Spoiler:

A letter arrived early in the morning, from the administration bureau, mission section.  The letter was sitting on the floor, near her front door about three feet away from it.  Suteki was, on a rare occasion sleeping in.  She had gotten back from her mission with Kurai just over a day ago and was still tired from the experience.  It was her first mission outside of the village borders, her first C rank mission, and it had quite the toll on her.  The mission was quite dangerous; the need to kill multiple opponents was a new sensation, though she managed to avoid doing so.  Amazingly, she managed to avoid having to kill anyone, not that the opportunity never presented itself!  Her partner, Kurai, took a huge toll of life, though not of having to back up the young girl.  She hadn’t the need to end any life on that mission, though she did incapacity a large number of enemies.  

The mission ended in a huge success, not only did they arrest or “remove” all of the bandits that were plaguing the border town, but they also captured the leader of the group of bandits.  Two genin, first timers to the demands entailed of a C rank mission, versus fourteen or more veteran murderous bandits.  No injuries were sustained for her partner or herself, but the stimulation might have been a little much for her.  Or perhaps it was a combination of that and the invitation that happened after the mission.  It was a valuable lesson for her, and she would take plenty away from the experience.  But for now, sleep was what she needed.

The sun rose above her balcony, screaming its immensely bright light through her unprotected windows.  Dust could be seen floating around the room, flashing as it twisted and turned within the gleaming light.  The young girl rolled over in her bed, with a moan, and pulled the sheets higher up above her eyes. It was such a glorious day outside, and such a waste to deny the world her presence, but it would have to live without her for this day.

It was about one in the afternoon when a rumble came from beneath the sheets of the still room.   The covers waved as the young girl stirred back to life.  Another rumble and slowly the sheets rolled off and a body flopped upwards.  The need to feed was great, as she managed to skip breakfast and dinner the night before.  Suteki managed to get herself out of bed and grabbed a quick meal.  It wasn’t anything worth detailing.  Suteki stared out the window, watching the world go by for a moment than, with a slam as they struck downwards, blinds covered up the windows, casting the room into darkness.  The covers flew in the air and settled back, with a few lumps now present.

Her dreams allowed reminiscing of the mission to occur.  She relived what happened, what could have happened, what would have helped.  Suteki was the weak link in that mission, though a minor hindrance, if Kurai hadn’t been there, she would have failed to complete the mission, or perhaps even worse.  Lightning stuck outside her house, the world still cast into darkness of night.  Each bolt of lightning seeming to influence her dreams, this nightmare.  Flashes of the bandits faces, the beating they gave to that woman, their ghoulish veneer of a lack of feelings for life.  The dream needed to end, now, right now.  A chilling sweat glinted on her face as the last bolt of lightning streamed in the distance, lighting the small cracks exposed by the shades before her windows.  A light rainfall happened and the dreams seemed to cease.

It was now morning, though dimly lite by the sun thanks to the overhanging rain clouds.  Though it seemed to quell the dreary dreams she had before.  Instead she had a delightful dream of what happened after the mission.  Though fantasized really, Suteki and Kurai were out on the town, hands held taught, as they were window shopping.  Smiles and laughter were the only thing on both of their faces as she imagined an enjoyable day off with the young man.  The dream seeped into the real world, as a slightly disturbing smile appeared on her face as she grabbed onto a pillow and held it tightly.  Though it was a dream, what a dream it was…

Suteki woke, stretching with a grin on her face.  She felt plenty better than she had in the last few days.  In fact, she felt spectacular.  The young girl sat up, stretching yet again facing her closed windows.  She grabbed the latch for the blinds and pulled them, exposing a slightly dreary world outside.  It was drizzling for the most part, though not horribly.  It would stay cloudy all day, and rainy for most of it, though the weather didn’t bring the young girl down at all.  For some reason, she felt energized and ecstatic for the day ahead.  She headed for her kitchen, preparing a decent size breakfast for the day ahead.  As she cooked, she planned out what she wanted to do today.  Some grocery shopping was needed, as she closed the door on the refrigerator, maybe I would pass by the clothing store for a short time.  The bakery would be another stop of course.

As she finished cooking breakfast, she headed to her dinner table and enjoyed it, eating it at a slow pace.  Suteki looked around her room.  Clothing was tossed around everywhere.  She spoke openly in the empty room, slight disappointment at the idea,“Laundry would need to be done as well.”  As she looked around, she saw a letter sitting a few feet from her front door.  She went over and picked it up, walking back to the table and taking another bite of her breakfast.  The letter was from the Administration office.  Perhaps payment for her last mission!  “Great, now I have some money to spend.  Perhaps I can buy some clothing this time.”  It was for a mission for her to help out at the academy.  The date requested was for today, though she was still off on her dates.  She continued eating and then started to gather her clothing off the floor.  As she opened the door, carrying her basket of clothing under her arm, she ran into a neighbor. “Glorious Wednesday morning huh.  It seems like it is going to rain all day.”  Suteki smiled, than spoke, “At least it isn’t raining to hard.  Still good enough to…”  ‘Wednesday?  Today was Tuesday wasn’t it?  With some apprehension to her voice, she spoke softly,’ “Did you say today was Wednesday?”  The older woman responded, “Yes.  Why dear?”  Suteki quickly turned around, saying goodbye to the lady and rushed with basket in tow.

Suteki grabbed onto the letter, reading it at an extreme pace.  ‘Mission…academy.. Pay of.. Wednesday at..’  Suteki looked at the clock for a moment, seeing it read 9:16.  Her head turned back as she read the rest of the letter.  ‘8:30’,  Suteki dropped the letter as it slowly fluttered to the floor.  She ran to her closet and grabbed something more suitable for training.  Fortunately she hadn’t trained the last few days and still had some clean cloths.  She was changed in three minutes flat and grabbed onto her gourd of sand as she rushed out her front door sprinting towards the academy.  It wasn’t bad enough she was already late, but the academy was about twenty minutes away.  Perhaps at full speed she could make it in 15 if she was lucky, but with the rain, it wouldn’t have been very safe.  As she sloshed down the slightly muddy streets, she had almost careened into a group of people.  As she ran passed them, catching herself barely, she half apologized, probably unable to be heard by them.  At that point she decided to head to the roof tops.  It would make her a little more tired, but at least she wouldn’t injure herself or anyone else.

