Someone called in the ripping squad. [CLOSED]

[alastinglight]

Characters: Okita Souji, Takasugi Shinsuke, Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke
Location: The Alps, site of Mission #82
Rating: PG-13 or higher, for violence
Time: December 6, pretty much the entire day
Description: Mission times, with a bit of madness~

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[mumyo_ken]

Okita was no stranger to the cold, either, though after the relative warmth of Death City, it was still something of a shock, even with the extra layer of Western-style clothing he'd had the foresight to add beneath his more traditional uniform.

He nodded at his partner's question. "Yes."

He didn't know the pair they had teamed up with, but Takasugi did, and that was good enough for him. He knew he could trust his partner's judgement.

[mumyo_ken]

"I agree with Takasugi-san. It's bound to be dangerous, so it's best we keep it off balance, as well."

They had strength in numbers, but the disadvantage of being in unfamiliar territory. "The madness wavelength means we should try to do this as quickly as possible, as well." The less time they had to spend in its influence, the better.

[hatedriven]

Sasuke said nothing in response to the conversation going on around him. And it took him a few moments to realize, after minutes of walking, why he was so unsettled. It was a whisper, somewhere to his left that made Sasuke glance that way twice, before realizing that wasn't the direction it was coming from. Then, he thought it was on his right. Something familiar and coaxing. He couldn't figure out what the sensation was, until a tremble of anticipation lodged itself in his spine.

It was a feeling that, when he was young, had scared him a little. One that he'd become far too familiar with in his three year absence, and that in this place, was much more unpredictable. When he finally speaks up, his voice is a low warning, even though he's sure the other boy is aware of it already: "Naruto."

[ramenandawesome]

"Yeah."

It was gutteral and low, almost a sound instead of an actual word. While the group had been discussing a plan of attack, while Sasuke had glanced not once, but twice to their side, Naruto's gaze hadn't wavered. Remained locked on the backs of their companion's instead. He knew his body, his soul had been different after being held by the witches, but his vulnerability to the madness had been a constant struggle. He'd been quick to give in even before the experimentation, but now- now it was the sort of insistence that was almost impossible to ignore.

He could feel his pulse quicken in response, and though his steps had yet to halt, his eyes had already shifted color. "We're close."

[alastinglight]

It started as a chitter at the back of his head, some vague buzz that he could easily ignore. A few more steps, however, and he knew exactly what was going on. He didn't need to hear Sasuke and Naruto's exchange.

"Might be good to transform now," he said in a low voice, eyeing Sasuke. They could fend off the madness better in their Weapon forms. Takasugi then stepped towards Okita, and shifted out in another moment.

The sword landed right in Okita's grip. Hopefully, they'd be able to stabilize each other.

[mumyo_ken]

Everyone was suddenly on edge, and Souji could feel why--there was a prickling sensation running along his spine and he felt himself tensing up before he consciously processed it. So this was what it was like... the last time, it had hit too quickly, amidst too much chaos for him to tell the difference between this, and his usual state in a battle, but now he could.

"Good idea. It can't be far off." That was the only good thing that came of the madness wavelength. The advanced warning.

He caught the black-bladed Weapon, and that intensity backed off a degree. He could still feel it lurking around at the back of his head, trying to get out, but he could keep it there for now.

[hatedriven]

Their idea was a decent one, after all, it had been said before that resonation could help ward the sensation off. But Sasuke didn't quite meet Takasugi's eye when he glanced back. He had the distinct impression that the effect wouldn't be the same for himself and his temporary Meister. Naruto was already susceptible, and Sasuke had known he was before he left. In his current state, unsure and unsettled, he wasn't sure what it would mean.

So instead, he fell into step with Naruto. They did things differently, as shinobi. Having all hands and eyes on deck until it was strictly necessary was the way Sasuke preferred to operate, and he'd never had a problem over it with Naruto before. Either way he was close enough the back of his hand touched Naruto's as they continued forward.

[ramenandawesome]

It's a concern they shared, and while he knew they would stand a better chance ordinarily- to partner as soon as possible, his knuckles merely bumped against back of Sasuke's hand. An unspoken acknowledgement. They'd been trained well, if not, in a different way than what he'd seen of Shibusen- the importance of working as a pair. But they were skilled shinobi in their own rights, and experienced weapon and meister beyond that. When it was needed, Naruto knew he would need nothing more than to reach out to the space between them before he'd find black fabric.

"I trust you." He said simply, instead- the words low as he followed Souji's back.

[alastinglight]

Takasugi wordlessly reached out to Okita through their bond, trying, in his usual quiet way, to check up on how his partner was doing. No words, of course: they were becoming increasingly better at not needing them.

He was curious, of course, at the way Naruto and Sasuke chose to handle the onslaught of the madness. He didn't ask, though: if it suited them better, than that was all he needed to know.

A bit more walking, and the madness wavelength was definitely more oppressive. Corpses of local animals began to appear too, along with the smoldering remains of cars and the dead bodies of the people who had been driving them.

The group wouldn't be given any time to inspect their surroundings, however. An inhuman howl pierced the air, and a few moments later, their target was lumbering down the road towards them at full speed.

