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The Good Stuff
Holding up a finger, Sakura signalled to her teammate to wait as she finished the sentence she was reading. She bit her lip to hold back her smirk as Sasuke made a sound of affront deep in his throat. Sakura finished what she was reading and made a careful note on the scroll before turning her eyes to Sasuke and smiling innocently.
"May I speak now?" he asked sarcastically and Sakura's smile grew wider. Sasuke rolled his eyes but continued. "You're needed at the Hokage's office, we have a mission."
Nodding, Sakura rolled up her work and stored it away in the top drawer of her desk, sealing the lock with a flare of her chakra. She followed Sasuke out of her office and together they made their way out of the hospital. Sasuke was annoyed to note that many of the male patients and even some of the male med-nin were quite enthusiastic in greeting his pink-haired teammate.
Sasuke wasn't blind and knew that Sakura had grown up in the four years since the last Shinobi World War. Konoha was currently in the midst of an unusually cool autumn, and while not bitterly cold outside, Sakura had opted to switch her trademark shorts for a pair of long, black trousers. Trousers which were, Sasuke observed, just as tight as her shorts had been. Coupled with the figure hugging red top that had the shoulders cut out displaying tempting slithers of creamy skin and Sasuke – actually, the males of Team 7 in general – had a hell of a time keeping the male populous at bay.
Not that Sakura would ever notice this.
It was a constant headache for her teammates that their female counterpart wasn't aware of the effect she had over men. For a woman that could level mountains with a single punch, she walked around for all the world like a doe-eyed little lamb.
Once outside the hospital the pair took to the roofs and covered the short distance to the Hokage's office in a matter of seconds. Landing on the window ledge they found Naruto and, surprisingly enough, Kakashi, already waiting.
Slipping in to the office and standing with their teammates, Sakura eyed her sensei curiously. "How are you on time?"
"Because I called him three hours before the rest of you." Tsunade smirked, leaning back against her chair. "Now, as soon as Sai gets here we can begin."
"Five jōnin on one mission?" Naruto squinted his eyes at the Godaime. "Sounds like we're up for an important mission!"
"Sai is ANBU rank." Kakashi remarked, his face buried in his book but Naruto waved the comment off.
Tsunade watched the blonde's eager face and threw him a bone. "Well it is A-rank."
"Alright!" Naruto cheered, pumping his fist in the air. "I've been going crazy with boredom."
There was a knock on the door and Sai entered quietly, coming to stand on Kakashi's other side.
"I apologise for my tardiness." Sai said politely and Tsunade waved her hand dismissively.
"Okay, down to business then. I've had word that the Daimyo of Hi no Kuni is in need of help."
"Ooh what is it?" Naruto leaned forward eagerly. "Bandits, assassination attempts, rampaging monsters?"
"He needs a tooth pulled." Tsunade cackled inwardly as the five ninja before her blinked in confusion and Naruto almost fell over in disappointment.
"Excuse me? Shishou do you mean to tell us that you are sending five jōnin to pull a tooth?"
"Of course not." Tsunade scoffed. "Sakura, I'm sending you to pull the tooth and the other four as protection."
"Protection from what? Plaque!?" Sakura threw her hands up in exasperation.
"Look," Tsunade sighed. "Often the work of the Hokage is more political than anything. The Daimyo is a very paranoid man and it does the village a favour to keep him appeased. He will not let any of his medics near him – he only wants the best, which is why I am sending you Sakura."
The pink-haired girl looked slightly mollified.
"His paranoia is the same reason I am sending the rest of you." Tsunade addressed the men before her. "Sending in a group of ninja with such a reputation as yours will please the Daimyo – it makes it look like his safety and comfort are our number one concern… and honestly, it's been pretty slow lately so the more ninja I can send on one A-Class mission then the more I can charge the Daimyo."
Sasuke snorted at that and Kakashi chuckled lowly.
"Okay," Naruto nodded. "So we travel to the Daimyo's palace, Sakura pulls his tooth and we come home. Simple!"
"Not quite." Tsunade sighed. "The Daimyo as well as being paranoid is very scared of pain."
"I can use a general anaesthetic if it will be that much of a hassle?" Sakura suggested.
"Nope. The Daimyo has a pathological fear of being put under for any sort of medical reason."
"What about just repairing any damage to the tooth with chakra?"
Tsunade laughed at that. "He distrusts chakra to an obscene extent. While ninja may be good enough to protect his lands, he prefers to avoid them where possible."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "I'm guessing the Daimyo was the only person around to inherit the position."
"I know, I know." Tsunade raised her hands in surrender. "He's a pain but he funds a lot of our work here and so we need to do as much as we can to meet his wishes. Sakura," she turned her attention to her student. "I think it would be best if you could heavily sedate the man, so he can remain awake but be oblivious to the procedure."
Naruto laughed loudly at that. "You want Sakura to drug the Daimyo?"
"I would never normally suggest such a thing but it will make the whole mission so much easier if you can relax the man rather than knock him out. Who knows, he might even get over this pathological fear of his if he has a good experience this time."
Sakura nodded. "It shouldn't be too hard. I'll go and prepare a sedative now."
"Good." Tsunade nodded. "Although you might want to prepare a lot of the stuff... the Daimyo is quite the corpulent man." Understanding, Sakura merely nodded. "You should all prepare to leave in the morning. I expect you to be gone for a day at the most."
The five ninja bowed to Tsunade and made their way from her office.
"Man I was hoping for some excitement." The orange-clad ninja whined.
"Be careful what you wish for, Naruto." Kakashi said blithely, flipping the page in his trusty book.
"Whatever." Naruto sighed, crossing his arms behind his head. "Anyone up for some ramen at Ichiraku's?"
"Sorry Naruto, I'd better go to the hospital and sort this sedative out. I'll see you all tomorrow at dawn?"
The men nodded watched as Sakura took off towards the hospital. Naruto eyed up his remaining teammates. "What about you guys?"
Sasuke shrugged and Kakashi mumbled in agreement while Sai smiled that disturbing grin of his and the four men headed towards Naruto's second home.
Dawn broke and found Sasuke crouched on a branch near the gates of Konoha waiting for his team to arrive. The weather was still erring on the cooler side but was not uncomfortable and would actually make travelling a lot more pleasant.
"Good morning!" Sasuke looked down at Sakura's chipper voice and found his female teammate adjusting the strap of her pack at the base of the tree. She was wearing those god-forsaken trousers again and Sasuke knew that the Dobe would find a way to travel behind her.
Sasuke hopped down from the tree to stand next to the girl. "Do you have everything?"
Sakura nodded and pulled a locked box from her bag. Injecting her chakra in to the seal on the side, the box clicked open and revealed a large syringe nestled inside. "I made extra, but as Tsunade said the Daimyo is a large man, I thought it better to have too much than too little." Closing and sealing the case once more, Sakura tucked it in to her pack and smiled at Sasuke. "It will be nice to get out of the village for a little while, even if it is just to the other side of Fire."
Sasuke nodded in agreement and the pair lapsed in to comfortable silence. Sai and Naruto arrived within minutes of each other and as per tradition, they were left waiting on their sensei.