It was now 9:25, nineteen minuets, it might have been a record time for her!  She quickly reported to the office, reporting to some administrator there.  She received a lecture about being late, but paid very little heed to it.  It would have easily been seen on her face, as she barely even looked at the man whom lectured her.  After the man finished, she apologized, bowing her head two times and the man had a stern look on his face, glaring at her.  She avoided eye contact.  “Report to room 218.”

1453 words.
600 to mission
Training Speed E-1 (75)
Training Speed E-2 (150)
Training Speed E-3 (225)
Training Speed D (300)
79 words
Training Reaction E-1 (75)

28 words remain

Strike Faster! Come on...push yourself harder! Stop being a wimp! Katari was training as hard as possible to get back in shape. You've been out of the game too long! You slacked off! What kind of Tsuchikage slacks off for so long! You're no reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths! Katari finally got tired of the voice in his head nagging him, so he decided to check the mail. He looked over to see that his clock read 6:42. A letter from Tsuchikage Kazu caught his attention. Out of curiosity, he opened it, ignoring the other letters. It read, "I have a mission for you to complete. We require your assistance at the Ninja Academy. There will be a pay of 70 ryo. Be there on Wednesday promptly at 8:30. Katari was overjoyed. He'd just recieved a mission!

So now you're coming back to train! I know what you really want! Of course he was going to train! He'd just been recognized by the Tsuchikage. Maybe if he were to become stronger, he could gain even more recognition. So for the next hour and a half, he trained with all his might.

He then started for the Ninja Academy, so excited that he forgot to wash up. He could really care less. He arrived at the academy about 5 minutes early. He was ready to teach. Where in the world is Suteki? He wondered. About an hour later, he watched as Suteki ran through the door. "It's about time! Luckily, I'm only about halfway through my biography."

268 words
Training Speed E-1 (75)
Training Speed E-2 (150)
Training Speed E-3 (43/225)

OOC: Was hoping for squad leader, but nvm, will just move along.  

IC:

After being scolded for being late, Suteki started to head towards room 218.  She read the letter again, and noticed that it was addressed to several other people besides herself.  This was going to make a bad situation worse.  Not only had she been late for the mission, but she let down a whole other group of people that she was supposed to meet up with.  The letter said to meet up at 8:30 in a the lounge next to the front office.  She looked up from the letter and looked around, searching for it.  Behind her was the front office, to her front was the corridor that lead out into the main entry way for the school.  She knew their was no lounge that way.  She had graduated from here not that long ago, but avoided coming to the front office for obvious reasons.  Though, she had had her share of moments of having to go there.  Though she never recollected a lounge.  Was it a new addition?  She looked around again and saw a room with a man looking towards her direction. A very tall, interestingly dressed man, especially compared to herself, in both accounts.  She started to walk towards him, his staring under a brimmed hat a little scary, given as she got closer, he seemed to be increasing in size exponentially.  The iron gauntlets and a sword showed that he was a close quarters combat fighter.  Something she had zero capabilities within.  

She continued towards him, holding a hand up towards the man, speaking with confidence, thought her voice a little shaky with some fear mixed in perhaps, "Greetings, sir.  My name is Suteki Yaku."  She was about 1.5 meters from the man now.  She bowed slightly to him as she spoke, keeping her eyes trained on his face.  The man was practically twice her size, and his demeanor seemed a little frightening.  As a quick moment of pause passed and she rose, she spoke again with the same shakiness, "It's..Excuse my rudeness sir for being late, It is a pleasure to meet you."  It was a little out of order, but the message got across, perhaps even unnoticed.  

Suteki took a deep breath in, than out, calming herself.  She was surprised to meet yet another new person for a squad.  She had just joined one not that long ago with the kage as her leader, a proud moment to be sure.  Though they had lost one member, she had gone on a mission with another man just a few days ago, and now to meet yet another she was unfamiliar with entirely.  Something must have occurred with her squad, perhaps something had happened to the kage himself?  It was something she would have to look into later, if it didn't present itself sooner.  

475 words.  (503)

Training Perception E-1 (75)
Training Perception E-2 (150)
Training Perception E-3 (225)

53 words remain

OOC: I haven't purchased my sword yet, but it's fine. We can ignore that part.

IC: So this is Suteki Yaku... Call him crazy, but he didn't think that they hired little kids to teach academy ninja. The absolute oldest she could've been was 12. Is she really a member of my squad. Looking down at her face he saw a glimpse of fear. How could he have been so impolite. He'd forgotten to introduce himself.

"Hello Suteki. My name is Katari Fantomusodo. I am pleased to meet your acquaintance. I am happy to be able to work in a squad with you. Could he have possibly told a bigger lie. Katari was stuck in a squad with a little kid that was half his size. Nonetheless, he still had to be nice. "As I just finished telling the students, I am the reincarnation of the Sage of Six Paths and the future Tsuchikage. As you can probably tell from my rather unusual apparel. I am not from here. I spent many years with my father living in the mountains..until he died.

His mind instantly went back many years to when he first went mountain climbing with his father. He specifically remembered the large gathering of ravens on the peak waiting to celebrate with. All he wished was that he could go back to that time. Even more, he wished that his family never had Hemophilia. That way, his dad would've never died. Do not live in the past, but strive for the future, he recalled his father saying.

On that note, he returned to the real world. He looked back at the girl beside him. He could tell that this girl had no prowess in hand-to-hand combat. Suteki seemed a bit more spiritual than that. This could work as an advantage. He whispered to Suteki, "Are you experience in Ninjutsu or Genjutsu?" She seemed too shy to answer but he saw her blush, most likely meaning that she was experienced in those fields. "Okay, students. I think it's about time to head outside. I don't plan on destroying the academy while showing you a few jutsu."

So he lead the class outside, hoping to impress them. "I've learned a few jutsu while living in the mountains, but one of the jutsu I am most proud of is one that I actually discovered while lurking in the forests of Konoha. It was originally called the Leaf Whirlwind, but I have taken the honor of renaming it the Iwa Whirlwind. It's not very complicated, but it requires much flexibility to use. Those of you who would like to specialize in Taijutsu should find this jutsu very useful in your arsenal. Now I need everyone to stand back. He then grabbed a practice dummy to use his technique on. Just breath and strike fast. He suddenly unleashed his quick flurry of kicks. He then turned to see the shocked look on the students' faces. "Okay Suteki, now it's your turn."

