Hall of Roses

[|Ayame Unbound|]

One hand was clapsed in his, the other resting carefully upon his shoulder as they moved across the dance floor. "Indeed its all very sudden though. One could've wished for more time to prepare," she murmured gently. They would twise and turn across the floor. She had no idea to whom she spoke and he had no idea of who she was, even less was the fact that she was Raikage.

The music continued to pick up place causing the movements of the dancers to speed up in count. Carefully Kana would place her steps trying her best to remember all of the dancing lessons she had recieved what seemed like eons ago. The ball, the hall, it was all so beautiful and it was all hers. A distant look would over take her eyes as she became lost in thought. A misstep caused her trip forwards, careening into the chest of her masked partner.

[Kuro]

They would seem to be within their own grace, such was the love of dance that filled the soul's rhythm in his heart. The young man would hold the woman of his age, though almost a foot of distance between them he would smile behind his mask as she spoke to him, such mystery would allow his guard to remain lowered and for hers as well it was nice. The best way to meet a shinobi whom one may fight along side or even against, with no identity he would grin a bit from his smile. She would speak of needing a bit more time to prepare herself, yet she looked wonderful. "Time is only there to set standards of life," he would murmur something of his Teacher's words. "Yet with the little time given, you look beautiful," with those words soft from his mouth, not stopped by his mask. They would seem to dance on into the night, Mokona ignored those around him, for his interest was finally hooked completely by the girl of purple.

Fates Hand.

She seemed to miss a step as she would lean into his chest he would brace her yet continue as to mask the mistake in a turn allowing it to seem more elegant, this was to assure her dignity not harmed in front of the others. Though the sudden twist in actions would send a slight chill of pain into his spine from the injuries he would hide it within facial expressions behind his mask. As they would dance on Mokona would forget further about his injuries and seem to let his movements flow together. "You seem to have this down to an art," he would say in a confident yet teasing tone, a compliment meant for the young woman, he would only hope she would accept his words. Those around him have had their picks and terms for the one eyed demon, yet his kind side was still strong, the thin line between sinner and saint seemed to be the path of which they danced. Twisted and winding around his own life like this movement would be.

[::Himiko::]

OOC: Yea, no posting order Kiyoshi xD
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"I'm actually not sure" the young man would reply.
"I was sent an invitation to this masquerade and couldn't resist coming... curiosity got the best of me I guess."

He gave no leads to Kotomi as he spoke with her. He must have been a guest here, and nothing else. Perhaps it was wrong to ask the commoner the question. Was he a ninja? An AnBu informant? Or was he just a villager to Kumogakure? The mask and attire he wore did not help the deciphering process as being kage, Kotomi's eye's could recognize the face of almost each and every ninja within the village. If for not the mask, She would know who she was talking to, and if he would be of use to her...

"It is rather strange actually..." he carried on.
"Err... This is an amazing building isn't it?".

The young man was trying to make light conversation with the kage now. Kotomi of course, was not a expert, novice, nor a beginning when it came to the art of social chatting. She of course, would refrain from most talk if it didn't involve the village in some way, or dissecting the human body for medical purposes. For the moment, Kotomi said nothing to the young man, leaving a odd sense of awkwardness between them...

"I've never even noticed it's existence..." he carried on regardless.
"...even though I pass right by it on my way to the Raikage Tower quite often."

"Yes" Kotomi finally replied after an moment of silence.
"The dimensional ratio of this building is quite interesting. Being a structure 40.845 meters wide and 30.567 meters long, with a height of 20.456 meters, give this building a maximum cubic space of 25539.5024 meters. This, paired with its location in which this building stand gives it a probably....."

Kotomi would have carried on with her mundane and monotonous dialogue if it wasn't for the young Chuunin Marii Kazeraikou who came forth and interrupted the kage. If it wasn't for her of course, the kage would have carried on endlessly with her speech to the young man, being unaware of her actions, and inability to create a good conversation.

"Good evening Raikage-sama. Good evening to you too" she said, as she came forth, revealing the kage's identity at the same time. Kotomi would not care if her identity was revealed or not, as such social gatherings meant little to her. Kotomi was ready to reply to Marii until Anbu felt otherwise. From the shadows, he would interrupt the young woman, and reprimand her for her actions.

