Another murder.

Fuyuko had been lazing around for most of the morning. She had been training herself for a couple of days in a row to hone her skills and part of training is also to take a break from it and let your body rest. However she had seen enough of the interior of her house for one day and decided to go on a stroll through town. She would’ve preferred going to the forest but if she did that she wasn’t sure she could keep herself from training more.

Having arrived into the more central part of town it seemed more active than the average day of the week. With her interests piqued she went around and searched for the source that caused the commotion. As the crowd got more and more rowdy with direction she was moving in she was sure she was on the right path. Sure enough a couple of meters further ahead it became impossible to penetrate any further into the crowd. Not letting this stop her she jumped onto one of the rooftops close by to get a bird’s eye view of the area. Blood. An incredible amount of blood was splattered all across the floor. Not far from it were two bodies on the floor covered with blankets.

Captivated by the sight, she hadn’t realized that there was a shinobi listing up all the bad crimes the two of them had supposedly committed. This wasn’t the first time this had happened nor will it be the last time. These mysterious murders had been happening for quite a while, way longer than Fuyuko was aware of. She herself hasn’t known about it for more than two weeks tops. The only thing she had deduced from the whole situation was that the village itself wasn’t behind the attacks. They, the village’s higher ups,  also hadn’t caught the perpetrator. That’s why they had someone list their crimes, because if they could somehow justify the deaths of these people the town wouldn’t go into an uproar.

Uncertainty was the main feeling Fuyuko got from the whole situation. On one side of the coin she could understand that the village seemed contempt with what was happening. An unknown person was killing off the weed of the town for them and all they had to do was justify it. To top that off the village wasn’t a very merciful one to begin with, so she could definitely see why they seemed reluctant on capturing the person behind it all. But the other side of the coin was filled with her own ideals. The ideals that heavily conflicted with that of the village. She wanted to give everyone a second chance, or at least try to give everyone a second chance. To her there should always be room for redemption for the criminals, no matter the crime they may have committed. There were no issues with killing someone that refused her salvation, but they should at least be offered that at the bare minimum. And to Fuyuko the whole situation just felt like they were killed in cold blood. Killed simply because they took some bad steps in life.

With new motivation surging through her body she quickly ran towards home to change into her mission gear. Having swapped out her clothes her next destination was the training grounds of the village. She needed to become stronger. She needed to be so strong she could take on anyone. Be able to offer people redemption, but be able to strike them down if they refused. But the biggest drive right now was becoming strong enough to capture the person that was behind all the murders. Because to her, that person should also be taken down. She felt like that person was just being hypocritical.


646 wc

A familiar voice spoke to Fuyuko. It wasn’t one that she had heard very often, but she it was one she knew she had to remember, one that should be shown respect. However with her determination slightly clouding her judgement she replied without looking up to whom she was replying to. “At the moment I’m just training my general hand-to-hand combat. I know it might not be as effective as using a sparring partner, but my skill isn’t that high yet that I can’t still learn on just a dummy”. With several pauses in her sentence as she tried to keep her breathing rhythm up it could’ve been perceived as being out of breath. Having been at it for a little bit, a small break wouldn’t be harmful and she could actually get a proper look at the person she was talking with.

Fuyuko was dumbfound and a feeling of embarrassment rushed through her, without second thought she bowed and said “Pardon my rudeness lady Mizukage. I didn’t realize that you were here, it was very impolite of me to answer without looking.” Fuyuko would hold her bow for quite a few seconds or until she was told to raise her head. “Please allow me to give a better reply than I did beforehand. First of all I’m honored that you’d be willing to give me pointers with my training, I’m quite a fresh genin only having graduated a few weeks ago, so I’m sure I could be given plenty of pointers. Second, to also elaborate more on what I said earlier, I need to become stronger. Strong enough so that I can carry out my desires within this world.” Fuyuko would take a small break as she looked up into the sky, looking as if she was recalling memories before she would look towards the Mizukage again and continue her answer.

