Team 3 mission: Hide & Seek with a Twist. [Private, Team 3 only]

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Quote :: Mission Title: Hide & Seek with a Twist
Mission Type: Custom
Mission Location: Forest of Death
Shinobi Requirement: Genin
Mission Rank: C
Mission Objective: Congratulations. You three have been selected to fill out Team 3 under Jounin Hinamori Toshiro. He had requested that the members of this latest (and hopefully longer-lived) team under his leadership to meet him at Training Ground 44 (ie Shi Mori) for the usual song-and-dance expected of new teams. He also stated the intent to determine your skill levels and ability to work together under "conditions as close to the field as possible" through a test of his own invention. Namely you have to first find your future commander in training ground 44 before noon and obtain one of his swords as proof of your ability. Keeping in mind that not only will you have to evade the local wildlife but the traps your sensei has no doubt spent the past several days laying in addition to not being found and attacked by him first. Good luck and remember - we're almost certain he won't kill you.
Min Post Count: 4

Sunrise over Konoha was a time met by as many different reactions as there are different types of people. Some greeted the rising sun like a friend while others wanted nothing more than to smash it with the same ease they would an alarm clock and return to blissful sleep. For one jounin the rising of the sun was met by a rising sense of anticipation. Ever since his wife had been named Hokage one Hinamori Toshiro had a very busy individual. Not only were they still getting used to married life, which was full of surprises both small and huge, but there was the unending chaos that came from a change in leadership that it fell to the new Kage to sort out. Since he wasn't (thank the kami) the head of his clan yet Toshiro had the larger amount of free time of the pair, free time he spent trying to keep his young wife from cracking under the never-ending string of responsibilities. Even if it meant having to exert spousal privilege and ordering her to take a break or twisting (to the point of breaking) some proverbial (or literal) arms to assure that the Council didn't cause her undo trouble. So it wasn't a stretch to say that Toshiro had built up his own share of stress without much chance to work it off. Which was why the grin he had sported on being told that another trio of hapless genin were being entrusted to him caused the poor sod that had passed the message along to shudder even in retreat. All the while praying for the souls of the sacrificial genin as nothing good happened to the person who was on the "Devil Sharks" mind when that expression was on his face.

Had the genin known what awaited them they almost certainly would have asked for many more prayers and maybe the last rites of their chosen faith before setting out. Almost as soon as the messenger was out of the sight the jounin had begun planning how to torture... err, test this latest group of genin's ability to function as a unit as well as individually. And what better way to do that than to pit all three of them against a vastly superior opponent on ground of the enemies choosing? After all, he had explained to his wife, if they could survive a situation where everything went against them then actual missions should be a breeze. To that end his chosen arena for the test was the most infamous "training ground" in the village if not the entire world - Training Ground Forty-Four, colloquially known as the Forest of Death. Within the fenced-in perimeter the genin would have to face an unending string of natural dangerous including over-sized tigers, carnivorous insects the size of large oxen, and plants that were poisonous and in more than a few cases predatory hunters themselves. To say nothing of the pits of quick sand scattered about.

As if that impressive list wasn't enough, the jounin had spent the three days between getting the message and that morning adding some twisted contributions to the forests reputation of his own. As of the prior evening the forest was now filled with several hundred traps and obstacles of his own invention. Some examples where small explosive charges secured to packets of bright orange dye and scent attractant that were then hooked up so that a pulling a trip wire or shifting the wrong object would saturate the victim - embarrassing the victim and making them stand out to anyone with one working eye or a nose. To say nothing of attracting the local fauna to their location. And because no good field exercise is complete without the element of danger to those "nuisance" traps he had added the traditional big-hitters; spiked tiger pits, punji stakes, spiked deadfalls, and various single-use kunai and shuriken launchers whose triggers were simply too numerous to list. This morning had been spent doing final checks to make sure everything was working as intended and do the things that could only be done at the last minute such as donning the camouflage patterned shirt and pants he had left in the forest to soak up the area's natural scent to mask his own.

Then he had settled down high in the canopy of one of the trees towards the center and dozed on a large branch while waiting for the dawn that had just come. And the three genin would come, if they wanted to avoid his ire, to find their "loving sensei" and obtain one of the swords that were on his back. How they fared in the next five hours was certain to have a profound impact on their futures as shinobi and kunochi. A solid performance including some ability to work together and he might, just might, have the sort of "diamond in the rough" team like his first one that deserved special treatment to bring out their best. A miserable failure however would likely see them relegated to months of remedial training and less-than-savory D-ranks . And kami have mercy if they turned on each other; if those involved didn't met an "unforeseen accident" they would be spending the rest of their careers doing the D-ranks that were reserved for punishment if Toshiro had his way.

Age : 109 Posts : 179

The rising sun brought with it a feeling of expectation, and fear. Expectation, because the young kunoichi known as Orimono Kei was going to come in contact with her first official team. So far, according to her grandfather, all that had passed since Kei had graduated from the Shinobi Academy had been child's play. A ninja began to experience real life when he learned to integrate into his team, and work together with the members. Kei, while she was quite sure that she was reasonable enough get along with her teammates (provided they were just as reasonable), refused to deceive herself concerning the nature of the people that she would work with. Sure, she hoped they would be friendly and stuff, but it wasn't everyone in Konoha that decided to take a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed outlook on life. Many, her grandfather included, would see such a point of view as naive. But perhaps it was because many people didn't understand the kind of person Kei was. She had actually wondered countless times whether there was space for a gentle soul in the world of shinobi. It seemed today would be a good enough day to find out.

And concerning fear, Kei had heard stories. Stories about the man called Hinamori Toshiro. The first thing Kei had heard had been his nickname: Konoha no Akumakou, the Devil Shark of the Hidden Leaf. Kei could pretend all she wanted that she wasn't scared, but deep down, she knew she had reason to be afraid, if not for anything but the details she had heard about her new sensei. And whoever it was that had given her the tale of Hinamori Toshiro had been a bit too dramatic, painting a picture of a limb-eating oni hiding within the body of a snow-haired young man. While Kei was not minded to believe him, the official records of the man told their own tale. And if Toshiro-sensei had received his monicker from a shinobi of a place as savage as Kirigakure, perhaps some of the tales revolving round him were true. The rest of the team was another matter. Kei had met one of her teammates, in a chance encounter in Konoha's ever-busy market. He had seemed to be a nice enough person, and Kei had found herself elated to have him on her team. Why, she did not know, and in the face of the challenge before her today, Kei was not eager to muse on such distractions. The other individual, Kei knew nothing about. Time would tell how they all worked out together.

Having risen early and had a light breakfast, Kei had left home as prepared as she could. She had studied as much as possible on the flora and fauna of the area known as Training Ground 44, but she had to admit that even with her medical knowledge (which was admittedly very small), most of the toxins she had come across possessed by the inhabitants of the Forest of Death simply stumped her. And while Kei knew somewhat of the freak-sized plants and animals, what good did knowing a giant mosquito's name do? As the kunoichi made her way to the outskirts of the Forest of Death, she prayed inwardly that fortune would smile on her that day. But as her grandfather had once said, fortune was just a part of success. The most important part was effort and determination. Steeling her mind for the task at hand and the ordeal to come, Kei stood outside the gate, waiting for the arrival of her squad mates. It would be very foolish to venture into the forest alone.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

[ooc: No show by the other two, skipping after 6 days.]

While Kei waited for her teammates to show, the very person the three genin were supposed to be hunting was also waiting. Perched in the boughs of one of the taller trees and concealed behind a screen of leaves that he only peeked through when the wind stirred them, Toshiro was rapidly forming a rather polarized opinion of his future team. As he pulled back from the leaves and into the more protected region near the trunk, the jounin was rapidly having to revise not only the outline for this "mission"-slash-examination but how soon he could be taking the three out for real missions. All based on the fact that so far only one-third of the team had even shown up.

Of Orimono Kei his opinion was so far favorable; showing up on time but waiting for her teammates hinted at a basic grasp of the tactical situation. Toshiro knew of a few genin who wouldn't have been nearly as wise - plunging into the forest to "hunt" for their target alone without a second thought to just how a genin would fair in a head-on fight against a veteran jounin on ground of the senior ninja's choosing. If that caution was tempered by the determination and raw courage he was hoping to find Team 3 would have it's metaphysical "rock" that could be depended on in the worst of times. Concerning the other two members, well, their future teacher was not impressed. At that point if a Yamanaka had mind-walked Toshiro they would likely have commented on never having heard half the "colorful descriptions" of someone's probably ancestry or seen such graphic mental images of how to stay within the letter - while trampling on the spirit - of the law when punishing one's subordinates. All because if the pair of slackers didn't show up soon, they were going to discover just how miserable their lives could become under Toshiro's command. Starting with being "hired" to muck out and scrub down the stables where his clan's merchants changed horses using tooth brushes that would look quite a bit like their own. While the Hinamori ninja didn't emphasize teamwork more than other jounin-sensei (and probably less than a good number), he had zero tolerance for those who left their fellows in a lurch.

As for the revised plan, well Toshiro soon enough came to a decision about what he was going to do. The jounin had intended to simply trail the three when they entered and make the usual harassing attacks along with taunting them a few times be appearing just out of reach while insulting their abilities. With just Kei however he would have to entice the genin to enter the forest. The first part of that enticement came when he was sure of being hidden from view. A small push of chakra and several handseals caused five copies of the jounin to form. Five copies who then proceeded to follow the senior ninja to the forest floor and being flitting from cover to cover maybe a hundred meters beyond the treeline. While it wouldn't fool anyone close, with the heavy shadows cast by the rising sun, poor visibility thanks to undergrowth, and the small window in which any one clone would be visible form the gate to the genin it would seem as if someone was moving about. Perhaps searching for something - like a missing sword? An illusion further enhanced as Toshiro cast a basic illusion over a large stick that made it appear to be one his swords still in its scabbard. A stick that just happened to be hooked up to a tripwire which in turn connected to a concealed paint bomb filled with bright pink paint. Then the jounin slipped behind one of the massive tree trunks and waited.

Depending on how, or even if, the genin took the bait Toshiro would have a better idea of any weaknesses that hadn't be discussed in their personnel files. Until then he would just have to wait and see how they handled this first lesson - not all is what it seems.

Toshiro: 195 - 5 = 190 CP

Spoiler:

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

Rushing down the stairs, Shikaruto finally had to face the wrath of his mother. He was beyond late for his first day actually assigned to a (hopefully) permanent team with a jounin sensei. If that wasn’t enough, said jounin sensei was Hinamori, Toshiro, the husband of the current hokage, Katsumi Kimiko and known in his own right as Akumakou no Konoha; a nickname, as Shikaruto understood, originated from Toshiro’s time in Kirigakure no Sato. If Toshiro could survive the infamous brutality of Kirigakure and emerge victorious with a title as vicious as Devil Shark, the Shikaruto could easily deduce that he was a force to be reckoned with.

