Forming Bonds with Blood Stained Hands

Xane quickly rushed off to the Kaenkage's mansion to meet the ninja from the Village of Waterfall for his mission. The bittersweet feeling that pulsed through his mind was slightly comforting to him. He would be able to gain his revenge on the group of rogues that hurt his friends. Though Nel and Sho told Xane not to overdo things before he left them at the hospital early this morning he had had no intention of half-assing his revenge. As the kage's mansion steadily grew closer he began to wonder about the people that would be taking part in the mission. All he knew was that Akuma had signed him up for the mission, one of his teammates would be from the village of flame and that two ninja from Waterfall were coming in to help assist with their mission while helping to bolstering village relations. As he slipped through the doors into the lobby he immediately noticed the two Waterfall Ninja, a young girl and an older man. Judging from that along he assumed the man to be a chuunin or above ninja while the girl to be a genin. After deducing this he walks stand to the side of the man before clearing his voice to drawl attention to him as he bows to them to show his respect. "Hello my name is Xane Legend, Genin of the Village of Flame. I do believe we were assigned to the same mission of clearing out the mercenary infestation in the area." Xane remains standing but moves to stand between his guests a few feet away. " I believe our last teammate will be arriving shortly though my sensei neglected to inform me of anything but his name, Gamma Akutabi."

Hanako snaps her head up as someone slips through the door, being torn out of her silent musing. In what seems like one motion, she makes sure the hair is covering the right side of her face, and jams both of her hands deep into the pockets of her jacket, a very practiced movement to be sure. Despite her grandiose attempts at hiding them, the scars on her face at least are fairly easily seen. She seems to draw in on herself for a moment, the sight of the flame on Xane's forehead protect seeming to be the source of the issue, before she shakes her head and forces herself to stand up. Yun watches all of this quietly, before rising a moment after Hanako. She takes a few steps forward, but nowhere near close enough for physical interaction. Instead she returns the bow with a slight one of her own, "I am Hanako Hyuuga, a Genin of Waterfall Village, and this is Takamachi Yun, a Jonin and my teacher for this mission." As if the last name wasn't a give away, the nearly completely white eye peering out from the unhidden side of her face would be a dead give away. Introductions done, she takes a seat again to wait for the final member of the team.

Gamma had finally arrived back to the village of flame. It had taken him longer to get back then he thought, but he hoped that the two genin he was supposed to accompany didn't already up and leave. The messenger ninja had run off somewhere just after the both of them entered back into the village, he seemed that he had something else he needed to attend to, but he may have just been fleeing in order to avoid any flack they might receive as a result of making a late entrance.

Gamma continued to walk on, making his way through the always busy streets of the village until he saw the tall structure of the KaenKage's mansion. Guards were present outside of the mansion and before the could speak Gamma adressed them on what was going on, which was quickly replied to with a bow, "The two genin you are to accompany are already present, you were the last to arrive." Gamma frowned and let out a sigh of disappointment, he had hoped to make it before them and impress them with his "Chuuniness", but it seemed the time for impressing people had passed. Gamma turned the corner and saw a female and male conversing with each other. By inspecting their headbands from where he was he could see that the dude was from Flame, while the dudette was from Waterfall. "So this must be them..."

He began to make his way towards the two, putting on a friendly smile. "Hey! My name's Gamma Akutabi. You guys would be?"

Xane turned his attention from Hanako and Yun to Gamma. "Hello Gamma," he said as he bowed, "I am Xane Legend pleased to meet you." Xane exuded nothing but admiration towards Gamma as he smiled at the group. One day Xane hoped to be just as well known as him, and if he was lucky strong like him too. As the group was now assembled he waited for the Waterfall Ninja to exchange pleasantries with Gamma. He knew that as soon as they were finished it was likely that their mission would begin. Knowing this he was glad he decided to make sure his things were in order before arriving as that would save time and get them off and going that much sooner. Soon he would be able to fight those ninja that made Nel and Sho hurt. He would be able to show them the same brutal welcome they had received. But more than anything else he would be able to make sure that this would never happen again to anyone else. Today would be filled with many things for Xane, revenge, new friendship, and a further sense of what the ninja world was like outside his safe home of the Village of Flame.

