Team Cybele: The Hare and the Snake

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke frowns at Amon's request, but complies and tears out the arrow with about as much delicacy as one would expect from somebody untrained to handle arrow wounds. That is to say, very little.

With his forceful removal of the arrow now complete, Yousuke takes the lead back into town, now sporting two extra katana. "There is little that needs to be done that Suneko-san is not more than capable of handling. However, Mitsuyo needs to be taught a lesson for making fools of Soragakue but unfortunately I am woefully low on my stores of chakra. If we indeed plan on confronting him I would like a day's rest to prepare."

[Princess Tracy]

"Ow, god dammit, Konpaku, I got the impression you were graceful - or if your dislike of me that intense?" Amon comments as he yanks the arrow with such little precision it almot splinters. "I'm teaching you first aid when we get back to town - nothing fancy, just some things every soldier or ninja should know. Understanding the human body is an important talent for a warrior anyway."

At Yousuke's contemplation of whether to attack Mitsuyo or not, Amon thinks for a moment. "You're overthinking it. We don't need to go all out - you and me can just use the tree climbing technique to sneak into his room and bop him on the head without ever drawing our swords. By the way, can you hand over the broken-looking one? I bet you I could fix it good. Anyway, if we kill him it might throw Suneko's plans out of line, so at most maim him. Of course, if you don't want to strain yourself any, I guess it's only a 3 hour trip here, to accomplish our goal and head back to the village. Although, I do kind of wonder who was burning down those warehouses still..."

Amon smiles evilly. "He'll be expecting 30 or so captured villagers to get dragged up to his doorstep. Why don't we give them to him? We can tell Suneko of the opportunity to sneak in that much militia into the main building in broad daylight AND a sky-nin in Mitsuyo's presence. It might be the opportunity she needs to seize Mitsuyo's base of operations and indeed Mitsuyo, kickstart this rebellion before any more people starve to death."

It's quite clear she's poured a lot of thought into how she would beat up Mitsuyo, thinking it will cleanse the pallette of the bloodbath they just made. She continues to lay out the following plan until Cybele makes herself known:

Amon's awesome petty revenge plan #37, draft 3
-either before we leave of after resting back in Soragakure, go up to the big buillding and say we've subdued the villagers responsible and they need only collect them at point X and that we want to discuss our terms of reward.
-talk our way into Mitsuyo's presence, ultimately
-Houshi and Yousuke hold the guards off while Amon teaches Mitsuyo some manners.

[ZeroNumerous]

Cybele

The sky jounin invisibly shrugs. "It's never caused you any adverse conditions before, so I don't see why it would now. Do you want to try it again and see if that fixes the problem?"

[Princess Tracy]

Amon leers at her on shadow, hoping Cybele is hiding within it. With a snap, she budges her wooden fingers back into place and they seem to stabilise. With a sigh, she just keeps walking, but can't help a comeback. "What do you mean, not caused me adverse conditions before. That's the first time you struck me in that fashion, right? Now come out here so I can stab you in the ass with a paralysing poison, see how you like it!" In truth, she'd wasted her last dose of the stuff on Suzunabu's shadow clone. Does she even get how scary not being able to move is? Amon has a slight claustrophobia that the paralysis seemed to react badly too.

[ZeroNumerous]

Cybele

The sky jounin smirks in the shadows. "As far as you remember."

[zeone3000]

Houshi strucks his chin, "Wow, that's actually really good. A couple applications of henge and he'll never know the difference."

[Princess Tracy]

"Oh, now she has a sense of humour," Amon says, still fuming as she tries to mentally invent a way to find the slippery commander. "Show yourself already! You're so.. argh!" She's pretty sure Cybele is bluffing about the paralysis. After all, she would remember being paralysed. Unless she did it in her sleep or something, but then what would be the point? She still shivers at the thought of being totally defenceless like that.

Her fury seems to snap for a moment. She mutters her train of thought. "Houshi said you wore an ANBU mask when you first met. You couldn't be the one who..." She shakes her head. "No, you're bluffing. There's more than one person in the world that wears an ANBU mask even if I've only 'met' two. And if I haven't ran into you before our team was formed and I've certainly not been paralysed in the last 3 days, you're obviously screwing with me."

Spoiler

Show

The other 'ANBU' (she never confirmed the identity before passing out) she met saved her life when they swept in to take out the Ronin.

Amon's eyes constantly dart around, looking for Cybele even if she knows it's futile. Of course, the futility just riles her up more

Houshi strucks his chin, "Wow, that's actually really good. A couple applications of henge and he'll never know the difference."

"Don't act surprised! Of course it's good, I thought of it, didn't I?" Amon acts in her usual snobbish way, but still smirks as if to let Houshi in on the artifice of it. In other words, she's one step away from breaking down laughing at herself.

