Aachen Rizen Compile - Kenno Matsuri [ In Character ]

[Ehb]

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This is the In Character Thread for Kenno Matsuri.
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[RedArmyShogun]

[Fieldbox= Rumiko Mitsurugi, #b30000, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of the Shrine ]

Leaving at the heels of Kei, the Miko had a funny feeling about all of this, but that was not enough to act on at least. The following events throughout the day however were a bit much. Meeting the group of two others the Miko had hoped for single duels, but rather after speaking with Tsubaha, the pair of men ran away at once, surrendering two bells in kind.

"So how about a....I...well then..." Not in the least bit happy about this the Miko shakes her head, she had agreed to this alliance to recover what was lost, not to be part of a bandit gang, this was all terribly wrong. Arriving back to the base, it seemed another member of the party was also a cook, it would be interesting to compare notes with her, though for now it meant that Rumiko would not need to prepare any meals. Retreating to the inner Sanctuary of Shrine, the Priestess largely kept to herself, taking a rigged pray stance for the next coupleo f hours.

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[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Hearing all of the commotion, the Miko joins those gathered, a swords woman of some sort was there with roughly twenty bells, challenging them directly, they had conducted themselves as bandits, now someone who likely slaughtered them had joined the fray, rather insultingly at that with the wrong assumptions. Eleven, Eleven bells was all they needed to keep them all here, while they could take more, that was not exactly needed, it would not be wise to push for more than sixteen at a maximum. Stepping forward, Rumiko bows lightly towards the swordswoman.

"I can say that did not sit well with me, but we all lost our bells to a dishonorable trick. Had I lost in combat I would have given up, my bells are not for my own comfort! I cannot be beaten here!"

Though the swordswoman was correct, they all should have been gone, or rather the rules did allow some leeway in that, you were to be removed by the end of the day, so if they could get the bells back before the sunset..

Either way the other girl seemed to be Tsubaha's sister..for some reason that did not comfort her, then Runara's words and nearly disastrous actions had hit the Miko harder than many fists had the previous day.

"I am Rumiko Mitsurugi, a Priestess of the Kousen Sect, I am not a bandit. I have suffered and went far as I decided it..while I will keep my agreement with this group, I cannot participate in more injustice..." Stepping forward and bowing towards the swords woman, the Miko had little doubt in who this woman was.

"Tsukaha Xu.. I will group with them till we have what was taken unjustly. I wish to accept your offer to battle.. I cannot speak for the rest, but one on one might be slow.. If we fight you however in smaller groups, I would wish for a fair winning. Taking all of your bells, even if we could, would be as unjust as what was done to us."

Being thought of as their group was did not set well with the Miko, not at all, and Runara's words had shamed her. "Sportsmanship.. I think we should split up to cover more ground after this but meet back regularly, getting bells as we did earlier.. It's not right.. And even if I have high ideals for my bell, what good is it if I build it off a lie?"

Taking a fighting stance, the muscular and tall Miko seemed set in her resolve, waiting for the rules that would be laid down or the acceptance of this combat, while she could attack her just as Runara had attempted, Rumiko doubted the battle would go well from a rush.

This girl was dangerous.

[/fieldbox]

 

[ERode]

[fieldbox=Yu Ri, #DDA0DD, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Just five days left. They would have to up the pace soon, if they all wanted to have a chance at getting a 'wish' from the Shogun. And with only five days left, perhaps Yu Ri was better serviced by detaching herself from this group of criminals after all. Perhaps...

But now wasn't the time to be thinking about that. The thrumming of plentiful bells could be heard, echoing every footstep made. Around her, others rose up from various positions of rest, heading out to see who had come, but Yu Ri simply let out a breath. A glimpse of their new enemy indicated a swordsman, supremely confident, but from the larger frames of the others, she couldn't get a good look from there.

Didn't matter though. This was a decisive point. Were the assassin's allies wolves? Or sheep?

"..shuuuuuu."

A soft, mind-clearing breath.

In the shadow of the evening, Yu Ri tapped Yuan on the back once, just to ensure that someone knew she existed, before slinking off. Duels weren't her style. Assassination was. This individual may be the one that Tsubaha had to prove herself to, but this individual had also come too early. The forehead midget never explained what proper procedure to be if she were to encounter her target before they had amassed a large bounty of bells.

So it was nothing personal, not really.

Soundless steps brought her out behind the shrine, before Yu Ri tied back her hair, steadied her heart, and began circling around their talented foe, her small frame disappearing in the neighbouring vegetation.

@Ehb @Psyker Landshark @lolliterallyeveryoneelse???
[/fieldbox]

 

[Accelerator]

[fieldbox= Noriko Amagawa, #99ccff, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of the Shrine ]

As Noriko was collecting the resources they came for in the river, he noticed another figure several meters away from him. Upon getting a closer look, it seems to be their resident Pirate Lord, Saburo using his own brand of water manipulation on the river to create multiple small whirlpools. Whether he was doing this as part of training or merely as a means of entertaining himself was anybody's guess but as he stood up, Noriko clearly saw the scourge of the sea take a plunge in the river when the ground on his feet gave way.

Rather than approach Saburo and lend a helping hand, Noriko prompted to turn a blind eye on the situation. There are people who would rather prefer to keep their sense of pride and dignity intact rather than accept help from others and the black haired samurai could sense that the pirate lord was one such person. Besides, if he has a good reason for desperately clinging on to the facade of being the dreaded Pirate Lord then Noriko felt like he didn't have the right to blow his cover. Though he couldn't speak for anyone else who saw Saburo take a dip.

Upon getting back to the group, Noriko was immediately faced with a pressing problem. Apparently, Tsubaha was determined to hunt down the deceased man's murderers and she had already picked the assassin and the bandit to accompany her. She seemed convinced that whoever killed the man they encountered was a possible threat to the group but in this competition, everyone was a threat.

Still, knowing Tsubaha's true intentions for joining this competition and agreeing to form this group of misfits, he was convinced that she was also trying to sneak in looking for clues on Tsukaha's whereabouts. The threat of the man's murderer could just be a pretense she's going to use to do all this.

"Well, you are our leader so I trust that you know just what you're doing. However don't even think twice about retreating if you encounter enemies that you can't handle with just the three of you."

As soon as he had said that, Saburo returned and began stirring up trouble once more. This time, he seems to have detected someone watching them from the bushes and immediately got into action by launching a blast of water at the bushes. The attack hit its mark which apparently was one of the twins, Ran. Not letting the pirate's actions slide, she retaliated by firing a stone that narrowly missed Saburo by a few hairs. Anyone observant enough could tell that Ran had missed her throw on purpose.

Additionally, Nanami, the perceptive soul that she is, made a valid point about going up against their deceased discovery's murderers. And apparently having had enough of all the conversation going on and the lack of progress, Kei decided to prematurely return to camp.

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[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of the Shrine ]

Having had enough to deal with for one day, Tsubaha decides to return to camp as well, leaving the others to their own devices. But like the true sheep that they are, they follow their shepherd back to the Shrine. Along the way, the group encountered a pair of participants which they were able to harass into forfeiting their bells due to the group's vastly superior numbers.

