Garden of Sinners

[Azai Mana]

Type of Quest: Skirmish
Quest Info: While on a patrol with a handful of soldiers, young Shinjo Naoyori of the Azai clan is accosted by what appears to be bandits. The numbers are not in their favor. A returning Mana wanders into the skirmish site and has to make a choice.
Location: Omi, near the Azai-Sasaki border
People Involved: Mana, Azai soldiers, 'bandits' (Sasaki/Rokkaku soldiers in disguise), Azai Nagamasa?, Shinjo Naoyori (historical Azai samurai, born 1538)
Plot-Important: For the Azai, quite possibly. For the rest of the country, probably not.

Note: Brandon has requested precedence in GMing this quest, so unless he has a change of heart, I'd like to leave this one to him.

[Oda Nobunaga]

While returning into Omi, Mana would happen upon a bandit attack, just outside the Azai-Sasaki Omi border! It seemed a small group of men bearing the Mon of the Azai were ambushed by a large group of bandits, and as it stood, they had very little chance of winning. Numbers were not on their side, not at all.

A runner would pass by Mana, heading down the road and presumably toward the Azai main camp, where he would seek reinforcements. Meanwhile, Naoyori and his small group of men were doing what they could to hold off the bandits!

The battlefield was a small one, mainly a road with thick brush. The Azai soldiers were on the road, with bandits on either side charging in. The Azai were surrounded and outnumbered.

24 Azai Soldiers
1 Azai Runner
125 Bandits

Naoyori Stats:
Str: 20(25)
Dex: 15(20)
Con: 20(25)
Wis: 20
Spr: 10

Azai Stats:
Str: 10(15)
Dex: 10(15)
Con: 10(15)
Wis: 10
Spr: 10

Bandit Stats:
Str: 15
Dex: 15
Con: 10
Wis: 10
Spr: 10

[Azai Mana]

The sight before Mana, while not uncommon for the age she found herself in, or even for her background, was very strange. It was a common tactic for bandits to try outnumbering a target in order to overwhelm them, as they were doing here, but not to this degree. Were they just that afraid of the Azai soldiers before them, perhaps? She knew not, and had no time to ponder this line of thought, for those very same Azai were on the ropes with no way of getting out, at least until that runner presumably made it to the allied camp. They might be dead before he returns with the reinforcements, though.

Not on her watch, not in the homeland she just returned to, and certainly not her countrymen.

As it stood, the bandits had not appeared to notice Mana, meaning she was relatively safe to proceed how she wished. As someone who had been on the other end of this equation before, she knew that charging the skirmish site head-on could lead to her untimely death. Instead, she took note of the 'battlefield' and its terrain: a road with thick brush on either side. She snuck off into the brush on the side with fewer bandits, making sure her spear was both at the ready and not poking out conspicuously to give her away. Once hidden, Mana would emerge when no enemies were looking toward her, get behind the closest man and impale him through the head.

If successful and still unaccounted for by the bandits, Mana intended to duplicate the maneuver on each bandit she saw that did not recognize her presence, slaying them with single thrusts through the head or heart (from the back, of course). If successful but noticed by the enemy, Mana would shift to a combat stance and fight intelligently, using her spear's length to her advantage when she could, fighting with both ends if an enemy came close, and counterattacking when an opportunity arose. If she failed in the initial assassination, her tactic would be to single out the man and dispatch him in a similar method to the above, then move on as outlined in the previous condition.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Mana would be able to go through the brush and take out about ten bandits before they spotted her, and some men made her their priority, given the Azai forces were already outnumbered anyway. Ten men charged her, surrounding her and rushing as a unit rather than attacking one-by-one. Each man made a horizontal slash aimed for her torso!

Total Bandit Losses: 10 from Mana, 5 from Azai = 15
Total Azai Losses: 0

[Azai Mana]

The manner in which the bandits moved showed signs of tactical knowledge. Instead of rushing head-on or one at a time, they banded together and made to surround Mana. She had little time to react, lest she be torn in two from ten strikes. Dropping down below the closing weapons, she managed to make it down unscathed, and moved fast by impaling one of the men's legs, then yanking her spear out and rushing through that same leg to escape the enclosure. From there, while maintaining awareness of her rear, Mana would go on to fight the ten brigands arrayed before her, focusing chiefly on counterattacks and utilizing clear opportunities to press the attack when presented, all while using her senses, agility, and reach to her advantage.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Mana would successfully impale a bandit's leg, ripping through him and getting out of the crowd. She was able to counter-kill about three men, having taken down four of them in total, but two would strike the cross-spear at the joint of the center blade, applying enough pressure to keep her from effectively maneuvering. One of the other four would throw a dagger for her forehead, while another charged in from her right side to impale her ribs.

Total Bandit Losses: Total Bandit Losses: 14 from Mana, 10 from Azai = 24
Total Azai Losses: 0

[Azai Mana]

The situation was close: Mana's weapon pinned to prevent maneuverability, someone about to release a knife aimed at her forehead, and another rushing to stab her ribs in. Without hesitation, and in a single movement, she pulled her yari toward herself as she stepped back and ducked down. Her weapon free of its pin left it able to be properly wielded again, while the knife flew past her head midway through her ducking and took a few strands of hair with it, and the man who would've impaled her side ended up with no positive results.

