- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest
- Thread starter eaglejarl
- Start date
-
- Tags
- naruto rationalist romance armageddon is looking better and better damn you kishimoto explosions everywhere explosives solve everyone if in doubt surrender to the mercy of zabuza it seemed like a good idea at the time looks like a really bad case of being a jōnin my god. where does the lore end? precommitting is the winning plan screaming in kagome screw the rules i have explosives something bad might still happen sometimes you gotta sociopath stabby zabby subsection c of paragraph 9 should include we can weaponize this so hard
Speaking of Flobovia...
How hard would it be to make a gold seal that makes silver seal (blanks) that (when infused) makes bronze seal (blanks) that (when infused) makes another type of seal blank?
How hard would it be to make a gold seal that makes silver seal (blanks) that (when infused) makes bronze seal (blanks) that (when infused) makes another type of seal blank?
(That and we should totally have a go at building a POPE.)
Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Just remember: Start with rodents, then bandits, then captured ninja. And then never use it on ourselves because we accidentally made a super intelligent enemy ninja.
- Location
- Academy City
- Pronouns
- They
Just use it on the next PC
. If it goes wrong, we have control, and if it goes right we keep our current protag.Ideas for enhancement seals that might (@eaglejarl @Velorien @Jackercracks ?) conceivably be within our level of expertise:
Social Modelling Seal v_1.0
Add one effective level to diplomacy and deception (capping at the max skill level).
Fighting Style Modelling Seal v_1.0
Add one effective level to tacmove and taijutsu (capping at the max skill level).
Data Analysis Seal v_1.0
Add two (one if that's too high?) effective levels to awareness (capping at the max skill level).
Chakra Flow Stabiliser Seal v_1.0
When using a jutsu, reroll (only once) any dice that are lower than the sealsmith's Sealing level at the time of seal creation.
Social Modelling Seal v_1.0
Add one effective level to diplomacy and deception (capping at the max skill level).
Fighting Style Modelling Seal v_1.0
Add one effective level to tacmove and taijutsu (capping at the max skill level).
Data Analysis Seal v_1.0
Add two (one if that's too high?) effective levels to awareness (capping at the max skill level).
Chakra Flow Stabiliser Seal v_1.0
When using a jutsu, reroll (only once) any dice that are lower than the sealsmith's Sealing level at the time of seal creation.
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Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Personally, I'd feel more comfortable with those if our sealing level was like... 25 or so...
Kagome has around Sealing 20 (I think?) and he can make forcefields and indestructible/immovable effects.
Those seem... vastly... more difficult than a program to approximately read body language.
Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
Sealing as a programming language has different low-hanging fruits to real-world programming languages. Now granted, if all those seals were intended to do is read body language, I'd be a lot more okay with them than if they futzed with our brainmeats. I like our brainmeats where they are, thank you very much.
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Role players (rohl-play-ahs) pl. noun
1. A class of people for whom the following equation is true:
"unbelievably unstable, unpredictable, and dangerous art with little or no science behind it" + "modifies the user's brain and/or body" = "good idea"
2. The second most frequent source of GM headaches. (The first most frequent being the grappling rules.)
1. A class of people for whom the following equation is true:
"unbelievably unstable, unpredictable, and dangerous art with little or no science behind it" + "modifies the user's brain and/or body" = "good idea"
2. The second most frequent source of GM headaches. (The first most frequent being the grappling rules.)
1) None of this necesarily modifies Hazou's brain. The information the seals deduce could be imparted through means other than seal-to-brain interface.
2) Even if it did, we've already discussed multiple times that such seals would be tested on things other than Hazou's brain very extensively before Hazou put them on.
Cariyaga
Handsome Gentleperson
- Location
- United States
*points to your sig*
Using alternative means of imparting information or testing extensively before use causes the QMs sanity damage?
Chapter 44, Part 2: Judgement Day
- Location
- UK
- Pronouns
- He/Him
"I believe I am approximately halfway through my training," Keiko told Hazō. "Takahashi-sensei informs me…" she gave a sudden, shy smile, "that I have excellent potential. Once we have finished, I should be able to draw forth essence from the Summon Realm as soon as I have a contract."
"Oh, really?" Hazō invited her to elaborate. Anything that gave Keiko a self-esteem boost could only be encouraged.
"It is not something I can speak of with outsiders," Keiko said, the smile vanishing. "I can only say that he considers me very swift to grasp the theory, and that the disillusionment with the nature of reality has not afflicted me as deeply as it might have another. After all, I am here only through the uncaring cruelty of the universe."
Hazō took a while to figure out how to respond to that.
He finally settled on, "Is it really that bad?"