“There was another murder today in town. Two criminals had been killed again, one could also use the word slaughtered. As per usual their crimes would called out loud in order to tame the rowdy streets of the village. This whole ordeal makes me question the person executing these murders. Mainly due to the fact that it collides so heavy with my own believes. I believe that… that people should be given a second chance. You don’t know why someone may have committed a crime and because of that I feel like people should be offered a second chance. Of course this depends on circumstances and all of those things. But the murders that keep happening that are put up for display… they’re just wrong. To me that person is just a hypocrite, they are as much as a criminal as the people he or she is killing. They should be offered another way out, a single slip-up shouldn’t result in death. There has to be a way for them to gain salvation. That’s what I want to become, someone that offers salvation to those whom deserve it and not mindless abandonment because they might recommit a crime, but for that I need to be strong.”


wc 536
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The Mizukage agreed with her on the aspect that she needed to be stronger. However the level of strength that was mentioned to her had never crossed her mind. She would need to surpass the Mizukage herself, an idea that not once had crossed the young girl’s mind. But logically thinking about it, that is what would be required. She would need to become omnipotent. No matter what curve ball she would be thrown along the way, she would need to come out on top as the victor.

After that it seemed like that the Mizukage was trying to test her believes. To what extend does Fuyuko believe someone is salvageable. At which point would someone no longer be considered humane enough to be saved. This was done with a rather gruesome story. A story that made Fuyuko realize how ill prepared she actually was for carrying out her ideals. Being raised in the countryside where everyone knew each other and was willing to help one another, crime wasn’t really something she would be exposed to. The most conflict she had encountered were some drunk people causing fuzzes, maybe a stolen tool here and there. But something of this extend, hunting on the weaker, gaining pleasure from torturing others, it was just unheard of. She had no idea that there would be people of this caliber. Even the crimes she had heard of committed by the criminals in the public murders weren’t this awful. She felt shaken, it made her question if she was really up to the task.

No words had been spoken by the Mizukage for a bit, her question had been stated, but Fuyuko was uncertain how to start. She slept herself on the cheeks and got some of her composure back. “Quite frankly, I’m a little shaken and I’m not sure on how to answer properly, so bear with me please” she said as she made another small quick bow. Taking a deep breath before looking back up to the Mizukage. She answered slowly, making sure that the words she spoke were carefully chosen. That her face and eyes wouldn’t oppose the words that left her mouth. “I’ll start off with the stating that I had not realized the extend of some criminals. Hearing the story has left me with a feeling of unease, because I could not have dreamed that there could be those kind of people in my worst nightmare. I grew up on the countryside, my house was alone in the mountains and forests a few kilometers away from the nearest village. And those villages would only contain a handful of buildings. The difference in criminal activity feels as big as the gap between here and the moon. I had always thought that the worst people did was just kill for no apparent reason. Not to torture for weeks on end just to hear their cries for help.” Fuyuko paused very briefly taking another deep breath before she would give the answer to the question instead of walking around it. Although she did feel like it was important to share that information.

“I don’t think he deserved a second chance. But does that mean he should have been killed? I’m not sure about that. He should definitely not have been released into society anywhere, the fact that he did this for so long and for those reasons, the risk of him doing it again is just too big. However you say that he had no mental illness? I don’t believe that. It may sound arrogant of me to say it this way, I wasn’t there after all. But someone that has lost their humanity, someone that gains pleasure through the pain and suffering of other to such an extent, how can one say that they are mentally stable?” Fuyuko looked down, not quite sure on how to continue her reply. A tone of sadness would seep into her voice as she continued talking. “Who are we to decide that someone does not deserve to live anymore? Why can they not live in an isolated area, well-guarded, where they can live out their life in peace. If they choose to violate the rules still within this last save haven, so be it. They have wasted their second chance. But within this save haven they could still be productive to society, they could be farmers, maybe workers in mines or something, there is an endless stream of possibilities how they could still contribute to society. And this is just not possible at the moment. If you take someone’s life after all, there is no more way for them to contribute. Yes, there is no more way for them to do wrong either, but there is no way to do good as well.”

Having finished her reply Fuyuko felt contempt. It was an answer that she felt like would properly convey her stance on the matter. She did however also feel insecure, afraid that the answer she gave wasn’t good enough, or not what was expected. She did after all always seek confirmation from others that she was doing good, the right thing.

wc 871
twc 2053

Without hesitation the Mizukage had quickly responded on her questioning the actual mental state of the man in the before mentioned story. It gave her the feeling that she had overstepped her boundaries. It was only natural, she just opposed the Mizukage whilst she was in no position to do so. Well maybe she was in a position to do so, but the way she was raised, it felt incredibly unnatural for her to do such a thing. But she was asked to give her opinion, so it should be fine, right? Despite struggling internally about her manners she noticed the smile on the Mizukage's face, it wasn't a natural one, it felt forced as if she was hiding some, if not all, of her true feelings on what she was about to say next.

