The team has returned from their weeks worth of their S-Rank mission they received. Group must report to Sasuke immediately. However upon arriving, they notice Konohagakure has seem to be more crowded with many shinobi from other villages, mainly from the other four great lands.

The boat trip was no picnic. While the land was set free in a very odd turn of events of the snow falling back to someplace, and they were returning with a new firend. Nori was distant. Nanami expected to be blamed for some of what happenend. Though she blamed herself for a lot more than what was her share of it. Knowing their last words were ones of distrust left everything between her and Sigmund unresolved. Though the tone of voice he talked in during their last exchange didn't feel like the words he spoke.

They got off the boat at a safe port and made their way home.

Nanami notices all the new faces as she they walked through the streets towards. This worried her. There hhad been no mention of joint missions with the other villages yet. It made her wonder if the snow had attacked other villages. She was sure she would hear from Sasuke. Though their mission debrief would most likely be rough. As she turned down the main road she noticed some sand shinobi. This made Nanami worry about her mother who was back in the sand village. Hopefully Sasuke would fill them in on what's going on..

As she entered the central building. Nanami noticed it was really busy. Busier than she had ever seen it. She made her way slowly to the reception area "Nara Nanami and the rest of my team to see Sasuke. He's expecting us." In a way she was expecting the type of lashing that Sigmund gave her time and time again. Though oddly she missed hearing him. Seeing Sigmund become her enemy hurt her a lot. She kept her rage and hate inside for now. She looked forward for the chance to find a training ground and let out some of her frustration.

The receptionist had went through Sasuke's appointments on the screen, looking for openings even the building was completely busy. She looked up at the group of girls. "Go right in, he's expecting you," she had replied softly and the group went up, knocking on the door and walked right in, taking their seats before him.

Sasuke hadn't change in the weeks of their trip, however he did seemed quite busy and annoyed with everything with the energy he was giving everyone. He wasn't sitting down, but standing, looking over the window that viewed the entire hidden leaf village.

"It seems you picked up a stray and yet you're missing someone. Where is he?" he asked firmly; he seemed to have known how many bodies entered the room and the most promising one had been missing. He didn't show any emotion towards the question though as he turned around and stared at the girls, particularly the new ice wielder standing before him.
This message was last updated by the player at 09:08, Wed 29 Nov 2017.

Nori could still remember the last words that Sigmund had said to them echoing in her ears before he had vanished with Kotatsu. He was there one moment and then the next he just...vanished. She cried out for him, but her cries were useless. He was gone. He was gone and she didn't know if he was ever going to come back. She failed to reach him. She failed to stop him. She knew that she couldn't have done anything to do so yet at the same time, she felt like she she should have fought harder for him. When they took this mission, Nori had felt uneasy. There was something she didn't like about it and knew that was mainly because Kotatsu was involved and knowing that, she didn't think things would end well. And it turns out she was right. They didn't. She had just lost the most important person in her life and now she was at a loss of what to do or how to get him back. She knew she would meet him again someday, but someday seemed like forever to her. Someday was unknown and that was what scared her the most. She had felt like she just got him back and now...now she lost him again.

Nanami and Shiroma had done their best to comfort her, to tell her that everything was going to be alright, but it wasn't. It wasn't going to be alright. On the entire trip home, she had hardly said a word to either one of them. She remained distant from them. The once happy, cheerful light that was in her emerald green eyes was now lifeless and distant. She retreated into herself and didn't know if she would ever come back. All she found she could do in those moments to herself was reflect on what had happened and what she should have done to stop him from leaving. She reflected on what could have been done differently and most of all, she felt like if she hadn't taken away his brother and made him live with it all this time, maybe the darkness wouldn't have engulfed him. There was no way she could fix what she had done. Now she could never make it up to him...if that was even possible from the beginning. Nori cried. That's all she felt she could do was cry.

The trip back to Konoha had been a slow yet quiet one. Once they had arrived back into the village, they were summoned by Sasuke to give a status report on their mission. While they lost the most important person of the group, they gained another. However, as vital as Shiroma had proven herself to be during this mission, no one could replace Sigmund. The Konoha team was no longer a team without him. And she wasn't even sure...if even she wanted to be apart of it anymore. So many things happened during this mission aside from the disappearance of Sigmund. She knew she needed to talk to her family about what she had found out about Sigmund's brother, but felt like she couldn't. At least not now. The trio entered the central building with Nori lagging behind them and to the reception area where they would wait to meet with Sasuke. While Nanami went to speak with someone at the front, she made her way over to a nearby chair and sat down upon it with a quiet thud. She rested her elbows onto her knees and buried her face into her hands as she strived to hold back the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes.

It was upon hearing a voice speak up to them telling them to come in, Nori quickly wiped at her eyes and took in a sharp breath before she dropped her hands from her face and stood up. She walked after Nanami and Shiroma into Sasuke's office and took a seat at the end. At hearing the question posed to them, there was a silence that filled the room. She curled her hands into fists on the top of her legs and looked down at her lap. "He's...gone," she said in a weak, timid voice. "He...left with Kotatsu. He left and...we couldn't stop him..." She shut her eyes tightly.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:00, Wed 29 Nov 2017.

Nanami took a long deep breath, and then exhaled. Her muscles relaxed. She didn't want to do this all stiff. So the girl took a moment to adjust her frame of mind to one reporting a situation. Her eye swiveled and met Sasuke's stern gaze. The girl's eyes were near emotionless. But were also filled with emotion. It was hard to read where her exact frame of mind was. She took one last breath and exhaled again. The world seemed to slow down to a crawl as she started to speak and tell a recounting of the important parts "This first part concerns you as well Lord Sasuke." She breathes slowly as she continued. There was a little stress in her voice "We met a hunter before we left the Land of Fire.." She sighed a little not sure how much of what the woman said was the truth "We saved her from a snare trap. It concerned me that a hunter would get caught in her own trap." It was this next part she was curious to see how Sasuke would respond. A lot went through her mind as she spoke "Later that night she revealed to me and Nori. Something interesting, or well confusing.." Her hand runs through the hair just behind her ear as she spoke "Does the name Akasumi ring a bell Lord Sasuke? Anyways.. She claimed to be your aunt, and was away on a mission when the incident with the Uchiha happened, and yes she showed me her Sharingan. She also claimed to be Sigmunds mother.. I couldn't verify these things. She also warned me to not go to the Land of Frost." She takes a long breath and knew the next part would not garner a positive response "Akasumi also said not to tell Sigmund as it would cause severe issues."

Nanami eyes looked down for a moment "So we hid it from him, we did tell him later.. We escorted her back to the village that she said she was from. It seemed pretty busy and normal. Or by appearances normal.. I did memorize the route there if you need me to give you directions to it.. Later we found out it was more or less a prison." She took another long breath this was taking a mental toll on her recounting this "So progressing past Akasumi. We made it to the ship and arrived in the Land of Frost. Immediately we were engaged by enemy forces. We dispatched them and captured Shiroma. I discovered she was under a strong Genjutsu. Using my medical knowledge and the Sharingan, we managed to release her from the Genjutsu and any control that was once held. She went through a lot of horrible things. Seeing them from a perspective where she lacked control to influence her bodies actions."

The girl pauses and tries to relax herself, as the next parts stir her anger and hatred "We were heading to a cave system that Shiroma knew of to recover and prepare for the assault on the fortress. As we made our way Shiroma was leading us and the weather worsened and we got seperated. Me and Nori were alone for a moment, and Kotatsu appeared before us." She bites her lip with her canine trying to contain the emotions she had been holding in. A small trickle of blood goes over her chin "Sigmund heard the commotion and came back to check on us. Then he tried to use some Genjutsu or something on him. It was powerful.. It took me using a medical technique and Nori causing a strong emotional response to overwhelm him, stopping the Genjutsu or jutsu. After sigmund passed out. Kotatsu laughed, said some arrogant remarks and left. So we made our ways carrying Sigmund to the caves. Here we gave him time to recover. Once he did, he got angry with me for interfering in his destiny. That his destiny was his own. So because I interfered, he lost his trust in me. Though not completely. So we talked more and moved on the fortress. The assault went perfectly as me and shiroma smashed them with our arrow jutsu's. Killing all of them.. Then Nori and Sigmund mopped up the remaining ground forces in the fortress and killed the sensory shinobi. I watched while recovering some chakra. Sigmund was brutal in his execution of the sensory shinobi. He chopped off his head. While I was watching I saw something very odd with the Sharingan." Again she takes another long deep breath "His chakra flashed from his forearm to his eyes. This is when I began to suspect something was already wrong. I hopped down and collected samples from the dead sensory shinobi in hopes they could be tested and we could gain some insight how all these shinobi's have this dark chakra."

Nanami tilts her head "He seemed annoyed that I wanted to take samples. After I was done. He told me to rig the lower levels with paper-bombs so once they dealt with the stuff up top. That it could be blown sky high. However the Shinobi managed to get off a distress call.. Or that was the thinking at the time. Kotatsu appeared again. This time he put up a barrier encompassing the entire upper room. When I sensed and heard about it. I thought taking out part of the floor underneath the barrier might break it. However the building was built to look sturdy. But fall apart like a house of cards if damage came to it. So instead of the well placed and designed explosion I had set up. It brought the building down. Shiroma prevented harm from coming to me and Nori by erecting an ice barrier around us. After the dust cleared Kotatsu had Sigmund trapped in a small dark barrier. Shiroma broke the barrier eventually. We learned that Kotatsu is Sigmunds brother. Who apparently hadn't died from his coma. Once Sigmund was free. Sigmund wasn't going to let Kotatsu go. He chose to fight. So as his teammate I could only support him. So I used my knowledge of the chakra system and opened the first four gates in him. This gave him a lot of strength. Unfortunately it ended up not being enough."

