A Fated Meeting (private)

Posts : 288

The white clouds in the sky stood out from the rest of the deep blue. There was little besides the sky that intrigued Akiko in this village recently, especially since her graduation from the academy. Akiko sat with her legs dangling over a short thirty foot cliff, her hands playing with the green, yellow, and red beads that hung from her hair. She looked down towards the ground and imagined for a moment how it would feel to drop to the ground below but quickly decided it was not the best idea. Behind her was a decent sized grass-less field, which was less visually inspiring than the sky above but still had that feeling of peace. The village was quiet and serene but a few sounds from the busiest parts of the village lofted up towards her ears. Her ears perked a bit as she tried to listen to specifics but it sounded like a small rumbling to her. She sighed and started to lazily kick her legs, "This is being a Genin. . .". Her brow furrowed as she said her statement. She was finally a full-fledged ninja but sitting here watching the sky was all she could do.

She felt pent up, bored, and uncomfortable, so Akiko stood up from her perch and walked a few feet away from the cliff. She took in a full breath, closed her eyes, and let out a loud bellowing yell. Her voice bounced off the mountains walls and into the air surrounding her. She let her voice crack before she silenced herself. A giggle took hold of Akiko, she wasn't sure if it was because of her boredom or the fact that she found her situation pathetic but either way it made her feel a bit more at ease. She began to hum to herself in a nonsensical melody, letting her mind wander.

Akiko thought about her mother. Someone she didn't feel close to anymore despite her mother's continuous attempts. Akiko knew it wasn't her mother's fault that they were separated, in fact she always felt that the Puraton and her own status in the clan was to blame., "My clan. . ." Her mind clung to the thought of her clan once again and her head shook out of frustration. Her mind raced about her clan and her father. Akiko wasn't sure of what she should do about them but she knew something needed to be done. She sighed again, giving up on the thought and sat her eyes back on the clouds. The clouds weren't complicated to her, in fact they seemed to be the only understandable things in her life.

She picked up some clumps of dirt, quickly made a mental note of the dirt underneath her fingernails, then threw the dirt clod off the cliff, and as it fell towards the ground below, her humming tune became more powerful.

Age : 34 Posts : 718

The Kyukkuo kunoichi wasn't the only one having clan problems. A recent incident in the Kousen compound that left several shinobi dead was ultimately blamed on Mugen by many within the clan despite the truth behind what happened. Because of this, it was hard for the boy to be in the same district as any of his clan members. Ever since he was given a lenient sentence, his clansmen started looking at Mugen with eyes of distrust. Some part of him understood. The boy that had grown up with his clans glory at the forefront of his mind wanted to see the reason behind things. He had taken the life of a prized Ranton user after all. The greatest of taboos a Kousen could commit, regardless of the circumstances. Because of the glares he would have had to endure if Mugen trained in the compound, he was ditching practice today. While his parents would give him an earful later, the knew the pressure he was facing from his peers and would ultimately let him off with just a lecture. Knowing he could recluse into solitude with little to no repercussion Mugen would find himself napping in the shade of a short cliff.

Only the gentlest of breezes reached the white haired Genin as he lay with both hands behind his head as cushion. A peaceful half smile was on the boys face as he enjoyed a pleasant dream of his clan welcoming him back as if he were a hero. Things were just getting to the good part when Akiko's yell from above woke him. Mugen sat up quickly thinking the scream was someone in trouble at first, but there was no panic to the sound. Someone was just yelling...great. Feeling groggy and a bit grumpy from his nap, Mugen got to his feet and brushed off his backside before making a nice big stretch to wake his body, "Aaaaaaah~ Well, I shouldn't sleep through lunch anyways, guess I'll just make the best of i-" Just as Mugen was about to finish his sentence, his horrible luck of getting interrupted struck once more as his fresh attempt to meet the day was met with falling dirt to the face. Mugen paused for a moment as if to confirm that what he though had happened...had indeed just happened. He was standing too far from the cliff edge for it to have been nature's cause...A bell rung in Mugen's mind as he cam to a conclusion, yup, some one must have thrown dirt off the cliff.

It was horrible, the dirt got in his mouth, eyes, and even up his nose! Mugen struggled through some kind of strange mix between coughing and sneezing while he rubbed his eyes clear. "What's the big idea!?" The Genin shouted as he finished clearing his face of debris and began scaling the cliff. A few well placed jumps using his enhanced strength to carry his light weight body upwards, Mugen would land crouched at the peak of the cliff close to where Akiko had been sitting before. The dirt particles still on his face should have made it somewhat clear to the girl as to what happened. She seemed to be humming to herself when he arrived and normally Mugen would stop to admire how cute his fellow Kumogakure-nin was or how nice the tune she hummed sounded to his ears. But he was stressed about his clan and the combined awakening/dirt trick suppressed Mugen's usually kind nature. His expression favored a stoic frown as he demanded an explanation, "Oi, did you throw that dirt just now?" As Mugen asked the question his eyes drew a line in the air to the dirt under the girl's nails and made a face that was just daring her to try and lie about it.

