Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

[RandomOTP]

Major Content Changes Over, All Following Changes will be minor word choice alterations in the pursuit of minimizing word count.

Click to shrink...

Okay, I lied.

kay, so can we maybe slow the speed down on these a bit?

One thing I'd like to do first, is talk to both Hinata and Sasuke about the situation, omitting specifics of course.

I would be pretty surprised if they werent in full agreement that this is sort of complete horseshit, and rightly so.

Now, the situation as it stands is that there are maybe a handful of clans (the only one of real note culturally are the Nara, and ISC as a whole) that would be pissed enough about this— but this is likely just due to asymetric information flow... they have no idea its a thing.

We went to Asuma operating within this context, and he essentially said "No, no you don't understand, this is not a problem I can solve."

I do not believe that to actually be true in the literal sense. I think that it is definitely the case that he believes that in some way, but the actual thing he said is closer in real meaning to "I don't know how to solve this problem in a satisfactory manner at the moment, and I don't care enough to think about it anymore."

This is probably sufficient (but sad) as far as he sees it, because Hazou is one person, and Keiko and Noburi and Hazou etc are, while politically powerful, are definitely not a hill worth attempting to Shut Up and Do The Impossible for, or even anything approaching that from his perspective.

This operating context changes quite significantly if we go to him with people like Sasuke, Hinata, Chouza, Shino, the Inuzuka, etc. and say "No, Lord Hokage, you do not understand: people being abducted and turned into meat on a table at the whims of this lunatic are simply not a thing that we believe we can tolerate in this village. You need to Solve This Problem."

This creates a vastly different scenario that might achieve results, instead of the token response given.

Click to shrink...

Good point. I'm not the biggest fan of vivisection, either. Leaving it in as an option, but I'm adding your ideas to the group meeting. That way it's sanity checked by the entire group (maybe there's a complicating factor that Hazou-the-character would miss and we-the-hivemind aren't yet privy to).

I'll highlight the segment below. How does it look to you?

I think we should change "vivisection" to "bloodline examination" setting the tone for negotiations is very important, and IMO immediately calling it a vivisection is a misstep on our part by giving too much ground too soon.

Click to shrink...

Swapped.

I would prefer this be spelled out a little more, "Hazou should recover from surgery in a few weeks". Mechanically that's a Moderate Physical Consequence. If we take another Severe Consequence right now. Hazou dies and Oro can blame us for being too weak for the surgery.

Click to shrink...

Clarified.

I would like this changed to "If Orochimaru desires, Hazou will share live data to Orochimaru during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward, for more data. Otherwise Hazou will be anesthetized by Noburi and kept unconscious for the surgery."

Click to shrink...

Specified, but with Tsunade. I don't see how we can convince Orochimaru to allow Noburi in the room.

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: tbd

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Akane sends Shadow Clones to find Ino, Shikamaru, and Ami.
  • Summarize Situation, Present Following Plans for Optimization.
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, please don't assume malice if unviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and all those yet-unnamed.
      • Misdirection: suggest Keiko's Clones are independent because hers bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (which don't have bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/his Clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake is a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get other Clan Heads to Support?
      
      • Can't imagine the Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) would approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Right now, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        
        • May not have been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower thinking about it.
      • Perhaps other noble clans (Uchiha, Hyuuga, etc) will add weight behind the message "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • We recover in a few weeks
      • Occurs at Hospital.
      • Orochimaru allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend.
        • Tsunade/Naruto commit to immediately destroy our body if we die, destroying data.
      • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou, but no other clans.
    • In return, we will...
      • Advocate the procedure (general public and bloodline users)
        • The data would be useful for Orochimaru and recipient, and may entice more volunteers.
      • If Orochimaru wants: Share live data to Orochimaru during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
        • YSJ/Tsunade to share data despite procedure?
        • Otherwise: anesthetized by Tsunade and kept unconscious during procedure.
    • Mari/others: follow up plan?
    • Ami, in private
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine, here be dragons. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
• Naruto (sanity-checked, then performed by Hazou/Kei/Ami (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
  • If not us, please help Kei.
  • If Hazou's talking to him: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
• Tsunade (sanity-checked, then performed by Akane/Hazou/Mari (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
  • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
  • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[Shrooms]

Okay, so can we maybe slow the speed down on these a bit?

