Shinji walked without much purpose.
The ANBU had gotten a handle on any necessary 'rescue operations' meant to free those trapped under any rubble, and the medical forces were still dispatched to take who they could back to the hospital to provide them comfort and rapid recovery. Though he had helped the elderly of the village make their way to the homes they lived in, by now there wasn't exactly much left to do. The mystery behind the beast's attack was likely going to be the question on everyone's minds until someone knew exactly what forced him to become an aggressor.
He lost track of the time and wasn't sure how long he had been wandering along the roads through the village. It was going to be a restless night for many throughout the village, as a tailed beasts power wasn't easy to sleep through after such a close call with it. The Hokage may have wanted to consider offering some sort of public statement to ease everyone's minds if at all possible, but that was up to him and him alone.
"What the hell is this?!?!"
The outrage of Daaku snapped Shinji's head from the ground up towards the scene just ahead unfolding before him. A man, one he recognized as an individual who stood against the tailed beast, was looking towards another who wore a mask and held something that had the figure of a small body. What was more noticeable was the hair traveling out of the package, with blood matted across the beautiful strands that appeared very fresh. Stopping in his tracks, Shinji assessed the situation in his head but would have no reason to, as the terms were very clear once the masked one spoke.
This 'Ayumi' must be very precious to the man who was outraged, and it was obviously a hostage situation. Ayumi was the result of desperation and desire, and the man desired scrolls.
"You threaten me with my daughter's life??"
His daughter? ..This is bad..
"Kid you mind helping me a bit??"
Shinji believed that ninja who clashed should have settled it between themselves but in the case of a hostage who had nothing to do with this, Shinji was more than willing to intervene if it meant keeping her out of harms way. By attempting to use Daaku's daughter against him, it was no longer a matter of two men settling things between themselves with honor, but saving something precious to him and showing just what happens when a shinobi brings another's family into the line of things.
Daaku ..it couldn't be -the- Daaku, could it?
"I'm with you." Shinji responded, moving into action as Daaku himself began his advance, vanishing in thin air only to reappear and deal a violent blow with his elbow. The masked man endured the attack but luckily for Daaku Ayumi was freed during that move. Rushing forward, Shinji would spin around using the heel of his right foot to kick the spear, redirecting its momentum and letting it crash against the ground, breaking apart into small pieces. The Ice Release channeled to his foot connected with the spear, entering inside and allowing it to be fractured and easily broken upon great enough contact. It wasn't until after he kicked it away did it prepare to be shattered, and did so upon hitting the ground.
Keeping Ayumi's body over his left shoulder and still in mid-air Shinji performed handsigns with only his right hand and it would merely be a blur to the inexperienced and experienced alike. Throwing his right palm towards the masked man, a powerful blast of wind released itself from it, sending itself towards Daaku and the foe. If the man acted the way Shinji figured, then there'd no way he'd attempt to use Daaku as a shield to this attack. Holding a child hostage was much different than a grown man, especially if he could've been ...
Wind Release - Shearing Palm!
"Tch!" The masked foe kicked himself off of Daaku's arm and retreated as the cone of wind continued to come his way. Before it was too late, he performed handsigns and in the nick of time was able to erect a stone wall between both him and the unlikely duo just ahead. He may have lost his chance at killing Ayumi, but it wasn't too late to get what he came for.
The man would allow his wall to intercept the wind blades that had come, tearing large chunks from it but not breaching it fully. Around him he could also feel the blades hitting the ground as well as needles of water, seeing it as a cone attack that spread outward. Still, it didn't work, and he was completely safe.
Landing on the ground, Shinji took a moderate leap backwards and removed Ayumi from her container, cradling her in his arms and trying to examine the severity of her head wound. He was no expert, but it didn't take rocket science to figure out that she suffered a hard blow to the head. Acting as best he could, Shinji placed the palm of his left hand against her forehead and began to gradually drop his core temperature and channeled it through his palm, trying to soothe her wound and remove the pain she'd feel once she awoke. It wasn't a complete fix but it would do with helping her situation if she would wake up from this event soon.
"Not yet." Shinji muttered to Daaku, silently urging him not to act on what happened. He was never in any real danger from his technique. The Shearing Palm was a way to separate the two.
