Ninja 1 Kingpin 0

Mission Name: Drug Lord Assassination
Mission Type: Assassination
Mission Rank: B
Mission Goal: Assassinate the drug lord
Description: One of the drug smuggling kingpins has been sighted in a small town near the northwestern coast of the Land of Lightning. He is there to supervise a large shipment of illegal contraband coming into the Land of Lightning, according to our sources. He is considered an excellent martial artist and is not afraid to get into a fight. He also has a personal retinue of bodyguards that accompany him everywhere he goes. Track him, figure out the best time to strike, and take him out. Don't worry about getting rid of the contraband, simply eliminate the leader for now.

Kingpin is B class NPC

Kingpin has 4 C class NPC guards

Compound has numerous E and D class NPC workers
Payment: 25,000 ryo
Requirements: 2 Chuunin+, 1 Jounin+


The first thing that Valris did when he returned home was not, in fact, go home. It had been to eat, and then get some sleep. Now though, Valris wanted to fight. He had been cooped in Kirigakure for far too long and he wanted nothing more than to fight something. To feel the sensation of his greatsword cleaving through the body of someone who needed to be killed. His blood ran hot at the thought of it, the sensation driving him crazy with a near furious bloodlust. Of course, this was controlled. For while Valris might be a battle loving Oni of the Yokai Clan. He still had his mind to him. It wasn’t like he was going to cut someone in half at random. No, that’s why his very first act the morning after returning home, had been to go to the mission center and get himself onto a B ranked mission. He would have a partner for it, which was a bit depressing. As it meant he’d have to control himself to a degree. However, it would matter little in the end.

The mission, of course, was to assassinate a drug lord and Valris found himself waiting at the village gates for his partner. He was distinctive in his appearance, as always. Seven feet of muscle was hard to miss after all. His horns curling around his head almost like a crown. His ebon greatsword slung over one shoulder. His chest naked, showing a well defined and muscular chest. Combat pants and boots finished out his clothing. His long silvery hair spilled down to his lower back and he waited patiently for his partner to arrive. He couldn’t wait to get his sword into his enemies. It had been far too long since he’d last fought, and he hadn’t even had the opportunity to test his new weapon. As it had been delivered to him Kirigakure. His hands opened in closed in barely restrained excitement. But, he could wait. More importantly, he would wait, regardless.

[1]

Niko had always been a sneaky one when it came to meeting new people. Now, she knew of Valris by name and reputation, but that was it… she didn’t like to dig into people’s files and discover who they were on paper, but rather meet them and ensure that she gathered the intel firsthand. Walking behind him on his blind side, ensuring her footsteps were silent, and made her approach, wearing her traditional combat outfit with her weaponry neatly tucked away and out of sight. As she got a bit closer, taking care to ensure she wasn’t seen or heard, she noticed his blade and immediately gravitated towards it. It was a superior blade, for certain… absolutely amazing.

“Good Morning,” she announced, but her eyes were not looking at his own for more than a second before they moved back to his sword. “Marvelous weapon. May I?” she asked, holding a hand towards the weapon to appraise it herself. “I am Niko Kanuchi. I’ll be working with you to eliminate the target today. Who forged this? It is of excellent quality. Nothing compared to my Uncle’s work, but the best I’ve seen since his passing.” The truth was, there wasn’t anyone who knew a lot about weapons that didn’t know Kagroth, the master of the Hellforge. His extremely well-crafted weapons were still traded for and sought by many to this day.

[1]

With his focus on his desire for combat, his heart pounding desire to rend through enemies and wade through them like they were a crashing tide against him. He failed to pay as much attention to his surroundings as he should have. As such the moment she said ‘Good Morning’ his hand would be halfway to Stormbringers hilt before he realized what had happened. ‘Good job moron, pay attention.’ He would think as he turned toward the woman and made brief eye contact before both parties' eyes drifted elsewhere. Hers? Up to his sword, his? Down her body and up it once more. He blinked once or twice as he took her in and felt a stir of desire inside of him. Oh no, this wasn’t good, this wasn’t good at all. Well, it was, but it wasn’t, you get the point.

“My my, aren’t we a lovely woman?” He would say absently. Her armor hugged her curves pleasantly and left little to the imagination because of it. His mind already raced with images, still pictures of what she might look beneath him, or above him, however she might prefer it. With a modicum of effort he banished the images. He wanted her, yes, gods but he did. But now wasn’t the time. He would think a moment, focusing on what he’d heard in his subconscious before realizing she’d asked to see his weapon. It seemed she was an admirer but such things. With a ferocious grin he took Stormbringer from his back and passed to her over one arm. The great blade was larger than she was. However this wasn’t a surprise, for it was almost as tall as him.

