After about 15 minutes of running, Ashi was already exhausted. She ran just under 3 kilometers in that time, which wasn't even half the distance between her lovely home in the north-eastern part of Iwagakure and the beginning of the (in)famous Fissure Training Grounds. She remembered the location at least somewhat, back from when her father took her there when she was younger. Ugh... This is embarrassing... I can't believe I'm tired already... Ashi stopped her already-heavy legs and bent over in order to regain her breat. She could feel the sweat running down her hair and dripping on the dry ground. Ashi looked over with confidence, and kept going; walking would take longer than she had hoped for, but as long as she reaches her destination it's all going to be just fine. She was a genin now, but Ashi didn't feel any stronger than before. Other genin were all much stronger when she watched them fight, or maybe that was just because she was an acedemy student back then so everything looked strong... But one thing was for sure; she had to become stronger by any means if she were to become a chunnin one day.

She walked and walked, until cracks in the cold ground started appearing. At first they were tiny, reminding her of hardened mud, but the further Ashi ventured the deeper and wider the fissures became. This place was a complete barren, with nothing but mountains in the far horizon wherever you looked. A familiar sensation arose inside Ashi; this was the place... But not that she was here, she realized that the trip was kind of pointless, as she could train anywhere else. Still, the feeling of solitude made her feel completely safe. This is far enough I guess... So... Where do I begin? Ashi sat down and started thinking out loud, supporting her head with her arm. After a brief moment, she decided to go with the first thing that she thought of; improving her clan-specific Dust Release. It was somewhat unusual to be able to perform it at an age this young, but Ashi managed to do it. Some called her a prodigy, but she just thought of herself as "somewhat talented". The problem is, though, that it was still somewhat weak; especially compared to what other people from her clan had to offer. Ashi'd Dust release couldn't really completely disintegrate creatures such as butterflies or cockroaches, while some from the Yuryo clan have been rumored to have destroyed entire groups of shinobi with no more than a single powerful Dust Release technique. But where should I start from, hmm... At this point Ashi remembered the very basics of the Dust Release her father taught her; it is created by molding together certain chakra nature types at a specific Katon-Doton-Fuuton ratio of 2-4-10, so the logical way to improve her Dust Release, Yinton, would be to get better at the very things that form the Dust Release chakra, right? And so Ashi stood up, closed her eyes and concentrated.

Wordcount: 510

Well I guess I'll start with Doton then? It was her weakest element after all, Ashi was never able to use it in any way outside of her Dust Release. It was a shame though, as controlling one's surroundings; which is what most users use Doton for; is a very powerful way of acquiring an advantage in battle, and could oftentimes decide who will live and who will die. So Ashi took the approach her father showed her back when she was first learning to use Katon independently; she closed her eyes, adjusted her fingers into the Tiger handseal, and began flowing chakra through her lungs, trying to only separate the "other" nature. She could feel a tingling sensation in her throat after a couple of seconds, so she opened her eyes and blew it out. But what came out was just a ball of disappointment, taking the form of a small fireball which quickly dissipated. It's not like Ashi expected to get it perfectly from the very beginning, but this was a complete failure. But she didn't come here to just try something out once and then return back home, right? Ashi is going to stay here until she gets it right. Hmm, that's not how I do it... I got the wrong nature. Let's do this again then, I guess! She closed her eyes, formed the tiger handseal with her hands, which by the way helps her be more precise with controlling her chakra, and started flowing it through her lungs again. She did her best to seperate the "other" nature only, but that only resulted in fire last time; so now instead of concentrating the "other" nature of he chakra only, she decided to isolate it, and blow out the rest of her chakra. Ashi took a deep breath, felt the tingling and blew it all out when she couldn't hold it any longer. What came out was a strange mix of dust and small embers that left behind a terrible taste in Ashi's throat, resulting in her nonstop coughing for the next minute. Okay, this was a bit closer, but I'm definitely not done yet! With determination in her eyes, Ashi did it again. And again, and again, refining the chakra a little bit more with every try. If only she brought some water with her to wash away that god-awful burnt mud taste...

