Game of the Year: A Naruto Quest

No matter how many times you visit it, the Inuzuka Compound always feels just a little bit… alien.

It could be the way the architecture of the buildings. Every clan likes it's own little details in their buildings, but the Inuzuka take that to an extreme with larger than average doors and short, squat stories that seem almost cramped. Or it could be that the sounds around the Compound are noticeably different than they are in the rest of the village. The rest of the village is almost always filled a noticeable hum of activity; not here. Here, there's silence and calm only broken by the sounds of puppies. Or maybe it's the smells of the Compound, less potent yet somehow sharper for it.

"Good afternoon Satomura-san," Kuromaru greets you. "What brings you by today?"

Or maybe, just maybe, it's because there are fucking dogs that talk living there. Just a possibility.

When Inuzuka Tsume's wolf-like partner speaks to you, no matter how many times you hear it, it always takes you by surprise. This time is no different. As the polite greeting washes over you you can't help but freeze for just a fraction of a second. But you're able to recover quickly and turn to the ninken before bowing low, as if you were greeting the clan head herself. "Good Afternoon, Kuromaru-san," you reply. "I was looking for Kiba."

Kuromaru cocks his head to the side in the universal doggy gesture for confusion and it takes all your willpower not to try to pet him. "Truly? Strange. I was told that you were each assigned a mission and that you would be meeting later."

You nod. "We were. But it is a team assignment after all-"

"Oh, yes, may I offer my congratulations on making it through your coming of age ritual? I'm told it is a simple milestone, but a milestone nonetheless. And all milestones deserve congratulations."

"Oh. Um, er, yes. Thank you, Kuromaru-san. I appreciate it," you answer, shrugging nervously, causing the contents of the loaded bags around your shoulders to clink together. "And yes, while graduating the Academy wasn't the hardest thing I've had to do, it's still important to have done. But anyway. Kiba and I were both assigned parts of a team assignment and it would be foolish not to coordinate."

Kuromaru nods approvingly. "An excellent instinct. Would you prefer to seek him out or should I have him summoned?"

"Whichever is faster?" you half ask.

Kuromaru doesn't answer in the common tongue. Instead he rears back and howls, a deep braying noise that echoes through the bizarre acoustics of the Inuzuka Compound. More ninken take up the call from deeper in, sending up a mighty chorus of barking dogs.

You have to stop yourself from whispering "the twilight bark" for some reason. There's a memory there, you just can't figure out what it is.

The dog's howls eventually are cut off by a few sharp yips. Kuromaru lowers his snout and looks back at you with his one fierce eye. "He has been told," he says, back to speaking disturbingly good common. "He will be along shortly."

"My thanks," you reply. You stand awkwardly for a few moments, waiting for Kiba to spontaneously appear. The time seems to get longer and longer as you wait under Kuromaru's unblinking eye. There's nothing else you can really do; to invite yourself further in would be to offer rudeness of the highest caliber, and you wouldn't even dream of that. And Kuromaru doesn't seem eager to invite you in. That's not exactly surprising; there's always some new dogs being littered around the Compound, and your scent is just unfamiliar enough to disturb them.

But while you may not be being invited further in, there's no reason for you just to stand in silence. You clear your throat. "So, how has everything been lately Kuromaru-san? Have you and Tsume-sama been on any interesting missions?"

The dog groans softly. "I wish. But no, Tsume has been tied up with her business, leaving me to mind the young. The last time we were in the field was nothing special either; just a simple track and recovery mission. Worthwhile, of course, but hardly interesting."

"Ah. Well, a shame. I hope my first few missions are more interesting than that."

Kuromaru's maw splits open into a doggy grin. "I highly-"

"Tst!" a voice hisses. "No! You don't get to spoil that Kuromaru! That's a secret for a reason!"

Kuromaru shakes his head. "I am perfectly able to say whatever it is I so choose! I-"

From a nearby building, the source of the new voice emerges and lets her hand hang dangerously close to a spray bottle hanging from her belt. "You're right!" she says brightly. "You can say whatever you want! But remember! Free speech has its consequences!"

