Thief's Day Out

[Yanagi Fuyu]

Yanagi strolled with her hands in her pockets through the crowded, bright streets, toying with the idea of staying in Otafuku Gai for just a little longer.
She’d stopped in the vibrant, friendly town to restock on some less shinobi-orientated supplies; food and the like, but she was tempted to prolong her stay and enjoy some of the entertainment the town so freely offered.

‘If I did, I’d probably wreck the joint in minutes,’ Yanagi thought ruefully, walking past another gambling venue. Yanagi wondered, idly, if their Hokage had been thrown out of that particular shop yet. Come on, the fact that Tsunade-sama was a poor gambler was hardly a secret. She even had the label on the back of her jacket! Well, the ‘gambler’ part, anyway.

Yanagi sighed and finally talked herself into behaving. She was expected back by the end of today, so she should get a move on. She’d already gathered all of the things she’d come to buy...
‘Or steal,’ She thought, smirking at the memory. One shopkeeper had been a royal ass, so Yanagi had had no regrets over lifting what she’d wanted from the store on her way out. His business was doing well, so it wasn’t like her minor theft would trouble him in any way except bruising his ego. If he even found out. ‘Idiot,’ Yanagi scoffed silently as she headed towards the gates, her memory easing her disappointment at having to leave the bustling town a little.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi was on a mission in the fire country, the few genin she'd been given to tutor had been on a simple delivery mission and of course she had to accompany them. The mission had been successful despite a few arguments between them, all settled with Yuzumi's boot and someones backside. It would take them a few days of nothing but travel to return to Kirigakure and so to preserve her own sanity she had allowed them a day of relaxing in the pleasant, vibrant town. The genin squad would meet her in the evening at the gates and the would camp outside and leave for home with the sun rise. She wondered the streets, getting annoyed everytime someone got in her way. She didn't care to spend money on useless items though she was certain the three kids would come back with lots of tourist aimed crap. She did step into a little store to pick up some food for the journey home, she doubted the brats would remember to get their own and toyed with the thought of not getting them any, to see how the coped.

Eventually she bought food enough for the four of them but she was going to pretend she hadn't. She figured that they'd learn a little about survival in the field if she made them rely on themselves and even if they didn't she'd still get a kick out of it. As she made her way out of the shop with her purchased good she couldn't help noticing the young girl walk out of the shop with items that were clearly stolen. The girl had entered after Yuzumi and was now leaving with her shopping but she hadn't payed the proprietor. She was a dirty little thief! She began to trail the girl, she was pissed off. Yuzumi angered quickly and people who thought they were above paying for things were one of the many things that set her into a rage. She was gonna find an opertunity to beat some regret into the girl and then take what she had stolen back to the man in the shop.

She trailed Yanagi for some time at a considerable distance and watched patiently for her chance. When the girl made for the city gate she sensed it was nearing. It was quiet outside the town limits in the late afternoon - perfect. She waited until the girl was outside beofre calling out to her. "You, thief! Come here!" She wasn't sure what to expect from the girl but she was geared up for an ass kicking regardless of her reactions.

[Yanagi Fuyu]

Yanagi turned at the voice, mildly annoyed at being caught. Oh well; she could reason it out – the prat of a shopkeeper had honestly deserved it – provided this person wasn’t so pissed off that they started throwing punches straight away.
When Yanagi realised that the person confronting her was a Mist Jounin, she wondered if that would complicate things, though she kept her expression fixed on mildly questioning. She’d left her headband at home, seeing no need to take it out on a shopping excursion, and wondered if she may have to identify herself as a fellow shinobi.

“Yes?” She asked, keeping her tone polite and deciding to overlook the rude way she’d been summoned. However, Yanagi had noticed Yuzumi’s obvious anger, and was keeping a safe distance away. Close enough to talk, but out of grabbing or kicking reach. If she was a Jounin, she no doubt had one hell of a punch.
The sun was on Yanagi’s right and a little behind her, so she had a clear view of Yuzumi should the older ninja attack. Quite an extreme reaction over a bit of pilfered food, but still. Yanagi was typically cautious, even though she may not seem it. Avoiding a violent confrontation was in Yanagi’s interest, so she decided to try and defuse the situation before it – specifically, Yuzumi – exploded.

