My Big Fat Mission Thread

Ryu had just left the office where Shinobi got there missions at all hours of the day, his sunglasses shielding him from the intense rays that were battering Otogakure like an abusive husband did to his wife. He sighed...it was always so hot here...was it too hard to get a nice, warm, or maybe even cool day around here? How could he wear his sexy, skin tight jackets when he was sweating bullets! While he had his usual outfit on, he didn't wear the jacket and instead substituted it with a plain, pink shirt. The simple shirt didn't clash at all with his outfit, and complimented it in a rather nice fashion. As he walked throughout the busy shopping distract of Otogakure, having no objective in particular until he read the mission file. It was placed inside a plain folder, and Ryu currently held it in his hands. Taking the file out and throwing the folder aside, the young shinobi groaned as he realized what he was heading into.

"That Hot Tomales business wants me as a bouncer? Bah. Dealing with thugs are kind of annoying, but if I get to keep them off of the streets..I think it's defintely worth it. Every time I think of one of them killing, raping, or stealing...it makes me sick. I have to stop it..plus, those strippers give good head, heh."

Ryu added that little line at the end to lighten up the mood, but it was true. He never felt that good when he did the job himself. Watching someone else do it...it gave him a massive ego, like he owned him. It was kind of a domination thing. Anyways, he continued heading down the road he was going to, because thankfully, it was the right way.

"You know...every time I take a walk through the village, I never cease to be amazed by the spirit this village has. Even if we aren't some major village..it's like we're a family here."

After he said that little speech, he found himself at the front doors of the Hot Tamale building, greeting the manager who he now knew as Mr. Takanawa from the mission briefing. He seemed to have cleaned himself quite a bit from what Ryu remembered of him the last time they met, and smelt considerably less worse...he actually smelled like a human being!

"Hm? You're Ryu, right!? I remember ya from our last time, you made one kick ass bouncer! Thanks for accepting the mission kid...and heh. Your payment is waiting upstairs once your shift is over, if ya catch my drift."

With that, the owner headed back inside the strip club. Ryu guessed he was about to do some of the strippers, from the lust that he noticed in the older male's eyes. The rest of the day went by rather smoothly; Any of the more rowdy customers were quickly calmed down by Ryu, and no thugs were in sight for his shift as a bouncer..

"Huh. I guess I must have scared them off."

With his mission complete, he went inside to collect his lap dance and money.

WC: 533
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"If I want that fabulous dress, I'm gonna have to seriously go and haul some ass with my missions..by my projections, if I keep doing missions at my current rate, I should have the funds required in order to purchase such a FABULOUS dress..I hope for that absurd price it's made of the finest silks in the land, or you KNOW I'm gonna come up in that store and be like uh-uh honey boo child, I want my refund now!"

A female, dressed in black yawned, looking at Ryu with a disinterested look.

"You fool...when will you learn I don't give not one, not two...not even three fucks about your damn problems of I can't find a fucking dress. Grow some balls..."

Ryu rolled his eyes, giggling. Even though they didn't seem like it, the two were close and had an unbreakable bond. After all, they shared the same body.

"Don't be such a sourpuss and lighten up, Mikass! Geez!"

Hands on his hips, Ryu frowned at his friend. Sometimes, she could really kill a dude's mood! And then, he snapped out of it, his momentary trance into his own mind now over, bringing him back to the real world. Ryu didn't find his multiple personalities a threat to his well being at all. He kind of liked the company they kept him while he was sleeping, or daydreaming like he just did.

Sometimes, when they do take over...it can kind of be a bad situation. Okay, it's usually only a bad situation when Mikasa takes over because Sakura farts out rainbows practically. Anyways.. I better get off my ass and go collect a mission..

He rose from the bench, heading to the section of the mission board laveled 'C-ranks', and took the mission file down. While B-rank and higher missions were much more secretive, having to be given directly by a trained shinobi messenger, Ds and Cs were so basic, it wasn't really needed. All Ryu had to do was check in with the mission guy to confirm he was doing the mission, and he did exactly that, heading out of the office's building.

"You know...one day I really gotta stop picking my missions by random, ya know? I might encounter something that's a pain in the ass.."

Ryu began opening the folder that.contained his mission details, reading what was inside.

"....Like this one. Finding some man eating snake won't be fun at all. I suppose I shouldn't be complaining though, as I do need the money for some armor."

According to the pet shop owner, this snake had ran away before. Ryu would be going to the place where it was last found the last time and ran. Unfortunately, that was near the lake, and if the snake touched water, Ryu would fail the mission. Given to him by the mission dude at the office was a bag of bait for the snake so he could be led safely back to the pet shop...but how safe could you get leading a snake? The lake in question was along the outskirts of the village, which was a decent length walk. Perhaps he could chat with his personas to pass the time, although usually he never got a connection with them when he was awake. Even then, it wasn't always the best quality. It seemed he needed to be in a dreamlike state.

Uh..hello? Can you guys hear me, or is this damn connection still bad?

After a few minutes, he sighed. Guess he was walking in silence. He felt like whining, but whining wouldn't do anything in this situation, so he kept his mouth shut and walked in silence. Then, a little voice began to grow in his head...it sounded like Sakura. She was much more friendly then Mikasa, so Ryu couldn't deny he liked being around her more.

Hai Ryu!

So, this bootleg mind connection actually works? That's pretty cool. Hopefully we won't have any problems communicating with each other..