WC: 494
494 to mission

Jutsu used:

Leaf Whirlwind:

The man introduced himself politely.  He, gave the impression of being a nice person.  Katari Fantomusodo, a young man once she got a closer look.  She half expected him to be much older, but once she had the closer look, though he gave the impression of being of great experience, she had run into older shinobi before.  Most of the older experienced shinobi she ran into had a more, secluded attitude towards her.  Then he told her of his, for what would be a lack of a better term, his aspiring.  He was the reincarnation of the father of all ninjutsu, the Sage of the Six Paths.  A story any young academy student had heard. Though she was half certain it was a story, he took it to heart it seemed.  

Not only was he that, but he was to be the future Tsuchikage.  Extraordinary record and aspirations, though if he was to be the reincarnation of the Sage, Tsuchikage would have been an easily attainable position.  He was not from the village originally, but from the mountains, which meant nearby most likely.  She was unsure of his boasts, but she found no reason to question him needlessly.  Suteki spoke with some earnest, regaining her composure entirely, "I hope for long lasting and fruitful future together Katari."

He asked of her expertise and was dead on when he said ninjutsu or genjutsu.  She was adept at both of those arts.  She gave a slight nod and he continued on.  He escorted the students outside of the academy, fortunately the rain had let up to allow such.  The man spoke about his past to the students, than started to speak about a jutsu he learned while in Konoha.  'He certainly had traveled quite a bit.', the thought came to mind. He was going to show them a taijutsu he had learned while traveling nearby the Fire Country village, this should be interesting to see.  She took a step back upon his request, along with the students.  A few of the students stood on edge, the anticipation to see his taijutsu was plain on most of their faces.  

His quick succession of strikes was something to see, though it seemed like a basic attack, it had plenty of merit. It was appropriate for the academy students, something they could strive to learn prior to leaving the academy even.  Than, Katari said it was her turn.  She thought for a moment, walking passed the man at what she could do that would be seemingly appropriate.  She only had a handful of techniques she could use, and obviously genjutsu, though formidable, would require a test subject, something that would be cruel to unleash onto these students.  So it would have to be ninjutsu.  She couldn't show them her bloodline techniques, that wouldn't be useful to them so much.  She looked around at how she could display the only technique that came to mind.  An idea did come to mind as she looked towards a nearby tall tree.

Suteki turned towards the students, practically the same age as her.  "I will be demonstrating a ninjutsu, using the Wind element.  It is a jutsu meant more for midair movement, for dodging, but it has other applications as well."  She smiled and turned towards the tree, than used the Body Flicker Technique.  A whirl of leaves took her place and she appeared on top of the tree nearby.  She spoke loudly, grabbing the attention of everyone to her new location. "All that is needed for this technique is to breath in deeply, than to mix your chakra together with the air and breath out.  Depending on how you breath out, the jutsu can have subtly different effects."  Suteki was now standing straight up on top of the tree, balacing perfectly.  She took a deep breath in, and released a strong current of air upon the tree.  The air rushed among the branches, tearing and splintering a few of them.  Leaves whirled at the bottom of the tree than shifted, passing by the students, with a small rush of wind.  The tree had a good chunk of the branches near Suteki, and along the bottom ripped apart.  A few leaves were still clinging onto the branches well below her.  She looked back to the students than jumped down the tree to rejoin them.  

780 words (including above)

Going towards B rank Water (780/4000)

That can't be her best jutsu...Katari watched as his squadmate used the Body Flicker technique. He couldn't deny that was an impressive yet simple technique, but he sensed hesitation. He could tell that Suteki didn't want to use her best technique. He understood why. She obviously wanted to show the children practical techniques. He wanted to do that too, but he also wanted to show the students what they could do if they only applied themselves. It was painful to see the uninterested faces in the crowd...the ones who would not graduate from the ninja academy due to their lack of inspiration. He hated to see that in children. He wanted to see them grow to become great shinobi. He wanted to see some of them as his Sannin when he became Tsuchikage. We need to do something unorthodox.

We needed to show them a good battle. He was very unsure about this idea. Too many things could go wrong. How would we make sure that the children wouldn't get hurt? How far away would we have to place them? Could they see the battle from so far away? Would I rough up Suteki too badly? Could I fight well without a sword equipped? For all he knew, this could either be his best idea ever or a devastatingly awful decision.

He then looked back at the crowd. He watched as the children picked their noses in boredom. I have to do something. He'd convinced himself that this was a good idea. All he had to do was convince Suteki that it was a good idea. How was he to go about this. He knew that Suteki was very shy, so it wouldn't by any means be easy, but he had to at least try.

So he looked around when he suddenly realized that he couldn't find Suteki anywhere. He panicked until he spotted her in the crowd of children.  I forget that she's as young as many of these students. Now to finally approach her. He walked straight into the crowd toward Suteki. "The Body Flicker technique you did wat pretty impressive. You're very skilled in ninjutsu. Do you mind show the students and I more of your techniques in a spar against me. I just want a short one in order to show the children how great they can eventually become. You have a bit of an advantage. I primarily use Bukijutsu, but I lack a rapier to use. I'd be honored if you were to accept my challenge." He finished his statement with a bow. He then looked back over and saw the excitement and anticipation in the crowd of students.

456 words

106 to mission (complete)
350/1500 Fantomu no noroi (Phantom’s Curse): First Release

OC: Sorry about that, forgot that body flicker could be construed that way.  The jutsu I presented was Wind Release: Stream after the body flicker.

Suteki made her way back to the crowd of children, She spoke loudly, so the students of the ninja academy could hear her, "Wind Release: Stream is the name of that particular jutsu.  Though that was a poor demonstration of it.  As you can see, it has a massive amount of wind exit through your mouth.  The best uses of the jutsu are for dodging in mid air, though every jutsu always has secondary useful effects."  

The young girl headed into the crowd, near the back, waiting to see how Katari would proceed.  The sky was still gloomy, black clouds covering the sky.  A few rumbles of thunder could be heard, though far far away from them, so they had plenty of time to continue.  She was up for anything so if he wanted to demonstrate another jutsu, she would go for it.  The tall man seemed to be deep in thought for the moment, and she just glanced around, reading the crowd as well.  The students weren't being very involved really in these demonstrations, and the two of them might be losing a few of them as some of the 'kids' started to yawn.  They would have to up this training in some manner to keep their attention.  