[mumyo_ken]

If the horror that had been visited upon the landscape they walked into bothered Souji in the least, there was no sign of it. They were too late for these people, and so there was no use dwelling on it at all. How much of that lack of empathy was the madness wavelength's fault, and how much of it was simply him was nearly impossible to determine.

And in the end, it didn't really matter. They weren't here to worry about the dead. They were there to make sure that those who were still alive stayed that way, and more importantly, they were there to kill the kishin egg that threatened them.

That task, at least, looked as if it would be a simple task. They'd been spotted, and wouldn't have to waste time looking for the thing. Instead, it was coming to them. The sight of it had Souji slipping into a defensive posture, ready to shift to attack the moment it was in range.

Everything else slipped away. He had one purpose now--to kill.

[hatedriven]

The admission was expected, but also jarring, rattling Sasuke to his core and likely half so noticeably because he could hear the soft hissing in the back of his head. The call back to murder and hate, something he'd spent three years perfecting, devoting himself to dark jutsus and relying on the curse Orochimaru laid on him. He took a breath as he saw the beast come toward them, felt the ground shake under his feet.

Sandals scuffed the dirt and Sasuke lowered his centre of gravity, staring hard at the kishin, trying to catalogue as much as he could before it was on top of them. Fur and horns and claws and a humanoid face, he couldn't figure out it's weak point- but it's blindside was obviously behind it. "We need to get behind it," He said, loud enough to be heard by everyone, kicking off to split away from Naruto as the kishin came upon them. Separating from his Meister wasn't the wisest thing to do, but it did give the beast more targets and a better chance at confusion.

[ramenandawesome]

He felt Souji's shift before he saw it, and while Naruto was hard pressed to remember a time he'd spoken to either member of the pair, one thing was obvious. They knew how to handle themselves. However- as the group's attention had locked on the beast ahead, the monster charging towards them, Naruto's gaze remained everywhere but. His chin dipped forward, blond hair falling forward over his eyes- but it was the death he was unable to look away from. The bodies of strangers, a macabre tangle of limbs, blood pooled so long it resembled ink- what had been people, civilians, now nothing more than crumpled heaps in the snow.

It was one thing, for the dead to be warriors- but this...

Why, a slow tightening in his jaw. He felt Sasuke move a fraction of a second later, his explanation hanging in the air- but Naruto did nothing. Only kept his mute vigil behind Souji's back, head lowered and gaze dark. Why is it always- people like this.

[alastinglight]

"You can count on us to give you an opening for that."

He knew that Okita was more than ready now, and his Meister was one of the fastest swordsmen he had ever seen. Good thing, too: the kishin had broken into a run, charging at full speed in their direction.

[mumyo_ken]

On the battlefield, fighting in a group, a swordsman had to be able to keep track of both the enemy and his comrades without actively thinking about it. Thought could not be spared on such things when one's concentration had to be spent completely on the fight, with all of its own myriad possibilities. It was owing to this that Souji could feel Naruto's hesitation despite the fact that the other stayed behind him.

It was worrisome. This was likely going to be a hard fight, and they could ill afford to spend time protecting the blond while trying to fight. He would give the boy the opportunity to act, however, before taking any action himself. There were any number of elements at play that could account for his inaction, and at the moment, it was not the immediate threat.

That was reserved for the kishin barreling towards them at full speed. They needed to make an opening--Sasuke was right in that it would be most vulnerable attacked from behind--and to do that, Souji stood his ground until the last possible moment before dashing

WOW GUYS. I SERIOUSLY THOGHT I TAGGED THIS YEARS AGO.

[hatedriven]

Sasuke had moved, but Naruto hadn't. The battle was underway, now, with the kishin launching, all screaming claws and teeth to the partnered pair. There was no telling, in how unpredictable these things could be, how long it would stay there. It could notice that he and Naruto weren't together, and go for the weaker link- as like this, separated, they were.

His hesitation sparked anger in Sasuke, something that would normally be simple frustration and instead was rubbed raw by the onslaught of the madness bearing cruelly down on them. "Naruto!" He snapped, a shout over the clashing of blade on claws and the call of their opponent. It was clear Souji was talented, and that he could hold his own-- but Sasuke knew, without a doubt, he was also feeling the pressure.

[ooc; if you guys aren't up to continuing just let me know!]

yeah well. you suck.

[ramenandawesome]

Be it the clash of steel on sharpened claws, or the shout of his name, Naruto responded. His chin lifted, enough to watch the creature bearing down on them, on Souji, but his gaze never moved to Sasuke. Naruto was too aware of the bodies around him, those that could be overlooked by the other members of his team- for the sake of the mission. Those he couldn't ignore no matter how hard he tried.

Like a second heartbeat, he could feel his meister ability pulsing through his blood. Reaching for the wavelength, the promise of power, of vengeance. "Yeah," He said aloud, voice low and perhaps to no one in particular. Yeah, he knew this feeling, and he knew what had happened in his own world, the last time he'd allowed himself to accept it. What it had nearly cost him. Naruto's eyes slid closed, sandals scuffing in the snow, and a beat later he was off- sprinting towards the beast ahead, along it's flank, kunai in hand.