It was simply another day in the training grounds for Yoichi. His training wasn't all that rigorous, it didn't push his limits. It was enough to keep his skills honed to the point he had them at, but not enough for him to be gaining all that much experience from it. It was more maintaining the status quo. It was in stark contrast to the sheer growth in power he'd exhibited lately. His career as a genin had been a rather short one, although it had begun later than most. Most genin became genin straight out of the academy as children, and would become Chuunin anywhere between a couple years or a decade later. However, Yoichi hadn't gone to the academy until much later in his life, already an adult by the time he became a genin. He'd chosen to spend most of his life studying strategy rather than training and fighting. And it had paid off rather well.

As a genin, fresh out of the Academy, Yoichi's intellect had allowed him to easily surpass those around him that had every physical advantage. His mind was sharp and quick, laying out a plan of attack and initiating them flawlessly. Having come under the radar of Lady Risu, his talent was quickly taken note of, and he became a pawn of the Ouroborus clan leader. And shortly, he found himself tested by her, doing secretive missions with more complicated tasks than the menial ones the village had assigned. His work had been more dangerous, and more rewarding. His body reacted well to the changes, growing in power quickly to match those he'd been combating. Now he was physically able to contend with those of his rank.

It amused him slightly. If he'd been in the shape he was now, back on the day that he'd fought the Suna Chuunin, Neci Uchiha, the fight would have gone much differently. Even though he'd beaten the other Uchiha, Yoichi had sustained his own fair share of injuries, and had to use up a large sum of chakra in order to beat him. It took his superior strategy, and at any moment he could have lost. But now, with this body, and more jutsu at his command, Yoichi would have been able to conserve more energy and chakra, and it would have been over a lot quicker. Perhaps he'd have even been able to take the other's eyes. But instead, he'd sent his opponent fleeing, but alive, to nurse his own wounds. And he'd been too injured and tired to even bother chasing after Neci.

He stood, water dripping from his face as he had poured it on himself to cool off, panting slightly from his small exertion, in front of a wooden training post. It had been beaten to all hell by the numerous people that trained on it, and Yoichi was one of the vast many who had. It had become his favored post, as he'd fallen into a habit as of late. As usual when it came to his training, he was dressed a bit different than normal. His eye patch still remained over his scarred eye, and his piercings were all in, but his vest, emblazoned with the Uchiha Clan Crest, the long sleeved undershirt that served to complete his jumpsuit and uniform, and his Forehead protector were piled up, off to the side, neatly placed in a fold and stacked in that order. He was what people would describe as lean, his muscled pale body almost contradictory. Having spent so much time obviously training out in the sun, one would expect him to be a little darker, but instead it looked as if he hadn't seen a day of sun in months.

WC: 622

His blood boiled. It’s been a while since he has felt this way. He wasn’t calm, but he was a little bit uneasy. There was a lust that he hadn’t felt in a long time; the lust for a good fight. Day in, day out he had been training by himself without anyone else around, just the occasional stranger to talk to, but that’s all they did, after all. He followed the path that led to an open area, surrounded by a thick forest. It was the training grounds; surely there must be someone there that could entertain Susumu as much as to give him a worthy fight. Considering it’s been a long time feeling the sensation and thrill of a close battle, he couldn’t just keep himself from ignoring his instincts. This time, he left his purple cloak at home. His star-shaped necklace was visible around his neck, hanging over his black, short sleeved shirt. In order to hide his identity a little bit from people that passed by, there was no visible Uchiha crest on it. In addition to the black shirt, he wore black pants and shinobi sandals covering his feet. His hands were in his pockets and although he twitched every now and then, aimed to come over as calmly as possible as he made his way over throught he last two trees, the light shining brightly in his face as the area revealed itself to him. It was rather empty, actually. Susumu figured that there would be more people training on a day like this, but it seems like everyone’s slacking off.. Everyone except one person, it seems. Two if you count Susumu as well. The individual, who Susumu had never seen before in his life, seemed rather exhausting as he stood in front of that training post. Would it even be fair to offer a fight to the guy training his ass off? He felt like it would turn into an unfair advantage for himself and he didn’t want that. He always wants to beat people when they’re at their best, to show off his own potential to the world. Looking from left to right, he made sure that there were no other individuals roaming around the training fields as Susumu slowly made his way over to the person with beads of sweat rolling down his face. Thinking about it more thoroughly, it shouldn’t necessarily mean that the guy is actually that exhausted. It’s natural to sweat if your work out system actually succeeds in training your body.

Susumu was certain that the man heard his footsteps getting closer and closer, crushing blades of leaf beneath the sole of his sandals and the clinging of the metal necklace around his neck also should’ve made the unknown figure aware of Susumu’s presence. This, however, was something that he didn’t want to hide at all. This wasn’t an ambush, just a request for a fair fight. It was just a matter if the person wanted that as well, or not. As he moved closer and closer, the traits of the man immediately became more visible to Susumu’s blue eyes. The first thing he spotted was the Uchiha Crest on the vest that the man was wearing. A smirk stretched out across his lips. “[i]An Uchiha..” He thought to himself. The thought of being able to fight another Uchiha made his blood boil some more, up to the point where he could barely hold in his instincts for battle. “[i]This should prove for an interesting fight.” With that in mind, he stopped in his tracks, narrowing his eyes to take into account every single trait that the man had visually exposed, but there wasn’t much interesting to see other than the Uchiha Crest he was apparently showing off with pride. Susumu was different than him in that view, because Susumu knew the history the Uchiha Clan has and does his best to keep him safe from any life-threatening situations to be able to develop himself more and more. With his hands still shoved in his pockets and his eyes narrowed he spoke. The smirk across his lips had already vanished, but there was no telling when it would return again. Most likely during the heat of battle if it should occur. “Yo there, Uchiha.” He began. It almost seemed as if he was talking down on his opponent, but really that wasn’t his intention at all. It was just his personality. As he, himself is an Uchiha, he knows they’re not to be underestimated, but still couldn’t help himself to have a little fun. “I can see that you’re pretty exhausted, but the training equipment around these parts don’t do it for me anymore.” From the sentence that he just uttered it actually sounded like he was stroking his own ego, thinking that he had reached a level greater than himself, but with that Susumu was wrong himself. And he knew. The training equipment around here was perfectly fine, but nothing satisfied Susumu anymore until he had finally exchanged fist with the man in front of him. Once his eyes are set on his targets, it’s nearly impossible to keep his vision off it. “That being said, how about you and I make it one hell of a fight. It’s a way to improve both of us. As an Uchiha, I’m sure you understand.” With that, he paused to wait for a response. Normally he’d engage in a conversation first to get information and see what the person is like, but this time he just went with it and whatever happened, happened. Being this impulsive is something Susumu rarely does, but for once in a while it shouldn’t be able to hurt. The individual was still unaware about Susumu’s origin and that he was an Uchiha. He’d refrain himself from overusing the Sharingan and conserve chakra, because he wasn’t even sure about this person’s level of power at all. For all he knew, he could be a few ranks above his and this would end in a one-way massacre.

