Little Lost Lamb (Mission Chain)

Mission 1:

Mission 2:

Mission 3:

Technically speaking, this was Baruga's first mission outside of the village itself.

Oh, certainly, she and her family were often clients of various hired ninja. After all, what would opulence be without expensive vacations, with only the finest security and the most wonderful of exotic views and food? The Daimyo before her father was personally a fan of writing haikus and pondering philosophy near giant waterfalls, and her father had continued the tradition, but with calligraphy rather than haiku.

In both cases, the pursuit of art was unlikely to continue if their throats were slit upon their canvases: mostly because the blood would ruin the canvas, her father often joked. As a child, she'd gotten used to having the errant chunin or the dismayed jonin keeping guard and badly attempting to eavesdrop as the adults talked politics and the children played pretend. So, being on the other side was... surreal, to say the least.

Of course, this was far from guarding the royal lineage, but it was still somewhat similar. Between the traveling on foot, and the servitude, and the... dynamic interaction with civilians, compared to the usual ones more accustomed to ninja eccentricities. She'd certainly never heard someone shriek in surprise when faced with a shinobi for a while.

Given they were trained killers, that should be more common. Perhaps it was best that she got out more...

The mountains of Kumogakure were steep and slippery with sleet and rain, but they eased up when one got closer to the more common trade and travel routes. At a certain point, it became more energy efficient to simply start walking compared to the usual stone-hopping that expedited travel time. Thank god for that, it was hell on her feet to be jumping back and forth on heels.

The flattened earth and cobblestone road that led to the shrine became visible, and Baruga took the moment to crack her neck and sigh in relief. Clearing her throat, she bit back a mild bit of anxiety and self-doubt: before it came back with a vengeance, forcing her to say something to calm her nerves.

"This is the place."

An obvious statement, and a reflection of her genin amateurness, but it helped to audibly confirm her assessment. Eager to stop being the pack mule (she'd insisted on holding some of the goods on her own person as strength training, but she'd clearly overexerted herself at some point), Baruga's eyes darted around to try and find the main shrine, her body swaying as she walked to avoid any passerby.

She turned to her assigned company. Expensive heels clacked against stone road as Baruga's long, brown hair swished.

"Did we receive any specific orders about drop-off, or are we to report to the head priest?"

Then, Baruga faced forward again, grumbling this next part under her breath.

"I'd like to avoid stepping into the actual temple, or I'm afraid the kami will kill me for — avarice, at the very least."

(Pride was unlikely because that assumed her confidence was misplaced.)

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WC: 505