Cats and Water [Mission]

Ikomiki’s right ear would shift, tilting to the side to face the direction of the approaching footsteps. It was hard to make out a single sound among the crowd at the docks, but the moment she stepped aboard the gangplank that raised up to the boat they were on Ikomiki could hear it. After her ears Ikomiki’s whole head would turn, peering out to watch the other member of their mission’s team approach. It seemed right just as the man spoke about waiting for a third that she would come. Another girl, which would make three of them together. This was good.

She would pull her bowl up again, lapping down at the juice some more. It created something of a loud sound as she did, or at least louder than what the sound of a normal person drinking would be. Once she was finished she would lower it again, turning over to stare directly at Kitsuki. Green eyes would peer down at her, and Ikomiki would instinctively hold the bowl a bit closer to her chest as if to signal that she didn’t intend on sharing.

“Rocktails.” She whispered the word to herself. That was the fish they were after, apparently. She couldn’t help but be a bit disappointed. It didn’t sound very colorful, or very good tasting at all.

Kitsuki boarded the boat and was a bit surprised at her mission-mates. One of them was an older woman with white hair and an experienced aura. She introduced herself as "Akeru" and Kitsuki reached out to shake her hand politely. "Kitsuki Kurahasa" she said. She wanted to smile but she found the older woman's ethos to be of the no nonsense sort so she kept a neutral expression. She looked over and saw a girl her own age drinking something out of a bowl. They two made eye contact and right away Kitsuki could tell there was something strange about this one. The things on her head....are those cat ears?! Kit's brown eyes widened and then relaxed when she realized that she was being rude. There were all sorts of non-human but sapien physiologies in the ninja world. The Hoshigaki were native to the Water Country and their appearance was akin to that of a shark. Kitsuki reasoned that this one was of a similar typology although instead of taking on an aquatic physiology, her mission partner took on that of a feline.

Kitsuki approached the catgirl and extended her hand just as she did with Akeru.

"Hi there, I'm Kitsuki"

Ikomiki would stare down at the girl’s hand. Both of her hands were currently occupied with the bowl of juice. She wondered for a moment if this was a ruse to steal the bowl away from her but it would only take a single moment for that idea to be discarded as ridiculous. Still. Her tail would flick behind her, swishing about in a way that sent a slight breeze of movement across her hair.

“I don’t like it when people touch me.” She would say in response to the offered handshake. It was another human custom she wasn’t the most fond of. Touching and shaking hands. Too much touching. Humans always seemed to be like that. First Akeruseirei touches her ears and now this girl wanted to touch her hands. It was strange and perverse and Ikomiki refused to entertain it even if cultural norms dictated she should.

“I saw where you were looking. Please don’t touch my ears either. Too many people think it’s okay to touch them without permission.”

Humans were so rude. Ikomiki would divert her eyes over to the side, avoiding any further eye contact with the girl. It wasn’t as if she disliked her. Akeruseirei had made an even worse first impression, but completely changed the situation by offering juice. Boundaries just needed to be set.

“My name is Ikomiki. It’s all the same.”

The catgirl stared at Kitsuki's hand as if there was something on it. The girl looked and saw nothing but immaculately trimmed finger nails. The mysterious catgirl declined the handshake stating that she did not like to be touched. Kitsuki saw the tail twitching in the background and nodded as if slowly understanding what was going on. The girl was either insane or she genuinely was like a cat and was suspicious of humans. Ikomiki also felt the need to warn Kit against touching her ears. Clearly, she wasn't the only one to have noticed the curious oddities. Once the warnings had been given, so would a name. Kit gave the catgirl a curt nod. It suggested a degree of finality to the interaction. She knew Ikomiki's type.

A loner. Stand-offish. Suspicious. There were girls like that back at the WASP. They had trusted others one time too many and had received nothing but heartbreak for their trouble. Fortunately, Kit was spared such a lonely experience but she could still empathize having come close to falling within that trap. She knew that the best way to handle such personalities was to give them space and wait for an opportunity to earn their trust. Ikomiki was clearly an introvert and her feline characteristics probably made relating to others even more difficult. Kit didn't want to display pity so she looked away just in time to hear Akeru's question.

