[center][h2][color=0072bc]Izumi[/color][/h2][/center]

[color=0072bc][i]Great, as if this thing wasn't hard enough to clean.[/i][/color] Annoyance and discomfort quickly flushed over Izumi's face as dirty water seeped into her black Shōzoku, chilling the girl's skin as her whole body was drenced. The young kunoichi pressed herself down to the mud beneath the sitting water in the rolling field of rice, using the muck-ridden water as cover for her position. When she had heard the metal of arms clanking ahead of her, she had tried her best to gracefully dive into the water, so as to make as little a splash as possible - any noise at all and she'd probably have a few arrows in her back by now. Izumi lifted her head to the surface, only enough to let her eyes gaze about at the road ahead.

Earlier that day, there had been quite a bit of rainfall that had covered this region of the countryside, and above her, dense gray clouds still loomed across the sky, dimming the area and making everything feel pretty gloomy. Izumi looked up into the air, searching for the sign she needed. She saw the small glint of metal far above, and the black beacon that carried it. Kuro, her best friend - the night heron that she had saved not too long ago, and nursed to health. Their bond was unbreakable, and Kuro proved incredibly useful, too - the constant flashing of his fake metal talons signalled trouble ahead, and that Izumi had best lay low.

[color=0072bc][i]I suppose I could try and take a look... Better hunt for some cover.[/i][/color] Izumi glanced around - what was she thinking? The small stalks and leaves of rice poked up in dense rows that spread on for acres, leaving no possible location for her to hide and dry off, other than right next to the road, which was conveniently quite a few feet above her, so she could at least kneel down - albeit, uncomfortably, but considering her circumstances, it wasn't like she could get less comfortable. She waded herself closer to the edge of the road, trying to keep her eyes the only part of her body above the surface. She scouted about for Kuro's location - good, he was still a ways further down the road, which means whatever it was that she should stay away from was, too. She finally got to the bottom of the small ledge and pushed herself along the path, trying her best to close the distance between her and her adversary.

When she got close enough to the clanking of armor and weapons, she tried to listen in on how many there were. From their pace and footsteps, Izumi figured that there couldn't be more than about 3 of them, walking along the road. But now, the real fun began, and she slowly and quietly rose up from the water to try and take a peek.

[@Halvtand]