Letting the earth-wall recede, the man in the mask was quick to gloat about the situation despite his odds. "It'll take more than that, kid!" knelt down still, the masked man attempted to perform additional handsigns in order to cripple both the boy and Daaku's precious little girl. "Last chance, Daaku!" before he could slam his palms into the ground and skewer the kids alive, something peculiar happened. He grew ..cold. An arm was tight around his neck and as for the other arm, it was buried in his back, passing through the lethal areas only to come out a bloody ice spear. It happened so quickly.
"....Can't be." He ..slipped? The needles of water that collided against his wall along with the wind were definitely water before, he certainly looked. Forcing his head back forward despite how tightly the ice clone held him, the masked shinobi got a good look at Shinji and his headband.
The boy had did what he could to ease the splitting pain in Ayumi's head once she woke up and was careful not to go too cold for fear of damaging her brain. Ayumi wasn't in any danger, and wouldn't feel a thing upon waking up unless she deliberately pressed against the wound. Secured in his arms in a manner similar to how a groom held his bride, Shinji advanced a couple steps closer to Daaku, although kept his eyes on the man who had recently been dealt a decisive blow by his hand. All the water needles that were formed and scattered in a cone behind him had gathered all at once the minute his attention returned to both Daaku and Shinji. He acted quickly, and although he almost missed his opportunity to end his assault he made it in time.
Gathering the water together from the needles he launched with his technique, he quickly formed the clone of ice and it landed its blow. The man's overconfidence was his weakness in this regard.
"I see, Ice Release ..so you're from that clan. Using my confidence and focus on killing you to divert my attention, I wouldn't have suspected a thing ..."a trail of blood left his mouth, internal bleeding growing. Though he hated to admit it, that brat did get him. Of all the kids to have been around ...he knew all about Daaku, but this kid was different. He never expected a member of that damn clan to be here..
"Daaku of the Burakkuai, Tsuchikage Daaku, Tenga-ryu Daaku ..you go by many names." Shinji wasn't reflecting on his tactic, but was moreso reflecting on the man he stood beside. His heart picked up its beating, being in the presence of a man who was feared in the last war. This could very well be the same man, and the girl he held was his daughter. "I avoided his vital organs in case you wanted to question him. He shouldn't die from such wounds."
No, not die, but his ability to move should've been hampered. Even now, the clone was doing its job by not only impaling him, but freezing the man's neck to the clones arm. If he broke free, he'd tear a lot of skin from his neck and back. Escape wouldn't come without a cost, and from a man desperate enough to kidnap a little girl, Shinji wouldn't put it past him. It seemed too easy ..maybe he was better than he gave himself credit for, or perhaps the masked man genuinely did get caught. He didn't drop his guard even so.
Ayumi may require a more thorough examination and judging from how busy the med-corps were, one more examination wouldn't hurt, especially if it was Daaku's child.
"As for Ayumi..I'll drop her at the hospital. He won't take advantage of her again." Shinji felt that whatever business was between Daaku and this man wasn't for his ears, and Ayumi's live was no doubt more precious to Daaku than his own. The least he could do now is let Daaku fight without worrying about Ayumi's own safety; he'd protect her until he was prepared to take her. Jumping back, he landed on a nearby wooden fence and turned around. Before leaving towards Konoha's hospital, he did offer Daaku one more word.
"Thank you for your confidence in me."
Daaku didn't underestimate his ability to aid him merely because of his age and appearance. Certain shinobi had an issue with pride, where asking others for help was out of the question. Some men might've said this was 'their' fight and none should intervene. When it came to his daughter's life, Daaku didn't seem the kind of man to let his pride come before his daughter's life, and because of it, he was able to deal with this man as he pleased while Ayumi was guaranteed to be safe. The battle couldn't have taken much longer between them, and although Shinji wanted to be there just in case, although he didn't want to leave Daaku here, he trusted Ayumi's father to handle himself with strength and grace.
That was the famous Daaku, after all, wasn't it?
-
"..You think you can just run away!?" that damn boy was taking off with Ayumi, and in this situation he needed as much leverage as he could get. The boy's clone wasn't budging easily, which left him with few to no options when it came to moving. He needed time, and Daaku wouldn't give him any if he knew what was good for him.
He prepared a new set of handsigns, hoping to beat Daaku to the punch and free himself. He couldn't go out like this!
