Watch The Store

Mission Name: Watch the Store
Mission Type: Chore
Mission Rank: D
Mission Goal: Look after the store while the owner's out
Description: A local shop owner of a small general store has to head out on business, to watch the store and keep it open they are looking to hire someone. Take up the mantle and head on over to the store located in the main street, you can't miss it as it has bright pink windows. The owner will give you a quick rundown before leaving saying he will be back in three hours. Serve any customer who comes through the door with a smile.
Payment: 10,000 Ryo
Requirements: Genin+

Another day another dollar. These menial tasks Hao kept being assigned were pretty annoying to deal with, but given his lack of shown competence he wasn’t really surprised that he was being left with the dregs. If this was the price to pay for pretending to be retarded, so be it. Regardless of these thoughts Hao hopped out of his bed after having a very fruitful and restful sleep. He went through his very simple morning routine of showering, brushing his hair, and putting on his clothes, before he made his way out the door. It was a misty morning in the village, as it tended to be, and the sun was just beginning to rise from the horizon, preparing itself to turn the cool refreshing mist into some hellscape resembling that of Florida. Hao’s mission today seemed to be watching over a shop for its opening while the owner ran off to some errand or something. He had also heard that he was going to be having a second genin with him. He had no idea why it would take two genin to run the store but he wasn’t going to complain. Having a second person would at least be entertaining.

It was an exciting day for Zeke. His first day as a genin had finally come. He had been tasked on a mission locally with another ninja from the academy. One he had never met. He hopped out of bed with a pep in his step. He moved through his tiny apartment with the quickness towards the bathroom. He hurriedly brushed his teeth and brushed his hair. It took a matter of seconds to slip into his clothes. On his way out he grabbed an apple out of the basket on his kitchen counter. He took long strides as he made his way to the rendezvous point. The mission for the day was to watch over the shop while he was away, why it took two genin to do it was beyond him. Another question that popped into Zeke's head was what exactly did the owner need to care about. That was a bit above his pay grade, but it wouldn't hurt to know. Overall It didn't matter to Zeke, it was his first mission so he wanted to make sure to do it right. The sun was just coming up over the horizon causing a wondrous sunrise. It wasn't long before Zeke reached the location.

After having left his home, Hao began to make his way towards the store’s location, merrily skipping along the road as he did so. His neighbors were used to this young man’s eccentric actions so none of them really batted an eye when he skipped by their homes. As he made his way there he occasionally waved and said hi to random villagers who he vaguely new, usually earning him faintly annoyed waves back. After a few minutes of skipping he rounded a corner and found himself at the store, just about when the other genin was arriving. Given that it was so early in the morning and that there weren’t really many people walking around outside, it was pretty obvious to Hao that this was probably going to be his partner for the day. He didn’t know this person at all, so this was definitely time to pretend like he was a ditzy moron. He quickly skipped towards the guy while saying “Hey there mister, my names Hao, what’s yo-”. Before he could finish his sentence he slipped on an acorn and face planted in front of the genin, landing on the ground with a loud thud. He wasn’t hurt of course, but his actions would definitely cement him in the eyes of most as a complete fool.

Zeke took a bite of his apple while walking it wasn't long before he spotted a green-haired individual. One he had never seen before no doubt the person he was supposed to be working with or maybe the store owner. He wasn't too sure but he made sure to swallow the bite his apple before forming the words to make a greeting. The individual in question skipped towards his location with a greeting in tow before meeting the pavement. Zeke made a dash for the kid to catch him but he would not make it in time. The kid slipped on an acorn before he could finish his greeting had met the pavement with a loud thud. The acorn and gravity had claimed a victim. With the apple in his left and an open right hand, Zeke rushed over to help the boy up. “Quite a fall you took there gotta watch where you are going.” Zeke lowered himself while saying this with one hand to help the lad up from his fall.

As the boy lay sprawled out on the floor, he contemplated his existence. Was this charade worth it? Would doing dumb shit like this bring him tangible benefits in the future? Only time could tell and for now it was time to get up and run some weird ass store. By the time Hao had finished his thinking, the other genin had already rushed over to try and help him up. Hao looked up and made a face as though he was almost dejected, but he quickly brightened up and grabbed the man's hand, allowing him to help him back up. After getting to his feet, Hao was just about to speak when the owner of the store made his way out after hearing the commotion. He was some short, kind of creepy looking old man with a really bad comb over, and the look on his face made it seem as though he had seen what had just happened. After the old man shuffled his way over, he just looked at the two boys and said, “Just make sure the store doesn't burn down.”, before sighing and walking away towards whatever goal he had that morning. Hao kicked away the acorn he had stepped on as though he were angry at it.

