Kurai got an early start this morning as he was to meet his former Academy teacher, Nanashi. It had been a while since he was at the mercy of the shinobi's lectures and embarrassingly one sided fights. It could be said though, that the mentor taught Kurai most of what he knew about fighting and being a shinobi initially, as the young Uchiha was definitely a student first. He absorbed almost everything, his sharp eyes rarely letting anything go unnoticed. It was this gift that spawned forward many of the ta;ents Kurai treasured. The talent of art and the talent of fighting, neither one would be as refined as they are today without his gifted eyes. But he wasn't even referring to the cunning doujutsu that burdened his clan, but just his own natural sight.

His body was lacquered in a black ensemble. Upper Body: Skin tight black long sleeve shirt with a black sleeves leather vest on top that was zipped up to his chest.

Lower Body: Reddish black leather pants with high top black leather boots.

Like most of his leather clothes they were all designed with an advanced insulating mechanism that kept his body cool and they were all tailored for the best fit, making Kurai's movements uninhibited. He had his clothes on and he was in the mindset to train. There was nothing else he needed.

~5 minutes later

He stood in the center of a rectangular platform. The platform was 50 meters long and 20 meters wide. It also sloped upwards about 10 meters. Giving the wondrous fighting plateau dimension of 50x20X10. The sparkling crystals from above gave off magnificent glow that radiated down and proceeded to branch off to fill the entire stadium with its emerald charm. Kurai dreamed of one day being strong enough to do battle against a comrade here, a fight so tantalizing it would attract the entire village, maybe even the entire world. A show of that magnitude would be fantastic and definitely worth a few pages in his journal. As he waited for Nanashi to arrive, to once more give the Genin a lesson in combat and maybe more, he took from his pocket a relic. It was a platinum miniature staff, he pressed it to his lips and put it back in his pocket.  

Principle #1: Hold close to yourself a strong will.

He would need just that. Nanashi was never the type to go easy on anyone, and that was why Kurai loved training with him, he could always count on being a much better competitor afterwards. 



Training 1st Tomoe: 434/1500

“Alessi.” The name of his former student rolled off Nanashi's lips with practical easy – the man sitting down at the table eating breakfast and remembering the only student that he took under his proverbial wing – not minding the fact that she was forced onto him by the upper echelons. A scoff had to be held back, from escaping his lips, at the thought of how pathetic she was back than. The woman, if you could have called her that, not having any assets that made one to believe that she was of said gender, didn't had what it took to be a shinobi. She was softer than a pillow, though she did had a temper –something that Nanashi took advantage of every chance he could. It was that notorious temper of Alessi that gave Nanashi a gateway to train her into a somewhat respectable and proper kunochi – granted he didn't break her out of her pacifist's nature. . . pity.

However, besides her average shinobi capabilities, Alessi did have some redeeming qualities, during the time where he was laid up in bed because of a broken back – she came by daily to check up on him. Throughout the countless check – ups the pair became closer, not in a romantic sense but more as a friendship thing. The two began to understand each other better and a sense of camaraderie, it had been growing beforehand but not at the rate it did doing that particular time. By the time he was medically cleared for duty, the pair of shinobis saw each other as best friends – the barrier of mentor and apprentice was shatter. Yes, things were well for the pair that was until. . .

Anbu. The choice of becoming apart of the elite squad wasn't exactly a choice but a request from Kanetsu Kazu the Tsuchikage who had gotten a transplant done by Nanashi. There weren't much thought going into the decision of accepting the request – Nanashi took it without hesitation. Of course joining Anbu cause him to cut all times with his apprentice Alessi. something that she wasn't happy about but understood perfectly, granted she didn't know he was joining Anbu – just that his new position cause him not to be around much. That was roughly six months ago and he haven't seen much of his former student, not like he been actively searching for her – maybe he should check up on her sooner or later.

Enough reminiscing. . .