[ZeroNumerous]

Cybele

The jounin finally makes herself known as she pokes Amon on the back of the neck. Her gloved finger runs down Amon's neck until it reaches the middle of her back. "A needle right there, and... right there. You'd forget everything, and wouldn't be able to move an inch."

With that said, Cybele addresses the sentiments surronding their plan for revenge against Mitsuyo. "You're free to act as you will, but if you intend to get revenge then I won't be involved."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon removes her own glove as she grabs Cybele by the wrist. *WHU-PAH!* Just after she says she'd forget everything, Amon slaps her in the face with her now removed glove, cutting her off like she's about to challenge her to a duel. Despite the sound,which Amon had made sure to maximise the bluntness of, the glove slap is fairly harmless, leaving no bruise and overall not being any more felt than a decently hard poke in the arm - it's more the shock and awe that Amon wanted to capitalise on. Her voice thick with a lust for cruel irony, she remarks "Oh, I'm sorry, were you speaking? I just got the impression you'd agree violation is an acceptable way to get someone to shut up - CAN'T IMAGINE WHY!"

She blinks as Cybele's cut off words set in, a little calmer to have vented and no longer so red in the face. "Wait... are you the one that...Yesterday..." She remembers the odd events of yesterday, the momentary lapse in her sanity, all based on her recollections. She releases Cybele from her grip. "Don't joke about removing memories, you of all people should know it creeps me out."

[zeone3000]

Houshi says in mock surprise, "That's why I'm impressed. You thought of it."

[Princess Tracy]

Houshi says in mock surprise, "That's why I'm impressed. You thought of it."

"Yeah, I know, odd that I should make a plan beyond your callibre, isn't it? Blargh, I'm a giant, I'll hit him with my tree of a ****ing sword!" she says, putting on an awful and cartoonish impression of her tall buddy as a good natured mockery. "When have my plans ever led you astray?"

[zeone3000]

Houdhi shrugs, "I can't help it if it works. Now, about your plans... Eh, you just think what you want to."

[Bad Situation]

Amon was the perfect example of why kunoichi were generally not to be trusted. One minute afraid and trembling at an arrow wound, then suddenly vindictive and catty toward their sensei, and back to playful and foul-mouthed with their remaining teammate. Cybele at least had the excuse of teaching them some sort of lesson, Amon on the other hand was probably just crazy. "Mother, I sometimes feel as though you have cursed me to a lifetime of troublesome women."

Cautiously, Yousuke snakes his hand down to the hilt of his sword and lets it rest there, in case his teammate turned her attention back to him. Cybele was after all, more than capable of defending herself from a petulant genin as evidenced by their first team meeting.

[ZeroNumerous]

Cybele

Cybele's mind was certainly surprised, but her body reacts instantly. The genin's glove flies toward her jounin's face, but the older looking woman intercepts the attack with a casual raise of her arm. She just gives Amon a cold narrow glare as the genin widens the gulf between them once more. "You're still an idiot." She fades away once more, and becomes nothing but the sound of silver bells following the three genin.

DM

If the group heads back to the rebel camp, then they find nothing there. Everyone seems to have picked up, grabbed a weapon--or a makeshift club of some sort--and left toward town in a giant mass. No one's around, and most of their non-combat gear has been left behind. If the genin investigate the camp, then they find several last wills and testaments left out to bake in setting sun. Just in case the people who wrote them don't return home. Off on the horizon the genin can see pillars of smoke rising from the village, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out that the fighting has already started.

The sound of bells stop shortly after you arrive in the abandoned camp.

[zeone3000]

Houshi whistles sharply in surprise, "Well, damn. We'd better get going then."

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke dashes after Houshi with his new sword in hand, technically their mission was now over but somehow he got the feeling that his teammate would not consider returning home.

[Princess Tracy]

"You're still an idiot."

Amon stutters as Cybele vanishes. When she's gone, she's left looking indignant for a moment as she fruitlessly looks around for where she could have gone to; meeting only the judging eyes of Yousuke, it sets in. The simplicity of Cybele's statement is what let's it sink in, rather bluntly. But... she's abusive and SHE hasn't apologised and... and... she hates me anyway, so why should I... She drops her glove as she looks to the floor. "You're right." She feels like she might throw up from pure regret. "When I get angry, I don't... think. I get so fixated on getting back at people that I don't think about what will happen afterwards. And now you hate me even more than you already did. ...Please, I'm sorry. I'll... I'll try and be less impulsive and rise above it, but... but please don't make jokes like that okay?" Amon feels at the part of herself Cybele boasted could rob her of her recollection. "I... I now realise you were trying to keep me out of trouble, I think, not just doing it because it was fun to break me like that. After all she was in there and I may have offended her, right? But it scared me so much for you to suddenly paralyse me like that - for a second I'd thought you'd killed me, I... And after yesterday..." After yesterday, you of all people should know I don't like my mind being tampered with - not even the slightest recollection.

