D-Rank : Hot Springs Fiasco

[Dream Catcher]

Prologue - Setting Out

D-Rank : Hot Springs Fiasco
Payout : 80
Description : A few of the Hot Spring caretakers fell ill and the Village requested a team to help clean up the dressing rooms.

The familiar smell of wonton soup filled Bai’s nostrils as he raced down a busy market street. His stomach began to grumble, giving him the sign that food must be ingested, now. “Maybe a bit later, I have to meet up with the gang…,” Bai thought to himself and patted his stomach as though talking to it instead. The genin always thought that morning air was the best kind of air. It was still pure and uncontaminated by the countless people breathing it in and out; it had an almost heavenly appeal to it. So crisp and refreshing, no person could resist it’s lulling touch. Intoxicated by the air around him, Bai began to go into a dreamlike state as the gas filled his lungs and relaxed him in the process. His eyes began to close, as a euphoric high took over his body.

“Hey watch it kid!!” yelled out a dedicated shopper as Bai tipped her shopping bag with his hand.

“Sorryyy…,” in return yelled Bai, as he snapped out of his trance and began focusing on dodging the men, women and children in his path.

Taking a familiar turn near Mr. Fujiki, the shopkeeper who sold anything from string to expensive furniture, Bai slid to an uncomfortable stop to avoid running into Ed’s back. Shaking his feet violently, he tried to get the pesky sand out of his sandals and back to where it belongs.

“Morning guys!” he exclaimed, still shaking his feet but now paying more attention to his team. Everyone was there already, and he was the last one to arrive.

“Morning Bai,” Nana waved in his direction alongside Ed, who had his nose stuck in that little book of his.

“Okay, now that we’re all here, let me tell you about what the Hokage has planned for us today.” Arizawa appeared sitting on the brick wall Nana had scaled just days earlier. Her voice was as crisp as the morning air, rocking Bai to sleep. “Bai are you listening?” Her voice a little bit sterner now.

“Uhh…uh.. yeah yeah, Hokage, plan, today…” Bai snapped back to reality once again.

“Oh I wonder what it is… will we go treasure hunting, or maybe escort an important person to another village ? “ the excitement in Nana’s voice was evident. A tasteful chuckle could be heard coming from Ed’s direction, but when anyone looked in his direction his face showed no signs humor.

“Haha, now now Nana, don’t get ahead of yourself… This mission is more cleansing than anything,” Ari laughed at the sound of her own humor, but no one else seemed to have gotten it as she got back to the point, “I thought that was pretty clever… either way, the mission is to go to the Hot Springs and clean up the changing rooms. Some of the employees came down with an illness and the Village asked some of it’s ninjas to help.”

“Cleaning up other people’s garbage sounds like a blast sensei!” Bai said sarcastically, with some genuine humor mixed in there, somewhere.

“Oh I can’t wait to take a dip in the Springs… have you guys ever been there??” Nana asked her teammates as she spread her arms and twirled in place, like a ballerina.

“Nope… never been there…how about you Ed?”

Ed shook his head at Bai’s question, signaling that he’d never been to the hot springs either. Ed didn’t seem to talk a lot. Bai and Nana figured it was because they had laughed at him every time he DID talk, but Ed didn’t seem to have any hard feelings towards either of them so they let those thoughts slide past their attention.

“I’ve been there only once,” Arizawa decided to join the youthful conversation, “it was quite a relaxing experience. Maybe if we finish quickly enough the owner would be as kind as to let us take a dip.” She smiled.

“Ahh that would be so wonderful,” exclaimed Nana, but her attitude quickly flipped sides, “Oh, but I don’t have a swimming suit…”

“That’s okay, you’re not supposed to use a swim suit in the Springs either way.”

“Wait! You mean…?!” Bai quickly jumped into the discussion.

