[hr][h3][color=Thistle]Azumi Taketori[/color][/h3][hr][sup][i]Morning  ||  Konoha[/i][/sup][indent] [/indent]
When Ai finished her explanation, Azumi quickly glanced to her teammates. Minori had moved closer, indicating his willingness to work together, and Masumi did the same, much to her surprise. Having seen his earlier attitude, she’d expected him to be more disagreeable, but she was glad he wasn’t truly all he seemed. 

[color=thistle]“So what should we do? Have one person distract her while the other two try to grab the chest?”[/color]

[color=darkgray]“That’s pretty obvious, don’t you think? She’d be expecting that.”[/color] Masumi’s eyes flicked to Ai. [color=darkgray]“We should try something she wouldn’t expect—or something that isn’t immediately obvious, at least. Like having Azumi grab the chest.”[/color]

[color=thistle]“”W-what?[/color] Azumi’s eyes widened. [color=thistle]“I-I don’t think—”[/color]

[color=darkgray]“What do you think, Minori?”[/color] Masumi turned his gaze on Minori, so Azumi did the same. Sure Ai probably wouldn’t expect her to grab the chest, but neither did she! She couldn’t even see herself getting close to it, much less grabbing it. Surely one of her teammates—both clearly more skilled than herself—would fare a lot better?
[h3]   [/h3][hr][h3][color=darkgray]Masumi Rinha[/color][/h3][hr][sup][i]Morning  ||  Konoha[/i][/sup][indent] [/indent]
Seeing as Minori seemed the reasonable sort, Masumi figured he’d probably agree with the plan. Ai was clearly testing the group’s teamwork, as she said herself, and as much as Masumi hated to trust Azumi to do anything skill-related, he and Minori made much better distractions than she did. In fact, done correctly, Azumi would have the easiest job: snatch and go. 

[color=darkgray]“We would all charge her to distract her, but Azumi will lag a little behind—intentionally. Then, when Ai isn’t expecting it, Azumi will grab the chest.”[/color]

[h3] [/h3][hr][h3][color=mediumpurple]Asuka Kurama[/color][/h3][hr][sup][i]Mid-morning  ||  Konoha[/i][/sup][indent] [/indent]
Ryuu took the news well—almost better than some Anbu, which surprised Asuka. But then again, he was the head of the police. It was a problem these days, underestimating others. The riskiness of Anbu missions had led her to default to underestimating rather than overestimating those around her because, in cases that something went wrong, she had only herself to rely on. It was a precarious balance of valuing her teammates, the mission, and her own survival. Asuka had rarely had to choose between the three, but when she did, she never liked looking back. 

When Ryuu addressed her, his use of the word “partner” hadn’t been lost on her, and as much as she hated dredging up the past, if her captain had approved her leave of absence, then there was no reason for her to refuse. With everything that was happening, it seemed like a decade-old set of questions might actually be answered one day, and though Asuka hated to say she hoped, she did now.

[color=mediumpurple]“Nothing in this room, partner.”[/color] Ryuu’s sharp gaze told not voice anything unnecessary—which, really, was unnecessary. One of the first things an Anbu learned was that words should be kept as a limited ration, and Asuka had never minded that. 

Asuka flicked her eyes to the upper corner of the room where a security camera hung: were there tapes?
[h3] [/h3][hr][hider=Jutsu]
[hider=Ninjutsu][list]
[/list][indent] [/indent][/hider]
[hider=Genjutsu][list]
[*]Genkaku (“Illusions”) — Yin Release [Genjutsu]: creates illusions in the landscape that manifest as physical objects.
[*]Shōmei kiri no Gensō (“Illusion of Lightning Fog”) — Water + Lightning Release [Ninjutsu]: allows Asuka to transmit genjutsu techniques via electricity passed through particles of water in the air.
[list][*]Kieru Kiri (“Disappearing Fog”) — Yin Release [Genjutsu]: momentarily disappears something from the opponent’s senses
[*]Mōmokuteki Moya (“Blind Haze”) — Yin Release [Genjutsu]: makes the fog appear blindingly thick for a moment.[/list]
[*]Takarajima (“Treasure Island”) — Yin Release [Genjutsu]: shows the target their inner desires as to distract them.
[/list][indent] [/indent][/hider]
[indent] [/indent][/hider]
[@SimpleWriter]