Gathering of the Blades

Cyrus sat at a large, mahogany conference table, making himself comfortable in one of the seven leather chairs that circled it. The Blades were even members of the organization so the table was a perfect circle with no head. Cyrus had sent word, mostly through letter, to the other Blades of the Shogunate to meet him in this room at noon, which was about five minutes away now. Cyrus was growing tired of sitting around on the West Continent while the other factions waged war on the East Continent. It was time the Shogunate showed its power and reminded the world how they conquered it all those decades ago. It was time to make a move.

Cyrus sighed and looked out the window, rain was falling lazily from the sky and overall it was a fairly depressing day. Fitting really, especially for a meeting in which they would talk about the declaration of a war. Not exactly something you want rainbows and butterflies for. There were many ways to approach this meeting. He might suggest they go in through the Land of Forsaken, attack the Dobutsu and make their way to the Allied Shinobi Council. Then again they could simply sail around the continent and absorb the council into the Shogunate. Reunite the Shinobi once again under one rule, as they had been so long ago. Cyrus leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, it was going to be a long day.

Vendetta would walk into the meeting hall, Kabutowari shealthed on her back neatly as both the Hammer and the Axe were at her right and left side respectively, she was wearing her usual outfit looking like a Hakagakure shinobi even though she proudly wore her custom forehead protector which framed her face and hair being more of a face plate rather than the usual sash with metal attached to it. Her hair was slightly wet from the rain causing her to shake it out seeing the only other person in the room way Cyrus and he was looking out the window she decided not to bother him. Instead she would pick a seat before pulling out the book of scriptures and opening it to the page she was reading and reflecting over Kami's word. She didn't know what the meeting was about but she hoped it had something to do with Pandora, how she longed to be backed by her allies and cleanse those tainted lands like the doctrine mandated.

Still, she knew she wasn't ready, nor were her apprentices ready sure Judal was promising but he was not yet skilled after all he hadn't even purged his first Maleficar while Jean...he was difficult to say the least and hiding things from her something she didn't like at all. She had hoped he'd see her as a mother figure guiding him into the light but he wasn't and their relationship was strained which hurt her a bit as it casted doubt on her teaching ability after all she didn't want them to know that she had never taken on apprentices before them. Hm. Wonder when the others will get here. Vendetta though to herself as she turned a page a small smile appearing on her face as reading the scriptures always made her feel warm inside.

A soft sigh released into the air as the Mishura relaxed his head on a cushion, whilst looking out his window watching the rain rise up from the sky below him. The clouds were a collage of whites and grays, some nearing black. Occasionally a streak of lightning would dance across them, issuing out a flash of brilliance and power. This would be a depressing atmosphere for most, however Haru enjoyed rainy days as well as thunder storms. Though if asked he wouldn't be able to come up with an actual answer as to why, but it was what it was; whatever it is. Soon a knock-knock on his door would announce a visitor to disturb his quiet time. "Aaawhhhnn~ Come in." The door would open after his words were received revealing a shogunate messenger with a letter in hand. At first the messenger was at a loss, from his perspective no one could be seen. "Hehe. Yo, up here." Announced the Blade as he directed his guest's attention upward to see a floating, upside down Haru. Along with that his eyes would also notice the numerous black marbled chess pieces floating around randomly. "Sooo, what's up?"

"Um, yeah... Well sir, you have a letter from another Blade." Descending from his aerial lazy spot with cushion in hand, Haru moved to gain said letter from the guy and dismissed him from his quarters. After opening it he'd read every line before moving to get dressed in a white shirt with loose long sleeves, a black sash around his waist, gray shinobi pants, and black ninja sandals. After getting dressed, Haru picked up his glasses off the night stand near his bed and put them on, as his favorite game piece gradually made it's way over to him, the queen. Placing the piece in his pocket, he grabbed the twin blades as he left the room. This was interesting, it had been a while since the Blades had a meeting. Sadly, it was on the topic of war. If only it could have been about arranging an event of sorts to hang out and have fun, but whatever.

Arriving in the room, Haru would be holding a small bag of sweets he acquired on the way here with a piece being munched upon in his mouth. Ah, the sugary goodness, after consuming the chewed sweet he'd notice how quiet the room was. The blades known as Kiba fitted into the back of his sash in an 'x' fashion. Gazing at the two sitting at the round table, he remembered the guy.....Cyrus, yeah that's his name. However, he hadn't yet met the other Blade. Moving to take up a seat between the two of them, he would also attempt to break the silence. "How's it going my fellow Blades? And nice to meet you, I'm Haru." He'd say with a nice smile on his face, with the last part for the lady as he gave her a little wave.

