Team Cybele: The Leaf and the Sand

[Princess Tracy]

"L-like I said, I DON'T know how it is Camille, I was only t-trying to h-help... " Amon looks to the floor, dreading eye contact as Camille snaps at her. In all honesty... she had wanted this. Amon preferred this. This anger; even this was better than nothing, the simple coldness. Yet she feels disgusted with herself anyway. "Emotions are like a pendulum."

Amon shuffles back towards the door, though doesn't turn from Camille until she reaches it, not making eye contact until she swivels around to face the door. "Well I got to see how you truly feel at last," she says with the oddest, most melancholic smile. "And I don't just mean about Yousuke when i speak of your feelings."

That done, she leaves at last. I do only seem to make things worse. Though at least in this case I managed to avoid that, she reflects oddly. I achieved the exact result I wanted. I'm just not sure why I wanted it.

Amon resumes her handiwork, finding a nice stable perch to make her watch. She supposes Camille won't be accepting it. Still though, her nerves were shot from being shouted at a bit, making her strain a little in frustration before the simple meditative joy of her tinkering soothes her heart some... Amon spends some time creating watch as well as even training if long enough time goes by without her being sent for.

Looking out over the river, Amon considers at one point activating Tadayou and just heading home...

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

The sky-nin doesn't see anything out of the ordinary until someone finally steps up onto the stairs. At first Amon doesn't recognize the purple-haired kunoichi stepping into view, but eventually her mind places a name to the appearance. Sune, Cybele's twin sister, stands at the top of the stairs. Her body is covered by a familiar ANBU-type uniform, but unlike Cybele she has no covering for her face nor any glasses. Instead, she simply views the world through half-lidded eyes, and that gives her the appearance of someone who's bored. The sky-nin looks around for the gatekeeper, but stops once she spots Amon. She waves, then heads over toward the tinkering ninja.

"My sister sends a real urgent message about coming out here to help, and when I get to Kusagakure they tell me that you've already left. I get here, and you're playing with something. This better not be a trick on her part."

Houshi

The young man notices a small humanoid float in from one of the open windows. She's not bigger than two feet tall, and has large silvery translucent wings adorning her back. Her long flowing blond hair billows in the wind, and her maid's outfit tells the young sky-nin that she likely works in the mansion. The winged humanoid flies across the dining hall and toward the small kitchen Suzunabu is using. She talks with the dragon for some time, then turns around and sees Houshi. She points to the giant genin, then says something to Suzunabu.

The red-haired dragon lady turns around, waves at Houshi, then motions for him to come closer.

[Princess Tracy]

Amon raises an eyebrow at this new appearance. "Cy...bele...?" She never really knew where she stood with Cybele but even she figures out this wasn't her by the time Sune speaks. Amon nods respectfully, frankly a little disoriented but remembering her manners - she would wave if her hands were free. She smiles pleasantly all the same at Sune's annoyance. "You're Cybele's illustrious sister, Sune, I take it? My we really are meeting the whole clan today - pleased to finally make you acquaintance." She teased her a bit with he ponderous tone, knowing she'd likely rushed over; she wanted to take the girl's measure, see if she was in better spirits than Cybele, but she didn't want to be so overt with it to make a bad first impression. "This 'toy' here is a Shokunin Amon Special; a watch I'm making as a parting gift with Camille," she smiles, nodding to the mansion to indicate where she is.

Amon closes the watch shut, halting her work for now as she stands, approaching Camille. "Camille was captured by Setsuna last night so we went to the Grass; Cybele rightly figured that Camille's transformation meant she was bound to the Snake Contract, so we had her summoned to us then rested for the night before coming here. Cybele went to kill Setsuna as soon as the greatmother told he where to go - she said she'd meet us back in Soragakure and sure enough we haven't seen her yet." Amon gives an awkward chuckle, sweating a bit as she remembers the embarrassing reason she let Cybele just run off on her own. "She acted really weird when she put this mask on, so I didn't really know how to deal with her... Ahem. Anyway, Camille was delivered safely."

Amon thinks for a moment before extending her still gloved hand, wanting to see if Sune was anything different from every Euryale she had met. She WAS able to get by without glasses after all - maybe she was a special case. "We were never introduced by the way. Yamana Amon," she says with a smile, hoping this one was more friendly than her teammates.

