Kappa Pride (Job)

Job

Here today in Fiore, Veleno begins his march on a new mission. One that sounded problematic by the way it was written on the job board, in which he would take the paper from said board. Skimming through it with his brown eyes, the paper rubbed against the fingers that was holding it. As he held it with one hand, and the other was kept empty. The fellow Silver wolf decided that this would be an interesting job, and using brain power to deduce the conflict involving a kappa tribe. However, he wasn’t sure what he could do to help them on the matter. It was something that require the help of both minds to figure this problem out. Whether his idea of helping the kappa tribe, or getting rid of them so they won’t bother the fishermen, but there was another option. He could help them learn how to better handle themselves.

This was a tough decision, but luckily he’ll be relying on another thoughtful mind to see what is best for the fishermen, and the kappas. Veleno folded the paper neatly, and placed it in his pocket that was near the sword that he was carrying inside of his sheath. Looking like he was ready to take on this brain numbing challenge. However, before he could venture off. He had to wait to catch the eyes of someone else who’d be interested. There were also two ways to travel to wherever the kappas are kept.  One way was off of the coast of Cedar, and the other was a hidden cavern system in sakuramori. The hidden cavern system sounded interesting, but he’ll wait, and see what route to take.

WC: 282

Zhāng had been having a slow week at the time in his job as a magical physician and had also hit somewhat of a slump in his research due to lack of intriguing guin...er valuable study volunteers to help him with it.  As a result, he now had a fair bit of free time on his hands and thought it would be best to stretch his legs a bit and just let them take him where they will.  Surprisingly enough, without even noticing it, somehow his feet had carried him all the way to a place in Fiore called Sakuramori which was dominated by a giant magical forest, at least as far as he knew from what little he heard of it till now. As he meandered lazily through the area, his sensitive ears had picked up whispers from the locals about some kappa colony troubling the fishermen in the area.

This caught his interest, but also that of his alter ego, Stein, who had apparently decided to awaken early this time. So, Zhāng had heard him whispering into his conscious mind

"Hey...hey...don't you ignore me, cuz i know you can hear me, loser...you got nothing to do anyways, so why not amuse ourselves with this kappa vs fishermen troubles thing? It sounds so delightfully entertaining..."

Zhāng let out a sigh of exasperation, shaking his head at the suggestion, oblivious as always to the weird stares the passersby were giving him thanks to his apparently talk with himself

"Gah!! shut it, you!! It's bad enough you bother me at home, but in public too?! Besides, why would i wanna take on this troublesome affair anyway?!"

To that, Stein responded by pointing out some facts that caught his eye

"Well...for starters, it would rid us of our boredom, and another benefit is we could potentially capture a few kappa to use as research specimens...if memory serves, we haven't yet studied critters like them so far...also could you keep your voice to a dull roar, people are giving us the stink eye already"

Zhāng couldn't believe what he was hearing, and so replied in the same heated whispers he had been using so far

"Wha...? You're the one who started this...and I so hate it when you make more sense than me...fine, sheesh!"

With that, the dialogue was over and now
Zhāng made his way further in and finally spotted a guy with a sword (Veleno) who looked like he was trying to decide on something, presumably...if he was lucky at least, about what to do with the kappa infestation. So he headed over to the man and tried to call his attention

"yo, you look like you could use some  help with something which is clearly troubling you...lemme guess, is it the kappa vs. fishermen thing?"

After that Zhāng fell silent and waited to see what the man would say as he came within earshot and sight too. Currently, even though he was gearing uo to take on a potentially complex quest, Zhāng didn't have much on him apart from his usual work attire mostly because this was done on a whim.

