SHINOBI TALES: CHAPTER ONE - INITIATION

[Nozu-kun]

THREE MONTHS AGO, 10:42 AM
RED CLOUD ESTATES

Laying comfortably wrapped in his blankets that covered his futon, the sleeping boy could see the sun rays from the streaks of light that zoned in on him through his cracked window. Fanning at the morning's procrastination spell that haunted him every waking, the young Yoippari moaned as he opened his eyes. He was dead beat, and needed at least a solid thirty more minutes before he could be considered fully functional. Especially after the training session he had last night with his 'keeper,' waking up was the furthest thing from his mind.

Pulling the sheets off of his face, eyes reddened by sleep deprivation peered across the clouds of drowsiness that his face was hidden within. Spotting the digital clock that sat on his dresser, he noticed the time and jumped up in a hurry.

"Shit!" he whelped, flying across his room and throwing on his usual garb. It was abrupt, but the curse of sleep seemed to be dispelled in an instant. "I'm not going to make it to Koi's shop in time for the free onigiri!!"

A FEW MINUTES LATER, 10:48 AM
OX ISLAND, TRAINING AREA NE16

In the skies drifting across the blue, hoovering across the sea below were the clouds that gave Kumogakure its' namesake. Surround by puffs of white lush, was a shaggy-haired Jōnin standing with a katana fitted comfortably behind his neck with his hands dangling over its' ends.

ENTER:
Akigumo Kazama, age twenty-four, rank: Jōnin, chakra nature: lightning and wind. White unkempt locks fell over his face, shielding his eyes from sight. Today was the beginning of that time of year where Genin were meeting their official sensei and starting their journey to become efficient shinobi of Kumogakure. While standing here, waiting calmly, he reviewed the facts he memorized about each of his students.

'Yotsuki Hisae, Arisato Ein, and...' he cracked an iota grimace as he thought about the last of his students. '...Yoippari Nozu. Interesting. They're quite a peculiar group, I think. I said to be here by eleven.'

[Arisato Ein]

Ein was already up. She had been up for hours before that, the moment the sun peeked over the horizon and gave her enough light to practice her sword strokes. Her mother had added a bit more weight to the bracelets today, and she noticed that her speed had taken a hit for it, but this was only the first day of a new regimen, so within a week's time or so, she would be satisfied with the progress that would be gained. Eyes constantly watched the position of the sun, watching the "time". She had someplace to be, after all.

Finally sheathing her blade, Ein headed into the house to bathe, change clothes and finally be on her way. Today was the first day of something big. She had recently graduated the academy...now she was going to meet her team for the first time. It would be a lie to say she wasn't nervous. She was certainly a different type of shinobi. This, she had known since she was old enough to understand what chakra was, what it did, and what made hers different. She would be able to contribute to her group in a different way, but they would by no means be a Ninjutsu triple-threat. That was just out of the running.

Clean, dressed and grabbing a peach on the way out, she shouted a barely-intelligible message to her parents and took off running toward the training field. She would be a half-hour early. Actually, closer to twenty-six minutes early, due to the effects of the beads around her wrists and ankles. The samurai gauntlet on her left arm clinked lightly as she ran.
Finally reaching Ox Island, she raced across the grounds, eyes peeled for anybody standing around like they were waiting for three of what would soon be Kumogakure's top shinobi.
And she spotted such an individual, white haired with a blade looped round his neck. Cutting a sharp turn, she veered in his direction, her own shimmering white locks blowing in the breeze.

And then suddenly, she put on the brakes. About three and a half feet from the man.
She had gotten good at judging distances. And she always gave herself that extra six inches, just in case. Her smile would light up the sky even if the sun wasn't out.
"I'm here! I'm Ein! I'm here and I'm Ein! Who're you?"

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[hisae]

Hisae did not take much time to get ready for his meeting with the new genin team. He was nonchalant about it, not much excited. Much pride was taken instead, with his own training since graduating the academy. The Yotsuki Ichizoku had helped him greatly with advancing his own abilities aside from the elemental chakra natures, being focused on later in the stages. He laid flat across a roof. Hisae overlooked the training area, Ox Island from afar. The nearby living quarters had a beautiful view of it. His katana and sheath were tightly fastened to his waist by a leather strap, made of cured brown hide. His black robe flapped in the breeze, clouds rolling in. Noticing a girl making her way to the meeting point, he decided to dip too.

