Team Cybele: The Hare and the Snake

[zeone3000]

Houshi doesn't hug her back out of embarrassment and rubs the back of his head in, laughing and responding nervously, "Yep... so cool." Noting that Amon was walking just a little too close for his comfort, he walking becomes a little stiffer.

At her words, he remembers someone else's, "She'll come around. The way I see it, she's like a friend's cat that doesn't know you. The first time you try to actively pet it, it usually runs away. Now, if you leave it alone, it will eventually come to you because it wants to be petted. Or something like that... I'm not to good at the deep, psychology stuff."

[Princess Tracy]

"Those words didn't come from you alone, did they? But to remember and put them so well, I think you grasp it better than you give yourself credit for." Amon nods at Houshi's cat example. "Maybe that's why cats don't seem to like me. Are you saying I'll get to pet Cybele?" She chuckles and adjusts her position with regards to Houshi - on some level aware she was making him uncomfortable, but still keeps comfortably within her arm's reach. "I guess I've lived my life a little too used to buddying up to me whether they liked me or not, for... obvious reasons,so now Cybele-sensei feels like a challenge I had to rise to. I suppose maybe I'm judging this team too much along the lines of my old team. We were a bunch of slackers, but we got along. Eh, I suppose even if Yousuke and Cybele hate me there's still a chance they'll come around if I don't bug them too much is what you're saying right? Besides, until then I have you, right?" She beams up at him. "You're the coolest."

As the subconscious understanding of Houshi's acceptance of Amon's presence grows, the distance between her and him shrinks as they walk, if such an event occurs at all (which is to say, Amon walks closer as soon as he lets her)

[zeone3000]

Houshi blushes, "Well, yeah sorta but I'm not to fond of cats. Though, I've always notice if I leave them alone, they eventually get curious. Why don't you want to pet me? I'm cute and fluffy."

He visually bristles, "What!? No! Why would you want to!?" Amon comes to realize that Houshi's definition and her's of arms reach are on different scales. In other words, he's still visually uncomfortable, "Yeah, being the daughter of an influential family must have its upside."

He nods at the first question, "Pretty much. Everyone marches to the beat of their own drum. That one's from my mom. Though, sometimes you gotta match theirs to make beautiful music. That one's from my dad. Cheesy, I know but doesn't invalidate its truth and worth."

He blushes again, a little deeper this time. He tries to hide it by turning away from Amon, "Of course. Someone has tell you when you're being overly annoying right?"

[Princess Tracy]

"Influential families, yeah.... it has it's downsides, but I guess it would be direspectful to the less fortunate to dwell on them too long. Let's just say they're not exactly proud of me for pursuing a career as a ninja. More importantly though, did you just ask me to pet you?" Amon asks, raising an eyebrow until it crosses into the realm of her bandanna, before it crashes back down into her familiar, evil grin that she always wears when winding someone up. "Well, as you said, you certainly are cute, Houshi. I'll pet you any time you ask."

"Cheesy though it may be, your parents must know good wisdom and how to use cheesiness to make it stick in your head. Keep them close. Although, I wonder if my innocent Houshi knows that 'making beautiful music together' comes with another meaning..."

His last comment about her being overly annoying and his aversion of her gaze only makes the mischief in her eyes more pronounced. "Hoh? You should try balancing me out then. Don't worry about trying to be cool Houshi - just be yourself - I said you are the coolest, not that you'll be the coolest if you put some effort in, after all." She lunges in one last time to tease him for blushing so much. "Don't let me make you uncomfortable." She suddenly steps back, putting Houshi well out of her own reach but herself within his. She smiles, her evil dissipating. "I'll be good from now on, don't worry. Though I appreciate your patience - it's more than Yousuke shows."

[zeone3000]

"What!? No! NO! That was from the cat's perspective! Jeez..." He sees the grin and shakes his head at her, sarcasim oozing in his voice, "I'm sure you would. Why does everyone tease me? Is it really that easy? Really?"

"Something about making babies... Mom hit him after that saying it was it too soon."

