Tool... or something more? (1x1 with Saia Kakaru)

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric cocked his head before nodding slightly. "We can't be certain, but from Zabuza's reaction, that would be right," he said with a slight shrug. Cammy cocked her head. "You said that Kirai was here?" she said to Alric. "She's undercover.. making sure their current client doesn't screw them over, though I'm sure he'll try," he said with a faint smile. Cammy shivered slightly, as did Zabuza. Zabuza glanced at Haku. "The Uzumaki Clan was known for their fūinjutsu, which covers most of what is known today short of the basic sealing methods. Unfortunately the Hidden Village in the Whirlpools or Uzushiogakure no Sato, their home, was wiped out along with all but probably a half dozen members. As far as I know, there are few, if any, left at all," he explained. He only knew what his own sensei had told him of the village, since he himself had been a young boy no older than Haku when the last Shinobi War was going on. He saw the faint smile on Alric's face and shivered; it reminded him of Kisame Hoshigaki's smile, barely restraining bloodlust. I get the feeling that the kid, when he's truly pissed, would probably make a Bijū shiver with fear, he thought.

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Kaosujin Ryu

BUMP

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

Alric's faint smile made her shudder, as she could practically feel the bloodlust rolling off of him in waves. I don't wanna be around when he finally snaps and gives into that bloodlust… Haku thought to herself, gripping her sleeve to make sure she didn't listen to her instincts and run. He was powerful enough as it was; if he ever reached the point where he wouldn't hold anything back, she feared what would happen to Zabuza and herself, along with his sisters. Haku didn't want to be on the receiving end of a bijuu's rage, not from all the stories she had heard about them and the tailed beasts. In an attempt to bring the subject to a less terrifying subject than Alric's rage, she gave a slight cough. "Perhaps we should check in with the brothers; surely the bridge builder came back with body guards, and who knows how much he told them about his situation." she suggested softly, her voice hardly above a whisper.  

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric tilted his head, his gaze flicking to the south as a frown flickered over his face. "Fine with me, though I doubt it matters that the bodyguards might know something's up... they won't know exactly what's up yet," he said carefully, sensing the discomfort he was causing everyone as he focused, burying the animalistic side of him deep within his mind. Zabuza exhaled slowly, surprised he even did so. "Let's go; they said they'd wait in ambush for the old man about a half day's journey outside of Konoha," he said idly as he half turned away. He had the feeling it might not be as easy as expected to get to the old bridge builder.

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

Nodding, she motioned to Cammy and Alric to follow before she took off. Leaping into the trees, she jumped from branch to branch, keeping a brisk pace. Something about Alric still unsettled her, but she hoped that was only his bijuu and not his true self. Glancing towards Zabuza, she hoped he would be able to tell her something more about this whole bijuu thing; as she only understood the bare minimum of what the general public knew, Haku wondered if there was something more that she was missing.

Kaosujin Ryu

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric tilted his head before he darted foward, moving almost as fast as Haku. Cammy darted into the trees, putting her naturally increased agility to good use. Zabuza cocked his head. "I know there are nine Bijū, though where they are, I'm not certain. I know that Isobu no Sanbi, the three tailed Turtle, is within the Mizukage, hence part of the reason I fled Kirigakure; I hear that the Ichibi no Shukaku is in Suna, though I don't know where the Nibi, Yonbi, Gobi, Rokubi, Shichibi, Hachibi, and Kyuubi is," he said to Haku as he kept pace with them. He cocked his head slightly as he saw what seemed to be a reflection of light against a tree. "Seems whoever the bridge builder has is competent," he said dryly.

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

"I see…" Haku replied quietly, trying to notice anything out of the ordinary. "Are… are they really that dangerous, Zabuza-sama?" she asked, hoping Alric wouldn't take offense if he overheard. Noticing the flash of light, she nodded. "He must've made sure to get someone decent. He knows Gatou is out to get him." Stopping at least 75 meters away, she waited in the treetops. From where she stood in the trees, she would be able to see who passed by on the road. Crouching, she ran her fingers over her mask; if the time came, she'd need the mask to fake her identity and allegiance to the Village.

Kaosujin Ryu

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric tilted his head, his eyes narrowing as the pupils dilated. His hand flashed forward, a narrow kunai no wider than an inch from edge to edge near its blade shooting forward and striking the tree by the reflected glimmer. Almost immediately there were two thumps and a few curses as the ninja wire parted like wet silk. Zabuza cocked his head, a chuckle slipping from his lips as Gōzu and Meizu were dragged into the bushes by the scruffs of their necks by Cammy. "I know the stronger ones like Shichibi, Hachibi, and Kyuubi can easily be mistaken for 'natural disasters'... though I heard the Yondaime Hokage supposedly killed the Kyuubi... I doubt that is true, though," he said dryly. Alric cocked his head, snapping his fingers where he balanced several meters ahead and to Haku's left. Almost immediately the narrow kunai shot backwards, spinning end-over-end before landing in his palm where it seeped like liquid into his skin. "Pretty obvious you don't want these two caught," Cammy said idly as she vanished in a burst of smoke, materializing a couple of meters behind Alric; fortunately the slight breeze that had kicked up carried any brimstone odor away from Haku.

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

Haku nodded, grateful that the pair were quick to pick up on things. "Thanks. Since they don't seem like they'll wake up soon, we should take them back to our base. Unless, Zabuza, you wanted to find out what kind of people the bridge builder hired to go against us." she offered, glancing to the elder ninja. The group wouldn't have gone far, not with the old man along, so they had a window of time before they'd miss the group completely. Besides, it wasn't like they didn't know where they'd end up eventually.

