These words were inscribed in the walls of the darkened underground hallways of the underground complex, which were host to Orochimaru not more than 200 or so years ago. Now they were nothing more than the gathering grounds for some rebel army, fighting against the odds to take back what they thought was rightfully theirs. Sovereignty. A freedom of sorts. A sense of self-worth. As decrepit and broken down the halls were, they were home to a force that had been steadily growing and seemed to finally be ready to go against the Hamajo confederation, and finally try and strive for a greater good. Tazei ni buzei. Few against many. Never have these words rang more true than now. This year was the year, this day was the day, the hour of striking back would finally come.



The underground hallways were bustling with activity, for once, as it seemed like most of the Jiyutai had made their way over to the larger base that was held by none other than Senhime of the Million Threads. A woman that had grown from a reserved Osuushi shrine-maiden into something of an urban legend within the Confederation. Survivor of the attack on Kirigakure, murderer of generals, and her most famous title within the Hamajo Confederation, brought to you by the head of propaganda, war-criminal. For a long time the Hamajo confederation had failed to acknowledge the presence of the Jiyutai, discarded them as nothing more than a bunch of criminals looking for an excuse to start a anarchic civil war to further their own gains.

No more.

With Senhime organizing the multitude of organizations under the single banner of the Jiyutai, they finally had some power to back up their claims, and Senhime had orchestrated a gigantic plan to showcase their newfound powers. 'Hamajo-day' was coming up in two weeks to celebrate the livelihood of the Hamajo Confederation itself, Ryuu Hamajo, the president. The tyrant, more like. While it was hard to argue that the Hamajo confederation had achieved nothing at all - they were responsible for the building of large infrastructural projects, the creation of an organized education system, and peace above all - it was also hard to argue against the crimes of the Hamajo confederation, which heavily outweighed the benefits.


The soft but high pitched voice echoed slightly through the hallways, but the other conversations between the Jiyutai rebels was over-powering it, and so the otherwise public conversation suddenly became a bit more private. Senhime and her younger sister, Akumako, were walking through the hall towards the main chamber, which was a large chamber with an overhanging balcony from which she could deliver a speech and some mission objectives for the different Jiyutai groups that were under her control. There had been some initial controversy, some two years ago, as the Jiyutai groups were all vying for control of the organization, but Senhime had been quick to squash that out. By now, most of the groups were loyal. Those that weren't were still involved, but they acted autonomously and mostly did whatever they felt like. Ultimately however, it was believed that anyone fighting against the Confederation was doing a good deed, and therefore these Jiyutai were left to their own devices.


The elder of the two Osuushi sisters’ voice had the slightest twinge of mischief behind its gentle timbre. While Senhime did not want to get too confident about the way things would play out, she was quite satisfied with the idea itself. But it would need to be handled responsibly. There happened to be fair amount of younger Chunin within the ranks of the Jiyutai, many of whom showed great promise. But potential meant nothing if they were killed before it was realised. As much as Senhime wanted to use Hamajo Day as a prime time to make a statement of the Jiyutai’s power, she was fully capable of swallowing her pride if things went south. Some of the naysayers might consider that to be cowardice on the commander’s part, but Senhime was of the opinion that the Jiyuna no Guntai’s already inferior numbers didn’t need to drop any further if it could be helped.



With Akumako at her side, Senhime took to the balcony overlooking the main chamber. Upon looking down onto the floor below, the commander was greeted by a sizeable group of rebel shinobi, having come together to hear the speech due to Akumako having delivered the announcement earlier in the day. The hall was a mess of conversations as everyone was waiting for the speech to start.

”Ara ara~. It’s been two years already and I still feel a little odd doing this.” Senhime remarked quietly enough that only her younger sister could hear. Taking a deep breath, Senhime took a step forward so all those gathered within the main chamber could see her clearly. In order to enforce the silence, Akumako found it necessary to spin her kanabo in her hands a few times before smacking it down rather hard on the wall next to the balcony, visibly cracking it and letting loose an audible cracking noise. This gave free way for Senhime to continue with her speech.

”It is no secret that the past two years have been a period of great progress for the Jiyuna no Guntai. And, while I would like to think I deserve full credit for this, this wouldn’t be possible without the wisdom of the leaders of the factions forming our band of freedom fighters. As well as the faith that you all put in our cause, and the faith that you all place on me. Moving forward, I would like you to know that I place the same faith in all of you.” she paused for a moment to let her words sink in, taking in the energy of the room during the small break before resuming her speech.

”As you may all know, there are only two weeks left until the coming of Hamajo-day. We have stood by as celebrations in the province of Amegakure have gone off without a hitch. This year will be different. As a display of our power, and a statement of our resolve, we will put a stop to this year’s Hamajo-day festivities. If Ryuunosuke Hamajo fancies himself a dragon…. Then I say we fancy ourselves to be dragon slayers,” ending the speech on that note, Senhime bowed before turning on her heel and walking back, feeling that the speech needn’t be much longer than that. Now, however, was the time to gather the initial strike team.

”Ara ara~. Was that last line a bit too much?” Senhime inquired, feeling a little bit embarrassed in retrospect after trying to use a cool line.

“Nee-chan...” Akumako whined, looking at her sister with a disappointed glare. “You tried too hard.” she continued, pinching the bridge of her nose with her small fingers, shaking her head in disappointment.



Akumako was walking around all day, reading off a list of notes and entering various of the sleeping quarters. The quarters were relatively comfortable for a 200-year-old underground-bunker that was hosted by none other than Orochimaru. Some of the quarters had been improved with brought in bedding and field equipment, and there were some various additions made over the course of the years, such as showers and other necessary equipment. But Akumako wasn't looking for the comforts of the rooms, but rather the people in it.


She didn't bother knocking, since she was the commanders little sister after all and could get away with many different things - a pleasure she used in large to steal sweets and other candy from the provisions. With her head peering inside of the room she spotted Seichiro, doing whatever he was doing. For a moment she'd wait until he acknowledged her, because she wasn't going to talk to a wall. She was far too important for that.


From what she could see Seichiro looked like a cool kid - but then again, none looked more cool than her, since she had horns. And what was cooler than that? She continued on her route through the quarters, entering the next room over and raising her voice again, interrupting the person inside of it with whatever they were doing.


She tried to sound as sweet as she could, because this person was supposedly a jonin, just like Akumako was, and of course nee-chan. She looked at the woman, looked her up and down and then smiled brightly at the woman. She has a chest just like nee-chan, Akumako thought to herself, I'm.. not jealous.. not at all.. Kuko doesn't need.. chest.. For a few moments Akumako stared in silence as she mentally tried to calm herself.


She quickly drew her head away from the door opening, feeling herself getting red, with a mix of embarrassment and anger. Taking a moment to breathe, she felt herself calm down enough to head to the next door. This one wasn't so close and she walked for a good minute, reading the make shift nameplates as she went. A bunch of 'famous' names passed her by, but Akumako was not interested in them at all. She'd met all of them already, by courtesy of her nee-chan being the most famous of them all. At least, in Akumako's mind. She popped her head into the next door opening that she needed to visit, waving at whoever was inside.


She noticed the girl inside, and smiled at the girl. This one didn't have such a big chest. It was easier to contain any feelings of jealousy as Akumako was sure she was cuter than most girls - due to her small height at 5'0 she felt that this was a boon, not a curse. People liked small girls, right? It was 'cute' she heard from nee-chan. But nee-chan was quite tall.. was she lying? Hm. No, never! Nee-chan would never.


Wew, good save. Breathing out deeply, she hurried on to the next room, not wishing to see Rin when she left to go to the meeting room. The next on the list was someone she hadn't even seen around the complex. A guy by the name of Takashi Ryuuga? Interesting name. Non-descript clan, though. But surely they weren't as cool as the Osuushi, the chosen people of Gyuki! I mean, hell, the Osuushi have horns, so nobody was cooler than them. She seemed happy with herself, knowing that this guy wouldn't be nearly as cool as her. She stepped inside with a cheerful smile on her face, but quickly this turned into a frown when she noticed Takashi.