Word count: 1012

It was only a little bit into his training that Yoichi realized he was being watched by somebody. It wasn't a normal occurance, but it wasn't necessarily a surprising one. People came here to observe the others all the time. Hell, even Yoichi came just to watch some people train on occasion. Information was perhaps one of the most useful tools a shinobi could have, especially one with their own ambitious goals and desires. Sousetsu wouldn't be in charge of Konoha forever, Yoichi would see to that. His main goal was to gain power, and there was no better test of power than taking on and defeating a kage. Besides, once he was strong enough to defeat Sousetsu, he could see Lamya rise to power and rule Konoha. She would hardly have any opposition, with powerhouses such as Uchiha Tenzo under her command. Should Tenzo prove to be another obstacle, then Yoichi would take him out. His eyes would certainly be useful as well, and would complete the power he needed mastery over. Mangekyou Sharingan was incomplete, but the eternal one... now that was real power. But as long as Tenzo was an ally, he would never betray Lady Risu in that manner. If he had to, he'd just take another Uchiha's eyes and go through a development process again.

But for now, Yoichi was but a Chuunin, with little real power at the moment. In fact, he felt his eyes weren't fully developed as they should be right now. The one tomoe was a good start, but it only really allowed for small utility. His next goal was to unlock the Two-tomoe, and with it, the ability to see Chakra masses. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. Knowing when an opponent's chakra was getting low would be nice, and there were some other uses for it. Unfortunately, he hadn't been placed in a situation where lately that would allow him to unlock the eye. Perhaps it would come soon enough, but then again, he didn't mind at the moment if it didn't. He wasn't one to rely on the power of the Sharingan, more so as a tool to be used, and as a measurement of his own power. After all, the stronger his eye, the more power he would have obtained, the EMS being the culmination of ultimate power in his own eyes. As well as literally IN his eyes.

Transfixed as he was in his thoughts and the monotony of his physical training, Yoichi had momentarily allowed himself to forget that someone was watching him, but it seemed that he wouldn't be allowed to keep that luxury for all too much longer, as he became acutely aware that the one watching him was now making an approach. And then a voice was heard, in a somewhat arrogant tone. Stopping in his exertions, Yoichi turned, and was met with an interesting surprise. The one who was doing all this watching was little more than a kid. Simply turning to face the kid was acknowledgement enough for him to proceed talking, and Yoichi simply stared at him, his one eye taking in what little information it could. The other, covered by the eye patch, with the faintest peak out of the scar that it hid underneath, hinting at the loss of that eye. The Uchiha were well known enough, and there were plenty of Dojutsu hunters out there after all. With the open display of his clan symbol, as well as the eye patch, one need not think too hard to figure out what had happened to him.

A little surprised that this kid was challenging him, Yoichi's eyebrows raised at the challenge. It was obvious that the one in front of him thought himself to be a threat, and there was little doubt in the older Uchiha's mind that it was entirely possible. The Uchiha were a special clan, and many gifted members had existed throughout their history. Although, just as many were far too arrogant based on their name alone, choosing to rely on their Kekkei Genkai instead of their own skill and martial prowess. But they weren't unique in their prodigies. Many other clans had equally gifted members, and as such, Yoichi couldn't underestimate anyone who declared themselves Shinobi. As the boy talked, Yoichi went over to his clothing, and picked up the bundle of clothing he had, pressing it to his face to rid it of the dripping water and sweat. It would appear normal to anyone, but Yoichi had also had an ulterior motive. Imbuing it with a small bit of chakra, he'd prepared a substitution with the bundle just in case he needed to use one. Suitably dry, Yoichi tossed it back down on the ground, and turned to face the kid. "You know what? Sure, I wouldn't mind a little spar. It's sort of unorthodox, and I'm not used to fighting kids, but I guess I can oblige."

Walking away from the post to bring himself away from his prepared substitution as well as to give himself more maneuverability room, Yoichi reached into his kunai holster that was strapped to his leg and made sure his weapon was still there. It wasn't worth it to pull out just yet, as he still needed to gauge this kid's abilities, so he readied himself up, waiting for some form of reaction from the kid. He'd give him the first move.

-5 Chakra, prepped Sub on "Clothing Bundle"
Chakra: 195/200

WC: 935
TWC: 1557

The older Uchiha in front of him mentioned that he wasn’t used to fighting kids, but in a fight that shouldn’t matter. If you truly don’t underestimate anyone, you don’t see someone as a kid or as an adult, but simply as a Shinobi. Even little kids can hold strengths you couldn’t even imagine that were possible, but everything would be made clear in the fight in just a few seconds. His blue eyes were locked on the individual as he cleared his face from the sweat dripping down from his chin and as he moved over to just a little bit of a distance in front of Susumu. Witnessing the man in front of him reach out for his weapon pouch strapped to his leg, it basically confirmed that he had a weapon hidden in there, while Susumu had nothing like a weapon at all. He needed to take into mind that the weapon could be brought into battle at any moment, needing to keep his guard up just a little bit more and prepare for the worst if it should come to that. For just a little while, the both of them just stood there, looking at each other without giving an inch into the direction of one another. It appeared that the man, whose name he didn’t even know yet, wanted Susumu to make the first move. Starting first never means getting an advantage, rather, Susumu sees it as a disadvantage. Your opponent will be able to react the first to whatever you have planned and immediately start a counter, so Susumu would need to try and predict whatever his opponent can do in a situation like that and place a counter himself afterwards.

He didn’t want to waste any chakra just yet, so he figured the best way to start off the fight would be with some simple taijutsu moves to ‘break the ice’, so to speak. His blue eyes narrowed, fixating his sight upon his opponent, causing the area around Yoichi to go out of focus, just having his battle with him in mind and not letting himself be distracted by anything around him. Every sound; the wind, birds chirping and the other animals moving around in the bushes were blocked out and the only sound that he could hear was the sound coming from that one person that interested him enough to challenge him to a fight. The boiling of his blood never stopped, not even now when he’s in the heat of battle and not knowing what might unfold in front of his very own eyes. He spread his legs and lowered himself a little bit to the ground, indicating that the fight isn’t very off from its start. Susumu has always been careful in fights, just analyzing everything the best he could and use his instincts from there on out, but as of now he couldn’t really detect any weaknesses on the man. The fight had to begin and drag on for a little bit to reveal more about what and what he’s not capable of. In an instant, he leaned forward on his toes and launched him forward towards the individual. Using just his toes to give himself a boost forwards, he made his way over at a fast pace, immediately stopping in his tracks as soon as he arrived right in front of the Uchiha, balancing himself on one leg and using his body weight to create a spinning motion on his entire body and deliver a roundhouse kick to the left side of his stomach. That one foot that still touched the ground was placed there to correct himself and still have the mobility to succeed in dodging a counter if it should prove necessary. Considering the possible level of strength this man had it would probably be necessary to prepare for a dodge and a counter. There were a few possible options that popped up in Susumu’s head as soon as he pinpointed the area where he wanted to deliver the blow, all he had to do now was wait for that one moment where the movement of the opponent’s bones determine in a slight way how his opponent is going to react. He had never tried this method in battle before, but was interested to seeing out how this would play out for him. If his naked eye was able to see such a feat was just a question to him, but it was a risk and maybe a hit he was willing to take if this would help him improve more in battle. For now, it was just waiting in anticipation.

