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This post marks the start of a mission using the following elements:
Masaki made his way through to Kuzuyama, made evident by a sign he walked by. Admittedly, he didn't know much about this area, but every site he walked through in the Badlands seemed to be affected by the aftermath of Eanna, and this place was no exception. Giant shards of moonstone littered the surrounding areas, underneath being either remnants of buildings or creating chasms in the ground for the excavation of materials. However, it looked as if the small town by the riverside was thriving as if the destruction didn't even bother them. Townhouses and stores were booming with trade offers and deals; the man could hear auctioneers selling off amounts of ore, materials, even powerful weapons that glistened under the sun. It was a wonder how this happened.
Out of curiousity, Masaki checked out one of the sales from the stores. It seems they're selling a surplus of bright white broadswords built for an army.
"Sold! To the man with the red hair!" He heard a man's voice booming out, indicating the auction of the broadswords was complete. Needless to say, Masaki was curious as to what those swords were made of. The hue of the blades matched that of Eanna. But he was out of luck, the weapons were gone.
He continued down the street, spying a smaller, less populated vendor selling the same brand of weapon, only not in bulk. Maybe that is why the place was less popular.
Masaki walked into the shop, the dolcet tone of chimes rang out as he made his way through. "Hey, welcome, welcome!" A voice called out to him. It could only be described as enthusiastic. "How can I help you? We have plenty of weapons at your disposal." Just like a sales pitch. He noticed the sound coming from an older woman, her hands looked calloused with her arms covered in scars. She wore a subtle shade of lipstick that held a raspberry flavored lollipop and donned blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. In essence, her body tone almost matched his, save for burn scars on the right arm.
"I'm just having a look." What Masaki said was truthful, he wanted a closer look at the weapons she provided. The shop showcased many different weapons, from common katanas, double-edged swords, spears, all sorts. Most notably, the blades on all the weapons held a white sheen to it, very similar to those of the moon shards of Eanna. In the corner of the store, he noticed an anvil, clean as if it underwent daily maintenance. "Did you make these?" He inquired, pointing at the blades.
Suddenly, the woman had a look that exacerbated no sense of humility. "That's right! Made all these myself!" She praised herself, thumb to her chest.
"They're impressive." Masaki replied, forgetting it would add to her ego. "How'd you make them?"
"Tut-tut," she wagged her finger at him. "We don't just share secrets for nothing around here. You gotta offer up something of equal value. Equivalent exchange, or something like that." She mused.
"How about kumi?"
"I prefer to trade for information. You want trade secrets, offer something up about yourself." She rested her arms on the bench in front of her, practically extorting an answer out of him.
Masaki let out a slight cough. "My name is Nagakura, I come from Fenchuch, and I--" He was suddenly cut off.
"No, no! I don't care about your backstory, as tragic as it may be, I want trade secrets. Tell me something about your craft."
"Well... I'm... not really a craftsman." He stuttered, replying solemnly.
"Then I'm afraid I can't help you out." The woman pulled out her lollipop and pointed it towards him. "Come back when you have something valuable, right, Nagakura-kun?" He was stumped. Maybe talking about his goal would work. It wasn't his craft, but it was all he had.
"I need material for a special tool."
"Ah, let me guess, you're working for Marzan-kun aren't you?" She raised an eyebrow following her suggestion. The name did strike a familiar chord with Masaki. The smith he was working with, Durmaz, mentioned him. He remembers his voice oozing with a sense of respect and envy. It didn't seem this woman had the same level of respect that other smiths carried for him.
"Not exactly. The guy I'm working with uses the same techniques, I'm guessing." Masaki replied.
"The Atavistic forge, yeah?" She mused. "Good enough for me! Always willing to help out someone who can trade properly." She walked over to one of her katanas, the blade was pristine as it glowed like the night sky. It was sharp and polished. Beautiful is the only word anyone could use to describe it.