"Hey, Sakura-chan?" Naruto piped up. "What will that drug you mixed up do to the Daimyo?"
Sakura smiled mischievously. "Well honestly, I've never tried it out."
"Well it's based on a sedative that I know is safe and works. I've adjusted it to also put the Daimyo in a more... cheerful mood."
"You're not giving him anything illegal are you?" Sasuke smirked and Sakura laughed.
"Totally legal, it's like an extra strength relaxant. It should hopefully lower his inhibitions a little and help him forget those fears that he seems to be constantly dealing with."
"Sounds like some good stuff." Kakashi spoke up, appearing around the tree his old students had been leaning against. "It seems our little Sakura could have a nice little side business if the ninja thing doesn't pan out."
Sakura stuck her tongue out and Kakashi ruffled her hair. Sakura swatted his hand away and gathered her hair back in to a ponytail deftly. She had been meaning to get it cut but had not found the time and so had to settle on tying it back to keep it out of her way while travelling.
"If you're all ready?" Everyone nodded at Kakashi's question and they moved as one in to the forests surrounding Konoha.
They ate up the distance to the Daimyo's palace with well-practised speed. Sakura travelled at the front near Kakashi while the boys lingered behind. Sasuke had been correct in guessing that Naruto would travel directly behind Sakura and so found great pleasure in putting himself between the kunoichi and the blonde. Naruto was quick to catch on to Sasuke's sabotage and soon the two best friends were having a silent competition of who could stay behind Sakura for the longest amount of time.
Sai watched his two teammates in confusion. It seemed like he still had a lot to learn.
They reached the gates of the Daimyo's palace in the early afternoon and Kakashi showed the waiting guards their mission scroll bearing the seal of the Hokage. One of the guards escorted them to the Daimyo's chambers and knocked on the door. A voice called for them to enter and the guard smiled sympathetically at the ninja.
"Lord Kenji is just inside. Good luck."
Kakashi opened the door and the quintet filed in to the room.
"Lord Kenji?" Kakashi addressed the miserable looking man sat at a low table, nursing a cup of tea in his large hands. The man nodded. "We're the team sent by Hokage-same. Sakura here," He gestured to the pink-haired girl to his left. "Is here to help you with that tooth."
Kenji eyed the girl distrustfully. "I'm actually feeling much better." He took a sip of his tea and immediately cringed in pain.
"Lord Kenji," Sakura spoke soothingly. "I promise to cause you no pain. I'll have that tooth out before you know it."
The large man stuffed his hands in the sleeves of his robes and frowned. "I don't want any chakra being used, you understand?"
Sakura nodded. "Yes, Tsunade-sama has explained it very carefully. I won't put you to sleep either."
Kenji nodded and Sakura approached the table while Sasuke and the others stood back near the door with the other guards who were in the room.
"Okay, if you just open your mouth so I can get a look at the problem." Kenji looked at her with hard eyes and Sakura smiled. "Just a look at the moment, I promise."
She was using a voice that Sasuke had heard her use when giving shots to uncooperative children in the hospital and it seemed to heave the same effect on the Daimyo who opened his mouth wide.
"Very good!" Sakura praised as she craned her head to see the afflicted tooth. It was a shame, she thought, that Kenji was so adamant on having no chakra used upon him as Sakura knew that she would have been able to repair the damaged enamel and nerve and save the tooth. Knowing not to push him however, she merely nodded. "Okay I see where the problem is. I'll pull it and it will all be over with."
Kenji's mouth clamped shut. "It won't hurt will it?"
Sakura shook he head and got the boxed syringe from her bag. Unclasping the lock she avoided pulling the needle in front of the nervous patient. "No my Lord. I will give you a small needle and you won't feel a thing."
Kenji's eyes narrowed. "I don't like needles."
"It's a tiny little thing. You won't even know I've done it."
Sasuke raised an eyebrow, recalling how large the needle had been but was very aware that the man would flip his lid if he actually saw it.
"Show me." Kenji demanded.
"I don't think that is such a good idea." Sakura tried to persuade him but the noble was insistent.
"I command you to show me the needle." Sighing and with no other choice, Sakura pulled the prepped syringe from the box and the Daimyo's eyes grew large with horror.
"No, I refuse. You may leave right now." He turned to his anxious looking guards. "Please escort these fine Konoha shinobi out."
"Er, my Lord." A nervous, freckle-faced guard spoke up. "You told us earlier that we were to make sure that your tooth is removed no matter how much you may protest."
"Well I'm changing my mind!" Kenji roared.
"Y-you said to ignore you if you said that too." The guard whimpered.
Sakura's patience for the man was running thin and she grasped the needle firmly in her hand. She shifted closed to the rotund man and held out a hand to take his arm. "Please Lord Kenji, the needle will ensure that you feel no pain when I extract the tooth. It's either the needle or I use chakra to repair the tooth."
"I choose neither!"
"Please, we also have orders that we are not to leave until your tooth has been dealt with." Sakura beseeched.
"No!" Kenji wailed.
"Sakura." Kakashi called and the girl cast him a desperate look. "Do it."
Sakura grasped Kenji's arm but the man was quick to yank it away. "I've told you no!"
"Be reasonable." Sakura tried but the man shifted his great weight backwards and up to his feet.
'I was right to make an extra-large batch.' Sakura mused.
Lord Kenji towered over her as well as being several times wider than her. It was quite comical to see such a little slip of a girl glaring at the large man.
"Just give me your arm and it will all be over with very quickly."
"No!" Kenji shouted.
"Lord Kenji…" Sakura gritted out.
"She's about to blow." Naruto muttered and the other men in the room nodded, watching the confrontation with rapt attention.
"Okay." Sakura said suddenly, "placing the syringe down on the table. "We'll leave the needle. I'm sure I have some cream that will do the job just as well."
Sakura saw the minute relaxing of Kenji's muscles and pounced. She refrained from using her chakra and was strong enough without it to wrestle the surprised man to the floor. Leaning her slight weight on the man she reached for the discarded syringe.
Kenji, seeing what she was trying to do struggled even more. With Sakura's lack of chakra and Kenji's surge of energy, the man gave a great heave and flung the girl off him. Sakura rolled across the table and came to land on her feet on the other side.
"Now really this is ridiculous you-!" Sakura broke off, registering a slight stinging in her leg and a curious feeling of light-headedness.
Glancing down she saw the syringe had stabbed in to her leg during the little scuffle over the table. Ripping it out she was horrified to see that it was almost empty.
"Oh no." She slurred, her head growing heavy and legs weak. She tried to pool her chakra to the injection site but her body would not cooperate. Falling to her bottom heavily she blinked up at her teammates as they appeared around her, all with worried faces.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled frantically. "Are you okay?"
Sakura blinked and a giddy smile broke out on her face. "Hi!" She giggled at how funny her voice sounded.
"Sakura?" Kakashi ventured hesitantly. Focusing on the silver-haired man now she flung herself on to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.
Naruto, Sai and Sasuke exchanged wide-eyed looks.
"What the heck was in that syringe?" Naruto asked, looking at the girl who was now rubbing her cheek against Kakashi's own masked one. The silver-haired jōnin tried to look detached but Sasuke could clearly see the flush of pink on his ears.