“I take it you’re going to ask about what I stole, so I’ll save you asking. The man was rude, refused to serve me for a shallow, ridiculous reason, and was generally an ass. As you could see, his establishment was thriving, so the money lost from the sale of the bit of food I took won’t do any harm to him or his family. That’s if he even realises. Had he been polite, even if he still refused to serve me, I would have left it at that and gone elsewhere. It was his bad personality that convinced me to steal the stuff.” Yanagi paused, her tone remaining calm and non-confrontational as she regarded the furious ninja in front of her with an unemotional mask, whilst trying to anticipate how Yuzumi would react. “I’m willing to talk this out, but if you are fixated on beating the crap out of me, then go right ahead. I’ll fight back. I won’t apologise for that man’s bad attitude,” She concluded, voice neutral and steady as she waited for some sort of response.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi eyed the girl suspiciously, she knew damn well she'd have been pissed at the shop keeper had he so much as looked at her wrong. But she'd have just beat him with her purchase and then throw her money at him. The thought of stealing was disgusting despite the circumstances and for all she knew the girl was lying about why she stole. The way the girl addressed her seemed to say her body language was distinctly aggressive, she hoped she came across as intimidating. When she didn't she found she had to hit more people to prove her points. What wasn't to be scared of? She was a heavily armed, Mist jounin. She did pack quite a punch too. Her long coat billowed a little as she took a step towards the younger girl.

"Come back to the shop with me and pay for what you stole and i won't have to beat you up. Nothing about stealing is right and your reasons are petty," she explained coldly, her voice wrought with menace. Yuzumi over-reacted to everything and she knew it, but quite frankly she didn't care. She was quick tempered and sadistic but in a round-a-bout caring way. She couldn't just let a criminal walk away without so much as a decent telling off (which to Yuzumi constituted a good kicking).

The afternoon sun was glorious, glinting off her headband as it hung loosely from her neck. Wearing it so openly had resulted in a few worried glances in the town. Mist didn't exactly have a good reputation and had very little comunication with the other nations so seeing a small squad of them was quite strange in places like this vibrant town. She thought of her genin charges and hoped they hadn't faced any stigma or if they had that they had dealt with it appropriately. She was due to meet them here in an hour or so, if this girl was adamant in leaving with the stolen food in hand Yuzumi would have plenty of time to deal with the situation.

[Yanagi Fuyu]

The young Leaf kunoichi watched Yuzumi’s open suspicion impassively, quietly guessing at its cause. Her explanation? Or was the Jounin questioning if the thief before her was a ninja or not?

Yanagi held her ground as Yuzumi stepped forward, obviously attempting to intimidate the younger girl. However, Yanagi knew one of the ninja in the Interrogations department quite well – training with him had steeled her against the more basic intimidation techniques, and a step forward accompanied by glaring was practically the most basic thing you could do to scare someone. Yanagi was immune to it, and had been since she was a genin.
Idly, she noted that such a technique was far more effective after turning into a wolf or lion, though that was a tactic unique to Yanagi, as far as she was aware.

Snapping out of her musings, Yanagi listened quietly, outwardly unperturbed by Yuzumi, whilst silently wondering just how badly she would lose should it come to a fight. She wasn’t naive enough to think she would win except by sheer fluke – Chuunin vs Jounin? Anyone could figure out that outcome. But still, the Konoha shinobi was reluctant to back down.

“So, I’m not allowed to steal, since, as you say, ‘nothing about it is right’ – but I’m perfectly licensed to kill people, and have it called a job well done? Now, that’s not right,” Yanagi stated, an eyebrow raised as her tone took on the faintest edge of sarcasm. “Besides, you’re not telling me you would let someone bad mouth you and you wouldn’t do something in return?” She asked, sceptical. Yuzumi seemed rather hot-headed; Yanagi doubted she’d take any messing about from anyone. Surely the Mist Jounin would at least understand Yanagi’s point of view.