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune throws up her arms in faux exasperation when Amon says Cybele. "We look years apart, and yet everyone things I'm my sister." Despite her play at being annoyed the young sky-nin never raises her eyelids and maintains the half-lidded bored look of an intellectual among farmers. "A watch? What, are you some kind of old man, or is she getting fired?" Sune takes a comical shot at Amon's choice of gift, but brushes it off anyway. She waits patiently for the sky-genin to finish her explanation of things, and only nods where appropriate. She finally responds when Amon stops talking.

"Sounds about right. I suppose Setsuna is dead then, as there aren't many people who can spot Cy-chan." When Amon extends her hand Sune just looks at it, then places her hand on her hip and sighs at Amon. "You know, that's really insulting to a Euryale. It's saying "I'm not afraid of your curse, because it clearly poses no threat to me". Not that I care, but you should avoid doing that in the future. You never know who you'll upset, ya know?" Nonetheless, Sune does not shake the young girl's hand. She does bow slightly, and introduces herself. "Euryale Sune."

[Princess Tracy]

"Well, this was the first thing that came to mind that I could make," Amon says, explaining the watch. "She doesn't seem like one to appreciate one of my swords - and I don't have a forge on hand anyway-" Amon thinks for a minute, remembering to invent a technique for that, "-and I didn't want to risk getting her the same gift as Yousuke, so here we are." Amon nods sagely as she explains her reasoning behind the most pointless thing in the whole conversation. "Also I saw Cybele without her technique up twice already. You are twins after all, looking similar to a casual observer is nothing to be ashamed of."

---

"THAT's why none of the Euryale seem to like me," Amon remarks in realization as Sune explains why a handshake is insulting before bursting out in an unladylike laugh. "Though I mostly just wrote that off as a combination of my poor social skills and generally being jinxed, since there are few ninja I get on with. I just wish some of the nice ones were on this team..." she adds with a murmur, seeming to not even realise she was saying it out loud.

"Well, Sune-san, if you must know, the day I met Cybele..." She gives a weak laugh. "Well, let's just say that, having felt it, I must say I am terrified of that curse. I just... think it's nice to not treat the Euryale like they're nothing more than curse bearers, you know?" Though I DO only ever seem to piss people off, even when i don't mean to

Finally, Amon returns Sune's bow, before backing up a bit and perching herself again, giving a little sigh as she looks to the house. "Well, what are you going to do now, Sune? Go make sure Cybele's okay? Return to town? Stupid Yousuke wants to stay here for three days, but that's more than a little excessive."

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune shrugs when Amon talks about the things she can make. "I can understand that, I guess. And no, looking similar is fine. But when everyone assumes I'm my sister's daughter... It gets a mite irritating." Sune frowns as she speaks, but it lets up once Amon starts talking about the Euryale.

"Ya, the Euryale are a clan steeped in a lot of old traditions. Handshakes not being one of them. In fact, there's a ban on all kinds of physical contact except between two Euryale." Sune listens as Amon talks about what happened between her and Cybele, and just shrugs when Amon talks about treating the Euryale like normal people. "Maybe you do, but that doesn't mean the Euryale see it the same way. A lot of them are resigned to... well, whatever comes. Some of us get depressed, some of us get angry, still others like my sister become obsessed with living. But all of us get insulted when our curse is treated lightly."

When Amon asks about Sune's plans, the young girl just shrugs. "I trust Cy-chan. I could return to town, but I think it'd be easier to return with you guys. After all, Cy-chan can move pretty fast on her own, but you guys are gonna be like molasses ya know?" Sune beams as she pokes fun at Amon's skills, but otherwise seems more playful than serious.

[Princess Tracy]

Amon's silent for a while as Sune speaks - she would comment on the twin appearances as 'well at least Cybele's aging tech basically guarantees you'll have a killer bod by the end of puberty' but she remembers the reduced lifespan and stops herself at the last second. Other than that, she mulls things over. She felt like she was suffering overexposure to these Euryale right about now - being around people ineffably worse off than her just made her feel guilty and futile.

Amon pouts, Sune succeeding at putting her in a more playful schoolyard-taunting mood. "Well maybe I'd learn to move like that too if Cybele held still long enough to teach me," she remarks, blowing a raspberry as she leans back against a wall, stretching out in her perch as a show of her preference for savoring. "If I want to get somewhere quick, I'll build a vehicle or trick a taijutsu user into carrying me. I'm Shokunin, not an athlete!"