"You might be guessing what these are made of right? It's the shards of the moon! Needs a special technique to craft them, but they're very sturdy!" She puffed out her chest in a way that yelled "admire me!"
Masaki rubbed his chin. "Interesting, I did consider the option of using the shards, but aren't they heavy?"
"That's where my secret technique comes in!" Her voice peaked proudly. "But I can't tell you what that is, unless..." She rubbed her finger and thumb together, the implication that meant she needed more payment for her services.
Masaki was stumped, once again. She knew he wasn't that much of an artisan. If anything, he had some basic skill in carpentry that he could show off if required, but all of her tools used an anvil at best. There had to be some way to win over her affections to gather the information he needed. What he did know is that she had some kind of technique that could be used to lower the weight of the moon shards so they weren't so heavy, without making the blade too brittle. There had to be something he could use. Something, anything.
That is, one idea popped into his head.
"Do you mind if I use the floor here?" Masaki asked. She motioned to the area to say the stage is yours. With that, he reached into his backpack to grab a scroll and laid it bare on the ground, its kanji symbol facing upwards. Her eyes focused on what might be in the scroll. He took a step back before performing a single hand gesture to activate the seal on the scroll. In a puff of smoke, a wooden puppet was revealed, in the shape of a large lizard. It was made completely of wood with a large metallic shield covering its back. Salamander.
The woman's eyes lit up with excitement. "Wow, Nagakura-kun, I didn't take you to be a master carpenter!" She said in praise.
"I perform maintenance on him, is all." He replied sheepishly, rubbing the nape of his neck. "I guess you could say I inherited this." In an instant, the woman jumped the counter and began to inspect the puppet. Maybe puppetry was a rare or ancient skill, or something she hadn't seen before. Any reason could have been Masaki's guess at her excitement. She'd eyeball the face and the mouth, lifting up Salamander's jaw to see a hose that could release a torrential maelstrom of flames at any moment. She continued to inspect the joints that made up its arms and feet, the level of craftsmanship which would allow for its expedient movement when commanded in battle. The tail that could extend way past the length it looked like. Lastly was the massive brick of iron on the back, which she attempted to lift by hand but to no avail.
"This is so heavy!" She puffed, out of breath, hands resting on her knees. "And you fight with this so easily!?"
"I wouldn't say it's easy, but yes." Masaki jested.
"Can you show me?!" She asked with such enthusiasm. He shook his head, bringing his own finger and thumb together, signalling that he would need his own payment. She pouted in response. "Yes yes, now show me!"
In seconds, a couple of threads shot out from the tips of his hands, attaching to certain joints on the puppet. Nothing strenuous, just enough so that Salamander's jaw would open and the shield raised up, primed and ready to spew fire from its mouth. The woman couldn't look more amazed even if she tried.
"This is amazing Nagakura-kun!" She replied quite enthusiastically. Her eyes remained fixated on the puppet, specifically the shield, until he let out a cough to remind her of the deal. "Ah, right..." The woman laughed as she moved out to the back of her store to grab a specific tool. This tool was a rock with a hue of purple on it. She placed it on the counter before explaining what it was. "This is my secret technique, a special stone called molybdenite found in the iron peninsula. It's got a waxy texture that has a strange reaction with the moon shards that creates small air pockets and makes them lighter. It also serves to strengthen the bond of the moon shards, I almost want to call it Eannite." She laughed at the end of her exposition.
Masaki relinquished his strings. "That's very interesting. You said it was in the iron peninsula?" He inquired.
"You're gonna get some yourself!?"
"That's the plan, yes."
"How about this proposition," she took in a deep breath. "You give me this puppet of yours, and I'll give you a small piece of my molybdenite. It'd be a great study for my own work! How about it?" The woman held out her hand. Interestingly, this was a proposal that suited him. He guessed she had some to spare so she could continue her craft, and he had the schematic memorised to make another Salamander, if needed. Masaki responded in turn, extending his own for a handshake.
