Mountain Range Outpost [Group Mission]

Spoiler:

This was Letony’s first time visiting the actual Administration Building to retrieve a mission, albeit the infamous Kage was yet to be found. It was such a large infrastructure for the young fifteen-year-old to behold. He would not dwell there long however, and would leave to begin the mission he just received. This mission would carry him somewhere and with someone he’d never encountered before. More specifically the Sun Spire Mountain Range. Just the thought of visiting such a place intrigued Letony tremendously, but the caliginous bastard would never reveal such enthusiasms. He would rather wallow in darkness outwardly than shed his most positive feelings, even if it truly made him feel different inside. And in a good way. Regardless, he would take this time to enjoy a teaming up experience but considering the rank of the mission he didn’t expect anything to be joyful about it, ‘I bet they won't even bother to put anyone good on my team,’ Letony thought. His sharp demeanor was the result of merciless beatings received from his one and only caregiver. The wraps on his left arm held together with a small black rope was a reminder of the ignorance he once endured. Until he detached himself of that filthy swine. Yes, Letony was a young murderer, but you would have killed him too if your arms succumbed to whips.  

Anyhow, Letony would rendezvous with his teammate at the village gates before the given mission took place. He had no knowledge of who his partner might be, and quite frankly wasn’t significantly optimistic, at least he didn’t appear to be. It was hard for him to keep a straight face; he always looked aggravated to some degree. Letony was just four meters from the entrance to the village, electing to stand around rather than find a place to sit. He needed a smoke to pass the time until his partner arrived. He felt more than comfortable asking a few strangers for a cigarette and a light. So, when his partner did arrive; Letony would be posted along the side of the gates smoking a cigarette. Although he was only fifteen, Letony’s appearance allowed him to easily pull this off. “They better not keep me waiting long,” Letony managed to muse to himself between a drag of smoke. On this day Letony wore his white Konowari flak jacket with the clan’s symbol embroidered on its center. It also had a hoodie attached which now rested against Letony’s shoulders. His darkened shade of silver hair would glide forward across his head unencumbered by the wind. Letony’s light golden brown eyes surveyed the area towards the inside of the village; he assumed his partner would be arriving from within the village.

[WC: 455/800]

A white cloud of smoke expunged from the mouth of Letony, as who he would come to know as Sojiro Sakura approached him. ‘This must be him,’ Letony thought, his narrow eyes focusing on where there was a missing appendage. Many ideals formed in Letony’s mind at that moment. How did it happen? Was it from being too weak? Or was it a sign that this person was strong? The possibilities were truly endless. Letony took note of what he perceived as some type of war paint or face tattoo. It was quite common of shinobi to wear markings for intimidation or to show one belonged to an organization. The man spoke raising an eyebrow. Letony would respond by first ridding himself of the cigarette; he didn’t care about being rude, it was just overdue to be snuffed out. Letony hated crowds, and had issues with anxiety but he was quite relaxed now.  

Letony listened to Sojiro speak and responded immediately after he snuffs the cigarette, “I am,” Letony quickly retorted. ‘So, this is the man I'll be partnered with,’ Letony thought before responding once more, “You can call me Letony, my last name’s Konowari. I suggest we head out quickly. We’ll be keeping an eye out for the construction workers, and aiding in any tasks proving too difficult for them,” Letony wasn’t as accustomed to working as part of a team but there was a goal he needed to fulfill, and thus he could compromise. There were more questions he had for Sojiro too, but he would let this adventure play out more, and hopefully new insights would be revealed. “The construction crew is already onsite, so all we gotta do is get there. I’ve never been there though,” Letony stood up straight listening for a response, he would follow his new partner’s lead. The Sun Spire Mountain Range was a place Letony had never been. If his partner could guide him, he would be relieved and it would reveal his partner’s level of competence.

[WC: 790/800]

Letony became alerted to the fact that cigarettes don’t degrade and are bad for the environment; he liked intelligence, and this man seemed to be pretty wise, to the fifteen year old.  Letony would follow along as the pair would exit the gates out to the sands. Not long into the journey, Letony was contemplating about the Sun Spire Mountains, when Sojiro broke the silence.

“The Konowari were founded around the time of the Second Nikkoukage. I, myself, don’t know much about my own clan or heritage just yet. I haven’t had much time to study our history with all the missions I’ve been doing. Ya see, that’s a goal of mine,” Letony forced the words from his mouth. The Konowari possess many techniques sacred to them only, and Letony had only just met this man. He would not divulge what he did know, and instead focused on what he had yet to learn. Such as who his parents are, and the history behind the Konowari clan. This, in fact, plays a key reasoning as to why Letony came to the Sun village to begin with. After all he was found stranded in the Frostlands.