Katari started to walk into the crowd, the students moving to the side as he moved towards them, approached her in the crowd.  He started with complimenting her on what she presented.  It seemed a little odd to her at that moment, though he quickly reached his intentions.  He wanted to have a little sparing session.  She was a little hesitant, though came around quickly enough.  Her expression, her air, seemed confident.  She spoke calmly and with some authority, "Yes.  Let's give them a show, shall we."  She held her hand out, closed and palm up, asking for him to lead the way.  She would follow behind him for a moment than speak up after they cleared the gang of students, who were starting to become extremely anxious in anticipation of the action to come.  "I suggest at least 10 meters from the students being required, please."  Her expression still that of calm and confidence.

Suteki slowed her pace, letting him get further ahead of her, based on his suggestions as well as her own.  The kids were now 5 meters behind her if he hadn't suggested any changes.  She pulled the corks off her gourd, sliding it off silently and letting the sand dump onto the floor.  If he wanted showy, than that is what she would give.  Her intention was to have Katari get in front of her, and have him furthest away from the students, that way she could unleash her jutsu on the emptiness behind him.  She let him keep walking without saying a word as her sand slowly poured out on it's own.  When he would turn, she would still obviously have stayed to close to the kids, and have her gourd off and tilted, showing that it was the same size as her, dumping it's contents, slowly.

Behind her, the students were murmuring, seeming to be placing their bets on who would win.  She listened to their words as Katari was still moving, and it was looking bad for her according to them.  "That man is fast, she has no chance." "Ya, she is to young.  Heck, she could still be a student at the school."  Another conversation went on, "Is she really a shinobi?  She is younger than I am."  Another kid spoke about Katari's height, others about his looks.  They were right on some accounts, she was young, very young.  She was much much shorter than he, her gourd easily towering her somewhat. Katari seemed to look much more dangerous based on his clothing as well.  Her cloths were rather plain, and almost generic.  They weren't meant for close quarters combat as his gauntlets and less cloth like coverings.  Any betting man would side with him as well, she was fighting an up hill battle.

Perhaps Katari would feel the same way!

686 words

Something seems different about Suteki... Katari had turned back toward Suteki, sensing something different about her. She'd accepted his spar challenge, which was surprising, but not enough to catch him off guard. The difference was, after she'd accepted his challenge, he saw confidence in the shy little girl's eyes. He'd never seen so much confidence in Suteki, but then again, he'd just met her earlier today. It was also then when he first noticed the huge gourd on her back.

Could it be...Could she be...naah. Normally those gourds would carry sand, but this one must have been different. He'd never seen a sand gourd in Iwagakure. Plus, her clan name is Yaku, and Sabaton is a Sabaku kekkei genkai. If not sand, what could that gourd be holding. It might be full of water, so she could be adept at Suiton.

It was then when he noticed her mysterious figure gesture for him to lead. She told him that 10 meters would be a fairly appropriate distance to be from the children. In this short time, he'd learned to trust her judgement. For a child, she was fairly mature. If it weren't for her height, build, and voice, you would mistake her for an older shinobi. So he started walking to an empty field near the academy, though he wouldn't really call it a "field." In his travels, he'd seen many field, but they all were full of grass. This one was pure flat rock, but there was no need to complain.

As he walked he started thinking about the mystery of Suteki. Is she really from here? What is in that gourd? What is she hiding? He continued asking himself these questions until he reached his destination. He'd then noticed that he'd let Suteki get fairly far behind. He turned around to face Suteki when he noticed sand on the ground. She has to be a Sabaku. She wouldn't just carry sand for her own health. She must be able to manipulate sand due to her kekkei genkai. But how. I've seen many Sabaku clan members in Sunagakure, but not in Iwagakure. He decided that he needed to be prepared for anything.

"May the best shinobi win" He then removed his hat to reveal his Hitai-Ate and bowed. He then slowly put his hat back on. He then dashed toward Suteki. She can't defend herself if I can get close enough to her to attack. I should probably use a few doppelgangers to fake her out. He focused his chakra into 4 doppelgangers which were all within 3 meters of each other in a line and dashed forward along with all of his doppelgangers. This will be an interesting battle.

469 words

819/1500 Fantomu no noroi (Phantom’s Curse): First Release

145/150:

Katari was still walking ahead of her and she was thinking what she would do, and shouldn't do.  The academy students needed to see the fight, so she couldn't mask the area in mist, a shame as well, it would put things in her favor.  She had no idea about this man, except that he was a close combat fighter.  He didn't have a sword, but he might have had other weapons, not to mention his taijutsu.  Suteki was a distance fighter, and she would need to maintain that distance somehow.  Only one of her skills would allow for such.  Enough sand had poured out just as he turned to allow the gourd to sit on it so she let it go, readying for the fight to start. Katari turned around, about 10+ meters or so from her.

Katari removed his hat, bowing to Suteki in respect for the coming sparring session, and saying to her, 'may the best shinobi win'.  He was going to take this sparring session quite serious it seemed.  So would she than.  The man bowed his head and Suteki put her hands together, forming the tiger hand seal and bowed her head as well, keeping an eye on him though.  He placed his hat back on, and she had already got her jutsu set up for when the combat started.  Though she used the tiger hand seal to show respect, it had a secondary use for her first jutsu.  The puddles of water would start to stir around her.