Amon whispers something that further depresses her as she utters it. "For one moment someone on this team didn't hate me. And I wasted that moment. That's what makes me an idiot. And unlikeable...."

DM
[The Scene at the Camp]

When they arrive at the camp, the sight is barely enough to knock Amon from her apologetic stupor. "...They moved already." She starts walking to town. "Let's go see how they're doing." She scoops up one of the last Wills and reads over it quickly to see if there's any important detail she should know. "We weren't away from her for more than 20 minutes - they won't even be at the town yet unless they can teleport across 2 hours of walking." She discards the will where she found it and gets running, trying to catch up. "You guys go back to Soragakure if you want, I want to see how this turns out. I've spent too much of today being made a fool of, I feel like cleansing the pallet, maybe fooling myself into thinking I'm good for something."

When the bells suddenly vanish, Amon gives a nod. "I never now what you're thinking, Cybele. You mood swing more often than I do..." She continues to head to town.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

If the genin head toward town, then they discover a woman wearing a billowing white dress standing atop a hill nearby. A shimmering black square roughly the size of a normal door stands beside her. The black square is perfectly square, utterly flat, and opaque. The group cannot see through it, but they can see that a sea of stars awaits beyond it. The woman motions for the genin to enter the door. "New arrivals?" She speaks, but the words don't come out right. She speaks, and you hear it, but the words don't make sense. There's no cohesion behind her statements, or any sense of rationality in the situation. "Just step through here, please." The "words" come again, and as before you can hear them but they make no sense. The beautiful woman smiles, laughs at a joke known only to herself, then waves her right hand at the gate.

It shatters apart. An explosion of shards fly across the field, but the shrapnel reacts oddly. Where it should be imparting force, it instead attracts things, and it blinks out of existence instantly upon contact with any physical surface.

"That's better, isn't it?" The woman speaks in a soft contralto. "Sorry, I forgot about the limitations of your... Well, it doesn't matter. You're here for the Human Princess, right? White Princess Isane, at your service." The woman fluidly courtesies, ever so slightly raising her dress in the process. "I'm afraid the Human Princess took her pets and went to play war. If you start walking, then you might get there before the war is over."

A devilish smile spreads across the woman's lips, and she looks toward her left hand. She's curled her hand into a cat's paw as she looks at her fingernails, as if admiring them through her gloves. "Or, I could take you there directly, and you could play at soldier. It won't hurt much. I promise."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon is almost entraced by the woman and her 'door', eyeing them both without understanding, like a charmed snake. As the door bursts though, she hops back onto a defensive stance, almost tripping herself up in the process of trying to seem even slightly intimidating as she readies her sword, but doesn't draw it. Her stance softens as the girl begins to speak normally. She could read lips well enough to understand what she thought was said, but it didn't make things any less mysterious until her voice became more natural. "Human Princess, White Princess. Some sort of aesthetic you have going?" Amon asks glibly as she tries to puzzle out the offer's meaning, blatantly stalling in thought. "Is Gold Princess taken or am I too 'human' for that?"

Amon remembers mention of a wild warrior woman drilling the villagers earlier - one who may not have been a ninja, and one serving Suneko's goals. Is there a relation? She clears her throat, drawing upon her science fiction knowledge base. "What's your deal then? Inter-dimensional traveller? I should assume something like that since you speak in a tongue not suited to our perceptions and seem to be offering high-speed travel, though you could just be an oddity of this plane." Amon shrugs. "Time may be of the essence I suppose... If my body clock is right, they're half an hour ahead of us or less, but their forces are not so great they could not force march over there. Wait, no, I'm stupid." Amon slaps herself on the head. "The Human Princes had you bring her forces to where they needed to be, didn't she?" Either that or you're very charitable. "I can't imagine why else you would be here."

Amon listens closely for Cybele; she makes a policy not to work with powerful people that she cannot trust and thsi strange girl had not earned her trust. At least Cybele could offer some protection and insight, and more importantly if the genin vanished into thin air, Cybele would have no clue where they were even if she tried to track them.

[Bad Situation]

"White Princess..." Suneko has said something about 'Red Princess' doing her job for once, which would mean these 'princesses' were somehow in the employ of of their fellow sky-nin. Going on a hunch he asks, "Is Suneko-san down there with Red Princess?"

[zeone3000]

Houshi nods his head, not one for questions really, "You guys can waste time questioning the pretty lady in white or we could go help our comrades and ask her later. Time, essence." He turns to Isane, bowing slightly, "I will gladly accept your offer. Pain is nothing new."