"She said it was a relaxant and painkiller... something about loosening up inhibitions." Sasuke mumbled, frowning at his teacher.
"Well judging by the difference between the hag's weight and Lord Kenji's, I'm guessing she's overdosed on the drug several times over." Sai noted, examining the empty syringe.
"Sakura." Kakashi said pushing the girl away from him gently. "Can you use your chakra to break that drug down?"
"Don't wanna." Sakura mumbled.
"Sakura." Kakashi said sternly and the girl's lip trembled.
"I'll try." She conceded.
The males of Team 7 watched as she tried gathering her chakra to her hands, but her control wavered very quickly and dissipated to nothing. The girl looked up at Kakashi with sad green eyes. "I couldn't do it."
"Aw! It's okay, Sakura-chan!" Naruto cooed, sweeping the girl up in a tight hug. Sakura laughed delightedly.
"Dobe." Sasuke growled and Naruto just sent him a foxy grin.
"You were trying to poison me!" Kenji's angry voice broke their little reprieve. "You would have ended up with me acting like that!"
"With all due respect, Lord Kenji." Kakashi stood, thankful to have Sakura attached to someone else. "The amount of the drug was suitable to your body weight. Sakura is under an amount much greater than the therapeutic effect you would have experienced."
"The whole universe is conspiring against me!" Kenji wailed dramatically. "First this blasted toothache and now a medic who wants to experiment on me!"
Sakura perked up as the man pointed at her. "Oh no, Kenji-sama." She said, detaching herself from Naruto and slinked over to the Daimyo. She leaned against his form and brought a hand up to stroke at his jaw tenderly. "I just want to help you. To make you feel good."
Kakashi slapped a hand to his face and Naruto and Sasuke watched with disgusted expressions as Sakura pawed over the now-pleased looking Lord.
"I guess Ugly was right." Sai spoke up. "Her formula really does lower the subject's inhibitions. In this case it would seem to be her inhibitions towards men."
"Shut up, Sai." Naruto and Sasuke growled as one.
"I know you're scared." Sakura soothed Kenji. "But this tooth." Here she tapped at the Daimyo's cheek. "Needs to come out."
With no further chatter, and before anyone in the room could see what was about to happen, Sakura's hand turned in to a fist and she sucker punched the Daimyo directly in the jaw.
There may not have been any chakra in the punch but the force still left the Lord reeling.
"Oh for the love of-!" Sasuke darted forward and pulled Sakura to him, quickly moving her away from the seething aristocrat.
"Why you –" Kenji paused his approaching tirade and puffed his cheeks out.
He held out a hand and spat a clearly infected tooth in to it. Probing at the inside of his mouth with his tongue Kenji smiled. "My tooth! It's out. You're right, that didn't hurt at all!"
Kakashi stared at the scene before him with an apathetic eye and wondered what he had done to deserve this life.
"We'd best get her back and have Tsunade see if she can purge the drug from her system." Kakashi led them away from the Daimyo's palace.
The guards stationed at the gates gave them odd looks as Sasuke struggled to keep a hold of the fidgeting kunoichi in his arms.
"Damn it, Sakura. Stay still!"
Sakura ignored him and continued to try and get her hands in his hair. "But Sasuke-kun," she purred. "Everything feels so good!"
Sasuke gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes at Naruto who had a wistful look on his face. "Get your mind out of the gutter you idiot."
Naruto held his hands up in surrender.
"Why don't you put her on your back, Sasuke?" Kakashi suggested. "She seems to be sure to hold on... she's being very affectionate after all."
Grumbling incoherent curses at the world in general, Sasuke stopped and let Sakura out of his arms. He crouched down before the girl. "Get on."
Sakura squealed and deftly hopped on to Sasuke's back, wrapping her legs around his waist and immediately burying her hands in his hair. Sasuke would bite his own tongue off before admitting that what Sakura was doing felt good... but god did it ever.
With Sakura no longer trying to escape, the team made quick work of the distance back to Konoha. In fact, everything was going smoothly until Sakura let out a loud and painfully suggestive moan. The men all froze, eyes fixed to Sakura and Sasuke although Sai's expression was curious.
"Is Ugly injured? She sounds like she's in pain."
No one answered him.
Sakura buried her nose in Sasuke's neck and sniffed him. "Mmm, you smell so nice, Sasuke-kun." She sighed and Sasuke almost jumped out of his skin when he felt her tongue dart out and lick the shell of his ear. "Yummy too."
"Damn lucky bastard." Naruto grumbled.
"Sasuke?" Kakashi ventured.
"Let's just go." Sasuke forced out, very conscious of the woman pressed tightly against his back.
It had been years since Sakura would throw herself at Sasuke, and even at her worse she was nowhere near this bad. So focused was she on her skills as a kunoichi and medic, Sakura had appeared to be happy to let the offers of the male population pass her by. She was more than making up for that now however.
Picking up their speed even further, Team 7 was relieved to see Konoha's gates loom in the distance. Kotetsu and Izumo were on guard duty and Kakashi came to a halt in front of them, flashing them the mission scroll as protocol dictated.
"Hey, is Sakura-chan okay?" Izumo nodded to Sakura who had slid off Sasuke's back and was swaying slightly on her feet.
"Oh fine." Kakashi tried to inject some cheerfulness in his voice. "Just a little mishap."
Sakura had apparently gotten fed up of her ponytail pulling at her scalp and drew the tie from her hair. She shook her head to free the long pink tresses and ran her hands through her hair humming in appreciation.
Sasuke's eyes bled red at the drooling faces of Kotetsu and Izumo. "Put your eyes back in your head in your head before I do it for you."
"Yeah, what he said!" Naruto growled.
The two chūnin averted their eyes promptly and Sasuke and Naruto each took a hold of one of the girl's arms. She chattered happily as the group made their way through the darkening streets of Konoha and up the stairs to the Hokage's office.
When their knocking received no answer, Kakashi pushed open the door and they found Tsunade fast asleep slumped over her desk.
"Tsunade-same." Kakashi tried to rouse her but the woman merely gave a light snore and continued to snooze.
Naruto rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. "GRANNY! WAKE UP!"
The woman jerked upright, a piece of paper stuck to her cheek. "Have some respect you brat!" She blinked dazedly before focusing on the group in front of her. "Back already?"
"We had reason to hurry back." Kakashi gestured to the pink haired girl currently playing with the ends of her hair and singing quietly to herself.
"What's wrong with my apprentice?" Tsunade frowned.
"She was accidentally injected with the drug intended for Kenji-sama." Kakashi explained nervously, rubbing the back of his head.
"How much of it?"
Sai withdrew the now-empty syringe from his pouch. "This much."
"What!?" Turning to her oblivious student she sighed. "What have been the side effects?"
"Well-" Naruto laughed nervously and Sakura looked up. Her eyes brightened when she saw what Sai was holding.
"Hey, my thing!" She moved over towards her socially-inept teammate and grinned at him. "Did you bring that back for me Sai? Thank you!" It was Sai's turn to be hugged this time and Sakura scratched him under the chin gently as one might do a beloved pet. "You're so kind to me."