Amon smiles, amused, really, though wishing she knew something about Sune to tease her about that wasn't hurtful. Thinking fast, she DOES remember something Kaede said. "Well, I'm sure you'll be just as fast as your sister when you get to her age, Sune-chan," Amon teases, giving a devilish smile. She KNEW Sune was the older of the twins. But she also knew Sune was apparently fixated on that point

Amon gives Sune a chance to react before she grows a little more sombre, turning to the house again as she speaks hesitantly. "Cybele's obsessed with life then? I never would have guessed after..." Muttering to herself, she wonders "Perhaps Nanako is like Kaoru to Cybele. Someone to live in place of. She did mention the duty of respecting her falling to Sune in that note..."

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune just shrugs. "Sounds bad, but my own team is left in the lurch so it's not like I'm one to preach." When Amon teases her, Sune just smirks. "Other way around kiddo. But I know you're not that smart, so I'll let it slide." She takes a shot back, then raises an eyebrow when Amon mentions Nanako.

"I dunno who this Kaoru is, but how did you find out about Nanako? Neither Cy-chan nor myself talk about her."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon flinches, looking a bit panicked as she realises she was talking to herself even in front of others now. "Uh..." Resisting a blush, she clears her throat to compose herself. "The greatmother was asking after Nanako and you after she found out Cybele was alive - and from everyone calling Cybele the Sacrifice and seeing a kid be sent off as the next Sacrifice, I just kind of figured it out from there..." She leaves out the part where she read Cybele's letter declaring her intent to die, at least for now, but an awkward pause in her speech makes her omission obvious.

"Kaoru is the shinobi from my old team," Amon adds, trying to change the subject before her willful intrusion of the Euryale twins' privacy becomes obvious - and sadly the only subject she could think to grasp at didn't leave her any more pleased to discuss. "He... isn't a shinobi anymore, because of me. To say the least... So I try and carry on in his stead. He was always friendly to people and understanding - I wasn't so nurturing until i decided to take up his mantle, but... I owe him that much. I certainly can't live up to his legacy as a genius. So for Nanoko... I'm not very good at figuring out people unless I've been through what they have, so..." She grows more and more quiet the more she talks, knowing she shouldn't be speaking of such things, but... the subject had been boiling away in her for so long it was overflowing by now

Amon goes silent for a bit, staring at the house as if hugely entertained by its presence. "Sorry for taking a heavy tone," she says suddenly, ironically sounding a little relieved in a way - or at least 'resigned', a sigh in her voice. "I usually don't share my problems with pretty girls until at least the second date." With that, she playfully looks back to Camille, winking - more joking than flirtatiously. Unlike Cybele whose defences were a sort of indifference and the shadows themselves, Amon's was a kidding nature.

"...Nanako's name was the cipher for a message intended for you - a message I obviously read. Sorry," she fesses up, blushing as she hopes to avoid digging herself a deeper hole

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke's scowls throughout Satoko's explanation but gradually softens the further and further she calls him out on his complaints. Feeling shame, he looks down at the ground but nevertheless continues to follow her. "She's..."

"...you're right. Few would be so lucky to have somebody like my grandfather raising them. Did you know him? My grandfather, I mean."

Remembering Satoko's earlier comment, he adds, "And on the subject of family, whatever became of your daughters? I would like to meet them if nothing else. You may call it meaningless subservience but grandfather has taught me that it is only polite that I ask to meet with all members of a household should I plan on extending my stays. For that matter, is there a location where I might be able to train? I cannot afford to let my skills decline lest grandfather chide me for waste."

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune shrugs once more. "Then you know everything you need to know about Nanako. She was our eldest sister, and was sacrificed by the Grass to save their hides. She's dead now." All throughout Amon's long rambling speech Sune is quiet and cold. She clearly didn't like that Amon know about her older sister, but doesn't comment on it as she allows Amon to ramble onward. Sune simply crosses her arms over her chest and waits for Amon to finish.

When the sky-genin cracks a joke, she finds Sune rather blank-faced. The younger girl doesn't chuckle, smile, or amuse herself with Amon's attempt at humor. She does finally speak when Amon confesses. Her voice is somber and deadly serious. "Nanako killed that stone-nin. I was with her, so I was blamed too, but it was Nanako who finished him off. The first day, the Tsuchikage tortured Nanako and myself. Before he could get to Cy-chan, Nanako admitted she was the one who killed the stone-nin." Sune's muscles clench instinctively as she revisits what happened in the Stone, but her face is as blank as always.