Yanagi sighed, folding her arms and shifting her weight to one hip, guessing she’d be here for a little while longer after all, though when she’d contemplated staying, getting into an argument with a Mist ninja had hardly been the scenario she had imagined.
Her movement had another purpose, however. She had two kunai strapped to her arms and concealed by her sleeves, should she need a surprise advantage or run out of kunai in her holster. Folding her arms put her hands close enough to the hidden weapons for them to be immediately available should she need them.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi was beginning to guess that this girl was a shinobi. Although yuzumi chose not to wear her flak, the only proof of her rank, she did not conceal the fact that she was a ninja. Most citizens would back down in such a situation but this girl had nerves of steel in comparison to that of your everyday shoplifter.

When she argued about being able to kill people Yuzumi became certain that this girl was a shinobi, despite the lack of a headband. She thought about the girls words, she had a point. Yuzumi could most definitely see her point of view but she disagreed with it. "It's clear to you I'm a shinobi and judging by the way you speak you are also a shinobi. When we go out on missions we do them for our village. It doesn't matter if we are out to steal an important object or weapon or if we must kill someone who poses a threat to the nation. We do these things for the good of our home land. Trust me when I say I am no stranger to death and killing but if I can avoid it I do," she stated with a hint of pride mixing into her fierce voice. She paused a moment and looked the girl up and down, her current stance was not one that suggested aggression or readiness to fight, but, it did not convey a girl who was ready to admit what she had done was wrong and return the goods.

"You've stolen for petty, childish reasons. To make yourself feel better, to get back at a nasty old man. In the same situation I'd have given him a peice of my mind, but nothing justifies commiting crimes for your own personal gain." She paused once more. The girl seemed bored. Yuzumi was still full of anger and her lack of reaction didn't help difuse the situation.

"I'll put this in simple terms for you, take the stuff back or I'll make you," she said sharply. She had no more patience for this.[/size]

[Yanagi Fuyu]

When Yuzumi voiced her observation, Yanagi nodded to show her assessment was correct. Then again, she’d hardly been trying to hide the fact she was a shinobi, and once you started talking about killing it didn’t take a genius to figure out what you were.
“...Trust me when I say I am no stranger to death and killing but if I can avoid it I do," A strange smile came to Yanagi’s face at those words, slightly sad and regretful, though there was no sign of her will weakening. In contrast to the almost gentle smile, her eyes had hardened to harsh green stones.
“As do I. I may be a thief with no regrets, but the same does not apply to killing.” She stated, her voice cold. Being a killer was an accepted disadvantage of being a shinobi.

At Yuzumi’s second small speech, Yanagi regained her old mask, though there was a vaguely wry twist to her mouth as she replied.

“Ah, but if I’d done as you would have, I would only have stressed or frightened him. That could have been detrimental to his health. For all I know, that guy has a weak heart – god knows, he didn’t look too healthy. Could have done with laying off the red meat for a while, at least. If I had given him a piece of my mind, as you said, I could have given him a stress-related heart attack, and who knows where the nearest medic is.” Yanagi shrugged again, the hint of her grin just barely in place. “This way, I get back at him – childish, I know, but I am still young enough to be prone to acting up – and the old man doesn’t get harmed in any way.” She knew her reasoning was flawed, but Yanagi wasn’t too bothered with that at the moment. She hadn’t hurt the old man, though at one point she had considered re-enacting one of her Isamu-instigated pranks of throwing paint all over him then legging it. But she’d restrained herself – she wasn’t nine anymore. That was childish.

Yanagi noted the Mist-nin’s change of tone, and guessed Yuzumi’s patience was close to running out.
Sighing imperceptively, the younger ninja considered her options seriously for the first time that afternoon. She didn’t want to give anything back – her pride was screaming a resounding ‘no’ at that choice, and since the only thing to force her hand was her own health, Yanagi went along with it. She could stifle her pride, but usually only when she knew there was no chance in hell of winning in a fight and there was something valuable – such as her comrades’ lives – hanging in the balance to sway her decision. Since this wasn’t the case, Yanagi considered a compromise. She didn’t want to get beat up over a few pieces of food.

