Akira had taken lengths to arrive prior to his squad. He had left messengers with instructions sent out that the squad was invited for training during the festival with their sensei and squad leader. But the messengers were told to wait two hours after Akira had departed before delivering the message. In reality it was just a simple scroll with a time and general area to be in the next morning. At Dawn of all times. Akira had never been one for waiting too late in the day to get started. But to make things better. By foot the travel to the nation given the time the message was to be delivered Would get them there with barely four hours to rest if they left that moment. But that was by walking speeds. He expected his students to be able to push themselves farther then that. To be able to move quickly enough and over long distances to get at least six hours of rest before training. Though at that pace even with the rest their muscles would be exhausted. And to a normal instructor that might be an issue. He might find it reason enough to take it easy and let them recover. But not Akira. Not only was Akira an accomplished and fearsome taijutsu master he was also a renowned medic. With a moment he would be able to heal any sore muscles. There would be no simplicity in his training. As Kurai already should know.

That was another of his concerns. His other students had found places in other squads or dropped out quickly. Only Kurai had the endurance to stick with him thus far. But Kurai was no longer a genin. Not a very potent Chunnin either but resourceful. He merely hoped that Kurai wouldn't be to distracted with missions during his new promotion and would make good time coming to the training session. The other official member of his squad was yet to have met him. But he had heard she was a real beat you down for talking back type bitch. He was looking forward to seeing that kind of ferocity in his training. Maybe she would give Kurai a run for his money? Who knew just what she was capable of. But he intended to push her limits just as he had done with Kurai in his office. There was an invite to one other but he knew little about the individual. Another genin within the taijutsu skills branch of the specializations all ninja progressed through. And Akira only accepted taijutsu practitioners in his squad.

Still he had something special planned. He had rented out one of the small dojo's underneath the Hero's Arena. It had the smells of battle and fear mixed with conviction and rage filtering in from the Arena above. But the noise was canceled out. And this early there were no events being held yet anyway. However the dojo itself was a traditional one. The wooden floors with weapon racks and mats set out on the floor. Dressing rooms for both men and women. On a pedestal in the center was Akira in a white karategi with a black belt tied to his waist. His feet were bare but somehow he seemed as clean and proper as ever. For some reason he seemed to be of average size and his body was almost thin in comparison to others. But something about him suggested he was in no way weak. Still he sat cross legged in the center on a pedestal in the dojo underground. However one might notice the floors of this dojo around the pedestal were connected oddly. As if they were meant to be shifted. As if they could be moved.

Upon arriving the members of the squad would of been directed to the Arena itself. Standing next to the doors leading into the arena underground was two men with Iwa headbands. They didn't show much in the way of clans but both of them were holding bows of impressive quality. They would bow to the squad members and direct them down to the dojo. Where they would find two more men. Also wearing Iwa headbands. But these men seemed to be wearing coats lined with Kunai. A walking arsenal of kunai each of them. Akira was not known for traveling without a guard. From there they would be directed to the changing room matching their gender were their karategi would be waiting for them. With white belts hung nearby imprinted with the Iwa symbol. Only after they changed would they be allowed into the dojo itself. Where it appeared Akira was meditating with his back to the locker rooms. However somehow his presence filled the room. As if he was everywhere while just sitting where he was.

805 words

Iwagakure: evening the day before

"Really, he wants us to get there on foot?!?" Yomi snarled loudly, after she had received the scroll with the time and date of her expected arrival at her meetingplace with the other squad members and the leader of squad One, who was none other than the tsuchikage himself. ofcourse the messenger didn't show any emotion or any other normal reaction to her snarl. "You really are one heck of a sunshine…tsk, if that's what he wants I'd better get myself to some packing."

Slamming the door shut before the messenger could say anything, Yomi got to her room, grabbing a simple black shoulder bag, stuffed it with another pair of gloves, some pants and a few halter tops, thinking she'd just buy some new underwear on site, hoping they'd have some interesting weaponshops or something like that. Getting back out of her room, she quickly grabbed an airfreshener out of the dresser on the corridor upstairs and threw it into the dark room of her parents, bidding them farewell, without expecting a response, walking downstairs and greet her brother in the living room, who as usual did not respond either.