As Shikaruto walked into the kitchen, he was prepared for whatever harsh voice his mother would address him in. However, she merely said to him, with a somewhat knowing smile on her face, “You deserve everything that’s coming to you.” Shikaruto assumed she was referring to his new sensei, and a lump developed in his throat. He swallowed hard, then made his way out of the front door, skipping the toast his mother had laid out on the table for him.

Shikaruto made his way to the village gates, his mind on the day ahead of him. His body was practically shaking in anticipation, a mixture of nerves and excitement. He had to take a few deep breaths to calm himself before continuing. Recalling the information he had read on a scroll which had been delivered to his house, Shikaruto realised that one of his teammates was Orimono, Kei, whom he had met recently at the opening of her store. Shikaruto relished in the idea of having the opportunity to speak to her again, both as shinobi, rather than as customer and employee. The prospect of being a permanent fixture in her life as a teammate made his stomach feel weird. The other name on the scroll; Koibito Tobaku, Shikaruto did not recognise and was therefore indifferent towards it. The location of their first mission was in the Forest of Death, which, as the name suggested, meant their first mission wasn’t going to be an easy one.

Running out of the village gates, Shikaruto inspected himself as he ran. He had known he was late, but he had taken time to fix his appearance. If he was going to be late, it was better than he arrived looking professional, rather than looking like a mess who couldn’t be bothered to show up to his team’s meeting. Although Shikaruto felt little affinity for his village, even he couldn’t deny the allure of having a team to work alongside, even if it meant just having constant people in his life. Having left the village, Shikaruto could see the looming trees of the Forest of Death as he approached the gate. There, at the entrance, he saw Kei, who was facing away from him, looking into the forest.

Rather than alert her to his presence, Shikaruto crept up behind her as quietly as he could, until he was arms length away from her. She still hadn’t noticed him, which Shikaruto found odd. He had figured her to be a rather analytical person based on their previous meeting. That was, until his gaze followed hers and he realised what she was so preoccupied by. Shadows flickered around the forest, between the trees and above the overgrowth. Deep within, just in sight due to a strain of the sun’s light filtering through the trees and glinting off of the cool metal, just visible above the sheath, Shikaruto could see a sword in which it was his task to obtain. It wasn’t just his objective, but it was Kei’s and their other teammate’s. However, Shikaruto would be the last to admit that he wanted to get his hands on one of those swords first, to make up for his lateness.

Pulling open the gate with a loud clang, Shikaruto walked through it, leaving it open for Kei to follow him, if she pleased. “Come on. I’m beyond late and I’ve only just arrived, so waiting for the other guy is only going to aggravate him more." In haste, Shikaruto approached the sword. There was a bubbling sensation in the pit of his stomach that he could not settle, but he just boiled it down to being in Kei’s presence, rather than him doing anything wrong. Since meeting her, she had made him feel that way and obviously it hadn’t been a one-time thing. He hoped it would stop. It made him feel rather uncomfortable.

Reaching out for the sword, Shikaruto picked it from its place, propped up against a tree. It didn’t feel right. It felt flaky and far too natural for metal, almost wet rather than cold. In confusion, Shikaruto stepped back. He heard a clicking noise which, as a bukijutsu user, he had become accustomed to associating with traps. Of course! How foolish of him, to assume that a jounin as skilled as Hinamori, Toshiro would leave their objective in plain side. Jumping backwards, Shikaruto managed to dodge an object which fell from the tree branch above him, but the bright pink paint splashed upwards from its collision with the ground, splatting all over his side. The genjustu broken, Shikaruto realised he was actually holding a stick covered in moss, which explained why it had felt wet. In frustration, Shikaruto threw the stick up at the branch from where the bomb had fallen from, hoping to hit Toshiro in his stupid, fat head.

“A paint bomb!? That’s all you’ve got? I expected more of you, Devil Shark.” Shikaruto shouted sarcastically into the darkness, aiming to antagonise his sensei. Deep within his psyche, he knew what he was doing wasn’t smart and that his ego was raging inside of him for revenge. But really, he was angry at himself, for numerous reasons: waking up late, allowing himself to be distracted by Kei and rushing into the situation without first assessing it. He assumed Toshiro would berate him for all of these things, and he couldn’t stand for it. In the few seconds of silence that followed, Shikaruto managed to calm himself down with a few deep breaths, and realise what an enormous mistake he had made.

Words #1,039
#Apologies for my lateness!
#Won't happen again
#I'm excited
#Let’s do this!

aaron, viridian 2013©

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Hidden behind the trunk of the massive tree, Toshiro wasn't aware of Shikaruto's arrival until the dark-haired genin spoke to his teammate of the need for haste. Of course the jounin was far too wily to poke his head out around the corner to check - mistakes like that killed off most of those who made them long before reaching jounin. Instead the polished blade of a kunai served as a suitable mirror held low to the ground. What that improvised mirror showed was mostly what its holder expected - dark hair in a short ponytail that made him look like a walking pineapple in mesh clothes. Most telling of all was that instead of the disarray and mess that might be expected, Shikaruto looked reasonable tidy if slightly harassed.

While the fellow's lateness was a mark against him, at least Shikaruto made no excuses for it. Understanding and accepting ones faults - while working to correct them - was something Toshiro believed was mandatory for a ninja to simply survive the "shadow world" they lived and worked in. The older genin also gained points for using uncommon common sense to figure out that waiting for someone who might never show would only further aggravate a potentially volatile situation. More points still for being bold enough to take the initiative by stepping in - another trait Toshiro found lacking in too many of his cohorts. To gather information and analyze it while waiting for a moment to strike was an admirable trait - missing opportunities due to fearing to act without all the cards on the table Toshiro regarded as just another form of cowardice. Still watching the genin who was bold (or foolish) enough to enter Shi Mori first as they approached then handle his little "present", Toshiro found himself subtracting some of those points for recklessness as Shikaruto unthinkingly trigged one of the least-harmless traps in the forest. A fact the genin became aware of - a bit too late - himself as he jumped back but not far enough to avoid the splash of paint that hit him. Perhaps the most unexpected result of the whole incident was "Pineapple's" reaction. Rarely had Toshiro seen a genin whose response to running afoul of a paint bomb to imply they had expected something more... lethal. The implications there of made the "Devil Shark" grin. The sort of grin that sent chills up the spines of everyone in a five mile radius and made them thank whatever deities they held that whatever mentally scarring event was about to happen they wouldn't be part of it. Oh yes, pass or fail Toshiro was going to have fun with this pair.

To that end Toshiro formed a single seal and with a burst of chakra caused an identical copy of himself to form. A copy that nodded before slipping into the underbrush and making its way towards the sole kunochi on the field. At the same time the original left behind an after-image as a burst of speed carried him behind the ranting genin. From that position of advantage, and with one leg already chambered, he would deliver a solid kick to Shikaruto's rear. Normally, given Toshiro's prodigious strength, if the blow connect - and was aimed at the normal target of the spine - the genin would be in excruciating pain if not paralyzed. Like any decent ninja of his rank however the jounin could alter an attack "on the fly", in this case trading raw damage for sending his future student flying a considerable distance by fully extending the kick only after impact. Not to mention aiming the blow to send the genin flying into the side effect of his clone's attack on Kei. As for the shadow clone sent to "deal" with said kunochi, well that particular doppelganger was engaged in lesson number three - ninjutsu - while Shikaruto was learning lesson number two (taijutsu) through a literal ass kicking. Using a jutsu from the jounin's days as a genin to eliminate the noise of its footsteps, the shadow clone stalked through the underbrush until it was within striking range of Kei. Then its fingers flew through the handseals for one its creator's favorite jutsu - one that used the myriad of small water sources in the area to create a monstrous column of water in the form of a serpentine dragon that reared up before coming down where the kunochi stood. When aimed properly the "Suiryuudan" was capable of snapping bones and large trees like twigs, however this one was aimed for a glancing blow - one that would leave the victim sore but with the only real injury being to the pride. It was also slow enough that even at close range it could be dodged but had a hidden trick in that - hit or miss - it would disperse on impact. In doing so the jutsu would release enough water to turn the immediate area and several meters around it into a shallow mud pit. A mixed blessing as it was highly doubtful the two genin would enjoy being covered in cold mud but - if they weren't blinded by anger - they would realize that hitting mud hurt quite a bit less than landing on just dirt.

Once he was sure to have the genin's undivided attention, Toshiro stepped into both their fields of vision. Arms akimbo and looking for all the world like a rather annoyed teacher who had just been handed two of the worst students in school and told "do whatever it takes". For what felt like hours (but was really only a few seconds) of looking down at his students as if he was trying to find some redeeming quality in them and not finding anything. Toshiro called it his "Hyuuga with extra-large pole up the rectum" face and it was quite effective at annoying many people and not just a certain white-eyed clan for whom he held no love and for which the feeling was mutual. Especially when teamed with words such as the ones with which he pronounced judgment on his future students. "Obviously Kimi needs to reevaluate the Academy staff and curriculum if this is the level of so-called ninja graduating. A big -chested wannabe only useful for seduce-and-destroy and a tardy slacker who falls for a simple trap have no place in the field." Hurtful? Very and quite far from the truth as well as Toshiro's actual opinion of the pair but he wanted to see just what they could do in the worst-case situation and the fastest way to drag that out was by making them angry. If the ridicule pushed them to try their absolutely best then all was good and if one or both broke, well those who couldn't handle harsh words truly had no place in a world where many opponents learned at least the basics of psychological warfare and used it regularly. Just as regularly as the smoke bomb Toshiro let drop from the hand that had been holding it before he had entered the genin's vision. As the thick black smoke from the device blocked any chance of seeing the jounin in seconds, his raised voice could be heard echoing among the trees. "Since you were slightly amusing however I'll give you another chance. And this time try to not screw it up." And when the smoke cleared the only indication that Toshiro had been there was the aftermath of "meeting" his genin.

Toshiro: 190 CP - 30 =79 CP Toshiro/ 81 CP clone

Spoiler:

[OOC: About time. Next up is Fluke then Aaron and finally myself until this is finished in a minimum of 3 more posts by each of you.]

Age : 109 Posts : 179

As Kei waited for the arrival of her teammates, her eyes suddenly caught a flash of movement. It appeared that someone... or was it more than one person, seemed to be running silently through the undergrowth. Well, whoever it was, the occasional stopping and moving seemed to indicate that the mysterious bush treader was engaged in a search. If he was, what for? While Kei strained her eyes and senses towards the forest, trying to glean as much information as she could from it while waiting for her teammates to arrive, the noisy clang of a gate opening brought Kei abruptly to her immediate surroundings. Nara Shikaruto had arrived, and it was he who had opened the gate. He called to Kei to follow him into the forest, eliciting a shake of the head from Kei. Were boys always so abrupt? Well, that didn't matter. As the kunoichi shrugged and followed Shikaruto into the gloom of the forest, she noticed the glint of muted sunlight on metal. A sword! Perhaps that was what the shadow in the forest was looking for. If that was so, then this mission would come to an end without hassles. Kei took a step forward, then stopped.