The boy laid there for a moment no doubt letting the pain set in for a moment before getting up. He raised his face, before a sad expression riddled it. The boy was quick to change his facial expression from a sad to a more up beat one. He grabbed Zeke's hand which caused Zeke to stand up while pulling the boy up to his feet. He looked as if he was about to mutter words before the owner of the shop came out of his store. A short man with a bad comb over came out, dusting himself off with a look on his face that showed he had seen what happened. He made his way over to the two lads and spoke on the matter. Don't burn his store down, should be easy right? All the had to do was sit there and help out anyone who came in. He then shuffled off to do whatever he sat off to do for the next couple of hours. The green haired kid kicked away the acorn angrily. Zeke took another bite of his apple while examining the store they were about to watch. He moved the piece of his apple that he was chewing to one side of his mouth to speak. With a cheek full of apple he spoke, “The name is Zeke by the way.” Before making his way over to the entrance of the store. “Suppose we should get to work.”

This other genin seemed abnormally nonchalant about the whole set of weird experiences that had just occurred. He just kept eating his apple as though this was the most normal thing in the world. Hao could respect a person with that kind of attitude, as it was very useful in the world of ninjas. Having been helped up and introduced to his fellow genin, he skipped and twirled into the store, making sure not to trip on anything again or to slam into any doors or walls. As the store had just opened, there weren’t any customers yet, so all the two genin would need to do is wait for something to do. While he made his way over to behind the counter, Hao couldn’t help but notice what kind of store this was. Different types of alcohol lined the shelves of the store, with there being a large assortment of cold beverages stored in the refrigerators in the back. Behind the counter was an array of different smoking implements, like cigarettes and lighters. There was even a large amount of smut magazines lining the racks attached to the sides of the alcohol rows. After making to behind the counter, Hao placed his elbows on the table and rested his head on his hands before saying, “What kind of weirdo hires kids to run his smut and booze shop.”

The lad with the green hair seemed to be alright and in higher spirits. Zeke stood there for a moment waiting for a name as he gave his. Yet, he was left with no name. Zeke didn't take it to heart, maybe there was some reason behind not giving a name. He didn't dwell too much on it, it would have been nice to know this kid by something. The individual in question skipped and twirled into the store as if he did not have a care in the world. 'Hopefully he doesn't trip again.' Zeke thought walking in normally. The door closed behind him and Zeke made his way into the store after the boy. He pushed on the door causing the bell to ring upon entry.

The store had just opened so there wasn't a soul inside besides the two genin. The boy made his way over to the counter, he was looking around taking account of the store they were supposed to watch over. Zeke continued to eat his apple while doing the same. It did not take long before he realized what kind of store they were in. One defiantly not for children. On one side of the store there were shelves fill to the brim with all sorts of liquor and booze. While on the other  there was a collection smut magazines accompanying the booze. Zeke continued to walk around the store eyeballing the magazines while shaking his head.

The green haired lad spoke on the subject of the store, Zeke couldn't disagree with the notion. It was kind of odd to hire genin to do this job. “I guess cause it's easier than paying actual employees. The mission statement said nothing of what kind of business the guy ran. I guess that was left out on purpose. But who are we to question orders from above I suppose.”

As Hao awaited a response he continued to scan the room to see if there was anything especially out of the ordinary in it. Unfortunately he couldn’t really find any magazines with especially weird fetishes that he could laugh at. After hearing Zeke say something about how we shouldn’t question the orders from the higher ups, Hao just shrugged and looked outside for a moment, noticing a disturbing looking creature making its way towards the shop. Yes, a creature, for the being that was making its way towards them could only be described as such. This shambling abomination of a person looked to be standing at a height of 5’4 and a weight exceeding 350 lbs if his rippling layers of muffin tops and fupas were to be believed. Atop his head sat a barren wasteland of hair, at least above the ears, riddled with moles and liver spots. Below that decaying wreck lay a disgusting look polish plait of hair reaching down to the man’s middle back. The eldritch horror wore a black graphic t-shirt that depicted some terrifying amalgamation between a hedgehog creature and an electric yellow rat. The doors opened with an eerie lack of silence as the thing waddled into the store. Just one look at its visage and a whiff of its foul stench caused Hao’s eyes to go wide and his body to shudder in primordial terror. His mouth lay agape, and he was like a deer in headlights, with no idea what to do. All he could do was wait and see how his new genin friend reacted before making a decision himself.