Hanako looks up as once again a ninja slips into the room. He quickly introduces himself, confirming the fact that he is indeed the last member of the group. Pushing herself to her feet, she looks a little more confident as she bows slightly to Gamma. "I am Hanako Hyuuga, Genin of Waterfall, and this is my teacher, Takimachi Yun, a Jonin of Waterfall. A pleasure to meet you." Introductions finished finally, she looks behind Gamma and Xane, as if expecting someone else to join them, "I was told a Jonin from your village would be accompanying us." The statement also seems to be a question and she seems to be hiding behind speaking formally to cover how nervous she is at the moment. While waiting for a response from either of the two, she reaches into the pouch on her right side, pulling out the mission scroll she received before leaving Waterfall. Unrolling it, she reads over the mission again, trying to figure out if she missed anything.

Xane was so pumped to go off on his mission he nearly missed the words of Hanako. "Well my teacher was supposed to take be accompanying us on this mission but he pulled some strings to get myself and Gamma assigned to the mission in his stead. The rogues in this area are weak enough that it should not make a difference if he was here or not." Xane felt a bit better having things work out this way as well. While he respected his teacher greatly it would be great to work with another ninja from his village so he could attempt to gain some friends with higher ranks. By associating himself with them he figured that it would be easier to understand how things work on each level and as such be better prepared for what would be expected of him later on. Coming back to reality Xane decided it was time to get things started. "So . . . with that in mind should we start the mission?"

Xane took a few steps back away from the group after his statement to get a better view of the whole group. It was then he really took what his partners looked like. Yun seemed to be bored with the whole experience, and Xane figured this was to be expected when being paired with lower level ninja who's inexperience was likely something he would have to make up for in some way. To a lesser degree the same seemed to be so with Gamma, who looked a bit annoyed that he had to take part in the mission while on the other hand looked more accepting of the Genin of the group. This could probably be because he was one not to long ago. He seemed to be happy to take on any challenge and excel at passing them too. Then there was Hanako who seemed to be a bit nervous with the whole mission. Xane had noticed the scars on her face but thought it rude to stare or inquire about them. He was glad Gamma arrived when he did as it gave him something to turn his attention to instead of getting into trouble by upsetting their guests from Waterfall by staring like a lumbering oaf at something that was none of his business. He wondered to himself what had happened to such a beautiful girl at this young an age that would result in those kind of scars. He decided it was best to leave that for a more appropriate time as looks were not always everything in the ninja world. Xane turned towards the door as he chuckled at that idea of looks being a defining role in if you could become a ninja. "I would have had no chance at all if that was the case, heh." he blerted out quietly to himself as he began to walk to the door.

Gamma nodded and smiled at the two genin and the jounin who introduced themselves. They seemed like a cool bunch of people. Hanako seemed a bit timid and shy, but being in a foreign village for the first time could do that to a person. She also seemed a little self conscious about the scars that were on the side of her face as she tried to cover them up the best she could. Gamma noticed this action but made sure not to make a big deal about it. The one known as Xane seemed to be itching to get this mission underway. Gamma wasn't sure but for some reason it felt as if Xane had a personal stake within this mission, or maybe that was just his personality. He seemed to be the type that liked to prove himself, and maybe this mission was a way for him to accomplish that.

"Yea, I guess it'd be a good time to get this whole process underway. Bout time we beat down some mercenaries! I'm ready when you all are"

Looking between the other two, who seemed more than read to get things going, Hanako rolls up the mission scroll, slipping it back in her pouch and nodding. Deciding to take the initiative, for now at least, she slips past Xane and Gamma and heads out the door, Yun following behind her. Clapping the two on the shoulder, he nudges them gently towards the door before exiting the room himself. Glad to be out of the Kaenkage's mansion, Hanako takes a deep breath, relaxing a bit. She wanders in what she believes is the direction of the gate, and since Yun makes no comment otherwise, continues on that path. Once arriving at the gate, she pauses, turning around and waiting for Xane and Gamma to catch up with them.

Not wanting to keep their guests waiting Xane was out the door of the KaenKage's Mansion quickly after the Waterfall Ninja. As he followed them towards the western gate he decided it was best not to inform them that they were taking the long way towards the gate and spare them the embarrassment. As they reached the gate he waved at the guard on duty and flashed a five to let him know they would be leaving soon. He simply nodded and stood back to wait for them ready themselves to leave. It would not be long until they would be off to clear out the mercenary infestation. He was finally going to get his revenge on them for what they had done.