Ryu arrived to the spot the snake was said to be found at, making sure to stay on his guard. It was an anaconda, so it was entirely possible he could be sneak attacked by the giant reptile and choked, or even swallowed whole. He didn't trust the thing even if its killer instincts were dulled from years of captivity. If he heard even a twig fall off of a tree, he'd probably nuke it into like, a gazillion pieces...if he had any explosive tags.

"Dammit...why didn't I get any supplies before trying to capture A FORTY FEET LONG SNAKE!"

Kicking rocks, he began cursing himself for his stupidity for about a minute...until he heard some leaves rustle. Quickly, he turned around and saw the anaconda, taking a picture out of his pocket.

"Huh..looks like the one on the picture. Time to lure it...funny, it doesn't seem dangerous. Meh. Better for me, I suppose. I guess Namikaze pretty much tamed him!"

He took out a small leather bag out of his backpack, clenching it tightly.

"I wonder what's in here anyways..."

Ryu opened the bag and looked inside, nearly about to puke from what he saw.

"Of course...frogs and mice. What did I expect, some pills?"

Then, he pulled out a cage. It was a little small for something so long, but Ryu figured it would just coil around it and fit inside. Pouring the bait inside the cage, he led the snake inside and shut the door, making sure the snake couldn't get outside. After all, he still wasn't sure if the anaconda would strangle him.

"I am never doing this mission again...no matter how good this damn pay is. Gotta make sure to request Namikaze from ever contacting me again, because the next thing you know, he'll want me to find his dragon that has farts capable of destroying entire countries!"

Growling, he went back to the pet shop to drop off the damn snake and collect his payment.


WC: 1029
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"How many missions has it been so far....hm...four out of fifteen, huh? And when I get to the office and take this one, it'll make it my fifth, and I'll be a third of the way complete with my goal of becoming of Chuunin!"

Ryu frowned though. Even though he was accumulating ryo at a very high pace, he still felt sad that he never really had a squad. This was a minor village after all, so the Jounin were spread a bit thin...he wanted to have the chance to truly connect with his former classmates after all, but it seemed he wouldn't get that chance at this rate. He was about to go to the mission board, when the guy at the counter who handed out assignments called Ryu over. His name was...Joe? No, no...it started with a G. Oh well.

"Ryu! I've been calling you on your radio for the past hour, but you never answered! What the hell happened? And don't use the your house is too far excuse...Otogakure is a small village."

"Well, to be honest...my bbatteries kind of died and I haven't had a chance to replace them, heh."

He simply shook his head, handing him the assignment. Ryu took it, and exited the building so he could take a chance to read it in peace and privacy. Once he opened it, the Otogakure shinobi was not pleased at all.

"Hot Tomales? Again? Isn't this, like the third time? Well...the money will help I suppose. Guess I shouldn't complain, really, especially when I need so much stuff...stupid parents won't give me all the bucket loads of Ryo they're sitting on, cuz I have to learn to do stuff myself..pfft."

Ryu headed towards the direct of the Hot Tomales building, a route he was very familar with already, so he threw the map out and the folder, and carried the file with him.

"If they keep calling me almost every single day, I'll have them double the pay for doing such a good job! I'm betting none of those thugs from Frijoles have attacked since I was gone!"

It wasn't even like he could just get promoted from working at Hot Tomales, either. A common law in the shinobi system was that you needed to complete five C ranks out of the fifteen missions required for ranking up. It was to prevent useless Chuunin with no experience out in the field, and Ryu could totally understand that. It was pretty logical.

Arriving at the Hot Tomales working place, he did the usual. Greet the owner, Mr.Takanawa, who seemed to be getting cleaner and cleaner every day...he said it was because he found his true love. It was pretty neat that love had the power to change people so much. After that, he did his usual guarding duties, and as his shift was over, he didn't even head into the back room. He was pooped, and wanted to go home and sleep.

WC: 512
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Yet again, Ryu found himself in the Otogakure Mission office, sitting down on a bench. The line was simply too long for Ryu to waste his time standing up there for only a D or C ranked mission...so, he figured he would rest and try to communicate with his alter egos. Zoning out for a bit, he found himself in a grassy area that he usually was placed when he zoned out like this. In front of him were Mikasa and Sakura, which was weird. Usually it was either one or the other, but he didn't mind. He could see how they interacted, and get to know them better. They both looked like there usual selves; Mikasa was a bit distanced from the others and had her frown, while Sakura was poking Ryu and was cheerful.

"Hey, guys."

Mikasa frowned and began walking closer to Ryu. He kind of braced himself just in case he got hit..you just didn't know with the crazy bitches.

"Why the hell are you here? Go back to your pathetic world and keep being pathetic, you pathetic fool."

"Wow...you must love that word, huh? The better question is why are YOU in my body! If ya don't like it, leave!"

"You fool! I'm the darkness created from your heart, I CAN'T LEAVE!"

"Guys, guys....just chill, will ya? Is it really worth it to waste precious seconds in our short lives just yelling?"

The group all turned towards the direction the voice came from, not knowing who the source of it was. But, as soon as he turned around Ryu awoke into the real world.

Who was that speaking? I've never heard him before, and what did Mikasa mean about being born from the darkness of my heart?! It's true none of us shinobis are saints, but I'm far from evil....gah. Can any of you guys hear me? [/]

For about ten minutes, he waited, but a response never came, and the line was thinning so he got up off of the bench and headed towards the board.

[i] Even though they're only figments of my imagination, they're still my friends, and I hope they're okay...maybe I'll see them during my dreams tonight.

Ryu proceeded to nab the mission off of the board, and went to the guy at the counter, who he still didn't know the name of, for approval.