Zeke walked down the aisle that had loads of liquor stored on the shelves. He used his free hand to pick up a bottle at a time. Looking over the label and the contents of the bottle. Then it dawned on him as he looked up at Hao. He did hear a name but it didn't quite register with him eating pavement. So he could actually put a name to a face. Before he could say anything else the door opened once more causing Zeke to turn around. He noticed the individual walking in. He was defiantly someone to gawk at for a moment. A round man with a questionable attire on him. The shirt barely fit on his round physique. Zeke wouldn't even mention the rest of him. Though one thing did enter the store along with him. An aroma of garbage and fecal matter caused Zeke to gag. He looked over at Hao to see him shudder at the sheer sight and smell of the man in question. Zeke gathered himself quickly, trying not to vomit out the apple he had been chomping on before. He made eye contact with the guy and searched his brain for some form of verbal action.

“Hi...welcome to the store. How can we help you.” He smiled trying not to tear up at the smell of this man who just walked into the store.

As Hao stood there in a daze filled with terror and dread for the experience that was about to befall him, his new genin friend saved him from this awful experience by engaging the man conversation. The creature paused for a moment as though he were contemplating what exactly he was there for. As he stood silent he rubbed his disgusting protruding fupa belly, displacing whatever foul particles lay connected to him. A visible haze of dust and grime began to fall to the floor as he rubbed himself. After his moment of contemplation he opened his almost toothless mouth and blubbered, “I’m in the market for a limited edition ninja pikaquestria figurine to add to my collection!” In his excitement for this figurine, his slobber flew all over the room, somehow traveling towards and hitting the face of Zeke if he didn’t dodge it somehow. Hao hadn’t really seen anything like that as he was scanning the store earlier, but given how confident this creature seemed to be that the store had it, he was probably a regular. Having seen the bravery of Zeke, Hao used his quickest speed to get out from behind the counter and go looking for the figurine, desperate to get this shambling abomination out of the store as quickly as possible. He just hoped Zeke could distract him long enough for him to find it.

The man rubbed his belly for a moment before answering Zeke's greeting. Visible dust of a food origin fell to the ground as his crusty hand continued to rub. Zeke fought back every instinct to make a disgusted face. He spoke but that was not the only thing that came out. Slobber shot out like a projectile in every direction. A bit came Zeke's way which prompted him to shift his body to the right while moving his face to avoid the saliva bullet. He regained his posture before speaking again to the easily excited costumer. Hao took no time to come from behind the counter to look for the figure in question. So this prompted Zeke to take action and stall for time. “Sure I am sure we have that here. Why not take a walk with me to the figure portion of the store.” Zeke came out of the aisle of booze he had been inspecting. He had now gotten a full-body view of the individual who had entered the store. This only made Zeke's stomach churn a bit, the smell didn't help either. While Hao was busy looking for the figure, Zeke showed some of the other figures to him. The man followed at a slow pace, breathing heavily as if even just the tiniest walk was a challenge from him.

“Over here is our other limited edition glitter squad figurines. As you can see we have a wide selection to choose from here at our little store.”

While Zeke attempted to distract and lead over the very slow and lumbering degenerate, Hao made use of his great intelligence to assess which of these toys the man was looking for. His mind raced as his eyes scanned the walls of toys, oddly stocked considering what type of store this was, but Hao didn’t really care about that at this moment. After Zeke and the man had made it about half way to his location, he found the toy he was looking for and removed it from the shelf with a careful touch, trying not to harm the “valuable” in any way, lest the creature lose his shit and attack them or something. After Hao had pulled the toy from the shelf, he signalled to Zeke that he had it and that he should bring the man over to see it. Just walking halfway around the store left the man drenched with putrid sweat that could be smelled from at least 20 feet away. Even random passerby on the streets were gagging a bit as they walked by on the store’s sidewalk. Hao utilized his years of medical experience to keep himself from hurling all over the store and kept a visibly pained smile on his face as he waited for Zeke to approach.