Posts : 288

Akiko's mind was on her father and her Caravan. She had not seen him since she had started the academy but until now it wasn't something that had bothered her. She thought that maybe she should pay a visit to him. She thought of what she would say and do but nothing seemed natural enough for her.
Akiko's humming slowly faded as her private world was interrupted by a male voice. She lowered her head and aimed her eyes towards the source of the voice. Her green eye's met with white hair worn naturally short that framed the face this boy. She figured he must of climbed the cliff face quickly or was using some sort of jutsu to conceal himself. She grew excited, for she never met a ninja before as a ninja herself. The blue-green color of his eyes made her forget what was happening for a moment. She hesitated to speak for a moment, being caught off guard took her speech although the apathy in her eyes would not betray it.

"Or I just returned it to the ground." She said flatly, her eyebrows raised as she tried to figure out why this boy cared. She looked took her eyes off of Mugen's and saw dirt on his face. A smirk crossed her lips when she realized what must of happened. "Well, I tried to." She lifted her hand and looked at her fingernails before shrugging and returning her attention to this boy. Her eye's traced up and down the boy looking for a forehead protector but she was unable to spot one. She figured he was not a ninja as she thought before and that she wasn't paying enough attention. Even though Akiko this boy had no forehead protector and no clear indications of his status, she still found him being upset interesting.

She returned her eyes to the boy's, "but your face seems to have stolen it.". She motioned towards his face, her smirk growing into a smug grin. Not only did the situation entertain her but she started to not dwell on her clan and this boy was a welcome distraction from her thoughts and boredom. Failing feigning disinterest, she tilted her head backwards, her face towards the sky, while her eyes kept in contact with Mugen's before she released her eyes to the sky.

Age : 34 Posts : 718

"Or I just returned it to the ground."

The response was not the humble apology Mugen was hoping for. He watched in silence while his brain tried to wrestle with the nonsense Akiko was spouting. It was clear from her tone and expression that she didn't feel the least bit guilty. The boy clenched his fists slightly as he waited for her to continue. His deep teal eyes broken by a golden halo were scanning the girls appearance up and down as well. She was clearly a kunoichi from the headband she wore, perhaps she would underestimate him since his own was hidden from sight. Making a mental note of that, Mugen listened as the Kunoichi continued,

"Well, I tried to."

What did she mean? Returned what to the ground? She smirked and finished,

"but your face seems to have stolen it."

Mugen was able to put it all together with that. She was being smooth with her words but she was talking about the dirt. Aloof as it might have been, there was the confession Mugen had demanded. Normally he would have kindly asked for an apology and moved on, but this girl was being particularly rude in his eyes. Instead of empathizing with Mugen and apologizing, Akiko had openly mocked him for his troubles. "Shouldn't you say sorry when things like this happen?" Mugen growled through his teeth as he forced himself to grin back at the girl even though the vein that was now visible over his brow clearly displayed his frustration.

Mugen probably wouldn't get an apology as a reply. If that was indeed the case, he'd kneel down and grasp a handful of dirt whilst carrying an evil glint in his eye. A mischievous smile danced across Mugen's lips as he decided if he could get a "sorry" then he'd just have to get even. "In that case...Eat this!" Mugen would shout before throwing a clump of dirt through the air aimed right for Akiko's noggin. "The name's Mugen. If you can beat me in a fight, I'll bow down to you and do whatever you say for an hour! But if I win, you'll kneel before me an apologize for an hour! It's a challenge!"

Posts : 288

"Sorry?", Akiko asked confused. She mused over the word. She didn't think about apologizing until this moment, but did not feel the slightest bit guilty. She pushed the thought through her head. She lowered her eyes to the boy just as he spoke to get a peek at his face just to have a clump of fresh dirt nail her square in the face. She stood there frozen for a moment, her smile still able to be seen underneath the dirt. Her hand reached up and wiped the dirt from her face.
Akiko's eyes met with the boy who introduced himself as Mugen. A challenge sounded pretty good to Akiko and this boy seemed strong judging by the force of the dirt clod that hit her. She began to reconsider Mugen's shinobi status but put it out of her mind deciding that it doesn't matter much. Mugen had sparked that competitive flame that she never got to use. Her family had taken care of her and sheltered her for as long as she can remember, so in sparring matches her opponent would forfeit as to not offend. Akiko's father and uncle also would spar her but with murderous intent but those were rare occasions.

She put her attention towards her gauntlets and began to tighten them. "A challenge? Well, I accept, Mr. Mugen." She planted her feet into the ground, stooped her posture, and let her arms hang a few inches from the ground. "Crunchy of the Kyokkuo clan will be your opponent. I suggest you remember it since you will be bowing down to her." Her smile faded as she spoke and was replaced with a blank look. Akiko kicked off her left leg and propelled towards Mugen, her arms dangling behind her and dirt trailing her.