"Approved...heh, good luck. You'll need it, heh."

Ryu left the building, pondering his words.

"It's just a C-rank, right? It can't be that dangerous.."

He opened the folder and looked inside, taking his mission out.

"I'm supposed to find a stupid animal for a C-rank? What the hell? At least that Anaconda was pretty dangerous, but this is just some stupid ass cat....gah. Whatever!"

Casting the folder that contained the mission aside, he began reading deeper about the mission.

"Mr. Bumblepuss...? What kind of name.."

He would find this cat in certainly one of the more dangerous parts in the village, and he heard it had wandered there multiple times, which lead him to wonder...how the hell did he keep coming back alive with those boars flooding the caves; Boars that were somehow resistant to chakra. It was a mystery that he'd have to wrap his head around later, but for now he needed to head into the north part of town where the Yuzamashi Cave was that held the boars. He had been to the outskirts of the cave a few times in his academy days, but never really ventured inside of it due to the possibilities of him encountering the boars. He was the type of person that listened to his mother's warnings. Being the adventurous type, those warnings probably kept him alive.

Once he arrived, he noticed that the entrance of the cave still wasn't anything special.

"Funny...I thought they'd be sprucing it up and exterminating the boars since they do pose a threat to civilians, and it is a bit of an eyesore..then again, some people are opposed to the balance of nature. I'm not sure what side I agree on, though."

Heading into the caves, he began cracking his knuckles, the sound echoing throughout the cave and possibly alerting the boars inside. It didn't matter though, because with his strength, a few animals wouldn't be a problem to him. He could quite literally take a man off of his balance with a casual flick of his finger. Venturing further and further into the caves, he encountered some of the boars, but they left him alone. It was the wise thing to do...many shinobi often came here and hunted for practice and food since the boar population was so massive. They seemed to be scared of his symbol..

"Luckily for them, I can cook up something way better then boar meat...now where's that damn cat?"

Then, as if a higher being decided to answer his question, he began to hear a meow sound coming from around him.

"Hn...it's coming from the east side...not too deep in the cave, I believe...it's probably still in this area."

Ryu looked behind rocks, in crevices...anywhere where that cat could possibly fit, the young genin was looking. This mission was more tedious then being a bouncer, but at least at Hot Tomales they gave you an extra reward. After about twenty minutes of searching, Ryu felt like calling the mission a failure and nuking the cave, blaming it on terrorists. But, he found the cat behind one of the more difficult to access rocks, and picked it up in order to see if it was the right cat.

"Yep...and now I can go home."

With the cat content and curled up in the boy's arms, Ryu headed to the office to collect his reward.

"Man...I hope this lady doesn't give me this job again, but I can't just deny someone in help...it simply goes against my nature."

WC: 1017
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Today would mark the day where he would complete his seventh mission. Looking back down the long road as a Genin, he sighed.

"I'm already halfway done, and I'll start doing the real dangerous missions. I can't imagine how torn up my Mom would be if I ended up dying, so I guess that option is out! But seriously...I need to be careful when I'm taking B-rank and higher missions.."

Currently, the soon to be Chuunin was at his parent's house in his bedroom, simply staring up at the ceiling. It was around the morning time, but his siblings were already doing missions since they usually had a habit of waking up earlier then him. Ryu's parents were currently at work, so he pretty much had the house to himself.

I still haven't heard back from Mikasa and Sakura..not even a hint of them in my dreams. Perhaps if I just daydream a little bit, then I'll be able to form a connection.

Going into a meditation pose, he began clearing his mind so he could venture deep inside of his mind. After a few moments, Ryu was transported into the grassy fields he was familiar with by now, and looked around. No one was here.

"This is odd! It's like they moved out! Mikasa! Sakura! Where are you guys?"

"Don't worry, Ryu..they're safe. Heh."

Turning around in surprise, Ryu growled as he immediately recognized the voice..it was the same one that he heard right before he lost his connection!

"Who are you? And what have you done to Mikasa and Sakura!?"

The man, who Ryu could only see the back of was casually fishing in the small pond of Ryu's landscape. His clothes weren't too fancy, but they weren't rags either. His voice carried a casual tone...the genin could sense he was lazy.

"I'm Naoya...and you don't seem to be a good listener. I already told you they're safe...as soon as you left the inside of your mind, they both attacked me thinking I was a threat. I tried to tell them I was a friend, but...eh..they didn't seem to listen. I wish I could have just kept fishing, but I needed to defend myself. It was so painful raising my finger...but, a man has to do what a man has to do."

"Then..where are they?"

"Locked inside your mind."

"Huh?"

"It's complicated. You better go back to reality. If you doze off in battle like that...it will get ya killed, kid."

And just like that, Ryu was back in his room.

"Damn...my mind is so messed up. Meh. I guess it makes life more interesting. Better go start on some missions so I can finally start doing things for my village! Staying here blows, anyways, especially when everyone else is out doing something with there lives."

So, he got dressed, putting on his signature attire with his sunglasses and headed out to the Mission Office. Noticing all the festivities around him, he remembered that today was the day that they celebrated Otogakure.

"Eh...I should take a break since I've done so many missions, I guess.."

"Hey! Ryu!"

Turning towards the source of the voice, Ryu saw a Chuunin he didn't know at all. How did the dude know his name?

"A message delivered from the Daimyo himself.."

The Chuunin delivered the message and forcibly placed it into his hands, running off before Ryu could even say anything.

"From the Daimyo? I wonder what he wants for me.."

Reading the letter, he nearly facepalmed at how stupid this was. Why did the freaking king need to give a letter for a mission that could have easily been given to on the mission board?