Word count: 775

Yoichi kept his eye on the boy, waiting to see what he'd do. In most fights he'd been in to this point, he'd either had the element of surprise on his side, being as sneaky as he was, and having had planted traps and such, or he'd instigated a fight, and was already prepared with a jutsu to use, having an agenda he wanted to get past. With Neci, he'd wanted to unlock his sharingan, or steal his eyes after defending himself with lethal force, whichever came first or was presented as an option, and so he'd let the man take the first hit, knowing he was safe. With his other fights, he was more careful, if he had no agenda. Sometimes he wanted to make kills. This time was not one of them. In fact, he was more intrigued than anything, wanting to see the combat capabilities of this kid. With that in mind, he wasn't going to make any showy performances like he usually would, and would just do what he could to match his nameless opponent.

The kid lurched forward, running towards him at a surprising speed, just below what he himself was capable of doing. 'So he's not just being cocky, he probably does have some skill. This might be more interesting than I'd been expecting.' he thought to himself. Even as the kid came toward him, Yoichi started to plan his movements accordingly. He'd been more used to fighting people of his size, so a smaller opponent would recquire some adjustment. Only a moments stop upon reaching him, and the kid used his momentum to build up power for a roundhouse kick to Yoichi's stomach. Immediately upon him raising his leg, Yoichi's stance lowered until his face was level with where the kick would land, his arm out to take to force of the impact, using his own strength to counteract the kick, feeling the jarring impact as it hit his forearm. Even as he was dropping, Yoichi lashed out with a sweep of his left leg towards Susumu's knee, as with one leg on the ground, and the other having just hit his arm, it would be easier to disrupt his balance. At the very least, he'd have to jump to avoid the sweep, but placed as high as it was, he might still manage to clip his ankle if he did so. Regardless of the circumstance, Yoichi would retaliate by jabbing his right arm forward, looking to hit the kid center mass with a punch. An advantage of his larger size meant that his reach was farther than Susumu's, who's leg was about as long as Yoichi's arm. While he was strong and fast, Yoichi had an edge in physicality as if Susumu was close enough to hit Yoichi, then Yoichi was close enough to hit him, but the inverse was not true for Susumu.

For now, he'd play the game this kid was playing. If he wanted to go taijutsu, Yoichi would respond accordingly. Yoichi may not be a taijutsu specialist, but all shinobi were trained in the basics of hand to hand combat. While he couldn't yet apply any taijutsu enhancements, he was still able to fight hand to hand with minimal issues. If it came to ninjutsu, then Yoichi could also oblige. That was his main focus, after all. The main factor here was going to be the unexpected, the unknown. Neither knew each other's skills. If it came down to it, Yoichi had his summons to fall back on, a skill not many utilized. A small smile crept onto Yoichi's face. This was going to be an interesting spar no matter which way it went.

WC: 639
TWC: 2196

Finally. Some excitement. That was the only thing that Susumu had on his mind as he engaged the individual ‘Yoichi’ in this unexpected and pretty much random battle. Susumu figured starting off with Taijutsu might be better to figure out the opponent’s moves for future reference, but being this close to his opponent, he just couldn’t hold himself back. Susumu’s kick that was aimed at the left side of his stomach was blocked by his opponent’s forearm as it took all of the impact from the kick away. The moment that Susumu’s leg hit Yoichi’s arm, he knew that he would think of something quickly to get out of this situation, because a counterattack from the man was definitely inevitable. Going on pure instinct from now on, he knew that without the Sharingan on his perception wasn’t that top-notch, or at least at its full potential for now. From the corner of his eyes and from Yoichi’s body movement, he determined that he was going for a low-aimed attack, though he couldn’t exactly pinpoint where the hit would land. From this distance and his situation, it couldn’t be a kick with much power in it. Considering he was standing on his leg, the only logical option for his opponent to attack with his leg would be to cause Susumu to go off-balance. Knowing that the sweep was coming on its way, he was on the verge of breaking his balance so there wasn’t much that he could do in a situation like this. He decided to ignore the damage done for now and just focus on the offense. He was confident that from close-range, he could probably turn this into his own favor. As a quick reaction in the spur of the moment, he jumped into the air. The sweep was apparently aimed at his knee, as it bumped barely into his feet, either way causing him to lose his balance in mid-air.

His eyes widened slightly. This was definitely not what he had expected. At this moment, there were several thoughts crossing his mind as to what he could do, the thinking wasn’t really the issue for him, it’s the executing of the ideas that bugged him. His body wasn’t able to handle such maneuvers, not yet. Snapping out of his thoughts, the next thing that he noticed was the opponent’s jab flying into his direction. Still spinning half-way in the middle of the air, the only option for him was to block using his left hand, keeping his right hand free. As soon as he pinpointed the location where the punch would land, he moved his forearm in front of it. Although it was definitely a tough punch, the impact had been absorbed by his body part. The punch was felt brushing up against the bones in his arm and because of the pressure punch behind it and Susumu not being in the most favorable position, he get blown back just a little bit, scraping over the ground while a cloud of dust marks his trail. This man definitely had some skill. It was a miscalculation on Susumu’s part; something that he hopefully avoids in the future. He had to plan carefully now and not run in recklessly. He’ll have to take his time and assess the situation, but a technique for a little backup couldn’t hurt at all. The cloud of dust that covered Susumu’s figure slowly started to disappear, revealing himself covered in the dirt that covered the ground. He wasn’t ashamed of almost being hit in the face. In fact, it was a wake-up call for him. As soon as he picked himself up, he raised his hands and performed a series of handseals that would hopefully work in his favor against an opponent like this. Susumu felt the Raiton chakra within his body swell up and generate from his own body. Three small spear-shaped masses of lightning surround his being. One above his head and the other two separately, left and right. To top it off, he inhaled and exhaled 5 seconds after, blowing out a highly flammable gas of 10 cubic meters and without a Doujutsu, impossible to see. He wondered if this was taking it too far, but he really didn’t intend to kill his opponent. He just wanted to see what an opponent like that would do in a situation like this. Susumu himself, as well had to keep track of the cloud, or else he would get himself into it.