The woman stood at 6’ even, which meant she was a foot taller than where the blade ended if it would be sticking in the ground. The hilt of the blade was 20 inches, the room on it being necessary for both his hands to grasp it comfortably and to shift it around. Not to mention the fuinjutsu script along the blade that allowed for the channeling of lightning chakra. “By all means!” He would say boisterously, excited at meeting someone who appreciated weaponry. He wondered idly if she might be interested in a different ‘sword’ later. However that could wait till later, although it wasn’t an ‘if’ either. He’d definitely end up asking if she’d be interested in something a bit more ‘carnal’ than slaughtering a drug lord and his hired flunkies after they were done. Who knew? Maybe she’d say yes. “I ordered from Shimiko Chinoike here in Kumogakure. Although I might upgrade something soon, I’ve heard tales of some outright incredible weapon crafters in the world nowadays and I’m interested in getting weapons from them. For now though, Stormbringer here will serve me well I’m sure.” He would say, an eager tone to his voice at the mission to come.

Niko seemed to completely ignore his comment about her being lovely. Firstly, Niko was almost positive that he needed to have his eyes checked, because there were far more beautiful people out there. Second, this wasn’t the time or place, nor a social visit. While she did want to get to know him, she was not someone who saw someone and immediately went to the gutter within her mind. Luckily, it didn’t last very long, and her redirecting his attention to his blade, which must have been a subject of a large amount of pride, had been the right call, as it got his mind back on track. Hearing Shimiko’s name brought a smile to her lips.

“Ah yes. I thought I recognized her work. Beautiful.” Now that she had the blade in her hand, her subtle musculature becoming more pronounced as she held it firmly, showing off unintentionally what her life of hard work had forged her body into; a well tuned, athletic machine. She spun the blade, rolling her wrist, the tip of it centimeters from hitting the ground and brought it around her head, then tossed it back and forth between her hands, and then again she tossed it upwards and let the blade land perfectly on one finger, hopping the blade just a bit until it balanced perfectly on her single finger. Grabbing the blade’s hilt again she spun it once again, presenting the hilt of the blade back to Valris for him to take. Her eyes lingered on the Fuuinjutsu, obviously recognizing it from her own training in the art.

“I am certain it will serve perfectly fine. I apologize for joining you so unexpectedly, but I am in need of funds, so I have been trying to get any mission that will pay decently. I am certain we will be able to make this go very swiftly.” With that said, she did a quick check of her weaponry, to include the pair of Senbon that were hidden in her hair that glinted of steel; far better than anything the market could produce. She looked in the distance towards their destination. “Ready to get going?”

[2]

He hadn’t lied about her being lovely, for while there may be more beautiful women in the world. That did not immediately invalidate the idea that she was beautiful herself. At the end of the day, Valris was the type of Oni who greatly enjoyed a woman who could handle herself, and from the looks of her, this ‘Niko Kanuchi’ definitely could. Still though, the fact that she ignored his comment told him she was either uncomfortable, or not confident in her appearance. He was going to bank on her being uncomfortable for now. As that was far safer than assuming a Jounin was not confident in themselves in any way. Her comment on the blade would bring another grin to his features as she held it. He could see the subtle tensing of muscles as the weight of the weapon was held within her grip and he watched her closely as she spun the blade, rolled her wrist, and in general, simply worked the blade through motions that showed a strong, yet lithe form.

Oh yes, she was definitely confident with her movements. Such a woman would have to know, inherently, that she held a grace of carriage that might make men fall over for her. So he would definitely put his money on him potentially making her a bit uncomfortable. Which wasn’t all that shocking really. It was however something he did not like to do. So he would of course tone down his carnal desires for the moment. As she finished her testing of the blade she would offer it back to him hilt first, her eyes lingering on the fuinjutsu script as she spoke again. “It is of no matter to me Miss Niko.” He would say, now polite as he worked to tone down his wanton desires. “I apologize for not introducing myself, my name is Valris, of the Yokai Clan here in the village.” He would say, some part of him hoping that the knowledge of his demonic nature wouldn’t scare her off, or would at least buy him a bit of forgiveness for making her uncomfortable before. Demonic natures tended to lean more toward the violent and sexual in natures. When they weren’t outright malevolent anyway. “I find myself in need of funds as well, but mostly I just want to get into a good scrap. I’ve been away at the Chuunin exams in Kirigakure. I was slated to proctor preliminaries that did not end up being necessary. So I returned home only yesterday. It’s been a while since I’ve had the thrill of combat and I’ve sorely missed it.” He would say, explaining his general excitement for the moment.