Something was very wrong. Firstly, if Kei's new sensei had decided that retrieving a sword would be the proof of completing the mission he had given, why would he be so careless to allow the sword to get lost? Secondly, if it had just dropped, something as heavy as a sword would make a sound when it fell, easily alerting someone with the fine senses of a Jounin; and even if it had fallen on soft humus, or similar material that would muffle its sound (which was unlikely, giving the fact that it was resting against a tree, and its metal against the wood of the trunk would be enough to inform the Jounin that it had fallen), the sudden change in weight of the Jounin's equipment would have alerted him. There was a very clear possibility that this was nothing more than a trap. Shikaruto seemed eager enough to get the mission finished as well, and was already reaching for the sword, having arrived at its location before Kei.

"Shikaruto-san..." Kei said nervously, her voice rising in warning as the Nara boy picked the disguised weapon. The telltale click of a trap's release mechanism being activated may have been familiar to Shikaruto, yet even someone not as trained as he was in the use of weapons could infer from the ominous 'clack' that something wrong was about to happen. Kei gave a low, short scream and instinctively jumped backwards as a bright pink explosion of paint burst from a hidden location, although her actions were unnecessary. Shikaruto was standing directly between Kei and the paint bomb, so his body served as a screen, taking the full brunt of the paint splatter. However, Kei noticed a few drops had managed to reach her maroon sandals. The kunoichi grimaced as she plucked a nearby leaf and tried to clean the stuff. It seemed the paint would not be gotten rid of so easily. She sighed quietly and turned to Shikaruto, who had one entire side of his body spattered. "Maybe we should proceed a bit more cautiously?" the girl offered meekly, although she was sure that advice was redundant; only a fool would keep rushing headlong after what had just happened. But before she could say or do anything further, with a speed that shocked and amazed, the water in the area gathered to form a huge liquid dragon which reared up and then crashed down towards the kunoichi. It seemed Shikaruto was also being attacked, but Kei had her own problems.

It was obvious that whoever had executed the attack did not mean for it to be undodgeable; the rearing of the dragon gave Kei enough time to gather her wits together and make a horizontal jump, translating it into a graceful flip, which would have ended well, had the Suiryuudan not dispersed and transformed the area into a mud pit. If there was anything Kei hated, it was being dirty, so she was definitely not very pleased when the mud spattered her legs and the bottom of her skirt. Then the white-haired Jounin appeared. His expression wasn't pleasant at all. As he stared at the two Genin in what seemed to be forever, the kunoichi wondered whether he was going to announce their failure. What came next were choice insults. While Kei tried with some degrees of success to stave off her annoyance at Toshiro-sensei's description of herself, her face turned quite red. "' Big -chested wannabe only useful for seduce-and-destroy'? Slightly amusing'! I'd like to kick him between the legs..." the girl thought as the Jounin's smoke bomb clearing revealed that he had gone.

"Shikaruto-san, please watch my back. I'm going to try and triangulate Toshiro-sensei's location..." Kei said, getting out of the mud pit and performing a string of handseals before placing her fingers on her temples. "Orijutsu Hiden: Kakureme no Ori!" As the chakra 'blanket ' spread out, Kei hoped Toshiro-sensei was still at least within the reach of her technique. But if he was motionless, detecting him would be a problem.

Spoiler:

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

The darkness provided Shikaruto with nothing but silence, as Toshiro did not respond to Shikaruto’s taunts, like he had expected him to. Calming down, Shikaruto tried his best to assess the situation. “Maybe we should proceed a bit more cautiously?” Kei offered meekly from behind him. Shikaruto resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her, even though he was sure she wouldn’t see it. His eyes caught a glint of light from behind a tree. A kunai was sticking out from behind it, twisting slightly, catching the light and his eye. There was very little doubt in Shikaruto’s mind that Toshiro was hiding behind that tree. Stepping back, Shikaruto brought his body up into a defensive stance, preparing himself for Toshiro’s counter. Shikaruto’s first thought was that Toshiro was going to throw the kunai at him, but that seemed to basic. Instead, the kunai twisted slightly in the hand Shikaruto could not see but assumed was there. Perhaps he was using the kunai to view the situation in the gleaming metal’s reflection? The idea was clever, in theory, but Toshiro hadn’t accounted for the fact that if he was using the refraction of light to view his opponents from behind safety, his opponents attention would be drawn to said kunai. However, Toshiro probably underestimated Shikaruto, given how careless his entrance had been. That was the beauty of the first move. It was always a feint.

Finally, Toshiro moved from behind the safety of the tree trunk, his movements so fast that Shikaruto had trouble keeping his eyes on him. Focused on the image of Toshiro darting through the undergrowth, there was a brief moment where Shikaruto realised although the image was moving towards him, it wasn’t doing much more. It was an illusion, for the real Toshiro would have attacked in that time, for sure. He needed a distraction because he had approached from a different direction. In the split second between his realisation that the Toshiro in front of him and the blow he received from the real Toshiro, Shikaruto managed to shift his body so that his side took the brunt of the hit, rather than his rear. Toshiro’s foot connected with Shikaruto hip with a loud thud as their bones collided. After the initial kick, Toshiro exerted more force into his attack, pushing Shikaruto with such force that he was sent flying through the air. Disorientated, Shikaruto barely managed to land on his feet, having managed to maneuver whilst in the air. A small triumph, Shikaruto took a moment to breathe and gather his bearings. Alas, it was a moment too long. A monstrous column of water engulfed Shikaruto, the pure pressure of the water weighing down on Shikaruto’s already aching bones like lead. Pushed backwards, Shikaruto relied on grit to stand his ground and not be knocked to his feet once again. Eventually, the water subsided, but not before turning the immediate terrain into mud. Assessing the situation, Shikaruto shook water from his ears, which were ringing. He looked down at himself. Well, at least the pink paint from earlier had washed off.

Looking up, Shikaruto saw Toshiro stood before him, his hands on his hips, a disapproving look on his face. He stared at Shikaruto for a while. “Obviously Kimi needs to reevaluate the Academy staff and curriculum if this is the level of so-called ninja graduating.” For a moment Shikaruto wondered who ‘Kimi’ was, before he realised this was Toshiro’s nickname for his wife, the Hokage. “A big -chested wannabe only useful for seduce-and-destroy and a tardy slacker who falls for a simple trap have no place in the field.” Having had an outburst of anger too soon in their initial meeting, Shikaruto was determined to keep calm. He saw through Toshiro’s tactic; he was trying to make the Genin angry, so he could see how they would perform under pressure. Besides, nothing Toshiro had said (about Shikaruto, at least) had been untrue, exactly. Noticing some movement from Toshiro, Shikaruto heard something hit the ground, but before he could decipher what, a loud hissing noise ejected from the object, exploding a thick black smog around the forest. It was a smoke bomb! “Since you were slightly amusing however, I'll give you another chance. And this time try to not screw it up.” Toshiro called from within the smoke. Thinking fast, Shikaruto performed the hand seals for, “Reppushou!” His intention was to immediately blow away the smoke to clear their vision. If the jutsu managed to hit Toshiro before he could find cover, then that was an added bonus. He had, after all, acted rather rapidly, and Shikaruto assumed Toshiro would have to turn his back to escape, which would greatly impede his ability to protect himself.

Before Shikaruto could witness the results of his jutsu, Kei walked up alongside him. “Shikaruto-san, please watch my back. I'm going to try and triangulate Toshiro-sensei's location...” Glancing over to her, Shikaruto saw she had managed to dodge the water, as she was relatively dry compared to Shikaruto. However, she had mud splashed all up her outfit, whereas Shikaruto had managed to navigate the terrain successfully thus far. Excited at the prospect of seeing an Orimono hijutsu in action after their previous philosophical discussion about the clan and its origins, Shikaruto merely nodded his affirmation to her request. Kei-san proceeded to perform a series of hand seals before placing her fingers on her temples in a way that reminded Shikaruto of a Yamanaka hijutsu. Shikaruto was sure something felt different, but he couldn’t place his finger on what it was. He just hoped Kei-san knew what she was doing...

Words #942
#Reppushou • Gale Wind Palm
#Combat
#It's been a while
#Hm

aaron, viridian 2013©

Jutsu Used:

Chakra Points:

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

As the genin started their own counter-attack with some basic reconnaissance, Toshiro watched events unfold from his position of concealment behind a dense patch of leaves. And as if Fate herself was mocking the young ninja their target was completely unscathed by wind and out of the reach of Kei's "net" of chakra. Something that almost caused the pairs white-haired tormentor to pity his opponents for the day in how close they had come yet were so far. Against another genin or perhaps a recently promoted chuunin the quick jutsu probably would have caught the target with at least a glancing blow. It really was a well-selected and well-executed technique but its user had overlooked two frequently-missed detail of the battlefield - the targets experience and that the battlefield wasn't strictly two-dimensional. Toshiro was far from a greenhorn and with nearly a decade of experience he had been moving before the seals finished. Instead it was his shadow clone that had done the speaking while the jounin had retreated as soon as the smoke blocked his view of the genin. A retreat that involved not moving across the ground but launching himself straight up (incidentally avoiding the Gale Palm as it tore through the smoke) into the canopy of foliage above. Covered by the precious seconds the smoke had concealed his position before being scattered to the winds by Shikaruto and using the same chakra-enhanced speed as before spotting Toshiro himself would have been difficult is not almost impossible under the best of situations.

Something the genin were most definitely not in. While their future (or current) sensei observed and took mental notes, his shadow clone went on the offensive. Soundlessly dashing across the ground the doppelganger rapidly closed the distance from directly behind the genin. With the weak morning sunlight that filtered down through the canopy above at its back helping to blur its outline, the clone further reinforced the illusion that it was the real Toshiro by forming its own clones. In the space of a few heartbeats what had been a solitary shadow clone became a shadow clone, a water clone that if weaker than its creator was still dangerous, and a quintet of illusionary clones. Weaving among themselves as they charge the "clone zerg" not only looked intimidating but it would be almost impossible to discern "Toshiro" from the water clone. A situation further aggravated by the shadow clone tossing two handfuls of shuriken at the genin before drawing its blades as it made a direct line for Kei. By that move alonethe real Toshiro knew what his doppelganger was going to do because he had used the very same ploy many times when fighting against pairs. While a solid clone (in this case the mizu bushin) engaged the most combat-orientated member of the pair (Shikaruto), the real ninja (or a shadow clone masquerading as him) would seek to separate the pair with thrown weapons before launching the "weaker" member into the air with the "Shadow of the Dancing Leaf". If successful the fight would quickly be over as the follow-up was the "Front Beheading" that was Toshiro's response to the "Front Lotus" some taijutsu fanatics counted among their arsenal. Tested and proven, it was a method that had netted the "Devil Shark" several victories over other pairs of ninja - both nuke-nin and those sworn to a village - whose teamwork made them far more dangerous together than apart. The only downside was that it was a method ill-suited to taking prisoners since if successful most victims literally lost their heads over it. Definitely a possibility that - if it caught Kei - would occur to the genin on realizing the tactics intent.

