Rippa had survived his moment with Enaka based solely on the mans amusement by him. Enaka had simply allowed him to live. There was nothing he could do to the man who had on the spot admitted to killing his father. The vile of thick oily liquid had been placed in the medical box hidden under his other medical things still within its syringe. Before the Medical box had once more been sealed inside of a scroll. He had the evidence that there was poison used on his father but no link of it between his uncle Itami and it outside of Enaka himself. And he was still fresh in his mind about that meeting. Anger flooded through him about his own weakness. He was a special jounin but all of it seemed to mean so little in this game they were playing. As if he were still just a pawn. But they were making a mistake. They were letting him move freely across the board. Only sending other pawns into his path. He could almost feel himself nearing the other edge of the board. And once there a pawn became something more. It became a piece that was capable of doing some incredible damage. So he needed to train more. Become more.

That was why he had ventured so far inland. Leaving the comforts of the city behind to choose to live off the land. It wasn't his first time but still he had brought plenty of supplies. Where he was going he expected food to have to be hunted down. But that suited him just fine. He had walked and took to the tree's as soon as they grew thick enough. Careful to leave as little of a trail to none as possible. After all he was not eager to be tracked down again. And even the locals feared where he was going. They claimed that the natures chakra there was so thick it turned people to stone that felt too much pressure from it. But Rippa ignored the warnings and went there anyways. Faking a path heading towards the lakes and breaking off towards the Mires instead. It took him over an hour to get there even at his speed but he knew it when he was getting close. The smell and feel of everything seemed to change. Mist coated the ground like a thick sheet and everything felt and even smelled moist. But more then that it all felt thick. As if he was moving through water. The presence of chakra was certainly strong here.

Rippa saw what had caused the people to spread their tale though. Deeper in there was several statues. Worn away or covered in moss but easy enough to identify. But there were also arches broken away and faded. Walls mostly crumbled. This wasn't just some marsh. It was some sort of ancient temple. And the statues obviously of warriors and their animal companions. Still it was of little concern to him. He moved in one leap to sail over several statues before spinning to place his feet on top of a fountain at the center. Long since dried up and crumbling. He quietly took of his pack and hooked its straps onto the fountains edge. High above the mist. he wanted to keep an eye on his supplies. Still he left them there as he hopped down. His knee length red coat barely above the mist as he landed. He could feel his black combat boots sink into the moist ground a little but it was still solid. Just moss covered stones. He stood straight as his white hair blew back a little in a bone chilling breeze that seemed to swirl the mist around him. But with a slight glance from his ice blue eyes to it he paid it no more mind. He made sure his medical scroll was still tucked safely into his right coat pocket. Aside from that he was wearing black shinobi pants with a black tank top and a leather belt. Tucked into his belt on either waist though was an identical pair of wooden swords wrapped in ragged white cloth. He crossed his arms over his stomach and drew both of them at once before spreading his feet. Assuming a forward sword guard with his left hand which brought the left sword up and away from him. Prepared to parry any incoming blows before they could reach him. The tip pointed slightly forward. In his right hand he raised the sword to about shoulder level holding the hilt behind him with the blade pointed upwards. The tip of it level with his ear as the point of the sword seemed to point where his gaze looked. Strangely enough it looked like someone preparing to fire an arrow from a bow. But the sword stance was not so simple as that.

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Ryder had left the village just hours before entering the misty lands known as Mire of Lost Statues. Why he traveled to these lands was because of it was the shortest distance between Takigakure and the hidden leaf village. Ryder was a head strong young man, he heard the rumors of the area and the threat of danger, but since it was the shortest distance he didn't care to listen. He had on a small pack full of a few days worth of food and water, although his trip was longer then that he figured he would either cross another village before he ran out or he would just hunt for the things he needed when the time came. On his person he wore his most common attire; which consisted of a sleeveless, gold trimmed black waist coat left open and untucked, exposing his bare chest showing that though he was on the lean side, his muscle were defined and strong. Below his upper half of his body he wore a white knee-lengthen trouser, a thick wristband his left wrist, black open-toed sandal and around his neck he wore a white scale-patterned scarf. Ryder continued to move through the fog covered land, only able to see a few yards of head of him. He still has yet to discover why the people feared the land, he has seen no real dangerous wild life since entering the area besides birds, squirrels and other small animals, which clued him on that if these animals weren't turned to stone, the fears were misplaced.

