Bearer of Bad News

Gin followed Kanna into the Administration Building, his gear and clothing all the same since he returned from the battle. A pair of black combat sandals cover both feet leaving the toes and heel open securing up to his ankles. He wears a pair of common synthetic black pants personally having the bottoms wrapped in white bandage wrap to prevent it dragging or getting snagged. On right his thigh is a blue rectangular holster secured and backed by white tape. Gin wears a black single utility belt tightly secured to his waist. It holds one blue holster on his right side as well as a beige carry pouch around the back side of the belt. His torso is covered by a long sleeve black shirt, the upper sleeves donning the Konoha emblem stitched in red material. Over his shirt is a slate gray colored flak jacket which is zipped up and secure on his body, provided with six scroll holsters across the torso. Choosing to wear a baldric he secures a sheathed Naginata diagonally across his back. On his belt towards the left side he also wore a small tin canteen.

His forehead protector is secured across his forehead, the cloth colored blue and with the steel plating facing forwards showing the Konoha emblem in plain view. Gin is a tall, lean male standing at 6'2 and weighing 175 lbs. He has a broad, moderately toned figure. He has a tan skin tone accompanied with rich hazel eyes and medium length brown hair stopping briefly past midway down his neck and shortly past his forehead. Because of this his forehead protector is partially covered by his hair though not greatly inhibiting identification. Entering in the Hokage Office he let Kanna speak, Gin rather letting his Captain do the talking than him. Of course he was willing to chime in when the opportunity arose.

The woman stood fast in earnest as her expression turned for the worse with her mind switching from the busy daily proceedings that made her scatterbrained to one that was solely focused on the moment.

"Of course." She moved to the desk that was against the wall opposite the front double doors. Gently, she set the stack of papers in her hands down upon the desktop and then reached down under it to tap a hidden object in an undisclosed location somewhere on the wooden furniture's underside.

The sound of crows could be heard in the distance before the Hokage's Aide could even stand back up. It became louder and louder until a small flock of the black birds burst through an open window towards the back. Onyx feathers swarmed the area in front of the two returned Konoha-nin and the birds within steadily became imperceptible, their cawing, hurried forms shaping into that of a man who, as the feathers began to fade, bore the distinct appearance of the First Hokage wearing his white kage robe over the all black clothing.

"Kanna, Gin." Kazuya spoke, moving his hands to clasp together behind him. "Welcome home. If you'll follow me..." He started towards the hallway at the back end of the room, down past the desk and the window that he'd come through and up the stairs into his office. Once there, he'd stand before his desk, motion for them to close the door, and let their debriefing begin. "Report."

There was no doubt they had an audience with the Big Cheese. It was more surprising to Gin that he had actually returned to office after his extended absence. He had hoped Kazuya was aware of the mission they were sent on in the first place, Yami having filled him in during the time they were away. Upon entering his office Kanna took over, spilling out essentially the entire scenario upon departure to arriving. Gin had his eyes fixed nonchalantly on Kanna as she spoke paying attention to what she said to ensure she did not miss any details. As Kanna finished up, and gave the floor to Gin to fill in any potential gaps left he would turn his head to Kazuya. "Yes, I do. The 'artifact of the sage' you speak of, Nozomi. Just before fleeing combat the enemy spoke rather openly about what she meant. The former Kirigakure Shinobi is a Jinchuriki. Nozomi has a demon sealed inside her, though we are unaware of her prowess with it at the moment. Regardless, the pale skinned woman gave us three years. I can only assume she intended on training her new pupils which could spell trouble for us in the near future."

Gin would reach back into his hip pouch, retrieving a medium-sized scroll from his bag holding it up near his face. "Otherwise I've recorded some details about those from Kirigakure regarding their Shinobi and their skills if you're interested. You'll have to forgive the lack of names, seeing as this was no social get-together. Though I have plenty of physical attributes recorded for reference. Unfortunately Kumogakure was late showing up to the party, so I had little time to observe them." He would then extend his arm offering the scroll to Kazuya. Whether he was interested and accepted it or not was up to him. Gin personally found the information priceless, and would keep it for his own sake. Inside the scroll the contents would read:

Information Scroll:

"That aside, there is nothing additional to report. Kanna covered most of the details already." At the end Gin would wait along with Kanna for Kazuya's response. In a sense the mission was a failure, as they did not successfully neutralize the pale woman, whoever she was. They would mend their failure with useful data instead, having their failure to completely execute their mission not go in vain.