Having finishing up the breakfast, that contents being ill important at the time, and placed the dishes into the sink with the promise of washing them when he returned. The silver haired male had gotten contacted by a former academy student and now genin – Uchiha Kurai the male having wanting to spar with the silver haired man again something that Nanashi accepted without pause. During his tint as an academy teacher, Nanashi had taught the class that held the Uchiha member and grew to knew him. . . somewhat. The pair had sparred a couple of times, most of the times being instructional training, nothing serious. So of course when Kurai had asked to spar with the Jounin, Nanashi couldn't turn down that opportunity.

And yet here he was going to train another. . .

“Guess I shouldn't keep him waiting.” Nanashi's said his body turning into raiton as he executed a lightning based body flicker and headed towards the location of the spar.

The sound of static would be the only warning Kurai would get before Nanashi's body flickered into existence within the underground stadium appearing ten meters a front of the Uchiha. The silver haired Jounin wore the stereotypical Iwagakure shinobi attire, a pair of 2 ½ ft senbons hidden on his person along with fifty regular senbons within the right sided holster. Like before the man had foregone wearing the black eye-patch that hid the three inch centipede diagonal scar that took up entirety of the empty left eye socket. This would be the first time Kurai ever seen what was underneath the eye-patch, Nanashi having beforehand preferred to well the eye-patch to save others from having look at it.

“Interesting choice of combat, Kurai.” Nanashi said, taking a moment to look around the vicinity – his lone yellow eye taking in few abandoned logs laying around the arena, oblivious being placed there for substitution purposes.

“I'm ready whenever you are.”

---

During non contest settings, logs were to be scattered around for cautionary purposes, giving all shinobi in the are the option of using the substitution jutsu with relative ease. Kurai was delighted, however a bit hindered in the creative process. He had built quite a reputation among his peers for pulling off unique substitution scenarios, it was one of the miniature facets of Kurai's fighting style that gave him an edge. Now, there was one less thing for him to worry about, allowing his analytical prowess to focus on more pressing details that would arouse in the spar between him and his teacher. He remembered Nanashi well... but of all there encounters there was always one thing that lingered more so than anything else. It was a peeve of Kurai's: that anything that he didn't know, simply irked him. And with Nanashi, it was his eye patch that lied mysteriously over his left eye. It was no secret within Iwagakure that Nanashi was one of the elite shinobi of the village hidden in the stone. However, most did not know of his abilities in detail, for the skills that made him such a force, shown to any body of lesser status, would likely leave them unconscious out of awe. Kurai had always wondered if his success was attributed to his eye. He was a well known medic, perhaps he surgically enhanced... or, perhaps it was there to cover a wound, but Kurai's curiosity was never quenched.

As the tension built steadily within Kurai, he began to contemplate on exactly his method of approach to the fight. It will be foolish for me to think he will let up more than half a step against me, so how will I emerge with a moral victory... well, not dying is one way, but other than that. Hah, okay, this should give me a slight edge... maybe, I think it's worth trying. Kurai couldn't believe he was contemplating such a tactic. Yes, he was known for deriving adequate strategies using minimum resources... but his strategies were usually straight forward and admirable, but given his current opponent, he found a more... discreet plan more suitable. Kurai walked towards the border of the platform where it sloped down to the scattered logs. The Uchiha took a deep breath and created three identical clones. He sent one to the center of the platform and he hid the other two within a stack of logs, because clones had no physical form, they were able to seemingly fuse with the pile of logs. 