"Oh...sorry. Never been to a masquerade ball before" said the young woman.
"Sorry if I troubled you two..."So...you're a ninja too?" she asked.

Kotomi would pause and say nothing at first. She would let the young ninja speak before she began to reply....

[|Ayame Unbound|]

"I've never been a competent dancer despite years of lessons I'm afraid," the female replied smoothly, brushing away the compliment. A sudden bang exploded through the air. Kana's head turned suddenly as she pulled away from her partner to view the window. Her eyes lit and she rushed to the window, dragging her partner with her. "Look! Fireworks!" She exclaimed happily.

A smile lit upon her face as she watched the fantastic explosions of color and light within the air. It was an amazing thing. "This is fantastic!" She murmured to no one in particular. She had never seen a fire works show before. Surely it would draw the attention of the others.

[kumono]

[The Phantom’s Mask]

The mask of the phantom adorned his face this fateful night; like twirling vapors, the ninja of Kumogakure danced and twirled, like scraps of mist caught up in the sudden wind. He hummed quietly to himself, letting the music dance with him and through him. He moved delicately, gently, dancing along with the mists. He was but another scrap of mist amongst them, another shadow in the darkness amongst them. He wore a crisp tuxedo, patterned in simple blacks and whites.

“Like the rain on the mountains…” He murmured to himself, blood waxing poetic as sound dripped from his lips. He let the music take him further, let the music flow him forward and closer to a masked goddess, her figure shining in the light. He dipped his head slightly, admiring her presence and coming to rest beside her, his body still swaying slightly.

“Fantastic indeed. Quite beautiful.” He said elegantly, “Much like yourself.” He felt free, for once. His face concealed with the pristine snow of the mask, he was a phantom, a shadow tossed about by the flickering firelight. He smiled at her, the slightest touches of mirth touching his lips, bowing slightly to her. Was he bold? Cheeky? Brave? Was he merely caught up in the moment or was he impassioned? Was he even Sakurai Sousuke beneath his mask, or had the shadows overtaken him, and only a phantom of passion and grace remained in his wake…

[Kuro]

Like a Cat.

She would be distracted shortly after her remarks by the loud explosions of the wondrous sights of fireworks in the night sky. Like a cat chasing a string her attention was snagged. He would smile as she would seem to pull away as he would at first continue the step but stop himself for feeling foolish in front of others would give away his own person. He would follow her to the large picture window as he viewed the bright lights in the sky. Hearing her words of enjoyment, but alas not all could be so easily attained as the beauty of the purple would draw in that of a phantom speaking next to him with a smile and bow. In most points Mokona would normally step it, but for something it was this mask that kept him from doing so. Smooth were the showman's words he would respect the choice of play. A grin behind the orange swirl the blue eye would analyze the bright lights outside of the building. For even he was the cat chasing the string with such beautiful site exploding in bursts of passion before his very person.

Keeping Sanity...

It was in this moment of true peace in his scene, would the mental stress return, as he would feel the pain catch back up to him inside. A cough would be caught by his mask thankfully yet his right hand would raise to cover his mouth out of natural instincts. "Please forgive me," he would say to the wondrous purple as he would bow and fade back into the crowd as he would seem to needs some air. His muscles still tight, even medics could fix everything so easily, perhaps those crutches would have been wise. He would reach the table, bracing himself with trembling arms he would grasp a glass of water, none of the other beverages would interest him. He would raise the mask only slightly as he kept his face still hidden he would sip on the water to cool his throat. Placing the mask properly back over his face he would feel his body aches build. He stared at the glass, it shook in his hand as he would try to steady his arm. "Damn..." he'd say under breath to the remark of his body falling apart on him.

[Takeuchi]

With a sigh the male was about to go ask one of the women not dancing for a dance. Yet as he walked towards the woman wearing the peacock-esqu mask there was a blast. Quickly he reacted, not taking up a combat stance but looking for the source. It was only at the second burst he noticed colored lights within the sky. Fireworks. No attack, and the tensed muscles hidden by his tuxedo relaxed and he altered course. Legs carried him from his position to the windows, behind the elegant woman in the semi-translucent sleeves, one he had suspected as Kana, and another male. Quiet words in his altered tone left his lips unbidden as he gazed at the colorful blasts in the sky, it was up to the possible couple to interpret them.