Eh? Senhime didn't mention that any of their cousins would be here. And then they misspelled his surname too. What a bunch of amateur shinobi in this place! They should do a great purge or something and get rid of these incompetent people. Oh well, it was good knowing that there was a cousin of sorts in the complex!

Next up, Maema Nisshoku! Peeking into his room, Akumako made quick notice of the boy. He resembled something of a shonen manga character that Akumako used to read about. Fu-fu.. that was funny to think about. What if this kid was secretly the inspiration for the manga? How.. lame would that be. We need soldiers, not pretty boys, Akumako thought, before speaking up to the boy.


Despite butchering his name, Akumako felt rather happy delivering the message. He looked to be older than him and nothing made Akumako feel better than being bossy to some pretty boy who hadn't achieved as much as she had. What a loser. On to the final name on the list. The resident medical nin that every team needed. Although arguably, with Senhime and Akumako around, there wasn't much danger since their combination jutsu were the most lethal in the entire world.


She said it with a twist of cheerfulness in her voice, since she was happy that she finally got to the last name on the list. Wew, what a big ass team. Hmm.. but looking at this Oshiro character she couldn't help but feel unimpressed. No horns.. no cool clothes.. he just looked kinda standard. Well, that was usually the case with medical nin. She was just glad he wasn't wearing some of those stupid medic-nin clothes.


And with that said and done, she turned on her heel and marched off towards the meeting room, which was obviously room 8B. With Oshiro dragged in tow behind her, since he didn't have much of a choice, she walked into the room and finally plunged herself down in one of the comfy chairs that was there. With a big grin she looked at the large seat in front of the table, where her older sister was sitting.



The older Osuushi sister perked up when Akumako returned with the news of having retrieved the rest of the team. In the time since the two had parted ways, Senhime had been swivelling about on a rolly chair, contemplating how to make her next speech a bit less ”cheesy” as young Kuko had explained it. ”Now now, Kuko-chan~. You may be young, but as a jounin, you have to set a good example.” she chimed, scolding the smash-happy youngster. For now, they would wait for the rest of the squad she’d assembled, and henceforth begin prepping for the assault on the Hamajo monument.

Upon the squad’s arrival, they would find their commander and her younger sister waiting for them, immediately greeted by the calming smile of Senhime as she stood up from her chair. The meeting room was a fairly simple area. All that there was of note was a blackboard on the wall opposite the entrance and a fairly sizeable round table with the Jiyuna no Guntai’s insignia engraved into it. As the group filed in, Senhime motioned towards the swivel chairs that flanked the table. ”Welcome~. I’m sure you all have a rough idea of why you’re here, but before we get into the nitty-gritty, why don’t we start with introductions?” she chimed, observing each of the Chunin (and the one Jounin) that had been assembled.

Takashi wasn't doing much when Akumako entered his room, simply laying around tossing a ball of electrical energy back and forth between his fingers. He didn't know much about the Commander's younger sister, but from her first word to her last, he couldn't decided if he found her demeanor to be endearing and cute, or something that would get old extremely fast. He did return her frown with one of his own at her statement about his name being 'misspelled'. He considered saying something, but before he had the chance, the girl was already on her way down the hall, probably off to do some other errand for the Commander.

With a sigh, Takashi got up and walked out towards Room 8B, still tossing around the ball of electricity. When he arrived at the room, the only other ones there were the Commander, her sister, and some other, plain-looking guy he didn't know. Seeing nothing else to do, he sat down in one corner of the room, still tossing around the lightning ball, except this time he started to do some tricks with it, ranging from spinning it around on his finger to bouncing it off some surfaces, and so on and so forth. After sometime, the others had arrived, at which point he stopped with his little hobby at got to attention. Looking around at the group assembled, he couldn't say he knew any of these people all too well. His gaze was also immediately drawn to the older woman in the bunch, noticing that among the team, she was clearly the oldest out of them all by a fair margin.

Seems like she's in her early to mid thirties, if I had to make a guess . . . and as fierce as wild boar from the looks of it. That's one woman you definitely don't want to mess with.

He turned his attention towards the rest of the team, looking at the guy with a gash on his nose next. He looked dependable, but also like kind of an asshole. The next to inspect was the other female in the group, who looked deceptively unassuming amongst the rest of the group(barring the plain looking guy). Then they had the pretty boy who was almost assuredly an asshole, and the one he was sort of familiar with. He seen this guy around Kumo from time to time, heard some things, so on and so forth. He didn't have anything against the guy personally, but he had a feeling that he was going to be a prime target for some 'morale-boosting' pranks sooner or later.

Turning back to the commander after his little inspection was done, he decided that now was good a time as any to make an impression. Whether it was a good one or a bad one was up to the group. Taking a moment to spin around in his swivel chair, he steepled his hands together as he gave everyone a toothy grin, his tail whipping behind him devilishly as he did so.

"Since no one else seems to be biting, I'll take the initiative." He unclasped his hands as he reclined in his seat a bit, smile never leaving his face as he took a second to make sure he had everyone's attention. "The name is Takashi Ryuuga, of the Ryuuga Clan. I come from Kumogakure and specialize in Lightning Ninjutsu and Explosive seals, so if you need someone to execute some shock and awe tactics, that is, quite literally, what I'm all about." As he spoke, he added a slight inclination to his voice as he said his last name, looking towards Akumako with a somewhat pointed stare, attempting to subtly drive the point home that it was, in fact, his name. After his little speech, his gaze would turn towards the others expectantly, still smiling wide as his tail began to trace slow circles in the air. One would notice, however, that after a couple glances at the two Osuushi's, he begin to feel at his own horns, a dissatisfied look spreading across his face.

Dammit, why can't I get cool horns like that? Everyone else I see have cool, arching horns, really bestial and threatening and whatnot, but all i got are these stupid spikes sticking out of my head. I mean, it kinda looks like a crown, so that's cool. . . right? *sigh* Some people get all the damn luck.

The morning routine went uninterrupted for Tsukiko. The room was small and cramped, but it was just big enough to give her space for her daily exercises. It was just after she finished and got to her feet when the door opened and the commander's little sister barged in. Tsukiko only glared at her, giving her no verbal response as she stammered and stared at the older woman. It was only after she left that Tsukiko let out a sigh of irritation. Didn't even knock, she thought to herself. Either way it was apparent that she was being summoned to a meeting at this Room 8B. Tsukiko didn't need to bring her sword or spear for this, instead leaving them leaning against the wall next to her bed as she stepped out into the hallway.

The trip to the meeting room was uneventful, though Tsukiko did not interact with anyone when she arrived. In fact she didn't even take a seat at the table. Instead she preferred to lean against the wall separate from the rest. If one had to ask her why it would be difficult to get an answer out of her, but anyone that knew her before she transferred to this base would already know she wasn't one for camaraderie. Perhaps it was for everyone's benefit that she remained apart anyways. If anyone within her reach said something particularly stupid or irritating it would be difficult for her to restrain herself from hurting them. Not to the point of injury, most of the time. But Tsukiko was a known enforcer of negative reinforcement when interacting with people she considered subordinate or inferior.

Hell, she was even skeptical about the commander of it all. Senhime Osuushi. She was attractive and kind-hearted, but in Tsukiko's eyes she was also young and foolish. Too idealistic. She had to be at least somewhat detached from reality as far as the older woman could tell, but even though her heart was in the right place it didn't mean she was always right. Before she actually met Senhime she had just assumed that the stories that idolized her were fabricated as propaganda. Today she isn't sure if the stories being true is as good as if they were lies. Either way, when Senhime decided the gathered rebels in the room should begin to introduce themselves it prompted an audible scoff from Tsukiko. These kids don't remember me, she deduced. Either way she waited patiently for her turn. She didn't exactly want to talk about herself but she certainly wanted to use the opportunity to demand a certain level of respect from her peers.