Ryder thought back to what brought him to this area, and more importantly his quest. Just a few days prior he had spoken to an elderly man who happened to recognize his clan symbol that was on his right shoulder. This was surprising fora simple singular fact; Ryder has never discovered anyone that knew of his clan, because as far as he knew, he was the last surviving member. After speaking with the old man he had told Ryder that there was a scroll with details of his clans history. Once Ryder heard those words, it was set in his mind that he would find this scroll, there was just a few problems. That single scroll was in a single sealed room, that room was in a single building, and that building was located in only one single village. That village, was the Leaf, that building was the library, and that room was only for high ranking Shinobi of the Leaf village. This leaf Ryder with very few options, he could either forget about it, but that was out of the question. He could ask nicely but since it was a sealed room he figured that was out the window like the first. His final option he could think of, was breaking in, taking the scroll and escape the village before anyone even knew he was there.

Now that Ryder was a few miles inward he started to see chunks of stone scattered along the ground, the further he went the bigger he chunks became until there were full statues of warriors and animals. Ryder stopped and eyed the stone figures, placing a hand on one running it down slightly, feeling the smoothness of the cold stone. After inspecting it for a few minutes he turned and walked away. After a few feet his feet hit a small wall of stone no higher then a few inches, on this discovery he bent down clearing away some weeds from the wall. After a few seconds he realized this wasn't a wall but a foundation to a building. He stood straight up shacking his head, all the stories and rumors were all making sense now. As he thought about how foolish the people were to think this land was cursed a shadow rushed by him several yards away. As soon as he saw the dark figure in the distance he crouched behind a statue hoping the figure didn't see him.

Ryder moved from statue to statue keeping his movements slow but fast enough to not get noticed unless someone was truly looking, he was light on his feet making sure not to cause any sound as well. After a few short dashes he was as close to the figure as he could get without being a dead give away. Now that he was close, he saw the figure was a male with long hair, the color either blonde or white, he couldn't tell from this distance. The male drew two swords and got into a stance, as if a fight was about to break out. Ryder looked around but he noticed no others in the area and no shadow figures in the distance either. Ryder stayed behind the statue waiting to see what will unfold.


word count 811

Rippa shifted in stance as he centered himself. Control and calm were the focuses of a good swordsman. Anything else was just a barbarian with a weapon. If he did not focus on his form and what he was doing then his weapon could be damaged and he could be hurt. No that wasn't right. He was thinking of that as two separate things. If his weapon was an extension to himself then any damage to it was already damage to him. he needed to feel the weapons as extensions of himself and rise up as a part of the weapon. Only by doing so could he truly feel the weapon move as it should and move in such a way that the enemy could not stop him. But part of the training was strengthening his arms from the recoil of hitting another thing. A vibration from hitting a hard object hard enough could send pain tangling into the arm and numbing the hand until the grip on the sword was worthless. In order to train to ignore or endure such pain he had come to this place. Stones all around to help him train. It would do for his training with such a dense and heavy material.

He seemed frozen in place for a moment. As if he was just going to stand there holding the stance. His eyes focusing onto the hand that held the sword belonging to the statue in front of him. His training with Sousetsu had claimed that area as the weakness to any swordsman. The forearms and hand were always in danger of further damage. So he would target that first. A shift of his forward foot was the only warning before he began his dance. He turned his body in a complete circle to build up speed and power, the mist seemed to spin away from his feet from the accelerated movement to show a clear patch of ground from the wind his movement kicked up, The sword seemed to shoot out like lightning from his left hand and cracked like the sound of thunder as it connected with the stone blade. A blocking practice of course. But the right blade slammed into the stone fingers with another crack of thunder. It was loud but that was because of how hard he was hitting. One would be surprised the wooden swords did not break but something about his grip made them endure.

