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Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

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faflec said:
So...do scorch squads actually exist? We never got a clear answer, and I'm starting to wonder if they were grue'd.
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If Scorch Squads do exist (and knowledge of Leaf's squads died with the last Hokage or they're being operated by Danzo) we'll probably find out soon because of the new mission type offering better protection to Leaf civilians from monsters that would have been blamed for what was actually scorch squad activity and more ninja contact with minor villages, meaning a higher likelihood of someone seeing evidence or even catching a squad at work.
 
Cariyaga said:
As far as the finding a breakdown in causality interesting goes, by the way @eaglejarl, I would recommend time travel rather than grueing. Develop an internally-consistent method by which it functions (You've previously used the Time Loop version as regards retroactive sealing failures, but that's not necessary required for non-sealing failures), and it'd be fine. Though, granted, insofar as player suspension-of-disbelief goes with regard to time travel, use of it may require exposition as to its mechanics in-story in the medium-term.

(As may be obvious, I am personally fond of time travel :p)
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No. Do not touch time travel with a ten foot pole, or any touching at all.
 
eaglejarl said:
By "grued", I mean that something was excised from reality by deliberate choice of the QMs without any mistake requiring it. Things that are grued *were* part of reality, no longer are, and all memory of them and all (most?) evidence of their previous existence is gone.
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eaglejarl said:
...exactly one grue: henge.
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What about stuff that never existed and we will never have to worry about but is treated as having been grue'd by Kagome? As in, we have never encountered it in-story and the QMs have never mentioned it or treated it as real, but Kagome makes offhand remarks about random stuff that only he remembers?
 
eaglejarl said:
After three long years I am FINALLY getting to write the "building a village" quest that I wanted back in the beginning.
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[Þ]Action Plan: Marked for Death²

  • Fake our deaths and escape from Leaf to become missing-nin once more
    • WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
      • Socials are hard, killing chakra monsters and eating them is not
  • Avoid any contact with other sentient life forms that are not part of our team
    • Punch first, ask questions later
  • Do some literal Uplifting
 
Tua said:
[Þ]Action Plan: Marked for Death²

  • Fake our deaths and escape from Leaf to become missing-nin once more
    • WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
      • Socials are hard, killing chakra monsters and eating them is not
  • Avoid any contact with other sentient life forms that are not part of our team
    • Punch first, ask questions later
  • Do some literal Uplifting
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[Þ]Action Plan: Marked for Death²

We should go Kagome all the way. Who cares about other stinkers anyway. They're all probably infected with lupchanz.
 
Vecht said:
[citation needed]
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I meant Kagome killing her in the skytower. I've amended for clarity.

Wiadi said:
I note, of course, the conspicuous absence of any word on whether or not they were faked. Still, at least the idea of scorch squads has had positive results.
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zxzx24 said:
And yet you refrain from mentioning faked.

Hm.
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Well yes. I needed to leave open the possibility that they are fake so that everyone can continue arguing whether or not we are actually evil enough to put such a thing in the game. There's a difference in having the players wonder about what is reality and what used to be reality.

somnolentSlumber said:
What about stuff that never existed and we will never have to worry about but is treated as having been grue'd by Kagome? As in, we have never encountered it in-story and the QMs have never mentioned it or treated it as real, but Kagome makes offhand remarks about random stuff that only he remembers?
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In seriousness, there never were Sand gliders. They were explicitly removed during worldbuilding -- I believe because they were filler, but don't quote me -- and they were mentioned during the grue as a bit of humor.

Oh, I suppose there is a fourth category: Things that were intended to be part of the world but got axed before ever showing up. The only example I can think of is that originally disguise kits were going to allow you to turn into animals, but that got added before anyone ever used it.
Tua said:
Fake our deaths and escape from Leaf to become missing-nin once more
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I will cut you.
With a very sharp piece of paper.
And then pour lemon juice on it.
 
eaglejarl said:
In seriousness, there never were Sand gliders. They were explicitly removed during worldbuilding -- I believe because they were filler, but don't quote me -- and they were mentioned during the grue as a bit of humor.

Oh, I suppose there is a fourth category: Things that were intended to be part of the world but got axed before ever showing up. The only example I can think of is that originally disguise kits were going to allow you to turn into animals, but that got added before anyone ever used it.
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...Huh, I thought gliders were mentioned either in-story or in-discussion by you guys outside the context of removed-during-worldbuilding, waaaaay long ago. Could be mistaken.
 
eaglejarl said:
It's also possible that I made a mistake. That happens with embarrassing frequency.
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eaglejarl said:
"That put us on the mainland. Going to any of the smaller nations would have left us camping right next to a ninja village, and even the minor villages would be able to take us out if they wanted to. Wind is huge, but it's mostly flat and they have a ton of scouts that fly around on gliders; too easy to get spotted from the air.
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Gliders were Mari's argument why Shikigami&Co didn't go to Wind.
 
I ended up not doing a proper reaction post due to a temporary spoon shortage and the Mari debacle hogging all the attention, but I nonetheless wanted to specifically comment on some things from Wednesday's update.

