Books, Books, Books, Falcon Friends, Rot Solid

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Rain drenched the streets of Kumogakure as Saku made his way to the Thunderpeak Campus. Not a dot of blue could be seen to provide the barest glimpse of hope that this miserable feeling day would be getting better any time soon. Having set out to complete a mission or two to make himself feel better, Saku was instantly greeted with further disappointment when he was assigned his tasks. None-the-less, Saku knew that each mission had their importance, clearly something could be gained from any task no matter how boring or mundane it seemed on the surface, and he intended to make the most of it.

The large cathedral doors creaked as Saku made his way inside the high-ceilinged palace. It really was quite the spectacle when you took the whole thing in at once. Glancing to his left, Saku smirked at the staircase leading to the Jonin-only quarters. One day, I'll step in those doors, and when I do.. I'll have made a change. He thought to himself before carrying on towards the shelves of scrolls and literature that sat near the back wall.

Bird, Snake, Horse, Bird... no... that's not correct.


Saku absent-mindedly reorganized some of the shelves, taking books that were clearly shoved back in at wherever the person perusing their selection was at the time and placing them back in their rightful place. Scrolls that were unraveled and tied back shut too loose were tightly sealed and returned.

Bird, Horse, Bird, Snake, Bird? Closer.. but still wrong.


A group of young children, academy students perhaps, began slowly raising their voices - arguing over whether or not having an affinity for water was more useful in combat than having an affinity for earth. A silly question, as any shinobi worth their salt knew that wind was the superior element. Saku rested one more novel back in it's place and walked over to the group of three boys with his hand in his pockets. When he arrived, he leaned against a nearby pillar and observed for few sparse moments before they noticed him and quickly quieted down.

"While I appreciate the three of you having such an in depth conversation, please remember that we are meant to be quiet here. If you must speak so... loudly.. on the matter, kindly take it outside of the building walls." Saku motioned towards the door, careful not to let his tone show off any unintended hostility. The three children all nodded simultaneously, muttering apologies before taking off to the entrance to the cathedral, slipping out into the downpour as a battle-scarred woman made her way in and up the staircase to the left.

Bird, Snake, Bird, Horse, Bird. That's it! Form the seals, and compress the wind around you. Then.. shoot them forward.


Saku smiled wide as he made his way back to the wall lined with older scrolls, mimicking the hand seals and throwing motion silently to himself. He might not be able to test and apply it until later, but being able to memorize the way a jutsu should look and feel without having anyone around to remind him, or a scroll to copy was a big win in his book. 

The next hour or so went by quickly as Saku was brimming with excitement to get back to the training grounds and prove to himself that he would actually be able to pull off the technique he had been trying to learn. A few ripped scrolls here and there were gathered and returned for mending, and a few more re-organized shelves later saw Saku nearly run out the front doors of the Thunderpeak Cathedral.

Only to be met once again with dark gray skies, and the reminder that there were still two tasks that needed to be completed before he could run wild once more. 

"Well..." Saku muttered, pulling the hood of his just-now-dry sweatshirt over the top of his head. "The key has always been patience, I supposed."


[660]

The streets of Kumogakure were nearly empty as Saku made his way to the aviary, a macabre stillness filled the air with nothing but the sound of a never-ending sheet of rain crashing into the mountain below. Bouncing from the cover underneath shop overhangs and second floor balconies, Saku moved as quickly as he could. Eventually, he arrived at the entrance to the giant bird cage, where the sights and sounds of dozens of crows and sparrows were noticeably absent. He peered inside, spotting one of the keepers near the east wall.

"Excuse me," Saku started, scanning the inside of the room as he spoke. "I'm here to assist with whatever it is you need today. My name is Saku."

"Oh good, very good." The old woman smiled as she spoke and made her way towards him, moving at a pace much quicker than Saku would have expected based on her appearance. The keeper looked to have been in her late sixties or early seventies, and still moved with the grace of someone half her age. "I do have some rather.. unappealing tasks that need taken care of before day's end if you don't mind." She stated as she reached him, and motioned towards the sparrow cages, nearly all full.

"Of course, anything that you need it would be my pleasure." Saku smiled, bowing.

"Well I am certainly glad that you said that, because I haven't been able to clean the mess these poor things have made in ages. The smell in here is getting quite nauseating." The woman giggled as she waved a loose hand in front of her nose.

"I'll get right to it ma'am. Thank you for the opportunity." Saku spoke as he nodded and slowly made his way towards the far wall. Now that she had mentioned it, the foul odor was quite strong and now at the forefront of Saku's mind after he noticed it. He couldn't help but think that with the way this woman moved, she was more than capable of cleaning up aviary fecal matter, but he supposed that didn't matter. He was being paid, and surely there was something that could be learned from this experience. 

The cleaning took significantly longer than Saku was hoping. Almost two hours in total to get into each cage, replace the nesting and clean the dropping's littered bottom. Unfortunately, much to his dismay, the last cage that Saku had decided to clean was of a particularly feisty crow. As soon as the cage was opened, the creature flew at the opening and escaped, nestling itself onto a light post at the very top of the building, significantly out of reach. Luckily, it seemed to have no intention to fly off to it's freedom, but nonetheless it needed to be retrieved. 

After a calming breath, Saku took note that the post was within reaching distance of the nearest wall. Slowly, with a quietness mimicking the streets outside, Saku approached the wooden frame of the building and focused chakra into the soles of his feet. He put one foot on the wall, and then the other. It took a moment, but after re-gaining his sense of center, Saku took one step up, then another. It felt like a snails pace, but Saku was able to scale the wall and within minutes was staring directly into the runaway's eyes. With a measured grasp, he stuck his right arm out and wrangled the bird in, nearly losing his balance and tumbling to the floor below on multiple occasions as the crow flapped and squawked in his ear, allegedly miserable at it's own recapture.

When he finally was back on the ground, vertical once more, Saku let out a sigh of relief. He had plenty of practice with the tree climbing technique, but this had been the first time he had used it in a situation where his sole focus could not be on remaining steady. Another success on a day that he perceived might be dull. As Saku placed the creature back in it's cage and finished the remaining touches of sweeping up the spilled nesting, he made his way back to the old aviary keeper.

"I do apologize about the.. mix up - but everything should be in order now, ma'am." Saku spoke, looking the woman in the eyes.

"Oh it's not a problem at all, young man. That's just Pochi, he loves to cause havoc any time he can. Thank you for getting him down! Please feel free to come back and help out any time." She smiled, and quickly returned to her own work as Saku turned to leave.

Upon opening the door, the constant hum of rainfall had eased to stop, and the slightest glimmer of sunlight started to shine through. A smile crossed Saku's lips as he began his descent.

Just one more mission to go, and as always, the sun is just in time.


[820]
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