[Princess Tracy]

"You don't even know how you'll..." Amon grunts in incomprehensible, semi-intellectual drivel as she always does when annoyed. "Fine. Houshi, if you're one for asking quetsions later, how about you go first and tell us if you live. Is that possible, communication? Besides, you should know the risk of the transportation itself isn't the biggest concern. After all, what of Cybele?"

[zeone3000]

Houshi ignores Amon's incomprehensible, semi-intellectual drivel as he always will, "I am and fortune favors the bold. Cybele's probably already there, she knows some serious mobility taijutsu."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon raises an eyebrow. "Houshi, honey, I know this might be mean to say since you can only use taijutsu, but there's some things taijutsu can't really accomplish. Transporting, what, 10 miles instantaneously is more the realm of ninjutsu. Cybele may be fast over short distances, but that has a limit. She may arrive ahead of us, but she couldn't possibly be there already." She strokes her chin. "Still though, you may be right. She might have gone already. But there's no way to know that..." Clearly as ever, she isn't one for instincts in place of rational planning, her own instincts being rather dull

[zeone3000]

Wow, being borderline condescending about something you know little about huh? Obviously, this annoyed Houshi greatly for Amon to think taijutsu wasn't capable of such feats, when he knew for extensiveness purposes it was, "While it may not be instantaneous, I'll give you that, Mugen Shunpo, when used by someone like Cybele can cover that easily within seconds."

[Princess Tracy]

"Really?" Amon asks, genuinely surprised. Clearly she knows very little of taijutsu, if it wasn't already obvious from her not once swinging her sword in the entire time they'd known her; one wonders if it's just for show, but then, it IS a concealed weapon. "...I really should learn some taijutsu at some point. Can you teach me, Houshi? I'll make it up to you - buy you dinner or something. Or make a sharper... whatever kind of sword it is you carry, for you."

Amon shakes herself, seeming to remember where she is. "For the matter at hand though, Houshi here seems to consent. Yousuke, what of you?" Even with Houshi's information of Cybele's possible abilities, she remains skeptical of the right course of action, but if her other team mates go, she's going too.

[ZeroNumerous]

DM

Cybele's bells are no where to be heard. She seems to have immediately left for the village, and either didn't notice the gate or ignored it.

The White Princess nods to Yousuke. "Smart boy, but no. The Blue Princess is helping our dear Human Princess. The Red Princess rarely does as she's asked, and... well, I suppose I'm not one to talk. I was told to eliminate anyone following her, but..." The woman's smile widens to a sadistic grin. "I love to watch her suffer."

When Amon interrupts with her science fiction mumbo-jumbo the White Princess just laughs. "Haha. No. I'm as physical as you. I'm... well, an agent, I guess, of the Human Princess. You're right that she asked me... Well, begged me practically", the woman blushes a little as she talks about Suneko begging her, "to send her little pets to their deaths. So I did." She plainly ignores Amon's questions about their titles, and Amon's request for a title of her own.

After Houshi offers to go through anyway, she raises her gloved right hand and motions for the boy to step closer. "I'll be gentle, and do your best to not get sick okay?"

[Bad Situation]

Upon hearing White Princess' words, Yousuke steps up to stand beside Houshi. "If my teammate is going to put himself into danger, it is only prudent that I serve in my capacity to aid him. The last time he attempted to do something on his own he became a pincushion for the opposition." Brandishing his new katana he continues, "If he is going, take me as well."

[Princess Tracy]

This girl... rebellious, sadistic, yet subservient. Is she some sort of contract-demon? Maybe that's why she hauls that giant scroll around all the time. I don't think we can trust her, but... She fidgets as she nudges Yousuke. "We're... not going to let him go alone, are we?" she asks, hesitantly, more to herself than to Yousuke.

Amon can't help but speak up, if only to buy herself thinking time. "Wait, who on earth would be following Suneko right now that she would ask you to kill everyone who walks this path behind her? W-we're the only other ninjas out here, right?" She backs away a little bit, gulping. "I-if you are willing to betray her expectations for fun, why wouldn't you betray ours and drop Houshi god-knows-where for that same fun?"

There;s a section of her mind she tries to keep quiet in case this strange woman can read minds (she's odd with preperations like that), one that rings out 'She is some sort of sadist, revelling in horror, perhaps it is best to give her what I want with my reactions'.

Spoiler

Show

Edit on account of Bad ninja-ing me

As Yousuke steps forward with sudden valour, Amon blushes a little - likely in embarrassment for being so hesitant by comparison. Gulping sh also steps forward, a little behind Yousuke as if using him as a shield, determined to not go first, if possible. "I-I'll go too." She clears her throat. "I can't let you two get in trouble without me."

She mentioned getting sick - perhaps turbulent motion then. Oh, I already KNOW, I'm not going to like this. Maybe I can use my medical knowledge to brace myself better...

[zeone3000]

Houshi smirks, stepping forward, "Better me then Amon. We need someone to patch me up afterwards. Now, let's go."