Age : 34 Posts : 718

After Mugen threw the handful of clumped earth at his fellow Kumo-nin he realized that perhaps that wasn't the most mature and calm way to have handled the situation. He considered apologizing as he was under a lot of stress and just kind of snapped. But then again, this girl was being quite the ice queen and she was just begging to be taught a lesson. Or perhaps she was anxious to let loose...the determination on her face was surprising as she introduced herself and prepared her stance. Mugen didn't think she would get so fired up about a spar, but honestly it was pleasing to see. The Kousen boy also wanted an excuse to let off some steam and it was hard to keep himself from smiling before he could zip up his hoody a bit more so his mouth would be hidden. It wasn't the perfect disguise as his cheeks still rose a bit and his eyes eased their gaze from sharp frustration to a simple carefree emotion. As the Kunoichi began her approach, the patient Genin took a step backwards and let himself begin to fall off the face of the cliff and out of sight for the briefest of moments.

While obscured from view by the cliff, Mugen reached behind his back and grasped his chain weapon, Kousa. As air flew past Mugen's body he swiftly threw the weighted end of the chain upwards with a swipe of his right hand sending the hexagon shaped weight ascending upwards. As it cleared the cliff Mugen had already fallen four meters, but he stopped his descent by placing his feet against the rocky cliff face and focusing chakra into his feet. It was a struggle to stop his fall and he slid another meter before stopping completely. Once the weight was high enough to be roughly chest level with Akiko's approaching stance Mugen swipped his hand again whilst holding his end of the chain. This sudden swipe would coil through the chain and suddenly change its trajectory 90 degrees. To Akiko it would appear as if the chain rose up and then struck out at her with a life of its own as if it were some kind of strange snake.

If the strike hit its mark then Akiko would suffer a small bruise wherever the weight impacts. But no serious or debilitating injury would result unless she somehow moved her head in the way of the attack. Mugen hoped to catch his opponent off guard with this little trick solely to upset her. Dealing damage wasn't his goal at the moment. Mugen looked up the cliff face with one hand on his chain as the other began reaching for his ninja tool pouch on his left thigh.

Stuff used this post/Chakra Bank::

Posts : 288

Akiko kept her eyes steady on Mugen and to her surprise he took a step off the cliff and fell from view. She hastened her step to try to reach the edge of the cliff before something serious happened to this non-shinobi. Suddenly, a chained weight sprang from the horizon of the cliff, changed its trajectory and snapped at her like a snake. Normal people would not be this daring to do this and it all became apparent, this boy Mugen was a ninja just like her and this thought excited her. Her lips parted as she prepared herself for her next actions.

Akiko quickened her steps even further and closed her eyes. She came up with an idea but needed to focus. After a few moments of her darkness, the sensation of pain sprang to life starting in her left shoulder. Akiko used the momentum of her run to carry her towards the edge of the cliff as she let the momentum and energy of the weight to spin her horizontally around the chain. Her left arm hung loose, her palm grazing the chain as she propelled over the cliff. She curled her right hand into a fist and prepared her Leaf Thunder Fist. Though Akiko prepared the attack she kept her focus was on her palm, waiting for the right moment to open her eyes and seize her moment.
She used her closed eyes to help her concentrate and to keep herself from being nauseous. While she spun she couldn't help to be grateful that she had the forethought to close her eyes. Chunks of Flying Fish was not a jutsu she wanted to discover this day. Once her palm felt the chain angle, her eyes sprung open. She grabbed hold of the chain as she took a snapshot of her surroundings.

Mugen stood against the cliff face, his eyes fixed on her having already seen her feet appear over the edge. She tried to take this moment to study his face but all she could see was his eyes. Despite that, she was able to figure out a few things. She was able to confirm she was correct about him being a ninja. She did not know his rank but underestimating him at this point would be stupid. Knowing this she realized flinging herself off of a cliff with her eyes closed probably wasn't the best idea. Her body seemed to float in the air as Akiko became eye level to Mugen but appearing upside down to Mugen. She decided that it was too late for hindsight and continued with her plan.
She tugged firmly with her left hand and clenched her right fist tighter. For a moment the chain became taught as Akiko used her momentum to change her trajectory at a right angle downwards following the chain to Mugen. As soon as she began her downwards decent she erupted out of her spring, her fist travelling to Mugen's face.

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Age : 34 Posts : 718

The wait was the hardest part about these strategies, but it gave Mugen time to think which was valuable for keeping his head cool and focused. The girl pronounced herself a Kyokkuo clan member...The Kousen struggled to recollect what that clan was famous for but he was sure there was something to them he should know about. He couldn't be sure without asking but there was only so much time available for thinking. The weapons expert felt the slight vibration from the impact against Akiko's body, it didn't feel like a clean hit which made Mugen feel a bit cautious. He feared that a number of things had happened but any paranoia was quickly smothered as Akiko appeared above him. The last thing he had expected was for her to have used his own attack to speed her rush off the cliff. As the girl appeared Mugen swiftly threw his left arm aiming for Akiko's trajectory of descent. This swipe of the arm would send two Kunai flying towards where she would have been just seconds from the attack. Assuming of course she fell to the ground unhindered. But once again the Kunoichi defied Mugen's expectations by using his chain to shift her direction of movement. The Kousen would be lucky if those kunai even scratched the target.

