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Marked for Death: A Rational Naruto Quest

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Since we didn't see what happened after the exploding tags, but did see the hospital scene with Ino, I wonder if Ino actually did go gently on us.
 
wait am I just being dumb and not getting that people are extending the joke or do people think this actually happened?? (I don't know what plan got voted for, we're we planning on talking with Shika??)
 
RandomOTP said:
Functionally unlimited, as far as Hazou can tell. Naruto had dozens (or was it hundreds?) of shadow Clones out during the Reconstruction of Leaf after the Collapse. Even then, I think I recall some players speculating that Naruto was limited by Resolve, rather than CP.
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Numbers matter here. 1k CP is a very different story to 100k CP.

The latter would (theoretically) let him cast a wall 100 km long. We are talking 'depopulate large areas of the map of chakra beasts' or 'dessertify and flood large areas of the map by redirecting water flows' or 'instant walled transportation channel between any two locations' kind of things. Also we are talking 'QMs sigh and disallow' but I'm going to ignore that part for now. Or possibly it just doesn't work because terrain isn't even enough, but there is leeway there to still do crazy things.

I misread the Shadow Clone math, and looking at it again, casting 100 clones with 25 CP left in each implies about 5k CP total. That's a lot, still casts for length 5km, is by far the longest range jutsu we know of besides Elemental Mastery, and still has global impacts if used right, but is far from infinite.
 
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Velorien said:
Yes, that was his name. Kurosawa Hazō. No, that wasn't quite right. Gōketsu Hazō?
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Velorien said:
He could feel pieces of his self go with them.
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Velorien said:
You don't think we'd be so unoriginal as to copy a canon mechanic for a new Bloodline Limit, do you?

The Sharingan's powers revolve around copying and manipulating other people. The Iron Nerve's powers revolve around copying and manipulating yourself. Thus, logically, if the Mangekyō Sharingan is unlocked by killing another, its Iron Nerve equivalent should be unlocked by killing yourself.

Better get cracking on that resurrection tech...
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He regressed back to Kurosowa Hazo? That means....

Yes! Finally! Mangekyou Iron Nerve time!

That's why voting is closed!

That's why Hazou was able to deal with Orochimaru so well. It makes perfect sense.

edit: damn, timeline says Oro talk was first, so much for my shitpost
 
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Chapter 507: From Seven to Five
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    • Some people, Hazō reflected, were harder to influence than others. Kei would, at worst, tolerate anybody who came to her with carrot cake, and even Lord Hagoromo might leave with the same number of limbs as he arrived if one of those limbs happened to be carrying a box of Pantasia's finest. Asuma was more demanding, requiring an absence of even accidental treason before he could be put in a good mood. Shikamaru, unfortunately, was harder still, since the act of socialising in and of itself risked incurring his disapproval. Given this, and the fact that Hazō couldn't even manipulate the circumstances of their meeting (if he tried, forcing Shikamaru to leave the Nara compound would already earn him minus points), today would demand the very finest performance from Gōketsu Mari's star pupil if he wanted to walk away with any forbidden lore at all.

    Hazō: Empathy 21 - 3 = 18
    Shikamaru: Deceit ?? + ? = ??

    So it was that Hazō's movements were smooth and relaxed, with no uncalled-for excitement, as he settled down into the visitor's chair in Shikamaru's office, and his tone was friendly but erring on the side of reserved as he gave his greetings.

    "Good afternoon, Shikamaru. Thank you for making time for me today."

    Shikamaru, after taking a second to extract a bookmark from a drawer and slide it into the middle of a folder marked STAR CLEARANCE ONLY—Hazō not only didn't have Star Clearance, but hadn't even heard of it before—gave a small, weary smile.

    "On the contrary," he said. "It is good to see you, Hazō, insofar as I have yet to thank you properly for saving Hagoromo Ritsuo's life."

    "I… did?" Hazō asked with an edge of alarm. He could have sworn he'd gone an entire week without any major slip-ups.

    "Indeed. I dread to think what might have happened to him had I been unable to make my point through mere threat of Dragon-induced liquefaction—and then the Hokage would have been forced to make my life very difficult."

