The night before, she had ventured beyond the bridge with the Torii gate that connected Spider Island with the rest of Kirigakure's wilderness. Under the dim light of the moon, she had walked towards the main hub that formed the Kirigakure she had heard about. The world where humans had their nest and formed the exact opposite of Spider Island where all sorts of spiders and clans had made their home. For a first time, she had left the safety of the manor in search of something new she had yet to find in the alien concept of 'humanity' and that would not be found in Sero's manor. The little spider could only wonder what more humanity had to offer that would, as usual, feel so redundant in the eight eyes of the spider she was. Food? Fruit wine? More weapons? Her rigid mind could not even start to grasp the extend of Human's creativity to colour their own world and provide a mote of protection against the calcification of the human spirit in general.

Eventually reaching a small fishers' village of which the name eluded her - and frankly, did not matter to her either way - the sound of water resonated heavily through the quiet night as if the sea itself was breathing in and out. Now, Haka was not unfamiliar with water in the slightest. She had been in the healing baths of Sero's manor before, where she had enslaved water to her own will, but to see the moon's light reflected upon something as vast as the sea was a different story. When she had reached the shore, her amber eyes had gazed at the massive body of water for an almost impossible twenty minutes without so much as a movement from her part as they took in the water's mind-boggling size, unlimited by bath tubs as it stretched out to reach the horizon.

Now, a day as bright as this one, without any mist enshrouding the area, and the warmth pleasantly spreading through the air was not something Haka was familiar with. An overly arrogant seagull had woken her by screaming next to her ear, presumably contemplating if the little girl sleeping in the sand was something it could eat. Instead, it soon found a kunai tasting its blood until it found itself experiencing its death throes. Rising slowly to her feet with a gaze set for murder, the ominous aura which betrayed Haka's inhumane nature reached out to the world as a deadly warning not to irritate this wolf spider in disguise again. Fortunately, no other seagull was cocky enough to venture in her vicinity.

The crowd was already quite busy. Fishermen were preparing to set sail, early birds either entering or leaving the tavern nearby and a small patrol moved by to check upon the state of affairs. A market was being set up and some felt a need to shout something that Haka could not quite catch due to the wind blowing the words away. Caring little for the movement at hand as they did not threaten her, Haka walked through the now illuminated streets of the village and hopped onto the roof to get a better view. What she saw there drove the spider-nin once more into a long quiet observation, her eyes fixated on the ships floating on the ever-moving sea.

---

568

It had been a journey of almost complete and total silence. Hanza of the Kōri, a white-haired and pale man of a decent height and weight would face no retribution as he marched across the lands from Konoha to Kirigakure, passing over land and sea both before arriving to his destintion. The young man wore his Kirigakure flak-jacket, which had a funny story of its own attached, it wasn’t until part way through his trip home that Hanza realized he had been promoted to the rank of Chūnin during his long, weighted slumber. It was a relief, and something that brought a smile to an otherwise grim situation. Hanza had spent his travels on a variety of much needed things. He was essentially giving himself physical therapy to further acclimate his muscles in preparation for the shinobi lifestyle. A month long coma was not gentle on the body.

The decision to boat the rest of the way to Kiri, sailing around the coast instead of walking the rest of the way was one Hanza didn’t make lightly. The young man’s body simply did not have the strength to take him all the way. He reflected on the events of the exams for a good bit of the journey before hearing the call out that they were nearing a docking point. Everything seemed to flicker by until Hanza stepped out into the rickety wooden dock, suddenly touched by a sea breeze and the sounds of seagulls flocking around to grab bites of the village people’s food. It was all semi-chaotic but to Hanza, a native of Kirigakure, it was serene and peaceful. A single year had passed since Hanza left to begin his work for the exchange program in Konoha. In that short of a time frame, he had built up his physical body and learned new skills, and he had even grown a bit taller. It was night and day in the blink of an eye. He was looking at his home through brand new lenses.

It seemed this seaside dock was a little ways off the main city area of Kiri. It was bustling with activity, though. It would seem this was a high point of travel activity in and out of the village. Hanza’s aura was colder than it was before the exams, but he refused to allow the nipping feelings in his mind corrode who he was. He put on a friendly smile and walked amongst the crowd, a proud Chūnin of the village hidden in the mist. It wouldn’t take long at all before a few people noticed Hanza from the televised exams. A few children would gather around Hanza and begin asking questions almost faster than the Kōri man could keep up with. He knelt down to their level, they couldn’t have each been more than seven or eight years old.

