| abstract | - Nightfall approximated the lands and covered it entirely with its seductive shadows. Noiseless it was in the hideout of the rising organization. Footsteps of fellow allied echoed throughout the halls. Soft murmurs and laughs reached the ears of the one that secluded itself from socializing. Its face was bare to be seen by anyone and the mask on its nightstand. The usually masked did not fear that someone would dare to peek on him. After all, the spirits that wandered around in the hallway would alert anyone that dared to approach his door room, the wanders where his personal, invisible guards. But even they remained quiet. Whispers from beyond the door alerted the unmasked. Silence erupted once more followed by a stern knock on the door. Sighing deeply the unmasked reached out for the mask that he had placed on the nightstand and slowly but hesitantly placed the mask onto his face. “What do you want, Takashi-kun?” The hoarse voice questioned, thickly layered that misshapes the frequency of the used tones. As Takashi approached Shihakushi's quarters an unearthly twinge of anxiety ran through his spine. While a ghastly uneasiness had emanated from the masked individual since their first meeting, there was a particular concentration around its domain. Despite still acclimating to the strange radial effect, he had come to identify the sensation as more of a forced response than a natural one. Stranger yet was the unsuspected response as he knocked upon the door, not from himself but the blade safely secured to his body. While he sword was far from mundane in craftsmanship, the reverberations it emanated as his hand struck the door only sought to deepen the mystery of his newly acquainted partner. The as inquiry passed through the door the swordsman responded in a timely fashion, though he was personally impressed that his identity was ascertained so quickly. "Shihakushi-dono, as per our orders to handle the Gobi, our transportation to the mainland has been secured," Takashi begins formally, waiting patiently outside of his charge's room. "To that end, our passage on this ship is a secondary concern at best for the vessel. Therefore, time is of the essence, as the ship will surely be departing soon." Bed dipped as the masked had been lying on it for a long resting period. Tiredness had evaded his mind and body from the restless nights. Preparing the essentials for whatever he would need to face, eventually. In return of the long rest, Shihakushi regained the energy to properly move around again, and especially with the upcoming mission with his partner. Alarmed and awake now that Shihakushi was sure that it was Takashi that had come to his quarters, the masked padded his feet onto the ground, pressing himself off the comfortable bed with his hands. With muffled noises the masked neared the door and seeped his slim fingers around the doorknob and swung the door open, as well managing to fling the cloak, the opposite way than it should be worn, around its figure, at the same time. Shihakushi felt a sudden rush of anxiety with his partner nearby. It was by no meaning his partner exactly, but rather the spiritual power that the sword radiated. Ignoring the burning sensation that threatened to overpower its body the masked pushed the imagines away. It was fear and anguish of the past. Something that will remain carved into the mind and memories. “Then we should move then,” Shihakushi brushed off with the similar tone usage as before, however, this time more with an authorities tone and a bit of annoyance. “Unless you have a faster transport for us...” For a moment Takashi sports a puzzled look at his senior's suggestion before answering "We happen to be lucky, due to the recent declaration of war, the Land of Water has called back a majority of their patrols on the archipelago around their territory," he beings, as he begins to make his way down the hall, "As such, our ship will be taking a much more direct route to the mainland then was previously proposed." Making it to the end of the hall, Takashi peered out into the darkness of the base, silently noting the lack of personnel in the facility. The other squads seem to have already departed for their various missions, leaving himself and Shihakushi one of the few people in the hideout. "So, I imagine Tsuzura-sama detailed you on the specifics on our outing. If you don't mind, Shihakushi-dono, I would appreciate being filled in on this information as well. It will make it all the much easier to protect you during this ordeal," he humbly explained to his lord. Silence slipped in between the pair. Questions of the taller man remained unanswered. Nerves tickled the smaller one, the masked one. Not that it helped that strains of darkish hair danced down in front of the strange eye holes of the masked. With slim fingers covered by the thick gloves the masked had tucked the annoying and wild strains of hair back under the hoodie of the cloak, which Shihakushi wore wrongly. But the leader, Tsuzura, never mentioned the wrongness, not that her nagging would have changed his habits. “I will not speak of our mission, here, and instead will brief you when we’re on our transport,” ushered the masked with a stern tone, no objections allowed or acknowledged. The sun’s heat blazed at the pair as they emerged out of the base. It did not harm the masked, however. Warmth merely tickled the covered skin with the wind breezes that somehow managed to worm itself under the clothes. But nothing changed the fact that the smaller one of the two remained dominant, seemingly the leader of the two. Shihakushi never spared a second to glance at its partner, paying no heed to show respect. On sight none would imagine the threat the two could possess, especially when they boarded the ship, were the locals paid no attention to the two strange clothed criminals. Departing into the wild ocean, Shihakushi