Wait, you didn't know? So unwittingly you've now canonized an avatar of the hivemind breaking into the setting to pilfer activated seals.

...WHAT HAVE I DONE?!
It's OK, Fifi drove him off before any damage could be done. I knew there was a reason Kagome of all people took her on as a pet.

Edit:
Well "never piss off Goketsu Keiko" is a bust, but the rest of that was amazing.
I don't know what you're talking about. She's a sweet, innocent little girl who wouldn't harm a fly.

She just doesn't know it yet.
 
I can chip in 20$, let's christen this ship.
@OliWhail I'll match any contributions others make for this
@Velorien did you have any particular image in mind for Keiko's date outfit? Maaaaybe like this, possibly hemmed with fur of some kind since it's winter...?

I figure Tenten is wearing something like this - since it's specifically mentioned that it's not great for mobility, I figure it isn't one of the... let's call them shorter versions that showed up in my search.
 
For the casino seals, I think the next step should be to lower their range or add direction. Shut down Invisible Girl with Goketsu-Style Genjutsu: Glitterdust.
 
@Velorien did you have any particular image in mind for Keiko's date outfit? Maaaaybe like this, possibly hemmed with fur of some kind since it's winter...?

I figure Tenten is wearing something like this - since it's specifically mentioned that it's not great for mobility, I figure it isn't one of the... let's call them shorter versions that showed up in my search.
For Keiko, I was thinking something like this. Not necessarily that pattern, but I think it matches what Mari would consider feminine mystique and Keiko would consider funereal. I don't think it's standard to hem kimonos with fur--they're inherently worn with lots of layers underneath them--but I am hardly an expert on the clothing of any culture or era.

For Tenten, I was thinking something like this with long sleeves, or this. As wool winter wear, it'll probably have thicker fabric than normal, but I don't know how viable or necessary it would be to depict that.

If anyone actually knows the intricacies of classical Chinese or Japanese winter wear, please feel free to jump in and contribute.
 
Disclaimer: Note again that this is not the approach I'm advocating. I don't even think it's a good approach.
It feels to me that you're putting yourself in Hazō's shoes and then modeling probable outcomes from that. ("I care very much about protecting the Condors from genocide and (not as much or not at all) about Jiraiya being Hokage. Jiraiya's Hokageship is fragile and my opposition would endanger it, therefore giving me leverage over him. I will tell Jiraiya that he must protect the Condors from the Pangolin or else I will oppose his Hokageship. He cannot afford to coerce me in any public way, so he will capitulate and do what I want him to.")

Would your estimated outcomes be any different if you put yourself in Jiraiya's shoes instead? Imagine yourself as Jiraiya, with your best understanding of Jiraiya's values. Your adoptive son comes to you and blackmails you to help the Condors. How does your simulation of Jiraiya feel about this? How much does he value the Condors and their genocide? How does that level of care rank in his other values? Are any of his other values involved in this situation? What is his most likely response?
(Quick clarification: Hazō would not be demanding Jiraiya's personal help, but permission for Hazō and Keiko to act.)

I don't understand the difference you expect from this reframing. Nonetheless, —

I don't think Jiraiya particularly cares about the summon realm at all except as an exploitable resource. Obviously his main priority in almost all regards is Leaf, with smaller, more private motivations on top, like for his own success. Jiraiya also values his personal agency, as you can tell from his discussion on going missing-nin; he considered the idea poor not because of the idea in general, but because he Leaf would send the big stuff after him, and he considered that a problem because he wasn't confident he could handle it, not because it would have hurt Leaf to spend the resources. Finally, he seems to claim he has some kind of specific attachment to the family, but I don't give that much weight overall since it doesn't make a ton of sense to me and he could just be saying it to increase trust.

I think Jiraiya will have two main concerns here. First, and perhaps most trivial, the reduction of exploitable resources from the summoning realm. I expect Hazō would try to compensate by offering some kind of mitigation if possible. Second, and the one that bites, a loss of trust in Hazō generally; Jiraiya presumably categorizes people a lot by whether he considers them ally or adversary to Leaf, and if Hazō doesn't follow that incentive structure Jiraiya will find it hard to consider him an ally. If Hazō is sane (not, admittedly, a given), he will make sure his incentive structure is clear, reassert his fealty to Leaf in other respects, and assure Jiraiya that he is in other ways predictable—as in, Hazō has no intention of repeating this performance, and considers himself in political debt.

There are two reasons I think Jiraiya would go along with it. The first is that I don't see how Jiraiya can afford to say no; the value proposition would be atrocious. Fundamentally—if he cares about his post as Hokage in a fundamental way and, from what I've given above plus his claims about the fate of Leaf if he fails to get it, I expect he does—he doesn't have all that much choice. This doesn't prevent him making Hazō's life difficult in return, or retaliating more fully after-the-fact, but the former is assumed acceptable in this respect, and any after-the-fact actions would be moderated by the fact that Hazō would be making good on his guarantee to continue working in Leaf's interest.