“Settle, children. I am glad that you watched the exams. Yes, my name is Hanza and I am the one you saw against Izumi of the Karisuma. Keep your hearts and your minds open and focus on your studies. Remember that it is okay if you choose not to become a shinobi. Be the best at what you decide to do, though. I believe in you all.”

Hanza would bring forth a cool chill of air and then a cute, fantastical burst of snowflakes which would gently fall onto the small group of children before he continued down the docks, remembering why it was he wanted to be a shinobi in the first place.

WC: 604

Up until this point Takahiro had done a great job of masking his identity from the locals during his exploration of Kiri. He wore no defining marks of a shinobi, not even a sword as was tradition considering he had no intention of engaging in combat on today of all days. It was a pity that of all the possibilities, in the moment when he would be forced to break the guise of an average citizen it would be over something as silly as slipping and falling. Perhaps no one would notice given that the flow of traffic thinned out the crowd near the center of the pier where no shops or vendors existed to attract crowds. Being graceful in approach and form was something Taka took pride in to the disappointment of his hell-bringer Uncle, and with mere seconds to analyze his options with a quick scan of his surroundings he relented. At this point it was either act or get wet; He'd never given it thought considering Konoha lacked comparable large bodies of water but there in that instant he realized not only his inherent aversion to the element but also that he could quite swim.

Using core muscular strength he would manage to shift his rear backwards, bring his shoulders forward as he crouched mustering all the strength he could before exploding off the ground. The light in the pants ninja, arced backwards in a full extension while his calculating, blue eyes sized the distance between the dock and the nearest of the three vessels. That look of intense focus on his countenance shifted to one of greater concern before decisiveness took hold. Either cheek would expand to an almost comedic extent as winds of desperation gathered inside of the boy who seemed to float weightlessly in that moment through the air.

‘Yosh.’

From his mouth roared forth the concentrated gases in a propulsory effort that would hurtle his folded body backwards. Takahiro was no stranger to his odd physiology and the inheritance of the Kimura and the worrying subsided as his aerial journey grounded atop the front edge of the boat. All the joints of his lower body would articulate in preparation for the recoil of landing on a boat of such a small size. He shifted downward though not nearly to a crouched position as he made impact, the force of his landing proved enough to displace water mainly to the front of the fishing trolley and lower the tiny ship’s bow briefly.

‘Smooth enough,’ he glanced up quickly and saw no immediate bystanders with confused or curious looks so it was a sign he’d evaded most of the potential exposure, ‘I can’t afford to get found out just yet… they’d have me on the first caravan back to Konoha, back to purgatory and my Mother.’

A vision of his angry mother flashing across his mind was exhausting even if only for that moment. He collapsed rather haphazardly onto one of three uncomfortable wooden slats that served as seats for whatever unlucky fisherman was relegated to them. He took a deep inhale before breathing out while simultaneously sighing out of relief of simply not getting drenched. Perhaps Benzaiten saw fit to pave a lucky path for him today he thought as his eyes began observing the crowd from this low and unsteady vantage point..

..1233..

Gaze set to endless, the spider-nin watched ships depart towards unknown origins in hopes to catch a good haul of fish for the day. Being a port, the village of Hōseki-mura was important for a consistent delivery of varied fish and seaweed used in the culinary dishes of nearby villages as well as Kirigakure itself, and as such the odour of fish hung heavily in the streets despite all the attempt to keep things clean. On one of the ships, a boy seemed to balance on the front of the ship, the construct oddly swaying more than it probably should have. No master in physics, the spider-nin merely observed him for a moment as he sat down to take a breather and, as nothing of particular interest seemed to occur, her eyes glided away to watch another phenomenon happening in the streets.

