Mission: Find a Cat

Cheerfully, June walked down the streets of Kiri with a bright smile on her face. Things seemed like they had been so weird lately.... Kiigan nearly died, she thought she was going to be murdered by Bijuu, Puu was still gone, some powerful fox monster was out to kill them all, and recently the town was covered in a much thicker mist than usual. But none of that mattered! So as long as she just didn't think about it and just kept ignoring her problems, the stress of knowing all the horrible things that had happened would just go away on their own, right?

Everyone was fine, she was fine, this was okay. Shut up, brain. I'm just going to ignore you, today has nothing to do with any of that. Today, all she had to do was complete her first real mission. How hard could it be to find a cat, anyways? She could be sneaky.... She could catch a cat.... All she had to do was just complete this one task and everything would be fine.

......

Suddenly, June's smile faded as she entered a town square and finally gave in to her inner doubts. Without thinking, she quickly uncurled her summoning scroll and immediately cast the summoning jutsu, bringing Puu, the fluffy roundish fox, directly to her in a puff of smoke. "PUU!" She shouted, seemingly waking the tired creature. "I'm sorry! I need someone to talk to! Your family's after me! I still don't understand my element! We're all going to die!!! Please say something to help!"

Unhelpfully, the summon simply tilted its head in confusion before quickly hopping over and climbing on top of June's head before curling up and going back to sleep.

"I guess that counts as something...." The white haired woman muttered with a weary look in her eyes before letting out a heavy sigh. As long as she could find a cat... that was all that mattered right now....

Spoiler:

Kiigan trudged through the town square as well, looking crankier than usual. He could have done without the scoffing at the assignment office. That guy seemed to think somehow age had something to do with cat catching skills, and that he was pathetic for failing the first time as a full fledged man. Even assigned a second person to it, as if more salt needed to be rubbed in the wound in his pride. If it was so easy, why didn't he go do it himself?! Cats were fast and had better hearing than he did, so once one heard him coming, there was no way he could catch up. That guy was lucky he needed the ryo for rent, otherwise he'd have busted him in the mouth...

Lost in his inner thoughts about the office guy as well as getting hyped about catching that cat now that he could move silently, he bumped shoulders with someone in the mist. He stumbled, then whirled to gripe at whoever it was even though it was his fault, only to find a familiar face. The shock registered first, followed by silence, followed by outrage. He raised a slightly shaky finger, pointing it at her intensely. "You..." he grumbled. "It's you," he repeated, lowering the finger and inhaling.

"What the heck?! Why did you try to kill me with that stupid hag fox?! I'm still spitting ink!" he demanded, looming over her and the weird little fox on her head. Was that thing able to transform into Sodai-whatever? He could feel the hairs raising on the back of his neck, even as Matatabi tried to hush him.

Reflexively, June stumbled back in shock as Kiigan began shouting at her until she fell on her butt, now forced to simply sit there and deal with whatever he was trying to say. Slowly, she scooted back as he pointed accusingly at her. Before she knew what was going on, it all hit her at once. She began crying as she looked up at the man, Puu jumping off of her head and scampering away to give them their space as June gave into what was happening.

"I- I... I'm sorry!" She sobbed before burying her face in her hands. "I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt... I... I didn't even.... I just wanted to summon Puu, I... I never thought that would call in THAT. I... I'm sorry, but.... There was no way I could have known and- It's not- I just don't know, Kiigan! I don't know what I'm doing! I don't know what that thing was! I don't know what it was after or why it wanted you! I don't even know what it was! I couldn't be more ignorant when it comes to these giant monsters and these things and what they do or why or anything.... I barely understand what it means to be a ninja! This is just beyond me, Kiigan, I am messing with things that I don't understand and it hurt you and I don't know what to do about it because I haven't been able to figure out this element yet and this is just all I'm able to ever do...."