One thing I'd like to do first, is talk to both Hinata and Sasuke about the situation, omitting specifics of course.

I would be pretty surprised if they werent in full agreement that this is sort of complete horseshit, and rightly so.

Now, the situation as it stands is that there are maybe a handful of clans (the only one of real note culturally are the Nara, and ISC as a whole) that would be pissed enough about this— but this is likely just due to asymetric information flow... they have no idea its a thing.

We went to Asuma operating within this context, and he essentially said "No, no you don't understand, this is not a problem I can solve."

I do not believe that to actually be true in the literal sense. I think that it is definitely the case that he believes that in some way, but the actual thing he said is closer in real meaning to "I don't know how to solve this problem in a satisfactory manner at the moment, and I don't care enough to think about it anymore."

This is probably sufficient (but sad) as far as he sees it, because Hazou is one person, and Keiko and Noburi and Hazou etc are, while politically powerful, are definitely not a hill worth attempting to Shut Up and Do The Impossible for, or even anything approaching that from his perspective.

This operating context changes quite significantly if we go to him with people like Sasuke, Hinata, Chouza, Shino, the Inuzuka, etc. and say "No, Lord Hokage, you do not understand: people being abducted and turned into meat on a table at the whims of this lunatic are simply not a thing that we believe we can tolerate in this village. You need to Solve This Problem."

This creates a vastly different scenario that might achieve results, instead of the token response given.

Click to shrink...

Are you proposing bringing other clans in on the vivisection idea, or just telling them Orochimaru is trying to murder Hazou and Kei and something should probably be done to prevent him from wantonly murdering Clan Heads and create [policy idea] or somesuch? Delicate line to walk, as creating too much political inconvenience could drive Oro to leave. Of course, that could be a bluff (all his stuff is here, after all)

 

[RandomOTP]

After consideration, I feel that this section should be reworded. Consider instead:

• We will (conditionally) volunteer for live vivisection.
  • Offer to share whatever live data we can to Orochimaru during the procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward, for more data.
• In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
  • Ensure we survive with no permanent injury.
  • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
  • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.

Note that I've also removed the section advocating for people volunteering for vivisection by Orochimaru. I feel that's a hard thing for Hazou to justify to himself as a thing-that-he-will-do, not to mention the horrified looks on everyone else's face when he suggests they also volunteer to be vivisected by Orochimaru.

Click to shrink...

What about the hospital? And how do you feel about the changes I've already made to that segment (changing pitch from "vivisection" to "bloodline examination" for softer pitch and also changing "permanent injury" to "heal within..." to mechanically keep the resulting Consequence under severe (to avoid dying on his table)?

 

[Kiba]

We should avoid bringing other clan head as dissection targets for Orochimaru as much as possible. Hazo should be the sacrifice, not opening it to everyone else.

In general, we should avoid conceding to Orochimaru as much as possible.

 

[RandomOTP]

Note that I've also removed the section advocating for people volunteering for vivisection by Orochimaru. I feel that's a hard thing for Hazou to justify to himself as a thing-that-he-will-do, not to mention the horrified looks on everyone else's face when he suggests they also volunteer to be vivisected by Orochimaru.

Click to shrink...

Agreed, will remove. Kept the alterations suggested by @Sir Stompy .