"Well...at least I don't have to do anything. No one ever causes trouble at the festival. They'd have all the ninjas in the village upon them in an instant. Plus, it is easy money, and I shouldn't complain about that. Wait...why is this a C-rank?! Sometimes I don't understand this damn ranking system...oh well."

So, Ryu did his job. It was pretty much like being a bouncer at Hot Tomales, except much more fun. The Genin broke up any ppossible fights that were about to happen between civilians. He expected brawls at this event because of the large amount of alcohol. Thankfully, there weren't that many brawls, so none of the fun in the event was sucked out of it.

"Heh. Those suckers are on some hard mission, while I'm having the time of my life out here! Man, I'm glad I woke up late or I probably wouldn't have gotten this letter due to being on a mission...just wait till they get home, they'll never hear the end of it!"

Unfortunately, even though he was security he was still limited to the sections for children, unless a fight was going on in the adult area. That made him irritated, because he had heard that the finest strippers from Hot Tomale were coming to the festival to give a public show, and a private one for some money. What kind of security didn't get an all access pass? It was ridiculous.

As the event began to go into its final hour, Ryu was told to go to the office to collect his payment. Once he got to the Otogakure Mission Office, he found a bag of ryo with his name on it, and took it, providing proof he was with the security team.

"Ah...two hundred ryo for such an easy mission. How wonderful...once I have the ability to take up B and A-rank missions, getting that pretty dress that I've always wanted will go a helluva lot faster."

Even though he had so much fun, Ryu was pooped. He headed back home to get some sleep, and to do even more missions so he could obtain the rank of Chuunin before his siblings did.

WC: 1017

Ryu sighed as he awoke from his bed, still feeling the effects of drowsiness and fatigue when waking up in the morning. He was so close to tasting that dress..he just needed to be able to take B rank missions, and he'd be able to get that dress...but what was so special about that dress that it costed so much? Well, today he would go and find that out. Ryu put on some clothes, brushed his teeth, and headed downstairs. Of course, no one was home, but that was how things usually were since he woke up late almost everyday. As he looked in the microwave, he smiled because his parents left him a plate of sausages and bacon. Taking the plate out of the microwave, he sat down at the table and began munching.

"That's so strange...even the most expensive stuff around here is at most, five thousand ryo. Perhaps I could haggle with the owner. Now that I think about it, can I really afford to waste ten thousand ryo on a simple dress? Now that I'm gonna be a Chuunin, I have to grow up...prioritize the village over myself, and that means getting the proper equipment."

Finished with his food, he dumped the paper plate in the garbage and headed outside of his house, his destination the Mission Office. By the next couple of days, he would be rewarded Chuunin.

"Huh...well, I may have not had my own squad yet, but at least once I'm a Chuunin I can apply for one. It'd be nice hanging around people my own age...heh, I bet they'll be surprised to see a Chuunin at such a young age. I hope my squad isn't a bunch of Debbie Downers, or that'd be a real buzz kill!"

Hell, Ryu would even make a deal with the devil that he'd reach the rank of Jounin in about a year. He was a successful Genin, and was sure to get the eyes of the Daimyo sooner or later. After all, the boy was a self proclaimed prodigy!

Arriving at the mission office, he took a simple D-rank mission off of the board and greeted the Mission Guy, which was actually his official title. It didn't sound official in the slightest, but Ryu didn't mind.

"So...I gotta find some toy box? Sounds easy enough."

Heading into the rice fields, he would look for this toy box which the farmer had lost during his work. It sounded really important to him, so he knew that he would need to do his best. After an hour, he found this toy box, and smiled.

"Eight missions down, seven to go! Easy enough!"

As instructed, he would leave the toy box on the porch of the farmer's shack, winding it up and walking away.

"Kind of strange I haven't seen this farmer the whole mission..eh, I don't think I should be asking questions"

He headed to the office, where his reward would be waiting for him.

WC: 509

It was the ninth mission for the Genin named Ryu Yamazaki of the Majin clan. Currently, he was in the mission office where the Mission Guy called him over.

"Ryu, it seems like you have a request from the business Hot Tomales. It's a D rank mission, like always, and I think you know what they want you to do since they've called you in so many times."

Ryu nodded, taking the mission file and storing it inside his pack. Honestly, he didn't mind working for the strip club anymore. It would probably be one of the last time he'd be working with them now that he was so close to being a Chuunin. He decided that it'd be best to tell Mr. Takanawa so he wouldn't waste his time requesting for Ryu. He doubted the village would let a Chuunin go do such a tedious task. So, off to Hot Tomales establishment, he headed out of the building and began walking. It was about 12:00 AM when Ryu took a look at the village's clock. He'd be having a six hour shift before the owner's cousins from Kumo came just like usual.

"Hm...I have to admit, it's quite busy out here..well, I guess today is the weekend. It's always busy in the shopping district, especially on Saturdays."

After about twenty of minutes of walking, he arrived at Hot Tomales.

"Hey, Mr.Takanawa, how's everything going?"

"The usual....thanks for all your help, Ryu. I heard you're about to become a Chuunin soon, so you're probably gonna be off to bigger and better things. Sorry I called ya in, but my bouncer got sick and called off of work."

Ryu frowned. He kind of felt bad, but if the business was doing so good, then why was he needed? Anyways, he watchrd as the owner went back inside, and Ryu sat on the chair outside the club. As it got later into the day, more and more people came, but no sign of the bandits that came the first time. Sighing with relief, it seemed that Ryu had scared them off permanently with the beating he gave them the first time.