OoC: I can write again kinda, yaaaay~

Rika's thoughts had been clouded since the day they fought the Hokkai. She felt this bloodlust in the pit of her very being begin to appear. No. It was already there before, now it was growing. She wanted to be at the forefront of action and to feel the feeling that was created when death was only a slight misstep from being a reality, feel the feeling of overcoming her opponent and making death a reality for them instead. To grow, to learn. She was at the highest possible rank a hunter nin could achieve, and yet she had never felt her inner potential to grow as strongly as she did now.

A meeting had been called between the Blades, she had a slight idea what it would be about based off of talk between herself and the other Blades. Rika made her way down the corridor to the meeting room and then stopped at the door before adjusting her clothes and her hair. She hadn't cared about such things in the past, but she found herself doing it more lately, particularly before seeing Cyrus. But she pushed that thought out of her mind, it was time for business. Rika stepped through the door and looked at the table and the seats. Cyrus was present, as was Haru and the newest of the Blades, Vendetta. Rika had heard rumors of her but never actually met her. Apparently she was a religious zealot who lived to punish wrongdoers and murderers and the like, it was also rumored she could see the color of a person's aura or something like that which told her if they were a wrongdoer or not. Rika gulped slightly, she knew she wasn't exactly far from being a murderer, she just wore a badge saying she could do it. Being in the presence of someone like Vendetta made her think more of her choices and her way of doing things, she had never really thought of or cared whether the person she was killing was innocent or not, if they were in the way of the shogun it didn't matter to her. Still, Rika couldn't help but wonder if Vendetta's religious beliefs would ever hold her back from her duty as a Blade, it seemed all too likely to Rika, which she didn't exactly like.

Now she was tasked however with choosing a seat. She immediately looked to the one closest to Cyrus, but she changed her mind as she didn't want to look like she wanted to be close to him. Rika moved over and sat in the seat that was just beyond the closest one to Cyrus. Perfect. Stealthy. What a great ninja. Who was she kidding she probably looked like a child in a lunchroom wanting to eat next to their crush. Rika sat back and cleared her throat before taking on a much more professional appearance and looking around at her fellow Blades. "Sorry for being late, I was preoccupied with something. I'm aware I haven't met two of you... So uhh Hello I suppose, I'm not the best with introductions but I hope we can work well together." she said with a glance to Vendetta and Haru, pausing her gaze on Vendetta for a moment to see if she had a look on her face that made it seem she had noticed Rika's past of killing.

OOC: There's five of us we should probably just start the meeting we have the majority now

His heart ached as the cold rain fell down on his sore muscles. He could feel the clan's anger and sadness and it all hurt him. Digging their graves felt like the right thing to do, a sort of penance for having failed them as their alpha. The sound of howling could be heard in the distance, it was rightfully the song that would continue to play throughout the digging. Once all the plots were dug he looked up and touched the statue of his clansman. 'What are we to do with you?' He thought to himself. Rainer's eyes met the statues, and he just wondered why. Why would they do this to him, this was a statue that couldn't be put on display. This was a body that couldn't be placed in its grave. This was a reminder of his failure. A slow hushed sigh escaped his mouth, its sound lost in the rain's. He'll be his own grave stone. His grave will remain empty. With that bit of business done he ran away from his clan, their emotions were powerful and numerous each hurting him more than the last. The rain made a good enough shower as the dirt seemed to have washed off him by the time he'd made it to the meeting.

As the pair made it inside Konrad quickly shook his fur as dry as possible not really caring about what or who he got wet. Rainer ran his hands through his hair to move it out of the way of his vision. Looking at what seats were left, and specifically two blades out of the four in the room, he made his way to the wall instead, pressing his moist back against the cool surface and placing his swords beside him. Konrad followed suit and laid facing away from the table, rubbing his muzzle against his paws every so often. Rainer could feel a mixture of emotions from the room, but only one had stuck out to him. After the morning he'd gone through it was the only one that was profound enough to do so. Rainer's eyes gazed at Rika with a look dejection. He could feel her love for whoever it was, and it only made him feel worse. Her emotions made him think of Serenity, and at that point he really didn't want to be at the meeting anymore. Pandora was were he wanted to be, searching everywhere to find her. Rainer's head sank as he shifted positions to look out the window.