As she checked her weapons he would return Stormbringer to it’s sheathe upon his back, and wait patiently. It wouldn’t take her long and when she asked if he was prepared he was quick to nod in the assent. “I am indeed.” He would say before giving her a moment to take the lead if she wanted. If she chose not to take it then he would move off, traveling toward their destination.

Niko listened to him, noticing that he seemed to have reigned in his compliments for the moment, which she was thankful for. Her capability to craft amazing weapons and armor? No problems. Her skill to handle missions even when they went sideways? She was stellar and knew it. But she simply had never had enough time in her life to consider her own personal looks, having been forced to ‘grow up’ when she was eight years old and simply had her nose to the grindstone ever since. It made it to where when someone did give her a compliment, it wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate their opinion, she simply didn’t know how it was supposed to affect her, because she didn’t see herself in the same light. She didn’t think of herself as bad looking, but more simply that she was too busy to see anything but what she was capable of doing with her own two hands.

Hearing his introduction made her smile and her brilliant emerald eyes went to his horns. “I never would have guessed,” she mused, the joke lighthearted and easy, showing no aversion towards his lineage in any way. Niko didn’t care about the ‘demons’ and all the rumors that circulated around them. It did also mean that she understood why he had made that comment before introductions though, as it was said that they were a little more swayed by their base instincts than most. Hearing his explanation for jumping into the mission confirmed this, but she didn’t comment on it. She would deliver these poor souls to Athreos where they would be judged, and to join Erebos, the god of Death, and rest of eternity, because that was needed to be done.

She walked quietly next to him, matching his pace perfectly, as they began the long trek towards their mission location. Now was the time to get to know him and do a little bit of Recon. “Do you know Andariel? She used to train with me from time to time, but I haven’t heard much from her lately.” After all, they were in the same clan, but Niko also realized the possibility that they might not know one another.

[3]

A slight smirk would grace his features “Hey, you never know how many other horny individuals you might find in our would.” He would say, the play on words a joke of his own. As they began walking she would move into step beside him and he would feel his hand twitch in an unconscious motion of holding his weapon. God he needed to fight something, soon though, he would have his opportunity to do just that. Her question would cause him to blink a moment, was this an attempt to try to get to know him? Well then, why not? A one for one exchange for questions seemed to be in order. “I know of Andariel, but we’ve never really spoken.” He would say with a small, apologetic shrug. It was true enough, it was odd though. He remembered having a dream about Andariel, and it wasn’t even a dirty one.

They had run into each other in Shimiko’s weapon shop and Valris had been quite happy to run into another Oni. Later on they’d run into each other again at Ayano’s Cafe and Valris had decided to invite her to lunch. Figuring that two chance meetings weren’t a coincidence. They sat down, ordered, and while waiting for their meal he woke up, confused as could be by such an odd dream. Oh well, what can you do right? Now it would be his own turn to ask a question. “What kind of weapons do you prefer to use?” He would ask, deciding to target something she seemed to enjoy talking about. Her answer might be a bit more involved than his was in that case and he could learn more about her.

Niko smiled and rolled her eyes at his joke, merging both the bit of forward flirtation from earlier with his racial physical trait. He probably used that joke quite a bit. “I’ll keep that in mind.” Hearing her talk about Andariel had the red-heads entire attention for a time, and then she looked towards the ground for a short time thinking. Hearing that she hadn’t really made a name for herself yet was concerning; she went to the Chuunin exams, she knew that much, but hadn’t heard the results. Especially from someone who was there with them, even if he didn’t wind up judging, he should have at least known about someone from his own clan attending the trial.

She would have to investigate later.

Hearing his question, Niko looked back up at him for a moment. “Spear and Shield. Once I get my crafting up to the level that I want it, I will be making them as my primary weapons.” It could be noted that she included the shield as a type of weapon by the way she worded things, because that was the truth of the matter. Used correctly, Niko knew the potency of the shield and what it was capable of, often at the dismay of the person on the receiving end. She had proven it to those wielding Kunai while she simply had her wooden training spear and shield when she was only a Genin.