Sai remained impassive as the pinkette pressed against him and looked to the other, rather dazed-looking, people in the room. "I'm afraid that I am unsure of how to deal with this social protocol."
Tsunade pinched the bridge of her nose. "Oh dear." She turned her amber eyes to her student. "Sakura, sweetie, can you tell me what you put in that syringe?"
Sakura grinned at Tsunade. "Sure!"
The room drew a collective sigh of relief. "Er, there was some of that blue stuff I think, and a little of that other thing I was working on."
Tsunade groaned. "I should have known. Sakura, had you tested that drug before you used it?"
"Of course!" Sakura nodded but Sasuke shook his head.
"Before the mission Sakura informed us that the vial contained a general sedative combined with another medicine of her own creation designed to ease stress and lower inhibitions. She was hoping to make the Daimyo forget how scared he was of... well everything."
Tsunade shook her head. "Sakura what have I warned you about using drugs before you have fully tested them on multiple subjects?"
Sakura glowered at Sasuke. "Tattletale." She poked him in the chest. "You're lucky you're so damn gorgeous, Sasuke-kun or I'd give you a right good spanking."
"Where's the punishment in that?" Naruto whispered to Kakashi and Sasuke sent him a glare before turning to a now amused Tsunade.
"Can't you use your chakra to break down whatever she's got floating around in her bloodstream?"
Tsunade rounded the desk and passed a glowing hand over Sakura's chest. "Hmm, it looks like the sedative properties have closed down a lot of her chakra points. I don't want to risk forcing my own chakra in there if she won't be able to access her own. I think it would be best if she stays at the hospital for the night so we can keep an eye on her. Hopefully this will have made its way out of her system by the morning."
"Hospital?" Sakura frowned. "More work?"
"No." Tsunade explained patiently. "We're going to have you stay there for tonight so we can make sure you get better."
"I'm not sick." Sakura smiled. "I feel fabulous." Sakura threw her arms up and her top rode up to expose her stomach.
Tsunade brought her hands back down gently and turned to the flushed looking men. "Take her straight to the hospital. If I get word that my apprentice has flashed someone on the way I will personally see to it that you all get nothing but D-rank missions for a year. I'll come over to check on her later on."
"Please stop trying to pull your top up, Sakura-chan." Naruto begged. "I don't want to spend a year chasing after cats for batty old women."
"But I'm so warm!" Sakura whined. "I have a bra on underneath so it's fine."
"No, it's really not." Sasuke mumbled.
"I wish Ino was here, she always tries to get me to take my top off when we go drinking."
"No more drinking with Ino for you." Kakashi said sternly and Sakura pouted.
"You guys always spoil my fun." She leant back on the pillows of her hospital bed. "Don't think I don't know about you chasing off all the guys who ask me out."
"They're no good for you." Naruto patted her hand.
"Yeah well I have needs!" They were not used to Sakura speaking so bluntly about things like this. "I've waited almost eight years for mister tall, dark and brooding to make a move but noooo! Even after the war you'd have thought he'd have a little time for some fun but nope, nadda. Icha Icha can only do so much!"
The men all stared agape at her and Kakashi looked at his little orange book in a new light. He discreetly closed it and slid it in to his pouch.
"What I don't get," Naruto began, scratching at his chin. "Is that if Sakura-chan made that drug to make Kenji forget that he was scared of stuff, then why is it making Sakura act like this?" He gestured to the blissful looking girl.
"Men can be so stupid." Tsunade walked in to the room, a medical chart in her hands.
"Huh?" Naruto frowned.
Tsunade bent over Sakura and began a more thorough check up on the girl's chakra systems. The Hokage glanced at the men and smiled wryly. "It's very simple. Sakura fears showing affection."
"No way!" Naruto argued. "She's one of the most loving people I know."
Tsunade laughed lightly at Naruto's sincere defence of his friend. "I mean towards men particularly. Her previous attempts at finding love have not been easy on her."
Sasuke was very aware of the eyes that turned to him and he kept his eyes resolutely fixed on his oblivious teammate.
Tsunade straightened up. "Right, everything seems fine apart from her chakra points being closed. A good night's sleep should see to that." She raised a glowing finger to Sakura's forehead and the girl slumped in to her pillows. "She should sleep until morning."
Looking at the rather despondent Team 7, Tsunade smiled. "I didn't mean to rain on your parade. It will serve you well to know that girls are always more complicated than they seem. Now come on, all of you out. You can visit Sakura tomorrow. If she's lucky she won't remember any of this."
The men were ushered out of the room by the Hokage and forced out of the hospital doors.
"Man what a weird day." Naruto grumbled. He glanced at his companions. "You want to get some food or something?"
Sasuke shook his head. "I'm going home. " With that he stalked off and out of sight before any more words could be spoken.
He gave it a few minutes until he was sure the others would have moved on before heading back towards the hospital. He entered the building unnoticed and made his way to Sakura's room without anyone questioning him.
Slipping in to the room, Sasuke observed the deeply slumbering girl and took a seat on the window sill, waiting.
When Sakura came to the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon. The girl groaned and rolled over, pressing her face in to the mattress. Feeling like her body had been hit by Chouji's Human Bullet Tank technique, Sakura whimpered in a rare show of vulnerability.
Someone was next to her a second later, pressing a straw against her lips. Sakura sipped at the cool water for a moment before opening her eyes to meet ebony orbs.
"Sasuke." Sakura began, voice quiet. "I am having some very strange memories from last night. Would you please tell me it's all a crazy dream?"
Sasuke set the cup back on the side table and smirked lightly. Sakura groaned and buried her face in her pillow.
"Kill me now!" She moaned. She peered a hazy green eye at him. "Dare I even ask what happened?"
"Your sedative did the trick... or it would have had you not got stuck with it instead. It seems that at high doses it does not only relax the patient but can also be used to completely lower inhibitions."
"Oh my – what did I do?" Sakura whispered, horrified.
"You pawed Sai and Kakashi, punched the Daimyo, tried to flash several people and may have destroyed Kakashi's love of Icha Icha."
Sakura laughed miserably. "Is that all?" She shifted on to her back before moving to sit against the pillows. She looked balefully at the Uchiha. "Why are you here?"
Sasuke frowned. "Charmed."
"No," Sakura explained. "I would have expected to see Naruto here too... I wouldn't have thought you'd be here on your own."
Sasuke in his pockets. "I wanted to make sure you were okay. I want to talk to you too."
"About what? Did I offend you yesterday too?"
Sasuke thought back to Sakura burying her face in his neck and her hands in his hair and shook his head to clear the thoughts. "Definitely not." He replied. Shooting her a sly glance, he smirked. "So that's what you'd be like if you didn't hold back huh?"
Sakura gave him a half-hearted glare. "I think my actions were rather exaggerated."
"Tsunade said that you probably acted the way you did because you usually have a guard up against men."
"Most women do." Sakura frowned.
"She also said you're scared."
Sakura raised a challenging eyebrow. "Did she now? Well with all due respect I think I know what I'm afraid of more than anyone else."
"You also mentioned that you've been waiting for me since we were twelve."
