Helping Hand [Solo | Plot]

{Travel Thread Reference: Lone Traveler}

Perhaps Ami had been a little too optimistic in her sense of directions as she walked. She had started her travels in the early morning and had ended up getting lost numerous of times after leaving the familiar Kataki Road. She stopped whoever she could find and finally as the sun began to set, she would reach the woodland that the secretary in her village had mentioned. It had an eerie feeling to it, half because she had taken so long to get there that all forests looked eerie at night, but also there was a certain vibe that didn’t sit well with the kunoichi. She treaded with caution, especially since these were unknown parts to her. She would eventually reach the entrance of the village. Half expecting to see guards on duty, she was very surprised to see that the gates were empty. Not a soul could be seen. Unsure of whether she had found the right place, she decided to enter the gates. Ami would put on her Moon village headband just in case, the last thing she needed was to be mistaken for an intruder or worse…a spy.

The young woman slipped past the village gates quietly. Although it was well past sunset and most vendors and places would be closing for the night, she found it very strange that the streets were empty. It gave her a chilling feeling, that would soon be replaced with shouts from somewhere off the side streets. It wasn’t a piercing scream, rather someone was yelling very loudly. Ami decided to follow the voices until she came to a jewelry shop. Just by its exterior, it seemed like a small local jeweler, with displays of gold necklaces by the window and other dainty but expensive accessories that would make any woman’s eyes light up. But she would move past the shiny pieces and look inside, where she saw an old man and a young man quarreling. The old man was grabbing at the other man’s sleeve, his face red with anger and his voice high pitched as he yelled. “What’s going on?” she would ask in a serious voice, although failing to be authoritative at all. She was not one to even sound it when she needed to. The two men stopped for a moment in mid-quarrel to look at her. “From Gekkousato,” she would say hastily. The young man would break free from the grasps of the old man, flinging the poor man against one of the glass containers. Ami quickly helped the man up and sat him down on a chair before asking him what had happened.

“That man…he’s a policeman,” the man began, his voice defeated. “Ever since the mayor of our village was killed, this place has been in utter chaos. Police are running around stealing valuables from shops, people are fighting each other, it’s a mess!” He would look up at the girl. “That man stole my shop’s most valuable piece. It’s a ruby necklace that I had made for my late wife. I had meant to give it to her on her birthday. It took me months of searching before I could find the best diamonds and rubies to make it…please…help me get it back!” his voice broke as tears flowed down his face. Ami needed to hear no further as she turned to leave the shop, turning around to the shop owner and vowing to find the man and get him back the necklace. Her blood boiled as she rushed down the empty streets, in the direction she thought the man had run off to only moments before. How dare he steal? Not only was he an upholder of authority but to steal from a poor old man…it was unforgivable act. Her steps quickened as her anger took the best of her, looking left and right with piecing eyes, trying to find the culprit.

It proved to be quite easy to find the man. He was gathered with a group of men outside the local police station, his hand holding the ruby necklace as he showed it off to his friends, who she guessed were also policemen. The woman would reach into her weapon pouch and grab three shuriken, aiming it at his outstretched hand as she drew near them. “Give the old man back the necklace!” her voice was stern and cold, probably the most authoritative it could ever get as she stood two meters away from the group. There were four of them including the young man with the necklace. He had retracted his hand just in time to dodge the incoming shuriken just in time. He smirked at her, obviously amused that a woman was trying to pretend to be all that in front of the muscular men. What he didn’t know was that muscles had nothing to do with skill. “And what if I said no?” the man taunted. A smirk appeared on her face at his words as she proceeded to run towards him. He sent a series of kicks at him, not even bothering to unsheathe her katana. The kicks connected to his torso and as he fell backward she would put her foot on his hand, crushing it with her weight. He screamed, the necklace now dropped on the ground. As she went to pick it up, the other men charged at her too.

“Imbeciles…” she hissed. Picking up the necklace in one swift motion, she grabbed her sword, and instead of attacking them, kicked her knee into the rib of the man who was on the floor. He groaned, her sword inches from his chest. She saw the terror in his eyes and would turn to look at the other men who had stopped mid-step, realizing that she meant business.“I’m not here to kill anyone today. But if you fools can’t do your job right, my sword won’t mind some fresh blood.” She dug her blade in the man’s stomach, listening to him scream in pain. “Policemen are supposed to protect the villagers, not harm them…” she whispered, her eyes now fixated on the other men. Ami removed her blade from inside his stomach, an action that made the man scream again. Blood trickled and she would turn her attention back to the injured man. “That cut right there…that’s your punishment. Now, go give the shop owner back the necklace or else I might just slice you up like sashimi…” her voice was so cold that it scared her. Ami nodded with her head to the other three men to help him up, throwing the necklace to them. She would follow them back to the shop. The shop owner looked alarmed at the bloodied man but was grateful to get his necklace back. Ami made sure the policeman apologized and vowed never to harm the villagers again, something she thought would have been common sense.

What kind of place was this?