Hisae waltzed at his own pace, not paying much attention to the time. All he knew that he would be right behind the girl with timing. Getting within earshot of the tall white-haired shinobi, pretty old looking, assumed to be their teacher, and the girl. A nod to both of them, "Hisae," and a simple introduction followed after.

[Nozu-kun]

Over the top of the rooftops he ventured, until he sudden came to an abrupt halt. Down below him he peered at the onigiri hut that was conveniently located on the corner of the block across the way.

Squatting down with an arm flanking outward, he grinned mightily. Today Koi was giving out a new, free onigiri mix for all those who visited him.

"Hey, geezer!" a scruffy voice grumbled, a black hood worn over their head as they placed a kunai towards Koi's throat. "Gimme all of ya cash and ya special onigiri. Now!!"

Truth be told, Nozu wasn't exactly sure what to do right now. Everything happened so suddenly, he moved upon a whim. Leaping down from the flat light pole he stood upon, he was inche in front of the thief in the next.

ENTER:
Yoippari Nozu, age twelve, rank: Genin, chakra nature: not applicible, other information: he is the jinchūriki of the Nibi bijū. He peaked through his buckled eyes, as he fought something inside.

"Leave Koi-san alone!" he demanded, his whole body began tensing up. Fist balled, his arms bulged, though they remained parallel to his sides. "Or else you'll have to deal with me!"

ONE MINUTE LEFT UNTIL THE MEETING, 10:59 AM
OX ISLAND, TRAINING AREA NE16

"Ara~" he beckoned as he jumped down from the plateau above the three gathered. "I'm here I'm here! With one minute to pare, I'm not late."

A loud sigh ensued.

In a blur of speed the Jōnin rushes forward in a movement that the young Genin's eyes were practically unaware of. Looming over Nozu, with his messy mop dangling over the boy's head, he gazed into his pools of brown with his good eye. He was...disappointed.

This lot just wouldn't do. They wouldn't do, at all. He would confirm this further, though. As he was a reasonable man, he wouldn't completely condemn the three youngster's completely.

"Wrong!" he retorted back in response to Nozu's earlier claim of arriving to Ox Island on time. "You didn't arrive to the isn't until 10:59, and it was 11 AM when you stood before us after all of your theatrics."

His gaze shifted to the other two Genin, a motion that was easy enough to decipher, as the Genin would undoubtedly form a straight line in beside Nozu. "Beside," he grinned, gripping his katana by it's sheathe. "You're only on time if you're five minutes early."

[Arisato Ein]

Ein looked at her new teammates. They seemed like interesting folks. Of course, to her, everything was interesting and exciting and awesome. The one point that she was unable to ignore was that she noticed the other two had some semblance of a blade on their person, as she did.
A team composed of kenjutsu-users... she thought to herself, smiling. That was a bit promising and something of a relief to her. Not only did that potentially minimize the chance of any chakra-related incidents, but perhaps also they all had something they could learn from one another. After all, she was the daughter of a samurai, whose kenjutsu might be a bit different than that used by some shinobi.

"My dad always said something like "If you're early, you're on time. If you're on time, you're late. Never quite understood it, really...if you say it like that, then if you're early, you're late. Which...wouldn't that mean that he was right on time?"
Ein scratched her head a bit. She had brought up the same point to her dad, who then just facepalmed and told her to always be no more than twenty minutes early for an appointment and no less than five minutes early. It was a philosophy that had worked well for her thus far.

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[hisae]

Hisae was pleased with the group, they looked interesting for the most part. It felt weird to be closer to their own sensei's height. They looked like stark contrasts, opposites of each other in more than one aspect. The most obvious was their hair color, a foreshadow for things to come. The girl had a blade on her side, suggesting that she was well-versed in kenjutsu. He was constantly looking to forward his own art and skill, having a second opinion on things and to converse with would be greatly beneficial. She was gorgeous though, no doubt that. Hisae was no doubt on his best behavior. Best way to impress the females, of course.

He turned over his shoulder to see the last genin make his way. The boy looked incredibly tiny compared to himself. Scruffy black hair, decent looking attire, looked like a snot-nosed brat. Then a blur, barely registered by his eye, passed by all of them and into their faces. The jonin had eyes of a warrior who demanded respect, Hisae damn well recognized those type of eyes. Shifting slightly next to Nozu, he simply bowed before rising up again, "Well, now I know. I'll be on time more often, sir," Hisae sort of apologized. It was a courtesy thing with him. He hoped that the jonin was not a pushover.