Sakura laughed at that, hollow sounding. "I don't think so Sasuke,. You really should take what is said with a pinch of salt, I was drugged after all."
"So you're not afraid of getting hurt again… hurt because of me?"
"That's what I said." Sakura sniffed, fingers playing with the starched blanket covering her.
Sasuke moved closer to her until his standing figure was hovering above her. "Look me in the eyes and tell me that."
Sakura met his gaze confidently. "I'm not… I'm not –" She sighed heavily and slumped in to her pillows. "I'm not that stupid little girl I was before."
"I know you're not."
"Then why are you doing this to me?" She said miserably. "Everyone already knows that I never stopped clinging on to the hope that you'd change your mind about me." Sasuke remained silent and Sakura continued. "After the war I was happy that I'd proved I deserved a place on Team 7… I wasn't the girl following behind anymore.
"So you're right I guess, I didn't want to look like the annoying girl I was before. I didn't want the men who approached me for dates… but I couldn't have the person I wanted so it was easier to put up a wall against men in general. Better to be alone than look like a fool right?"
Sasuke felt like the scum of the earth at that moment. He knew he was an idiot when he was younger (still was if he was being honest with himself) but he would never have imagined how much his actions affected the people around him. He leaned forward, his body caging Sakura against the bed and he caught the girl's chin in his hand, forcing her gaze to meet his.
"This fear you have about me breaking your heart again?" His eyes burned in to hers. "You have nothing to be scared about."
Sakura offered him an unsure smile and Sasuke's lips twitched in return. "Just promise me one thing." He said, voice serious.
"The next time you feel like lowering all you inhibitions? Make sure we're alone first."
Sakura couldn't stop the laugh that bubble up at his words and she gazed at him fondly. "Deal."
Naruto skipped happily through the hospital corridors eager to see if Sakura was feeling back to normal. When he reached her room he was surprised to see Kakashi, Sai and Tsunade all stood outside, conversing lowly.
"Hey," the blonde called out as he approached them. "What's everyone doing out here? Is something wrong with Sakura?"
Tsunade coughed in to her hand. "Actually, Sakura is already awake."
"Great!" Naruto cheered and headed for the door.
"I wouldn't go in there if I was you." Kakashi warned, his lazy eye fixed on Naruto.
Naruto waved him off. "I want to see Sakura-chan."
Before anyone could stop him, Naruto wrenched open the door and took a step inside. It took a split second for his brain to process what he was seeing.
"Oh my god!" The blonde man screamed, staggering back in to the corridor, slamming the door shut behind him.
"Funny," Sai noted calmly. "That's what Ugly's been shouting all morning."
I think this is the first Naruto piece I've written that isn't an AU setting… even if it is completely crackish!
I really enjoyed writing it, and I hope it was as much fun to read.


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G5 Entertainment's Q3 2011 report was once again a demonstration of profitable growth and reliability. As expected, management re-iterates its guidance for FY 2011 and its target of an 2012 EPS of SEK 3.20.
Rather than writing a long text about the obvious trends and how great the company is (if you follow our comments you know how it is anyway), I decided to show you some graphs that speak for themselves.
I am long G5 Entertainment and you should be too
Nordic Investor

subset: commoncrawl


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In my debut piece, I wrote about why the Magnificent Seven series is so perfectly suited for continuous remakes. While I have no interest in becoming the "remake guy," I couldn't help but react similarly given this news: An adaptation of the 1984 sub-underground classic The Toxic Avenger is in the works. With a script from Mike Arnold and Chris Poole (of Archer fame), Conrad Vernon will leave behind the Sausage Party to direct fresh high jinx in Tromaville. I say this with no hyperbole, but the Toxic Avenger is one my earliest discernible memories. As the child of a single, overworked mother, I saw this film far too early, and it burned its way into my heart. In many ways, I covet it more than Batman and zombie flicks, and I had a dream not a month ago that someone would remake this beast of a film.
Since it's not me behind the camera, I'd like to offer some advice to Vernon and co. Here's how you should remake The Toxic Avenger if you don't want me and other Avenger acolytes to throw you from a second story window into flaming ooze.
1. Go Mainstream, Just Not Too Mainstream
The appeal of The Toxic Avenger is that, even by Troma's standards, it's fairly redonkulous. There's savage beatings by a toxic monster, mega overt racists, low-key bestiality, extreme bullying, hardcore pimps, straight-up child abuse, modified seppuku, gangsters with a castration fetish, and interspecies lovemaking. It wasn't ever meant to have mainstream appeal; this was a film for the awkward losers who wanted sex and blood and they wanted it real weird-like.
That kind of film wouldn't float in the modern movie-sphere, even in the day and age of of self-funded weirdos tossing footage onto YouTube by the country mile. But it's less about what Toxie does with his hands and to whom, and more so the spirit. Don't be afraid to get weird, to gear the humor less to the frat bros of the world and more to the kids in the proverbial back of the class. That was me when I was younger, and this movie gave me a lot of solace. I would hate for the filmmakers to miss out on providing that outlet by thinking they have to make everyone happy. Those dweebs and outcasts whose hearts you do touch will love you for giving them a channel to express some less-than-savory feelings about bullies and other ne'er do wells. Plus, I doubt that most people are going to get uber hyped about this movie, and that's an advantage you want to use to excite the cult fanbase.
2. You'll Never Be All That Weird
On the flip side, going mainstream is the only direction that creators really can go. Not just for the reasons above, although our culture certainly has grown out of (or loss touch with) the creative energies needed to make this genuinely bonkers film. It's more so that the Troma Entertainment had a very specific identity, and they wanted things to feel weird and uneven in most of their films.
Watch just about any other Troma property (I suggest Redneck Zombies) and you'll see that no one's aesthetic is as deeply coo-coo as dudes like Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz. They almost wanted to scare some viewers away with the ultraviolence and sexual absurdity. The remake crew is no doubt operating under a semi-major studio, and they'd no doubt find themselves working at YouTube Red if they thought they could touch a lot of the core material.
To some extent, a mainstream Toxic Avenger could work. Cutting out some of the more extreme elements (like Toxie ripping a dude apart with his sludge-covered hands) doesn't mean this story is any less weird. It's about finding ways to pay tribute wherever possible, and preserving the inherent sense of quirkiness and underdog charm. Just don't change the pink tutu.
3. Keep It Brainy, Yo
When the film series was translated into the 1990 cartoon Toxic Crusaders, the creators decided to amp up the inherent themes of environmental protection. That makes sense given shows like Captain Planet were also helping to raise awareness and instill a sense of eco-consciousness in brats everywhere. That's not to say that the film didn't touch on those same ideas, but did so in a way that was fun and interesting.
To me, Toxic Avenger had always taken a punk rock approach to advocacy. It didn't bash you over the head with the message (Too busy doing that to characters), but it clearly had something to say. If you didn't pick up on that, then you're the dummy. And what was that message? Well, it's more than just the Earth is in danger and needs our help. It's just that if terrible bullies want to keep messing with the natural order, and relying on industries that require the creation of radioactive waste, then something is going to happen. And that something is a mutated monster who rips your arm off and puts you in a sleeper hold with it.