Houshi realizing that was just how Amon was gonna be and at her word, just accepts her lunge with a shrug, "Comes with being a swordsmen, patience. Furthermore, I'm the best genin swordsman. I challenge anyone to disapprove me. My taijutsu was said to be at Chuunin level already." After tooting his own horn, he holds his head high with a smug sense of satisfaction, "Seriously though, I'm pretty good but I've got a long way to go."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon nods. "But of course, you make yourself a target for teasing. You have the most splendid reactions. Although my offer still stands." She holds her tongue on the 'making babies' comment. Eh, at his age it can only be so long before he figures it out.

"You certainly have the brawn of a powerful warrior," Amon evaluates with a nod. "Just a little more experience would do you good. Try not to get in over your head though - 30 gangsters is poor odds for anyone, especially without ninjutsu. Although perhaps you would care to teach me a thing or two at some point - my Taijutsu is currently only at a theoretical level. I'll make it up to you somehow if you give me a few lessons when we get back, okay?" She gives him a wink.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

Unless the team stops for whatever reason they find themselves in Yosita within the hour. Much of Yosita looks destitute when you arrive. Buildings made of half-rotted wood stand as tribute to their maker's tenacity. The streets are simply alleys where the buildings don't touch, and only dirt paths with no actual roads run through the village. Children with emaciated bodies play with dirt and rocks through the town's streets, and they're watched by equally thin adults who regard the approaching ninja with a healthy mix of apprehension and outright fear. Children are shooed out of the streets by concerned parents as you approach, and if anyone attempts to get closer then the parents take their children inside their ramshackle homes. The people are clearly afraid of the sky-nin, and any attempt to communication is met with a sudden rush to get in doors and away from the genin. If you turn back to talk to Cybele, then you find she's gone once more. The jounin answers no calls, but the soft sound of silver bells follow the genin through town.

Attempting to gather information from the people reveals nothing you didn't already know. They're poor, hungry, and terrified of outsiders. You do notice that the center of town holds a large stone structure. It seems to be in much better repair than the rest of the village, and people near it seem much less terrified than those living on the outer edge of Yosita. If questioned, the people reveal that the building is owned by Odoma Mitsuyo. They further reveal that Mitsuyo owns much of the farmland around Yosita, and that those farms are the only way for Yosita's citizens to make any money. Finally, they reveal that Mitsuyo has shut down the farms after a group of citizens refused to pay their taxes, and the people have been starved out as a result. If questioned about any gangs the people reveal nothing, and cite that no one would want to come to Yosita for any reason.

Spot DC 15

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You notice you've been quietly followed since you arrived in town. A group of four or so dirty looking farmers seem be following you at a large distance.

Sense Motive DC 14

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The group following you aren't aggressive, and seem to be more curious than anything else.

Spot DC 35

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Cybele's hiding in Yousuke's shadow.

[Princess Tracy]

Amon doesn't seem pleased to have people scared of her, as they clearly are. I guess ninja are potentially pretty dangerous. Is there something about sky-nin in particular though? I guess portraying myself as a ninja doesn't always work out. She removes her headband-bandanna after the second time a starving family of four runs away from her, her hair being shown to be pretty smoothly bulbous from overuse of that headgear as she lets it dangle free - hoping that she at least would be mistaken for a traveller.

"Who the hell is our employer?" Amon wander aloud angrily after walking away from the third dead lead of a peasant who failed to cough up anything about the gang. "They could have at least told us where to find these people..."

As the people tell her of Mitsuyo though, a few pieces start to come together as she tries to look at the problem from a new angle. "Are we entirely sure they're a gang?" she wonders after hearing about the farming dispute. "This mission... I think i may have it figured out already. I'll tell you gents if I was right or not. In the meantime, if this Mitsuyo is being paid taxes, that must mean he has some authority in this town. Why don't we drop in and see if we can get a brief audience - surely driving off some invading ruffians would be in his best interest, assuming he didn't hire us to drive people out of town himself."

"So, shall we split up or would you care to come with. Either way, I'm going to see if I can talk to the 'law' in this town about the lawless."