Spoiler:

post wc: 522
personal total wc: 522
group total wc: 804

Veleno straightened his purple, neck length hair that was stylized in a single ponytail. Both of his bangs rested on both sides of his face. It had looked like he was getting ready for a date, as the feminine looking silver wolf spotted a stranger coming towards him. Realizing that veleno still had the paper in his hand, and completely folded while he was fixing up his hair. Veleno was wondering what business does he have with him, but when the strange man came up to him. He had assumed that something was troubling him, and came to the idea that it was the kappa job. The man looked like he has a sharp sense of knowing what is going on, but it was already obvious what veleno was thinking about. "Here"

Veleno began to unfold the paper that explained the job, and showed it to him. "Now, then. We can move forward, and we can start this job" Veleno said in a cheerful manner. "But there's a catch to this -- there's a hidden cavern system somewhere in this town that leads to the kappa tribe, and once we get there. We have to figure out what to do with this problem" Veleno explained, once the man had gotten a good look at the paper, as he would begin to fold it back up. "By the way, what's your name?" Veleno would ask before setting off to find the hidden cavern. It is best to find out about on another, in order to establish a certain amount of trust.

WC: 259
Total: 541
Group WC: 1,062

Zhāng was relieved to see that his assumptions about the man turned out to be right on the money, but of course, he didn't show it on his face, but kept it lit up with a polite smile instead. The man had wasted no time at all in acquainting him with the finer nuances of the task before them and even brought the job flyer for the request.  As all this was happening, Zhāng stayed silent, absorbing as much information as he could from the narrative  nodding whereever appropriate to signal his attentiveness and then when the man set off,  Zhāng fell into step with him while introducing himself in his rich baritone but yet mellifluous voice

"You can call me Zhāng, it's nice to meet you. So...a hidden cavern system, eh? I begin to see why the fishermen are having such problems dealing with this kappa tribe...after all, it must be one helluva of a treacherous descent on the way to their lair..."

While they headed towards their destination, Zhāng was careful to remain vigilant, even though his brownish red eyes retained their languid expression throughout, perhaps giving the impression that he was one who seemed to have his head in the clouds, but this was an artful deception, contrived mainly to mislead those around him as far as possible. After a brief silence, his baritone voice rent the air once more, still striking and mellifluous, but now also having a somewhat lazy, drawn out undertone to it to go with his laidback facial expression

"So...you look to be fairly intelligent from the vibe you're giving off...I presume then that you have already considered the three obvious solutions  before us now,  namely  getting rid of the kappa so they won't bother the fishermen, helping the kappa out and sparing their lives, or the middle ground, perhaps helping both sides come to some sort of a compromise...

As he ended his remarks, a brief yawn came unbidden from his lips,  not that he had the motivation to try to repress it.

personal post wc: 342
personal total wc: 864
group wc:  1405

It was good to understand that the man seemed to be ready for the mission. However, finding a hidden cavern within this town can be troublesome. One would need to ask any residence within the area, if they know where it is. The fishermen of sakuramori sounded like a good option to start, since they're the ones that are having an issue with the tribe. The man that would accompany Veleno, had given out his name. His name was Zhang, as he started to talk about the mission at hand. Veleno was thinking of where he can spot a fishermen. One of them should be able to lead the two to the cavern, and devise a plan on the way there. Veleno had hoped to not get into any bothersome situations on the way there.

"I doubt finding it will be easy, but what we need is to find a fishermen…" It was one step out of the many others into this misadventure of solving the problem between the tribe, and the fishermen in Sakuramori. Zhang had pointed out Velenos intelligence, while he isn't wrong. Veleno is still finding it troublesome to figure out a way to solve this problem. He had thought that what's best for the tribe is to teach them on how to handle themselves, and not attack them over aiding them in a raid. Veleno didn't have the time to be under the watchful eyes of any authority figures that could be lurking about. But, he'll let his companion decide. "What do you think is the better option In this situation?" Veleno asked for Zhang's two sense.

WC: 271
Total: 812
Group: 1,693

Zhāng had been thinking along the same lines and it pleased him greatly to see that his companion was indeed no slouch, proving his first impression right after all, or at least that's what it seemed like from his suggestion to find a fishermen who could be their guide. His companion then proceeded to seek his advice on which option of them all would be best.

