[Center][H2][color=D3D3D3]Yayoi, Ikaruga[/color][/H2]
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With the squads having managed to take care of the hostiles defending the refinery, they were allowed a bit of a breather, or at the very least a huddle to determine the next course of action. Ikaruga let out a sigh of relief at the fact that, for the most part, everybody hadn’t gotten roughed up too bad. That is, except for Sutemasu-sensei, who looked to have been stabbed while her team was inside of the refinery. Though, oddly enough, she didn’t seem terribly concerned about her wound. At the very least, the mist had begun to clear a bit. Might’ve been more useful when everyone was in the heat of battle, but they would take what they could get, right? Despite not having encountered any major setbacks so far, Ikaruga had a feeling that they weren’t quite out of the woods yet. After all, Kirigakure was going through so much trouble stealing minerals from Kumogakure, so surely they planned to have a greater defense than this planned out?

Keeping this thought in the back of his mind, Ikaruga listened intently as Sutemasu proposed a plan, one that was less explodey than that prescribed in the original mission. While Ikaruga agreed with the sentiment behind it, he wasn’t sure how much the Raikage would approve. Ikaruga hadn’t met Kumogakure’s leader terribly often, but he’d gotten the impression that she was very…. [i]intense[/i] to say the least. A trait that appeared to be passed on in some way to Hageshi. In any case, Minaru brought up the one wrinkle in the plan, which Ikaruga had also been thinking about. Why the hell would they hold a refinery off enemy shores without access to materials?

Before any further deliberation could be had, the relative silence of the area was pierced by the roar of explosions, followed by the voice of the man from which they came. As a bit of an anateur shinobi historian, the visage of the weapon the man held and the relation of the facility to Kirigakure let Ikaruga put two-and-two together rather quickly. [i]The Mist’s Seven Swordsmen[/i]. Or, at least one of them as far as Ikaruga was able to tell. Of course, the spear-wielding Chunin would quickly be proven wrong by the appearance of yet another figure wielding a large blade with ease. The individual looked to be around the age of all the Chunin present and, by extension, the young Jounin Minaru. It didn’t take long for the Kubikiribocho’s wielder to zip into range to mount an assault on the group of Chunin. Just as Ikaruga prepared to dodge the blow, Kumo’s own master swordsman, Minaru Gazo, the Lionheart, intercepted the attack, driving him off for a pitched one-on-one duel. [i]”[color=D3D3D3]I’d heard he was powerful, but I didn’t realize he was that strong.[/color]”[/i] Ikaruga thought, watching the broken piece of the cleaver blade sail through the air before landing in the water.

Of course, the teams wouldn’t be so lucky as to get a breather after that, as an old man emerged from the water between them. “Shit!” Ikaruga growled, stepping into the blow as the man swung the shark-skinned sword. Holding his spear vertically to block the strike, Ikaruga hoped to at least reduce the speed of the man’s swing enough for everyone else to dodge. However, due to a combination of not having too much time to think it through, along with an underestimation of the opponent’s strength, Ikaruga was sent flying, sent skipping along the water like a rock. The spearman quickly rolled to his feet and noticed pain shooting through his right arm, which now had some puncture wounds along it. Looking from his blood-soaked sleeve to the Samehada’s wielder, he saw that the blade’s skin had extended out into spikes, presumably at the moment it had come into contact with Ikaruga’s guard. “[color=D3D3D3]You guys probably don’t need me to tell you this, but avoid touching that thing at all costs!”[/color] Ikaruga called out to his fellow Chunin as he stumbled back up onto his feet. He was sure that he wasn’t going to get too much time to explain the intricacies of the peculiar blade, so that advice would have to suffice. “[color=D3D3D3]Just our luck for a first mission, huh?[/color]” Ikaruga muttered, taking a stance once again and waiting for an opening. Patience was a virtue here. These were members of Kirigakure’s elite, so one false move would get them killed. Ikaruga himself had only gotten lucky that the swing wasn’t too fast for him to react to.
[i]A shark toying with its prey.[/i]