Amon heads for the stone structure, and asks the people there if Odoma Mitsuyo or a representative is present and could spare a moment for a consultation with Yamana-san in the best interest of his investments.

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Diplomacy check to try and get past the door (1d20+5)[10]

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke shakes his head at the notion to splitting the group, "Splitting up is not advisable in unfamiliar territory, least of all when the civilians are as unfriendly as our own." The stone structure was their best bet for the time being, they would need to go to what was presumably the center of authority in the town.

Hopefully this Mitsuyo was not as ill mannered as the Mitsuyo who Cybele had henged into to during their first team meeting.

[zeone3000]

None the wiser to them being tailed, Houshi's thumbs to Yousuke, "Gotta go with Yousuke on that. Besides, it seems pretty obvious this is where we would end up anyway. Everything else looks like it could fall down any second. Including the people." He clenches his fist, voice dripping with maliciousness, "Greed, another driving force for evil in this world. Businessmen would rather see people starve and suffer just to make money."

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Spot - (1d20+2)[12]
Sense Motive - (1d20+2)[16]

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The structure's guarded by several men armed with a mix of katanas, polearms, and bows. None of them seem to be wearing armor or any kind of identifying uniform. They seem to be nothing more than a motley collection of thugs, brigands, and strong-arms intended to scare the populace into obedience. The gate guards scoff at Amon's attempt to sweet talk her way into the building, but allow the ninjas entry since Yousuke and Houshi's headbands are still on display. The guards escort the sky-nin further into the squat square building. Fresh, well-cleaned, and well-maintained furnishings drape the building's stone insides. Red carpets pad the hallways, hand-carved wooden chairs are scattered about for guests, and large tapestries of an extremely fat man hang from every other wall. Both Houshi and Yousuke recognize the jello-like figure as the one Sune had been masquerading as during their first mission.

Eventually the guards lead their charges to a small banquet hall. A thick and heavy table dominates the center of the room. To each side of it rest several pointlessly ornate chairs in gauche colors such as pink or purple. At the far end, sitting in a chair that would be fit for a daimyo if not for its horrendously ornate nature, is Odoma Mitsuyo. One greasy dough-like hand holds a thick slice of red-colored pie, and the other's fat little fingers are wrapped around a fistful of more pie. His disgustingly fat cheeks jiggle and roil as the grotesque human being chews whatever has the misfortune to be inside his mouth. The guards introduce your group, then motion you forward.

Mitsuyo shouts across the table at you, without so much as swallowing his food. "You mongrels are here to take care of my bandit problem, yes? Good! Good. I was worried that your meager little hovel wouldn't provide any real assistance." The fat mockery of a human body jiggles greatly as Mitsuyo swallows. "A group of filthy peasants, ugh, have started raiding my precious warehouses. They've been stealing my rightful taxes, and I want that stopped!"

His bulbous fist slams into the table. His pie tin flips end over end, and ultimately lands pie side down on the floor. He snorts loudly and calls for a maid before continuing. "I'm sure my steward sent in my request, so I'll get to brass tacks. I want you to kill them all. No, wait. I want you to capture them all, bring them here, and I'll kill them myself. Yes! That'll be delicious!" The sack of jello wrapped in flesh wiggles and roils about as Mitsuyo laughs and laughs.

[Princess Tracy]

Before arriving at the building, as Houshi says his bit about greed, Amon tenses slightly before realising it was hardly her family's responsibility, this clear suffering of the populace. "He is not a businessman though, Houshi," she says calmly. "He is a lord, a position synonymous with entitlement. He is our only lead and likely our employer. If you have a gripe with him, shelve it until after we get what we need from him, which will be at least information. If my deduction is correct, you will have far more to be angry about by the end of the day, so there's no point in using snapping from breach of moral imperatives just yet. Just follow my lead - don't make eye contact and speak only when spoken to, but he won't speak to you. He'll speak to me. Patience is what you teach me, Houshi, I expect you to practice it at least for the duration of this conversation. Just keep in mind, no matter what happens in there, don't criticise him. At least, not to his face"

...

