Find that Kitty!

Spoiler:

Rēnin was at Ground Zero once again. He was helping clear rubble with some of the other peasants in the area. The engineers were repairing the ports that left Rēnin to do some back breaking work with those who could not wait for the specialists to help. It didn't require any ninja techniques which was good because Rēnin was still lacking in that department but it did make him feel like he was helping. It wasn't enough though. Even if Ground Zero was cleaned the livelihoods of some of these  people would not be enough to sustain them. They were living a hand to mouth existence and it was the stress of the labor that gave Rēnin an outlet from his frustration so to speak. He had met up with an young shinobi named Thorfinn that hailed from the Land of Iron. The kid seemed good and he had parents that were well-to-do or at the very least better off than Rēnin and his father. Rēnin had them sign up to take a basic D-Rank mission and the two agreed to meet once more at Ground Zero where the Bijuu first appeared. Rēnin had graduated at an older age so he needed allies that he could rely on having not earned the camaraderie that others had. He knew that his skills were relatively undeveloped so he'd need to make a strong impression with what little talents he had. The last thing that Rēnin wanted was to make a fool of himself in front of his new partner.

On top of a half collapsed building Thorfinn gaze out onto the ruined docks. He could see capsized ships out in the water and a ton of rubble floating on the water. Look over the ruins he could see destroyed markets, broken cranes, and other structures that very well tells him that this is a major impact on Kirigakure economy given it's a port village that relies on the docks for trade. He saw a few stray animals among the rubble who possibly became homeless after the attack and was scavenging for food. Leaping down on the muddy ground he heads towards ground zero. Quickly looking around he saw the tell-tale rags belonging to a certain Uchiha. Resting his left hand on the hilt of Stål he headed towards the Uchiha. "Hail lad, nice to see you again!" He gave a shout as he waved his right right. He stepped over a fallen plank and next to the young lad. Since he was ground level he can feel heat bouncing over the waters. Good thing he left his cape and shield because he was not used to any heat besides an hearth.

Rēnin turned his head and smiled as his partner arrived. "Hey!" Rēnin finished up with clearing a patch of rubble and walked over to his fellow genin. Now that the two of them were present they could begin their very first mission together. "A cat is on the loose. Its grey with blue eyes and we are to return it to this address when we find it. Its apparently a slippery little fellow and with all this rubble it will be tough to catch em" Rēnin scratched his head and scanned the area around the docks. He surmised that cats hated water so it was unlikely they'd find the cat close to ground zero so it was probably best if they searched the interior of the village and used the rooftops to get a bird's eye view of the surrounding area below. "Let's take the rooftops and see if we find anything" Rēnin started to run towards the more densely populated streets of Kirigakure filled with refugees. The alleyways were perfect places to spot a stray cat.

Thorfinn murmurer an agreement as he thought over the assignment. It reminded him of his hunts back in the Land of Iron where he had to track down animals in the blizzard or over miles of mountains. "Well like many animals it would very likely be in the outskirts of the village. Like how birds leave a day before a storm or cats fleeing hours before an earthquake, I bet it sensed danger coming and may have fled as far away as it can." Thorfinn spoke to his comrade as he began to follow after the Uchiha. He used a fallen lumber as a stepping stone to leap ontop of a nearby rooftop. From above he looks down on any sort of hiding place that a cat could possibly be hiding. Cat's can be skittish so it is unlikely that the cat would be wandering about after a Bijuu attack.

Thorfinn's experience brought an interesting suggestion forth and so Rēnin took it into account. The cat ought be on the edges of Kirigakure so Rēnin turned and moved in that direction motioning for Thorfinn to follow him. Rēnin leapt from rooftop to rooftop keeping his eyes peeled for the creature, he knew the village slums better than Thorfinn and so he used his knowledge of the geography to his advantage. "There are huge dumpsters on the far side of Kirigakure. I-, uh some of the less fortunate used to go there to see if any good food was thrown away" Rēnin blushed and didn't make eye contact with Thorfinn as they traveled. It was bad enough he was wearing rags there was no reason to out himself as a dumpster diver as well although the damage was already likely done. Rēnin ran to the piles of trash where workers took the refuse out of the village. "Its a good place for a cat to hide from the destruction and grab some food" Rēnin remarked as they arrived at the trash heap.