The real Kurai morphed himself into a log using the academy transformation technique that Nanashi himself taught him. This should give me small opportunity to launch a surprise attack. The clones won't fool Nanashi for long, so I have to be ready to proceed with the next phase of this plan. As Kurai's clone waited atop the platform, a crackling sound reverberated through the empty underground stadium. Then, in a flash of lightning chakra, Nanashi appeared. I've always liked his style. If he was wearing leather it would've looked even cooler though. Nanashi commented on the chosen venue. The clone couldn't help but focus slightly only the empty left eye socket as the right eye scanned the area. Gruesome. Then Nanashi proclaimed his willingness to begin the training session, with that the clone took off for Nanashi. There was about 5 meters separating the two. He knew the clone wasn't fast enough to hit Nanashi, so he hoped that the fact that it was just a clone would go unnoticed a bit longer, but once Nanashi dodged which he surely would do, a counter was sure to follow. Upon striking the clone, it would then become obvious, as the strike would cause the clone to dissipate. So Kurai had the second clone prepped in case that happened, or if the jutsu became apparent for other reasons. Kurai was hoping Nanashi wouldn't expect one clone, let alone two. After that it would be the last clone's turn, and then the real Kurai would launch his attack. 


Principle #12:  Never be predictable

Depending on what happened, Kurai might only use the second clone finding it a sufficient decoy for him to attack, but he would keep the third clone around just in case. 

140/150:

Training First Tomoe: 1164/1500

He knew. The moment that Nanashi had arrived into the underground area via raiton body flicker – he knew that the man before him wasn't that he seem to be. The lone reptilian eye of his were able to pick up on the truth the Uchiha tried to hide from him – it picked up on the reality that others of a lower rank than him would fail to see. The reality that has been hidden from view was about to be shattered by none other than Nanashi. The silver haired man couldn't stop the almost sinister smirk from manifesting on his visage, his lone eye hardening slightly.


Nanashi's leg muscle coiled like a rattlesnake readying to strike before doing just that, stepping forward and propelling off the left foot, he closed the distance between the pair quickly before stopping on a dime and executing a front snap kick,knee being brought to chest before 'snapping' outward, sending his foot through the 'Kurai' a front of him – dispelling it. From the moment Nanashi decided to take action and till the time the clone simply vanish – it would seem like a blur for the Genin like opponent*. The silver haired Jounin had forgone toying with his opponent.

“I commend you on your attempt to trick me Uchiha. It was a amiable attempt.” The words came out as soothe like silk through held a bite to them like venom, as the silver haired male straighten up his posture and continue to speak “However, you should know better to try that on myself. Come now. Show me that my teachings haven't gone to waste. For if you don't. . .” He paused, green lighting from the stones illuminating on his body as his chakra began to spike and the image of a Dark Angel appears hovering on him, it's black wings spread out and a scowl present on it's face*.

“I will kill you.”

They say that war changes people and it certainly had changed Nanashi. Anyone who had the luxury of training with him before going to war knew about his tendencies of being a vicious slave driver while at the same time holding back his punches . . . a little. However, after the war, Nanashi had become more vicious doing training regiments, no longer holding back punches and beating those who train with him to the brink of death. He took them to the door of the shinigami before bringing them back from the Angel's grasp. Some would say he had changed, but Nanashi knew better.

The war didn't change him. The war 'reconnected' Nanashi with the part that Iwagakure no Sato tried to suppress. The part of him that the former Tsuchikage saw the moment that she laid eyes onto the man during his time as a genin. The monster that Tei had coax out a few times doing their training sessions. The beast that the current Tsuchikage knew about and in a twisted way respect. A beast that he shared with his mother. . .

Yes, the war of Kirigakure reconnected Nanashi with the killer that he was.

---

* A cosmetic quirk. Think of Zenpachi's first fight with Ichigo, where he released his spiritual energy and the image of a skull appeared behind him. Yes, I went there. . .

* Don't exactly know the speed difference between a Genin and Jounin. But I would guess if a Jounin was going top speed it would be a blue to a genin.