"Well, i think before we do anything else, we need to find that fisherman you spoke of, preferably an able bodied one, so he won't become dead weight for us later should the situation go south quickly."

He said with his head slightly tilted upward, brows creased, and while miming stroking a nonexistent beard, he continued

"However, having both of us go find the fisherman might not be efficient, so maybe one of us should go and try to scout some possible locations or look for other clues that may come in handy for us in finding this hidden cavern we are seeking while the other goes and tries to find us a fisherman?"

That was all he had to offer for now since he didn't have enough data to come to a more informed conclusion, so Zhāng fell silent and watched his companion's reaction to see if it was kosher or not.

post wc: 219
personal total wc: 1083
group total wc: 1895

Veleno had thought about finding the fishermen himself, despite the fact that he isn't familiar with sakuramori. It shouldn't be that difficult to find someone nearby. There could be a shore somewhere within sakuramori that they'd go around, and fish there. Finding the fishermen was already the first thing that veleno had to do, before he would proceed any further. It is best to collect information, that way it can be easier for the two of them to find where the kappas are hiding. "I'll be finding the fishermen, since that's all that we need to do. Not like a hidden cavern can magically pop out of thin air, and poof. A tribe." Veleno says with a slightly sarcastic remark.

"I'm not all that confident about this place, considering that anything can pop up, and intervene in our search." Veleno expressed his doubt in navigating through the city in order to find out where the hidden cavern is. Also hinting at the idea that Zhang should do the honors, and try to do some digging, as veleno would look elsewhere. Trying to see if there is any shores around this town. Veleno would signal off Zhang, as he would begin to search for a fishermen in town. It shouldn't be too difficult. If he would ask the right people, they'd surely be able to lend him a hand. Maybe he can use his pretty looks to get a good enough of an advantage in this mission. Makes things much more easier.

WC: 251
Total: 1,063
Group: 2163

As Zhang was more or less oblivious to such things as sarcasm, the attempt at such by his companion Veleno was lost on him. However, he did respond to the suggestion that he should be the one to try his hand at the hunt for the cavern while Veleno was going to test his luck with finding a fisherman to be their guide

"Sounds like a plan, let's do that then."

With that, he fell silent and headed off a little after Veleno himself had left to find the fisherman. It took a long while to find any trace at all, but eventually at the outskirts, Zhang did manage to come upon some rather suspicious looking tracks thanks to his keen eyes picking them up, and also thanks to the fact that, the tracks themselves were luckily well preserved. He examined them and found that they were indeed kappa tracks which fired him up some since he would now have something to show Veleno and any fishermen who came with him. He tried to follow the tracks backwards to try to find the origin point, but due to the unusual nature of the forest, he was repelled and thus couldnt make much headway. Instead, he decided to wait near the tracks at a place where he could watch the sky for any indication from Veleno as to his own success with the fishermen.

post wc: 234

personal total wc: 1317

group total wc: 2380

Finding a single fisherman felt like a scavenger hunt. After minutes of walking through Sakuramori, like a lost tourist. Trying to find something to felt their eyes with. Veleno wasn't going to give up, but he wasn't all too determined to find one of them either. His luck suddenly came in his favor after a man curiously confronted the young silver wolf.

"You lost, kid?" Addressed the man who was standing behind the purple headed mage. Veleno was suddenly startled by the presence of a random stranger, however he seemed like he was good company by the way he sounded. The man didn't approach veleno is a suspicious manner. ".... You're who I'm looking for" Veleno jumped with Joy. He had felt a short relief that he didn't have to endlessly search all over town for one person, while Zhang was out looking for any specific leads towards the hidden cave. At first the man didn't know what the young one was talking about, until his memory kicked in. "Now I remember, you're here about that kappa thing. Right, you see me and some friends stumbled upon some trouble with them. We were just about to show 'em who's boss. Luckily they're not smart enough to cover up their own tracks, which lead them to their little secret hideout, so if you don't mind but to help us, and get rid of this problem. We'll pay you kindly" Explained the fishermen, as he would show veleno to the Hideout.