Her life had been made so much easier since the accident happened, just as she didn't care to hide her true self anymore, no longer smiling empty or hiding her desires and adorations. closing the door of the house behind her, the woman let out a deep sigh, stretching her arms and legs a bit, before trying to find the gate of the willge which would set her on the straight path to Takigakure. Silently she cursed her squadleader for such strictness, but realizing it would only benefit the strength of her precious legs, she simply smiled slightly sardonic, scaring a little kid nearby, before making her way to the agreed time and place without any tardiness.

Takigakure outskirts: present

"Another mile to go, I think," Yomi sighed at the break of dawn, nearing the place she had to be within half an hour. She'd been sweating a bit, since the weather was so much more humid and more moderate than that of Iwagakure, however she did not care, not yet at least. She'd better change her clothes before she'd walk into the place she had been awaited at. "Dojo, dojo, dojo, where the heck is that…oh."

Finally having found the place, Yomi looked at the arena, thinking she must've made a mistake somewhere, but everything indicated that the arena wasn't her destination. Grumbling a bit, she noticed the two men with bows standing guard, instantly captivated by the quality of the bows, she ran towards the two, taking a good look at the bows and practically ignoring all questions they were asking about who she was or what village she belonged to. Eventually, she lost interest in the bows again, since they weren't of such exceptional quality to be made by an actual master and looked more like high quality standardized bows.

Showing the headband she carried in her long coat, mentioning that she was being expected, one of the two men lead her to a dojo underneath the arena, where she was told to refresh herself a bit before entering the dojo itself. Ignoring those base points of advice, she simply dropped her bag in the locker room, took off her coat, so that the tattoo on her left arm was completely visible and dried off her sweat with a towel she found inside the locker. When she had done that, she nonchalantly walked into the dojo, looking at the man in a white karategiri with a black sash, tapping with two fingers against the side of her head in an extremely casual greeting. "Yo"

637

“Ow! You’re going to pay for that!” Scurrying to his feet, Kurai drew three senbon and launched them at the bandit who had stolen a sack of crops. All three senbon were thrown at eye level, distracting the bandit from the fourth senbon that was aimed at the hand holding the stolen crops. What happened next was not expected. Instead of blocking the senbon, he ducked right into the fourth senbon that pierced his neck. Wailing followed that caused Kurai to cover his ears, “It doesn’t hurt that bad does it?” Kurai jetted over to the bandit quickly. Standing over the cowering thief, “You had a nice run.” Kurai retrieved the sack. A cracking twig sounded behind him causing Kurai to whip around. “Uh… “Before Kurai could say a word a scroll was being handed to him. The surprise ran so deep that his face wasn’t able to express it. Barely able to speak, “Takigakure… by dawn… on foot.” After sighing, “Thank you.” Kurai turned around and saw that the thief had escaped. Eyeing down the trail of blood Kurai contemplated tracking him, but he had no time now. There were still a few things he had to gather before setting out.



After packing a bag of clothes and supplies, Kurai made his way to the road. Walking briskly to start, but of course if he was to make the mandatory meeting in time he would have to pick up the pace considerably. His plan was to run the rest of the way after he left the borders of the village hidden in the stone. This being Kurai’s first trip to Takigakure, he didn’t know exactly how long it would take. However, given the timeline provided, he could safely assume that at near half speed he could make it to Takigakure in time to get approximately 5 hours of rest. The sun was at its peak as Kurai neared the village gates. Glancing back before exiting the inside of the village, “I guess I’ll have to continue my training in Takigakure. It is always the pleasure training with Akira sensei anyway.” Melodic sounds were produced by the land animal that dwelled in the wilderness of Iwagakure. An armadillo crept beside Kurai for about 30 minutes. Initially it was creepy, but he soon got over it. He had finally left the solace of his home, the village and terrain he was so familiar with. The wilderness of Iwagakure was a vast place, and it provided Kurai with all the excitement he needed, enough that he never had the urge or the permission to go to another village.



