New Beginnings: Magic in Mokugakure

[Kakashi Hatake]

“My name is Asuma,” the olive-skinned shinobi responded, nodding at the injured party. “As for what we are, we’re just...people. Watch your step.” He gestured toward a sizable crater, a gaggle of townsfolk currently at work shoveling loose earth into it. “Don’t mind our appearance. As you seemed to have learned, the Tangled Green isn’t always the friendliest place. I hope you can understand our initial hesitation.”

“Take it easy,” the young medic implored, draping an arm over the youngest newcomer. “You need to- Ooof!” The boy was nearly knocked to the ground as the girl sprang momentarily back to consciousness, muttering an apology as her caretaker struggled to keep the two of them standing. He placed his free hand on her hanging head as they walked, his appendage beginning to glow a dull blue.  

“That’s Chūzo,” the chain-smoking jonin said with the hint of a smile on his face. “He doesn’t get the chance to play hero much, but he does his best. The two behind you are Mack and Gabriella. They don’t take as quickly to strangers as Chūzo, but you can trust them.” 

The group continued through the village center, passing toppled buildings and the burnt remnants of various infrastructure. Though the village as a whole remained standing, the scars of devastation could not be ignored. Asuma found it hard to look upon those wounded as he passed, instead focusing on their destination. Just ahead he could see the off-white building popping up over the rest of the smaller huts. He hoped that the infirmary had enough staff to cater to the newcomers.

[Eda]

She was awake at least now , there was that much she could be thankful for . However moving was still a bit of a chore , she could feel her power slowly replenishing . However it would take time , something she would not always have the benefit of . Her hues took in the sights and the overall state of the village , her voice low as not to strain herself .

" It looks like a lot of fighting took place here , and they are not done yet either . I don't know how to explain it but I can feel that the fighting is not fully over yet "

Her senses were not as strong as Ebony or Amber , and in her current state it might just be ramblings to the lot of them . However she knew somehow it was not delusion , something big was coming.

[Ebony]

Ebony was still unsure of anyone in this village, hell, to be honest she was unsold on the members of her own party still, so as she walked with the ones who were taking them to the infirmary, she still was scanning about, and had one hand near the hilt of her sword. She hoped that it was not going to be a issue to the ones who were apparently going to help them, but even if it was, it was a lesson learned in blood to never let her guard down, and one she followed religiously. She would eventually make her determination of this place, just not yet.

[Andyra]

Andyra glanced around from each individual towards the other as they explained about the Tangled Green and themselves in a short and simple manner. No matter where you go, there was always something, always someone that would be there to try to stop you from going further on she thought to herself. Though she was glad to see that Eda was feeling better, she wasn't very good at expressing emotions much, she got that from her father but she certainly didn't want anyone to just die out here. Andyra knew that this was just the beginning, there were much much stronger things still lurking out there and even if she couldn't see them, she could smell evil all around the forest, it was no wonder that seeing things like bunnies and squirrels was likely a rarity in this crazy place. She looked towards Asuma who've had been speaking. As she considered what to say herself and choose to remain silent after pondering, she did mention her name as it was only polite greetings, but nothing more and nothing left. It was best all of them move on once Eda and Ebony were all healed up and ready to depart, and she didn't even know what direction they'd go in next and she certainly wasn't sure how long they would be a party before having issues of their own to deal with.

[Amber Veritz]

Amber slid along with the group. The reason she had stayed this long was because they reminded her of when she first entered the Nexus. No one was there to help her. In fact, it only took about an hour in the Nexus for someone to pick a fight with her. Sabrina. The name made her shudder.

Beyond that though, Amber could see now this group was capable of taking caring of themselves. They had all definitely improved since they were in the Nexus, that was apparent. Perhaps Amber could leave them now, and continue on her own path. Fort Amber still needed some protection, and Amber needed to become even stronger. To do all this, she would need more Omnilium. Sitting around is going to give her more power.

Amber turned to Andyra, "I believe your guy's group is ready to travel without me. I'm needed in other places. I wanted to make sure you three could handle yourselves. It's obvious you can." She summoned a small piece of a paper and a pen and scribbled on it. "Once you get a mobile device that's connected to the dataverse, message me. We can party up some time in the future." The cat girl slipped the paper into the lionesses hand and turned to walk back towards the gate. "Good luck in your future endeavors!" She waved them off as she made a party of 4 into 3.

[Kakashi Hatake]

Amber's departure was met with a small nod from Asuma. "We'll do what we can for them. Stay safe out there." He flashed the cat girl a thumbs up and continued leading the group toward the welcoming sight of the infirmary. The bearded shinobi was glad to have Chūzo among his ranks in a time like this. They had been forced to take the long way through town due to the destruction that the most recent orc attack had caused and his medical ninjutsu was no doubt providing needed comfort to Eda.

"I'll run ahead and get some cots ready," Mack, one of the previously mute chaperons, finally spoke up. With a quick nod to his female partner he dashed toward the medical building.