"Beautiful..."

Explosions were soemthing found often within his Katon training, yet those were booms nothing like these. These were like nothing he had ever seen, for such displays had never been present with him around. It was nice to relax like this and enjoy the view of the bursts, so nice indeed, if only he could enjoy this with her....

[Kvasir]

(OOC= I kind of guessed not... XD)

As quick as I asked the question (which wasn't very quick actually...) the woman I was talking to answered with her reply. "Yes, the dimensional ratio of this building is quite interesting. Being a structure 40.845 meters wide and 30.567 meters long, with a height of 20.456 meters, give this building a maximum cubic space of 25539.5024 meters. This, paired with its location in which this building stand gives it a probably....." I listened and attempted to understand everything that she'd said, but the raw amount of information pretty much fried my brain for a few seconds and I was left speechless.

My mind attempted to grasp the information given as the lady in front of me was spoken to by another very beautiful woman clad in silver, saying things that I could hardly decipher in my state of numb-mindedness. "Good evening Raikage-sama. Good evening to you too." Rai... RAIKAGE?!? In an instant the second woman would be stopped and talked to by ANBU, who apparently didn't want the identity of the Raikage to travel around. After a second though she would talk directly to me. "So...you're a ninja too?" Too? That must mean that she was also a ninja!

My mind reeled at the information, not only was this party suspicious but the Raikage herself didn't know about it! I instantly shed all my worried thoughts as my mind worked. "Yes I am a ninja... So, you and I are both ninja," I'd point to the second lady when I said 'you' and then myself as I said 'I'. "You're the Raikage," I attempted to say this softly to avoid being called upon by the ANBU myself. I'd also turned and pointed to the first lady, the Raikage. "And none of us have any idea what this party is even for?" I shrugged slightly, showing my own lack of knowledge on the event. This was interesting... I was glad to have come to this party.

[Tieren]

The thought of this event was quite annoying as Tieren stood against a wall, watching the party-goers. He didn't know who people were, and that was what annoyed him the most. He would feel happier if it was filled with people that he actually knew. Unfortunately, he didn't. His eyes darted around the room, watching people dancing all throughout the room. He wasn't sure who he could dance with. However, he saw a group of three, two of which seemed female, one who seemed male. Tieren started toward them.

When he arrived, he nodded to the one who looked male [Kiyoshi], and would look to the two females [Marii and Kotomi] and spoke softly "Would either of you two ladies allow me to dance with you?"[/color] He would wait to see if either of them would allow him to dance. However, he changed his voice slightly. If he couldn't know who anyone was, then he wouldn't let them know who he was. The change in his voice prevented them from telling that much. And considering the wig, the mask, the gloves, and the costume itself, they couldn't distinguish that either. So he would wait until one would acknowledge him, hoping he wasn't too much of an idiot to be doing this.

[|Ayame Unbound|]

As Kana turned to address the new male and stop her retreating partner a loud and vicious crack loud enough to shake the windows erupted through the air causing her eyes to shoot back to the window. Fire lit upon the ground in masses of light and shrunk rapidly. "Oh no!" The girl exclaimed as she strained to see through the dakrness. It would appear a firework had back fired. But was everyone okay?

[Marii K. Kazeraikou]

"Yes I am a ninja... So, you and I are both ninja," said the male. "I suppose..." said the female and let out a small sigh. A loud sound made her jump and turned around; there were fireworks outside. 'They are beautiful, save that loud explosion sound' thought Marii and felt her eyes narrow a little in irritation.
"You are the Raikage" said the bottle blond. 'Yeah, duuh. You did not noticed!?' thought her inner. The girl closed her eyes and rolled them; she did not wanted to seem rude to this guy. She sipped some of her Coke and looked at the fireworks for some moments.
"And none of us have any idea what this party is even for?" said the young man. At the same time, another guy had appeared next to the trio. "Would either of you two ladies allow me to dance with you?" said the stranger. He was clad in a black costume and had black hair. "Maybe later mister. I heard some rumours about an announce-".
She was interrupted by the sound of glass that broke and her head turned towards a window not too far away. By instinct, the heiress did an afterimage [1/15] and moved back a few meters. It seemed like some backfired firework was the culprit. "Are you guys OK?" asked the female and looked at the other three. Her older sister and Chuunin responsibility kicked in a little here, but she could not help it.