Xane did some calisthenics to ready himself as he waited for the rest of his group to ready up. He wondered if they would think less of him should he lose himself during the battle. He only hoped that they would not get in his way or try to stop him. He was not worried about accidentally hurting them or getting in their way during the fight. He was concerned that they would take away from their numbers and leave him with less to kill.

As he was stretching his arms and legs to limber them up he decided to prep them for what might happen. "Hey . . I just thought I should let you two know that I've got a personal stake in this. Those mercenaries are the reason two of my teammates are stuck in the hospital for now. I figured I should let you know this before we rolled out so you know why I may be a bit irrational during the raid." He then became silent as he turned away from them to let a single tear escape his eye which he quickly wiped away. It would be the only time he would show this weakness even if he had hidden it well.

Gamma followed the three outside and to the main gates leading out of the village. It seemed the others were ready to start the mission, Xane showing this the most out of all of them. Soon enough Xane confirmed what Gamma had previously assumed of him after meeting him. This mission was personal for him, and as such it might cause some difficulties. "Xane...I can understand the emotions that you are going through, but letting these emotions cloud your actions during a mission will cause more harm than good. Keep that in mind." Gamma patted Xane on the back and continued to walk on passed the guards. Gamma then waved his hand towards Yun, "Hey! We should be heading off for the village of Smoke and Ash right?"

Hanako blinks a couple times as she stares at Gamma, almost as if she didn't comprehend what he had asked. She then turns to look up at Yun, hoping he does actually know the answer, because she certainly doesn't. Yun had already turned his back at that point, not catching the pleading look from Hanako. He nods, staring off in the direction of where their mission will lead them. "Aye, that abouts is where were supposed to be headin." He looks over his shoulder at Xane, who still seems to be involved with readying himself to deal again with the people that hurt his friends. "No one really knows where abouts they call home though, so it could take a bit of searchin. Or they may make it easy fer us and just trying attack us like another set of travelers. Won't know standin round here though, so lets get started." Nodding towards the gate guard, he heads off down the path, Hanako following quickly on his heals, not wanting to separated from the one connection to her village at the moment.

Xane nodded at Yun and clapped his hands together in a series of hand signs before being covered in a haze of smoke. When the smoke cleared he appeared to be a normal traveling merchant within his disguise jutsu. He figured that they would need some bait and since no one else went for it he would oblige them by doing it himself. " Well then guess I'll try to drawl them out while we walk, ey?" He trotted off making sure to keep his eyes open and ever vigilant to the surroundings. He may have missed their attackers the first time he had gone out on the mission but he would not be so naive this time around. He would make sure that whoever was foolish enough to attack would go down hard and fast. With at least one captured intact to interrogate.

"So a transformation jutsu? Eh, not a bad idea..." Gamma's idea of getting this mission over with was just to head to the place, beat them all down, and finish this all up so he could get back to training. But this method might've been a little hard to go along with...seeing as he didn't even know where the village of Smoke and Ash was at. Couldn't rightly beat people up if you didn't know where they were. "So I guess we can use this as a guise and lure them out, then we'll just interrogate them about the whereabouts of the hideout." Gamma quickly followed suit and performed a transformation, taking the form of an old man in a wheelchair. He also made sure to create a large bag of goods which was strapped to the back of his chair. "Ok then, lets go." Gamma wheeled himself off down the path following Xane.

Hanako watches the two transform themselves and head off down the road as if this was just another day. Looking up at Yun, she gets a nod from him. She frets slightly, never having been much good at Genjutsu, but sure that she can be able to do at least this simple jutsu. Forming the seals for the jutsu, she transforms a little girl, slightly smaller than herself normally, the scars gone and her clothes to that of a commoner. She hurries after Gamma as the old man shouting, "Wait up, Grandpa!" Yun follows suit, changing himself to look like a guard a merchant would hire, hoping to add some importance to the group to make it a more desirable target. Hurrying quickly after the others, he catches up with them as the proceed down the road, hoping to snare the mercenaries they are looking for.