When Takashi finished his brief introduction, Tsukiko also realized that many of these kids probably didn't come from the Land of Fire. Her name was less famous outside the borders. With a relenting sigh, Tsukiko finally spoke up. "My name is Tsukiko Umene, former Jonin Commander of Konohagakure." Short, sweet, and to the point. An introduction didn't need anything more than a name and a title, as far as she was concerned. It established herself some authority and superiority, though it was no secret that she was already the oldest one in the room. She probably already had a certain baseline level of respect just for being the elder. Nevertheless it concluded her brief introduction without her moving from her comfortable position against the wall. She was less interested in the other introductions that would follow and was more curious about what the meeting was going to entail. Senhime did announce previously that they would be coordinating a strike during Hamajo Day. That was certainly interesting, to say the least.

Wrapping jobs don't take an in-depth knowledge of rocket science. You grab a strip of thin cloth and twirl it around whatever you are trying to wrap, and voila! It practically does itself. Seichirō, however, was treating a mundane task such as that with the concentration and determination only required for B-Rank missions. To his defense, he didn't have anything better to do and the act of covering Yin's handle with bandages wasn't as time consuming - what made the time fly by was his seemingly never ending dissatisfaction with his work.

Suddenly, he heard someone calling out his name, a female voice. "Yep, that's me!", the young Roga responded in a faux enthusiastic manner, his sight set on Yin's handle. The fact that he was prioritizing a senseless task over his summoning, which most likely had some pretty important implications to it, was a testament to his "unwavering" loyalty to the cause. "After the rain, comes the rainbow." was one of the unofficial propaganda banners that Jiyutai supporters enjoyed tossing around like they're in the world's most convoluted game of hot potato, which to Seichirō was a sugar-coated way of saying "Let's fuck shit up and hope that what's left is of convenience to us." Some might call it cynicism, but he likes to call it a bullshit radar.

It took Seichirō a while to realize that no words had been uttered since he responded to the girl's calling. Slightly dumbfounded, he uncrossed his legs and turned his head around. That's when he saw that the summoner was not A girl; it was the sister of the Jiyutai's leader. It was then that she decided to talk, letting him know he was needed in Room 8B. Seichirō nodded affirmatively, prompting the girl to vanish from his line of sight. He accelerated Yin's wrapping process before sheathing it in his back along with it's trusted comrade, Yang.

Like the other unfortunate ones, Seichirō also did not resort to small talk while on his way to the meeting room. There was a very real chance that he'd be pitted against them at some point, which was his main reason as to why he was trying to avoid making more bonds. He had his fingers crossed, for if the upcoming task put them in a scenario where interactions were unavoidable, then he'd be, as he himself once eloquently put, "fucked". Not even his steely gaze can enforce the defense systems surrounding his kind heart. Like the older woman, Seichirō also opted to not take the chair, choosing to remain in a standing position. It was not an act of rebellion. It's just that his feet were sore because of having them crossed for too long. He had a brief but ominous staring contest with the 6 foot tall freak of nature. From what he could deduce, the weird-looking shinobi was sizing him up. And then came Senihime.

All the Jiyutai supporters and those participating in it found her to be an amazing leader. There were songs sung regarding her unmatched charisma, a charisma that Seichirō attributes to her huge rack. It had to be addressed at some point. Not to say that the young Roga had fallen prey to her good looks; dude had a perverted jutsu on his portofolio which he'd spent a good portion of summer practicing. He liked to believed he was already immune. However, even with his innate ability to drain the value from everything, he would admit time and time again that her fighting skills were unmatched. Contrary to popular belief, she was also a pretty decent person, so that was a bonus.

Seichirō's sight moved all over the room at a consistent pace, watching over everyone who was making their introductions. The guy with the horns was from the Ryuuga clan, a name familiar to Seichirō. They were supposed to be very troublesome clan in Kumogakure, but like the Roga, very underrated and severely oppressed. The older woman turned out to be a Jonin, from Konohagakure even. Judging from her quick response, it was clear that she didn't enjoy being there any more than the junior Roga did. Seichirō's attention span got severed when the tiny framed girl and the pop idol began their rambling, even though he did catch the part when they disclosed their names and birthplace.

Upon seeing that no one else was going to introduce himself, Seichirō cleared his throat before calmly uttering "Roga, Seichirō. Konohagakure.", following on the example set by the former-Jonin commander of Konoha. He fixed his gaze on Senihime (Senihime's FACE, mind you) as the words slipped his mouth, in an effort to conceal his genuine concern over the faction's doings. He had a gut feeling the following month was gonna be a series of bumpy, potentially life-threatening rides.

Kazuki kept his room rather spartan, he only has a simple desk, a simple dresser, a chair, a bed and a nightstand with a lamp on it. Eventhough he felt welcome and accepted within Jiyuna no Guntai, he always wanted to be ready for anything. So he always made sure he had most of his stuff sealed inside some sealing scrolls. Kazuki was sitting on his bed as he was casually reading one of the advanced medical books he owned, he had allready read it several times before. But he could lose himself in his study's quite easily, besides there wasn't much for him to do in this base. Kazuki looked up at the younger girl as his name was called. "Hai, Akumako-san. I will be with you in a minute." He replied to the younger sister of their commander, as he puts his book down. Kazuki got up and quickly put his boots, gloves and bracers on before he exited the room to follow Akumako. "Akumako-san, I am ready..." He started as he left the room. "Now where do I need to go.." He mumbled to himself.

"Why couldn't she wait for a minute? Guess I will have to find my own way then, it sounded quite important." Kazuki thought to himself as he started to get agitated while he stared into the identical looking hallways around him. "She didn't even tell me a room number." He thought to himself, getting annoyed by the situation. Kazuki decided to head towards the direction where he heard footsteps, hoping that would lead him in the right direction. In the end he finally managed to find the room, just to discover that he was the last one to arrive. He gave a small bow towards Senhime before he looked through the room at, what he assumed, would be his fellow team mates before nodding his head at each of them. He wasn't sure what he could make of them yet, he has heard some rumors about a few of them, but that was hardly anything to go on. Kazuki took a seat in one of the swivel chairs as he listend carefully to everyones introductions. Some of them were informative enough, but from some of them he only learned their names. But he was certain he would get to know them later.

After everyone else made their introduction, Kazuki stood up. "I am Oshiro Kazuki, I came from Iwagakure. I am a medical ninja who can offer medium to long range support with my doton jutsu and my ranged weapons." He introduced himself before he let himself fall back into the seat. Turning his seat slightly to look at their commander, who was one of the most inspering people he has ever had the honor to meet. Not that he was someone who idiolizes people, but she just had something over her.

As the room filled up with those whom the commander had sent Akumako to retrieve, she made a note of at least two of the party's decision not to take a seat at the table with everyone else. Senhime had already grown to expect such behavior from Tsukiko just from the brief few occasions on which the two interacted. The older, wild-looking woman didn't seem to like anybody, much less Senhime herself. It was unfortunate, but nobody really joined the Jiyuna no Guntai to make friends. If nothing else, the woman more than made up for her standoffish nature with her excellence in the field. Though, considering that this was to be more of a team effort, Senhime could only hope that she could trust the woman to "play nice", so to speak. As for Seichiro, she hadn't known him to be particularly hostile, but from all accounts, he wasn't exactly some kind of super social butterfly either. Perhaps he was nervous around strangers or something? In any case, whether or not the two were seated wasn't the most important thing at the moment. As long as they introduced themselves and paid at least some attention to the other introductions, they could move on to more pressing matters.

The introductions were all short, sweet and to-the-point. Although, Senhime couldn't help but pick up on a few of the gathered shinobi cutting a glance at Akumako, or putting emphasis on their name's pronunciation in the case of Maema. While she should have expected it, the older Osuushi sister couldn't help but be at least a little surprised at how young Kuko had already managed to get off on the wrong foot with most of the group before the official meeting. Shaking her head slightly, Senhime then nodded once young Kazuki Oshiro finished off his introduction, rounding out the gathering. The commander was already well aware of the little bit of information everyone was so generous to provide, and then some. "Wonderful~. Now that we've got introductions out of the way, we can get to why I've gathered you all here today." the commander stated, producing a scroll which she placed onto the table, leaving it rolled up. "As you heard yesterday evening, Hamajo-day comes in two weeks. Many of the provinces will be holding at least some manner of festivity in honor of this most sacred day, during which each branch of the Jiyutai and associated groups will strike while they can to disrupt the proceedings. However, as many of you may well know, the Hamajo Confederation's capital, Amegakure, is home to the biggest Hamajo-day celebration in all the lands. And that is where this team comes in. I have called you all here to act as the team that will engage in the act of destroying the Hamajo monument. We will not be the only ones participating in this endeavor, but in the interest of not putting all of our eggs in one basket, I have prepared only a small platoon for the purposes of assisting in fighting back any possible reinforcements that might be called in." the commander explained, observing each of the group's faces to gauge their reactions.

