No Cutting Corners [Solo Mission]

The Objective:

Another. Early. Day. Disgusting. Ryojin huffed having to get out of bed first thing in the morning. As per usual his father had kept him up way too late. He rubbed his temples slightly. Unlike his father he needed sleep to properly function. He fumbled about his room pulling out a white cloak for today's mission. This one, unlike the last, would be all him. He stepped from his room into the kitchen making himself some black tea in an attempt to get himself a bit more aware before heading to the administration office.

The usual looks were shot at him and he still made it a point to greet each and every person he passed by. Some gave him the moment and seemed to genuinely appreciate him greeting them as usual, others would just high nose and be on their way. This was the normal here for an outsider. It was to be expected. It didn't matter to Ryojin one bit. He finally reached the administration office and approached the counter. The black haired kunoichi, as per usual, handed him the paper work along with a note from his father. This one had a specific set of instructions. He was to clear out surrounding buildings of stragglers from beyond the village. This would be easy enough. He smiled and turned about on his way.

He followed the path of the river for this one. It didn't take long for him to reach the first abandoned shack. He pulled the hood on his white cloak up and formed his hand seals. It began to snow. By this point he was far enough from the village. Today the weather was a bit dryer than usual. The ambient temperature would be easy to drag down. He would wait in silence. The instructions from his father were simple enough this time. Be Clean. Be Impartial. It didn't take long for the normally warm jungle to suddenly begin to feel frosty. An older man walked out of the cabin teeth chattering. Ryojin stepped forward through the snow fully revealing himself. "It's your choice which way this goes. Regardless of your choice, you need to go." The man scoffed slightly, that is until he caught sight of Ryojin's headband. At that point the man gulped. He opened his mouth as if to protest, but Ryojin held up a hand. "It's only going to get colder and I have nowhere to be today. Sorry. You just drew the short straw." With that, the man sighed slightly and went on his way.

The first one was easy. He didn't expect any sort of conflict. This was the nature of things when outsiders saw a headband. It gave them the impression that he was willing to do what he needed to serve his village and further himself. As Ryojin continued following the river, he came about a few more shacks, an abandoned outpost, a sort of watch tower. Remnants of old times he supposed. These had each been empty, but in the sense of cover actually available, it made sense. Soon, Ryojin came up to a rather fresh looking hut constructed in a half shack. It was still snowing, by now it had collected an inch. As he approached the cabin, he was caught off guard slightly as the figure of a man shifted from behind a near by tree. He was improving. Before he wouldn't have noticed such a subtle shift. "You need to go. I can see you." As the form solidified, Ryojin had to contain himself. "I'm not looking for trouble. I just caught wind someone was actually patrolling these old buildings. I'm curious. Are you the one making it snow in a jungle like this?" Ryojin knew this face too well. He had to be extra careful not to reveal too much of his face. "Does it matter? I won't answer just to satiate your curiosity." He took in a silent, but deep breath. The form was none other than one of his brothers. If he let his hood fall, this would turn into something it didn't need to be. He knew that and he did his best to keep his breathing level and his emotions in check. He was beginning to feel suffocated. Kill them with kindness. The words almost haunted him.

His brother smirked and shrugged. "Suit yourself, but you should be careful out here. You never know who or what you might find." With this, his brother took his leave. Ryojin remained a few moments to make sure his brother had actually left. Ryojin, for a moment, absolutely lost his composure. There was nobody there to witness, but in a moment, he had felt his hatred, his anger, it bubbled over. It was uncharacteristic of him. Forgive everyone. The fact that it was so difficult for him to let the anger go pushed him even further over the edge to a point where his aggression was momentarilly walloped into a nearby tree trunk. The tree didn't give way even a little, but it didn't matter. For a few moments, Ryojin wildly swung. Angrily Swung. He remained silent. His Knuckled bloodied. His hand bruised. He kept punching until his hand was too weak to punch anymore. With that, he shoved it into the accumulating snow on the ground. It took a few more moments, but the anger finally passed.

Ryojin noted that he had definitely lost himself a moment. Seeing his brother's face. He had promised himself to forgive. To let it go. It became clear to him that it would be harder than he thought. Had his father somehow heard he would be here? Was it just luck of the draw? Either way, it didn't matter, but the thought left a sour taste in his mouth. This was a question, regardless of how curious he was, he just wouldn't ask. His mission had come to a close. He made his way back toward the village. Minus some pretty thorough bruising, his hand didn't look too bad. He would just insist he ran in to a bit of trouble more than what he had planned. It didn't matter. The mission was done.