A group of kids had gathered around a singular man, eager to ask him questions and vying for his attention. He didn't seem to mind it, taking his time to answer their questions as good as was possible. Unlike these kids, Haka had no idea who the chunin was as she had not participated in the Exams and had just now left the Spider Island for the first time in search of more humanity. Even then, should she be pulled into the hype, names and titles meant little to the spider-nin as even her own father, Sero Osada, mentioning all of his titles, positions and honours had not impressed the girl who had just barely managed to survive as an Unmei only to seek him out. The only thing that she had come to realise by now from the many visitors of the manor, was that her Creator had to be an important man of sorts in the eyes of mere humans.

After having watched the popular guy pop out snowflakes out of nowhere, Haka decided it was time to have a taste of this village's humanity. Jumping down the rather lowly build shack, she landed on the floor softly and moved over to a salesman behind an open counter on the market who sold fresh fruit and vegetables. As she eyed his stand, she quietly named all of the vegetables she recognised from the time she had been cooking with Fuyuko, until she arrived at a bowl of fruit salad. Not being able to identify the mixture of fruits, Haka asked for one bowl and was promptly answered with a hint of fright in their eyes.

"W-what's with that hostile aura...?"

Even though Haka did not look exactly terrifying, the spider's innate hunting instinct was unmistakably present within her aura, oppressing nearby people by sending a dreadful feeling down their spine. To stand near her was to feel the presence of a predator nearby, ready to take life away at a whims notice. Haka on the other hand, cared not for the worries of others, knowing no empathy for the inferior species that were humans. In reply, she just gazed at the man, still expecting her request to be fulfilled as she took out a couple of ryo from her pouch and held her clenched hand out.

"R-right. Just go eat it somewhere else, you hear me?"

She nodded, finishing the trade and walked away without a care. Flashing a spoon out of nowhere, Haka scooped up a spoonful of the fruits and looked at them, tilting her head and even looking below the spoon as if to be sure it would not do anything out of the unusual. With a soft 'hmmmm', she took her time to identify the pieces of fruit by sight and scent, only taking a bite once she was certain they were the same fruits she had been tasting in the kitchen of the manor back home.

---

646
Total: 1214

Hanza had the low humming of a headache. This was a somewhat persistent phenomenon since his waking from a lengthy coma. Hanza himself was a Medical shinobi, and he incidentally took it upon himself to keep his health, despite how unconventional and ineffectual that was in practice. He would close his eyes and channel the cooling entries of his Hyōton chakra toward his head, hoping to alleviate the pain. It would help, but only marginally.

The children had scattered among the dampened, dark wood of the docks to play and banter about the experience they had just had. Despite how he felt, being a chunin meant something to the young. All of the ceremonial displays and competition of the exams was something of a comic book adventure for those children.

Children. The young breath of life in society.

Hanza would smile very lightly as the world seemed to stand quiet. These young souls brought with them a spirit which seemed to wash over and below the young Kōri clansman’s wings. He would walk to his left, where a large span of shanty looking buildings lined the innermost square of the docks. As strange as it was to see the white-haired, gentle looking man walking into a rough-and-tumble  tavern. It was an unfortunate habit for the young man, drinking. It had started when he first relocated to Konoha for the exchange program.

This particular tavern had the burly sailor-type men throughout. Carrying on and chatting with one another. Hanza slipped into a seat directly at the bar, hoisting himself lightly onto and tapping gently. He ordered himself a shot of sake, requesting the bottle be provided so that he could refill as he pleased. When his fingertips pressed to the small shot glass, if frosted over slightly before he threw it against the back of his throat and gulped it down, hard.

WC: 318
TWC: 922

The sea vessel, rocked rhythmically with the push and pull of the tides. The sensation was unsettling, as Takahiro was akin to a wary cat at the waters edge. His aversion to being wet, despite the waters innate beauty surprising him and it encouraging his usual bout of curiosity, ensured that he would make his way to land soon enough. Where the day had begun peacefully in a scene of solitude and pensive thoughts, he would be remiss of his natural call to adventure and goal of understanding the Land of Water in all its mysteries.

From his sea-level perch the Kimura scanned the crowd further, this time in search of something moderately interesting. What he eventually noticed was an accumulation of souls around one indiscernible focal point. The contrasting flow of patrons in the opposite direction to which the group of people moved made the nature of their collusion indiscernible at first. That was until the mass of social interactions began to disperse. As people fell off only to be gladly swallowed by a less forgiving crowd of consumers in constant flux through the pier.