Wordcount: 401
Total Wordcount: 911

And so, at the 10th try, Ashi finally managed to focus nothing but pure doton, resulting in her basically vomiting out a pile of fresh mud on the now-already-hot ground. She gasped for air while trying to spit out any remaining mud in her mouth. Oh man... And I thought that it tasted bad before... This, THIS IS WHAT BAD TASTE IS LIKE. I wish I could feel the embery-dust from before, oh man oh man oh man... By the time Ashi opened her eyes, the pile of mud in front of her only made her want to actually puke, so she turned around instantly, holding her hand over her mouth. Well this is it I guess, but I don't feel like puking mud on someone in the middle of battle would do me any good. I should probably learn how to use it for something actually useful, heheh... But for now I think I'll just rest... Yeah, that sounds nice... So Ashi spit out some more of the disgusting brown stuff out of her mouth, and laid down on the warm ground. It looked like it was going to be noon soon; the sun was still relatively high. And so Ashi closed her eyes and tried to relax a moment; all the mud and dust puking left her throat and lungs quite irritated, maybe she overdid it a little. But after not even a minute of attempted rest, the sun really began bothering her. Falling asleep now would only leave her with sun-burns, something that she's really not fond of. It happened to her once before, and the pain of even putting on a shirt was real...

Because of this, Ashi forced herself to stand up and go look for some shadows. While walking through the barren training grounds, she tried to think of a place where she could rest for a bit without turning into a red crab for the next week. Now that I think about it... I did hear the stories how there are actually caves and even underground rooms in some of the really huge fissures farther up... That might be promising, as long as I don't fall in- And just as Ashi was thinking about no falling in, she tripped over a crack in the ground, causing her to fall down on the ground face-first, raising a small cloud of dust. She got up quickly, but could feel the pain and couldn't help but to moan a bit while swiping off the dust from her clothes and face. Ashi looked back to the fissure that she tripped over; it was about 30 centimeters wide and quite deep. She was getting close to the huge ravines in the ground which would result in certain death if someone fell in; and that's exactly where she was going at. So Ashi kept going and going, but now carefully looking at her surroundings and walking over the bigger-and-bigger fissures. After about five minutes of said walking, some of the fissures were already so large she had to jump over them. This is starting to get scary... What if the edge crumbles off and I fall in?? Oh man oh man oh man... It's not like Ashi was scared of heights, but looking down into the endless darkness of the cracks in the ground still gave her the chills. But she still kept going, jumping over the fissures as she reached them, until she noticed something quite odd about one of them; upon taking a closer look, she noticed some carved out stairs leading into the darkness below. Is this it? Did I really find it? Wow, can't believe it wasn't all just a myth... Ashi stared down, wondering if it's still a good idea to go down there.

Wordcount: 635
Total Wordcount: 1546

Training; having spent a couple of days in Iwagakure, Ayumu had let allowed himself to train in his family arts, something that was sorely needed. The reasons for his negligence being two fold: because of his profession as a singer everyone wanted a picture, audio-graph, or some other form of memorabilia from him too the point that some developed stalker-like mentality; and at the same time he couldn't train in any area due too many not knowing about his shinobi background, something he wants to keep under wraps for now. However, today is a new day and seeing how his schedule was completely empty, Ayumu believe this was the perfect opportunity to find a seclude place and get in some much needed training. With that thought in mind, Ayumu removed himself from the mattress, stretching to get any possible kinks out of his body which was followed by audible popping of his joints, before venturing towards the washroom in preparation for today's activities.

Ayumu walked out of his room dressed in a brown shirt, dark brown shinobi-esque pants and matching light footwear exactly the attire one would expect someone to train in. Double checking to make sure he had everything, and reminding himself to buy some water from a local vendor, he locked his door and made his way out - all the while whistling a tone from one of his songs. He easily slipped himself amongst those filling up the streets, disappearing within the crowd with ease. First order of business was to find a vendor and buy a two bottles of water, then he'll fish for information on where he could get some training done in sedclusion. The first objective, finding a vendor who sold water, was easier than the last which took him a good twenty minutes before someone told him of the Fissure Training Grounds and the caves that surround them.