The group traveled swiftly to seem like a regular group of merchants in the area who had heard about the mercenary/rogue situation. As they swiftly made it to the fork in the road Xane began to get a bit antsy. He knew that last time they were attacked shortly after arriving to this point and he was assuming that they would most likely get attacked around the same point by a similar group. He made sure to inform his group about this as the made the fork left towards the point he got attacked last time. It was like he was having a vicarious experience he would liken his previous escort would have had last time. Waiting to get attacked was not something someone would expect every day, but it was even weirder for that to be the soul desire of their journey. After walking only a few miles away from the fork in the road it was like Déjà vu. The rogues sprang out of nowhere to attack the group, 6 in all. It was strange as last time this happened the group was filled with shock and tension. This time it was something more of relief and excitement. Xane dropped his transformation jutsu as he lunged at a man brandishing a large naginata. He met this man with a katana of his own and a Kunai to his thigh.

As they continued to travel down the road, Gamma couldn't help but feel that they were being watched. A few rustling leaves, the sounds of branches breaking, and six guys jumping out from nowhere blocking their path was soon evidence that he was right. Most people didn't travel with the hopes of being mugged, but right about now Gamma was feeling like they had just won the jackpot. It'd be too easy to transform back and take these guys out with everyone else help. He planned to draw this out for as long as he could and have a bit of fun. Gamma in his "grandpa" uniform soon held up his hands as if the police had just arrived. "Please let us pass, I am but an elderly man making my way to town with my granddaughter, this random guy in merchant clothing, and this guard whom of which isn't such a great guard since you have shown up and he isn't doing anything...." Gamma began to snicker a bit and continued talking, "Please....just let me live and take them all!!" Xane was obviously not amused as he quickly reverted from his henge and darted off, rushing in to attack on of the bandits. "Dammit Xane....had to spoil the fun...."

Following suit, Gamma soon reverted from his henge and quickly began forming handsigns. "Will-O-Wisp Jutsu!" Almost instantaneously after exclaiming this, 6 balls of flame appeared. One in each hand, one on each elbow, and one on each foot. Moving fluidly he was able to let off five of the flames, sending them at five of the ninja. Before making contact Gamma set them off, causing them to explode in front of the Bandit they had been aimed at. With five of the bandits down, that left only one. "Hanako! Take that one down!" Gamma then looked at Xane who's opponent he had taken down before Xane could even make it to him, "Hehe...took my fun, had to get some payback"

Once the men they are looking for jump out to ambush them, Hanako looks rather surprised. If this is to go along with the little girl disguise she is wearing, or was truly not expecting it, its very hard to tell. Just as quickly as the men appeared, both Xane and Gamma seem to have taken care of them. Quickly releasing the disguise jutsu, she forms the seal she uses to activate her doujutsu, muttering, "Byakugan." As she does. Just about that point, Gamma shouts for her to take care of the remaining mercenary, who is noticing that all of his friends have been put out of commission. Dropping into the stance of the Gentle Fist style, she rushes the guy. Noticing her running at him, the bandit for hire draws a kunai and swipes at where she was heading, or at least he thinks. Ducking under the blade, she half slides past his left side, reaching out to poke the side of the guys knee with two fingers on her left hand. At that same instant, she plants her right foot, spinning behind him and placing her right palm against the flat of his back, shouting out, "Kansetsu Sejou Atemi!" The guy tries to spin around to resume his attack, but his now locked left knee, causing him to tumble forward. The blow to the back has an interesting effect that Hanako didn't count on, the pressure of the chakra between the vertebra pinches the nerves in the guys spine, causing temporary paralysis from that spot down. The loss of the use of his legs causes him to drop to the ground. Hard. Hanako blinks a couple times, looking at the fallen opponent, then looks back up at Yun, who releases his own disguise jutsu, nodding his head. "I see that you guys seem to have this handled rather well. Lets clean up the road and go interrogate the prisoner Hanako so nicely prepared for us." Hanako blushes a bit, trying to hide a bit more behind her hair as Yun leans down to grab the legs of one of the mercenaries that Gamma took care of. Hanako quickly rushes to help, grabbing another guy and pulling him after Yun, struggling a bit more with it than the Jonin.