Some might have found it weird to have been called "Miss Kurahasa", but back at the WASP it was such a common thing that it only made her feel more at home hearing it. Kit kept one eye on Akeru's impressive blade as she responded:

"Yes ma'am. Absolutely ma'am". Akeru had the aura of a teacher, or even a Dean. She was the one giving orders here and Kit would be certain to follow her instructions to the letter. She considered making small talk with the woman but decided against it. These kunoichi didn't seem to be like the talkative sort.

What is that cat drinking anyways?

Ikomiki would  raise the bowl to her lips again. Luckily the girl didn’t take her refusal of the handshake as an insult or throw a fuss over it. It was easier that way. She would lap up a bit, just enough to wet her mouth, before Akeru decided to speak again, and then the bowl would be lowered. Ikomiki would stare over at the woman, eyes narrowing somewhat. It was a confused glare.

“Why would I want to touch your disgusting, sweaty human ears? Don’t make this perverse.”

She would glare at the woman for a moment, her eyes shrinking to green slits for a moment. It was uncomfortable. Her ears would flatten down to press against her head, and they would be almost hidden in her hair. The girl’s tail would swish even faster behind her, almost violent in how it moved. With how Rei spoke about her ears and then the bit about the swimming Ikomiki couldn’t help it. She knew she was being teased here but that didn’t take away from how much she was annoyed by it.

“This is a ship. Why would it get wet? The water is on the bottom side, not the top side.” She would ask, somewhat accusatory. It felt like the strange lady was planning something, and Ikomiki hated it. “Don’t make this troublesome.”

Kitsuki was a bit surprised when Akeru insisted that they were on a first name basis. Maybe this woman was a bit more casual than she let on. The cat, however, was displeased at her earlier comment. Kitsuki assumed that Akeru was just breaking the ice and trying to alleviate some of the tension in the room. Unfortunately, Ikomiki took it the wrong way and decided to insult her. Kit's expression grew from neutral to annoyed. It was a rude thing to say and Kit did not like rudeness. The girl could forgive shyness and introversion, but being nasty about a simple joke was a bit too far in her book. The look she gave Ikomiki was a cross between a glare and a look of disappointment. She said nothing and the look didn't linger, but the disapproval was still rolling off her body language.

Akeru appeared to make a dirty joke before ordering Kit to fetch her a pitcher of juice. She appeared to be the one in charge and so Kit did as she was told. She grabbed the pitcher of juice and took it to Akeru.

This whole situation was weird. Really weird. The rude catgirl, this mysterious Akeru and her lewd jokes, even the mission itself was a bit odd. Zizz had been resting on a single follicle of hair. The Angel had shrank to the size of a speck and was essentially treating the strand as something akin to a hammock. The second Kitsuki's uncertainty about the situation turned to apprehension, it grew to the size of a tick and went on red (or rather gold) alert. The single strand lit up like a tree as Angelic energy rushed through it. Of course, one strand of hair buried in a sea of black curls was utterly unnoticeable. Nevertheless, it was a sign that the guardian was ready should things not be as they appeared.

Ikomiki’s apprehension would grow. Her apprehension levels were off the charts. Now only did the woman reveal she could use water chakra, but she also implied that she would potentially use them to make Ikomiki wet. This was a cardinal sin and one that would never be forgotten. The continuation, being that Akerusirei enacting a truly perverse display, would only make it worse. Ikomiki would stare at the woman, peering with slitted glaring eyes. She didn’t like any of this. The way the woman spoke about water. The way she touched herself just now. The way she made an implication with the words ‘force my hand’. This was all very bad.

“I expected better from a woman, but I don’t know why. That was foolish of me. All humans are the same.”

She continued to glare at the woman. The fact that Kitsuki seemed to be glaring back at her was something she almost missed. Ikomiki didn’t understand it, but not everything needed to be understood. Likely it was human social etiquette she had trampled on, or some sort. Maybe she was offended about the ears comment, seeing as she had the same weird sweaty human skin flaps that they called ‘ears’. It was just how things usually were. Typical human behavior. Her ears raised up from her head, and Ikomiki’s tail would raise straight up as well. If she were truly a cat this would be the point where her hair would all stand on end in the illusion of making herself look bigger, but she lacked those reflexes and would instead only get goosebumps instead. Although her tail would become significantly fluffier.