tilted his head to the left, telling Takashi to follow his direction. It was far behind the steering on the upper deck. None were in their range to overhear their conversation. “I heard what you mentioned earlier. But we cannot risk to plan our ideas out in the hideout. It is not safe as you think.” The masked watched the see with interest as the rough waves crashed against each other while gently brushing the sides of the boat. “The patrols,” the masked began. “We need to watch them, closely. Unlike the other teams that work with more than two to three. We, you and I, will go after the Gobi. Tsuzura told me nothing much either. The only thing is certain: Gobi’s Jinchuuriki is seen to be as a heroine. Bringing down and capturing this heroine will be interesting to say at the very least. As well that we will influence these weaklings even more,” Shihakushi finally answered. With a bitter and grim undertone mixed with a mischievously glint of amusement. "As you wish, milord," Takashi responds without complaint, before following his master through the brilliant sunlight. As they climb onto the ship the silver-haired swordsman first thinks that the locals preparing the ship for launch were merely ignoring the pair of cloaked travelers. Soon though, he realizes that they were completely oblivious to their presence, despite being coerced to move around them against their will. It was obviously the work of his partner, but the means to do so eluded Takashi. Heeding Shihakushi's will they made their way to the upper deck of the ship. Here he carefully listened to the explanation with regard to their target, and the necessity to keep an eye out for organized patrols from various organizations. Without warning the ship began to rock more readily as it began to pull away from the dock. He hadn't noticed the crew finish its preparations during the lengthy explanation of his partner. "Understood, Shihakushi-dono," he responds, noting his master's apparent preference in efficient input on his part. While he maintained his composure completely, he was personally both worried and thrilled at the challenge that a bijū and its host would pose. While he had faced more than his share of monstrosities in the past, most of them paled in comparison to a tailed beast. Additionally, he noted a certain sense of enjoyment from his partner when he spoke of felling the heroine jinchūriki in question, a trait that generated a quick smirk on Takashi's face. Whether this look was of discontent or shared amusement was not clear, but the reaction itself occurred nonetheless. For a time the swordsman looks out across the horizon, before posing an inquiry to his lord once again. "In the meantime, Shihakushi-dono, is there anything you need of me?" Lifelessly the masked peered at the harbor and the beautiful, wild ocean. Glints of crimson shades illuminated in the fogging area that obstructed the long-distance view. These crimson orbs tore away from the rough waves that rocked the boat wildly to watch the silver-haired partner to bore into his eyes, seemingly as if the masked could see through his soul, and gladly voiced with the misshaped tone of him, “The oceans of the Night are the guardians to enter the island. Without its permission, none can survive, and those that do, will have a hard time to return. Anyhow, I’ll head down to venture for our cabin and prepare for the worst. Heed the warning, Takashi-kun, do not stay out too long out on the upper deck after I’ve left you here, alone.” With wobbling steps Shihakushi managed to reach the stairs that led him to the under deck to seek out their cabin. The moment the small figure stepped onto the first step of the stair, a knick of energy left his fingertips, breaking apart the illusion he had created, to prevent from being seen by the locals of the harbor. Leaving the Night remained unknown to the island and Sorane, other than Tsuzura and Takashi knowing of his movements. Descending down the stairs the masked rooted his feet on the wooden planks to refrain from falling or sliding of the rocking movements caused by the wrathful waves. At the end of the hall Shihakushi found their cabin, an extra luxury and large one that is. He tore off the cloak that had clung tightly around his figure due the water that had been splashed on him. Still, the hoodie and scarf had been ignored by the waters and remained to cover Shihakushi’s head. Climbing onto his choice of bed, the masked closed his eyes to rest, but by no meaning fell asleep. There were no eyes to watch out for him at this moment, not in this kind of situation, because they could not survive the harshness of these waters. Lowering his head as the masked shinobi made his way to the lower levels, Takashi spends a moment on the upper deck watching the waves. After several minutes of taking in the sea breeze the silver-haired shinobi follows suit, casually making his way into the ships lower levels. Verifying Shihakushi's presence at the end of the hall, he slips into one of the rooms in the adjacent hall. The enclosure wasn't anything especially impressive, in fact it looked as it was seemingly used for storage. Regardless, Takashi concludes that at least it was quiet, which would serve his purposes well enough. Taking a seat, and leaning up against a stack of barrels, he decides that getting some degree of rest would be beneficial. Lowering his eyes, yet keeping his senses keenly focused on the various individuals on the ship, Takashi starts considering potential tactics that could be employed against their target. A jinchūriki, and perhaps even a fully revived tailed beast, wasn't a challenge that could be taken lightly. Countless lives had been lost over the years in pursuit of the beasts. "Hmph...as if I'd let myself die against such an opponent," he thinks to himself before continuing his strategic planning.
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