Asuma silently acknowledged the young man's decision, keeping a leisurely pace to allow their medic to keep the wounded girl in one piece. As a whole the group wasn't too talkative; with one being semi-conscious at best and the others being more than a little guarded, idle conversation was perhaps out of the question. The jonin retrieved his half-spent cigarette from behind his ear and lit it, hoping to get the last few puffs in before they reached the hospital doors.

Moments later the group finally arrived at the infirmary, Mack and several medical personnel waiting patiently by the door. A kind-looking medical-nin with curly red hair held a wheelchair before her, ready to receive their ailing visitor.

"Great, looks like we have room for you three." Sarutobi flicked the remainder of his cancer stick into a nearby trash can and wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. "This is where I'll be leaving you. Chūzo and Mack will stay here to lend you a hand and answer any more questions you might have." He bowed politely, offering a friendly smile. "Have a speedy recovery."

[Eda]

At the very least Eda's energy was rapidly returning , Ebony could feel it though . She was already more than twice as powerful as she had been in the nexus , and something gave the drow the feeling the young woman still was not at 100% . Why was she getting so strong so quickly was a good question that may not see an answer in some time . She spoke in a cheery tone to thank those who were helping her , estimating that she should be back on her feet soon though .

A few more hours had passed and she indeed was , albeit wobbly she went to take a shower and get changed . Making herself a new costume , slightly different from the last in that it had a few new designs on it . Her right arm sleeve now having names written on it , in plain human so they were easy to read . A way of thanking everyone who had helped her get this far , including even the ninja who had tended to her .

[Ebony]

Ebony also was back to what she felt was at the least, combat able before too long, after all, as she had told Eda before, she had fought with worse injuries, ,though to be honest, she did miss her ability to fight beyond the time when she should be dead, as she could have done before with her blood magic. She looked at Eda with a grin, deciding to troll her a bit. Using the power she had been granted when she came here, she used her abilities to bring an art set into existence, drawing a picture will grinning to herself, which she took over to Eda, handing it to her face down so she could not see it. When Eda turned it over, she could see that it was a picture of her in the stream, everything in perfect detail and proportion, showing a talent none of them had known she possessed, art. "You said to take a picture, that it would last longer", ,she said with a smirk. "I think it came out well. I do wish it had been you to have been the one to break my ribs though. I got no enjoyment out of that skeleton doing it, and I might have at least enjoyed it some".

[Andyra]

Andyra took the piece of paper from Amber.
"It was nice meeting you as well Amber. Perhaps one day we'll see one another again." replied Andyra flatly. There was no emotion in her response nor did she find it odd that Amber would choose to leave them now. She likely wanted to get back with her own party and now they knew more of what this strange place was but they did need a leader, someone to be able to make decisions for the group. Andyra had always known that her wonderful father wanted her to one day take his throne after she killed his ass so she had the assets to be a natural born leader but she wasn't really that talkative and she didn't even know how long she would be sticking around. After all she certainly didn't mind either of them but they all had their own paths to take and one day those paths could very well split off into their own unique ways.

[Eda]

Eda stretched out her hair tied back up once more , though she showed frustration and embarrassment at Ebony's little jab . Her face getting red and hiding the picture , trying not to show that it bothered her .

" That is weird you know , that is really strange and unusual . You really shouldn't do things like that , its just bizarre . Then again I should expect that from you huh , at least Andyra is mostly normal . " 

A deep sigh escaped her lips and she shook her head seeming to ready herself for anything they might endure , quickly mapping the area out for their later uses . She spoke once again when she finished doing so , her voice its usual upbeat tone .

" Okay here is everything we know so far , the gate to the nexus is way back here . There is a temple that something does not want us going near here , and Mokugakure is here where we are now . I am almost curious to learn what is across the forests , I can sense some intense magic that way though "  

[Ebony]

"Sweety, ,she only acts that way. She is as much a might is right being as I am, perhaps more even. If a being were to fight her and win, she would be surprised, as a matter of fact, probably insulted, if the one who challenged and beat her did not take her just as I threatened to with you, as that is the way the more primal races do, and she comes from not one, but two ancient primal races in beasts and dragons. My race is the same, in that you lose, you are the one at the mercy of the one who beat you. Laws do not protect the weak where we come from, and rape is only if the being is too young to fight for themselves, which none of us are. Therefore, you may be needing to watch over your shoulder for not one but two beings coming for you", she said with a grin. "And by the way, you are welcome for the picture. I bet you didn't know I was an artist, did you? It is something i truly enjoy, and it calms me somewhat".

[Andyra]

Andyra simply raised a slight eyebrow at Ebony and Eda.
"I swear you two act like a married couple just kiss already." replied Andyra flatly. Though she didn't disagree with Ebony, most lions and dragons would be ashamed of losing but they would feel like absolute trash and weak trash at that if that one that beat them didn't take or claim them. Of course she had already had such things happen to her and in each case the one whom had taken her hadn't kept her even though the first time had been a battle. Yet she didn't feel like utter trash because of it, no she felt like a naive fool to lose to a being that she should have been able to crush easily but because of his talent and experience with mastery of illusions, she had been deceived and she was honestly glad that one no longer worked for her father, though if she ever did see him again she would kill him.