Kiigan clamped his mouth shut. Whatever reaction he'd been anticipating, if he'd even thought that far ahead, wasn't this one. He stood in awkward silence, just dumbly staring at her as she sobbed and tried to explain. Even though he was pretty sure he had a right to be angry and know what was going on, he felt like the bad guy here. And boy did he know what being the bad guy was like, since it seemed to be his favorite persona. However, unlike usual, this hit him right in the gut, making him extremely uncomfortable....as were the glances they were receiving from passersby.

"Er.." he started, retracting the accusatory finger and becoming much less imposing. This girl had successfully disarmed him, whether that was her intention or not. "H-Hey...stop crying," he tried to soothe. "If you didn't mean to, then.. fine. Just...calm down," he fumbled, wracking his brain for her name. "June?" the jinchuriki asked, trying to get her attention from behind her hands. Hopefully he was right about her name, but either way he extended his hand to help her up. You know, before someone flogged him because they misread the situation.

Still sniffling with eyes full of tears, June awkwardly took his hand and slowly stood up. "I... I'm sorry...." She breathed to the man. "I know this is all wrong, but just.... But.... I just can't do any better, so I just have to...." Against her will, the reality began to sink in. She would never be able to keep up with anyone else from the academy, would she? Because if she couldn't risk summoning and she couldn't use jutsu, then what did she even have left?

Before she could respond, she picked up on the distinctive sound of a group of people walking closer as they seemed to be saying something to eachother. Slowly, the three men came into view, all dressed casually as the guy in the middle of the group pumped his fist in the air. "Yo yo! Exposition boys in the house! Comin' round with the daily news! Yeah! Yeah! Oh! One, Two, Three, lets go!"

Immediately, the fatter guy to the left picked up the rap. "Ehh, I've gone from coast to coast and I'd heard about this ghost and it's out there, y'know, out there lookin' for a host! If you see it, you're toast, but it's at the training post. Better stay away from there, aien't no time to boast! 'Cause this is serious biz, it's down to living or death, you better hold your breath! Or it'll just be lights out and you'll be missed the most."

"But Dozu!" The goatee'd man to the right continued. "Aien't that too far, I aien't scared of that soul, he aien't got nothin' on me, I aien't paying his toll. We aien't turning away, he's just full of regret. Aien't got a thing to his name and not a beat to his breath. Died along with his love, Suzuku had it all made. But he aien't gone to her place 'cause the player got played. Hammer struck to his head, put him down in the grave. Now the killer's still out there, got that spirit enslaved."

With a flick of his hand, the right man switched the rhyme off to the thin central man. "Now if you go find the ghost, don't be full of unrest! C'mon! We'll pay you for the news at our current address! You go to...."

As the group continued, finally trailing off into the distance, June couldn't help but bat her eyes in confusion. Did that really just happen? It must be a new thing they're doing. Hopefully they would stop soon, though.... If they kept that up then one day, someone would be bound to hear something they didn't like and take it out on the trio for singing it to the entire neighborhood.

"Now the word about Usaki's she a slut! Yeah, the word about Usaki's that she likes it up the- Whaaaat? She been sneaking out at dawn and meetin' up with...."

The white haired woman's eyes narrowed at the group as their voices finally trailed off. Yeah... They'd definitely end up getting beat up one day. Or worse.... It must suck to be Usaki right now, though.... Poor Usaki. She didn't deserve this. At least, she 'probably' didn't deserve it? Finally, June just turned to Kiigan, desperately hoping to find some form of answer with him that she couldn't grasp on her own. But, before she could get one, she forced herself to change the topic. "So cats... I need to find one...."

The red-head had been just about to try to understand what June was rambling about when he, too, was distracted by the nearing group of weirdos. "What the actual f--" the rest of the statement died somewhere within the ridiculous rapping, though the intent of the words remained cemented on his face. It was one of those moments in time when things are far too stupid and surprising to fully comprehend so standing in wide-eyed silence is the most logical action.