The new blade wasn't someone he cared to know at this time. She smelt of paper, a thin paper used for bibles and such to be exact. He glanced at her book and felt as though she carried it around everywhere, she had to if the smell clung to her like that. His eyes returned to the window as he waited for the meeting to start.

Spoiler:

As Rainer entered the room and took his seat, Cyrus inhaled deeply before standing. Well, not all of us are here but there is a majority and time is of the essence. I will fill the other two in on what goes on in this meeting at a later date. As for introductions, go around the room, say your name and any other small tidbit of information you might want to distinguish yourself with. I'll go first, for those of you that don't know me, or don't know me well anyway, I am Cyrus Taki, current head of the Taki clan and holder of Samehada. Cyrus said, motioning to the blade that rested along the edge of the table beside him. Samehada's scales quivered in response at its name and Cyrus touched the handle, feeding chakra into it before falling silent and allowing the others to go around and introduce themselves.

When they were done, Cyrus would continue, Well, now that we all at least know one another's names, we can begin. If you'd like more proper introductions, which I highly suggest, do so on your own time. Now, for the matters at hand. Cyrus's palms were sweating, he tried to maintain an air of confidence, but after all he was still a kid and all of this was very new for him, I've called you all here today because it's time. It's time to make our move. The West Continent has sat idly by for too long while the Origins Continent has been moving on, different factions losing and gaining ground while we sit here training and fortifying our defenses. Well we've trained long enough, it's time to take action, to let the world know that we are still a force to be reckoned with. That being said, I believe it's time for an invasion of one of the faction's territories. Specifically I believe we should go after the Allied Shinobi Council. Cyrus stepped away from the table and to the wall behind him where several maps hung, rolled up with long strings to pull down. He pulled the closest one and revealed an updated map of which factions held which lands in the world.

As you can see, he said, tracing an area around the Shinobi's lands with a kunai from his pocket, the ASC currently hold the smallest amount of land. Unlike the other two factions, I wish to use them, possibly ally with them so long as they swear their allegiance. With all of the shinobi united under the Shogun, we would be able to start making tracks into the Dobutsu Badlands. Perhaps we could begin flushing them out, even reclaiming territory. With a united front, we could crush them and be rid of this threat forever. Cyrus looked at the gathered Blades and wondered if he should continue going, he had dropped a lot of information on them in a rather short time. It was time to hear their thoughts on the matter, make sure he had a majority agreement before pressing on, So, thoughts? I'd like to hear from all of you before we start formulating an invasion strategy.

Moving on the ASC, it was not what she wanted per say but strategy wise she could understand why they'd do it, thus she would have to give her own contributions to the table. In fact she already had an in to the ASC territory via the "Church" she was a high ranking member of it and while she wasn't the most powerful she did hold a lot of sway not to mention she had been to Hakagakure recently and had seen the state of things, as it was if they attacked the ASC would fall to their hands. You can call me Vendetta, I prefer it over my birth name. I am a member of the "Church" a worshipper of Kami, I have been to the land of Graves fairly recently they are filled with refugees and the shinobi are overburdened stretched to thin due to the attempts by Pandora as well as the Dobutsu claiming many lives. Their civilians aren't skilled as those who were fled to Epsilon, we will need to establish contact with the Republic for resources. Vendetta said closing the scriptures with a snap as she looked at each of the Blades, they were all a pale yellow which wasn't that bad she had no reason to kill any of them as there was still hope that they could convert to the worship of the one true Deity.

I have contacts in the Temple of Kami who can spy on their forces in Paradox, learn of their troop movements. Likewise as you can see I last purchased armor from Hakagakure, I would like to lead a team into the Graves if that is the first place to strike. Though the Council can not win this war it is obvious that they won't lay down without a fight so we will have to make an example of some and cleanse them of their ignorance so they can once again come under the rule of the Shogun. she said before leaning forward and deciding to finish what she had to say. Still we need to keep an eye on Pandora, in order to get to the Origin Continent there are only 2 ways at least two non-suicidal ways, to do so. Either we take the Polar sea which Pandora frequents or we take the Lost sea and run risk of coming across storms and creatures. The Empire has provided an unfortunate block while if we decide to go to the west and circle around it would take us far to long to get to the Abyssal Sea. So the decision is simple, either we take the West Sea and head north through the Polar Sea to get to the North Abyssal one or we head south through the Lost Sea to get to the South Abyssal Sea. she said placing both of her elbows on the table and holding her head in her hands while her eyes moved from Rika to Rainer to Laxus and ending on Haru.

