"Phoenix, I'll be awaiting you at the Saimon gates." Houou sang out as his clone began to morph and warp into a thin branch, his feet began to grow roots , stretching deep into the ground. From the tip of the branch blossomed a small golden orchid, followed by several bright green leaves sprouting downward.
Odoeb
Time and Timor
malavaes
Posted: Mon Oct 23, 2017 7:31 pm
Atsuko was taking a bit of time to relax in the new home stead. The workers had finished up just a few days ago, leaving it freshly renovated and much more comfortable then it had been for a very long time. With Asumo on his shoulders he'd go up to the cave entrance, reequipping his long range communicator so as to relay a message to the other members.
"Base rennovations have been completed. I have keys for each of you for when you are able to meet up with me. I plan to be at the base for a few more days at least. You're free to add whatever else you'd like to your rooms, but at the very least we all finally have our own beds to sleep in"
The message was relayed which meant Atsuko could go back inside, he closed up the doors and rested for the time being.
After the days had passed of course he finally headed out all geared up. There was never time to waste as a rogue after all. ________________________________________________________________ ◆￤ CHAKRAx 350 / 350x◆￤ STAMINAx 150 / 150x◆￤ RYOx 650x◆￤ ACx 1100 ◆￤ TAMER / NINJUTSU x◆￤ D-RANK ROGUEx◆￤ SHISHINx◆￤ UCHIHA x◆￤ DRAGONxxxxx
◆￤ Passives
● Flames of the Uchiha; Fire techniques are moderately increased in rank, flames have a blackish hue. Costs 10 Extra Chakra. ● Dragons Greed - 1.5x Ryo rewards from missions or jobs; With a love for wealth instilled by his chosen animal Saiji is particularly good and negotiating higher sums for missions or jobs. ● ●
It had be a quiet couple of weeks at the Shishin's home. They had returned, exhausted both physically and mentally. Houou's ashes were given a proper burial underneath the tree in the center of the building and Artemis and Atsuko shared stories of Houou with the other members, a reminder of happier times. Atsuko himself etched onto his back using the transformation technique a complex figure of a tree, with a sleeping tiger underneath. At the base of the tree he etched carefully into the wood Houou's name. It was simple, but in Atsuko's mind fitting. Houou to him was more of a feeling then could be put into words, like a ray of sunshine through dim clouds. Once the burial was complete they would all be given time, especially Artemis, to mourn Houou and recover.
Atsuko did spend sometime with their new comer. Zetsu was his name, a slave of the UHV who had a similar past as Houou did and showed great interest to join them. Atsuko made it clear that it wouldn't be as simple as being given a spot, but that he would be given the title of Fire which in and of itself was something new. Fire would be the title given to all those who were initiates of the Shishin and aimed to eventually take up an official role, like bright flames roaring against adversity. If he stuck with them long enough and proved his loyalty and merit he would be given a title just the same.
Once two weeks had passed Atsuko would gather them in the morning. He had made it clear that they would not dwell on this longer then necessary. Houou would never be forgotten but his spirit could not be represented if they spent their time lost in mourning and sadness. Houou would want them to continue on with their journey, and their goals.
"It is time we step back into the world. Kumo is satisfied with our progress so far and as we dealt a major blow to the uhv we are not in a need to do such a large move again in such high numbers. Because of this I will have us split up again. We have communicators and can work together if we'd like but we don't need to work as a full team. I will be taking Taketori to the hospital and a few other errands so he can progress on his curse seal but after that is done it is likely I will be busy catching up on quite a few things I've been meaning to. I will also be pursuing a new alliance with Kirigakure. I'd like to see us have a few more options for where to train and more chances at work. Besides them I am also planning to visit Takumi to catch up on some....family matters.
Artemis I do have a request however. I want you to work with Zetsu for the next little while. He has been given the role of fire and thus is aiming to prove himself. We will have to get him a communicator but regardless he'll need a partner.
Other then that all of you are free to do as you wish in terms of any training or missions. It would do good to continue to pester the UHV in Sasagi but right now our main focus is simply to work on getting stronger" Atsuko finished, almost running out of breath as he did so. Before anyone would have a chance to speak however he'd clear his throat to add on one last thing.
"Finally I want to say....thank you. Though we have suffered loss we have continued to stride forward and will continue to do so. I could not have wished for a better family and from this point on I will do everything in my power to ensure that our future is a peaceful, and safe one for all of you" ________________________________________________________________
Artemis spent the next few weeks in complete silence. It was contrary to her typical brash, loud-mouthed manner; the personality that had made her seem so magnetic to Houou. She was merely a ghost haunting herself, refusing to speak nor emote nor eat and drink at healthy levels. She was looking a little skinny at the end of their unofficial official mourning period. The only easy sign that she was upset was when she'd torn her room apart - not that there was much inside, but that didn't stop her from tossing any remaining tailoring supplies or projects in a fit of anger, that those practices had been ages ago and she wasn't the same person that started those projects because that person had had Houou.
She threw her tantrum, knocked everything over and screamed once at the top of her lungs until she was seconds from passing out. She recollected herself. Then, she cleaned up her room. She was one of those therapeutic cleaners, that making things look nice and neat helped her also organize her mind in a pleasing way. She dusted off the room that still had that new-house smell, because it was new, even if it'd just been sitting around in the meantime, waiting for her.
She didn't speak until the gathering. When Atsuko got down to business in the way he did, and set out what he was going to do -- they'd discovered that communication was truly key; not hearing from Chet in this extreme amount of time was very telling -- and then he made a request.
Work with Zetsu.
Work with that b*****d. Artemis broke her vow of silence for such an injustice.
"You expect me to put up with this snot-nosed brat? This baby scientist that can't even name all of the kages? Any academy student in the world knows more than this kid, and it's my responsibility to -" She had turned to glare at the kid to emphasize his point, but in the morning light, Zetsu had a likeness that struck a chord in Artemis. In the soft morning light, the kid's still-somewhat-scrawny edges resembled a warmth akin to Houou's; for a brief second, the Senju was among them again, happier than ever.
She choked, looked down with burning cheeks at the thought of Houou disapproving of her - and he would, she knows - and sighed so the tension in her shoulders would be relieved. "Alright, Atsuko. For you."
Taketori had spent the last two weeks listening to stories about Houou, the one who had been killed in their last mission. They spoke of his ideals and his dreams, the things that Shishin itself were adapting moving forward. He had carved his own abode within the secret base of Shishin. It was rather spartan and bare for the time being. Taketori himself slept on the ground. A carved femur, telling a primitive tale of their previous mission in the tunnel, hung on the wall. It seemed that Atsuko had decided it was time to re-enter the world.
As they received their orders, Taketori nodded simply at Artemis and Zetsu. Sister Sunbird he found hard to approach after the mission. Matters of necessity Taketori could handle but they had carved out a reprieve from the world and he did not know what to do. Zetsu, too, had a lot of his own personal thinking to do. Taketori chose to leave that man alone until Zetsu solidified his position.
With that, he and Atsuko departed. First for Takumi.
First Class: Taijutsu Discipline → Berserker: Your external training and devotion to taijutsu has allowed you to have moderately increased Strength and Fortitude. Your hardened body allows you to mitigate the pain/status effect of an incoming attack for two post per body rank, allowing you to continue the fight until the pain or hazards settle in. This means that a stunning effect can be delayed by up to ten posts at S rank. However, you ignore pain anytime you use this discipline for any reason, meaning if you delay having your arm disabled by a skill, you can also ignore the pain from having been stabbed on that post as well. Example: A ninja uses a lightning technique designed to stun you. For one post, you can delay that effect from taking hold, and have nine posts to continue delaying effects. Similarly, the pain from the attack itself is also ignored. This doesn't, however, prevent you from being blown away in the wind, or set on fire/drowned for example. Furthermore, if lethal damage is suffered then the delaying ability will be nullified for that effect.