Katari dashed towards her, trying to get close to her, as she had guessed. 'He was skilled obviously.'  The puddles of water near her had clones grow from out of them, all looking exactly like she did.  The kids didn't think much of it it seemed, though these weren't your normal boring academy clones.  They each grew from the water on the ground around her, and 5 clones formed, each holding the tiger seal as well.  Katari also created clones, at the same time as she amazingly.  They both thought of the same plan of action to counter each other, though she would have the upper hand this round.  She and the clones grabbed the senbon they had stored on their bodies, and the kunai in the other as they moved.  Two of the inside clones jumped forward moving more towards the center and towards Katari and his clones for protecting Suteki, another two moved a meter slanted forward and inside, but staying just outside the other group, and the last one on the way outside started to move towards Suteki's side, kunia up for protection.  (General shape /.,\ the comma is Suteki)  The four clones that were running to intercept Katari's clones tossed their senbon towards their mirror target, three at first, than the last three in case they moved.  The senbon would be hard to see for any one.  It was a small thing projectile, and without sunlight to glisten off of them, would be hidden pretty well because of their speed and small area of coverage.  The weapon would do very little damage, only entering 1/2 an inch into any target hit.  The small area they covered with that pierce would do fairly little damage, unless they entered a weak spot.  Though she wasn't that skilled just yet, they would only serve her in a way to deter the enemy or in this case, dispatch clones.  The clones had a secondary weapon in the other hand.  Kunai, another basic weapon and plan as day to see were up and ready, for when they clashed with the clones if they were similar to them, and able to actually attack.

Suteki and her last clone were ready, with senbon and kunai in hand as well, ready to toss the senbon if any targets made it pass the other four clones or defend if matters got bad.  Though, this wasn't enough preperation for the young lass.  She was hellbent on winning this match.  Her last fight, even thought it was against a chuunin, ended in a loss and she was looking to rectify that loss.  The kage had ended that match, to her feelings to early, though she was injured badly, Suteki felt she could have won in the end.  This time, she wouldn't hold back any of her skills.  Though that fight was 'to the death' and this wasn't, if Katari received medical attention quick enough, he would be perfectly fine.  With the technique she prepared at her feet, water started to form at the soles of her shoes, hidden behind the pile of sand.

115/130:

Prepared to fire:

781 words towards water element B.
2247/4000

OOC: I'm sorry for taking so long. I've been testing a lot.

IC: Wow, her Suiton is excellent. Katari watched as she summoned clones at the exact same time as he. For most ninja, this wouldn't be a problem, but for Katari, this could be be tragic. Unlike Suteki's clones, which were formed out of water, Katari's clones lacked substance. Even worse, Suteki didn't seem intimidated by his clones. She probably recognized the lack of physical substance of his clones. Nonetheless, he continued dashing forward with a new plan in mind. He would create a formation similar to Suteki's in order to trick Suteki into believing that the clones would battle each other. As soon as he was about to execute this plan, however, his clones suddenly dissipated. She must be using senbon. I'm dead meat if I get hit with one.

His newest plan surely wouldn't fail. He realized that in order to win this battle, he had to take out the clones. The setup made it obvious which one was Suteki, so he knew how he would strike. He ran forward with faster speed in attempt to lose distance between him and Suteki. After reaching about two meters from Suteki's leading clones, he launched his attack.

He first struck at both of Suteki's leading clones with his Flash Fingers. He then jumped over Suteki and threw senbon at both back line clones. These senbon were attached to weak D-rank chakra strings with Balanced Control so that he could return them to his hand. Finally, he turned around and used his Iwa Whirlwind on one of the middle figures, not knowing which was Suteki and which was the clone. Now all he wondered was whether his attacks hit and if he dispelled all of the clones.

291 words
1110/1500 Fantomu no noroi (Phantom’s Curse): First Release

100/150 chakra:

It was a head on battle between the clones at first, and it ended with absolute victory, in Suteki's favor.  Unlike Katari's clones, whom's only purpose was to distract or confuse an enemy, her's had substance, allowing the same purpose to occur, and possibly than some.  Her clones tossed their senbon at Katari's clones, and they just ran right into them and vanished in a puff of smoke, one after the other.  Her clones were moving in sync, barely even a second apart in their attacks from the first to last.

The students behind her ewed in suprise off all the clones and coordinated movements, and grew louder as several of the Katari vanished.  They reserved their other senbon, as the smoke vanished leaving only Katari behind.  Though, he was quick on his counter attack unlike her.  Katari struck fast, displaying his taijutsu skills.  He jabbed the first two clones in her formation, and they pulled back injured, than dissipated into pools of water.  Though they had kunia to defend themselves, they weren't fast enough in the reaction this time.

Suteki pulled her kunia up for defense as Katari made his way towards her.  She was ready to send her wave of water out at the man, though he seemed to ready for such a thing.  She reserved that chakra at this time.  

Katari was still moving forward, having destroyed her first two clones.  He leapt high into the air, and Suteki pulled her kunia close to her, turning around as he soared, following him.  Her clone beside her was doing the same thing.  Katari tossed senbon at the two remaining outer clones while in the air.  They though, were ready for an attack.  They deflected a senbon each, and if their was another, they were hit by it.  But, Katari may have under estimated these clones.  They wouldn't be destroyed by a simple mild wound like those cheap clones he created.  

Katari landed behind her, and she held her kunai up, just about to jump away towards her clone to get behind it.  Though, she wasn't fast enough to evade the attack.  The kick slammed into her hands, knocking her back, hitting the gourd slightly and into the clone who grabbed onto her with it's arms and fell back as well, but softened the blow slightly.  Suteki got hit, and hit hard, but she had managed two forms of defense.  The first being her clone catching her.  It reduced the recoil and when they landed, the clone took the brunt of the grounds impact.  The second defense though, might have caused her some injury, but Katari would have felt some pain as well.  As Katari kicked her, his leg would have hit the Kunia she was using for a defense, how much damage he received would be unknown to her, but he would most certainly have taken some, either stabbing or slicing damage.

The other two clones on the outside, and the clone below her were still kicking, and able to perform.  The clones towards the direction of the kick, the left, moved forward into a defensive position in front of Suteki and the other clone.  

Suteki pushed off the clone and looked at Katari, standing just next to her gourd a few feet away, and for the most part on top of the pile of sand that had already been dumped out.  He might have just made a mistake that would cost him this fight.  Well, it would have if she was just a little more experienced in using her sand for a weapon.  For now, it would just trap him, which might be enough for this fight.  She reached her hand out and the sand moved quickly, raising around his position and quickly hardening into a shell as it moved.  For now, she wouldn't hurt him, as this was just a spar.  The young girl could have sent spikes into him, doing some real damage, but this would be more amazing to the students less than four meters behind him, as the huge ball of sand would form quickly and elegantly, let alone even amazing to Katari most likely.  It was a feat to behold, the massive amounts of moving sands.  The walls would entrap him, keeping him stuck within the shell of sand.  He would be protected from any attacks that she could use at this time.  Though, he would also be stuck within the walls that could take decent damage from within as well.  And if she so felt, could even use the spikes within, possibly killing him, though she wouldn't, for now.