[|Ayame Unbound|]

In the chaos of it all just as the window exploded Kotomi Inohara would seemingly disappear. Perhaps she was lost in the crowd in the confusion of everything... but perhaps not. Kana popped her commincations device into her ear and signaled to those setting off the fireworks questioning if everyone was safe. When they confirmed she simply said okay and snapped off the device.

Her eyes scanned the crowd. She had known immediatley that the peacock masked woman was Kotomi Inohara, her outrageous style of dress was a give away. But where was she? Lost in the chaos of the explosion? Injured? Offering aid to anybody who had been hurt? Her eyes continued to scan until she saw the woman for the briefest second being escorted through the doors by two ANBU.

In the midst of the chaos no one but Kana would notice the location of Kotomi Inohara, her disappearance would of course be noticed but Kana alone saw the destination and something in her bones began to hum. Something simply wasn't right.

[kumono]

“Hm…” Sousuke said, following the girl he had complimented as she popped a com device into her ear. The fireworks had been quite chaotic, causing a bit of a stir in the ballroom. He wasn’t entirely sure what had caused it, but he wanted to know. He heard her ask if everything was right and proper; her voice sounded familiar. He wasn’t sure what it was that had caused the chaos, but he was going to keep with her.

“What’s happening?” He murmured to the unknown girl. “Something’s off. That was a whole lot of fuss for a random accident.” Paranoid thinking, for sure, but the thinking of a ninja, and a paranoid ninja survived a lot longer on the battlefield than a foolish warrior. Part of the term ninja itself was derived from the ability to think on one’s feet and see underneath the underneath. It was a mindset and a lifestyle. He wasn’t entirely sure who they were following yet, be he kept his eyes trained forward and the girl in his side-view.

[Naota]

He was still by the punch table. It seemed that the man he talked to was busy and he decided that it was time to go chat with others around so he started looking around. He wasn't able to find anything that interested him. Others were already in short conversations so he decided that he would simply just watch from the side of the Hall. Where he stood alone. It was a party but he was not the type of person to party. He was invited so he felt obligated to come. He did not know what this party was being held for nor why everybody was wearing masks. His anti-socialness would lead him to stay away from others.

"I wonder what's gonna happen here"

As soon as those words escaped his soft pink lips, There had been an explosion. He knew that there were firework going on and he thought that maybe one had misfired. He thougth quickly and ran to the area where the explosion had happened. A kunai in hand just in case the explosion had been caused by something other than a firework. He looked around to see if anybody was hurt. It seemed everybody was fine. Now to figure out what happened.

[Kuro]

Feathers Fly.

As he had pulled away to make it to the table of drinks, Lady Purple would seem to try and stop him, an explosion of a miss fire would ignite in flames. His eye would glare at first out the whole but his pain would force him to withdraw his attention as he took a few hobbled steps backward he would catch the movement of porcelain masks. A peacock mask would leave with them, odd, what was going on here. Where was Lady Kotomi in the mess of all this. Though if that wasn't enough a boy would dart out the door, such chaos around him almost reminded him of the war he just crawled out of using the will of survival. As he tried to think of all that was happening he would try to give his attention to Lady Purple whom would speak over a comm device, words not within his hearing but lips were soft so pleasantly moved. Something was wrong, off and out of place, as if it was planned.

Prelude to Chaos.

He coughed once more the rough burn in the throat would be painful, he was told severe dehydration damaged his throat in minor extents and the cough would remain with him for some time. He needed water, but his legs were aching, to move them was unpleasant. He gazed at her, distracted for a moment as she moved. "Lady Purple, so wondrous in my eye," he said softly in his voice to himself, as if no-one was left around him. If people heard him he wouldn't care, Mokona was always one to risk the odds, so was his name the Wicked Blue Eyed Demon of Kumogakure, and he was not one to avoid confrontation. More so to embrace it, even the phantom of the mask. With that in mind he would stumble forward to take her hand within his own. "Come with me for a moment," if she did not pull away he would lead her away from the crowd to speak quickly with her in private.