The words that were spoken were harsh and sharp to Fuyuko. As if a blade had just stabbed her straight through her guts. Killing a man without actually taking their life, that's the view that the Mizukage suggested to her. Was her view on the matter that short sighted? “Did someones life really end the moment they would lose their possibility to live? What did it mean 'to live'? Was it just simply waking up and going to bed, day in, day out? Was it being able to do what you wanted to do on a particular day? But one could still do that within a 'prison' of sorts? Or was 'living' the ability to go and stand wherever one would want?” The list of thoughts that ran through her head seemed endless. What did it mean to her 'to live', this seemed to be the real question here. She would definitely need to think about this hard when she is back home.

Having finished the rather sad-toned reply the Mizukage had decided it was enough of that for now. It was time to focus more on Fuyuko's training, the Mizukage had asked her to take on her stance. Feeling slightly pressured with the Mizukage watching over her, she made sure to get in position carefully and properly. Her right foot forward, pointed towards the left side of the dummy. Her left foot about a foot to the side and half a foot backwards, angled almost perpendicular compared to the her other foot. Her knees ever slightly bend giving her body more stability and flexibility. With her lower body slightly facing away from the target, her torso was turned the opposite direction. Making the core of her body would still face towards the target. Her right arm held up in front of her body, her hand being at about lip height. Her fingers in the shape of almost performing the half-tiger seal, but bend away from it making it possible for her to quickly change the shape of her hand according to the situation. She could clench it, straighten it to slap something away or perform the seal all within just a fraction of a second. Her left hand followed suit, it was just positioned closer to her body. Protecting the last really open side of her body.

Having finished her stance and waiting a little bit, making sure the Mizukage had all the time to check out her posture she began to strike. Fuyuko started out with some jabs from her right hand, striking swiftly but with not too much power. Abruptly stopping the punches by rotating her foot clockwise, throwing her body slightly backwards to keep the balance. Her leg stretching out and going in for kick to the side of the dummy. After the kick made proper contact with the dummy she quickly slammed her feet to the ground, using her bodies motion she went in for a punch with her right hand. Firmly slamming the dummy in the middle of its body. Having finished her series of blows she took a small jump backwards and got back into her position again, awaiting feedback from the Mizukage.

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The girl was silent for a moment before they moved on to looking at her martial style, it was basic, but functional, Ayakashi would continue to give a couple of slight pointers to posture and where to put the pressure and force into the strikes without trying to sound too preachy about everything. Her stance was a basic Karate or Kenpo fighting stance, one guard arm back, a foot perpendicular behind and one arm raised with the other coiled back. It was simple and functional, but once again Ayakashi could see the fault of a student adopting a balanced stance... she really needed to talk to some of the teachers in the academy about basic fighting styles, and show them up at their own game. Looking to the child she would take up a stance beside her, using the same one simply from her style of tai chi. Ayakashi would ask her to look at her and her posture and mimic what she does, all the while explaining some important details... Though, of all the things the student performed, the drop spin kick was almost faultless. It was a pretty standard side kick, but the loud crack it made on the dummy had Ayakashi nodding.




"Okay, first things first, one thing you should always be aware of in a fight is where you place your weight and how you move it. Weight to the front, is aggressive, offensive you will move in on your opponent with each strike putting your body into it as you go, you'll hit harder, faster and overpower an opponent. Balanced jabs and kicks are all well and good, but they're for gaining distance or boxing in an opponent for a decisive strike. To which end, all strikes should have an element of decisiveness to it... so i keep away from them altogether. The closer you are to someone the better. Your 'real' power comes from building momentum, don't jab, thrust with the intent of follow through, like they're not even there. Their only option is to dodge such a strike, and when they do, flow that one strike into another like a rolling river."