The thought made her smile.

“Once I get it to that point, I hope you will come visit me at the Hellforge. I’ll see about making you equipment that is able to live up to the Forge’s reputation.” He would know of the Hellforge too, as the legendary weapons that had come from the place were famous. Most had been lost to time, but the stories of their infamous quality remained. He might even know her uncle’s name, Kagroth. Another talking point on their walk.

[4]

Her eye roll at the totally original joke caused him to grin. To be honest the joke wasn’t meant to get a laugh, but rather, it was designed to get that exact reaction. Then she would go on into thought about his answer regarding Andariel. Had she expected to hear more from the girl? He wasn’t sure. “The exams aren’t over yet you know. I left when preliminaries weren’t required. I also wasn’t a part of the first or second exams. I was basically there for no good reason. For all I know, she’s fighting in the championship now.” He would say, hoping to assuage any concerns the woman seemed to have. When it came to his own question her answer would be prompt. Spear and shield eh? That would certainly provide a little bit of everything. The sharp point of the spear would be used lethally but because the rest of the implement was blunt the amount of control over it one potentially had was about as limited as what one could do with the hand holding it, and more importantly, the body behind it.

The shield would be primarily for defensive purposes and to provide control, sometimes the simplest tricks with a shield could be brutally deadly. Like hiding the spear behind it and moving it as you begin to thrust. The opponent can’t see where you’re aiming the attack, there’s also the classic shield bash. Hell, one could sharpen the edges of the shield and make it just as lethal as the tip of the spear if one really wanted.

“Spear and shield eh? Good combination.” He would say as they continued. Her hopes that he would come visit A shop called ‘The Hellforge’ weren’t lost on him. He had heard of the shop, and it’s owner, Kagroth. “Is the original owner, Kagroth, I think his name was. Some relation you?” He would ask curiously. Should her weapon quality reach a point where it could overpower one he might get from one of those crafters elsewhere in the world. Then he would certainly go visit. Hell, he might anyway just to see. As they spoke, the distance was slowly being eaten up by their walking. It would still be a while yet before they arrived at their destination though.

She was glad that he approved of her weapon choice, particularly because compared to most people, it was so far out in left field for most they couldn’t come up with good counters. Throwing weapons were all but worthless against her, and she had a variety of options for range. Spears, after all, could also be thrown. At hearing him talk about the shop, knowing the name of the previous owner, she couldn’t help but smile.

“Kagroth was my uncle. Taught me everything I know. He passed about ten years ago now. Big shoes to fill.” She wasn’t going to dive too deeply into it, but if he thought about it, the conclusion wasn’t that difficult to read; she had been on her own since she was eight years old, and had survived somehow to where she was now. It explained a lot when it came down to how she was a Jounin at such a young age. When others were out playing tag, Niko was working herself to the bone to stay afloat and not lost the shop she had inherited. She was in a ton of debt because of it though, and this was a step towards working it off.

“So, feel free to stop by sometime. You’ll have to come around back to the house until I get the doors officially opened again, but that’s why the mission is important. Speaking of… we should be getting somewhat close.” She closed her eyes, reaching out with her Sensory for a moment before opening them. “Lots of weaker enemies not worth killing. One that we might need to worry a little about, but not on our level either. Shouldn’t be too hard honestly if you don’t want to go with the stealth approach…” and she was almost certain that he was wanting to charge in.

[5]

Her answer would prompt him to nod. If her uncle passed away ten years ago, then that meant she had effectively raised herself from a young age. “I see, I’m in much the same boat in many ways. I was born to a human female and a demon. I come from a town named Tristram, on a separate continent far to the south of ours. I was unwanted by anyone in the town. Including the woman who bore me. I won’t go into details, but eventually my father arrived, and asked me why in the hell I was being content with acting like their dog. So I left, came here, and that was that.” He’d say, giving a quick rundown of his past.

In the end, he’d been kept in a kennel outside. His demonic constitution kept him safe from illness and such. He was starved frequently, kicked frequently, and in general treated as a mongrel. When he came here, his life became so much better. He had begun to really relish his demonic heritage and he focused on those aspects for the most part. Which was understandable, humans had abused him, but his father, a demon, had helped him by showing him how to leave. Why wouldn’t he choose to embrace his more demonic tendencies in light of such things? Now he loved two things, fighting, and fucking. He could be polite, and frequently was. He knew full well that not everyone was like him and he made sure to remember it constantly. It worked out, people who weren’t interested in either of those two things generally left him to go his way. While he did similarly for them.