Her eyes show disdain for the words that came next "So Kotatsu grabbed his wrist, and it seemed like he was placing something inside Sigmunds arm. Then he did something to his back. Fortunately via information gained from Akasumi, I knew how to reverse the damage to his back." She was quivering trying to keep her emotions from showing "According to Kotatsu he had done what he came here to do, and left yet again. So we all talked, and had some heated discussions. Eventually we all slept in a cave that was warmed by a hot spring." She breathed much deeper "We made it to an area above the port, another discussion was held. Though something wasn't right. It seemed like the approach was to easy. We went with it. Me and Shiroma under the guise of a Genjutsu cloak. Made our way into the port. This is where things went from worse, to as deadly as it could. The man that took all the leaders of all the villages. He appeared before me and Shiroma, then erected a dark barrier that covered the entire port. There was no way for me and Shiroma to penetrate the barrier. Soon we noticed that the man and Kotatsu had switched places. He captured both Nori and Sigmund, and completed whatever they were doing to him. Converting him into one of them. Kotatsu mocked me and Shiroma. Soon Sigmund smashed his fist into the barrier destroying it from the outside, his eyes displayed the three tomoe Sharingan.. I used the moment to flicker me and Shiroma to safety. I knew they could have stopped us if they had wanted to. We were deemed unimportant. So they let us live.. Then we traveled back here to the village."

She had a very angry demeanor about her "Earlier in the mission when Sigmund was unconscious after the first encounter with Kotatsu. I took blood, skin, and cell samples of the tissue around the area I saw the odd chakra. I hoped it might lead to find a way to undo what they did.." Nanami did not say that with any type of hope. The emotions she wore were hate and anger.

She calms herself down "When walking here I noticed Shinobi from all of the other lands.. Did something happen?"
This message was last edited by a game editor at 04:19, Thu 30 Nov 2017.

Sasuke had remained quiet as Nanami prepared a thesis about their entire mission. He eventually sat down as he knew this was going to be awhile. He remained attentive and did not react to any of the subjects that were brought up. Particular names, incidents, and the overall mission at the end are what interested him the most.

He studied Nanami as she continued on through her various deep breathing and trying to conceal her emotions. He was more curious and interested in her emotional distress than the actual story. Towards the end, she began questioning him which made him stand back up from the desk that belonged to the great and current Hokage. "That is not your concern," he told her. This wasn't her place to start questioning him.

"As for the tissue samples you stole from your teammate without consent, unfortunately any information we find is off limits," he explained as he walked over to a filing cabinet, searching for Sigmund's name. After pulling it out, he showed a scroll instead of a folder with a black tie on it. The outside of the scroll read confidential and top secret on the other side; in smaller print Sigmund's name appeared. "We are aware of who Sigmund is and his background; we are also aware of who his birth parents are and how it came to be. However it is restricted information. His tissue samples will help confirm what we've been thinking," he explained as he placed the scroll away and walked back to the desk. "I'm going to need those samples," he demanded with his hand out.

"I know you were expecting a reaction from me. However I am aware of who Akasumi is. She is my great aunt; I've known this information for quite some time now. She's barely surfaced out of the blue, but I have yet to confront her myself," he explained. He wasn't one to share such personal information, but by confirming this, this would help ease Nanami's own doubts and put it to rest when it came to the Uchiha name.

"As for the overall mission: you all failed," he blurted out, pointing out the obvious. "It was clear that neither of you were to engage Kotatsu and yet somehow you all managed to do so regardless. You all lack being obedient. All of you allowed personal feelings and personal affairs get in the way of working as a team. You all lack teamwork. You also failed your objective as you, Nanami, destroyed the light beam tower the first time without gathering how it worked or what exactly it did. The second light beam tower is still standing," he went on as he continued to scold them all. "The only thing you accomplished was freeing the land of frost from the grips of the Snow and brought back little intel on them," he added as he still awaited for the samples of both Sigmund and from the snow shinobi.

"Your squad is suspended indefinitely until further notice. Neither of you are allowed to leave Konohagakure without my knowledge and sign off," he said. A suspension meant they couldn't take on missions or leave the village. "As for you, in the back," his eyes finding Shiroma's. "Tsuna Shiroma was it? Here," he said, tossing her a leaf headband. "You now represent Konohagakure. Your skills are impressive, however you are suspended with the squad you have chosen to tag along with. Once I have your new leader assigned, we'll be in contact, but until then you are all dismissed," he said, sending them away at this point. Nanami was now left to hand over the samples so the group could go figure out what they needed to do next.

Nori stayed silent as she listened to Nanami go over the details of their mission. She recalled the events in her head. They had happened. And it was a time that she was never going to forget. This mission had changed everything for her. From her finding out she killed Sigmund's brother to Sigmund disappearing before her eyes. After this mission was over, she was hoping to find a way to move past what she had done all those years ago. She knew she had to if she ever wanted to learn how to forgive herself. She had hoped to do those things with Sigmund at her side. It was as she thought of him, his face flashed in her mind and she brought up her hands to bury her face within them. She had failed to save him and that was what killed her inside. She couldn't stop him. However, she knew that if Sigmund was here right now, he would tell her to suck it up and to stop being a crybaby. He probably didn't even know his own worth to her and he probably never would.

After Nanami finished giving her report on their mission, Nori knew the worst was to come. It had been apparent by the tone in his voice that he was not at all pleased with how things turned out. They had failed. Everything he was saying was true. They didn't work together as they should have. They came back with little intel. And most of all, they engaged with Kotatsu, which was something Sigmund had made clear in the beginning of the mission to not do. There was really no excuses or words to say that would justify what they had done and what they failed to do. It was no surprise that they were facing the consequences for their actions. Although at that point, Nori didn't really seem to care. She didn't really have the desire to go anywhere and do any missions anyway. Once he dismissed them, Nori slowly stood up from her place in her chair and bowed her head towards him before she turned on her heel and took a few steps around her chair, but stopped. After Nanami gave her the samples she had taken from Sigmund, Nori turned herself back around but kept her head lowered.

"Um, Lord Sasuke. I know...I know I am not in position to ask about this, but..." she began to say as she lowered her eyes back down to the floor. "When I was a child...you and my parents...did you do something to alter my memories?" She lifted her head up and looked up to him. "Back in that cave...there was something that I remembered. Something I don't ever remember doing and yet changed the lives of not only Sigmund, but his family." She clasped her hands in front of her and began to wring them nervously. "I don't have the right to demand anything. I know that, but...knowing what I know...it makes me question a lot of things about myself. Am I really who I think I am? Or do I know nothing of myself and everything in my life has been a lie?"

Nara nodded and took a step back so she could take out her summon scroll and summon the medical kit. She handed it over to Sasuke.

Some of what Sasuke said was a surprise. Some of it wasn't. She expected some form of reprimand. There was no response but a nod to Sasuke's words. Then she spoke before leaving "Am I allowed to use the training grounds? I need to blow off some steam." The expression was not disrespectful. But showed the state of mind she was in, its an expression Sasuke would recognize . After Sasuke's answer she would turn and leave, unless told to stop.

She wanted to talk to Nori. But Nori's words stifled her will to do so, as well as her current temperament wasn't the greatest to try and work things out. She would wait for rest of her team outside. If they wanted to talk she would "So what do we do now?" Nanami asked once all of them were there. She was still attempting to hide her emotions to the best of her abilities until she got the time to release some frustrations..

After receiving the samples, he was sure to place them on the desk, and carefully tried to examine them before he was interrupted by a small voice. He looked at her as she explained a familiar situation he had been apart of. He waited a moment before answering as the other two girls stepped out, leaving Nori here before him. ”Your identity crisis is not of importance to me,” he said harshly. ”This is neither the time or place. But since you seem so persistent in the mater,” he paused for a moment as he cleared his throat.

”Naruto and I decided to lock away that incident. You were hesterical; killing that boy made your parentals worry. Your parents requested, almost begged us to do something. After a short deliberation, I was summoned and did what I had to do. Be grateful we didn’t reprogram your whole life as that is what I wanted to do,” he explained, confirming Nori’s accusations.

At first Nori thought that Sasuke wasn't going to say anything to her and thus, expected to be rejected being told anything about what had happened, but to her surprise, he began to speak. From what she had remembered, she did see Sasuke there in her memory and knew that he had to have been the one to lock away her memories. Although, she never thought that anyone could reprogram someone's entire life. There was still a lot of things she didn't understand about the world and what people were actually capable of. Her eyes fell down to the floor and she just stayed silent. Her parents...that was what it came back to. While she knew they were trying to protect her, Nori still felt like part of her was taken. "Thank you, Lord Sasuke, for not reprogramming my life. I mean, I know that it's strange to thank you for something like that, but I am grateful. I can't imagine what kind of life I would have had if everything had been erased. I can't imagine a life where I hadn't met..." she began to say before she pressed her lips together. She saw Sigmund flash through her mind again and she closed her eyes.