    Hazō took a second to recall the beautiful terror in Lord Hagoromo's eyes as Shikamaru bent him ever closer to an overdue encounter with the Reaper. Lord Hagoromo had taken his revenge as best he could after that, against Hazō at least, demanding compensation for the dagger as if it had been made from chakra metal by the Sage of Six Paths himself. Unfortunately, the cunning snake had made a point of ensuring Harumitsu knew what happened, and rejecting the ridiculous demand when Hazō was technically in the wrong would have made him look even worse in front of his apprentice. The last thing Hazō needed was for the Hagoromo to start regaining their moral superiority over him in Harumitsu's eyes.

    "Well," Hazō said, "you're very welcome. Or possibly my sincere apologies, whichever you prefer."

    Shikamaru gave a shadow of a smile.

    "Now, how may I help you on this occasion?"

    "I wanted to pick your brain about something I came across on the Seventh Path," Hazō said. "Cannai, the Dog Boss, once told me a particularly cryptic poem attributed to the Sage of Six Paths himself—whom, you'll remember, some of the oldest summons knew in person. Here, I wrote it out for you."

    Unbounded you name me, yet bound am I
    Wise One you name me, yet still I err
    First Spinner you name me, and this I grant
    I have spun your First Tale, my Great Tale
    The Tale of Dog, and Cat, of Hawk, and Hornet.

    All tales change and all tales flow
    Days wend into weeks and years
    Passing time bringing losses, cheers
    Now must I go, my children all
    My bed to make among the men, who need me more.

    Flow of fire, standing high
    Tower the mighty waves, grave and gray and green
    Water's power raised by storm-wind's breath
    Fire and wave in joyous chorus, the birth of earth to bring
    Green the rising life shall grow
    Trees of wood and iron and stone
    Beware their shade, where my Lost Ones sing.

    Beyond the trees my rest shall be
    I leave there seven rocks with seven locks
    Each rock a treasure's home
    Treasures bright shall guidance give
    Truth or death, no equal chance
    To find the way to me.

    Spin on, talespinner! Spin on!
    Raise up the mighty word, unite the bounding arc of dream
    With reason's bark and incisive bite
    From first to last
    To tread the path of wisdoms lost
    Remember me, speak my name
    And when the years have wended wide
    Come and find me once again.

    Shikamaru read over the text several times.

    "Were it not for the credibility of the source, I would be tempted to dismiss it as a prank. I studied a number of prophecies and similar texts during my training—most are inventions of diseased minds or would-be poets wishing to add mystique to their simian flailing of brush and paper. One must always consider context: would the writer have a reason for conveying important information to these people at this time, and if they did, would they have reason to do so in an obscure and cryptic fashion? You do not see me encoding Nara Clan secrets into rhyme and handing them out to random canines of my acquaintance. If I must share them at all, I do so plainly, in a fashion minimally vulnerable to miscommunication, and only with select individuals in a sufficiently secure environment.

    "What is it you believe can be found within this piece of, if you'll forgive me, doggerel?"

    "I wouldn't have made anything of it," Hazō said after a few seconds' thought, "if I wasn't already neck-deep in this Great Seal business. But now I am, I have to ask: how many other little surprises has the Sage left for us across the universe? Are there any eldritch horrors running around which we're just lucky not to have come across yet, or more ancient wards with expiration dates about to go by? And then I hear a message allegedly from the Sage talking about 'seven rocks with seven locks', and suddenly I feel like it's really important to know if there are six other existential threats I need to be preparing for.

    "Oh," he said, as if his train of thought had been interrupted, "I nearly forgot. I was passing by a bookshop on my way here, and saw that Tetsu Gaku's new work, Meditations on Applied Eschatology, had just come out, so I figured I'd pick you up a copy."

    He reached into his bag and pulled out the heavy, leather-bound tome.

    Shikamaru's expression brightened slightly as he took it. "Thank you. Losing track of bookshop contents is one of the few disadvantages of leaving the compound as little as possible. One of the sisters would surely have brought it to my attention before long, but I appreciate the gesture."