At her words of them potentially getting close, and her description of their powers he would look over at her. “A sensor eh? Nice.” He would say with a grin as he idly opened and closed his hands over and over in mild excitement. “While I can always appreciate a stealth approach, such things don’t really work for me. It’s hard to be sneaky when you’re my size, so I generally don’t bother. If you want to split up and ambush them while I have some of my own fun, we can do that. Or we could both charge in, your choice.” He would say with a shrug at the end. It really was too. While they had never openly stated who would be in charge, at the end of the day, it didn’t make sense for him to try to sneak around anywhere at all. So in the end, he’d probably be rushing the group regardless. What she thought was best for her to do in this situation, was totally up to her.

Niko listened to his story, thinking about how that must have been and felt sympathetic, but did not express it in the slightest. One of the worst things you could do to a grown warrior was ‘feel sorry for them’ and even the general showing of sympathy could be considered offensive. She of course would never mean it that way, but in this instance, it would be best to err on the side of caution. Still, she was starting to put together the puzzle that was Valris, the Oni. It was interesting indeed to learn about new people, and one of the things that she enjoyed about interacting with others and socialization.

She gave him a gentle smile at his compliment to Sensory, and considered the situation for a moment or two before speaking up again, thinking of the proper tactics and how to word things to where she wouldn’t have to worry about the demon’s bloodlust. It was important, after all, to ensure you catered your words to shape it best for who you are talking to. She was amazed though that even despite his harsh upbringing, he didn’t seem spiteful towards people at all. Perhaps that was why he let himself be guided by those amplified basic instincts to fight and hit on others. Chances were, considering he was reasonably attractive by society’s standards, there were a few that were willing to take him up on the offer.

“Well, thinking about that, how about you play ‘distraction’?” She gave him a smile while pulling the two steel senbon out of her hair. “Probably don’t need to kill the small fry… not worth the effort. Maybe just knock’em out real quick while we work towards the main target. Once you have everyone’s attention fully, I’ll slip in and take care of the target, and you can work on taking out the contraband. Now… if someone is able to put up a fight and is worth your time…” her grin grew to something that was a little more scary. “Go to town. Have fun.” The predatory smile faded back to her more soft and normal look, but it was proof enough that Niko was not all sunshine and rainbows, and there was indeed a side of her that, like him, enjoyed combat. She just did in her own way.

[6]

She could express whatever she wanted. Valris, wouldn’t have cared either way really. He had seen sympathy, he had seen revulsion. He had also seen bone crippling fear. There was no point in being insulted by anything or getting angry over what he considered ‘stupid shit’. The overly tall Oni honestly felt like people put too much stock in what others thought in the end. Her gentle smile would prompt a raised eyebrow. Apparently, he had said something right. That was good, perhaps if he kept it up he could see about getting to ‘know’ her better later. Whether that ended up being sexually or not, would be seen in time. At her suggestion that he play ‘distraction’ he would nod emphatically before pausing at the rest of her words. He would feel conflicted on this point, strongly so.

You see, it had been a very long time since Valris had gotten to tear into anyone with a weapon. More importantly, this one, his Stormbringer, was completely unblooded. It had yet to taste even a bit of blood from a target and he so very much wanted to thoroughly take care of that this day. He considered his words carefully. For he didn’t want to annoy her, or anger his partner on this mission. “I do not care in the end if they are small fry or not. In this country, what they are doing is monstrous and against the law. I find that it is always worth the effort to eliminate rats.” He would say, giving her his own logic on the matter.

In the end if the infestation was not cut out, root and stem, they would simply repopulate in a matter of weeks. Valris wasn’t in the habit of leaving loose ends that could be used in such ways. “I’m sorry if my intentions here displease you Miss Niko, it is not my intention to anger you. Quite the opposite given what I’d like to do with you actually. However when it comes to work, I do not leave loose ends. None of these vermin leave.” He would say, ending the last word with an odd tone. It wasn’t harsh, he wasn’t trying to order her around or anything. It was a combination of a building elation at the prospect of battle, along with determination to fulfill what he saw as his duty to the country that took him in.

