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Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

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TaliesinSkye said:
You know, it shocks me that we're not using Iron Nerve in important conversations like this as a default, like Ren obviously does. We shouldn't be giving away any microexpressions and reactions we don't want to. Maybe that's something to put in future plans?
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I think it's implied that this is difficult to do seamlessly.

Hana mentions "The Training" and that Hazou isn't half bad at socials for someone who hasn't had "The Training". I'm pretty sure its some sort of thing you need help learning.

Granted, theres literally no reason we shouldn't be trying to get our grubby little hands on this. Approximately perfect body language is a massive boon in social situations (If in doubt, in the next prolonged conversation you find yourself in, keep track of how subtle shifts in facial expression and stance/footing have an effect on your read of a conversation/what you think the other person is thinking or feeling).

MrCogmor said:
This was a mistake and it is one we should never repeat.

Even if Ami doesn't want to get hit by an angry kage there are long lasting poisons, mind altering substances, binary chemical weapons and other deniable substances she could slip into our food. Since this place is experimental cuisine it is possible she could even blame the civilian. Her eating some isn't any proof of innocence since she could have antidotes or resistance. You also shouldn't trust the word of someone like Ami when they say that they don't want to kill you.
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Good point. We should immediately vomit it all up and store the remains so that Tsunade can look it over.

E: Also we should go eat a pound of charcoal.
 
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Well. Everyone, please note how Ami talked about how people want to fight wars, and they don't know what else to do. That's what Madara says, when justifying the Infinite Tsukiyomi. So, Ami is Madara's pawn.

…

***panicked screaming in Kagome***
 
Okay, I love this chick. This whole endeavor remains a terrible idea, but it's the kind of terrible idea I can get on board with. Humanity 3.0 full speed ahead! Where is snekuncle already?


Velorien said:
"Irony being," she added, "Old Tsukamoto got killed fighting a Light Element user. You know, the guys who go invisible."
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Still screwing with us, but goddamn if it isn't glorious. Definitely something to ask about in the Jiraiya debrief.


Velorien said:
"Would I?" Ami asked. "I'll be long dead by the time humanity dies out, same as those people you're asking to think about the long term. Heck, I could, and probably will, die within the month.
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World war incoming.


faflec said:
Related: We nearly got fucked by what I read as a low-medium effort attempt at seduction. We are not prepared for this shit.
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Duh.


MMKII said:
Solution: Exposure therapy.
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Hazou is still due a verdict on his semifinals performance from Ikeda.


Powerofmind said:
What even is that age gap? I didn't think Ami was that much older than Kei.

My parents are nearly a decade apart, same with my girlfriend and me.
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Yeah, but what's the gap between your first coldblooded murders of innocent bystanders?


eaglejarl said:
"By darkness unmoved."
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No wonder Shikaku is concerned.


MMKII said:
In all fairness: you have to be an absolute madman to pick CQC as your combat specialization.
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*Manic smiling in Mariko*


MMKII said:
We don't actually have any knowledge about whether she's a social spec. In fact, I think it more likely she's just Itachi tier.
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Dammit, we forgot to ask for an autograph!


MMKII said:
This girl has more faces than Jiraiya has spikey white hairs on his head, and she can be any single one of them at any moment. She is deadly , competent, and utterly terrifying. She could have been fucking with us, or a split second from leaving Hazou's slowly cooling corpse on the ground.

I have no doubt that if we ever become a true thorn in her side, we will shortly find ourselves dead in a time and manner that is maximally convenient to her. (Unless we do something clever first, of course.)

So I ask you...

...when's our second date?
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In a month.
 
So Ami is fascinating, and terriyfying, and also we need _at least_ the level of "can't trust Hazou in in-person conversation" that we apply to Hana.

She was, all things considered, very gentle and kind; but that is mostly because we don't really have anything she wants that much right now. If that changes (and how would we know), in person engagement becomes very risky.

Soo, pen pals?
 
MMKII said:
I think it's implied that this is difficult to do seamlessly.

Hana mentions "The Training" and that Hazou isn't half bad at socials for someone who hasn't had "The Training". I'm pretty sure its some sort of thing you need help learning.

Granted, theres literally no reason we shouldn't be trying to get our grubby little hands on this. Approximately perfect body language is a massive boon in social situations (If in doubt, in the next prolonged conversation you find yourself in, keep track of how subtle shifts in facial expression and stance/footing have an effect on your read of a conversation/what you think the other person is thinking or feeling).
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I suppose I can see two social applications of the Iron Nerve.

The first level is easy. Basically a perfect poker face. Don't show anything you don't want to show. Keep people from reading you.

The second level is the mastery Ren shows, and what Hana probably has. Manipulate your marks by figuring out exactly the right expressions to show at exactly the right times and do it all seamlessly, like it's natural and not a performance made out of clip art.

I'll bet the second level is what the training is all about, but we should be able to do the first level easily by plastering a neutral expression on and sticking with it. It'll make us seem like a creepy robot, but that's better than letting a social spec read you like a book.

Edit: You know, I just had a flash of inspiration.

Let's tell Hana about the meeting and get her take on it.
 
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MMKII said:
Right, but that doesn't make us enemies.
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Sure as heck doesn't make us friends, either.

If you must have a positive emotion at her, go with respect. She didn't kill us, she respected us enough to think we wouldn't fall for a direct "hi I'm your best friend" approach, and she's put a healthy fear of ninja diplomacy into us. Don't disregard the lesson she just tried to teach you.
 
Evenstar said:
Sure as heck doesn't make us friends, either.

If you must have a positive emotion at her, go with respect. She didn't kill us, she respected us enough to think we wouldn't fall for a direct "hi I'm your best friend" approach, and she's put a healthy fear of ninja diplomacy into us. Don't disregard the lesson she just tried to teach you.
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She gets respect by virtue of having the "Jonin" title, regardless of how she acted towards us.
 
Cariyaga said:
Nah. She'll die just like everyone else if we drop a nuke.
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Yeah, but I would like to keep that option up our sleeves just in case Mist or Ami decides we need to die or goes to war with us.

E: Also giving Radvic total control is our last resort option, isn't it?
 
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I do think this is an excellent opportunity to introduce Hazo to the fact that he's influenced by exraplanar forces. Let's do that, imagine the boon if we started being able to collaborate with Hazo directly.
 
[X] Action Plan: Think about extraplanar entities and their relationship with the people they influence. Become aware that this plan was brought to you by one such (collective) entity.
 
MMKII said:
She implied the Mori knew something about roughly when the world started going to shit, too.
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Well, she implied that she knows something. Whether that's through the Mori, through her "third party" faction (if it even exists), or entirely independently is unclear.

(and of course there's always the possibility that she knows no such thing, but the point is that she didn't provide any "evidence" to lead Hazou to assume Mori involvement specifically, whatever her motivations)
 
Wiadi said:
Whether that's through the Mori, through her "third party" faction (if it even exists), or entirely independently is unclear.
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After that update, I have a suspicion that the "third faction" is just an increasingly large blob of Jonin , Mist ANBU, and other influential ninja /individuals that owe Ami some major favors, and she's the one at the wheel here using them to accomplish things.
 
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