Once they finally started to leave, Kiigan watched them for a moment in confusion before starting to turn back to June, only to whirl back toward the crew of idiots as they started a new song. For some unexplained reason, now the man seemed enraged, fully ready to chase the rappers down. "HEY! What'd you say about Usaki?!" he roared. How dare they say such things about Usaki?! He knew her well, and she was hot and experienced and had always treated him very well...not considering the implications of his own thoughts, he was just about to go beat them up when he heard a strange phrase behind him. As dumb as it seemed, it yanked his attention away from the Exposition boys and back to the task at hand. One they seemed to share...

"Find a cat...?" he asked, quirking a brow. It sank in. "You're the other person assigned to this?"

"Huhh?" June muttered at the odd question before she stopped and began putting the pieces together, moving her finger at each stage as she mentally imagined the steps they took to get to this point. "Right, you were trying that mission, too... I remember now, you went to the training field to learn how to catch a cat. And then Kirito taught you the technique so you could catch the cat. But then everything was interrupted.... So I guess after that, I must have forgotten you wanted to do the mission and I took it instead even though I never learned the technique to catch the cat."

As weird as it was, she had somehow accidentally come around full circle in this game of cat-catching, and yet none of them was actually any closer to catching a cat then when they began. "Well... it's a good thing you're here, I guess... because if you weren't here then I don't know if I'd be able to catch that cat. If it managed to get past you, then I don't think I'd be able to really do much better than that.... B-but since we're on this mission together anyways, I guess we might as well work together to get two cats, right? If we have double the manpower, I think we could easily get triple the cats! Or more!"

Now that she said it out loud, June couldn't help but wonder if Puu even liked cats. Who knows? It might be good to get him a playmate while they're at it, right? Or maybe he'd like to be left alone, instead? Usually, Puu enjoyed just resting on his own, so maybe he'd be more against the idea than anything else....

"...or just one cat," Kiigan supplied flatly, sliding his hands into his pockets and stepping around her. He started off toward the path out of the town square. "Well, off to the outskirts where stupid stray cats hide in the trees and crap," he sighed. To him, having someone like her with him actually damaged his chances of catching a cat. She didn't even have a vote of confidence for herself, so why should he think any different.

"Obviously cats are very perceptive and fast. Neither of us can catch one if we tip them off before the grab. Stealth and silence is key. Can you do that?" he asked, tossing a look back at her. If he failed this again, he was giving up. Facing that guy in the office with anything less than a victory was not a thing his pride would allow. "I know how to move in complete silence now. If you see a cat, quietly point it out and I'll sneak up on it, okay?" he asked, trying to make sure she understood. This was a mission a twelve year old could do. From his judgement, she was around his age. An adult. Surely they could get this kid a freaking cat.

June nodded her head at the request as the request sunk in. Right, Kiigan was counting on her. She couldn't let him down... she had to stay focused! For her own sake, she needed to do this. To better herself and prove that, yes, as much of an oddball screw up as she might be at times, she still had what it took to be a competent ninja that could make it on her own in this dark, crazy, messed-up world they all lived in. She would spot that cat even if it meant the death of her!

As she raised her fist in determination, June finally glanced down to see a cat swiftly running right past her legs, almost glancing back in slow motion as it flashed her a taunting smile before zipping away. Her eyes blinked for a second before she finally registered just what the animal even was. "A... CAT!" The woman suddenly shouted as she immediately pointed the way it had gone. "Quickly. Kiigan! GRAB THAT CAT!!!"

Before he could respond, June had already begun chasing the small animal, running as hard as she could despite barely managing to keep up with the kitty. However, despite its mobility, she was slightly faster! If it could just continue on a straight path, she could potentially catch up to it and go in for the grab!

"Wha-- HUH!?" exclaimed the mad, caught off guard that she said it so soon. He caught a glimpse of it as it sped by...was that the same one that got away from him? Arguably they all looked the same to him because he only cared to notice the color, but that didn't stop him from renewing his vendetta for this stupid animal that made him look like a fool in the face of the mission registrar.