The Hokage's expression remained unchanged as the details were expressed. The situation was much, much worse than initially anticipated. A large flying creature with high destructive capability was suspected and worst case had it at a Bijuu. A dragon, though, want completely unforeseen and could be better or even worse than a Bijuu, but to have a person on the ground cooperating with it or controlling it implied a significantly more dangerous threat.

The ability to summon snakes and attack with an invisible force reminded Kazuya of something he'd heard in folklore during the journeys of his youth, but he had little real detail, nothing concrete enough to act on. He'd have to research more.

Knowing that this woman had such power, such affinity for summons, and now with a Jinchuuriki recruited to her side and a clear declaration of war just three years away...There were a great deal of preparations to make. Kumogakure would no doubt rally to a joint effort, having lost most or all of their shinobi in this slaughter. Kirigakure likely would prefer to cover things up, having lost what may be the only Jinchuuriki among the major nations. Perhaps the only consolation in all of this was that it wasn't Zurui.

"I must apologize for the situation." The First began, accepting the scroll. He opened as his eyes flashed crimson and then he closed it before a normal person could even glance a sentence. These details were of vital importance, too much to rely on memory any less than that of the Sharingan. Kazuya handed the scroll back to Gin, nodding a thanks.

"We had little information to go on and only on the dragon. You were sent undermanned and ill prepared." The Hokage leaned back against his desk and folded his arms. "Still, you gathered a great deal of useful information and managed to come out alive. Given your circumstances, that's a success." With a sigh, Kazuya finished with a series of questions that has enough spacing to allow for answers. He didn't feel the need for following up. "This invisible striking power, what was their approximate range?"

"Kanna, what technique is it that allows you to modify your body with threads? What are its specifics?"

"The fire she used, was it noticeably hotter than normal? Able to melt stone, perhaps?"

It appeared they were unprepared for what waited for them in Kumogakure. There was always a risk running into conflict with no intel. Although their squad was powerful, they were simply not enough for the power Honiko had. Still, if what she said was true, they would have three years to prepare. Kazuya accepted the scroll only for a brief moment, his eyes changing color as he recorded the details written down in a second, before handing the scroll back to Gin. Taking it he stored it back in his hip pouch. He stayed silent once again as Kanna took the floor. In all honesty, he did not notice the invisible attacks she mentioned, most likely because he was always occupied with trying to spare his own life in the process. Everything else he could contest for, though Kanna was more than capable of replying on her own. Though, as she finished speaking, he would nod and turn back to Kazuya. "She was not a fan of being subtle. The technique she used were all very high rank. More than what I could manage."

"I see." The Hokage picked up a scroll from the top of his desk and began writing in it. "Kanna," he started, never taking his eyes or hand from the scroll, "go to the hospital and speak with the staff there. I'd like you to get checked out, find some answers on this technique of yours. If possible, I want a method for you to improve it. Report to me if you find anything; otherwise, see if you can find Yui Kotoshura and begin training the Eight Gates with her. Dismissed."

Kazuya would finish the scroll about the time Kanna would start to walk through the door, unless she had further questions. He'd hand the rolled parchment to Gin, saying, "You'll find a powerful sealing technique in there. Learn it and destroy the scroll. Ensure that nobody reads it. Afterwards, seek out Satomi Uchiha. You, Kanna, and he will form a squad, so train with him until I send word on your next mission."



Scroll contains Four Symbols Seal, which will allow you to learn Eight Trigrams Seal and Torii Seal.

After receiving the scroll Gin would bow to Kazuya. "Thank you." Gin had a general idea he was receiving an exclusive of sorts. Konoha was well-known for their Fuuinjutsu, a field he specialized in well. Their mission report was done. Although he had initially planned to rest up the urgency of being in possession of an exclusive scroll was most important. He would spend his spare time learning the art of the technique he possessed to quickly dispose of it afterwards.

[Exit]