She would not be surprised if some of the group appeared to be hesitant about the whole idea. Blowing up an important monument right in the capital representing the seat of Ryuunosuke Hamajo's power sounded dangerous. And dangerous it would be. Which is why Senhime intended for the group to get it all over with as quickly as possible. While the Jiyutai had to make an impression, Senhime did not want to run the risk of any of the Confederation's heavy-hitters showing up. While the chunin of the group were indeed a promising selection, they would be hard pressed to survive against the best that Hamajo's forces had to offer. While the group took the time to process Senhime's words, the commander promptly unrolled the scroll she'd placed on the table, revealing the contents of the parchment to everyone in the room. Those who read the scroll would see that there were two lists written on its surface. For two teams.

{Team 1: Perimeter Security Interception Team}
Umene, Tsukiko
Takahashi, Rin
Oshiro, Kazuki
Ryuuga, Takashi

{Team 2: Civillian Dispersal and Statue Occupation Team}
Osuushi, Akumako
Nisshoku, Maema
Roga, Seichiro

"For the two weeks leading up until Hamajo-day, I am putting the seven of you into these squads. During those two weeks, I expect you all to become accustomed to each others' strengths and weaknesses and understand how to better cover each others' blindspots. I would like to take this time to apologize to Umene-san for heaping the responsibility of whipping three of our party into shape. Due to your greater experience, as well as Akumako's inexperience in a proper leadership position, I have determined this to be the best course of action for now." Senhime finished her explanation and bowed towards Tsukiko, the intent being apologetic in nature.
"Any questions?"

---

---

Akumako sat idly by in her spinning chair, spinning it around as she listened to some of the introductions. What a bunch of boring people! In the end she started drumming on her knees while looking around, pretending to be attentive. It was only when Senhime herself began speaking that she'd pay attention. Nee-chan didn't like it when she was ignoring her. “Hai! May-ma and Chimney. Guys, lets go right away. I want to catch up on your skills a bit more, so that I create a master plan for how to attack this mission!”

She stood up straight, pushing the chair back with her legs sending it flying against the wall. Her hand whipped up and went next to her head into a salute, where she faced Senhime. Apparently she was saluting her. “Kuko out, let's take back our shrine.” she said seriously, not a hint of playfulness in her voice, before she marched out of the room. .. she didn't really give Chimney or May-ma any time to ask Senhime questions, but Akumako didn't really care about that. For now she was pre-occupied with going to her room. “First, we're gonna go to my room and let me grab a sweater, because this hallway is cold as ba- ... baloney.” Good save, Kuko. Senhime said to be an example for everyone else, so swearing is a bad idea.

Arriving at her respective room, it was noticeably different from the other rooms. Not so because it was larger or had more luxuries, but because it was filled with decorations. On the wall were at least a dozen posters of various manga booklets she'd read, and throughout the room there was at least a hundred plush stuffed animals. Some were quite bad ass, such as a certain shinobi-styled panda that had a sword in it's hand, but there were also some girly one. Let it be known that Akumako did not give one shit about what people thought of her collections.

Rather than a door, her entrance was simply masked by a curtain she whipped away as she entered. On the curtain was the insignia of the Osuushi clan, but it'd been made 'better' by Akumako's decorations, which were mostly her sewing on patches of manga characters and other cool shit. In short, her room was one big organized mess of stuffed animals and other baubles and collections. And if that wasn't bad enough..

“HAI! LET'S OPEN THE DOORS!” With a heavy pull on the handles of her wardrobe, she pulled open a massive wardrobe in the corner. After which, of course, a large pile of clothes fell out, showering her in clothes. “Aw yeah.” she said while she searched through the pile of clothes, unaware or uncaring of the fact that May-ma and Chimney were probably watching her. After throwing a few of the clothes behind her, she finally found her black hoodie and pulled it over her head, carefully making sure it didn't get stuck on her horns. “Okay! I'll clean that up later.. and by clean up I mean stuff it back into my wardrobe, ehehe.” she said, turning to face the two chunin with a slightly devilish grin on her face.

“Now let's get food!” Not giving May-ma and Chimney any time to react, she already walked out of the room, whipping the curtain to the side and heading left to the cafeteria. Upon arrival she headed straight to the front of the row and ordered for the other two as well. Luxuries of being the little sister of the commander. “Hoioi! Can I get three Akumako Specials?” The chef, or rather, makeshift chef, nodded and quickly fetched a three platters, before heading back and coming back with all three of the platters filled with cupcakes and other sweets. “Thank you, chef-sensei. I bow for your might.” She followed up on her word and bowed before the man, and then quickly headed back to May-ma and Chimney, leading them off to a lonesome table somewhere.

Finally sitting down and taking some rest rather than being hyperactive as she had been, she looked them both straight in the eyes while they sat there. “Careful. This is the Akumako Special. Out of these sweets and cupcakes, one has been poisoned. .. pick the right one.” She looked serious for a while longer before finally smiling and squinting with her eyes in happiness. It would be hard to tell whether she was being serious about the poison, but that didn't stop Akumako from grabbing a bunch of sweets and stuffing them in her mouth like a starved pig.

“Okay, so here's the plan! I don't know a lot of jutsu, but I can smack people with my kanabo. And then, May-ma, you can use your sword and SHWING SHWING! chop them up! Chimney, you do.. something spectacular! We're gonna be like superheroes from the NARUTO OMEGA GAIDEN XIV Manga! Awesomeeeee~~! Did you guys read the latest volume yet? It's so kick ass. Naruto fights with dark-side Kakashi and then ZOOM BOOM he kicks him in the head using ultimate superhero Sharingan-kyuubi mode.”

Sometimes it did truly seem like she was more serious about her manga than about the fighting of the Hamajo Confederation.. but she was a 16 year old girl that had never lived in a shinobi village. Who could blame her?

"Civilian dispersal?", Seichirō thought to himself, his hairless chin being unconsciously stroked by the thumb and the index finger of his right hand. He could destroy the statue single-handedly either via Ash Pile Burning or Deadly Pellet Incursion, provided his teammates took care of Hamajo's defenses. However, for the life of him, he couldn't see why he was a good choice to drive civilians away from the battle zone. The Kumo freak of nature would be much more fitting for that. He didn't know that Maema guy, but he'd taken a glimpse of Akumako's shenanigans so he got why she was perfect for it. In a way, she reminded Seichirō of his own mother. She too bore the physical frame of a yard gnome, the power of a golem and the mental availability of a meth addict. A truly unpredictable combo.

Seichirō pondered bringing up those points to Senihime, barely raising his finger in an inquisitive manner, but he was cut short by a voice that he'd become much too familiar for his liking. He watched in surprise as Akumako kicked off her seat, saluted her sister, said some weirdly ominous stuff about a shrine, most likely regarding the shrine of the Osuushi clan and then scampered out, all done in an erratic manner that really made Seichirō NOT look forward to the upcoming events. He threw a look at Maema as if trying to ask him what the hell's going on before reluctantly pacing after Akumako. From there on, he went through the most hellish fifteen minutes of his life.

Throughout her multiple trips around the base, Seichirō kept his mouth shut, often throwing a side glance at the Nisshoku kid to see if he was just as annoyed. He tried to make a comment regarding her room's content, which he thought was rather colorful, but her incessant babbling kept getting in the way and at one point he gave up. To be clear, if it was any other person, Seichirō would be quick to let them know what a pain in his ass they were, however Akumako was the Commander's sister. Not only that, she was also a very powerful Jonin with poor impulse control. She was not a person you'd want to piss off. However, that did not mean she had his attention. You had to be a better man than the teen Roga to actually devote your attention to her bullshit.