The recent news of his other squad mates departing was tough. It was one of his many fears entering a squad. His past experience with squads had always made him hesitant about joining another… the difficulty and stress of directly being responsibly for someone else’s life… at this time in his life he had learned to manage. That management was all the more difficult with the massacre of his last squad. Back to the current squad situation, with the leave of his other teammates, the question had loomed over his head for a while… “Who will I fight alongside with next? Who will I train with till my bones resist?” Or perhaps, no one would replace his past members… that would be unfortunate. Or maybe bitter sweet would be a better term. Being the sole student of the Tsuchikage definitely had its obvious perks, but it would also lack the competition and bonding that came along with a peer. Kurai was now running, leaving the armadillo in the dust. With every step towards Takigakure, his eagerness to see what his sensei had planned increased.



Never remiss, Kurai was also aware of the highly anticipated Chuunin exams taking place in Takigakure. Kurai knew a few of his fellow villagers that were participating. “I think Motoichi and Suteki are competing… this will give me a chance to wish them luck and spectate.” Kurai had seen both Motoichi and Suteki in action. In fact, he was sent on missions with both of them. He could say with confidence that he expected impressive performances from them both. Talks and advertising for the Chuunin exams had been present for a while, but Kurai opted to move up the ranks before hand. A slice of regret lingered, he would have loved test his skills against the best Genin from the other major shinobi villages.



His body ached as the sun had long since dropped, but lucky for him the bright lights of Takigakure were well within view. A pained smirk struggled to manifest itself. Beads of sweats ran down his cool face. A monument called out to him as a crutch to lean on. Now only about 20 meters outside the entrance of Takigakure, Kurai leaned against the monument. The structure was in the shape of a pentagon with writing in the center. His tired eyes would only allow his optics to perceive the writing as a blur. Kurai shook his head. His shaggy white hair flailed. A minute was all he needed, after all, getting a room and resting for his meeting tomorrow morning was more important. As of right now, Kurai was looking at 5 hours of rest… but it came at a cost. Since being promoted Chuunin, he still hadn’t reached the level of physical endurance indicative of an elite Chuunin. With his current strength, Kurai only viewed himself as an extremely experienced Genin. Rest was definitely the priority at this point. It was frustrating too, once again his physical strength and endurance was likely to hinder him in training. On top of that, Kurai possibly had the least merciful of all Iwagakure’s senseis. Walking wearily throughout Takigakure… “Woah, if I didn’t have a meeting tomorrow morning.” Even at the current hour, the village was booming with people, activities, and lights. It was truly amazing what being the host of the Chuunin exams could do for a village. Unfortunately for the Uchiha, there was no time to engage in the festivities, not now anyway. Kurai quickly located lodging, and got some rest.



The morning had come, and it was time for Kurai to make his way to Hero’s Arena. He was directed by a guide. Upon arrival, two men with Iwagakure headbands stood next to the entrance. The guides left, leaving only Kurai and the two shinobi that were holding bows. The men bowed. Kurai reciprocated them with an identical gesture. One of them led him into the arena. “The dojo is below.” Kurai raised his eyebrows and continued to follow the shinobi. The arena was magnificent. “A grand arena like this would’ve surely brought out the best of me.” “You’re not competing? Are you not a Genin?” Kurai shook his head. “No sir, I am a Chuunin.” Adjacent to the far end of the seats for spectators was a hall that led appeared to lead to a dead end that only had restrooms and water fountains. However, in the hallway the shinobi lifted up the floor board revealing stairs going down. After getting off the steps, two more men with Iwagakure headbands were spotted. They wore jackets bearing a plethora of kunai. They guided Kurai into a changing area. Kurai changed into the karategi set for him along with a while belt that had the Iwagakure symbol stitched on it. Kurai was then walked into the dojo. Standing in the doorway, Kurai saw Akira and a woman. The woman had black hair that fell to her shoulders.



At first glance, the woman looked to be extremely fit. More notables of her appearance were her tribal tattoo on her left forearm. Always keen to the traits of the people he encountered he began committing several details of the woman to memory for analysis. “Her physique, the tattoo, and her decision to not accept the gear that was insisted upon us to wear… It would appear she does not like authority. However, under this rebellious persona, might be a fierce competitor, and that I like.” It appeared Akira and the woman who Kurai further noted to be his new teammate, had already met. Kurai tugged karategi and spoke with a calm tone. “Good morning, Akira sensei.” The pedestal that Akira was near drew Kurai’s attention to the floor around the pedestal. “Peculiar. The tiles on the floor seem jagged, loose even. The peculiar part though, is that it appears to be aligned that way only around the pedestal.”
　
His eyes shifted to the woman with the ponytails. As he stepped forward he spoke to her. “Hello. I’m Kurai.”


