The Gauntlet (Open/Social)

After her latest success in effectively getting her first factory off the ground she had a great relief, both reassuring the skills she obtained over the course of her life as well as stabilizing her income. It was such a success she found a celebration due. Of course the best celebration was one alone, and there was no better way of celebration than to indulge. Natsuru had a refined tongue, which came from an upbringing with wealthy parents. She was by no means pretentious when it came to what she ate, though she expected to eat food that was properly prepared and "real." That being said, she gave a pass for junk food. In fact it seemed the most illegitimate eating establishments served the best fried foods.

Natsuru wears black sandals which cover both feet securely and tightly providing comfort and protection. This is matched with a pair of dark gray steel shin guards. The shin guards covered the tops of her feet all the way up to her lower knees. This was matched with a pair of black stockings which covered her feet and extended above her knees. Although made from cloth they were somewhat thick and provided minor protection. Natsuru wears black undergarments which are concealed by a long, black loincloth which extends just to the sides of her knees on the front and back still providing suitable coverage. Around her right thigh she wears a simple, small black leather belt. Attached on the belt is a dark gray lacquered scabbard sized for a tanto. Another black belt is worn around her waist which serves to hold her quiver located around her back side.

A mesh, sleeveless undershirt covered her body as a set of riveted mail is worn over the undershirt. As her primary top she wears a simple black leotard fitted to her body type. Naturally, her mail shirt beneath her top extends slightly down her upper arm adding some additional protection. On both hands Natsuru wears a pair of long fingerless gloves which extends just below her elbows made with the same material of cloth and quality as her stockings. These are backed by a pair of soft leather arm guards protecting her forearm and back hand leaving a small soft part on her wrist still allowing flexibility. Her bow is worn across her chest with the front of the bow between her bosom and the string running across her back, the natural properties of the bow clinging itself to her body. Over her torso is a black cloak that extended down to the backs of her knees with a down hood, the mantel thick and well-insulated.

Natsuru has very fair skin with an almost ink-like navy blue hair, which matches her eyes in the same regards. Her hair runs down her back inside of the cloak's cover down to her rear end with a few bunches of hair touching down her breasts. Standing at 5'10 she has a very slender frame which maximizes her role as an archer giving her a statuesque vibe. Alas, a highly decorated Indian-style necklace made of silver and ruby was worn around her neck resting atop her chest serving as a relish for the stunning Kunoichi.

She would sit in an outdoor setting in front of a place called "Bobi's Donuts" in the Takamaki Plaza area. The city was bustling as usual, and before Natsuru a gluttonous amount of donuts piled high in an intimidating mountain. This was paired with a cup of black coffee, of course. The sweetness of the donuts were to balance the bitterness had by the coffee. They worked hand and hand to be a delicious treat for the statuesque. Natsuru paid no attention to the few odd looks and remarks made by passerby. Picking up a single doughnut with pink strawberry frosting and rainbow sprinkles she brought it to her nose and inhaled deeply as a form of food foreplay. "First one down the hatch..." Taking a large bite clearing a third of the doughnut in one go, she would hum quietly to herself as she enjoyed her endeavor.

Though the apparent night there was a particular presence which stalked the Kunoichi about her business. Natsuru was well aware of his presence, as he made no attempt to stalk her quietly. His movements were like a pestering fly, always so near yet out of reach. She ignored him for the most part trying to enjoy her treat. As she seated herself with her order she could not help but notice his presence was still near, something awfully disturbing nonetheless. Just pretend like he's not there and he will go away... Of course, Natsuru's wishful thinking did not always go as planned. Natsuru kept her head forward, enjoying her doughnut as her stalker approached. Her senses sharpened to almost combat levels as he did, unaware what his intentions were if he intended of being hostile or not. As the stranger began to open his mouth and speak his first two words, Natsuru would turn her head to face the man directly with furrowed brows speaking sharply to cut him off. "Could you not." She exclaimed in an attempts to ward off the speaking male.

Upon turning her head and actually acknowledging him she got a solid read on the man's character. He was a young man, younger than even Shimiko or Ryuko. He had a frail, small frame as even in her sitting position she was of near equal height. Given if she were to stand up she would easily loom more than a foot above the kid. A motionless trigger allowed the statuesque to read his chakra. It was subpar compared to her allies, though undoubtedly greater than her own. Still, Natsuru assumed him to be one of the "big thinkers." He possessed a variety of elements, and even a unique nature within. His aura was certainly unique and different from the others she encountered. It was bright like diamonds, and radiant like electricity. Upon picking up his signature, it was something she would never forget. Though, she picked up his signature out of precaution and not to admire his own reservoir.