"I know that we failed you, Lord Sasuke, and that you are disappointed in us. There's not anything we can do that will change that now. What's done is done, but this, all of this, isn't over. We may not have gotten the answers you wanted us to find, but...realistically I don't think that would have been possible." She lifted her head up and looked at Sasuke with a soft yet subtle expression. "We don't know what their intentions are or what they want out of this, but one thing I do know is that Sigmund is apart of it. There are...still things about him that I don't understand or could ever begin to understand, but they chose him for a reason," she said as she curled her hands into her fists. "There are things he wants for himself and you are a big part of that. You influence his life more than anything or anyone else. He has lived by your words his entire life. I think more than anyone the last person he wanted to disappoint was you and him not being here...I believe you are still disappointed in him. That he was weak and let himself be taken over shows his inability to be a leader, but that just isn't true."

Nori felt like she was ranting. That all of this was probably pointless to say to a person that lacked showing emotion. "I don't know what your plan is about getting him back or if you even want to get him back, but I don't plan on giving up on him. I know becoming someone that is heartless, violent, and angry like those people out there isn't what he would want. He wouldn't want anything to do with them. He would...he would want to protect everyone even at the cost of his own life. There is goodness in Sigmund. I know this more than anyone else in the entire world. I'm not going to stand by and let them manipulate and make him turn his back on all those that mean the most to him. Including you. I won't let it happen. I just won't." In saying those last words, she bowed her head respectfully towards him and made her way to the door before she walked out.

Sasuke remained quiet as the girl before him literally broke herself. She was unstable and too hopeful. It reminded him of his wife. Sakura has been just as hopeful and persistent on getting him back. Nori has the same demeanor as Sakura in wanting to save someone. To protect and die for someone like that, well he could’ve only guessed the poor girl was in love with him. ”I’ll be sending these samples for medical examination. I cannot share the results however after much deliberation and observation, I’ll be thinking over your suspension. In the meantime, go. You are not needed here,” he shooed away. It was apparent he was as busy as ever with the new refugees that seemed to have taken their likings to Konoha and with Naruto gone, there was a lot more on his plate than he would have ever liked. The fact of the matter was that he needed to get these analyzed, study how the new chakra works, add more to Sigmund’s forbidden file, and figure out what to do with an incompetent group of girls. He had gave his “blessing” for Nanami to use the training grounds and he did remind them that they were not on duty for the time being so official shinobi business was off limits until he summoned them again.

Nanami bowed to Sasuke and turned to leave. She knew down the road they would cross paths with Sigmund again, next time she has to be ready to deal with both of them. That road was going to be long and extremely taxing. Both in the mental sense and physical ones. She had gotten an idea from watching some of the taijutsu, and nin-taijutsu users. It's a style she would have to train hard to master. The sharingan will ease the actual use of the jutsu. She met up with Nori and Shiroma in the lobby "I am going to the training grounds. I'm not going to waste any of the valuable free time we have." She looks down "I also need to blow off some steam. It's been a frustrating month.. You two are welcome to join me."

Nanami looked at Nori.. She tried to say something but nothing came out. She walked over to the receptionist before leaving "Is there a list of the Sand Shinobi that are here?" Before she could blow off said steam. Nanami checked in with the receptionist to see if her mother was in Konoha. The way everything felt, it just felt a bit off, and she was concerned about her mother.

The receptionist had been filing paperwork; the desk looked chaotic as the new refugees had taken their place in staying in Konoha for salvation. After telling the little group of girls to head to Sasuke, many more Jonin like leaders came in and out bringing lists of civilians that were alive.

As the girls came back down, Nanami approached her again. ”We’re still getting lists and are still expecting more as we speak. You are free to take a look at this current list for Sunagakure, but if a name doesn’t stand out to you, don’t think the worse. It could mean we either are miscounting or they haven’t reported in yet,” she explained as she handed two pages of what appeared to be everyone from Sunagakure currently residing in Konoha right now.

Nori didn't know what she was going to do next now that they were suspended from going anywhere for the time being. Perhaps the first place she should go to was to see her parents. To ask them about what happened back then. Part of her understood why they did it, but the other part of her was upset that they would hold the truth from her after all these years. While she was sure that she wouldn't have been able to handle it as a child, she felt like it was something they could have talked to her about. Perhaps Nanami revealing the memories of what happened back then wasn't exactly the best method as everything had just come flooding back to her all at once. She couldn't help but wonder if she would have reacted any differently should her parents have been the one to tell her the truth. At least then, though, it would be coming from them. She wouldn't have had to find it out by someone else. It just made her question if there were other things they were hiding from her that they didn't want her to know about.

Nori walked down to the lobby where she met up with Nanami and Shiroma. Although she may have been able to talk to Sasuke like she had done, she still wasn't sure if she was ready to face her teammates just yet. She knew they had done nothing wrong. They had tried to comfort her after Sigmund had disappeared and were doing their best to cheer her up, but she wasn't ready. She felt like she couldn't really smile at them or be happy like she usually was. "Thank you for the offer, but I'll be going home," she told her friend before she turned her head and looked over at Shiroma. "You should go explore. I'm sure you'll like Konoha. If you'll excuse me." She bowed her head towards the girl before she dismissed herself and walked out of the building. Luckily her family home wasn't too far from here. She'd be able to get there in no time.

After about ten minutes had passed, Nori opened up the front door of her home. "Mom? Dad? I'm back," she called out to them. She wasn't sure if either of them were even home at the moment or if they were out and about since they weren't expecting her today. She stepped inside the house and closed the door before taking off her shoes and stepping up onto the tatami floor.

Shiroma had done what she could for the girls on the way back trying to comfort Nori though it seemed that the comfort was not wanted or at least there was a lack of response to it.  She still did what she could even for Nanami trying her best to help the two process through what had happened.  Still it was something that was going to take a long time for them to get past.  She herself had liked Sigmund as much as she could since there was something abrasive about the boy that made it hard to try and help him even though she had done her best.

After they docked and the trip to Konohagakure she had stayed silent watching the difference in the land then the one she was used too.  As they came into the large village she looked around with mild awe just at the number of people.  Even in the height of trading season there was never this many people around in her home and it was sight to be seen.  She joined the other two girls in the meeting with the great Sasuke and had to bite her tongue several times.  Although everything that the man said was correct there was still so much that he left out.

Taking the offered head band she thought about throwing it back in his face and making some comment about the leadership style of Konohagakure that she was seeing in him and had seen in Sigmund. Thinking better of it since she did want to stay close to the girls that had been there for her to help pull her out of her darkest time.  She owed them at least that much if not even more.

Watching Nori leave she sighed softly shaking her head before looking to Nanami and smiled slightly waiting for her to finish things up with the receptionist.  Slipping an arm around Nanami's shoulders she smiled, "Come on I will join you on the training ground.  As long as you promise to show me the best place to eat in this village."

Her father, Tataka Yamada, heard the sweet sound of his daughter. It was a reassuring sign she had returned safely from her dangerous mission she had explained weeks and weeks ago. She had been eager to get out f the village and to make a difference in the war effort. It was almost hard to believe that she was becoming the woman she had always set herself to be. ”Nori? Nori is that you?” he called out as he walked out from their living room. ”Oh Nori. God bless that you made it home. Your mother and I have been worried sick. We heard horrible confrontations had been taking place lately and that made us worry more,” he explained the relief as it showed on his face. ”Nori!” a female voice could be heard behind her father as she moved passed him and ran to her daughter, embracing her tightly in her arms. ”Oh sweetheart! I’m so glad you’re back and okay and alive!” she exclaimed as she began to get ready eyed from the excitement of her return.

Nanami and Shiroma:

At this point since you’re going into the village and have nothing special going on in this thread, exit this thread and move your characters to 4.0 Konohagakure as you’ll be roaming the village at this point.

Nanami flipped through the pages. She doesn't notice her moms name "I am guessing not all of the ninja have checked in right?" She asked in a calm voice. Nanami runs a hand through her hair showing a little bit of anxiousness "If Temari Nara checks in, tell her that her daughter is looking for her please." She then turns and then feels an arm go around her shoulders. She looks at Shiroma and smiles "I hate to say it. I am a lot Naruto, as ramen is one of my favorite foods. The Naruto special is awesome! Well and hot food sounds really good after freezing my butt off in the frozen land.." Her arm wraps around Shiroma's shoulder "Let us go. Might as well build up some energy before beginning to train right?" She smiled, and a bit of her felt relieved to be back home and she missed the sun.

<<<<< Moving to 4.0: Konohagkure <<<<<

This message was last edited by a game editor at 00:57, Sun 03 Dec 2017.

In reply to Tataka (msg # 16):

As wonderful as it should have been to hear the sweet sounds of her parents voices when she walked through the door, Nori somehow felt like it wasn't the same. Her parents weren't bad people. They worked hard every day. Even when they struggled, they still found a way to reassure her that things would be alright. They would never show her their worn and tired faces after a long day's work in the fields and market. She knew that they didn't have any bad intentions of keeping a secret from her, but they...they never kept secrets from her. They never lied to her. They always told her the truth...or so she thought. When she saw finally saw their faces and felt her mother's familiar arms wrap around her in a warm, loving embrace, Nori indulged in it for a short moment. "I'm...home, Mom. You don't have to worry. I...won't be going anywhere for awhile," she said as she brought up a hand and lightly patted her mother's back before she flicked her eyes up and looked at her father. "I'm sorry for making you worry so much, but considering everything that's been going on lately, I guess it is a reason for concern." She pulled herself away from her mother's embrace. "A lot has happened since I left and there are things that I found out that I...don't understand. Things that I need both of you to help me understand. Can you do that for me?" she asked them.