Second Class: Taijutsu Discipline → Monk: A more internal martial artist, this user focuses on the ability to utilize chakra to increase their power and techniques due to their smaller body frame. Gains a -2 learning reduction to Pi Qua Quan, Hsing-I Pakua, and Xinyi liuhe Quan. Attacks overwhelm physical taijutsu techniques of the same rank or lower and type.
Over the two week period, Zetsu found himself struggling with many unforeseen adjustments. The young 15 year old boy had never been quite so free. While Zetsu could not leave the base for obvious reasons, he was allowed to travel freely within the base and even around the entrance. Atsuko had assigned Zetsu a room, but he had not slept in it yet. The room had belonged to Houou and after exploring the contents. Zetsu began to understand Houous role in the group....the reasoning for His newfound freedom....why a man could be so selfless. Zetsu discovered that Houou was a medic due to the abundance of medical supplies that were left behind in the room. This man was quite the neat freak as well, Zetsu thought to himself. Zetsu didn’t have the nerve to move anything in the room during those two weeks. Instead he would sleep near the garden where a small sliver of moonlight slipped through a thin crack in the mountainside.
During his many chilled nights out in the garden, Zetsu could seldom be found sleeping. He was too plagued with thoughts of what the UHV had done to him. Now that he was free, the only thing that consumed his mind were concepts of revenge. That is, until he began talking to Atsuko. This great warrior that lead the charge in the caves, couldn’t have been much older than Zetsu himself. This tore Zetsu’s mind even more. On one hand, he wanted to run away and start attacking the UHV, even with no combat experience. He was being young and brash, his inexperience was to great. On the other hand. Zetsu now felt like he had a place he could belong. A place that Houou sacrificed himself to see Zetsu in. How could he let such a sacrifice go unpaid. He knew that he owed it to shishin to take up the mantle as their new medic.....even if he knew nothing of those arts.
Suddenly one day Zetsu would awake to the entire group, congregating around where he would sleep. Atsuko’s words were direct and to the point. The group could not remain stagnant and their grieving period was at an end. Zetsu was to be paired up and trained by Artemis, the only person in shishin that didn’t welcome him with open arms. She made that clear when she objected to training him. Zetsu only looked down slightly. Unsure of how he should respond. He felt as though he was a burden to Artemis. Only slowing her down with his utter lack of knowledge. So he made a decision. Something he had though of in Houous room.he would travel back to the city where the mysterious man Magnus resided. Surely a man of his position would be able to assist him in his hunt.
“I know that i have no right to ask it of you... but may I travel to The city where you all found me? I have something to ask of Magnus. If I am to be of use to this group, his assistance is integral.”
Zetsu never met anyone’s eyes, instead he kept his head low, fidgeting with his communicator.
Returning back to the mountain, Taketori distributed a pair of mechanics' goggles and their lens pack to Atsuko, Zetsu and Artemis. He would keep his own on him. Donning his vambraces for training, Atsuko and him prepared a few days of learning.
First Atsuko would begin by teaching Taketori some basics. The Feigning Sleep Technique was important. They were about to embark on a massive training session and would need to rest often. Showing Taketori the hand sign, Taketori took it up immediately. Atsuko had to wake him up. [Tanukineiri no Jutsu [ Feigning Sleep Technique ] (E-Rank) learned in 1 post]
Now to learn the Shadow Clone technique. Taketori had seen how Atsuko had summoned a myriad of clones. They were exceedingly useful and would help further facilitate his training. For example, he could spar with his own clones for greater effect. Watching Atsuko perform some hand seals, Taketori followed suit. He began channeling his chakra. Learning ninjutsu wasn’t as natural as Taijutsu was, especially for a man who grew up in a forest in the Forgotten Lands, but Atsuko helped him get the general gist down. With a surge of Chakra, puffs of smoke created additional Taketoris. He evenly distributed his chakra and stamina to them. He learned it! With this, he could more easily learn the other techniques Atsuko had prepared. [Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (B-rank) learned in 3 posts. -4 post learning reduction. Intermediate Training: Discipline [+15 Chakra/Stamina]]
Upon seeing he had achieved the technique, he was about to disperse them when Atsuko stopped him. Looking patiently at the man, Taketori waited to see what he would do next. Atsuko began performing some different hand signs, these ones more complicated. A glowing purple seal began spreading across his teacher’s skin. It then sent out a pulse of chakra, spreading quickly and through solid objects as well. Atsuko explained the range to Taketori, it was about half a mile. He noticed that the Shadow Clones he created earlier were no longer under his control. Ah, so this was why Atsuko started with the Clone technique. Well, despite how complicated it appeared Taketori was sure he could learn it too. He began performing the hand signs he saw Atsuko perform earlier. When he messed up, Atsuko redirected him back on the right path. He had a few false starts, but in his defense the vambraces he was wearing were quite heavy after all. After he finally got the seals right to channel his chakra, the same purple signs appeared on him. They sent out a pulse in a sphere. Taketori himself could feel the sphere was probably a radius of half-a-mile and any clones caught in that would switch control to him. The clones that Atsuko had taken control of returned to Taketori and he also got some of Atsuko’s clones. With a nod from his teacher, he dispersed all the clones. He felt his chakra return to him and Atsuko got his back as well. Ah, Taketori could see that the original summoner of the clones then still had to deal with their upkeep but would also still get their energy back. This would be a useful technique against someone who overused the clone technique. [Bunshin Houin [ Clone Sealing ] learned in 6 posts. -4 post learning reduction. Intermediate Training: Meditate [+25 Chakra/Stamina]]
Next up was then the Taijutsu techniques Atsuko had employed. This was back in Taketori’s comfort zone now. He began sidestepping basic attacks from Atsuko. When he did so, an after-image was left behind. It was intangible. [Kyouzou – Sidestep (Stage One) learned in 1 post. -9 post Taijutsu training reduction for Kyouzou.]
Next was learning Ghost Strike. By focusing on his punches, he used extra chakra to create after images. These were intangible, partial images of only the attacks Taketori was performing. It was simple conceptually and simple to perform. [Kyouzou – Ghost Strike (Stage One) learned in 1 post]
Next Atsuko introduced Radial Split. After the demonstration, Taketori stood about 20 meters away from Atsuko. He visualized what he wanted to do and began to run at him. A solid after-image split from his starting position and ran towards Atsuko in a different direction. After a while he stopped running and the after image vanished. [Kyouzou – Radial Split (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
Now that he was closer to Atsuko, he performed a direct attack on the Uchiha that would leave the man unharmed if done right. Atsuko was showing an awful lot of trust here. Taketori moved his hand in a punching motion and as he threw it he simultaneously stopped it short while sending an intangible after-image of the punch forward. The punch appeared to completely land but went through Atsuko’s face. [Kyouzou – Fake Strike (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
Moving onto the next stage, Taketori moved away from Atsuko now. As he moved back, he saw the after-images he was creating. These were solid after images, and there were two of them. They mimicked what he did and how he attacked. [Kyouzou – Multistrike (Stage Three) learned in 1 post]
The next attack was like Fake Strike but in reverse. Rather than creating an intangible after-image to throw the opponent off guard, Delayed Strike worked by creating a tangible after-image that would follow up on Taketori’s attack. He did so and saw two after-images that each moved farther and farther forward after the punch. It could be used to combo a line of punches. [Kyouzou – Delayed Strike (Stage Three) learned in 1 post]
Now was a fun technique. Taketori was rather shocked as he tried to use it. An extra set of arms were created above his own with chakra. It was a tiring ability and no matter how he tried he couldn’t create any hand seals with those arms. They were usable for hand-to-hand fighting however. [Kyouzou – Multiple Arms (Stage Three) learned in 1 post]
Atsuko created a clone for the next one. Taketori rushed it and launched an uppercut at the clone. As the clone was knocked into the air, more after-images of Taketori appeared to continue the assault, launching it further and further into the air until it poofed and disappeared. [Kyouzou – Rising Barrage [Stage Four] learned in 1 post]
Following up on Rising Barrage, Taketori immediately began the next technique. Taketori converted the clones he had made with Rising Barrage into actual Shadow Clones, giving them portions of his Chakra and Stamina. This occurred after the uppercuts he launched. Atsuko explained the limitations of Cicada Shell to him. [Kyouzou – Cicada Shell [Stage Four] learned in 1 post]
Having gotten the basics out of the way, now was the time to push the edge of Taketori’s knowledge. Taketori began running circles around Atsuko. As he did, he released intangible after-images that ran in different directions around his compatriot-turned teacher. These clones were used for distraction and, having used it at A-rank, Taketori found himself creating ten after-images. It was a real tornado of motion around Atsuko now. Though this was largely a vanity, of course. The Sharingan would still see right through it. Well, he could see even Atsuko was having trouble reacting properly to all the clones. [Kyouzou – False Cyclone (Stage Five) learned in 2 posts.]