As the two of them walk, Veleno decided upon an idea. "How about trying to settle your differences with them, I'm sure they're only doing it because they have little food for themselves." As veleno was trying to propose his idea to solve this problem, had found where Zhang was. Veleno would hope that this job can be finished.

WC: 307
Total: 1370
Group:2704

Zhang had been waiting patiently a while when he finally caught sight of Veleno heading his way with a fisherman in tow

"Well well...so he was successful too...this makes things easier..."

He thought to himself as he strolled up to meet  Veleno and his new friend the fisherman halfway and explained as he came within earshot

"I found some tracks that look promising, so come on, this way. I will lead us to them...and this fisherman can take over from there, presumably."

Wasting no time, he marched a bit ahead of them and quickly took them to the location on the outskirts of town where he had found the kappa footprints. Like Veleno, he too was just about ready to get this job over with so he could get back to his base in Magnolia and relax the rest of the day. Soon, they reached the spot with the tracks and then Zhang waited as he let the fisherman and Veleno too, if he was curious, study the tracks so that he could get a second opinion before they headed off to hunt for the kappa who had presumably left the tracks.

post wc: 194
personal total wc: 1510
group total wc: 2880

It was pleasant news to learn about the discovery of fresh tracks that leads to where the kappas reside. Seeing as Zhang did a good job, sniffing out any evidence for if they were here recently or not. Makes things easier, when there is something that helps them get to where they need to go. "Perfect, now all we need to do is follow this trail, and hope for the better" Veleno finished, after rubbing two of his fingers from his left hand, and on to smooth surface. Getting a good feel of the footprints that were left by the kappa. Seeing that it hasn't been too long since they've reached here. Wondering if they come here every often. Once veleno was done examining the foot prints, like a detective trying to find clues. He began to straighten out his legs, by standing straight once more. After having to bend his knees, to look at the prints on the ground. Being tall is a drag.

As he, and the fishermen began to set course to their final destination. He began to hear some footsteps. Veleno couldn't get a precise head count, as to how many there were, but the sound made it seem like something is traveling in a group. Multiple footsteps can be heard not too long ago. He wasn't sure if it was them or not, since it was coming from beyond the cave, in which the trail was leading towards.

"It's them" The fishermen said, as if he was certain about it. He was armed and ready with a sword in hand, as if he was going to create a bloodbath with the troublemakers. With a small smile on Velenos face, he began to place his hand on the bright silver blade of the fisherman's dagger. "We're not here to cause any more troubles than needed"

WC: 309
Total: 1679
Group: 3207

Zhāng had been following along as quietly as he could with both Veleno and the fisherman who was their guide in finding the hideout of the kappa. When he saw the hideout come up, he was both relieved and excited as well to see that his deduction about tracks had been correct all along, though he had not actually shared it with his companions. Of course, he too wanted a more or less peaceful resolution to this whole affair so that at the end, he could maybe recruit some of the kappa to be his newest study subjects. That’s why when he saw the fisherman get ready to engage the kappa in what promised to be a bloody fight, he became worried, but fortunately for him, Veleno had saved him the trouble to trying to stop the fisherman’s blood-lust by doing so himself, namely by preventing him from drawing his sword and his simple admonishing remark about avoiding unnecessary trouble. With that out of the way, Zhāng suggested the next course of action to his companions

“Well then, shall we get going so that we can all be done with this little adventure? Mr. Fisherman, please lead on.”

To that, the fisherman nodded and then led the group inside the cavern, making sure to warn them about what to watch out for along the way. It was a long, somewhat bumpy ride all the way to the end, but it seemed like several hours of trudging along and all the while, his hidden personality, Stein, had been asking intermittently into his conscious mind

“Are we there yet, partner?…Are we there now?…How about now?”

As a result, Zhāng had to had to make an almost superhuman effort of will to avoid making his split personality condition known to his companions. Thankfully before too much longer the group had reached the center most cavern where there seemed to be a large contingent of the kappa waiting for them, with quite a few armed for battle. When he saw this, Zhāng sighed and swore under his breath

“Damn…how troublesome...I better hurry up and resolve this peacefully.”