The crackling sounds of the lightning around his being was heard as the gas was put into place in front of Susumu, extending to about where Yoichi was standing. This time, Susumu wasn’t going to attack first. A smirk slipped across his lips, putting out his hand and making a ‘get over here’ motion, indicating that this time, it was Yoichi’s turn to attack first. He had to use the lightning spears at the right time, he needed to conserve chakra and not waste it on just missing his target. For now, he was in no need to use the Sharingan and neither did the man, apparently. Noting the eyepatch the man has on, he could take advantage of that blind spot the next them they’re head-to-head, if that would even happen now. Susumu feels like he has started a Ninjutsu fight. Not that he didn’t mind, but he wasn’t aware of this man’s abilities and didn’t know if he had the right measurement and mindset to deal with the attacks that he has planned. For now, he just stood his ground a few meters away from Yoichi, narrowing his eyes and awaiting what the fight would bring next.

Word count: 949
Chakra: 125/150

Techniques used:

The corner of Yoichi's mouth twitched slightly, a small smile forming as he'd managed to calculate exactly what he'd needed to do. While it wasn't a decisive blow landed, he had still knocked the kid off balance, and showcased his own strength, knocking the much younger shinobi back. And with that opening exchange, they'd both learned things about each other. Susumu had seen that Yoichi was able to keep up with him, as well as take advantage of a situation, but Yoichi had learned much more than that. He'd learned that the kid was strong, and was fast. Almost as much as Yoichi himself was. He'd made the correct assumption earlier, that he couldn't underestimate anyone, not even this kid who was younger than most Academy graduates. This kid who was stronger than even some Chuunin that Yoichi knew. It wasn't entirely unexpected, but it was certainly a surprise. This would be another one to keep an eye on, but Yoichi didn't even know his name. He'd have to amend that. But this fight was just beginning. They hadn't even barely started to showcase their skills yet.

Standing back up while Susumu was sliding backwards, Yoichi reset his stance. Staying low like that would only be to a disadvantage to him, as he'd have to take more time to extend to full length if he needed to jump back or backpedal, so he took advantage of the time he'd bought himself. As the dust settled, Yoichi watched as Susumu made some signs, signs that he himself was actually fairly familiar with, using a jutsu that Yoichi also knew. The three familiar lightning spears triangulated around Susumu, and Yoichi grinned, coating his lungs and throat with chakra, inhaling a breath, prepared to launch a katon technique, the Misty Flame Dance, to release the invisible gas into the air. It would be a good counter to Susumu, who had his sparking lightning spears around him. Sending those through a gas would cause an explosion. And oddly enough, the young boy had done the same thing, their gasses mixing, the familiar scent of noxious gas in the air. This would be an area to avoid then, at least to the normal eye. It was obvious they both knew what would happen should either of them enter the radius of the gas. And with that in mind...

Yoichi leapt back, once he'd expelled the chakra gas, and then did quick calculations, running along in a circle towards Susumu, making sure to stay clear of the blast zone, in case Susumu tried to detonate it. Susumu had the advantage of time to plan, as Yoichi was very visible, but that made little difference to the Uchiha. He had plenty of aces up his sleeve. As he'd come around to now be clear of the radius, nothing between the two of them but normal air, Yoichi had a solid plan up his sleeve to catch the boy by surprise. He had now placed Susumu between himself and the training post, beside which lay his prepared substitution, in case he would find it necessary to use, but as of now, he had no reason to. He had a trick that only a Doujutsu capable of viewing chakra would be able to see, and now it was time to field test it. Expelling chakra in a radius around him, Yoichi used Blank Space for the first time in an actual spar. Confident that were it to fail, it wouldnt make much difference, as this was a spar, and not a life or death contest, he was eager to see if it would work. It didn't take any time at all, and as he dashed towards Susumu, he was already beginning to weave a quick sign for Phoenix Flower Jutsu. To his understanding, Yoichi knew that Blank Space would only be able to cancel out two of the spears, and prepared himself to dodge the third, away from the gas clouds still, of course. Regardless of whether or not Susumu attacked with his Lightning, Yoichi launched his Phoenix Flower Jutsu, the 10 fire balls soaring towards Susumu, forming a small wall of fire. It wasn't going to pack a punch, not without the usual additives that Yoichi would pile on to make it lethal, but anything was better than nothing, and in a spar, it wouldn't have to go that far. He was certainly eager to see how the kid would respond. It would only take one misstep for him to either back up close to Yoichi's prepared substitution, or to step too close to the cloud of gas, and Yoichi was the type of person who would capitalize on either of those mistakes.

WC: 805
TWC: 3001

-10 Chakra "Misty Flame Dance"
-10 Chakra "Blank Space"
-15 Chakra "Phoenix Flower Jutsu"
Chakra: 160/200

Spoiler:

The stench of the gas cloud that Susumu had blown out of his mouth strengthened, which could only mean one thing. Noticing that the individual in front of him leapt back as well, figuring that he must’ve noticed the smell of the invisible cloud in between of them. The individual, however, decided to do the same and mix both of their gas clouds into one. Should this area ignite, it would create a larger explosion than it normally would, both of their techniques having combined. Susumu kept his eyes locked on his target as they moved around the area, making a circling movement around Susumu to relocate themselves. Although they were clearly visible, it would at least give Susumu some time to think, but not that much of time, because he couldn’t allow his opponent to set up whatever attack he has in mind for Susumu. Given that he has the lightning spears surrounding him, the opponent probably wouldn’t try to get too close to him and with the mixed gas clouds to Susumu’s left and Yoichi’s right, this could turn into quite the predicament for either of them. The opponent Susumu was facing stopped in their tracks, facing Susumu as he stood with the back towards the pole with the pile of clothes of Yoichi. Susumu was young; still a little naïve and hadn’t noticed that at the beginning of the fight, the clothes were being a tool to be used for the substitution technique. Susumu blue eyes narrowed, looking closely as the handseals were performed for a certain technique, which Susumu didn’t really recognize. It might’ve been a technique that he had seen before, but he couldn’t figure out what exactly it was. Guessing that he just had to wait and see, he didn’t plan to stick around himself for much longer. Bending through his knees a little to give him the push off the ground in whatever direction he needed to head to.

It was something that Susumu had definitely expected; a fire technique. Being unsure if the fire would come into contact with the gas, considering he’s unable to see it with his naked eye and neither with the stage his Sharingan is in, he decided to play it safe for now. The fire projectiles made its way towards Susumu, his eyes shifting back and forth from the location of the gas cloud and the fire heading his direction. That wasn’t of any use, however. Should it come into contact with it, it’s an explosion in one go and it’s done for. There was no wind, therefore the gas cloud shouldn’t move from that spot. Still having bent through his knees, he launches himself backwards with the fire projectiles still in his sight and not averting his vision from them. He lands on top of the training post to get himself to a higher ground. He didn’t want to get around the fire, but actually go over it. Standing on top of the training post, he’ll be able to reach out higher and successfully jump over the flames. Waiting for the right timing to jump over them; the moment where the flames are about to reach the training post. Almost timing it perfectly, he bent through his knees one more time to give him that final push into the air and gives himself a boost forward. Moving himself over the flames into the direction from which they came, and at the rate they’re moving into the opposite direction, it gives him enough of a wind to make the jump with ease, given that his timing is right. Although he felt the heat barely touch the sole of his sandals and the post behind him burst out in flames the moment that the technique hit the wood, he safely landed on the ground, but didn’t stop there. Landing on his toes, he gives himself the ability to immediately launch himself forwards and leaning forward with most of his weight to speed himself up. Having trained himself based on speed, it’s on par of that of a normal Chuunin-ranked individual.