He decided to further increase the amount of after-images Atsuko would have to deal with. Stampede created an additional ten after-images to add to the chaos of the previous False Cyclone. These new after-images were all intangible, unfortunately, but the sheer number was whipping up a storm. It was an interesting technique that could be used in conjunction with any other image-creating one. Taketori could see a real strength of it lay in turning the after-images into clones with Cicada Shell. Twenty clones would be a real force to reckon with. And it seems this was why Atsuko taught him the technique to take and relinquish control of clones as well. Well as long as he continued to grow his chakra, he would be able to effectively use that technique in the future. [Kyouzou – Stampede (Stage Five) learned in 2 posts]
The rest of Kyouzou was too complicated for this one go. Taketori rested using the False Nap technique for 3 posts until he completely recovered all his stamina and chakra (those Vambraces were killer). He then began his next phase of training with Atsuko on a Bukijutsu. Atsuko didn’t know it either but at least with his help he would be able to learn faster.
Close quarters combat knife techniques were next. Atsuko took a kunai while Taketori took out a bone from his body. As Atsuko rushed in, Taketori swiped upwards with his bone-knife to repel the blow. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Countering Technique: Upward Repel (Stage One) learned in 1 post. -3 post reduction to Bukijutsu training with Atsuko]
Next, Taketori channeled chakra into the hilt-area of his bone-knife. He jabbed it at Atsuko. Even though it was a small amount of chakra, Atsuko took it good naturedly. It winded him. They discussed how a stronger use of the technique could easily interrupt someone if it landed and wind them quite seriously. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Technique: Assisted Jab (Stage One) learned in 1 post]
After doing just that little bit, the two sparred with their respective knives. Taketori was a big man who often punched his way out of situations. As he got accustomed to the usage of the small knife and how to minimize his movements for greater efficiency, he found himself getting faster. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Styles: Knife Stances (Stage One) learned in 1 post. +2 to speed when using Bukijutsu involving small arms]
With the same training as before, Taketori had to deal with a slew of Atsuko’s incoming attacks. He found himself switching his blocks and slashes quite often. Upwards, downwards, leftwards, rightwards. Using a knife was flirting with danger due to its small blade and he found his reflex increase from courting danger like so. Not that if Atsuko did stab him it’d be a problem, given his Kaguya bloodline. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Styles: Simple Play (Stage One) learned in 1 post. +2 to Reflex]
They repeated the initial position. Atsuko took a stab at Taketori. Taketori repelled the attack upwards and also threw his knife upwards too. He then moved around behind Atsuko to catch the knife as it fell and attack. It seemed kind of silly to him since he could just make another bone-knife appear but it was stylish at least. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Countering Technique: Back Repel (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
As they returned to knife sparring, Atsuko instructed Taketori on how to pass the knife from one hand to the other. It didn’t really look like Atsuko himself could do it as he refused to demonstrate. Taketori took his advice though. Just because he couldn’t do it didn’t mean he couldn’t give critiques after all. Taketori suddenly switched his knife to his other hand in the middle of play. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Technique: Change of Hands (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
The next one was Kneecap Surprise. Taketori enjoyed the name it had been given, he found it quiet humorous. As they began sparring again, rather than continue the same set of horizontal sweeps Taketori switched his knife hand to confuse Atsuko and then tossed it right at his knee. Atsuko would dodge it but it had potential to inconvenience someone. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Technique: Kneecap Surprise (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
Finishing up that sparring session, with the vambraces weighing on his arm, they decided to transition to throwing. Again, Atsuko was more there to provide general guidelines on what would be effective and what wouldn’t be. Taketori channeled chakra into his hands. He then tossed his knife at a target pasted on the far wall. The chakra around the knife let it cut cleanly through air with no air resistance. It also made no noise at all. At least none he could hear. This would be good for stealth missions, though it was funny imagining this 6’9” giant going on stealth missions. Nevertheless, he was and this style’s training was much needed for him. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Technique: Swift Dart (Stage Two) learned in 2 posts]
The next training was tricky. Taketori almost didn’t believe Atsuko when he suggested it. Like Atsuko pointed out, he wasn’t really in danger of hurting himself badly due to his Kaguya genetics. So Taketori started juggling and catching a whole series of bone-knives. It helped his reflexes at least. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Style: Knife Toss (Stage Two) learned in 1 post. +1 Reflex]
The next training was for increased draw speed. Since Taktori kept his “knives”, if you will, inside his body, it was somewhat relevant. He formed and slashed with a bone knife at the same time. By the end of the slash, the bone had popped out of his palm and was resting solidly in his hand. It increased his draw speed [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Style: Artless Draw (Stage Two) learned in 1 post]
The next technique was tricky. They were passing the basics now into the more complicated stuff they were both unfamiliar with. It was going to be a lot of training, that much was certain. Hypothetically, the next technique was one that could end a fight. It required Atsuko’s creativity to come up with it combined with Taketori’s highly able body for the execution. As they began fighting, Taketori would drop his knife. He did this after a parry to one of Atsuko’s attacks. As the knife fell, Taketori quickly timed a powerful kick. This kick sent the bone-knife flying upwards. It was ostensibly aimed at Atsuko’s face. It’d be fatal if he used more power. Fortunately Atsuko blocked it. Taketori could see that it would be effective to use after striking an opponent’s defensive technique. With his bones providing his weapon arsenal, this would be an easy and fun technique to perform. With faster speeds and strengths too the knife would become more and more dangerous. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Technique: Knife Punt (Stage Three) learned in 3 posts] The next one was a bit hard to do in the mountain base. Taketori had to find a torch first. Taking the torch, he also got a ladder. He needed to mount the torch to the ceiling, to use as a pseudo-sun. The next technique involving trying to reflect light into an opponent’s eyes. The conditions weren’t exactly proper here but they could wing it. This was what ingenuity was about. Conversely, they could train outside as well but that was neither here nor there. As they began light sparring, Taketori realized it would not work with his god damn bones. He borrowed a kunai from Atsuko. Continuing to spar, he tried different angles of attack to get the light into Atsuko’s Uchiha eyes. The conditions again weren’t great but he found himself able to predict lines of reflection and angles of incidence depending on how he held his blade. A better light source would work. Honestly Taketori doubted he’d use this at all since his primary weapons were bones anyways. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Technique: Dirty Reflection (Stage Three) learned in 3 posts]
Having finished playing with light, Taketori got the ladder back out and removed the torch from the ceiling. It was a potential fire hazard. Actually it was a literal fire but they really did not need it here. He stomped out the flame and tossed the torch away in a pile of other torches. He’d have to learn the E-rank techniques at some point. He bet one of them could give you a fire source. Atsuko offered to teach him all the ones he knew later, to which Taketori was grateful for. Continuing on with the knife techniques, the next one involved the off-hand. Channeling chakra into it, a short aura appeared. The tip of his hand could be treated as a knife, really, with how it looked. It could do some solid damage, especially to an enemy’s limbs or internal organs. Taketori liked it, it gave him another avenue of attack. It was only C-rank but it could be combined with Taijutsu to make it more deadly. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Technique: Vital Poke (Stage Three) learned in 4 posts]