[::Himiko::]

OOC: Sorry for the late reply. Busy day x.x
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15 second Time recall- "A shift in events can occur rather unexpectedly at the worst of times"

Previously, the Kage would be in the midst of a dialogue between two ninja who carried on with light chitter chatter regarding ninja hood and the purpose of the party. Neither of the topics brought up the Genin or the Chuunin interested Kotomi, as they failed to provide the information she desired. The young genin seem to have desired more factual information regarding the kage's identity, while the Chuunin seemed to want to reinforce this truth.

Kotomi however, did not want to reveal her identity for the moment. She could create an uproar, which would lead to some rather undesirable results. It was best if she kept her cover...

Just as a another young man walked over to the small gathering of ninja, asking Kotomi or the Chuunin for a dance; Kotomi would excuse herself from the group rather abruptly.

"Pardon me for a moment" she said disregarding both the young Genin's and Chuunins correct assumption toward her identity.

Kotomi would depart from the group, and head towards a nearby bar, where she gathered herself a Drink or two. She would position herself near a young man (Runesaka) to which she began to drink next to him.....

Present...

In a large crash, Fireworks would explode creating a diversion for the masses. Before Kotomi could turn to see what had occurred, a sharp pain jolted from her side. It was a needle, dripping with a odd substance. The needle itself was located in her lower abdomen, a place were no one could see.

In an instant, her body fell limp, and she buckled over slightly. She quickly lost consciousness. The soft grasp of Anbu of course, would impede this fall, and carry the Kage out from the hall. Their movements from the bar to the exit point was swift, and agile.

"Subject obtained" they whispered, as they carried her off elsewhere...

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***Temporary control over Kotomi given to Ayame...

[Kvasir]

Where to begin?

First there was this beautiful ninja standing in front of me who seemed not the least bit interrested in what I was saying. Then there was a mysterious man who simply walked up and asked either of the two ladies to dance with him. Then there was the Raikage, or at least I was under the impression it was, who simply stood there and seemed to simply absorb what was happening like raw data...

The guy made me rather upset, encroaching upon my possibility of spending time with either of the two ladies, but this was remidied by the two women. First was Raikage simply leaving, only saying "Pardon me for a moment" and walking towards the bar, and then the ninja lady could only say "Maybe later mister. I heard some rumours about an announce-" before she was interrupted by an explosion!

*Kabang!* I hadn't hardly noticed the fireworks before, having been lost in my own thoughts and the current conversation, so the even larger bang would instantly cause me to freak out and bark out loudly. "*Arf!*" I'd do a frightened spasm jump and reach for my staff, which of course wasn't there... The ninja would move away from the spot and then call out towards me and the guy who had attempted to steal the girls I was with. "Are you guys OK?" I took check around me, there was no explosions so I guess everything is ok... "Err... Yeah, I'm ok." I could see nobody injured but asked the same question back anyways. "Are you ok?"

My mind was traveling at high speeds at that moment, guarenteeing that what I'd heard was indeed a bad firework (since I'd hardly noticed them in the first place,) making sure everyone was safe, making sure that the remaining beautiful female ninja was safe, and also attempting to keep male B, the freakish caped and bat wing masked one (who did he think he was anyways, batman?) away from the only remaining female still talking to me (since I guess the Raikage had better things to do.)

[Marii K. Kazeraikou]

“What’s happening?” said a male voice. The female turned around and saw a guy in a tuxedo and a mask similar to hers. She guessed he was 15-16 or so, judging from his voice and the fact that his jaw was less defined than older teenager males.“Something’s off. That was a whole lot of fuss for a random accident.” said the raven-haired teen. "You are right" muttered Marii and looked around. It did not seem like the others had any injuries.
"Err... Yeah, I'm ok. Are you ok?" asked the tall guy she had talked to. "Yeah, but I have a feeling that something is not right..." said the girl and did some handseals. Her eyes connected to the lamps, which gave her a full overview.