"Don't touch me." She added that last part again for good measure.

Shikotsumyaku : Cosmetic active

"Don't touch me."
"Yeah, I heard you the first time"

Kitsuki replied in a cold but measured tone. She had no intention of touching the cat. It clearly felt threatened by the prescence of humans which begged the question as to why it had accepted this mission in the first place. Then there was that laugh. The sound nearly startled Kit but she had managed to hang on to her wits to keep from jumping. She couldn't show weakness in front of people like these. They were predators.

Kit's eyes widened as the previously human woman bean to mutate horns, claws, and a teeth. She looked at Ikomiki to see if the catgirl was seeing the same thing as she was.

Genjutsu?! Another mutant?

The woman then retracted her mutations just as fast as they had appeared. Akeru accepted the pitcher and thanked her. Kit took a few steps back until there was a healthy bit of distance between herself, the older woman, and the catgirl. The threats Akeru had made chilled her spine. Even worse, she drank from the pitcher directly. Kitsuki's mouth twitched in annoyance. Despite her demeanor, Akeru was as crass and ill-mannered as the cat-human hybrid. The genin said nothing as she tried not to look either of them in the eye. She was at maximum alertness as was Zizz. Something was not right here but she wouldn't call attention to herself unless the situation demanded it. For now, there was no violence and that was what was most important. If this was some kind of trap she had a means to call for help.

She didn’t understand what was happening. This woman started threatening her and sexually harassing her out of nowhere for no real reason. This always happened. She tried to set basic boundaries with humans like ‘Don’t touch me without my permission’ and then for some reason they all became violent and insisted on both breaking them and either threatening physical harm on her or inflicting physical harm. Somehow she had managed to provoke Kitsuki in the process, which Ikomiki could only give a very confused glare at the girl for. Ikomiki hadn’t even been talking to her, but rather the adult Akeruseirei who was explicitly both sexually harassing Ikomiki and threatening her wellbeing on this mission. The fact that Kitsuki seemed upset with her for defending herself was bewildering. Perhaps it was just human solidarity.

Ikomiki’s eyes would widen as she stared over at the woman again. Bones growing out of her forehead, her teeth turning jagged, and claws coming from her fingertips. She seemed like some sort of demon. The terrifying appearance came with another threat, this time of bodily harm.

Ikomiki hissed. She couldn’t help it. A sound like a snake came from her mouth, with clenched teeth. Her tail stood up on end, raising high, and her posture would change to where she was slightly leaning forward while still standing straight on her legs, allowing her tail to raise up even higher.

She would stop half-way through the hiss, the movement sending a wave of pain spreading throughout her chest. Ikomiki had remained stiff in posture throughout this entire time, and changing it suddenly in the moment like that had set her off. She returned to her stiff, straight posture instantly, her facial expression souring. It was never going to heal at this rate.

Slowly, very slowly, Ikomiki would drop to a sitting position, keeping her torso perfectly straight the entire while. The bowl would be placed to her side. With her hands now freed she would form a variety of hand seals. They were all fake, of course. It barely mattered what she made. Following that display she would put her hand up to her mouth and bite hard into the tip of her thumb, enough to draw blood. It would be smeared down at the bottom of the ship following that.

Two cats would appear in a poof of smoke. One with fluffy long black fur and green eyes. It was a smaller one, being only a kitten. The other was much larger, clearly an adult, with shorter white fur and bright blue eyes. Upon being summoned both would remain silent, but would immediately to to the bowl of juice and help themselves. Ikomiki would sigh.

Iko's Stuff:

When Ikomiki started hissing and shifting her body language to be more aggressive, Kit knew something was about to go down. The catgirl formed handseals and summoned two cats. Simultaneously, Kitsuki recalled her cane from the aether of time. Angelic Return! In a golden flash, the jet black weapon would appear in her right hand. Kitsuki couldn't blame Ikomiki for being concerned for her well-being. The older woman came off as extremely threatening. Ikomiki was strange but probably harmless. The one with silve-hair was lewd, un-ladylike, and decisvely threatening. This was either some kind of test set up by the Chuunin Exam, a trap by a sinister organization, or a particularly disturbed Jounin.