As expected, the trickery was seen through with no less mastery than he had come to expect from his teacher. Kurai was no stranger to Nanashi's flares of excitement in the midst of combat... but even this was over the top for him. You gotta love this guy... Kurai cancelled the third clone, he wouldn't be needed. This strategy was definitely a tad out of character for the Uchiha, and he was tired of playing games himself, he would pit his skills against his teacher once and for all, and let his strength decide the rest. Kurai undid the transformation as well and leaped onto the platform at Chuunin  speed (Taijutsu-Speed). A slight tremble emanated from his knees, but his strong will quickly silenced them. His eyes fell upon what could only be described as an evil rising of Nanashi's apparent blood thirst. The wings of the manifestation arched outwards, with every inch of wing span would go most will to fight, but not Kurai. The Genin's, yes, despite his lowly rank had extremely discerning and insightful vision... he knew that it was only a spectra, and that Nanashi was a man of his word. Kurai had stepped up to the challenge, and now the training could begin.

When Kurai slid on the platform, he landed 10 meters away from Nanashi. "Thank you Nanashi-san. As you know tactics like this are not of me, but against someone of your strength, it was a necessary attempt. I will now show you my mettle." Kurai flicked his hands open, showing mud gathering in his palms. In a split second the mud formed into 3 hardened kunai, 2 in one hand, 1 in the other. He would use a staggered releases, throwing one, then the next, then the last. The first was aimed at the right side of Nanashi's chest, the second was aimed right above his left knee, and third would come in afterwards, going for the left side of Nanashi's chest. As a Jounin, Kurai naturally assumed he would find it easy to dodge, regardless of the kunai being placed precisely. So, Kurai had a plan for Nanashi's possible answers. Whether he dodged, or decided to answer with his own projectiles... Kurai was ready. There was a glint in the Uchiha's eyes, as the battle had now officially started. The shinobi was now fully alert has his earthen projectiles were on flight towards his target. His eyes processing the information that sat in front of them, and his body ready to act upon the intelligence. 

130/150:

Training First Tomoe: 1500/1500

Training: 89

”He's faster than I remember.” Nanashi mused to himself, an eyebrow raising slightly as the lone eye tracked the Uchiha's movement as he made his way up onto the platform. If silver haired jounin had to waver a guess on the speed at which his adversary was currently functioning at it would be around chuunin level – two levels below the speed that Nanashi can and often will move at. While a jounin of lesser caliber wouldn't pay any attention to the increase of speed – finding it insufficient at best – Nanashi took note of it. The reason being the quite simply many have fallen to a lesser opponent when they didn't take in all the variables that were presented to them. Such case scenario being an opponent who speed is higher than their rank dictates.

“Good. Show me your mettle, Uchiha!” Nanashi stated, feet shuffling as his body being to sway from side to side and front to back as if he was on an unstable boat on the ocean. Anyone who used projectiles will admit it's considerably harder to hit a moving target then a stationary one. It's even harder to hit a target that's movement doesn't have a set pattern, they keep on shifting, and adding to the difficulty is the constant change in speed from jounin through academy level, academy to genin, etc. At times Nanashi would appear like a blur while others times it would seem like he's standing still.
Yes, it making hitter a target considerably harder. Nanashi didn't want to be in Kurai's shoes right now.

Three Kunai.

And they were all aimed for a different part of his body, rocking to the right and forward, Nanashi closed the distance between the first kunai – thrown at his right side – plucking it from the air and tossing it back at it's owner. Despite throwing the kunai back his body never stopped moving, left hand moving down to pluck the second kunai, inches from his thigh and threw it back as his body rocked backwards. The last and final kunai would miss him entirely, his body rocking to right by two feet.

All of this happen in a second or less.

As his body lurch forward, Nanashi propelled himself towards Kurai, closing the distance between them in a blink in an eye – a right jab following by a left one to his face and ending with a thrust kick to the Uchiha's solar plexus. It was time to test the Uchiha's taijutsu skills.