From what he gather the training ground wasn't readily used by many, they preferring others, and those who due used them only ventured into the area closer to the village, not those further away. He was also told about the caves that are hidden among the grounds where no one in their right mind would venture to go, and it being a perfect spot to train, if one was looking for privacy. With the information in hand, Ayumu made his way towards the fissure training ground.

Finally making it to the grounds, he quickly transverse the area, moving towards the farest training ground, being mindful of the fissures that were getting bigger and bigger as he continued onward. It didn't take him long to reach the area, but before he could get into the much needed train he spotted something. A girl. And by the looks of it she was younger than him. Mentally groaning at this new development, Ayumu allowed his presence be known, having read how jittery shinobis can be, before moving beside the girl who was looking down within a nearby cave, down at the spiraling steps that descended into darkness "Didn't know someone was using this area." He stated, looking around the area once more and then back at the girl "I'm Ayumu. And you?"

---

Word Count: 543

"Didn't know someone was using this area." The young man's words came as a surprise to Ashi, this was the last place she expected company. She quickly turned around to see who it was, and was rather surprised to see it was a young man... And a handsome one, to be honest. Ashi had a thing for white hair, and his hair was the whitest that she'd ever seen. Before Ashi even had the time to react or say anything, he continued speaking. "I'm Ayumu. And you?" he spoke with a clear voice. "A-a-ashi. M-my name's Ashi, glad to meet you." She stuttered a little when she talked, still surprised by Ayumu's sudden appearance. Ashi was obviously shy, and didn't quite know how to proceed in this situation. She looked around a little bit more, twiddling her thumbs, before opening her mouth to speak again. "So, uh... How come you came this far? Didn't really expect to meet anyone else here." She looked at his eyes with a light smile, and could see even from this distance that they were a kind of blue. Just like hers.

Wordcount: 195
Total wordcount: 1741

Conversation post = Short post. :P

Walking by candlelight. Only small areas were within the sight of the young Uchiha, who's eyes burned bright with ambition. It was a reoccuring theme, predicaments such as the one he was currently in. Many unexplainable sensations told him that travelling out into the Fissure Training Grounds the day before his promotion to Chuunin was a bad idea. As an adventure seeker, those sensations only attracted him more to the peril that loomed before him. He was in deep dark trouble now. Walking near aimlessly, trying to make his way back to the sprialling steps that he took down into the cave. It was but another myth he was hunting. That is what lured him into abyss. Once again he was looking to draw on the powers of the eerie for inspiration. His writings as of later were becoming bleek, dull even. Such characteristics of his work were intolerable. Days were now at times occupied at finding the catalyst for his writing's passion and exuberance that leaps off the page and consumes readers. In order for him to draw on his experience in the dark to consume others, he would have exit this place.

With hope dwindling, the young shinobi grew furious with himself. Yes, the cave was large, but to lose complete track of position. He would surely find his way, but it was taking much longer than he liked. Such an event was sure to evoke emotion in his future. That was the bright side to this darkness. Wandering on through the rocky abyss. The cavern's floor was a treacherous ordeal alone. Many wrong footings and changes in level have left Kurai's knees and ankles a mess. If it was not for his recent endurance and strength training, his body would have already succumbed to this trek. Nearing full dysteria was Kurai, as he heard faint voices. Your mind goes first I suppose. He said dismissively. At times it seemed the shinobi would welcome insanity. He thrived on being unpredictable, but due to his immense sanity, it was quite difficult for him. However, if he was insane, it would make the feat of unpredictability natural and easy. Swooping down to rescue him once more was his sanity, ruling out the possibility that the sound of faint voices were but an aberration manifested by an abnormality in his nervous system. Those voices are real. I'm near the entrance!

Kurai took off full speed along the perilous dark cave. The light traveled just far enough down to showcase the stairs. Screeching along the earth now was Kurai. As soon as he came to a complete stop, he launched himself in the air, catupluting himself a third of the way up the stairs. He would sprint up the rest of the way. Finally. He said with his hands clenching at his knees. Kurai allowed his body to relax for a moment and dropped to one knee near the mouth of the cave. His eyes blurred from the drastic changed in the amount of light. It caused him to slam his eyes shut. I would like to thank you two for being so chatty.