<<<<< Moving to 4.0: Konohagkure <<<<<

Shiroma had no idea where she was going so just followed Nanami out of the command center.

In reply to Yamada Nori (msg # 19):

Her mother let Nori go Once Nori pulled away and requested that they help her understand some things that may have happened while she was away. Her father in the background remained quiet for a moment, the concerned look on his face. ”I suppose there’s no harm, however I don’t know if your mother and I can assist you with shinobi business,” he admitted. Nori has mentioned she needed help understanding things that took place on her mission so her parents were of course wanting to help but wasn’t sure if they could be of any assistance as neither of them were shinobi. The scene moved to the kitchen table; Nori’s parents on one side and Nori across from them. They waited in silence as Nori prepared herself to speak and ask.

Nori turned her eyes and looked over at her father. "Well, it's not...exactly shinobi related, so you don't need to worry," she told him when she saw the look on his face. She pulled herself away from her mother completely and walked with the two of them over to the kitchen table. She pulled out a chair and sat directly across from them before she looked at them in the eyes. There was a silence between them. She didn't know exactly how she wanted to do this. Would it be better to break the ice first? Or just get straight to the point? "So, um...a lot of different things happened on this mission and it effected me in ways that I...can't really explain." She clasped her hands in her lap and looked gripped them tightly together. "From Sigmund disappearing to...to..." She turned her head down and and looked down at the table. "My team and I encountered a person who plays a big role in the chaos that is taking place right now. Do you want to know what his name is?" she asked as she looked up at her parents across from her with a solemn gaze. "Ryuu. Does that name mean anything to you?" Nori turned her head and looked from one parent to the other. "It was the name of Sigmund's brother. A brother that I killed when I was a child and you wiped my memories of. Would you care to explain that to me? And don't...don't you dare lie to me. I deserve to know."

Tataka remained silent as Nori broke the ice of the tension that seemed to fill the air suddenly. Once Nori has finished speaking, she demanded answers and very rudely at that. Tataka looked over to his wife. ”It’s best you leave the room. I’ll take care of this,” he whispered to her and she merely nodded. She excused herself and headed upstairs, a look of saddness on her face as she exited the room. ”All right. I see what this is about,” he said. ”However your tone isn’t going to get you anywhere in life so take this as a warning,” he said sternly as he placed his hands on top of the table, hands joined together with himself.

”Ryuu was a boy from your school, yes. I believe he was one of the son’s adopted into the Akitoki clan; he was their eldest son,” he began calmly. ”From what we had been told, there had been some bullying going on that day between the two brothers and you decided to intervene,” he continued on. ”Unfortunately at such a young age, we were told it was through your anger that fueled that death blow to Ryuu’s skull, placing him in a coma. He suffered a stroke and was pronounced brain dead that same day,” he paused as he sighed.

”The whole ordeal was traumatizing to you. You placed yourself in a catatonic state and kept whispering how you didn’t want to go to the academy anymore and didn’t want to pursue your ninja career anymore. As concerned parents we took you to the Hokage himself and see what could be done,” he added. ”Naruto summoned Uchiha Sakura first to diagnose you. It was states you’d never recover from this because your mentality was weak and fragile. She recommended consulting with her husband and Sasuke was summoned. The three of them decided it was best to wipe away the incident and so Sasuke did,” he finished. ”So to clarify, WE didn’t take your memory. They did. So if you want someone to be mad at and blame, blame your Hokage, blame the great Sasuke, and blame the best medical shinobi out there, Sakura. We merely approved it. We followed the advice of three great minds. You lost one memory; you didn’t lose your life and you didn’t lose yourself. They restored you,” he added.

“It seems you already have been told of this incident and just by looking at you, it seems you’ve seen the truth for yourself. So truthfully, by us telling you, I do not see how that’s going to fix what’s been done. Were you hoping it was a lie? Because you can go to Sasuke yourself and he’s be more than willingly to confess,” he added harshly. From Tataka’s point of view, he only saw Nori seeking confirmation.

Nori watched as her mother got up from the table and walked away, leaving her and her father alone at the table. She listened to him speak about the incident and about everything that she had, herself, seen that day when her memories were brought back to her. He was able to fill in the little details that weren't part of what she had seen, but she was aware of. She merely listened to him finish speaking and looked down at the table again. "Lord Sasuke has told me his part in what had happened. I realize that none of this way your or mother's fault. I can't imagine it was easy having to make that decision, but...you are wrong. They didn't restore me, Dad. You do realize that because my memory was erased that I had lost a friendship that meant more to me than anything else in the world. This whole time, Sigmund had hated me because he thought I chose to forget what had happened that day, when in fact, that memory was taken from me. I went on with my life as if nothing had happened while the whole time...Sigmund was suffering," she cleaned her hands tighter together and shut her eyes tightly.

"You've known how much he's meant to me as a child and how much he means to me now. He...was kind enough to forgive me for what I had done. I was only trying to protect him that day and he knew that. He knew that and yet he put up with me. For so long, I...I thought I knew everything about myself and it turns out...I don't know myself at all. My life was built on a memory that was taken from me and because of that, it hurt the one person I...that I love. You may think that losing one memory is nothing, but it means everything to me."" Nori shut her eyes tightly. "I don't expect any validation and I don't expect you to tell me that you would have done things differently back then. You did what you had to do, but did you not realize what your decision would do to my future? You couldn't have been okay keeping this from me. I deserved to know. This is my life. You can't just pick and choose what memories I should have and what memories to take away. None of you had the right to do that." Nori opened her eyes and stood up from the chair. "What else has been kept from me, Dad? Is there anything else? Please tell me."

Tataka remained quiet as Nori expressed her disapproval of their decision from the past. On some accounts she was right but on others she wasn’t. He sighed when she asked him to be truthful about her existence. ”Perhaps when you reconcile with your friend Sigmund; ask him what he told us that day that accident happened. Maybe even ask what his parents told us as well. Once you hear those words, perhaps you’ll think twice on whether or not Sigmund would’ve still been your friend regardless which way things would’ve been handled,” he uttered as he got up from the table and walked over to a picture frame of their family portrait. He rubbed his finger on Nori’s face when she was younger before taking the frame down and it revealed a safe. He grabbed the necklace from his chest and took it off, the family key he held onto all the Time was in fact the key to this safe. He opened the safe and pulled out a small box big enough for a necklace. He placed it on the table, pushing it towards Nori. ”Inside you’ll find a pendant. This pendant belonged to your birth mother,” he whispered.

”We adopted you a month after you were born. A woman from Kirigakure left you to the Hokage and begged that you be taken care of by a good family. At the time your mother and I had been considering expanding the family and we were personally asked if we would take you in. And so we did,” he explained. ”The woman gave us this pendant. She personally wanted us to tell you about your adoptation when reached Jonin level as that’s the age a shinobi is fully mature to comprehend these things. In the beginning, she would send us ryo every month or so as I started to get the shop running. Then she wrote us a letter about how she had to stop the financial aide and that was the last time we ever heard from her,” He explained as he sat back down.

”You can hate your mother and I but if you do, hate your birth mother as well for putting us in this position,” he uttered.

Nori didn't know what answers she was expecting to find out from her father when she had asked him if there was anything else he wanted to tell. While part of her was curious as to if there really was anything, another part of her hoped that there wasn't. However, when she looked up and saw him going towards their family portrait on the wall, she watched his fingertips touch the picture before he set it down, revealing a safe behind it. Her eyes widened slightly. There was a safe? He soon took the key off his neck that he had always worn and unlocked the safe before he opened it up and took something out of it. She didn't know what it was at first, but then she saw him turn around and place the box on the table. She looked down and blinked at it. It looked like it was small enough for a piece of jewelry of some kind. Nori slowly reached out and took hold of it. It was just as she was about to open it that she heard him say that inside was a necklace that had belonged to her birth mother. "Birth mother?" she asked as she quickly looked up at with a confused expression.

She listened to him as he explained that the pendant was something given to them when they adopted her and that she had wanted them to tell her about her adoption when she got older. Of course she wasn't at a Jonin level, but she was old enough. She turned her eyes down and opened up the small lid of her box. It was inside there that she saw a circular, blue pendant of four wavy lines. Wait. Wasn't that...the symbol of Kirigakure? Her birth mother was...from Kirigakure? She took the pendant from the box and held it steadily in her hand, letting her eyes take it in. So she...had sent her parents money when she was young to take care of her? Did she...really care about her? Then why give her up? This was a lot to wrap her head around. Never in her wildest dreams would she had ever thought that she was adopted.

"Who was she?" she suddenly asked in a low, vulnerable voice before she looked up at her father that had taken a seat back at the table. "What was her name?" She lightly curled her fingers around the pendant. "You met with her personally, right? What did she look like? What about my...what about my birth father? Where is he? Do you know who he is?" Her voice cracked at the end as she looked at him with a desperate hope in her eyes. "Please tell me! What else do you know about them?"