Training: 1455

Akira let out slow breaths as he focused on clearing his mind. His body positioned crossed legged as he placed a hand on each of his knee's. He focused on remaining calm. Thinking of nothing but the calm itself. To do this he pictured a river in his minds eye. Each thought was just another stone tossed into the river. Sinking and forgotten. All of this was to remain patient while he awaited his students. But Akira was not very good at remaining calm and patient. Soon the rocks symbolizing thoughts began to dump into the river. No longer sinking but piling up and blockading the river itself Finally he let out a breath and opened his eyes. Giving up on that meditation crap. Anyone knew that enough rocks in a river eventually create a damn. That quack that wrote the book "Meditation and your bodies elements" was out of his bloody mind. Akira regretted buying a copy of it now more then ever. ANd good lord that book had been boring. He hadn't even finished it. Still Akira knew he wasn't known for being patient. And with the rumors about his volatile nature and a new student joining him. He might want to figure out how to calm himself.

Still his yellow eyes moved to each locker room. Who would arrive first? His first disciple Kurai? The boy was determined and loyal with a surprising level of potential. And his talents with Genjutsu was not common in Iwagakure. He recalled how Kurai had managed to defeat his team mate with one genjutsu used appropriately and timed perfectly. Still his drop out rate with students was alarming. Only one out of three had even made it passed the first trial. Was he being to harsh with them? Perhaps he was expecting too much from genin. Well Kurai was a chunnin now but barely. He wasn't particularly strong in any field other then his perception skills. In combat Kurai would likely rely moreo n his wits then physical prowess. But that was precisely why he had passed Kurai. For his intelligence and his willpower. Besides the boy was still alive so that couldn't of been a mistake. And now he was to show up to yet another of Akira's special lessons. He was sure that Kurai would survive this one as well. And perhaps even get a little stronger for it. Maybe.

Still the slight sound of movement in the girls locker room caught his attention. A sly grin came to his lips as he contemplated peeking. Oooh how wonderful it would be to get a peak at a girls sweaty body first thing in the morning. Changing into a karategi means she would be nearly naked for a moment. He was rather excited but at the same time wary. What if she had man face or man body? What if she looked utterly gross? His nose crinkled as he decided he would wait until after he saw how she looked. He could always peek on her after training. When her body would be weary and glistening. Maybe a peek in the showers. All depending on if she was hot or not. He certainly hoped she was a looker.

However his eyes narrowed as he saw her enter the dojo. She had decided not to wear the training gear and what was more she had walked into his dojo wearing the shoes she had traveled in. He felt his eyebrow twitch even as she said yo. Not a care in the world it would seem. But he could feel his temper rising. The pressure in the room growing as if everything was getting heavier. His yellow eyes didn't move from her as Kurai entered the room. Introducing himself politely as always. To this though Akira held up a hand to motion for Kurai to halt. His yellow eyes staring straight at the new girl on his squad. Before he spoke. His voice calm but something in his presence marked it as dangerous. He wasn't here to be disrespected.

"You there. Little girl. I don't know if you didn't pay attention when people tried teaching you tradition or if no one bothered with you to begin with. But you are now my student in my dojo. You will respect the dojo and at the very least remove your shoes before stepping in here. If you were being wise you would change into the Karategi provided in the locker room you just left. Less your clothes get torn during this training. I don't do half assed training. This won't be something normal clothes would survive. A karategi is thicker to withstand being grabbed and thrown. Either way that is up to you. But the shoes you will remove or I will remove them for you. And only then may you greet your Senpai that has been polite enough to greet you."

1635 WC

Seeing the man in his white karategiri wasn't a bad sight at all, but the fact that his expression was far from friendly, made Yomi cringe only slightly. His yellow eyes were not something normal, that she was sure of, she had never seen such a color of eyes before in her entire life, but despite the fact that she could feel the airpressure in the room becoming close to unbearable, the young woman only showed a selfconfident smirk.