The second reason is more outside-view level stuff. "I won't support you unless you do X" basically summarises Leaf politics in a nutshell. This is how the game is meant to be played, and if Jiraiya was the kind of person to play hard lines against such tactics, he wouldn't be successful. Jiraiya is also capable of working with people who want different things to him, as his successful spy network makes clear, and refusing to ever compromise on things is a kind of stupid that, while it might work a few times when you're lucky, doesn't work consistently and certainly doesn't scale. So, again, I expect Jiraiya to say, "screw you kid, I thought we were a team" but then go on and let Hazō do his thing anyway.
 
I have to admit, my heart skipped a beat when I saw the alert say "10k words". Great update @Velorien, and don't think I haven't noticed Hazou's developing social competence in the Ino conversation.

but for the fact that Akane could not possibly know Kei had a girlfriend.

It's both funny and sad how Keiko continues to underestimate and look down on Akane. It's almost like she's extended her own warped sense of self-perception to another person, somehow.

For all the world's sins, it did not deserve a drunken Kei.

That sounds like a challenge for the players!

Shikamaru gave her a sideways look. "Item 47 of the Sensible Nara List."

"'If the activity you are considering is something only Mitarashi Anko would do, get a senior Nara's permission before doing it'," Shiori recited.

Ha! Lists are yet again vindicated as the ultimate form of organizing information!

Shiori was running out of "what".

Poor Shiori, she unwittingly entered the Goketsu Clan's sphere of influence, and her life quickly became chaos.

Hazō's smile widened as he heard the names. Really, it was strange how he hadn't seen it coming, what with all the time those two had been spending together. After the whole Mari-sensei thing, somehow it had never occurred to him that Keiko might eventually get a boyfriend.

Isn't Hazou aware of Keiko's homosexuality? Or does he think it's just a phase she'll grow out of?

"The Official Gōketsu Keiko Fan Club. We've been running for less than a week, but we're very dedicated."

popcorn.gif

"Well, sir," the shopkeeper's voice took on an ardent quality, "at first it was just another rumour about a salesman meeting the Hokage's daughter, and how she was an adorable little angel unlike anything he'd ever seen. But then some of us started looking out for her in the streets, just out of curiosity, and we saw that every word was true! She's cute as a button, but with a quiet dignity, and very tall for only ten years old. A few bold people tried talking to her, but of course she left as quickly as she could, being scared of strangers and all. We're hoping that once our numbers are higher, we can provide an escort to keep idiots like that away.

Oh man, and Keiko already traded her ability to murder Tobikomi for a pony. This is going to be so good.

Then a memory flashed through his mind, of spending the night shivering outside while constantly looking for the glint of sharp metal beneath the moonlight. And then a slightly earlier one, of being verbally eviscerated for no reason whatsoever while he was just trying to have a quiet mug of hot chocolate.

You know, putting the humour aside for a moment, Keiko has always had an intermittent streak of somewhat abusive behaviour like this. It's not really that big a deal, but as far as I'm aware, she's also never apologized for it. And blowing up on a family member for no reason is really not something that anyone should become comfortable with, like she apparently has.

It's nice that Hazou found a way to get back at her in a way that doesn't risk feeding into her issues, but it'd also be nice if she learned to act a bit more kind to people.

"Don't take too long. We're going to need you to save the world."

Man, Noburi has come such a long way. So proud.
 
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So, again, I expect Jiraiya to say, "screw you kid, I thought we were a team" but then go on and let Hazō do his thing anyway.
I see. This is likely to require some worldbuilding in the part of the QMs, so we should probably start thinking about it.

Could you summarize for us how and when you would choose to approach Jiraiya on the issue? In his office, at a meeting (with whom?), in public, etc. Are you prepared to trade anything aside from your ongoing lack of opposition? What, specifically, would you want him to do and what would you be willing to bargain down to if he pushed back?


EDIT: Actually, you said you were trying to get permission for you and Keiko to act. What would you be doing that would require Jiraiya's permission?
 
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@Velorien - great chapter, and some much needed relief for the thread about the orgy thing.

He interrupted her.

"Other people's relationships are not your business, Yamanaka."

^ This exchange was great; Hazou was confident and sincere, and it reinforces how when he talks about things he believes in deeply, he can be convincing and well-spoken.

"Oh, right," Yamanaka muttered to herself. "That was why."

Ino agrees :p

"I'll…" What could Hazō possibly do? He could try to talk to Mari-sensei and make her feel better. After all, it wasn't like anything he said could make things worse.

Who was he kidding, of course it could. If even Keiko, who was probably closer to Mari-sensei than any of them, couldn't pull it off… No, they needed Noburi. They needed him like never before.

Hint hint, nudge nudge, maybe it's time to talk to Mari too.

Actually, do we know how close Noburi and Mari are? I don't think they've had very many scenes together, contrary to Keiko. Do we think this is something he can deal with? If he never made trouble and Mari was never vulnerable around him... Could be tough!

Well, at the very least we should talk to him about that. Um, and make sure he has the deets on her role in our Mist departure.

