Cursebreaker: An Unexpected Conclusion

Shimiko had received word from ANBU that another tape from Menza had arrived. She had instructed them to check it for traps, watch it, and then deliver a report to her desk. When all was said and done, Shimiko sat back in her chair in disbelief. She had several questions and some of them were easier to answer than others.

Is this a trap? Who is the mysterious benefactor? Can Yui really regrow limbs?

The ANBU Captain watched the video for herself and analyzed it. Menza appeared to be quite serious and if he was to be believed then the crisis had ended just as suddenly as it had begun. She had just finished her preparations for their rescue attempt and now this. The timing appeared to be good to be true. She'd need to get more eyes on this. She invited Seid, Seigi, and Yui to come to a conference room in the Defense Coordination Center to watch the video.

Menza's Final Message To the World of Shinobi:

A group of ANBU stood in the back of the room while the projector played Menza's video. If Yui got upset they'd be there to stop her. Shimiko of course warned the girl that no further acts of destruction were permitted in the building. The staff was still replacing the wall she had blown up.

Once the video was done being presented, Shimiko would turn to Yui.

"Is it true what he said? Can you really regrow body parts?"

Yui would enter the room and see another Menza tape, as she listened her blood would boil, he was running away from her. He was such a coward, still, this also meant Rin would be safe. She kept calm even as her blood boiled inside, him mentioning she could regrow limbs caused her to sigh. This was true in a way but it still hurt like literal hell and forced her to use her gates to regrow the limb when she blasted it off.

"It is true but only under certain circumstances, I have to use a jutsu that allows my body to regrow limbs. This does not mean it doesn't cause immense pain, I do have to say I do not trust Rins safety in Konoha."

This was when she realized the other thing mentioned her cousin was dead and had been killed, she had just talked to her and she had been in Kiri. Her blood boiled even further as she was clearly angry, her eyes would show teas as her hands shook from the news. She had no idea what to say about the subject but Rins safety would have to come before any plans for revenge.

"If you still trust Kiri after what you heard about my cousin you would be a fool, they are the world enemies and the bitches of the society. I do not know what I will do yet, but it is very likely I will be considered a missing-nin soon. I won't allow Kiri sins to go unpunished, between the society and them I have a lot of enemies to take out. As for my regrowing of body parts, I would love to show you but I need that jutsu for facing whoever my enemy is, and don't let Kiri lie and you believe them. No way my cousin was assassinated in a militaristic village without them fully witnessing or knowing about it. I need to go to Konoha now, I don't know if I will ever see you again but if I plan to take out Kiri or the Society I will give you a call I am sure you want payback on both of them. Until we meet again, I hope you know I do not consider you an enemy but a friend and ally."

Yui would walk over to Shimiko and offer her hand if she shook it Yui would pull her in for a friendly hug before letting her go and leaving the room, even though she did not outburst it was clear Yui was mad her hands still shook. She was full of rage and anger and would be in Konoha soon, she wondered if someone there would be foolish enough to try to stop her, or if someone would be stupid enough to demand her and her clan stay in Konoha. She was done with the vile politics of the villages, she would help free Iwa in some way and create a nation that would crush all who opposed freedom in the world. If she had to she would crush all empires to show she would not tolerate stripping lands of freedom to fill their own coffers and fatten up on the suffering of those taken over.

-Exit Thread-

Shimiko watched Yui tremble with anger as the video played. Fortunately, the Kotoshura didn't blow anything up this time around. She confirmed that she was indeed able to regrow limbs but declined to say how she was able to accomplish such a thing. The ANBU was mighty curious as to what tricks she was hiding but ultimately she decided against squeezing the knowledge out of her. Yui was in a volatile state and she could be a potential asset in the wars to come. Kirigakure's new Mizukage had announced that the Hokage had been assassinated. The news didn't come as a surprise to Shimiko. She knew that given Tatsu's maniacal actions it was only a matter of time. Either Kiri got to her or Akihiro did, it didn't matter to this Chinoike as they were doing the world a favor.

Yui predictably wasn't happy about that given the fact that they were kin. You don't choose who your family and Shimiko knew that if it was a member of the Chinoike Clan she'd be forced to act regardless of how insane their actions might appear to be. Shimiko did think it was interesting that this was the second time a ninja had reportedly gone mad and had been put down within Kiri's borders. First Lei and now Neko-sama. She happened to know that Neko-sama was crazy but that didn't shake the feeling that something was wrong with the Hidden Mist. Yui shared her concerns and made it clear that Kiri was on her hit list.

It was a prospect they shared.

