A Cold Night... (Group Plot)

Ryojin normally wore a two-tone blue coat with a dragon shooting across it's surface, but for this mission he had been ordered to go stealth. He was in pitch black with a hooded robe this time. He had made his way up to Sojiro who was reading, but from behind. A moderately boney pale finger would extend from the darkened alley behind him and ever so gently tap against his shoulder to grab his attention. So long as he wasn't completely caught off guard and turned to see, he would see Ryojin's blue eyes beneath the cloak and a noticeable finger extended over his closed mouth signaling quiet. He would usher Sojiro and point toward the housing district about fourty meters beyond the alleyway he had hidden himself in.

Tonight, the goal was for them to look at crime scenes, and he knew the first he wanted to go and see. The mission proctor that he had been rather fond of had been one of the victims to these gruesome acts. The order was that tonight he was to behave as a true shinobi. That meant no loud happy go lucky freedom about him as per usual and it showed that he was perhaps taking this more seriously than he would any other circumstances. It wouldn't take the both of them long to cover the distance in the dead of night and arrive to her home. He lightly pulled the handle down, and the door silently crept open. The moment the door opened, maybe even before then, the smell of dried blood would wash over Sojiro.

When the door opened, the corpse was gone, but the blood was all over the wall as a giant A. Ryojin stared at it a moment. The air around him grew cold as his fingers trailed the surfaces gently. This was one of four houses total they would be visiting this evening. There were no real signs of contest, but from what he understood, she had been a support shinobi to start with so signs of struggle in this case would be highly unlikely, especially if she hadn't expected an attack.

His chakra had grown almost palpable. It was clear that Ryojin was growing more frustrated by the second. He stopped after a moment and took in a shallow breath. There was a time and a place for his anger; here and now wasn't it. He walked around the apartment. There wasn't anything else in particular out of the ordinary at first sight. He walked to the counter in the kitchen, on the counter was a very fine powder. This powder was next to a water spot stained against the marble. Had she been poured a glass of something? Could she have been poisoned? What was this powder? Ryojin slid some of it into a small bag and sealed it. He would have to take it to his father. If it was a poison known in the moon, he would have an answer soon enough.

He continued about the scene. His emotions were in a bit of turmoil, but he was able to steady himself enough to still be effective. That was the key. The more effective he was now, the more effective they could be in finding who did this later.

There was nothing else to be found in the first house. As they left Ryojin softly shut the door and gave a nearly inaudible sigh. It was time to move on to the next scene. The second house, once they entered, was far different. Compared to the tidy scene from before, this house was a wreck. There was clear evidence of a fight. Blood had leaked across the entire floor down the hallway. It looked as though someone had been severely wounded.

In the kitchen, dishes were scattered and shattered everywhere. There was a handprint surrounded by burns on the counter. Just as the house before, an 'A' was on the wall, but this one was crude and messy. "One thing for sure.. These were two different people." It was the first words he had spoken aloud.

He continued to search through the house. Things were definitely a wreck. With a struggle like this wouldn't someone else have definitely heard? He wondered what the neighbors had been up to during the time of the attack. It definitely didn't appear as though this one was quiet like the last.

"Honestly, I think they're getting close to their targets before striking. This one just seems to have a knack for being messy while the other one was definitely a clean killer. To bring two like this together... a common goal. A common goal means a partnership or an organization."

Ryojin continued to look around. Other than the 'A' there was definitely not much in common among the two cases. The question they needed to find was the link between their victims. One male, one female. Both lived in the housing district, but that could always be coincidence. He didn't have anything to go on.

"Have you noticed anything unusual scent wise?"

"Bah! I forgot about the dogs." Ryojin rubbed the back of his head a bit and led them forward to the next building. Upon opening the door, the smell of blood with this one would be the faintest it had yet. The only thing in this locale would be the standard A on the wall they had seen just like the others. There was no sign of struggle inside, but there was definitely minor damage to the door frame implying the lock had been forced.

Ryojin tilted his head. Children were... disappearing? His hand tightened into a fist slightly. What was going on? Was this peace a shade over a real problem? What were the kages hiding and why? After the prison break, a lot was uncertain. "No reports of any groups wearing wolf masks right...?" The question may have seemed random to Sojiro, but to Ryojin it bore real weight. Was it possible his brother had got involved in something more?

"Uh.. I mean.. well. You should let me know if a guy who's not too much taller than me, way angrier than me, and has eyes a bit less blue than me pops up. Oh and uses ice jutsu. Even when in the desert." With that, Ryojin let out a long sigh. This mission had been exhausting. They had reviewed the crime scenes as was assigned, but nothing else at this point was really standing out. They knew one thing for sure, it was organized, it was a group possibly.

"Yeah.. it really seems like these guys don't have any real methodology or anything. I guess all we can do is wait and see. As for the villages, yeah it seems like they haven't invested any real interest in anything as of late. To be honest, it's a little concerning, but what do we really know? It's not like we're privy to the kage's true directives." Ryojin stepped out of the last house they were investigating. Would this all just be swept under the rug in the end? Was there a bigger threat here? Either way, it was inconvenient.

"It seems like we're done here for the time being. Let's meet up again soon okay Sojiro? Stay safe out there." Ryojin had a lot more to say. Maybe he had let his feelings about his brother resurface again. He felt nearly hopeless to the wave of incoming anger, then indifference, then the crisp stoic apathy that hid itself so deep within him only to surface when he let himself get carried too far. He made it a point to take the long way home so that he could have the time to clear his head.