But the aged stone fingers did not. They cracked and crumbled under his sword. Giving way to the weight of the stone sword. It was obvious that if Rippa intended to he could use the wooden swords to crumble bone on contact. But the wood did not brandish any cracks. It was an extension of himself and thus stronger for it. Still the heavy stone sword cracked the rest of the way through what was left of the fingers. Rippa could already feel the pain forming in his hands from the contact but he would learn to bypass it. To ignore it. He needed to continue against this stone warrior. As the sword descended it seemed for sure that it would break right through his wooden defense and break Rippa's shoulder. But he was prepared for that. His sword that was pressed against it strained as he pressed back and then threw the great stone sword up in the air. Moving it up by about a meter as he brought his other sword out and clashed with another thundering crack on the statue's chest. But that was only the beginning. He shifted his stance and brought the defensive sword up, His offensive sword in his right hand slamming into the back of the statue's legs as the great stone sword came down once more only to meet Rippa's defensive sword in his left hand and be flung upwards once more. His training was basic enough. He would build up his endurance by hitting stone while practicing his blocking and striking by not letting the stone sword his the ground and striking each time he blocked.

1508

Ryder watched from his spot behind the stone statue watching the man before him. The mans stance was strong and firm, as if he himself was like a statue. Ryders eyes narrowed slightly as the man seemed to freeze. At first Ryder thought maybe the man spotted him but then a slight shifting of the mans foot proved other wise. The man struck out against the stone warrior before him. Ryder peered some what in awe, partly from the power of the mans hits sounding like thunder and as fast as lightning, his form seeming perfect, and the other part was the tools he was using for such powerful blows. The swords he held were made of wood, there didn't seem anything special about them either, yet they would not break, or crack not even splinter.

The man before Ryder never faltered, his form never become less sloppy if anything his body became tighter the swords moving from simple tools to extensions of the mans limbs. Ryder was a novice at best when it came to weapons, but he understood what good swordsmanship looked like. He understood that wielding swords was like an art, the motions of the sword and body had to be one, a clean flowing movement or the wielder would leave himself open for a counter attack. After a few moments Ryder noticed that the man was not just practicing striking but blocking and defending as well. Strike with one sword, block with the second sword, this pattern never changed, each sword having its own job.

Ryder started to lose focus on his hiding spot as he continued to watch, more of his body exposed from behind the stone status. Maybe he didn't care, maybe he wanted to get caught for a chance to fight the man. Ryder was young, hard headed, and often stupid when it came to picking fights. Although the man before him is levels above him Ryder wouldn't dare run from him, or rather a challenge. A small smile crossed his lips as he thought of a fight against the man, in his mind he was stronger and had more skills then he currently as causing the fight to be more on equal terms then what it truly would be. Fist verses sword, tool verses man, the fight would face these two things against on another. Ryders form was brute, dirty and erratic, against the sword which was the opposite, clean, smooth, precise.

Ryder was now standing to the right of the statue, his left hand resting on the statues arm as he leaned forward trying to get a better view, soaking it as much of the training as he could. It was hard to tell how long he had been watching, a few seconds, minutes, hours perhaps? He was lost in a slight trace, between the flowing movements, the sounds of the strikes and the area they were in Ryder became sloppy. Ryder put to much weight on the old stone statue, and because of this, it cracked. At first it was just a hairline but with in a split second it sliced through the arm completely, causing the arm to snap off the body and hit the ground shattering into a few larger chunks. This also caused Ryder to tumble forward do a single roll and slam his head against another statue.

Ryder sat up holding his head with one hand the other gripping the statue he was now behind to bring himself up to a kneeling position. Ryder opened his eyes and looked to the man who no doubt heard or saw everything that just happened, and himself for that matter. "Ah, Hey. Names Ryder... Ryder gave a small smile wincing slight as he stood up on his feet to stand tall against the man before him.