"We have a deal." The woman began to jump in excitement, a notion Masaki couldn't quite wrap his head around, but simply smiled. She handed him the rock in a matted newspaper to prevent the waxiness from getting everywhere, which he promptly placed into his backpack. "Thank you." He bowed, before leaving her store and Salamander behind. Chimes rang out again as the door opened.
"See you soon, Nagakura-kun!" She called out.
With that in mind, he didn't know where else he could go to procure the third ore he required for Durmaz. Maybe he could grab a shard from the moon since that was what the molybdenite was used for, but that would be too easy. In fact, he considered it may have been a material the smith had in surplus already. Masaki looked around the vista of Kuzuyama, keeping a peculiar eye out for anything strange that could give him a hint, before setting off. He didn't know where, but he was going somewhere.
And someone was tailing him...
End mission.
Leaving landmark.
This post marks the start of a mission using the following elements:
- Find and gather ore to forge a God-slaying Tool (3)
Masaki made his way through to Kuzuyama, made evident by a sign he walked by. Admittedly, he didn't know much about this area, but every site he walked through in the Badlands seemed to be affected by the aftermath of Eanna, and this place was no exception. Giant shards of moonstone littered the surrounding areas, underneath being either remnants of buildings or creating chasms in the ground for the excavation of materials. However, it looked as if the small town by the riverside was thriving as if the destruction didn't even bother them. Townhouses and stores were booming with trade offers and deals; the man could hear auctioneers selling off amounts of ore, materials, even powerful weapons that glistened under the sun. It was a wonder how this happened.
Out of curiousity, Masaki checked out one of the sales from the stores. It seems they're selling a surplus of bright white broadswords built for an army.
"Sold! To the man with the red hair!" He heard a man's voice booming out, indicating the auction of the broadswords was complete. Needless to say, Masaki was curious as to what those swords were made of. The hue of the blades matched that of Eanna. But he was out of luck, the weapons were gone.
He continued down the street, spying a smaller, less populated vendor selling the same brand of weapon, only not in bulk. Maybe that is why the place was less popular.
Masaki walked into the shop, the dolcet tone of chimes rang out as he made his way through. "Hey, welcome, welcome!" A voice called out to him. It could only be described as enthusiastic. "How can I help you? We have plenty of weapons at your disposal." Just like a sales pitch. He noticed the sound coming from an older woman, her hands looked calloused with her arms covered in scars. She wore a subtle shade of lipstick that held a raspberry flavored lollipop and donned blonde hair tied back in a ponytail. In essence, her body tone almost matched his, save for burn scars on the right arm.
"I'm just having a look." What Masaki said was truthful, he wanted a closer look at the weapons she provided. The shop showcased many different weapons, from common katanas, double-edged swords, spears, all sorts. Most notably, the blades on all the weapons held a white sheen to it, very similar to those of the moon shards of Eanna. In the corner of the store, he noticed an anvil, clean as if it underwent daily maintenance. "Did you make these?" He inquired, pointing at the blades.
Suddenly, the woman had a look that exacerbated no sense of humility. "That's right! Made all these myself!" She praised herself, thumb to her chest.
"They're impressive." Masaki replied, forgetting it would add to her ego. "How'd you make them?"
"Tut-tut," she wagged her finger at him. "We don't just share secrets for nothing around here. You gotta offer up something of equal value. Equivalent exchange, or something like that." She mused.
"How about kumi?"
"I prefer to trade for information. You want trade secrets, offer something up about yourself." She rested her arms on the bench in front of her, practically extorting an answer out of him.
Masaki let out a slight cough. "My name is Nagakura, I come from Fenchuch, and I--" He was suddenly cut off.
"No, no! I don't care about your backstory, as tragic as it may be, I want trade secrets. Tell me something about your craft."
"Well... I'm... not really a craftsman." He stuttered, replying solemnly.
"Then I'm afraid I can't help you out." The woman pulled out her lollipop and pointed it towards him. "Come back when you have something valuable, right, Nagakura-kun?" He was stumped. Maybe talking about his goal would work. It wasn't his craft, but it was all he had.