There was no chance for him to even reach down to try and grab it. In a flash, it was gone and June was gaining on it. No way! She was fast! Even as he chased after them, he could barely track them, and that's because the cat did start a weave pattern once it noticed June. That slowed them both down. "You have got to be kidding me!" he roared, trying for a path that would be straight and fast for him, while the cat tried to shake June. "I hate cats," Kiigan grumbled.

It seemed the frustrating feline had grown bored already and was looking to escape into the bushes. Grinning evilly, Kiigan used some of his new blue fire and lobbed a fireball into the bush right in front of the animal, halting its dash to freedom. As it skidded to a stop to change directions, yowling in surprise and fear, Kiigan ran up and stooped to grab it, only for it to not be there. "Do these things have springs in their feet?!" he cried, as the cat had somehow launched up at a slight angle and was clinging to a tree trunk. "AGH!"

As the bush caught on fire, the cat suddenly sprinted out of its way at lightning speed! Its brown fur streaking right out of Kiigan's reach instinctively. But meanwhile, right behind the cat, June didn't have as much reaction time. As soon as the bush caught on fire, her eyes widened in fear as she found herself heading straight for it. Immediately, June held her arms out in front of her to try and brace herself against the fire as she desperately tried to stop herself.

Right as she forced her eyes shut, the woman suddenly felt herself stopping. Slowly, she opened her eyes and glanced behind her as she finally realized that a series of hair masses had wrapped around her, keeping her from stumbling right into the flames. Her eyes quickly scanned along the hair before swiftly tracking it back to its source... a familiar friend's tail! "Puu!" She exclaimed, happily as the hairs finally retracted, letting her go.

Spoiler:

"Right!" June finally mentioned before turning around to face the cat stuck in the tree. "I'm getting you down whether you like it or not!" Without thinking, June put her hands together, weaving hand signs as she just hoped it would finally work. "NINJUTSU!!!" She shouted at the animal as she tried to mold her chakra into some physical form, only for nothing to come out. Well, that wasn't working, but if she just kept at it it would work out eventually! Left with no other options, the ninja ran forward and awkwardly jumped at the tree, clawing at the wood to climb it before falling off the instant she managed to get a foot off the ground.

"Kiigan! Can you... I don't know.... I.... I never learned to climb trees, so....."

(Ninjutsu, 1/3)

The man cringed as he was certain she'd crash into the fire he'd set. That'd have been a really terrible first use of his new power, burning his mission partner and horribly disfiguring her while simply trying to catch a cat for a child. Thankfully, the formerly useless seeming ball of fur she had with her saved her with some sort of fur jutsu. Crisis averted.

But now she simply tried to climb a tree and failed. "How did you become a genin?" Kiigan asked, though it was unclear whether he meant to speak the question out loud. He stared at her for a moment, then refocused on the task and ran at the tree. He ran straight up with no trouble using Tree Climbing Practice. Once he neared the cat, of course it took off jumping from branch to branch on other trees, so Kiigan followed. If only he was faster...

"Yo! Can that furball of yours do what it did for you to this dumb cat?" he asked, lunging at the animal that clumsily scampered to the next branch. As Kiigan followed, he was so consumed with the animal that he ended up getting whipped by a brach full of leaves to the face. "AUGH!"

June flinched as Kiigan took a hit from one of the branches. Kiigan really had to learn restraint with his fire, but she didn't have any place to talk. She couldn't even figure out how to do jutsus, she couldn't even climb a tree right.... All she had was her summon and her sword. And she already knew that wouldn't be enough to get her by forever.

"It's a long story...." The white haired woman replied at Kiigan questioning her credentials. Slowly, she walked forward a few steps as she remembered back to how it happened. "It was... weird.... I never learned how to make a clone, but I was in a large class so when it came to sparring, I actually managed to get some wins and do pretty well. I've just been practicing the basics of swordplay so long that I guess I just had an advantage on a lot of them and none of them could really get in any solid hits. And then once it came to testing our jutsu, I just somehow managed to luck out and pull off the summon. I guess they thought that was impressive, you know? Because... after that... They just sort-of said I was a special case and let me move on. I'm not quite sure if they made the right call, but I guess just being able to fight and do something uncommon like summoning was enough for them to think I could hold my own...."

