Thank him for his political acuity and willingness to stake his clan for Leaf's best interests
Check that he's okay after being subjected to Tsunade and Orochimaru's killing intent.
Is there anything we, as Lord Gouketsu or as a friend, can do to repay him?
Offer to Summon the lower-energy puppies.
Hopefully less "bowl him over" and more "lie on his chest while being slowly petted".
Hinata:
Invite her to an instance of two individuals spending a few hours together in order to facilitate greater mutual knowledge and familiarity, arranged in anticipation of a potential long-term (political) relationship.
Perhaps tea at the Yabai Cafe.
Thank her for her help in the Council -- she's very astute.
Keep conversation light. Ask after the tea, her teammates, the architecture. Avoid asking about family too much (because of lots of recent fatalities).
Offer to Summon the puppies.
(Offscreen) misc:
Request Jashin's holy symbol back, since Hidan might return. Start carrying stored top-quality peppermint tea for a delaying tactic.
Review the information gathered from the Rock facility to start planning strategic next steps.
Ask Hornets if they have a Summon Scroll.
Check if Hornets/Arachnids are ready to operate seals.
[x] Action Plan: Puppies, Power, and the Power of Puppies
Word Count: tbd
Summon Puppies for Everyone, relax, invite Ino over to meet puppies.
Cannai
How are the Dogs doing? Anything Hazou can assist with? He should be fully healed in a few weeks or so.
Hazou has mulled over Cannai's poem, and had a few questions.
The poem claims the Sage went 'beyond the trees' to rest, and that 'truth or death' could lead to him.
Did he go to the Naraka Path? Hazou may have seen those trees once...
For that matter, he left 'seven rocks with seven locks' and the Great Seal is basically a giant lock made of rock. There's seven paths... are there six more Great Seals somewhere?
What does Cannai know of the other Paths?
Who are the Lost Ones? Does this refer to the Sage's Five companions Cannai mentioned or someone else?
Is Jashin a Lost One? Has Cannai heard of Jashin before? His cult's symbol is a circle with a triangle inside.
Trees made of Iron or Stone? Are those supposed to be buildings? Why is their shade dangerous? Is it because the Lost Ones reside in them?
Pantsā told Kei that the denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya later told us draining a Summon could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans or something? Would Hazou get sick from staying here too long? Mareo seems to have managed it.
I would also suggest taking Jiraiya Summon Note + Hazou's intuition + What we know of the Nature's Chakra OPSEC failure to reach Sage Mode and launch Noburi at Ma and Pa after a general Clan brainstorming section(All off-screen). Of course let's remember to keep Mari and Kei separate.
This said, if you add the off-screen section of the previous plan, my vote is yours.
Speaking of which, how is it that Ami herself was unable to convince her own clan to be decent human beings to Kei? Like, it's not like she was trying to convince them to betray the village or something, this is just the bare minimum.
I would also suggest taking Jiraiya Summon Note + Hazou's intuition + What we know of the Nature's Chakra OPSEC failure to reach Sage Mode and launch Noburi at Ma and Pa after a general Clan brainstorming section(All off-screen). Of course let's remember to keep Mari and Kei separate.
This said, if you add the off-screen section of the previous plan, my vote is yours.
[x] Action Plan: Puppies, Power, and the Power of Puppies
Word Count: tbd
Summon Puppies for Everyone, relax, invite Ino over to meet puppies.
Once rested: Cannai
How're the Dogs doing? Need assistance? Should be fully healed in a few weeks.
We've mulled over Cannai's poem, and have some questions.
The poem claims the Sage went 'beyond the trees' to rest, and that 'truth or death' could lead to him.
Did he go to the Naraka Path? We might've seen those trees once...
Sage also left 'seven rocks with seven locks' and the Great Seal is, basically, a giant lock made of rock. There's seven paths... are there six more Great Seals somewhere?
What does Cannai know of the other Paths?
Who are the Lost Ones? Does this refer to the Sage's Five companions Cannai mentioned or someone else?
Is Jashin a Lost One? Has Cannai heard of Jashin before? His cult's symbol is a circle with a triangle inside.