Of course the clone wouldn't actually use the final maneuver at its full strength, much less with the sharpened edge of its blade. After all, the clone was a complete copy of its creator and despite his reputation Toshiro wasn't one to slaughter fellow Leaf-nin. The two times he had killed an older sibling and her followers not withstanding - after all, Asusha had attempted a coup, almost killed his grandfather, tried to use his wife's little sister as the container for a pseudo-bijuu, and then attacked a town under his clan's protection and tried to ambush the pair of then-chuunin. That time he had felt fully justified in doing his utmost to see how many pieces he could carve off his older sister and her cronies before they died of blood loss. Besides, even if the clone had gone battle-mad it wouldn't be able to complete the attack. Not with Toshiro ready to intervene if things got out of hand even while he was taking mental notes about the pairs tactics. Of course if the pair managed to defeat the combination that had felled seasoned shinobi they would somewhat impress their teacher. It was that possibility which had the jounin keeping the gap in the leaves through which he was watching open almost as much as keeping one narrowed jade eye on the genin. Even as one gloved hand rhythmically opened and closed around the hilt of the two junior ninja's stated objective.

Toshiro: 79/ 81 CP - 3/8 (28) =76 CP Toshiro/ 72 (53 if Shadow Dance successful) CP clone

Spoiler:

Age : 109 Posts : 179

While Kei was unable to detect the real Toshiro, the clones made enough movements to be discernible by her Orijutsu Hiden. As soon as the clone entered her jutsu's field of effect, Kei spun to see the shadow clone create other clones, and, of course, wanted to assume that the shinobi creating clones and charging at the group was her sensei. All the same, she had to put all possible scenarios into consideration. Toshiro was capable of using clones, as he had shown previously, and if this was a kage bunshin, there was no way she could know. But for now, that really didn't matter, because the Toshiro running towards her was, at the moment, her biggest problem. If another more authentic Toshiro appeared, well, she would have to respond as the occasion allowed. But for now, she would handle the threat before her.

With her sharp turning to face the clones, Kei could only hope that Shikaruto would see her motion and react accordingly. Even though she had her own problems, there was no point in leaving her teammate to fend for himself. As many actions as she could allow would be geared towards favoring the Nara, if she could help it. Whichever the case, there was something off with the running clones. The low visibility made it rather hard to say if the clones were tangible or not, but Kei's chakra 'blanket' easily screened out the incorporeal clones from the solid ones. "Five of them are not real..." Kei said, as she dispelled her chakra net and moved in response to the thrown shuriken, inadvertently accomplishing what Toshiro's technique had intended. For as Kei sprang away to dodge the flying weapons, she created some reasonable space between herself and Shikaruto. As the kage bunshin drew its sword and came for her, Kei began to wonder if she hadn't made a mistake by moving away from Shikaruto; then again, maybe it was for the best, because dodging while close to another could probably cause issues of maneuverability. A sharp yet shallow pain in her shoulder told her that she hadn't managed to dodge all the projectiles. But such a small wound was inconsequential. What mattered was handling her opponent.

As Kei's feet touched the ground, she slammed her hands on the wet earth, a wall of earth obscuring her from her would-be attacker. While Kei knew that was not very effective, as Toshiro would simply run round the wall, the temporary break of vision would allow her to do something that could help, provided Toshiro didn't have any doujutsu or similar techniques that could determine the true nature of a clone and a real body. A second string of handseals provided an earth clone just as Toshiro came into view. Unfortunately, Kei hadn't been fast enough to perform her handseals before the Toshiro clone arrived, so the making of her clone did nothing to deceive Toshiro's. His kick connected with her jaw, sending her into the air like a ragdoll, her lightweight doing little to keep her from going airborne. As the pain radiated from her jaw to her brain and throughout her body, Kei placed all her mental abilities to work to keep from passing out. The split-second battle of maintaining consciousness was won, and Kei had to respond with a counter-attack.

Her grandfather had always said that everything had an advantage and disadvantage. One's job was to find all advantages and utilize them. Kei's first advantage was her brain. And while this was her first time seeing the Konoha Kage Buyou, she had read about it sufficiently to know what the kick was used for, and what would follow. While Kei's light body could easily be knocked into the air, coupled with her evasion training, she could make more acrobatic maneuvres than the average genin. So rather than just floating into the air, Kei attempted to twist in an aerial spin so she would be facing Toshiro when he performed the Kage Buyou, while she began handseals again. That action, of course, would have done nothing to help her against the coming attack, but her Doton Bunshin had other ideas. The clone flung itself into Toshiro's, attempting to tangle the jounin's clone as much as possible with its own body made from mud. While Toshiro's clone's greater strength would have made the interference a little less helpful than normal, Kei's knowledge of the human body was vital in the clone's attempting to lock joints and move body parts out of trajectory. What this translated to was Kei receiving a glancing blow to her side from the Konoha Zembu Zanshu. She hit a tree and crashed into the forest floor, a moan of pain escaping her lips as she landed roughly but managed to right herself like a cat. It was time for the counter-offense.

" Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

The fireball was aimed in the Toshiro clone's direction, even as Kei's clone still sought to impair its movements. But the purpose of the fireball wasn't really to hit the Toshiro clone; Kei was sure that such a simple attack would be dodged by the clone. Rather, the fireball would end up creating a temporary but sufficient light source that would throw all shadows, except hers (as she was on the other side of the flame) towards Shikaruto. If what she had heard about the Nara clan was true, then hopefully, unless the boy was too much in a knot of his own, he would be able to utilize the suddenly created opportunity. Well, the Nara were known for their fast thinking; Kei prayed nothing had slowed down Shikaruto's. Her legs were shaky and her body battered; it was just a matter of time before the battle ended, and not in her favor, most likely.

BATTLE INFO:

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

Shikaruto had achieved his goal of clearing the battlefield of smoke, which disappeared almost instantly after the use of his fuuton jutsu. Shikaruto used his newfound visibility to scan the battlefield, but he could not see Toshiro or indeed any indication that his jutsu had been successful in actually harming him. There were a few moments of silence, before Kei became alerted to Toshiro’s presence by her blanket jutsu. Shikaruto turned with her, to face the oncoming danger. Toshiro was speeding towards the pair, although Shikaruto wasn’t really sure that it was him. He had used shadow clones before, what was stopping him from doing it again? Shikaruto’s suspicion was all but confirmed in his eyes when the charging Toshiro produced another clone and from that clone, a handful more clones. Shikaruto memorised the order in which the clones had been produced. “Five of them are not real...” Kei stated as the clones entered her blanket jutsu, Shikaruto assumed. How else could she know? He hoped he wasn’t missing something obvious. Either way, Kei dispelled her jutsu and prepared herself for battle, Shikaruto following her lead.

The first clone, debatably the real Toshiro, threw two handfuls of shuriken, one at Shikaruto and one at Kei. Shikaruto had no problem with blocking the shuriken, being well educated in the use of weaponry, he activated his left kunai mechanism hidden on his shoulder and caught the kunai in his hand as it shot down his sleeve. Pulling it up to his face, Shikaruto relied on his reflexes and hit away each of the kunai with a loud metal clang. He was so used to defending himself in such a manner, that he had been able to keep track of what was happening. The first Toshiro had withdrawn a pair of blades and was making a beeline for Kei, who had separated herself from Shikaruto, not managing to block the shuriken launched at her, but dodge them with almost perfect success. His eyes darting back across the battlefield, Shikaruto saw all of the other clones were coming for him. Why did Kei only get one clone, yet he got six? Kei had told him that five of the clones weren’t real, but merely illusions. Kei must have one physical clone and he had the other. Deducing that only one of the clones approaching him was real, Shikaruto tried to decipher which one it was.

As Kei landed her dodge, she slammed her hands to the ground, a rising wall of mud shooting out of the ground to protect her. Kei produced a clone from the earth, but it did nothing to fool Toshiro, who had managed to manoeuvre her earth wall faster than she expected, obviously. Not fooled by her clone, Toshiro flew through the air with a kick, which connected with Kei’s jaw, sending her flying through the air like a rag doll. At the sight of this, Shikaruto acted on instinct. Launching the kunai he had been clutching tightly in his hand at Kei’s Toshiro, Shikaruto ran sideways to rendezvous with Kei to the best of his ability, closing the space between them. When running sideways across the battlefield, he was careful to avoid slipping on the muddy terrain. Still airborne, the real Kei managed to flip her body so she was face down, rather than vulnerable with her back to the floor. He mud clone intercepted Toshiro for a moment, but it only managed to delay him. This, however, was enough. Toshiro’s Konoha Zembu Zanshu was nowhere near as successful as it could have been, only connecting with Kei’s hip as he slammed her into a nearby tree, before she slid down the trunk, a moan of pain slipping from her mouth. But Kei wasn’t on the defensive for long, as Shikaruto observed her shoot a fireball directly at Toshiro, who surely wouldn’t have enough time to react.

Shikaruto couldn’t see Toshiro’s fate, although he doubted it was actually him. The fireball sped across the battlefield, casting shadows that danced all around the forest. Shikaruto guessed that Kei was assuming he would use a shadow jutsu at this point, but Shikaruto didn’t like to use his hijutsu except where he felt it was really necessary. Focusing on the floor ahead of him, Shikaruto noticed there was only one shadow approaching him, as bunshin had no physical substance and therefore could not cast shadows. Glancing up, this allowed Shikaruto to discern the clone with physical substance and disregard the illusionary clones which served only to distract him. Fully focused, Shikaruto had tunnel vision on his target, who was almost with arms length of him. The heat from the recently passed fireball which flew past the tree line before finally burning out made Shikaruto sweat a little. Waiting until the very final moment, Shikaruto withdrew a kunai from his kit and lunged down, stabbing his kunai into the leg of the clone, ignoring all of the others that leapt towards him, as he knew these were just images that could not hurt him.

Words #841
#No jutsu
#Minimalism
#Kunai
#Weaponry

aaron, viridian 2013©

Jutsu Used:

Weaponry Used:

Chakra Points:

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

As he watched the contest of wits play out below him, Toshiro started to formulate a plan. One that involved the two genin currently embroiled with his clones but with a wholly different intent. Namely how to best go about honing them like the sturdy and serviceable if outwardly plain weapon a veteran soldier chooses over the flashy but unreliable arm of the strutting dandy. They might not have gotten their mitts on one of his swords (yet), but as far as Toshiro was concerned the pair had already passed the vast majority of their "examination".