The incoming attack itself wasn't particularly threatening, but Mugen became more cautious as the girl proved herself to be anything but predictable. Fearing there was more to Akiko's punch than met the eye, Mugen jumped from the wall letting go of his Kousa chain with his right hand while his left moved the grasp the sword resting at his shoulders beneath his hoody. Mugen's jump would take him several feet away from the wall and temporarily out of Akiko's reach as she descended along his chain. The male genin did a simple back flip through the air and landed in a crouched position only to stand up right away unzipping his hoody and drawing his shortsword, Silpharius. Despite his short stature of only 4'11", Mugen managed to look somewhat capable as the undone zipper would reveal the Kumogakure forehead protector tied around his waist. It also showed a look on his face very different from before. Through that brief exchange all of the boys worries regarding his clan melted away and a calm joy spread throughout him. He'd witnessed a new method of countering his own prized weapon, which Mugen took great pride in, forcing him to abandon it. This was the first time something like this had ever happened! If this were a mission or a battle against someone with killing intent, perhaps this would have thrown Mugen into a panic. But since this was a spar between village shinobi the prospect of something "new" was more than enough to out weigh the consequences of losing this battle. Mugen now had an innocent smile on his face as he spoke out to his attacker while there was this brief moment where neither could really attack one another.

"Wow! That was really impressive! You're the first person to counter my Kousa and Ryuuga that way." Mugen slashed the short sword through the air and bent his knees in order to sink into his center of gravity with the right side of his body turned towards Akiko. He tossed the blade from his left hand to his right and extended the armed limb towards Akiko. As he did, Mugen stepped back several feet further from the cliff lest his opponent jump off and land exactly where he was standing. "Sorry I didn't fully introduce myself before. Mugen Kousen, a Genin of Kumogakure." Mugen revealed his clan linage on a whim more than anything else. He wanted to see how Akiko would react to hearing that he was from a relatively famous local clan. While Mugen himself didn't think that really made him any better or more impressive than the next guy, he was aware that he was unique in having such equalist heavy view. There was a chance it could upset Akiko or make her more cautious, or perhaps it would spur her to fight harder out of pride? Mugen would deal with the results when the time came. For now he would hide his left hand behind his body and keep it close to his ninja tool pouch while he waited for a chance to reveal itself.

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Posts : 288

As Akiko fell, a glimpse of Mugen's arm movement made her concerned. She recognized it as some sort of throwing weapon, though her eyes weren't adept enough to see what. Her brain went into overdrive, trying to figure out a way to move her body before what ever he threw reached her. Quickly, she tugged at the chain in her hand, hoping it would pull her but the give was not there anymore. Akiko figured he let go of the chain as she saw Mugen jump away from her and the wall. Her instincts told her there was to find a way to lunge out at him before he got away but she knew the weapons were more important at the moment. She let go of the chain and it caught around her torso.

Not knowing what to do, she aimed her punch at the wall but released the fist. Her open right palm smacked the rocky face solidly. She twisted her body from her right arm and brought her legs closer to the cliff face. The chain caught her shirt and began to twist around her torso. The kunai and the weight wrapped around her until the weight smacked into the cliff. She hated having to move her body into this orientation because she it forced her to take her eyes off of her enemy. She was able though to see the weapons getting closer to her pelvis. She gritted her teeth as she prepared her body to move.
The weapon's were about to hit her thighs as she kicked her legs open into a side split. She was surprised that going into the splits so quickly did not strain her body nearly as much as it did when she was younger. Time seemed to slow as she watched the blur of metal whisk in between her legs. Right as they were about to jet out of view, she turned her attention to the next matter. Not hitting the ground. She knew she was agile and flexible but she would not take the landing gracefully. She grappled her fingers against the wall, trying to get enough friction, enough surface area, enough anything to her legs to pull in to the wall. Feeling the feeling of futility, she pushed off the wall with her fingertips and decided that she should emulate Mugen. She pushed off slightly weaker than she anticipated though and it wasn't enough to push her away from the wall much, but it angled her body enough to have the tips of her right toe scraped the wall. A new idea came to mind and she had a split second to pull it off. She quickly pressed the ball of her left foot forward, touching the wall. She focused the chakra on the bottom of her foot so she could attach to the wall. It worked but just enough to stick loosely.
Luckily for Akiko, the whole endeavor brought her body closer to the cliff face. Nearly at the same time she swung her right arm away from the wall and kicked her right leg behind her left. Her hand grasped the side of the cliff, her right foot was not far behind. She began to turn upside down as she focused chakra into her other foot. She relaxed a bit as the chakra in her feet slowed down her descent drastically. She returned her focus to Mugen as she slid, more upside down than not, to a stop about 6 meters away from the ground. The end of the chains barely touched the ground as she hung there, her golden hair hanging towards the ground.