In the meantime another student had arrived and that guy's polite and humble manner almost drove her into a fit of laughter, but so far only a soft chuckle left her lips, though it was quickly abbrupted when the man sitting down, looking at her with his piercing yellow eyes begun to speak with a firm and authorative tone of voice, reminding her of the old geezer in the Academy's dojo, always speaking as if he was the center of the attention and as if there was no truth but that within his own words.

"I'll take of my boots per your request…sensei," Yomi rebuked quite calm, again showing that same confident smirk on her face. "Though I will not change clothes. The karategiri, however thicker and sturdier and more practical in the use of grappling styles of taijutsu will only hinder my movements compared to my form fitting outfit, which allows for more freedom regarding my Commando Savat, which is a style based on striking an opponent and focuses more on the legs."

With that being said, she gave a swift bow, before pulling off her shoes and socks, holding them in one hand, while making her way back to the dresser room and placing them on a rack near the entrance of the dojo. When she had done so, she skidded back to her place where she had been standing before, while again having that same provocative smirk on her face.

"My name is Yamada Yomi, nice to meet'cha," The young woman said in a slightly politer way than her earlier greeting, giving a bow to both Kurai and Akira. "I hope you wont go easy on me, cuz easy isn't fun."

370/1007 (1)

Kurai was suppressing his excitement for now, but internally he was boiling over with excitement. The excitement of getting to know his new teammate. His inquisitive spirit never at rest. He had many questions, but of course, most of his information gathering on the woman would come via observation. After introducing himself, his walk towards the woman and his continued greeting was halted by his sensei. It was only a matter of time, but I was hoping I could get to know her some more before the scolding. Oh well, there'll be plenty of time to gauge her character and skill later. So Kurai did as instructed, stopping in stride, gathering his balance and facing Akira. Oh, he may be much more upset than I assumed. That came to Kurai's mind after witnessing the look in Akira's cold blooded eyes. His new squad mate was a character and tough one, that much anyone could perceive. Out of her many actions that were deemed unappealing, it was her not removing her shoes that toppled the house of cards. In summary, her actions reeked of apathy. An emotion that was not kin to the young shinobi. Everything Kurai did, he did with an unyielding passion. On the other hand though, perhaps the woman was only apathetic to authority and tradition... he was sure if anything could get her to take notice it would be a fight.

Always glad to say, I was right. Once his new teammate responded, he knew she was a competitor above all else. Kurai knew without a doubt, no matter how "disrespectful" she might be, Akira would see the toughness and competitiveness. Qualities a man like the Tshuchikage could work with. Discipline was only a fraction of the makeup of a shinobi. Discipline can be taught, but intangibles like heart and attitude could not. In conclusion, she would go to the dressing room to place her shoes and socks, conceding that much, but still advocating that she was better off without the karategi. Upon getting back in place, she introduced herself formally with a bow afterwards to both. Yamada Yomi... hmmm His interest could be stifled no more. "Nice to meet you as well. Yomi is it, a fine name. You say you do not like easy, well, after the trip we had to make to get here, I do not foresee anything easy about the task ahead of us. Unless of course... the task is that we spar each other, then it might be easy." He said with a faint smile. The statement could be taken two ways really, either he was declaring that Yomi was far inferior to him in combat, or the reverse. The reverse would imply that Kurai was humble or perhaps bashful and reluctant to combat. The poet relished at any opportunity to get in someone's head. At the end of their banter, Kurai would direct his attention back to Akira sensei, as they were here under his orders. Surely, he wouldn't take kindly to them talking amongst themselves for too long, and Kurai didn't want to talk much. Talking was a tool for Kurai, but his anticipation for the training session ahead overwhelmed that urge for now.