((Pendant: ))
This message was last edited by the player at 03:59, Wed 06 Dec 2017.

He had say quietly as Nori baraded him with questions about her birth parents. He placed his hand on her’s From across the table and have it a squeeze. ”She was a shinobi from Kirigakure. She was fairly young at the time when we met her the one time to officially sign you over. At the time she had light brown hair. I can imagine she more likely doesn’t look the same after all these years,” he explained. ”As for your father, I do not know. There was no father in the picture; she seemed to be a single mother and being as young as she was, i’d Like to believe she gave you up because you’d have a better life here rather than with her. I remember she thanked us and that was it. I do not know anything more than that. It was a closed adoption after that and once you became a Jonin, you’d be old enough to find her yourself. The case was closed after she signed you over; she wanted no contact so we never sent photos or talked about your progress,” he finished as he removed his hand from here’s. He knew he did the right thing to tell Nori this now however it was breaking the rules of the adoption all together. He had raised Nori since she was two weeks old. Nori would always be his daughter but he knew she would one day want her answers.

Nori had been sad to hear that her father couldn't tell her more about what her mother had looked like or who her birth father was. All she really knew was that her birth mother had been from Kirigakure and was young at the time she placed her for adoption. So this woman...this woman really wanted nothing to do with her yet at the same time, didn't want Nori to forget who she was, either. She could have only imagine how difficult it must have been for her. How scared she must have felt at the thought of having to raise a child on her own. No one could ever really prepare for that. But still...she was grateful to this woman who, without her, wouldn't be alive today and would never have had such wonderful parents raising. Where was she now, though? Did she ever think of her? She could feel her father's hand squeeze her's and it caused her to curl her hand into a fist underneath. "Did...did she love me?" she asked in a soft voice as she looked into his eyes. "She didn't give me up because she didn't love me, right? There had to have been something there or else why would she do it? She...she had to have at least cared for me a little...right?" Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks.

He smiled as he got up from his chair and brought his daughter into a loving embrace. ”She loved you, Nori. She may have stopped contact however she loved you by sending us what she could for you. She left you this beautiful treasure of her’s. She made the hardest decision to give you up but she did it because she loved you. She wanted you to have a good life even if that meant a life without her,” he explained as he kissed the top of Nori’s head. ”She did this out of love,” he whispered.

An intercom can be heard turning on throughout the entire village.

A male voice can be heard as it turns on, it was Lord Sasuke.

”Attention citizens and refugees of Konohagakure, shinobi and villagers;. An emergency meeting will be taking place in five minutes at Konoha stadium. Please report to the stadium immediately. This concerns all citizens and refugees,” Sasuke has repeated himself three times before the intercom went dead.

People started to make their way to the stadium as instructed. Perhaps many could get the answers they wanted.

Nori watched as her father got up from his chair and walked around the table before he took into a tender yet loving embrace. She just stared across the room at the wall in which their family portrait had been in front of. The more her father spoke, the more the tears spilled down her cheeks. She brought up her trembling arms and wrapped them around him to embrace him in return. She closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the top of his shoulder. It was going to take some time for her to adjust to the fact that she had a birth mother and father out there somewhere and that she had been loved. Maybe not by her father, but by her mother she was most certain. She was now sure of that. There were so many things she wanted to know and that she wanted answers to, but she knew she would not be able to find them here. "No matter what, you and Mom will always be my parents," she said in a low, trembling voice as she wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. "But I...I have to know who she is, Dad. I feel like if I don't, there will always be part of me that is missing." She pulled herself back and looked into his eyes just as she heard the announcement made over the village intercom. "I..want to find her."

As he continued to hold onto her, he felt her the importance of this issue within the atmosphere. She had trembled against him and that only made him hold her tighter to him. That’s when she broke the silence. He felt relieved when she reassured him that he would always be her father just like she would always be his daughter. His oldest, his pride and joy. But she mentioned she needed to find her birth mother and he completely understood. ”You do what you must, Nori. I encourage you to find the answers you seek. You’re a bright and beautiful young lady and you have made this man proud. I hope what you’re looking for is what you need- he was interrupted by the echoing intercom outside. Apparently there was refugee issue and official shinobi business Nori has to tend to. ”It looks like you’re needed,” He uttered as he let her go.

Upon getting his blessing to go and look for her birth mother, Nori smiled brightly up at him and nodded. "Thank you for being understanding, Dad, and for being honest with me. I know you weren't supposed to tell me about this until I got older, but thank you for telling me now. I feel like...like I needed the distraction from everything that's going on right now," she said and looked over in the direction of which her mother had walked to. "Should I...maybe talk to mom? I don't want her to feel like I'm doing this to hurt her." She turned her head and looked back at her father. "I don't know what is going to happen when I find my birth mother, but...whatever the outcome is, I know I'll have my family to come back to," she said as she lingered in his hold for a moment or two longer before the two of them pulled away from each other. "The announcement called for all shinobi, refugees, and villagers, and that includes you and mom. Why don't you go grab her and we'll go, okay?"

He patted her shoulders and smiled at her. ”As much as we would love to accompany you, this is officially shinobi business. I’m too old for that. Besides,” he paused and looked down the hall. ”I think I need to comfort your mom for a bit. You know she gets a bit too emotional,” he smiled and kissed her cheek. ”Off you go. Let us know what happens okay?”

Nori gave her father a little smile. "Please, Dad. You are far from old," she said as she let go of him before she looked down the hallway towards where her mother had walked through. She knew she would have to talk to her about this eventually. The last thing she had ever wanted to do was hurt her and yet she felt like she did just that. "I understand." She turned her head and looked back to her father, giving him a small nod. "I will. Please tell her I love her for me." She gave him one last smile before she turned on her heel and made her way out the door to go to the meeting.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Moving to Chapter 4.0: Konohagakure>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
This message was last edited by the player at 21:16, Wed 20 Dec 2017.

Sarada had panted as she watched as her fire fist had nailed Nori. Her intention wasn’t to use such a strong technique but she couldn’t hold back the urge especially with her father watching, I mean the lord. She stood her ground as she chakra sprinted towards Nori, taking a knee beside her. She looked down at her. She waved her hand to call both of the other two genin. ”Nanami. Treat her if you can. Treat all of you. While you do so, I’ll give you your evaluations,” she explained. ”Had I had an intention to kill, you likely wouldn’t have lived through that,” Sarada explained with a small smile. She placed her hand on Nori’s shoulder for comfort.

Shiroma came over to where her team was gathering at the behest of their sensei she came over to Nori to help get her out of the water and onto dry ground where she could be helped by Nanami.  Shiroma settled down sighing softly.  She touched a few of the small cuts over her arms and winced softly.  Her wounds oozed slowly just a small amount of blood slipping out of the cut and even that was clotting very fast thanks to the cold nature of her body. She sighed and then giggled softly, “Sensei I would hope that you hadn’t intended to kill us.  At least not until the second day of our training.  Killing us on the first day would I’m sure set some new record.” Her eyes blue eyes twinkled softly and the tone of her voice spoke of amusement and teasing.

Nori turned her head up and looked at Sarada with weary eyes as she came over beside her. Despite the fact that the flames had been put out, even the touch their sensei gave to her shoulder made her wince. "It was a pretty powerful move. I'm sure you could have done worse to me if you wanted to," she said with a small, crooked smile before she felt an onset of pain course through her, causing her to lightly hug her body. "I just...hope none of these...burn marks cause any permanent...scarring. Although it...it would definitely be a...story to tell one day that I...got to spar with...the Hime of this land. Not everyone...gets the chance to do...that, right?" She lightly laughed before she closed her eyes briefly and turned her head away from her to look over at Nanami. "I think...she's going to need some healing herself..."

Nanami nodded and placed both a hand on Nori and Shiroma. She took a deep and both Nori and Shiroma glowed "No internal injuries, a few minor bone fractures, cuts, burns, nothing fatal. Beginning healing process." She spoke in a relaxed tone. Nanami used her training and experience. She guided her chakra first to the small fractures in each of her teammates. Then the external and internal flesh begins to mend itself and close. Once all the external cuts were healed their bruises began to slowly fade away. The skintone of both Shiroma and Nori returned to normal. The burns took the longest as the skin first seemed to rehydrate. Then it became soft before solidifying again, and becoming normal. This took about three minutes.

When finished she walks up to Sarada "Shall I see to your injuries as well, Sensei?" She asked. She hoped their Sensei would accept her at least in the aspect of being a strong medical ninja.

Sarada had smirked after hearing Shiroma tease her about killing her squad. The idea was preposterous, yet intriguing at the same time. Never keeping her eyes off of Nori, she replied,”If I intended to kill you and set a record, I likely may have accomplished that in the Lord’s building. That’s would’ve been the record.” Nanami eventually came by them all, simultaneously diagnosing her teammates effectively. ”You’re going to be okay. Lady Sakura is on sight if Nanami cannot do this but considering her training, I have no doubt in her ability,” she removed her hand noticing the wince when she touched her. ”Perhaps you can tell that story better next time if you actually make a successful hit,” she teased before standing up. Several minutes as Sarada waited patiently. All the girls insisted she get healed. ”I don’t require healing, thank you. I’m just drained if anything. None of you managed to make me take any damage,” she teased.