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: tbd

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Akane sends Shadow Clones to find Ino, Shikamaru, and Ami.
  • Summarize Situation, Present Following Plans for Optimization.
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, please don't assume malice if unviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and all those yet-unnamed.
      • Misdirection: suggest Keiko's Clones are independent because hers bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (which don't have bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/his Clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake is a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get other Clan Heads to Support?
      • Can't imagine the Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) would approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Right now, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        • May not have been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower thinking about it.
      • Perhaps other noble clans (Uchiha, Hyuuga, etc) will add weight behind the message "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can to Orochimaru during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward, for more data.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
    • Mari/others: follow up plan?
    • Ami, in private
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine, here be dragons. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
• Naruto (sanity-checked, then performed by Hazou/Kei/Ami (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
  • If not us, please help Kei.
  • If Hazou's talking to him: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
• Tsunade (sanity-checked, then performed by Akane/Hazou/Mari (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
  • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
  • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[faflec]

What about the hospital? And how do you feel about the changes I've already made to that segment (changing pitch from "vivisection" to "bloodline examination" for softer pitch and also changing "permanent injury" to "heal within..." to mechanically keep the resulting Consequence under severe (to avoid dying on his table)?

Click to shrink...

Doing it at the hospital is optional and I think to sweeten the deal we avoid mentioning doing it there: Orochimaru probably has better equipment/recording nightmares in the Basement. I personally don't think Orochimaru wouldn't want to study our bloodline in-depth while we're awake since it's a mental/nervous system bloodline, you can keep it if you want but I think Orochimaru would be more approving of a deal where we don't mention things he would certainly not want. I'm not a medic-nin or expert on Orochimaru's abilities, but it seems reasonable? Haven't thought about how long a recovery would take for the guy.

Related note: Getting clan support is fine (though I think the title should be "Get other Clan Heads' Support?"), but if we're poking our heads in that direction we definitely do not want to have it ever gotten out that we sold bloodline secrets to Orochimaru, let alone made the insinuation that other people should do the same. Clan secrets are a big deal in this world.

Actually, general point to make: WE SHOULD NOT REVEAL THAT WE GAVE OUR BLOODLINE SECRETS OF THE KUROSAWA CLAN TO OROCHIMARU, THE MIZUKAGE WHOSE NAME IS KUROSAWA REN WILL FLIP HER SHIT AND TORPEDO ANY CHANCE OF A MIST-LEAF ALLIANCE IN SHEER RAGE

I honestly have no idea how the current plan is going to work given that we are inviting Shikamaru, Ino, and Ami, the former two are definitely going to look at us askance at the idea and Ami may or may not be honor-bound to report this information to the Mizukage immediately, even if we end up not doing this. Would it be possible for us to talk to them after we propose our ideas to Gouketsu et al?

Final, pointless side note: You said "Misdirection: suggest Keiko's Clones".

 

[Sir Stompy]

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far

 

[Dictator4Hire]

These. I can't offer FOOM to anyone as it throws out any hope of Goketsu supremacy. And asking the Kage to kill Orochimaru just...doesn't seem like it'd go well.

Click to shrink...

I put FOOM on the bargaining table because long term power ups ultimately don't help us survive the short to medium term. We will still have FOOM; only Asuma will know about it outside of our clan. I can add a line about only him using it personally if that helps.

As a compromise, is there anything else we can offer Asuma?

As for the second:

"If I could, I'd put Orochimaru on trial this very day. I don't have any proof that he's back to his old ways, but I'm not a fool. If that man goes through the justice of the Will of Fire, I very much doubt he'll come out unburned.

Click to shrink...

"Until now, I've painstakingly avoided a confrontation between the Tower and Orochimaru. The Final Gift Programme was a blessing from the Deva Path, and I'd sincerely hoped that between that and the occasional missing-nin, we could keep Orochimaru in his Basement long enough for Leaf to stop needing him. That is still my objective, because every day Orochimaru goes without clearing his name or being punished for his crimes is a day that this village drifts further from the Will of Fire."

Click to shrink...

That part of the plan was meant to address the underlined section. There's no love lost between Oro and Asuma: we need only proof and a convenient time to accuse Oro, which I hope we can do after the war (and the dragons are taken care of).