Training Strength : 527

Good. Nothing sharp and pointy founded it's way into his body. This was good . . . very good. The lack of any type of metallic object embedding into him gave a sign that the girl before one wasn't the, throw first and ask question later type of person. Of course it could also mean that she didn't carry kunai on her persona like the majority of shinobi, and civilians did; even he carries one neatly tucked somewhere on his body, a safety precaution. "The pleasure is all mine. But I wonder are you glad in meeting me or just by body that you been checking out, hmmm Ashi-chan?" He retort, voice filled with mirth, a smile playing across his face and his laughter dancing across the gentle breeze as his gray eyes full of warmth and compassion met blue ones. The woman or rather teen before him was younger than him in appearance, and it's because of that reason why his eyes didn't stray from hers. Looking at someone younger than you with lust is just plain creepy, unless of course you was related to a former snake sannin.

She was shy - that much was oblivious. Her body language gave away the clues needed for him to determine that, and he couldn't help but to find the way she looked away from him, thumbs twiddling together, adorable. Tilting his head sideways as if he was trying to come up with a reason for being there ""I - " whatever he was about to say was cut off by the arrival of another person, this one coming from the cave that Ashi was looking down into. Ayumu took a quick glance at the white haired male haggard appearance ""Got lost?" He question waiting for an answer before focusing back on the girl and answering her question ""Yes, I actually expect to meet a black hair, blue eyed goddess." he retort humor obliviously presence. It being his way to get back at the girl for blatantly checking him out. Deciding to be honest for a moment Ayumu told her the reason why he came out here "The real reason I came this far was to train." He said, while not revealing what exactly he wanted to train.

---

Word Count 378(921)

"The pleasure is all mine. But I wonder are you glad in meeting me or just by body that you been checking out, hmmm Ashi-chan?" Amaya laughed after what he had said, but Ashi didn't find his words funny at all. Her face turned from a smiling one into one obviously filled with confusion in a matter of moments. Wait, what the hell did he just say? Checking out his body..? Was I really that obvious... oh man oh man... this is so awkward... The what-seemed-like-a-staring-contest between the two was quickly interrupted by another voice, probably male from what Ashi could hear. And it was coming from... the cave. "Finally." - a guy said, while kneeling down to rest. His ankles and knees were full of scratches and cuts, but Ashi didn't want to stare. "I would like to thank you two for being so chatty." - he continued, before Ashi even had a chance to say anything. H..His hair is also white? This must be my lucky day, heheh... Unlike Amaya, who was clearly older than Ashi by quite a bit, the new cave-guy seemed a bit closer to her age. Ashi was still relatively confused when Amaya spoke again, addressing the new guy. "Got lost?" - he stated, which sounded a bit rude to Ashi, and then instantly looked back at Ashi and answered her previous question. "Yes, I actually expect to meet a black hair, blue eyed goddess." At this point, Ashi was as red as a ripe tomato; she was obviously blushing. Before she could even react, her jaw dropped to the ground and her hand quickly covered her open mouth. This was definitely a first compliment that she had gotten from a member of the opposite gender that wasn't her dad. T-then good luck on your search... Ashi tried to say it, but she simply couldn't speak; the shock was real. "The real reason I came this far was to train." - he explained further. To train... what a coincidence.. Ashi proceeded to shake her head left and right and calm down, quickly looking over at the cave-guy in order to take her mind off the awfully handsome Amaya and the awkwardness he was responsible for. "H-hi there, my name's Ashi.. So how did you get here? I'm also here to train.. She hoped she wasn't too direct with the question.

Wordcount: 411
Total wordcount: 2152

There were two people standing outside the cave. The one furthest from Kurai was a male. From his looks he was a young adult, stood around 6 feet and was quite stocky. He too had white hair,  A negative light would revolve around him once he implied aloud that Kurai had gotten lost. huh, his hair must not be naturally white, 'cause a fellow whitehead would never insult another. Currently, the white haired boy was too tired to respond to what seemed to be a jeer. The guy went on to change the topic to his reason for being on the Fissure Grounds. At first it was to make the young lady uncomfortable, now it was to train. It looked as though Ashi was here to train too. Kurai had yet to catch the name of the guy. Kurai's eyes would lock onto Ashi for the first time, really taking in her features. About 3 seconds elapsed as he studied her. Ashi looked slightly younger than Kurai and much smaller in stature. Her hair fell to her waist in a shadowy elegance that Kurai admired. Suddenly her blue eyes met Kurai's coal black eyes.