Nori watched as Nanami came over and knelt down beside her and Shiroma. With the hand that she put on her shoulder, she lightly winced but soon saw herself start to glow. She could feel her fatigue begin to fade away within seconds and the pain she had felt internally from the burn marks on her skin began to subside. Although, it seemed that her burns were taking the longest as the damage to it was a lot more severe than anything else. Luckily the only thing she was directly hit with was their sensei's fist, but that was it. The burns were more than enough for her, but even they could cause more damage than any hit could have done. She watched as her skin began to slowly replenish before it turned it's normal hue again, which she was thankful for. She was honestly afraid that the burns were going to leave some kind of permanent scarring. However, with Nanami's superb medical skills, it seemed that she had nothing to worry about. Feeling her body completely replenished and renewed, Nori turned her head up and looked at her friend. "Thanks, Nanami," she said with a small smile before she looked back over to Sarada."If only I had been a few milliseconds faster than you, sensei, I think you would have been the one eating dust." She lightly smirked before she pushed herself up into a sitting position.

Nanami would give the same look that Sakura gave Nanami when saying she didn't need to be healed "We can't start a mission with you having even the smallest exploit, and I wouldn't be doing my job as the team's medical shinobi if I let our Sensei have any hindrances in the upcoming mission." She blinks letting out a breath "And it will only take a moment for me to scan you for any injuries. However small the bruise or cut. Both can cause other issues." She extends her hand towards Sarada "Let me check you for any such injury, please Sensei."

She didn't expect Sarada to let her, but hoped Sarada would "You were impressive, Sensei." Her eyes glance over to Nori "I thought you had Sensei as well, Nori. She is a Jonin for a reason right?" She smiled trying to make light of the situation. Nanami wondered how Sarada would judge them in such a short fight.

Shirmoa smirked slightly shaking her head at their Sensei’s clearly teasing tone a she spoke about them not touching her.  She was rather sure they hadn’t left a mark on her but at the same time she could hope after all there was a lot of fracturing ice when she stopped the attack  and she hadn’t been using her famed Sharingan so she might not have dodged them all. Shiroma nodded agreeing with Nanami both about her thinking Nori had her and how impressive Sadara was. “I must agree Sensei that though I’m not at all surprised at the outcome of the sparring match, I am rather shocked in your choices to stop…well specifically my attack.  I hadn’t thought of that weakness to it before, it relying on the ground being stable. Not sure if I can do anything to modify it to correct that weakness though.” She was chewing on her lip slowly clearly thinking through the sparing match.

Sarada was in fact facinstated in Nori’s quick attempt on her and even though it failed the way it did, she was impressed none the less. She sighed holding out her hand to Nanami, giving in to the girls of their concern. ”Make it quick,” she uttered before looking at them all. ”Your Attack was stable Shiroma. It caught me by surprise but I had to try and think of something quickly. Those spikes are no joke,” she praised. ”Nori, you almost had me. I actually was kinda scared in that moment when I stopped my Chidori. But I was just a tad quicker,” she explained. Truthfully Sarada admitted to herself that technique would’ve been the finishing for her. It was a scary thought and knew she had to be much more careful in the future. Her Sharingan would’ve prevented that. ”Ready for your evaluations?” she asked them.

Nori was honestly a little bit surprised that Sarada had walked away from the sparring match with no injuries. The only one that she had used a clone on was her, but with Shiroma and Nanami, those were all her. Did she really not get once scratch on her? They both delivered pretty impressive attacks. They seemed almost flawless. But with their sensei being stronger than they were, she was just a little bit quicker than they were. Although, somehow it felt good when she heard her praise them on their techniques. "I'm actually pretty happy that I was able to execute it the way that I wanted to. Lee-sensei taught me so much about that state of mind when it came to executing my techniques. I'm glad I was able to at least get it off the ground," she said with a small smile as she watched Sarada hold out her hand to Nanami so that she could check her for injuries. "I'm actually interested to hear your feedback, sensei. I'm ready for my evaluation."

Nanami uses her diagnosis jutsu and scans Sarada "Minor bruising, minor cuts, joint bruising, and mild chakra fatigue." She uses her healing jutsu and patches Sarada up quickly. She listened to Nori and nodded "I am curious as well." She looks at Sarada and back to Nori "Sensei had what would be the equivalent to the minor scrapes and bruising we get when we train." Her head tilted thinking over a few things. Nanami knew she still had a long way to go before she reached the strength she wanted to be.

She looked up as a gust of wind cut across the training yard. It was nice and cool. It calmed Nanami a little bit. She was curious about what mission they would be taking on, but decided to wait until they were told about it. No need pressing her luck with their new Sensei. Her head pops from one side to the other stretching her neck muscles. The minor burns she had taken from the fire jutsu she had healed while she healed Nori and Shiroma. Nanami realized parts of her clothes were burned.

Nanami stood their with a kind smile waiting for their sensei's assessment.

Shiroma cocked her head to one side slightly at the praise but she was still seemingly lost in thought though totally aware of everything that was around her and hearing every word.  The pair of her personalities were working as one to process the feelings and observations in their chakra flow as well as what their senses told them in minute detail.  Hearing the offer to give them the evaluations she shook herself from her thought process and looked to Sarada. “Yes Sensei I would love to hear what you thought of the sparring match and out performance.”  The way that this evaluation was said would say a lot about their new Sensei’s way of leading  and Shiroma was very interested in that, not to mention what she thought of her and them as a team whole.

Nanami’s diagnosis was at to no surprise. The scrapes were from her impact with the ground with Shiroma. She wasn’t surprised with it. She used powerful ninjutsu and executed them flawlessly but at a cost of chakra depletion and bruising to her joints. It was a norm for a shinobi at her level. She did feel the aches now but they quickly went away as Nanami took the necessary procedure to heal. Sarada could’ve done it herself but allowing Nanami to treat and assess her comrades was her duty more than Sarada’s.

Shortly after, she crossed her arms across her chest and looked at them. ”It was evident what you all were trying to do. You all split off in your own directions. The silent communication and observation from each of you, your initial plan was to push to Nori being as she focuses with up close combat. Nanami was more of a distraction, Shiroma used that opportunity as a push, and Nori was suppose to finish it. Your teamwork was superb,” she commented. ”I’m trying to figure out why that teamwork couldn’t be applied to your last mission. From what I read, Shiroma is your newest addition and she fits in perfectly in the short time she’s occompanied you and went along with the plan. I don’t know if it’s because you’re trying to impress so I’ll think less of you all or you truly did work on this during your suspension. It remains to be seen,” she added. They received passing for teamwork and strategic ability.

“Nanami, I would’ve liked to see a more powerful and more unique technique. An arrow with a paper bomb was a poor choice. I know you have better arsenal than that,” she commented on Nanami’s arrow with the paper bomb.

”Shiroma, I don’t know much about your abilities. However your display was fantastic. To create your own arrows using your kekkei and that same arrow transformed into spikes. You manipulated the moisture from within the ground and fueled that to create your spikes. It’s a very interesting technique and very deadly. I can imagine this and the rest of yours work much better with proper weather conditions,” she praised. ”Of course the only weakness is the ground. An earth shinobi user would be the downfall. We will have to figure out a way to conceal that weakness,” she added. Sarada seemed to have took a liking to Shiroma’s ability as oppose to Nanami’s.

”And finally, Nori. Your technique was quick and accurate and you knew right when to strike. You picked the perfect moment. However being in the air like that leaves you very vulnerable as you saw. It took me by surprise, I will admit that. I would’ve been done for Had I not acted sooner like I did. Your training with Lee-sensei paid off. You’re the perfect fit for surprise attacks like that,” she approved.

”Neither of you took an opportunity to do anything alone which was I was not looking for. Being a lone wolf works when it’s one on one but as an entire group, you all passed. And Nanami, I know why you took the safe approach. I was judging you by your rules as a medical kunochi and for that you passed. You followed your clauses perfectly, knowing you couldn’t go head on,” she said with a small smile before it faded.

Shiroma settled back after the minor cuts were healed thanks to Nanami’s skill though she had almost forgotten about them thanks to the mild numbing effect that she constantly felt throughout most of her body.  Though she did find it strange to note that it was lessened some in the warmer climate here than in her own land, guessing that at least part of what she was missing was what would be normal for everyone going around with such thin clothing in the cold of the land of frost as she did.   Smiling slightly the white haired girl nodded in thanks of the kind words from their new Sensei, though she wasn’t totally sure it wasn’t just her being impressed by something new she hadn’t seen before.

Either way Shiroma was at least impressed with the way that Sarada choose to speak to each part of their critique. It gave her hope for the leaders of the land of fire since it was rather different from the two she had dealt with before.   The frost girl thought over what was said and then finally spoke up when their sensei had finished.

“Sensei, regarding teamwork, we did put a focus in working together and building a tighter bond over our suspension.  There is a simple reason for that; that bond was deliberately attacked on out last mission.  What I mean is that there were physiological attacks launched that were intentionally used to divide us and cause the team to break apart.” She frowned slightly before continuing. “And in truth…I am not sure when they started." She fell silent letting that thought pass needing to process it more before she could offer more information on it.  Though there were several suspicions growing in her mind.