Mitsuyo's summary of the mission is perfectly in keeping with Amon's predictions - a fact that she makes no secret of as she gives a momentary grin despite the horror of the man's objective. She whispers to Yousuke (on account of his ears being more level to her mouth than Houshi's) to try and think of a way out of this mission and let her do the talking.

Amon approaches him a little, giving a curtsey. "Amon Yamana, firstborn daughter and apprentice of the Executive of the Yamana Company, and Genin of Soragakure, humbled and at your service, my lord." Her tone is quite unlike what Yousuke and Houshi are used to; respectful and reserved, her very voice seeming to kneel and bow. Ladylike even - a tone she had much practice when acting as the trophy child at meetings with her family's allies. The perfect little princess willing to overlook the noble's vile excursions - one would almost thing she had turned traitor. "The peasants were quite uncooperative - they made our preliminary investigation for this mission quite taxing and fruitless, so we felt it best to come here for some more information. Although I am confused, sir. Does this town not have its own law enforcement that could detain such criminals? Are they just particularly crafty pests or have they stolen enough to qualify as urgent?"

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While addressing Mitsuyo, Amon's facial expression is softer. I'm too impatient and tired to explain it, so have a picture of Retsu Unohana instead
http://images.sodahead.com/polls/000..._3_xlarge.jpeg

[zeone3000]

Houshi realizes he may have inadvertently insulted Amon's family. He smiles back, "There's always exceptions though. As for this lord business, birth rights matter little when people abuse them." He shrugs, "I'll hold my tongue and my blade, but I'll tell you right now... He's already asking for it."

-------------

Houshi crosses arms, standing next to Amon and looks off to the side. Obviously irritated by the whole thing. The way he sees it, more or less, they were hired by the bad guy, Even the village is motivated by greed, how sad... Why would you want to make a deal with this butterball?

Still, he couldn't help but get a kick out of Amon's performance. He rolls his eyes at the end of it, Yes, because ordinary law enforcement is so much better then ninjas... Come on Amon, you can do better then that. He must really be pissed if he's willing to pay for it instead of letting the thugs handle it.

[Princess Tracy]

Amon's feigns a duller expression as she speaks, knowing those in power don't like their underlings to seem smarter than they themselves are. She tilts her head back at Houshi as she speaks as she senses his mass shift as he seems to silently chuckle at her behaviour. Seeing some disapproval from him at her last question, she shrugs, producing one of her scrolls for this mission - the one with the gang bosses' faces on them. "This mission briefing is accurate, right?" she infers, falsely, showing him the portraits. There is a clear disparity between what she was told and what was now expected of her, and no less than 4 explanations for why; she intended to narrow it down some. "Are these the people you suspect to be in charge?"

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke watches the corpulent man with thinly veiled disgust, strangely mesmerized by the thick rolls of fat that would seem to jiggle at his every word. Perhaps Cybele's illusion was less an exaggeration than he had initially expected it to be. Were all lords like this? His grandfather's stories of their ancestral service to the Saigyouji described that of an eternally beautiful maiden, and her picturesque garden in the Netherworld. Not a walrus who seemed to think himself a man, not like this at any rate.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The fat man looks a bit confused, then quickly becomes very angry. The folds of his face seem to make a fractal of disappointment as his forehead, mouth, cheeks, and all three chins seem to frown. "Are you questioning me?! I wanted ninjas to deal with this! I want a show of force to prove once and for all that there is no opposition to me! NONE!" His jello-like fist slams into the table once more, and the fat man continues on his tirade.

"I don't care how many you have to kill to find them, nor do I care whether you hurt some of the villagers or not--they're all probably in league together. Just bring them here, so I can kill them myself!" His anger subsides a bit as an extremely thin maid brings him another pie. He begins consuming it, and doesn't stop even as Amon asks her question or when he gives his response.

"Bah! That's them, yes. I want them taken alive the most. The rest will just be icing on the cake." The maid starts cleaning up the remains of the initial pie.