Suddenly, June glanced up as the sight of something falling caught her eye. Without thinking, she extended her arms as she caught the object. The cat had jumped out of the tree to escape and June had somehow managed to catch it without thinking. As soon as the sensation of fur registered, her eyes widened in amazement as her grip suddenly tightened, now wrapping one arm around the feline's torso as the other one cradled its hind end to keep it from squirming away. "K- KIIGAANNNN...." She began in an almost worried tone. "I... I got the cat! Oh my god, what do I do now?! I- Should we tie it up with something? Should we take it to the place right away? I don't- what do we do now!?!"

Kiigan busted out of the forest like a mad man, covered in scratches from the haphazardly growing branches and twigs. Chest heaving, the man tried to catch his breath but wasted no time closing in on the cat, and subsequently June. "We fry and eat the freakin' thing..." he growled, eyes bright with hatred and rage toward the tiny beast, which only stared back with innocent and defeated eyes. Matatabi was both amused by Kiigan and sympathetic to their furry victim.

Once he'd calmed a little, he reached into his pouch and produced something tightly wound. In one slick motion, a sack unfurled and he held it open. "Put the demon in here," scowled the jinchuriki, also armed with extra rope in case tying it up was also needed.

His eyes switched from the animal to the girl holding it, appraisingly like when they met. After a few seconds, they squinted incredulously. This girl who managed to basically accidentally (as he understood it) pass academy without learning most of the required skills, caught the cat. June caught it. It pissed him off. Chalking it up to a fluke, he spoke again. "Listen, if you're trying to make something of yourself as a ninja and do missions, you need to learn basic crap. I did my worst at academy, but still learned how to climb a tree and walk on water. If you get assigned with other people, they're going to expect you not to drag them down." Ugh, that tasted like he cared about being a ninja.

The more Kiigan spoke, the more June was filled with pure disgust at the man. He seriously wanted to shove a poor cat into a bag?! And now he was trying to lecture her on her own weaknesses?

Without thinking, she almost let go of the cat as the genin glared at the person in front of her in silence, struggling to find the words to express what she wanted to say. "I... I can't believe you!" She uttered. "Do you think I don't know how bad I am at this? At everything? Do you think I don't deal with this all the time? That it doesn't get to me and eat me up inside? Do you think I'm just content to sit back and let life pass me by while everyone else does their stuff and passes me by?!"

Her grip on the cat finally came loose as June finally stopped caring about the animal, allowing it to get away. "I've tried, okay? I'm still trying and I'm still learning!" Her hands balled into fists before her eyes finally began to water against her will. "I know I'd just drag people down, but at least I'm trying to get better and move past that! At least I'm trying to help people when I can! That's why I haven't joined a team yet, because I don't want to pull them down with me until I become something better than what I've always been! And what's your excuse?!"

Her hand pointed accusingly at the red haired man as her eyes scrunched up, trying to fight back her tears. "You're not like me! You actually have potential! You were born with one of the strongest beings on the planet for free, no strings attached! All you had to do was just talk to it, try to work something out between you, and you couldn't even do that! Do you know what I'd give to just be able to make friends with someone and gain the type of power you could have! Do you know how many people I could have protected with that power? Do you even know what I've been through to get as far as I have?!"

The woman brushed some tears away as she turned away from Kiigan, not sure why she was even saying all of this to him anymore. "You... you don't deserve to dig into me like that.... Not after how much I'm already doing it to myself."