“Hahaha, yes… but don’t get your hopes up Bai,”

“I was just wondering that’s all…”

“Sure you were Bai… Perv!” Nana’s cheeks flushed red again and she quickly punched Bai’s shoulder, but not before Bai noticing her blushing.

“Alright guys, save your energy for when we get to the Springs…”

Arizawa quickly ended the nonexistent scuffle and motioned for the kids to follow her. Team 13’s first mission was about to begin. Each member’s heart rate rose and fell, as they controlled the urges of excitement and anxiousness surging through their bodies.

[Dream Catcher]

Let's get to it !

Having never been to the Hot Springs, Bai’s eyes were wide open with wonder and awe as he tried to take in everything in his surroundings at once. He had never thought that an area so quite, so pure, so untouched by civilization could exist within the Village. Majestic oak trees rose on either side of the narrow path the crew was trekking. The woods were full with an assortment of birds, insects and animals. Indeed these parts have never been touched by the villagers, living just a sharp left and a slight right from the rock shaped like an old man’s face.

“How come the forest was left alone Arizawa-sensei,” Bai finally asked.

“I don’t really know what to tell you.” Ari took in a deep breath of the crisp air, “but I’m sure glad they left it the way it is. It’s a very calming place to come and reflect.”

“Yeah, it seems calm,” Nana butted in.

“Hmm… I’m glad it’s this way too. It’s a good change from the daily commotion of the Village”

“Amen to that, if I could, I would tip my hat,” Ed suddenly spoke up.

Everyone stopped in their tracks at the sound of Ed’s voice. Ed rarely spoke up, and when he did it was always pretty random. He seemed to talk only when he really felt like it, or maybe when he had enough of not talking for a while and decided to give his vocal cords a ring.

“Wow Ed, I almost forgot how great your voice sounds,” Bai said jokingly, trying to get Ed to talk some more.

“Well, what can I say, it’s a special day,” Ed smiled in return, pushing his falling glasses up the bridge of his nose.

This indeed was a special day. The entire surroundings have sparked something inside Ed. Whether it was the fresh smell, the change of scenery or the calamity of the moment, Ed’s poetic drive began to show itself. The team had resumed walking now, not wanting to be late to their first mission, but they still kept their eyes and ears open to catch another one of Ed’s random moments.

“This is a beautiful forest, just like my mom’s florist,” Ed gazed up at the sky above, barely visible through the narrow opening left by the towering trees.

“You really like this place don’t you Ed,” said Nana after observing his behavior. She liked to think of it as a hobby. In fact, she enjoyed watching Ed. He had a mysterious feel about him, so simple yet so cryptic.

“I would like to think I do, what about you?” He turned to her and smiled. The quiet genin rarely talked, let alone ask someone how they felt. Nana blushed a bit and suddenly looked over at Bai, who had now quickened his pace and went ahead of the group. Shaking off the boy’s antics, Nana proceeded with answering Ed’s question.

“I really like it. At first I was a bit scared from thinking that a wolf might attack us, but now I feel a lot more comfortable.”

“Don’t worry, if a wolf would attack us, I would protect you, and the rest of the crew.” He looked directly into Nana’s eyes and then back on the road.

“Oh….,” Nana muttered, not knowing what else to say and fell into silence. She felt a warm tone in Ed’s words, as though he cared about her more than she would like to think.

Since they entered the woods, Nana had noticed that his entire body language has changed. Every time she gazed over his shoulder to see what he was doing, he moved his body in such a way as to make her see better, every time she tossed something at him, he would eventually pick it up and toss it back at her. What a peculiar boy this one was.

“Hey Ed,” Ari broke the tension, “recite one of those poems you’ve been working on.”

“You’ve seen…?” The genin began to question his sensei when she abruptly cut him off.

“Of course I’ve seen, I am not blind. Right Nana?”

“Huh…,” the girl seemed to be caught off guard, “yeah, I’ve seen you write quite a few poems, although I didn’t get to finish them, you always closed the book before I could.”