EDIT: Additions made to the plan:

[X] Action Plan: Do Not Go Quietly Under the Knife

• Orochimaru will not harm our family nor Leaf:
  • Humbly ask Asuma in utmost secrecy for an S-rank mission to either reform Snuncle or kill Oro.
    • We will not pursue executing such a mission now, but we need time to prepare countermeasures for after the war
• Advise Asuma in private to order Oro to postpone new experiments so that Oro can focus fully on dissecting Cloud and Rock bodies for the Leaf war effort
  • There can be a provision to have Oro allowed to defend Leaf if it comes under attack
  • Suggest that Kei along with whoever Asuma deems necessary should be sent to Iron so that she can prevent and disrupt communications between Cloud and Rock and to get her away from Oro
    • Apologize for trying to use Leaf strategy for our personal needs again
    • Offer Asuma FOOM (for his personal use only)as compensation and in the hope he can one day stand like his father did in a non-patronizing way
      • Lead with and stress the importance of FOOM as our clan secret as a sign of our cooperation and belief in him personally
• Talk with our clan about potential ways to keep Kei, Hazou, and everyone else safe from Oro
  • Sanity check exploratory surgery on Hazou ideas as a last resort
• Set up meetings with Naruto and Tsunade to explain the realpolitik regarding Oro, Asuma's position, and Oro's desire for Goketsu secrets
  • They are the only two preventing Oro from going among the clans quietly taking what he wants
  • If not for Hazou's sake, please protect us for everyone else's sake to keep the peace inside of Leaf and the Will of Fire alive, untainted

---

Word Count: 281

Additions in Cyan

Click to shrink...

 

[RandomOTP]

Doing it at the hospital is optional and I think to sweeten the deal we avoid mentioning doing it there: Orochimaru probably has better equipment/recording nightmares in the Basement. I personally don't think Orochimaru wouldn't want to study our bloodline in-depth while we're awake since it's a mental/nervous system bloodline, you can keep it if you want but I think Orochimaru would be more approving of a deal where we don't mention things he would certainly not want. I'm not a medic-nin or expert on Orochimaru's abilities, but it seems reasonable? Haven't thought about how long a recovery would take for the guy.

Click to shrink...

Good point, keeping the recovery (don't want Hazou to die due to mechanical Consequences of vivisection) but going to delete the Hospital.

Related note: Getting clan support is fine (though I think the title should be "Get other Clan Heads' Support?"), but if we're poking our heads in that direction we definitely do not want to have it ever gotten out that we sold bloodline secrets to Orochimaru, let alone made the insinuation that other people should do the same. Clan secrets are a big deal in this world.

Actually, general point to make: WE SHOULD NOT REVEAL THAT WE GAVE OUR BLOODLINE SECRETS OF THE KUROSAWA CLAN TO OROCHIMARU, THE MIZUKAGE WHOSE NAME IS KUROSAWA REN WILL FLIP HER SHIT AND TORPEDO ANY CHANCE OF A MIST-LEAF ALLIANCE IN SHEER RAGE

Click to shrink...

True and True, give me a moment to add words accordingly.

I honestly have no idea how the current plan is going to work given that we are inviting Shikamaru, Ino, and Ami, the former two are definitely going to look at us askance at the idea and Ami may or may not be honor-bound to report this information to the Mizukage immediately, even if we end up not doing this. Would it be possible for us to talk to them after we propose our ideas to Gouketsu et al?

Click to shrink...

Hm. True on the Ino part. She was mostly included in my initial panicking of "ALL HANDS ON DECK" planmaking. I'll cut her out of the meeting. Ami... I'm unsure. She's pissed at Rin and has worked against sending back valid info. I'll set it up so that we meet with her in private, after the meeting.

Edit: should we keep Shikamaru in? He'd provide valuable insight, but he's also duty-bound to report any possible treason...

Final, pointless side note: You said "Misdirection: suggest Keiko's Clones".

Click to shrink...

shitfuckdamnjesusassbag--

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!! Immediately fixed.