Spoiler:

More familiar faces came in as the Mishura continued to eat from his little bag of sweets. He hoped despite the seriousness of the meeting that it would be a little fun to have everyone together. Plopping a green sugar coated cube into his mouth, his face cringed a bit at the sour tang of flavor before relaxing to the sweetness that followed soon after. The bag was starting to feel lighter which put a tint of depression on his face, he'd have to slow down on devouring his snacks for the remainder of the meeting. Once Rika and Rainer took their respective places, Cyrus began the meeting stating for an academy style 'round the room introduction. Haru listened to the man beginning the chain with himself, he didn't know he was the head of the Taki clan, neat. Next up was the now known Vendetta, it seemed she was very loyal follower of Kami's teachings. to be honest, Haru had little interest in the subjects of religion and gods. Not that he didn't believe in any of it, but he couldn't say he did believe either; it was complicated. Next up was his turn, swallowing the finely chewed treat, words replaced the space left behind. "I am Haru Mishura, a fond player of chess and the wielder of twin blades Kiba." After which, he attentively listened to the other's introductions before Cyrus brought up the main topic for their gathering.

So we were finally getting back into the fray? Nice, he didn't want to say it out loud but he did miss home a tad bit. Haru was actually very passive on fighting the allied shinobi, but it would be very advantageous to all be united before facing the other factions. Though he had to wonder if a peace treaty would work with them? And even if we did join forces and crush our shared enemies; what would happen then? He was sure that one side would try to over power the other for complete control after all was said and done. Then we'd be back at the start of things. Meh, thinking too much can be bad. Tossing two cubes, one pink the other blue, into his maw he enjoyed the mixing flavors of the sweets. At that time Vendetta began to speak, using her connections to further our knowledge of the enemy and suggesting her plan on getting to the continent. "Heading south would be nice."Haru wasn't really planning on saying much, only focusing on listening and snacking for the time being.

"Rainer Hokkai. Konrad." Rainer said pointing at himself and the sleeping wolverine next to him. He'd decided to mainly listen. After today's events he wasn't in the mood for all the much talking. Listen to vendetta he waited until all had said their peace before he chimed in. "Going south means facing possibly something worse than the dobutsu." With that he turned his head and began to look out the window again, he could see where his clan had made their home and only fell deeper into his depression. Konrad could smell the sugary goodness he then made his way to haru and placed his muzzle in his lap and began whimpering. He was too smart not to get a treat.

Rika listened close to what Cyrus had to say. She was a bit surprised at first, it was a similar thought to what King and Rika had discussed previously. The thought of King and Wolf made her frown a bit, she missed them already, and hoped desperately to see them again. Hopefully their mission would go well. She glanced over to Rainer as she thought of this, certainly it hit him harder than anyone else, though she was good friends with them, Rainer was their family and had to carry out the order of their punishment himself. Rika couldn't help but wonder if he resented her for killing his clansmen, much less with a smile on her face. She decided she would apologize to him one on one after the meeting, he looked like he needed a hug.

As for Cyrus plans of taking back the ASC and their land, it sounded good. Reinstating the villages was the end goal of the war, keeping the shogun in power, but with Pandora and the Dobutsu only growing stronger, it was a long term goal. "I agree that now is the time to act and the ASC is the best choice in target, however, we will be leaving ourselves open to the Dobutsu and the Pandora Empire if we send all our forces there, so we should put utmost consideration into who we send and who we leave her to defend our borders. Gaining the ASC on our side will mean nothing if we have no home to return to." she said. Certainly Cyrus already thought of this but she wanted to voice it to make sure that there would be a force left at home which is great enough to defend. "As for the council, surely not all of them will be willing to join us, even in the face of death. What do we do in that situation? I suppose we could use them as examples of what happens to those who oppose us, and Kyoshiro would enjoy samples for his... work. Perhaps there is a better option though?" she added. Rika had one more thought that she wanted to voice. "Also what do you think the ones who escape will do? Surely there will be some shinobi who slip away, and those away on missions at the time of us invading will also be spared, what actions do you think they will take?" she asked. She had no objections to the plan, she just wanted to make sure all bases were covered, as well as satisfy her own curiosity.