Kuromaru's eye follows her hand and his mouth slams shut, nearly biting his own tongue. "I'll be quiet," he answers meekly.

"Good!" The speaker replies before turning her attention to you. "Hey, Daisuke. Good to see you!"

There's only one thing you can say in response. "Um," you say eloquently, glancing down at the dirt where your foot is absently kicking up a cloud of dust behind you. "Um, uh, H-hi Hana."

Immediately you start cursing yourself in your head. Hi Hana?! The fuck was that?! And you fucking stuttered again when you said it! The hell is wrong with you?!

Sadly you know the answer to that: the exact same thing that was wrong with you the last time you came to the Inuzuka Compound. And the time before that. And the time before that. And every time you've come here for years. That thing: the older girl currently looking like she's suppressing the mother of all smiles in front of you, one Inuzuka Hana.

It had all started years ago. Like all the other boys in class, Kiba had decided that the most important thing in his life was hanging around your house so he could gawk at Mother. But unlike most of the other boys, Kiba had been completely shameless. He had barely blinked when she was around and had then spent every class talking about how hot she was. Not how pretty. Not how classy. Not how refined. How hot. It had been enough to drive you insane.

And so you had retaliated in the best way you could think of: by fighting fire with fire. You had started seeking out Kiba's older sister and bringing her flowers. What's more, she was in on the joke, gleefully helping you take her baby brother down a peg. You had kept doing it day after day until Kiba finally noticed and just lost it in a fit of apoplectic rage. It had been glorious.

Mission accomplished you had decided to ease off; let Kiba breathe now that he knew what it felt like. But somehow… well, you just hadn't really stopped hanging around Hana. At first it was because you owed her a day of dog sitting for helping out with your revenge. Then it was because she was always around fluffy little puppies that needed ear scratches. Then it was because you could tell she really needed some extra hands around her little clinic, which was completely understaffed. All good, solid reasons to stick around.

Then the reasons got less good. You had a free hour and felt like it. It was a little cold outside and you were just coming in to warm up. There was a scuff on the floor you could polish out. You saw a cool bird once and wanted to see it again. You thought someone had called you over but no, well, might as well stick around.

That was around the time you realized you had a problem. One that made you act like a total loser the hell is wrong with you-

No. You can't dwell on that now. You clear your throat awkwardly and look up at Hana who, as always, looks like she's barely holding back hysterical laughter. "Hey, Hana," you say again, this time forcing your voice a little deeper to keep from stutter. "What's up?"

"Not much," the older, pretty Inuzuka answers. "Heard you got assigned to Kiba's team."

"Uh, yeah. The two of us- three of us, sorry- and Mariko. It should be…" you trail off as you try to figure out the right word.

"Horrible?" Hana offers.

You snap your fingers. "Yeah, that's it! Should be horrible!"

Hana chuckles. "Don't freak out too much about it. Trust me, if everything goes as it should, in six months they'll be your best friends. It's what happened with me on my genin team."

The thought of you being bestest buddies in the whole wide world with Kiba and Mariko flashes through your mind and you shudder. Like that would ever happen. "I doubt it," you reply diplomatically. Kiba is her brother after all, no matter how much she enjoys tormenting him; you doubt she'll take you saying anything seriously bad about him lying down. "But who knows? Stranger things have happened."

"Indeed," Kuromaru offers, doggy grin back in full effect. "Allow me to offer my own words of encouragement, Daisuke-san. Tsume had much the same reaction to her own genin team, but now she regards them as family."

Hana nods. "Besides, I hope you and Kiba start to get along better. He could do worse than having someone actually responsible looking out for him."

You know she doesn't mean anything by it. You know she's just being nice. But still, you can feel your cheeks burn and you have to wrench your eyes from Hana's face to stare at the ground. You curse yourself even more as you look down. You're making an even bigger moron out of yourself!

Thankfully, you're not alone with Hana and Kuromaru for much longer. The sounds of running alert you that Kiba and Akamaru have arrived. You look away from the dirt to see them coming right at you, a look of anger on Kiba's face. He skids to a halt next to Hana and takes a few subtle steps to the side to stand between you and his older sister. "Hey, teammate!" he says too brightly. "Aren't we supposed to meet up for the mission later? Why are you here?"