[Technique Used: Chakra Sensing Technique]

Natsuru's solid rejection was followed through by more bothersome noises by the kid, her ear twitching as the boy was clearly oblivious about the nature of the situation. Just as he began to speak again for the second time following his rhetorical question, Natsuru spoke abruptly to cut him off again, the girl raising her voice a little more than before to give herself a more stern tone. "I don't feel you comprehend anything around you, so let me make it really simple for you: If you had at least one brain cell you could obviously see I am not on a patrol, or doing anything remotely similar to Shinobi work. I am trying to enjoy what was supposed a treat before you came along and started harassing me about some idiotic nonsense." Natsuru reached out to her quarter-empty cup of coffee, feeling that is has cooled since she distracted herself with the young boy. "And guess what? My coffee is cold now. Thanks to you."

Natsuru sat back in her chair, crossing her leg and folding her arms as she turned her attention away from the boy for a moment and stared off into the night sky. "Now that you've ruined my coffee go fetch me another one. No cream and no sugar. Otherwise, if you're not going to be useful, get out of my face and leave me alone." Natsuru would remain passive for a moment, letting the kid decide his own fate. Regardless, it was quite obvious she was not having his presence.

Kasuo had just been enjoying himself at the doughnut parlour long before Natsuru even got there, it was quite an unusual thing to see if anyone knew Kasuo well enough, he was more of a shut-in then a physical, activity type of guy and yet, he gets the occasional sweet tooth that he feels an inexplicable need to fulfil. It felt ironic to him, feeling like someone of his standard had fallen guilty to such mundane, human pleasures. He reassured himself on that thought when he kept thinking that he's only human after all, that it's nice to treat yourself every once in a while as long as he wasn't consistently eating such junk food.

He was studying and eating at the same time, believe it or not, reserving one of the tables as he pushed in his entire, undivided attention towards the pages and he went for the occasional pause for a bite out of the donuts he bought, with nothing too special... just chocolate donuts. The simplicity of it was more then enticing enough for him, he was never one to have multiple flavours on one base food, as he believes the combination of too many complex flavours just ruins the taste-buds, but that's just his opinion on it and how he likes it. 

However, the peace and quiet of the outside dining area had been interrupted by the little rant heard by the purple-haired woman, towards the smaller, looking chil- oh no... that's the person he worked with on the bandit mission, was he causing some sort of trouble? he only heard bits and pieces of the conversation, but picked up on it properly when he heard about the woman's coffee going cold, with the Jounin suddenly vanishing out of nowhere.

After dealing with him firsthand, Kasuo knows that he might be... frustrating to some people, feeling obligated to explain it to the woman that was troubled for it. He approached her calmly with enough ryo in his hand that would get her a new coffee, to which he gently placed upon the table. "I'm sorry for any trouble he caused you... he can be a bit... eccentric, he didn't mean any offence. I hope that's enough to buy you a new coffee." gesturing towards the ryo on the table as he said the last part, with that little business handled, he made his way back to his table to continue reading, believing the situation wouldn't progress any further then that.

Natsuru sustained her standoffish pose as the boy before her stood silently in shock, perhaps even afraid to speak of anything further. He did some odd breathing exercise before making a speedy escape with the renown Body Flicker technique. As the boy vanished her nerves began to settle, though the girl's mood was ruined. Her "celebration" meal turned sour by one person bothering her. The confidence she had to eradicate the pile of doughnuts before her shrunk; Natsuru just wanted to go home and sleep now. Though of course by sleep she intended on staying up well past midnight reading her books.

Natsuru would break her pose as one of the patrons rose from his seat and began making a clear linear path towards her table. Her muscles tensed beneath her heavy clothing as she was half expecting this man to start bothering her next, or perhaps even come off as aggressive seeing how she treated the young boy. This guy was older and appeared more level-headed than the previous, seeing as he was not stalking her. Of course, like always, Natsuru was not receptive for meeting new people. In fact, she immediately disliked the boy due to his strange aura he gave off. Something about him reminded her of a mad scientist or a ghoul. His pale skinned, blown-out purple hair, and sharp features reminded her of someone in particular. Skeletor...

The man would begin to reach in his pocket, and to her surprise, place a scant handful of loose ryo he had in his pocket, something that was enough to get two cups of coffee on their own though a good part of Natsuru knew he was giving her his loose change. Natsuru would turn her head over to Kasuo with her angry face relaxed, though eyebrows still furrowed out of minor frustration. Her eyes looked down at the ryo placed on the table as Kasuo spoke. Given she was with her friends she would break out in hysterical laughter. Of course, given that her mood was already ruined, she processed the boy's "charity" as an insult. "What? Keep your life savings, si gui." She did not expect the man to understand her derogatory insult, given the general language barrier.