Trees made of Iron or Stone? Are those supposed to be buildings? Why is their shade dangerous? Is it because the Lost Ones reside in them?
Pantsā told Kei that the denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya later told us draining a Summon could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans or something? Would Hazou get sick from staying here too long? Mareo seems to have managed it.
(Offscreen)
Hidan:
Request Jashin's holy symbol back (Hidan might return)
There are various rumours about lost treasures, yes. However, they mostly refer to the unrecovered property of clans, which would have no reason to publicise their losses.
@RandomOTP According to the quote above from Vel and assuming the Tower is in the same situation as the clans, Hazo could inform Shikamaru that he could help with any collapse mapping, extraction, and recovery. It's probably a mid-long project, but we could make use of earth shaping to map out underground areas, secure unstable areas, and shape them to be more navigable.
It would be our contribution to the war effort, resource recovery and build alot of goodwill with ISC and Leaf. For instance, remember Kei mentioning that disguise kits or Earth country intel was lost in the collapse but I assume this would be kept tightly under wraps. If there's anything that can be recovered, Shikamaru would know and it would pay him back big for just saving our butts.
Tl;Dr : Interested in coordinating with Shikamaru to recover tower and ISC valuables lost in the collapse using earthshaper?
[x] Action Plan: Puppies, Power, and the Power of Puppies
"Good morning, Hazō. Is there an imminent threat or would you like tea?"
Hazō smiled. "No and yes, respectively. Thank you."
Shikamaru nodded in appreciation of the efficiently-worded reply and poured the tea, offering Hazō the choice of which cup. Hazō took the one on the left and sat down in the chair that Shikamaru nodded him towards. The two teenage Clan Heads raised their mugs to one another in silent toast and sipped.
It was an unseasonably warm day, slightly above freezing, and the two young men were on a back patio at the Nara estate, sprawled on separate loungers while a well-stoked firepit kept the chill off. Hazō's cane was looped over the back of the sinfully comfortable chair he was relaxing into. He was watching the slow drip...drip......drip..drip...drip of water coming off one of the larger icicles that hung from the gutters. There had been an ice storm through last night, encasing the entire world in a rime of frozen diamond, but today the warm temperatures were stripping away the diamonds while the cloudless skies allowed the sun to turn those diamonds into glitter and glory.
"This chair is ridiculously comfortable," Hazō said. "Compliments to the maker."
"Shikapama will be pleased. She carved it to your measurements."
"Say what now?"
"You are half-clan and a frequent and valued guest. Of course we have furniture made to your measurements."
"How did you get my measurements? I don't remember any...never mind. You're the Nara, that kind of thing is your particular flavor of bullshit."
"I have no idea what you mean."
"Hang on...I see that sneaky look. Is this chair actually made to my measurements or are you just yanking my chain?"
"See for yourself. Place your arm on the armrest."
Hazō checked; yes, annoyingly, the armrest was precisely the correct length to provide optimal support.
"You Nara are so completely bullshit, you know that?"
"Are you insulting the honor of my husband's clan again, Hazō?" Kei asked, arriving from the house with a plate of scrambled eggs in one hand. "I should note that such things tend to lead to intergenerational feuds that destroy vast areas."
"Uh-huh. Nice to see you, sis."
"You as well. To what do we owe the pleasure?" She settled in the chair that had been left open for her so that the three of them were evenly distributed around the firepit, feet facing inwards.
Hazō shrugged and sipped his tea. "Nothing super important. After all the stress lately I decided I was going to take the morning off. Affairs of state can wait until after lunch. I want to relax and be calm, with people I like, for four hours, no emergencies allowed."
"I find it either bold or foolish, and most definitely troublesome, that you would express such a wish while sitting on my patio," Shikamaru said. "Are you not aware of the perversity of the universe? I grant you, your expressed wish could have been worse—you did not say 'good thing that old enemy of ours is dead', or 'it's an easy mission', or 'what's the worst that could happen'? Still, was it wise to tempt fate in such a fashion? Especially when your current location indicates that it will be my estate, not that of the Gōketsu, that will be targeted by whatever an angry universe sends?"