Zeke made sure to keep track of Hao while distracting the customer. It took everything in Zeke's body to avoid hurling at the smell of this individual. It was just sheer willpower at this point. No prior training or anything. Then again nothing could really prepare one for this kind of thing. It was completely from left field. The customer seemed to be genuinely intrigued by the glitter squad figures as it was in the same ballpark as the desired one. He saw Hao signaling to him that he had the figure in hand. Zeke stood up straight, gathered himself and fought back the tears from the smell. “Looks like my partner here has found what you were looking for sir.”

“Oh good, you guys do have it. I don't know what I would have done if you guys didn't have it.” The customer replied. His breath wasn't too good neither. It smelled of rotten garbage. Right into Zeke's general direction. He turned away from the customer suddenly to hide his facial expression. 'Sweet ninja Jesus.' He thought while grimacing for a moment. It was a short walk over to Hao to take a gander at the desired figure. Hao was carefully handling the figure to avoid any mishaps. No telling what this guy would do if the figure had gotten damaged in the process of selling it to him. “Your ninja pikaquestria figurine as requested. Let's get you checked out.”

Zeke went to the backroom to look for a packing box and some wrapping paper. while Hao took the customer to the front desk. It wasn't long before he found a small enough box with some bubble wrap. He came out to the front with the items in hand.

After showing Zeke the figure Hao had a feeling of dread that crept up behind him and overtook his psyche. For some reason he felt as though he was about to be left alone with this fell abomination. Perhaps this was retribution for his cowardice when faced with the thought of speaking to this man. Nevertheless, Zeke acknowledged his presence and disappeared to a location unknown, though Hao could surmise it was probably the back room to gather supplies of some sort. Now he was left alone with this mass of flesh and crusty goo. He said nothing as he shuddered and made his way to the cash register, hoping the man would just follow him without a word. Unfortunately for Hao the man desired to express his joy for his situation by saying “Oh god im so excited to finally get the new pikaquestria deluxe super unicorn rat.” Hao dodged the spit and other discharges from the man as he made his way to the register. The man stood at the counter, panting as though the journey he had just been on was too great for him, the sweat from his body dripping onto the floor and staining it a permanent pus yellow. Hao stifled his urge to gag as he rang up the order with as much haste as he could muster. He hoped Zeke would at least return by the time he finished scanning this thing.

Zeke came out with supplies in hand, he made his way over to behind the counter. The overweight gentleman paid his order. He handed Hao the exact amount so there was no need for change. Zeke took the statue and began the process of boxing it up nicely. He placed the figure in the middle and placed the bubble wrap inside before sealing the box with some tape. He pushed the box over the counter towards the gentleman so he could grab it. Zeke made sure to avoid letting their hands touch to avoid any nastiness that came along with that. In most cases, he wouldn't mind but this was a special case due to the unhygienic nature of the customer. The man grabbed his box and began his journey out of the store and back home. He said nothing as he made his way out of the store. “Have a nice day!” Soon as the man was out of the store and hopefully out of earshot Zeke finally gagged. His face scrunched up in disgust and an audible gag could be heard. “I never knew someone existed like that. The stench was really starting to get to me.”

Hao continued to contain the contents of his stomach as he accepted the moist change from the man’s hands. His scrawny arm shook in terror as he took the money and deposited it within the cash register with as much speed as he could muster. He didn’t know if he could stand to be within a few foot radius of this being for much longer, but to his relief, the man took his toy and ran off without a word, as though there was nothing that could stop him from enjoying his new figurine. It baffled Hao that the man had the capacity to run, given how much trouble he had walking in the store, but the human body was an amazing thing, so he wasn’t going to give it much more thought. The moment the man had made it out of sight, Hao’s body wretched forward away from the counter, his arms wrapped around his stomach as he gagged. His eyes were almost blood shot as he attempted to gather his composure. Any semblance of his normal cheerfulness was gone at this moment, but he managed to pull himself together as he heard Zeke speak. It seemed as though the experience was bad enough that Hao’s actual personality bled through for just a moment as he said, “Ugh! I’ve smelled corpses that were less revolting than whatever the hell that abomination was.”

