For Our Sake [Plot]

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Kawaguchi Daishin & Ren Natsumi WORDS. 301 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. --

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR Tap, tap, tap... the sound of a finger hitting a wooden desk impatiently. Daishin leaned over his office desk, a letter clutched in his left hand. His right arm lay outstretched on the table, and his right index finger repeatedly tapped against its surface. How long would it take Natsumi to answer his summons? His assistant usually stayed in the office longer than he did, diligently pouring over important documents, calculating budgets, or tackling other issues of administration. Most likely, Natsumi received Daishin's summon while dealing with such another important matter. However, what Daishin had to tell her trumped all other tasks. The ANBU he dispatched understood as much and would convey the Hanchou's urgency accordingly. His thoughts still dwelled on his recent negotiation with Zaraki Inari, the S-rank Nukenin who managed to infiltrate the village in order to broker a deal with Daishin. However, the crafty leader of Takigakure had his own plans, which he managed to convince Inari to partially help with. Now, all Daishin had to do on that front was wait for information...and perhaps arrange for ANBU to trail the Nukenin at a distance. They would pursue him anyway, as per usual Nukenin status. Unfortunately, Daishin would not receive updates until Inari decided to approach him in person, which he could not do without taking the necessary precautions. After all, Daishin needed to put on airs that they still considered Inari an enemy of the state. All this and more he needed to relay to his assistant. "...Can't even focus," Daishin mumbled, placing the paper down on the table while swinging around in his seat. He rested his elbows on the table-top and laced his fingers, resting his chin on the back of his hands. Daishin glared at the door, anxiously awaiting Natsumi's tardy and rushed entrance...

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[Ren Natsumi]

[atrb=border,0,true] maybe life is nothing more than a curse inside the blessed Takigakure was a small village, especially when compared to the Great Five. As such, each member of the village had to pull more than their own weight in order to keep the village relevant in the grand scale of things. When the Hancho's summons came, Natsumi was currently in the middle of an interrogation. Although she was primarily the Hancho's assistant, her talents were sometimes required... elsewhere. As the village's foremost expert on assassination techniques, Natsu knew human anatomy quite expensively. She knew how to inflict the most pain with the least effort... how much force was needed to cripple the average man... and where she should aim her attacks to inflict more-than-lethal injuries to ensure a clean kill. As such, she was very adept at making others talk. The man hunched over at her feet had been a somewhat notable Nukenin from Taki, and it was Natsu's intent to uncover the extent of what knowledge he'd shared with whom. It would have been easy to simply get an ANBU to probe the man's mind... and that would still happen. But she wanted to have a bit of 'fun' with him first. Thin trails of blood ran down her forearm with thick blotches coating her hands as she stared down at the man with her usual calm expression. She was just starting to lean down, hand stretching towards his collar... just when an ANBU opened the door to the room. "I thought I asked to not be disturbed-" The ANBU's head tilted down a bit, likely looking at the injured man before looking back up at Natsu, "Sorry, ma'am... but Hancho Kawaguchi has sent for you." Natsu made a small annoyed sound and picked up a stained rag from the tray beside her, wiping what she could off of her arms while gesturing towards the nukenin, "Finish it." The ANBU nodded slowly as Natsu moved past him, leaving the room... A short time later, Natsu found herself in Kawaguchi's office, closing the door behind her before moving her hands behind her back to hide the stains that she wasn't able to get off on such short notice. "I trust this is important...?" Although her tone was level, she wasn't upset with Kawaguchi, or questioning his orders. It was a genuine question, although she already knew the answer. i will fight this bloody war with every strangled breath

386/2500 words, made by akemi of btn

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Kawaguchi Daishin & Ren Natsumi WORDS. 761 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. blah blah blah !

