next.
[break][break]
"Very well." Shō replied, "I'm ready to proceed. I'll wait for you outside the base in case you need any last-minute preparations." As he left the tent, Shō glanced up at the sky, briefly contemplating their upcoming ad-hoc mission. He acknowledged that they might not be fully prepared, as there were several additional steps they could have taken, such as gathering more intel from villagers, analysing patrol patterns, and assessing their combat capabilities. However, time was not on their side. The bandits were banished from the village and couldn't sustain themselves for long without resorting to thievery.
[break][break]
Shō arrived at the exit of the hideout and, when Harusame emerged, he would ask if there was a better way to reach the village unnoticed. If not, he was prepared to lead the way through tree jumping and act as the vanguard.



[break][break]

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Gurē Shō – 274 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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[Ronin]

As Shō agreed to the plan to bring just a few of the bandits along, he left to allow the bandits to do whatever preparations they needed to make before leaving with him to rectify the bad blood between them and the village. They did not take too long, as there was little to be prepared for. I would have been otherwise, if they were going on a longer journey, or a battle.

Eventually, Harusame and one of the elders emerged from the shack. The decision had been to leave Murasame behind to keep an eye on the hideout, even though he had wanted to come along, for two reasons. Firstly, he was crippled, and as such, if anything untoward happened, he would be disadvantaged trying to get away. Also, in case anything bad happened as well, he was the wisest of the council, and would be able to best decide the next course of action for the bandits.

Harusame and the other bandit met Shō at the hideout exit, where he asked about the best way to approach the village. "We have a hidden path we use to get close to the village when we want to raid it. It's carefully hidden, but we also have sentries watching the area at every time of the day. If anyone approaches, we use genjutsu to make them lose their way. We can use that to approach the village unseen," Harusame answered.

If Shō agreed to taking this route, he would discover that it led to about a hundred meters away from the village's rear wall. There was no gate there, but no sentries as well, so it would be quite easy to sneak up to the wall unless lookouts were skirting its perimeter, which none seemed to be doing at present.

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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Help Us[break] 「Personal Mission」[break] C-rank

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It seemed like the councils had made the decision; Murasame will stay back to watch over the hideout. As an outsider and out of respect, Shō did not voice out his opinions, but in his mind, he acknowledged the decision, recognizing the importance of having an experienced figure in the base in case anything went wrong. Given his knowledge that Harusame was taught by his father, Murasame, it was evident that he possessed significant genjutsu skills, which would prove essential in defending the base against potential attacks from the villagers.
[break][break]
When the alternative route was proposed, Shō readily agreed, as it aligned with their top priority: stealth. Should any unforeseen circumstances arise, their proficiency in genjutsu would serve as a useful tool. "It sounds like a better plan, let’s go with that path." Without any delay, the last minute formed team embarked on the hidden path. Throughout the journey, Shō remained vigilant, constantly scanning their surroundings for any signs of potential threats.
[break][break]
Upon reaching the end of the concealed route, Shō noted that they were approximately merely a hundred metres from the village, albeit not at the entrance, but rather at the rear wall. The absence of lookouts or sentries provided an advantageous moment to proceed quietly and covertly. However, Shō wanted to leverage Harusame's experience in such operations and turned to him for insights and suggestions on the best approach for their entry. If he had no objections, he would proceed to infiltrate with simply tree walking jutsu.

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Gurē Shō – 250 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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[Ronin]

The group, having arrived at the rear wall of the village, sought to determine how next they would proceed. As Shō turned to Harusame to ask him about how best to proceed from here, the boy tapped a finger on his chin thoughtfully. "Well, normally, when perform our usual...uh, operations, I use a genjutsu to cause everyone to sleep. It's a short-range genjutsu, but the people I come with usually have these special tags that help to expand the reach of my chakra, which they place at strategic points round the village. Then we put everyone to sleep, sneak in, take what we need, remove the tags, and return the way we came," he whispered.

"But what do you intend to do, Kiri ninja? Do you want us to proceed as we normally do and put everyone to sleep before going in? Because I don't know, but I feel that if we do, people might not be so pleased to hear us out and settle things amicably when they wake, as they might think we attacked them. Of course, we could simply attempt to climb over the fence, which wouldn't be too difficult either, but coming in that way might raise suspicions if people saw us. So those are the options we have, but we're willing to follow your lead, either way."