It's sort of like another '90s movie, Fern Gully, in that awful people are basically consumed by the personification of their greed and gluttony. This is a message that should persist in the remake, especially given the continued interest in global warming. To ignore the subtlety of the message is to strip the film of its real power.
4. Give Me A Damn Hero
There might be an argument for abandoning the environmental angle. I'm not exactly in favor of that, but given the vast swells of data that have emerged in the last decade, it makes sense for some artists to avoid corrupting these issues with gore and dick jokes. Beyond the environmental message, the original film delves deep into the ideas of bullying and the corruption of power. From Mayor Belgoody to the dudes at the local taco shop, just about everyone is a jerk in Tromaville. If you're not a dickhead then you're under the boot of one.
Toxie, then, is a huge shot in the mutated arm, and a way to give people back some hope and societal power. Every person he grievously maimed was to rip out cancerous tumors from the heart of his beloved hometown. He didn't do it for fame or glory or the girl (which he still got), but cause it was the right thing to do. There's a clear-cut sense of morality through the film — bad guys wear leather studded belts or short-shorts and the good guys look like a lump of melted wax. They all have their roles to play, and the film is an effective exploration of ethics and heroism (again, without bonking you on the head with a mop handle of overt messaging). Movies nowadays deal with gritty heroes and a sense of duality (the cinematic Batman comes to mind). This film needs to have clear winners and losers when it comes to such trappings.
5. Watch How You Cast This Bad Boy
There are basically no big-name actors in almost any of the Toxie films. Unless, of course, you count Marisa Tomei, who appeared as "Locker Room Girl" in the director's cut. Sure, that's because Troma probably had like $40 to pay actors, but it works. This approach only lets them pick mostly average folks, and that really feeds into the film's thematic vibe and general aesthetic.
Marvin (played by Mark Torgl) is so sad and pathetic looking that even I want to beat him with a couple of textbooks. Meanwhile, the "cool kids" of Bozo (Gary Schneider) and Julie (Cindy Manion) exemplify everything right and wrong with '80s movie actors. The former is a beefcake minus the sex appeal — the kind of cheesy goon you were born to loathe. The latter, meanwhile, was attractive in a really approachable way, and that's an essential balance for the era.
When you're casting for the remake, folks, I don't want to see Michael Cera as Marvin or Dave Franco as Slug. You might not be able to land them, but that's beside the point: They're too perfect looking, and I can't disconnect myself from their past work. I want some nobody I can either hate or pity to really drive home the grit and dirt that the cast needs to genuinely succeed in this most bizarre tale. I would, though, happily accept DJ Qualls as Marvin cause that's about as perfect casting as has ever existed.
6. Try To Pick And Choose
As mentioned above, there is no way the original and the remake could ever be, like, some sort of Funny Games shot-for-shot remake. Here's just one fight scene to help prove my point:
Unless you'd like to get an NC17 rating or run in 45 theaters for a total of 1.5 days, I don't see a lot of that brawl going down. If you want to stay faithful to movie, it's just as possible, and it's all about what you decide to show. Avoid the questionable acts of violence and give us something else. Go as extreme as you can within the new film's context, so long as you recognize the sheer absurdity of it all.
Some stuff may even be adaptable because of how it enhances the inherent value or meaning, like the famous bathtub transformation scene. As a moment seared into the deepest part of my cortex, I remember how just raw and physical it was, from the wailing and the contortions to the bubbling flesh. A new version won't be the same to my tiny little psyche, but this is a perfect moment to get a little sick and twisted and pay homage to the original. It's a way to help separate this film and still give the people a dash of sugary sweet nostalgia.
7. Make Me Feel Bad
As much as my nerd soul loves this film, it makes me feel bad to watch. Not because it's the first time I saw a man kiss a sheep (and certainly not the last), but for just about every event in the entire 79-minute run-time (and I mean every moment) I hated to see Marvin suffer. Yet, it felt good to see that little dweeb get a good thrashing.
Same goes for the death of every gang-banger. The moments where Toxie gets to be happy, the bit-by-bit disassembling of the town's coolest residents, and even the ending that makes me feel both hopeful and really worried. It's not the lame, goofy flick so many imagine; it's a really irksome and disturbing film on some profound level.
As much as it delights and entertains, I can't ever escape that sense of discomfort I feel upon viewing this movie. Again, that might be the film getting to me at a young and impressionable age, but there's something intoxicating about the experience. I enjoy it as the film climbs into my mouth and rubs dirt on every molar and incisor. It doesn't happen with every film, and because of that it has stuck with me like a true sense memory. The remake squad should aim for this kind of dynamic — to honor that sense of exploration by pushing people's buttons and leaving them feeling feeling like an exposed nerve.
What was your favorite moment from the original The Toxic Avenger?


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Research Note
Stereoscopic investigation on plasma density fluctuations in the outer solar corona
1 National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), Astrophysical Observatory of Torino, via Osservatorio 20, 10025 Pino Torinese, Italy
e-mail: email@example.com
2 National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), Astrophysical Observatory of Catania, via S. Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, Italy
Received: 1 October 2013
Accepted: 17 February 2014
This research note extends a previous work focused on the 2D reconstruction of the spatial distribution and temporal evolution of the plasma density fluctuations in the outer solar corona and based on STEREO COR1-A white-light observations. By using the corresponding total brightness images obtained in the same observational period with the coronagraph COR1-B onboard the "Behind" twin STEREO-B spacecraft, and adopting the same methodological approach as for COR1-A data, it was possible to confirm the results of the previous work and argue for the 3D configuration of the fluctuations of the coronal plasma. This provides further evidence in support of a scenario in which the fluctuating features, which are recurrent and spatially coherent, are localized along the magnetic field lines and points out the crucial role played by the 3D magnetic field topology in the confinement and evolution of the plasma density fluctuations.
Key words: methods: data analysis / magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) / Sun: corona / Sun: magnetic fields / Sun: oscillations / waves


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Houston's flooded streets due to Hurricane Harvey. (Photo: IrinaK/Shutterstock.com)
Donald Guter, dean of the South Texas College of Law Houston, has spent the past several days volunteering at the George R. Brown Convention Center, which has transformed into an emergency shelter for people displaced by flooding from Hurricane Harvey.
Guter counts himself as fortunate. His downtown Houston high-rise apartment building has been spared from the rushing water and sits several blocks from both the convention center and the law school, each of which have escaped flooding. Guter and his wife started working at the shelter Sunday night soon after it opened. But by Tuesday afternoon they were turned away due to an oversupply of Houstonians who had showed up to help. Only volunteers with medical backgrounds were let in.
We caught up with Guter Tuesday to discuss the law school's plan to reopen, how students have fared and what it's like in the emergency shelter. His answers have been edited for length and clarity.
What is it like at the convention center-turned emergency shelter?
What made me proud was that when we went over there, the first thing I saw was a group of South Texas students and recent grads pitching in, along with thousands of other people who are helping. The outpouring from the community is just astounding and heartwarming.