As they sat down, with their three plates of Akumako specials, because apparently nepotism was the norm within the ranks of the Jiyutai, Seichirō extended his hand immediately and reached for one of the cupcakes only to be politely informed that one of them may be poisoned. In what can be described best as a knee jerk reaction, he threw the cupcake back on the plate, perhaps a little bit harder than he wanted to. His eyes met with Kuko's now squinted ones as he couldn't help but smirk. "You know what? I'm not even hungry." Technically he wasn't lying, but he really did want to taste an Akumako, as wrong as that sounds.

Seichirō began paying attention to Akumako once she started talking about the plan, but at this point he'd lost hope that she'd actually say something worth his time. And true to his predictions, her plan was not really much of a plan. It was a fantasy display of an already overlong manga that's actually shamelessly cashing in on historical events, but of course putting a spin on them that requires a huge suspension of disbelief. Seichirō also used to read those back in Konoha, but he stopped after volume V when Ten Tails Pain created a hole in the universe's fabric and annihilated all space-time ninjutsu. That's when it got too ridiculous for his tastes. Volume I to IV were actually decent, though.

"Sorry, Akumako-san, but that's not really a plan.", Seichirō finally spoke, his hands cupping behind his head as he laid back on his seat. "We're gonna need something more specific. Something that conforms to our individual fighting styles while at the same time highlighting our common strong points.", he paused for a second to place his elbows on the table, putting his hands mere inches away from Akumako's plate. "Don't worry, though. Once we figure out a plan, you'll have the best part in it.", Seichirō let out a chuckle, not a genuine one but disguised good enough to look like it. He had no idea how Akumako would react to someone tossing away her suggestions just like that, so he figured he'd need something to soften the "blow". That didn't mean he was OK with the "learn each other's blindspots" tidbit though. That was hard to do for a man like Seichirō, who considered everyone on the faction to be a potential enemy.

His facial expression changed from his smiley one to a more exasperated, somewhat neutral look as he veered his sight towards Maema. He had to break the ice somehow, and there was really no easy way to do it but by initiating conversation, especially when you have to deal with such a hard shell like Maema.

"Oy, you..", Seichirō spoke.

"You talked something about a Kekkei Tota earlier. You want to elaborate on it? It might help us on our task."

As the group all went about introducing themselves in a variety of rather stock standard ways, Takashi set about making some decision based on what he had seen so far. Nothing solid, just his impressions on everyone so far.

"My name is Tsukiko Umene, former Jonin Commander of Konohagakure."

"Straight to the point, no embellishments, an interesting reveal. Delivery was as expected, but the tidbit gives her a much more solid presence, as well as making a bigger wall between her and us. Conclusion: DOn't fuck with her if I want to live.

"Rin Takahashi, Sunagakure. I'm pretty good at hitting things I guess."

Dull, Bland, forgettable. Plain girl is plain, but that could work for her if she's given infiltration missions. Conclusion: She's alright, better than the Mascot character and has a more amiable personality than the Top-heavy bear-trap that went before her. Definitely going to fuck with her, though, she seems like a fun one to tease.

“I’m May-Ma Nisshoku. I have a peculiar kekkei-tota that I plan on using to slay the dragon. Its not a friendly ability to be honest.”

Someone's trying to seem cool, parroting the Commander's line and all. Kekkei-tota bit is interesting, but since he wants to be a mysterious asshole, that's all he says. If you're bring it up, give details, ya shit. Conclusion: Primary target for now, he's going to learn to hate me. That being said, he's tolerable, just needs to drop the 'I'm too cool to care' act

"Roga, Seichirō. Konohagakure."

Another too-cool-for-school Konoha nin, with an extremely lacking intro. Two thumbs down, but he looks like he has his shit together. Conclusion: Reliable so far, but probably somewhat of an asshole, so a plausible secondary target. I'm going to annoying him, but not too much.

"I am Oshiro Kazuki, I came from Iwagakure. I am a medical ninja who can offer medium to long range support with my doton jutsu and my ranged weapons."

Medic, which means I will also not fuck with him. Never fuck with the guy whose job is to patch you up. He seems nice, and unlike everyone else, he actually volunteered some useful information. Why couldn't everyone do that, is it really so hard? Conclusion: I like him, and depending on how open he is to giving me access to various chemicals, he'd make a good pranking buddy. He's joining the Commander and Bear-trap on the 'Don't fuck with' list. I should probably put the Mascot on that list, but honestly, I can't think of any reason good enough to discount how fun it;ll be to mess with the little brat. Just have to be sure I'm ready to run like hell.

After everyone had introduced themselves, Takashi nodded his head, feeling pleased that his introduction was definitely the most memorable of those presented, but that smugness kind of fell away as he then counted the fact that nobody else was really trying, thus making his victory feel rather bitter sweet. He shook himself out of his funk, however, when the Commander laid out the plan. One would see Takashi's face widen into a rather manic grin as she mentioned blowing up the Hamajo Statue, little sparks of electricity arcing off him a tad as he could barely contain himself, only for it to die immediately as he saw his name on the Perimeter Security team. However, he his face was not as disappointed as one might expect from his previous reaction. Instead, he seemed deeply convicted over something. That something was the fact that, while he wasn't going to be part of the demolition squad, which sucked, he also wasn't going to be on the same team as the Mascot, which didn't suck and was much preffered. After seeming to weigh the options in his head, he leaned back into his seat with an expression that seemed to say 'I'm okay with this.' This expression only seemed to solidify as the mascot led her team away immediately to form a 'plan', though something told Takashi that most of the planning would be done by her subordinates while she did what all Mascot characters did: eat a crap ton of food. Ok, I'm exaggerating that a bit, but I'll be damned if she isn't leading them somewhere so she could stuff her face while they talk. I almost want to send a Shadow Clone after them to make sure. . . nah, that'd be rude and I've got to focus right now.

After that, Takashi turned his attention back to the commander, thinking of a few questions that would be worth asking the Commander at this moment. This would take a minute, in which his eyes would be closed, his tail curling around his waist, before rapidly unwinding as he finally had a good grasp of what he needed to know.

"Well, since you asked, I do have a few. First, what is our job exactly as the perimeter squad? What is the make up and number of our back-up platoon? Will there be any big-hitters that we should be worried about in the area when we strike, and what should the mission or our lives take precedence if such individuals appear?" As he spoke, Takashi reminded largely profesional in tone, looking intently at the Commander's face, seeming to be scanning it for any signs of emotion or weakness. It was a rather challenging stare, brought on by the base draconic instincts that bubbled up when he saw the Commander's apology to Tsukiko for giving her more units under her commander. WHile consciously, Takashi didn't care, subconsciously, it seemed weak and submissive to the much more dominant presence that Tsukiko emitted, and thus, while he was still respectful to her, a small bit of challenge was being presented, a test to see how dominant she could be.

Following these serious questions, however, Takashi's face would quickly shifted into an exaggerated look of exasperation as , he ran a hand through his hair, his posture relaxing as he offered one more statement to the Commander. "One last thing, can we not refer to Hamajo as a 'Dragon', because he barely makes it as a Drake from what I've seen from the propaganda the Confederation puts out. I've seen real dragons, and it's insulting to my clan to refer to him as such. Not to mention, all this talk of dragon slaying makes me feel a tad uncomfortable." The last part was said jokingly, but the rest of his complaint held some seriousness. It was the generally basis of the Ryuuga clan that Hamajo was full of hot air to call himself a dragon, cause while he seemed strong, to them, it was considered rather stupid and idiotic to equate one's self to a dragon without giving a rather extreme showing of one's own personal power. As far as Ryuuga cared, Hamajo wasn't worthy of such reverence, and as such, the whole thing about him being a dragon was jus a painful thing for any Ryuuga to hear. "But hey, it makes for good propaganda and what not, so it's whatever. Just a thought."

Senhime simply shook her head as her little sister made her abrupt exit, followed by the rest of her team. She could only hope that she wouldn't wear the two boys' patience down too quickly. While there were a great many in the Jiyutai who found Akumako to be quite cute, there was no denying that the rambunctious young girl was quite a handful. Seichiro, for one, already seemed to be cursing his lot in life from the moment Kuko had given the commander her salute. Senhime silently wished the two good luck before turning to look at the rest of the group, making note of the small sparks arcing along the Ryuuga boy's body. He appeared to be deep in thought, perhaps pondering whether or not he had any questions for her. If it wasn't his closed eyes that made it obvious, the sight of the boy's tail curling around certainly did.