"You have been spending too much time around Ishihara if you believe otherwise," Keiko replied coolly. "Perhaps as Hazō-sensei, you should live up to your responsibilities and make her see the world as it truly is, rather than the other way round. It might prevent any further incidents like Kōta's."
She turned away, and busied herself with brewing a cup of tea.
"Oh, really?" Hazō invited her to elaborate. Anything that gave Keiko a self-esteem boost could only be encouraged.
"It is not something I can speak of with outsiders," Keiko said, the smile vanishing. "I can only say that he considers me very swift to grasp the theory, and that the disillusionment with the nature of reality has not afflicted me as deeply as it might have another. After all, I am here only through the uncaring cruelty of the universe."
Hazō took a while to figure out how to respond to that.
He finally settled on, "Is it really that bad?"
"You have been spending too much time around Ishihara if you believe otherwise," Keiko replied coolly. "Perhaps as Hazō-sensei, you should live up to your responsibilities and make her see the world as it truly is, rather than the other way round. It might prevent any further incidents like Kōta's."
She turned away, and busied herself with brewing a cup of tea.
-o-
Mari sipped the bitter but symbolically important brew as she listened to Takahashi's explanation of Gasai's trial.
"At that point," Takahashi carried on, "remember this: your testimony must be purely factual. If you speak in Gasai's favour, the other elders will believe that you are colluding in order to influence our politics. If you speak against her, they will immediately unite against you for offering insult to one of their own. Either would be disastrous."
Mari nodded, processing this. She'd expected as much. At this point it would be beyond her power to prevent or even cushion Gasai's fall—her concern now would be to protect the team's own reputation. She remembered the last time a few words in the right ears had doomed the chief of the minor village of Hidden Ravine to death by execution, and how his allies had fled like rats from a sinking ship when he sought their support. This was no different, and the last thing Mari wanted to do at this stage was to board Gasai's ship, or for that matter to be seen as the pirate who had sunk it.
But this was not enough. Gasai's trial would take place during the second part of the meeting. What mattered was the first, when Kannagi would compete against his rival for Gasai's place. Mari had been surprised by that ordering, but according to Takahashi it was a mechanism intended to prevent opportunistic elders from undermining their rivals and then immediately replacing them with their own cronies. This way, the leaving elder had some limited influence in choosing their successor.
The idea of choosing a successor before deciding whether one was necessary still seemed bizarre to Mari, but after several attempts to explain the byzantine logic behind it, Takahashi had finally given up and just said "ancient tradition".
Regardless, it would be during the first part of the meeting that her team's fate would essentially be decided. And observers like herself were strictly forbidden to attend.
"There has to be a way, Elder Takahashi," Mari said in her most professional voice. Emotional appeals would not work on this man, she'd quickly found, unless they were completely genuine—he had an uncanny ability to see through deception, and when it came to her and genuine displays of emotion...
"You may have use for us in the coming weeks," she went on before he could object, "and we would make poor tools without at least a limited understanding of our circumstances and of the opponents you would have us face."
Takahashi considered this for at least a couple of minutes, during which Mari finished the astringent abomination he had seen fit to serve her today. It sharpened the mind, she knew that, but whether the price was worth it was a matter for debate.
"Your training is in infiltration, is it not?" he asked, seemingly out of the blue.
Mari winced internally. It was not the kind of thing you admitted to an ally of convenience. But it was clear that if she said no, whatever avenue of progress he had come up with would instantly become cut off.
"That is correct," she said carefully.
"Then there may be a way."
He looked at her appraisingly. "Your Mai has much in common with Shiina, one of my daughters. They are both reserved, and hate to be touched without permission. We have had trouble finding a suitable husband for Shiina, and I suspect the same will hold true of Mai as well."
Mari nodded, a little sadly, but did not allow herself to get distracted. "And there are circumstances under which Shiina would be permitted to join you at the meeting."
"By ancient custom, each elder may bring with themselves one retainer, typically from their family, to prepare them for the position they may one day inherit. As it happens, in the beginning the retainers were brought to protect the elders in case of violence, but it has been centuries since such a thing was necessary.
"The retainer may not speak unless spoken to, which they are generally not. They are discouraged from moving or doing anything else which might distract the elders, and there are seals placed in the hall to make sure that they do not attempt to influence proceedings with ninjutsu. For all intents and purposes, they are part of the background."
"You're saying," Mari finished the thought, "that it is expected for no one to interact with the retainer in any way."
"Indeed," Takahashi nodded. "Tomorrow morning, I will invite your entire group to spend the day as guests of the Takahashi, thus ensuring that you are unable to spy on the Council of Elders. In the evening, I will leave this place with Shiina to attend the meeting. During the recess after the first part, Shiina will return home, citing tiredness, and Minori will then escort your team, yourself included, to the village hall in order to take part in Gasai's trial. Is this arrangement acceptable to you?"