Good...I don't want those thugs coming while I'm not here, harming innocent people. Gah...

With his shift coming to a close, and the owner's cousins from Kumo arriving, Ryu went into the club to collect his payment, two hundred ryo. Mr. Takanawa never tried to rip him off. He was a pretty decent guy, actually.

One last lap dance...? Sure, why not I guess.

He headed into the back room, to receive his true reward. It'd be the last time he'd get this until he was old enough, anyways.

"I'm gonna miss this club..heh. Maybe Mr. Takanawa will make a exception for me, but knowing my luck that won't happen. Eh...hopefully when I come back a few years from now, he'll still have top quality girls I can choose from...chocolate, vanilla...mm.."

He knew for the rest of his life, he would never forget this place.

WC: 522

Ryu was about to hit double digits..after this mission, he would be two thirds of the way done with his career as a Genin. He only hoped the Kage trusted him enough to give him a squad even though he would be new.

"Man..I kind of wish I got to join the Chuunin Exams. It seems like fun, but oh well. Guess I'll be taking my academy friends to the exams, heh."

Currently, he was in the mission office waiting for the line to get shorter. Plus, he had a particularly long walk since he'd fell asleep at the training area on the other side of the village, so he decided to go and rest his legs. Sometimes practicing stances was exhausting, especially when you had a long day the night before.

I haven't dressed up in a couple of weeks...maybe I love crossdressing, but should I do it during missions? It's not like being able to play dress up is a useless ability, either. I could use it in assassination missions by crafting a disguise....hm...but, I reckon my students will be creeped out if I don't tell them about it...

He hopped off the bench and went to collect his mission. He needed only two more C-ranks to complete the five C-rank missions required on his quest for Chuunin, so he decided to take a C-rank mission today. Taking the mission file, he left the building, opening the folder which contained the details. Then, he began reading everything, all while making sure he wouldn't be bumping into any civilians and glancing up every so often to keep a look out for any thieves that might have attempted to ambush him while he wasn't paying attention 100%.

"Huh....how many times does this lady lose her dang cat? It can't be hard to keep track of one...anyways, speaking of cats, I should go see Snowflake once I'm done with this mission. I kind of miss the little guy ."

However, instead of being in the cave where the boars resistant to jutsu were, the little feline had found itself trapped inside of an abandoned mine with many dangerous explosives. How did the little thing find itself in so many dangerous situations and survive? It was like a miracle....or cats really did have nine lives. Anyways, this mine was located at the Northwest part of the village. It wouldn't take too long to get there...about twenty minutes if there was heavy traffic in the streets. Still, he could always climb over the buildings to reduce the time, so street traffic wouldn't really matter, he supposed.

"I have to be careful not to set off any explosives, or I'm as good as dead. Even if I survive and somehow manage not to get severely injured, I'd be in big trouble...with all the explosives in there, and tthe mines close proximity to civilians, it'll definitely kill some people and cause massive destruction. That's why they're working on getting the explosives out, but it won't be an easy task, especially with the risks and pressure involved."

Ryu was a bit thankful he didn't live near the mines just in case it did explode, although he was worried for the people that lived around here. The Genin wish he could help somehow, but couldn't think of a good idea. All he could do was pray that the explosives could be safely extracted from the dangerous mine. Heading into the mine, he decided to take out the flashlight from his backpack that he was given so he could see in the mines. It wasn't completely dark due to the torches lit along the cave, but he did need to watch his step.

"Man..I'd rather be in grass that cuts your legs then this...what if I step on an explosive by accident? Plus, I wouldn't be surprised if I encountered animals in here...even though the mission file said nothing about it, it's still entirely possible that they're in here. Likely, even. As a ninja, I need to be ready for the worst if I want to survive in this cruel world...don't worry, my children."

Ryu then went to pat his genitals.

"I'll make this a better world for all of you where you won't have to fight to live....where there won't be savages that'll try to kill you every minute of your lives."

Looking on his map in order to navigate the cave to find points where the cat would most likely be and to avoid any explosives, Ryu made many twists and turns..he guessed he was here for about an hour, but still no sight of the damn cat named Mr. Bumblepuss. The boy kicked a rock, frowning. This was probably the most tedious mission he had ever done.

"....Okay, seriously, this time, I am NEVER doing this damn mission again. Finding some stupid ass cat that keeps running away from home is a waste of my damn time. Like, that lady is rich. Why doesn't she buy a new cat?!"

Then, he heard some meows coming west of him. Sighing in relief knowing he had found the cap, he headed towards the direction of the cat.

"Finally...after I return it into the office, I'll take a nice hot shower at the house."

Finding the cat in a crate of explosives, he shook his head.

"Definitely more trouble then he's worth. He could have nuked half the village if he made one wrong movement.."

Picking up the cat, Ryu headed out of the mines with the cat, scratching its ears and letting it rest contently in his arms.

"Two hours of my day wasted...ugh. At least I only need to do one more C-rank. All the available ones are so tedious..somehow, the D-ranks are much more fun then that."

He sighed as he exited the mines, looking up at the night sky.

WC: 1004

Ryu stirred in his sleep....what was going on? He...he saw something. Ruins...a wasteland. This wasn't the grass, hills and ponds that the Genin was used to. Was this a dream or a nightmare? Ryu was leaning towards the latter.

"Where are those three? They're always here when I'm asleep..it's the time where I'm most vulnerable."

"Hmph. I'm over here you idiot.."