"Awwwww," Hana coos. "It's because Daisuke just wanted to check up on little ol' me! Isn't that sweet of him? You should really be more like your teammate her lil' bro! I-"

As much as you like Hana- and gods you like Hana more than you should- she's going to get you killed. With every word she says, Kiba's face gets darker and darker. If you don't cut this off now you're going to have to fight- and that won't do anything good for the supplies you have over your shoulders. "Actually," you say, cutting off Hana's teasing. "I came looking for you. For the mission."

Kiba's eyes stay narrow. "I thought we were going to meet back up at the training ground after we all got our stuff."

You nod. "Yes. But I thought it would be smart to coordinate so that we don't all bring the same thing. A lack of communication sounds like something that we could fail the mission for."

After a too long moment of consideration, the near-rage is wiped off of Kiba's face like it was never there. "Oh, yeah, that makes sense! So what've ya got?"

Huh. Maybe one day you'll get used to Kiba's sudden mood swings. Today is not that day. You blink once, adjusting yourself, and brandish the bags that are hanging over your shoulders. "Drinks and music," you answer. "One of them has my premade teas, my herbal extracts, and anything else I could need to brew more. The other is my shamisen; I decided I could play if we needed entertainment."

Kiba snorts. "You? You play the shamisen?"

"That's surprising to you?"

He pauses. "Well, you don't really seem the type."

You arch an eyebrow. "Strange. I am, though. I have played for years. It has come in handy in some… interesting situations."

Another snort. "Yeah? What could playing the shamisen have helped you with?"

Memories race back to you, one after another. Quest after quest. Public performances, distractions, battles in your ever-raging war on squirrels, that one time you had to break it over someone's head as a challenge. So many things, all done with just your hands and your instrument.

...things you'd really rather not discuss. "Things," you say absently. "Things and stuff. They're not important. How about you? What are you bringing?"

Kiba accepts the change in subject with the air of someone who really didn't give a damn about the question they just asked in the first place. "I was grabbing some food! Some real Inuzuka fine dining!"

You stare at him for a long moment, barely holding back a dozen questions and two dozen more jibes. "So…. what exactly does that mean?" you finally ask.

"Boar!" Kiba proclaims proudly. "Fresh from the thicket! Me and Akamaru are gonna hunt one up and that'll be dinner!"

"And this is… 'Inuzuka fine dining'?"

"Damn straight! All the younger pups hone their skills by hunting in the thicket! Trust me man, the meat is to die for!"

"Woof Ga-ruff!"

You're going to guess that that's an assurance from Akamaru too. You shrug. Far be it for you to judge. "Alright. Have you already hunted down the boar? Do you need help?" Seeing that he's about to get offended, you wave him down. "Not because you're incompetent; I trust Akamaru to get the job done if nothing else. But time is important here."

"Why?" Kiba questions, glancing up at the slowly moving sun. "We've got a couple hours, right?"

"Yes, but I want to link up with Mariko as well. And you need to come with me for that."

"Awww," Kiba groans. "But she's awful! Why do you need me to go see her anyway?"

"Because I don't know where she lives. I trust that won't be an issue for you?"

"Not if I've got some… time to work with," Kiba mumbles. He groans again. "Fine, come on, you can help me with the boar. Let's get going!"

"You boys have fun!" Hana calls as she heads back towards her clinic, seeing no more amusement to be had. "Remember Kiba, if the big bad boar hurts you, let me know and I'll stitch you up again! If you have any problems, just remember, do what Daisuke does! He'll handle it!"

With Hana's laughter in your ears making you flush again and Kiba growling at the dirt, you bid farewell to a sleepy-looking Kuromaru and head deeper into the Inuzuka Compound, searching for the Boar's Thicket.
***
The boars are difficult to find, but easy to kill. It only takes Kiba thirty minutes to track down the giant pig and then between the three of you, it's easy to slaughter. With Kiba's task done, the two of you form a makeshift litter from nearby fallen branches, sling the pig carcass over your shoulders, and make your way from the Inuzuka Compound.