95/130 Chakra:

779 Towards water element B
3026/4000

Edit: Found post with 502 words towards Water Element training, adding here.
3528/4000

Oh Brother... Katari realized that his plan failed miserably. Even worse, he was trapped in a barrier of sand. He had to think quickly in order to win this spar. He had to somehow break the barrier and then take out the three clones before he could attack Suteki. Maybe I can turn the sand into glass and then break it. He then realized that his Katon techniques were too weak. He realized that there was only one thing he could do. He thrashed rapidly, hitting the barrier repeatedly.

He then felt a sharp searing pain in his leg. The sight sent chills down his spine. It was his greatest weakness. It was blood. Hemophilia ran in his family. This condition led to the death of his father. He had to make a major decision to make. Either admit defeat and receive medical care. or finish this battle and risk death. His pride did not allow him to surrender. He was aware of the cost, but he had to finish. He knew what he had to do. He had to catch Suteki off guard so she would release him. "So how many people in the village know that you are a member of the Sabaku clan?" he stated, "You are quite a rarity in Iwagakure. Most Sabaku clan members live in Sunagakure, where there is unlimited sand. In all of my travels, you are the first Sabaku I've seen anywhere else." Hopefully this will catch her off guard.

1359/1500 Fantomu no noroi (Phantom’s Curse): First Release

The sand warped around the mans feet and in several finger like protrusions swallowed the man whole, encapsulating him within the barrier of sand.  A defensive technique turned into an offensive, well, kind of.  The man was protected from her attacks, and she from his at the moment.  Her clone picked the young girl up and she rubbed her chest a little, still hurting from the attack he delivered.  The students that were watching were in amazement to say the least.  The young girl, the underdog in this fight, given to her by them now turned full circle.  Though, her devices might have been slightly underhanded, taking the advantage at the start and laying a trap.  If this were a real fight, this could have easily occurred.  She rubbed the spot where Katari made contact and a sharp pain ran through her.  Another injury from a fight with allies.  She needed to stop being so lenient in her attacks.  Suteki turned towards the crowd, hearing their responses from witnessing her attack.

The students screamed in excitement, a few statements being passed along among them.

"So even someone young like us can fight like adults."
"The girl is crazy strong, how the heck did she manage that?  It really is scary how she could do that without handseals."  
"She's a monster, controlling earth like...."

Excitement, shock, enjoyment, amazement, distrust, fear.  These were the expressions and words expressed that she could hear.  She faded away from hearing the academy students and turned back towards the ball of sand before her.  The fight was in her favor as of now.  Though she hadn't known any of his abilities, though she planed for the worst for the most part.  If he could use earth jutsu, he might have a chance to escape, wind and lightning would pose a little threat, fire.  Fire, that would be funny for him to use.  Within that small ball, he would most certainly burn himself before being capable of cracking the ball.  Water though, that could pose a problem, but she would be able to react to that if needed.  For now, it was a stalemate.  She could send spikes into the man within, though she had no intention of ripping him to shreds.  And she had no other techniques that could be used on the sand.  That, itself was quiet the problem.  She captured the man in a small sphere of sand, but it was meant for protection.  A useless attack if facing an enemy, especially with allies.  It was in need of fixing, the lack of sand jutsu she had.  Something she will have to see to in the near future.

She only had one real move left than, to have him give up.  She stepped closer to the ball, strolling towards it along with all her clones.  She was just about to speak as she heard Katari yell from within the ball of sand, "So how many people in the village know that you are a member of the Sabaku clan?" It seemed like an odd thing to ask. And Sabaku?  The young girl wasn't sure what that was. "You are quite a rarity in Iwagakure. Most Sabaku clan members live in Sunagakure, where there is unlimited sand. In all of my travels, you are the first Sabaku I've seen anywhere else."  

Since the girl had never left the village, and she had never met or heard of another capable of using earth in the same manner as her, it would seem that the users of sand had a reputation amongst seasoned shinobi.  The young girl spoke loudly so the man could hear, and slightly slow and confused, "Sabaku huh?  Is that the name of the clan capable of using earth like myself?" She didn't have to entertain the conversation, but..no but...

She had formed a plan and would now carry it out.  She waved to her clones, and they started to run while pulling out their senbon and kunai.  The mans attention would probably be dulled right now.  She would have her chance to strike quick, but needed a moment.  She spoke loudly so he could hear, and took her time speaking"The desert?.. Why would anyone want to live in such a hot place willingly,..even if sand was plentiful.  Iwagakure, earth and mountains, seem like a better thing than hot sand to me.  Right everyone!"  The kids looked at her as she held her thumb up, and they cheered.  "Yay!  Iwagakure is the best!" The clones were about to be in place.  She waited a moment for the kids roar to dull slightly, "My families name is Yaku, not Sabaku.  So I guess very few would know,"  The clones were in position, and the young girl raised her hand.  They would attack as soon as she dropped her arm, and the sand on a small portion of the ball would drop just before they threw their weapons.  

Their objective was to injure only; legs, arms, shoulders, nonvital chest portions.  Katari wouldn't know what was happening until the weapons hit him most certainly.  It was dark within that sphere, and though it wasn't sunny today, perhaps the momentary shock of what little light there was could help her plan as well.  Though, the attack wouldn't take him out of the fight most likely, he could still continue on if he wished, but she had another plan up her sleeve.  She continued to speak, not missing a beat, not showing any intentions of her plan, finishing what she was saying, "of such a thing as that.  But thank you for warning me."  She breathed in deeply and than out.  "Well, would you be willing to give up this sparring session, or should we continue?"  She would wait for his response, but if it sounded negative in any way, the plan would go into action, a small door/window of sand would open up facing the clones as her arm would drop, and the clones would toss all their weapons at him.