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: tbd

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Akane sends Shadow Clones to find Shikamaru and Ami.
    • Ami is still duty-bound to Mist. Ask her to wait until after immediately after the meeting. Bribe her with shaved ice/poetry?
  • Summarize Situation, Present Following Plans for Optimization.
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, please don't assume malice if unviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and all those yet-unnamed.
      • Misdirection: suggest Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (which don't have bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/his Clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake is a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Can't imagine the Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) would approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Right now, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        • May not have been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower thinking about it.
      • Perhaps other noble clans (Uchiha, Hyuuga, etc) will add weight behind the message "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can to Orochimaru during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward, for more data.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
    • Mari/others: follow up plan?
    • Ami, in private, immediately after meeting
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine, here be dragons. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
• Naruto (sanity-checked, then performed by Hazou/Kei/Ami (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
  • If not us, please help Kei.
  • If Hazou's talking to him: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
• Tsunade (sanity-checked, then performed by Akane/Hazou/Mari (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
  • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
  • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[Inferno Vulpix]

Hm. True on the Ino part. She was mostly included in my initial panicking of "ALL HANDS ON DECK" planmaking. I'll cut her out of the meeting. Ami... I'm unsure. She's pissed at Rin and has worked against sending back valid info. I'll set it up so that we meet with her in private, after the meeting.

Edit: should we keep Shikamaru in? He'd provide valuable insight, but he's also duty-bound to report any possible treason...

Click to shrink...

What about Kagome? It's not a sort of meeting where a panicked outburst of concern would endanger our plans, and he has a keen mind and cares very deeply about us.

 

[eaglejarl]

@faflec O Mighty Loremaster, lend me your powers! What is canonical about the relationship between Anko and Orochimaru?

EDIT:

Also, I see a question in QUINOA requesting mechanics for chakdar seals. I feel like those have been given but I can't find them. Anyone have any recollection?

 

[RandomOTP]

What about Kagome? It's not a sort of meeting where a panicked outburst of concern would endanger our plans, and he has a keen mind and cares very deeply about us.

Click to shrink...

Good point. Kagome has hidden depths, is an intelligent man, is deeply introspective, and has hidden depths. Added.

Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)

• Akane sends Shadow Clones to find Shikamaru and Ami.
  • Ami is duty-bound to Mist. Ask her to wait until the meeting is over?

Click to shrink...

Edit: going to bed tonight. Will wake up in time for edits and suggestions.

 

[Sir Stompy]

Also, I see a question in QUINOA requesting mechanics for chakdar seals. I feel like those have been given but I can't find them. Anyone have any recollection?

Click to shrink...

As far as I know, they have have never been given

 

[Lysbeth Succubus]

I don't remember this. Context?

edit:
Also. Should we add a contingency for if Oro catches Kei as she leaves Asuma's office and demands her immediately come to the compound?

Click to shrink...

After the Collapse when we suggested de-escalation and improved trade because making money off others is better than killing and dying to them

 

[faflec]

Hm. True on the Ino part. She was mostly included in my initial panicking of "ALL HANDS ON DECK" planmaking. I'll cut her out of the meeting. Ami... I'm unsure. She's pissed at Rin and has worked against sending back valid info. I'll set it up so that we meet with her in private, after the meeting.

Edit: should we keep Shikamaru in? He'd provide valuable insight, but he's also duty-bound to report any possible treason...

Click to shrink...

I do not agree with letting Ami and/or Shikamaru know about this until we have confirmed (via Kei/Mari/other Goketsu) that they won't flip out. Recall that Ami had to run herself through hoops to be able to interact with Yuno without knowing-knowing she was a member of a previously unknown Hidden Village, and therefore being honor-bound to report said intelligence to Ren and causing all sorts of trouble. The Iron Nerve's already important enough that she's supposed to report to Ren if Hazou got someone pregnant, common-born or not, so learning that we're letting Orochimaru of the Sannin study us and give our insights in the process would be even worse.

Shikamaru is a lesser threat when it comes to geopolitics, but his status as one of our closest (only) allies makes freaking him out arguably even worse.