Kei was clearly a wily kunochi and a credit to her clan. Whatever the exact nature of her hijutsu, it hadn't left her as initially defenseless as he had first thought it would. Indeed she not only had ample warning of the impending clone to face them, but had pegged the number of solid versus illusionary clones exactly. And while one of the clone's made not a whisper to boot. That kind of ability - giving warning and gathering information simultaneously - was worth at least another two or three shinobi in the chaos of battle. On top of that she showed a rather advanced understanding of how to use what elemental jutsu she knew. While a beginner could use such a technique to block or stall an opponent, far fewer would combine it with a solid clone in a simply but effective deception ploy that just a few seconds faster or combined with one of the "vanish into the ground" techniques that Doton was famous for would have caught even a seasoned jounin off guard. And that fireball - even in his perch Toshiro had felt the heat rising from it. While not a katon-user himself, having a borderline pyromaniac Uchiha on his first team and a wife whose nickname in her youth was "The Konoha Blaze" had given the jounin an understanding of that element almost as good as those who used it. Certainly enough to know that if his clone hadn't forgone it's follow up after its initial plan failed to blast a jet of water out he would have learned via second (or was it first since it shadow clones were technically copies of the caster) hand just what it felt like to be burned to a crisp. Even after landing back on its feet to its creators eyes the clone looked to be on its last legs. And while Kei was no doubt hurting from being swatted with the reverse edge of a sword and the resulting crash, she looked to be very much in the fight.

As for Shikaruto, well Toshiro could see that the section mentioning his issues about sticking his neck out for teammates wasn't completely accurate. Whether the file had been based on too small a sample or Kei was an exception, the pineapple-head had - knowingly or not - shown the sort of reactions that spoke of worry for another. Almost the sort of worry Toshiro had felt for his wife when the pair had gone of their first mission together as genin and that worried him. If the Nara did have feelings - that he knew about or not - for his blonde teammate it would be the proverbial double-edged sword. On the one had Toshiro knew exactly how that sort of thing could ignite a raging inferno of determination reduced impossible odds to annoyances. The proof of that was literally seared into his flesh and soul. On the other any shinobi with a lick of sense knew that if such a relationship formed and went bad the only truly effective fix was to place the two on separate teams for the rest of their careers. As for the fellows fight with the mizu bushin, well that had Toshiro raising an eyebrow in surprise. To a man every Nara that the white-haired ninja personally knew relied heavily on their shadow-based ninjutsu, to the point where at times it almost seemed as if they were addicted to it. So to see a member of that clan pass up a free bonanza of shadows to wield in favor of a simple kunai to the leg was something of an eye-opener. Probably almost as much the one Shikaruto likely got when the water clone who Shikaruto had stabbed in what would be the femoral artery lost cohesion as it bent over him and dispersed with a splush and a bucket or so worth of water.

Really the only weakness in the pair that Toshiro could spot was that they didn't coordinate their abilities for maximum effect. Something that he was sure would develop as the pair trained and fought together. Which still left him one final major decision - to end the fight now or let it play out some more in the hope of learning more about his future pupils. A decision that took on great urgency as the clone stopped playing around and pulled the big jutsu. Daibakufu no Jutsu was not something that genin could be expected to counter but that was what the frazzled shadow clone was preparing to unleash as it maneuvered around Kei so that the attack would strike both genin. Eyes going wide in suprise, hastily the real Toshiro unleashed the kunai he had been palming at the doppelganger's head as it finished the jutsu. The result was a three-way race between a kunai aimed at a clones head, an A-ranked suiton jutsu barreling towards a pair of genin, and whatever defenses said genin would try to get up in time. With the winner determining if a white-haired jounin would even have a team to teach in the future.

Toshiro: 76/ 53 CP - 3/18 =73CP Toshiro/35 CP clone

Spoiler:

Age : 109 Posts : 179

Kei was quite surprised to see that the Nara did not use her Goukakyuu no jutsu as she had expected. All the same, his ability to think of using the shadows created by the huge fireball to determine which of the figures of the silver-haired jounin was the corporeal one was rather impressive, especially in such a fast-paced scenario. Kei had to admit she was quite impressed that at least Shikaruto hadn't wasted her jutsu. She wasn't sure if she would have thought up such a thing under so much pressure. But, of course, she was most likely selling herself short; a thing Kei was accustomed to doing too many times. Her opponent, having disentangled himself from her clone, managed to shoot out a decent quantity of water from his mouth to counter the approaching miniscule inferno. "Pity..." Kei mused, slightly annoyed that her fire technique had not managed to get the Toshiro clone. A flick of her eyes told her that Shikaruto had achieved better results against his opponent. A good thing. Now the two of them could make a concerted attack on Toshiro-sensei.

With the motion of the snowy-haired clone, and the handseals being formed, it didn't take long for Kei to guess the clone's intention. Whatever technique the Toshiro doppelganger was about to do was quite unknown to the kunoichi, but she could tell that the way the clone moved, bringing Shikaruto practically between himself and her, was a maneuver aimed at putting the two genin in line for an attack, most likely a directional, area-of-effect technique. So far, the clone had been using Suiton techniques; it would be unwise to assume that the clone would use water again, seeing that their opponent was a seasoned ninja, and a greenhorn like herself was already proficient in the use of two elements. For all Kei knew, Toshiro could even be able to use three elements; she had heard of quite a number of shinobi with such an ability. All the same, Kei didn't have any other defensive element aside Earth, and she couldn't make a counter-offense, because Fire always yielded to Water. So she would dare to use a Doton, but first she would have to know what Toshiro-sensei was doing. The sudden thought that Toshiro's about-to-be-revealed technique was a non-elemental jutsu strengthened Kei's desire to wait and see what the clone was going to do.

As the column of water rose and began circling the white-haired jounin, Kei could not help but register a look of shock and despair on her face as the memory of what she had read a good number of times in the library identified the technique being used. But as the details of the jutsu were analyzed and recognized by her brain, the young kunoichi was already almost instinctively performing handseals. A number of scenarios had gone through her head, concerning how two genin would escape an A-ranked Suiton, and most of them ended in disaster. Of course, the most logical thing to do would be to leave Shikaruto to fend for himself, and attempt to sink into the earth with her Dochuu Senkou technique, but doing that, namely, leaving a nakama in potential danger while looking to her own devices, was wrong. True, the ninja was expected to be a selfish creature, but in a case where one's nindō decried such a lifestyle, there wasn't really a choice in the matter, was there? "Please, do not move, Shikaruto-san," Kei said, hope rising within her, as she observed something that had not been taken into consideration by the irate Toshiro clone.

"Doton: Doro Gaeshi!"

The wall of earth would rise up with sudden force under Shikaruto, throwing him into the air, if he trusted Kei and did not move. And by then, the wave of water would have reached the genin, and as at the time it would strike the rock wall, Shikaruto would be most likely over it. But the wave would not hit the wall directly, for as the Daibakufu no Jutsu was being released, Kei's Earth clone, having not been dispelled by attack or will, ran into Toshiro's own clone. The effect would throw him off balance, and change the course of the water wave, even if slightly. The wave brushed by the earth wall, although the differences in jutsu levels caused the wall to shatter. Unable to defend herself further, Kei shielded her face with her arms, as the pressure of the edge of the Suiton technique smashed into the girl, flinging her away from the major force of the wave. The world seemed to go into slow motion, as droplets of water scattered round Kei's airborne form.

"Extremely stupid thing to do..." the more rational side of Kei's mind whispered. "All the same," she mentally answered, "I had to do it."
"There were other options," came the voice again.

"None of which were acceptable."

The voice was silent for a moment, then it said, "You won't live long if you keep behaving like this. Just like your dad, always putting others before himself."

"Yes," Kei answered, "just like Dad." That fact alone made even the seeming stupidity of her actions worth it. And anyone who could see Kei's face as, sailing through the air, she passed into unconsciousness and her clone dissolved into earth, would be probably surprised to see a contented smile on her face as her blue eyes closed.

Jutsu Used:

________________________________________________

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

Rather than feeling the blade of his kunai slice into the supple flesh of his opponent, Shikaruto heard an unusual splush sound, as the Toshiro in front of him dispersed into a body of water that drenched Shikaruto in surprise. Just managing to keep his balance from the lunge, Shikaruto pulled himself back up into a defensive stance, ready for whatever the real Toshiro would throw at him, from wherever he was. Shikaruto’s eyes flickered through the tree line, but he couldn’t see Toshiro. He could only see the clone that Kei was still dealing with. Making his way towards her, Shikaruto examined in horror as the clone Toshiro began to form seals at an alarming rate. Whatever jutsu he was about to use, it was big. Fear pulsing throughout his body, Shikaruto saw a gigantic column of water encircle the clone of Toshiro, swirling menacingly as it approached Shikaruto and Kei, who had regrouped. In his peripheral vision, Shikaruto noticed the glint of a kunai flying through the air, but it disappeared behind the waterfall and he lost sight of it. Was that the real Toshiro? It had to be. Shikaruto wanted nothing more than to ditch Kei at to pursue the real Toshiro and find his sword, but he knew that it would be frowned upon and he had wasted precious seconds weighing up the situation, so now his only option left was to defend himself.

Glancing across at Kei, Shikaruto saw her face expressing the fear he felt. He wasn’t sure just how hard Toshiro was going to be on the pair. Would he kill them? Shikaruto doubted it. But even so, the amount of pain he was allowed to inflict on them both was discretional. Shikaruto had been smarter than Kei, keeping his face impassive, refusing to give Toshiro the satisfaction of seeing his fear. “Please, do not move, Shikaruto-san,” Kei said, startling Shikaruto with a glimmer of hope in her voice. What was she about to do? Rooted to the spot, Shikaruto almost cried aloud when the ground underneath him shifted. Shikaruto was thrown up into the air by the force, but he managed to keep in control of his body, despite being airborne. Staring into the eye of the column of water, Shikaruto restrained himself from jumping backwards from it, instead choosing to trust Kei’s judgement. The water collided with Kei’s earth wall, shattering it. Shikaruto dropped in the absence of stable footing, but Kei had given him enough time to flip backwards and land safely without being hit by the suiton jutsu, landing a few feet behind her.

Shikaruto heard a collision and despite the stupidity of it, he looked up to see the jutsu collide with Kei, smacking her backwards, her form flying through the air past Shikaruto who only looked on in shock, his heart in his mouth. Droplets of water sprayed all over Shikaruto from the column’s contact with Kei, and Shikaruto allowed the anger at Toshiro that bubbled inside of him to justify the recklessness of his counter. Forming seals rapidly, Shikaruto created a shadow clone of his own, knowing this would impress Toshiro, as the jutsu was not expected of Genin. “Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!” Once his clone appeared with a cloud of smoke, Shikaruto retreated, searching the forest for Kei.