The clones were at the right side of her, just off of intersecting from the children, 4 meters away from the closest one, and 1 meter apart from each other.  She didn't want to have the children move to expose her plan, but wanted to make sure they stayed safe.  But even so, the children saw the clones ready to attack, and some backed up quitely giving her a little more room to maneuver.  This plan allowed the kids to stay safe anyways, as she showed a smile to the kids to help them relaxe a little.  Suteki was just shy of 5 meters away from them still, and would be out of sight from the opening, barely.  If he stepped out of the ball, she would see him, and the next step of her plan would go into action.  Though, she hoped he would bow out rather than continue on.  Though if he did, the first things he would see would be light, her clones and the kids.  

90/130 Chakra:

1185 words
472 words towards water element
4000/4000

713 words remaining
Reaction Time to E-2 (150 words)
Reaction Time to E-3 (225 words)
Perception to D (300 words)

38 words remain

I stood at the ready to drop the front of the dome, and attack him with my clones, viciously.  I stood their for what seemed to be an eternity, the adrenaline making what seemed like a few seconds to be an eternity.  Everything was in slow motion at that moment of expectation.  The kids feverish screams of excitement, the soft blowing wind from the storm passing the village, blowing the hairs on what little skin was exposed holding my hand up, and my hair as well.  I was normally a calm person, but it seemed the excitement of it all, the pain, sweat, agony, and stimulation, it was turning me into something else entirely.  Though I had no intention of hurting Katari, the moment before when he hit me, If I could have, I would have ripped his arm leg straight off from his body.  It was instincts that kicked in to grab him with my sand, surround him in a protective dome.  Protective, fortune was smiling on Katari it seemed for it was the only move I could dish out really.  If I had the capabilities, it would have ended in a worse manner.  But as each second passed by, my heavy breathing slowed, and so did some of the hate and anger that had been building.  I was slowly getting back to under control.  

The enemy went silent for quite a while.  I stood at the ready for some form of a response from Katari.  The students were standing on edge just a few moments ago but now they were starting to get restless, watching my clones at the ready to attack, and myself ready to drop my hand to begin the attack.  "Go, already.  How long are you going to give him."  "Ya, you can beat him!"

I would have continued, but I had no reason to harm the older man.  This was a sparring session, for training purposes, not a match.  But then again, this could have been a trick!  Was he hoping I would just drop the jutsu and then he would attack?  That would be quite the dirty trick!

Was he in trouble?  Was he giving up?  Was he up to no good?  Three options to choose from.  If only she were capable of grasping the man within.  That would be her best option.  Though, she was in a great amount of need to learn sand based jutsu, in a manner to utilize them offensively.  So at the present time, she had none under her belt of tricks.  Though, how hard could it have been to try and come up with a similar method of grasping a large object.  She was more than capable of grasping small objects, like door nobs, books, pencils, basically anything that had a hard surface.  She once tried to grab a piece of paper, and to say the least, well, she did manage to grab it.  Though the instructor at the school didn't enjoy the site of a crumpled almost torn essay paper being turned in.  This was a person, something that could be slightly defined as being squishy and yet resilient and hard.  

It..should be probable to grasp him within the sand, and leave him uninjured.  I never damaged the books, pens and door nob physically, so it should be an acceptable risk.  It would be the best method of defeating him, with the least amount of damage I could inflict.  I concentrated on the sphere of sand before me, that held Katari Fantomusodo within.  What I wanted to do was shrink the shield of sand that was already surrounding him, and than harden the sand to keep him in place.  It seemed like an easy task to accomplish, but, if I squeezed to hard, I could crush him, to soft and he might slip through the sand and attack me.  

Perhaps I was being to soft on the man, he was a skilled shinobi, and should be able to take the punishment.  But if something should have happened to him.  If he was afraid of small spaces, than he might be in shock.  A plus for me, but he would need some form of medical attention.  I turned to the students to my right, speaking with a calm voice, "Could one of you go and get a teacher please, and ask them to bring a doctor or something along those lines."  The kids took a second and looked at one another, seeming to not really want to leave.  "Sometime today please!"  One of the girls ran off back towards the school.

I would also need them to look at my wound, that kick he delivered was still hurting quite a bit.  The damage shouldn't have been to sever, but it was a pointless reason to take any chance.  I looked back at the dome of sand in front of me, and  I stretched my hand out forwards.  All I needed to do was slowly close the dome in on him, the sand was already available for the the Sand Binding Coffin jutsu.

Sand Binding Coffin Jutsu was a fairly famous jutsu utilized by what I was told to be an ancestor of mine from long long ago.  He was a kage of Hidden Wind Village in the Wind Country, and said to be among the strongest shinobi to have ever lived, and the youngest Kage of any village in history.  Though, this jutsu was more of a means to use while fighting, than a jutsu to be flaunted over, it had it's purposes obviously.  The jutsu itself allowed sand to be manipulated in order to surround a portion or the entire body of the enemy, than grab hold of them and encase them.  Though I was going to take a round about way to achieve that, the entire point was to just get sand around them, and I had accomplished that quite successfully already.  So half of my job was already finished.  

Once someone was captured within the block of sand, the next move was all up to you.  The enemy would not be able to escape the sand easily physically since movement was being blocked physically by the sand.  So tiajutsu was mostly useless against it.  Ninjutsu could not be cast since the hands were bound as well.  That left genjutsu, which could also be blocked by similar means if hand gestures were needed.  

So, it was a fairly powerful jutsu in itself.  But it was the jutsu that followed it that was to be most respected.  It was a shame that jutsu was a little beyond my capabilities, but the jutsu would have inflicted great damage to my enemy.  Something I was trying to avoid right now.  So it was a good start for the future as I saw it.  

I clenched my hand, in an attempt to have the sand dome shrink around him, as I did, some of the sand started to drain off the top of the dome and I released my grasp and focused to stop the sand from softening.  This was going to be much harder than I thought from this step.  Most of the time, I would just release the jutsu entirely and let the sand dissipate entirely.  This time though, it was much more involving, much more fine control would be needed.  I breathed in deeply, than out, thinking about how I would accomplish this.  I thought about when I was inside of the dome, how it felt and looked.  I controlled the sand entirely.  Every grain had some of my chakra embedded within it.  So it wasn't a big step to be able to do what I wanted, it just required some thought behind it.  Usually, I would just see the sand and control what was visible to me.  This time though, I could not actually see the sand within the dome.  I never tried to shrink a jutsu either.  Usually I would just form a second jutsu within the first, or move the sand as it was, or just dissolve entirely than re harden.  None of these option were sufficient this time though, unless I wanted him to escape.  