Senhime was quickly proven correct when Takashi's eyes opened once again and threw a few questions her way. All very important questions, to be sure. As Senhime prepared to answer the boy's inquiries, Takashi then brought up a complaint about what he may have felt was a misattribution of the word "dragon" to the Hamajo Confederation's president. The commander noted the look in the boy's eyes as he spoke, though her own soft expression remained unchanged. "All excellent questions, Takashi-kun~. As the Perimeter Security Interception Team, it is you four's job to neutralize any Confederate fighters who may be stationed around the square where the Hamajo-day celebrations are being held. As for the back-up platoon, you will have a fourteen member squad. Two Jounin to command each half of the group. Rest assured that there will be medical nin withing the squad's composition as well, if only to take some pressure off of Kazuki-kun." she explained, nodding at the other boy. "We have reason to believe that the Blue Voice, Fuegushi Aoi, will be holding the Hamajo-day speech in the President's stead. You all would do well to watch out in the event that you come into direct confrontation with her. She may appear to be harmless, but one does not enter the President's inner circle without a certain measure of skill. As for any others, we currently don't have anything concrete on the matter yet. In the event that anyone capable of stopping the operation does arrive, that is where I come in." she finished, letting the fact that she would be present for the Hamajo-day operation sink in.

Senhime carefully considered the rest of what Takashi had mentioned, taking into account what little she knew of the Ryuuga clan's history. "While I respect your clan's reverence for dragons, Takashi-kun, I would like to point out that you and your clan may be unaware of President Hamajo's true strength. Considering those that he calls his underlings, there is no doubt in my mind that Ryuunosuke Hamajo himself is an opponent that even I would be hard-pressed to think I could beat at my current power. And, to me, you appear to be nothing more than a mere hatchling. So, I would suggest that you temper your pride." Senhime remarked, her words harsh despite the gentle tone that carried them.
"Ara ara, I seem to have gotten carried away again~. My apologies, Takashi-kun." she chimed, letting out a sigh as she cupped her cheeks and shook her head. She didn't mean for it to come out as condescending as it may have sounded, but those were the facts. Regardless of what Takashi or even the entire Ryuuga clan might have thought, President Hamajo had more than solidified his position as a formidable foe. Senhime had yet to meet, much less fight a dragon, but the fact that the Ryuuga were placed under the rule of the Confederation themselves made it abundantly clear that, even if he were a mere "drake" in the eyes of their clan, it was more than enough to subdue them. Just as it was enough for him to cause the massacre of the Osuushi clan and the greater part of Kirigakure.

Oshiro Kazuki

Kazuki was listening closely to Senhime as she was explaining the objective of the mission, he wanted to make sure he heard all the details. "So she wants us to attack one of the best defended city's during a day where the security will be at it's highest. It's sounds like a suicide run.." He thought to himself as a flash of doubt crossed his face. "But then again, if we succeed it will be a enormous blow to the confederation. It would show that we are a true force to be reckoned with and could potentially drive more people to our cause. It's a very dangerous plan, but sometimes you need to put your life on the line for what you believe in" Kazuki figured as his look of doubt changed to determination. Kazuki glanced over the scroll as it was being rolled out, which clearly stated that he would be on the perimeter security interception team, with three other people.

Kazuki looked around the room as he put the names he just read to the people who he had just met. First he glanced at the older woman of the group, Tsukiko Umene. "A former jounin commander, so she should be strong and a capable captain of our team. Shame that's all I know about her though, but I am sure that will change over the coming days." He reasoned as he his gaze drifted to the second person, Rin Takahashi.

"She looks rather plain and normal, but then again looks can be very deceiving in our line of work. Her introduction could have been more informative, but if she is good at hitting things she is probably a close range specialist. It seems like she isn't sure of herself, so either she is bad at social things like this or she isn't certain about her own ability's. I certainly hope it's the first one, but I need to find out about that before the mission. Someone who doubts themselfs too much can be a liability." Kazuki deduced as his gaze shifted to the last person on his team, Ryuuga Takashi.

"Finally someone who explains somewhat more then the other ones. So a he is a raiton (lighting release) user and uses explosive seals. So that would place him as either a short to medium or medium to long range ninjutsu specialist, which would round out our team pretty nicely I reckon. His comment about shock and awe could be bad, depending on how liberally he uses those explosive seals." He figured as Akumako stood up and made a weird comment about taking back a shrine, but it seemed unrelated at the moment so he would just keep that comment in the back of his head for now.

Kazuki was just going over the plan in his head as Takashi asked his questions, several of which he was wanting to ask aswell. He mostly disregared the comment about Hamajo being called a dragon, he didn't really care what he named himself. He would fall in the end anyway, it would be better if Takashi considered him more of a real threat though. There still were several questions he still wanted to ask, but he wasn't sure if this was the best place to ask them. He was about to speak as Senhime started to talk again.

Kazuki let out a small sigh of relieve as Senhime commented on the fact that he wouldn't be the only medical ninja on the mission. Not that he couldn't handle it on his own, but he welcomed all the help. The fact that their commander would be there aswell, uplifted his spirits a bit. Eventhough he hasn't seen her fight yet, but he has heard plenty of stories to be able to deduce that she is strong. "Senhime-sama, I still have several questions. More about the specific plans we would use that day. But I reckon those are probably best left until we are closer to the day." Kazuki commented with a nod towards their commander. He turned to look at Tsukiko Umene, to see what she had planned now, since she would be their team leader for the coming weeks.

The introductions didn't yield anything worthy of note for Tsukiko. While she would remember what they said word for word, it simply wasn't information that would prompt curiosity or interest from the older woman. Nothing outstanding, she thought to herself, only a brief distraction before Senhime began to explain the details as to why they have been gathered for this meeting. Indeed it was in relation to the upcoming Confederation holiday. To be precise: they were planning on striking at the heart of the Hamajo Confederation. Obviously this was less of a show of power and more of a show of intent. Tsukiko could already tell that the Jiyutai had nothing to gain militarily or economically from destroying a large statue of the Confederation's president, but she knew it would send a message and potentially lead to improved recruitment in the future. A respectable decision on Senhime's part. Obviously there are better targets but this opportunity would only come once a year, and if they failed now they would likely not get another opportunity.

Senhime had also delegated more of the teenagers to be under Tsukiko's command than her own sister's command, rightfully so. "No need to apologize," Tsukiko spoke up, waving her hand in a gesture of dismissal after Senhime gave her a polite bow. "This is nothing I haven't done before." Hell, even since she joined the Jiyutai she had taken control over missions and taken it upon herself to make whatever squad she was in suit her tastes. Tsukiko never attempted to hide her experience from her comrades. The population of the Jiyuna no Guntai were mostly teenagers and young adults. They mostly lacked experience with these kinds of military operations. Their leadership is earnest but still green and they have yet to make any real progress towards their goals.

But Tsukiko planned on fixing that.

Before she had any time to go over the mission details in her own head, one of the kids she was going to be leading decided to ask Senhime further questions. Akumako had already taken her squad out of the room, which made Tsukiko expect most of the immaturity would've left with the girl but it seemed that wasn't quite so. The Commander handled Takashi's inquisition and his subtle attempt at insubordination rather decently, though Tsukiko personally would've been a bit harsher if the boy had taken that tone with her. Regardless it seemed like an apt time to explain to Takashi, and everyone else still present, exactly what Senhime was talking about. "Boys," she spoke up, in reference to Takashi and Kazuki, "Leave the planning to me. We have some things to go over before we even think about setting foot in Amegakure. Don't get ahead of yourselves."