Post word count- 640. Total- 1451

Rippa had been gathering focus more and more. Tunnel vision forming on his objective. It was a bad habit unless you were in a one on one fight. For the moment all that existed was the area of influence within the range of his sword. Like a sphere around him it was put together by every available move he could make with his sword. It left a few open spots. But only ones a master could infiltrate. The way Rippa was moving made the weak spots on the back of his head, neck and shoulders hard to keep track of. But the fact that they were there meant Rippa was not yet a master. But that was the point of training. Always improving so that he could one day he could be considered one of the best. The wielder of the crimson blades. He looked forward to that more then anything. If he could be considered the best and famed for his skill then maybe Orochi Enaka might stop sending pawns to die. Maybe then he could actually take down that man and his uncle. That last meeting, the feeling of helplessness. He used that as his motivation. And when he was ready everyone would know.

He heard the crack of stone though and sheathed his wooden swords in one spinning movement. His hands reaching out to grab the hilt of the heavy stone sword and catch it mid fall. It had no cutting ability but if he was under attack the pure weight of it behind the tip could be driven into someone and likely end their mercenary career. His muscles strained as he swung the heavy stone sword to keep it's momentum going only to spot the young man as he head butted a statue. He didn't sense any malice or killing intent from the kid. If anything he was surprised he hadn't sensed him before. It took him a moment to decide not to kill the boy as another hunter after him but he wasn't eager to kill kids anyway. So the stone sword Rose and then he drove it down tip first between two stones. The grinding of stone audible as he wedged it forcefully between the two stones. Keeping it there for the time being. If he wanted to continue his training then he would do so with it later. If his position wasn't compromised

With a movement he was suddenly sitting on the headless shoulders of a nearby statue closer to Ryder. His red coat fluttered to a stop as he planted his boots on the statue for balance and tilted his head. His own blue eyes staring at the new arrival. If anything Rippa was fast and strong. Though for someone so clumsy to have gotten so close to him. It meant he was still weak. Still the boy pulled himself up and introduced himself. He was polite enough at least. A slight smile passed Rippa's lips. He was used to being friendly if given the opportunity anyway. His voice carried out over the mist with the sound of an deeper voice but still young.

"Aye Ryder. Nice name. I go by Rippa. What brings you to the Mire kid? Most locals fear this place." He was obviously curious. But his question was more of a digging one. There were too many people hunting for Rippa for him to just accept a friendly face. If nothing else this could just be a clever trap and the kid wasn't the clumsy clown he seemed. Just another trick to lower Rippa's guard. That was why Rippa had chosen the high ground. An advantage if he needed to defend or attack.

2131

Ryders eyes couldn't quite follow Rippa as he perched on the headless stone statue but what he could noticed was the displacement of the fog that he passed through from point A to B. For the split second that Ryder lost visual of the man his senses became hyper aware, the first thing he noticed was the displacement of the fog, the second was the sound of the mans clothing moving through the air. Ryder turned to look at the man who was now looking down at him from the headless statue. Ryder watched as the man tilted his head like a bird looking down from a tree, then the smile appeared on the mans face. The smile seemed real enough, but at the same time, it seemed like a facade to Ryder. He had met many people who hide killer intent behind a smile.

As the words slipped out of the mans lips Ryder paid close attention to his tone and manner of it all. As the man finished his question he thought back to why he had originally came here before he had gotten distracted by the man known as Rippa. He dropped his hand from his head as the pain went away and put his arms across his chest. "Well, I heard all the rumors that the villages spoke of, but I am traveling to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, and well you know what they say ;the fastest way from point A to B is a straight line." Ryder smiled slightly, most would of just gone around the Mire, because it would just easier and safer, but Ryder had a goal in mind, and would reach it as fast as he could, and if traveling through a place like the Mire had to be done, he would do it. In his mind it was nothing but extra training that would help him once he reached the Leaf village.

Ryder looked around slightly before returning his eyes to Rippa. "I would ask you what you're doing here, but it's kind of easy to to tell you are training." Ryders eyes drifted to the swords tilting his head to the side like the man did before. "Why the wooden swords? Scared you might cut yourself with real ones?" It was usually comments like these that got Ryder into trouble, he didn't have much of a filter when it came to putting thought into words. Ryder turned to his side slightly, but not enough to lose sight of Rippa and climbed onto the back of a large wolf statue, his right hand resting on the wolfs master. Ryder did this mostly to show Rippa that, although stronger he wasn't 'above' him, nor was Ryder fearful of the man before him. "Or are you one of those guys that don't believe in killing at all?" This last comment always comes to mind when meeting new people, most answer with something like 'When the other is 'evil' or to survive. To Ryder there were nay reasons to kill, and all in his mind were on the same level, punishment, survival, revenge, it was all the same to him; it it needs to be done, then do it with out trying to wrap some higher purpose around it.