"Eh." Hazō waved a hand in grand dismissal. "I don't care. Everything is fine, everything is going to stay fine for at least four more hours. After that we can have another...I dunno, invasion from an enemy village, attack of extradimensional horrors, runaway gerbil swarm, or whatever. For now, breakfast and light conversation." He picked up the mostly-cooled plate of cheesy eggs from beside himself and scarfed a few mouthfuls before setting it down again.
"I find your recklessness most foolish, but your presence is nonetheless welcome," Kei said, turning her nose playfully up on the first words.
"Actually, there was one thing I wanted to say..."
Shikamaru raised an eyebrow in invitation while sipping at his tea.
"I can't tell you how much I appreciated what you did yesterday, Shikamaru. Your political acuity is the only reason we're all here right now, and you showed guts for days doing it."
Both eyebrows went up. "Thank you, Hazō, although I fail to understand why my actions are worthy of praise. They were merely—"
"Sage's ballsack!" Hazō shouted, throwing his arms in the air. "No wonder the two of you get on! For the sake of the Sage, Shikamaru, take the compliment and don't go on about how obvious it was and how anyone would do the same and blah blah blah. That's Kei's schtick and I cannot abide you copying it. Just take the compliment."
Shikamaru blinked, started to say something, stopped, and then settled on, "Thank you, Hazō. I am grateful for your words of praise."
"Thank you. See, was that so hard?"
"Although I will say that the choice was indeed readily apparent given the—"
Hazō flicked a bit of egg at Shikamaru's head; the Nara lord batted it aside with a faint convulsion of his face that on a normal person might have been a tiny smile, but for a Nara it was obviously some form of highly-condensed communication that would take paragraphs of italicized text to properly record. Right? No Nara would simply smile at being complimented and pelted with breakfast foods. They were far too stiff and reserved.
"Is there anything the Gōketsu can do to repay you? Or that I personally can do?"
"Nothing springs to mind, but I shall let you know when something occurs."
"Okay. Let me know. You've got a big Gōketsu marker for whenever you want to cash it in."
"Thank you, Hazō. It is most appreciated."
"Sure." He thought about it for a moment, then took the plunge. "Actually, there is one thing I thought I would offer. How do you feel about puppies?" He looked back and forth between them.
"Personally, I am more affiliated with the feline species," Kei said. "They are more graceful and independent. Puppies, however, are an acceptable substitute when the actual article is unavailable."
"Shikamaru?"
"They are squirmy slobber machines that have an unpleasant habit of nipping."
Hazō laughed. "I see. Bad childhood experience?"
"My third birthday. I note that I am uncertain whether I most dispreferred being bitten in the face or having my birthday cake splattered everywhere."
"Uh...okay, I'm going to move right on by that for now, since if I don't then I'll lose my train of thought. You know that I have a couple dozen summoning contracts with various puppies. It's for military communications, mostly, but I have them. I was going to ask if you guys would like to have some puppies here, now? For company and cuddles, no military stuff. Anyway, given Shikamaru's reaction I suppose I shouldn't offer."
Shikamaru's face spasmed in revulsion. "I—"
"Husband, I believe you were the one encouraging me to engage in uncomfortable activities in order to, quote, expand my comfort zone, unquote. Were you not?"
Shikamaru glared daggers, then sighed and muttered about the troublesome nature of marriage. "Very well, Hazō. Do your worst."
That wasn't quite the ringing endorsement of his idea that Hazō had been looking for, but it was better than nothing. He pricked his thumb and slapped it on the frozen ground.
Five blasts of colored smoke marched around the patio, each resolving itself into a dog.
Actually, 'dog' wasn't really the right word. Nor was 'young dog'. 'Puppy', while chronologically appropriate, didn't properly convey the reality. No, what Hazō had summoned were five instantiations of the Platonic ideal of adorableness. Five fuzzy, big-eyed, floppy-eared, bundles of love balanced in ungainly fashion atop oversized paws.
Also, five carefully-selected fuzzy, big-eyed, floppy-eared, bundles of love balanced in ungainly fashion atop oversized paws. Most of Hazō's puppies were excitable and energetic, altogether unsuitable for providing the form of lurrrrvvvv that a Nara needed.