“I won’t be stupid enough to say I’d win for definite, but nor will I say you would come out of a fight unscathed should one occur. Is it really worth your while getting beat up over something as trivial as this, even if you won the fight?” Yanagi asked, sceptical again, an eyebrow raised. Her tone had stayed as strong as ever – she didn’t wheedle if she wanted out of a situation. She stated what she wanted to say then fought the rest of the way if she had to.
“Since I doubt you’ll back off, how’s this – either I dump what I stole and don’t use it, therefore I would in no way have committed the crime for personal gain,” She stressed the last two words a little, voice just a touch sneering, for want of a better description. “-Or, I give the stuff to you, you do with it what you will, return it or whatever. In any case, I’m neither apologising nor paying.” Yanagi said firmly, resolute on that matter. Yuzumi could choose one option or the other, or she could fight. Yanagi would make sure she’d get one hell of a surprise should the Mist kunoichi attack.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi was adament in her mind, the girl was going to come back with her and own up to the old man with our without a fight. She was losing her patience, not that she ever had much, and it was begining to show. She moved in to a more aggressive stance, her arms raised in readiness and her legs bent. She was focusing chakra to her feet incase she needed the extra speed, a habitual practice for Yuzumi. As a jounin she strived to always come across as fast, as strong and as nimble as she could. Her blows, it is fair to say, packed particular punch and she was very good at using her environment to make everything all the more impressive.

"Look, I'm tired of this nonsense. Regardless of your reasons you are still a petty thief. A disgrace to your nation. Apologise to the man with me now or I will make you. This is no longer a discussion," she said sternly, her steely grey eyes looking down into the girls own. Yuzumi was sticking to her guns on this one, partly because she really felt this girls petty criminal activity was pathetic and should not go unpunished and partly because after spending so long with the genin in her charge she was itching for a fight.

She waited to see if the girl would back down and come with her or if she would take the more stupid, albeit more fun, route of challenging Yuzumi. She was radiating arrogant pride and confidence. On her lips a hint of a smile played as the excitement of anticipation washed over her. She was angry at Yanagi, yes, but she always looked forward to a fight. She moved her hands a little closer together to be sure that if this got violent she'd waste no time in using her favourite jutsu.[/size]

[OOC - Sorry for the delay - internet is struggling to cope with all the demands of 4 people. It's a little short but when i get back in my groove it'll improve.]

[Yanagi Fuyu]

Yanagi mirrored Yuzumi’s movements, though hers were still calm rather than intimidating as she adopted her own fighting stance; turning side-on, taking her weight on her back leg, her arms raised but relaxed until needed, though she didn’t make any move to attack. Yanagi too was utilising her chakra, though she was spreading it across her skin as an additional defence, as well as using it to anchor herself to the ground and to lend a little extra power to her attacks.

‘So, here ends the reasoning and begins the fighting,’ Yanagi thought, the shadow of a grin forming as she waited, deciding to let Yuzumi attack first. Yanagi already knew her best bet would be to defend and dodge as much as possible, attacking when she could.
‘I may need to use my kekkei genkai here...jeez, all this over some fruit!’ She thought, acknowledging then ignoring the fact that she was equally at fault for the upcoming battle in the same manner that she ignored Yuzumi’s words, letting her clear stance talk for her.

Yanagi didn’t miss the Mist nin’s smile, faint as it was. So, she’s enjoying the idea of a fight. It’d be rude to disappoint then, especially as Yanagi herself was partial to a bit of low-key violence. Or maybe not so low-key – Yuzumi looked a little too excited for this to end with just a few bruises.
‘Oh well. She can’t give me worse than what I’ve had before, if she even tried she’d be worse than a ‘petty thief’, something her flawless morals wouldn’t stand for. Plus I would be majorly pissed if she did,’ As if to support her thoughts, or perhaps caused by them, her ribs issued a phantom pain that would have made Yanagi frown had she not been concentrating on the aggressive ninja before her, trying to anticipate what her first move would be.

[OOC: sorry for the poor post – I’ve had two extremely late nights in a row (5:30 in the morning, one of them) so I’m not at my best. Should be better once I’ve recovered haha]

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi wasted no time in reacting to the girls change of stance.
"You are a fool," she stated with a slight chuckle as she clasped her hands togther in a few speedy handseals before spitting a rally of senbon from her mouth. Such a basic jutsu but such a great surprise. Hidden Needles was one of her favourite techniques. Moments later she sprang forwards, aided by her chakra, with some speed to punch Yanagi's face.