Moving himself from left to right, his attempt to slightly confuse the opponent as in which direction Susumu’s gonna take for his attack, though still with the spears around him. He knows that with those still near him, his opponent will be careful with closing in on Susumu, considering he can even fire them at will, without touching them. Knowing that his reaction time is slower without the activation of his Sharingan, he decides to use it just for a little while in a situation like this. Although it doesn’t add much, it still gives him a slightly better reaction time than right now in his current condition. His eyes widened while still making his way over to his opponent, flattening the grass blades beneath his sole with every step that he took. Which were once his blue eyes, instantly changed into crimson with one tomoe within both of them. It was still an early stage, but he takes any advantage he could get at this point. Once again, he aimed to engage the man in a close-combat fight, but this time with the spears by his side. Not knowing how the man would react, he figured that this time it wouldn’t be wise to attack with just his legs. When he was just a few centimeters away from actually coming within reach, he quickly moved himself to the right side at the last moment to see if the man is paying attention. Pulling his fist back and launching it forward almost immediately, he hopes to land a punch into his face, burying it deep into his cheek. During this process, he hoped to launch two of the spears by his side; one into each leg of his opponent to maybe immobilize him, although temporary and leave some openings for Susumu to lead on. Even during all of this, there was a smile across his lips. Although it was just a spar, it was a sensation that was indescribable for Susumu.

Word count: 1013
Sharingan activation: 5 chakra

Chakra: 120 / 150

More and more, this kid was proving himself to be someone that was quite talented. In terms of skill, he and Yoichi seemed to be about on par with each other, which was interesting to Yoichi, who was about a decade older than Susumu, give or take. If he continued honing his skills at the rate he was aging, then Yoichi wouldn't be able to hold a flame to him once he reached his current age. Expertly dodging the Phoenix Flower fireballs by springing onto the sparring post, Yoichi's eyes flashed to his prepared substitution momentarily concerned with the proximity between it and the post. As the jutsu lit up the post, Yoichi's concern was invalidated, as they were far enough away from it as to not be destroyed in the crossfire. And then he was on the move again, although Yoichi decided to let the fight come to him again instead of engaging fully. That's when he saw it, a flash in his opponent's eyes, a change in color, and a spinning black dot. The Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan.

"An Uchiha then. No wonder you're so talented at your age." Yoichi mused out loud, although more to himself than the kid, as the kid activated his sharingan. It was a one tomoe, so there was little that he would benefit from activating it, although it would allow him to react a little quicker. Although Yoichi held the advantage, presumably, considering he'd trained his body to be able to react quicker without the use of sharingan, preferring to forgo the dependency that the majority of his clan had on the Doujutsu. Due to their zealous over use and dependency on the eye to react to visual clues, they reacted slower when it wasn't active, after unlocking it. Yoichi himself had noted that, but having worked on his reflexes, he matched his previous skill without the Doujutsu active, and with his heightened reflexes, was able to make a much more effective use of the sharingan. And he'd still yet to activate his own, which meant he held more cards in his corner.

And like that, they were back in melee range, Susumu directly in front of him, until a quick feint to his right, Yoichi's left, away from the gas, placed him in Yoichi's blind spot, his eye patch proving a hindrance in this regard, something that Yoichi understood perfectly. Forced to twitch his head over so that he could keep an eye on him, Yoichi started to turn his body moments after, but the feint had worked well. The kid had good tactics, certainly, and knew how to take advantage of an opponent's weaknesses. Although, that same thing was his flaw. He knew only what he could see, and because of that, fell right into Yoichi's trap, playing into his hand perfectly. As he came in, he launched two of his lightning spears, and Yoichi could feel his Blank Space dissipate, watching as the jutsu's abilities were consumed, negating the launch and cancelling them out completely. It was a perfect success, in Yoichi's eyes.

Now, though, Yoichi had to start moving his face away from the fist that was launching towards his face. Instead of fully avoiding it, which might have been possible, but then again might have proved fruitless, Yoichi simply sought to mitigate the full punch, taking some of the damage head on, and grabbed at Susumu's arm, to grab a hold of it, and if he succeeded, would muster up all his strength and the momentum of the punch as well as the natural spin of his body having taking a punch, to hurl the kid into the gas mixture, that should have weakened enough by now, if he'd been timing correctly, and was nearing the end of its time. This would force to kid to either relinquish his last lightning spear, or it would ignite the gas itself, dealing some moderately weak burns, but fully body ones none the less. Small wounds were the ones that won a war of attrition.

If Yoichi's plan to ignite the gas failed, he'd light it himself, dropping low to the ground, planting his hand firmly down. "Summoning Jutsu: Fire Release, Ophidian Brimstone!" he'd call out, 5 snakes appearing and launching forward, wreathed in flames, which would launch themselves into the gas, igniting it, and dispersing them in the explosion. If it had already ignited, however, Yoichi wouldn't bother with the summoning. Regardless of what caused the ignition, however, Yoichi would draw his three Shuriken, leaving himself with one kunai as an offensive weapon, and would attach the puppetry strings to them, having recalled how effectively he'd used them against the Chuunin Neci Uchiha, launching them at Susumu, who would be forced to either dodge them, or take a hit. Once the outcome was revealed, Yoichi would then use the strings to return them to himself, ripping out any that had successfully hit, and yo yo'ing any that had been dodged, perhaps getting him on the return trip.

WC: 867
TWC: 3868

(-10 Ophidian Brimstone)
-5 Puppetry Strings
Chakra: 155(145)/200
Jutsu used:

Spoiler:

Susumu felt the skin on his fist barely hit the cheek of his opponent, but something was definitely wrong. It didn’t feel like the impact had that much effect, but rather worked himself into a disadvantage. The gas was right into the direction where Susumu was looking, so from this position he could easily be thrown into the gas. The two lightning spears that he had previously fired towards the opponent’s legs had vanished into thin air; which meant that some kind of jutsu had to be of effect. Was the technique over with the two techniques, or did he have something else up his sleeve? Although that crossed his mind, he didn’t have much time to think it through correctly and just went to follow his instincts rather than his brain at this point. He felt the grip tightening around his arm the moment that Yoichi took some of some of the damage. It was a trap. Susumu’s eyes widened and his small body got lifted up from the ground, the opponent using his momentum in order to sway Susumu into the direction of the gas. The final spear, that Susumu had still floating around as a back-up, got immediately fired off right before the moment that the man let go of his arm. The lightning spear once again, if successful, pierced into the man’s leg, 1 inch deep and causing major first degree wound to spread on his arm. This was to keep him from moving the way that he did before, maybe putting Susumu into an advantage.