She announced here name which Kurai had heard the other fellow say earlier, then she inquired on how he got here and that she was also here to train. A few drops of blood leaked from his leg and ankles, results of the treacherous terrain of the abyss. He would will himself to stand regardless. Nice to meet you Ashi, my name is Kurai. I arrived here by task. The task of being promoted. I am knocking on the door to being promoted to Chuunin... however, my sensei is extremely strict when it comes to physical prowess, so I am out here training my strength before I meet with him for my evaluation. It appears that all of us are here to train, so how about we get organized and make this encounter a productive one for us all. Kurai dusted himself off vigorously and stood up straight not wanting to show any signs of weakness or fatigue. Showing full willingness to participate in a training session, or a spar perhaps, he awaited the response of the others. And you sir, I didn't catch your name. He said pointing to the fellow white haired man with the stocky build before letting them finally respond to his proposition.



Training Strength: 931

Well that's an interesting shade of red, Ayumu mused to himself, watching Ashi's face gain a slight reddish tinge to it - oblivious from his earlier comments. It never did dawn on the male that the teenager, assumingly, before him took his words for truth; that she exactly believed he was commenting on her beauty, and simply not joking with her. Not that she wasn't beautiful or anything, silently admitting she was indeed pretty for her visual age, but rather her physical appearance didn't meet his unique tastes, therefore, she would never register on his radar. Is he shallow? At times but most people are. The only difference between him and the majority is that he also carries for other aspects about a person with looks only playing a minor part while personality being the most dominating factor when meeting the opposite sex. So, why was her physical attribute the first thing he commented on? More or less to see how she would respond too such a cheesy and corny statement; would she return with her on witty banter or take it at face value or shy away from it? Sadly she took the latter route, becoming shy and slightly taken back by it; which quickly took her off his radar. Ayumu didn't go for women who could toss banter back and forth.

Ayumu barely paid any attention to the conversation between Ashi and the newcomer Kurai, the latter stating how he's on the crust of being promoted, and due to his sensei's strict code of having some competence in the physical department was out here to improve in the given area. There was also talk about them, Kurai, Ashi, and him, organizing something seeing how they all came out here to train. While the idea had merit, training with others outside of the Houkyaku clan was frowned upon highly for you never know when your training partner is from a clan who had a vendetta against you and use the training opportunity to exact revenge. While the occurrence of these incidents were rare they have been documented proof of them occurring, and it's the reason why many, including Ayumu, prefer training alone if they can't train with family members, it ensures their safety. Seeing how there is a slim chance of him escaping this situation, believing telling them that he had other plans and leaving would be rude, quickly came up with a solution but before that could be revealed he answered Kurai's question "Saito Ayumu." He replied, dropping the bombshell of him being the famous singer of the now disbanded band called 'Numb' who now is a solo artist that tours the Elemental Nation. He mentally pray to every Kami known too man that neither one of them were apart of the fan clubs who has a love, more like obsession, with anything dealing with him. After introducing himself to Kurai, Ayumu's thought more about the proposal earlier before given his own input "While training with you to would be fun, but I'm not a shinobi. I'm just a civilian who's chakra coils got unlocked accidentally by an inexperience medical nin during a check up when I was younger." He admitted before continuing "I have limited knowledge on anything shinobi related with what I do know coming from second rate scrolls and what not. However, I apparently have a gift for genjutsu and ninjutsu, and my elements are fuuton and doton, at least that's what a retire shinobi who I met told me once." He said, the latter portion ebing almost an afterthought.

"So me training with you two would be ill advise for I would slow you down." He said, sighing in defeating due to him realizing that such a statement was indeed true. Maybe they will teach him more about being a 'shinobi' something that he dearly lacked. Or maybe they would see him as dead weight and train without him, leaving him to his own devices. Who knew what they would do, only time will tell.