The training was going well for him. He had certainly mastered the use of one or two knives in combat during the large amount of sparring time he and Atsuko had performed together. The movements were getting more fluid and effortless to him. This was even WITH the vambraces, which was quite impressive. Taketori tried using a D-rank technique to see how well his training was going. Aside from the weight of his training vambraces, it was a seamless. He could not do many techniques that effortlessly however. Perhaps one every so often when transitioning. This would be good for him, especially enhancing his hand-switching of the knives. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Style: Two -fer-One (Stage Three) learned in 3 posts]
Atsuko assumed a defensive stance for the next part. He was only focusing on defense. Taketori started stabbing at him. His attacks were getting parried. He needed to do something else. He tried to look for weaknesses. Atsuko was parrying his attacks quite well. Perhaps then, he needed to switch targets. He looked. Atsuko was focused on his bone-knife that Taketori was stabbing with. Taketori then decided he would switch focus. He tried to make a grab at Atsuko’s arm with his off-arm. Making contact, he pulled Atsuko in. This seemed to catch him off-guard. Taketori then raised one of his big, meaty legs and pointed it. He threatened Atsuko’s chest with it. It was clear that if he pushed it, it would do serious damage. He might even rip off Atsuko’s arm if he kicked seriously. The two of them separated afterwards. [Sobagai Deba Sentou –Piercing Technique: What Defense? (Stage Four) learned in 5 posts]
The next one was another defense-breaking technique. It would disrupt an opponent’s defense. After taking a small meditation break, the two resumed their knife sparring. Knives clashed back and forth. Atsuko was focusing more on defense now. He also knew the piercing technique trick Taketori performed earlier. He was being careful not to be grabbed. Taketori needed another tactic then. Taketori thought about charging his elbow with chakra. He tried to look for openings to use it. Atsuko was on guard though, especially with the glowing chakra elbow. It was hard to land it still. He neede to break through Atsuko’s defense. Taketori then fell back from his offense to a more defensive stance. He parried Atsuko’s incoming attacks. As he did, he then saw an opening. Using his elbow, he made contact with Atsuko. The chakra dispersed into Atsuko’s body. He would suddenly feel his muscles not reacting properly as the chakra disrupted him. No matter what signals Atsuko was sending, he’d lose one activation. It was effective if it hit. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Disrupting Technique: Tingling Elbow (Stage Four) learned in 6 posts. Intermediate Training: Meditation [+25 Chakra/Stamina]]
The next training was to focus on his feet. He was acquainted with many techniques now. Still, Taketori knew he needed a bit of personal training to lift and press his feet. He would let Atsuko recover from his attacks. Taketori was a big man of course. It was more difficult for him, obviously. His foot steps echoed throughout the base. It was helpful though. The more echoes there, the more he could work out. It was positive feedback. He tried to find the best ways to step. Heel first or maybe the ball first? It was unclear to Taketori at first but as Atsuko gave him instructions. After a while, Atsuko nodded. He could no longer hear his footsteps anymore, at least not without enhancing his hearing. He found some mud too and looked to see if he left footprints. He did, though it was far shallower. This would help versus trackers and such. He snuck back up on Atsuko re-entering. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Style – Retreating Feet (Stage Four) learned in 5 posts. Intermediate Training: Performance [+15 Chakra/Stamina]]
Now Atsuko was helping him again. He needed to develop a greater sense of precision. Well, he juggled earlier that had worked. So he decided, hey he would juggle again. He’d do some of his Performance Training. Taketori started juggling a series of bone knives. He made six bone knives. He was catching them by the tip this time, rather than by the handle. It was more demanding to do it this way. If he wasn’t careful, he could hurt himself. Atsuko saw that Taketori was doing fine. He then started throwing other kunais and shuriken into Taketori’s juggling. Taketori had to quickly adapt to these new things. Each one had a different method of being caught. He felt his reflexes improving from this exercise. It was certainly impressive too, at the very least. Once he felt comfortable catching knives, he started gathering them up on the end of the juggle. With his hands full of knives, kunai, and shuriken, he dropped them and prepared to move onto the next phase of training. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Trick Style – Retreating Feet (Stage Four) learned in 5 posts. +1 to reflex Intermediate Training: Performance [+15 Chakra/Stamina]] Now they were moving into the most complex techniques Taketori could tackle. If he had thought the previous ones were involved, this was a whole new stage. This next was a countering technique. It was called Oopsie and Over. Taketori and Atsuko discussed the best way to execute it. Taketori would need to work on his foot work. He of course had the physical capability of leaping over Atsuko, that wasn’t difficult. He needed to be careful. It could easily break bones, pop sockets, and cause severe pain. They decided it would be better to use it on a clone instead. That made sense to Taketori. While some previous techniques were used one each other, this one was debilitating long-term. So, Atsuko created a clone for Taketori to spar with. They re-engaged in the knife sparring. While Atsuko was performing tricky maneuvers, Taketori simply defended. He was biding his time for the right technique. There it was, a straightforward stab! Taketori grabbed the clone’s attacking arm. He avoided the stab at the same time. With a twist, he used his power and build to leap over the clone’s head. There was a hideous snapping, popping, and cracking noise as he did so. Landing on the other side, the clone cried in pain. It dissipated in a puff of smoke soon after. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Countering Technique: Oopsie and Over (Stage Five) learned in 7 posts]
They took a short breather before the next one. This technique required some chakra to use. It would be harder for Taketori to learn compared to the previous one. That was alright, training was meant to be hard. This next technique was a disrupting technique as well. It employed similar conditions to the Tingling Elbow and the finger. Taketori focused chakra around his bone-knife. The knife appeared to be in a haze. No longer appearing as an object, it looked more like an indistinct shape in his hand. Hm, this could be useful for hiding. However it was still kind of visible so someone with a suspicion could see through it if careful. What it did allow was for sneak abilities. After all, who knew which end he would strike with? This technique, the dangerous end was actually the hilt. Continuing the fight, he could see that Atsuko was having a hard time. It was difficult to tell where an indistinct knife was after all. Taketori would try to hit him with the hilt. He saw an opening and took it. He struck Atsuko straight on the head. Dispersing the chakra throughout, Atsuko suddenly froze. He couldn’t move. Taketori decided to wait for him to recover. Afterwards, they discussed the ability. If he had landed it on a limb, that limb would actually be immobile until medical care was given. It was fortunate he had hit the head, because that’d be a pain to wait for. There was still training for him to do, but perhaps once it got to these more dangerous techniques Taketori should switch to more clone combat to not incapacitate his partner. Atsuko agreed. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Disrupting Technique: Severe Acupuncture (Stage Five) learned in 8 posts]
Next up, Taketori would do some more personal training. He’d let Atsuko recover from his ordeal. He was feeling tired too, a nap was definitely in order. The vambraces he was wearing did a serious number on him. The next training was a continuation of a previous one. Where he had learned to step quietly, now he had to do it quickly and quietly. Starting at great speed, he was still noisy. He was unsure which direction to go. Should he start quiet and increase speed or start quickly and increase quietness? He asked Atsuko. He would start quietly and increase his speed then. Finding a particular part of the area that echoed more than usual, Taketori began to practice. He repeated the steps of the previous training to achieve his soft footsteps. Then he began to speed it up. At every level of speed increased, he paused briefly. It was strange, there were different factors to keep in mind at higher speeds. It was not an easy training, especially for a man as big as Taketori. His pride would not let him NOT learn it however. After reaching a peak with this method, he switched. He had gotten the basics down. Now he tried to move as quickly as he could and find ways to quiet his step. It relied on his speed and reflex quite a lot. After training, Taketori thanked Atsuko and readied to sleep. [Sobagai Deba Sentou – Offensive Style: Stepless(Stage Five) learned in 7 posts]
Taketori feigned sleep until he recovered all his stamina and chakra.