He didn’t have a choice to keep the lightning spear around, for it would ignite the gas at the moment of contact and leave Susumu into more of a predicament than he already is. Although he had gotten rid of the one thing that he had around him that could do damage to himself, he still got launched in the middle of the cloud of gas, leaving him very vulnerable to incoming attacks. His Sharingan shifted from side to side. Was he able to get out of this situation? One thing that his Sharingan did catch was the moment his opponent lowered himself to the ground, sending five snakes existing out of flames heading into his direction; the area of gas. For Susumu, it was too late. The moment that he spotted the flaming snakes shooting into his direction, they spread into the gas, disappeared leading to the explosion that followed immediately afterwards. From the outside, Susumu’s figure disappeared into the flames and smoke that came with it. There was no scream heard from Susumu, only silence. It took a while for the explosion to stop echoing. The smoke hadn’t yet cleared up, Susumu nowhere to be found.

From within the smoke, Susumu was still alive, although he didn’t make it noticeable. His crimson eyes shifted back to their natural blue color, having determined that the Sharingan didn’t have much influence on a battle like this, definitely not in the early stages. This knowledge could only be gained by getting into battle, and he’s definitely not disappointed with the opponent he’s facing, but there was something definitely bothering him. He needed to take this time, while surrounded by smoke, to give everything a quick thought. “This is pathetic.” He thought to himself, biting his lips while some of the blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. “Up until this moment, I showed confidence and strength, yet I made myself believe that I could take down a Kage, while I can’t even defeat an opponent of this level!” He realized what he did and quickly, in his mind, took back his words. He just underestimated his opponent. Stating that he was bothered by the fact he couldn’t take down Yoichi who was “only” a Chuunin, he realized that it was his confidence that got the better of him. Instead of underestimating his opponent, he had to learn from this experience and use it for further development. Everything happening in this fight could be taken into account in the next fight and learn from them, rather than regret them. A smile crossed his lips, knowing fully well that this battle was probably something that he couldn’t win, although he wanted to. He needed to look back at this moment as material for improvement.

Slowly, he rose up to his feet. He couldn’t pinpoint the man’s location, either, but he had a vague kind of idea where he would be standing. If the man indeed thought that it would be over with an attack like this, he’d still be standing at the same spot he was when he threw Susumu, to try and confirm the result of the impact. He felt as he had grown with this encounter, but even though he thought that he would lose, he’d still try his best to turn the tables around. Everything happening is needed to lead him towards his goal. He didn’t see coming what happening next, however. From through the smoke, there were three shurikens swirling into his direction. His vision was clouded by what’s around him, so the reaction time he had was minimum. He had yet enough time to move his body so that the shurikens would hit any vital parts, which would render him useless for the rest of the fight. One shuriken stuck to his shoulder, while one hit the upper part of his leg and the other just grazed his face, leaving a cut across his cheek. This was the moment where he realized the wire attached to them, as well as the wire attached to the one that was stuck in his shoulder. This could mean it’s time for a surprise. He needed something that was easy to use. By focusing his lightning chakra in his finger, he attempted to cut through the wire that was attached to both the one in his shoulder, as well as the one in his leg, completely ignoring the one that had just grazed by him. He had to bear with the stinging pain for now coming from the wounds where the shuriken stuck, only pulling out the one stuck in his leg and performing the necessary handseals; going back to the basics.

Two of his clones, his bunshins, appeared next to him. It’s a basic academy technique, but in a situation where his current location is unknown, it could come in handy. Together with his two ‘companions’, he launched himself through the thick smoke and reveal himself back into the open, heading into his opponent’s direction. His clothes were completely battered, full of burn holes as well as his skin that had suffered some incredible damage. The pain he received was, for him personally, intense, something that he’d never had before, all the more reason to push yourself over it. At this point, he shouldn’t use any jutsu til after both of the clones had vanished, otherwise he’d just give away the original Susumu. Both of the clones were sent forward, first, both feinting a punch in both the stomach and the face, only to disappear immediately after what was supposed to be the impact. In the background, there was Susumu, just finishing up the handseals he was waiting for and the chakra he built up, pushing it outwards. “Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!” He yelled out, his elemental fire chakra expanding and expanding, heading into Yoichi’s direction. The attack was performed as a sphere, rather than a flamethrower. If successful, the ball of fire would engulf Yoichi, the same way Susumu previously got engulfed by the explosion from the gas.

Chakra: 95 / 150
Word count: 1269

Techniques used:

His plan had gone off without a hitch. Susumu was unable to stop himself from the grapple and was thrown directly into the gas. As he'd expected, he'd released his lightning spear, which found itself embedded in Yoichi's leg, dropping him to his knee briefly as his leg gave out from the burst of pain. Luckily, this placed him in a perfect position for his summoning anyways, so it wasn't too big of a deal, and if this worked, his injuries would be minor, localized in the one area, as compared to the full body injury that Susumu would receive. His plan played out, and there was an explosion of flames as his snakes did their job. Sure, they died, but the snakes were simply pawns. There were millions of them, and these ones were specifically designated to die. They weren't any more sentient than a common snake. As he had thrown his shuriken, he felt the chakra connection severe moments after he threw them, although one remained fully connected. That was good, it meant that one hadn't been noticed most likely, or at least had missed. He could at least salvage one from them, and besides, if he yanked back, the shuriken might hit him from behind. Recalling the shuriken, Yoichi waited, not bothering sending a Jutsu into the smoke as he couldn't see through the smoke and had no clue whether or not Susumu was okay or not.

Then came the clones. Yoichi's eyes narrowed, trying to focus and see which was which. He cursed his lack of 2 tomoe eyes, as he'd have been able to tell where Susumu was, and if these were real or not more easily. That was fine, he'd simply have to feel them out then, or hit both of them. He could use his Striking Shadow Snakes, but he'd prefer not to just at this moment. That would more than likely be the move he used to end the match, as he'd hold Susumu down and make sure he agreed the match was over. Far too often people could get too heated in combat and even after one person called the match over, would still attack while their guard was down or their back was turned. It was always a good idea to establish that a match was over. Striking Shadow Snakes was good for that due to the immobilizing power.

That in mind, Yoichi fell into a defensive stance, pushing himself back to his feet, the wound he'd received had hurt of course, and would slow him down, but it wasn't too much that he couldn't move on it. Gritting his teeth, Yoichi's eyes scanned over the clones which were moving towards him, he noted the first one had no shadow, marking it as a clone, as it was devoid of an actual physical form and was little more than an illusion, however the other was on him by the time he went to look and verify it was a clone as well. Not bothering to block the strike from the one he knew wasn't real, Yoichi moved in time to block the strike from the other Susumu just in case. There was little surprise when the second Susumu also dissipated. His gaze fell back on the smoke which was starting to clear out, and heard it clearly, the remainder of the smoke lighting up as a large fireball blasted out from it. There wasn't enough time for Yoichi to counter it with an attack of his own, and his wound made it impossible to out speed it.