After a few moments of searching, he saw a broken tree and immediately investigated it. Sure enough, there was Kei, in a crumple on the floor. Strangely enough, there was a smile on her face, and she looked almost... content. Her expression confused Shikaruto, but he didn’t have time to ponder over it. Scooping her up into his arms, Shikaruto withdrew a flash bomb from his ninja pouch and launched it back towards the area where the combat was taking place, creating a diversion he could use so the real Toshiro would lose track of him. Shikaruto didn’t know whether Toshiro would be watching him or his clone, but he had to cover every possibility. Darting through the trees, Shikaruto logically headed towards the thick undergrowth, taking as much care as possible without sacrificing speed, so that he would not further harm Kei. She was only unconscious, but Shikaruto wasn’t sure how severe her injuries were. He didn’t have time to check. Once he was satisfied with how much distance he had put between himself and the battlefield, Shikaruto placed Kei down, hidden by the foliage and crouched down beside her, out of sight, but by her side, ready to protect her, should Toshiro show up, pursuing them. Shikaruto desperately wanted to shake Kei, to talk to her, but he had to remain silent. He couldn’t risk exposing their position. His heart beating so hard against his chest that it hurt, Shikaruto willed himself to calm down and think. Resting against the trunk of a tree, he listened out carefully for the sounds of anyone approaching.

Shikaruto’s clone acted immediately, knowing instantaneously what he was required to do. Forming the singular tiger seal with as much confidence as he could muster, Shikaruto’s clone performed, “Hi no Ishi!” Although he knew it wouldn’t be an equal match, Shikaruto’s clone launched the fuuton jutsu into Toshiro’s clone’s suiton jutsu, hoping the surprise would give him the split second opportunity to reverse the jutsu’s direction, so the column of water would unleash all over Toshiro and his clone, if they were both within the field of effect of the jutsu. It wasn’t the best counter attack, but it was the only one Shikaruto could think of under pressure. It was all the chakra the clone had been granted, so he dispersed upon using it. He just hoped it was enough.

Words #949
#Combat
#Ninjutsu
#Kage Bunshin no Jutsu
#Hi no Ishi

aaron, viridian 2013©

Jutsu Used:

Weaponry Used:

Chakra Points:

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

While Shikaruto had gone to ground to find a place to hide Toshiro had taken to the air, or in this case trees, and begun searching for the pair of genin. "Bloody damn idiot clone. Of all the brainless, stupid... grr!" Err, and swearing up a proverbial storm in a manner more akin to an extremely angry sailor than the silent assassin he was supposed to be. So much so that his landings were blowing pieces of bark off with each impact which was a fair indicator that the jounin was more than simply angry. No, it would have been more accurate to say Toshiro was furious. Furious at the clone that went and did something its creator wouldn't consider doing outside of actual combat, and furious at himself for not having taken steps to prevent the whole incident. Sure it had been years since a clone of his had "gone stupid", but even now they occasionally acted as if they had a mind of their own. Granted it was usually used to insult him in some manner and not for going against all common sense - in this case by using far too powerful a jutsu against genin in a test-slash-training situation - but he still felt he should have done something. As it was all the jounin had been able to do was follow in the wake of his kunai and shove one of the clones shoulders so that it spun around more incase the thrown knife was dodged. In the end he had managed to nail his clone in the shoulder to further the spin after it had barely avoid the thrown weapon, only for the both of them to get hit by first a bright flash and then Shikaruto's second fuuton jutsu of the day. Luckily the clone had take the brunt of the actual impact, even if only because its creator had grabbed it by the throat and left it no option, so other than a few minor scratches and a bruised cheek the jounin had again escaped injury. Of course by the time he had gotten out of the undergrowth the two genin were gone and the clone had dispersed with nary a trace. For the jounin there was no doubt that the crafty Nara had used the distraction to take both of them into cover and wait out the situation. A decision that worked in Toshiro's favor as well; three seals, chakra, and a thumb cut on a nearby thorn bush later had been followed by his first summon taking flight back to the village to rustle up medical supplies (i.e. if need be kidnap the first medic-nin Tonbi laid eyes on) while he had gone looking for the two genin. "I told you those clones were flawed. Should have used a Kaze bushin instead." And accompanied by his second summon who was taking great pleasure in saying "I told you so" after learning how badly the Kage Bushin had screwed up. He didn't know where she got it from but lately Kanako had become a real snob when it came to comparing wind-based jutsu to, well, every other ninjutsu. Something that as he bounded off yet another tree the jounin did his best to ignore even if the snickering from behind was making him grind his teeth.

If one good thing came out of that mess though, it was proof that the file on Shikaruto had been dead wrong. The person that document had been talking about would have carried on with the "mission", not risked everything on a diversion to get a fallen comrade out of the line of fire. And if the expression on the face of the shadow clone Shikaruto made was any indication he wasn't just being "a good Konoha shinobi" but really concerned about Kei. That more than anything put to rest the jounin's biggest concern about the shadow-user; he had dealt with far too many of the "don't need a team and don't care about teammates" genin to want yet another put into his care. Plus it was obvious that the sneaky Nara had been able to hide a few things from the offical records; none of the files Toshiro had laid eyes on mentioned Shikaruto knowing the Kage Bushin no Jutsu or the villages "secret" wind jutsu and that was as impressive as the jutsu themselves. And Kei. When she recovered (her teacher refused to consider any alternative) Toshiro wasn't sure if he wanted to yell at her for not considering other options or trusting her teammate, or wrap her in a bear hug for then yell at her for being so damn reckless. Watching the kunochi's solution to the dilemma she had been put in, the jounin couldn't help but think back to a certain raven-haired genin who had been just as reckless in protecting others. Toshiro just hoped that Kei wouldn't follow in his wife's footsteps - he had gone through enough heart-stopping moments like the time in Kumo and those bastards who had attempted to kidnap his then-girlfriend. If he had to go through that again Toshiro wasn't sure he would survive to see his first child enter the Academy.

Just after that thought Toshiro paused on a branch to look around, and thanks to being so high up was quickly able to spot the genin even as Kanako landed to his side. Now here was a pretty problem. Toshiro had enough battle experience to be able to judge how much actual damage his jutsu could do on even a glancing blow so he was pretty sure Kei had only been knocked out. Pretty sure wasn't a hundred percent though and he couldn't be stop worrying until he had a chance to assess the damage personally. To do that though he would have to get past an obviously agitated Shikaruto who was very likely to stab first and not bother with questions. And then there was the matter of pride. Toshiro had no way of knowing how Shikaruto - or Kei when she woke up - would react to being told that they passed without completing their "mission". Even if hearing such did get the pine-apple haired genin to stand down, one or both might construe such a "cheap win" as pity or a lack of faith in their abilities, and having one or even two upset genin on his team would make matters far more difficult than the jounin was ready to deal with. Thankfully it was his tactically-inclined summon who had accompanied the jounin and Kanako's mind had been running along parallel tracks. A quick discussion between summoner and summon via the hand signs that served both clans as a common language soon resulted in what both hoped was a plan that would end matters while leaving the two genin's pride intact.

On an unseen signal the pair jumped down on opposite sides of the genin, Toshiro landing in a ready stance with one hand on a sheathed sword and Kanako on the opposite with all five of her daggers buzzing around her furiously in a display of her skill with fuuton ninjutsu. In between them and right in front of the genin landed another sword that buried itself halfway down the unsheathed blade. Jade orbs never leaving the genin's eyes, Toshiro put the ball on how the mission ended into the hands of the sole conscious genin on the team. "Seems there is more to you two than meets the eyes. Enough that it would be a waste to just send you back to the reserves. So here is my final offer. You can choose to fail the mission but leave with your partner and try again later, or you can try to fight and risk it all on a slim chance." It was the classic lesser-of-two-evil's challenge; all the options available were bad and the subject had to pick one of them. If Shikaruto took the first option he would technically be failing the assignment - something no shinobi wants on their record - but the two genin would have "escaped" with their lives to fight again. Something that was at times all you could hope for in the ninja world when a mission went belly up and anyone who wanted to progress beyond genin would need. And if the lone conscious genin did choose to fight it would certainly prove he was the sort that could be trusted with the rare of missions where death truly was preferable to failure, and there was still a way out right in front Shikaruto's face.

Toshiro: 111 CP - 15 = 96 CP

Spoiler:

Kanako: 50 CP - 14 = 36 CP

Spoiler:

[OOC: So much for the plan I had. If no objections we can end this with one last post each this.]

Age : 109 Posts : 179

In a strange pitch black darkness, all sense of space or time was lost to the young kunoichi as she stood alone, seemingly in the air. Strange, because although everything was black around, she could at least still see herself easily. For a fleeting moment, Kei wondered where she was; if her memory had served her correctly, she had been fighting alongside Shikaruto against their sensei, and had managed to get him out of harm's way, with the latest Suiton tachnique that had been used against the two. While the technique was quite powerful, Kei knew such a glancing blow could hardly prove fatal. So she was not dead, then. The fact that Kei's body didn't hurt one bit suggested that she wasn't in the real world... yet. The girl took a step forward, her senses straining to apprehend any stimulus to which she could react. There seemed to be nothing at first, until her ears heard the sound of footfalls in the darkness. As the steps became louder, Kei considered moving towards them, but caution won her over, and she stayed where she was, choosing to allow the approaching person to show themselves to her first, instead of vice versa.

A shadow materialized out of the gloom, and an identical figure of the kunoichi stood facing her, about 20 feet away. For a moment, the two figures stood; if not for the fact that there was no medium between them, one could have easily supposed Kei was standing in front of a mirror. Then the 'mirror' Kei spoke: "The ability to complete a mission is always valued in the ninja world..." "If you expect me to feel bad about my decision back in the forest, you may look for someone else to convince," Kei replied. Mirror-Kei shrugged. "Just saying. But you do know that if this was a real mission, being that reckless might have cost you your life." "Stop nagging me," came the reply, "if this was a real mission, with two genin going up against someone as skilled and as crazy as the Konoha no Akumakou, we'd probably be both dead or something by now, regardless of how prudent we are." The mirror image nodded slowly, as though attempting to convince herself of the logic of that statement. Then the image turned and began to leave. But as the figure left, a voice came floating out of the dark into which the spectral Kei melded: "Fair enough. But it is not your way to leave a friend in a dangerous position, if I am correct...."

Shikaruto! The realization that he was probably trying to defend her unconscious form from whatever Toshiro-sensei was cooking up made her begin to attempt to reawaken her physical body by sheer willpower alone. Why she had the faith that the young Nara would not leave her unprotected and attempt to recover their sensei's sword (as was generally expected of a ninja: completing the mission at all costs), Kei was not sure she knew. Perhaps it was because she would have done the same, if positions were swapped. Uncertain of what to do to get out of the mental dungeon in which she found herself, Kei began to run. She didn't know where she was going; she just ran in the direction she was facing... until she ran into a thick, black gelatinous wall. Mustering as much power as she could, Kei pushed through the rubbery substance, until her right hand, which was foremost, broke through the stuff into open space. Her hand felt warm. With one last powerful thrust, Kei willed her body through the viscous wall.