Shimiko stood and shook Yui's hand. She was a bit stunned at how calm and driven the Kotoshura was. She allowed herself to be pulled into a friendly hug. She embraced Yui as she thought about what the girl had said. She had no qualms about losing her hand if it meant getting back Rin. But that didn't mean the Society could be trusted to actually deliver on their end of the deal. This whole thing could be a trap. Menza hated Yui in particular and it was possible he was just nudging her into a corner. If that was the case then Yui would need someone who had her back. Shimiko walked after Yui and grabbed her arm, pulling the newly minted Jounin away from the door.

"Yui wait! You can't go to Konoha alone....Menza said Rin would be there waiting for you but we have no way of telling whether this is a trap or not. At least let me accompany you to the Hidden Leaf. If I'm there they might not be so tempted to try something"

Yui would suddenly feel her rm grabbed as Shimiko pointed out it could be a trap, this was very true as she had also thought this was the case. The min issue was Konoha may have marked her as an enemy, and if that was the case anyone that went with her could be attacked. She was sure Shimiko realized this, but she would warn her even still, she also could not bring a large force or Konoha could consider it an act of war, this was a very precarious situation.

"I do not mind if you come with me, however, realize Konoha and myself are not on good terms and they may have deemed me an enemy of the state already. If this is the case they may attack both myself and you to cover up their assassination attempts, so your life could gravely be in danger. If you understand we cannot bring a large force with us and at most could bring one or two other people, they need to be strong however we cannot risk having to protect someone weaker. We can fly there on my dragon, in fact, I invented an evens stronger dragon, it's faster and makes bigger explosions."

She would motion for Shimiko to follow if they were to bring someone else they had to be strong, the weak could not join them on this mission. She highly suspected Kponoh may make a move on her despite her never having harmed Konoha.

-Attempted Exit-

"I'm coming with you." Seigi would say. "I am still technically a Konoha-nin, after all." He would push his chair as he stood up. "And even if you say no, I know where you're going." He would glance between both women, his left hand coming up to his right wrist, tightening a small bandage from his and Shimiko's last training session. "Konoha has no reason to suspect me of anything and recon is one of my specialties."
Seigi believed himself to be ready. With the awakening of some of his old memories and his knowledge of how to use Magnet Release returned to him, his skills were now much more honed than they were when he first came to Kumogakure. He was also curious to see Konoha's current state, as he heard rumors of things changing with the city. Making sure the blades on his side were fastened, he would step over to Shimiko's side, ready to move whenever they were.

Yui assented to Shimiko coming with her. If Konoha decided to attack her then Shimiko's presence would hopefully made a difference in saving her life. The blonde prayed to Jashin that it wouldn't come to that but knowing the madness that sprang from Konoha, it certainly wouldn't be the most outlandish thing to have happened these past few months. Yui insisted that only a small group of people accompany her. Too many people were a crowd and given the circumstances they couldn't afford to protect anyone weak. Shimiko gave a determined nod.

"If they threaten you, their village ends."

It wasn't a threat but a promise. They'd be going by dragon. The thought made Shimiko uneasy given the creature's association with Shiroi, but she didn't bring it up. It was fast and powerful which is what they'd need at the moment. Just as they prepared to leave, Seigi would speak up. He wanted to come as well given his affiliation with the village.

"No. Absolutely not! Seigi....I know that you have great potential and that in your own world you were one of the strongest shinobi around....but you're not at 100% yet. I can't risk you getting hurt. I also can't risk Konoha finding out that I tricked them. Until we come up with a rock solid cover story, you and I can't be seen working together outside of Kumo. Seid will hold down the fort while I'm gone and you will STAY PUT. That's an order! Follow us at your own peril....you haven't seen a tenth of what I'm capable of and if you leave this village, you'll be on the receiving end"


Shimiko was reminded of her childhood. She had grabbed a kitchen knife and tried to go on a mission with her older brother. They weren't that far apart in years but he was leagues above her. A trained ANBU and one of the strongest ninja within the village. She wasn't even in a genin. He had told her, he had pleaded with her, he had even threatened her to not put herself in harm's way before she was ready. Now she found herself giving the same speech to an identical version of him.

"Let's go Yui"

Shimiko would walk past the Blaster and march out of the room. She was dying to kill something.

Exit

Seid was a little bit late. His jumps to his home could cause him to be delayed for quite some time. He came rushing in to the briefing room. Just as Shimiko was speaking her last order towards the group of ANBU inside. Apparently the new person Shimiko brought to Kumogakure was to stay here, and he was to protect the village. That was a quick mission. "If you command. Shimiko-sensei." Seid said as she passed by. He had the gist of the situation already, being privy to the this information beforehand. He would follow the ANBU Captain out of the room as well.

[Exit]