When he awoke, he decided he’d need to catch up on some of his other Taijutsu styles. Impact of the Clenched Fist would be a good start. The next punch was a ranged one, in a manner of speaking. He infused his fist with chakra. He punched forward, sending the chakra off his fist. The chakra flew off in an invisible blast of force. The wave of energy flew straight, but it could also be tracked onto a Marked target. A direct hit with his fist would do less damage than the chakra wave. He marked Atsuko next. Now he aimed away from Atsuko with the punch. The chakra wave flew at him anyways thanks to the mark. [Nigirikobushi no Shintou – Heavy Blows of the Aura (Stage Five) learned in 4 posts. -7 post reduction]
The next punch he was working on would have little force behind it. Its intention was, rather, to antagonize the opponent. It was still used with chakra infused into the fist. He and Atsuko re-engaged in a sparring stance. Atsuko was powering up with various techniques and ninjutsu. When he saw an opening, Taketori aimed the Konsen punch. The punch landed and it had an immediate effect. The antagonizing punch seemed to really annoy him, breaking his focuses. Atsuko’s strength, speed, reflex, and fortitude bonuses all seemed to disappear. On top of that, his ninjutsu got worse. This technique could have many uses. It was difficult to land, however if it did land it would ruin a lot of people. Especially those with the Eight Gates. They would not be able to keep their focus on their gates, Taketori bet. [Nigirikobushi no Shintou – Free-for-All (Stage Five) learned in 4 posts] Now for Will-to-Fight. Fortunately for Atsuko, this was more of a cooperative ability. Having already Marked him, Taketori would try to share bonuses to Taijutsu and Bukijutsu. It was not necessarily an easy technique to understand. They had to boost their Will-to-Fight, essentially. It could even be used against an opponent during a fight to sort of bring equality to it. Taketori felt himself and Atsuko share the same bonuses to Taijutsu and Bukijutsu. Perhaps this would help with training as well. He undid it and then started a sparring session. It was somewhat uneven. Taketori was definitely the stronger Taijutsu combatant between the two. He then activated Will-to-Fight. Sharing the same bonuses, the fight became more even. [Nigirikobushi no Shintou – Will to Fight (Stage Five) learned in 4 posts]
Now it was time to work on the Kaiser Fist techniques. The Invigorating Armor had served him very well early. Now he wanted to learn an even stronger Armor technique. Taketori started screaming to power up. It was like a Super Saiyan one if anything. A crackling aura started developing around him. It was filled with energy. It was a struggle to maintain, much harder than previous Armors. He calmed down and thought through the basics. It was like Invigorating Armor, but even further beyond. And it was supposedly good for stopping exhaustion, which would be ideal for his continued training. In fact, he would maintain it as long as he could. With another scream as he powered up, the aura around Taketori finally consolidated itself into a stable Bolstering Armor. He felt Stamina rush back into his body as the technique kept him going. [Kaiser Fist – Bolstering Armor (Stage Five) learned in 4 posts] Next was the eponymous namesake of this technique. The Kaiser fist, with all its straightforward and brutal power. Taketori made a clone for this technique to get an idea of its power. He then began charging up. It was not easy to execute. In fact, in the same time someone could perform three techniques, the Kaiser Fist had to be charged up. He focused the energy he needed into his body and fist. Finally prepared, he looked up and set his eyes on the clone. The unfortunate recipient of the Kaiser Fist attack. Now, he charged forward. Sending his fist forward, his clone responded with a block. The sheer force shock the room. Even through the block, the clone vanished. Taketori took in the experience of the coach. He almost winced. Every single bone in his torso, even through the block, had been shattered. [Kaiser Fist – Kaiser Fist (Stage Five) learned in 4 posts] He then made another clone. These techniques were too dangerous for training with a partner. Maintaining the Bolstering Armor that powered him up, he sized up the clone. The technique would involve lifting the clone and then slamming it down head first. It was a death sentence, more or less. Given how big Taketori was, the opponent would still be falling from quite a distance. He grabbed the Taketori clone and lifted him up. Spinning him overhead, he changed his position and crashed him down into the ground. The impact broke bone, stone, and metal alike as the clone vanished and Taketori received the information. He was satisfied with it. [Kaiser Fist – Liger Bomb (Stage Five) learned in 3 posts] Dispelling his Bolstering Armor, which had recovered him a significant amount of Stamina, Taketori decided to continue training. He felt a few deficiencies in his use of the technique. After training in it so much, he could see he had openings from just blindly following the kata. Taketori summoned a full series of ten clones. They would spar each other for this training. Since there were so many clones versus one of him, he would need to minimize his openings. A heavy and precise strike was what he was looking for. He felt his strength increase as he found his own style. [Kaiser Fist – Bulky Punch (Stage Five) learned in 3 posts. +3 Strength]
[Training post part 2. I went over character limit]
Taketori also decided to train his Hard Physical Formless. It was at C-rank currently and he was looking to get it to A-rank at least. He paired up with Atsuko again. He aimed a few punches and quickly got it up to B-rank. Thanks to his large amount of Taijutsu training, it wasn’t difficult. [Formless B-rank learned in 1 post.]
Now he had to train more. To get to the next level, he needed to step up his game. He aimed power punches and kicks at Atsuko. As they went around the room, Taketori was denting floors and walls. After training in forms so long, it felt both bad and good. Good in that it let his natural skills shine forth. Bad in that even Taketori could feel a lot of missing potential in his blows. Now Atsuko went on the offensive. Taketori began blocking his attacks. As they were mostly straight forward, Taketori and his crazy fortitude were more than enough. [Formless A-rank learned in 3 posts.]
Next up then, Taketori took a short break before picking his next style, Hsing-I-Pakua. First he meditated to understand the true nature of fire. He could enhance his other attacks with the idea of fire.
Next meditation, Taketori thought of the earth. It was solid, firm, strong, and yet active underneath. It gave defensive power and stability. Techniques that couldn’t be stopped could be redirected into the Earth.
The essence of metal was different. It was hard, sharp, and decisive. Using it, it would increase the strength of what he augmented with the idea of metal.
Water, the essence of water was drilling. Water was flowing, formless, and soft. Yet water was also capable of penetrating. With water, he could transfer damage even through armor.
The true essence of wood, one that smothers. While one saw the great branches of wood above, one must remember the deep roots below. Keeping the whole structure in mind, he could increase the transition time between techniques and his own reaction time.
[Stage One of Hsing-I-Pakua learned. One post per technique, five posts total. -9 Training Reduction]
Next, Taketori compressed his body like a coiled snake. He rocketed his body forward for a quick punch. It would be good for the face or torso and it could be fast.
Extending Rooster was the next technique to learn. He sank his body by bending his knees. Then shifting forward, he did a powerful front kick followed by another kick jumping forward with the back leg. It could easily transition into the Coiled Snake later.
Bear Withdrawing, Shocking, then Following was next. Atsuko got back up to rejoin the spar. As he threw a punch, Taketori cleared the strike out with a palm strike and moved forward to close the distance.
Taketori raised one hand like a bird looking at its wing. He lowered the other hand to the ground like a bird hovering over its kill. He defended against high and low attacks from Atsuko.
[Stage Two learned. 1 post per technique for 4 posts total.]
Taketori opened his hips by rotating his front foot out. He then unleashed a powerful roundhouse kick. If it hit the legs as he was aiming, his opponent would be crippled and thrown off balance. He then followed up with two elbow strikes that would sweep someone off their feet.
He naturally followed up with Phoenix Launching and Hunting. He launched himself in the air and crashed down with both knees. He would pin a target to the ground with it if it landed and be able to pummel them.
He practiced with a chakra-enhanced hand. It had a stronger grip strength and he could grab at his opponent with it. Once grappled, he’d be able to keep his enemy off balance while attacking. A palm to the head could knock the enemy down after.
Taketori shifted his hips in the direction of his target. He performed a fast sidekick. This would be followed up by using his hands to ensnare a limb or clear a weapon and end in an uppercut.
He summoned a clone to practice grappling with. He cleared away the clone’s limb and started wrapping around it to immobilize the clone. He struck twice and wrapped a limb around the clone’s neck. The clone would feel weak and eventually lose consciousness.
[Stage Three learned. 1 post per technique for 5 posts total.]
Taketori charged his body with chakra to increase his strength. This technique wasn’t too dissimilar from the Liger Bomb. He would pick up a training clone and spike it on the ground head first. Not even armor could prevent damage.