Now she specifically directed her attention to Takashi. "If we're going to be a cohesive unit then there will be no tolerance for stupidity or mistakes. We have two weeks and I intend to use every waking minute of it to my advantage. So right here and now I'm going to tell you a little something about the man of the hour, Ryuunosuke Hamajo." Tsukiko paused and glanced around, making sure that everyone present was at attention. Even Senhime should've been listening, as this information may be new to her as well as far as Tsukiko could tell. She had no idea what kind of education these kids had but it seemed like they all needed a bit more. "In Konoha we paid close attention to rise to power. He was young then, still a teenager, which made it all the more important to pay attention to what he was doing. He came out of nowhere, no history on the kid, none of the hidden villages had any record of him, and he starts defeating a lot of people. Mainly bandits and rogue shinobi, but he fought some particularly powerful individuals and bested all of them. Every person in the Confederation cabinet is someone who fought him and lost but he spared their life for reasons unknown."

"From the reports we had at the time, we had to peg him as Kage-level, if any of you remember what the Kage were." With a sigh, Tsukiko closed her eyes and shook her head. "We couldn't get any specifics on his combat details, but it was very apparent that none of us were equipped to deal with him until it was already too late. I'm not a gambler so I would say that if Ryuunosuke himself shows up during our attack, we will retreat immediately. S-class missing-nin were killed at his hands with ease, and I don't think it's a stretch to assume he's grown stronger over the past decade. He's probably in his prime right now, if not just past it. It's best to think of him as a non-factor, from a tactical standpoint. If he ever comes into play then there should be no confusion on the subject: we will probably die."

It was depressing and lacked specific details, as Tsukiko was drawing on memories of reports she read years ago, but it got the point across. They needed to know what they were dealing with. "Either way, what we should take into consideration is Aoi Fuegushi..." Tsukiko opened her eyes finally and looked to the floor. There was a brief moment of silence from her, but after a few seconds she finally looked back up to the rest of her squad. "She is skilled and intelligent. It is safe to assume she won't be actively participating in the security from the start, which makes our lives easier, but she will not hesitate to jump into action. She has a kekkei genkai that revolves around mucus and she is incredibly proficient with it. She will attempt to trap us or force us into a position to be trapped. I worked with her before, long ago, so it is also safe to assume that she will know my tricks once she realizes I am on the scene." Thinking about Aoi was like a trip down memory lane, thinking back to her old life. Only instead of nostalgia she only felt anger and loss.

The older woman clenched her fists as she stood upright and ceased leaning against the wall. "We have time to go over this in greater detail, no need to get ahead of ourselves right now. Naturally we will sneak into Amegakure to scout the area beforehand, so I can get a good bead on where their security will likely be and what the layout of the area is like. Then we'll spend the rest of the time practicing, getting our plan down solid. I already said I won't tolerate any stupidity or any mistakes. If we get compromised for any reason..." Tsukiko had moseyed over to the table and stood next to it. She made sure to stand very close to the seated Takashi, likely uncomfortably close. In a blur of motion she drew her concealed gut knife from the pouch on her left leg and stabbed it deep into the table, making a loud noise and possibly startling those who weren't fully paying attention or those who didn't expect such an aggressive act. "Now, details." Leaving the knife in the table, Tsukiko sat directly next to it on the table and then scooted backwards. She decided that sitting with her legs crossed on the table itself allowed her to face everyone at once without being distant from them, as she would have to be to sit on the other side of the table. "Give me the rundown. What can all of you do, specifically? We're going to take this time to learn what we are, as a squad, before we even think about what we are going to do. Start talking."

---

---

Akumako was quick to realize her show was being stolen. The anger in her face became visible immediately. Though it was subtle, small at first, it quickly grew into something more sinister. She even put down her cupcake, and stared down at the table in anger, a vein nearly bursting in the side of her head. When the two were done speaking, Akumako suddenly looked up, a devilish grin playing on her mouth as she stared down Chimney-boy. “Who's the jonin here?” she said, suddenly being quite serious. Her right hand gripped the handle of her kanabo tightly, tapping it against the bench next to her. An ominous sign if anything.

Suddenly she would lunge up, pushing the entirety of the bench she was sitting up away behind her and giving her space to move. “It's me!” she yelled as she swung the kanabo around in a wide arc, hitting the bottom of the table rather hard. A blast of chakra from her chakra enhanced strength was showcased, and made a compelling point as to why she was the jonin, too.

The table lifted from the ground and surged into the sky, flying at a rapid speed way beyond visual recognition unless you had a sharingan or other dojutsu capable of high-speed tracking. The table stopped only when it hit the top of the ceiling, squishing the candy and cupcakes. A very loud bang! followed that, which prompted Akumako to stop grinning so devilishly and staring down the boy, to exchange her vision with the table above them.

“Oh right. Those were the explosive tags I was gonna set off when we were done eating. Hm. Well, that spoiled the surprise!”

With the explosion her attention (of which the span was already short) shifted to the explosion and then back to the two chunin in front of her. Her rather evil look had dissipated immediately and she faced to May-ma again. “No, nee-chan says if every objective requires a death, we'll be out of an army soon enough. I know I can do this alone, too.. but then what is the point? We need to show we are capable, not that we can do things. Anyone can do things. A dog can destroy that statue. It's about showing that we're organized enough to pull it off without any deaths.”

The words sounded remarkably intelligent for such a dumb girl, but she quickly rectified it by pulling out a small notebook from her inner shirt. She quickly opened it and read through it, reading three pages in rapid succession. “Hm, yep. It says right here. Exactly how I said it. Nee-chan told me!”

BANG! The table clattered down in front of them again and looked rather.. broken. Akumako looked rather unfazed by it all. Her expression barely changed at all as she kept staring at May-ma and sometimes switching her gaze to Chimney as she spoke. Some of the shinobi nearby looked over, but as they saw that the notorious trouble-making child Akumako was standing by, they quickly dismissed it as 'something Senhime would fix later.'

“So-so-so-so.... hmm. But maybe you had a point. I've only got a few jutsu. The three nerd basic jutsu that all the nerds known, and then the chakra enhanced strength. My sister says it's just my gift from Gyuki. I think it's because I'm really cool so Gyuki said I should be cool enough to have this jutsu. Either way, it's really cool and I can smash people really hard with my kanabo. So, May-ma, please be careful with your mercury, because 'killing your superior' isn't something that looks good on your documents, right?! Ha-ha! Imagine that. Hey, Seichiro, what about you? What can you do?”

Seichirō couldn't process what led to the ensuing chaos fast enough. All he could recall was sensing a change in Akumako's body language and then a loud bang erupting from the ceiling, leading him to believe they were being assaulted, and rightfully so. He bolted out of his seat and rapidly took a defensive stance, his right hand reaching for Yin which was sheathed on his back. There was a brief moment of horror on his part as he felt his torso and crotch area had gotten moist, deceiving his brain into thinking he was bleeding. That was quickly exhaled through a sigh of relief once he was positive that the moisture came from the cupcakes that got splattered all around.

It had to be seen to be believed, but during her tantrum, Akumako actually began making sense and Seichirō couldn't help but agree with all her points, so much so that he momentarily suspected he was under a genjutsu. He was proven wrong once she revealed that it was actually something she memorized. The teen Roga let out a sigh, a mix of exasperation and relief surging his body. It was beyond him how she could pull off crazy stuff like that while keeping a straight face. So far, his prevailing theory was that she was born a couple of months earlier, prematurely so to speak. Explained her erratic behavior fine, and it had the added bonus of justifying her small build. As she continued with her rambling, Seichirō carefully picked all the bits of cake from his white t-shirt and some out of his sweatpants. He was thankful that he was wearing his downtime clothes. His battle attire is a bitch when it comes to washing it. He paid close attention to what Akumako was saying, or else he would've missed the part when she asked him about his strengths.

"Akumako..", he uttered, his head hanging low as he searched for more stained areas on his front. He opted to drop the suffix. If she was smart enough to see through his bullshit, then it was time for him to be blunt..but not hostile. It was a very sound decision, considering that he was handling someone who was ready to set up explosive tags for the sake of theatrics.

"..let's not do this again. " He redirected his sight back to her, this time in the form of a scowl. He was somewhat pissed off at her theatrics, but he was also a Roga. His spinning wheel of emotions didn't have many options in it.