As the tension settled, so did Natsuru. Her muscles relaxed as she began to process the situation. With a deep sigh she closed her eyes. "Who the Hell was he anyways? The kid stalked me briefly before I stopped here." This stranger was acquainted with the first guy. For whatever reason, she could at least gather more knowledge about him to develop a better understanding.

Before Kasuo could really return back to his table, it seems the woman was a bit obnoxious about him trying to be nice, and saw that she saw it as an insult. He didn't get offended himself or try to pursue an argument with her however, that's the last thing he honestly wants, he has nothing to prove with this woman. He grabbed back up the ryo he placed on the table and placed it back in his pocket, pragmatically, it just meant he had more money to spend for himself now.

He focused once more on the conversation with the woman, and she mentioned about the small Jounin had stalked her. It honestly didn't sound like him from what he knew, but he'd offer some level of explanation to what Kasuo knew. "I haven't seen him do anything weird like that, so far from what I've seen of him, he utilises unique, weird jutsu and that was only in the mission I got assigned with him. He was well-spoken most of the time but he wasn't bad about it, he's weird but in a good way." that's the best way Kasuo could describe him, since that's literally all he knew about the individual.

However, it seems someone that she apparently knew had come along, calling her by perhaps a nickname only known to the duo of them perhaps? After that, it looked like Kasuo wouldn't be needed there anymore, giving a light wave to the black-haired guy and another one to Natsuru. "If you'll excuse me, if there's nothing else, I'll return back to my table."

Natsuru was somewhat relieved to hear the man was just a weirdo, if anything. It appeared she was not the only unfortunate soul to have encountered him. The man even had to endure a mission with him, something that did not sound fun in the least. Natsuru hummed to herself, understanding a little more about the stranger. She could appreciate this man was level-headed and a bit generous, though Natsuru knew better than to get to know him. It was for the same reasons she kept her barriers around Shimiko and Ryuko. Although she considered those two girls her best friends, they were simply too young for her to spend exclusive time with. Especially since she was taller than the average female. Not only that, but their tastes differed due to their age gap. Kasuo was a similar, yet different case in the same regards. He was a decent person, though his appearance was ghastly. On top of that, he was a male and Natsuru cared greatly about her social status. Having too many male friends would make her appear promiscuous. Though, speaking of male friends, a familiar voice spoke out a peculiar nickname given to her, and known exclusively to her small circle.

Natsuru turned her head only to find a dashing young man with extravagant locks of black hair. Her nerves rattled with goosebumps and cheeks heated to a light blush. She stared momentarily in awe as he got closer. Topping the man's appearance off, he went on to state his name. "Simon? Is that you?" She said rhetorically before springing out of her chair and embracing the male, Natsuru's ample bosom nearly reaching the bottom of his neck as she squeeze him with rather brutish strength. She would let him go after a brief embrace as she threw her hands on her hips, sizing the man up from head to toe, and back up again. "What are you doing here? And what's with the appearance change? Trying something different? Oh, and thank you. I've been working diligently the past couple weeks, but my first chemical plant is up and running. Oh! How did your date with Shimiko go?" Settling back into her chair she waited eagerly for Simon to respond. It partly pained her to say those words. Shimiko and Simon were officially going out, assuming the date went well enough. It made Natsuru feel like she was missing out on something. Three years older and I'm still single...I wonder why...

Natsuru was a bit surprised, and partially turned on when Simon mentioned his current look was natural. He certainly looked a lot better than his former self. Truth be told, she simply did not care much for blonds. Not to mention her horrible track record with them. Shimiko was a copious handful of emotions on her own. Nozomi reinforced the stereotype of them being crazy. The black hair was dark and masculine, improving the boy's aesthetic to her liking. Not only that, but the confidence displayed when deciding to finally go natural was attractive. Apparently there was an explanation as to why he changed his appearance in the first place. Something he had already explained to Ryuko and wanted to tell her and Ryuko when he got the chance. And of course this boiled down to the mission, something Natsuru intentionally veered.