    "No problem," Hazō said. Then, with Shikamaru briefly off-guard, he made a probing move.

    "More than anything else," he said, "it's hard to believe how irresponsible the so-called Father of Shinobi's turned out to be. You'd think it would be a no-brainer that when you take responsibility for keeping humanity safe from an abomination, you give it the whole thousand yards instead of just putting the thing behind a giant seal and calling it a day."

    "Quite," Shikamaru agreed distractedly as he flicked through the book. "Had there been a stroke of ill luck as trivial as a delay in training the next Dog Summoner, no one on the Human Path would have learned that the Great Seal existed at all until it was too late. Had our great forefather never heard of contingencies?"

    Nothing. Never mind. With the recent Orochimaru windfall, the cost of a single book wasn't going to break the bank (leave that to the Gōketsu's short-sighted rivals), and it wasn't like Hazō regretted doing something nice for his brother-in-law.

    Hazō spends 2 FP to invoke "Creative Idealist" and "Relics of the Dragon".
    Hazō: Rapport 21 + 3 + 3 - 3 = 27
    Shikamaru spends 1 FP to tag ???
    Shikamaru: Presence ?? + ? + ? = ??

    "You're absolutely right," Hazō said. "But I guess that only makes it more important for us, his heirs, to make up for his mistakes. We're entering a new age of hope for humanity, between AMITY, the Nara Future Foundation, the Gōketsu's various projects, and all the other clans I hope we'll inspire to innovations of their own once they see how much we can accomplish. The idea of finally pulling humanity out of its spiral of self-destruction, only to be devoured by some ancient monstrosity that we could have vanquished but didn't… it's unacceptable, simple as that."

    "Vanquished?" Shikamaru asked sceptically.

    "Vanquished," Hazō said with an edge of challenge. "You saw the remains of the Dragon I showed at the Clan Council meeting. The remains, Shikamaru. The Sage didn't have either the will or the power to destroy Dragons, but a thousand years later, we have both. You and I can sit here trembling in fear, knowing that in a decade, or in a century, or maybe as soon as tomorrow, something will rise up to destroy everything we've built. The clans to which we have a duty, the loved ones we've sworn to protect, the village and the world we're determined to uplift… all of that could disappear at any moment, and we won't be able to lift a finger.

    "Or we can make the first move. We can collect the breadcrumbs of lore the Sage and his successors left behind. We can track down the threats to humanity's existence, one by one, and study what the Sage did to counter them, just like I am with the Great Seal. Then, we can improve on his works. Humanity hasn't been sitting on its thumbs for a thousand years. We may have lost much, but there are things we've gained as well that no ancient horror will see coming—you witnessed that with your own eyes. We aren't lambs waiting for the slaughter—we're shinobi hunting chakra beasts that masquerade as gods.

    "That's why I came to you with this, Shikamaru. The first step is to know our enemy. Can you think of any lore that might point at these six other seals? Could there be any on the Human Path?"

    Shikamaru studied the poem for a few seconds more.

    "It is not that I am unsympathetic to the main thrust of your argument, Hazō, but I feel you still lack an appreciation of the scope of the endeavour you propose. You have conducted minor maintenance work on one elder seal, and slain one of a number of aberrations that came forth from beyond it. These are noteworthy, some might even say historic achievements. However, are they sufficient to outweigh the success of a millennium spent leaving well enough alone? We do not even know that the Great Seal's deterioration is unrelated to human activity—it is a fact that human involvement in the Summon Realm has increased considerably since the start of the village era, and then spiked recently with the advent of the summon trade network. If an accident or a poor decision on your part were to destroy some Great Seal equivalent instead of reinforcing it, that would spell an end to us all more surely than any hypothetical escape that might or might not ever happen.

    "Regardless, I could agree with you as much as I wished, and it would not change the fact that I have no such information I can offer you. I am sorry if you feel you have wasted your time."

