Catch that tiger (D-rank mission)

mission:

Yamamoto leapt through the air, her white outfit and grey hair billowing in the breeze. She grabbed a tree branch, swinging forth on it before releasing. Her legs bent as she landed upon a lower branch, yellow gaze locked on the figure of an orange beast with black stripes fleeing away from her, heading into the undergrowth that made up training ground one. Yamamoto launched forth, leaping down to ground level before breaking out into a full sprint.

She had chased this overgrown tiger all throughout the lowest level of the village and so far it had not injured anyone, which was a relief and a half that’s for sure, but Yamamoto had still been hired to recapture it. Sadly, she had so far been unable to actually capture it. Understandably, the tiger known as Kokoro had simply run away from this unknown stranger and their strange scent. It was an understandable response but it did still make things difficult.

Yamamoto stopped suddenly, watching the tiger flee as a realisation set in: simply chasing the animal would not be sufficient in capturing it. She paused, thinking to herself on what would be the best way to reign this tiger in. Ideally, she would like to simply convince Kokoro to return of their own volition but that...hm. Yamamoto’s thoughts stopped suddenly, her face remaining its expression of passive indifference to the world around it. That was exactly it wasn’t it? Why did she need to rely upon capturing this tiger?

With an idea spawning in her head Yamamoto simply turned on her heel and walked back to the village, smiling at the guards who had been positioned around the entrance to the training grounds. It was strange to see her enter and then leave so quickly, especially given the tiger that had charged in moments before, but a disarming smile and confidence inviting nod was enough to convince them that she had everything in hand. Plus, it was her mission so best to leave it to her.

Taking a lesson from the playbook she had employed back when taking out those rats, Yamamoto made her way to her favourite butcher’s shop, stepping through the door and waving politely. The owner of the store was not working today it seened, judging by how his young apprentice was behind the counter. It did not matter to Yamamoto either way. This butcher had known her parents, or so he claimed, and as such had always been willing to offer a slight discount, the best cuts or some extra meat.

“Hello Hiroto-chan. Would you have anything that could lure a tiger out?”” The auburn haired boy, roughly eighteen, turned to face Yamamoto. His green eyes blinked, dilated with surprise at this immensely odd request. What WOULD a tiger eat? They were pretty big animals and it was pretty likely they also ate big prey animals which meant…

“...Not a clue honestly. Maybe try beef? I’ve got some off cuts you can have. Not like we can sell them anyway.” He put down the butcher’s knife he had been using and grabbed a nearby piece of plastic wrapping, binding the random assortment of beef offcuts together in plastic wrap before handing them to Yamamoto. She gratefully accepted them, a soft smile decorating her features as she made her exit. She would have to remember to do something nice for the shop’s staff.

However, as she was walking out from the store with her bait in hand Yamamoto stopped, turning around to walk back into the butcher’s. From the folds of her clothing Yamamoto removed what served as her wallet, a simple piece of rough and aged leather that showed a great deal of age. From the folds of this wallet that had once belonged to her father, Yamamoto withdrew a small bundle of Ryo and placed them on the counter. The butcher’s apprentice had not noticed due to his back being turned and as quickly as she had entered, Yamamoto left.

The kunoichi soon made her way back to the training grounds, bait in hand and a neutral smile on her lips. She yet again waved at the guards assigned, who seemed to be a new addition now that Yamamoto thought about it, before making her way back into the training ground. It was a simple matter to find the tiger via the sensory jutsu she had trained in but if one had expected her to simply chase after it, they would be sorely disappointed.

The Kunoichi instead went upwind of the animal, surprised that despite how it could probably smell her by now the tiger remained stationary, and bent down. She unpacked the meat and let it sit in the open, its bloody scent carrying on the wind down towards the tiger. Yamamoto then retreated into a nearby tree, clutching a few spare scraps of meat, and got as comfortable as she could. Then, she simply waited.

Seconds rolled into minutes, minutes rolled into hours and after a good hour, the tiger known as Kokoro strayed into the clearing. It made sense that they would not have eaten, or known how to hunt in the first place, given how they were raised in captivity and it was good to see her assumption proved to be correct. She watched the tiger walk towards the offered food and, after a few careful glances, they began to eat.

She jumped down from the tree, body bent low and submissive. In truth, Yamamoto had utterly no idea how to best approach a tiger or any wild animal for that fact and so all she could really do was go with her gut feeling. She slowly approached the tiger, yellow eyes locked with the feline gaze. Slow and careful steps, submissive body language and to cap it all off, Yamamoto offered the few cuts of meat she had kept.

Kokoro licked his meaty chops, cleaning some of the blood off his face before taking a sniff. One paw, then a second, a third and a fourth. He slowly walked towards Yamamoto, cautiously licking the meat before eating it out of her hand. She took this opportunity to pet the tiger, rather surprised that all it took was a few bits of meat and a gentle approach to secure Kokoro’s trust.

“Would you like to return home with me Kokoro?” The tiger purred and rubbed his head against Yamamoto’s chest, seemingly content and having forgived the past chase that occurred between the two of them. It was a simple matter for her to lead the tiger back to their owner, explain what had happened and then go collect her fee.