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR Just when Daishin's hands started feeling uncomfortable with his chin pressed down upon them, the door to the Hanchou's office opened. Natsumi entered calmly, concealing the blood stains she could not remove from her sleeves. Daishin did not recognize the small splotches of crimson red since his mind dwelled on other matters. Even if Daishin did notice, he would not reprimand Natsumi for it. After all, Daishin often delegated more gruesome and cruel matters to her. Natsu exhibited excellent capability as an assassin, and her consistent diligence meant that she could always be relied upon to take care of matters that, while important, the Hanchou could not attend to himself. However, the matter of his negotiation with Inari required both of their attention and involvement. "Hmph. You know better than to ask that. Anyway, I won't inflate my explanations here. It's important that you listen more closely than usual, because this is quite a delicate and significant situation." The Hanchou paused to let his warnings sink into Natsumi's mind. She would need to be more attentive than ever. "...I just had an impromptu reunion with Zaraki Inari. He managed to infiltrate the village and approach me directly. He brought with him all the Ryo he stole during his flight, and expected that to clear his name. If that worries you, relax, for I reject his initial offer. Instead, after a short back and forth, we managed to form an agreement. We rightfully keep the Ryo he returned to us, and in exchange offer to pay it back to him with potential interest--if he locates, identifies, and records information on all Bijuu and Jinchuuriki, then reports that information back to us. This means that he remains officially branded an S-rank Nukenin, but in actuality is more of an...associate. His status as a defector enables us to play ignorant of his efforts, despite myself having ordered them. Don't worry--if at any point he attempts to prematurely seize back the money he returned, the deal is off and he'll be hunted down without a second chance. " It was a lot of very important information to suddenly take in. Daishin silently brooded over the event once again in his mind, letting Natsumi collect her own thoughts on the story that her boss had just recounted. Daishin hoped that his assistant understood his larger aims behind the agreement. "This is a top-secret matter. Only myself, you, the elders, and various captains of the Jonin and ANBU will know. I trust you know that, as a holder of our village's top security clearance, you know how to abide by it," he remarked sternly, rendering the situation ever clearer to her. "Now, before I introduce another interesting piece of information, any questions for me?"

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[Ren Natsumi]

[atrb=border,0,true] maybe life is nothing more than a curse inside the blessed The corner of her lip curled up in the slightest of smiles at her Lord's comment. Of course she knew better than to question him, but it was simply an ingrained habit. Besides, some small part of her like being reprimanded by Kuchigawa in a minor way. A major screw up would be taken very seriously, but something like that? She found it amusing for one reason or another. But when the Hancho made it clear that there was a more important matter at hand, her smile dropped as she focused on the man in front of her. When Kuchigawa started to explain, she did predictably tense up- that fact that she hadn't heard of Inari's capture meant that it hadn't occurred. But the alternative was... what? That Kuchigawa brokered a deal between the village and that criminal? That would be... traitorous at best. But as he continue to explain, she did relax... a little bit. He did say that he only rejected the 'initial' offer... Her eyes narrowed slightly as he revealed his plan for the White Fox, but Natsu was still uneasy. Unlike Kuchigawa, she wasn't quite so ready to take a traitor at his word. She was briefly entertaining the idea of stealing the money herself to frame Inari and have him hunted down as he deserves, then return the Ryo as if she'd looted it from his smoldering corpse. Her head listed to the side slightly as the Hancho continued to talk... that last comment of his made it fairly apparently that doing anything of the sort would be heavily punished. She didn't want to damage the trust that he had in her either, despite her misgivings about the Fox. Natsu closed her eyes and sighed softly, shaking her head a little, "Where did you encounter the Fox? If it was in the village, how was he able to enter undetected?" Her eyes would slowly open as she gave the Hancho a cold stare, but her gaze wasn't focused on him, "I'll have a word with our sentries..." i will fight this bloody war with every strangled breath

736/2500 words, made by akemi of btn

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Kawaguchi Daishin & Ren Natsumi WORDS. 1,183 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. plots in plots

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR An S-rank Nukenin infiltrating the very village he defected from would unnerve most shinobi, and Daishin expected as much from his assistant. However, he also recognized Natsumi's faint distaste with how he handled the situation. Aside from his criminal status, Inari had all the skills required to complete the first stage of Daishin's plan. Perhaps Natsumi could not immediately understand why Daishin wanted information on all Bijuu and Jinchuuriki, and moreover, why he entrusted Inari with bringing that information back to him. Obviously, maintaing knowledge of Bijuu and Jinchuuriki was a great priority of the Hidden Villages. But, unlike the others, Daishin desired a change in the status quo of Bijuu power balances. Using Inari to obtain the necessary information only constituted the first-step in the Hanchou's dangerous, long-term scheme. Natsumi did not need to know the inner-workings of the Hanchou's mind and, as his subordinate, she could not directly chide Daishin for his decision. Thus, he refrained from discussing her potential disagreement, instead preferring to answer her simple and specific question. "He interrupted an evaluation test of mine at training ground 1-A. He managed that, alongside infiltration, thanks to his Hiraishin no Jutsu. And no, don't bother punishing our sentries. In fact, pretend like nothing ever occurred. If Inari subdued any of our men before being recognized, keep it that way. As I just said, this is top-secret. The fewer men aware of Inari's movements and reformed status, the better. Is that clear?" Daishin looked up at his standing assistant, his chin resting again on the back of his hands. In that instance, the seriousness and intensity conveyed by the Hanchou's stare was unmistakable. He would not risk a failure of his plan so quickly after forming it, and Natsumi had to understand that more thoroughly than any other Takigakure ninja. Daishin pushed down on the table with his hands, stood up from his bent position in his office chair, and walked closer to his assistant. He wanted to keep the next tidbit of information only between them, so he decided to speak extra softly and carefully. "Natsumi, Inari also mentioned an 'organization' that he needed to fund. If this organization proves a threat to Inari's completion of our agreement, then we need information on it. We may also need to subsequently terminate it. It may be too risky to inform any ANBU who tail him, since they won't know of Inari's new terms. Instead, I may charge you with the task of uncovering the information... Think you could do it?"

