What you don't see CAN hurt you. [Toshiro SC training]

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Code:: [b]Name:[/b] Black Ops Stealth
[b]Rank:[/b] A
[b]Type:[/b] Skill Based
[b]Prerequisites:[/b] Must have Advanced Stealth.
[b]Training Requirements:[/b] A 1600 word training post is required to gain this special characteristic.
[b]Restriction:[/b] -
[b]Description:[/b] A characteristic bestowed upon those elite ninja whose stealth became even deadlier through training and experience. The ninja now has a Black Ops member's stealth which allows them to move within the shadows like a phantom and completely blend in with darkness, rendering them invisible. Along with being able to create no sound, the ninja is now able to suppress their chakra to a near undetectable level, rendering them the perfect assassins. Those with this characteristic can easily eliminate shinobi from the shadows, as well as infiltrate buildings with increased ease.

Stealth. Sneakiness. The traditional lifeblood of ninja who replaced the numbers and direct combat skill of samurai with it. A skill not nearly as practiced as it should be even among the ANBU and their knock-offs in other villages, who all too often (in a certain sennin's opinion) relied far too much on their uniforms to stay out of sight. It was a skill Toshiro had strived to cultivate and tonight he planned to be able to safely declare to have mastered. At least the surrounding forest, and more importantly what it sheltered, didn't throw a proverbial monkey wrench into the plan. There had been enough of those (once literally) in the workup to this moment to last a lifetime for those not inclined to masochism. Which was in retrospect probably why when debating between the two paths (stealthy and loud) most ninja focused almost solely on the later as the training for that route was considerably less demanding on ones time and energy. The question for one Konoha sennin had not been between the two paths, but rather how to go about reaching that pinnacle of sneakiness.

Learning to suppress his chakra down to a point where it was effectively undetectable by most was actually a well-documented process. One that involved a great deal of sitting on one's rear end for hours at a stretch with the eyes closed. All the while attempting to - in a manner not dissimilar to developing perfect chakra control - let on the smallest amount required escape. Except that instead of doing that solely for a jutsu - no mean feat by itself - Toshiro had to learn who to let only the smallest amount required to live out. Aside from requiring a degree of control that would make a medic-nin chartreuse with envy, getting to that point bloody HURT! In the first two weeks alone he had rendered himself unconscious at least a dozen times and been dragged to the village's hospital three time (once each by a sister, future sister-in-law, and fiancé) when he let too little chakra out for too long. Of course being as mule-headed as he was Toshiro didn't let a little risk like death stop him so he had been back at practice almost as soon as he was released. In the end it had taken nearly a month of constant practice and "I'm sorry for worrying you" apologies but Toshiro had finally reached a point he was happy with. Now it was almost second nature to the shinobi to keep his chakra "squashed" to such as a degree that he could invade someone's personal space and not be noticed until they turned around or he made his presence known. Something he abused the ever living daylights out of by scaring Hyguuga into jumping at their own shadows. Compared to that the getting the other skills required to a sufficient proficiency had been downright easy. Any ninja worth the name learned at some point the core principles of hiding such as moving only as much as needed. Toshiro had simply taken those lessons, already honed by through prior training and practice, and applied to them to how he moved every waking moment. Easy enough to say but pulling it off in theory had still taken nearly three weeks to learn. Especially since Toshiro had disdained common shortcuts such as wearing garments with sleeves long enough to hide the entire hand or relying on blacking out the face and hands. But learn the required skills he had, resulting in the sennin being able to stay absolutely still for hours on end and when motion - be it an attack or simply moving about - was required he could do so with the bare minimum of motion.

From that point it had taken just under a week for Toshiro to figure out how to use (and more importantly stop using) those abilities at will before putting them to a trial by fire. Hence why he was currently perched high in a conifer while doing his best to ignore the steady icy drizzle that was systematically trying to turn him into a shinobicicle. The conifer was part of the forest that bordered a clearing in which sat, illuminated by the inconsistent moonlight, what appeared to be a house of the sort a woodcutter or trapper might build. Of course Toshiro wasn't fooled for a moment by the innocent facade, having suppressed his chakra to the smallest amount he could. While it was unlikely he would encounter a ninja experienced enough to have developed chakra-sensing abilities in this particular assignment it was better to take no chances. Taking great care to tread only on branches that could bear his weight and when he had to slide down the trunk to not break of part of the bark the sennin descended from his perch until hi feet once more touched terra firma. Checking to make sure every piece of equipment was tightly secured verdant depths turned the sennin set about besting the obstacles ahead of him. The first obstacle being a hundred yards of open ground between him and the domicile that had been cleared of anything larger than the occasional waist-high bush or small boulder. Which was no doubt being watched through convenient window by whoever was keeping the fire burning inside. Crouching down briefly Toshiro waited for a patch of clouds to obscure the moon before dashing into the cleared area before coming to a stop while kneeling several feet behind a bush. roughly one-quarter the distance he had to cover. Pushing his sense's to their limit to check for any indication he had been spotted to find nothing the sennin smirked as he mentally mapped out his next steps. A second silent dash while hunched over put Toshiro behind a stump just as the full moon once more came out form behind the clouds. Immediately the sennin dropped to the ground and curled up into a tight ball, in the weak moonlight making him look like just another boulder in the field. A scholar of the most ancient ninja arts would have called it a classic example of the original meaning of doton. Toshiro just knew it worked because no sooner was he doing a fair impression of a boulder than the buildings lone visible entrance opened up. Fortune was with the sennin as the light from inside the domicile failed long before it could illuminate him and that same light would ruin the night vision of the figure whom he assumed would be standing in the frame. For long moments he waited, even after the sound of the door closing, for the treacherous orb to go back behind the clouds as cold water soaked his garb. Only when the moon once was obscured behind the clouds did the sennin dare to move again. This time with haste as he was certain that he would not be so lucky if the figure came out to look again. Instead Leaf-nin gambled everything in one head-first dash on silent feet to the wall and around the corner of the building while darkness reigned.