Nanami nodded "Team work was a focus during our suspension. We worked within each others abilities, also knowing the restrictions some of us are bound by." Hearing Sarada say she wanted to see flashy "If you want to see it. What I am sure will be my signature fire jutsu in the future, I am willing." Though she didn't mind if Sarada wanted to meet the trio or not. Nanami found a tree to lean against. Her eyes went down when the previous mission was talked about. There was so much lost on that mission that it made Nanami slightly agitated. Her eyes glance to Shiroma, yet they also gained. She slight agitation that she felt melted away. She knew she would have to be infinitely stronger to kill Kotatsu. The stories she had read about the third and fourth great ninja wars. Nanami felt she needed to rise to all the challenges that come her way..

Nanami activates her chakra scalpel and flexes her hand. Her mind drifted a little. She quickly deactivates it when she realizes that her mind had drifted to her place of focus. Nanami takes a deep breath "Shiroma summed it up pretty well." Nanami hoped Sarada did not ask her to elaborate or ask her thoughts on it. It was obvious though that Nanami held a lot of anger or even hate for something or someone. Maybe even both. She took many deep breaths calming her mind and adrenaline release "Have we been assigned a mission?" She asks attempting to change the subject.

Nori stayed silent as Sarada began to speak on each of their strengths while critiquing on what could be improved upon. She was honestly a little surprised of the praise that she received from her regarding the technique she had used. It was Nori's first attempt in using it since her training with Rock Lee and to know that her speed and accuracy was spot on was definitely something she was proud of. It was all about being able to pick the right time to make that move. As Lee-sensei had mentioned to her before, using it would be extremely strenuous on the body and could cause fatigue. She had to be more careful when she used it. Executing the Eight Gates technique was going to require perfect timing and accuracy each and every time. Despite having only learned the first couple, it would take its toll but she wanted to make a goal of learning as many as she could. Rock Lee had wanted her to learn just a few for now, but was open to training her more about open learning the other six. She had to make sure that she was prepared and to ready for when that time came. Learning them wasn't as it seemed to be. "Thank you for your critique, sensei. I feel very proud of what I have been able to accomplish so far, but I am definitely open to learning more from Lee-sensei when the time is right. For now, I wish to master at least the first two gates before moving on to the others. Although it means a lot knowing that my accuracy and speed were precise. I built up on those two areas during my training, but I feel like I could work on my stamina a bit, too. Using that technique causes strain and fatigue on the body," she replied as she slowly stood up to her feet and stretched herself out.

"I can't necessarily say teamwork was at our best during this last mission, but I definitely think that it can be approved upon and that was what we were trying to focus on during our training during the suspension period. With Shiroma, I feel like we all play off each other very well. I feel like we have learned a lot and I feel like we can take on this next assignment with a better state of mind and focus." Nori didn't know exactly what this next mission was going to consist of, but  she knew that they had to do well at it. Considering everything that had happened and what Nori's state of mind had been about Sigmund, finding out she killed his brother, and learning she was adopted, she knew she had to put those things in the back of her mind. It was still a process for her to be working through these things, but she had to focus on the assignment and not so much on what she couldn't control. She wanted to help Sigmund. She wanted to bring him back. She wanted to save him, but she knew she couldn't do any of that without getting back out there and doing what she needed to do to get the answers she wanted.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:47, Tue 30 Jan 2018.

As Sarada gave her feedback to her squad, they seem to have taken it well in return. They took her feedback and had commented they would apply that to their future. As they continued to mingle around, Sarada noticed Nanami’s sudden distance on the particular topic of their previous mission. For a moment, her eyes had changed to the famous Sharingan as Nanami walked away and leaned against a tree but not too far from hearing distance. A chakra scalpel was present but quickly dispersed. That’s when they all asked her if they would be assigned a mission. That’s when she heard her father walk up to them; she remained quiet out of respect. Her Sharingan was then not present anymore.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:19, Tue 30 Jan 2018.

Sasuke and Sakura has exchanged several words about their daughter’s capabilities to take on a mission under disguise. Sakura was more concerned that if anybody figured out who she really was, she could become a major target for captivity or worst: her kekkei genkai. He sighed, dismissing Sakura’s concern and it was left at that. Throughout their small spat, Sarada had finished her critique of her squad and he stepped forward. He heard the last of the conversation when they asked Sarada if they would be assigned a mission. He saw everything and anything and it was no mistake what he just saw as he was sure Sarada saw the same. ”I cannot assign a mission to a mentally unstable group of genin,” he stayed as he stopped next to Sarada. ”It seems one of you is not mentally stable. I cannot approve this group to move on to anything until these issues are resolved,” he added, eyeing Nanami. ”Let’s stop pretending you are all okay. Speak up now,” he ordered. Personally he never felt failure in his life other than his past. He couldn’t sympathize with them when it came to failing and losing all in the same evening. It was evident they held hate in their heart, regret, and agony. He knew he had to put a stop to it.
This message was last edited by a game editor at 06:01, Tue 30 Jan 2018.

Nanami looked up "It's not that. Its more of a focus, a focus to become stronger. A goal.. Someone I hate, yes.. Will I ever put that hate above my friends lives, or the mission. Never.." There was no falsehood in her words, all of her words rang pure. There wasn't any doubt in her tone "Everyone has that one person that they know is beyond them, so its their goal to reach their level. So they can.. I am far from that level. And you have forbidden me from taking a dark path to power. I promised I wouldn't, and I won't." Her gaze was normal, she had no reason to lie about her feelings "Do I want to kill him.. Yes. Yet seeing his power in force on the mission made me realize I can't become that strong on my own. I can't let hate rule me, like it rules that man..."

She looked Sasuke in the eyes "Hate leads one to give everything they love to it as well. It's not something I will ever be willing to sacrifice. That's the difference between me and others. I have too much to lose by giving into hate, into the need for power. I know I will become stronger, and I know that man will be waiting. And no I am not talking of Kotatsu. Their leader, the man in black. The killing intent, and chakra pressure was beyond any I have ever felt. My goal is become equal in power. So I can protect everything I love from him and the Land of Snow." She was unflinching in her words "You don't have to worry about me falling. I am one who will always get back up. I will protect my team, and I will never abandon them to pursue that hate." She paused and closed her eyes, then she opens them "I have been thinking about my ninja way a lot. Until taking such a loss, and being beaten down both physically and mentally. There were several things I said. So my ninja way is this. My word is my bond, I will never go back on it.. And I will never give up." She said this, not knowing it was similar to Naruto's ninja way "You can count on me being mentally stable. If you need me to kneel and swear it. I will. You have nothing to worry about or fear from me, Lord Sasuke." She bows respectfully.
This message was last edited by a game editor at 05:39, Tue 30 Jan 2018.

Sasuke listened silently as Nanami expressed herself but there were a couple things that bothered him. She bowed respectful after being honest with herself. Her want to kill, the fear of losing everything, and most of all hate for this mysterious shinobi they still had to identify. ”Fear is the first start of going down a dark path. Just because I forbid it, doesn’t mean you won’t defy me. Your fear has already led you to be angry and the need to kill and revenge for those you’ve already lost,” he explained. ”I’m telling you this because we looked over the samples you brought us. We know what fuels this mysterious chakra and it starts from the heart. You have a darkness that only you can fix. Take this warning and find hope instead. Harmony. Justice,” he added before turning to Sarada. ”I entrust the best out of you to keep them at bay and to redeem her darkened heart before it leads to another downfall,” he commented.

Several moments passed before he pulled out a scroll. ”All Of you must let go of revenge and the intent to kill this man and focus on our war efforts. You next assignment is in this scroll. I leave this in your care. Do not disappoint me,” he warned before handing the scroll to Sarada and disappeared.

Upon hearing footsteps coming in their direction, Nori turned her head and saw Lord Sasuke coming towards them. She stood upright and fixed her posture before she bowed her head towards him. It was when he began to speak about one of them in the group being mentally unstable that she lifted her head up and looked at him. She blinked. For a second, she thought it was herself as she had made it quite evident from her past emotional states, but now she was thinking with a more clear head. Although, she couldn't very well deny that she would let her emotions get in the way again. She didn't want them to, but she was an emotional person by nature so not letting them get in the way was perhaps impossible. At least when it came to the people and the things that were important to her. She had to go into not just this assignment, but future assignments with a clear head. She couldn't let herself get emotional no matter how much she wanted to. It was just as she was about to open her mouth and speak that she heard Nanami raise her voice. She turned her head and looked over at her friend, listening to what she said. A lot had happened and it had effected them all to some degree. They had all felt different things, but there was one thing they all had felt and that was hate for the man that had yet to reveal his true identity to anyone. That one emotion was one that was a key in their connection. They had their reasons for wanting that man to be gone and he knew what they were. This was all just a game to him. He set up the pieces exactly where he wanted them and at the moment, they were in the palm of his hand just waiting to see what he was going to do next. A war was happening and they were all apart of it now. And they all had to do their part. Nori knew that.