"Cy-chan claimed it was her, but Nanako convinced the Tsuchikage that she was the culprit. He cut off her legs and her arms, then kept her in the council room where he met the higher ups of the Stone. He used her eyes as a threat to his council, and used her safety to ensure Cy-chan and I were obedient." Sune looks Amon square in the eyes as she speaks. "He would torture Nanako when Cy-chan or I refused to do his bidding. One day, he went too far and killed her. She died crying for our mother, staring Cy-chan in the face, and cursing the Grass. Since that day Cy-chan has always been weak when people can look right at her."

Sune shudders a little, then shakes her head to free herself from her past. "The next day Kaede ran from the Stone. We were sent to kill him, and bring Momo back. I... I wanted to do it, because I was afraid I'd be next. Cy-chan wanted to abandon the Stone with Kaede. Well, the rest is history, and here we are."

Yousuke

Satoko just smirks as she looks at Yousuke. "I did. Sixty years ago he was quite a looker. He was young, virile, and... stupid. Ah, if only I had kept him around." Satoko sighs, then shrugs as if to say 'Oh well'. When Yousuke asks about Satoko's daughters, she just shrugs once more. "Re-chan should be around somewhere. Flan-chan won't be joining us. You should be able to find some space outside that Suzunabu uses to practice her ninja abilities."

[Princess Tracy]

Spoiler

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I'd say Sune's story is much more rambling than Amon's. :P

The more Sune looks her in the eye, the more Amon was tempted to look away. When she finishes, Amon looks to the ground, hugging her wooden fingers as she feels herself being released. What am I even supposed to say to all that? Why did she tell me so much, I... I can't even handle my own problems. The thought of someone mistreating Aiko that way does make Amon visibly feel sick. As does the knowledge that she let another sacrifice go to that foul Kage without a word of objection. She thought she'd feel more glad to hear why Cybele is the way she is. Maybe if she hadn't spent the last 3 days in the midst of the Euryales' despair and she could remove herself a little more, but no.

Amon silently returns to her tinkering, occupying her hands as she tries and fails to say something. She always felt guilt around these people, but 'sorry' sounded condescending. She had wanted to ask her something about Camille's curse, but the energy to change the topic had left her, instead that heavy presence of the conversation was bearing down on her.

"Camille is..." she starts before sighing into silence again, nodding towards the front door. She didn't feel like her words bore enough significance to be said - regretting silence even as she exhibits it. She doesn't know why she felt the need to explain Kaoru - she knew no one cared to listen to her talk about herself. Unless... did she just exchange stories with Sune? Was she expecting more - no. She seemed bored listening to Amon.

Amon just sulks, staring into the gears as she works. Or tries to. Tinkering always brought peace, even when it shouldn't...

"You don't need to tell me of your despairs, Sune-san..." she finally says as she works, her tinkering giving her just enough calm to speak up - at least a little. "Sorry, that sounds crude..."

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune shakes her head. "It's not a despair for me any longer. Nanako is dead and gone. While I miss her, I recognize that mourning her has to end sometime. But it seems that Cy-chan will always hate herself for what happened to Nanako." Sune just sighs as if to push the heavy atmosphere away with her breath.

"I told you because you shared about your own friend. Carrying that kind of regret makes you and Cy-chan closer than you think." Sune sighs once more, then looks to the sky. "I was worried that this girl, this Camille, would become another burden for Cy-chan. I'm glad she's gone, to be honest."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon quivers a bit at Sune's words. "I... I ran." Amon stutters suddenly. She tries to hold it back, tries to limit her words, but no matter what, she fails to simply remain silent. "You and Cybele stayed by her side so long, yet I ran to save my own h-hide..." she confesses, her voice snapping a bit. She forces herself to remain stable, to just keep looking at the gears, to not dwell on it, but she can't muster it. "I..." her eyes start to well up a bit. She won't want to hear it, she decides, forcing herself to be quiet just a little longer, to force it deep within herself. "I-it doesn't matter..." Just keep crafting... Are you seriously trying to get pity for which you can't even be forgiven?