To prevent any further hindrances, Zhāng took charge of the encounter as best he could, and that was to start by approaching the kappa group as slowly and directly as possible. Of course, those who seemed like the warriors of the kappa group intercepted him with their spears thrust in a X formation towards his throat and heart while bellowing

“That’s far enough, intruder!! Stay where you are if you know what’s good for you!! Your two friends better do the same too and the three of you better turn around and leave the way you came if you want to live!!”

Upon hearing this, Zhāng sighed but did not step backward any, instead he held his hands up in a gesture of surrender while exclaiming

“Whoa there!! Go easy!! You could have taken me out with that!! See I am unarmed, and though one of my companions does have a sword, surely with your superior numbers you still have the advantage!!”

After that remark, he waited for a few moments and thankfully, the warrior kappa duo backed off without further trouble and returned to their side, though both still scrutinized him as well as Veleno and the fisherman closely to watch for any signs of deception. Zhāng then continued speaking, hoping he could flush out the kappa’s leaders

“Greetings, o good kappa folk, my companions and I come in peace…we wish only to negotiate, and would prefer to avoid armed conflict if at all possible. So, please I beseech you, won’t you find it in your hearts to grant us audience with your leaders?”

Fortunately for him, his plan worked since not too long after his proclamation of intent, a rather old and frail looking pair of kappa who were bent over along with two more who looked much younger and in their prime stepped forward as if seeking to further the discussion between the two sides in order to avoid any further misunderstandings. All of them were dressed in what seemed like traditional tribal chieftain garb. The old male kappa spoke, his voice still having a somewhat regal strength despite his apparent age and infirmity and his reliance upon his thick wooden staff

“I, Suitengu, am the elder and former leader of the kappa tribe! Whatever you want to talk about, you can discuss with me and my son, Kawatora, who is the current leader!”

As he listened to the elder kappa, his peripheral vision registered an old female kappa who looked about the same age as the elder who was currently speaking to him and a much younger one who seemed to be in her prime, and perhaps was the mate of the younger male kappa. They were watching the proceedings with what seemed like worry apparent on their faces and there was one last individual his peripheral vision noted, and this one was hiding behind his mother’s legs and just barely peeking at him and his two companions. However, he could not sate his curiosity about them at the moment for he had more pressing concerns, namely finishing this quest. So he focused harder on the kappa elder’s words and when he was done, replied while putting on a polite smile

“Sounds good, and I thank you for your patience and restraint, Suitengu.”

And just like that, the conversation came to an end and the kappa elder, his mate, his son and the rest of the head family led the way to their village where the rest of the tribe which was quite numerous from the number of gazes that he could see directed at them, was waiting for them. Then, the crowd parted to give way and Suitengu led the way to the chieftain’s abode, which was again styled after that of any traditional tribal chieftain. Once there, Zhāng and his companions were led inside where they were shown to their seats. Interestingly enough, none of the warrior kappa or the ones in the huge crowd at the village entrance had attacked them along the way, which probably meant that Zhāng and his buddies had gotten the tacit, but still tentative approval of the kappa tribe’s leaders. Before sitting down, Zhāng let his eyes roam about, apparently lazily glancing about his new surroundings, but all the while his keen mind was noting whatever critical details about the chieftain’s abode it could as it had done before when the group was moving through the village. After that, he sat down and the younger male, Kawatora, had his mate serve them some basic refreshment as a courtesy, for which he thanked them not only for himself but also on behalf of Veleno and their new fisherman friend. After that was done, Suitengu, the kappa elder bade them to speak

“Now, what will these negotiations be about? Hopefully, we can reach a conclusion suitable to both sides in this matter.”