    Hazō's spirits sank. He'd taken his intermittent efforts to get secret lore out of Shikamaru to a whole new level, looking for clues while treading carefully to make sure he did not come across as antagonistic or do anything to undermine Shikamaru's trust in him. He'd half-succeeded—there was no sign that Shikamaru was furious with him for attempting to extract clan secrets or generally stick his nose where it didn't belong—but it wasn't the half that would progress Hazō's ambitions. Why did the world so determinedly resist his attempts to save it?

    Never mind. The half that had paid off was still important. It meant he would have another chance when he had bigger explosives to bring to the fight.

    In the meantime, he may as well make a last-ditch attempt to get some information out of Shikamaru now he'd succeeded in putting him in a good mood.

    "There's one more thing," Hazō said. "As you might guess, Noburi and I have been talking to elders on the Seventh Path, trying to get any clues we can, and we've come across multiple references to the Sage's band of five companions. Does that ring any bells with you?"

    Shikamaru frowned. "As it happens, that is a subject of some interest to me. After you originally mentioned them to me in the context of the Eaters, as they were then known, I spent some time in the archives, and I have certain findings I could share with you."

    "Anything would help."

    Shikamaru leaned back in his chair. "Have you ever asked Kei about the origins of her clan?"

    Hazō nodded. "It's come up in conversation. I was pretty surprised by the fact that the Mori don't claim to be descended from the Sage himself, but from one of his close allies."

    "The same is true of the Nara," Shikamaru said. "The Sage had many companions over the course of his life, of course—we lack records, but it would beggar belief to imagine that he lived only the handful of decades allotted to ordinary mortals—but Nara himself was one of his very closest and most trusted."

    "Nara?" Hazō asked. "You mean he named the clan after himself?"

    "Of course," Shikamaru said. "In ancient times, and indeed stretching to modernity in many places and cultures, it was the exception rather than the rule for people to possess two separate names. Such things are valuable to census-keepers, or those who desire others to be constantly reminded of their bloodline, but quite pointless for commoners living in small settlements where 'Mari who lives by the well' would be a sufficient identifier for all daily purposes. But why would those descended from a true hero call themselves anything other than 'son of Nara', or 'grandson of Nara', or, finally, just 'Nara'?

    "There are, naturally, as many legends about Nara as there are clouds in the sky. My favourites, as narrated by my father in happier days, speak of him as a wizard—not a shinobi, you will note, in those days of yore—whose magic brought art to life. His drawings would become warriors to fight by his side, or landscapes that would enfold the real terrain around them and vanish back into fiction, taking those they had enfolded with them. Nara could paint a road leading to a faraway land, then walk it and appear at the other end, or mix paints into impossible colours that brought visions of terrible otherworldly truths. His art lies at the core of the Summoning Scrolls, and the Sage is said to have rewarded him with the Deer Scroll for his contribution."

    "But there's no Deer Clan," Hazō interjected, "at least as far as I know."

    "One of the great mysteries of this world," Shikamaru agreed. "The Nara have spent centuries seeking the lost scroll, but to no avail. Of course, another legend claims that he rode into battle on a giant warthog, a very different kind of beast, and that this warthog's descendants were the battle boars once used by the Yamanaka. Personally, I find that one doubtful, as it would imply a far older relationship between our clans than the records support. Regardless, it would be troublesome to enumerate all such legends, as we would be here all week, and I am an uninspiring storyteller.

    "So the Mori and the Nara claim descent from the Sage's companions," Hazō said. "Are you saying they were two of the five?"

    "The archives hint at the possibility," Shikamaru said. "Certainly, it is noteworthy that when the Mori and the Nara are spoken of together, it is in conjunction with exactly three other clans."

    "The Tama, the Yodomi and the Raiyoke!" Hazō exclaimed, pieces falling into place.

    "I see you have been performing quite some research of your own," Shikamaru said, but without approval. "Well, I suppose it is hardly a clan secret. Obviously, I have less information on the other three, if indeed their claims are as accurate as ours. However, if you desire hints to spur on your own research, I can tell you that Tama is often referred to as the Hierophant. She was dedicated to some deity whose name is now long lost, and with its name on her lips, she could heal or destroy with a touch, as well as 'command the faithless'—whatever that means. The rites according to which the deity is to be worshipped have also been lost, or so the Tama claim. Some also call her the Deathless, alleging that she was a kami who bestowed blessings and curses and could not be slain in battle, but this seems unlikely since it would imply that the Tama themselves have kami blood.