The first day it was organized, but organized chaos as someone described it. It's very efficient and well laid out. They've got doors for intake. They pat people down—they aren't allowed to bring weapons—then they pass through stations to get towels, clothing and food. Yesterday, when we were over there, we were helping to set up the thousands of cots that were bring brought in, and making sure all the cots have blankets and pillows. The space was filling up very fast.
What's the situation with your law school's building?
We're fortunate to be on high ground. I've got my Gore-Tex on and I'll slosh over to the school and make a perimeter check later, which I've been doing every day. The thing that's saving us right now is our particular location in downtown. We're downtown but away from the bayou. You can walk a few blocks either west or north and have to stop because it's flooded. It's an amazing amount of water.
So the law school isn't flooded. Have you been inside yet to see if there is any interior damage?
I have not, but we're pretty confident that there isn't. And if there is, we're pretty confident we know where it would be. It's nothing that would effect operations whatsoever.
Are your students OK?
We have heard some individual stories coming in from students. Fortunately, they are all safe and dry. They've made it to the homes of friends or family. We're trying to determine if any were displaced to shelters. When we open, we want to be able to provide individual help to every student, whether it's finding a place for them to live, or supply recovery.
What about access to the school?
The main problem is getting into and out of downtown. There are some directions you can go. But most, if not all of the highway systems, are blocked once you get a few blocks out of downtown. If you live within a mile or two, you may have access. For those faculty, staff and students who live out the suburbs, they're not faring as well.
Do you have plans to reopen at this point?
We're going to officially stay closed through the weekend, opening Tuesday morning. We're going to see if it's feasible and safe to open the school on Friday, on a voluntary basis, for faculty staff and students to start taking an inventory and provide an air conditioned, dry, space for students to study if they want to. But also to start finding out from students what they need, and do any counseling we need to do.
What's your message to students right now?
The primary message to students is to be safe. Either stay in place if you know you're safe there, or get someplace safe and stay there. Don't try to worry about other things that are out of your control. And don't worry about law school. We're going do everything in our power to take care of your individual needs when we reopen.


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Skip to comments.Glendale worries about East L.A. gang graffiti found in city
Posted on 09/24/2011 2:52:54 PM PDT by moonshinner_09
Glendale police are investigating graffiti tied to an East Los Angeles gang that appeared in parts of the city, prompting concerns from residents.
Police noticed the graffiti about a month ago in the area surrounding Fremont Park in the 600 block of Hahn Avenue, said Lt. Susan Hayn, who oversees the departments Criminal Investigations Bureau.
It scared the hell out me because I know what that could mean, Glendale resident Lenore Solis told the Glendale News-Press. If we dont nip it right away, it could cause some problems.
(Excerpt) Read more at latimesblogs.latimes.com ...
I did not realize this was blog,... sorry my error
SE-most Glendale has long been borderline gangland, and by "gang" I mean of the Latino type.
Oddly enough, one of the strongest bulwarks against infiltration by those gangs further into Glendale may be A.P. (Armenian Power). Of course, I'd prefer good old fashioned police arrests and citizens defending themselves, but in LAland it's very hard for the latter to occur legally.
Vandals broke windows and fired BB-gun pellets at a Los Angeles campaign office for Barack Obama Thursday night, days before the president is scheduled to attend nearby fundraisers.http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/obama-office-vandalized-los-angeles-180115921.html
That's correct. But they couldn't even contain their own in Little Armenia here in Hollywood, and when people think of Glendale, they think Americana or the Galleria. It's more than that. It's the same ignorant mentality when people think of L.A. as Hollywood. L.A in truth, looks more like Tijuana if people actually get the chance to take the Blue Line from 7th and Metro to LBC.
phew! I thought this was Glendale, AZ and was about to start loading more 30 round AK74 mags
phew! I thought this was Glendale, AZ and was about to start loading more 30 round AK74 mags
"Glendale worries about East L.A. gang graffiti found in city"
Do what all liberals do: Disarm yourselves and wait for the cops to show up in minutes when seconds count.
CA liberals define stupid to the Nnth degree. On my last trip to CA, I thought I had gone through a time warp and landed in 1930's fascist Germany. What a bunch of wimpy, clueless clods.
The state is run by fascists ruling over 36 million Ma & Pa Kettles, FReepers excepted, of course.
5 million illegals and growing here...LA is Mexico. All done. I guess the old White and new Armenian and Asian money in Glendale/Pasadena is seeing what the results of their pulling the (D) lever for all these years and watching people like DeLeon disarm you; Cedillo give away state aid to Mexicans and Tony Villar use all of his crooked cronies (SEIU/LAUSD/La Raza/MeCHA) and grievance groups push for more Tijuana Norte politics and policies.
My family still lives down there, but it's a literal third-world cesspool.
"My family still lives down there, but its a literal third-world cesspool."
Do what you gotta do, buddy.
Check out the Southeast when you get a chance. There's little league baseball for the kids, great restaurants and fine houses for a song.
I, ironically, am 1700's Virginia stock...my brother, sister and I moved to CA about 10 years ago...I do like a lot of people here, believe it or not, but the culture is fading into a hodgepodge of Lefty politics, unions and massive third world immigration.
The pockets are still here...but the Liberal mayors and town councils are importing diversity to even make the most kook-Libtard paradise (Marin County) have gang and budget problems.
I am ready to go back to the SE.
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To create a Dungeons and Dragons game can be as much fun as to actually play it. With programs such as THE QUILL by Gilsoft or DUNGEON BUILDER by Dream Software, very little programming knowledge is required. Let there be warning however that a logical and skilful mind is essential, as even the most simple detail of the program requires careful planning, if our hero, the player, is to stand a chance against the pitfalls and Dragons of the adventure. If you have a preference for graphical adventures, the Dungeon Builder is your comrade in arms. Discover the secret weapons at the reach of your fingertips...
The curious cassette box hides a 100-page manual containing hidden secrets and instructions and a single cassette loaded with the latest dungeon construction gear and dragon breeding equipment. The cassette also stores an hors d'example adventure to whet your appetite and to get you started on the right track..
The manual reads like Merlin's recipe book, advising you of the eight powerful menus at your disposal and introduces you to every single command feature with an example, which gradually allows you to build up a simple doorless two- chamber horror quickie to the most sophisticated multi-level dungeon mansion with all mods and cons such as self-locking doors and cliffs, trap doors and spiral staircases, secret passages and spacewarps, wall-to-wall treasures and blood curdling monsters...
The central playing ground is the Main Display Screen displaying a portion of a 40 x 40 cell map. Each cell is octagonal and represents a room with eight walls. A cursor pinpoints the editing location and the co-ordinates of every cell are displayed. In the upper right-hand corner is the memory gauge, indicating the amount of free bytes left. Below appear the various menus with command selections.
Upon selecting CREATE from the Outer Menu, all cells are restored with all walls intact and all objects destroyed. The basis of the system is to modify or knock out the walls of the cells, to create descriptions and if required screen pictures for the cells, create objects, etc. The player, all living beings, treasures, stairs, doors, keys, etc, are all treated as objects and must therefore be created individually. To any object is allocated a name, a score, a weight, a (starting) position, commands from the verblist to which it reacts and descriptions, when encountered in a room.