Hanako was able to bring the man down, using some sort paralysis technique on him. This was perfect, as the other bandits were now permanently incapacitated we could now use this man as a way to find out exactly where the village of "Smoke and Ash" was hidden. Gamma stood there for a second, trying to make out exactly what it was that Hanako actually did to the man. She struck his back with the palm of her hand and it almost instantaneously caused what seemed to be the locking of his joints. Attacks that caused the immobilization of a limb in the middle of combat are always deadly. If hit with something of that caliber in the middle of a life or death battle were mere seconds could be the decider in who lives and who dies, this would surely mean death for whoever was unlucky enough to be struck with it. Out of nowhere, Yun's voice pierced through Gamma train of thought, informing them that they should clean up the road and quickly interrogate their new prisoner. Gamma sighed, he was never fond of cleaning especially a mess such as this one. Looking over to Xane he could see that he was just standing there. "Hey Xane, you can handle the cleaning right? If you want to become a chuunin you've got to try and stand out during your missions, if you were to excel at this task it'd look really good on your mission transcript. So I'll leave this to you, do your best!" Letting off a grin, Gamma walked off after Hanako and Yun.

Xane mumbled under his breath as he nodded at Gamma. He knew that it would be pointless to argue given that soon enough he would be at the village where the mercenaries lived. He could end the problem at the source with the help of these companions. If he had to clean up things, then so be it. He threw his hands together forming the signs required to activate his clone tech. As 5 perfectly formed doppelgangers appeared beside Xane they simultaneously moved forwards to pick up the bodies of the recently deceased enemies. As he buried their bodies far away from the scene of the fight he wondered how Hanako had paralyzed that man so easily. He figured it was because of her bloodline but the way she seemed to hit her opponent it seemed to be unplanned on her part. Xane figured it was best he stayed on her good side for fear of her refining that technique on him.

Having dropped the body off with Xane as he was burying them, Hanako returned to where Yun had just finished tying their captive to a tree. The man struggled against the bonds, hoping in vain that he could find a loose knot. A thin line of blood trailed out of the left side of his mouth, Yun tossing what looked like a tooth up into the air and catching it. He turns as Hanako joins him, letting his gaze shift to Gamma then Xane. Tossing the tooth up one last time, he catches it and pockets it, "Hanako, Xane, I want you two to go out to the tree line and stand watch. We don't know if they have any buddies that will be checking up on them. Gamma, you're with me." Hanako nods, then looks to Xane, before heading back out the way she came, hoping that Xane was following her. Reaching the line where the trees started to thin out as they got towards the road, Hanako retraces her steps a few feet, and takes position behind one of the larger trees where she has a good vantage point of the road. She absently blows at the hair hanging in front of her face, preparing for a watch that may take minutes or hours.

Gamma watched as Hanako and Xane ran off, heading to the road so that they could follow Yun's order to stake out the road in case any friends of the bandit's decided to make an appearance. Soon after their departure Yun motioned Gamma over towards the tree where the thief they had apprehended earlier was being held. Apparently Yun needed some help getting information out of this guy, or he felt this would be a good training exercise for the young chuunin. Leaning in Yun quietly explained what the plan was and Gamma nodded his head with understanding. It seemed that Gamma's latter thought about what would be going on was true, Yun was handing the task of interrogating their "inmate" over to Gamma. This would be a huge opportunity for him to prove himself to a jounin, but also to show his cunning side as well. "Remember Gamma, using fear is a good tactic to get the information you want, but also remember when people are desperate they'll say anything to get out of the situation that they're in, be careful that you don't end up misinformed...." . Gamma nodded as Yun made his way towards the road to meet up with Hanako and Xane to assist them.

Turning his attention back on the prisoner, who was obviously struggling to get out of the bonds that held him, the blood running down his hands from the ropes cutting into his wrist was a tell tale sign. The man looked up to him and gave him look that meant to show defiance towards him, but behind it Gamma could tell it was really fear that he was showing. All of a sudden an idea lit up like a light bulb in Gamma's mind, he knew what he'd do to get the information out of this guy. Walking to the left of the man and took a knee. The man looked to Gamma with anger, an anger that felt to Gamma that if this man was unbounded he'd have no qualms with trying to attack him this very moment. But just like earlier, Gamma could tell the way this man was feeling was actually just based in the events that had happened prior, and who could blame him? One second you're planning to cash in on some easy money, then the next second your friends are dead and you're tied to a tree. Having your day turn out like this would give anybody a bad mood. Gamma looked past this though, "Hey there, I feel like we got off on the wrong foot, I should introduce myself. My name is Gamma Akutabi and I'm a ninja from the Village of Flame. Though you probably already figured out that last part on your own" Gamma let out a small laugh, but from the expression on the mans face he hadn't found this funny in the slightest. Quickly trying to move past his failure with comedy Gamma quickly moved on. "So, may I ask what your name is?"