    "Raiyoke was a warrior, one of the nobles of old, who did have a family name but discarded it for the Sage's sake—again, it is unclear whether this was a metaphysical act or merely a symbolic one, or how the Sage benefited. He possessed a dual-wielding style that the greatest of kenjutsu schools have attempted to recreate over the centuries, battling with speed that blinded his foes. He was also a master of tigers—summons, perhaps, or he could have been a tamer like the Inuzuka.

    "Yodomi was another of the breed that believes muscles superior to brains, rendering it astounding that she became the progenitor of our near-equals. She is said to have challenged the Sage to equal combat, and after a lengthy battle emerged victorious by luring him to a hot spring, and I'm certain you can imagine what transpired there. There is little of interest in the stories of that maniac.

    "As to the Mori, I am, of course, not the best source you have available to you. I imagine Ami would be the better storyteller, and Kei the more reliable for factual details, insofar as 'factual details' is a term that means anything after a thousand years of distortion."

    Hazō smiled. "Thanks, Shikamaru. I'm glad I asked you after all."

    Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "After all?"

    "Oh," Hazō exclaimed, glancing out of the window, "how did it get this late? I could have sworn I'd just arrived. I'm sorry for keeping you so long."

    "Not at all," Shikamaru said, brushing his hand across the space between them as if cleaning away the idea. "However, I myself have a gaming appointment to keep with the Kittensphere, so this is good timing to end our discussion for now."

    "The Kittensphere?" Hazō echoed incredulously.

    "Petty revenge for a minor domestic slight," Shikamaru said offhandedly. "Feel free to use it next time Kei deploys her death glare without adequate justification."

    "Oh, I will." Hazō suppressed a gleeful grin, then remembered that there was no need to suppress it. "Thanks for your time, Shikamaru. Let me know what you think of the book."

    "It was my pleasure."

    As Hazō headed out of the office, Shikamaru added, "Please convey my compliments to Ino for her selection of bribery material. I had no idea she was so aware of my tastes."

    Hazō picked up the pace.

    -o-​

    You have received 3 + 1 (Brevity) + 1 (Fun-to-write) = 5 XP. You have lost 2 FP.

    -o-​

    Voting ends on
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • Actually screw leeching chakra from Naruto, we're allied with Mist, we should just do a joint project with the Wakahisa to completely renovate the Elemental Nations. Starting with securing Leaf and Mist, of course. 10k chakra a day is 4,000km/year of walls. That's half of China's road production, length-wise. By a small group of people.
     
    Veedrac said:
    Actually screw leeching chakra from Naruto [...]
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    We don't know if that's safe. If Naruto's CP is affected by the Kyuubi, then the nature of his chakra might be as well. In canon, jinchuuriki chakra was toxic. While this isn't canon, I'd suggest doing some safety testing before injecting Naruto's chakra into another human being, just in case.
     
    RandomOTP said:
    So... Hazou used an explosive seal, the light allowed him to download the seal, and Ino scraped it out of the Iron Nerve Library to try to prevent Out Infection?

    Thank the Sage they don't know about the Pangolin Scroll Incident.
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    I think the Seal, or just the first level of defense put by the Nara, had an effect of turning vulnerable people paranoid, as a way to get out the unworthy. Honestly I suspected in the April 1st timeline we didn't even managed to trigger the explosive tag before Shika paralyzed us and we got shot full of sleep shurikens from hidden arrow slits.

    Interesting about the Deer and the Boar Princess. I don't recall a boar/pig clan. I was lucky to realize it's April Fools early, but I like to think I'd know as soon as Shikamaru chose to walk down enough flights of stairs to make Hazous feet ache. How long would that take, several days?
     