Word count- 395.
Total- 1846

Rippa watched the boy carefully for a time. Observing how he moved and calculating what might be necessary if a fight occurred all while hoping he didn't have to destroy yet another individual after him. The arms across the chest was certainly a power stance but all to common in head strong individuals. It made Rippa tap his fingers idly in a lack of patience. The youth never seemed to notice how disrespectful they were. But that was not something he was interested in breaking. He wanted to teach caution but not at the complete loss of bravery. That aside he was no master to this boy. Or to anyone. He had always considered himself to dangerous and out of control to actually instruct. He had put almost as many people in the hospital as he had healed. But the days of running a free clinic seemed so far gone. If anything he had a little concern for the boys head but the guy seemed to be functioning well enough. He doubted there were any signs of injury. He was an endurable little guy that was for sure. But the fact that he was heading to konoha made Rippa raise a white eye brow.

There was a chance that the boy was going there for work. He wanted to warn him on certain people to avoid but on the other hand if he actively avoided Enaka or his uncle then they might just turn on Ryder. Likely a death sentence if anything. They didn't tolerate loose ends or people that knew too much. As much as Rippa needed allies he wasn't ready to risk some kids life. He wasn't like those evil bastards. On the other hand Ryder could be a mercenary that they were hiring to hunt him down. If they hadn't already. Still if the boy was here to scout it was on his uncles orders. Enaka already was confident that Rippa couldn't touch him. Still the comment about the wooden swords drove a sharp and cold blue look to Ryder. It sounded insulting the way the boy spoke. As if Rippa were some coward. For a split moment Rippa's aura flared. It was like blood rushing down the entire area. In that moment all the mist was swept away revealing the ground for about five seconds before Rippa took a deep breath. His aura regaining control as the mist rolled back in.

After a moment he finally spoke. His voice calm as he himself had calmed down again. He wasn't one to take being called a coward simply but he was also not one to overreact and attack someone for mouthing off. Still there was a hint of something cold there along with something sad. "There are those who deserve to die. I just have to be willing to choose who is to be prosecuted and who is simply a victim in this world. I use wooden blades because I am still a student. I have not yet proven to myself I am ready to wield a weapon. As it is a tool that can decide to end someone's life. This wood is to remind me of restraint."

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Ryder eyes flashed slightly at the flare of the mans aura changed, he brightened his back slightly and bent his knees as well, putting him in a stance that would allow him to dodge quickly if something happened. With the mist pushed away Ryder got a better view of the area for a moment, with the better view he mapped out a quick and easy escape plan before returning his eyes to the man. Ryder no longer had his arms crossed instead one was behind his back slipping a kunia from his pouch while the other one rested lazily on the stone statue of the master of the wolf he was standing on. A few seconds passed as Rippa gathered himself, and as he did the mist rolled back in covering the ground back up in it's white shroud. Ryder study the man slightly trying to figure out of he would attack, once the man started to speak he knew he wouldn't attack, not yet anyways.

Ryder lowered his body until he was sitting cross legged on the stone wolf statue listening to the man speak. A few words stuck out to him, causing him to ponder slightly before speaking, allowing the man to finish. Ryder brought the kunia into view balancing the tip on his finger and closing one of his eyes he looked through the hole that was at the bottom of the handle so that Rippa was at the center of the hole. One the man was done speaking Ryder spoke while keeping the kunia balanced. "Victim of the world? Everyone is a victim to the world, to someone or something. Everyone has some strife in their life that shapes them as a person. Ryder twitched his finger causing the kunia to tip over, falling off his finger the kunia fell to the ground and stuck into the wet soil of the earth. "Have you ever dropped a glass before? Imagine that you're holding onto 2 bottles and they drop on the floor. What happens? They both break. But it's how they break that's important, because you see while one bottle crumples into a pile of glass, the other shatters into a jagged edged weapon. You see, exact same environment that forged a victim can forge a survivor, a warrior, a killer, but only the ones who are left weak are the victims, why is that?
Ryder lifted his head slightly from the kunia that he had dropped to the man standing on the statue in front of him. "Who is to say the victims shouldn't be the ones prosecuted?