Niko nodded at his decision. “As you will. Athreos will sort them out to decide their fates after death. And should we find slaves, we will liberate them.” Usually, in missions like this, slaves were relatively common, and it was one of the things that she could absolutely not stand. Oriana, one of the girls she cared for, had been a slave and a prostitute since she was a child, and the mere thought of it set her on edge. For a brief moment, if he was truly paying attention, Valris would be able to feel the subtle shift in her chakra as it turned from generally warm to something that could have almost been a Genjutsu, for how lethal it felt, almost like a blade’s edge running across the skin.

And the moment passed, and then her signature vanished completely as she looked up to the massive man. “You have the light of Mogis, the God of Slaughter in you. Go… have fun. I’ll be around.” She gave him a smile and then slowly began to deviate from his path, soon fading into the brush where she vanished completely. From there she would move to the outskirts of the enemy encampment, encircling around to the back side near the shore. Valris was approaching from inland, and when the attention was drawn away from her, she would make her move. For someone with such bright colored features, Niko was able to hide extremely well and began to monitor operations, waiting for Valris to commence his attack.

[7]

He would nod his head in agreement with the stipulation that slaves be freed. Such men and woman did not deserve the fate of indentured servitude. They had done no crime that would cause Valris to kill them this day if they were clapped in irons with the intent to put them to work in the field, or in the case of the women, the sheets. However a question would now be on his list to ask her after this was done. ‘Who in the fuck is Atheros?’ He would think before she spoke again. ‘Mogis? God of what now?’ He would think, confused as the only ‘god’ he ever knew had rejected him due to his heritage. The demon’s blood that flowed throughout his veins. Who was this ‘Atheros’ and ‘Mogis’ then? False gods? Or did more than one exist? It was a question to bring up later. For now, he hungered for battle.

Her smile would prompt his own smirk, as well as kindled much more intimate desires to the surface. A strong part of him wanted to cover her lips with his, press his body against her, pulling her against him, and see where things went. However that paled in comparison to the strength of the part of him that wanted to slaughter. As she turned to walk away, lightning would crackle around him as an aura of lightning enveloped him. Covering him in it’s protective embrace and vastly increasing his physical capabilities in the process. Drawing his sword, he would rush out, toward the man gate of the outpost that had been set up. A single guard stood at the gate and with a swift thrust, Stormbringer would be through the man's belly as Valris put his strength and weight of the blow.

Holding the man up completely upon his blade, his screams of agony would echo across the outpost. It was not a simple scream either. It was the primal scream of terror. Of pain, and the burning knowledge that others would soon follow. The scream of course did exactly what he wanted it to do. Dozens of dirty, ragged, men and women, ran out to the gate, weapons drawn with the intent to try to kill him. In response, he flung the now dead gate guard off his sword at a group. Meanwhile, he’d rear his head back and let loose a roar, it was nearly bestial in sound, and it caused all comers to pause momentarily in their tracks as they stared at him in open fear. Well, the distraction was going quite well then. Good.

Sitting there and waiting for the signal, she was glad he had agreed about the liberation of any slaves they discovered. She heard the scream come from the main gate and gained a predatory smile she didn’t often wear unless she was hunting someone. She waited a little bit more; the guards and other personnel were a little slow to respond at first, and she had to wait until their attention was completely diverted. Once they were though, she made her move quickly and quietly. No one noticed the blur of red and gold streak through the clearing, their eyes and ears directed towards the sound of battle, and Niko made her way to the main building where the target no doubt resided.

She was inside before anyone noticed, not even the person in the hallway she entered who was walking towards a window that would give the guard a view of what was happening at the front gate. A senbon found its way into the base of the man’s neck, just below the skull and severing the nerves and separating the vertebrae just enough to ensure the man couldn’t scream and was immediately unconscious. It also punctured enough the the main trachea that went to his lungs began to fill with the blood, and he would die in his own blood via drowning in roughly a minute. Niko walked over to him and pulled it free, wiping the blood on the man’s clothing, and stalked through the hall. Another advantage to this method of killing was that it was not immediately apparent what was wrong, only a tiny hole in the back of his neck bleeding gently, making it hard to heal him if they had anyone capable of such.

The trail of bodies she left through the hall was accompanied with absolutely no sound, Niko catching their bodies as they fell and setting them aside, looking as though they were merely sleeping with all the surgical precision of her strikes. The building was fairly large, but the distraction was working; no one anticipated her as she entered each room, and they fell in short order. Niko was a herald of death, silent and swift, delivering them to the afterlife in short order. Where Valris was a wrecking ball, she was a scalpel.