Any time you may have made up for your quick boar slaughtering, though, you lose as Kiba fights to get Mariko's scent. It takes nearly as long as it did to kill the pig for him to finally pick up her trail. But pick it up he does, finally finding a good scent trail starting at the spot she always ate lunch at during class.

The trail heads in the same direction as Yamanaka Flowers, but it takes a sharp turn before it gets all the way to Ino's home. Instead Kiba leads you down several winding side streets, past what look like civilian homes, and towards a small, squat building at the corner of two dirt paths. Kiba jerks his head at you as he steps up to the door. "I'm pretty sure this is the place. This house reeks of her perfume." Without any further delay he reaches out and wraps on the door. A long moment passes with no answer, and Kiba does it again. He's winding up for a third knock when the door finally slides open.

A smallish man, balding with a round bowling ball gut, steps in the way of Kiba's knuckles before he can knock again. "May I help you…." he gets out before trailing off.

His eyes dart from you, laden with a sword and two heavy bags, to Kiba, who's wearing a yapping dog as a hat, to the dead pig, hanging on a litter suspended between the two of you, back to Akamaru, who suddenly seems fascinated by a passing bug and is jerking tracking it avidly. The man doesn't seem to know quite what to say, and you're not sure you blame him. The three of you- four counting the boar- are a strange looking group.

So you do the only thing you can: you plow on ahead. "Excuse me," you ask. "Is Mariko home?"

The man's eyes don't stop darting from thing to thing but he turns his head slightly so that he can call into the house. "Mariko? It's for you!"

There's some shuffling from deep inside the home and you hear Mariko call back, "Can it wait? I'm in the middle of something!"

The man turns back to you and Kiba. Mutely, the two of you shake your head in unison. No this cannot wait. The man half shrugs and turns again. "I don't think so, no!"

"Fine!" Mariko calls. "But I hope whoever it is isn't expecting me to look my best right now! I'm only half done!" As she talks, you can hear her voice getting closer and closer until she reaches the door- and freezes. Her eyes do the same thing her dad's did, darting from person to person to pig and back again.

As she inspects you, you inspect her. It doesn't take a genius to realize what she was doing. It looks like she's fresh out of a shower, and half of her hair is it's usual straight perfection. The other half is a mess of curls. In her hands, she holds what you recognize as a simple flat iron. You hadn't realized she straightened her hair.

Mariko's eyes meet yours and she brandishes the iron like you would your sword. "Tell anyone," she hisses, "and there will be no place you can run that's safe from me."

If you weren't holding so many things, you'd hold your hands up to ward off the sudden threat. Jeez. It's not like it's a big deal, right? "Alright," you say. "We won't say anything. Right?" In front of you, Kiba nods eagerly, careful to keep the hot metal from touching his nose.

Mariko glares at you for another long moment before lowering her arm. "Good," she huffs. "Now how did you know where I live- wait, no. Kiba. Of course he could find me."

"You have really strong perfume," the Inuzuka offers.

The platinum blonde ignores that. "So I know how you got here. But why are you-" She cuts herself off mid sentence and turns to the man still standing awkwardly next to her. "Sorry, Dad. Dad, these are my teammates. Teammates, this is my Dad."

You bow slightly. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Yokota-san."

"Uh, likewise!"

"Ruff Ruff!"

For his part, Mariko's dad doesn't seem to know how to answer you. HIs daughter gently pushes his arm. "You can go sit back down Dad. Sorry to bother you." The man goes, but only after another long look at the boar. Once he's gone from the entrance, Mariko turns back to you. "So why are you here?" she grumbles.

"For the mission," you answer. "It made sense for us to coordinate beforehand so that we don't all bring the same things. I know we might not get along, but I'd still like us all to do our best here."

Mariko takes that in for a moment. "Fine," she allows. "That does make sense. What are you both bringing?"