Using another training clone, Taketori unleashed the Rushing Rooster. A quick series of 9-10 rolling machine gun punches rained down on the clone. He could see that spreading out his blows made it hard to defend while focusing down the center-line dealt massive damage.
He focused chakra in his palm. Looking at another training clone, he struck it in the torso and vibrated the chakra that he transferred. After dispelling the clone, he could see that it caused blurry vision.
Now he coated his body in chakra. He felt very fast, shunshin speeds. As he ran and closed in on Atsuko, he released the chakra off his body. It moved Atsuko’s limb and blinded him temporarily.
[Stage Four learned. 1 post per technique for 5 posts total. -9 post learning reduction for Hsing-I-Pakua.]
Using all the power his large body could generate, Taketori swung an open-clawed hand. The strike had great force and could easily send someone flying. By adding chakra, he could even deflect ninjutsu. [Bear Backing, Rocking, and Striking learned in 1 post.]
Next, Taketori paused and began meditating. He opened his mind up and reached out to see who was willing to accept it. Atsuko was, of course. Atsuko was here to help teach him these techniques anyways. He felt himself able to reduce Atsuko’s fatigue and gave him a great sense of courage. He could even send him some chakra to restore his chakra and stamina. It took another post for his senses to return to his body. It seemed like it would synergize well with Ninshuu. [Battlefield Meditation learned in 2 posts.]
Taketori then began channeling his chakra. He had many ways to invigorate himself and this was one. His chakra, pulsing through his body, began to eliminate his fatigue. He felt his stamina increase. In fact, it seemed like a good tradeoff. He felt twice as good for each bit of chakra he used. This would allow him to dominate and survive a battle for quite a while if he was satisfied with resorting to Simple attacks. [Invigorate learned in 2 posts.]
Taketori positioned himself and quickly issued a counterattack on the air. He could target his opponent’s joints on an attacking limb and aim for a break or hyperextension. He could even strip a weapon away, though then that’d obviously reduce the damage done. And it was an easy style to transition into another with. [Blocking Lion, Tearing Python learned in 1 post.]
[Begin Kishitou no Yoroi training. -8 post reduction to training.] For the next portion of his training, Taketori donned the armor pieces he salvaged from the tunnels. He wore them to get a better feel for it. He’d wear the armor pieces to acclimate.
The next was a very basic endurance technique. As Asuko launched physical attacks, Taketori planted his feet and leaned into it. The attack was less effective versus this.
Next, he lowered his head and charged at Atsuko. He aimed a tackle. It knocked Atsuko off-balance, as Taketori was quite a large man. [Stage One completed in 3 posts. 1 post per technique,]
He built on the foundation of Gamankurabe [ Endurance Contest ] for the next one. He simply brought his arms up to cover his face and upper torso. The attacks Atsuko rained on it lost all descriptive ranks and chakra. This would synergize exceedingly well with his bones.
The next ability was a powerful stomp. It took advantage of the armor he was wearing. It could have recoil, but he fortunately would not suffer from recoil thanks to previous training in a different style.
The next attack was inspired by beetles apparently. Taketori had seen them before in the forest so he had a good idea of what to do. In a pincer motion, he grabbed Atsuko and lifted him up, grappling him. [Stage Two completed in 3 posts, 1 per technique.]
His next training involved unstable ground. As he got accustomed to training on sand, gravel, and in mud, he would become harder to topple. He was also harder to move now if he wanted to plant himself in place.
Next was an anti-material attack. Swinging his hands in a double hammer-fist, he saw the damage it dealt to an object and to a clone. It dealt more damage to objects and less damage to flesh.
Taketori then jumped high in the air. He jumped about three meters up, though he knew he could go higher from his Dropkick training. As he came down, the impact would cause damage around him. [Stage Three completed in 3 posts, 1 per technique.]
He charged the armor around his foot with chakra and planted it in a defensive ninjutsu technique Atsuko used. While it damaged as a simple technique, it dispersed anything lower than its rank that it came into contact with. It could tear through defenses like a knife through hot butter.
He exerted himself and covered his armor in chakra spikes. Any incoming taijutsu attacks that hit the spikes would cause damage back. Ninjutsu attacks Atsuko tried were also absorbed by the spikes, with Taketori not feeling any damage until the spikes were destroyed. [Stage Four completed in 2 posts, 1 per technique.]
First was the Filling Gaps technique. He let his chakra seep into his armor. This bolstered his makeshift armor’s defensive qualities. However it was definitely harder to move in. It was a great enhancement for his armor. He wondered if it would work with the cloak of bones he could make as well. Well, first Taketori would need to learn that Bloodline technique. For the time being, he practiced moving around while Atsuko rained blows on his now enhanced armor to no avail. It felt good being that capable of soaking damage. [Anaume [ Filling Gaps ] learned in 3 posts.]
Now the final technique he could glean from the Kishitou no Yoroi at his current level was Kakuheki [ Barrier Wall ]. It was a defense against any incoming technique. However, Taketori saw its benefit versus ninjutsu especially. He pulled his limbs in for a perfect defense. Atsuko would launch ninjutsu attacks against it to test it. Fire, wind, Maruton, all sorts. The techniques would deflect around his armor and leave a cone behind him that was unaffected. It also granted some extra protection versus simple and complex techniques. Its effectiveness though was especially noted against ninjutsu. So long as he was prepared, large scale explosions and such would be no problem for Taketori. All he’d have to do was put up the Kakuheki and deflect it. [Kakuheki [ Barrier Wall ] learned in 3 posts.]
Taketori took another nap using Feigning Sleep. His chakra levels were low, though he would not have any stamina issues any more. Now was just a string of E-rank techniques Taketori had asked Atsuko to train him in.
Atsuko taught Taketori how to properly stealth and hide. It made him less conspicuous. This was a great feat because Taketori was a big man. [ Shadowing Stealth Technique Learned ] Next was the escaping skill. Atsuko tied Taketori up in ropes. Taketori was then taught the ways to nudge the rope and ties just right to break out. [ Escaping Skill Learned ] Now Atsuko showed Taketori a camouflage cloak. Pulling it over himself, he blended in with the background. The cloak absorbed the information it needed. [ Magic Cloak of Invisibility Technique Learned ] Next was Barrier shatter. They could borrow each other’s chakra to shatter barriers. It became more powerful with each person who linked up for it. [ Barrier Shatter Technique Learned ] Now Atsuko shared some Katon techniques. Taketori molded chakra in his lungs. He then exhaled them in a flare of fire. [ Flare Techinque learned ] The next technique let Taketori create a hot white flash after making some hand seals. It allowed for openings when the opponent was blinded. However the flash’s effect didn’t last for too long. [ Veil Technique Learned ] He snapped his fingers next. It created a small spark. He could create it anywhere but it did not seem to have much combat use. [ Cinder Technique Learned ] Now this technique was important for dealing with the flames of Katon. Mostly from their own techniques, it seemed. It would allow him to withstand more heat. [ Flame Resistance Technique Learned ]
[E-rank techniques learned in 8 posts.]