I would highly recommend that that section be reworded entirely, to cut Ami, Shikamaru, etc. out until we've talked it over with our in-group (again: Kei, Mari, and other Gouketsu we trust).

@faflec O Mighty Loremaster, lend me your powers! What is canonical about the relationship between Anko and Orochimaru?

EDIT:

Also, I see a question in QUINOA requesting mechanics for chakdar seals. I feel like those have been given but I can't find them. Anyone have any recollection?

Click to shrink...

Anko's heart lurched at the reminder of her losses. Sensei had apparently been in Leaf for days or weeks; why had he not sent for her? Why had T&I not asked for her assessment of the bastard? And why did she have to have been on a mission out of Leaf when the news came and the task force was sent? Maybe she could have turned the tide. Maybe—

Click to shrink...

Mari has not mentioned any relationship between Anko and Orochimaru. Hazō's also aware that talking about having a relationship with Orochimaru is a lot like talking about how a close family member of yours is a foreign sympathiser in Yagura's Mist. Anko is unlikely to bring it up unless prompted.

Click to shrink...

"There might be other sources," Mari noted. "Kabuto was his apprentice and prime assistant. Anko worked with him for a bit, although I don't know the details. There are others around who were active before he went missing. I'll ask around."

Click to shrink...

"Kei Anko."

Countless people exchanged looks ranging from surprise to frank bewilderment. She wasn't anywhere near Ami's level, but who would choose that walking headache to be at the core of their still-fragile new clan?

No, this was also a political move. There was no better way to prove the Kei Clan's meritocratic credentials than choosing a talented ninja with obvious personality problems. It was also, Hazō's Mari-trained instincts noted, a sure way to earn the favour of Morino Ibiki, perhaps Leaf's most influential clanless ninja. Assuming he wasn't standing on that stage already, it could even pave the way towards adopting him as well. And then there were the rumours that Anko had once been Orochimaru's own apprentice, and might possess some of his secret lore… Hazō could only hope, for their sake, that it proved worth the pain.

Click to shrink...

Chakdar is in the "Seals" GoogleDoc, but mechanics are unknown to us.

 

[RandomOTP]

I would highly recommend that that section be reworded entirely, to cut Ami, Shikamaru, etc. out until we've talked it over with our in-group (again: Kei, Mari, and other Gouketsu we trust).

Click to shrink...

How does this look?

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: 467

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Can we trust Ami/Shikamaru in this?
  • Ami's duty-bound to Rin, Shikamaru to Leaf
    
    • If yes, Akane sends Shadow Clones to get Ami/Shikamaru
  • Summarize Situation, Present Following Plans
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
      • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (don't receive bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Currently, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        • May not've been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower?
      • Perhaps other noble clans will add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
    • Mari/others: follow up plan?
    • If we could trust Ami to be at the meeting, speak with her in private, afterwards...
      
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
• Naruto (sanity-checked, then performed by Hazou/Kei/Ami (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
  • If not us, please help Kei.
  • If Hazou: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
• Tsunade (sanity-checked, then performed by Akane/Hazou/Mari (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
  • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
  • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[faflec]

How does this look?

Click to shrink...

I think it would be necessary to explain our plan to the Gouketsu Clan members before Ami/Shikamaru show up. Keep in mind the Naruto incident.

 

[RandomOTP]

I think it would be necessary to explain our plan to the Gouketsu Clan members before Ami/Shikamaru show up. Keep in mind the Naruto incident.

Click to shrink...

Hm. Good point. Hazou generally has a good track record and, in the panic of our current situation (and the time crunch revolving around Ami), they may assume Hazou knows what he's doing. Altered accordingly, what do you think?

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: 467

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Summarize Situation, Present Following Plans
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
      • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (don't receive bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Currently, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        • May not've been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower?
      • Perhaps other noble clans will add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
    • Mari/others
      • follow up plan?
      • Can we trust Ami/Shikamaru in this?
        
        • Ami's duty-bound to Rin, Shikamaru to Leaf
        • If yes, Akane sends Shadow Clones to get Ami/Shikamaru
        • Summarize situation/plans, request feedback.
    • If we can trust Ami, speak with her in private afterwards...
      
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
• Naruto (sanity-checked, then performed by Hazou/Kei/Ami (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
  • If not us, please help Kei.
  • If Hazou: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
• Tsunade (sanity-checked, then performed by Akane/Hazou/Mari (whomever is more likely to succeed))
  • Explain Orochimaru crisis, and the plan. If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
  • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
  • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[faflec]

Hm. Good point. Hazou generally has a good track record and, in the panic of our current situation (and the time crunch revolving around Ami), they may assume Hazou knows what he's doing. Altered accordingly, what do you think?

Click to shrink...

Better, though I would just do this as the change (this is mostly a formatting change, mind, but I cut some of the detail of why Ami/Shikamaru would have problems since us giving away bloodline secrets seems to be too obvious to need mention, along with some other changes...):

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: 467

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Summarize Situation
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
      • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (don't receive bloodlines) don't have this limitation
        • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/clones
      • Potential lie: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
  • Present Following Plans
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Currently, all we have is Nara/ISC support.
        • May not've been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower?
      • Perhaps other noble clans will add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
  • If we get the all-clear, fill our allies (Ami, Shikamaru, etc.) in on the plan and request feedback/help.
    • Ami:
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
    • Naruto (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed)
      • If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
      • If not us, please help Kei.
      • If Hazou: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
    • Tsunade (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed)
      • If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
      • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
      • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[RandomOTP]

Better, though I would just do this as the change (this is mostly a formatting change, mind, but I cut some of the detail of why Ami/Shikamaru would have problems since us giving away bloodline secrets seems to be too obvious to need mention, along with some other changes...):

Click to shrink...

Good point, I don't want to insult their intelligence and it also saves on word count by... so very much! Thank you!!

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: 416

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Summarize Situation, Present Plans
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
    • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (don't receive bloodlines) don't have this limitation
      • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/clones
      • Misdirection: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Hyuuga (or the Uchiha, with their few numbers) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Currently, we only have Nara/ISC support.
        • May not've been politically important enough for Asuma to waste brainpower?
      • Other noble clans may add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
    • If we get the all-clear, fill our allies (Ami, Shikamaru, etc.) in on the plan and request feedback/help.
      
      • Ami (in private):
        
        • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
        • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
        • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
      • Naruto (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed)
        
        • If Naruto is present during procedure, our chances increase.
        • If not us, please help Kei.
        • If Hazou: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.
      • Tsunade (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed)
        
        • If Tsunade oversaw the procedure, she could keep us alive.
        • Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
        • If not us, Kei?

Click to shrink...

 

[Velorien]

Good point. Hazou generally has a good track record and, in the panic of our current situation (and the time crunch revolving around Ami), they may assume Hazou knows what he's doing.

Click to shrink...

Only in this quest would this be a problem to be worked around.

 

[faflec]

Good point, I don't want to insult their intelligence and it also saves on word count... By, so very much! Thank you!!

Click to shrink...

Cut the word count to 384, some of it was splicing things together (Naruto/Tsunade) but I also deleted the implication that Asuma didn't think of ISC as being politically important enough, which is...not true, as well as flexing some other less-important changes.

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Summarize Situation, Present Plans
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
    • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her. Shadow Clones, which don't receive bloodlines, don't have this limitation.
      • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/his clones
    • Misdirection: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Double down: claim Snowflake's an attempt at directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
      • Backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      • Currently, we only have Nara/ISC support.
      • Hyuuga (among all the others) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Other noble clans may add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru may share data only with Hazou.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
  • If we get the all-clear, fill our allies (Ami, Shikamaru, etc.) in on the plan and request feedback/help.
    • Ami (in private):
      • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
      • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
      • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
    • Naruto/Tsunade (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed):
      • If they are present/helping during procedure, our chances of success increases.
      • If not for us, please help Kei.
      • Tsunade: Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
      • If Hazou talks to Naruto: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.

Click to shrink...

 

[eaglejarl]

As far as I know, they have have never been given

Click to shrink...

Hrm. Honestly, I haven't thought about it and have no idea what the mechanics should be, and I doubt @Velorien has either. There's simply been too much else going on. Suggestions requested? We likely won't use them exactly as given but it would be a big help.

Currently they have a short range -- "Melee", in mechanical terms -- and they detect chakra being actively molded outside the body. That means jutsu, tree walking, etc, but not chakra boost. (I think Pantokrater's Hammer would probably be detected? Not sure.)

 

[RandomOTP]

Cut the word count to 384, some of it was splicing things together (Naruto/Tsunade) but I also deleted the implication that Asuma didn't think of ISC as being politically important enough, which is...not true, as well as flexing some other less-important changes.

Click to shrink...

I included your changes, but I think that I may have missed one or two of the less-important changes, because my word count is at 388 (or the programs we're using have different ways of counting the text)

[x] Action Plan: Pretty Damn Far
Word Count: 388

• Meeting (Mari, Akane, Noburi, Kagome, Kei/Snowflake)
  • Summarize Situation, Present Plans
    • Disclaimer: half-formed ideas, don't assume malice if nonviable
    • Our Priority is Kei...
      • Refuse to Lose Family
        • Kei, Snowflake, Crystal, Winterlight, Scalpel, Prism, Constellation, Spiral, Moonlight, Soar, Kitten, Whisper, Prayer, Kiss, and those-yet-unnamed.
    • Dissuade: Kei's Clones are independent because her bloodline cognitively impairs her, but Shadow Clones (don't receive bloodlines) don't have this limitation
      • Implication: For Orochimaru to gain this benefit, he must cognitively impair either himself/clones
      • Misdirection: Leaf thinks Snowflake's a long-term Nara social experiment. Doubledown. Claim Snowflake's an experiment regarding directed personality drift, and Mari wasn't informed. (Controlling Variables. Rumor mill knows Kei and Mari aren't friendly.)
        • Fake/backdate paperwork accordingly
    • Get Other Clan Heads' Support?
      
      • Currently, we only have Nara/ISC support.
      • Hyuuga (among all the others) wouldn't approve of what Orochimaru's doing.
      • Other noble clans may add weight behind "What Orochimaru is trying isn't the Will of Fire and we cannot tolerate this. Solve This Problem."
    • We will (conditionally) volunteer for live bloodline examination.
      • Offer to share whatever live data we can during procedure, and explain experience in detail afterward.
      • In exchange, Orochimaru agrees to:
        • Ensure we recover in a few weeks
        • Allows Tsunade and Naruto to attend. If we die, they commit to immediately destroying our body to deny further data acquisition.
        • Orochimaru shares data with Hazou only.
      • Clan secrets are BIG, may ruin Mist alliance. How can we keep this secret?
    • If we get the all-clear, fill our allies (Ami, Shikamaru, etc.) in on the plan and request feedback/help.
      • Ami (in private):
        • We made an agreement with The Ami, unity towards Kei's survival.
        • Five Clans know things. Here be dragons? Fine. If Kei lives, then we'll gladly endure the Consequences.
        • Anything you can tell us to persuade Orochimaru Snowflake is deadend research, please... even if it draws his focus towards us.
      • Naruto/Tsunade (performed by whomever is more likely to succeed):
        
        • If they are present/helping during procedure, our chances of success increases.
        • If not for us, please help Kei.
        • Tsunade: Name price to attend procedure. If she doesn't, we're dead anyway.
        • If Hazou talks to Naruto: Apologize. We should've been brothers, and it's our fault. You'll be a great Hokage. When that happens, please remember: the Will of Fire can spark within anyone, anywhere.

Click to shrink...

 

[faflec]

I included your changes, but I think that I may have missed one or two of the less-important changes, because my word count is at 388 (or the programs we're using have different ways of counting the text)

Click to shrink...

I think it's the word counter, when I paste things into googledocs I get 383.