"As for what I can do, my clan's kekkei genkai is called Entotsu. It's the ability to turn body parts, individually or collectively, into smoke." With that said, Seichirō raised his palm up. In a moment's notice, the hand turned into small puff of smoke. It looked like usual smoke, however upon closer inspection it had a somewhat dark brown hue to it that also made it easy to mistake it for dust.

"But onto the important things." He threw a look at Maema, his hand casually reverting back to it's organic form. "I'm assuming you can do concentrated attacks with your Mercury release? It's a valuable ability, don't get me wrong, but there will be a huge crowd of people during Hamajo Day, especially surrounding the statue." He drew memories from his last trip to Amegakure, which was around two years ago. His mother forced him to join her and his cousins during the celebration, much to his dismay. "We cannot allow to accidentally lay waste on civilians, even more so considering the nature of the mission." Seichirō had no idea what label Senihime gave to the Hamajo Day operation, but he knew it was a publicity stunt. If done right, it would boost public support for the Jiyutai and force The Confederation to take them seriously. He was still unsure whether the latter was a good or bad thing.

He looked back at Akumako, though what he was about to say was of importance to both parties. "If you guys don't mind, I'll take it upon myself to formulate a plan. I still need to see what you're capable of, but I think I got a glimpse of that. ", he casually kicked one of the shattered wooden planks in Akumako's direction. "I'm not underestimating you. I'm simply boasting. My clan's been the underdog in every fight they've participated. They've had to deal with external threats way beyond their comprehension, and they've survived. Sure, they're decimated now, but that's a story on it's own and it's totally unrelated to the point I'm trying to make."

His mouth curved upwards involuntarily as he shot a glance at the destroyed ceiling. Back in Konoha, he never had the guts to take charge of the teams he was assigned, but he felt that his expertise was truly needed. Akumako was as insightful as a brick wall. Maema seemed very...not interested. Unless Senihime decided to get into micromanagement, he was their only hope. In spite of totally butchering his speech, Seichirō was proud of himself for taking initiative. And there was no going back now.

"My point is; I can spearhead this. My clan's become capable of making plans out of necessity. As you had just seen earlier, our kekkei genkai is really not helpful if it all boils down to a confrontation, so we make do with what we have. I can talk with Tsukiko-sama regarding her approach and we can coordinate with the perimeter security team. We have two weeks to prepare ourselves. I'd wager they're enough.", he finished, his eyes alternating between Kuko and Maema. He was certain that Kuko had spaced out at some point, but he didn't care. He was more interested in seeing if Maema was on board, believing him to be the more reasonable one. The prospect of conversing with the former Jonin commander of Konohagakure was a daunting task on it's own, but Seichirō figured that as long as he remained professional, she wouldn't shove a blade through his throat.

Takashi sighed internally as he realized that the intent of his complaint was misconstrued to make him look like an uppity idiot, listening to the Commander's response with an attentive air about him. He did notice the edge to here voice as she called him a hatchling, but it was something that he was already very much aware of. He didn't think himself to be overly strong in combat, and he knew that he had very, very big weaknesses that could easily be taken advantage of. This wasn't a matter of pride, however, but a matter of symbolism. Before he could speak out his thoughts on the matter, however, the Bear Trap stepped in to lay down the law, reinforcing the fact that Hamajo was a dangerous man(Yeah, no shit.), and that facing him would be their death. After that, she talked about this Aoi lady, whom Tsukiko seemed to now personally if her body language was anything to go by. The way she stiffened ever so slightly with anger made him wonder if she was a former teammate or even student of the older woman.

Whatever the reason, once Tsukiko began making her way over to him, Takashi instantly knew that the woman was going to try and intimidate him by doing something rather sudden. That being said, knowing that something was going to happened didn't always stop it from working, because the sight of a very large knife being stabbed into the table uncomfortable close to him still made him flinch ever so slightly. He moved his chair away from her a bit, not wanting to risk having said knife planted anywhere more important then the poor table. However, before he could muster up the voice to actually respond to her, the plain girl surprised him by going into a tangent about freedom and whatnot, causing Takashi to quite drastically change his opinion of the girl. This change also became slight fear as he saw what she did with the woman's knife, letting out a long whistle as he mentally reconsidered the benefits of pulling pranks on someone who could do something like that at a moments notice.

Once she had finished, Takashi couldn't help but give a round of applause, giving her a thumbs, before turning around to look Tsukiko in the eyes, smiling like the little shit he loved to be. While he was still terrified of the woman, like he was he going to let himself be shown up by acting like a timid field mouse in comparison to Rin. He had the blood of dragon's pulsing through his veins, and he wasn't about to let himself get cowed so easily.

"Before I start, can I start by explaining something: I'm not an idiot, and neither are the Ryuuga. I know that Hamajo is strong, I know that the people under him our strong. I would never in a millions years thing I could beat him as I am now. However, he's still just a man. He ages like a man, he bleeds like a man, and sooner or later, he will die like a man, be it in his bed or on the battlefield. For the Ryuuga, to call someone a dragon is to say they've transcended humanity, that they've become something so great, so monstrous, so powerful, that it will live it's life eternally and unchallenged. Thus, he's a drake, because while he's strong, he has not achieved that level of immortality. I'm sorry for making such a big deal about this, probably bigger than it needs to be, but it's like saying the man's a god in my eyes. It's the height of hubris, and to acknowledge it seems like accepting that he's something greater then human. . . I guess it's just how I see things as a Ryuuga, though, so like I said, it's whatever." Takashi shrugged his shoulders as his tail whipped to and fro behind him. "Also, I'm not going to stop planning and leave everything to you, Umene-san. I will more than likely follow your plans since you're more experienced than I am, but I'm not going to do so blindly. You can try to cow me all you want, but I won't simply stop thinking because you tell me to. I observe, I plan, I strike, I adapt. That's how I fight, that's how I live my life."

Now Takashi was shifting into what Tsukiko probably wanted to hear, if she wasn't thinking about having Rin send a super dagger into his head by now. However, everyone would easily notice from his tone and stare that he was taking a drastically harder stance against the woman then the little toeing of the line that had occurred with the Commander, a clear sign that he didn't see Tsukiko with near as much respect. Add on to the fact that as he spoke, he couldn't help but give a big shit-eating grin to the woman, which was basically his version of baring fangs at her."I'm probably the fastest Chunin of the group, whether it comes down to running, reaction time, agility, and so on and so forth, but unlike Rin, I can't take a lot of hits. I'm a lightning Jutsu specialist and my clan's Kekkei Genkai means that my jutsu hit harder then those of other because of just how focused my body is one Lightning Chakra." As he spoke, more arcs of electricity began to arc from his body for a second, probably shocking Tsukiko a little bit if she was still standing relatively close to him. "I've also got a pretty good knowledge on Fuinjutsu, specifically on explosive seals, of which I have two variants, though it's technically three, as well as the ability to make just regular old storage seals as well. ALl of my seals are charged with Lightning Chakra, of course, and thus are more potent because of it. When it comes to close combat, I rely on my Ninjato and a Kunai, though I do have some taijutsu skill to back it up if need be. I work best when I'm with someone who can cover my biggest weakness, which is Wind Style Jutsu, so I think me and Rin could possibly make for a Good team. She's not the hardest hitter, but if she draws the enemy away from me, she doesn't have to be since I can electrocute them until she sends one of those super heaver kunai into their chest, and if she gets too scuffed up, Kazuki can take a break from providing support to patch her up while I lay down some suppressing fire."

"Not to mention that you're probably some sort of rough and tumble type as well, yes Umene-san. You don't have the look of a ninjutsu specialist, but maybe I'm wrong. Either way, if this Aoi chick shows up then . . . Oh, sorry, I'm supposed to leave the planning to you, right? My bad, I'll be sure to keep my thoughts to myself from now on . . . probably."

Takashi knew he was going well over the line, but the more he thought on the way Tsukiko had been addressing them, the more pissed off he had become. She was exactly the kind of person who he hated to have as a superior, because she only sees things as he way or the highway when dealing with those under her command. "I don't care how much of a bad dea this is, I'm going to prank the hell out of this woman after this mission is done with. Can't believe I was actually going to just let this woman do whatever the hell she wanted.