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[Ren Natsumi]

[atrb=border,0,true] maybe life is nothing more than a curse inside the blessed Kuchigawa was right. She would never disobey his orders, either to his face or behind his back. There might be the odd comment spoken against some plan or idea of his, but those were very few and far between. But she wasn't stupid, either. Just from the information given, she knew that the Hancho planned on stealing the Bijuu right from under the Great Five's noses. It was a scheme that she couldn't bring herself to disagree with- with the war against Iwa whittling down what little resources they had, they needed something big to bring themselves back on top. A game changer. A squad of Jinchuuriki would be just that, but could they control such a thing? But when Kuchigawa addressed her directly, she clicked her tongue softly. His tone annoyed her, although she would never admit it. She understood the benefit in keeping Inari's status and infiltration a secret, but still. Letting an S-rank Nukenin run free with the village's blessing just didn't sit right with her. Not that anyone but perhaps Nori, herself, and the Hancho were even capable of doing anything about it at the moment. And she doubted that Nori or herself would be able to put Inari down for good on account of that accursed jutsu of his. Still, she swallowed nervously when the Hancho rose, tilting her head up a little as he walked up to her. When he revealed the second part of his plan, Natsu hesitated. Infiltration wasn't exactly one of her strong suits. The woman tended to wear her heart on her sleeve, letting her intentions be known to anyone who had the decency to ask. Or simply pay attention. But even though Natsu's devotion to the village was absolute, there was one small reservoir of true hatred that she felt for the village. The fact that serving the village had meant killing her own brother in cold blood. The incident had hardened her heart, causing her to suppress her emotions for fear of being hurt again. If she were to let that passion run free, if only for a moment, she could surely convince Inari that she would be willing to betray the village for him- if it came to that. But ideally, he would never know that she was there. "It's not a matter of whether I think I can or not. If you wish for it to be done, then it will be done. There's nothing more to it than that." i will fight this bloody war with every strangled breath

1154/2500 words, made by akemi of btn

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Daishin & Natsumi WORDS. 1,608 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. The last name is Kawaguchi, not Kuchigawa xD

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR Daishin had expected Natsumi's response to sound steadfastly loyal. As his hard-working assistant, she had a reputation for prioritizing work over anything else. And yet, while Daishin felt flattered by her response, he also felt slightly uneasy. Because retrieving information on Inari's organization amounted to a mission of incalculable uncertainty, Daishin would only assign the task to a shinobi sufficiently confident of navigating through the uncertainty. Natsumi exceeded Daishin's desires for a diligent, committed ninja, but she possibly lacked the patience or subtlety the job required. Daishin trusted her more than most of his village and included her among the very select few who knew of Inari's recent infiltration. But, perhaps, waiting to investigate the organization until they had a clearer lead and direction would be better, rather than simply tossing resources into the air. "As expected. However, I'll deliberate for a bit longer. After consulting with the elders and appropriate ANBU heads, we'll see what our best move is. Stay alert, in case I assign the task to you. In other words, don't get too ingrained in case-work, so that you can remain flexible." With that more delicate matter momentarily settled, Daishin walked back toward his desk and sat in his chair. Going over the recent event seemed to set the relative calm of Takigakure and its leader on edge. However, what Daishin really needed most of his resources for was the war currently going on with Iwagakure and Sunagakure. The Hidden Waterfall only remained standing because of its close alliance with Kusagakure, a minor village of similar status, and the backing of Konohagakure, the strongest of the Five Great Nations. Inari's current threat paled in comparison to the two Great Nations destroying Daishin's hidden village. The Hanchou leaned forward, elbows on the table's surface and fingers laced in the same position as before. "While Inari certainly poses a threat to our village if unchecked, I hope our recent agreement allows us to divert our resources to where they are needed. If Inari provides the information discussed, he could even indirectly support our war effort. However, this war has not been kind to us. Where it not for the Leaf, our village would no doubt be in a state of disrepair and ruin. We need more resources--ones that do not put us directly under aggression by either the Earth or Wind countries, resources that enable a higher degree of economic independence. I will continue to think of possible solutions and alternatives to our current situation. Natsumi, do you have anything new to report?"