[Princess Tracy]

Biting her tongue as Mitsuyo seems to explode in blubbery rage, Amon does her best to pretend to be frightened and ashamed rather than shoving a gloves fist down his throat halfway through his random shouting. "A-apologies my lord, I did not mean to question your wisdom... Please, don't shout while eating, my medical training indicates you might choke. And that would be awful." She hadn't expected him to be quite THIS spoiled a brat. She endures however. "Very well. Have someone show us the way to one of these raided warehouses and we'll get started," she says, trying not to grind her teeth too much. This was hardly a man worth losing it over, is what she told herself. At least, not yet - she was 90% sure she'd find a better reason to punch him up by the time they returned to the village. She wondered if they would bother checking into it if he died of poisoning while they were half the village away. Or if she more simply put a rock in one of the pies he was eating whole.

Mentally snapping her fingers, she says "Or, if you have captured any of them alive, we would be more efficient at interrogation than tracking to get back to the rest." And I'll be able to get their side of the story if I can find at least one of them.

Amon intends to sneak off, by using the substitute technique(?), while being led to the warehouse, IF that's where they're going, instead using the transformation technique to disguise herself and head out to continue her investigation, free of the image of Mitsuyo's lapdog

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The fat man's forces haven't captured anyone at all, and Mitsuyo says as much. He orders a map to be drawn up with all of the raided warehouses, and the group spends fifteen minutes waiting on that to be done. Once it's finished, he allows the sky-nin to leave but sends no one with the group. The group finds themselves escorted off the premises as soon as the map is done, and are told not to return until they've found the bandits.

If the group investigates any of the five warehouses on the map they discover that they've all been raided, and subsequently burned to the ground. There are no posted guards, or any villagers, near any of the warehouses. Luckily, all the warehouses are unconnected from the homes nearby, and the fires did not spread.

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You can attempt another Gather Info, but you'll be taking a -5 penalty to it from being outsiders. A successful DC 15 Intimidate or Diplomacy check will also get you information on the gang's whereabouts.

DC 15 Demolitions, Know(Tactics), or Investigation check

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The fires near the warehouse were set with reckless abandon, and would have spread outward if the warehouses were just a bit closer to other buildings. It's very likely the fires wouldn't have been started that way if the arsonists lived in town.

[Princess Tracy]

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Rolls in posts #1124 and #1129 of the OOC

Upon arriving at the seen, Amon looks it over pretty closely, particularly the burns. "I may have been wrong," she remarks, suddenly. "This is just greed. Unless... a third party could... no, I shall focus on the now and keep you posted." Quite the odd girl with teh way she mutters updates on her ego-stroking.

Having surveyed the scene, she pipes up. "Whoever burned this place down, they were consistent only in their recklessness. if these warehouses were any closer to the townsfolk - if Mitsuyo had any trust in his citizens - half the settlement would have gone up in smoke. From this, I conclude it was not the villagers, or at least that they were not acting in the best interests of the villagers."

She nods thoughtfully at her assessment. "You two stay here and watch each other's backs - Houshi can't transform and Yousuke.... well, you're Yousuke. I'll be back in a bit." With that, she performs a transformation technique, taking the form of a bad-off merchant woman and dashes into town to gather information.

True to her word, she's back quickly enough, looking excited as she dispels her technique. "According to a source, the bandits are two hours from the village, east by south-east. Shall we head on over there and make everyone's lives marginally less terrifying? Although I wouldn't mind a chat with the leaders before we start busting heads..."

Amon hums as she makes for the bandit hideout, happy to be leading the way.

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1 point of chakra pool expended.

[zeone3000]

Houshi shrugs as Amon leaves and does some light drills to fill the time. He was close to figuring out a third party was behind the arson but couldn't put two and two together.

Once she returns, he sheathes his blade. He thought, so far, this was going much better then their first mission. Hopefully, this trend continued to the end.

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke frowns at her casual dismissal of his skills but says nothing of it and finds a place to sit down while watching Houshi's drills. Who had she been kidding with her apology, not a day had yet gone by she was already back to marginalizing his skills. "Typical. And the mission thus far has only begun to show me how two faced she really is."