A smile crept across her face as her eyes listlessly followed Mugen's actions. She watched as he took out a split sword. The blade's edge etched golden streaks in the air as Mugen swiped it around. An audible "Oooo" sound escaped Akiko's lips as she watched. Akiko began to sway her head as if there was a song playing in her head as her eyes caught the Cloud symbol around his waist before returning them back to Mugen himself.

'Wow! That was really impressive! You're the first person to counter my Kousa and Ryuuga that way.'

"I know." Her eyes seemed to disappear as her smug grin grew even bigger. "I was just extremely surprised at the angry magic hex ball-chain attack thing." She relaxed her smile when he said Kousen as his surname and rank. Genin! She had someone her rank and she grew even more excited. She was not too familiar with that clan but she had heard it from the adults in her clan every once in a while. Akiko had the feeling it was something she should have remembered had she cared what the adults ever said.
"Well, Kousen." She said casually. She bucked her legs off the wall and somersaulted to the ground, crouched about fifteen meters away from Mugen. She slowly stood as she turned her head slightly to keep Mugen in her peripheral vision. "I am going to be hold this for a while." She said motioning to the chains hanging around her hips. She pulled the excess chains and wrapped them around her forearms, a bit of the chain around her elbows hung loosely about a foot or two. The kunai hung a few inches from her right wrist while she held the weight firmly in her left, with about the foot of chain-link to spare. She thought it best in this spar to push the Genin's buttons, if she could find them.
"I find that it looks appealing on me." She lied with a mocking tone. She returned her smile to her face. She returned to her first stance but instead held the weight of the chain into the ground. She again sprinted towards the Kousen warrior, the weight dragged her left arm behind. The feet between them closed in and Akiko came in closer.
Just when Akiko thought it would look like she would attack, she let go of the weight and let it fall. She dug her heels into the ground and slid to a stop. As she slid she began to form some hand signs before saying, "Kumogakure no Jutsu!".
A thick cloud popped into existence and surrounded Akiko in a thick grey. As soon as she felt the jutsu complete, she moved her hand to her kit and removed two shuriken. With a moment to adjust, she threw the shuriken to where Mugen has standing. She couldn't go rushing in like normal, she recalled how the chain she currently wore as able to strike at her as if alive. She did not want to kneel to this boy and would not take the chance to be taken off guard again. She stood in a low stance as she anticipated and watched Mugen from the safety of her cloud.

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Age : 34 Posts : 718

The Kousen Genin held his stance and maintained a confident expression even as Akiko made attempts to mock him. From his perspective her intent was obvious due to the smirk the girl carried. The tone of his opponents voice as she spoke only made things more evident as she paused to make note of stealing Mugen's Kousa chain. Besides, that was HIS tactic and the fact that she was using it before him was really the only means through which Akiko succeeded in annoying the boy. But Mugen was a patient fighter by trade so instead of rushing in he kept his cool. Sylpharius was a defensive weapon anyways, now was not the time to act rashly. From the way Akiko seemed to enjoy her flaunting of Mugen's stolen weapon, Mugen could not help but imagine she would take full advantage of the hour they'd agreed upon. So he responded to her pokes of pressure with a smiling retort, "Ah! You're right! The chains of a prisoner would look good on the loser~" Mugen's tongue lashed a sharp response to her teasing all while implying that she had already lost. Not bad for something he came up with on the fly, but verbal assaults alone would not win this contest.

Adopting a stubborn patience Mugen remained firm in his position even as Akiko began running towards him. He had no reason to retreat as he was waiting for an attack to react to before taking action. The purpose behind Sylpharius' unique design wasn't hard to figure out so he had to be careful when and how he used it lest his intent be discovered. But all of the white haired youth's plans were dismantled and thrown out the window as the Kyokko kunoichi halted her approach and performed the village signature hidden cloud jutsu. Being familiar with the jutsu himself, Mugen recognized the handsigns just as the last one was completed giving him a precious few seconds to react before the clouds quickly manifesting around them fully formed. In this opening Mugen brought the hilt of his blade to his mouth and held it between his teeth for safe keeping while his hands flew to his tool pouchs as fast as they could. Mugen knew that Akiko would be able to "see" his position through her own jutsu so he needed his own cover. The tool his hands eagerly reached for were two balls that looked to be made of paper mache.