“Well, I guess it wouldn’t hurt… I’ll tell you one about her shirt,” Ed cleared his throat.

“Oh wait, before you begin, I wonder if Bai would like to hear it too… Baiiiiiiii,” Nana yelled at the figure walking ahead of them.

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?” He yelled back without turning around.

“Dooooo youuuuuuuuu waaaaaaaaaantt tooooooooo heeeeeaaaaaarrrrrr Edddddddddddd’ss….”

“Nooooooooooo.” Bai cut Nana off with a bitter harshness in his tone.

Nana jerked back a bit at the unusual sound of her friend’s voice, putting her hands up to her chest and over her beating heart.

“Don’t take it personally Nana,” Arizawa offered words of comfort, “he didn’t mean it…”

“Yeah, I’m sure he didn’t,” she turned to Ed and smiled.

The young poet cleared his throat again and began his recital. His voice rang loud and clear in the farthest depths of the forest.

"How sweet thou rolls are
Your sticky glaze is on par
The warm dough filled with jam,
From the glass jar.

How soft your features
Just like our teacher’s
Just like a mythical creature
You are only worthy of a culinary teacher."

A pecking sound rang clear in the ears of the group as Ed cleared his throat once again and looked over at Nana and Arizawa. The two girls kept their faces straight, trying not to laugh at the peculiar, yet ingenious wording of the poem.

“Well, was it swell?” said Ed while looking almost beggingly at the girls.

“I liked it, was it about cinnamon rolls?” Nana finally got the courage and self control to speak up.

“Yeah ! That’s exactly what it was about, don’t have a doubt! HAHHA”

“That’s what I thought it was about as well.” said Ari and looked at Nana while nodding her head.

“It was alright. Nothing special” Bai’s voice appeared out of nowhere but he wasn’t anywhere to be found.

“Did anyone else hear that…,” asked Nana while trying to reassure herself that she wasn’t hearing things.

“You’re silly,” Bai’s voice appeared again, this time accompanied by a small twig hitting Nana on top of the head.

“Hey!” She looked up to find Bai jumping around on the tree branches and flinging stuff down at the group. “Stop that, or I’ll have to come up there”

“Why don’t you just come and try,” Bai said mockingly, egging her on.

“That’s it, you asked for it!” Nana began to race up the tree, followed by Ed.

“Ahh, Arizawa sensei help meee!” Bai’s cry for help rang loud and clear in the quiet forest as the three teammates burst out into laughter from atop the branches.

[Dream Catcher]

The crisp morning air was becoming more humid, letting the shinobi know that they were nearing the springs. Pillars of vapor began to be visible raising high into the heavens above. A large mountain towered proudly over the forest. Like a mother watching it’s babies, it protected the nearby wildlife from strong winds coming from the East. This was a perfect location for the hot springs. The winds were always calm, the sun was never too bright and the visitors always left satisfied. Positioned right at the foot of the mountain, hot water stood still in natural pools carved out by nature, like a life long project. A manmade waterfall showered those who were a bit too hot with refreshing spring water, as cold as ice and as refreshing as a glass of lemonade. Small gazebos lined the edges of the hot springs, providing visitors with immediate access to the pools. A few, larger, cabins leaned up against the side of the mountain. They were probably used primarily for paying the mandatory fees, feasting, and overnight stay for those who required it.

“Okay guys stop horsing around, we’re almost there.”

Arizawa’s voice notified the Team that it’s time to stop horsing around and get serious. Jumping down from the tree branches, the genin landed softly on the ground below. Dusting themselves off and picking out any small twigs or leafs stuck in their hair and clothes, the three looked at each other and smiled briefly. This was going to be the first mission they were carrying out as a team, and the first mission is always the most important one. At least that’s what everyone was led to believe. You certainly don’t build good teamwork from knowing each other for a few days, but these three had a connection. Their actions felt so fluid, their words so complementary; it’s as though they were three pieces of one puzzle.