Mari smiled like a cat that had got the cream. "It would be our honour to partake of your hospitality, Elder Takahashi."
-o-
"Isn't Kimiko wonderful?" Yuno practically bounced up to Noburi. "She's so friendly, and fun to spar with, and she's been teaching me about this fascinating thing called the Spirit of Youth!"
"Yeah, she's pretty great," Noburi agreed, lounging back on one of the fort's more comfortable benches after an exhausting session of ninjutsu practice. "On first names already?"
Yuno's face clouded over a little. "Well, I don't use my surname much. So Kimiko said it was OK if I called her by her first name, to reduce the distance between us."
"What are you doing here, Yuno?" Noburi asked belatedly, catching himself being more comfortable with Yuno's presence than the situation probably warranted. "I mean, it's not that I mind, but we don't normally bring village ninja inside the perimeter."
"Kimiko let me in as a one-off after we talked," Yuno explained, looking down shyly while stirring the dust on the ground with one foot. "She, um, taught me something else about foreign ninja."
"What's that?"
Yuno sat down on the bench next to Noburi. "She, um, said… she said… that you're much more direct about matters of romance."
"No offence, but from where I'm standing, it would be hard to be less direct than you guys," Noburi laughed.
Yuno kept looking at him, holding his gaze for the full second and a half that they were currently permitted.
"So I was wondering… I know it's very forward of me, but if it's not too much… could we maybe…"
She squirmed as words apparently failed her. Instead, she tentatively held out her hand.
Noburi took it. A small shock ran through him.
Her hand was smaller than he expected, but with an axe-wielder's strength, and after a moment's hesitation it wrapped around his in a tight grip.
It felt... nice.
What was he doing, Noburi suddenly asked himself. What was he thinking? What would Keiko think if she walked in right now, and saw him being… romantic… with someone else?
Nothing. She would think nothing at all. Noburi knew that. There was no point denying it. When it came to winning Keiko's heart, he was so thoroughly outclassed it wasn't even funny. And maybe it wasn't such a bad thing, having an intelligent, lively, attractive girl who was unambiguously interested in him. Sure, she wasn't Keiko, but… well, maybe she didn't need to be.
His eyes drifted back towards Yuno's as he wondered just how forward he was allowed to be, here in this moment where his and her social conventions were blurring together…
The sound of Inoue-sensei's footsteps broke the fragile silence.
Yuno and Noburi's hands separated so fast they practically left a vacuum between them. Yuno, in a blur of motion, was suddenly at the other end of the bench. Her face was flaming red, and Noburi was sure his was the same.
"Excuse me," Inoue-sensei said in a completely deadpan voice. "I've just remembered that I have pressing business somewhere far away from here."
She swivelled on her heels and left.
After a few seconds, Yuno glanced at Noburi. "Your friend isn't very subtle, is she?"
"She's exactly as subtle as she wants to be," Noburi explained, his voice low and filled with a thousand years of long-suffering weariness. "You get used to it."
"Yes," Yuno said softly, "I would like that."
After a pause, she turned towards Noburi.
"When we were… you know… you were thinking of another girl, weren't you?"
A shiver ran down Noburi's spine at Yuno's preternatural senses. Something told him bad things would happen if he didn't handle this just right.
But, perhaps for the first time in his love life, inspiration descended on him and told him exactly how to save the day.
"Yes," he said with unimpeachable honesty, "I was thinking how glad I am you're not her."
For a while after that, they just sat together, no one knowing quite what to say.
Noburi's mind chose this time to remind him that this whole thing was a deception, that soon Elder Kannagi would "disapprove" of him and break off the betrothal. Although Noburi hadn't the faintest intention of getting married to anyone at the ripe old age of thirteen, he found his feelings growing more ambivalent than they had been before.
It also occurred to him that he still didn't know whether Yuno knew. If she was just playing along, then maybe all of this was an act, though Noburi found it hard to believe that she was such a master actress. But if it wasn't… how would she feel when the inevitable happened?
"Say, Yuno," he began cautiously, "I've been wondering about something. I don't know your customs, but what would happen if… hypothetically speaking… your grandfather decided that he disapproved of me after all, and broke off the betrothal?"
Yuno gave him a smile that was just a little bit too serene. "Oh, don't worry about that. Satsuko and I won't let anything take you away from me. Not ever."
"Yeah, she's pretty great," Noburi agreed, lounging back on one of the fort's more comfortable benches after an exhausting session of ninjutsu practice. "On first names already?"