The spheres were drawn just as Akiko drew her shuriken but Mugen did not need to aim and throw the spheres. The moment the were clear from their respective pouches Mugen flicked his fingers and sent the two spheres to land on the ground only a foot or so on either side of him. These two balls suddenly began releasing a thick purple mist that would propagate out as a cloud within the cloud making it just as impossible to detect Mugen as it was for him to detect Akiko. As the purple mist bloomed outwards Mugen would quickly step left while part of his body was still exposed to Akiko. His intent was ultimately misdirection but it led to him narrowly dodging a direct hit from the shuriken thrown his way. The spinning blades would fly past the boy's right arm at two points leaving shallow cuts in their wake. But at least he didn't have bits of sharp metal sticking out of him, these superficial wounds were an acceptable sacrifice and most importantly; Akiko witnessed the injury take place. Mugen didn't plan to get hit, but now that he had, he hoped the girl would let it go to her head.

As the genin fully entered the obscurity of his mist bomb he waited a second for the space between each bomb was covered in a thick veil of purple so he could jump to the right placing himself in the opposite direction he had been moving last Akiko "saw" him. While in mid air during this jumo Mugen weaved a few handsigns as he silently thought the name of his technique, "Mizuame Nabara" Before Mugen landed his chest would swell before vomiting up a sticky green adhesive substance. Mugen aimed the sticky syrup for the ground covered by his own mist bombs save for the part farthest to the direction Akiko visibly saw Mugen move. Mugen would kneel right away as he landed and take the short sword from his mouth as he waited and listened with his eyes closed. Since he couldn't see through his own cloud unlike Akiko, he would need to rely on his ears to tell when and where she would approach.

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Posts : 288

Akiko watched as the shuriken fly towards it's intended target but noticed Mugen release small spheres. They landed and quickly began to pour out with a thick purple mist. Akiko's vision began to get smoggy as she realized that this mist would obscure her vision, and even the playing field. Quickly the mist bloomed and Akiko focused her attention to the shurikens she had just thrown.
Mugen stepped to the left as most of his body vanished within the cloud. His right arm, however, still showed and Akiko watched as the shuriken barely glanced his skin and continued behind him. At first, she felt the feeling of annoyance on her mind. For a moment she forgot it was a spar, and seeing the shuriken not make a solid hit caused her frustration. Akiko shook the dumb thought form her head and started thinking of things she could do. She was never good at strategy and she knew that staying still would only give Mugen an advantage. Her fist clenched hard as she started to run towards the last location where she saw her opponent. Unlucky for Akiko, she was not paying much attention to her footing and tripped over her left foot. She began to stumble but used her left hand to push off the ground before she could hit the ground face first. As she tried to push away, she felt a great resistance not letting her hand release.
Her eyes darted to her left hand, which was covered in mist. Akiko could not tell what or why her hand was stuck but it was definitely not going to be moved easily. Her lips parted as her predicament became clear to her. She yanked a few more times before she realized she had lost Mugen completely in the fog. Shuriken and kunai came to mind as things she could use to carve herself out but quickly gave up on that idea since she could be attacked at any moment and in all likelihood they would get stuck too. She let an audible sigh pass as she gave up on her hand.
"Hmm. . . You are a very sneaky one.", Akiko said casually as she tried to listen for his movements and voice. She decided that if she was to stay put then she would not go down easily. She shifted her weight on her left hand, the chains rattling slightly as she moved and then balanced herself on it. Her time dodging and fleeing attacks from her father paid off since a year or so ago she would not be able to do this easily, especially during action. She closed her eyes, knowing her sight would fail her for now. Her right hand rose to her chest and rested in half a Tiger hand-sign.
"Crunchy!" She exclaimed in a nearly sing-song voice.

((Sorry if there isn't enough her to go on. Bad day and tired. I can add more if that is better though, just let me know))

Age : 34 Posts : 718

As Mugen crouched to the ground he kept one hand on his bleeding bicep while his focus tried to forget about pain and settle on listening. He was blind within his own mist cover leaving only his sense of sound as a reliable method of detecting Akiko's approach. He could only hope that she would stumble into the trap set for her. That patience would pay off as the Kousen heard his opponent slip followed by the satisfying splat sound of something landing in Mugen's syrup. He didn't know that only her hand was caught, but the sound of the splat was enough to tell Mugen her current position and that was enough. The genin stood up and performed a pair of handsigns for suiton as he shouted, "Suiton: Sui Itsu!" His chest then swelled up once more before unleashing a powerful spew of water at the ground in Akiko's direction starting closer to himself and then pushing the sprat farther her way. In this manner, the jutsu would act like a hose pushing more of the syrup towards the target in hopes of further entrapping her. Mugen's smoke bombs would be fading soon which would give Akiko the vision advantage once more so he was eager to secure a victory now.

Because of the additional water, the syrup would become a bit less viscous an easier to break free from. However it would still take considerable effort and more of the stuff was flowing her way. But the most important part about this all was that water was also spread making a puddle of water that connected Akiko to Mugen. "Sorry, but I think this is over Akiko-san! Raiton: Densen!" Mugen shouted as he thrust his hand into the puddle and let raiton chakra flow freely into the low resistance conductor. The electric charge would follow the water and syrup mix and shock Akiko if she could not find a way to break free. The result would be a temporary paralysis throughout her body which would surely make her muscles constrict. This meant falling into more of the syrup and getting stuck even more.