---

Ah ha! Not quite what I expected... he really is amazing! The kunai were plucked back at Kurai, as they honed in on the moving target. It wasn't often Kurai faced an opponent as equally meticulous. Nanashi took into account Kurai's attempt to launch projectiles, and thus entering a swaying motion, but as eluded to already, this did not deter Kurai, but instead what happened next was the pleasant surprise he was delighted with. Two of the kunai were sent back at Kurai, and third missed Nanashi completely. Kurai turned his body sideways for a brief moment, letting the two kunai fly past him, and then entered back into his regular fighting stance. Then Nanashi, in eye straining speed closed the distance. Because of the unexpected counter and the sheer speed of Nanashi... Kurai found himself in a dilemma. Before his body could even react to Nanashi's straight forward movements, he was already in position. His former academy teacher would then fire a right and left jab towards Kurai's face, they would hit their target. Kurai took the first two strikes because he could tell they weren't that powerful, and against a superior opponent every strike counted, but the more powerful blows deserved more attention. He had absorbed the meager jabs as best he could so that he would have more time for the more powerful strike he was obviously preparing, and Kurai was right. Nanashi was now priming a forceful blow to Kurai's solar plexus, Kurai was able to pick out that much with his keen eyes. He doesn't just blindly strike the opponent, he places them, optimizing the damage. He's even scarier than I remember.


Because of the extra time he gave himself by taking the jabs face on, he gained enough time to side step the thrust kick, as the kick pushed passed his torso, Kurai delivered a swift and seemingly harmless chop to the side of Nanashi's leg. If Kurai's well timed counter connected, a subtle and burst of non visible chakra would be released on contact, ensnaring Nanashi in a bizarre illusion. After the quick chop/Genjutsu attempt, Kurai would leap to his left, behind Nanashi, about 10 meters. If his jump backwards in an effort to create space was succeeded he would attempt to take advantage of the Genjutsu by attaching a chakra string to the fallen kunai that whizzed past Nanashi. After that, in Nanashi's possible moment of confusion, he would hurl the kunai at Nanahsi.

115/150:

Training: 513

The feeling of his left fist making contact with the opponent's face, the feeling of flesh caving in from the simple jab – abrupt not a powerful one – like a morning tide a sicken pleasure began to swell within the belly of the medic and he had to stop the smile that threaten to mar his stoic visage. Throughout his relatively short life Nanashi had the luxury of meeting some taijutsu specialists, his mother being one, and during the meetings with them they all made one thing clear to him – well those who where like him and his mother. There isn't nothing more pleasurable, nothing more primal, than beating someone with your bare hands. There's just something caveman like when pummeling another being, human or not, with bare hands. Sure one can get the job done quicker with some type of weapon but one doesn't get to experience the pleasure of feeling the life drain or the quicken of someone/something's heart when using a weapon as they would when they did so barehanded. Yes, fighting barehanded was truly a wonderful experience.


The lack of a sickening crunch caused Nanashi to mentally frown. Did he really pull back his punches that much? It truly wasn't his intentions to do so. He knew that a jab wasn't a powerful punch to being with sacrificing power for speed but he didn't realize how much power it sacrificed. Pity, guess he wouldn't get the satisfaction of feeling the nose caving in.


Nanashi were thoroughly surprise that his kick had missed completely, though this didn't show on his face, it remaining stoic as ever. Though the fact that he had missed was on his part, he had simply telegraphed the kick to soon, allowing for an easy counter or in this case a dodge. The miss didn't detour him the slightest, Nanashi used the momentum of the kick to propel himself forward, completely dodging the chop to the leg, entering into a one handed hand stand, his legs spread perpendicular to the ground, torquing on the right hand planted firmly on the ground causing his body entering into a top spin and sending eight rapidly fired kicks to Kurai's center mass – timing it at the height of the Uchiha's jump. If the kicks connected or not, it matter little to Nanashi for this was just a precursor for something else.