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[Ren Natsumi]

[atrb=border,0,true] maybe life is nothing more than a curse inside the blessed "So, he doesn't think I'm capable..." The fact that the Hancho had reneged when he'd just expressed interest in assigning this mission to her was all the evidence that she needed. Natsu may have been lost as far as certain aspects of human interaction went, but she wasn't dense either. Not that she blamed Kawaguchi or felt any kind of ill will towards him for the choice- even she didn't feel she had the appropriate skillset for that particular task. Although she wanted to be given a chance, she also knew it would likely end in failure for both herself and the village. As such, she felt no need to press the matter further. As she continued to listen to the Hancho's report, the side of her mouth curled down into a slight frown. She couldn't find fault with anything that he was saying, but it didn't make her any happier about any of it. In fact, it made her a little annoyed at a particular Jounin who chose to goof off instead of doing work. But she also felt a small measure of despair, unable to think of any solutions to the particular problem that the Hancho posed. Kiri was currently unaffiliated, and their Swordsmen would be a great boon to the war effort against Iwa and Suna. Additionally, if Iwa or Suna were to sway them to their side, Konoha would find themselves with enemies on all sides of the map as opposed to merely having a western front. Which was something else that annoyed her. Konoha was one of the Great Nations, but with Taki between Konoha and Suna, it meant that they were the ones who took the brunt of the losses while Konoha remained sitting pretty. But, there were more important matters to address at the moment. "No, nothing significant has changed to my knowledge. However..." Natsu raised her left hand slightly and looked down at her palm before clenching her fist, feeling the fingers twitch slightly from an involuntary movement. She'd been using the Chidori so often that it was starting to have an affect on her body. "Since I took over interrogations, I've been... experimenting with the Chidori. As you know, I'm the only person in the village who can utilize it properly, but..." She let her hand drop to the side so that she could look at Kawaguchi again, "I've been developing variations of the jutsu that others might be able to use. One of them might be capable of disabling even a Bijuu for a short time if a few shinobi were able to use it in conjunction; and the other maintains the Chidori's killing power while negating most of the risk involved. When I've polished these jutsu, I'm going to look through the village records to see if there is anyone that I can pass them on to. Against Iwa, having more ninja that are capable in Raiton can only benefit us. Even if I'm unable to find others, by utilizing the Shoten, I might be able to restrain a Bijuu long enough for us to subdue it." i will fight this bloody war with every strangled breath

1,688/2500 words, made by akemi of btn

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Daishin & Natsumi WORDS. 2,027 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. --

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR Natsumi's response did not address winning the war or achieving economic independence as Daishin had hoped. Most likely, new developments on those issues required his personal attention and far more time to work out. Rather, his assistant relayed more personal aspirations to him. At first, Daishin felt uneasy about her remark. To what extent Natsumi incorporated her Chidori in interrogations Daishin did not know. Hopefully, she did not outright eliminate victims. Daishin knew that his assistant recognized that obtaining information before the kill took the highest priority, unless the captured victim threatened village security on the same level as Zaraki Inari or any S-rank Nukenin--except, of course, when even an individaul of that threat level could be used as an invaluable resource... However, Daishin's suspicions transformed into immense curiosity when Natsumi mentioned the potential for Chidori to subdue a Bijuu. The Hanchou's eyes widened, staring at her in a mixture of realistic disbelief but idealistic longing. Hearing that such a technique required a team-effort, meaning multiple shinobi capable of using Chidori, sounded both exciting and dangerous. Daishin already highly valued Natsumi as both his assistant and first-rate bodyguard for her mastery of the Chidori. But she also posed a powerful argument: such a high level Raiton technique directly countered much of Iwagakure's Doton technique arsenal. "Tell me more about these developments, Natsumi," Daishin ordered, willingly overlooking her remark on Chidori for interrogation. "You are absolutely right--if we have other shinobi that match your capability with a lightning change in chakra nature, passing on Chidori boosts our overall combat strength, especially against our most formidable enemy. I'd like a report filed on these different variants of the technique, including the benefits and drawbacks of each. This obviously means that you'll have to perform extensive research on your variations. If you're already doing so in your interrogations, and hence why you've made developments in the first place, you have my permission to continue such operations. In the report, I'd also like a list of any ninja you deem sufficient to pass the technique onto. Lastly, I'd like a separate report filed on the variant that can subdue a Bijuu. We'll also have to find some way to test that variant thoroughly. We can discuss that in more detail later, though. Daishin then leaned back in his chair, folding his left leg and placing its foot atop his right knee. "I look forward to your reports. Heh, it seems like the both of us have plenty of work to do..."