Cantred and Cannula, a brother/sister pair of low-slung basset hounds, lolloped over to Kei and pressed their heads against her knees while looking up with soulful eyes.
"Hello, Miss Summoner Sister Ma'am! We're very happy to meet you and may we please come up?"
Kei was, as the moment required, a brutal assassin, a scathingly rapier wit, and a plan-optimizing machine. What she was not, however, was immune to those eyes. She was unable to keep a smile off her face and instead simply nodded. The two pups galumphed up onto the lounger and had a brief and relatively cordial pushing and shoving match to see who got to claim the best bit of lap. The question settled, they floomped on their backs, paws waving in the air as they wiggled slightly in a silent and highly effective plea for belly rubs. Kei was happy to oblige, her crushing haptophobia apparently inapplicable against the power of adorable tummies.
Shikamaru had no time to take all that in since he was receiving his own dose of weaponized cuteness, delivered at the deadly paws of Canmono, a three-month-old Saint Bernard, and Cantsuru, a young sheepdog that looked like a pile of blond and grey hair with soft eyes and an importuning look.
"You must be Lord Nara! Hello!" Canmono said, his voice surprisingly deep and Nara-unobjectionable for a canine of his tender years.
"Our Summoner says that you're one of his favorite people and that he owes you his life and that we should be real quiet and calm and polite around you! Can we please come up for pets?"
Shikamaru shot Kei a scathing look that promised violent retribution at some unknown date in the future. She merely smiled back, both hands still engaged in belly rubs.
With a sigh, Shikamaru turned back to the two dogs. "Do you intend to bite, slobber, defecate, urinate, or destroy my food or beverage?"
"Nuh-uh!" / "We would never!"
"Very well. You may come up."
"Yayyy!" The two climbed, with carefully-restrained sedateness, onto Shikamaru's lounger and floomped on either side of him, squeezing tight as the chair wasn't that wide. They dropped their chins on his chest and gazed into his eyes with no specific demands but infinite longing.
"Kai," Shikamaru muttered, making the handseal for breaking out of a genjutsu. When reality failed to reassert itself he gave in and began to stroke his fuzzy visitors.
Hazō watched all this in amusement as Canshō, a young beagle, pushed her way onto his chest and bumped her head under his chin in a demand for petting.
Quiet descended on the Nara patio. Quiet, and a sense of peace and comfort that brushed aside the very concept of stress. Within ten minutes Shikamaru was asleep with a smile on his face and his hands loosely draped over his visitors.
Author's Notes: You spent a couple hours with the puppies at the Nara estate, then visited Hinata. The two of you had a relaxed and enjoyable light lunch / high tea that included small sandwiches with the crusts cut off. You kept the conversation light, asking after the tea, her teammates, the architecture, and other simple topics. She thanked you for the offer of puppy therapy but turned it down without explanation. You did not push.
XP AWARD: 10
Brevity XP: 2
"GM had fun" XP: 2
It is now about 5pm.
Vote time! What to do now? Voting closes tomorrow at 5pm New York time.
@RandomOTP If you'd include asking spider wife about Nature chakra I'll vote for it. Would have Hazō say how he's worried about how nature chakra interacts with the way we are trying to stabilize the great seal and then see if they have any techniques that interact with it
Pantsā told Kei that the denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya later told us draining a Summon could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans or something? Would Hazou get sick from staying here too long? Mareo seems to have managed it.
Hazō knows that the Seventh Path is saturated in nature chakra, which is different from regular chakra but still enables summoned people to perform jutsu etc. He does not know if it's possible for humans to use this chakra.
Maybe we should ask Cannai if he knows of any humans that can use nature charka? From what Jiraiya implied it would be really dangerous, but Summons seem to have a lot of really cool elements that humans don't. They also don't seem to have trouble using those techniques on the Human Path.
It might just be the personal experience talking, but I haven't even finished reading the latest update, but I already think that Kei is in need of a gentle reminder that her siblings are only alive because her adoptive mother knew that her preferred child wouldn't choose to leave her teammates to pointlessly die in an abysmal hell-swamp of death and pain. Just a thought.