Isn't Hazou aware of Keiko's homosexuality? Or does he think it's just a phase she'll grow out of?

All Goketsu (except for Jirayia I guess?) know that Keiko had a serious crush on Mari.
 
@Ishtar, @Vecht, @ anybody else who might want to chip in for a KeiTen commission.

Okay, so, there are of course lots of references for Tenten.

Here are (I think?) the only two depictions we have of Keiko. One of them is actually by @Phearo, who I'd seen in the Artist thread and was already going to suggesting talking to even before I realized they'd done "The Team Plays Games".
So, yeah, uh, when I said before that a couple of guys got me to draw a picture for the thread? Well, Here's another one!


And finally, they also left a note:
EDIT: Here's a link to the source file. For anyone who wants to mess with it.
Side note: GOD I love Pandaa here. I always love Pandaa.
I have a thing you guys might like.



Cover art by Jen Cao.

And special thanks to @OliWhail for gathering feedback from peoples, coordinating with the artist throughout the project, and for faithfully preserving my anonymity as the benefactor.

...Er, wait.

SO taking in what @Velorien said about what he had in mind for their outfits, I'm kind of picturing Keiko wearing a blue kimono with a pattern of stylized snowflakes and plum-blossoms (symbolizing 'Elegance, Faithfulness, Pure heart', AND they're a winter flower) and Tenten wearing a red winter cheongsam (longer dress cut, long sleeves) with either dragon or phoenix embroidery (Land of / Will of Fire, plus her Twin Rising Dragons thing in canon), standing looking between the sunset and each other and blushing and trying not to look like they want to look at each other too badly and AAAUUUGH THEY'RE SO CUTE @Velorien WHY HAVE YOU DONE THIS TO MY HEART
 
You know, putting the humour aside for a moment, Keiko has always had an intermittent streak of somewhat abusive behaviour like this. It's not really that big a deal, but as far as I'm aware, she's also never apologized for it. And blowing up on a family member for no reason is really not something that anyone should become comfortable with, like she apparently has.

It's nice that Hazou found a way to get back at her in a way that doesn't risk feeding into her issues, but it'd also be nice if she learned to act a bit more kind to people.
I don't think anyone ever thinks they're blowing up for no reason. I would say there is a clear pattern to what triggers Keiko's murderous impulses.
@Ishtar, @Vecht, @ anybody else who might want to chip in for a KeiTen commission.

Okay, so, there are of course lots of references for Tenten.

Here are (I think?) the only two depictions we have of Keiko. One of them is actually by @Phearo, who I'd seen in the Artist thread and was already going to suggesting talking to even before I realized they'd done "The Team Plays Games".

Side note: GOD I love Pandaa here. I always love Pandaa.


SO taking in what @Velorien said about what he had in mind for their outfits, I'm kind of picturing Keiko wearing a blue kimono with a pattern of stylized snowflakes and plum-blossoms (symbolizing 'Elegance, Faithfulness, Pure heart', AND they're a winter flower) and Tenten wearing a red winter cheongsam (longer dress cut, long sleeves) with either dragon or phoenix embroidery (Land of / Will of Fire, plus her Twin Rising Dragons thing in canon), standing looking between the sunset and each other and blushing and trying not to look like they want to look at each other too badly and AAAUUUGH THEY'RE SO CUTE @Velorien WHY HAVE YOU DONE THIS TO MY HEART
Incidentally, omitting individual details like relative heights, The Team Plays Games is my personal visual reference for everyone except Kagome and partially Akane. I'm in love with that image. (No, really, I have it as my desktop background and everything.)
 
@Velorien I have a couple of questions on the casino seals.

You are done with the casino seals. There were no sealing failures beyond the sealing lab's power to safely contain. They have a six-foot range, and set off an alarm if they detect active chakra emission within it. Casting ninjutsu counts; already-active ninjutsu and chakra boosting (which is purely internal) do not. The Iron Nerve, Frozen Skein and Vampiric Dew are also not based on chakra emission and therefore do not trigger them.

1. Are they reusable? That is, do they active once upon chakra detection and then have to be redrawn, or do they activate and continue the alarm for (some period of time) before shutting off, only to reactivate when sensing a new chakra source?

2. Are they activated by infusion or activation of a seal within their range?

3. What type of "alarm" do they produce? Light or sound and at what approximate level?

4. Back when Hazou first discovered them, they were drawn to blend in with woodwork patterns. Does this mean they:

A. Were drawn on paper with a wood-like appearance and then paper was glued to the wood surface?
B. Were drawn in ink on the wood itself?
C. Were caved into the wood itself?

EDIT: If you answer these questions, you might want to edit answers into the game post so that people don't keep coming back with the same questions.
 
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Chapter was equal parts hilarious and adorable, @Velorien. Great job!

@eaglejarl @OliWhail

If this is a question that Hazou or Kagome can answer: Does Hazou think he can rework Casino Seals between now and the tournament to detect chakra boosting/active ninjutsu?
 
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