"Cy-Cybele at least wouldn't step over the bodies of her loved ones like that... So how close could we b-be, Cybele and me...?"

[zeone3000]

Noticing the winged blonde girl, Houshi's face scrunches into one of puzzlement, This place just keeps getting weirder...

Houshi stands up from his seat, here he had been sitting quietly and walks over, "Yes?"

[Bad Situation]

Blanching at the uncomfortable thought of a woman lusting over his grandfather, even in the past, Yousuke attempts to shift the conversation to something else. Anything else. Really, the only thing worse than imagining his grandfather in that would be imagining his own mother with strange me- "Let's not go there..."

"What was he doing here in the first place? Did he have some business with you? Did it have something to do with your title as the Dragon Sage? And what exactly does being a sage entail? What are your daughters like? Do you suppose I will get along with them?" He asks his questions furiously and in rapid succession, eager to sear away the disturbing mental images forming in his head and out of genuine curiosity.

[Princess Tracy]

If Sune remains silent yet remains present long enough, Amon might continue, her hands shaking too much to continue working as she remembers it all.

Spoiler

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When Amon first speaks, of the past, it's like she's fighting herself on whether she wants to be heard or not - consciously, she doesn't, but the silence drags it out of her. "They... Omki didn't ask me to run. She b-begged me to stay, to do something, to help Kaoru... I dragged her away, I told myself it was the right thing to do, that Kaoru would want us to make it out, but... I even left Omki, in the end. Just....blacked out and I was... running. I... I thought if I kept being a ninja, if I got back into it, I could... be forgiven for my weakness. That if I endured, good times would come. But everywhere I go there's so much suffering and I'm unable to do anything about it," she looks to Sune, biting her lip as she clearly references (in her mind) the Euryale curse as an example of that futility. "I decided to help Cybele the day we met, even before I knew about her curse, but... I only ever seem to make things worse. But it feels like Omki and Kaoru would want to..." she shakes her head sadly as she considers her estranged's opinion. "Cybele's so close yet so far. I guess... now I know why."

Amon faces away from Sune as she looks to the sky. "Sorry... I shouldn't be burdening you with my stupid feelings..." Giving one of her fake smiles she had practiced for the last 2 years and beyond, she remarks "Next to all you two went through, I guess I don't have a right to complain, huh?" Somehow the convincingness of her smile wasn't quite up to snuff compared to her usual disguising of her emotions, though she keeps up an effort anyway.

Spoiler

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Just felt the need to post something before hitting the hey in case you were going to move us ahead. With this conversation tone I'm not sure if I can work in the 'how come I didn't transform' question so smoothly, though I guess we'll see in the morning

---

"As she fixes up the watch, before Sune appears, Amon's odd 'crafting train of thought' leads her to an odd feeling - like there was something really important she's forgetting to do" - segment of a post I thought I had deleted without posting. Eh, it's WAY to late to post it now though and editing it in would be weird

[ZeroNumerous]

Yousuke

"Oh-hoho." Satoko laughs at Yousuke's obvious discomfort concerning his grandfather. "Do not be so closed-minded young man. Even in your old age, I bet that the ladies would be all over you." Satoko slows down to better hear all of Yousuke's questions, and to answer them in kind. "He was here about a sword. Supposedly, one of my dragonkin had stolen it from him in the past, and he wanted it returned. Quite serious business, I assure you." She chuckles at that, but carries on anyway. "So requested that I summon the dragon, or send him to the Mountain. I chose the latter of the two."

When Yousuke questions her status as a Sage, Satoko smiles and beams with pride. "Why, as a Sage I am responsible for the relations between man and dragon. I assuage the dragon's wounded egos, and ensure that those who would abuse them are brought to justice."

However, before she can answer Yousuke's next question, the dragon-lady stops as they near a pair of wide double doors. She opens them, and slides through with ease. The doors lead into a tall hexagon-shaped room lined with rows of books. In the center sits a young girl in a pink dress. She seems to be no older than eleven or twelve, yet the young girl sits and sips her wine as if she were an old lady. She leans forward as a pair of black lizard-like wings adorn her back. They flutter weakly, as if she were moving them unconsciously much like a person tapping their foot against the floor. A book rests in her right hand, and she slowly flicks through its words with all the time and care of a glacier. Satoko raises herself up to "sit" on her tail, then motions over to the young girl. "Re-chan, our guest arrived."