[Eda]

" Eww why would I ever ? ugh eww that is just wrong and unnatural . Two girls can't , that is just super wrong and gross .. No ugh why "

~ She seemed to cough and gag at the idea shaking her head no , trying to keep her voice down . She was decidedly back to her normal self , more guarded then she had been prior ~

[Ebony]

"Well, I think she is a bit scared", Ebony said, walking over and laying a good, deep kiss on Andyra, grinning at her. "What say we catch her now and give her a nice deep one as well", Ebony suggested with a grin, showing a bit of a playful side of herself. "See, ,it isn't such a bad thing for girls to kiss, as a matter of fact it is hot, in my opinion", she said with a grin. "You are next, by the way, so be prepared. It may not happen right now, but it will happen".

[Andyra]

Andyra didn't even care when Ebony came over and laid a kiss on her, it wasn't like she had never been kissed before and two girls kissing there was nothing wrong with that. Though she didn't really kiss back, she had no real feelings for much of anything or anyone. The one thing she did care about was killing her father and that goal was now out of her reach, it irriated her to no end. She looked towards Ebony as she spoke about the two of them going after Eda next.
"No thanks, I prefer my prey to at least fight back." replied Andyra calmly letting just a bit of the lion within show as she crossed her arms and looked around the village. "I'm going to see if I can gather us some supplies for the road, likely getting medical supplies and some form of useful tools for the road ahead in case we run into anymore idiots like the one before." stated Andyra calmly.

[Eda]

Both of the poor secondaries were left speechless by their actions , and Eda turned her gaze away from them . Not wanting to show how appalled she was at the idea of such a thing she was . Turning away from them in the direction of the village gate , her voice not finding her . She said not a word as she prepared to go on ahead , she did not need this kind of stress . She was really not okay with any of that , she dealt with enough of that on set back home . Two of the girls back then were an item and she hated seeing it even back when that was her life , she had hoped to avoid it here . However here she was stuck seeing it again , she continued to walk ahead of them . 

[Ebony]

Ebony walked up behind her, sneaking up right behind her and groping her butt intentionally, then springing back, as she expected a staff or something of the sort to be coming her way. "Oh, trust me, she does fight, though she is woefully inexperienced, so if that is what you want, you should try her on for size", Ebony said with a grin. "Though, I've got to be honest, I already have my eyes on beating her and keeping her at some point, so there is that".

[Andyra]

"Well good luck with that, I'm sure you two will make a lovely couple someday." smiled Andyra as she fondly remembered two of her old friends from before Sheila, and Hyla most didn't know they hada thing going on between them but it had been very obvious to her nose and to her eyes that they truly loved one another. Love, it wasn't something she had ever desired, even if her bastard of a father wanted to set her up on some kind of date. Pfft, she was only focused on ending his pitiful existence. She went around the village collecting whatever supplies the ninjas were willing to spare, even paying them with coins she had from her world, though she wasn't sure they held any value at all out here. And with her away from the love birds, they';d have time to get their acts together, if they were to travel together then they needed to act like a team rather than a bunch of children, Eda espicially.

[Eda]

Eda swatted the other woman's hand away with a genuine look of pure hatred , it was the first time a genuine emotion showed through her usual cheerful act . Walking away once more she recalled just why it made her so upset , she had thought she made a friend . She had thought in her journey to stardom that she had found a true and genuine person who wanted to just be her friend , and she found out that same girl had been using her to get to her on again off again girlfriend . It was a complicated mess that she still had not forgiven , and for all her foggy memory she could simply not forget either . She continued to walk ahead of them , waiting at the gate for them to get done . She had no intention of burdening the nice people here any longer then she had to , her voice a low annoyed growl .

" Girls can't do that sort of stuff with girls , end of story . I can't be any more clear on that , all you are doing is making me angry . I can't even focus on my magic when I am angry , if this stupid nonsense gets me killed . I won't forgive you , just so you know " 

[Ebony]

"Well, then, either learn to focus through your anger, ,or around it, ,because what I am doing is nothing compared to what an enemy will do if they realize how flustered stuff like this makes you", Ebony said, walking right alongside her. "You must have had a very sheltered life ultimately, as where I was brought up, if any weakness, any whatsoever, ,was shown, you immediately took advantage of it, and used it for your own good. I am merely showing you a problem in your way of fighting, which will be a problem if anything does something like that to either Andyra or myself. If we were to get captured, ,and were being raped and tortured in front of you, with you being made to watch, if it was a girl doing the torture, you could not focus and free us? That would be a problem and a potential weakness in our team. To be honest, if I really wanted to have you as a pet, we both know it would have happened when we first met, ,so get off of your need to protect your precious virtue, and think for a second. We all need to get over our particular faults to work together, otherwise we will die in this place. So, take what I am doing as it was meant, and take my assistance in trying to teach you to get over it, before your insistence on everything being according to your morals ends up getting all of us killed, because I will come back for you after respawn if that happens, and put you through what I went through as a child, and worse. Do I make myself clear", she said with a flat, cold voice.