Turning around, Ryu frowned a bit. While he considered Mikasa a friend even though the feelings weren't mutual, he still would rather see Sakura, or even Naoya.

"Mikasa? Where's the others?!"

"Heh..Naoya thought he could keep me restrained forever. But, you just can't keep the darkness away forever...eventually, it spreads. He was only delaying the inevitable. That weakling girl Sakura couldn't escape..she's been consumed and ravaged by the darkness. But, I'd like to think of her death as a positive thing. She'll be reborn into something new and stronger..heh."

Ryu sensed an unbelievable amount of killing intent exuding from Mikasa. He couldn't believe this! Sure he knew she wasn't anywhere near a saint, but he didn't think Mikasa would do something this bad.

"You bitch! I'll-"

"You'll do nothing. This body is mines...while I would enjoy a female body, it seems I will have to make do. Evil...it can't be ever quenched. Good luck on getting out of here, fool."

Tendrils that emerged from the ground began to take a hold of Ryu, slowly sucking him in deeper and deeper. No matter how much he struggled, it seemed that there was no way he would get out of this. Tears were starting to form in his eyes...he thought of his multiple personalities as friends, but now..he realized that they were a curse. He'd never see his family again..

Now, he was completely swallowed by the ground...darkness for miles. He called out the names of Sakura and Naoya, but got no response...all he could do was float aimlessly in the infinite darkness, as he felt his conscious slowly slipping away.

"Mom...Sister...I'm...I'm scared..even though you can't here me..t-this is it. I'll love you, always.."
*****************************

Mikasa awoke, clenching her fists tightly. She didn't like this body at all..it felt weird to be a boy, but she supposed it was a temporary host until she found the means to find another body.

Hm...I posess all the memories of all of the personalities combined, so...Ryu was on his tenth mission, huh? Interesting. Well, I suppose I can't stay a Genin forever if I plan om conquering the Shinobi World, so I guess I'll pick up where he left off.

Heading into the closet to look for something to wear, Mikasa was pleased to find something that satisfied her tastes. A purple wig with hair that reached to around her chin, a black skirt, a black pair of stockings, and a pair of brown shoes. Her shirt was also black...for some reason, Mikasa really liked the color black.

Good. Nobody is ever home, so I suppose I should get something to eat, then head out towards the office to collect my mission. They know of his crossdressing tendencies, so it shouldn't be a problem getting by.

After finishing her breakfast, Mikasa headed out towards the office. Civilians were completely unaware of his true gender. After entering the mission office and taking her mission, the Mission Guy sighed.

"Look, Ryu, I know you like playing dress up, but during a mission? Eh, not my problem."

Mikasa shrugged, walking off. Looking at the mission details, the evil female frowned.

"Finding an Anaconda, huh? Well, since it always slithers off to the same spot it shouldn't be too much of a problem to find...if it even comes close to me, I'm going to rip its head off without hesitation."

Heading to the pond north of town, Mikasa sighed. She did feel a little bad about Ryu, but she was evil! Why the hell should she care?

"Hm...snake bait, check...cage to hold the snake in, check. Good, good...I have all I need to finish this mission. I think this is the last C-ranked mission I need to take, and then after that, I'll have it easy with some D-ranks."

Currently at the pond, she looked around for any signs of the snake. She didn't care how well trained Mr. Namikaze thought the animal was, it was still a lethal forty foot long snake probably hunting for food...and it was entirely possible that Mikasa would be its next prey if she wasn't careful.

"Come out...Sweetcakes. I'm just here to return you to your owner.."

Sweetcakes...that wasn't a proper name for an Anaconda, that was a name for a cat. Either Mr. Namikaze was an idiot, or he had a really cruel sense of humor.

Sweetcakes slithered out of the bush rather slowly, and Mikasa smiled briefly. This mission had only taken a half hour, meaning she could probably do another mission today. Laying out the bait which lead the anaconda to the cage, as soon as its whole body was in it, she shut the cage, making sure that it wouldn't be able to escape.

"Time to head to the pet shop.."

She exited the pond area. It took her about twenty minutes to arrive at Mr. Namikaze's pet shop. She layed down the cage on his counter, alerting him to her presence.

"Hey..this mission was assigned to Ryu. Where is he?"

"I AM Ryu..I just like playing dress up, that's all."

"...oh."

Handing her the bag of Ryo, Mikasa happily collected it and left the pet shop.

"Maybe I should let Ryu have his body back...this body is simply not at the strength I want it to be, and eventually, I'll mess up this charade. After all, they know about his multiple personality disorder. And I just feel really uncomfortable in the body of a man..having parts I shouldn't have is disgusting."

WC: 1028

He awoke in great shock, checking his clock. Was it all just a dream? Did he imagine sifting through that infinite darkness? It was...horrible. He felt like he was losing himself..like he was becoming a nobody. Whatever that nightmare was, he didn't want it to happen again.

"It all felt so realistic..Mikasa trapping me into an infinite abyss, but..she wouldn't do that, right?"

Sighing, he leapt off of his bed and began putting on his clothes for the day. This was his eleventh mission...no, twelfth. But when did he do the twelfth? His head was hurting so much trying to remember..everything was just so confusing. Dressed in his standard attire, he put on his sunglasses and headed out the house. He didn't feel like eating breakfast today. Instead, it would be his lunch. Otogakure was hot as usual, which was no surprise to the Genin.

"All five of the C-ranks I need to do are finally finish...like I said yesterday, it's gonna be easy cruising from here."

Well, he didn't remember exactly saying that, but it did sound familiar. Meh. As soon as he headed inside the building, he picked up his D-ranked mission and headed towards the Mission Guy.