"I need material for a special tool."
"Ah, let me guess, you're working for Marzan-kun aren't you?" She raised an eyebrow following her suggestion. The name did strike a familiar chord with Masaki. The smith he was working with, Durmaz, mentioned him. He remembers his voice oozing with a sense of respect and envy. It didn't seem this woman had the same level of respect that other smiths carried for him.
"Not exactly. The guy I'm working with uses the same techniques, I'm guessing." Masaki replied.
"The Atavistic forge, yeah?" She mused. "Good enough for me! Always willing to help out someone who can trade properly." She walked over to one of her katanas, the blade was pristine as it glowed like the night sky. It was sharp and polished. Beautiful is the only word anyone could use to describe it.
"You might be guessing what these are made of right? It's the shards of the moon! Needs a special technique to craft them, but they're very sturdy!" She puffed out her chest in a way that yelled "admire me!"
Masaki rubbed his chin. "Interesting, I did consider the option of using the shards, but aren't they heavy?"
"That's where my secret technique comes in!" Her voice peaked proudly. "But I can't tell you what that is, unless..." She rubbed her finger and thumb together, the implication that meant she needed more payment for her services.
Masaki was stumped, once again. She knew he wasn't that much of an artisan. If anything, he had some basic skill in carpentry that he could show off if required, but all of her tools used an anvil at best. There had to be some way to win over her affections to gather the information he needed. What he did know is that she had some kind of technique that could be used to lower the weight of the moon shards so they weren't so heavy, without making the blade too brittle. There had to be something he could use. Something, anything.
That is, one idea popped into his head.
"Do you mind if I use the floor here?" Masaki asked. She motioned to the area to say the stage is yours. With that, he reached into his backpack to grab a scroll and laid it bare on the ground, its kanji symbol facing upwards. Her eyes focused on what might be in the scroll. He took a step back before performing a single hand gesture to activate the seal on the scroll. In a puff of smoke, a wooden puppet was revealed, in the shape of a large lizard. It was made completely of wood with a large metallic shield covering its back. Salamander.
The woman's eyes lit up with excitement. "Wow, Nagakura-kun, I didn't take you to be a master carpenter!" She said in praise.
"I perform maintenance on him, is all." He replied sheepishly, rubbing the nape of his neck. "I guess you could say I inherited this." In an instant, the woman jumped the counter and began to inspect the puppet. Maybe puppetry was a rare or ancient skill, or something she hadn't seen before. Any reason could have been Masaki's guess at her excitement. She'd eyeball the face and the mouth, lifting up Salamander's jaw to see a hose that could release a torrential maelstrom of flames at any moment. She continued to inspect the joints that made up its arms and feet, the level of craftsmanship which would allow for its expedient movement when commanded in battle. The tail that could extend way past the length it looked like. Lastly was the massive brick of iron on the back, which she attempted to lift by hand but to no avail.
"This is so heavy!" She puffed, out of breath, hands resting on her knees. "And you fight with this so easily!?"
"I wouldn't say it's easy, but yes." Masaki jested.
"Can you show me?!" She asked with such enthusiasm. He shook his head, bringing his own finger and thumb together, signalling that he would need his own payment. She pouted in response. "Yes yes, now show me!"
In seconds, a couple of threads shot out from the tips of his hands, attaching to certain joints on the puppet. Nothing strenuous, just enough so that Salamander's jaw would open and the shield raised up, primed and ready to spew fire from its mouth. The woman couldn't look more amazed even if she tried.
"This is amazing Nagakura-kun!" She replied quite enthusiastically. Her eyes remained fixated on the puppet, specifically the shield, until he let out a cough to remind her of the deal. "Ah, right..." The woman laughed as she moved out to the back of her store to grab a specific tool. This tool was a rock with a hue of purple on it. She placed it on the counter before explaining what it was. "This is my secret technique, a special stone called molybdenite found in the iron peninsula. It's got a waxy texture that has a strange reaction with the moon shards that creates small air pockets and makes them lighter. It also serves to strengthen the bond of the moon shards, I almost want to call it Eannite." She laughed at the end of her exposition.