Ryder placed his hands on each one of his knees as he looked at the man waiting for the answer to his question. Why are the weak always helped, if they can't help themselves can they even truly be helped? Ryder shock his head slightly pushing the thoughts from his head, perhaps he was being cold hearted to the victims of the world as Rippa would put it. Ryder removed his hands from his knees and placed them behind him to allow him to lean back on the stone wolf. If you're still in training, I would hate to see a true master at work. Ryder looked away slightly before looking back at the man once more. "Restraint? Then, that means you have taken someones life before? No, not someones, you don't need a restraint if its just a singular person, so it must have been a good handful of people if you have to restrain yourself from doing it.

Ryder stood up and stepped off of the stone wolf to land next to his dropped kunia. Once his feet were planted on the ground he picked it up running the blade across his pant leg to clean the dirt from it. Ryder spun the blade in his palm a few times before returning it to it's place in the pouch on his belt. "I have a question, well besides the ones I already asked. Ryder brought his eyes up to the man a slight shine in them, like a kid about to get a gift on Christmas. "Whats the best way to sneak into the sealed record room of the Leaf village's library? As Ryder spoke this last question he couldn't help but allow a small smirk cross his lips, because of the challenge that awaits him.


Word count-743
Total- 2589

Rippa watched as the boy spoke for a time. It was obvious that this individual had dealt with his own deal of strife in his life. No innocent mind thought something had to be broken to become something else. To be shaped into something able to survive. It was a sad concept really. To think something could not become more while remaining whole. Rippa himself had let go of a part of himself in his anger but he had never felt he was completely broken. After all he was working to control his anger instead of letting it change him. There was a difference between the muddy depths of the graves and the righteousness of avenging one's father against evil people. Still it wasn't like he didn't have blood and mud on him. But it wasn't what he was about. He had started and focused as more of a healer. But it was that part of him that healed people that refused to believe only the strong survived. He had always been fine letting his strength carry more then just himself along. To him that was just part of being a part of something. A community like the village. He didn't expect a wanderer to understand that kind of unity.

Still the last question made him frown and raise an eye brow. The brat was certainly a cocky red headed step child. Ask the wrong person that question and you might get your throat slit as a possible breach of security. Luckily though Rippa was not so straight forward of an individual. Instead he sighed audibly before hopping down. His boots hitting solid ground as he landed at a walking pace until he stopped in front of the boy. There he stood and crossed his arms. It was obvious then that Rippa was built. Not just athletic but his muscles were almost straining out of his shirt.  He was tall and it appeared as if he was maybe two percent body fat. Even physically he was daunting. Not only did he have that dark and heavy almost dripping chakra from before but he had honed his body to be capable. That aside he was tall. Standing at six foot he was a good head taller then the boy. So he looked down at him in a way an adult looks at a child in disapproval. It was then that he spoke. His voice only slightly quieter but incredibly clear as if he was much bigger then he was.

"Let me answer your first set of statements first. There are different levels of strife. I take it upon myself to keep the harsher ones away from the citizens as do several others within the village. While you are correct that a shattered bottle might create a weapon, a weapon made from such is fragile. Even more so then the bottle originally was. Liable to break all the easier. A bottle that doesn't break is superior in that regard. That aside if we broke every bottle then the usefulness and purpose the bottles served before would be gone. No longer would that purpose be served. So even those who can not fight at the level I can still have purpose in this world. As for your final question, That is some dangerous territory you are getting into there. If you insist on asking me how to compromise my villages security again. I will interrogate you, And keep in mind I am a gifted med nin. Meaning if I think you are a threat I will break you and heal you until I know for sure and then drag you to konoha myself. So to be clear. Avoid such topics with me again. Understood?"

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