The beautiful view revealed itself to the shinobi bit by bit. Just like waiting for a delicious bowl of wonton soup to arrive, the springs gave hints about the gratifying experiences awaiting anyone who entered it’s premises and indulged themselves in it’s many accommodations. At first, the hot vapor began to signal the inevitable arrival to the springs, then the majestic mountain reveled itself to travelers in all its glory. Finally, the gazebos and the hot pools began to be visible and only people’s head were visible through the thick vapor clouds surrounding the area.

“Ahhhh… it’s more beautiful than I though!” squealed Nana in a high pitched tone.

“I wanna go into the pools!!” yelled out Bai and began running toward the entrance

“Bai wa….,” was all that Ari could muster up before the genin disappeared behind the doors leading into the facility. “Such a pain…,” she said kindly.

“Don’t worry about him, it’s just a whim.”

“Yeah, let’s hope so, otherwise I might have to put him on a leash… ahahaha.”

Again, Arizawa seemed to be the only one to laugh at her jokes, as the other two starred at her disapprovingly.

“Oh come on…,” Ari began to defend her case when someone interrupted her.

“You must be the shinobi the Village sent?”

The three stopped in their tracks and looked directly at the person in front of them. She was fairly short, with dark brown skin and short black hair. Her eyes were a bright blue, standing out from the rest of her dark complexion.

“Yes, I’m Arizawa,” she bowed and continued to introduce her team, “and these are my teammates. Ed Robinson,”

“Nice to meet you…” Ed bowed gracefully

“And this is Nana Senju,” Ari pointed to the blue haired girl.

“Nice to meet you,” she said and bowed her head.

The girl looked at the three shinobi politely and motioned for them to follow her.

“You think we should have mentioned Bai to her?” whispered Nana as they passed through the doors.

“I have a feeling she already met him…,” Ari whispered back.

Suddenly the girl stopped abruptly in front of one of the gazebos. Reaching out her hand, she pulled one of the sliding doors open, to reveal Bai ducked down on the floor and reaching under a bench.

“This must be one of yours as well Arizawa-san,” the girl spoke up kindly and smiled.

“Ahaha, yeah, that’s Bai,” she laughed nervously as her cheeks flushed red from embarrassment.

“Oh, hi Arizawa sensei!” Bai addressed his teacher and kept searching under the bench.

“He’s quite the eager one, rushing in here and starting to clean the gazebo right away,” said the girl.

“Yeah, I remember you saying if we finish early we can take a dip in the hot springs so I decided to start as soon as I could and spend more time relaxing when I’m done!”

“See what I mean,” she smiled again, “now I know this isn’t the usual stuff you guys do, but we are very grateful for your help. Please feel free to use our accommodations anytime you like,” she bowed and continued, “all the gazebos on the right side are already clean, if you would be so kind as to clean the ones on the left. If you need anything else just call me” the girl waited a second and began to walk away, but not before Ed could ask her something important.

“Excuse me, you didn’t tell us your name, that is a shame”

“Ohhh… where are my manners, I’m sorry, you can call me Hekki.” she bowed one more time and darted off.

“What a pretty name… “Hekki”” Nana exclaimed and looked over at Bai, “Do you need some help?”

“No, no I’m good. You go start on the other rooms so we can be done quicker.”

Nana shrugged and walked away towards one of the empty gazebos. Ed followed the genin as Arizawa took off her shoes and began walking around on the warm ground.

[Dream Catcher]

Cleaning gazebos was definitely not Bai’s idea of a mission. He was expecting something more “hands on,” something more dangerous, more adventurous. Although, this is as close as you could get to “hands on.” His only spark at completing the mission was to reap it’s rewards. Taking a dip in the Hot Springs was something he could not pass up. He almost done with the first gazebo now. Black bags, full of trash, stood lined up against the wooden beam in the middle of the room. The smell was not as bad as Bai had previously thought, but it was still pretty bad. He would gladly hold one of his hands over his mouth to cover the stench, but that would slow his production and he would end up being slower than before; so he took it like a man and continued picking up undergarments and towels.