Kaosujin Ryu

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric tilted his head, pushing off and darteing closer to the road where he crouched, staring at the dirt. "They're moving cautiously, but fairly steadily. Seems someone heavier waited in the bushes when these two attacked, and clearly it seems there's at least three of them, since one managed to pin their chain to the tree, albeit it took a throwing blade to affix it for certain; at least one of them is wounded, though I don't think the poison took effect strongly enough to weaken him. I smell three males and a female... on top of the bridge builder, who smells worse than a brewery," he said as he pushed off, glancing momentarily at the tree that had a slice in the tree where a shuriken had been and a kunai he'd spotted in the bushes. Zabuza smirked slightly, thinking. Kid's definitely trained by someone in strategy, if not combat, though I'm curious how he managed to see the ninja wire, he thought. He blinked as Alric spoke before landing a few branches away from Haku. I don't think an Inuzuka could manage scents that easily, he thought with surprise. "Let's go; we'll strike near a lake not too far from here," he said dryly. Alric tilted his head as he hefted both Gōzu and Meizu over his shoulders after dropping down to the ground before he pushed off sharply, landing lower in the tree with their added weight, but not seeming bothered by it. "Let's go," he said simply.

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

Nodding, she was about to take off when she spotted Alric pick up both Meizu and Gozu. "I can take one of them…" she offered, even though he seemed unfazed by their weight. As mysterious as he was, Haku couldn't help but admire him; usually she was on guard around people like this, for her and Zabuza's survival. She didn't think too long about why he and his siblings were the only ones to get past her instincts; they still had a mission to complete, and she knew Zabuza was most likely interested in what these guards could do. So far, she was slightly impressed by the one who had pinned the chain to the tree; Alric had impressed her greatly long ago, and still continued to do so. Dropping down next to Alric, she extended her arms in a gesture to take one of the unconscious men.

Kaosujin Ryu

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric shifted Meizu off of his shoulder, his gaze shifting momentarily back to the road. The girl will be the easiest to track, her scent is strong with cherry scented shampoo and mint scented perfume, he thought. Zabuza saw Alric glance back to the road, his expression blank. I'd hate to play the kid in poker; he has a natural skill at a blank face, he thought. He cocked his head slightly; it was obvious to him that Alric was independent and used to relying on himself and was cautious of relying on others other than his siblings. He cocked his head as the girl he'd called Cammy vanished in a burst of smoke. He pushed off, heading towards the lake quickly. Alric cocked his head slightly as he pushed off, still hauling Gōzu's unconscious form over his shoulder. "We'll have to be cautious. It's clear whoever the bridge builder has knows how to work together. The shuriken and kunai that pinned their chain to the tree had different scents, so either the shuriken user didn't throw it hard enough or was simply too incompetent to realize that he hadn't pinned the chain securely enough, forcing the other male to assist him by forcing the shuriken deeper into the tree with the kunai hilt," he said quietly to Haku. He had noticed slight cuts on the wrapping of the hilt on the kunai, evidence that the hilt itself had either struck something sharp or had been used like a hammer to drive something with an edge into a surface.

Saia Kakaru

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

exclaim exclaim exclaim
BUMP
exclaim exclaim exclaim

Saia Kakaru

 

[Saia Kakaru]

Taking in Alric's information, she followed him, having no choice in whether she helped him or not. "So it's a team of at least two people who're protecting him. And one of them is still inexperienced in the field." Haku observed quietly, wondering what rank of ninjas they were dealing with. It was hard to tell from the scene if they were facing with Chuunin or Jounin. "They're at least Chuunin rank, I think. Could be possibly Jounin, if he didn't leave out any details about how much trouble he's in." Biting her lip, she began to think of the possibilities. I can handle chuunin, but a jounin will give me some problems…maybe… Falling in step behind Alric, she stayed silent, trying to figure out an attack plan.

Kaosujin Ryu

 

[Kaosujin Ryu]

Alric tilted his head. "There's at least three, possibly four, other than the bridge builder. One is wounded, however," he said coolly, his tone just as low as Haku's. He tilted his head fractionally before he pushed off, his feet lightly pressing against the trunks of the trees as he moved, unaware he was easily moving at mid Chuunin speeds. Zabuza tilted his head thoughtfully. Interesting. He looked at the trees and ground for likely no more than a couple of minutes and gathered all of that information; he'd be a dangerous hunter-nin if he became one, he thought. He blinked as Alric accelerated before the Oi-nin pursued him for several trees. He was impressed that the young man could shift from moving at Chuunin speed to easily Jounin speed with little effort. He blinked when Alric brutally decapitated the Oi-nin and let the body fall. He saw Gozu slumped over the tree two ahead of Alric, apparently unhurt other than being unconscious. Alric twisted slightly, spotting a flicker of white and light blue over a blur of green as two kunai from the Kiri Hunter missed him by a couple of inches. He heard very faint footfalls behind him as he pushed off, somersaulting as he did to evade the larger Fūma Shuriken that sheared through the branch he had just been on. He tilted his head, his eyes narrowing as he twisted, flipping backwards to evade the shuriken the Oi-nin threw. He accelerated, letting Gozu land on the branch ahead of him before he leaped backwards. His hands flashed forward at high speed, wisps of steam flickering as gauntlets formed with razor sharp claws. One slammed into the ninja's upper back while the other drove into the lower back. He jerked sharply, decapitating the man and ripping out his spinal column in the process. He let the body fall with a muted thump

Saia Kakaru