"Re-chan" bolts up in her chair, looks at her mother with the joy of a child plainly written across her face, then notices Yousuke and coughs. For a moment she makes eye contact with Yousuke, and the young man is able to see her bright red eyes. The girl's alien gaze shows her heritage just as easily as her wings. She blinks, then immediately resumes her disinterested somber look and sips her wine. "Very well mother. I will pla--Greet. I will greet our guest soon enough." Satoko chuckles at her daughter's actions, then motions to Yousuke. "Re-chan, this is Konpaku Yousuke, grandson of Konpaku Youki. Yousuke, this is Remilia Scarlet, the Daughter of the Dragon."

The young girl frowns at her mother, but nods at Yousuke.

Houshi

As Houshi gets closer he notices the extremely small winged girl is carrying a large bottle of soy sauce nearly as big as she is. Her arms are wrapped tightly around the bottle, and she seems to be having trouble carrying it and flying. Suzunabu waits for the young man to approach, then motions to the soup she was making. "Taste that, would you kindly?" The young flying girl bows to Houshi, and the bottle of soy sauce she's carrying pours out onto the floor from the action. She lets out a small cry when she notices her mistake, but corrects herself too late. The entire bottle is empty, and Suzunabu just sighs. "These fairies are useless. Would you mind getting some soy sauce from the pantry? This fairy will show you the way."

Amon

Sune has nothing more to say about Amon's past, or how close she was with Cybele. After all, she didn't know Cybele's mentality. Even so, she did explicitly state that they ran away from the Stone without getting revenge, so it's not as if they were any braver. When Amon talks about helping her sister, and comparing their misfortune, Sune just shakes her head. "All suffering in life, from the big to the small, is not something to be proud of. You had your own problems, we had ours, there is no point in comparing them. Even so... Helping Cy-chan would be hard. She's too locked up in what Nanako would do, and has forgotten who she once was." Sune just grins at her next words. "The easy way to help would be stabbing her in the ass when she gets depressed."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon has a long pause as Sune attempts once more to raise the mood, looking back at her, her eyes glimmering a bit as she examines the Euryale. Pondering, she accepts it as an escape from having to speak further of herself. Lest she realise how much her own ego has decayed in recent times... "The feeling of forgetting who you once were..."

Amon finally stands, but doesn't move, still leaning against a wall as she wipes her eyes. Why am I crying anyway... "I don't know how to help her then, sadly," she says, turning to Sune a little somberly. Clearing he throat she tries to cheer up, rolling with Sune's joke about stabbing Cybele - "She did stab me in the ass once to shut me up, but I've tried and she's way too fast for me to get back at her for that."

Amon smiles, bowing a bit. "Sorry. We just met after all, it's rude of me to pass my burdens off to you..." She sighs, relaxing a bit at last. "Well. How's things back in town? Is, ah... is Kaede doing well?" Her eyes give a sudden twitch, some fear in them even she wouldn't want to confront long enough to explain to herself

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune just shrugs. "I'm not his keeper. He's alive, as far as I can tell. Everything else is basically the same as far as I can tell. Lots of people with complaints, and lots of teams spending all their time getting ready for the Exams."

[Princess Tracy]

"Exams, huh..." Amon reclaims her perch, looking to the sky as she thinks. "Did you and Cybele have to take those when you came to Soragakure?"

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune nods. "Yup. Had to earn our special jounin status by demonstrating our abilities. Cy-chan had to sneak through three jounin, then "kill" another jounin by touching her throat without anyone seeing her. I had the easier one, just needed to pull off a bunch of Doton techniques."

[Princess Tracy]

"An elementalist, huh?" Amon asks as she looks Sune over. "Don't suppose you'd know anything I could learn? If I'm doing the exams, I'll need to get to cramming." She laughs shortly, like an engine filter backfiring. "I was hoping you'd know what the chuunin exams were like," she looks to Sune as she quirks a brow. "So, were you in ANBU too? Can you do the disappearing thing all the Euryale seem to do? It would be good if I could learn that - it would make a good combo with my hijutsu"

Blushing, she clears her throat, looking off to the side. "Of course, I don't expect you to actually train me or anything - I mean, Cybele won't and she's my jounin, y'know?"