---

Kurai's Taijutsu prowess was shining bright, but Nanashi's relentless was catching up to him. It was clear that the Genin had an edge over his senior in technique, but the speed, strength, and experience difference was beginning to take hold. Kurai had chosen the short chop just for this possible scenario, it didn't require that much momentum so it allowed Kurai to stay in a defensive stance allowing him to be as ready as possible for counter. But the counter was too sporadic and too fast for Kurai to manage at first... As Kurai's chop missed in dramatic fashion, Nanashi had propelled himself up and on his right hand. Then entered a spinning kick. Kurai was planted on the ground. Initially, it appeared to be aimed low, but Kurai saw past it and pulled up his high guard defending against the legs of Nanashi. But as eluded to earlier, not only speed was formidable, but so was his strength. The kick smashed through his guard and sent him hurling back 10 meters.

As Kurai's body slid to a halt, a puff of white smoke appeared in its place. Then 5 meters to the right of that location appeared the real Kurai, but when he revealed himself, his body was covering in spewing flames sending off repeated explosions. If Nanashi's witnessed the sight, light created would seem more drastic, and blind Nanashi. This was a Genjutsu. If it was executed properly, Nanashi would be blinded, and so Kurai would head in for a follow up strike. Kurai would sprint at full speeds towards Nanashi looking to land a single vicious blow to Nanashi's rib cage. If the strike connected a searing flare of fire would be released intensifying the damage.

If the Genjutsu for some reason failed, Kurai would analyze the situation and pick his next best move. 

11[b][b]0[/b][/b]/150 (Neither of the previous jutsus were used):

Training Fire Illusion, Exploding Pillar: 827/1500

His leg connected with the center mass of his opponent's body, it was like music to Nanashi's ears, a finely tuned symphony orchestra being conducted by a skillful master. The sweet melodies of each hit resonated within the underground stadium, causing them to sound louder than what they truly were. The once stoic expression of Nanashi couldn't help but to crack, an undetectable smile wandering on his visage and fleeting before anyone could catch a glimpse of it. The stoic expression returning once more. While his smile was skittish of being seen, Nanashi's lone eye truly wasn't. There within the pit of the yellow viper orb were an intense inferno, an unquenchable fire that roar for enemies' soul. And sadly the enemy was Uchiha Kurai.

No sooner after the kick had landed, sending his adversary flying a couple of meters away, Nanashi used the momentum of the movement and executed a front flip – and landed perfectly a meter way from his current position. Right after his feet touched the ground, Nanashi looked in the direction of where his opponent was hurled only to find a log in it's place. Tsk. The genin used substitution. A perfectly timed one – not like Nanashi would admit that. Through his peripheral vision, Nanashi saw something a keen to fire spewing from Kurai's body and prepared himself to defend against it by looking directly at his opponent.


Bright! He subconsciously closed his only eye, trying to block the intensity of the light from causing any more damage to his lone optical organ.


“Oof. . .” That was the only sound that came out of Nanashi's mouth as searing punch connected with his stomach. The punch itself didn't do that much damage but caused him to slide back a few feet.


Before Kurai could even think about pulling back from the punch, Nanashi's right hand grasp around  the wrist – tightening the grip to almost unbearable levels. The sannin level strength making escaping almost impossible for the genin hopeful, however things were just about to get worse.

”Time to end this.” He mused to himself, chakra building within his core as the vice grip he has on the Genin's wrist being as strong as ever. The building of chakra wouldn't last long before a gray miasma slithers out of his pores, creating a chakra shroud around Nanashi and engulfing everything else in a five meter radius. The vileness of the miasma was almost palpable for sensor and non-sensor shinobi a like, it reeked of death, it was like the Angel of Death had stepped onto the battlefield. The vileness of the chakra wasn't the problem though.