Several action commands may be allocated to one object, for example 'Open door' or 'Close door' and depending on the command taken, one of the following actions may be taken:
- SAY Prints a message, ie 'The door is locked'
- DIE Object is killed
- MOVE Moves the object to a new position (Any, Carried, Here, Select)
- STATUS Changes the status of the object (ie from closed to open)
- JUMP Causes player to move to a position specifIed.
For each status a different description of the object may be given. Each command recognised by an object increases the Verb List. Each command can be made dependent on a given condition and the action is to be specified.
This sounds all very complicated, but in fact is made very easy by the automatic prompting of the program. Depending on the previous action a new menu is displayed and makes sure that no logical errors occur.
Basically the creation may be subdivided into the following main activities:
- Create and modify the individual cells (Description, Screen Picture, Score, knock down or modify walls, etc.)
-Create and modify objects (Name, Description, Score, Commands, Position. Weight).
The commands recognised by the objects make up the Verb List. Since the command processor checks on the status of the object and various commands can be allocated to one object, multiple actions are made possible.
The cell walls are double-sided and may be broken through on one side only for access in one direction only. Conditional movement through a wall of the cell is possible, where the command processor makes the movement conditional to the status of an object, an open or closed door.
A wall of a cell may be made to react to the approach of the player, the action involving Say, Die, Move. Status or Jump. With Jump a spacewarp effect can be achieved, whereby the player will leave the room and appear at any given position on the map. Say will allow a message to appear when the wall is approached. For multi-level adventures it is necessary to create pseudo objects. These start with a dot and are therefore not printed on an Inventory or an entry into a room.
Stairs may be created as a pseudo object, which recognises up and down commands and acts accordingly. When in the middle of a cell, the menu asks for a description or picture. Selecting picture will activate the Picture Creator.
The facility includes apart from the usual paper and ink colour selection the drawing of lines and the painting of solid triangles. The cursor is controlled by the cursor keys (Caps shift for eight pixels per keystroke). Once completed the resulting picture will be displayed whenever the room is entered.
The unfinished program may be saved to cassette and reloaded. An excellent facility is provided for saving the completed adventure game in machine code, so that it can be loaded and played independently of Dungeon Builder.
In conclusion, the DUNGEON BUILDER is an excellent Graphic Adventure games creator, which simplifies the generation of even the most elaborate adventure and thus provides a possibility for the less expenenced programmer to create an adventure masterpiece.
Passage cause consequence list to be executed. (Shown in yellow).
Y coordinates (Ramge 1-40).
Centre editing menu (Displayed when the cursor is on the centre of a cell).
Open diagonal passage.
Number of bytes free for your game.
X coordinates (Range 1-40).
Conditionally open wall. (displayed in red).
Single wall permits one way movement from W to E.
Flashing cursor.
Edge editing menu (Displayed when the cursor is on the edge of a cell).


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The Weekender: We Steal Secrets
Noah J Nelson on Thursday, May. 23rd
I still get hyped about movies, even if it takes a bit more to move me than it did before blockbuster season was five months long and filled with copious, if dubious, 3D CGI wizardry.
This weekend is the traditional start of the summer movie season (i.e. when it used to start 20 years ago) and there are two big films coming out… and one small film that I truly care about.
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks is director Alex Gibney's (Taxi to the Dark Side, Client 9) look at the controversial website that aimed to force governments and institutions to be more open by creating a secure dead drop where anyone could leak secrets.
The film focuses on three critical figures: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, Army specialist Bradley Manning–who was the source of a diplomatic leak that embarrassed the U.S. Government deeply–and hacker Adrian Lamo, who outed Manning to the government and the press after winning the other man's trust online.
I'm a sucker for real life thrillers, which the Wikileaks story is. More than that, how governments operate in an increasingly transparent networked age is something that will define countless aspects of our lives in the decades to come.
The story of WikiLeaks isn't just about one big leak, it reaches into the very much in the headlines stories about how government views the press. A look at our dystopian present, and the picture of a potentially bleak future.
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks opens at select theatres tomorrow.
Follow Noah Nelson on Twitter (@noahjnelson)
Adrian Lamo • Alex Gibney • Bradley Manning • Jullian Assange • wikileaks


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Netherlands based producer Kratos Himself has enjoyed a studious 2013. This year alone he has provided remixes for Deon Custom, IET and contributed to the Mooncircle project as well as the Mellow Yellow Taxi ride compilation. In the pipeline is collaborative work with Jese Futureman. If all of the above was not enough to warrant the rest of the year off Kratos Presents A Town Called Imaginarium.
The 7 track EP is an eclectic journey across continents. Opening track, Imaginarium is downtempo with a intermittent military drum roll. This track manages to set the theme which runs throughout the project. Vastness.
The EP gathers pace over the next two tracks. Remember is a flashback to pre dub step Amon Tobin material, whilst Ayahuasca has the feel of a pursuit underpinned with an eirrie distant choir. Ayahuasca has a heavy milddle eastern influence infused with chemical drums.However the track that will have listeners reaching for repeat on a lazy summers evening is Lucid. This contemporary jazz like composition combines orchestral strings trumpet and break beats perfectly. Till we meet again brings about an atmospheric end to the EP. The rhythm of the track is provided by a slowed down heart beat strings and guitar.
As with Air, Bonobo, and the late Terry Callier before him, Kratos creates muisc which evokes a feeling of an epic voyage will be embarked upon every time the listener presses play.


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I wonder why I couldn't publish my hub. What kind of violation did I make?
sort by best latest
The first thing is did you follow the instructions from the help section. As one who is severely "tech" challenged, I found HubPages to be the most informative as far as "how to".
Also, depending on the topic there could have been some violation but you would have been notified of that.
Did you make sure to SAVE all of your information in the capsules - The first Hub I published I ended up not saving properly and I lost it.
I am sure it is something very simple that you can rectify quickly.
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Dicaprio died,he stayed in the dream while others was kicked and went back to reality
Hope this answer your question, or maybe not? heehee ...
I'm pretty sure the butler did it...
Hahahaha ... Carlos ... who was that guy who played the butler?
it was the transgender robot I think, you know- the one who looks a bit like a Tangerine
Oh ... that one, huh? Hahahaha ... need to replay the cheap DVD to search for it ...
In the end, there was no spoon.
Do you remember the ending of "Basic Instinct"? The camera pans down to the icepick on the floor?
Did it mean anything? No. But simple happy endings are as unacceptable to the makers of cool movies as they are to their target audiences.
In "Inception" the same rule applies. In the minds of the film-makers, there's no reason not to make one last camera move down to the ever-spinning top.
It's cheap, simple, and appropriately undermines the happy ending.
Does it mean anything?
The top wasn't ever-spinning. The movie ends just when it would stop, does it not? This is because the makers were too indecisive to decide whether or not Leo was still in his dream or not.
He wasn't though. Also, there were too many levels of dream in this movie. And didn't someone die and then come back to life?
Hahahahaha ... actually, Matrix is real, and we are all living in it ... I think I just saw Mr Smith at Wu Dao Kou last night :)
I know kung fu.
Hahahahaha ... we all know the Panda :)