Kiigan despondently watched the cat, ecstatic to avoid the bag, scamper away as fast as its paws could take it. Seriously. She let it go. They were that close to being done, and she let it go. Just so she could yell at him. His temper flared and the bag ignited into blue flame, promptly burning to nothing and honestly startling him out of his own anger. He turned his gaze back to the angry woman, finding it odd that he was still standing here and taking it. That same twist in his gut from earlier returned, and though he didn't know what it meant, it felt uncomfortable. But she wasn't even crying like before--no, wait, there were the waterworks. That made it worse.

"Alright, alright," he relented, holding his hands up in a desperate bid to calm her down, or at least halt her speech. She wasn't looking at him, but whatever. "I get it. I don't know you and your story and your struggles, and it was none of my business to harp at you about it. I just hate this mission and it put me in a bad mood, and since you were so fast if you could've climbed a tree you'd have gotten this over with easily," he started, trying to keep his voice calm.

"But to be fair, you don't know me either. You also don't deserve judge me. You don't deserve to see my struggles like greener grass. Everybody's got problems! Neither of us is special. I didn't ask for this, and I don't want it. I can't get rid of it, because it'll kill me and probably a bunch of other people. With this demon cat came a whole bunch of crap, all because someone thought it'd be cool to shove it into a newborn. A jinchuriki is nothing more to anyone than a weapon for a village to hold over another one's head. No one sees a person, all they see is potential. I'm a screw up and I worked pretty darn hard to be one, just so I'm not someone's tool. I don't want to be a ninja, I just need the money so I don't lose my home, and maybe so I can eat. So, June, if I could give you all this potential and power so you could make friends with it, I would! Maybe if you learn to seal it, you can kill me and take it for yourself." Now he was clenching his fists at his side.

"But excuse me for not being psychic and sensing that you have low self esteem. From where I'm standing, you're way faster than me, and you can summon a fox to help you. I was surprised, and thought I'd offer some advice, maybe even show you how later. But if trying to be helpful in my own way and wanting to put the cat that got me made fun of in a breathable sack offends you that deeply, then I'm sorry!" He finished, glaring at the back of her head. She had him so worked up, he pulled out a flask and drained it. That was the last of it. His cigarettes and his alcohol were officially gone until he could catch this animal and get a little bit of ryo, and sadly the booze didn't numb whatever this knotted feeling in his gut was.

"F-fine!" June cried as she began to walk away from Kiigan, inhaling deeply through her nose to keep any snot from potentially dripping out as her tears intensified. Why was he so mean to her? What did he have against her that was making him act this way? Well... no matter what it was, it didn't matter.... If she had her way, she'd never hear from someone this vile and disgusting ever again. "If you're really going to be like that, then you can fail this mission a second time, too! And I hope somebody shoves you in a sack so YOU can know what it feels like to be shoved in a small, dark, space against your will... you... you.... Asshole!"

Without another word, the woman began running away towards the town square, trying to keep her face hidden the entire time so nobody could laugh at her. If someone would stop her to ask about this whole situation, at that very moment, June might have actively died from embarrassment at it all.

That wasn't the first time he'd been called that. This one hurt a little more than usual. Frankly, he was confused as to what he'd done to make her so upset. "I have been shoved in small, dark places against my will..." he muttered. There she was going again, saying things she didn't know anything about like she was allowed to but he wasn't. How was that fair?

"Your communication skills have always been bad, child," Matatabi spoke, grabbing his attention.

"But she said I have no right...she has no right either! How am I the only one at fault here?"

"Sometimes it is not about whose fault it is. That line of thinking it why you have no friends. Sometimes you must sacrifice your pride. If you do not learn these lessons, you will never control me. You cannot form relationships with anyone this way," the nibi insisted.

"I don't see what that has to do with any--"

"BUT IT DOES!" the Wraith flared, causing Kiigan to flinch. "IT IS EVERYTHING! If you do not start taking me seriously, I will loosen this seal and free myself! Do not forget who I am! I will not always be so lenient if you keep going this way. I will take your hatred and control you instead!" the demon cat roared, displaying a blood thirst and darkness the man had never encountered before. "What will you do?"