Yuno's face clouded over a little. "Well, I don't use my surname much. So Kimiko said it was OK if I called her by her first name, to reduce the distance between us."
"What are you doing here, Yuno?" Noburi asked belatedly, catching himself being more comfortable with Yuno's presence than the situation probably warranted. "I mean, it's not that I mind, but we don't normally bring village ninja inside the perimeter."
"Kimiko let me in as a one-off after we talked," Yuno explained, looking down shyly while stirring the dust on the ground with one foot. "She, um, taught me something else about foreign ninja."
"What's that?"
Yuno sat down on the bench next to Noburi. "She, um, said… she said… that you're much more direct about matters of romance."
"No offence, but from where I'm standing, it would be hard to be less direct than you guys," Noburi laughed.
Yuno kept looking at him, holding his gaze for the full second and a half that they were currently permitted.
"So I was wondering… I know it's very forward of me, but if it's not too much… could we maybe…"
She squirmed as words apparently failed her. Instead, she tentatively held out her hand.
Noburi took it. A small shock ran through him.
Her hand was smaller than he expected, but with an axe-wielder's strength, and after a moment's hesitation it wrapped around his in a tight grip.
It felt... nice.
What was he doing, Noburi suddenly asked himself. What was he thinking? What would Keiko think if she walked in right now, and saw him being… romantic… with someone else?
Nothing. She would think nothing at all. Noburi knew that. There was no point denying it. When it came to winning Keiko's heart, he was so thoroughly outclassed it wasn't even funny. And maybe it wasn't such a bad thing, having an intelligent, lively, attractive girl who was unambiguously interested in him. Sure, she wasn't Keiko, but… well, maybe she didn't need to be.
His eyes drifted back towards Yuno's as he wondered just how forward he was allowed to be, here in this moment where his and her social conventions were blurring together…
The sound of Inoue-sensei's footsteps broke the fragile silence.
Yuno and Noburi's hands separated so fast they practically left a vacuum between them. Yuno, in a blur of motion, was suddenly at the other end of the bench. Her face was flaming red, and Noburi was sure his was the same.
"Excuse me," Inoue-sensei said in a completely deadpan voice. "I've just remembered that I have pressing business somewhere far away from here."
She swivelled on her heels and left.
After a few seconds, Yuno glanced at Noburi. "Your friend isn't very subtle, is she?"
"She's exactly as subtle as she wants to be," Noburi explained, his voice low and filled with a thousand years of long-suffering weariness. "You get used to it."
"Yes," Yuno said softly, "I would like that."
After a pause, she turned towards Noburi.
"When we were… you know… you were thinking of another girl, weren't you?"
A shiver ran down Noburi's spine at Yuno's preternatural senses. Something told him bad things would happen if he didn't handle this just right.
But, perhaps for the first time in his love life, inspiration descended on him and told him exactly how to save the day.
"Yes," he said with unimpeachable honesty, "I was thinking how glad I am you're not her."
For a while after that, they just sat together, no one knowing quite what to say.
Noburi's mind chose this time to remind him that this whole thing was a deception, that soon Elder Kannagi would "disapprove" of him and break off the betrothal. Although Noburi hadn't the faintest intention of getting married to anyone at the ripe old age of thirteen, he found his feelings growing more ambivalent than they had been before.
It also occurred to him that he still didn't know whether Yuno knew. If she was just playing along, then maybe all of this was an act, though Noburi found it hard to believe that she was such a master actress. But if it wasn't… how would she feel when the inevitable happened?
"Say, Yuno," he began cautiously, "I've been wondering about something. I don't know your customs, but what would happen if… hypothetically speaking… your grandfather decided that he disapproved of me after all, and broke off the betrothal?"
Yuno gave him a smile that was just a little bit too serene. "Oh, don't worry about that. Satsuko and I won't let anything take you away from me. Not ever."
-o-
The elders were seated in order of seniority. On the right sat Inoue Rika, a sour-looking woman who looked like she'd been stretched out vertically, leaving her tall, rake-thin, and with a hooked nose that went on far too long. It was a common surname, Mari repeated to herself. She couldn't possibly be related to someone who looked like that.
To her left, in front of Mari, Takahashi sat with an eerie motionlessness, his hands folded in his lap. He had not said one word to her since they left the house.
Next was Yoshida. She was leaning forward on the table in front of her, eyes scanning the other elders and the two candidates waiting to be called forward.
The next seat was empty.
Gasai, on the other side of it from Yoshida, was wearing a perfect mask of serenity, but you could tell it was a mask because it never moved.