Cyrus nodded in agreement as the other gathered Blades spoke one by one. They made many good points and Cyrus had no idea that Vendetta possessed contacts within the Land of Graves. She was becoming a more valuable asset than he had ever anticipated. With your contacts in Hakagakure I agree it would be best for you to lead a small invasion force into the heart of Hakagakure. This would have to function as a surprise unit and would not begin moving until after the main invasion begins. Hopefully you would be entrenched behind enemy lines and be able to work some magic back there while the brunt of the ASC is dealing with our main invasion. Cyrus turned to Rainer and nodded, Rainer brings up a good point, the Lost Sea is mostly uncharted territory. Beasts and Dobutsu most likely roam those seas and I'd rather play it safe and travel the waters we at least have charted. True the Pandorians frequent the Polar Sea, but there's been little outside movement from them lately. I'm personally willing to take that risk instead of sending an entire fleet into waters we are unfamiliar with.

Finally, Cyrus turned to Rika and forced back a kind smile. This was a meeting, not a date. Agreed, we cannot leave our home undefended. Obviously some of us will need to stay behind while the others lead the main invasion fleet. Any volunteers will be gladly appreciated though I'm sure Kyoshiro is already one of them. I myself will be going to the Land of Madness before the bulk of the fleet begins to move. I'll be taking a very small team to the Land of Madness to search out the Mishura and other clans up for hire. Perhaps through some persuading we can form an alliance, or at the very least hire them. This will provide us with yet another invasion team to attack the Land of Graves from a third side. Hopefully they'll be stretched so thin it should be a certain victory with as little casualties as possible.

Cyrus cleared his throat and continued, That being said however, let it be known first and foremost we are to avoid war as much as possible. If the ASC is willing to lay down their arms and join us peacefully, well then that is the ideal situation. I plan on making contact with their leaders after my meeting with the Mishura. As this meeting is going on I want the main invasion fleet stationed on the waters off of the Land of Graves. Depending on the decisions made, we will commence the invasion at that point or not. I'm certain it will not be unanimous but if we can convince a majority of the council to see the light of reason and swear allegiance to the Shogun, then we can quickly regroup and begin our assault on the Dobutsu Badlands. We must remember through all of this, the ASC is not our enemy, the Dobutsu however are. Should we conquer the ASC, Rika is correct, there will be shinobi unaccounted for and many who do not wish to serve under the Shogun. We cannot afford to waste time and resources hunting them down while the Dobutsu knock at our door. Should they become a problem we will address it when the time comes but until then we can only hope they will understand our common enemy here and side with us even if only temporarily.

So we go through the Polar sea then, concerning our forces, what is going on with that, I do admit I am new to this organization and have not had time to learn of the funds we have at our disposal. If our peace negotiations fail, how will our troops be armed and the like. Personally I agree with Cyrus's sentiments how the Dobutsu are the true enemy, once they are dealt with then Pandora..after Pandora we can purge the ASC of all of those not loyal to the Shogun as the whole reason the shinobi world is in the mess that it is now is due to the revolution. Vendetta said a scowl appearing over her face, sure she did want to simply march on Pandora immediately and let the ASC and Dobutsu tear themselves apart for the Shogunate to deal with after the main enemy was dealt with. But she recognized that she was biased due to her vows and convictions and as a Blade she had to look at the bigger picture, namely that they needed the ASC for the time being.

That being said, in regards to supplies, where do we stand or perhaps we should send one of our members to Epsilon despite their seeming disinterest in the war they do seem amicable to business so it is likely that they would sell us additional supplies. she said her facial expression changing to cause her scowl to deepen however. This Kyoshiro however, he didn't show up for the meeting along with Kimiko? Why is that, or perhaps did they have something more important to do than discuss about our course of action. I wasn't even aware attendance was optional given the importance of today's meeting. she said as she shifted her view from Haru to rest on Cyrus leaning back and folding both of her arms over her chest her facial expression unchanging.

So it was decided that they weren't going to take the southern route, which was fine. Haru just figured it'd be more fun going somewhere uncharted... Anyway he continued to listen to everyone's statements as they spoke; strategies for attack formations, diplomatic action, and dealing with other things after all was said and hopefully done successfully. His eyes went from one blade to another as they went back and forth, as he still consumed a colorful cube every few minutes. Before long Haru felt something on his lap, noticing Konrad whimpering below the table, he handed the furry dude two of the sugary cubes before patting him on the head. To be honest, he wasn't quite sure it was safe to give him any but the wolverine was a shinobi too so maybe he'll be fine.. Rika had brought up a point of making sure that our base of operations were to not be left unattended. So some of us would be here to babysit during the invasion. Then his ears caught word of his clan from Cyrus. Dropping his gaze on the Blade, he listened a bit more attentively as he thought about how his clan was doing. he had to admit it would be more fun fighting with them than against them. I'm probably a traitor, haha~ The thought crossed his mind as he smiled a bit.

The bag was now empty as Haru neatly closed the opening before placing it on the table in front of him. However, he would now take out his chess piece, allowing the black marble piece to float and gradually spin before him. At the time Vendetta had brought attention to the resources of the Shogunate army and the two Blades who aren't currently in attendance. One of which he remembered, Kimiko who he had lost to in the Chunin exams. Ah, maybe now wouldn't be the best time for that rematch they agreed on. All in all, he still had little to say but he did want to know how the teams were going to be decided, maybe based on ability or simply volunteering.

Konrad clamped down on the two cubes of sugar and wolfed them straight down. Catching only bits of the sour he made his way back to Rainer and returned to his position. The wolverine instantly fell asleep just as the others finished what they had to say. The meeting wasn't were he wanted to be, but apparently it was where he needed to be. The funerals would go on as planned while he was here, something he was hurt by. Scratching the back of his head he sighed and looked to Vendetta, his eyes could carry his pain for miles at this point. No need in worrying about them. They'll be filled in and given their orders.

Normally he'd be much more at ease without Kyoshiro around. His stench alone was enough to anger Rainer to his core. Kimiko was never someone on his radar. She just never seemed to be someone that was worth his time. And he, ...or was it she, always had this stench about him that confused Rainer and Konrad both. Kimiko was something they knew to stay away from for this reason alone. Thankfully they hadn't needed to work with her yet. Or he?

Rika smiled as Cyrus agreed with what she had said and acknowledged her. She didn't really have much else to input, she just had to get ready. She had been working on Ira and Invidia, not on a mechanical level but more so their innate abilities derived from the people they once were. They were nearly combat ready to the point that Rika wanted them. Before long they would likely be even stronger than her herself. There was also another thing she had to do before the war that involved her precious puppets, but she wasn't too sure how to go about doing it. Rika looked up upon Vendetta mentioning Kimiko, especially considering it was in a fashion that Rika didn't like too much. Sure Kimiko wasn't the most dutiful Blade, but Rika was very protective and caring of the young girl. Rika couldn't help but notice how Cyrus was taking charge of things, if he hadn't done it she would have had to and she just wasn't sure she would've been able to do as good of a job as him. Rika wasn't a diplomat, or a talker, her talents lay elsewhere... The thought of which made her look to Rainer once again. Every time she did she felt a sharp pain of guilt as she remembered smiling over the corpse of the Hokkai she had defeated. Did he notice? Did he hate her? She just couldn't bear to imagine the pain he was going through.

OOC: Haru if you were looking to go Med-Nin or Hunter-Nin then just promote yourself to that instead of Jonin. Whatever is the A-rank equivalent. For everyone, you can just post closing posts and exit the topic unless you want to stay and talk to Cyrus 1 on 1.

Cyrus smirked at Vendetta's plan, I admire your tenacity Vendetta, but let's focus on one war at a time. With the addition of the ASC members, we will purge the Origin Continent of the Dobutsu threat. After that we will regroup and decide our next move, but all things in due time. As for supplies we have our armor smith here on the West Continent working on armor for all of our troops. Agreed though, we will need to make contact with Epsilon in the coming days. If there are any volunteers for that, please let me know. Cyrus moved away from the map of the world behind him and back to his chair, sitting down and rubbing the bridge of his nose in thought. This was more mentally taxing than he had ever anticipated. As for Kimiko and Kyoshiro...I will deal with them and their lack of absence on my own terms. I promise you it has not gone unnoticed.

Cyrus looked towards Rika for a moment, his eyes lingering on her for awhile before he returned to the rest of the group. Truth be told he wasn't looking forward to this war at all. If he could have it any other way, he'd start to build a relationship with Rika, then maybe a life. Settle down somewhere, still working for the Shogun of course but in a peaceful world with a home he could always return to and a family happy to see him each and every evening. That wasn't his life though, and it never would be. He was a Shinobi, a Blade of the Shogunate no less. He would die on the battlefield, at a young age, just as Jasmine had said he would. Hopefully though, it wouldn't be in vain and he'd leave behind a better world than he had entered. I believe that covers most of the meeting. Before we go however, I'd like to formally acknowledge Vendetta and Haru's immediate promotion to the rank of jonin. These are war times, we'll be needing everyone at the top of their games especially if you'll be leading your own invasion cell into the heart of the Land of Graves Vendetta. Now then, if there is anything more you wish to discuss, voice these concerns please, otherwise you're all free to go. Thank you.