“However, if you must insist, maybe I’ll show you some things when we get to the mountains. Maybe a friendly showcase while out on duty?” Letony inquired, unsure how much he could hide from this person, and how much he would reveal. Letony was definitely into mental chess matches, and took a liking to Sojiro’s aptitude. “And what about you. What’s the story behind that arm?” Letony was rather direct and didn’t beat around the bush. Letony was uncertain how far the two had come by now, but he suspected the Mountains would be visible before they arrived. Would there be a path for them to follow? Did they have to climb? Many inquiries passed through Letony's mind as he awaited responses from Sojiro.

[WC: 1109/800]

The young boy Letony focused intently on his partner’s words. Shooting a glance over at him periodically, as he focused extensively on his surroundings. What the two would encounter was a transition of the habitat. The sand becoming solid stone when Sojiro finished his words of wisdom. Letony had an intrigued look on his face, taking time to delegate and process what the man meant. His face would lower to view the ground slightly, looking as though he was in deep thought. He almost looked as if he wanted to the cuff his chin in a thinking pose. But if he remained looking at the ground; he would most certainly miss the Sun Spire Mountain Range as it came into view. Letony immediately elevated his vision, a full elevation not required for the vast arrangement of massive rocks to be seen. “That’s impressive,” Letony acknowledging the grand scale of the range he’d never before witnessed. Letony followed along beside Sojiro, as he directed which path the two would take to reach the outpost. There seemed to be a number of paths leading to various spires; Letony was curious about where the bulk of them led. He was pleased that Sojiro would take him up on his offer, but when he inquired about the missing appendage he didn’t get the expected response. The man seemed to be a bit flustered by the question; Letony himself a bit flustered as to how he could be so nonchalant about the whole ordeal. When he questioned Letony as to what he meant; Letony almost responded. It was as if he didn’t know his arm was even gone. “A bet?” Letony spoke, slow to notice Sojiro’s true intentions. Letony realized it was something the man no longer wanted to discuss by his demeanor, and after an awkward silence.

The path would elevate the two men to a plateau etched into the mountainside. The plateau would overlook the ocean, as the waves crashed relentlessly into the stone. White foam stirred from the waves as they churned up against the mountains; water bursting out capriciously with each incoming tide. The sun would be just beyond the horizon; denoting only a few hours until dusk. What the two encountered on this plateau was the late development of an outpost. The outpost’s foundation would be the stone plateau, as it ascended into the air 30 meters tall. It appeared to be formed from mortared bricks of stone, carved from the very mountain’s themselves. Here, there were already at least ten construction workers who were busy crafting the remainder of the outpost. Things appeared normal on the construction site, albeit the outpost almost took the shape of the Seattle Space Needle. They appeared to be finishing its apex which was a circular lookout tower. You could see from 360 degrees at its top. There seemed to be plenty of space and opportunity, as there was nothing requiring their assistance. “I guess we should make sure they don’t need us first,” Letony turned his face toward Sojiro without much expression, but he was getting excited internally. He was happy to see that there wasn’t much for them to actually do, except supervise and secure the premises.

Letony nodded as Sojiro walked off to assess the situation with the foreman of the construction crew. Rather than be hasty, he decided to wait for Sojiro to return with the information, and took the time to gaze around his surroundings. There appeared to be steep cliff on one side of the plateau, overlooking the ocean, and where the waves crashed against the stone wall. The outpost was located about five meters from its edge. The entire plateau was circular and had a 60 meter in radius apex, which is where they stood. It appeared as though it was formerly a mountain which had been sliced off at the top, but it sat precariously between several other mountains on the later side of the cliff. There was a steep fall from the plateau’s edge, where there wasn’t a path leading upward. A deep pit filled with nothingness, and darkness. The location had plenty of natural defense from intruders, and the line of sight range was quite substantial from the outpost, overlooking the ocean. The partially encompassing mountains cast a forbearing ambiance over the plateau, although the sun was over the ocean. The location was fairly incredible in Letony’s eyes, having never encountered such a place.