The Azai cousins followed. One was old, balding and with heavily calloused hands. His deep-set eyes squinted from the middle of a round face, with bushy eyebrows locked in a perpetual suspicious frown. His neighbour couldn't be a bigger contrast—pale skin, long-nailed hands that looked like they'd never seen a day's work, rich, curly hair, and an expression of blissful ignorance.
Finally, Kannagi and his rival stood a comfortable distance from each other by the entrance.
Just as Rika lifted her staff of office to begin the meeting, a desperate-looking man burst in through the front door, nearly swatting Kannagi against the wall.
"Please… accept… my… apologies. My mother, Aida Rin… has been injured… in a hunting accident. I am here… to represent her."
There was an alarmed stir in the meeting room, except from Takahashi, who remained motionless, and Azai Shūsuke, who seemed like he was sleeping with his eyes open.
Rika wordlessly waved the Aida representative to the empty seat.
When she finally spoke, even though her words were nothing more than a formal welcome, Mari was left stunned. Her voice wasn't loud, but it possessed an all-encompassing depth that made the listener, or Mari at least, feel like she was standing on the palm of Rika's hand in a vast cosmic space, waiting to receive the Lorekeeper's benediction or damnation. It took decades of training to develop a voice like that, if you had the talent to begin with. Mari knew for a fact that Yagura would kill for such an ability.
"Kannagi, you may make your case," Rika endowed him with permission (there was no other way of describing it) after the necessary formalities were complete.
Kannagi stepped forward. "I am Yoshirō, direct descendant of Kannagi the Sword Saint, who abandoned the quest for glory to cleave the Founder's path through countless beasts to this, our sanctuary. I come not for my own sake, but in the name of the weaponmasters of the village, who have seen fit to choose me as their representative.
"We all know there is but one issue at stake today—the coming of the foreigners, and the conflict between the new knowledge that they bring and the old ways we are sworn to protect. I believe this is a false dichotomy.
"Many of you must wonder why I have allowed my own beloved granddaughter to become betrothed to one of the intruders so many of us fear and hate. But I say to you that this is the way forward. Soon, they will be bound to us by ties of blood, and their incredible, all-healing power of medical ninjutsu, as well as the other lore of the outside world, made to work for the benefit of the village under the guidance of the Kannagi.
"Indeed, in this we see a glimpse into the foreigners' hearts. Instead of insulting us and our ways by finding an excuse to reject the betrothal, as a true barbarian would, they have shown openness to the diplomatic approach I have pioneered. It is on this path that we can make use of all that is good in them, drawing out their virtues and subordinating them to our own. We must bind them to us not merely with words but with ties of every kind, until their power is our power, and it is the wisdom of the elders that dictates how and why it is to be used."
The son of a bitch bowed, his speech short and thereby making sure his audience heard only the things he wanted to say.
Inside, Mari burned. Kannagi was going to have his cake and eat it—let Noburi dig himself deeper and deeper, then make the call about whether to allow the wedding to proceed whenever it was most politically expedient. And his words had just backed them into a corner when it came to ending the betrothal themselves.
It was almost as if Kannagi knew she was listening. That was impossible, though. A taijutsu expert was not going to see through one of her disguises.
Rika gave Kannagi a measuring stare for a few seconds, then moved on.
"Murasaki, you may make your case."
Murasaki was a short man with jaundiced skin and large, veiny hands which he continuously drummed against his thighs.
"I am Ganta, direct descendant of Murasaki of the Golden Hands, whose secret arts saved the Founder's life when he was struck down by the Black Fever. I come not for my own sake, but in the name of the healers of the village, who have seen fit to choose me as their representative.
"I agree with my esteemed opponent that the foreigners cannot be allowed to run amok, but rather must be dealt with on our terms. But I believe he does not go far enough. They must not merely be allied with—they must be assimilated. At any time, they may leave, taking the secret of our existence with them, and the only way to prevent that without bloodshed is to make them a willing part of this village.
"They say they are 'missing-nin', exiles in search of a home. Let us give one to them. We shall welcome them, and have them learn our ways, until in the end they are no longer foreigners, and their children, or perhaps their grandchildren, are seen fit to guard the sacred scroll. Their bloodlines shall enrich our own, and their arts shall become our arts, not through a process of thoughtless intrusion, but naturally over the years, subject to the authority of the elders in exactly the same way as we are all subject to the authority of the elders. And if they choose to reject our kindness? Well, a healer like myself knows that sometimes sick flesh must be excised for the good of the body, and has means of doing so that do not require direct confrontation.
"Finally, though it pains me to say it, Kannagi is not the man to lead us in this. How can we entrust the protection of our traditions to a man whose family rose to prominence a mere hundred years ago? A man from a bloodline that has not held a council seat in living memory?