Velorien said:
Hazō was starting to wish he and Fifi hadn't reached an understanding. It was already hard enough for him to get to sleep these days. As soon as his brain recognised that the day had ended, it would decide that he was now free for all the thoughts of Akane he'd previously managed to avoid. Then, once he did fall asleep, being awakened by a possibly feline monstrosity demanding scritches behind the ear—or else—was not doing anything for his mental state.

Thus, he was already up and in the middle of making breakfast when a yawning Keiko descended the stairs.

"'morning, Keiko."

"Good morning, Hazō."

Keiko walked over to the sink and poured herself a cup of water.

"Hazō," she began after a fortifying drink, "it has been made clear to me that I owe you an apology."

Things weren't so bad, then. He must have gone back to sleep after placating Fifi, and for once it was a nice dream.

"An apology?" he asked, intrigued where such a fantastical experience was going to go next.

"Indeed. I should not have allowed myself to crush your fragile spirit in an outpouring of righteous fury without first establishing the degree to which you were responsible for the orgy."

"You mean not at all?"

"That is what the preliminary investigation has concluded," Keiko admitted. "Although it increasingly appears that the truth will forever be lost in the fog."

"You think Mari-sensei arranged it?" Hazō asked, aghast. "But she couldn't have—no, wait. It fits her sense of humour perfectly, and she's the one who invited Anko... Are you implying a pre-arranged conspiracy, from before Mari-sensei... got sick?"

"Mari-sensei would probably never do such a thing!" Keiko snapped." I merely appreciate the elegance of the expression.

"Regardless, I did not have sufficient evidence to justify my actions, and for that I apologise." Keiko bowed deeply, if not for long.

Hazō wished he had more such dreams, instead of charred corpses floating on the water or him hiding behind an air dome while Minami's blood painted it red.

"Apology accepted, Keiko." Then, looking at the obvious tension in her posture, it hit him. "Wait, did Noburi put you up to this?"

"Is it so implausible that I should reflect on my actions and recognise my own failings unassisted?"

Hazō's inner paranoid missing-nin screamed at him that this was no time for honesty.

Hazō's outer, slightly less paranoid ex-missing-nin cast about for a distraction.

"So while you're on a roll, what about that time you tried to kill me the other night?"

"What other night?" Keiko asked innocently. "I do not recall any flagrant violation of my privacy, such as would require an as-yet-uninflicted torturous death in order to both preserve the security of any information gained and prevent similar incidents in the future."

"Huh," Hazō said. He recalled the last time he'd been careless with his denials. "That's funny, neither do I. I'm pretty sure I went straight to bed that night—not that we're talking about any night in particular—and that's exactly what I'd tell anyone if the subject happened to come up in conversation.

"Not that it would," he added, "it being just another ordinary night with no reason to draw anyone's attention."

"He learns," Keiko said approvingly. "It is fortunate that I was not forced to defend my privacy, and will not have to do so in the future."

"Y-Yes, ma'am."

At this point, and mercifully none earlier, Kagome-sensei came down the stairs, one hand unsuccessfully trying to reshape his greasy morning hair in an effort to internalise Mari-sensei's teachings. "Did none of you hear the bell? Someone's at the front gate."

"I'll get it!" Hazō leapt from his seat.
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That was really nice to read, and it's good for Keiko to give some thought to how she's treating her family members (even if it was a result of Noburi's intervention; Noburi's the best #makeNoburiThePC). Even putting aside Keiko's specific issues, she's still a kid, and this kind of self-reflection is an important part of growing up.

@Velorien, out of curiosity, would this scene have existed if I hadn't started that whole conversation about Keiko's mean streak after the date chapter? You don't have to answer if you don't want to.

Velorien said:
"Huh," Hazō said. He recalled the last time he'd been careless with his denials.
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Velorien said:
Hazō's inner paranoid missing-nin screamed at him that this was no time for honesty.

Hazō's outer, slightly less paranoid ex-missing-nin cast about for a distraction.
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While I'm very happy to witness Hazou's continued growth and improved social acumen, I'm somewhat worried that it comes in the form of an "inner paranoid missing-nin".
 
Roomba said:
@Velorien, out of curiosity, would this scene have existed if I hadn't started that whole conversation about Keiko's mean streak after the date chapter? You don't have to answer if you don't want to.
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It's a good question, and the answer is that I don't know. Hazō isn't the only one who gets unconsciously influenced by thread stuff, especially when players raise interesting issues. I mean, I have my own take on Keiko's behaviour, which is different from a lot of people's, but the fact that the topic was raised at all could have had an impact of its own.

Roomba said:
While I'm very happy to witness Hazou's continued growth and improved social acumen, I'm somewhat worried that it comes in the form of an "inner paranoid missing-nin".
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Actually, this has been part of Hazō's characterisation for a while, just not a conspicuous one since it's usually been drowned out by stronger factors. You have to remember, he has been a paranoid missing-nin, with Kagome as one of his primary formative influences.
 
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