Sojiro would return suddenly, and Letony focused his attention back toward him as he approached. Hearing him say just a quick sweep of the area, before they could cut loose, pleased Letony’s mind, “Alright… I’ll start up there.” He pointed to the nearly finished lookout tower for a moment before proceeding toward it. It was rudimentary to take the highest point possible to view a location. Letony quickly began climbing the exterior of the tower’s dark grey, textured, brick stone wall. Using chakra at the bottom of his feet to adhere, Letony would rise until he could see the bulk of the area from up on high. He yelled down at Sojiro, “I don’t see anything up here,” he cupped one hand above his eyebrows to shade his eyes. This was whilst his feet held on to the circular siding of the outpost. Standing erect, the Konowari’s black cloak drifted downward awkwardly, as he stood in an abnormal position to view his surroundings.

“Not so fast. Before we leave, how about that showcase,” Letony’s eyes followed Sojiro as he returned to the spot just below him, and heard him mention leaving. To Letony this was a fine, and spacious arrangement for the men to display some things in their arsenals. He didn’t want to let the opportunity slip to get a brief workout in such a pristine location. Without anyone around to notice, or interfere with the two, there was plenty of time left for Letony’s showcase. After speaking briefly, Letony lowered himself to the ground walking, and leaping at a comfortable distance to land on his feet near Sojiro. He was standing face to face with him now, albeit a slight body length to the right. This gave him just enough space to slip past Sojiro if he wanted to go the other direction. But Sojiro was still a meter ahead of him. With the outpost now behind Letony, he had enough space on his right side to show off a little bit. Sojiro was safely toward his left. “If I had a signature Ninjutsu, I’d say this would have to be it,” Letony said in a reassuring voice as he casually formed hand seals. Letony turned his body to the right at the same time, now facing away from the outpost, and Sojiro. He slowly extended his right palm, curling his fingers slightly, and gripping his right forearm with is left hand.“Rarely do I do anything just to show off, but here it is,” translucent wind natured chakra began to accumulate at his extended right palm.“Wind Release: Galactic Arrow,” The clear chakra formed the flat tip of an arrow directly from the center of Letony’s outreaching appendage. It was roughly three inches wide, completely flat, and ascended from the palm in the shape of an arrow. It remained connected with Letony’s palm, as he directed it toward the ground ahead of him at about two meters. The tip of the arrow sliced into the ground with ease, the tip of the wind natured chakra buried in the ground whilst still connected to Letony’s palm. After a few moments the technique dissipated, and Letony stood straight once more. “Feel free to let me know what ya think, although, can’t say I will care too much about your feedback.” The technique left a three inch impression on the ground, however it was at least three meters deep into the earth if Sojiro paid it any attention. It was hard to actually see significantly deep, as it was quite far away, and the gloom beneath the earth tended to cover down into the hole.

Standing straight, Letony turned to face Sojiro as he would speak and begin walking toward him. He was already a meter close to Letony, and seemed to be intrusive of his personal space. He would see when Sojiro walked by and tried to pat him on the shoulder, he’d only just met the man and he was already trying to touch him? The aggressive Letony pulled his shoulder from the range of the man’s pat as he passed by him. Allowing his attempt at a touch to become non deleterious. The man now stood ahead of Letony just a meter, now facing what used to be Letony’s right side. Letony curiously gazed at Sojiro’s back as he wondered why a teammate would try to show affection without truly knowing one another. But things seemed to change as the winds around Sojiro kicked up to a great extent, sending Letony’s black cloak fluttering as he was still at a close distance, but behind Sojiro a meter. A hurricane seemed to arrive at Sojiro’s blank arm spot, and condensed into a wind natured arm it seemed he could use at his beckon call. ‘Quite a high-level wind release,’ Letony thought, still musing over the fact of why Sojiro would attempt to touch him so early in the relationship. Letony had a cunning and deceptive mind of his own, and was an expert at the arts of illusion. It was no matter, as Sojiro formed more wind style in his later hand, and seemed to bring the two forces of wind chakra together in a massive, forceful clap. It sent a blast of wind hurdling 15 meters ahead of them in a conical design, easily erasing the mark Letony created. Letony could only think that, he was happy he wasn’t within the technique’s range, as it devastated the ground and sent rock flying off ahead of them.  

“That. Was a pretty decent showcase. Maybe you can teach me that technique one day?.... When I learn to trust you.. If that ever happens that is,” Letony became suspicious of his partner’s intent, sending a natural paranoia flooding through his veins. He would keep his eyes on Sojiro, as he signaled for the two to exit. “Why don’t you become my Senpai?” Letony’s angered demeanor seemed to shift into a slightly less angry smirk.