As I let the air out, I pictured the sand within the dome.  I controlled more sand to pile onto the already formed dome, encasing it a little more for what had already fallen off from before.  I just had to remove some of the sand from below, that was one step of shrinking.  Than I would have two options; I could draw sand to enter the dome from below, and form the wall within than repeat over and over, or I could just have the sand enter and grab him.  The problem with the second plan was I did not know where he was, so it would be difficult to grab him, and if I did grab him, he might react.  Through shrinking though, I could surround him slowly enough to just grab him all around at the same time.  Within the dome, it would be pitch black, no sunlight was able to enter so it wasn't like he could see the dome shrinking.  If he wasn't alert enough, he might not realize it was shrinking, perhaps that he was just touching the wall because he moved.  

So I started to remove sand from the bottom, when an opening was made, I drew the sand within and slowly reinforced the insides of the dome, drawing the walls closer and closer each second.  This was a slow process, but the children seemed entertained enough to see the swirling sand in the air, and the shifting of it on the ground.  The earth on the ground was constantly in shift, moving, crawling, almost life like.  A few of the students caught on to how interesting and dangerous my abilities could really be.  Some in a slight amount of fear showing on their faces.  Others couldn't seem to care less, except enjoying that a large area jutsu was being used.  Others, wanted more.

"Come on already, end this fight would you."
"Ya, you have this in the bag.  Put it to him miss!"

I continued to pour in the sand for another few seconds until I thought enough had entered.  I could not be entirely sure if enough sand was within, or if I was close to him, outside of guessing.  I than reached my hand out again, and closed my grasp slowly.  The sand from the dome within would go towards the center, and than harden, as more and more sand would enter from the small opening below, and from the dome, causing it to grow more and more brittle as it shrank.  It was truth time now, either I had him within the sand fully, or he might stand a chance of escape, as unlikely as it could possibly be.  

Soon the entire dome was gone, and exposed was the hardened remains of it.  I could see parts of Katari within the hardened shell of sand, and tried to approximate where his face would be.  I released the sand gathered where it should have been to allow him to breath some fresh air.  Katari wasn't moving, and didn't speak as he laid stuck within the sand.  Perhaps he slightly suffocated within the dome and passed out.  Though that was unlikely, I wasn't sure what had happened within the dome.  Perhaps he panicked, consuming what was within the dome?  It didn't matter though now.  I had won this match.  I looked at my clones and they splashed into nonexistence, returning to the material they were made out of.  I then looked back at my advisory and dropped my hands, the sand melting around him instantly.  

"Aww, I was hoping for a little more than that"
"Wow, the girl beat that older guy.  She is bad ass!"

A few other comments were muttered amongst the students.  I heard someone yelling in the distance, "Is everything alright!  Does someone need medical attention!"  I drew the sand all around back towards my gourd, slowly unearthing Katari from the sand.  Two medical shinobi showed up, one going to each person.  "He should be fine, I didn't really cause any physical injuries.  He might have suffocated or collapsed from shock.  Though, I could use a little help.  He managed to hit me in the ribs quite hard."  "Please, come with me please so I can check you properly."  He pointed for me to go ahead towards the school and I walked off, looking back as a teacher and the other medical guy looked over Katari.  

The man looked me over, asking me to remove my shirt to look me over properly in a closed room that was the medical faculties at the academy.  At least he had the decency to do such.  I half wanted him to check me at the battle field, not thinking of any of the students that were my age watching.  I got slightly red thinking about it.  Another man entered, reporting the progress of Katari.  He said that he was fine, just had fallen unconscious, and suffered no injuries except a decent scrap that was easily bandaged.  The man did looked me over thoroughly, only finding a bruise starting to form around my chest. He said I just needed a few days of rest, that no critical damage was inflicted to need me to go to the hospital, but the area might bruise and be sore for a few days. He asked if the pain got bad to come see him, and I left to go back home.  

The pain wasn't that bad at the moment, so I decided to move as quickly as possible.  I was still running on a slight amount of adrenaline from the battle, and the excitement that I had beaten the man.  It was a win for me, something I was in a great need for to tell the truth.  Though I took the most damage from the fight, I still managed to get the win.  I felt like I was floating on air practically.  A spring was in each step, driving me farther and farther as I moved.  I couldn't have been happier until I was about a block away from my door.  I slowed down dramatically as a searing pan ran through my spin with each step.  I decided I would just take my time and walk the last block as I rubbed my stomach and chest to help ease some of the pain.  It had no effect though.  

Katari Fantomusodo had delivered a mean blow with that kick of his. Though it wasn't the most painful injury I had received from a "Spar".  I again slowed my pace as I continued walking, each step becoming a little more difficult to achieve.  Was this just from the impact of his kick?  Taijutsu sucked beyond any immensely slurred terms I could think of.  Right now I just wanted to get home and relax in the bath.  That should ease my injury some what.  

The slow creep up the stairs caused an immense amount of pain.  Perhaps it was a mistake to race home as I had, though if this kicked in earlier, I would probably be regretting doing just that as well.  I drew a bath and started to relax once I entered my abode.  No one was around to help me, and that thought kind of bothered me slightly.  It would have been nice to have some help with basic needs, drawing the bath, making the bed, laying out cloths, cooking.  My stomach rumbled from that thought.  I would have to order out tonight.

The bath relaxed my muscles and I was now sitting on the couch, enjoying the soft coolness of it.  I had already placed an order from a local restaurant, though it would take a little bit of time.  I hadn't minded that at this moment, as the couch seemed like a paradise for me.  

I enjoyed my meal and than relaxed on the bed.  The day had, for the most part gone well.  I managed to beat Katari Fantomusodo in the dual in the end.  Though, he managed to come out of it in better physical condition.  I thought for a moment why he had fainted.  Though the thoughts quickly went away and I fell asleep.  It wasn't prepared but at the time I didn't care.  I just grabbed a cover and dragged myself into it with a pillow and enjoyed the rest.
*Exit*

2776 words +38

Reacting Time rank D(300)
Speed rank D-2 (400)
Reaction Time to D-1 (325)
Reaction Time to D-2 (400)
Reaction Time to D-3 (450)
Perception to D-2 (400)



502 words towards water C to B (4000/4000)