For those caught within the shroud they will experience the horror of the technique that Nanashi made – a technique that will unknowingly become his signature in the future. Pestilence's cloak, the name of the technique, cause disease to spread. This disease being necrosis causing death to cells in a six inch radius and one inch deep into the immediate contacted area. Now what does this mean for Kurai? Well. . . seeing how the Uchiha is in contact with the shroud, it being five meters in radius, his whole body will be experiencing the effects of the technique – his skin blacken as the cells begin to die. Of course Nanashi didn't know this – still suffering the effects of the technique that Uchiha used.

“Do you want to yield?” Nanashi asked in a calm voice, his vice grip still remaining strong. Nanashi didn't really want to kill the genin but if the man didn't get the medical assistance from the stand by medics; those that having been assigned to the underground arena and other areas to apply medical treatment quick and effectively, cutting down the time it took for a patient to get from point A to B. The additional of having stationary medics was a project of Nanashi who have seen how out of hand some sparring sessions could get.

This being a prime example.

“Might end up dying if you don't. And that would be a shame for Iwagakure no Sato. . .” He added.

---

Chakra: 275/300:

Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder| 1024/1350 | Learning!

Chakra flared from Kurai's body as the Genjutsu weaved its way in the mind of Nanashi, rendering him victim to the illusion. Kurai momentarily thought about using the illusion as a catalyst for another mental strike, but instead could not fight the urge to land a strike on Nanashi-san. Just to be able to say that he was able to connect with a physical strike was too much to pass up. So the Uchiha would continue with his initial plan and sprint at the blind Nanashi, striking in the midsection. As his fist dug into his stomach, a burst of flames would spew out, burning Nanashi. The sweet sound of a tiny fraction of the superior shinobi's air being releases was highly satisfying. The cannon punch sent Nanashi sliding back a few feet. Ha, here's my---- His grip of some fashion of victory was as short as his grip on tolerance. The teacher's sadistic nature manifested once more. His ill will alone left Kurai nauseous. Kurai's opponent had grabbed a hold of his wrist with magnificent force. ....His strength is ridiculous


Kurai could feel the blood rushing to his fingertips, the pressure so intense he felt that his hand would explode if his bones didn't break in time. Yes, Kurai's motto was to never give up, but another motto of his was to never die too. He would choose to follow the latter on this occasion, as the next phase of Nanashi's sinister skill was literally killing the boy. Blackness spread from the hand of Nanashi, killing away the flesh of Kurai and delving deeper into the flesh. It wouldn't stop, and because of Nanashi's bone crushing strength, that was a certainty. This is it, I am satisfied with my performance. It is time to retire and learn from the events of this training session. Nanashi gave me a lot to look over and study. Next time we meet, I'll definitely be stronger, and will definitely have a strategy against this corrosive maneuver. Kurai then thought on the fact that this spar was everything he should have expected from Nanashi. He then spoke up through gritted teeth. "Nanashi-san, I accept defeat. I have learned much from you." The fingers of the hand being compressed began to twitch as the pain was overriding his control over his muscles. A mixture of brutal blunt pain and shock was a terrible combo, and Kurai now had a new sensation to use as inspiration in his writing. A once ineffable sensation was now as descriptive as ever.

Kurai stood his ground though through buckling knees. Yes, he was defeated, but he still had pride. Despite being overpowered, he made a good effort and he would hold his head up high. Kurai's chin pointed at Nanashi as he waited for him to release his hold and treat the injury.

The green glow shined down from above, giving the exchange a cinematic feel, giving Kurai further details to utilize when writing about the events here later on. Kurai imagined reaching the level at which he could fight here competitively in front of hundreds of Iwagakure villagers. Kurai stared in the eyes of Nanashi. A pain was welling up in his eyes. What is this? In a split second, a flicker of red consumed his iris and the first tomoe sharingan was born, but it was deactivated immediately afterwards. Was that... the... sharingan?? It had happened, a milestone for him. Even though Kurai relied mostly on his natural vision, he considered the sharingan the ultimate complement to someone like himself... and now he had it. 