SPOILER: Click to show

Ryuugan Activation.
Rank: “C” Rank.
Skill: Ninjutsu/bloodlimit jutsu.
Effect: Activates the Ryuugan. Makes the users senses more sensitive. If someone for example is reading a letter 15 meters away, you'll read it with ease. The vision range widens from 180 degrees to 210. You will also be able to use the Kazeraikou clans Eastern attacks.
Jutsus based on lightning will be amplified, and the user can control very strong lightning ninjutsus with lower risks than those who don't have Ryuugan. Wind jutsus might be easier to perform, depending how good you are to control chakra. Genjutsu and ninjutsu specialists should be able to do that.
Special: Dragon.
Drawback: Takes a little chakra.
Description: The user are now able to control small winds (change their direction, fly on them if they have an umbrella or a fan, make them weaker/stronger) and anything electric. But the person can't control things/others jutsus with high power. Jounins or “B”-ranked shinobis can maximum control “C”-rank lightning jutsus, which is the max.
Not even an “A”-rank character can stop a “B”-ranked jutsu for example. That means that they can weaken the jutsu a teeny little bit, change direction a bit or slow it down so they can avoid it.
Limit: Must be member of the Kazeraikou clan. Have to know Lightning release and how to read.

Seiryuus Eyes.
Rank: Equals with rank (“D”-ranked: “D”, “C”-ranked: “C” and so goes on).
Skill: Ninjutsu/bloodlimit jutsu.
Effect: The user is able to see other things by manipulating eletric forces. “D”-ranked shinobis can only controls things as lamps, cameras or radios. “C”-ranked shinobis can control telephones or small TV's while shinobis that are “B”-ranked and up can control computers and TV's.
Special: Dragon, snake and dragon.
Drawback: Your eyes can't see anything that's more than 10 feets away from you. If someone for example turn off the lamp you're using, you'll be blind for 3 posts. If you are “C”-ranked for example and tries to connect to a TV, you'll be half blind for 2 posts because the high amount of electricity.
Description: You can make a 'third eye' by connecting your Ryuugan to something that's connected to a weak electric force. Long-range technique. The jutsu lasts for 4 posts each time. It's often used in spionage missions. The range and control of electricity will increase with difficulty class.
“C”-ranked = 14-18 meters. Can connect to somewhat bigger devices like surveillance cameras, most lamps, telephones, vcr's and similar items.
Limit: Kazeraikou clans Ryuugan. Lightning release.

None of the other guests seemed injured, but again, she was only able to see a little more than the half of the ballroom. 'Hm...where is Raikage-sama? She is not standing by the drink table' thought the heiress. The female re-activated her bloodlimit.
"Hey...can you see that woman we spoke to earlier?" asked the fake silver-haired while she looked at the tall guy she had talked with. Since he was taller, he had a better view of this room.

[Naota]

Naota who had been the quickest to jump on the random explosion was already standing at the site of the explosion. It seemed there was another man who had been as decisive as he was. He stared at the man as he jumped through the smoke that had been blowing on the opposite side of Naota. He had grabbed a women and ran off with her. Maybe she was an important person. None the less Naota waited to see if what happened as the smoke cleared away. He expected to see somebody. He hoped there was. He wanted to to show everyone he was ready. Would he wish be granted?

"I hope everyone is alright"

He still stood there in the same position. Kunai in hand and he stared at the blank faces around him. He had no idea that Lady Kazeraikou had bugged a nearby lamp. His breath was course. THe smoke had already begun to choke him even though it wasn't directly blowing in his face. He ignored the minor pain to make sure things will be alright. THe smoke finally cleared...

[|Ayame Unbound|]

Kana ignored them all, her feet swiftly taking her to the double doors. She would be lost amongst the crowd and the chaos. The first indication of her location would be her flinging open the door, her body blocking any from exiting or entering before her. From her vantage point she could see a mask roughly five feet to her left, tosses carelessly amongst the roses. A peacock mask. What was happening this night?

OOC: Need Himiko to post before much can continue from here, Kana is blocking the doorway in which Himiko left.