    RandomOTP said:
    We don't know if that's safe. If Naruto's CP is affected by the Kyuubi, then the nature of his chakra might be as well. In canon, jinchuuriki chakra was toxic. While this isn't canon, I'd suggest doing some safety testing before injecting Naruto's chakra into another human being, just in case.
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    I was just thinking of teaching him the jutsu in that case, since then he could do one or two extra large casts per day. It's not super important if we have another source.
     
    if the clones finished wathever they were doing instead of suddenly popping or were still around by the time we were done whit shikamaru then the seal thing didn't happened.
     
    Differences between the two chapters, found using an online text comparer.
    The following happens right before the first second diceroll.
    Chapter 507: Truth in the DarkChapter 507: From Seven to Five
    "Quite," Shikamaru agreed distractedly as he flicked through the book. "Considering what is at stake if even one such primordial horror breaks free, one would think the Sage would at least leave behind detailed guidance for the maintenance of his works. One should not be forced to reconstruct knowledge vital to the survival of the human species generation by generation, especially when the dangers of experimentation are cataclysmic.""Quite," Shikamaru agreed distractedly as he flicked through the book. "Had there been a stroke of ill luck as trivial as a delay in training the next Dog Summoner, no one on the Human Path would have learned that the Great Seal existed at all until it was too late. Had our great forefather never heard of contingencies?"
    Bullseye. It wasn't an admission that Shikamaru felt a personal sense of responsibility when it came to keeping sealed horrors sealed, but it was a strong enough hint that Hazō felt confident leaning on it in pursuing his objective.Nothing. Never mind. With the recent Orochimaru windfall, the cost of a single book wasn't going to break the bank (leave that to the Gōketsu's short-sighted rivals), and it wasn't like Hazō regretted doing something nice for his brother-in-law.

    This is right before Shikamaru lead us down to the depths/told us about the companions.
    "Or we can make the first move. We can use our intelligence to study the Sage's work and rediscover his arts, the way studying the Great Seal is already providing clues about how 3D sealing is possible. We can gather knowledge to learn our enemies' weaknesses and find ways to destroy them, just like my summon allies and I investigated and then set deadly a trap for the Dragon. There's no safe path either way, but it is possible for us to be in control of our own destinies instead of sitting there waiting for the sand to run out on human civilization."Or we can make the first move. We can collect the breadcrumbs of lore the Sage and his successors left behind. We can track down the threats to humanity's existence, one by one, and study what the Sage did to counter them, just like I am with the Great Seal. Then, we can improve on his works. Humanity hasn't been sitting on its thumbs for a thousand years. We may have lost much, but there are things we've gained as well that no ancient horror will see coming—you witnessed that with your own eyes. We aren't lambs waiting for the slaughter—we're shinobi hunting chakra beasts that masquerade as gods.
    Shikamaru didn't respond straight away.Shikamaru studied the poem for a few seconds more.

    After this, everything is different between the two versions.

    Edit:
    I noticed that the dicerolls are slightly different too.
    Hazō tags "Keeper of the Third Lock" and spends 2 FP to invoke "Creative Idealist" and "Relics of the Dragon".
    Hazō: Rapport 21 + 3 + 3 + 3 - 3 = 30
    Shikamaru: Presence ?? + ? = ??    		Hazō spends 2 FP to invoke "Creative Idealist" and "Relics of the Dragon".
    Hazō: Rapport 21 + 3 + 3 - 3 = 30
    Shikamaru spends 1 FP to tag ???
    Shikamaru: Presence ?? + ? + ? = ??
     
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    Aodyssey said:
    Interesting about the Deer and the Boar Princess. I don't recall a boar/pig clan.
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    The Boars are known to live on the island south of the main landmass, sharing it with the Snakes. That's about all we know of them. The Deer clan was indeed wholly unknown to us before now, though given the mythological nature of our information I'm only penciling it down as a maybe.

    Updated version of the map will be up soon, this is only a tiny addition but there are some previous details I added to the master copy but neglected to upload so it'll be nice to get that off my mind.
     
    Well... We did in fact burn trough FP so that chapter did happened.
    @Velorien did the mental consequences apply?

    All in all more info for the backburner and Hazõu needs more mental defense if we are dealing with memetic hazzards.
     
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