Name: The Hillside Cave
Difficulty: C
Location: Just outside Kusamuragakure
Reward: 15,000 Ryo
Experience: 50
Objective: Find the source of the strange noises and deal with them.
Description: For the past few days, villagers have been hearing loud, strange noises coming from a cave outside Kusamuragakure.  It could be many things, but the village higher-ups seem to think it is a group of bandits or maybe some large animals.  Use of deadly force is authorized.


   After a great deal of warning from a few Special Jounin, Kotetsu accepted the C rank mission for his Sakurakage. He had a healthy amount of respect for his village superiors, and was eager to prove himself in an actual mission. A few loud noises weren't going to scare this Genin away by any means. Maybe if he got lucky, he could draw some blood.

    A gruesome smile came to his face, and he quickly wiped it away. He needed to focus on the realism of the situation.

"Alright, time to get going." Kotetsu dissappeared into the huge sakura tree next to the building, and jumped away from the Sakurakage's office. Within minutes he could see the cavern. It was large enough, but nothing special by any means. If there were animals making this their den, they'd be asleep, and all the easier for Kotetsu to take care of.

'No!' Kotetsu thought 'investigate first. Investigate.' He stopped himself next to the mouth of the cave, and crept towards the opening. Instantly he felt the cold and damp of the interior. He could see the advantage of a large animal taking refuge within, it protected it from the elements, and kept it cool in the unforgiving jungle heat. 'Unfortunately for you, you chose the wrong cave.' Kotetsu grabbed a large stick, just in case he needed a torch.

Kotetsu stalked within, soon enclosed by the darkness. His only friends now were the dripping, and the cold stone walls. He walked for what seemed to be three hundred meters before sight was nearly hopeless.

Kotetsu cursed, 'So much for the element of surprise.' He tucked his torch stick under his armpit, and performed the handsigns for his Fire Trail Technique.  His right hand burst into flame, and he waved it around him for a bit of light before bringing it to his torch,, but it didn't reach far enough to even see the walls around him. The torch lit well enough, and finally caught just before Kotetsu could stand the heat from his Jutsu no longer. He waved his hand out and cut off the chakra flow. The torch was dried wood, so it burned nicely enough with no aid. A simple torch, however, would not protect him from the slumbering thing at his feet.

    If Kotetsu had taken a step further, he would have kicked a large oily-black jaguar. It's form rose and fell, it's breath rythmic and sleepy. It had curled in a random space. This, however, didn't seem right. Jaguar are silent stealthy animals. One might even venture to say as stealthy as a Shinobi.  They wouldn't simply make loud noises for no reason, especially in their den. That's when it struck Kotetsu.

He waived his torch outward, silent as could be, and saw the blood splattered acrossed the floor behind it. He would have thought it beautiful, were it not for what the blood trickled from.

    The opened stomach of a poor student of the academy. If it had been wolves this would have been a clean kill, they would have taken right to eating and at least the child would have been left alone. But Cats. Cats play with their food. They probably spent an hour simply savoring his entrails. It made Kotetsu sick. No one deserved that, least of all this poor youngling.

No doubt he was no older than ten. Kotetsu's anger, and sadness, flared within him. The pained cries of this child had to have been what the Villagers had heard, warped and twisted by the cave's stone and hallowing walls. It must have sounded like little more than an echo. The curious child must have only wandered in to play, and simply picked the wrong place.

    Kotetsu drew a Kunai, and prepaired to revenge the poor child who would never be a Shinobi. That is when he heard a growl from behind. He froze, and the growling turned louder. He didn't need to see what was behind him to know he was in danger. He must have stalked right past it.

    "TIME FOR SOME LIGHT," Kotetsu yelled, loud enough to make the beast lunge at him. He rolled to the side, fast enough to evade, but not run. He would have to play smart. Kotetsu had enough time to put together the handsigns for his Oil Fountain Technique, before he had to leap into the air. The Jaguar had clambered into it's mate, and the two had recovered quickly. That was when the wide awake jungle cat had lunged once more. Kotetsu spewed strait down a fountain of liquid as black as his assailant's coat, in a line from it's face to the flaming stick he had dropped. It flared to life in a fraction of a second.

The beast roured, and began to flail about, unaware of where the pain came from. Kotetsu had to squint to keep from being blinded from the sudden burst of light. 'Damn, i should have thought!'

Just then he received a sharp pain in his side. The Jaguar's flailing had accomplished a skin-deep scratch to his ribs. By now the slumbering, clearly larger male, had realized the situation and began to bound the few meters tbetween the wounded Shinobi and itself. Kotetsu pulled his one Shuriken, and threw with a Ninja's aim with his good side. He Caught the monster in it's shoulder. It bared it's fangs, and Kotetsu ducked to his right so that it slammed headfirst into the wall he had been thrown against.

The Kunai that had been clutched in his hand now found itself digging into the big cat's neck. It reared back, and attempted to dig it's teeth into the Genin, but he put his other forearm to it's throat, his ribs flaring with pain. Eventually it subsided, but a horse breathing growl told Kotetsu he was not out of danger.

It's Mate's hide was charred, and still smoldering, but it didn't seem to care. It pushed off with two powerful back legs, a mere five meters away from a now hunched Kotetsu. He had no time to think, only to act. His hands flew into several handsigns, and he roured in defiance.

"FIRE STYLE: FIRE BALL JUTSU" the flame erupted from his mouth, gathering in a large orb around the attacking Jaguar. He let the attack burn itself out, feeling the tax on his energy, however small. All that remained was little more than a charred body, it's mouth permanently ready to rip out Kotetsu's throat. A hot crater had been left in the ground, and Kotetsu breathed heavily.

"Hell of a second mission." Kotetsu said with a slight chuckle. He simply couldn't bring himself to leave the child, no matter the state of his wound. He gathered up the body, and began his treck back to the surface.