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune shrugs. "Well, I'm Earth, Fire, and Wind types, so if you're either of those types then I could train you. But otherwise... Sorry." When Amon talks about the ANBU then Sune shakes her head. "Yup, in the Stone at least. Here in the Sky, well... Lets say I won't degrade myself for Kaede-san."

Amon bringing up Cybele's techniques just causes Sune to cross her arms and frown. "Cy-chan's ability isn't something you can teach. You have to know how to stop moving, completely. It's hard, because stopping is equivalent to death for living creatures. Even I can't do stuff like that, and I'm the same kind of "genius" as her."

[Princess Tracy]

Amon pouts. "Am I the only Raiton user in the Sky?" she remarks.

"What the hell does 'stop moving' mean? As in... stop the particles that compose you from partaking in quantum mechanics that lead to interaction with photons in the visible spectrum of light? To stop transmission and de excitation would cause a potentially lethal buildup of energy but how can one stop all such energy transfer..." she rambles on to herself. "One thing's for use, you can't possibly mean literally holding still - she's been at our side for hours while in stealth mode and I've even heard her speak."

Spoiler

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Amon's assessment is only marginally correct: she has high intelligence but only 1 rank in physical sciences, so she's an untrained genius

Amon's folded arms impersonate Sune's nicely as she frowns at the baffling technique. "Well, Taro's making his seize for power the last week. Anyone I like die yet?" she asks flippantly, one eye opened.

"That reminds me, since we found her in THAT mission, Kaede didn't seem to know but i just kind of assumed you did. You know what Camille's nature is, right? I was wondering if you'd be able to answer another of my intrustive questions about the Euryale..."

If Sune demonstrates she knows Camille was artificially created, Amon with clutch at her chest, looking a bit disoriented as she continues anyway. "Camille snapped at me earlier and described what the curse felt like - the wriggling snake. And I realised it sounds just like... it felt when it was inside me. I was just wondering, if... Camille said her transformation took a day or two, but my body seemed to eventually reject the snake. Or rather it... it kind of died thrashing around just outside my heart after I waited long enough. I was kind of wondering... why did Camille turn when i didn't?"

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke scrunches his face in confusion at Satoko's first comment, "Ma'am, the 'ladies' aren't all over me now what makes you think it will be any different in my old age?" Satsuki avoided him as much as possible. Yuri seemed to hate him most days, and now even Camille wanted nothing to do with him. His own mother had seemed uninterested in him throughout her return to the village. As far as he could tell, females wanted nothing to do with him.

Smiling at the memory of Youki he asks, "What was he like back then? I have found in recent years that his stories tend to be...less than concerned with historical accuracy than is the norm."

At the door the young swordsman peeks over Satoko's shoulder, or tries to at any rate, to get a glimpse at whatever it was that was inside. When the 'it' turns out to be a young girl, he softens considerably and smiles widely at 'Re-chan'. Bowing polite, he introduces himself and offers his courtesies. "It is a pleasure to meet you, young lady. I would be glad to play with you should you ask it of me."

Staring back into the girl's red eyes with his own grey he finishes with, "I will be in your care for the next few days. During this time I will do whatever is required of me to earn my stay. Should you require me, do not hesitate to ask."

[ZeroNumerous]

Amon

Sune just shrugs when Amon rambles on about quantum mechanics. "Maybe that's how she does it. But no. You stop moving to the degree where you fade into the background, and people ignore your presence. Because you move so little, people's perceptions slide off you as if you were a blade of grass or a leaf on a tree. It's as much psychological as anything else." When Amon talks about Taro's grab for power Sune once again just shrugs. "Kai's being quiet, so nothing's really changed."

It's not until Amon talks about Camille that Sune shows real interest in the conversation. She confirms that she knows about Camille's artificial nature, and waits for Amon to ask her question. When Amon does, the young kunoichi just rubs her chin. "Well, what do you know of the Euryale? I'm certain Cy-chan would have explained the nature of her curse, but I suppose she didn't."

Sune taps her heart. "When I turn my stamina and spiritual energy into chakra, my energy goes through one of my Gates and comes out as chakra. As you know, chakra with different signatures react negatively: they repel one another. Euryale chakra, however, bonds with chakra that has a different signature. It then converts that chakra over to its own signature, like a virus attacking a cell. That chakra meets the creature's innate energy, converts that, so on and so forth. But unlike Euryale, normal creatures cannot live with cursed chakra in their bodies. If that snake had reached your heart, it would have converted one of your Gates and killed you by generating cursed chakra within your body. Your body can't use the cursed chakra, so constant build up of energy causes the pressure to burst your blood vessels."