There was a little sunlight on her face; much of the light was shaded by foliage. The ground was dry, so it seemed she wasn't in the same place she and Shikaruto had met the crazy clone. Squatting beside her, resting against a tree trunk was the form of her genin teammate, the pure picture of worry. And her body felt like it had been run through a grinder, but somehow she was still in one piece, although her right shoulder, where she had been brushed by the water technique felt worse than normal. Probably a dislocation. Well, she was thankful for little mercies. Lifting her left hand, she placed it gently on Shikaruto's knee as she gave a weak smile. "You look like your mom's dying..." But the whispered joke was trunkated, as a flurry of motion and sudden sounds exploded into existence. Kei's eyes grew saucer-wide as she took in the scenario before her. One one side was Toshiro-sensei, ready to fight, with a bird, looked like a pheasant, on the other side, a number of kunai buzzing round it in an unknown jutsu. The sensei introduced the last leg of the game, and gave the options that faced Shikaruto. While Kei hated giving up, there was no point in continuing.

"Please, don't bother, Shikaruto-san," the injured girl said, her voice hoarse with fatigue. "You're only one now, because I don't think I'm useful at the moment, and you have two enemies. Unless Toshiro-sensei decides to stage some fake act and let you take the sword, it'll just be the both of us going to the hospital. We have an option to try again later; honestly I think that's the only option. The actual choices you have are: do you want extra injuries or not? I'm so sorry I can't be in this one with you...."

Kei felt like crying; there was nothing worse than feeling helpless, but everyone had limits, and they had to be respected.

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

Despite his best efforts, Shikaruto did not hear them approach. Suddenly, he sensed movement on either side of him, as Toshiro dropped down from the trees above and a pheasant wielding five kunai in some sort of fuuton jutsu appeared opposite Toshiro, on Shikaruto’s other side. The kunai floated ominously around the pheasant, obviously prepared to launch at just a moment's notice. Toshiro’s hand was ready on his sheathed sword, his stance rather threatening. Shikaruto's heart plummeted at the sight. This was bad. He was down to almost a quarter of his chakra pool and his teammate was unconscious. Now, he was faced with the challenge of not only his sensei, but what Shikaruto assumed was also his summon. Another sword landed in front of Shikaruto, closer to him than it was Toshiro or his weird bird summon. Instantly, Shikaruto thought about running out and grabbing it, completing the mission. For him, at least. But was that what Kei would want? The thought stunned him, as his opportunity to act passed.

Toshiro’s eyes made contact with Shikaruto as he spoke and Shikaruto threw every ounce of anger he had at his situation towards the man. "Seems there is more to you two than meets the eyes. Enough that it would be a waste to just send you back to the reserves. So here is my final offer. You can choose to fail the mission but leave with your partner and try again later, or you can try to fight and risk it all on a slim chance." Immediately, Shikaruto became aware of the weight Toshiro’s words carried. This was a moral challenge, of which the importance of his answer could not be understated. Shikaruto was sure his future on Toshiro's team depended on his next few words and actions.

As Shikaruto was contemplating his next move, Kei reawakened, ready to assist Shikaruto with his moral dilemma. “Please, don't bother, Shikaruto-san,” Kei piped up, her voice hoarse with fatigue. The sight and sound of her made something inside of Shikaruto ignite in anger towards the one who had caused her such pain. Shikaruto shivered in confusion, trying hard to keep in control of himself. “You're only one now, because I don't think I'm useful at the moment, and you have two enemies. Unless Toshiro-sensei decides to stage some fake act and let you take the sword, it'll just be the both of us going to the hospital. We have an option to try again later; honestly I think that's the only option. The actual choices you have are: do you want extra injuries or not? I'm so sorry I can't be in this one with you...” Kei looked like she was about to cry. Shikaruto wasn't surprised, considering her helplessness in their situation.

Instinctively, Shikaruto’s first conclusion was to take his chances and go for it. Kei was injured, so he had more chance of getting the sword than her, so she was an obstacle he didn’t have to worry about. He felt guilty about thinking of his teammate as an obstacle, but that was the core of this challenge, Shikaruto mused. If Kei had remained unconscious, there was no doubt in Shikaruto’s mind that he would have attempted to carry on the mission. He had little regard for himself and his own safety. But there was something about her... Something in her pleading eyes staring up at him which forced him to back down in the face of danger, forced him to swallow the burning rage inside of him and act accordingly. The light in her eyes kept him grounded, as he stowed away his kunai in an act of retreat. However, Shikaruto wasn’t about to let Toshiro think lesser of him. “Don’t think less of me for this,” Shikaruto said, turning once again to face the Jounin. “We will get another attempt at this challenge. I’ll hold you to that.” Shikaruto declared, the firmness clear in his voice. Feeling like he needed to clear the air, so he didn’t come across so harsh, Shikaruto decided to finally attach the formal title to what Toshiro now was to him. “Sensei...” He concluded with a small smile and inclination of his head, which was somewhat of a bow.

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Success. Never did its sweet taste fail to make Toshiro smile and this was no exception. When the "mission" had entered the endgame stage the snow-haired jounin had been truly concerned that the situation might have spiraled out of control, a possibility that had seemed all too likely if the rage that had flashed over Shikaruto's face for just a moment was any indication. Rage mixed with what Toshiro called a "planning something crazy" face when the genin's eyes had fallen on the sword the jounin had intentionally dangled in front of the Nara. Never a good combination when what the other person was looking for was a level head and at least a basic understanding. The two genin's sensei (at least in name) had been on the verge of simply calling an end to the mission when Lady Luck intervened in his favor. In the form of one blonde genin's return to the land of the wakeful with the type of quip that was as good as a signed statement that she wasn't in danger of immediately dying. Watching the momentary interaction with the pair, Toshiro wondered if this is how Toho-sensei had felt with him and Kimiko. That there was something between the two - even if it was one-sided - was painfully obvious in the way Shikaruto did an about-face from willing to fight an impossible fight to accepting temporary defeat.

As the pine-apple haired genin stowed his weapon Toshiro effectively did that same by taking his hand of the hilt of his sword and giving Kanako the sign to stand down. An order the hen complied with - if somewhat reluctantly - by recalling her spinning daggers to the container on her back. The avian wind-user had been hoping that Shikaruto would actually attempt to fight. It wasn't often Kanako got to match wits with one of the shadow-users famed for their intelligence and now that chance would have to wait. As for her summoner, he was quickly finalizing plans for the two genin's training even as he moved closer to the pair. For Shikaruto he would build on the obvious skill and preference for smaller weapons - maybe teaching him how to fully use a bow - and start instructing the black-haired genin in how to merge his elemental affinity directly with those weapons to create truly lethal attacks. Combined with more training in stealth and the Nara's hijutsu the genin would make an absolutely superb long-range fighter; able to identify and kill key enemies before they could influence the battlefield while being far enough removed from the fight to analyze it and protect less combat-orientated member. As for Kei he was debating which of a list of basic weapons would best augment her strengths and offset her weaknesses. That - along with general tutelage in ninjutsu - was all he could offer her for the moment since her affinities directly opposed his own and he currently had zero training in ijutsu. Well until he could cajole, bribe, and blackmail various friends, relations, and associates into providing special lessons. Harsh, crazy, and insane his methods might seem but no one could say that Hinamori Toshiro didn't get his students the best.

Such was for the near-future however with immediate needs being first. Chief of among those needs was assuring the two genin that they had passed and assuring himself that no lasting harm would come to one of them. "I never think less of someone for thinking like a true shinobi. And I look forward to that rematch when you two are jounin." Plain words they might be, but the meaning within held much more. Not if the two made jounin but when. As if the pair reaching that rank - which fewer did than the number who died before becoming chuunin - was a foregone conclusion, which for their sensei it was. What had transpired in the past hours had shown that the two had more potential than any of the other genin entrusted to him and it would be up to him to make sure they lived up to that potential. "Orimono Kei, Nara Shikaruto - welcome to the team." With that Team Three was formally inducted into being as a unit of Konohakagure no Sato's military and the first part urgent need was done. The second urgent priority therefore became the first.

Moving quickly to Kei's side, the genin's new teacher-slash-commander began to carefully use what knowledge of battlefield medicine he knew to assess the kunochi for injury. A process that took maybe a minute or two at most to confirm what Kei had suspected - a dislocated shoulder. Leaning back to look the kunochi dead in the eye Toshiro gave his assessment and suggestions on the course of action. "Dislocated if I had to guess. I can try to put it back now but I'm sure you know its going to hurt like crazy, or we can immobilize it and wait for my lazy summon to get his rear here with the medic he was supposed to be finding." Then Toshiro's expression turned quite serious as he laid down one rule that was specific to the kunochi of the team. "Oh and Kei. If you ever do something that reckless again I will turn you over my knee and spank your rear until you can't sit down. Bad enough my wife was the definition of recklessness as genin - I don't need more heart attacks from a student following in her footsteps." Following that the jounin turned to Shikaruto and laid down the basic ground rules for the other genin of the team. "And you are going to make sure she doesn't put herself in that sort of situation. I have every intention of retiring at some point and none of dying from a cardiac arrest because Kei keeps putting herself between you and danger."

Toshiro: 111 CP - 15 = 96 CP

Kanako: 50 CP - 14 = 36 CP

Age : 109 Posts : 179

For a moment there, Kei had been afraid that Shikaruto was going to still attempt to go for the blade in the soft earth, but that moment passed, as the Nara returned his wielded kunai and surrendered his chance to attempt to go ahead with the mission. Kei breathed a silent sigh of relief at Shikaruto's decision. A part of her consciousness wondered why she did that. After all, with Shikaruto yielding, the mission was essentially a failed one, unless Toshiro-sensei had something else in mind when he set up the whole matter. Perhaps it was because there was now no threat of danger, at least coming from the jounin and his kunai-manipulating bird. Or perhaps it was because she hadn't wanted Shikaruto to be hurt... perhaps not.

Pulling herself away from her internal ruminations, Kei shifted her gaze from her teammate to her sensei as he began speaking. His words were most encouraging, because not only had Toshiro-sensei revealed that he regarded Shikaruto's decision in a favorable light, he had also hinted at something even better in his next sentence. By using the conjunction 'when', rather than 'if', Toshiro-sensei had expressed that he had faith in the pair. While Kei was not one to approve of such 'hasty conclusions', this one was an exception, for it meant that most likely the team would get along well together. In a situation where the jounin sensei had no good words to say about his team, bonding and learning from each other would be nigh impossible.

"Orimono Kei, Nara Shikaruto - welcome to the team."

Kei would have clapped, if her shoulder was any better. As that wasn't the case, she just had to be content with lying down and grinning happily. So, she was now a fundamental part of Konohagakure's Team Three. Funny. A three-man cell called Team Three. Maybe she would make '3' her lucky number. The kunoichi tried to rise, and the grin was replaced by a groan, as she remembered that moving an injured person was highly not recommendable. She decided to make no more moves, as her white-haired sensei evaluated her physical condition. By his analysis, it was most likely a dislocation, just as Kei had earlier surmised. Well, that was much better than a fracture. Being a medic ninja, Kei would have been able to deal with herself, but for the fact that as her shoulder was dislocated, moving even her hand was problematic, and so handseals were out of the question. While berating herself for being unable to move, Kei was pragmatic enough to understand that her journey as a ninja had just begun, and it would be foolish to attempt that which a higher ninja, by reason of experience and conditioning, could do.