[8]

After his roar ended the member of the Yokai brought his head back down, a predatory gleam in his eyes as he suddenly began to move, swinging stormbringer in wide, swathing arcs. The fodder began to fall before him like a field of wheat, blood spraying out in multiple directions as every swing of his sword felled more men and women. As he worked more and more came out, some trying to give orders. The lightning demon wasn’t stupid though, and he killed them first, this caused confusion to run rampant through their ranks as no one could give them direction. Well, no one but Valris of course.

Of course the direction he had for them to go was generally lethal.

The Oni of the Yokai clan felt himself get lost in the slaughter, his skin turned red, and his irises dilated to mere pinpricks as he continued. Blood covered him as he fought and killed, bodies of men and women were cleaved in two, ripped asunder, and thrown aside. The scene from anyone’s perspective would be grizzly but this was what he was best for. The cloak of lightning crackled around him, enhancing his capabilities greatly and a few times he’d activate Stormbringer’s fuinjutsu script. Charging the blade with massive amounts of electricity before discharging it all in great sweeps of his blade and causing the electrical energies to release. The resulting corpses were often blackened and charred beyond recognition.

When it was said and done and every single ‘small fry’ was slaughtered and his battlefield was painted in red, he would return from the brink. His eyes return to normal, his skin coming back to it’s normal shade. His breathing was heavy not from exertion, but from excitement and he turned and surveyed the scene before wordlessly looking around. Some captives were held in cages outside, mostly women. Probably kept near at hand for ‘convenience’. He moved toward the first cage and everyone in it flinched back from him at once. Shaking in fear they cried for him to get away. However he simply moved to the cage before cutting the lock off of it with a swift slice of his greatblade. He would then move away, giving them the option of when they wanted to leave.

He was used to those looks after he’d worked. Most wanted to be rescued by a shinobi that was much more professional than he. Someone like his partner actually, however that simply wasn’t how he operated. He waited down the road from the compound a ways for Niko to finish and meet him, figuring she would be able to find him easily enough. He didn’t have anyway to take care of the blade on his body, however he could clean the blood from his blade with a towel and he did so carefully, ensuring the blade gleamed the reflected sunlight back before returning it to it’s sheathe upon his back. Over time those captives would get the others released and slowly leave, avoiding him like the plague, as if afraid that he would kill them next if they gave him a reason to.

Niko hadn’t missed a beat. The carnage outside was something that was painfully apparent, and she couldn’t help but wonder if Mogis was channeling through the man as they spoke, considering the level of wanton slaughter that was happening. Niko hadn’t been idle either, using the distraction wisely and making her way through the compound carefully, eliminating targets and moving through the halls and into various rooms. The more she moved through them, the more she hated these people… they all had various levels of corruption, trying to ransack entire villages, taking the people, food, and pretty much anything that wasn’t nailed down and outright erasing the village off the map. Niko felt it was only proper to respond in kind, and as she had been moving through the building, had been placing explosive tags in various places.

Moving up towards the top level, finally, she could hear the kingpin panicking. Apparently the show outside had been enough to make him start shaking, and he seemed to be scrambling around in his office. Walking up to the door, she knew it was locked, but that wasn’t something that would stop a Jounin of Kumogakure, and with a swift kick the door went flying off its hinges splintering into several pieces and sending small wooden shrapnel forward, causing the man to scream. She must have truly caught him off guard, because he had been at the window, not even concerned about someone being in his building yet, too distracted by the walking catastrophe outside. The man turned, pulling out what looked like a crossbow and aimed it at her, panicked, causing the red-head to simply raise an eyebrow.

Suddenly she lurched forward a single half-step, acting like she was going to rush the man, causing him to fire wildly, something that Niko had absolutely no problem tracking as it flew through the air, and snatching before it reached her shoulder, where it would have struck otherwise. His one hope of taking down the Jounin now depleted, he changed tactics, babbling something about money, about giving the pair whatever they wanted, even starting to rant about hiring them as personal bodyguards for his shipments and the like. This only caused Niko’s eyes to narrow, the disdain plain to see. With a very precise body flicker, she towered over him suddenly as he fell backwards… it took several seconds for him to realize that he couldn’t move his arms or legs, a single steel senbon sticking out of the back of his neck, stabbing through his spine. Reaching down, she grabbed the needle and looked him in the eyes, watching the terror dance as he knew his death was coming, and with a sudden jerk, he died instantly.