---

Word Count 685(1606)

"Nice to meet you Ashi, my name is Kurai. I arrived here by task. The task of being promoted. I am knocking on the door to being promoted to Chuunin... however, my sensei is extremely strict when it comes to physical prowess, so I am out here training my strength before I meet with him for my evaluation. It appears that all of us are here to train, so how about we get organized and make this encounter a productive one for us all. "Yeah, that'd be a good idea." Ashi agreed with him; it seemed like an impossible coincidence for three random people to meet so far away from Iwa and want to train together, but if that was the case then they should at least take advantage of it. The other two were older than Ashi, so she could very likely learn a lot from them. After Kurai explained his reason for being here, he turned his look over to Ayumu and asked for his name: "And you sir, I didn't catch your name." "Saito Ayumu." Saito... I think I hear that name somewhere before... Ashi thought about it for a little while, but couldn't quite remember where she knew that name from. Ayumu continued, explaining why he didn't think it was a good idea for him to train together with the other two. "While training with you to would be fun, but I'm not a shinobi. I'm just a civilian who's chakra coils got unlocked accidentally by an inexperience medical nin during a check up when I was younger. I have limited knowledge on anything shinobi related with what I do know coming from second rate scrolls and what not. However, I apparently have a gift for genjutsu and ninjutsu, and my elements are fuuton and doton, at least that's what a retire shinobi who I met told me once." So he's not a shinobi, but can still use chakra... That's kinda weird, never heard of something like that happening before. But there's no way we'll train and he'll just get to stand besides us and rest, nuh-uh! Ayumu continued. "So me training with you two would be ill advise for I would slow you down." This is where Ashi came in. "Oh believe me, I'm not any better either. In fact, I only graduated yesterday. And it's not like we're going to let you just watch and relax while we work our buts of... Ashi laughed lightly after what she had said, and slowly began feeling comfortable in her new company. So she looked back at Kurai and asked: "So how are we even going to do this..? A spar maybe..? She wasn't sure what to suggest, so Ashi suggested a spar, and she quickly realized that it might not be a good idea. I sure hope he doesn't agree, he looks strong... oh man oh man...

Wordcount: 500
Total Wordcount: 2652

Ayumu Saito... Saito... Saito... That's right! A friend had an album by an artist of that name... could that be him. From what I remember he was pretty good to. A very unique style. Okay, so the Ayumu fellow wasn't so bad. One of Kurai's interests were music... and that is how I will drag him into training. Ayumu, I've heard of you before... you're a singer right. Well then, I challenge you to a sing off. If I win you have to team up with Ashi to face me. If you win, you're free to do whatever you want.

Kurai looked over to Ashi and smiled. He spoke audibly, Don't worry I've heard sing before. Kurai cleared his throat awiating to see if Ayumu would accept his challenge. Would the two white haired vocalists face off, or would the celebrity fancy himslef to good to accept the challenge? The shinobi began warming up just in case. Do re me fa so la ti dooooooo! His voice was truly angelic.



Training Strength: 1109

Ayumu sighed in relief when Ashi didn't bombarded him, asking for an autograph or asking to bear his children. In fact the girl looked like she haven't even heard of him before. It being a good thing for it meant he could potentially befriend someone who actually wanted to be his friend instead of simply using him to piggyback off his success, something which was a current occurrence in his famed life and probably something many like him go through on a daily bases. However, the other male of the group recognized Ayumu from his background and current profession as a singer, quite a popular one to, as he pointed this out the female in the group.

"Yeah, I'm a singer." Ayumu confirmed, answering the rhetorical statement. An eyebrow slightly and his eyes danced with mischief as he listen to the challenge that Kurai had thrown down at him. A singing contest? In the middle of nowhere? And if he wins then he would be allowed to do anything that he want; meaning no training with them? Was this a joke? Who was going to be the judge in this little contest; Ashi? That would be kind of bias considering the black haired beauty wanted him to join in the training. Sighing again, something he has been doing a lot lately, Ayumu listen to Kurai warm up his voice. The singer had been prepared to listen to something horrible but was surprise at the nice voice Kurai had, not as nice as his but still nice.