There was silence for a long while, the man obviously still trying to keep his charade of defiance going, but it seemed he had become more uncomfortable with the awkward silence than Gamma had. "My name....my name is Dorobou..." Gamma smiled and continued on with the conversation. "Ah I see, well it's nice to meet--" Before Gamma could even finish the man shot him a glance, causing Gamma to laugh uncomfortably. "So I take it your still mad about earlier....I'm sorry but what we did had to be done. We had to get you away from those murderers and the only plausible outcome is what occurred." The man was obviously confused, just as Gamma thought he'd be. "Get me away from them....? What do you mean?" Gamma let out a sigh and began to explain, "Dorobou, you know and I know that you are nothing like the men you surrounded yourself with. Those men were cold blooded killers who jumped at the chance to kill an small girl and an elderly man. You on the other hand, you stayed back and let it all unfold, you didn't want what was about to happen, happen. Did you?" The mans eyes began to water and he quickly closed them, shaking his head to reply "No".

Gamma's plan was working this man was playing right into his hands. "I thought so, you aren't like those others, you don't find pleasure in killing, it's quite plain to see that you are a victim of circumstance. You didn't choose this life, this life chose you and now you're just playing with the cards you've been dealt." Hearing Gamma's words the man broke down, tears flooded his face and he began to bawl in an unsightly fashion. "It's ok, theres no shame in it. You're simply trying to live, and no doubt about it you've mourned for each person who's death you've been forced to play a role in...." While Gamma spoke he looked down towards Dorobous hands and noticed he had a golden ring on his right ring finger. "Tell me Dorobou, you're married aren't you?" Dorobou looked up at Gamma with a shocked expression, "How...how did you know that?" "Oh, I just noticed your ring....where are they now?" Dorobou got quiet, but soon replied, "My wife and my daughter....they are in the Village of Smoke and Ash...the bandit hideout...." Gamma frowned at this news, he hadn't expected that a man like this would have a wife and a child. "Dorobou, tell me, how did you end up becoming a bandit?" Dorobou looked at Gamma, tears still welling up in his eyes. "About three years ago, my family and I were on a trip. I was a hotshot merchant and I had decided that after this last deal that I had with the Village of the Flame, I'd take them on a trip to the Village of the Star. In that village it was said that you could see every constellation in the galaxy, and back then my daughter loved to admire the stars. I thought that by bringing my family with me would save time so that right after I finished the deal we could leave for the Star Village. I had heard that bandit attacks were on the rise around the outskirts of the Village of Flame, but being the arrogant man I was back then I didn't listen to anyone or anything..."

Dorobou paused for a bit before continuing, it was evident by talking about his past he was reliving it, something that was very hard and painful for him to do. "Soon enough we made our way to the Village of Flame and finished our dealings with the local shops, then I decided that we should continue on. My wife pleaded that it wouldn't be safe to leave at the time of night that I insisted on, saying that it would be dangerous. But like I said before, back then the only person's opinion I listened to was my own....I now see how much of an idiotic person I was...but anyway, I disagreed with her. I told her that nothing would happen to us and that if we left that night we'd be able to spend the entire day in the Village of the Star. My wants outweighed any argument they had about the situation...I was selfish and I regret the way I acted back then. We began to travel, and midway into our journey we were attacked by bandits. I fought my hardest to protect my family, killing two of the bandits but there were too many and I was overpowered. The now leader of the bandits, Osore, was present with them. He is a fierce warrior, I tried my best to defeat him, but he brutally attacked me, leaving me clinging on for my life. For some reason he respected my fighting abilities and decided to "draft" me into his bandit faction. If I refused...he said he'd kill my wife and daughter and make me watch, then he'd kill me after...."