Sune shrugs once. "As far as how to create artificial members, I don't know. You'd have find and ask Setsuna."

Yousuke

Satoko just chuckles at Yousuke's complaints. "Hohoho. Just give it time, and you will come into your own." When Yousuke asks about Youki's past, Satoko just smiles. "He was brash. Foolish. He thought he could make me obey with the strength of his sword arm alone! It was quite amusing. But he has changed, and I respect him greatly for it." When Yousuke goes to make himself known to the young lady of the house he finds a cold response.

"Do you think I am some child who would be amused so easily?" She asks in a visible huff. She puffs out her cheeks and crosses her arms. Satoko just laughs at "Re-chan", then reaches over as she tries to pat Yousuke on the head.

"Don't be that way Re-chan. You-chan here is such a good little boy." Remilia frowns greatly at this.

"Mother. Please, do not act so familiar to the commoners. And do not refer to me in such a childish manner." Remilia's blushing greatly as she reprimands her mother, but Satoko just laughs it off. However, she grows deathly quiet when Yousuke offers to earn his stay. Satoko smiles as she slithers closer to the boy. She looks him over from head to toe, slithering circles around him over and over until she suddenly tightens up and curls her entire snake-like body around him.

Spoiler

Show

Satoko makes a touch attack to initiate a grapple on Yousuke. (1d20+28)[32]. As Yousuke is flat-footed, he does not get an AoO. Yousuke needs a grapple check against a DC of (1d20+34)[46](BAB+STR+Huge size).

Whether she succeeds or not, Satoko just grins at the boy. Her grin accidentally bears her teeth, and shows that she's got very pronounced canines for a human. "Well, well... You want to earn your keep? Guests don't usually work, but with your honor I expect you wouldn't sit by and let us take care of you. So, how about a wager then. If you complete my task, then I will assign a maid to work for you for one year and one day. If you fail, then you will become a maid here for one year and one day. Oh, don't worry, it'll be a fair task. But, if the Konpaku have truly fallen so far as to refuse a task the great Youki succeeded at, then I would not begrudge you a refusal."

[Bad Situation]

Yousuke frowns at Remilia's curt dismissal and opens his mouth to speak but is interrupted by Satoko's coiled tail. His honed reflexes immediately kick in to react to the danger but is too late and gets caught in the woman's scaled embrace. "Hrk!" Though apprehensive, the genin listens to what Satoko has to say, his expression quickly shifting from fear to incredulity and then finally settling on muted anger. Knowing her last words were bait, the proud swordsman gladly takes the chance to prove himself.

From within the coiled tail, Yousuke struggles and futily shrugs against the constriction and says, "If my grandfather completed the task then so will I! Allow me the honor of enlightening you to the pride of a Konpaku swordsman!" This is said with a manic smile, face etched in excitement. This was his chance to prove himself against his grandfather's legacy.

[ZeroNumerous]

Yousuke

"Ohoho!" Satoko laughs at Yousuke's acceptance, then squeezes him tightly. "Wonderful, wonderful!" She releases Yousuke, then dashes out of the room. Her snake-body allows her to move extremely quickly in bursts, and soon she's out the door. Remilia just sighs, then rubs her temples.

"Why did you get her started...?" Satoko shouts back at Yousuke as she moves deeper into the mansion.

"Yousuke! Find your friends! You'll need them too! And meet me outside." Satoko's voice fades as she dashes through the mansion.

[Princess Tracy]

"That would be problematic," Amon comments at last, at the notion of consulting Setsuna. "Like I said, Cybele went to kill her... Maybe she left her notes though?"

Amon sighs, thinking. "So that's how it works." She props herself up against a wall again, bobbing her head back and forth. "It... didn't seem to actually damage me though, just as long as I didn't use any chakra." Thinking, she adds "This does sound in part familiar, though I can never keep straight my own conjecture and others' words sometimes."

Amon turns, looking to the house forlornly as she had found herself doing a lot while talking to Sune. "It feels like... I was supposed to do something in this house. Something... I almost remembered it while tinkering there, but it slipped away when you appeared. Damn, what was it? Asking abou Yusa? No, not even close... dammit"