At the same time Ayumu thought about actually accepting this challenge, if only to humor himself. It would be something different, and it could be fun. But did he really want to have a sing off in the middle of nowhere? Hew came out him to train in secret, not to sing. But the thought of crushing Kurai was to good to pass up. Ayumu was a gift singer, he could - Nope! Nope! Nope! He didn't come out here for a singing contest. And if he did; what the point in beating some no-name? He came out here to train in secret. And  he be for damn, that's exactly what he was going to do! Looking between the pair, Ayumu thought about the secretive of his clan and came to a realization. While some people knew about the Houkyaku clan there wasn't much information on their skill set, so as long as he didn't show anything linking him to them then he would be fine . . . right?

Chuckling soft to break the silence that fell, Ayumu spoke,  bringing the attention to him "Seems like neither of you are giving me a legitimate choice in the matter."  the smile present on his face never leaving " In that case, I'll train with you all. But only under one condition. Keep my skill sets between  you two, I don't need everyone and their mother to know my shinobi-esque activities." He stated, placing some trust into these complete strangers.  Looking between the two, Ayumu figured he should elaborate on why the secrecy was needed but first "As Kurai stated, I'm a singer. The former lead vocalist of "Numb' who's now solo after the band broke apart. Now that you know who I am, let me tell you why this secrecy is needed. Some of my fans are anti-chakra supporters. In order words they are apart of a relatively small group of extremist of believed those who wields chakra are an abomination to society.  They see us as monsters who only use chakra to cause war and destruction, while overlooking the good that chakra has brought the world. While they haven't done anything yet. My fan-base just so happens to be made up of a quite a few of them with one of biggest supporters being a member. So yeah, think you can keep anything seen between the two of ya?" He asked, waiting for their answer.

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Word Count: 673(2279)

"Ayumu, I've heard of you before... you're a singer right. Well then, I challenge you to a sing off. If I win you have to team up with Ashi to face me. If you win, you're free to do whatever you want." Kurai reminded Ashi where she knew Ayumu from; yup, he was a singer. Her friend loved him and talked about him alot, but Ashi never actually heard him sing. But if the mentioned sing-off were to happen, Ashi could see why her friend loved Ayumu that much. Kurai started warming up his voice, which was actually quite pleasant. Ayumu quickly responded to the challenge, and Ashi kept quiet in the meanwhile. I just hope they don't ask me to sing... I'm absolutely terrible... "Yeah, I'm a singer. Seems like neither of you are giving me a legitimate choice in the matter." the smile present on his face never leaving " In that case, I'll train with you all. But only under one condition. Keep my skill sets between you two, I don't need everyone and their mother to know my shinobi-esque activities. As Kurai stated, I'm a singer. The former lead vocalist of "Numb' who's now solo after the band broke apart. Now that you know who I am, let me tell you why this secrecy is needed. Some of my fans are anti-chakra supporters. In order words they are apart of a relatively small group of extremist of believed those who wields chakra are an abomination to society. They see us as monsters who only use chakra to cause war and destruction, while overlooking the good that chakra has brought the world. While they haven't done anything yet. My fan-base just so happens to be made up of a quite a few of them with one of biggest supporters being a member. So yeah, think you can keep anything seen between the two of ya?" A group of anti-chakra supporters? Does something like that even exist? Ashi was generally surprised by what she had heard just now, even shocked a tiny bit. How could a person believe chakra is an abomination? It is completely natural, and everyone can gain control of it with practice; even more so if the person is of young age. But whatever; Ayumu's secret was safe with Ashi, so she nodded and spoke. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." On the other hand, if he's really that famous... Information like this could make the front page of many magazines no problem... But that would be a real dick move, hmm... Ashi would sit there and imagine herself swimming in a pile of money she'd get for information like this, while waiting for someone to actually begin the training session; she had no idea what to do or how to do it.

Wordcount: 476
Total wordcount: 3128

OOC:

Kurai was immensely dissappointed, it would appear that he had warmed his voice up for nothing. He cleared his throat and agreed to his terms. In return for training with them, he only asked that both Kurai and Ashi keep his ability to use chakra a secret. "Not a problem. Numb used to be one of my favorite groups, you can be sure I won't tell anyone" Kurai now looked around as everyone seemed a lot more comfortable, and ready to do what they had all came down here for... train.