There was only one course of action he had. A quick side glance verified the location of his substitution, and he quickly swapped places, feeling his body rubber band next to the still smoldering training post, and his bundle of clothes still overlayed with an image of himself, before the Substitution illusion broke, revealing it to be his bundle of clothes, which now lay burning on the ground. That was a shame, it meant he'd need a new shirt and vest with a symbol on it, but that wasn't too much an issue for him, it just meant he'd have to walk home without a shirt or vest. Smirking, Yoichi wiped some sweat off his brow, noting that it had been a close call on that last one. He'd gotten too caught up on the clones, and hadn't been paying attention to the smoke, which had cleared up now. Yoichi's eyes wandered to Susumu's back, to see if his shuriken had hit him on the return or not, having had relinquished his control on it when he'd substituted. He noted the wounds on the boy, verifying he was caught in the explosion, as well as the shuriken that had hit his shoulder and upper leg.

Walking forward, Yoichi's mind calculated. His Chakra reserves were still fairly full, with just about as much as he'd been able to utilize as a genin. That placed them around 3/4 capacity, which was enough to overwhelm Susumu if he wanted to. He had his own Fireball jutsu, he still had Istral and Kali, he had his quickdraw lightning shots, if he felt like using them. Striking Shadow Snakes was still of course unused. His Great Flame Dragon was still able to be used. Not to mention he still had his Fire Clones, which were substantial. Yes, he still had plenty up his sleeves at this point. Unless Susumu was holding back some unknown skills still, then Yoichi was the winner of this match, but it wasn't quite over just yet. Speaking now to address Susumu, Yoichi made a calculated decision. "I know you aren't going to win this match, but for one so young as you to have the skills you do, you've certainly proven an admirable adversary. You're going to go far kid, and it will be sooner than you think at this rate. You've certainly inherited the Uchiha's prodigal abilities." His entire goal in this was to make sure that Yoichi had respect for him, and wasn't one to forsake an opponent simply because he was beneath Yoichi's abilities. Granted, Yoichi usually would have in a situation like this, but in this case, Yoichi had no doubt that Susumu would prove to be a powerhouse in the future. And a powerhouse with the potential for Mangekyou Sharingan. It was better to have him as an ally while he was weak so that he would prove a powerful asset in the future, than to forsake him now, and have him begrudge Yoichi and come after him in the future.

"Normal courtesy dictates that we know each other's names before the start of a spar, but I suppose there's no harm in it being said now. My name's Yoichi Uchiha. Judging by your sharingan, you're also an Uchiha. With the same level of eye prowess as my own, as my eye is unfortunately weak. Before you deign to tell me your name or not, I'll give you some advice kid. Power isn't everything. Pure strength isn't everything. Your tools and what you have at your disposal are the only things that matter, and that comes down to your mind. Your mind is your strongest tool. The Sharingan is just a tool. Don't ever be reliant on it. That's the number one mistake most Uchiha make once they achieve a higher stage of Sharingan. I've beaten an Uchiha with a Two Tomoe back when you would have wrecked me physically. Plan everything out. Hone your mind. Hone your jutsu. Hone your body too, but your body is only another tool, don't focus too heavily on it. Physical skill alone can only get you so far, and if you don't have the tools to sustain a longer battle, be it jutsu, or weapons, then you simply won't last in a fight." Eyes flashing red as his Sharingan activated, Yoichi held up his arms to his side, and 5 snakes on each arm extended from seemingly nowhere, although at the base of where they came out (each in a different location on his forearm) flashed a previously unseen summoning seal. 10 snakes in total, and a larger portion of his chakra now drained down, Yoichi flashed a grin. "So. I'll leave this up to you. Continue our spar, or have you had enough for now?"

WC: 1455
TWC: 5323

-5 Sharingan Activation (1 Tomoe)
-5 Substitution Used (Refer to earlier post for Jutsu Used)
-5 Puppet Strings (Refer to earlier post for Jutsu Used) (Discontinued)
-30 Striking Shadow Snakes (both arms)
Chakra: 100/200

Jutsu Used:

Spoiler:

”Crap… was the first word that crossed his mind the moment that he noticed all of his tactics up until now were in vain. The clones were a decent enough distraction to keep his opponent’s eyes off the real deal. Everything was spot on, even up until the point where he revealed himself from throughout the smoke and launched that fire ball into his direction. But there was one thing that he didn’t keep in mind, which was the bundle of clothes next to the burned down training post. Because of the previous attack that Susumu dodged, the pole had burned down, but fortunately for Yoichi, the clothes didn’t burn away themselves. If they did, it would’ve prevented him from being able to use the substitution without a valid object to swap with. The only thing he could do was watch as the fireball, instead of burning his opponent, burned his clothes instead. Nothing but ash hit the ground once the fireball had vanished into thin air as its run its course. The ash got dragged along with the wind, scattering across the lands. Susumu’s breathing had gotten heavier, noticing that his chakra levels are dropping at an alarming rate. He wasn’t really conserving chakra in this fight, letting himself go to the fullest. That was probably what was his downfall, or maybe it was because this opponent was just out of his league. Prepared to commence the battle in the hope that he might still be able to turn the tables around, he didn’t know that he was experiencing defeat and admitting to it out of own free will for the very first time. Blood ran across his cheek from the wound he had gotten from the shuriken that swirled past his face. The shuriken in his shoulder was still in its place and hadn’t been removed yet.

Susumu turned his entire body around in order to face his opponent once more. He was determined to finish this fight, but that may have been out of his reach. As Susumu lowered his body to the ground as an indication that he would launch himself forward, he was suddenly interrupted by the man as he began to speak. Why would he start a conversation in the middle of the fight? Did he perhaps think that it was already over to begin with? And it was indeed true. The man mentioned that he was certain Susumu wouldn’t be able to continue. Susumu himself being wounded knew fully well that in his condition, he wouldn’t be able to fight to his full potential, while Yoich only took very little damage. He didn’t even seem that exhausted like Susumu did. Maybe the wounds drained most of his energy, but his chakra that depleted so suddenly over such a short amount of time might’ve done the trick as well. Although the man seemed to talk down on Susumu, he did compliment him on his prowess. It was unusual. Susumu had never imagined that in a fight, his opponent would acknowledge his abilities. Not to mention that Susumu attacked without even introducing himself first. The individual was the first to do so, however, introducing himself as Yoichi Uchiha, another member of the Uchiha Clan. That wasn’t all, because he seemed to be giving Susumu life lessons in this sparring session. Being kind of confused, he tried to pay close attention to the words he uttered, definitely some of it making sense to him, but too proud to admit it out in the open. Yoichi did seem to have his share of experience, definitely a worthy opponent. It was just when he stopped talking, Susumu realized that this was too much for him to handle at his level.

