Hospital Visitation [Max]

Hearing the hushed tones Max would listen and nod, “I can direct you there.” The young shinobi would then be picked up and the two would exit the hospital through the window. Max would be giving directions as they went, making sure to take the fastest route possible. The intensity of Kiseragi’s eyes, those crimson, devilish eyes… it would look as though he had manifested a more advanced form of the sharingan, along with another similar technique in the for of that arm. A powerful, yet terrible power is now held within the grasp of his ally and friend, and hopefully it wouldn’t change him. Max has grown to understand that while most people he has encountered with those evil eyes tend to be monstrous, Kiseragi was an example of an Uchiha without those fiendish tendencies. Max would simply pray that the darkness attached to those eyes wouldn’t completely envelop and consume his friend.

 

Once they made their way to the cemetery it wouldn’t be long before they were at his shack. The door would swing open upon contact with the Uchiha and a grisly sight would be in front of the two. The stench of death and decay was intense, mostly because Max hadn’t been able to work here and ensure that the puppet bodies remained fresher for use. Various corpses would be littered around the room, all shells left in this world that when finished would continue to defend Kumo even in the afterlife. “Pardon the mess, for I haven’t been here to clean. This is my private workshop, where I study and create new biological puppets.” Max would say before continuing, “Even in death, these people can protect our homeland for all eternity.” Max’s voice would grow full of sorrow, “I know it may at first seem little better than our tainted past, but I brought these people no suffering like Mortarion did. I simply wish to utilize all available resources, and these deceased wanted to extend their duty to our homeland.” Max would think back to his brother, Senshi’s words ringing clearly in his mind. He made a promise to the man, and it was one he intends to keep.

 

Once he heard anything Kiseragi had to say in regards to the studies and practices of the young puppeteer, Max would tell him where everything is. “There is a jar, in the puppet on the table there.” He wanted to point, but his broken body didn’t react. “It is in the stomach. Just lift the skin and take out the jar. That is the container that will house me…” Max looks at the small container, almost in astonishment as he thinks about how all that will be left of him will fit into this small jar.

 

“When you are ready, you will have to remove my heart and place it inside. Then place that closed container back into the guts of the puppet. I don’t know how long it will take before I reanimate the puppet… but I have faith that it shouldn’t be too long.” Max fully understood the risks here, and so he would add before it began, “Should anything go awry… just know that I thank you for everything. You have been a good friend and I wouldn’t trust this task to another. Just promise me that no matter what happens, you will keep our shared dream of Kumo alive.”

The smell was the first to hit him, causing his eyes to close for a moment before he became acclimated to it. At first he looked at the puppet Max had pointed out, gently grabbing him with the phantasmal hand and going to the puppet. Slowly he would do as instructed and pull out the contraption gently, looking it over with his Mangekyou Sharingan and then nodding," Alright. This should be easy...in theory," he made a small quip before pushing somethings to the side and setting the boy Kage directly beside what would become his new body. The phantasmal energy would soon disappear as his eyes returned to his three tomoe state, a little blur in his vision coming up yet after a while he was fine. Listening to the instructions he would reach into his pouch to retrieve a Kunai and nodded," Well then. Let me know if you feel any discomfort or pain...I dont have anything to numb it with," there he went again with a small joke to lighten up the mood.

As Max spoke his last words, presumably in this body, Kiseragi would stop him mid sentence," Don't speak like i'm going to muck this up. I'll see you when you wake up in your new body my friend," and with that he would begin. The first cut was directly over the area where the heart would be, not to deep so that he didn't nick the heart, but just shallow enough to where he could make one final incision. With the X-shaped mark made on the boys chest he would sit the Kunai down and reach into the boys chest with his right hand, applying enough pressure to break through the bones, meat and skin to firmly place his hand around his heart. With the last vestiges of life in the boys body, he made a brief moment of eye contact before a singular motion had been made and the heart was out. With haste he placed the heart into the container and returned it where he had obtained it.

The deed was done. He didn't know if he had just killed his friend or not, but he leaned against a portion of the cabin and waited. In silence he had with a puppet and a corpse, nothing about this had been bothering him, and yet the Uchiha wondered if he could do it again. The blood of his friend sat upon his hands as he waited. In silence with nothing but his thoughts and the acts he committed.

Max would smile, as the joke about discomfort or pain eased this tense moment for him. It was time... The almost parasitic entity known to the boy as Napa was aware of what was going on. If this body died, he too would. Self preservation would kick in and various masses would find their way to his heart, the organ now looking to be riddled with tumors. As soon as Kiseragi removed his heart Max would feel the life slip away, his consciousness fading in an instant. He was... dead.

Thump thump. The container now housed the heart that would continue to beat, the rhythmic sound ensuring that he was not yet truly dead to the  ears of the trained Jounin. The puppet body that now held his soul would twitch ever so slightly, the chakra of young Max stretching to fill this vessel completely. In only a few minutes the process would complete, but those minutes felt like an eternity. Max's consciousness would return, the puppet turning its head to glance at Kiseragi. "It...is... com...plete."

This body was incredibly odd. It was going to be fully mobile, but Max still could not feel anything. In fact, this sensory deprivation took a while to get used to. He would have to relearn advanced motor function, though he would quickly grasp the basics. He would begin to sit up, looking at his friend. He wanted to smile, but his face didn't want to react to his mental commands. "I... need... time..." His mind wanted to breathe, but his lungs didn't function fully in this body. It was a terrifying sensation, almost like suffocating. 