She was keeping things simple, there was no need to over do it. if the girl was incompetant she wouldn't last against this but in truth this was Yuzumi's way of measuring up the girl's skill. Her black hair flew back as she launched herself forwards ferociously as did her long coat. The beginnings of a smile that had played on her features had spread into a slightly manic grin. She was so excited she was already beginning to forget why she was fighting.

There was no attempt in Yuzumi's mind to with hold the sadistic, bloodlusting beast that she was. Her steely eyes glinted brightly with elation in the late afternoon sunshine. She half hoped the genin brats would show up to witness this, the skill of a Jounin in battle.

[ooc- sorry it's short and a little crappy. I'm quite distracted]

[Yanagi Fuyu]

The moment Yuzumi started her hand seals, Yanagi moved, though the speedy needles soon caught up with her, almost catching her. One nicked her sleeve before the barrage ceased and Yanagi had Yuzumi’s punch to deal with.

The Mist Jounin moved too fast; it caught Yanagi right on her cheekbone as the younger kunoichi raises her arms to block the attack.
The thin layer of chakra over her skin absorbed a tiny bit of the impact, enough to stop the skin from splitting as her head snapped sideways, her unrestrained hair whipping like a banner in a storm to follow the movement, but it was the chakra anchoring her to the ground that stopped her from being knocked off her feet, though the force of the attack made Yanagi take a step or two back, regardless of chakra.

Taking advantage of the proximity and her own natural speed, Yanagi grabbed for Yuzumi’s outstretched punching arm at the wrist, ducking and slamming Yuzumi’s lower legs with her free arm then standing rapidly, aiming to throw the Jounin over her shoulder and into the air where she might be able to get a few consecutive attacks in whilst Yuzumi was disorientated.

Out of the corner of her eye, Yanagi had noticed the manic look on her opponents face.
‘Psycho or what?’ She thought briefly, with the small shard of her mind that wasn’t concentrating on not being pulverised by a crazed Mist nin.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi grinned with satisfaction as her blow found it's mark, though at least Yanagi had managed to dodge the needles relatively well. It seemed that the punch hadn't quite had enough force to make her back down and in fact Yuzumi was a little taken aback as the younger, willowy girl succeeded in launching her into the air. Her coat whipped wildly in the air as she forced herself into a flip in mid-air. The girl had pulled her up over her shoulders into a position of vunerablity, in which she was totally open to attacks from the girls stance on the ground, before she managed to land ungracefully on one knee. It seemed Yuzumi had indeed been underestimating the thief.

She wasted no time in springing up with another punch, this time aimed for her lower chest. She had withstood the first blow well enough but perhaps a second, more breath-taking blow would be enough to make her admit defeat. Although the girl was exceeding Yuzumi's expectaions, as of yet there was no reason to resort to jutsu yet. Although she had no way of knowing the girls rank she would still be a little embarassed if she needed to perform jutsu in order to win this spur of the moment bought.

Despite having taken a blow, Yuzumi was enjoying herself. The girl had shown a little ferocity in her retaliation that seemed promising. With any luck the girl would be a half decent fighter and give Yuzumi a run for her money.
"What is your name," she growled in the midst of her punch. She had decided she at least ought to know the name of her opponant.

[Yanagi Fuyu]

With Yuzumi successfully cast into the air, Yanagi jumped after her, using the Mist nin’s body to help pull herself off the ground.
Keeping hold of the other kunoichi’s shoulders, Yanagi slammed her knee towards Yuzumi’s stomach before releasing her and kicking her away to try and avoid any mid-air counters. They landed a few yards apart, Yanagi having a slightly steadier meeting with the ground than Yuzumi, though the younger ninja soon stood again, in time to see the Jounin’s next attack. Again, it was fast, but there was more distance between them this time and Yanagi managed to raise her hand to catch and deflect the punch, though it bent her wrist at an awkward angle against her side and forced her to take a steadying step back.
‘That’ll ache later,’ She noted, the twisted limb already shaking uncontrollably from the rapidly developed sprain.