Taking a single personal effect of his as proof and wiping a bit of his blood onto it to show that she had indeed killed him, she then hopped out of the window and onto the ground, moving to where the slaves were just beginning to eyeball the gates of their prisons. “Don’t be afraid. The man you just met is the reason you have a chance for freedom again. We should all thank him before you go wherever you’d like. Those who wish it can come back to the village with us for medical treatment.” They looked hesitant, but Niko’s natural charm and smile allowed for many of them to nod and start following her back to where Valris was waiting. Some still weren’t able to bring themselves to issue any sort of thank you to the man, but many managed it, and once they were gathered, Niko addressed them a final time. “Ransack this facility. Take their weapons, clothes, money… whatever you need to start over… anything that wasn’t in that building.”

She had led them all outside of the blast radius, and with a single pulse of chakra, the main compound exploded in a deafening shock of heat and force. All the contraband, drugs and other nonsense was in that facility, and she wanted to remove temptation from the survivors to try to use that as a means to gain any sort of profit, and eliminate it from the land. Then, the woman would finally approach Valris himself, and used a single hand to wipe a decent amount of blood from his chest gently, and pulled a piece of paper from her pouch, unfolding it and placing a full hand-print onto it, and then offering it to Valris. “An offering to Mogis,” she explained, taking his hand in both of hers and placing it on the parchment, assuming he didn’t fight her on it. Either way, the red-head would then wrap the paper around a stone and wrap a final explosive tag around it, and then toss it high into the air. Letting it explode, that was the signal it was time to start working their way back home.

She offered a bloody hand towards the man to get him to his feet. [color=lime]“That was an enjoyable first mission together. Very productive.” She was back to her cheerful self, even if she hadn’t just assisted in the slaughter of dozens of people, as though it was of absolutely no consequence whatsoever.

[9]

Valris would wait patiently, his eyebrow raised in curiosity as some of the prisoners he’d freed managed to come thank him for what he’d done. He wasn’t entirely comfortable with such things and he honestly wished they hadn’t bothered. It made the entire situation far more awkward than it needed to be but he nodded at them all the same without saying a word. Niko would tell them to ransack the place, taking anything that wanted or needed provided they didn’t go into the main building. After she had done so a pulse of chakra signalled the destruction of the main compound and all of the illegal items and substances would go up in a brutal amount of heat and fire.

At that point the woman would approach him and without a word use a hand to wipe some of the blood off of his bare chest. His eyebrow would raise as she pressed the hand that had wiped that blood off onto a piece of paper before offering it to him. With a raised eyebrow he would take it. He didn’t know who Mogis was, but if they were getting an offering it was probably some god of hers. He wasn’t interested in getting into theological debates at the moment and it seemed simple and harmless enough to do the deed so he allowed her to take his hand in both of hers before placing his on the parchment before take it back, wrapping it around a stone and placing another explosive tag on it before throwing it high into the air. The stone would explode with the general force of an explosive tag, signaling all the looters that it was time to go.

He’d take the proffered hand and stand back up, adjusting his blade as necessary before she spoke. He’d listen before nodding, his head in agreement. “Indeed, shall we go then?” He would ask, his feet already beginning to move. She had signaled the return after all. It was obvious he was mildly bothered by something and his words were few as he traveled back home. Intent on showering and relaxing for the rest of the day. He wasn’t used to people being polite to him, wasn’t sure he liked the change in pace. At this moment, he simply wanted to get home and let the day end.

Exit

Niko smiled at the man, noting how he was uncomfortable and beginning the walk back to the town side by side with him. "All in all, that was a successful mission. When we get back, I'll treat you to a meal. I am a pretty decent chef." She gave him a warm smile, back to being the same warm and fuzzy woman that he had met before as if she hadn't just literally slaughtered dozens of people and gave them a cremation using explosive tags. She was not the type of person you normally would see in the market and think was capable of doing such things, but when it came to accomplishing a mission or protecting what belongs to her, she was more than willing to step over that line into the territory that truly proved she was not one to be trifled with.

Niko thought about the money she would be making from this mission, mentally calculating how much more she would need to earn in order to open up her shop. She took a moment to look at the blade again, mentally etching the schematics in her mind so she could try to recreate the weapon at a later time and date. Already her mind was working what to buy and what to cook, thinking about what she could probably convince Oriana and Shunko to help her make. Today had been very productive indeed... and she was hungry too. Perhaps she would pull out all the stops and just make a massive meal for all of them. It wasn't like it would go to waste considering the number of mouths to feed.

{10}
[EXIT]