This form was so alien, yet this was now his soul's home. Time would pass, Max figuring out how to properly mobilize himself. "I... I should..." Despite still trying desperately to breathe he cannot catch his breath, "I should not.. go out like... this." Max would say, beginning to form the hand seals needed for the Basic Transformation technique that he learned so many years ago. His form would shift back to that of the small boy that now lay lifeless in the room. Looking at his old body was... unnerving. 

"I will need... to train..." Max would mutter, hoping Kiseragi would hear him, "And then... Kiri suffers..."

For moments unending the male sat in silence waiting for something, anything to happen. At first he became skeptical of the fact that his friend would truly come back to life as a puppet. Even if history itself had the proof to show that someone accomplished it, would it truly work for. Silence gave way to doubts and before long those doubts were subsided as he heard the faint, raspy voice of his friend. Turning his eyes to the male a small but happy smile would begin to form upon his face as he leaned off of the cabin walls and spoke," It seems like death has no hold on you my friend...How are you feeling?," it was the first question he felt he should ask. He didn't know how this process had truly worked or even if Max would have a lot of the movements and actions he did in his living body.

As the male changed his form, Kiseragi nodded for a moment seeing that he was in fact just as he was before he had "died". Things were changed about him yes, but the air around him also felt different. When he had mentioned that he needed needed to train, presumably to get used to the new body, a slight furrow of his brow began to play upon his features," What would you like to do to get reacclimated to this new body?," though his last words caused the smile to turn into a grin. The wheels of fate were slowly turning as soon he would be able to raze the very village that thought they could subjugate them. Only time could tell in what changes happened to Max, but for now the task was simply getting him back up to snuff.

Max would nod slowly before letting out a quiet, "I have... dodged death... this day. I feel...okay," in response to Kiseragi's question about how he was feeling. In reality, it was odd. It was a lot different than he honestly expected, but with his mobility returned he would be able to once again focus on bettering Kumo.




"I will need... to practice my... movements. This body is... different. I must... get used to how it... moves. I also have... to rebuild my puppets..." He would look up at Kiseragi and grin himself, "We also need... soldiers for this war..." Was war really the best term for this conflict? The passion in his beating heart told him this may go far beyond war. It may just be a massacre, their village left a burning pile of rubble soon to be washed away be the tides of change. Max would glance down at Kiseragi's headband, the ideas flowing quickly now that he was growing more acclimated. "I can kill two... with one stone... I will find those... that will support... our cause... and train them." Kumo had plenty of capable shinobi, and while it was true that this war might not get sanctioned by the village itself, any Kumo loyalist that witnessed the attack on their village by Kiri would understand.


"Does anybody... spring to mind, Kiseragi?" He would ask, unsure of what changes the village has truly undergone in his absence. The Uchiha has been watching the village in his stead, and would likely know the candidates with both potential and the drive to see Kumo reclaim any and all honor lost at the hands of Kiri.

Things were finally coming into play as the two sat in the cabin, the red of the sharingan going to their original amber state. As he took the first blink he felt his vision blur and a drip of blood, but as he wiped it from his eyes he slowly returned back to normal and resumed his conversation with Max," All good things in due time my friend. Focus on getting used to the new body and its limitations. FInish all of your puppets so we are ready first before we gather more people...Actually we should probably move your base of operations to somewhere more...hidden. There are many caverns and wells within the mountains where I stay where we can house your new area if you so choose. In the meantime...I'll go through the files and see if I can't find us some people who are more than willing to go into this and claim our retribution," however when max spoke of training a few to help the cause a small smile appeared on his face. He had wished Jiro had not gotten himself killed in a fight that was above his experience, but even the dead can serve a use. Only one person came to mind at the moment when it came to aid, but he wasn't quite sure he was willing to bring her into the fold yet. A small shake of the head was his only response as he turned to the door and began to head out," Today we relax and mend ourselves...Tomorrow we begin a new dawn for our village." With a small smile he turned to his friend and gave him a small pat on the shoulder before heading out, his first stop being the Administration building.

[Exit, will add claims later]
1,269 twc

Claiming 6 AP
1,269 words towardSage Mode New total (2436/3000)

Max would note the trickle of blood running down the eyes of his friend. He wanted to ask, but he felt that now may not be the best time to do so. The offer of hiding away in the mountains was tempting, but Max thought on it for some time. If he was wanted dead, it would have happened already. He was being kept alive for a purpose. If he suddenly awoke from the hospital and was nowhere to be found in the village it would likely only cause suspicion to be raised. “Perhaps it would…. be best to make myself… visible in the village. Our efforts against Kiri… are not treasonous, so I don’t … believe that I should suddenly disappear.” He would take a pause to get his bearings as he moved around, it was all still so new, but he would grow more and more acclimated to this vessel with each passing moment. Indeed this was a time for recuperation. It wouldn’t be long before all the pieces fit into place and they moved on their target enemy.

---Exit---

WC: 181
TWC: 3368

Max taking all WC

2633 wc towards finishing Lich Body V1 (combined with claims here)
Remaining 735 WC towards skill:  Itemcrafting (735/2000)
66 AP (???)