"Even his betrothal plan is a slipshod thing, crafted by a man who lacks commitment to his cause. Who is his 'beloved granddaughter'? Why, of all his grandchildren, he has chosen Yuno, the albino tapir of the family, born of the very Gasai line whose trial you will hold this night. We all know who she is and what she has done. Will you grant responsibility to a man who stakes his family's fortunes on a cursed child?"
Ganta bowed.
Mari pondered what she'd just heard. When she'd mentioned Yuno's excitement about the courtship to Takahashi, he had explained that it was probably her first experience of romance, since outside professional contexts (where she was respected as a skilled ninja), people tended to avoid her due to her poor reputation and unusual inclinations. He had not elaborated on either.
Meanwhile, the elders exchanged glances. They did not confer, nor make comments or ask further questions, which struck Mari as strange. But then again, these people all knew each other. Each knew how the others would vote, and each knew the candidates well enough that there would be little to ask. Small communities were easy to govern—and easy to undermine if you could successfully infiltrate them to begin with.
Finally, Rika's resonant voice filled the room once more as she stood from her seat, leaning slightly on her staff.
"I, Rika, sent by the Inoue to speak for the ancestors, give my blessing to Murasaki."
Takahashi stood up next, oddly still even in his motion.
"I, Saburō, sent by the Takahashi to speak for the ninjutsu wielders, give my blessing to Kannagi."
Murasaki's hands stopped tapping.
"I, Tsukiko, sent by the Yoshida to speak for the sealcrafters, give my blessing to Kannagi." Yoshida spoke with satisfaction, letting every word fall into place one by one.
"I, Mikoto, sent by the Gasai to speak for the martial artists, give my blessing to Kannagi," Gasai said heavily. The look she exchanged with Kannagi at that moment was not a friendly look.
They appeared to have skipped the Aida representative. In a way, Mari supposed it made sense—they were voting in order of seniority, and Aida was the only non-elder. Not exactly fair, but what was one to expect from small village politics?
"I, Rindō, sent by the Azai to speak for the beastmasters, give my blessing to Murasaki," the narrow-eyed man said in a gravelly voice, watching the other elders' faces as if daring them to challenge his decision.
His statement was followed by silence.
After a few seconds, Rindō gave a meaningful cough.
Shūsuke's head jerked in Rindō's direction. He blinked a couple of times.
"Ahem. I, Shūsuke, sent by the Azai to speak for the craftsmen, give my blessing to Murasaki."
Three to three. Everyone turned to Aida Isshin, who was visibly sweating. Mari watched his gaze go back and forth, between the healer and the man who now held medical ninjutsu in his hands. His injured mother had to be foremost in his mind.
Back and forth. Back and forth.
"I, Isshin, sent by the Aida to speak for the scroll guardians, give my blessing to…"
The hall was quiet enough that Mari could hear Murasaki's fingers, moving once again.
Finally, Isshin found his courage.
"Kannagi!"
To her left, in front of Mari, Takahashi sat with an eerie motionlessness, his hands folded in his lap. He had not said one word to her since they left the house.
Next was Yoshida. She was leaning forward on the table in front of her, eyes scanning the other elders and the two candidates waiting to be called forward.
The next seat was empty.
Gasai, on the other side of it from Yoshida, was wearing a perfect mask of serenity, but you could tell it was a mask because it never moved.
The Azai cousins followed. One was old, balding and with heavily calloused hands. His deep-set eyes squinted from the middle of a round face, with bushy eyebrows locked in a perpetual suspicious frown. His neighbour couldn't be a bigger contrast—pale skin, long-nailed hands that looked like they'd never seen a day's work, rich, curly hair, and an expression of blissful ignorance.
Finally, Kannagi and his rival stood a comfortable distance from each other by the entrance.
Just as Rika lifted her staff of office to begin the meeting, a desperate-looking man burst in through the front door, nearly swatting Kannagi against the wall.
"Please… accept… my… apologies. My mother, Aida Rin… has been injured… in a hunting accident. I am here… to represent her."
There was an alarmed stir in the meeting room, except from Takahashi, who remained motionless, and Azai Shūsuke, who seemed like he was sleeping with his eyes open.
Rika wordlessly waved the Aida representative to the empty seat.
When she finally spoke, even though her words were nothing more than a formal welcome, Mari was left stunned. Her voice wasn't loud, but it possessed an all-encompassing depth that made the listener, or Mari at least, feel like she was standing on the palm of Rika's hand in a vast cosmic space, waiting to receive the Lorekeeper's benediction or damnation. It took decades of training to develop a voice like that, if you had the talent to begin with. Mari knew for a fact that Yagura would kill for such an ability.