You each take a moment to explain your offerings, with Kiba seeming thrilled about his boar and you presenting your music and drinks as simply as you can. When it gets to her turn, Mariko sighs. "I was going to bring…"

She mutters something too quietly for you to hear. "Excuse me?" you ask.

"Games!" she says, louder this time, almost shouting. "I was going to bring some games for us all to play. It's not a party without games, right?!"

You're not sure why she's so defensive about this. "Yes, that makes sense. Like Shogi, Go?" You had never taken her for someone who liked those games though. Mariko's never seemed the kind of person who would enjoy old man games like that. Maybe that's why she's so defensive?

But no. Mariko makes a dismissive noise at that. "Yeah, right. Do I look like a Nara? I mean like actual games! Super Sleuth, One Card, Domination, that kind of thing!"

...huh. Actual board and card games then. Those names all ring bells for you, but not bells from this life. Are those games based on stuff from your old reality? Super Sleuth… that sounds a lot like Clue. And One Card is probably Uno. Domination… is that Dominion? Does Mariko have motherfucking Dominion?! Why don't you have Dominion?!

Kiba seems almost as excited as you suddenly feel. "Do you have Journey of Life? I love Journey of Life!"

Mariko flushes. "Like, no! Like I would ever be caught with such a lame game like Journey of Life! There are no mechanics in that, it's all just like luck based! I've got real games here! Like Beasts of Battle! And Nightmare's War! And-"

She cuts herself off, but the damage is done. You now know the truth. Why Mariko is so defensive about her board games. It's not because she enjoys old man games like you thought at first. It's because she's a board game nerd.

Again, the flat iron comes up. "Not a word," you agree before she says anything. "Besides, it's not like I really get along with any of your friends anyway. Why would I go telling them things that you don't want to be known?"

"Because you want to embarass me," she answers promptly.

"I don't," you answer with a sigh. "I really don't. Like it or not, we have to function as a team, at least for now. That means at least nominally having each other's backs. And that precludes me from sabotaging your social life. Which I wouldn't do anyway."

"I might!" Kiba chirps before leaping backwards, out of the flat iron's path. "I mean I won't, I won't! I swear!"

Mariko looks barely appeased, but she lowers the iron once again. You try to get the conversation back on course. "So you're bringing games, Kiba's bringing food, I'm bringing drinks and entertainment. That sounds good. We'll need something to sit on of course, but we should be able to find blankets."

"I have extra," Mariko says, words sounding like they're being pulled from between her teeth. It has to be killing her to be actually helping. "If you can help me carry them, we can set them up at the training ground."

"That would work," you say. "Do you want us to come in and grab them-"

"No!" Mariko yelps suddenly. "No, you can't come in! You'll… you'll get pig blood everywhere! Just wait there! I need to finish getting ready and then we'll get everything together and go!"

"Weak," Kiba snorts. "You gotta think of a better excuse if you want us to stay out. Come on, it can't be that messy. My place is much worse than-"

"Yes! It's messy! And pig blood would make it worse! Stay there!"

And the door slams shut.

You and Kiba trade looks.

Huh.
***
No matter how many times you ask, Mariko refuses to tell you the real reason she won't let you into her house. And of course, she won't let you into her house. Not that that stops her from giving you more things to carry though. By the time her hair is good and straight and she's all ready to go, both you and Kiba are juggling half a dozen boxes and a trio of blankets between the two of you.

The only thing that stops you from grumbling about the whole thing is that Mariko herself is just as overloaded with boxes and blankets, and a folding table besides.. Even Akamaru gets drafted into helping, hopping off of Kiba and lugging a smaller bag in his teeth.

Between all the luggage, the dog with a knapsack, and the still eye-catching sight of the dead boar on a litter, the four of you make an interesting parade that draws attention. The reactions you get are different depend on who sees you. Civilians stop and gawk, mostly at Akamaru and the boar, but you all get your moments of staring. Ninja, however, merely laugh. They've seen this too many times to stare. The stares get less and less frequent as you make your way through Konoha and back to the training grounds. By the time you make it to Training Ground 23, you're left entirely alone.