Since Kurai was close to being promoted and seemed to have much more experience than the others, he would offer them a opportunity to fight him. "To begin, how about you join Ayumu, Ashi. You two fight alongside each other and try to defeat me." Kurai jumped away from the abyss and waited for Ashi to join Ayumu, so they could begin. "Whenever you two are ready?"

The fight was about to break out soon. Ashi thought that she was ready for it, but on the second thought... The guys were all older and simply bigger than her, and much stronger most likely. Anxiety started appearing inside her. Maybe this isn't a good idea after all... I don't even know anything except spitting out a tiny fireball or vomiting a pile of mud... And I'm already tired from all the chakra I spent earlier... Yeah I think I should go... Ashi started backing off slowly, before she was just by the doorway from which light was flowing into the cave. The look on her face revealed that she was in fact, a chicken. "Sorry guys, I... I changed my mind. I rememebered I should be heading home... Yeah, my family's expecting me... Maybe we'll have a spar some other time? Heheh... She faked a slight laughter, and ran away, up the stairs. The sun peaked above her head, and it was oh so hot. Ashi covered her eyes with her hands to easen the pain while they adjusted. It's so hot, I can't do shit here anymore... This place is probably better to train at when it isn't this goddamn hot! It was kinda a waste of time to even head out so far in the first place, what was I thinking. She made her way back, in the general direction of Iwa, jumping over any fissures that reaped through the dry soil. After about fifteen minutes of walking, she was already near the edge of the wasteland. In fact, there was even a healthy-looking tree there - the shade Ashi was looking for. She hurried under it, and sat down on the fresh ground. Much better... The nature around her was at peace.

After she had rested for a couple of minutes, Ashi got up and thought to herself - I don't really wanna head back this soon, and I didn't achieve much either... If I wanna stand a chance against guys like that in the future, I should learn something useful. Ashi thought about what to do, before finally deciding on something that utilizes Doton. She figured out that a technique that could hold enemies in place would be very useful, both for attacking but for giving herself a chance to run away too. I wonder how I would do something like that though... It's not like I can just spew out Doton natured chakra this time. I guess I should send it out in the ground... I guess? Ashi closed her eyes, locked her hands together in the Tiger handseal, and began to concentrate her chakra. She did her best to seperate only Doton natured chakra, and tried to flow it towards her arms, before slamming the soil beneath her with her open palms. She didn't time it very well and there wasn't much force behind the chakra: a small crater of earth formed around the spot she hit the ground, not exactly what she was hoping for. She tried again and again, each time more precise and with better results, but what happened is that she simply shifted the ground away from her hands, and what she was going for was to be able to send chakra through the ground, and it to raise the soil at that place, trapping the person above. So she practiced that instead, now crouching on the ground. She would perform a series of handseals, molding her chakra, and place her arms on the soil firmly, and then proceed to try and flow the chakra through it. Now she practically sent a very small "mountain range" through the ground, that continued for about a meter, lower and lower. This is more like it - Ashi thought as she wiped the sweat off her forehead. She tried the technique many more times, and in about an hour she learned how to do it the way she wanted to from the start: she could effectively send chakra through the ground and precisely hit a spot in a 10 meter radius around her, where the earth would raise up into small hill. Ashi sat down, and wondered. Wow, I really managed to pull it off! But it would be much nicer if I could perform the technique in combat without having to smack the ground... What if... What if I did it the same way, but through my feet? Ashi was instantly excited, and jumped up on her feet eager to try out her new idea. It didn't work all that well at first, but after trying it out for about a dozen more times Ashi could do it just as well as she could with her hands. She could feel her control over chakra grow more delicate. She was pleased with herself, but now completely exhausted, hungry and tired. It was time to finally go back home. Ashi walked away from the tree with the demolished landscape around it - it was filled with hills, holes, and all other sorts of strange deformities Ashi left behind herself. It was a good spot to train, possibly one she would return to once again. But this was more than enough for now, so Ashi walked back towards her village without a care in the world.


Wordcount: 882
Total Wordcount: 4024

Doton D->C: 1500/1500
Rocking Restraint Training: 1000/1000
Endurence E->D: 750/750
Strength E->D: 750/750