All the great nations were feeling fear right now because of this one man and his army of corrupted shinobi. She was sure that he had greater things in store for them, but it was obvious taking out as many of the nations as possible was a goal. Casualties didn't seem to matter to him. To Kotatsu...or Ryuu. And now...Sigmund. She did fear what would become of him if he were to continue siding with them. It scared her to know that this darkness in his heart may be there forever. But she...she wanted to stop it no matter how impossible it may have seemed. It was no surprise to her that the darkness started in someone's heart, but she had hope that it could stop. It was just...they all had to want to stop it on their own. That was what Sigmund needed to do, but would he? After speaking to their sensei for a brief moment, Lord Sasuke had turned his attention back towards them. Nori knew what she had to do and right now she knew she had to focus on stopping this war. Once he disappeared, she turned her head and looked over at Sarada. "I know we made a lot of mistakes in our past assignment, sensei, but we want to do what we can to make up for those mistakes. We want to show you our want and need to change in our efforts. We don't...we don't want to disappoint anyone ever again. We won't. I can't promise you that we won't, but...we want to do our best not to. There's too much at stake to do that again, so whatever the challenge is this time, we are ready to face it together," she told their sensei as she looked straight into her eyes with a solemn expression.

Sarada had kept her mouth shut the entire time Lord Sasuke, or her father, had spoken. She knew very well what memeber of the group he had been talking about; she had seen what he saw but chose to ignore it, having faith in Nanami as much as she could but with Lord Sasuke’s words she knew she couldn’t let anything like that slide at all. He had high expectations out of them and she needed to see to it that those expectations were meant. She hadn’t been told about the results of their findings but now it was clear to her that hate, pain, anger, and revenge could not be thes reason why they fought. Lord Sasuke elaborated on their findings and he of all people knew that because he single handedly experienced this. He was right, like always.

The Lord handed her a scroll, containing their next mission assignment. She gripped it tightly as he left rather quickly. She looked down at the scroll in her hand before looking at her group. Nori had broke the silence by trying to reassure her they had this, but Sarada was unsure of the mental capabilities of her squad. They had teamwork and strength and the techniques, however their emotional state was another problem all together. ”Lord Sasuke is right and you all know it. He is a perfect example and image of wanting revenge and the need to kill. Lord Sasuke takes this personally and as harsh as he is, he will do everything in his power to prevent anybody taking the road he once took. Neither one of us will ever be strong enough to tackle on this man. However we can overcome this Kotatsu fellow and all other right hand men he has appointed. We always start from the bottom. Attack them where it hurts. Taking down his associates will hurt the most. That’s the true war objective but our true purpose is to restore hope to many of the less fortunate countries. To provide hope,” she replied. ”Do you all understand this?” she questioned.

Nori grew silent at hearing Sarada speak of Lord Sasuke and his own taste for revenge. She was sure that he, probably more than anyone, would understand how they would feel. What was going on right now...while it was more for reasons that were effecting all the nations, for the three of them, it was much more than that. They had their own personal reasons for wanting to take revenge on both Kotasu and this mystery man, but Nori couldn't very well deny that deep down, she wanted to do her part in taking them down for what they did. Not just to those around her, but to her personally. She didn't know if she would ever get that chance to, but she didn't want those hateful, negative emotions to overrun her. She knew it wouldn't do any good. Lord Sasuke was trying to look out for their best interests and she couldn't even begin to understand just how much he was going through right now. To have the weight of the world on your shoulders...it wasn't an easy thing. And to entrust their sensei with whatever was in that scroll must have have taken a great deal of trust on his part. It only made her more curious as to what was inside it. "I understand, sensei. These people have gone through so much and with this war going on, it seems like hope is dwindling. But...I want to help restore their hope again," she said. "We all have to stand together and fight this enemy that is a threat to our very existence. They...they have taken so much away from all of us, but not anymore. Now t's their time to be brought down."

Shiroma sat there her ears still listening to everything and processing her teammate’s responses to the evaluation of their sparring match.  She was still processing through the ideas she had been working on for how to improve on her spike to make them less vulnerable to an earth jutsu like the one Sarada had used.  She doubted she would come up with an answer any time soon, though would have to keep working on it.  Looking up at the new voice her minds totally focused on him and then she frowned slightly finding herself a bit shocked that he would bring such a thing up.

‘He’s got a lot of nerve consider…’

‘Shut up.’

‘I won’t he really should have a piece of my mind! Now let me have control!’

‘No, he is the Omo after all.’

‘So…’

The rest of the conversation was stopped as Nanami spoke up and started into her promise and explanation of what it was that Suske was referring too  and it only caused a deeper frown on her face as she heard both what was being said from Nanami and then even more so from hearing about the fuel of the dark chakra.  She bit her lip bowing slightly at Suske left and sat there thinking through what that could all mean and then sighed.  She heard Nori’s comment and then nodded in agreement pushing the thoughts and doubts she was having to the back of her mind. “Yes Sensei, I understand. I think I speak for all of us when I say, we won’t let the people of the land of storms and the hurting nations down.”

Nanami listened to Sasuke as he spoke, she nodded "I will work on it. But its not as easy as I wish it could be." She stood up from her bow and watched him leave "I will keep to my ninja way.." She said quietly. She knew her next steps would have to get over these emotions. The feeling she felt at the concert were happy ones. She looked at Sarada "Why did you think I held that concert. It was so not only I, but all those who heard me could let out their anger, sadness, hate, and gain a glimmer of hope, happiness, and justice. I don't like feeling hate, or the need to kill a specific person. But in war its part of it. Many ninja need a focus, so they don't lose themselves to their hate." She thinks back at seeing the darkness manifest in Sigmund "I will work on ridding myself of it. It will take a little time I imagine." She goes quiet ending her bit on that topic..

Nanami looked at Nori, Shiroma and Sarada and she smiled a little. Letting out a deep breath "Actually saying all of that helped a bit. I hadn't really told anyone about what was on my mind." She walked up to Nori and Shiroma "We won't fail again." Her eyes shimmered softly in the light. She had many thoughts. Most were on what the future could bring. She knew she would have to ask Sakura soon if she wanted to start learning that jutsu. But she had a few other jutsu to learn before that one..

She listened to Sarada lay down the base plan "I understand, Sensei. We will protect our land." She said with a confident look.
This message was last edited by a game editor at 08:58, Tue 30 Jan 2018.

Sarada merely nodded. ”I am appointing Tsuna Shiroma as Squad captain. If I am not around or a separation occurs, it is your job to lead you all to victory and to complete your mission. You have a background specifically working under the land of snow and have been present during an entire country takeover. Because you do not have personal ties to the situation that these two have, you’re more level headed. While I understand it was said you slaughtered your own team, by joining our forces, you have redeemed yourself. Do not disappoint me,” she stated. Picking Shiroma as their captain was the most logical choice as in all three of their reports about their last mission, Shiroma had helped with the mapping of the area, deescaltion of personal situations, and was a mutual party in all their ordeals.

She proceeded to opening the scroll, giving it a quick read before closing it. ”All right, listen up. It would seem an old Konoha shinobi departed ways with us a long time ago. Relocating whenever possible and wherever they were needed, they were eventually marked as a missing-nin. Recently, it has been rumored this individual has been partnered with the land of snow before any of the war outbroke. ANBU recently spotted this most wanted individual and believe they have highly costly intel that can help change the turn of events. They are considered armed and dangerous; we are not to kill this missing-nin unless we have no choice however if that is what we have to resort to, we must first get our hands on what they know. This is a locating and captive mission and possibly an escort. We cannot fail as this can change the tides of war for us. We will be heading to the very land that started this all,” she explained as she summed up the mission they were given. It was a big one and it could change everything. This depended solely on them.

When Sarada had appointed Shiroma as team captain, it honestly didn't come as too much of a surprise that she was chosen. While she had definitely been asset to their last mission due to her intel, she wasn't personally tied to one of the main sources of her and Nanami's concerns: Sigmund. While he definitely would have approved of her intellectual abilities and techniques she had, Nori didn't want to feel as if their mistakes were going to continue following them even once this assignment was over. "I understand your decision, sensei. Nanami and I will continue to support Shiroma just as we have been," she reassured their sensei as she looked over at their new captain. "You can always rely on us, okay, Shiroma? We won't let you down. I promise."

She turned her head and looked back over to Sarada as she had opened up the scroll she was given by Lord Sasuke and quietly looked it over. Nori had been a little antsy as to what this particular mission was, but she knew one thing thing and that was that it wasn't going to involve Sigmund. Their sensei had made it clear that they weren't going to have anything to do with Sigmund. Although with the way she talked, it certainly did sound like Sigmund. That would be raising their hopes too high. "An...old Konoha shinobi listed as a missing-nin?" she said as she lightly folded her arms across her chest. "If this person is from Konoha, wouldn't their be some kind of records that are on file for all shinobi that were deemed as missing-nin? I mean, if we don't have some kind of idea of who this person is, than isn't that like picking a needle out of a haystack since we don't have a lot of intel on them?"

She smirked to Nori’s oblivious response. Sarada had simply not finished as she had only introduced the mission. ”It’s not Sigmund, Nori,” she pointed out. ”In the future, ensure you get all the information before you start asking questions,” she warmed as she opened up the scroll and turned it around.

”We are looking for a woman named Fūma Tsukiko. She separated herself from the Land of Fire as a teenager, a genin rank. She’s been far and wide from country to country. She goes by many aliases so it is our duty to ask around from here to the ship yard in the land of sound. She’s a hired mercenary at this point as we believe that is. Finding her shouldn’t be too difficult for the correct price we are hoping anyways,” she explained as she showed a picture of what the woman could possibly look like:

Move replies to Chapter 5.