Kitsuki was prepared to handle each of those situations. She said nothing and watched as the stranger grew weapons out of their body and placed them on the table.

A Kaguya....

That alleviated some of her stress. If this woman was from Kirigakure then it was likely she was a shinobi and not an enemy. It didn't exonerate her completely but it was reassuring to know something familiar about this person. She remained silent and set her cane in front of her body. She rested both hands on it while waiting for the boat to stop.

The cats beside her gave her comfort. That meant she wasn’t all by herself anymore, if things came down to it. Even if cats were generally solitary they still enjoyed sticking together to some extent. Both of her summons were at least moderately dangerous on their own as well. Both were fast, intelligent, and had at least some ability with ninjutsu. Safety in numbers, since it seemed that both her teammates here were the sort who would unpredictably attack her at any moment. She needed more than anything to be on her toes.

The bones would be produced shortly afterwards. Bone harpoons. The shape was obviously a weapon, and the barbed ends were obvious enough that Ikomiki could tell their purpose just by looking at them. Nasty things. They were surely effective weapons, but some interesting questions were raised from their production. They were ivory white, like the color of cleaned bones. How did she make them? Surely some strange ninjutsu, but wouldn’t doing something like that hurt? It also raised the question of exactly what kind of fish that they were hunting that spears like this would be necessary.

Ikomiki would stand, and cautiously retrieve one of the harpoons from where they had been placed on the ground only after Rei had already walked away from them. It would be spun around a bit in her hand, and the bone would be rubbed at gently with her fingertips.

“How did you make these?” The question was simple, and with the spear in her hand Ikomiki would turn over to glance curiously at Rei. “Are you really some sort of demon?”

The tension appeared to die down in the room a bit. That was good. Kitsuki watched as Ikomiki walked over and touched some of the makeshift weapons. Ikomiki wasn't familiar with the Kaguya bloodline which meant that she couldn't possibly be from Kirigakure. Or maybe she was and was just ignorant. Kit didn't bother asking where the catgirl was from. Instead, she walked over to the fishing implements were and examined them herself. She was sure to give the catgirl a wide berth so that there would be no touching between them.

Ikomiki asked if Akeru was a demon and the woman gave a cryptic answer. Kit said nothing in response. These two were very strange and it was perhaps best to just observe and stay quiet for now. Akeru started talking about the mission which was a relief. They had set aside their differences and were not focusing on the task at hand. This wasn't a trap. Thank Kami...

Additionally, the possibility of catching a few Rocktails to take home was a delectable reward. Kit gave a slight nod indicating her approval for such a handsome payment.

She kept the weapon tight in her hand. It was clearly bone, just from feeling it. The entire process was pretty incredible. The demon-lady was scary but impressive, and Ikomiki would look at her a bit differently. Even with how perverted she was and how infuriated Ikomiki had been just mere moments ago she couldn’t help but feel a bit of respect for the woman. She clearly had some sort of incredible ability. Once the harpoon was tight in her hand Ikomiki would give it a little spin, just to test the weight of it. Once she was confident with it in her hands she would retreat again, giving herself some space between Akeruseirei and Kitsuki.

Ikomiki would turn between the others on the boat. Her cats were still occupying themselves with the juice, but she knew they could be counted on at a moment’s notice. The girl with the black hair, Kitsuki, seemed passive at the moment. Ikomiki would keep a side eye on her and occasionally watch her movements, but her main focus was now on Akeruseirei. The demon lady. She confirmed that it was a fact, and that alone was enough to cement it into Ikomiki’s mind permanently.

“Big fish.” She would repeat the concept. It was hard to imagine one as big as this boat. “Very big fish. If it’s as big as this boat what good will these weapons be?” She didn’t understand, or even know that fish could get that big. “A fish that big would eat us and the boat together.”

Kitsuki made a shadow clone. The duplicate poofed into existence right next to her and then grabbed a harpoon. The real Kit busied herself looking around the ship while the clone tested out the harpoon: its weight, density, and edges. Ikomiki commented that the big fish were a threat to which Kit couldn't help but shake her head. Rocktails were strong, but she was stronger. She could pound the creatures into submission with her bare hands. For the longest while she had been the weaker Kurahasa but as time went on she felt herself getting stronger and stronger. Katsumi had abandoned the shinobi lifestyle it seemed which was fine but it did put an extra weight on her shoulders. She needed to be shinobi enough for the both of them. When faced with such a burden she had no choice but to work on her physicality. These Rocktails won't know what their getting themselves into...