"Well, congratulations Ryu. After this mission, you'll only need three more missions before you rank up to a Chuunin. Maybe you'll take my spot in this job, eh.."

Ryu laughed nervously. How did he even get stuck here, anyways? This job blowed hard, and he didn't want any part of it. Anyways, the Otogakure Genin began to head out of the mission building, and to the Hot Tomales establishment.

"Bah. I should go stop for a quick snap before I go start my job."

Heading towards one of the many vendor stalls located in Otogakure's shopping district, Ryu purchased a bag of chips, some chicken, and an apple, carrying the bag of food to his destination.

"Mm..I can't wait to dig in. This should keep me sustained long emough for me to do this mission, I guess. Six hour shifts aren't as nearly bad as they sound.."

Standing in front of the establishment, he greeted Mr. Takanawa once again, and began his duty. He had finally scared off the thieves. Ryu was enjoying such an easy mission.

"Hm..I might take this mission no matter what rank I am. It's a decent source of income, and it's fairly easy now that I won't have to bother with those thugs from Frijoles anymore. I'm glad they haven't become so annoying reoccurring thing.."

Taking out his lunch, he began eating. The shift went pretty smooth, and after it was finished, Ryu went inside to collect both of his prizes, making sure to dispose of his trash properly. The Shinobi liked this place enough not to mess it up, plus the side effects of harming Earth were too great.

"Gah..once I go back into my meditation state I'm gonna have to talk to Mikasa."

WC: 507

The Sound Shinobi yawned, rising up from his bed and leapt off, landing directly into his slippers. Currently he was in his boxers, wearing a T-shirt, and his hair was such a mess! Before he went and did anything, he had to get rid of this fashion disaster. Quickly fixing himself up and going downstairs, making sure he picked his bookbag off of his desk, Ryu exited the house disappointed there was no breakfast.

"Dammit, I might have to wake up earlier if I want breakfast...this is probably to punish me for my lazy ways, or whatever."

He rolled his eyes. His Mom always came up with the silliest of ideas, but he didn't mind. She wouldn't be continuing this for long, the woman didn't have the guts. Anyways, he headed towards the mission office. He'd probably be a Chuunin within the week. After navigating through the crowds that consumed Otogakure, he arrived at his office, going to pick up a mission like usual. Nabbing one off of the mission board, he went to the receptionist to get his mission request approved. They engaged in small friendly banter and greetings like they usually did.

Then, Ryu started to walk out of the mission office out of, studying his current mission. Another toy box that he needed to find in the rice fields for that farmer. He didn't really mind this mission, so he had no problems with accepting this mission. Besides, it was far less tedious then most of the missions he took up.

"Hm...it's colder then usual in Otogakure, but I guess that isn't saying much. Well, at least I can wear my sexy jacket. I always find that silver lining, haha...hope I'm using that saying right. Prolly' night, but whatever.[/i]

The farm was northwest of Ryu's position, about ten minutes away from his current location. He was walking at a faster pace then usual, mainly because he figured if he finished this mission, he could get a few more in and rank up today.

"But I'll have to do it fast, or else it'll be too late...it's like a race against time, basically."

Ten minutes later, he arrived at the farm. Immediately, the Genin began searching in the fields looking for the toy boxes.

"As long as I don't go over two or three hours, I'll be a Chuunin today! Ya!"

After about an hour of searching among the fields, Ryu found tthe box and smiled.

"Time to wind it up in the shack, then I'll collect my reward!"

Heading to the shack which was about ten meters away, he opened the door which was unlocked, and began winding up the toybox.

"Well...time to go collect my reward."

He exited the premises and headed back to the office, where he was promised his reward. Currently, he was thinking about what he would do with the insane amount of ryo he had.

"You know..in celebration of my Chuunin rank, I'll be buying a bunch of armor and weapons. I need it, anyways. Missions are gonna be way more difficult and serious..it's possible the missions I'll do will have an effect on the village."

WC: 538

Today was a rather rare occurrence at Ryu's house. Instead of the fancy clothes he decided to usually wear, the boy wore his Gi today, just coming from a fresh session of training, honing his body and skills at weaponry. While his parents wouldn't be home, his sister was probably up having a quick snack before she left. Entering the house, he smiled.

"Hey, Kiri..how's the mission life going? I'm on my fourteenth mission already!"

His sister nodded. She looked a little weary, like she been up all night. Probably busy doing a C-rank, or partying. Honestly, if she wasn't partying so much Ryu realized she would have had him beaten in the race for Chuunin.

"Eh...only got eleven missions finished. I like bonding with my squad, so I guess I'm not in too much of a hurry. I'm actually waiting for the Chuunin exams so I can test out my combat skills in a relatively safe enviroment."

"Safe? Haven't you heard of the psychos who go on killing sprees, murdering whoever they come across? Those exams are far ffrom safe...you better think of them as a life or death situation, just like a real mission."

Usually, Ryu wasn't this serious. But he wouldn't let his sister get hurt, or even worse if he could do anything about it. With his little speech given, he walked out of the house and headed to the office for his mission.

"I wonder what I'm getting today..hm.."

He had already eaten breakfast before he left the house, so he was operating on a well fed stomach. The streets of Otogakure were nearly empty, and once he entered the office he found it was the same situation. Instead of the usual person at the desk he was so friendly with, he found a more buff, scary looking guy.

Huh..so they do switch shifts. I always thought that he lived here, which is kind of silly now that I think about this..