Sage also left 'seven rocks with seven locks' and the Great Seal is, basically, a giant lock made of rock. There're seven paths... are there six more Great Seals?
What does Cannai know about the other Paths?
Who're the Lost Ones? Does this refer to the Sage's Five companions Cannai mentioned?
Ask Cannai about names, description, weapons of the Five companions.
Has Cannai heard of Jashin before? Is Jashin a Lost One?
Verbal Description: cult's symbol is an upside-down triangle, inside a circle.
Trees of Iron or Stone? Are those buildings? Why is their shade dangerous? Because the Lost Ones reside in them?
Pantsā told Kei that denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya also told us draining Summons could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans? Would Hazou get sick from staying too long? Mareo seems to have managed it.
Jiraiya said that Nature Chakra is dangerous for humans, but not for denizens of 7th Path. Y'all can use your non-human-standard elements just fine on the Human Path (which doesn't have nature chakra). Can Humans use Nature Chakra?
Kumokōgō:
We know how Human Path Chakra interacts with seals, but we're less sure on Nature Chakra.
Minor seals have been fine, but when stabilizing the Great Seal, "fine" isn't enough.
Have any way of sensing/interacting with Nature Chakra?
Yuno
Celebrate Birthday
(Offscreen)
Hidan:
Request Jashin's holy symbol back (Hidan might return)
My girlfriends love language is biting. Figure out why you express affection that way and you can easily find another, more pro social outlet. This advice would also be good for Kei, amusingly. Stop jokingly threatening to stab Hazō damnit
Hey, biting can be good and healthy and fun. I like spicy food because I like food that can bite back. There is a reason that my favorite first-date movies are "Save the last dance" and "Fly away home".
Updated action plan. These are content changes, word choice and word count changes will be made later.
Can anyone think of a way to word "Hey Noburi? Here's what we know about Nature Chakra, in-character. Go ask the Toads and try to get them to give us UNLIMITED POWAH?" Because, jokes aside, anything I try to write comes across as too... meta-gamey for me to be comfortable putting it in a plan. Does anyone have any suggestions?
[x] Action Plan: Puppies, Power, and the Power of Puppies
Word Count: tbd
Summon Puppies for Everyone, relax, invite Ino over to meet puppies.
Once rested: Cannai
How're the Dogs doing? Need assistance? Should be fully healed in a few weeks.
We've mulled over Cannai's poem, and have some questions.
The poem claims the Sage went 'beyond the trees' to rest, and that 'truth or death' could lead to him.
Did he go to the Naraka Path? We might've seen those trees once...
Sage also left 'seven rocks with seven locks' and the Great Seal is, basically, a giant lock made of rock. There's seven paths... are there six more Great Seals somewhere?
What does Cannai know of the other Paths?
Who are the Lost Ones? Does this refer to the Sage's Five companions Cannai mentioned or someone else?
Is Jashin a Lost One? Has Cannai heard of Jashin before? His cult's symbol is a circle with a triangle inside.
Trees made of Iron or Stone? Are those supposed to be buildings? Why is their shade dangerous? Is it because the Lost Ones reside in them?
Pantsā told Kei that the denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya later told us draining a Summon could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans or something? Would Hazou get sick from staying here too long? Mareo seems to have managed it.
Jiraiya said that Nature Chakra is dangerous for humans, but not for denizens of 7th Path. Y'all can use your non-human-standard elements just fine on the Human Path (which doesn't have nature chakra). Can Humans use Nature Chakra?
(Offscreen)
Hidan:
Request Jashin's holy symbol back (Hidan might return)
Review information gathered from the Rock facility.
Kagome: please review Summoning notes
Shikamaru:
We have Earthshaping. We could help with any Collapse mapping/extraction/recovery.
We could use of earthshaping to map out underground areas, stabilize unstable areas, and shape them to be more navigable.
Kei said that important things (disguise kits, Earth country intel, etc) were lost in the collapse. Maybe we could recover some of it for the Tower, for the war effort?
personal note: invent air conditioning for the Shikamaru household. him, keiko and tenten like to live inside a freezer. his other two girlfriends-in-law would have to suck it up.