In reply, Zhāng began by outlining the problems that the fishermen and their families have been having with the kappa and then proceeded to explain various solutions to the problems which he could see and also how to implement them. While he was doing this, thankfully, the elder and the rest of his household were rapt with attention since they too were apparently seeking a way to resolve this whole crazy affair with as little or even no armed conflict at all. After several minutes, Zhāng finished explaining and then fell silent, with a small part of him actually being anxious to see what the elder’s response would be to his suggestion. His fears were confirmed in short order as the elder retorted

“I am sorry, but I refuse to back down and relocate my tribe to another locale as you first suggested. However, in deference and respect to you for your willingness to negotiate instead of attacking us outright, I will try to encourage my people to work alongside this fisherman’s own kith and kin in order to coexist peacefully. Of course, this will take several months of hard work and dedication to pull off successfully, and I want you to promise that none of these fishermen and/or their families will try to attack us when our guards are down. Only if you can promise this will I consider your offer, er…”

The elder was apparently wanting to know his name, so Zhāng introduced himself and his two companions

“You can call me Zhāng, and I swear that I will do my utmost to dissuade the fishermen and their families from deceiving and betraying you like that. Now, let’s proceed, shall we, Suitengu?”

It took them several more hours after that, and by the time they were finally done, luckily for him, Veleno, and the fisherman, Zhāng had been able to work with the kappa elder to devise further strategies of sharing the land and sea’s natural bounty between the kappa and the fishermen folk equally so both sides could thrive successfully well into the future and coexist peacefully. After the negotiations were done, Zhāng bade the kappa elder and his son goodbye and was about to leave when the son, Kawatora, interrupted their exit by issuing a challenge to any who were brave enough among their party

“Hold it!! Before you go, why not prove to us your mettle in a friendly contest of strength and strategy?! Are there any among you three who are brave enough to rise to the challenge of mine?!”

Zhāng let out yet another sigh as he saw that his hopes of having a quick, easy exit out of this quest dashed to pieces. Nevertheless, since the situation could easily go south were he to refuse, he turned around and faced the elder’s son, Kawatora, no matter how much he didn’t actually want to and exclaimed

“Fine!! I, Zhāng, will accept your challenge on behalf of my party!!”

With those words, it was settled and Kawatora led them all to the ceremonial sumo wrestling ring in the middle of the village where a crowd had already gathered to bear witness to the impending sumo wrestling match. When he saw that, Zhāng frowned as a memory rose unbidden from the depths of his mind about his student days when he had learned about kappa from his tutors. He had apparently forgotten that lesson since the fact that kappa were known to love sumo wrestling had totally slipped his mind till just now. Unfortunately he didn’t exactly have a choice, so he donned the traditional attire and got into the ring, standing face to face with Kawatora himself. Then, the sumo wrestling match began in short order and continued for a while with neither side giving an inch. Finally, after what seemed like several hours had passed, Zhāng somehow managed to outwit and outmaneuver Kawatora and succeeded in throwing Kawatora out of the ring, thus defeating him just in the nick of time. The gong then resounded throughout the cavern, thus signalling the end of the match and Zhāng’s victory. After that, Kawatora met Zhāng in the center and both shook hands, thus sealing the deal between the two sides permanently after once again donning their regular clothes and then Zhāng and company once again bade the kappa farewell and took their leave for good, but not without a promise to follow up on their dealings in the near future.
Zhāng then let the fisherman take over as their guide once more and before too much longer, Veleno, him, and their fisherman guide were all out of the cavern and in the nice evening air again.

Zhāng broke the silence between the three at this point

“Well now, that went off rather nicely, or at least as well as could be hoped for, I suppose. Mr. Fisherman, try your best to not mess this future pact between your side and that of the kappa, okay? I know it will be hard to resist breaking it what with the temptation of a cornucopia of resources that lie before you, but I highly recommend following my advice if you know what’s good for you.”

The fisherman growled in anger as he heard Zhāng’s condescending tone, but acquiesced all the same. Then Zhāng bade goodbye to both him and Veleno and made his exit, heading off to the path leading off to Magnolia Town again.

(EXIT POST, JOB CONCLUDED)

post wc: 2077
total personal wc: 3587
group wc: 5266