Gamma patted Dorobou on his shoulder, "That's enough....I understand. I truly appreciate that you've trusted me enough to give me this information, and to repay that trust I swear to you that I'll save your wife and child." Hearing Gamma's words Dorobou's eyes lit up, "Are....are you serious?!" Gamma smiled, "Of course Im serious, ninja of the Flame Village are loyal...we stick to our words, no matter what the consequences and on my word I swear to you I'll save them. Though before I can do that there Is one more favor I must ask. I need you to show us where the Village of Smoke and Ash is, it's needless to say if I can't get there I can't make good on my promise." "Of course of course! I'll show you the way!" Dorobou's attitude now was a polar opposite of what it had been only an hour earlier, his once gloomy attitude had now been brightened by hope. Gamma walked behind the tree and pulled out his kunai, cutting the ties that bound Dorobou to the tree. "Ok, im trusting you, show us the way." Dorobou nodded his head and both he and Gamma made their way to the road.

Much sooner than she expected, and minus the screaming she was almost certain would emanate from where the integration would be coming from, Gamma and the captured ninja came walking back towards the road. Much to Hanako's surprise, the man walked completely unbound and seemed to be...smiling? Very confused, she looked over at Gamma, all the muscles in her body tensing in preparation for an attack, in case this was a trick. Even more to her surprise, the man turned to where she was standing and smiled at her, a genuine, warm, friendly smile. What in the world is going on, she thought. I just attacked him, yet now hes smiling at me? She looks over towards where Xane was supposed to be standing, only to see him leaning against the tree he was using for cover, eyes closed and very asleep. Sighing quietly, Hanako relaxes a little bit as Gamma obviously doesn't seem concerned with the current situation, so she can only assume that he somehow got the enemy ninja to work for them. Giving Gamma another questioning glance, she turns her head as Yun rejoins them. Yun has a fairly similar reaction to Hanako's, raising a curious eyebrow at Gamma and their new "ally", but decides not to make an issue of it at the moment. He walks over to join Hanako, and the two wait for Gamma to lead the way to their destination.

Gamma followed Dorobou as he led them through the woods, or rather a part of these woods that he had never seen before. Gamma had been through the areas surrounding the Village of Flame a lot during his childhood, but something about the area that they were now in seemed completely foreign. The bark of the trees became a soot gray, instead of the healthy brown that they were normally, and the leaves on each tree were completely dead. If anything, this area was beginning to resemble a place that would be aptly named "The Village of Smoke and Ash". The group continued to walk a bit further, following Dorobou through the thick underbrush of the forest until the finally came across an immense gate. Looking to the left and the right of the main entrance, it seemed that this gate went on forever each side, making sure that there would be no trespassers. Dorobou turned around to the group, "This is the Bandit Hideout...otherwise known as the Village of Smoke and Ash." Yun walked forward and began to scope out some of the surroundings. "Well now that we've secured the location of the village it is time that we head back and report our findings to the kage."

Gamma then turned and faced Dorobou, "Hey, even though we are leaving we'll be back. I promised you that I'd help rescue your family and I'll stand by that promise no matter what. What I need you to do now is to go about your life as a bandit for right now. We'll inform the kage of who you are, and im sure I'll be able to set up living arrangements for you and your family within the Village of Flame when this is all over." Dorobou's eyes began to water as he listened to the words that Gamma had spoken, "Thank you....thank you so much!" "It's alright, it's the least I could do for a friend. Now we have to be on our way, we'll be back here soon." Dorobou nodded and waved them off as they walked back down the trail and back to the Village of Flame.

Hanako watches the entire exchange between Gamma and the captured ninja, her eyes growing wider as the conversation comes to a close. She glances over her shoulder a few times as they make their way back, finally figuring they're far enough away, she confronts Gamma. "What did you just sign us up for? We..." She waves her hands at the four of them, "..are supposed to take down that -entire- village?" Even though she is obviously angry, her voice doesn't quite portray the tone very well, not having been used to being very expressive. Not really waiting for an answer, she storms off a small way to the front of the group, and remains apart from them for the rest of the trip back. She only allows Yun to join her halfway through the trip, and as soon as they get back to the Village of Flame, returns to the place they have been put up while visiting.