Wait, since EJ posted a chapter today, does that mean tomorrow is Vel's day, or is EJ still writing it? Because, depending on who's writing what, I may need to shuffle my action plan wrt what's "on-screen."
I suspect this could also be done with Hiding Like a Mole (albeit, much less skillfully, since HLaM only allows the caster to move through Earth, rather than the Earth around the caster).
That said, it's a worthwhile notion and it'd potentially give Shikamaru more screentime. I'll add it, just give me a few minutes before you refresh the page--
"Sage's ballsack!" Hazō shouted, throwing his arms in the air. "No wonder the two of you get on! For the sake of the Sage, Shikamaru, take the compliment and don't go on about how obvious it was and how anyone would do the same and blah blah blah. That's Kei's schtick and I cannot abide you copying it. Just take the compliment."
Shikamaru blinked, started to say something, stopped, and then settled on, "Thank you, Hazō. I am grateful for your words of praise."
"Thank you. See, was that so hard?"
"Although I will say that the choice was indeed readily apparent given the—"
Hazō flicked a bit of egg at Shikamaru's head; the Nara lord batted it aside with a faint convulsion of his face that on a normal person might have been a tiny smile, but for a Nara it was obviously some form of highly-condensed communication that would take paragraphs of italicized text to properly record. Right? No Nara would simply smile at being complimented and pelted with breakfast foods. They were far too stiff and reserved.
We could combo HLaM with Earthshaping? It'd be a medium-long term project anyway, but the prospect of recovering valuable lost intel would be worth the impracticality/inefficiency.
@RandomOTP If you'd include asking spider wife about Nature chakra I'll vote for it. Would have Hazō say how he's worried about how nature chakra interacts with the way we are trying to stabilize the great seal and then see if they have any techniques that interact with it
Word Count: tbd
[x] Action Plan: Stealing the Secrets of the Sages
prep work
Confirm that Kagome is going to get the scroll
Noburi, Kei, and Kagome
Celebrate the fact that we got a scroll for Kagome
Find out if there is anything Kagome wants to find out about the Arachnids, would he like us to try to find potential summons for him?
If he would like us to give a message to Kumokōgō?
Hazou has been going through some of Jiraiya's old note and he's interested in nature chakra. It def feels like there is something worth knowing there. Hazou also thinks that understanding how it works would help into stabilizing the Great Seal
Keiko, Noburi can y'all try to find out any info or techniques about it from your bosses/sages?
Cannai
How're the Dogs doing? Need assistance? Should be fully healed in a few weeks.
We've mulled over Cannai's poem, and have some questions.
The poem claims the Sage went 'beyond the trees' to rest, and that 'truth or death' could lead to him.
Did he go to the Naraka Path? We might've seen those trees once...
Sage also left 'seven rocks with seven locks' and the Great Seal is, basically, a giant lock made of rock. There's seven paths... are there six more Great Seals somewhere?
What does Cannai know of the other Paths?
Who are the Lost Ones? Does this refer to the Sage's Five companions Cannai mentioned or someone else?
Is Jashin a Lost One? Has Cannai heard of Jashin before? His cult's symbol is a circle with a triangle inside.
Trees made of Iron or Stone? Are those supposed to be buildings? Why is their shade dangerous? Is it because the Lost Ones reside in them?
Pantsā told Kei that the denizens of the Seventh Path absorb 'nature chakra' from it, which is why stronger denizens are harder to Summon. Jiraiya later told us draining a Summon could be dangerous. Is nature chakra toxic to humans or something? We are worried about how nature chakra might interact with how we are trying to stabilize the Great Seal. If Cannai has any insight it would be incredibly helpful
Kumokōgō
Inform her that you have obtained the Arachnoid Scroll and tell her about Kagome
Ask if there's anything she would like to know about him
Hazou has been reviewing some of his notes from Jiraiya a great seal master and summoner and he's learned of nature chakra
He's worried about how it might interact with the attempt to stabilize the great seal
If Kumokōgō has any info or techniques that interact with nature chakra it could greatly increase our odds of containing the dragons