Taking a D-rank mission off of the board, he went over to the receptionist and got his approval, although without the friendly banter he usually got. It felt weird..some ninja stared at him, and when he left, he saw some ladies staring at his rippling muscles. Ryu started flexing, because after all..he was a pretty big showboat. Stopping after awhile, he began to read the mission's details.

"Shiiiit. Another farmer and his damn toy boxes that I need to find? It's like some bandit is stealing toy boxes specifically from farmers....if that's the case, then the dude literally has no life."

Heading towards the location, which was a farm, Ryu frowned. He would have to do a C-rank mission soon, for reasons which he would go over later so he wouldn't be convinced the shinobi system needed to die.

After arriving to the farm, he found the box after an hour of searching and placed it in the shack. Once he was done, he went and collected his reward.

"Tomorrow...I'll be doing my fifteenth, and final mission. It'll be a big day once I'm rewarded with the rank of Chuunin.."

WC: 534

Ryu awoke from his bed, looking around the room. Was this all real? Was today finally the day he'd be qualified for becoming a Chuunin?

"Finally...after so long I'll be a respected and valued member of this village...one day, I'm gonna be one of the Sannin in my village! A legemdary ninja that's known across the world for his skills..and I'll definitely be known for my skills in Fuinjutsu! This world better believe it!"

With a huge grin plastered on his face, Ryu got dressed in his signature outfit, picked up his backpack, and ran out of the house, heading towards the mission office. Instead of taking the streets, he ran along the rooftops just like a real ninja.

"YA HEAR THAT, OTOGAKURE? RYU YAMAZAKI IS GONNA BECOME A SANNIN!"

His shout resounded throughout the village, causing many people to look at him, each in different ways. Some had a look of hatred and displeasure at the boy's loud voice, while others had a look of hope and happiness on there eyes. They were glad to see the new generation aspiring to become something great. However, the ninja did not he didn't care about either. Today, he was in his own world and wouldn't let any obstacles on his destiny distract him. Arriving at the office at half the time he'd usually come to it, he leapt off one of the buildings, landing safely at the entrance. Immediately, he rushed in.

"Yes! There's no line!"

Then, he went up to the board with a happy gleam in his eyes, snatching a C-rank off of the board and heading to the receptionist. He was so excited, he could barely hold it and didn't decide to read it as usual.

"Woah...Ryu, calm down. You okay, kid?"

He nodded. He missed the friendly banter he got from him, even if he was gone only for a day.

"Yeah...it's just, this is my last mission and I'm excited. I'll finally be a Chuunin, a trusted solider..I'll even have my own squad! So many things to worry about..gah.."

"Don't overthink things, Ryu. Just calm down, and do this like it was ay other missions. Even though this is helping with a festival, if you aren't calm enough in battle, you'll be smartin' soon enough. Or...dead, if you're seriously careless. But what do I know, I'm stuck in this shitty job.."

For a moment, he saw a look of extreme bitterness and depression on his face, but it was brief, and as soon as he blinked..it was gone. What circumstances took him off of the line of duty? Perhaps he would question the man another time, but for now, he waved goodbye and went to help the Daimyo for the festival. It was pretty standard duty, similar to the one he had last time that he had when he did this schtik. All Ryu needed to do was go and make sure everyone wasn't in the middle of fighting, and other then that he was told to have fun.

"Well, wasn't that many fights last time I did this. Should be pretty easy, since those fights were only caused by alcohol. He heard that they were reducing the limit people could drink at the festival to prevent those mishaps from happening again."

For the rest of the day, he was patrolling the area to make sure nothing bad was going on, playing the various games that were setup. Whack-A-Mole, some water slides, a rollercoaster. It was a pretty fun experience, even though he felt like some of the games were just too childish to them. He broke up one or two fights due to the alcohol,and for the rest of the night had a smooth time playing games. Now, with the festival in its final minutes, Ryu headed off to collect his ryo in the office.

"Heh...tomorrow, I'll go file a request to the Daimyo for the rank of Chuunin...I'd do it today, but.."

He yawned, stretching out his back and arms.

"I'm way too pooped from all that partying I've done. The Daimyo sure knows how to throw a party, heh.."

He arrived at the office, and entered. It seemed the receptionist wasn't here yet, so Ryu would need to wait for him so he could transfer the ryo directly into his bank account. He sat on one of the chairs in the cold room, and waited. After five minutes, he dozed off...after all, he was pooped from his long night.

Twenty minutes later, he felt a large hand wake him up, and he jolted awake.

"Huh?"

It was the receptionist.

"I filed the ryo to your account, kid. Good luck on your request to become a Chuunin. It's always nice to see some new blood in this village, heh."

Ryu nodded slowly, still feeling the drowsiness one usually gets once they wake up from a nap. He waved goodbye, and headed off to his house.

Once he got there, he flinched back in surprise. His Mom, Dad, and siblings were all here with a massive chocolate cake on his table...it was his favorite flavor.

"Congratulations, Ryu! We know you aren't technically a Chuunin yet, but still...we know how much you're in love with cake, so we bought you this anyways!"

He got hugs from each of his family members, tears beginning to form on his eyes.

"T-thanks guys.."

"Aw shucks big bro. You don't have to-"

"No, really ..I mean it! Thank you all!"

He bowed down, and his Dad began to speak.

"This isn't even your party, hah! The real fun starts tomorrow, don't worry!"

Ryu was so happy to have such a nice caring family like this. They might have not always been here, but when they were, they made it count. He knew whatever personal struggles he had to deal with, his family would help him out.

Whew...c'mon guys! Let's dig in!"

WC: 1012