"HEY! ....wait." he called in a shaky but desperate voice. He went after her a bit, his body in a cold sweat. He was pretty pale, too. "Please. I'm..not good with people. You're right! You're right. I'm...I'm sorry!" he rushed out. It was sincere, if not odd sounding through the fear that had no context to her.

"BOW, KITTEN!"

Kiigan stopped and bowed. "Can you...try to understand me? I'll try not to be a dick!"

June stopped, unsure how to react to the sudden change in tone. Against her better judgment, she didn't want to even look at him. She didn't even want to acknowledge he existed. But, eventually, Puu climbed back up to her shoulder as he manually turned her head with his familiar fluffy fox tail. Slowly, she gave into the persuasion and turned around, her eyes still tearing up as she looked over to see the man bowing to her.

"Why...." She asked in an empty voice. "Why are you suddenly turning around? Why are you trying to go back on things now?! I haven't even finished processing it all yet, and.... I don't know! Okay?! Why are you trying to make it harder for me to just feel justified at being mad at you?! I don't understand!"

Without thinking, she covered her eyes with her sleeve, wiping away what tears she could. "Please, just.... I don't know.... I.... Just find a cat, please. I need a moment before I can think straight. At least then, we can just be done with this mission and be free to figure things out, I guess...."

"You are justified..being mad at me," he said on his own, unprompted by the nibi. "I can take that," he continued, taking a few more moments to remain bowed before hesitantly raising back up to glance at her. "Matatabi put something in perspective, you could say," he answered, not wanting to offer more. He didn't know what would tick her off, so admitting that he'd been threatened with death seemed off the table.

"I..uh...yeah. I'll got get a cat," Kiigan awkwardly sputtered, then moved off into the woods, his movements completely silent with the Silent Killing technique. His mind whirled as he moved, staying alert for the cats while also sorting through stuff. He was angry in general. Always judged, always misunderstood, always forced into situations he didn't want to be in...and now Matatabi was being weirder than usual about him needing to make friends. How would friends help him control this thing? It was a mystery to him, but it seemed he didn't have a choice. That was a running theme in his life.

After a while, he finally came across several cats sharing a fish. With his silence, they didn't detect him. The smell of the fish masked his own scent. This was perfect!

...

The bushes rustled near June as Kiigan emerged, pretty scratched up, but clutching not one, but three furballs in his arms, one of which was a small black kitten. He seemed out of breath and tired, plus there was some smoke rising in the distance, but he'd won. "Three....like you wanted..." he huffed, one cat starting to claw him again in attempts to escape one last time. "OWW!"

As Kiigan left, June curled into a ball as she eventually calmed down. In a way, everything that happened made her feel empty inside. There was nothing left to grasp onto. No greater truths, no clear people to be angry at, just herself and her own insecurities. Even those seemed rather hard to focus on now that she had such a big outburst over them. Despite Puu's efforts to get her attention, June couldn't even take the time to look at the animal as she simply let her own abstract sense of misery sink in. It must be nice for someone to have a person there they would always be able to talk to... it must be useful for getting through a lot of stuff.

Suddenly, her eyes widened in surprise as Kiigan showed up carrying three cats! "Oh... oh my god...." June muttered as she stared at his wounds. "Kiigan-! This is too much, I didn't want you to actually get three, you didn't have to-" Her words failed her as she simply stood up in surprise. Just what was going through his mind now to go this far to try and please her? "I- ... Are you alright?" The woman asked as she slowly moved just a little closer to get a better look at what had happened. It still didn't feel real. "They didn't hurt you too bad, did they?"

It was comical how scratched up he was, some bleeding and some just puffy and red. "I think I'm a little allergic...they itch," he complained, the cats starting to scratch and attempt to escape his arms again. "Ow! HEY!" he yelped, tightening his arms enough to make sure they couldn't wiggle free, but not enough to hurt them. The kitten mewed loudly, though didn't put up much of a fight.