"Kannagi, you may make your case," Rika endowed him with permission (there was no other way of describing it) after the necessary formalities were complete.
Kannagi stepped forward. "I am Yoshirō, direct descendant of Kannagi the Sword Saint, who abandoned the quest for glory to cleave the Founder's path through countless beasts to this, our sanctuary. I come not for my own sake, but in the name of the weaponmasters of the village, who have seen fit to choose me as their representative.
"We all know there is but one issue at stake today—the coming of the foreigners, and the conflict between the new knowledge that they bring and the old ways we are sworn to protect. I believe this is a false dichotomy.
"Many of you must wonder why I have allowed my own beloved granddaughter to become betrothed to one of the intruders so many of us fear and hate. But I say to you that this is the way forward. Soon, they will be bound to us by ties of blood, and their incredible, all-healing power of medical ninjutsu, as well as the other lore of the outside world, made to work for the benefit of the village under the guidance of the Kannagi.
"Indeed, in this we see a glimpse into the foreigners' hearts. Instead of insulting us and our ways by finding an excuse to reject the betrothal, as a true barbarian would, they have shown openness to the diplomatic approach I have pioneered. It is on this path that we can make use of all that is good in them, drawing out their virtues and subordinating them to our own. We must bind them to us not merely with words but with ties of every kind, until their power is our power, and it is the wisdom of the elders that dictates how and why it is to be used."
The son of a bitch bowed, his speech short and thereby making sure his audience heard only the things he wanted to say.
Inside, Mari burned. Kannagi was going to have his cake and eat it—let Noburi dig himself deeper and deeper, then make the call about whether to allow the wedding to proceed whenever it was most politically expedient. And his words had just backed them into a corner when it came to ending the betrothal themselves.
It was almost as if Kannagi knew she was listening. That was impossible, though. A taijutsu expert was not going to see through one of her disguises.
Rika gave Kannagi a measuring stare for a few seconds, then moved on.
"Murasaki, you may make your case."
Murasaki was a short man with jaundiced skin and large, veiny hands which he continuously drummed against his thighs.
"I am Ganta, direct descendant of Murasaki of the Golden Hands, whose secret arts saved the Founder's life when he was struck down by the Black Fever. I come not for my own sake, but in the name of the healers of the village, who have seen fit to choose me as their representative.
"I agree with my esteemed opponent that the foreigners cannot be allowed to run amok, but rather must be dealt with on our terms. But I believe he does not go far enough. They must not merely be allied with—they must be assimilated. At any time, they may leave, taking the secret of our existence with them, and the only way to prevent that without bloodshed is to make them a willing part of this village.
"They say they are 'missing-nin', exiles in search of a home. Let us give one to them. We shall welcome them, and have them learn our ways, until in the end they are no longer foreigners, and their children, or perhaps their grandchildren, are seen fit to guard the sacred scroll. Their bloodlines shall enrich our own, and their arts shall become our arts, not through a process of thoughtless intrusion, but naturally over the years, subject to the authority of the elders in exactly the same way as we are all subject to the authority of the elders. And if they choose to reject our kindness? Well, a healer like myself knows that sometimes sick flesh must be excised for the good of the body, and has means of doing so that do not require direct confrontation.
"Finally, though it pains me to say it, Kannagi is not the man to lead us in this. How can we entrust the protection of our traditions to a man whose family rose to prominence a mere hundred years ago? A man from a bloodline that has not held a council seat in living memory?
"Even his betrothal plan is a slipshod thing, crafted by a man who lacks commitment to his cause. Who is his 'beloved granddaughter'? Why, of all his grandchildren, he has chosen Yuno, the albino tapir of the family, born of the very Gasai line whose trial you will hold this night. We all know who she is and what she has done. Will you grant responsibility to a man who stakes his family's fortunes on a cursed child?"
Ganta bowed.
Mari pondered what she'd just heard. When she'd mentioned Yuno's excitement about the courtship to Takahashi, he had explained that it was probably her first experience of romance, since outside professional contexts (where she was respected as a skilled ninja), people tended to avoid her due to her poor reputation and unusual inclinations. He had not elaborated on either.
Meanwhile, the elders exchanged glances. They did not confer, nor make comments or ask further questions, which struck Mari as strange. But then again, these people all knew each other. Each knew how the others would vote, and each knew the candidates well enough that there would be little to ask. Small communities were easy to govern—and easy to undermine if you could successfully infiltrate them to begin with.
Finally, Rika's resonant voice filled the room once more as she stood from her seat, leaning slightly on her staff.
"I, Rika, sent by the Inoue to speak for the ancestors, give my blessing to Murasaki."
Takahashi stood up next, oddly still even in his motion.