Long days of practice, along with a few accounts of a ninja peeking around a corner "to make sure no one is coming" being spotted because of just that, kept Toshiro frozen in place against the wall as he listened. Only after mentally counting twenty slow breaths with no sign of the locals taking note of the shadow moving outside did he look up. Fifteen feet or so above the ground was the solitary window on this side of the building that would give access to the upper floor. Although calling what was in all probability a small attic a full floor was probably overly generous. Semantics aside it was still the best way in Toshiro had found that didn't involve a head-on fight, so with one final check of his surroundings the sennin turned around began climbing the wall. A task easier said than done as, while the height was nothing to a shinobi and the fieldstone walls offered plenty of finger and toe holds, the icy rain had made the surface almost as slippery as if it was greased. Still the sennin had no choice but to make the ascent so he ignored the chill and scraped toes as he pulled himself up the wall. Soon enough the only visible barrier between Toshiro and the attic was one old window, so old that over the decades the glass had become visibly thicker at the bottom than the top. Nor was the frame in any better shape, the wood having swollen until it might as well be nailed down for all the give it had. Sparing a momentary scowl at the bothersome delay Toshiro used one hand to remove a small steel bars from his kit and set to work using it to forcibely but silently open up enough of a gap that the sash could again move.. A process that took far too long in his opinion before he was able open the window enough to gain access to the room on the other side.

Even if calling the space a room truly over-generous as he had expected. To keep from bashing his head against the ceiling Toshiro had to bend at the knees and stoop and that was in the dead center where the roof was its highest. Searching through the chaotically mix of various containers and piles of random stuff that occupied everything available inch of space save for a narrow alley down the center would be even less pleasant. But searching, or rather moving, them with great care to avoid making a sound is what Toshiro set about doing with a will until he found what he had been searching for. A scroll holding a secret treaty? A box of gems that was some high-class merchants stock in trade? A racy photo of some noble lady slated for an arranged marriage to a major lord? Not at all. What Toshiro had been seeking was a simple knothole in one of the floorboards. Looking through the hole however did show the sennin what he expected to see. One much-abused table covered in half-eaten food, empty sake bottles, discarded playing cards, and directly below the knothole his ultimate objective - one rolled up piece of paper held closed with a pink ribbon and bearing an intact seal. Oh and a individuals who fit the "stereotypical bandit" right down the stained clothes dozing with his feet on the table right over the roll of paper. No doubt there were other bandits out of sight, including one that might still be awake, but that was fine for what Toshiro had planned. Carefully to make no noise the sennin removed a length of wire then a sebon around which he wrapped one end of the wire. Then with caution the improvised grappling hook was threaded through the hole and inch by inch made its way down until it was next to the scroll itself. Further careful finagling and several frustratingly close failures occurred before one ended went in cleanly and dug into the material with a slight tug. A slightly harder pull on the wire freed the roll of paper then it began to ascend as Toshiro reeled it up and through the knothole. Grabbing the reason he came here, the sennin shoved it into his pouch along with the improvised grappling hook then with a final check to confirm that the residents were still oblivious to his presence, made for the window.

Dropping soundlessly to the ground with the building's shadow providing a shield from any prying eyes Toshiro started making his way towards the surrounding woods. Along the way the sennin couldn't help but feel exasperated. All this effort just to retrieve a list of guests for the surprise birthday party being thrown for a minor feudal lords seventh son's fourth child. Which had been stolen because the courier grabbed it instead of the highly classified memo the bandits had been hired to steal in the first place and had caused the parcel company to post a mission to retrieve it. The lengths some clients would go to preserve their "infallible" reputation never failed to amaze Toshiro. If it hadn't been good practice he would have laughed in their faces instead of taking the fool thing.