[Nozu-kun]

Kazama looked upon the three curiously. He could tell a lot about a person by they way they presented themselves. This lot, for lack of a better word, was truly odd.

"At least I didn't show up after eleven," mumbled Nozu under his breath as the Jōnin began to walk a circle around the trio. Hearing Nozu's retort, Kazama stopped in his place, which was right between Ein and Hisae.

He had an idea.

"I need a bit of information about you three before we continue alone." he stated, walking down and hoover over Nozu's shoulder. "Start things off. Introduce yourself to everyone. Also, tell us your hobbies, goals, specialties, or anything that'll help us get a grasp of who you are."

Peering over his shoulder, Nozu grinned with a nod.

"Alright then," he started, stepping froward and turning around so that he faced his sensei and his teammates. "My name's Nozu. I don't really have any hobbies, besides eating and tasting Koi's different mixes of he has at his shop. My goal is to get on the cover on Kaminari JUMP." he admitted with a teethy grin covering his face, his hands prompted against the crown of his head.

"My specialty..." he mused, looking around as he thought. He shrugged upwardly. "I hear I'm pretty good at a lot of things."

"Interesting," the white haired man said, placing a gentle hand onto the shoulder of the only kunoichi in the group. "How about you go next?" he suggested, motioning for Nozu to step back into the line-up.

[Arisato Ein]

This was certainly a good way to get things kicked off. After all, aside from occasionally seeing them around town and in Academy, Ein didn't know either of her teammates. That, and she felt like the confession she had to make was better made early on than dragging it out.
Nozu would go first, and he immediately had her attention. He seemed interesting. A little cocky, but like he could be quite a character. Hisae seemed more even, like the straight-man of the group. And Ein would probably fit somewhere in the middle. Over all, based on appearance, they would seem to be a fairly balanced trio.

Upon feeling Kazama's hand on her shoulder, Ein smiled and stepped forward.
"I'm Arisato Ein!" she said boisterously. "I like to practice kenjutsu, and make different dishes containing bacon. My goal is to become a great swordsman like my dad!"
She pressed a finger to her chin, pondering if there was anything else she wanted to say before the grand reveal. There was much more that she COULD say, but would any of it be relevant to now? Probably not. So linking her hands behind her back, she took a deep breath.
"I'm different. I pretty much bust up any chakra that comes within three feet of me. So...yeah. Ninjutsu and Genjutsu don't work on me at all. But that counts for my comrades, too. So I'll be sure to always stay three feet out from you, in case you want to use your chakra without it getting all torn apart."
Ein nodded and smiled, falling back into line, making sure she was properly distanced from Nozu and Hisae. There...she had issued her warning. She hoped none of them would hate her because of it, or not want to work with her.
"I'm really good with my sword, though." she added as an afterthought. More like a selling point.

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[hisae]

A little questionnaire wasn't bad for the group. They had to get to know each other eventually, but the essentials was necessary for the moment. All of the genin were required to detail their abilities, hobbies, goals etc. The whole enchilada was what the Jonin wanted basically. Hisae leaned on his sword, still in the scabbard. He focused on the details from his teammates, not interested in missing any details. In order to make himself comfortable with them and vice-versa, Hisae had to gasp their character. Both were sorta eccentric, one cocky, the other seemingly abnormal to everything having to do with chakra. So, it was a good mix as far as himself was concerned. He felt like the equalizer, a platform for when their crazies were done, they would come back to earth with him waiting for them.

"Uhh--" pondered Hisae for a moment as his long jet black hair flourished in the wind, "My full name is Yotsuki Hisae. I really like practicing kenjutsu, as my clan has been doing it for centuries. My goal for now is to just learn as much as I can, make myself versatile. I love drawing and working on caligraphy, but keep that on the low, if possible," mumbled the last part, blush stamped on his cheeks. It was not information he liked to tell, but for the sake of being a team, he would have to let down some of his walls. Hisae continued, "I have photographic memory and pretty chill. I think thats it..." said the genin, not having much more to say after that. He made sure to touch on all facets of his own self.

[Nozu-kun]

The white haired Jōnin was able to recall, in great detail, what he read in Ein's file about her ability. She was born with an anomaly, a chakra-nullifying ability that was mainly the purpose of her being placed on this very team with her teammates.