When she returns does not bother to engage her in conversation and merely stands up, heading off in the offered direction without any word of consent.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

The three genin and their bell-clad ghost travel toward the last known location of the bandits. The trip takes two hours if they walk, and nothing posing any sort of risk runs across their path. The four ninja arrive at a relatively large camp hidden in a shallow valley. The camp is a bustling center of activity as many men and women, several armed but few are armored, seem to be living rather peacefully away from the town. The tents are all uniform, and seem to lack any way to discern who resides in them. There aren't any guards posted, or at least visible ones. A quick cursory glance reveals that there are many more than thirty people inside this camp.

If the genin take the time to really watch the camp, then they'll notice a train of people going to and from a pair of particular tents. These tents lack guards, but they seem to be home to someone extremely important within the organization structure of the camp. Likely someone who is very high up the chain of command, and thus are likely the bandit's leaders. Or would know where the leaders can be found if they aren't.

DC 20 Spot Check

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Several members of the camp seem to be traveling north-by-northeast. They disappear over a hill, and you cannot see their destination. But they do return within ten to fifteen minutes. All of the people going that direction are armed and armored.

DC 15 Investigation Check

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You count up all the armed people, and discover that they number at 45.

DC 15 Know(Tactics)

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The camp's laid out in too haphazard of a style to be a military camp. They're either lacking in discipline, or simply not military trained at all. Bandits in the area would come from deserters from the Fire Country's military, so there's no reason for them to be this haphazard.

[Princess Tracy]

"40, 41.... have I seen her before - no. 42, ooh, 43..." Amon mutters, progressively louder as she points down to various people in the camp. "There are 45 people if you count just the ARMED ones." By the time she is done, her eyes are squinted in concentration, but she smiles knowingly. "Interesting, don't you think? Just the combatants significantly outnumber the reported amount. Either we've been few bad information that would only deter our ability to fulfil our mission, the gangsters are expert at information control, or... they've been recruiting in the time our orders were issued. One supposes their increased funds from the raids could attract additional numbers, or else something more interesting may be going on... Thoughts, gentlemen?"

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke half-listens to Amon's deduction as he peers over the horizon, squinting his eyes to get a better look at the situation. Sure enough, the armed 'bandits' were disappearing over the hill for some sort of service and returning a short while later. They weren't conducting raids were they? No, not enough time for that.

"Several of the armed bandits are moving north-by-northeast," he says, pointing at the hill, "I believe it bears investigation. Should I scout it out?"

[Princess Tracy]

"Scout it out? Wasn't it you that advised against splitting the group, Konpaku-san?" Amon asks. "If they're well equipped, they may be the professionals... guard duty? No, rotations would not be so rapid."

Amon sighs. "Very well, go as you please, Yousuke, I am quite curious and neither me nor Houshi are particularly good at the whole scouting thing, I imagine," she remarks, holding up her hand to indicate the difference in height between Houshi and herself. "How long do you think it would take you to get over there and have a look? if you're not back here in, say, 3 times that length of time, we'll come looking for you." She points towards some foliage at the outer rim of the camp, a few hundred yards from their current position. "Use your sword or other cutting implement to leave a series of small markers from THAT point on. That way we can follow the trail from that spot on to follow you, and if the enemy should somehow discover your intentions, the trail won't lead all the way back here, giving us time to fall back and regroup. If there's trouble on my end... hmm... Well, if we go quietly, then..." She quickly thinks of a double bluff. Grabbing her writing implements, she writes 'HELP, IN THE CAMP, tent no...' in blood-red ink on a blank scroll, setting it down, slightly open and facing away from the encampment. "If we're overwhelmed or otherwise surrender - I really don't want to open hostilities on these people, and yet the element of surprise may be the only way we would win - the the plan is this; they'll see the scroll, assuming I wrote it in my blood in a last ditch effort (I'll be sure to cut my finger open to complete the illusion using my own chakra scalpel) and take it before our saviour should see it and come to our aid. Thus, if this scroll is not here when you return, it indicates we have been captured. This also applies if the scroll is open all the way - I left it just open enough that one can see the 'blood' (ink, clearly) and the start of the word 'help' ('he-'), so they may actually try and outsmart you coming to our aid and lead you into a trap by leaving the scroll here and closing it as if it had been unopened; I have left it precisely such that it will have appeared to fall from my hand and been knocked open, thus that it is not intended to be open. Thus if you return and the scroll is closed, it indicates they know you are coming. If we are here but the scroll is not... damn, you can't sense chakra, can you? Hmm... I know!" Amon plucks a flower from the nearby terrain, putting it in her hair. "If something happens to us, I need only lean forward to dislodge this flower, so if someone tries to disguise as us, they wont' know to copy the flower," she says, as she dons ter headband in such a way to hide the flower from outside observers until she tilts her head forward or lifts her extremely slack bandanna.