"I, Saburō, sent by the Takahashi to speak for the ninjutsu wielders, give my blessing to Kannagi."
Murasaki's hands stopped tapping.
"I, Tsukiko, sent by the Yoshida to speak for the sealcrafters, give my blessing to Kannagi." Yoshida spoke with satisfaction, letting every word fall into place one by one.
"I, Mikoto, sent by the Gasai to speak for the martial artists, give my blessing to Kannagi," Gasai said heavily. The look she exchanged with Kannagi at that moment was not a friendly look.
They appeared to have skipped the Aida representative. In a way, Mari supposed it made sense—they were voting in order of seniority, and Aida was the only non-elder. Not exactly fair, but what was one to expect from small village politics?
"I, Rindō, sent by the Azai to speak for the beastmasters, give my blessing to Murasaki," the narrow-eyed man said in a gravelly voice, watching the other elders' faces as if daring them to challenge his decision.
His statement was followed by silence.
After a few seconds, Rindō gave a meaningful cough.
Shūsuke's head jerked in Rindō's direction. He blinked a couple of times.
"Ahem. I, Shūsuke, sent by the Azai to speak for the craftsmen, give my blessing to Murasaki."
Three to three. Everyone turned to Aida Isshin, who was visibly sweating. Mari watched his gaze go back and forth, between the healer and the man who now held medical ninjutsu in his hands. His injured mother had to be foremost in his mind.
Back and forth. Back and forth.
"I, Isshin, sent by the Aida to speak for the scroll guardians, give my blessing to…"
The hall was quiet enough that Mari could hear Murasaki's fingers, moving once again.
Finally, Isshin found his courage.
"Kannagi!"
-o-
You have received 20 XP.
Righteous Face Punching Style popularity: lv. 3 (Persistent Rumour)
Noburi fangirl count: 9 (Junior Heartthrob)
Hazō fangirl count: 1 (Village Pariah)
Your plans regarding Kagome's birthday were extremely vague, so little happened. You may assume that you now know where the market is, and any other standard shops, and you can now purchase common goods without assistance (as long as you have something to pay with).
-o-
Where do you go from here?
Voting closes on Saturday the 21st, 9 am Pacific Standard Time.
Voting closes on Saturday the 21st, 9 am Pacific Standard Time.
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- Location
- USA
Kieko... a vast rift is opening up between you and the rest of the group. Even now you are slipping past the point of cute cynicism and into the hands of the isolationist cult. Rejoin the world that you are a part of, specks of dust though we may all be on the grand scale. Think of the beauty of the math that brought about your existence and that continues to keep the group together. Nothing so pointless as this stupid summon scroll should be enough to separate the close bound our group shares.
Yep.
There it is.
There it is.
That old Fox Takahashi is cunningly seperating her more and more from us, while binding her to himself. Well, her crush for Mari is probably the most important tie she still has to our group....
AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
- Location
- Europe
LEWD! LEWD I SAY!
Yeah, when it comes to Keiko, we need to do something about it now. The other option is to run away from the village now. If we can't come up with a solid plan to help Keiko I'm totally prepared to vote for a "run to the hills" plan. We made some XP and have good stuff to sell to Jiraya, it should be enough.
- Location
- Atlanta
Important safety tip. Akane has told Yuno how to get past whatever always-on defences we have on the fort. @eaglejarl, @Velorien, @Jackercracks, do we also have defensive seals/traps that we only turn on at night or when no one is in the fort that would have been disabled when Yuno came inside?
Can we please admit to ourselves now that all of our "allies" are working together to play us?
Please?
- Location
- UK
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Kagome's preference is all traps on all the time.
According to Akane, she followed basic safety protocols, i.e. don't let people see the safe path through, or how to deactivate anything.
- Location
- ?
Seriously Keiko, the universe may be uncaring, but it's no more cruel than it is kind, and we are the ones who fill our lives with meaning.
We need to reaffirm her ties to the group, the sooner the better. Kagome's birthday might not be soon enough. Alert Mari.
I guess this confirms Takahashi's motivation. Training is real but he has no intention of letting Kei go. If he has his way, she won't even want to. We lose a teammate, Takahashi gains a loyal minion/summoner.
And hello there, Gasai Yuno. Who still thinks we need to know her better before we can conclude she is trouble?
We need to reaffirm her ties to the group, the sooner the better. Kagome's birthday might not be soon enough. Alert Mari.
I guess this confirms Takahashi's motivation. Training is real but he has no intention of letting Kei go. If he has his way, she won't even want to. We lose a teammate, Takahashi gains a loyal minion/summoner.
And hello there, Gasai Yuno. Who still thinks we need to know her better before we can conclude she is trouble?