What emerged from the more trafficked part of the pier was a curious sight indeed. A single, above-average height male with hair white as if stressed out of it’s youth. The ‘young’ man’s change of directions had him heading straight for a row of the most rickety old establishments Takahiro had laid eyes on thus far. Takahiro was unaware of what caused so many young people to flock to his side and vie for his company. It was no doubt a lack of options and impulsive thought that spurned him to pursue answers. With a well-placed, lithe step his body would rise from the sodden, wooden panels with about as much as haste as he could muster without fear of falling overboard.

With relative ease Taka would close the gap between boats, landing in such a way that contrasted with the grace in his initial movements.  He would gather himself first then shift his center of gravity lower, raising rapidly there after in one final attempt at getting himself to the comfort and security of solid ground. His reflection, however feint and warped by the sun’s gaze, almost teased the surface of the water as he glided unabated across before landing with a short-lived thud. The strangest, ominous feeling seemed to grip him as he neared the tavern the man, whose acquaintance he sought, had entered. It was warding in nature while not imparting fear, only concerning him in the way that felt instinctual.

‘What is this feeling? It’s as if something dangerous is close by yet I can’t quite peg who or what it is…’

He scanned his surrounding, even looking up albeit with his line of sight obscured by the underside of the wooden canopy jutting out from the tavern. Takahiro had the means perhaps to at least notice the solitary, girl observing from the rooftop further above, yet had not the slightest idea to put those to use. It had become more likely in his eyes, that perhaps the individual he’d laid eyes on earlier projected this warding aura. Never the less, his mind was set and choosing to ignore the feeling as best he could Takahiro would slink into the quaint tavern.

..562/1795

[Exit]

1175 for Reaction Time D to D-3
300 for Speed E-3 to D
150 for Strength E-1 to E-2
150 for Endurance E-1 to E-2

Words Used: 1175
Words Wasted: 20
Ryo Owed: 150

Taking another scoop from the fruit cocktail, Haka noticed snowflake-man enter a peculiar building. It was larger than those which surrounded it, it had been given a name and was decorated with pictures of drinks. A lot of noise escaped anytime the door opened, often followed with a puff of smoke from those enjoying their cigarettes or cigars. The stones that had shaped it were nothing special, falling perfectly in line with the other buildings, but the whole place seemed far dirtier. The noise and activity was a complete opposite of the manor she lived in where it was mostly quiet and cold. That, and it was filled with humans rather than spiders. Curious to analyse the differences between the tavern and the manor, Haka made her way to the place where she had seen snow-man enter.

Along the road, the boy who had been hopping on ships was also making his way to the tavern. Much like snow-man, he was not the sort that looked like he'd fit in a fisherman's tavern, but that sort of context was not something the spider-nin was really aware of. To her, it almost felt as if fate was being woven together in the tapestry of life, invisible strands pulling them all together to the tavern. Scooping up another spoonful fruit, Haka decided to follow the two just to see what it would give as being in the middle of a group of humans could prove an enriching and mostly fast-learning experience.

Pushing the door open of the tavern, the girl stepped inside the building, completely out of place from the first moment she stepped inside. A young girl between all these adults, of which some were quite muscled at that, wearing a tidy schoolgirl uniform whereas others wore the garb of daily toiling. Mingling within the warm auras of humanity, a rotten presence of predatory morbidity. As she walked inside, her amber eyes glided through the crowd to see if she could spot the two others, while her mind was relating her current situation to that of the humans who entered Sero's manor - inverse roles aside, it was a very similar experience with that difference that Haka's apathy did not allow her to care about the fact she didn't belong here.

Her aura wasn't the only one that could easily be distinguished, however. The cold chill of Ice Release was as a nip in the air nearby, exhumed by the nearby shinobi that had been fighting in the Chuunin Exams. While Haka wanted to know what the exams were and why this man was supposedly to be considered of certain importance, the cold nip was not something her arachnid nature was not too happy to confront. Unfortunately, she had only suiton at her disposal, thus lacking the means to grant herself a cloak of comforting warmth, and as such she would have to endure this unease if she was to know more about the chuunin.

---

[EXIT], as OP has left thread.

504
Total: 1718

Training: