Cruel . World (Open)

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru sat on a dune, swaying faintly as the black bodies of the sleeping Jackals were huddled around him, he stares at the sky with his unfeeling brown eyes. the Stars were peaking out, Shukaku was giggling quietly deeply inside him. His white hair rustling faintly in the wind. The Akatsuki... Where were they? He could feel them close... Where were they?

He gently scratched the large ears of a jackal, frowning faintly,"..."

Come on, The son of Gaara is waiting for you

[Light]

Contrast to the sandy dunes that surrounded Jakkaru, the forest breathed. It swayed, rustled, and changed rapidly. Animals were one of the driving forces of change within the change, as much as humans would like to believe they were barely needed.

Against a tree, a pelt rubbed against the bark and scratched its thick hide. Paws scrabbled up onto a large root and looked over the sand dunes, watching, and pondering about the dusty expanse. More paws joined the four, until a pack was relaxed and lazing about the border.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru's lips slightly parted... He felt unfamiliar paws, ones not suited for sand...

He gazes toward the sky, silently wondering how the mist village was fairing.. It had been more then ten moons since he visited..

[Light]

A few paws gently slip into the sand with a yelp as a few pups get too rowdy, yipping and rolling around in a playful bout. There had been little interference from the Mist village, and the friends that he had made within the village tried to visit whenever they could, but lately, that had become less and less frequent.

A mother wolf waddles over to the pups and picks them up by the scruff, carrying them away from the sand. Around their necks, silvery headbands hung from their necks and glimmered in the light that reflected off the metal plate--the Mist symbol engraved upon them.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru pauses, sensing an unusual chakra from them, he slowly stands and makes a quiet signal to one of the Jackals who had woken to gaze at him before leaping over the back lightly and sliding down the dune

[Light]

The wolves, sensing the approach of a large chakra signature, quiet and fall into rank. The strongest circled around, and layer after layer was made, until the pups were in the very center. Yellow and brown eyes watched the sand from the leaves, some howling to talk to the wolves within the perimeter.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru immediately falls into the odd shinobi sprint he had developed, moving quickly through the dunes, frowning

[Light]

An angry howl pierces the air, and the peaceful forest flies into a disruptive fury. A tree, or trees, is felled, and the many chakra signatures flare as the ninja wolves are engaged in battle. A jutsu flies, and the wolves spread or, or get caught in it. The other large signature, that had been smothered by control, was unleashed. The Akatsuki was on the loose.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru felt the change, something changed, he barely touched the ground and as soon as he saw the shapes of the wolves... He skidded to a half and immediately the sand began to rise, engulfing the battle and making everything blind...

[Light]

The wolves yelp and dart around, the unseen, hidden enemy tearing apart their ranks. A head band slowly slid down the hill, its metal plaque covered in the blood of the animal that had worn it. They seemed to be searching for the source of the fireballs and stabbing knives, but were unable to find it.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru immediately balls his fists and in an instant, razor sharp sand grain threads ripped into the intruder.

Another Akatsuki watched from a ways away, crouched in the shadows, watching..

[Light]

The intruder falls to the ground, its pale skin evaporating into a gray skeleton or a beastly human. The wolves scamper back together and howl, the chakra laced onto the call. It echoes, bouncing off the trees, calling for assistance... Because their sixth sense told them, that it would not be that easy.

[CrimsonMoon]

" Run to the center of the desert, don't stop, i'll protect you!" Jakkaru calls out to the wolves, hoping they understood his calls. He raised his own voice in the wavering yowl of a jackal... He was calling his own pack...

He pauses before stepping out of the desert and into the foliage,"..."

[Light]

The females quickly pick up the pups, the elders helping them as they run past him. A few make sounds of thanks to him if their mouths weren't full, the more warrior like wolves longing the trail to protect the evacuating wolves.

The bones finally disappear with an unnatural pop, and the trees shift. It was like the first Akatsuki he met, but this signature was different. There was more malice than insanity, and it was controlled. From a few yards away, a large wave of trees fly up from the ground and fly at him like arrows, the roots spraying into the air.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru starts, taken off guard but immediately takes a defensive stance, crossing his arms over his face with barely enough time before the first of the roots sink into his arms and legs...

[Light]

The chakra flares before slowly diminishing, the shadows dancing around the darkness of the forest... Watching.

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru slowly lowers his arms, ignoring the splinters that had sunk into his bare forearms but ripping a particularly large splinter out and calling,"... I know you're not strong enough to follow them into the desert... Is that why you ambush them near my borders?" his voice was hoarse from disuse

[Light]

Hoarse breathing is his answer, the pants sounding like laughter in a way. The wood twists, eyes seeming to look at him from the trunks of the oaks. "...Tac...ic..."

[CrimsonMoon]

Jakkaru casts the splinter aside and frowns,"... There is another with you... but you seem to be the only one fighting... Why?"

[Light]

"...tac...tic," it repeats as the eye makes a sickening squish as it closes, and reopens. The air buzzes, and branches snap nearby. A figure emerges from the trees, and a familiar blonde looks at him. Kai blinks her pink eyes. "Jakkaru! You look positively awful, I heard the wolves and saw the forest get a makeover,"