"How convenient," started Kazama, looking at Ein and then at Nozu, "We have one of the villages jinchūriki and a Genin with chakra nullifying abilities, on the same team. I'm sure you two will developed quite the rivalry." Looking at Ein, Nozu shrugged. Maybe Kazama was right, him and his female teammate could develop some sort of rivalry; he didn't think Hisae would prove as much of an opponent, his poise was sloppy and not fitting of a sword-bearer.

As Ein fell back into the line, and Hisae stepped from it and began his introductions, Nozu scoffed as the boy introduced himself. Dissatisfaction, that was the first word that came to his mind when he heard the boy's namesake. There was no way that punk was from the Yotsuki.

"It seems like we have two members from the Yotsuki clan present, also." interjected Kazama while Hisae wrapped up his introduction. "I'm curious to see you two's similarities."

"Nani?" Nozu quipped instantly, "He's a liar. He's not from the Yotsuki clan. I've never seen him before; besides, there's no way he's from my clan. Look at his poise, Suiyo-sensei wouldn't let anyone from our clan call themselves a ninja with that kinda form."

[Arisato Ein]

Well, no one seemed to have a problem with what she had said. That was a major relief. Ein was sure that there would at least be some questions, perhaps some degree of opposition to having her on the team. But not a word. It made Ein smile just the slightest bit. The questions and opposition might come later, perhaps after the first accidental contact, the first chakra 'incident'. But for now, she would have this moment. This milestone. With herself and Nozu and Hisae...and Kazama.

When Kazama referred to Nozu as a jinchuriki, she turned slowly toward him, a puzzled look on her face.
"A jinchuriki? A chakra construct?" she said, her eyes not leaving her new teammate. she had heard a little bit about the biju and jinchuriki from her parents, particularly in the stories they told about times past. But she never thought she would get the chance to so much as meet one, much less end up on the same team. But that would pose an interesting future for them. Someone with all the chakra in the world, fighting alongside, growing alongside someone with absolutely none at all to contribute to the battle. It was almost as if someone, somewhere was hiding behind a tree and laughing at this little situation.
But Ein didn't mind. As long as they stayed vigilant, there likely wouldn't be any problems.

"Maybe." Ein said with a shrug and a wry grin. "It might be fun to have a rival."
Though she had to wonder how much of a rivalry it would really be. More like just the pair of them trying to one-up one another. She had no desire to fight her teammate. It would be unfair. To him.
But it would seem there might be another more interesting rivalry brewing. Apparently, Nozu and Hisae were some kind of relatives? Nozu didn't seem too accepting of the news, and Ein watched the pair of them with interest, waiting to see what was going to happen next. No matter...she was going to be the best of this little threesome, anyway. She would carry these embittered cousins or brothers or whatever to safety and finish out the battle, herself.

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[hisae]

Hisae turned to Ein's direction, her smile brightening his own day. It was absolutely beautiful, a small smirk being the reality. It must be difficult not having chakra at your disposal. She had the art of kenjutsu to compensate for her lack of long-range capabilities, but it was a foreign idea to Hisae. Being used to combining ninjutsu and kenjutsu with his own combat style, it was a dilemma he could not fathom. His ears twitched with the mention of a rivalry between the two, Ein and Nozu. As the Jinchurki of the village, it was a burden well-known. Explained by his own parents and hearing stories, Hisae knew about their whole thing, possessing incredible reserves of chakra and simply a step above every other shinobi. No matter their age, they were fierce in their own right.

A mention of a rivalry because they came from the same family, only received a raised eyebrow as a response. Hisae did not have plans to entertain the idea based solely that they were from the Yotsuki. If he would be his rival or even considered respectable, it would be his skills as a shinobi and not lineage. Though, being insulted by the runt wasn't appreciated. "Your right about him, from what I heard. But then again, I do not find it the proper situation for proper decorum, Nozu. Iji-sensei said there is a time and place for everything," replied back Hisae, rather nonchalant. He had a dull expression on his face, yet a stern stare that demanded attention was his only visible sign of retaliation. Yawning, his lanky frame stretched as his back arched. "Anywho, whats the next?" he asked, looking at Kazama.

[Nozu-kun]

"Iji-sensei was failure, and is ranked as the elementary instructor." chuckling, he dismissed Hisae's response with a yawn. "I guess that's why you stand like such a loser."

"Now now boys," said Kazama, stepping in between the two Genin. "Play nice."

---

FOUR DAYS LATER, 8:30 AM
TOWN COMMONS

"Now that you're all here," the Jōnin began as a middle-aged man with an apron worn across his waist walked up towards the team as they stood by the bench area known as the 'town village commons.'