Mugen felt confident that he had won the match with this play. The boy stood with a smile on his face as the purple mists began to fade. This wasn't a terrible assumption on Mugen's part, but he still didn't approach Akiko knowing that it was possible he'd fallen for some sort of trap as well. Perhaps she used his own weapon to create the splatter sound for example. Mugen didn't have the time to consider that before and was now waiting to see if Akiko replied with her surrender. If not then perhaps he had just made a very poor decision.

Spoiler:

Posts : 288

Her right hand felt the sway of the kunai as she balanced. It made her loose her focus. She let the coiled chain from her right arm loosened letting it fall into her now open palm. Once it had no more give left, she tossed the kunai towards where she remembered the cliff face being. It flew out of the obscured mess that was around Akiko and she waited for it's sharp thud, knowing that it would distract her if she let it.

"Suiton: Sui Itsu!"

Akiko opened her eyes and moments after the words left Mugen's lips, a wave of water sweep over her hand. She put her effort to wiggle her left index finger gripped around the weight. Just as she thought, the water loosened whatever was gripping her to the ground. It wasn't enough for her to free herself with just her arm strength though and her mind raced through her repertoire for anything to help her escape and retaliate.

"Sorry, but I think this is over Akiko-san! Raiton: Densen!"

The silvered haired ninja claimed that this was checkmate and she heard the key word.

Raiton. She thought, plus Suiton. . .equals!. A horrifying lightbulb lit up in Akiko's noggin. Her eyelids widen in fright when Akiko's mind finished its jutsu math. Out of ideas, she let go another yell but this one denoting desperation clearly. Her voice echoed off the cliff-face as she let her body move according to it's instincts.
The left hand relaxed around the weight as her arm prepared to push off. Akiko released her Konoha Dai Senpuu, causing her legs to start kicking. Instead of the usual order she swung her legs, she reversed it due to her being upside down. A swift right kick, aimed to her right that appeared high to her, followed by her left leg sweeping middle. The twisting motion of the Konoha Dai Senpuu gave her momentum, uncoiling the chain around her body and left arm. She could feel her hand loosening but hopelessness creeped into her as she knew she would land on the ground close to her and get stuck again but maybe it was enough to dodge whatever Raiton jutsu Mugen had conjured. Akiko's mind thought about the name of her attack being another village, and how it didn't sit well with her but she quickly dismissed the thought.
Her right leg continued her body's motions and swept across her body. The momentum lifted her towards the sky and with it being used with her right arm pushing, she broke free from the slug from her hand and she ascended towards the sky a foot or two. She gritted her teeth as her buoyancy began to fade and she felt her body returning to the ground and her defeat. Just as she started to descend to the ground, she heard a thud in the cliff face.

The chain kunai thing! Akiko's mind screamed.
She gripped the taught chain with both her hands and pulled with all her might. She felt that she had pulled the kunai out of the cliff, but it held long enough for Akiko to pull herself a few meters. The world appeared before her as she erupted face first from the plume of gases following her lifeline out. She let her lips smile as she saw the ground underneath her was just dirt. The grin didn't last long,however, as the dirt she loved a moment earlier came to give her a kiss. Her head skidded for a few feet before her body started spinning head over heel.
The pain had to stop, so after a few flips, she caught her foot in the ground and pushed off thus gaining control of her momentum and turning her body so she would be facing the ominous cloud. She landed with her legs shoulder-width apart and slid a few feet, the chain lying next to her feet and extended a ways. As she slid she grabbed a Kunai from her pouch and readied it in her left hand, the rest of her body relaxing into her low stance. Her head throbbed and her face burned and her dissatisfaction was clear on her face.
She threw her right hand forward as her lips began to move.

"Daitoppa" She yelled as a gust of wind rushed from her hand and rushed to the purplish cloud and her evaporating cloud. The gale sliced through the smoke and cleared the majority of it revealing a readied Kousen-nin, mist covering her feet. Akiko eyed him angrily for a moment then relaxed her face to its usual nonchalant look. She left out a sigh, returned her kunai to her pouch, and stood out of her fighting stance. She was tired and used more jutsu than she thought she should, plus she figured it wasn't the time to be sparring and using all of her energy when she had to meet with her squad mates.

"Yup. I lose." She calmly said, her face showed a big grin that seemed misplace with her uncaring eyes. "You're strong. . . and my head hurts."