Hao shared in Zeke's disgust for a moment. It was enough to make Zeke laugh at Hao's comment. This was a genuine moment the two shared in Zeke's first mission as a genin. Yet their first and hopefully last obstacle had passed for this mission. Zeke hoped that the owner would be back soonish so they could get paid. The door opened causing the bell to ring. A tired dusty looking gentleman came through the door. He looked uncut with his long beard and messy hair. His clothes hung off of him as if they were too baggy for him. The rotten smell from earlier seemed to be overridden by another waft of liquor. It was coming from the gentleman who now stood in the store scratching his lower extremities without a care in the world. He glanced around the store as if he was looking for something. Zeke spoke up once again so Hao would not have to. “How ya doin sir is there anything we can help ya with?” The man said nothing and made his way over to the liquor. He began looking around the aisles only making grunts as he looked at various bottles.

Despite Hao’s outburst, Zeke apparently found both the comment and the situation funny enough to laugh. After considering the absurdity of the situation, Hao couldn’t stop himself from laughing along with Zeke. After he had gotten the laughs out of his system and had a moment to think, he hoped to ninja jesus that the owner would return soon so he could leave this cursed place. Unfortunately for him, another interesting customer made his way into the store. This customer didn’t seem to be anywhere near as bad as the first, but he did seem like some sort of degenerate. The smell of liquor wafted off him and mixed with the remnant odor of decay left behind by the first customer. Even after being spoken to the man looked as though he was on a mission; a mission to find more booze. From the weird little groaning noises he was making, Hao was able to make out a few sentences or so. The man was mumbling to himself as though he were almost asleep, stumbling around the store saying “You are my frriiieeeend aaaaa.” After fumbling around for a bit his eyes honed in on some form of rum, and with a speed unbecoming of an obviously drunk hobo, he made a mad dash for the bottle.

The man moved with a purpose after focusing on some dark rum. Captain Jack's Spiced Rum to be exact. A smile crept across his face as he looked back up at the counter with his booze in hand. He moved towards the counter with the smell of decay and liquor in tow. Zeke sat there in amazement of how quickly he moved from part of the store to another. He wasn't too sure if the man was an ex-ninja or not, so his history was left unsure. But that kind of movement for something as simple as booze wasn't too natural. The man stood at the counter for a moment staring down the two genin for a moment while he reached into his pocket with a free hand. Zeke didn't really know what to say for a moment hopefully Hao chimed in. The man pulled out some ryo and slapped it on the counter. Some crumpled bills and dirty coins were revealed after the man removed his hand from the counter. With his booze, he said nothing and made his way out of the door. Zeke grabbed the money, not even sure if it was the right amount but it didn't matter the guy didn't cause any problems. He wasn't going to say anything to the store owner if Hao didn't.

Apparently this man was an expert in the art of purchasing alcohol. He spent no time looking around or browsing the wares. He was a simple man with simple needs and he knew what he desired. The drunken man was both tottering but somehow balanced as he picked up his Captain Jack’s Spiced Rum and made his way to the counter. There was an eerie silence before the man fished out his crumpled money with a swift motion; slamming it on the table with his hobo strength. The man grabbed him booze and walked out without actually staying to make sure the money he had given them was actually enough to purchase the booze. Normally Hao would have tried to stop the man but the sheer force of his booze purchasing will prevented him from doing so. He stood there dumbfounded once again at the absurdity of the situations he had been placed in. He was used to interesting things happening during missions, but these two experiences seemed to be something special. Luckily for Hao and Zeke their suffering would soon come to an end as the owner returned to his store. At this point, Hao just wanted to leave, so he gave his goodbyes to both the owner and to Zeke and went home to take a long deserved rest.

[Exit]

Zeke placed the ryo in the register and no words were exchanged. The hobo left the store without saying as much as a peep. The door swung open once more but this time it wasn't a customer. Thankfully the job was coming to a close. The owner came back into the store with some bags in tow. “Oh good the store isn't burnt down.” He made his way into the back room and came back out. “Alright you two can leave now your payment will be sent to you both. Hao said his goodbye and left the store afterwards. Zeke wasn't too far behind him. He did grab a bit of rum for himself. He grabbed the same rum the hobo grabbed. Captain Jack's spiced rum was on the menu for the nightHe left the money on the counter just like the hobo. It should have been the exact amount needed. Sure he was technically underage but the store owner didn't care. He did have two genin watch his smut store with no regards for their age. Zeke left the store with booze in tow. He made his way back to his apartment where he would partake in the rum he bought from the store.

[Exit]