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[Ren Natsumi]

[atrb=border,0,true] maybe life is nothing more than a curse inside the blessed When she saw Kawaguchi's reaction to what she told him- specifically his expression... she tilted her head forward slightly, closing her eyes and smiling softly. It was a look with some snugness and pride attached to it- after all, how long had it been since she'd seen the Hancho excited of all things? Especially at something she'd done. "As I'm sure you know, the Chidori is capable of doing more than simply killing. Without force behind it, it merely delivers a debilitating shock. Lately, after a particular incident in dealing with an enemy that I was unable to kill due to his... value" Her voice tailed off for a moment as she shuddered a little. She was, of course, talking about Fukui. Killing him would surely get her in hot water with the Hancho, no matter how badly she might wish to end his stupidity once and for all. When Natsu realized that she'd cut herself off in the middle of the explanation that Kuchigawa had personally requested, she jolted slightly as if she'd been shocked, cheeks flushed slightly from embarrassment, "A-Anyway, chakra is malleable, even after being altered by nature transformation. For the Chidori, I concentrate a large about of chakra into an extremely small area for maximum killing power. But if I were to dispurse it across my entire body... it's killing power would be lessened to almost nothing, but it would disable anyone who came into contact with that field. I'm sure of it." Because of her extensive study into the subject, Natsu knew almost as much about human anatomy as any high ranking Medic-nin. The level of electricity discharged by this particular jutsu should be enough to invoke involuntary muscle spams, rendering the enemy unable to move for a short time. But if it were scaled up to a high enough level, it should be able to disable something like a summon... or a Bijuu. Admittedly she knew little about the Tailed Beast's anatomy, but then who did? As for the rest of Kuchigawa's orders, she simply bowed her head in understanding. But, there was one thing keeping her from simply leaving. She hesitated for a long while, wrestling with herself over whether she should even bother asking... but eventually she looked up again and smoke with a slight shake to her voice, "Hancho Kuchigawa... how do you feel about Fukui? The head of the Genin squad. A-And the Genin too, of course." She obviously added that second half to try and deflect the question a bit, but it was obvious there was more to it than she was letting on. i will fight this bloody war with every strangled breath

2,138/2500 words, made by akemi of btn

[Kawaguchi Daishin]

[atrb=border, 0, true][atrb=vAlign, top] NOTES ! TAGS. Daishin & Natsumi WORDS. 2,274 | 2,500 LYRICS. this is war, 30 seconds to mars. NOTES. blah blah blah !

to the soldier, the civilian, the martyr, the victim. THIS IS WAR "...A chidori field? Yes, that could prove useful. That idea, and others, need more investigation," Daishin mumbled in response to his assistant's remark. He looked forward to what the future had in store for the both of them. These chidori variants, if pushed to their utmost potential, could serve as one of the key ingredients in Daishin's plan for Takigakure supremacy. Regardless of what his village's higher-ups devised, the Hanchou recognized that any plans would require substantial amounts of time. Deliberation and experimentation would see the village through to its goals, rather than rushing to desired conclusions. Natsumi's question surprised Daishin. It seemed uncharacteristic of her to inquire about Daishin's views on another Takigakure Jounin, and even more uncharacteristic to ask for his views on their main genin squad. Moreover, her stutters revealed her nervousness in even asking said question. However, Daishin did not want to make Natsumi uncomfortable, so he replied as if her question was typical. "Fukui, huh? Well...he is a two sided coin. One on side, Fukui is a man capable of achieving desired results. His...unique traits are one of our village's more significant experimental successes, and a welcome addition to our arsenal," the Hanchou commented, referring to Fukui's air vents. "On the other side, however, is his carefree and childish banter, an attitude unbecoming of a Jounin--especially during times of war. Unfortunately, my attention is focused on more important matters than reforming the behavior of one individual shinobi. Why do you ask?"

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