Yanagi just raised her eyebrows at Yuzumi’s words, though the rest of her face was contorted into something resembling a mild, silent snarl.
Immediately afterwards, her free hand whipped out to punch the Jounin in the face, much the same way Yanagi had been struck before, shoving her opponent away at the same time to create some space between them.

“You tell me yours and I’ll tell you mine,” She answered, a grin on her face, though her eyes glinted too much for the expression to be reassuring or friendly in any way. It was more like she was enjoying taunting the other shinobi, and was looking forward to the rest of the fight. Which, in all honesty, she was.

Yanagi had already realised that there would be no stopping this fight until one of them either gave in, was knocked out, or they were both too exhausted to continue. So, she may as well enjoy the training opportunity, as well as the chance to use someone she didn’t have to live with later as a punch bag.

[Yuzumi Setsuzen]

Yuzumi was wild with excitment now, she had forgotten why she was fighting and was now soley on emerging victorious from the bout. Her body ached with th blows Yanagi had landed whilst in the air but the adrenelin rush that coursed through her veins was enough to dim out the pain of bruised ribs into nothingness. The girl deflected her next punch but not completly, her wrist took the blow instead. It hadn't winded her as Yuzumi had intened but she was sure it would still have hurt.

By the time Yuzumi realised she was about to be hit she was in too close to do anything about it. She leapt backwards as soon as she could but by this time she had been struck hard on the cheek bone. It hurt like hell but she was fairly certain no bones had been broken. She let out a painful yell as she let the combined force of her leap, Yanagi's push and the blow knock her backwards, off of her feet. As she her feet lifted off she swung her boot upwards at Yanagi's chin, trying to land a nasty blow before there was too much distance between them.

Yuzumi landed on her back with a dull thud that caused some breath to escape her lungs. She gasped as she lay on the floor for a second before roll back and jumping back up her feet. She raised a hand to rub her swollen cheek, the skin had been grazed off leaving little flecks of blood on the already blue surface. The new bruise stood out frighteningly on her pale skin and oddly seemed to match the colour around her eyes. She glared at Yanagi. "My name is Yuzumi Setsuzen!" she spat at the teenager. She stood at her full height, her hands balled into fists by her side. She waited for Yanagi's next move with rigid anticipation.

[Yanagi Fuyu]

The strike at her chin hit Yanagi’s jaw instead as she tried to turn and avoid the hit. Unbalanced and audibly snarling, she fell rather ungracefully to the ground, jarring her tailbone but managing to stay somewhat upright.
She spat a few choice curses through her teeth as she stood, ignoring the odd feeling lingering in her spine that spread all the way up to the back of her throat and the throbbing ache in her face that doubled in force with every slight move of her jaw.

Unlike Yuzumi, Yanagi still had her reason – an advantage, in her eyes. Mistakes were easily made if you were attacking like a berserker, with no real thought or reason.
Still, she was mad. The whole left side of her face hurt – a punch and a kick within the space of a few minutes had already started to discolour her cheek and mouth, staining the pale skin with blotchy blue and purple. It had done nothing to improve her mood.
Though, now she had a name to put to a face, and proceeded to give her own as she’d promised.
“Yanagi Fuyu. Got anymore questions for me before I give you another bruise?” She growled, falling back into a snappy attitude as a result of her almost lost temper, though she remembered with some enjoyment that Yuzumi’s last question had resulted in the Mist-nin getting hit in the face. Hopefully there would be a repeat of that, or better.

Rather than keep tense, Yanagi returned to her initial, relatively relaxed stance as she watched Yuzumi carefully for any signs of an offensive, whilst wondering what the best way to attack her would be from their current positions. Despite her very slight crouch, Yanagi was still taller than Yuzumi – had she been standing tall, there would be a good four or five inch difference between them. The Konoha ninja noticed, and held back a grin, partly because it hurt her face, partly because height didn’t make much of a difference in a fight, so there was no point smiling over it.

Instead, Yanagi jumped forward, using the upper limits of her speed, and swung into a short rally of hits; first a right then a left hook, followed immediately by a swift high-kick towards Yuzumi’s head, all intending to drive the Mist Jounin back and onto the defensive.