As ayakashi talked she would demonstrate, coming in with a basic hook at not the dummy, but the air in front of her like she were fighting a shadow. As it was assumed she missed, she would route her momentum dropping low with a hooked leg to sweep the feet, speeding up all the while. As that missed she'd plant that foot and raise with her other leg in a round-house kick, which again would miss before finally she would use all her momentum and throw a single punch, the wind-force alone from the blow cracking the wooden dummy from four meters away... leaving direct impact to her imagination.

"The issue with this is, leading with your weight can leave you open to mis-direction and counterattack. It's an all or nothing gamble. So, rather than learn a balanced stance, and take the middle road. You learn to place your weight behind you. Lead an opponent in, open the gates for attack and weave and misdirect an opponents' attacks. You effectively learn two separate styles, and it can be hard, but, rather than learn one and remain adept in both, you master each on their own. The problem with a balanced style, is that should you face a master of pure aggression or iron clad defense, you will always loose. Now, you try. Attack, build momentum, try and let no move be wasted, but you must focus on balance, the more momentum you build, the more force you'll place on your body. Start slow. Then, transition to your back-foot, lead an opponent towards you, veer attacks away. I'll be your dummy."

Aya would turn in front of the genin and, should the genin accept, Aya would dodge and weave through the slow-motion strikes until the end, calling 'switch' as she would begin to slowly attack and advance against her, throwing slow high punches, chops and kicks before calling switch again to bring her back to offensive. After a couple of exchanges, if her student were showing some progress, Ayakashi would smile happily.

"There, that's worlds better. I also recommend acrobatics lessons, they strengthen your core and teach your body how it moves naturally. But, in any-case, I must take my leave, if ever you want another lesson, come to the Administration building and ask for me. I'm always available. "



[exit thread]

Fuyuko listened carefully to the explanation of the Mizukage. Her ears pointed towards the Mizukage as if she were listening to locate a hunter coming out to get her. She didn't want to miss a single bit of information that was given to her. The points that were given to her were solid, if she were to only become good at both offensive and defensive she'd be overpowered by someone with more aggression. Likewise if she were to face someone that had mastered the arts of defending she'd never be able to land a single hit. While it made sense to her, she wondered what style she'd like the most. It would probably be one of a defensive style, seeing as how she didn't really want to harm anyone and she'd rather disarm them. However just like in the topic they had just closed, there would come a time where she'd need to face reality and she would not longer be able to hide and would have to go on the offensive. So with some reluctance she decided to still work on improving both sides, just like the Mizukage suggested.

Fuyuko carefully looked at the demonstration that was being given. The Mizukage's moves were slow, probably to give her a chance to properly see what was being demonstrated to her. Despite the speed of the moves, they flowed smoothly. Not wasting momentum and keep on going, just like a rolling river to finish of with a decisive strike. One that kind of surprised Fuyuko as it left a noticeable impact on the dummy that she didn't even physically hit. It made her wonder if that was simply from how she flowed her moves differently, the sheer difference in strength or both of them. It would most likely be the latter, but she couldn't help but feel impressed about it regardless.

Now with the demonstration over the Mizukage had offered herself as her sparring partner. There was no way Fuyuko could decline such an offer and quickly got ready to spar. Having never sparred before with someone she was a little slow on the uptake, having to get used a bit to the 'switching' aspect of it. But once that went more smoothly the transition between going on the offense en defense went smoother as well. Steadily getting more and more used to the pace of the practice match. The cohesion between her moves got slowly better, although there were still moments where there wasn't really any to be found. Despite those moments the Mizukage still reassured her that she was improving. And with those words the sparring was over, she had other matters to attend to.

This was a very informative day for Fuyuko, she had learned a lot on multiple fronts. The benefits of several different fighting styles on the more combative front. While also giving her a lot to think and ponder about on a moral front. Regardless of what she'll end up deciding on the moral front, her naive shell had been cracked. It was no longer possible for her to feel like she could simply justify someone as living, just because they were breathing. But that was oke, she still has a lot of time left to figure out the intricacies of life.

[Exit Thread]

wc 559
twc 3281

Training:
Strength: D -> D2 725 wc + 75 Ryo
Endurance: D1 -> D3 850 wc + 125 Ryo
Perception: D1 -> D3 850 wc + 125 Ryo
Reaction T: D1 -> D3 850 wc + 125 Ryo

3275 wc + 450 Ryo

Discard 6 wc