Oddly, the dirty attire Bai was picking up didn’t smell as bad as the one in the bag. That was quite strange indeed, especially since all the stuff in the bag was stuff he put there himself. Reaching behind a large oak chest, Bai’s hand fished around for anymore garbage he could find. This was the last unchecked spot in the gazebo and he wanted to make it choppy and finish up. Feeling through spider webs and what he thought was water, his hand finally grasped some sort of soft cloth.

“Gotcha!” He exclaimed and locked his fingers.

Tugging lightly, the genin stood up and observed the piece of clothing dangling in front of him. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what it was, but Bai took a little longer, just to make sure. He’d never seen one that big before, so he definitely had to take his time. As he stood there and examined the article in his hand, a bright idea stuck in the shallows of his mind. He slowly brought it up to his face and began smelling it. Whether he was curious about the origin of that foul odor or the scent of a fully developed woman will never be known, but what is known is that at that moment his ears began to ache at the sound of a sharp voice.

“AHHHH BAI YOU PERV!” Nana’s voice rang loud and clear.

“Wha…Nana...,” Bai turned around to face Nana, “it’s not what it looks like...,” he dropped the bra and wiped his hands.

“Suuuuuure it doesn’t,” she said, but suddenly something struck her attention. She had noticed the size of the bra, at least a D cup. Looking down at her chest, she cursed the fact that she was not gifted with voluptuous breasts. “Do you not like my breasts?” she murmured under her breath.

“Did you say something?” Bai spoke up and took a step towards Nana, but she was already out the gazebo. A small wet circle marked the spot where she had stood, as Bai unknowingly placed one of the black bags over it and shoved the bra inside.

[Dream Catcher]

Fumbling through the thick drapes, Bai finally made his way out of the gazebo. His peaceful surroundings allowed him to drift away into a dream world, only to be forcefully brought back from it by the sight of his shinobi accomplices. Arizawa was still brooding around the premises barefoot, occasionally peeking into an empty gazebo to double check that all the trash has been removed. Bai casually walked towards her in the bright midday sun.

“Oi, Arizawa-sensei, are we done yet?” Bai called out to his teacher, but to no avail. Ari had made a quick exit into a nearby gazebo and disappeared from view. Deciding not to follow her, Bai thought it would be best if he just checked the remaining gazebos himself and be through with it.

Walking over to the nearest gazebo, Bai fumbled in the drapes once again and tumbled inside. Ever since they came here, he had a problem with entering these dang things. He always had some sort of run in with the cloth covering the structures. It was as though the thing didn’t want to let him in, but who are we kidding, those things aren’t alive. Although it would be pretty cool if they were. Imagine talking to one of those. Imagine the things it has seen! Bai surely would have loved to sit down with one of them, have a cup of tea and discuss the numerous females dressing and undressing within it’s walls. Unfortunately for the genin, the Springs were virtually empty today and he would not get to see anything even if he wished for it upon the stars.

Stepping out of the gazebo, Bai concluded that it was clean enough to pass inspection and ran over to the next gazebo, located on the other side of a river connecting all the hot pools. His feet made a loud clank as he ran over the wooden bridge. Stepping onto dry solid ground, he casually parted the drapes, or so he thought. Stepping on a small portion of the cloth, he tripped and was sent flying into the room. Bai cursed the drapes as he landed on his. Quickly jumping to his feet, he didn’t have enough time to dust himself off as a screeching scream pierced his ears.

“AHHHHHH!!”

The only thing Bai could do was stare at Hekki’s naked body as he stood frozen in place.

“What are you doing?! OUT!” She grabbed a towel to cover herself, but Bai had already seen the goods and was darting out of the gazebo. Fumbling in the drapes when panicking proved to be very hazardous, as Bai tore them off and continued forward into the river. The loud splash he made caused Ed, Nana and Arizawa to rush outside to see what was going on. Still fumbling with the wet drape, Bai began to sink to the bottom of the river as the slow current swayed him side to side. Suddenly he felt someone grab his collar and pull him out of the water.

“You really have to watch where you’re running, hahaha” a familiar voice spoke next to his ear.

Wiping away the water from his eyes, Bai squirmed a bit as he found himself hovering over the river, but not falling into it. Suddenly he saw that he was being held over the water by non other than Arizawa.

“You’re really a bother Bai,” she said kindly.

[Dream Catcher]

"Hey you're water walking!" Bai yelled quite loudly, "thanks for saving me I guess."

"Hahah you guess? You would have been fish food if not for me." Ari laughed.

"Yeah, yeah fish food. I was about to free myself from that dang drape." Bai shook his fist at the cloth floating off into the distance.

"What? You don't think you'll let that thing just float off and dirty the pools?"

Arizawa let go of Bai and let him splash down into the river. At first he waved his hands and kicked his feet in the water but after a few moments began floating in the water. It's a good thing his mom taught him to swim, otherwise he would actually be fish food right now. Getting more and more comfortable in the water, Bai began swimming toward the cloth off in the distance.

"Ah ah ah," Arizawa suddenly yanked him by the collar and he stopped in his paddles, "You're not swimming there... you're walking."

"What? You want to train now? It's not part of the mission, and I wanna relax." Bai began his complaints.

"Don't worry we'll get to relax, besides, the mission is to help clean up and right now it looks like the mission is not complete." She let go of him and he fell back in the water, "just remember your tree walking, but this time try to focus your chakra even more."

"Sure, sounds easy enough," Bai thought to himself as he began imagining the liquid filled pitcher and the paper. But something began to go wrong.

As Bai imagined the pitched tip over, cracks began to form along it's base and the whole thing blew up. Glowing liquid splashed everywhere, soaking the small piece of paper inside and out. As the pitcher's base blew out, the water around Bai shot into all directions, soaking everyone standing near by.

"We'll play some other time okay Bai?" Nana mocked Bai as she wiped the water off her face.

"Ahh... sorry sorry...," Bai said in return, "What am I doing wrong... I'm following the same steps as before," He began thinking to himself when it suddenly struck him, "AH!"

Floating in the river, he began imagining a gas stove. As he turned it on, the fire blazed out in all directions, even making the genin feel the heat himself. Slowly turning the knob on the stove, the fire began to stabilize itself and burn steadily. As the fire blew nice and steady, Bai placed his hands on the water. At first his right hand slipped underwater, but after a few tries he finally lifted himself onto the water. Still a bit wobbly, he began walking toward the floating drape.

Just as he was about to bend over and pick up the cloth, Hekki came out of the gazebo, fully dressed now. Catching a glimps of her in the corner of his eye, her naked image flashed itself in the genin's mind and he lost his focus, falling underwater.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Team 13 stood wearily at the entrance to the Hot Springs. The orange sun was now lighting up the horizon off in the distance, ready to take it's twelve hour slumber.

"Thank you so much for helping us out," Hekki smiled happily as she thanked every member of the team.

When she neared Bai, her faced flushed a bright red and she slowly extended her hand toward the boy. He would have gladly shook it, were it not for the little encounter they had back in the gazebo. He felt way too embarrassed to even look into her eyes and all the could do was wave goodbye as the Team disappeared into the woods.

"Ahhh... I hope I see him again," Hekki thought to herself as she locked the gates, "I like him."






Mission Done

[i_feel_tiredsleepy]

1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
0

8/10
4XP
Pay: 96

Well done, simplistic and well written and entertaining enough.

(Doing quick judgements to get everything done for the CE.)