Now Taketori was going to teach himself some techniques. Unfortunately, Atsuko would not be much help with Taketori’s bloodline. He thanked the Uchiha and let him go on his way. Now, this was some serious training he was about to engage in. First was the Dance of the Skeleton’s Robes. Taketori formed several hand signs in preparation. A cloak of bones began to form over him. This was similar to how the bijuu would form their chakra cloaks. Of course, he had not seen a bijuu before. Apparently those who had were inspired by the bijuu cloaks. Their Skeleton Robes took on similar properties. Unlike the weapons and other techniques he would pull out, these bones were still considered living. He could feel them as a part of himself. That meant he could use his techniques through them as well. He would practice this to get a feel for it. The bones draped over him provided fantastic protection too. Enemies would be hard pressed to pierce it. It was easier to maintain after usage as well. While it had taken A-rank chakra to activate, it only took C-rank to continue using it. Taketori wondered how the bone cloak would react to a Cursed Seal. Not that he was willing to activate the seal to test it out. After all, the Cursed Seal was draining portions of his life. He was not willing to shave off a year, even if he was going to live long, just to test out how it affected Dance of the Skeleton’s Robes. He’d theorycraft it then. There’d probably end up being extra cartilage, perhaps. This would make the cloak highly usable and active. The cloak was also good for its ability to cover for damage. For example, even if his right arm was injured and unusable he could stimulate the cloak’s right arm for attacking. This would make him very difficult to take down for enemies. [Dance of the Skeleton’s Robes (A-rank) learned in 9 posts. -1 reduction.] The next technique, Taketori was unsure if he wanted to learn. It could lead to a serious taboo. After all, it involved desecrating the dead. That did not bother Taketori too much. After all, the dead were dead. It’s not as though he enslaved their souls, merely better utilized their mortal shells. However, the world around him considered it a serious taboo. He was a Rogue, but if seen performing it he could become an even greater pariah too. Yet, it was a technique that gave him options. Taketori decided he would rather know it and never have to use it than to have to use it and not know it. It would mean things were really desperate however. He was willing to throw away much for his family to ensure their safety. Yes, Taketori mused, he would rather learn the technique for an emergency situation. Luckily, he did not need to practice on full blown human corpses. Going outside, he hunted some small game. Lots of rabbits, squirrels, and such creatures. He arranged a series of corpses in front of him. Making some hand signs, a bone spike then extended into the ground. The bone spike would begin raising the dead around him. The squirrels, rabbits, and other small woodland creatures returned to life. They were simple zombies but they also had his Shikotsumyaku inside them. This would really enhance their durability. Of course, the more dead he revived the weaker their skeletal reinforcement. Beyond the 7th one, it lost resistance to simple bukijutsu. It was just a normal skeleton at that point. There was upkeep for each group of zombies. He wagered that the Cursed Seal would further enhance this technique. It was strange, the Cursed Seals and the power of the Kaguya really were wedded quite significantly. He then ended the technique, no longer animating the corpses. He would take them with him to make jerky later, after all wasting hard-caught food was certainly a greater sin in his eyes than raising the dead. [Obon no Mai [ Dance of the Festival of the Dead ] (A-rank) learned in 9 posts. -1 reduction,] Now Taketori would set out to learn his own techniques. Having trained in the others so much, he had come up with ideas of his own. First was the [ Dance of the Sandbur ]. It took ideas from Sawarabi no Mai’s explosive growth of bones and localized it. He focused the chakra into one of his finger bones. Firing his finger, he then triggered the [ Dance of the Sandbur ]. The bone from a finger bone into a jagged, spiky mess. The spikes on that soon launched off for even more damage. This technique would do serious damage, especially if the bone that was imbued with it pierced someone. [Dance of the Sandbur (X-rank) learned.]
Now Taketori needed to train in Korabo with himself. The next technique was a sort of self-buff and it required him to be able to combine his own jutsus together. There was multiple methods to Korabo. Taketori would try them all. He might use many of them. One would stick as his preferred one too. He did not really have much ninjutsu to practice however. He created a shadow clone of himself. The two would begin matching hand signs for Korabo training. Nothing complicated here at the start. They performed a few hand signs and created a brighter white hot flash. This was a bad idea. The light was much more blinding as it gained a rank. Blinking, he regained his sight the same time his clone did. They agreed to never speak of it. Next then, they would simultaneously time a snap. This was for the Cinder Technique. It created a larger, D-rank fire between the two for a brief instant. That wasn’t bad. Koraboing with a clone wasn’t tough. However, Taketori had doubts he would do so often. After all, his ninjutsu pool was more of a ninjutsu puddle. There was not much he was looking to combine. Next, he used the Kyouzou Taijutsu style and generated extra arms. The set of chakra arms could not perform hand signs. They could snap however. Taketori would do so to create another D-rank Cinder Technique. The inability to perform handsigns would put a damper on this method. Next he tried something more internal. After all, many of the techniques he was looking to Korabo involved Taijutsu. It wasn’t too difficult there, he just needed to mold the chakras together inside his body. [A-rank Korabo with self: achieved. 10 posts.]
Now with that out of the way, Taketori theorycrafted some more. He wanted a way to enhance the power of his basic dances. They had the potential to be very useful after all. Ah yes, he had just performed the Korabo training! Perhaps he could utilize that to his benefit. He thought of the [ Dance of the Clematis ]. Specifically, the flower. He created a super-dense bone lance for that technique. He wondered if it could be applied to his entire body. So he tried doing so, making his bones super dense. It worked! He would follow up with using his various Dances, such as [ Dance of the Willow ]. The bones formed there were also super-dense and much harder. Bukijutsu would struggle to cut through this, even including Complex/Spiritual A-ranks and below. However he found that his bones could not leave his body very far. Creating an extra long bone, it became powder and returned to his body after one meter. The concentration he put on keeping his bones dense meant that he would struggle to have bones leave his vicinity. Of course, a Cursed Seal Level Two could probably overcome that limitation. He [Dance of the Bulwark Oak (B-rank) learned in 3 posts.]
After finishing up, Taketori went back inside and went to sleep. It had been a long couple days of pure training. And he wasn’t done.
After completing the training and resting, Atsuko and Taketori would re-depart. They would want to upgrade his Cursed Seal, given how much of his Bloodline seemed intertwined with it. [Exit, puppeting Atsuko with permission]
Taijutsu and Bukijutsu Training Tally: Kyouzou learned up to Stage Five. [+5 Speed] Sobagai Deba Sentou learned up to Stage Five. [+3 Reflex, +2 Speed. Additional training passives: +6 Reflex, speed +2. Extra situational DRs.] Hsing-I-Pakua learned up to Stage Five. Kishitou no Yoroi learned up to Stage Five. [+5 Fortitude] Kaiser Fist Stage Five learned. [+1 Fortitude, +3 strength] Impact of the Clenched Fist Stage Five learned . [+1 strength] Total Posts: 200 posts. Vambraces training: completed. [OOC]:
Artemis accepted Taketori's gift of goggles with a brief thanks, letting him go off with Atsuko to train with a curt nod. She turned back to Zetsu with an almost offended look on her face once he spoke to her. He did have no right to make any request, but she did want to separate herself from him for as long as possible. Plus, there would be shopping of her own she could finish there.
With Artemis’ approval the pair departed to the village Zetsu thought he wouldn’t see for quite some time. Nervousness was painted all over his face, to the point that he cut his shoulder length hair, in hopes of passing through the village unnoticed by UHV troops. Through the False rock entrance they traveled, destined for Sasagi.
align=center] ”I would like to be remembered as a person who wanted to havepeace.....” ↓
Location ☷ xxxWith ☷ xxxThoughts ☷ ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Now that he was back at home Atsuko could take his time to train his new found abilities.