"I...or my clone rather...can hop in the water and go after them if need be m-, Akeru" Kit caught herself before she offended the stranger Jounin.

Something buoyant was supposed to be attached to the end of these harpoons. That made sense, especially with the barb. They would pierce in and then allow them to track the movements of the beast as it went underwater. The hole on the opposite end of the barb was for the typing. It was clever. Good for hunting. She would make use of this principle in the future. Perhaps the near future if she would be allowed to keep this harpoon. It would only take her a few moments to find some rope, although there was nothing really buoyant to attach it too. Except the boat. That would be her plan, with one end of the rope tied to the harpoon and the other to the mast of the ship. That would hopefully be enough.

“I’m ready.” She had taken a good deal of time tying the knots, even if she had been working quickly. Either way, she was prepared for the approach of a massive fish or some sort of whale at any moment. She would kill and eat it. If these two were confident then she would have to be as well, lest she look like a fool.

Her cats would poof away, sensing danger from the conversation, although they left an empty bowl that was drained completely of its juice.

Kitsuki's eyes flashed with determination as she felt the boat rock. She stood back and let the clone walk in front of her. She scanned the horizon and noticed there was turbulence in the waves. The clone lowered the harpoon and waited for the action to start. Rocktail was absolutely delicious and Kitsuki had every intention of killing this beast so that she could be rewarded with some. Once the fish jumped out of the water, she stared at it in awe as it landed in the boat. The structure almost capsized and Kitsuki needed to root herself into the ground in order to avoid being thrown into the water. Luckily, she was strong enough to stop herself from falling over. She looked to Ikomiki. The catgirl appeared to be fragile, fierce, but fragile all the same. She wanted to grab her and prevent her from falling overboard. The Jounin could probably take care of herself but Kit didn't want her mission partner falling into the water. Unfortunately, the order to "not touch her" was rather explicit. Kitsuki did not want to violate her personal autonomy but if it came down to it, she'd save Ikomiki even if the girl wasn't appreciative of it.

Assuming Ikomiki remained on the ship, Clone Kit would pounce on the Rocktail. Using her superhuman strength she'd jab the fish with her harpoon. Spearing it right through the most sensitive and vulnerable part. She used her immense power to drive it in as far as possible hopefully puncturing its vitals and killing it before it had a chance to damage the ship or its crew.

"Hiya!" the clone would Kiai as it made its move.

The fish would rise up, breeching itself over the roiling waves and reaching up into the sunlight. It was the largest fish Ikomiki had ever seen in her life. To an extent she hadn’t believed Rei before when she mentioned there being a fish the size of the boat. She knew about fish and what sizes they were. Boat sized were not the size of any fish she had ever seen, and she had seen a lot of fish in her times in the Land of Fire’s rivers. The rivers there would never allow for such a fish though, just as a mere consequence of their size. The ocean was as big as she could see, so there was much more room for a fish of this size to grow in.

The boat would almost capsize, and Ikomiki would be thrown back. It would be hard to keep her footing with the shifting of the boat, especially with the unexpected nature of what had come. She hadn’t steadied herself in the slightest, and paying for that mistake Ikomiki would be sent down to her ass on the wood of the boat, skirting off to the side. She would flinch as she made contact, being sent sprawling.

Even then, she would still move. The harpoon she had in her hands would be held tightly, and she would scramble to regain control. Her feet would dig into the wooden planks of the boat until she remained still, and then she would steady herself laying like this. Even here, even now, she could still be useful. From her sitting position on the boat she would begin. Her arm would tense, and at the sparkling underbelly of the beast Ikomiki would throw the harpoon with all her might. The bone spear would fly forward, rope attached, and eventually collide into the flying fish. It would pierce in, digging with the barb until both were stuck fast into the fish’s gut. It would have hit lower and much shallower than what Ikomiki would have wanted, but it was deep enough for the barb to attach, and with the rope attached to the harpoon it would attach the ship to the fish.