The two participants could only throw idle threats as they fled in panic leaving the group with a total of three bells to their name. It was nowhere near their original number of bells but three was better than nothing. Considering that this was originally meant to be a scouting expedition, Noriko could say that they've been more than productive.

---

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

"Oi... you've gotta be kidding me right?" Noriko could only blurt out those words after seeing the woman that condifently and brazenly walked into their camp.

He didn't expect the final boss to face them so soon and it was at the worst situation possible. He had hoped that by the time they encounter Tsukaha, they would already have collected enough bells for everyone. That way, it'd be easier to convince the group to let Tsubaha fight her one on one. But faced with the temptation of those bells, he was not confident that he could hold back anyone from taking a shot at the renowned hero specially the reckless ones present.

Still he was well aware that if anyone other than Tsubaha tries to land a hit on her, then she would not hesitate to turn against the group.

"STOP! Everyone, stay where you're at!" Noriko shouted from the top of his lungs to get everyone's attention.

After doing so, he scanned his surroundings to do a quick head count and clicked his tongue after noticing that Yu wasn't present. She must be already planning to land a killing blow to Tsukaha when she least expects it.

"I know that everyone here wants to get back their bells as soon as possible. I know how important it is for you to get your wish whatever they may be, but for someone here, getting those bells won't grant her what she wants the most."

Truth and sincerity were the only paths he could take to get everyone to back down. It was the only way to get Tsubaha the fair fight that she wanted the most.

"That's because all Tsubaha-san wants is a fight with the renowned swordmaster, Tsukaha Xu fair and square. So I am asking all of you to stand down and let these two women fight!" the black haired samurai said as he bowed respectfully towards the rest of the group.

Of all the people that were present, he could think of a couple that may not be persuaded by his words. At the top of that list was Yu Ri who was undoubtedly planning something from the shadows. Kei's demonstration of his impatience also makes him a likely candidate as well as Saburo due to the recklessness he displayed. Finally there's Ran whose desire to free her sister from her bonds might just may out way the loyalty she displayed to Tsubaha, and Yuan, a bandit who would more than likely think of personal gain rather than the welfare of the group.

"Tch... there are far too many for me to restrain alone. And aside from that assassin who's probably already started making her move, I'm not sure how the others would act. I just have to watch out for her in the meantime, I suppose." Noriko thought while scanning his surroundings anxiously.


@Ehb @everyonecalmdownplease
[/fieldbox]

 

[Psyker Landshark]

[fieldbox= Yuan Liwei, #4dff4d, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of Shrine ]

"That's right, run home!" Yuan laughed as the fighter and swordsman cowered before Tsubaha, throwing their bells away and fleeing for their lives.

And there was the reason he'd been so receptive to the idea of grouping up: overwhelming numbers. As much as Yuan would have personally liked to just fight it out with the two they'd encountered, priorities came first. They were on a bit of a deadline here. Five more days, and he, and a few others, were dead men.

So for now, Yuan let his appetite for a fight grow, eagerly awaiting a worthy opponent...

---

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

...And lo and behold, a worthy opponent appeared before them. A famed swordstress, and of the Jiao School, to boot? Oh, how he fucking wanted this fight. To hell with the bells, to hell with the future. This was everything he'd been searching for in three years of banditry.

But Yu Ri's tap and Noriko's words gave him pause, bringing back a recollection of the words he'd shared with Tsubaha. Was this what the bushy-browed midget had entered the tournament for? Damn. He wasn't enough of a heel to take away someone's dreams of challenge like that. Too much of a kindred spirit to his own wishes.

"Oi, Jiao School bitch!" Yuan called out with a savage grin. "Much as I'd like to take the first dance, I think Tsubaha's got the most right to take a crack at you! Tell you what, we'll let you two fight first. She goes down, we'll play the rest of this your way." The bandit let one hand rest atop the pommel of his sword.

"Anyone got a problem with that, you can let the first fight play out, then do what you want. Of course, if the little miss there wins, the whole point's moot, yeah?" What went unsaid was his desire to challenge the winner of this fight, regardless of outcome.

@literally everyone
[/fieldbox]

 

[Rithas]

[fieldbox= Saburo, #FF00FF, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of the Shrine ]

Saburo didn't even get to ask why the twins were hiding in a bush before a rock rocketed through, nearly nipping his ear.

Hold steady, bladder.

"I think...." Saburo looked at Ran. "You're supposed to skip it on the water."

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[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, West of the Shrine ]

Technically this was exactly what he had wanted. The reward without any of the effort.

Not that them or anyone know that it was the actual killers. It most likely was. But they had no idea. They just surrended and ran away without another word.

"Ah, the typical reaction to seeing the Pirate King...."

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[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Fucking older siblings.

Ah, at least he could relate somewhat. Though he doubted his brothers were about to come throught the tree line with nineteen bells. He wouldn't even be mad if that happened.

So Tsubaha's sister was this famous swordstress? That might explain her whole complex towards stabbing things. Wanting to prove herself and all...Yes...yes....Tsubaha was just jealous!

Still, even is his non-existant warrior instincts told him that this person was very bad trouble. The whole walking in here like she owned the place wihh nineteen bells kinda tipped him off. And he could tell that it wasn't just stupid bravery. If anyone was going to have that trait in the family, Saburo felt like it would be Tsubaha.

Just let the family fight. He couldn't afford to fight her, even if he wanted to. She would shatter his image. That just can't happen.

Watching the others give their words, Saburo sighed slightly. Well, they had failed the first big chance they had. Which was to immeditally mob her and kick her to the curb. Nineteen bells was nineteen bells. Saburo was about to give his own excuse for not fighting when Noriko spoke.

"W-what?" The words came out in a quiet tone. "Are.....are you f-fucking serious!?" Saburo flailed his hands in the air. "That's all she wants! A fight against her sister? Honour that!? Thats....errrrr....stupid!" His voice cracking, Saburo held his hands out to Noriko as if he was trying to force choke him. "She'll lose! She will definitely lose! One of them has nineteen bells, the other drank water from a stranger she had never met!"

"Oh, you could have just said what I think which is that I don't really care about a family squabble. But to honour our...'party member' losing. That's...." Saburo bit his fist. "Great if your wish is to leave her to get bonked on the head."

Saburo pointed as Tsukaha. "Nineteen bells. You only need three for the wish. Which means that your wish is to be swordmaster! or you get off on hurting people you never know."

"If this stupid duel is really meant to happen, can't you...." Saburo, shrugged. "Leave it till the last day? I mean, I dunno about you. But this happening right now is a little anti-climatic. Wouldn't it be cooler if we had a lot more bells in play for this? Then, the winner would definitely be swordmaster! Now that sounds worthy of a battle!"

And delays the group's leader's soul being crushed. If Noriko is right and this is what she's in this whole thing for. Then if she gets stomped and looses her will and this group fall apart he was screwed! Which is not what he needed right now! No...if it's the last day the chance of him having the bells he needed by then were a lot higher. Hell, even if she won. Having the group leader get their objective two days in was also, not what he needed!