With her spear pulled back and braced for its next strike, Mana turned and stepped toward the bandit that had charged from her right side, thrusting hard and fast for his stomach, and immediately pull out as soon as the weapon bottomed out. If successful, and while watching herself, she'd go on to pick off the two men who'd previously held her weapon at bay, and follow through on pursuing the other three men who were her current opponents. If she failed, Mana would withdraw to a defensive mindset, once more prioritizing counters over offense.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Mana pulled her weapon away just in time, ducking under the knife and ripping the stomach of the charging bandit apart! The two who pinned her down earlier were quickly overwhelmed by her skill and slain, but as they fell, she would be caught off-guard! The man who threw the dagger threw dirt in her eyes, sending a strong foot into her stomach to knock her down, and the other two bandits flipped their katanas over and launched them at her stomach!

Total Bandit Losses: Total Bandit Losses: 17 from Mana, 15 from Azai = 32
Total Azai Losses: 0

[Azai Mana]

Mana took the dirt in the eyes, but did not make to grab or claw at them, for she knew this would worsen her defense and leave her truly vulnerable. She slammed her eyes shut, keeping them closed even as she was booted to the ground. Though sightless at the moment, she could hear the katanas of the other two men being flourished and sent for her. The enforcer held her yari tight and parallel against her front and rolled, narrowly avoiding a choppy death, rising to a kneel and using the auditory information to swing her weapon for where she estimated the two bandits' legs to be, intending for one of the side prongs of her cross-spear to cut into - or through, if she was especially lucky - their legs.

Regardless of her success or failure, Mana would promptly rise to her feet and listen intently, shifting to the defense and only countering an attack when she was certain there was an opportunity. If, at any time, she counted the deaths of three men, she'd stop and clear her eyes of the dirt to regain her full sight.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Mana would cut through one man's leg and he would fall to the floor, and her spear would end up impaling the second man's thigh, but it didn't go all the way through! He roared in pain, reaching down and grabbing the shaft of the blade to keep her from moving very far. During this time, she would feel a dagger fly into her shoulder!

There were so many soldiers in the area, it would be hard to single out just these three men!

Total Bandit Losses: Total Bandit Losses: 17 from Mana, 20 from Azai = 37
Total Azai Losses: 1

[Azai Mana]

The distinct feel of metal embedded in her shoulder, though expectedly painful, did not give Mana cause for alarm or fear. She had experienced far worse pain, both physical and psychological, than a meager dagger in her lifetime. Holding her yari steady with her injured arm, she used the other hand to unceremoniously pull the blade free of her shoulder with naught but a grunt. Determined to fight for her countrymen whom she had not seen or known for so long, Mana opened an eye and fixed it on the bandit daring to touch her spear, just before throwing the dagger at his neck.

If successful, Mana would pull her weapon from his grip and thigh before dead man's grip could set in, and gently wipe the dirt from her tear ducts so that she execute the bandit prone on the floor, then resume her objective. If she missed, she'd take the opportunity while the man was preoccupied with the projectile to forcefully shove her spear forward as hard as she could, then yank out and thrust for the source of his yelling, then wipe her eyes as previously detailed.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Then first man was slain, and so too was the one on the floor! The man who'd thrown the daggers was still up and kicking, however, and rushed to tackle Mana immediately after she'd executed the man on the floor!

Total Bandit Losses: Total Bandit Losses: 19 from Mana, 25 from Azai = 44
Total Azai Losses: 1

[Azai Mana]

Mana spied the man coming as she finished off his prone companion. Releasing her spear and leaving it in the corpse, she made to quickly move out of the way and around the charging bandit, intending to trip him by kicking out his ankle. If successful, the former enforcer would pick up the nearest weapon - whether that's her yari or a pointy object on the ground, it doesn't matter - and step in to stomp his stomach/back (depending on if he's on his back or front respectively) to stun the man before embedding her acquired weapon in his skull, then retrieve her yari if she hadn't just done so. If the trip failed, she'd grab her spear all the same and fight him off before moving on in the battle.

In both cases, and if the man is dead, Mana's intent was to then circle around the main battle and link up with Azai forces, cutting through and counterattacking any bandits in her path to do so.

[Oda Nobunaga]

Mana tripped the man, and her spear ripped through his skull and slew him. She would find, though, that she could not get to the Azai forces because the bandit numbers were much too thick, and the Azai were surrounded on all sides!

Three men would rush her, each armed with a spear! Two stabbed at her waist, while one ran around her and looked to stab her through the spine!

Dust could be seen building down the path, from where the Azai soldier ran off to at the beginning of the attack!

Total Bandit Losses: Total Bandit Losses: 20 from Mana, 30 from Azai = 50
Total Azai Losses: 3

[Azai Mana]

If Mana could not get through to the Azai now, then she would cut open a path, one way or another. For now, she had to focus on the three men before her. Three spearmen, two from the front aiming for her waist, and she had seen the third running to her rear. Reacting quickly and precisely, she diverolled to the right as she was being thrust at, turning and rising in time to see the three men potentially stabbing at or into eachother. Regardless of if they did or not, Mana would advance with her cross-spear and aim to slash and thrust into their torsos, countering any efforts that they made to attack her a second time, bearing in mind that it was three (depending on the above) against one.