((Edit due to lack of chakra use listed on the bottom))

Chakra and Item use.:

Age : 34 Posts : 718

Mugen remained crouched in the smoke silently waiting for a response from his opponent. He had one hand still pressing fingertips into the puddle at his feet while the other was pressing down on the cut at his shoulder to help stop the bleeding. The Kousen felt cautious even with his victory "surely" secured as he could hear the sounds of Akiko's movements. But even so, he could not determine the nature of her movements and actions. It wasn't until the fuuton jutsu was released to blow away all the visual cover that he could see his opponent and hear her allowance of his victory. He scowl was a bit worrisome until it melting into a beautiful smile that made Mugen's heart skip a beat. He was still a bit too young to start thinking about girls, but who couldn't be touched by such an open hearted grin made under the conditions of a loss? Realizing that Akiko was probably a good person after all, Mugen felt silly for having started any conflict with her in the first place. He smiled back earnestly and replied with a chuckle, "Hahaha, it's not about being strong. I'm surprised you aren't upset at how I used so many dirty tricks!" Mugen made his way closer to Akiko and the cliff side so they didn't have to shout.

As the Kousen's steps brought him closer he observed a lack of burns on Akiko's body showing that she'd escaped his attack anyways. This made his smile turn to a bit of a grin as well, "How about we call this one a tie, and in exchange~" The boy held out his left hand, "You give me my Kousa back and no one has to follow anyone's orders. Sound good?" It was a fair deal to put them back on equal ground. While it was no longer a competition, this would allow Akiko to save face and put some good faith between them. Or so Mugen hoped as he felt it was his own fault the got off on the wrong foot anyways.

Posts : 288

"Upset? Nope. Not me!" She began with a giggle. "But I will get you back for those dirty tricks, I swear." Akiko pointed her right index finger a Mugen's forehead, imitating a pistol. The Kyokkou girl wanted Mugen to know that she was not happy with the outcome of the fight but did not have the patience to say it tactfully. Realizing her failure of socializing, she decided to just move past her awkwardness and continue. She let a wink escape from her eye before her face relaxed. Akiko cocked her head in confusion with Mugen's suggestion. She did not like ties because they she felt that it meant there were two losers. In her mind, this wasn't over but now was not the time to try to rival someone. She hesitantly nodded in response to Mugen's tie offer, her face feeling hot with frustration.
Her eyes gave the boy another look over trying to decide what to make of him. He was a ninja and one who surprised her in many ways. She rested her hands on her hips, while she thought about him. Mugen was nothing if not interesting to her, something about his demeanor let her easily forget about her clan and it's problems. On top of that, he was strong and smart, traits Akiko liked most and maybe this Kousen could help her become stronger.

"I like you Snow Hair." She said flatly, returning her head upright. "You will be my friend.", She added with authority in her tone. She glanced towards the ground and saw the chain she had acquired from the fight. Akiko gently picked up the chain and started to bundle it into a ball. She started to walk to Mugen as she picked up the links but stopped when she remembered the weight and the sticky goo from earlier. Not wanting to get caught again, she tossed the chains where she had left the ball.

"See, I helped!" She said confidently. After her statement, the throbbing head decided it wanted attention. It wasn't extremely painful but it was a headache Akiko did not want to deal with. She rubbed her crown before turning away from Mugen.

She began to walk away from Mugen and head to the village to get patched up by her caretakers. She tilted her head back to Mugen and lifted her arm up to wave. "We will be seeing each other soon, Moogy!" With that she walked, thinking about her encounter and feeling more at ease with the world than she thought was possible.

[Exit]

Age : 34 Posts : 718

As awkward as the Kunoichi felt, Mugen received her intentions rather clearly. The finger pointing gesture showed hostility, but when it was following an adorable giggle it was hard for him to take it personally. Mugen chuckled and returned his short blade to its sheath at his back and waited for her to return his chain weapon. The girl seemed to be thinking silently to herself for a moment before declaring that they would now be friends. She called him "Snow Hair" and it felt like teasing, but he found Akiko's presence pleasant so far so he agreed, "Sure, I don't mind being friends, but what about my Kous-" He then watched as the girl balled up the chain she had around her and tossed it. "Hey!" Mugen shouted as he jumped into action intercepting the chain and recovering it before it could get caught up in the syrup on the ground nearby. The Kousen sighed in relief as he managed to save himself the trouble of freeing the chain from a sticky substance.

By the time Mugen turned around he saw that Akiko was well on her way to leaving. He stared at her a bit confused but waved anyways, "Moogy, huh?...Sheesh, I think I liked 'Snow Hair' better." The Genin chuckled to himself before ruffling his own hair and taking a deep breath. "Alright...Time to go face mom and dad." Mugen told himself. He felt like his head and heart were much more clear than before. Perhaps it was because he was able to laugh for the first time in a few days. Regardless, despite her eccentric attitude, Akiko seemed like a reliable ally. If only the world outside the village would be so kind as to let them all live peacefully here in Kumogakure. But there were dangers to the village beyond those walls and Mugen knew it. That is why it was all the more important that he reforge his clans trust as soon as possible. Filled with a new confidence Mugen freed his chain and returned it to its rightful place at his lower back before heading back to the Kousen clan compound with intent to face his parents and clan members in an attempt to reconcile the tension between them.

---Exit---