Masaki relinquished his strings. "That's very interesting. You said it was in the iron peninsula?" He inquired.
"You're gonna get some yourself!?"
"That's the plan, yes."
"How about this proposition," she took in a deep breath. "You give me this puppet of yours, and I'll give you a small piece of my molybdenite. It'd be a great study for my own work! How about it?" The woman held out her hand. Interestingly, this was a proposal that suited him. He guessed she had some to spare so she could continue her craft, and he had the schematic memorised to make another Salamander, if needed. Masaki responded in turn, extending his own for a handshake.
"We have a deal." The woman began to jump in excitement, a notion Masaki couldn't quite wrap his head around, but simply smiled. She handed him the rock in a matted newspaper to prevent the waxiness from getting everywhere, which he promptly placed into his backpack. "Thank you." He bowed, before leaving her store and Salamander behind. Chimes rang out again as the door opened.
"See you soon, Nagakura-kun!" She called out.
With that in mind, he didn't know where else he could go to procure the third ore he required for Durmaz. Maybe he could grab a shard from the moon since that was what the molybdenite was used for, but that would be too easy. In fact, he considered it may have been a material the smith had in surplus already. Masaki looked around the vista of Kuzuyama, keeping a peculiar eye out for anything strange that could give him a hint, before setting off. He didn't know where, but he was going somewhere.
And someone was tailing him...
(Sanshōuo) - Salamander
Type: Puppet
Rank: C
Range: N/A
Chakra: 15
Damage: N/A
Description: Salamander is a defensive puppet, though not on the level of defense as that of Hiruko. Salamander, as its name suggests, is built in the form of a large salamander, being one of the largest puppets seen thus far, and though it is not more powerful defensively than Hiruko, it is larger than the other puppet. Salamander is able to rise up a large area on its back to be used as a shield, making a black shield over its head. It, like some other puppets, is hollow, and it can open its back at any time and then rise up its large tail over its head, stretching it out and therefore allowing the puppet user to jump inside of it for protection. Salamander can also spew out fire equal to C rank. Salamander can only be destroyed by one who knows its weak spots, being a weak joint on its side that holds the shield in place and afterwards simply striking it on its back, or by a move of A rank or higher.
Note: Only useable by a Sunagakure puppeteer.
(Kugutsu No Jutsu) - Puppetry Technique
Type: Supplementary
Rank: D
Range: Short-Mid
Chakra: 10 (+5 each turn)
Damage: N/A
Description: The user makes threads of chakra that are used to control puppets.
Type: Puppet
Rank: C
Range: N/A
Chakra: 15
Damage: N/A
Description: Salamander is a defensive puppet, though not on the level of defense as that of Hiruko. Salamander, as its name suggests, is built in the form of a large salamander, being one of the largest puppets seen thus far, and though it is not more powerful defensively than Hiruko, it is larger than the other puppet. Salamander is able to rise up a large area on its back to be used as a shield, making a black shield over its head. It, like some other puppets, is hollow, and it can open its back at any time and then rise up its large tail over its head, stretching it out and therefore allowing the puppet user to jump inside of it for protection. Salamander can also spew out fire equal to C rank. Salamander can only be destroyed by one who knows its weak spots, being a weak joint on its side that holds the shield in place and afterwards simply striking it on its back, or by a move of A rank or higher.
Note: Only useable by a Sunagakure puppeteer.
(Kugutsu No Jutsu) - Puppetry Technique
Type: Supplementary
Rank: D
Range: Short-Mid
Chakra: 10 (+5 each turn)
Damage: N/A
Description: The user makes threads of chakra that are used to control puppets.
End mission.
Leaving landmark.
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