It dawns on Amon she may be overthinking things, just a little. "Then again, I guess the odds of a ninja being in their employ is only, maybe... 30%? Hmm... if we do fight, or if I suspect trouble is coming your way, I shall use my lightning bolt; if I use this, get out of there, your safety is in danger in a way no swordsman is obligated to face. If YOU get in a fight of any sort, use your fuuton to make as much of a racket as possible." She tilts her head, smiling. "Did you get all that? Now you can feel safe even with the group split, yay!" With that, she seems to wave him off on his merry way before turning to Houshi. "Houshi, you're pretty smart with battle-stuff, right? What's your evaluation of the camp? They don't look terribly strong. Anything we should know from your evaluation?"

[zeone3000]

"Tacitics, that's the word you're looking for," Houshi turns a keen eye on the encampment. "They probably aren't military. It's way to sloppy to be at least. Even if there are some, they would be from Fire Country."

[Princess Tracy]

"Hmm... so if the bandis are usually military trained, we can assume..." Amon snaps her fingers. "Yeah, these might just be the villagers, but then why would they burn..."

She inhales suddenly, as if a strong hit to the gut had knocked the wind out of her. "I think everything is coming into focus now. What if there were two entities, yes, and the other using the poor reputation of one to.." She descends into mad ramblings.

She claps, looking pleased as pie. "Good huddle, everyone. Okay, Yousuke, get going, but remember. Don't kill anyone - even in self defence, try to take them alive if you can. There's a nonzero chance these people aren't who we should be fighting in the first place and I certainly wouldn't cooperate with someone that killed my buddy." She gives a short bow. "I'm sorry I'm so pushy all the time, Konpaku-san," she says quietly. "You don't have to go with any of my advice or my planning; scouting if your idea and your responsibility, and I daresay your expertise, so I leave you to your own discretion. I know when to defer to superior judgement, and I view your's as such."

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

A loud snap draws the group's attention to the rear, and immediately the sky-nin leap into action to hide. Yousuke and Amon hide themselves effectively behind some light brush, but Houshi's attempt to hide behind a knee high bush only result in the giant genin trampling it under foot. A trio of guards, armed and armored in light leather, stumble onto the scene. They look at the giant man trying to hide, notice his headband then look a bit confused.

"Hey," the one female guard says with a confused tone of voice, "aren't you supposed to be with the other ninja?" The woman wiggles her fingers in front of her forehead to indicate Houshi's headband. "That thing is the same, so you're from the same village, right? Did you show up late or something?"

None of the guards seem to be going for the weapons, nor do they seem on guard. They're clearly used to the appearance of ninja--whether those ninja are sky-nin or not remains to be seen.

[Bad Situation]

Thinking quickly, Yousuke tears off his forehead protector and quickly goes through the seals for the Henge technique. Upon melding the chakra, he takes on the form of a slightly shorter red head with a ruddy complexion. He snakes his fingers to the ground and traces a message in the dirt for Amon to read. "Catch up with Houshi and make sure he does not get in over his head. I will wait here until they pass before leaving to scout out the premises. Do not search for me, I will come for you."

[zeone3000]

Houshi clears his throat, trying to put some bass in his voice, "Y-y-yeah, nature called, had to answer." In his head, he thought, How am I so lucky? Though that means there are ninjas here. Damn... I can play along or take'em out. If their reinforcement do show up, I doubt I'll be able talk my way out. On the other hand...

He finishes, "Where they at?"