Once you unburden yourself of all your stuff, you launch right into setting everything up. Mariko sets up her table and gets to work setting up various board games. Kiba places the boar on a blanket and together with Akamaru starts digging a fire pit a safe way away from where you're spreading out the blankets. As for you, once you're done positioning the blankets, it's your turn to unpack your bags and start spreading out your drinks on Mariko's table.

It's harder than it seems. The table is almost overflowing with board games before you get there, and when you start unloading your extracts and bottles, the table is too crowded. Mariko huffs as you put down another bottle. "Don't you have enough of those things?" she sneers.

Well, it's more of a question than a sneer. The sneer is still there but it's a ghost of what it used to be. Progress! You do your best to similarly hold back your normal animosity when you glance at her nearly twenty board games and reply, "That's what I was going to ask. It's not like we're going to play all of them at once after all."

Mariko rolls her eyes. "This is going to make everything so much easier," she explains in a tone of voice that makes it clear that she really doesn't expect you to understand. "Some of these take forever to set up. Having them ready to go is way better then doing it when Sensei is ready to play."

"That may be the case," you reply evenly. "But I need at least some space. Otherwise I'll have to mix on the ground, and I can't get an even blend on an unlevel surface."

"Do you really need to mix stuff? Don't you have plenty of drinks already?"

Only one thing to say to that. "Do you really need all the board games? Don't you have plenty already?"

The two of you stop almost as one and take a step away from each other. Close. That was very close. You're both doing pretty well, but there's no getting around the fact that you've spent the better part of seven years sniping at each other. It would be so easy to fall back into old habits; it's something you'll both need to continue to work on if you want this team thing to succeed.

Mariko doesn't look at you as she says, "I guess I can only use half the games. That should leave you a little table space."

"Thank you," you reply, carefully looking at Kiba as he digs the pit and not at the girl next to you. "I'll only use a few of my bottles at first. That should leave us both with enough space, right?"

"Yes. I appreciate it."

The two of you set up in silence and are done quickly. The drink station constructed you move to your other bag, and start assembling your shamisen. The cunningly carved wooden pieces of the neck slide together easily and unite with the body just as simply. The strings, you have to struggle with a bit, tangled with each other in your bag as they've become. But you get it done, stringing the instrument with practiced motions. Curiously, you pull a bachi from your pocket and give a string a strum. You wince; out of tune. You give one of the pegs a twist and try again to a marginally better sound. Still needs work.

You're still tuning your shamisen when Kurenai-sensei turns up. She glances around at the scene around her and a small smile crosses her face. "Early, I see," she says. "Excellent. Punctuality is very important. So what have you each brought?"

She looks at each of you and, in turn, you present your stuff. Kiba's boar, roasting over a merilly crackling fire, gets an approving nod, as do your drinks and music. Mariko's board games get closer inspection, but Kurenai-sensei ends up taken with a copy of Frontier Survivors and seems almost thrilled.

*Ding*

Success Condition Cleared!

You release a breath you hadn't realized you were holding. A quick scan of your quest log shows that success condition one has turned green; looks like you all brought the correct things to the party. But neither of the other two success conditions has unlocked. Strange.

With no conditions to guide you you're left with enjoying the party. Sure, it can barely be called a party with only four people, but you find yourself having a surprising amount of fun. The boar proves delectable, though that might not be a surprise. After all, you pre-tenderized it. Your drink game is on if you do say so yourself, and everyone seems to really enjoy the blends you whip up. And though you almost get into a screaming match with Mariko over a game of Domination, it's different than your usual screaming match. Not once do you feel that either of you is close to violence.

You're not the only one having a good time. Akamaru fell asleep right after the boar but the rest of you are all up and active, bright eyed and ready for more. Even Kurenai-sensei is chatting animatedly with Kiba while you strum out a basic tune, a far departure from what seems like her normal almost aloof exterior.

Looking at her makes you wonder though; is this really all there is to this test? It seems so… so simple. It's a far cry from the bell test you know Team Seven will be undergoing tomorrow, to say nothing of the other tests that people will wind up failing. You don't want to just ask her that though. What if asking her just reminds her to make it more complicated?