"These guys are evil. Don't they know that they'll get a home with free food everyday and someone to love them? They don't even have to pay rent," Kiigan griped. "Feel free to carry one. You just said three earlier, so I thought it was better safe than sorry..." That was a bit awkward, but he couldn't very well tell her that he went out of his way to smooth things over because Matatabi was pretty set on him forming some sort of relationship with someone, and June just happened to be the lucky one nearby at the time.

"Very good, Kitten," the nibi purred, momentarily satisfied.

"Stop calling me that!" Kiigan growled, but she didn't feel like responding.

"We should get these back, right? There are more missions to do...more money to make..." he said after a moment, looking toward the misty town. Would this be his life now? A career shinobi?

A sigh escaped June before she finally gave in and took one of the cats from Kiigan, awkwardly maneuvering her arms around to try and get a grip on just one of them without letting the other two loose before finally getting a good grasp on it, holding it tight to her chest. Eventually, she looked up and gave the man a sudden hesitant nod of approval. He might not have been great at it, but at least he was making an effort for reasons beyond her knowledge. So if he was willing to put out the effort to at least try to be open and make up or it, then she could at least give him a chance and try to see where things go.


Eventually, June and Kiigan both made their way into the mission registrar. Before they knew it, they had already entered the building and handed over the cat. After being handed the money for their efforts, June couldn't help but mentally celebrate in the office-like room. "I think we can take on another one, too!" She exclaimed before her expression quickly shifted in shock as the proctor put a bowl of ramen on the table in an ornate, sealed, red bowl with yellow patters across it.

"I apologize for the sudden request." The old man behind the counter stated before scratching at his light colored beard. "But this has to go straight to one of our nobles while its still warm. It should keep for a few hours, but I'd have more than a few people mad at me personally if Mr. Nodachi doesn't get his food." Without stopping for a break, the proctor forced a piece of paper into Kiigan's hands before he began to turn around to focus on another task. "There's your directions, I wish you luck, and get outta here already. The sooner you get done, the less I have to hear about it."

Mission 2:

Kiigan, still covered in inflamed, thin wounds, grunted at the man who forced the paper on him. After glaring for a moment, he took a second to open the paper as they walked outside the building. He gazed at it for a long moment, then turned it slightly to the right, then to the left. The man hesitantly paused outside the door and cleared his throat, a sweat drop forming on his brow. Looking up, he scanned the area and all the branching paths, in the dark as to which one to take. Directions were not his forte. He got lost in town all the time. This is the very reason he didn't take this mission to begin with, even though it would have been cake compared to catching the feline demons of the mist. He knew his own limits and thought he'd have a better time with cats. He'd failed the cat one once, but this one he'd fail forever on his own.

Promptly giving up, he turned to June and held out both hands, one empty and one with the paper. "Er, here, take the directions. I'll carry that bowl for you," he said, doing his best not admit his inadequacy. You know, because of pride. Let her think he wanted to carry the heavy thing.

After switching objects, June carefully examined the map, her nose scrunching up as she focused. Then, she turned it around and glanced at the road in front of them while she nodded her head, making a grunting sound of confirmation before she turned the map around to look at it from a different direction. Hesitantly, she looked at the fog-covered area in front of her, trying to make out what was in the distance before she finally put the map away in her sash.

"Okay!" She shouted out of nowhere as she made a series of hand signs. "I've got this Kiigan! This time, I'm going to be able to do it for sure and it'll clear this fog away no-problem!" Before he could stop her, June made the last hand sign and opened her mouth angrily as she stared off into the distance only for nothing to happen at all.

"I don't get it...." The woman muttered to herself. "I did it just like it showed in the scroll... maybe if I do the rabbit sign here instead of there, then.... Or maybe if... no, that couldn't be it...." Eventually, June glanced back up, snapping back to reality as she turned to Kiigan. "Sorry, I think we're lost. But maybe if we go North we'll start to see this round area that's on the map? Maybe? I think that direction's North...."

(Ninjutsu 2/3)