Thoma x Reader

You deftly finished lacing up your boots and stood, quietly exiting your house. It was still dark out, and the waning quarter moon did little to illuminate the path, despite sparse cloud cover. It would be almost dawn by the time you reached the docks at Ritou, and evening when the boat meant for you would arrive at your destination.

Tsurumi Island, a place deeply shrouded in both fog and mystery. A man who had sabotaged storehouses belonging to the Yashiro Commission is suspected to be taking advantage of Tsurumi's relative abandonment, having fled there. Your mission is to bring him in, dead or alive. This particular assignment was huge for you. It was important, so placing it on your shoulders was a show of trust from your superiors. They were testing you. If you didn't manage to bring him in, he could strike again in the future.

As you walked along the stretch of beach that connected Ritou to the rest of Narukami, you ran your hands over your new set of kunai attached at your hip, concealed by your clothes. You also had a pair of kamas, shorter scythe-like weapons adapted from farm tools, attached to your mid back, as well as other odds and ends. Your father had been well known within the Shuumatsuban for his skill with kama. As his daughter, he made sure you were also fluent in using them, so they became your weapon of choice.

So far, the plan was to track down this target and subdue him. However... As a Shuumatsuban, you were a ninja. It's not like being a soldier or a samurai—your whole operation depended on surprise and stealth. There was no room for discussion, and you were prepared to kill. Another of many reasons such organizations stay in the dark. Ah, the taboo of murder.

The sun wasn't even up, yet your boat was already waiting for you at the docks. Your lone escort was a choice affiliate of the Shuumatsuban for operations like these, but you still greeted him wearing a hannya mask. The mask had been made for you upon initiation—modeled similarly to the oni mask your father had worn. It was mostly dark red, very traditional, except that it only covered the lower two thirds of your face.

You boarded the boat and briefly exchanged code with the escort to verify that it was you. With that, you set off.

_____

With how dense the fog was, you almost didn't see the island itself until you were practically on top of it. What a pain. You reached shore and hopped out of the boat, splashing the rest of the way to dry land.

"I'll be here again in two days. Do not miss it," your escort reminded you sternly, using a paddle to push the boat back out to sea. You simply nodded in acknowledgment before turning your attention back to the land ahead.

This fog was thick enough to cut with a knife. You had a map with landmarks, and you had made yourself notes while studying what you could find about the terrain, but keeping somewhat close to the shore was wisest for now. So you began walking, keeping just off of the sand so as to not leave footprints.

As time went on, you were able to adjust and adapt more to navigating the fog, allowing yourself to put more distance between yourself and the ocean. All of your senses were on high alert as you crept through the eerily quiet land.

_____

Half a day passed as you checked off locations and looked for tracks from your target. Daytime was best to search because the sunlight helped thin out the fog a little; however, once you found him, you would wait until dark to strike.

You had quickly come to realize that Tsurumi wasn't completely abandoned. You had to avoid the occasional camp of hilichurls. Getting caught in a skirmish could alert the target of your presence, and you also needed to save your energy.