Then Toshiro-sensei's expression became more severe, and he issued a funny but serious-sounding threat, if one would go by his facial expression. Kei laughed merrily, as Toshiro-sensei gave Shikaruto his orders. So the woman who was so respected by the entire village and who held Toshiro's heart had started off as being reckless. Kei was sure she typically wasn't as reckless as Kimiko-sama, but then they had never met, so Kei couldn't know. Anyway, she couldn't disagree with her sensei. Kei felt it was a bit selfish to put the minds of those who cared for you on edge with careless behavior. Even still, she would not guarantee anything to her sensei. "Copy that, sensei," she replied, "although I can't make any promises." For a moment, Kei had the urge to say a little joke about the spanking session having the potential of being fun, but she refrained from doing so. She was 'respectable', although from what Kei remembered when she was still in Tsuchi no Kuni, the Orimono were known for being naughty. Kei briefly wondered whether her decency would be able to stand up against her pedigree, but only time would tell.

"Concerning my shoulder," Kei continued, "I'm fine with it being immobilized. Waiting isn't all that bad...." Kei was no masochist, and wasn't interested in attempting to show that she could withstand pain. Since there was no immediate threat, Kei was intent on recovering as comfortably as possible. If the team had been on a mission, however, or in a more volatile situation, Kei would not have bothered to seek for another option. Besides, she didn't want anybody to feel worried by her discomfort at getting her shoulder reset. The kunoichi closed her eyes, a content smile on her face. Every great journey started with a step. Even though technically Kei and Shikaruto had not completed their mission objective, they had managed to gain respect from a feared jounin of the village, and Kei had made new friends... especially Shikaruto....

Topic Exit

Age : 27 Posts : 2538

As Shikaruto stowed away his kunai, Toshiro did the same with his sword, returning it to its sheath. Toshiro’s summon also stepped down, somewhat more reluctantly, as the kunai it had been wielding in a fuuton jutsu returned to a container on its back. “I never think less of someone for thinking like a true shinobi. And I look forward to that rematch when you two are jounin.” From Toshiro’s words, Shikaruto knew he had made the right choice. He had passed the moral dilemma Toshiro had presented to him, which was surprising, considering Shikaruto had never really been all that good with morals and ethics. Happy to have been called a ‘true shinobi’, Shikaruto’s eyes darted down to the ground as a small smile crept across his narrow features. Shikaruto’s eyes gleamed at the prospect of a rematch, but he had to wait until they were Jounin? Shikaruto thought about protesting, but he decided that in their current state, it wasn’t worth it. He had lost, fair and square. At least he was going to get another chance. As well as that, Toshiro really seemed to have confidence in him and Kei, as he said ‘when’ they were Jounin, rather than ‘if’. He may not have meant to have said as much, but Shikaruto was an intuitive person, and he picked up on it all the same.

“Orimono Kei, Nara Shikaruto - welcome to the team.” Toshiro said formally, announcing the start of their cell. From this, the atmosphere in the forest changed, as Toshiro moved quickly to Kei’s side, kneeling down beside her and assessing the injuries he had caused. Shikaruto was still mad at Toshiro about that, but it wouldn’t have made sense for them to fight him if there was no element of danger. Shikaruto was kind of just glad it wasn’t him plastered to the floor in pain. “Dislocated if I had to guess. I can try to put it back now but I'm sure you know it’s going to hurt like crazy, or we can immobilize it and wait for my lazy summon to get his rear here with the medic he was supposed to be finding.” Toshiro said after a minute or two. Shikaruto waited in interest to see how Kei would wish to proceed. Toshiro’s expression shifted from serious to grave as he proceeded. “Oh, and Kei, if you ever do something that reckless again, I will turn you over my knee and spank your rear until you can't sit down.” Shikaruto didn’t know whether to laugh or cringe at what Toshiro had said. It sent a vile mental image through his head. He just wished Toshiro hadn’t said it. “Bad enough my wife was the definition of recklessness as genin - I don't need more heart attacks from a student following in her footsteps.” Shikaruto knew Toshiro’s wife was the Hokage. It was interesting to note she had been reckless, but grown out of it. Perhaps there was more to say about recklessness than Shikaruto had originally mused. By ‘following in her footsteps’, did Toshiro mean he thought Kei was a Hokage candidate? Because that was a pretty extreme thing to say to a Genin.

Shikaruto wondered how Kei would react to what Toshiro had said. “Copy that, sensi,” she replied, “although I can't make any promises.” A brief, cheeky smile flitted across her face, and Shikaruto suppressed a chuckle. "Concerning my shoulder," Kei continued, "I'm fine with it being immobilized. Waiting isn't all that bad..." Shikaruto deduced from her decision that Kei was a pragmatic girl. She was willing to wait for her injury to be healed, considering there was no further danger and it was safer, even if it meant withstanding the pain for a little longer.

Shikaruto didn’t have much time to turn the exchange over in his mind, because before long, his sensei turned to him. “And you are going to make sure she doesn't put herself in that sort of situation. I have every intention of retiring at some point and none of dying from a cardiac arrest because Kei keeps putting herself between you and danger.” Shikaruto didn’t much like the way his sensei spoke to him, but it was too soon to say anything about it, and by this point he was too tired to care. Besides, he knew Toshiro’s words were coming from a place of concern rather than power. So he just nodded in compliance.

All he really wanted to do now was to go home and be alone, but he was part of a team and he had responsibilities to other people. Walking over to Toshiro who was knelt beside Kei still, he waited patiently, smiling down at Kei, in his own small way letting her know it would all be alright. Maybe staying with them while they waited for medical assistance wouldn’t be so bad, after all.

Topic Exit~

Age : 48 Posts : 1036

Gauging his genin's reactions to the news that they had passed the "exam" only reinforced Toshiro's sense that he had made the right call. No complaints about an "unfair exam" or questions about how they could pass without completing the "official" objectives such as filled the horror stories of other would-be jounin sensei with normal teams first encounter with this sort of situation. He didn't consider his prior - and only until today - pair of genin normal. Not with the baggage both had carried prior to coming under his tutelage. So far the pair seemed free of that that particular problem and in possession of far more sense, a welcome change from his prior teams whose unifying characteristic (aside from massive personal issues) was a profound lack there of. Kei being a profound example of that as the kunochi elected to have her dislocated shoulder immobilized until it could be properly set instead of trust to her teacher's admittedly rudimentary field medicine.

As he fashioned a sling out of what was available (mostly one of his sleeves and one of the leather straps that held his scabbards) Toshiro found himself wondering how far he could have taken his first team if they had been so... stable. 'Probably further than they got' he concluded and, even as he secured the last knot in the sling, silently promised himself he would make sure the pair of now-genin made jounin as he had implied they would. As a sort of down payment on that promise he had both genin take a seat on the ground and laid down the basic rules, expectations, and other details that as a jounin-sensei it was expected one imparted to your students. Included in that laundry list was a basic training schedule (four days out of every seven), where the three would meet (at the training ground nearest the Hokage tower) for said training, that they should be ready to receive missions even on official days off, and that they would be responsible for any clan-specific training during days off or when their sensei was assigned to a mission beyond their capabilities. While it wasn't expected of jounin-sensei Toshiro also made it very clear that he expected the two genin to be ready for missions higher than the normal D-rank or occasional C-rank within a few months time.

Toshiro had just finished the list of requirements and asked "any questions for me" when the undergrowth nearest the trio shook. Before anyone could take hasty action (in case the disturbance was due to one of the innumerable predators in the forest) emerging from the undergrowth was two of the larger-than-should-be-possible pheasants that were Toshiro's clan summons. One the genin would recognize as the white and black brid who had previous been poised to fight them. Kanako had apparently slipped away while the two junior ninja's attention was focused on their teacher to (successfully) lead her counterpart to the right place. Said counterpart, a somewhat larger pheasant with black-rimmed gold feathers, made a somewhat comical sight as over his back was slung a tied up and clearly irate physician if the sounds making their way past the gag were anything to go by. Before the jounin could ask just what his first summon was doing the avian rather unceremoniously dropped his protesting bundle to the ground and used a kunai of his own to slice through the bonds. Then used that same implement to make a point by holding it against the fellows pauch and saying "remember, she gets better or you get very sick" before adding a kick to the backside that propelled the man to Kei's side where he was soon hurriedly doing his best to fix the damage to the kunochi's shoulder. While the "medical supplies" he had been sent to find were earning their keep, Tonbi busied himself answering the query in his summoners raised eyebrow. "Sorry taicho but this was all I could find. And he wouldn't come along nicely even after I made the usual offer. Something about it being beneath a physician of his standing to go to the patients. Had to resort to the other promise and going over the wall."

As explanations go it probably left any listeners with more questions than answers but Toshiro was used to his first summons slash best friends antics. At least enough to fill in the blanks and wonder just what sort of fallout he would have to deal with this time. After all, it wasn't every day one of the villages most self-important physicians - the sort who expected even the deathly ill to come to his office - was threatened at kunai-point and kidnapped by a summon to fix one of said village's genin. "It's a good thing I don't mind a reputation as a blood-crazed killer. Because you are NOT helping dispel that Tonbi."As he buried his face in his hand at his summon's antics Toshiro wondered just what he had done to deserve this. Ignoring the nagging little voice that began to count off all the things he had done that deserved far worse Toshiro muttered what might have been a particular foul curse even as the doctor was finishing making sure Kei's shoulder was back in its proper place before calling an end to the day. "Kanako, take your mate in hand please and tell Kimi that I'm going to be late getting home tonight thanks to the paperwork that pin-feather's inability to be discrete is sure to have caused." Equally ignoring the abrupt protest - at both the insulting nickname and suggestion that he needed that sort of guidance - as Kanako grabbed her mate by the feathers on his head and half-dragged half-lead the taller pheasant into the brush, the jounin turned back to his genin. "As for you two, be at the meeting place the day after tomorrow. I'm probably going to be too busy for the rest of today and tomorrow dealing with the fallout from my dearest summons stupidity to start properly teaching you until then."

When he had formulated this "mission" Toshiro had thought "how can I put my own spin on the usual game of catch-the-sensei". And while it had certainly been rather different from the norm the jounin had not expected that the twist to the whole assignment would be that he was going to be running damage control if he didn't want to end up sleeping on the couch for the next week. Sweet and loving, not to mention drop-dead gorgeous, his wife may be Kimiko did not enjoy the extra paperwork her spouses tendency to overdo things sometimes caused and had no problems making her displeasure known.

[exit thread]