Thorfinn nodded at his partner suggestion regarding the potential hiding spot. "Aye that and the smell would mask its scent from predators, good eye lad" Thorfinn gave him a small praise to lift his spirits since from the style he speaks the young lad needs it. Jumping down onto the ground below he walked towards the trash heap before stopping a few meters away. "It would be good to lure it out with some food, lets look around for some fish. There bound to be fish given that Kirigakire is a port village" Thorfinn spoke with mild amusement before looking for any smelly fish.

Rēnin definitely appreciated some praise from Thorfinn, he wanted to be a leader but there were honestly times where he wasn't too confident in himself due to his background so he took the compliment with great gusto. Rēnin agreed with Thorfinn's plan to use fish to bait out the cat and he began to pretend looking for some. In truth, Rēnin knew exactly which section of the dump contained the fish thrown out by restaurants and fisheries due to having busted bellies. The fish meat was good but its form ugly or tarnished so it would ruin its presentation to those with finer appetites. Rēnin was just a hungry kid with a sharp nose so it was the first place he and the other street rats went when they needed a quick meal. If fried with some leftover cabbage it provided a decent repast but Rēnin was too ashamed of that to bring it up. He scouted the area alongside Thorfinn and looked in areas he knew contained no fish bait. "Here Kitty! Kitty Kitty" he called out every now and again.

As they sooth any presence of a cat Thorfinn saw a head poked out under a discarded pop tarts box. "Well little one, welcome back from you're pop tart hotel. It's time for you to go home." Chuckling Thirfinn scooped up the cat in his arms who proceeded to purr and snuggle up in his arms. "I suppose we should take this little fellow back home ey lad?" He said with a smile as he waits for his partner to lead the way.

Rēnin sighed with relief that Thorfinn had found the cat in a pop tart box. The cat was alive and well which was good. Not too many pets were all that lucky but first it occurred to him that they ought to give the kitty a bath rather than turn it in so dirty. "Let's wash it off and then return her" Rēnin suggested as he walked over to Thorfinn and relieved the samurai-native on the creature. The cat was a bit unruly but Rēnin knew how to woo cats as he had done so often for strays that like him were untrustworthy of others. He massaged the cat and soon it cooed softly, it took an expert to wash a cat without it throwing a fit. Rēnin walked to a nearby stream and cleaned the cat thoroughly used a bit of soap he had in his pocket. Once the feline was adequately cleaned he gave it back to Thorfinn and said "Let's go. I know the address follow me." and so he took off at his top speed utilizing the rooftops as before to get to the house of the little girl.

They reached the house to find the little girl waiting at the doorstep. When she caught site of her feline companion she squealed in joy and bounded over to them. He let the cat go and smiled as the two friends were reunited. "This is why we do what we do my companion" Wanting to give to two some space he waited for his partner to leave with him so they can report in an succeeded mission.

"Amen." Thorfinn and Rēnin just had their first successful mission and it felt good. The two gave the young girl and her reunited cat some space and made their way to the mission station. The two filed the appropriate paperwork so that they could get credit for their mission. Rēnin turned to his partner before leaving and shook his hand. "We should take another mission soon. I heard a rumor about examinations for Chuunin promotion and I want to make sure we're eligible"

"Aye lad I am in need of some training, We'll see again." after shaking his partner hands he left to go train elsewhere. He really needs to learn Iai Beheading but for now he needs to get some experience under his belt.

[exit]

"Same. Take care bro" Rēnin agreed vowing to get stronger for their next mission as well.

EXIT