"Today you have a mission. Saburo-san," he said directing the three Genin's sights to the round-about man that now stood beside Kazama with a smile. "Has hired you to help him set up his new shop, and to act as his security to manage and protect his new merchandise so that it doesn't get damaged or stolen."

"Ara...." groaned Nozu, wiping the sleep from out of his eyes. "What exactly do we gotta do?"

Chiming in with a step, "I have several dozen boxes that need to be unloaded, organized, and stocked. I also need you guys to help me advertise a little too. This is my new shop, and I hope to be getting tons of business by the end of today." His index spiked up instantly, the old man had another thought. "Also, I really need you three to make sure you keep an eye out. Some of the other shop keepers don't want me to open a shop here, and I've had numerous sabotage threats in the past couple of days, which is why I hired you guys instead of civilians."

"There you go," he said throwing up two fingers and waving goodbye. "You three have your orders. I'll be back later to check on things."

[Arisato Ein]

Ein was excited about the prospect of their first mission. So much so that she opted for NO armor that morning. Not even her usual gauntlet. She chose her favorite wakizashi...the one with the orange hilt and scabbard and the cloud charm.

She watched as Kazama gestured in the direction of their upcoming endeavor. Stocking, advertising, security...that all sounded A-okay with Ein.

"I can take care of the advertising." she offered, stepping forward. "It will give me a good chance to keep an eye on everybody in the area and intercept if anybody tries to start trouble if you guys are working inside."

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[hisae]

With the kunoichi taking the easiest job, the more troublesome one was left to Nozu and Hisae. Seeing that there already was confrontation between the two, Hisae played to his favor. Nozu came off as highly hostile, much pride in the Yotsuki and somewhat a need to prove something always. Hisae found it troubling and unnecessary for a variety of reasons, but decided to give it no more thought.

"I'll do whatever is left, which I think is the boxes themselves," said Hisae. Stretching his arms and a few quick leg stretches, he was prepped for some hard labor. Having worked out, it wouldn't be too much of trouble. Although, he did watch for everyone that passed by. Ein couldn't do it all by herself. A glance at the runt before getting to work, Hisae didn't have high expectations for him. Jinchurki or not, attitude ruins everything.

OOC : PC problems and internet. My bad :/

[Nozu-kun]

Scoffing, the young Yoippari shook his head as walked over to Ein.

"I guess I'll help you with the advertising since the big shot over here said he'll handle the boxes." His gaze shot over to Hisae. Truth be told, he was starting to not like he kid due to the vibe he was giving off. No words were needed, although it was apparent in the kid's tone that he was judging and underestimating Nozu for some reason. What annoyed Nozu more was the look Hisae wore on his face when he spoke. A look of superiority, a look that made Nozu feel like the kid thought he was better than he was. He always hated that look, he saw it frequently when he was growing up; hell, he was even told multiple times that he couldn't even call himself a real person because considered him to be a beast. A demon. Those words never shook his spirit back then and they wouldn't do so now.

Not many disliked him, to his knowledge, but those that did and showed so, he disliked. To him, they were scum. Petty little pieces of shit that he scrapes off the bottom of his shoes.

"Oi," he called to Saburo, the client, "Do you have any fliers ready, so we can start posting those around the place?"

"Oh yes," the old man nodded, "Let me go get those for you."

As the man disappeared into his shop, Nozu turned to Ein. "Okay," he started, stretches his arms out by his sides. It was the morning, and he'd only been up for like twenty minutes so he was still pretty much waking up.
"You took the lead on this, so how do you wanna do things?" he asked, completing his stretching by cracking his knuckles and his inner palm.

[Arisato Ein]

Ein smiled and nodded in response to Nozu's suggestion. It would be good to have two pairs of eyes keeping watch on what was going on around the area. Especially with possible allegations of sabotage afoot.

As the man went to get the flyers, Ein pondered for a moment how to make this work. Fingers to her chin, she furrowed her brow.
"Well, I guess if you want to post them, I can just hand them out. Or vice versa. Either way, we'll both be out there, keeping an eye on everything around the area. One of us will stay closer to the shop to back up Hisae in case anything goes down, and the other will be posted out not too much further, just to get a jump on any approaching trouble. "
Ein looked around the area, gauging just how far out the traveler should be going.

"We can even alternate on the positions...I'll post for a bit and you hand, and then I'll hand and you post. That way, there's two vantage points and neither position gets stale to the person doing it."

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