Atsuko knew that he had to train his new abilities. The mirror he kept in his study was a reflection of himself, to which he studied his eyes closely. Dull brown eyes slowly flickered to crimson red. [1] The place that once had his tomoe had been...altered in its patterned. Where once had been 3 slighted dots now were interconnected in a sense in a more flowing pattern. This meant if anyone were to look at his eyes they would know what had happened, and what they possessed. [2] He couldn't dwell on the darkness that these things symbolized however. His friends had passed away, his family had been lost, and now he was given an opportunity to give their legacy a proper example. Through darkness it was often that light shone brighter then before, even darkness was only the lack of it after all. [3] Darkness was what his eyes drew him to. Perhaps not in history but rather in emphasis, in power. From what he could tell from the stone the mangekyou had many abilities, to which he had been blessed with some. [4] He couldn't say for certain what these were but much like his clan jutsu he felt the pull of them in the back of his mind, which only meant for practice. Unlike his usual jutsu's though these ones would be far more difficult and take far more time of mastery. It was not something he planned to approach lightly. [5] And so he kept to a cross legged sitting position and focused his mind to what drew him. He closed his eyes and let his mental capacity drift off. Often he did this when meditating, so clearing his head was not an issue, and with it he felt his perspective float to some new place. [6] When his minds eye opened he found himself in darkness. Rather it was as though he was floating in a sea of darkness, the rolling clouds above a moonless night. Yet large blocks were still illuminated below, sharp white shapes jutting out as far as he could see. [7] At first this seemed quite nonsensical as it was a rather dream like place but that opinion changed when he landed slowly on the blocks. One could tell when they were awake or asleep, and Atsuko was definitely not sleeping. This place was real. [8] Unsure of where he was he avoided letting panic set in and remembered as to what was discussed on the stone. This was the world of Kamui. A place created by users of the doujutsu, its own world that laid within the user. [9] It was used in the same sense that it was almost a sort of storage space. Its sheer size was evident of it, as far as he could see just endless shapes greeted his sight in eery silence. People, attacks, almost anything one could think of could be sent here. [10] That was when his mind made another connection. In order to send anything here there had to be a way to do that. He wouldn't have been here if otherwise, there had to be a source to the travel. Even summoning jutsu had a source for its travel after all. [11] That was where he would practice next then, focusing on the aspect of travel. For some intuition he could tell that it involved one side of him much more then the other. Like there was a functional difference between the two. [12] When he relaxed his body and focused his chakra, he could feel his eye tense. A black swirling portal would slowly form, like ebbing black mist it enveloped Atsuko. Shortly after he opened his eyes and found himself back in his sitting position, back in reality. [13] (Left Side Trained)
One side felt complete. It now left his other side though. Kamui seemed to be such a fickle thing at times. [1] Instead of going there this time when he cleared his mind he felt his body go...lighter. Similar to how it felt to have the wind technique for flight used on him. But this was different. [2] He didn't feel weightless in the sense that he would be floating, but rather he just felt empty. Hollow. Void of space within himself the more he focused. [3] It was such an off feeling that he lost his focus and he felt himself refilling and he was forced to clear his head with a bit of a walk around the area. With a stand and a stretch he rubbed his chin in a puzzled manor. What was that feeling he had felt? [4] As he walked around the facilities he moved to the tree that was in the center, gently touching its leaves as they etched across his fingers. This bothered his head for some reason. Why was that? [5] To feel that empty it had felt as though he was lighter then air itself. In fact he could almost remember the air flowing THROUGH him. Going through, now that was a thought. [6] In order to get to the kamui dimension with his body he imagined that he didn't just stay in one piece right. Though summoning with chakra was possible it took much chakra for long distances, let alone a unique dimension. No no, that didn't seem as right. [7] He had trained one half of his body but the other half was a different story. He couldn't dwell on the other half if he was to properly learn the other after all. There had to be another trick with this. [8] That empty feeling was still nagging him but not as much of an annoyance or off set as it was before so he was able to slowly clear his mind. Bit by bit at least.Then he felt that slow, gradual release, that made him empty again. [9] His eyes were open this time however in order to witness this feeling. The leaf was still in his hand, however he noticed something. Before it had still, but right now it was....shifting. [10] The more this feeling grew the more the leaf seemed to shift until he finally witnessed it, fall from his palms. Or rather it fell THRU his palm, gently to the ground below. He stared his at his hand for a few moments and the thoughts finally clicked. [11] His hand had gone intangible and that had to have been the empty feeling. However it wasn't just his hand that had this feeling, which caused him to extend his arm towards the tree curiously. Surely enough, it phased through. His entire body could be done so. [12] As he was getting carried away with this he felt his eye hurting again, forcing him to cut things short and go back to his study. This was the heavy reminder. Mangekyou was not to be taken lightly. [13] (Right Side Trained)
Tsukoyomi was an ability that Atsuko hoped he wouldn't ever have to use on someone. Genjutsu to him was always something he felt a particular malice towards. Tricking someones senses, making them see or hear things that aren't real, always felt so dirty and underhanded. [1]. In confrontation he always tried to be direct with people if he could. Taking a life was never something he took lightly and unless it really did call for it he wanted people to be able to face their end up front. Not taken without acknowledgement [2]. However it was already in him, the ability he could feel. To not train it would be disadvantageous and there may come a time where he felt it was actually necessary to use. A final judgement to place upon a person as it were. [3] That to him really was what Tsukoyomi was, a judgement. In reality it only lasted maybe a few seconds, enough time for people to kai out of unless for some reason they couldn't. God help them if they couldn't because in that few seconds they would be witness to a literal three day span of judgement. [4] Three days in which the victim could be witness to literally anything the user imagines. Knives through the body, a nightmarish realm of darkness, or even just a void of nothing. It was complete control. This had a chance to be uneffective against some however three days of testing and manipulation would almost always result in some effect.....or at the very worse permanent mental decay. [5] That in and of itself was why he shy'd away from the thought at first. Tsukoyomi was primarily used as a torture device. It couldn't hold people for very long but COULD effect them very quickly. However on that coin he saw the other side as well. [6] Though you could use it for bad means you could also do so for good. Use those three days to talk, to show them a perspective they haven't seen, anything to help calm or end the situation. [7] That thought was enough to make his mind set on practicing it. A double edge sword that could be used for good, or judgement. Evil wasn't the right term for Atsuko to practice with. In his eyes there were those that did deserve death or judgement, but those were the souls who were to far lost. Those that couldn't be retrieved or were to dangerous to do so at the time. [8] If he was a pacifistic like his father for example he knew he'd have a hard time in this world. People could be recruited to follow him and he could do speaks of peace to others but in a world fueled on warfare not bringing a sword to your side is a quick path to death. Death was a permanent path. [9] If he wanted to continue to change the world he had to live, he had to survive, Not by any means necessary but by means he chose. By means that the Shishin chose. [10] He closed his eyes in meditation as he thought to this and opened them again in a dream like world. It truly felt like a dream, but he had more...control. With a flick of his thoughts he could change it on a whim. [11] Great beasts could be made and dispersed. Clouds of smoke shifted and swirled, going from solid to liquid and smoke once more. All of it so malleable, so free. [12] He had spent what felt like days in there but when he opened his eyes again he could tell it had only been a few moments. Huh. It was nice to have a place to think. Though he doubted he'd use it for such a purpose. [13]
Training complete. Atsuko rested as needed to be at full strength and would exit the base, locking up as he did so.
tab Mon Mi-jin had her back to the wall and her world view was upside down. She was perch upside down with her legs cross and her arms folded over her chest as she hum deeply. Her eyes was close, but if someone ask her what she was doing, she would say she was meditating. Blood was slowly trickling to her head, but Mi-jin continue to focus.
fish1/4 OOc:
Location: secrets base
Company: Enemies: none
Posted: Wed Apr 24, 2019 9:58 pm
A t s u k o • U c h i h a
As Atsuko waited he realized that at least one of them might have been a bit on the late side, so he opted to head inside for now and talk to one of their newest members.
The door shut behind him and he walked down the hallway into the main lobby. From the railing he spotted Mon on the 1st floor, who as usual seemed to be up to something. He hopped over the railing and landed on a rock below, sliding off of it to land a few feet away from her.
His eyes as always were lit up with crimson red, mangekyou sharingan pretty much always on. To some that might have been a bit threatening but for Atsuko he always kept it on around his group for their own protection. The man would never hesitate to use its power to protect each and every one of them even if he went blind for it.
There was the sound of wrinkling paper as Atsuko pulled out the set of scrolls from his robe.
"Hey Mon. Meditating again?"
Atsuko held the scrolls towards her but didn't mention them directly quite yet, half expecting the girl to fall over from all that blood pooling in her head.
tab Mi-jin felt she was getting close to some sort of enlightment or maybe passing out. Her face has turn a bright pink as she hum louder. Her eyes snap open at the crinkle of paper and she notice Atsuko was upside down. "I am reaching enlightment." Mi-jin replied. Slowly uncrossing her legs and attempting to push herself upward in a sort of upside down push up, but topple over to the side. "ouch." Mi-jin rubbed her hips and sat upward up at Atsuko. She was accustom to Atsuko mangekyou being active whenever he was around them. It just how he was, from what she could gather. "Hi Uchi, w'at dis?" Mi-jin curiosity asked.