I guess he had Nanashi to think. It was no secret that the awakening and the advancement of the sharingan relied on pain, trauma, and loss. And today, Kurai suffered all three. He wasn't even sure if he truly wanted to get the next level, if this was what he was in store for. However, that thought was brief. It was something about adversity that drove the Uchiha, the tougher things got, the more he fought. The adventure that awaited him was one to look forward to. The journey to unlocking the powers of the sharingan would be a mystical and rewarding one. 


Training Fire Illusion: 1500/1500

Pestilence's cloak. Due to the relatively few numbers of Guanyin members throughout the Elemental Nations, many don't realize the versatility and the deadliest the clansmen. Sure it was general knowledge that they weren't the stereotypical medic – preferring the offensive nature of medical ninjutsu than the defensive/supplementary. It was also relatively known that they prefer the usage of senbons, with many members incorporate acupuncture into their arsenal. What isn't entirely known is their unique ability to cause necrosis – a cripple disease that causes cells to black and die. The ability to cause necrosis is usually used in conjunction with senbons, decreasing the area of affection for the disease and making it a mute point in most cases. However, a certain silver haired Jounin had forgo the usage of senbons to cause necrosis and went with an unconventional approach. That being turning his own chakra into the deadly disease. And thus Pestilence's cloak was born.

Was it a deadly technique? Hell yes. When used effectively the shroud can cause the eighty percent of the body to contact necrosis – and that's a lot of dead flesh. Nanashi had liken the ability of the cloak to that of decay, not a far off mark seeing how it works in similar fashion, and if the decaying of flesh wasn't enough, the immense pain that follows it would be sufficient. Needless to say it wasn't pleasant for those who manage to contract the disease. Something that Kurai was now figuring out.

Stubbornness. One of many traits that he both admire and pity in others. He didn't have any problem with those who would continue trekking forward when the going gets tough – in fact that was the right mindset. But for those who allow their stubbornness to override the natural instincts of survival, he pity them. That stubbornness will ultimately be their downfall, leading them to an inevitable death. This stubbornness were something that he had seen in the eyes of Uchiha Kurai, when he first laid eyes on the aspiring shinobi during his stint as an academy teacher. During that time he never got to see the true depths of the trait of the young Uchiha and it left him wondering. How far does it go? Will you throw away your life before you surrender your stubbornness?

Nanashi got his answer. . .

The lone reptilian eye looked into the eyes of Kurai, the defiance that was within them crumbling away to acceptance – to defeat. Uchiha Kurai's survival instincts had won out and Nanashi couldn't have approve more with it. Even before Kurai spoke, Nanashi's grip on the Uchiha's wrist began to loosen and the chakra shroud around them both began to fold till it was nothing but small wisps – vanishing into the atmosphere. Thus leaving the pair, one standing proudly and the other one barely standing at all, in the center of the arena.

“Medics.” Without considerably effort, Nanashi's voice bellowed outward causing some of the medics in the stadium to jump from the sudden noise before they started rushing towards the pair of shinobi.

Splash

Splash

Nanashi didn't even need to turn his head towards the distinct sound having already figured out that some of the lesser experience medics were puking at the grotesque sight of Kurai – his flesh having  blacken and died considerably. It wasn't a pretty sight. “Lets heal him up before it get worse.” Nanashi spoke as medical chakra emitted from the hands of several experience medics and the silver haired Jounin himself. It would be roughly three hours of continuous regeneration before the Uchiha would be back on his feet.

[i]Congrats.{i] Nanashi mused to himself, his lone eye catching the sudden change of Kurai's eye to that of the sharingan before it was cut off through a small application of chakra – no point in causing the body even more trauma.  

“There. That should take care of it.” Nanashi said, standing up and allowing the other medics to wrap up the healing process. Once they were done, Nanashi would leave the area via body flicker his words echoing

“Come find me when you are stronger.”


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[i]Lightning Release: Electromagnetic Murder| 1350/1350 | Learned![/i][/i]