"So, can you, er...just wait a bit?"

@Ehb @Accelerator[/fieldbox]

 

[Karyra]

[fieldbox=Kei Daidouji, #00ffff, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Well that brought their total of bells up to... three. Which was enough to win, if he could get the darned things out from careful watch. Though, he doubted it. People already were thinking the same thing, no doubt. He'd have to wait. He had five more days before he was put back into the cell.

Which led to him sitting in a tree outside, happily eating the best food he'd had in a long time. He didn't want to be around the group at all right now, and the shrine would be tight enough with all those people inside. How could they stand that shrine so much?

That was when Tsubaha's sister showed up. With more than enough bells to last them all, he offered a challenge. Kei quietly drank his soup as the spectacle went on. He could enjoy the show, and doubt that anyone could get the bells of someone from the Wushu School. Much less someone who no doubt had also taken that many bells fair and square.

Runara apparently hurt her back from logging. Poor thing.

Rumiko accepted the offer. She had a chance to win, at least.

Yu Ri was nowhere to be seen, after Kei thought about having the assassin strike now while the warrior was distracted. Maybe she was going to give out bells like candy.

And of course, Noriko was shouting at the group to do the honorable thing and stay put. Lame, but in the end might be the more honorable route since they were more than likely going to lose.

"No worries, Mister Noriko! I plan on staying right here and finishing my dinner!" He stuffed a spoonful of soup into his mouth. "Oh, and when Tsubaha loses, are we then allowed to try out hand at challenging her? I'm kinda on a time limit, so I'd like to have my wish granted sooner than later."

Even if he was probably going to get his butt kicked thoroughly in the fight.

"And we don't have time to pretend that this isn't the shortest way to victory and that it's worth trying once. Though... that's not really your decision, Mister. Pirate. King. Tsubaha can fight whoever she wants, isn't that right? If she wants to fight, then she fights. If she loses, it's her loss. Failure is the greatest motivator that one could ever ask for. So I say let her make her choice." Kei started flipping a knife he pulled from seemingly nowhere, still holding his soup in his free hand. "Got it?"

Kei was smiling, but it wasn't friendly.

@EverybodyBetterStartStabbin @Rithas @Ehb
[/fieldbox]

 

[Miya]

[fieldbox= Tsubaki Hanejima, lightgreen, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

The first half of the day went without any fanfare, which Tsubaki was glad of. There were nice food as well, courtesy of Utashou. As for the scouting party, they managed to get 3 bells. It might be little, but it is better than nothing. The noble started to relax...

... Until a commotion happened. Tsubaki followed her employer to see what was going on, and her jaw dropped when she saw the figure that got surrounded by the others.

Tsukaha Xu.

The noble learned about her deeds through the elders of the Hanejima family, and her other senior acquaintances. A prodigy in swordsmanship that accrued countless victories. The probable successor of Swordmaster Lee. The white haired noble narrowed her eyes as she continued to observe the banter unfolding in front of her.

Tsubaha was the prodigy's younger sister. With that fact alone, the noble realized that she and Runara are in a deeper trouble than it seems. Tsukaha also mentioned that they are supposed to leave if they lost their bells. Then again, would not that amount to death since there are Shang soldiers armed with crossbows that will shoot at anyone that tries to leave the battleground ?

The conversation eventually ended with the Swordstress Prodigy asking for a fair duel, after showing off her 19 bells.

("Despite being Tsukaha Xu, I believe she wouldn't be dumb enough to waltz in here without some form of backup. Nineteen bells, sounds tempting. But I know better than picking a fight from you.")

The Hanejima noble thought to herself as she scanned the people around her. Little she knows that Runara was already making her move on Tsukaha. Fortunately, the Doven managed to stop, before saying her back hurts. With a panicked expression, Tsubaki immediately grabbed Runara's hand and whisked her away from the prodigy's sight, into a wall nearby, away the crowd. As the others started to respond to Tsukaha's challenge...

"Are you serious?!" Tsubaki stared at Runara with a shocked expression, clutching her shoulders. "That's Tsukaha Xu! The Swordstress that is renowned for her prodigal skills! Before you know what's hitting you, you're already dead!"

She said with a fearful whisper. "Not to mention even though she is a skilled swordstress, one does not simply walk into the enemy's den..."

@LowDefinition
[/fieldbox]

 

[Akashi]

[fieldbox= Nanami Houhou, #FFFF99]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Midday / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

From one bell to two? No three. On their way back from a silly discussion back by the river, they stumbled upon, or rather, two goons stumbled upon them and realized they made a grave mistake. Scared and filled with regret, they gave up their two bells to Nanami and the others on their way back to the shrine. "Well.. I suppose we made the right decision to head back.. Huh?"

Upon their return, they met up with the rest of their group. Presenting them with what they had found and answers to some of their questions about what they had to report. A dead corpse, a boasting Pirate who got soaked by the river. The twins who were checking them up from afar but ended up getting soaked, or, at least one of them. And then the two dimwits who gave the two more bells.

While temporary, they had settled back at the shrine. Food was being cooked, and eventually everyone dived in. Nanami was hungy, so she ate like a bear. Focused on her blade, she began to sharpen it, out of habit. To pass the time and to move on with the rest. Despite the odd air around the group, they were doing fairly well, so to speak?

It all came to an halt when an uninvited guest stopped by at their camp. Sheating her well-sharpened blade, her eyes landed on the stranger. "What now?" Nanami stood up and walked up with the rest, or those who actually decided to face this new person. Judging by Tsubaha's reaction, and the name Tsukaha, Nanami's eyes widened ever so slightly. She knew about this swordstress and her reputation.

Though it did not take long for her to brag about her nineteen or so bells. Just being this close to someone like Tsukaha Xu sent shivers down her spine. Not because she was afraid, but because of her excitement. Like Yuan, she was more than eager to fight her, to test herself against someone who was a formidable opponent, and probably more.

However, because of her code, she lightened her grip around her blade. A concentrated, yet focused sigh escaped her lips. Nanami closed her eyes for a few seconds. Once Noriko and the others were done talking about what to do next or how to approach this situation, she spoke up. "An honorable fight? Against Tsubaha-chan? I will not stand in the way of it. You may do as you please." Glancing at Tsubaha for a moment, she turned to her side.

Giving the others a simple look, some were not satisfied. "But I'd like to have a crack at you as well, Tsukaha Xu. Heh." A grin was plastered on her face.

"If you would be honorable enough to give me a chance to fight you as well.." A rhetoric response, before she took a small pause.

"This is something between the two sisters, people. Despite the temptation to take those nineteen bells, we should give them a chance to settle this." Even if the quick approach would be to just attack her with the rest, that was likely a bad decision. Tsukaha Xu was brave enough to come to their camp. She could probably fight them off or hold her own.

'Nineteen bells huh?'

@Ehb @Theentireweebgroup
[/fieldbox]

 

[ShiroKiyoshi]

[fieldbox=Black Nightingale, #D3D3D3, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn Down Shrine ]

Grrr...

Black was of course sound asleep, having the same nightmare, in what became his usual spot in the back of the Shrine. It wasn't until there was a bunch of people yelling and bickering, and then there was a jingle -- a cascade of jingling -- that he started to wake. In his dreams the jingle of the bells came like little droplets of water. He stared at them as they dropped from nowhere, sort of entranced by them, they broke the darkness and dispelled his nightmare. Freed from his own fabricated prison, he opened his eyes, and looked down to find a Tanuki sleeping at his feet, he raised a brow at the little thing before patting it with his tail. Of course it woke and scurried away, but it brought his attention to something else moving in the brush. Black readied himself for a fight, but just for a moment he saw who it was; Yu Ri. He sighed and disengaged.

With his attention focused on connecting with the real-world again he could hear Nanashi talking about two sisters fighting. Instinctively, he thought they were talking about the twins and so he casually walked around the side of the Shrine with a yawn to go see them duke it out. Though he thought it was highly unlikely that those two sisters would fight, it would be interesting to find out nonetheless. So, as he turned the corner and saw Tsubaha and Tsukaha staring at each other, he raised a brow.

"Ah, those two... sisters?" Black mumbled to himself. He examined Tsukaha, really just drowning everyone else out now, they were so loud. Maybe if she had a tail she'd be more of his type. Oh, she also had bells. A lot of bells, Black noticed that too. "What the hell are they all doing?"

Black held his fist as if he had a knife in it and bounced around a bit. Just then he remembered seeing Yu Ri and what Nanashi said earlier. If he did this, he knew he could screw something up, it messed with his head. He knew something would go wrong, but those bells jingled and he thought that if it didn't go bad, he could really do some good.

"That settles it then. Yu Ri's a smart girl, let's hope I can stay alive long enough for this." Black muttered to himself as he kicked off the ground with a rush of air, giving him a faster start, as he ran at Tsukaha.

Alright, Black, swords. Use your head, parry, parry, and run her down. Keep her facing me.

Just as Black had thought to himself, he ran straight at Tsukaha, aiming to catch her off guard and slam his fist into her neck. Though, he had already taken in the distance he had to run and assumed that to be impossible. He was counting on her noticing him and engaging, it'd be easier on him if he could take the defensive in this one, as if his allies were as opportunistic as he was, they'd take this chance to seize the bells. Though, being asleep, he missed what was making them so hesitant.

@Ehb
@ERode
@Akashi
@LetsFite
[/fieldbox]

 

[Skyswimsky]

[fieldbox= Ran Yiban, #4da6ff, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn Down Shrine ]
"Are you stupid?" Ran did not smile as she asked Tsukaha(@Ehb) in a serious tone. "That's the first time I heard of such a rule if it even is a rule. I suppose nobody bothered mentioning it because who would even control if anyone had ever zero bells at the end of it?" After all, despite how honorable the Festival of Swords was supposed to be, anything seemed to go. And it was no surprise either with all the criminal scum around. Survival of the fittest.

Her smile returned a bit, however, as suddenly the stupid girl revealed A LOT of bells. Like, all of them. She mentioned something about those other people, maybe they were her backup? She seemed too full of herself to team up with anyone thou.

This was great.
This was perfect.
This was absolutely phenomenal.
This was a blessing.

Maybe the Miko's prayers actually did something.
Maybe a god, or whatever, did exist.
Maybe there was Justice.

Ran smiled genuinely, for just a moment, realizing her sister was soon to be free before she actually looked pissed - genuinely. All in less than two seconds.

"Are YOU ALL stupid?" She now asked as the group, instead of being useful, started...what exactly? Arguing. Being dumb? So they were sisters. Great, Tsubaha mentioned something about that, right. Instead of a feud they should take a page from Ran and Lan's relationship! "Just now, a girl too full of herself -unless she has backup- walked into our camp. One versus many. ONE. VERSUS. MANY. Even if she is able to defeat one, or two, or three, or even five of us, we should win! With the exception of the prostitute, I am sure that everybody here knows HOW TO FIGHT. So, unless this stupid sister girl has offensive capabilities to destroy the entire shrine in one go AND some defensive maneuvers to block a COORDINATED ATTACK, after all, she should be as frail as every single one of us,—" Ran put a lot of emphasis on COORDINATED. Sure, if they were all just running one after the other against her. They had to be on the same page, hence, the white-hair actually being furious. "—WE. SHOULD. WIN. And if she is indeed THAT powerful, 5 days of intense training won't help us become THAT MUCH STRONGER. So, to win, we NEED COORDINATION. So WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? I don't care about your silly honor. My INNOCENT sister's life is at stake. Not to mention, we don't have to kill her and cute Tsubaha can have her duel some other time. All honorable. Easy, right? So... DO SOMETHING BEFORE THIS BLACK IDIOT'S ATTEMPT GETS HIM KILLED FOR NOTHING." There wouldn't be another chance coming up like this, would it? The white-hair was serious enough about this, for Lan, to not wear her mask for a moment. Ran wouldn't let it slip.

Surely, even if some of them were being dumb of not grabbing the dozen-or-so-bells from her, some others had to join? Group mentality and all! Removing her giant beating stick from her back, as she doubted to ever be able to hit Tsukaha and it only slowed her down, Ran drew her two daggers instead, eyeing for an opportunity to either distract or strike the bell girl. She made sure that these toothpicks were comfortable enough to be thrown, too.

There was no smile.

@Ehb
@_LITERALLY EVERYBODY
[/fieldbox]

 

[RedArmyShogun]

[Fieldbox= Rumiko Mitsurugi, #b30000, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn Down Shrine ]

And of course the others devolved the situation at this point. The former scout leader, that Rumiko has suspected had close ties to the leader all but confirmed as much, with how much he knew about Tsubaha and Tsukaha he also had to be a Jiao School student.

Others either supported the notion or suspect she would lose, things then went even more to hell. But one thing had struck the Miko, what actually had happened to the two she ran into and why had they told this swordswoman anything? Narrowing her eyes with that revelation, there was too much politics going on here, too much of Shang.

There was also the sinking thought that had only now occurred to Rumiko, the attacker who came here had way more bells than she needed, way too many..

"..you don't care about a wish or anything do you? Only battle or is it slaughter?" Saying her thoughts aloud, in an almost hushed tone the Miko would be troubled more by Black's sudden rush, the assassin had vanished and the twin known as Ran had went into a rant with a few words that stuck out.

Did they just let bell-less people leave? The rules had stated you only needed Three bells at the end to have your wish. She knew people in higher postings had stacked and manipulated the game to a point with bets, the swordswoman here and she herself had shown, even when you have your three bells you could remain.. Would they kick a person out with none..or was this all just a pointless death match?

There was one final issue, if the swordswoman had killed those two as she suspected then this was all likely part of some Family grudge, she had purposely came here to break Tsubaha and to fight them, purely out of selfish interest, such a person could be a threat to the Shrine and there was one more nagging issue that had developed from the three being here..

"Jiao School? Honor? What good has your Jiao school done these few years? ..Thousands are counting upon my Wish..maybe even more.. WHAT HAVE YOU ALL DONE FOR ANYONE ELSE NOT IN YOUR TEA HOUSE OF A SCHOOL!?"

Seemingly snapping into a battle minded state, at the prestigious school and it's seemingly untouched state in the world, Rumiko's muscles seem to bulk slightly as she takes a fighting stance mixed with that of a prayer.

"BLACK!?" With her thoughts finally having caught up with the situation on hand, the Miko was not a political sort and it took her time to see some situations for what they were. This would be a dangerous battle, Tsukaha was dangerous.. but wasn't she as well? The Priestess had spent much time killing bandits, monsters, dismissing evil spirits and covering her fists in blood. She just wasn't as popular.. Building up her confidence, the Miko would rather not break her earlier words, but she was unsure of the sort of being this Tsukaha was, but one thing was for sure, those spare bells likely mean she was a sadist or a snob that marked people as worthy.

Stepping off on her leg in a sudden bursts of speed, the Miko didn't like the fact she would have to show the Houten Ryu to so many others was a disappointing one, but anything less would mean her own defeat or worse.

Meeting a gaze with Tsubaha in passing and a tiny jerk of her head, the Miko seemed to be saying; DO SOMETHING!! For all of the oddity of the situation, her thoughts lingered back, for now they had to keep Black alive.. Absurd, all of this so absurd.

"YUAN! A Miko and a Bandit walk into a Bar!" If the bandit would aid her in this task till a more solid plan was formed was something else, keeping her eyes fixed on the woman, there was another part to this joke..one which she wouldn't mention just yet, the girl was likely already on the move as the Miko went left, fist raised back.

A Miko a bandit and an Assassin..

[/Fieldbox]
@Psyker Landshark @Ehb @ShiroKiyoshi @ERode @Skyswimsky @Accelerator (direct mentions ore pertaining to) @others (if yah wanna stop meh or join the battle royale)

 

[Love]

[fieldbox= Rizen, #00ffa5, solid]

[Month of Renewal, 15th - Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest]


"Good lord, that did it!"

With a satisfied smile, Rizen stood up, fixing his pants.
While being in a forest in the middle of nowhere is horrible when nature calls, at least you can go deep into the woods and hide in the bushes, and,

"I'll blame the smell on the animals!"

Yeah, no, don't grin like an idiot like he did.

It is now evening, quite some time has passed since the whole party regrouped.
The staying party cooked up a nice dinner, thanks to Utashou's cooking skill and the tinders that Runara and Rizen gathered.
The scouts came back with a boatload of information to share.
They managed to land themselves a few bells, 3 to be exact, one from a dead body, which is suspicious on its own, and the other two, according to them, was too long a story to be told.
Meanwhile, Rizen has just managed to overcome his personal issues of angry stomach.

He's quite deep in the forest, as he walked away from the shrine in order to, uh, blame the animals, as he said before.
But now seeing that he has finished blaming the animals, it is time to go back.
The sun flickered crimson and the last thing he would like to find himself in is in a dark forest, or worse, stepped on his own dung in a dark forest.

As Rizen made his way back to the shrine, he hummed with a big grin and arms swinging wide.
That behavior however, was not for long,

"!!!"
Rizen's eyes sharpened, his head turned around wildly, left and right, seemingly searching for something, or someone.

Rizen has an uncanny ability that borders extrasensory, in his words, he's "feeling the wind".
The elemental elders called it, "blessed by the elements", as one who is in tune with the world.
The elites of various martial arts sects called it, "a wild wolf's instinct", based on Rizen's natural talents.
Most people however, would refer to him as "touched in the head", as in, he's hearing voices.
In this case, he sensed imminent danger, a sinister wind, one that touched his spine with tingling chills.

"STOP! Everyone, stay where you're at!"

And he's right, that was Noriko shouting, and whatever that was, it's certainly not pleasant.
Commotion, heavy crashing sounds. Rizen can hear his friends distant voices yet they were unclear.

Rizen hastened his pace, he ran through the thick bushes towards the shrine as fast as he could.
His breath heavy, many scenarios rapidly revolved in his mind as he can only imagined what actually happened on the shrine. Were they perhaps screaming? Would he be too late?

And as the shrine was in his sights, Rizen soon saw a spectacle seemingly out of this world.
There stood a lone girl, brandishing her sword, with nineteen bells on her hand.
It's a familiar figure for Rizen that greeted him as he quickly made his way to join the ranks of his friends.

"T-tsukaha... chan?"

It was Tsubaha's older sister, the famed swordstress Tsukaha Xu, someone Rizen personally knew from his days back in the Wushu school.
Rizen might be dense and stupid when it comes to personal interaction, and his late arrival eclipsed him from what happened a few minutes before, but this immediate situation is very easy for him to grasp.
She issued a challenge.

"Ahahaha! Oh come on, don't joke around, Tsukaha-chan! Why don't you take a seat and share your stories with us?"
was what Rizen wanted to say, but he arrived far too late.

His friends already chose a bold option, as some of them have primed themselves up for a confrontation. For one, Yu Ri has quickly made herself disappear, and Runara apparently tried to do something stupid.

"W-wait... Guys, can we....."

And there goes Black.

"Wha..."
And Rizen's thoughts went faster than a bullet train, so fast he couldn't hear what Ran was screaming about.
Black would die a pointless death if he's not stopped.
Hundreds of possible options flashed upon Rizen as the world seems to crawl as slow as a snail.

What to do?
Rush!
Jump!
Glide!
Flashstep!
Hadoken!
Grapple!
Trip!
Takedown!

Not good, the first few options he could think of would not work, not this time.

"YUAN! A Miko and a Bandit walk into a Bar!"
as Rumiko signalled something to Yuan and Tsubaha, a new option dawned upon Rizen, something that he felt confident with, that is:

Coordinated attack from all directions!

Uh, okay, let's try that again.....
Coordinated attack from all directions!

.....

Rizen fell silent, his tongue clicked hard as his instincts told him the futility of that option.
At this point, Tsukaha's presence reminded him of a rather unpleasant memory.
A memory that to this day, still freezes him solid, rendering him unable to move for even an inch,

---

"Hohoho... Little Rizen... Is that all you amount to?"​

---

As he tried to fight the goosebumps creeping up his neck, Rizen could have sworn he saw Tsukaha showing a slight grin as his friends rushed upon her.

[/fieldbox]

@Ehb
@everyone

 

[Psyker Landshark]

[fieldbox= Yuan Liwei, #4dff4d, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Annnd never mind. Seemed that everyone else would rather just attack. Man, Tsubaha was going to kill them if they made it out of this. Still, with Black's impulsive charge and Ran's frenzied screaming, Yuan sighed, his sword hand falling down to the hilt of his wodao. If they did nothing, Black would probably get himself killed. He really should have seen this coming. Of course someone would lose their composure and charge.

"YUAN! A Miko and a Bandit walk into a Bar!"

He didn't even know what the hell that meant. Still, that was just more reason to charge. Better for everyone to follow a shit idea than for people to start second-guessing and holding back. Yuan turned to Tsubaha before he charged, sending her an apologetic glance.

"Sorry, kiddo. If I had it my way, I would've let you have your duel. Too bad Black's about to get himself killed." He said, settling down into a battle stance as he drew his sword.

"Come on, then! Face the last practitioner of the Tianlong style!" Yuan bellowed, stepping to the side before dashing in to flank Tsukaha.

@everybody
[/fieldbox]

 

[Ehb]

[fieldbox=Tsubaha Mori, Red, Solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

The first person who spoke to her. A Doven, easily identified by their tail.

"You... do realize that not everyone joining this tournament is a goody two shoes right?"

"Yeah." Tsubaha replied in a polite and dry tone.

"We technically never lost our bells according to the actual rules. After all, one takes the bell if they bested another in combat... no?"

The girl with the tail seemed to attempt to swing her sword.... but she appeared to be inclined to retire due to some ailment of her body. But, there were more people there still who spoke to her. An abnormally towering and muscular person stepped forward.


"I am Rumiko Mitsurugi, a Priestess of the Kousen Sect, I am not a bandit. I have suffered and went far as I decided it..while I will keep my agreement with this group, I cannot participate in more injustice..."

She bowed as a humble greeting. To this Tsukaha did likewise, albeit hesitantly.

"Tsukaha Xu.. I will group with them till we have what was taken unjustly. I wish to accept your offer to battle.. I cannot speak for the rest, but one on one might be slow.. If we fight you however in smaller groups, I would wish for a fair winning. Taking all of your bells, even if we could, would be as unjust as what was done to us."

The miko thereafter took up a fighting stance. Yes. She wanted to fight as well it seemed. At that same time, Tsukaha heard it. The sound of something sifting into the grass. Someone was already making preparations to make the first strike. With that apparancy, Tsukaha, seeming to respond to the miko's words, waved her free hand forward and backwards.

That was the sign to move forward.


"Winning after ganging up on me deserves a 'fair winning'? I wonder what that would amount to?"

"STOP! Everyone, stay where you're at!"

"I know that everyone here wants to get back their bells as soon as possible. I know how important it is for you to get your wish whatever they may be, but for someone here, getting those bells won't grant her what she wants the most."

"Wow. Noriko. You're in this thing too? I feel like I should be scolding you over joining this lot. Unless... you lost your bell just like the rest of them too."

"That's because all Tsubaha-san wants is a fight with the renowned swordmaster, Tsukaha Xu fair and square. So I am asking all of you to stand down and let these two women fight!"

"N-noriko! You....!"
"Aww. I'm touched. Tsubaha."

Tsukaha said. Smiling to the corners of her mouth. But also looking amused at the same time.


"Oi, Jiao School bitch!"
"Much as I'd like to take the first dance, I think Tsubaha's got the most right to take a crack at you! Tell you what, we'll let you two fight first. She goes down, we'll play the rest of this your way."

"Anyone got a problem with that, you can let the first fight play out, then do what you want. Of course, if the little miss there wins, the whole point's moot, yeah?"

Another wish for battle. This time from the vagrant looking one. Tsukaha looked in his direction.

"Huh. You're..."

For a moment, her expression betrayed a look of curiosity. But, her attention to the general area returned when another rustle from the grass was heard. Possibly from the one who was circling around her at this moment. But that was interceded by the chatter of one in the crowd.


"She'll lose! She will definitely lose! One of them has nineteen bells, the other drank water from a stranger she had never met!"

The one chattering, the purple haired one, pointed at her. "Nineteen bells. You only need three for the wish. Which means that your wish is to be swordmaster! or you get off on hurting people you never know."

"I can clearly hear you, you know."

"If this stupid duel is really meant to happen, can't you.... Leave it till the last day? I mean, I dunno about you. But this happening right now is a little anti-climatic. Wouldn't it be cooler if we had a lot more bells in play for this? Then, the winner would definitely be swordmaster! Now that sounds worthy of a battle!"
"So, can you, er...just wait a bit?"

It sounded like a question was something more appropriate to ask of Tsubaha. She looked over to her sister.

"I won't!"
"And there you have it."

"If you would be honorable enough to give me a chance to fight you as well.."
"This is something between the two sisters, people. Despite the temptation to take those nineteen bells, we should give them a chance to settle this."

The amount of people lining up to fight against Tsukaha continued to grow.

"Right now. There's one person I'd really like to oblige to a challenge, certainly. But, some of us aren't making that very easy, now are we?"

Tsukaha said, seeming to call out to the person darting around them.


"..you don't care about a wish or anything do you? Only battle or is it slaughter?"

"Oh come now priestess, I'm not like that exactly. Though, I think there's humor in the fact you're the one presenting me with question."

"Jiao School? Honor? What good has your Jiao school done these few years? ..Thousands are counting upon my Wish..maybe even more.. WHAT HAVE YOU ALL DONE FOR ANYONE ELSE NOT IN YOUR TEA HOUSE OF A SCHOOL!?"

"Huh? Well, it's not my fault that you're people screwed themselves over."

"BLACK!?"
"YUAN! A Miko and a Bandit walk into a Bar!"

The rest happened so quickly.
Several people went forward, and attacked.
Some of them looking at Tsubaha, apologetically, and the lack of overall leadership.
There was no helping it. Thus began an ill advised sudden attack to take Tsukaha down.


From the front, the two flanks, and potentially behind. Tsukaha Xu was being attacked from all fronts. She had her eyes locked on black, who was rapidly charging at her. The four synchronized, launching an attack that would simultaneously hit her from all sides. There was no way she could possibly defend her self and counter from all sides. Especially given she didn't even have her blade ready.

Before this, Tsukaha seemed to be taking a step back. This action set off Yu who had been waiting for the opportunity. For that opportunity had just presented itself in full view for a strike from behind.

There was no way to fully deflect all four at once as she was.
Tsukaha knew this. Tsubaha was well aware of it.

The only answer...

The four of them smashed into one another at the center where they met. At was at that same time that Tsubaha heard some hollow clangs, and felt a hand take her shoulder. She looked aside to complete surprise.

"Hey, Tsubaha."

The person that had landed by her was Tsukaha.

Tsubaha felt her shoulder being pressured to go down.

"What are you doing? Stop pushing."

Tsukaha raised her arm into the air.

"I guess we couldn't just talk and do things fairly. Fine then! You people think I just walked up unprepared!?"

Anyone with command experience could recognize it.
With a deft chop downward, in the direction of the four who collided.

Tsukaha commanded the marksmen in the treeline to 'fire'. Everyone had been focusing on Tsukaha the entire time to the point that the rangers had managed to approach and come into range without notice.


Their primary targets were Rumiko, Yuan, Yu, and Black.

The First Volley....
Just barely scraped past the Miko and Yu. However, a couple of arrows found their mark on Yuan and Black. An arrow struck into each one of them, either in an arm or a leg. Not hitting anything vital, but they definitely struck into them.

A stray bolt even landed close to Tsubaha.

("Archers!? No... those are crossbolts!")

The same sort of projectile they'd found on the corpse at the beach. A bolt... heavier and shorter than an arrow. But harder hitting. Black and Yuan were probably feeling that now.

But, that raised even more question.Tsubaha could only look at her sister apprehensively.

"Tsubaha... you already have three bells already. Why are you even still with this group of nobodies. -NorikoandRizennonwithstandinguntilfurtherquestioning."

"That's..."

Tsukahas finally drew her sword.
it was curious, as it made a hollow hum in the air as it was moved.
That wasn't any normal sword then? And in the hands of someone like Tsukaha, she had no chance.

"Well? Why?"

A dark thought crossed Tsubaha's mind.
With the three bells, she could save herself here.

There was high chance that they were going to get massacred if they chose to fight here.

And, if the implications of those crossbow bolts were true, then that meant that even if she escaped with them, they'd be hunted down for not having bells.

For the others around her, Tsukaha Xu suddenly gave of this heavy and oppressive pressure.
The unmistakable feeling of evil ones whom were about to be struck down by a hero. Oppressive and hopeless.

They couldn't lose Tsubaha - and the three only bells they had.
But they had to run if they had any chance of surviving.

@RedArmyShogun
@Psyker Landshark
@ERode
@ShiroKiyoshi
@_Everyone
[/fieldbox]

 

[RedArmyShogun]

[Fieldbox= Rumiko Mitsurugi, #b30000, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Of course everything seemed to decend more and more into chaos, and she didn't have the chance to respond to the girl. Even though their attack had failed, her principle goal was to save Black from his reckless charge, knowing full well this situation would likely turn dicey, she had not expected this level of collusion. As soon as she ran into the rest, the Miko who was rather used to fighting things who were not all that human, immediately drops and rolls, springboarding to her feet. Taking note the Assassin was also quick to move, crossbow bolts had sailed past her head, and other parts, hitting Yuan and Black..lightly or not she wasn't about to take the time to see.

What was to follow next was the realization a person with a slight case of paranoia has when they are proven correct. In this case it was; "SHANG!" In spite of the near certain death, she had said Shang was taking favorites and with several well supplied crossbows being fired at them, there was no way those men didn't have Shang Chainmail under their clothing. Even if they were not in uniform, in fact they likely were, in the Miko's mind.

Then of course the woman who had vanished mid attack, was now closing on their leader, had they did this properly.. Well it didn't matter now and the Miko had many of her suspicions confirmed, if not for the fact some of this group were good, she would have used the chaos to slip away and left them to their fate.

If those without bells were truly being hunted down, did they had little to no choice, they needed bells, but this large of a grouping had made them public enemy number one.

How in the name of the Spirits and ancestors did I become the bad guy?

They could turn and fight the archers, but if they were, and all signs pointed at them being Shang Military, then that would bring the Garrison down on them, if they fought her, then they would likely fail if she got serious. Wracking her brain on what to do, Rumiko preferred working alone and against things she could see and fpunch, as a result she was not very diplomatic in the least.

"Hey, if you are running that hunter killer squad..why did you all kill that man at the river? He had one.. No, the bells don't matter at all do they? Some noble or another has a hit list of those they don't want winning, but I had my bells and was leaving till I had them robbed."

Voicing her paranoid viewpoint, the Miko was careful to keep moving, waiting for the impending second volley. With what she had said earlier, Tsukaha was cocky she unfortunately could back it up. While all here, they could have taken her.. probably... But now with those Archers? Angrily glaring, she had been correct, from the Shang to needing to split up or going on to find more bells, if they survived this.. she was likely done listening to any commands or suggestions from this group.

"If you were serious about accepting that offer, I'm still for it, I was just trying to keep them alive..No tricks planned here, I'm not smart enough for that.."

For now she was attempting to draw the woman's attention, or to maybe get things back to the original intention. Even if they ran they would be hunted, but fighting under the current situation was a death sentence, this was a fated encounter.. If the Miko had the skill to do so, she would have attempted talking the woman into give them a few bells with the promise of being able to fight and kill them later.

Their dishonorable and dishonest greed had gotten them all into a shaky situation. If they attacked under the current rules then some would die, if they ran and this rule on the bells or her own paranoia was true, they would still die, but a few hours later. All in all Rumiko didn't know what else to do but offer the standing of honor that might appeal to the woman, but would she trust it? More importantly what would this group do, now that they were staring a very real death in the face? More and more this was becoming a bad deal.

@Ehb @others
[/fieldbox]

 

[ERode]

[fieldbox=Yu Ri, #DDA0DD, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Who could have predicted this tragedy? Everyone, really. Yu Ri didn't even have a reason for launching an attack once the swordmistress called her out directly. But it was a synchronized attack, and perhaps the combination of Rumiko, Yuan, and Black would have been enough after all, so the assassin girl dove into the horrid mess and extracted herself just as quickly. The clash of steel and bodies, the thrum of bolts through the air, and the assassin was skimming towards the treeline, diving towards the saftey of concealment once again.

Tsukaha may be out of their reach without the entirety of the group descending upon her, but as far as threats went...

Four crossbowmen within the forest. She'll clear them first under the guise of simply running away.

Within the shrubbery and the darkness of the night, Yu Ri slid through the terrain, a knife spinning in her hand. The bowmen, from the quick glance she had of the bolts' trajectories, were situated in a spread out, crescent formation, and the first one should be merely fifteen feet away. From the shrine, their forms were obscured by the shadows of the forest, but now that she was back in the treeline, the light from the flaming torches of the shrine served to outline their silhouettes perfectly.

She took a step...and then Rumiko's speech sounded through the night air.

They only had five days left. They still had five days left.

A breath. Reestablish the parameters.

There was no one here who she was obliged to kill.

She backed off further into the treeline, masking her presence and extinguishing her killing intent. And for the time being...Yu Ri listened.

@Ehb
[/fieldbox]

 

[Karyra]

[fieldbox=Kei Daidouji, #00ffff, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Kei finished helping of soup just as Black and the others foolishly broke the rules. Did they really think that she didn't have a backup just in case something like this happened. He was all for being honorable and whatever, this time. Mostly because she was certain to kick their butts if they had waited to try her challenge.

"Gods above, you're all dense."

Kei hopped down from his tree, preparing knives. Bowmen. Crossbows. Poison? Didn't seem like it, or the two who had been shot would be feeling it. Same bolts from before. So Tsuhaka had been staking out the shrine at least. There was no way that she hadn't, if she could walk in and plan an ambush like this.

"Looks like it's time to ditch the shrine, everybody! Now, Those with range cover those who don't while we get away. And maybe next time, we all stop acting like bandits. Because believe it or not, looks like that thinking screwed us all over!"

He could run. He could just run without a care in the world about these idiotic people. It'd be easy.

Tsubaha had the bells. Well, guess it was nice thought while it lasted.

Kei dashed towards the clearing, moving fast and staying low while moving towards Yuan and Black. If those arrows fired again, that would hurt. He didn't particularly like pain. However, the rangers with the crossbows were all hidden, so he'd be throwing a knife completely blind. So it was deal with the archers and help move whoever was injured.

"If anyone took an arrow in the leg I'll help them move. Rumiko and Yu, I need you two to help cover me while I move them. Even if Rumiko manages to get the challenge back, they are done fighting for a little while. For the moment, no killing. Don't think we need to kill in order to win here."

This had gone to hell in a hand-basket. All it took was a little patience and a little attempt at honor. It really wasn't much. Of course, nobody had really wanted to do that. Maybe if honor was on the line, they should tie up and watch Yu Ri, Yuan, and Black.

"Tsubaha, you're not the type to abandon someone when they need help. Heck you even took that dumb charm from that guy. If you want vengeance for him, you have to live through it. Tsuhaka's goons shot him, so it them you have to fight. So help us, we help you get even for that guy. Please."

If Tsubaha ran with those bells, there went his chances of stealing them for himself. There went his chances of keeping this group together. He needed this wish. He needed to be free of that tiny cell. If this fell apart, he'd rather die than go back. So desperation it was. Playing nice and saying please and thank you and pretending to be a servant it was.

@FoolsWhoRushedIn @RedArmyShogun @ERode @Psyker Landshark @ShiroKiyoshi
[/fieldbox]

 

[Rithas]

[fieldbox= Saburo, #FF00FF , solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn-Down Shrine ]

Saburo raised his hands at Kei and Tsubaha. "N-nono.....You guys aren't getting the picture here! Sto-stop acting like this all matter-"

And then everything went a little crazy.

Black, Yuan, Miko and at some point Yu even though Saburo had no idea when she got around to the back. All deciding that now was a great time to attack. Not all of them at the very start. But just four now. Maybe it was still possible...there was four of them. Surely they had a chance.

He closed his eyes in anticipation.

Nope.

When he had opened his eyes again Tsukaha seemed to effortlessly dodge all four. Leading the group to collide in comical fashion. Yeah, she sure looked like someone you could duel one on one.

Little shadows littered the sky for a moment. Saburo felt his breath catch. Arrows? No. As the objects landed, Saburo saw the familarilty to the body on the riverbank.

Crossbowmen in the trees. Evidenced by the bolts that rained down. This....wasn't good.

Don't cry don't cry don't cry.

The people around him seemed to spring into action. Like they knew what to do. He should stop standing still. He should be doing something. Moving to attack! Or defend, or just running away. Gods, why wasn't he running away. The fact that his legs seemed to be frozen with some magic at the moment was adding to his problems.

His eyes caught the bolts sticking out of Yuan and Black. He cringed. How much did that hurt. Was it deadly? He felt like he would soon find out if things didn't improve. He should help them. Wait, no he shouldn't! They got themselves and everyone else in this mess! They deserved this!

Is that what he was telling himself? It wasn't wrong.

His hand twitched.

Next, his eyes went back to the scene of the skilled warrior trying to kill them and her annoying little eyebrow sister. Ah, maybe that's why he hadn't run away yet. She still had the bells! They needed those! She couldn't be lost here. He scolded himself. Also because something bad could happen to her. Even though she tried to stab him and this was all totally her fault as well.

Stupid siblings....this was so stupid. Stupid stupid and he was going to die in the middle of this stupid forest because of these stupid people. Should had of just listened to him and ran away...

Saburo found it hard to pick out any specific voices as sound seemed to fade out to him.. But his sub-concious picked up on Kei trying to convince Tsubaha to run and stay with them. Oh yeah...was she being doubted....Saburo couldn't focus. Couldn't remember what had happened five seconds ago.

....She also knocked him out.........

Through the chaos. Something wrapped around Tsubaha's leg. Whatever it was pulled, and Tsubaha found herself being flung away from her sister. Away from the treeline of crossbowmen. And basically hurtling towards whatever tree or bush was on the other side of the clearing. Saburo had not checked before his hand had moved into action.

It would probably not be a soft landing for her.

"NotimeforspeechesbutItotallywillfightforyourfightagainstyouroldersistercauseoldersiblingsuckbutwereallyneedtorun. S-Sorry!" He mumbled, even though she most likely couldn't hear him.

@Ehb @Everyone. @Isitabirdisitaplanenoit'sTsubaha![/fieldbox]

 

[ShiroKiyoshi]

[fieldbox=Black Nightingale, #D3D3D3, solid]
[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn Down Shrine ]

Well, that was bit much. Rumiko yelled Black's name as she joined him in his effort to take down Tsukaha. Then came a reluctant Yuan who dashed forward with his blade. From the looks of it they were going to be able to capture and lock down Tsukaha for Yu Ri to deliver a decisive strike.

Appearances could be deceiving. Tsukaha vanished into thin air leaving the rest of them standing in confusion. Yu Ri had retreated, Rumiko merely stopped, and the same went for Black. This left Black in weird state of confusion until he heard Tsukaha behind him, he turned to go rush after her, but felt an arrow strike him in the leg. He dove for cover behind some of the rubble of the Shrine and stared at the arrow lodged in his leg.

"Well, it ain't so bad." Black mumbled to himself.

Seeing as he couldn't help many others with the pain in his leg, he broke off the arrowhead, and slid the shaft out. Using a piece of the sash around his waist he patched his leg up and pushed himself into the woods using his wind.

In the woods he didn't really move. He just sat there catching his breath, he had no idea where the arrows came from, but he knew they were behind him at least, so he sat with his back to a tree and to them.

"Can Shortstack do that to?" Black said, sucking his teeth. "And how'd she do that? I wanna do that."

Black was referring to the way she seemingly disappeared from view. He assumed she moved pretty fast, he just wasn't aware what it took to get to "pretty fast".

@Ehb
@Karyra
@RedArmyShogun
@Psyker Landshark
@PeopleGonDie
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[LowDefinition]

[fieldbox=Runara Blazeheart, #ffa64d, solid]

[ Month of Renewal 15th, Evening / Jiaojing Province, Maolan Forest, Worn Down Shrine ]

Runara retreated back, but not without her apparent servant, Tsubaki dragging her away. Scolding her for trying to mess with the wrong person.

"Eheheh... Whoops...?" Runara smiled awkwardly, knowing full well that she's caught playing around. "Tsubaki... I'm just toying around you know..." She gave Tsubaki a reassuring tap on her shoulders. "If she is really that famed person, I really doubt she'd be appearing alone. Besides... It's a fair fight invitation right?" Finishing with a confident grin, Runara then looked back and see that everyone else seemed to take this into a rather unfavorable outcome, her grin disappears and she is now worried...

"We should stop them befo---" and then the undesirable happened. Some of them went to strike Tsukaha. "Too late." She saw that Yu Ri, Yuan, Black, and Rumiko smashed against each other as Tsukaha seemingly vanished, only to appear beside Tsubaha. Seeing her hand raised, Runara knew for sure that everyone made a huge mistake in attacking Tsukaha. She see arrows flying towards them. She knew that this path led them to have to ditch the shrine as whatever backup Tsukaha have will shoot them dead if they stay here.

"Tsubaki, we should ditch this place." Runara said as she stood up and get herself ready to run. "But... Not without Ts-" She turned to Tsubaha only to see Tsubaha flung away by... some sort of whip? "Nevermind that, let's go!" She commanded as she ran away from the shrine.

"Stupid everyone with their greed!" She cursed.

@Miya
@_Ditchingtheshrine
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