A few days ago she received a message from Simon in her mail regarding a mission he wanted to take. It would include her squad, Ryuko and Shimiko, along with Simon himself. Although she enjoyed their presence, missions were not something she partook in often. Fact was: if she could afford to not go, she wouldn't. Though, being confronted with it directly by such a dreamy male was making her have second thoughts. But of course...he's already taken. She centered her attention back on Simon as he discussed a bit more about the mission itself. He wanted to visit the Land of Frost for political reasons, as well as it being his birth place. She recalled Nariko discussing her plans to conquer Snow and Frost. One of the major reasons why she opted to choose Snow over Frost was because it was a better climate. Frost was know to be unbearably cold with very high altitude mountains they'd have to cross. She was not build for endurance, and she certainly hated the cold.

"Oh, I see. Frost. Isn't it constantly...cold there. I heard the nights easily go below zero with high winds to top it off. Not sure why people would ever think it's a good idea to settle there." She gave it brief thought devouring the rest of her doughnut in a fell swoop, chewing a couple times before swallowing whole. "I know Ryuko is skilled with making clothing and armor. Maybe she could fix you guys some heavy clothing. I just hope that would be enough. As for me...well, I did plan to keep doing my thing." She left her respond open-ended allowing it to be interpreted any way Simon chose to. The tone in her voice showed disinterest in the idea of going to Frost.

Following what she said Simon continued to make small talk, though a big part of her could tell he truly wanted her to tag along, for whatever reason. She did not want to feel excluded, but there were a lot of concerns she had. As he tried to move on to the next topic Natsuru sighed in defeat. "Simon..." She paused, turning her attention to her mount of donuts as she smashed a blue sprinkle against the plate with her index finger. "I understand you want me to go with you guys, but I just don't think it would work out. You see, back at the party..." Natsuru struggled to come up with the right words. She promised Shimiko that Ryuko's secret was to stay just between the three of them. This was for Ryuko's own safety, though knowing Simon she felt she could trust him enough to spread rumors. "Promise you won't say this to anybody, but Ryuko came out to me while you and Shimiko were away. I still care for her, believe me, but after rejecting her like that I don't think things will be...normal between me and her. Then since you and Shimiko are going out I don't want to feel left out." A soreness was growing in her throat as she turned her head down staring at her donuts. She fought back an ancient sadness within her, strong enough to hold back her emotions.

Shimiko already secured her first boyfriend while she falling behind. A big part of her knew she would gloat about it, and find every reason to rub it in. Part of her was angry while another part was depressed. Depressed that she lived the life she did, always shutting people out and giving a cold impression. It was a natural bitterness that she developed over years after suffering betrayal in her schooling years. She was foolish enough to act like she did towards Simon and not see the man he could be. She was alone as her peers and others around her succeeded. And that made her angry inside. "I wanted to be a role model for them, but they're already better than me. Now I'm just alone with nothing. They don't need me anymore." Natsuru rested the side of her face an open palm while her elbow sat on the table. Her eyes were glassy as she fought her emotions, her voice scratchy.

Her breath shuddered as she inhaled deeply through her nose, the girl grabbing a nearby tissue as she blew her nose. Crumbling the used napkin she set it on her plate next to the pile of unfinished donuts. "I know they're my friends, but I don't want to hear it. I'm tired of falling behind and ending up being different from the group. I don't want to go through it all again." She sat in a momentary silence, Natsuru comfortable with sharing her emotions due to the late time of their unfortunate meeting. Most people were inside, or far enough away to not cause any invasion of privacy. In the short silence they had she would speak up again after a moment of clarity with sincerity in her voice, though still distressed. "I can go if you want me to. Just...come grab me when you need me." She waited for Simon to give some heartfelt response about her friends loving her and all that jazz. A part of her simply wasn't feeling it. She was unaware if Simon could understand what she was feeling.


"Just leave me alone. I'm better off that way."

Natsuru sat in silence as Simon spoke to her. Unfortunately, his words fell mostly on deaf hears. Te distressed female understood he was speaking to her with sympathy and tried his best to change her feelings, but these therapy talks did not change her situation. She was still where she was in the end, and her feelings were the same regarding it. Whatever Simon saw or felt in her were things that were short-lived. He left the girl on an open-ended decision. If she wanted to come it was entirely up to her. Despite her concerns she would generally be inclined to jump on board. However, another part of her just waned to be left alone and for her to work by herself. When Simon finished speaking the girl stood up from her seat without a word or looking back at the man before her. "Just grab me when you're ready." Natsuru would leave her table with a cold cup of coffee and twenty-three donuts left. She did not bother to toss her used napkin or even push in her chair. She just wrapped herself in her cloak to keep her warm as she traveled through the street. She would try to make herself home choosing the most direct route to the Tomiko Heights.

[Exit]