Gurē Shō

[Gurē Shō]

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"I see." Shō nodded as he processed Harusame's explanation. After a moment of contemplation, he responded, "You're absolutely right; putting the villagers to sleep will only worsen the situation. Our primary objective is to find the chief without harming the others." This was easier said than done, though. He would spend the next minute pondering how to achieve this task perfectly. Entering the village alongside Harusame and the other bandit would surely arouse suspicion among the villagers, potentially leading to a hostile response, hence it was definitely a no-no.
[break][break]
Unconsciously, Shō pressed his thumb against his lips as he contemplated a more effective plan to address the issues at hand. Various ideas raced through his mind, but most of them failed to adequately solve the central problem - how to locate the chief within the limited timeframe. After a brief moment of introspection, he suddenly broke the silence, exclaiming, "Ah! I could simply enter the village directly, locate the chief without raising any suspicion, and apprehend him!" It was a straightforward yet efficient approach that could resolve all the challenges they faced. How had he not thought of it sooner?
[break][break]
"And once I'm ready, I'll signal you with my shadow clone." Shō continued. If Harusame agreed with the plan, he would begin creating a clone of himself. This clone would then create another one. This way, Shō could enter the village with clone #2 while positioning clone #1 with Harusame. If he needed to convey a message, clone #2 could dispel itself and relay the experience to clone #1. As usual, there was no problem that couldn't be solved with a shadow clone, if there is, then make an additional clone!


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Gurē Shō – 280 words

[attr="class","credits"]made by gimmick

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[newclass=#panedglass .colorfield-1] position: absolute; top: 0; width: 200px; height: 600px; background: linear-gradient(150deg, rgba(var(--accentRGB), 0), rgba(var(--accentRGB), .65) 85%); z-index: 100; opacity: 1; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .colorfield-2] position: absolute; width: 200px; height: 600px; top: 0; z-index: 90; background: var(--accent); mix-blend-mode: color; opacity: .1; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .colorfield-3] width: 400px; height: 400px; background: var(--accent); border-radius: 100%; position: absolute; right: -220px; top: calc(50% - 150px); z-index: 0; opacity: .5; mix-blend-mode: hard-light; transition: all 1s ease; -o-transition: all 1s ease; -webkit-transition: all 1s ease; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass:hover .colorfield-3] opacity: 1; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .glasslyrics] width: 90%; height: 100%; z-index: 150; position: relative; display: flex; justify-content: flex-end; align-items: center; flex-direction: column; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .glasslyrics>div] max-height: 190px; overflow: hidden; margin-bottom: 0px; color: #fff; font: 300 9px/15px 'Poppins', sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: .9px; opacity: 0; transition: all 1s ease; -o-transition: all 1s ease; -webkit-transition: all 1s ease; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass:hover .glasslyrics>div] opacity: 1; margin-bottom: 30px; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .glassright] padding: 0; position: relative; z-index: 5; background: #f0f0f0; padding: 15px 0 0 15px; width: 400px; border-radius: 0 9px 9px 0; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .glassscroll] padding-right: 29px; height: calc(600px - 46px); overflow: auto; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass .glass-h1] font: 300 24px/32px 'Poppins'; color: var(--accent); letter-spacing: 1px; text-transform: uppercase; margin: 0 0 3px; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass b] font-weight: 600; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass hr] margin: 15px 0; border: 0; height: 2px; background: #ddd; width: 100%; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass br+br] display: block; content: ' '; margin: 0 0 12px; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass a]color: var(--accent); font: inherit; font-weight: 500; text-decoration: underline; text-decoration-color: rgba(var(--accentRGB), 1); transition: .25s ease; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass a:hover] text-decoration-color: rgba(var(--accentRGB), 0); [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass ::-webkit-scrollbar] width: 4px !important; border: 0 !important [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass ::-webkit-scrollbar-track] background: #f0f0f0; border-radius: 1px; border: 0 !important; [/newclass]
[newclass=#panedglass ::-webkit-scrollbar-thumb]background: #ddd; border-radius: 2px; border: 0 !important [/newclass]

[Ronin]

Harusame and his fellow bandit were content to wait as long as was necessary for the Kiri Chuunin to think up an alternate plan regarding how they would get into the village. As things stood, it was in their best interests that things worked out with as little hitches as possible. And while the bandits knew that their position was relatively precarious, they were not pressed for time. There would be a good deal of diplomacy needed to sort through the present issue, and it was best to present themselves in the most positive light that they could. With the bad blood which existed between the village and the bandits, any appearance of hostility or malevolence was best avoided.

When Shō presented his idea of going in to apprehend the chief directly, the two bandits looked at each other momentarily, nodding their heads as they did. Yes, that would work. "Sounds like a good plan. We shall quietly wait here until you summon us. All the best, Shō-san," Harusame answered, as the two bandits bowed to him, before taking their positions and attempting to make themselves as comfortable as possible, without sacrificing alertness. Neither knew how long this would take, but as was said before, they were willing to wait.

Gurē Shō