But it's almost like she can read your mind. As your song fades and you start considering what next to play, Kurenai-sensei cuts off her conversation and rises from the blankets. She gives you a look that has you put your shamisen down and makes Mariko drop her dice. A jerk of her head beckons you, and before you know it all of you are gathered around the fire.

"You all brought such wonderful things," Sensei begins, "and you must all be congratulated for your choices. I've been to many parties, but this is probably my favorite. But if only you brought things then I would be a poor host! So I have an activity of my own."

She reaches into a pouch behind her wrappings and produces a small sachet. She shows it to you carefully. "This is a pouch of incense that, when burned, produces a scent that I've found most calming. It would be an honor for you to-"
In mid sentence, in one fluid motion, she drops the sachet in the firepit, and a cloud of perfumed smoke explodes throughout the training ground. You feel it wash over you and you set your jaw. This is it. This is the other shoe that you were expecting to drop. This is the second part of Kurenai-sensei's test. But you..

But you…

You-

Why is everything around you dark?

The clearing is gone. The blankets, the firepit, the board games, your drinks and shamisen, the snoozing Akamaru, Sensei, Kiba, Mariko, all gone. There's nothing around you but eerie blankness.

Genjutsu. It has to be. You didn't feel any chakra bite into you, but that's hardly conclusive. Kurenai-sensei is regarded as one of if not the foremost users of Genjutsu in the village. She'd be able to sneak her chakra probe around your senses with no issues. Still, Genjutsu is Genjutsu. No matter how expertly applied it's still breakable.

You mold your hands into a seal and pulse your chakra. "Kai," you hiss.

Nothing happens. That's not right.

Again you muster your chakra and again, you start the the releasing technique. But the results are no better. A third time, you start, pumping even more chakra into it. But no.

"Pathetic," a voice snarls. "You really are just mediocre."

Your focus snaps away from dispelling and towards the source of the too-familiar voice. A shadow darker than the eerie blackness moves and steps forward. As it gets closer, it takes form revealing a man you haven't seen outside of your nightmares for seven years. White armor. Pristine blade. Grizzled, scowling features that you haven't seen since you skewered his throat.

Tokei. Tokei is walking towards you.

You try to rise but your muscles won't obey you. Tokei doesn't seem to care though; he fixes you with a blank glare. "Do you know that once, I thought you may have had promise?" he growls. "That once, you may have walked the path of honor? But you did not and instead, you took you soul, you took my skin, and you turned them towards foul, ninja ends."

You inhale deeply. It's just an illusion. It's just an illusion. It's just an-

"And you're not even skilled with your deceitful techniques! The Gods truly were right about you. Your existence is just… pointless."

You can't breathe anymore.

"Look at you! A boy chosen by the heavens themselves to receive a second chance! But what has that boy done with his new life? He slew me, who sought only to do what was right! And then he has become no more impactful than he was the first time he drew breath!"

The darkness around you dissolves- but not to the Training Ground. You're standing in a very familiar alleyway. Behind you is a wall. In front of you stands Tokei. Implacable, unyielding Tokei. But this time, his blade is in his hands.

"I shall do the gods a favor," Tokei intones, "And I shall correct my mistakes. No more shall you corrupt this world with your very presence! And when you fall here…"

"When you fall here, you will not come back again." A ghost of a smile flickers over Tokei's face. "What will happen when you die a second time? Will the sins of two lifetimes weigh your soul down? Will you face double the judgement that you would have had you just died as you were supposed to?"

You take a step back automatically, feeling the wall brushing against your back. It takes a second for that to sink in- you can move! And as your hands fall to your waist, you realize that your sword, the exact duplicate of the blade in Tokei's hands, still hangs from your waist.

*Ding!*

Quest Log Updated!

New Success Condition: Survive!

You need to survive. But how?
[] This is still an illusion! You know it! You just need to break it! Pump even more chakra into your dispelling technique and escape it!
[] Tokei has a sword, but so do you! You've killed him before; you can do it again.
[] Write-In (Tag @Vesvius for approval)
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