Eying Yoichi, he noticed the 10 snakes of total appearing around him and a grin crossing his lips. Was he challenging Susumu to continue the fight or actually giving him a fair warning? He didn’t have much techniques left that he could make useful in a situation like this. And basically the only tool that he has at his disposal is the shuriken stuck in his shoulder. His eyes narrowed and his brain scanned looking for every possible option he could figure out. His hand slowly reached for the shuriken stuck in his shoulder and suddenly yanked it out. A little bit of blood scattered across the ground in front of him, next to the peddle of blood that’s dripping off his chin. As hard as he thought, he was only able to come at one conclusion. With one swift arm movement, he threw the Shuriken, though not aimed at Yoichi himself. It suddenly changed direction with a curve and impaled the ground right in front of Yoichi’s feet. “All that talk about tools, I suppose you shouldn’t be losing yours.” he mentioned. Although he didn’t openly admit it, his behavior showed that he had indeed accepting his defeat. Even if he did, a smile crossed his lips let out with a slight laugh that snuck out. “Uchiha Susumu. That’s what I’m called.” It was a really late introduction and with much hassle, but even Susumu has found a type of respect for Yoichi. “I didn’t expect to get a lecture here, but at least it’s a lecture from another Uchiha. I don’t believe you’re wrong, however. Everything can be considered a tool, even the Sharingan. I wasn’t planning on using it, even, not at the level it’s at currently, but in order to keep up with your movements, I had no choice. Even though it was futile in the end.” He moved his hand over the wound on his shoulder, covering the blood and walked over to Yoichi, up closer. “And I’m not going to get you your new clothes.” He mentioned, before Yoichi wanted to make him pay for burning down some of his property. “I don’t say this often, however..” He paused for a moment until he stopped in his tracks, just a little distance removed from Yoichi. “You’ve been a fun opponent to fight against.” He spoke, a slight, innocent smile slipping through.

Word count: 1019

Watching Susumu's actions to confirm his decision, whether it be continued attack, or to accept defeat, Yoichi didn't have to wait long at all. It appeared that Susumu was going to make the smart decision to pull back now. Of course, it could be argued that a continued fight might have also been smart enough, as it would allow him to get stronger still, and learn more, but in this case, enough had passed that it was not necessary for that to happen.

He couldn't help it. The comment had elicited a laugh from the older Uchiha's throat. "I swear, if I actually cared enough about my clothes that I'd make you pay for new ones for any damage done to them, I wouldn't have used them for a substitution, nor would they be anywhere near the training grounds Susumu." His eyes spun slower and slower and the comma-like tomoe seemed to enlarge until there was no further noticeable red left in his pupils as he dismissed his sharingan. The snakes fully retreated into the summoning seals, and Yoichi's arms fell down to his sides as he leaned forward to pick up his shuriken. They were rather simple weapons, but had proven useful, so there was no reason to discard them. The kid had said it correctly. This had been a rather fun fight. It let Yoichi test himself against someone who was equal to himself, and because of that, he found some shortcomings as well as hidden talents he had not known. His skills were improving, and soon he'd surpass his old limits and start reaching into the higher depths of shinobi abilities. He couldn't be too proud with himself though, as his opponent had been just a kid. It didn't matter how strong or capable the kid was, he was still just a kid, and was limited by his body, and his still developing mind. When he matured in body and mind, the kid would be sure to rival or surpass Yoichi if his rate of growth remained constant. "And I wouldn't call it a lecture. Just take it as some well intentioned advice. I'll offer one last thing before I go." he said, wiping off his weapons as he placed them back in their holsters.

"There is one last lesson I think, that everyone needs to learn at some point. And that is how to lose. Sometimes someone will just be leagues above you in skill. Something that can't possibly be overcome barring a miracle or time. There are plenty like that above me, and while physically you and I are probably about the same, I have more experience than you do, giving me a solid advantage. But losing isn't always a bad thing. Always winning will make you arrogant. Sometimes it's better to lose some small battles to win a larger war. Every battle you survive will make you stronger, win or lose. Some are more strategic to lose. And losing doesn't always apply to physical fights. Sometimes you must make yourself subservient to someone, a subordinate. Bide your time, gather your strength. But don't think that you must always lose. This won't mean much to you now, and may seem like strange advice, but you'll understand what I mean someday." Placing two fingers on his forehead, Yoichi gave a farewell salute to the kid, before using the Body Flicker Technique and disappearing from the Training Grounds, to go and ponder on the fight.

WC: 578
TWC: 5901

Technique's used: Body Flicker Technique
(not marking chakra because leaving thread, will if you halt me or whatever)
EXIT THREAD

Training:
All Stats:
C -> C-2 : 5875/5875
(C-> C-1 (575x5=2875) + C-1 -> C-2 (600x5=3000)
3000+2875=5875
REMAINING WC: 26

It’s true. Susumu’s usually just focused on winning. This is the first time that he had accepted his defeat like that. He didn’t have any other option, however. The opponent he faced this time was clearly out of his league. Continuing this fight just would’ve been in his disadvantage. Of course, getting beaten up is also a great way to gain experience, but didn’t Susumu get beat up enough already? This time, what the man spoke of wasn’t much of a lecture, but rather giving him advice as a fellow Uchiha. Susumu wasn’t the type that liked losing, but who did? He just had to put it in the past and move forward with his head held high. The laugh was heard coming from the bottom of the man’s throat, mentioning that he’d make them pay for the burned out clothes if he actually cared. A grin crossed Susumu’s lips. “I’d much rather run away than pay for clothes like those. It’s not really money well spent.” Of course, this was his way of joking around although very rarely seen. This shows that Susumu personally doesn’t have a grudge nor against the Uchiha or any other Shinobi of this village. It all depends on their own personality. Each person here has their own unique traits, whether Susumu likes them or not is another question.

It’s strange, but although Susumu lost, he didn’t feel like it. His clothes were completely worn out and blood dripped from several parts of his body. His breathing had become more steady as he collected more and more energy what was once lost. Taking the advice given to heart, he nodded. “You’re right, Yoichi.” He began. “The next time we’ll meet, my strength will be on another level. And at that point, I do hope that we can continue this battle, though with a different outcome.” This, of course, meant that Susumu was planning to win their next battle. He only wondered if this fight was actually coming in the near future, because he’d sure love to kick his ass next time for a little bit of payback. “It’s clear that right now, our levels have a great difference. It may not be in physical prowess, but the experience is the thing I lack the most. People continuously tell me that I’m still young and have way more options left for improvement and they’re not wrong. So, remember that next time, things won’t be going so smoothly for you.” He laughed a little bit, turning around at the moment that Yoichi gave him the farewell salute. “I’ll see you around next time, fellow Uchiha.” The moment that he uttered those words, Yoichi had already disappeared using the body flicker technique. With a smile remaining on his lips, he too, vanished using the body flicker technique. In an instant, the two that had the battle on the training grounds had left, leaving behind nothing but worn out pieces of clothing and damage to the environment. This was definitely an experience worth getting for Susumu.

Word count: 507
Technique used: Body Flicker Technique
[EXIT]