The last few times I trained with Akira, the challenges I faced were unique to me. Maybe, just maybe, he is due for a general training session. Kurai recalled his first meeting with Akira, and he was tasked with first climbing a nearly incalculable amount steps to a grandiose dojo. He was then sent on a race back down the steps against his former squad mate to retrieve a fragile weight... Needless to say, it was a strange challenge and a challenging one at that. The entire ordeal posed many obstacles to Kurai at the time, all of which made him stronger, so he had no regrets. Then there was the most recent meeting, the meeting at which he requested to be promoted to Chuunin. His perceptive skills were tested by noticing changes made to the Kage's office. Changes that were made within 5 seconds while Kurai was forced to close his eyes. Then his speed and reflexes were tested by catching a stack of papers fluttering down. Finally, the brutish of all the challenges. Breaking a stone bowl with his bare hands. It was precisely that, which awoken a new power.

So now here we are, would another page be ripped from Akira's unorthodox training manual, or were Yomi and Kurai in store for something more... traditional.


Training: 2215

Akira slowly let out a breath and allowed himself to calm down. She had at least complied with removing her shoes. So she understood some respect to the dojo was needed. or at least required by him. He took in a deep breath to let out a sigh. Taijutsu was a very potent ability with its weaknesses and strengths but the practitioners of it had a tendency to get a little full of themselves. He couldn't even deny that he was a little to big for his britches in that regard. The honing of his body had brought up his already unreasonable confidence from the start. But the Hyuga were always led to believe that they were unstoppable in hand to hand combat. That targeting one of them for a melee fight was asking for a beat down. And very few people ever bothered to humble a hyuga in hand to hand for it. Choosing to play it smart and keep a safe distance. But now he was the only one who knew he was so dangerous up close and personal. His abilities surpassing that of a normal person. But it was also a curse. As if he was ever pushed into using hyuga techniques he might be revealed as the man he really was.

He listened to them greet each other in a way, each of them confident enough by the sound of it. Akira audibly chuckled. Each member of his squad so far was showing a great deal of promise. He had just given them an endurance test but they seemed as chipper as could be for so early in the morning. Aside from that he liked to see such bravado before training. There was no use in breaking them of that. Not yet anyway. The new generation deserved to enjoy training instead of having a sensei that tore them down. Besides all that Akira's lessons were competitive. He wondered if Kurai would win this one too with his genjutsu or if this young lady with her fine ass and perky...cough cough. If she could see through it and maybe knock him around a bit. Genjutsu was always a tricky thing in combat. Especially if used in the most crucial of moments. For a moment he though about forbidding the use of genjutsu for the purposes of focusing on taijutsu. But he decided the genjutsu might actually prepare her for what was waiting for her. And he might learn how to use it even better then he already did. Perhaps even learning how one might negate or bypass his jutsu entirely and be prepared for it.

Still Akira stopped chuckling and his yellow eyes looked between them. Before he spoke in an amused tone. Warm enough when backed up with a smile. Still his words were not something to be missed, "Well I see you are both feeling energetic. No need to heal your limbs of any exhaustion then. Good! We can get started with the lesson. You will be competing with each other here. The prize is a secret but if you win you will see it. If you lose then there will be some punishment. Since you both seem so confident I am eager to see what happens." He looked between them making sure he had their attention before reaching into his Karategi. Pulling out four balls. Each of them held between two fingers. All about the same size by the looks of it. One red, One blue, one yellow and one green. He then began to explain."What I hold here are bouncy balls. But they are unique in the way that when applied with chakra they continue bouncing indefinitely and at the same speed of eight meters per second. your goal is collect all four colors. However there will only be two sets out there. And one set is more dangerous to be near. As you can see," With that he dropped the red ball and the blue ball. The red ball bounced off the floor with a little tap noise while the blue ball let out a resounding bang of a weight bouncing off of something. Both bounced up at alarming speeds of eight meters per second before Akira caught both between his fingers again. As if they were both normal balls. He then tucked them back into his shirt before continuing "One set weighs twenty kilograms per ball. The only way to tell which is which is by the sound they make when they bounce as the floors are chakra reinforced they won't take any damage. You can take balls from your team mate or try and take the ones in my karategi from me. The set in my karategi is a third set but if you can get those it still counts as a win. Once you have a full set regardless of the weight you must hold onto it for thirty seconds(two posts) in order to claim victory. However if either of you are unable to continue then you may surrender. Begin." And with that he pressed his left hand down on one of the odd connections on the floor around him. Forcing a wave of chakra into it which caused the floors to lift all around him and eight balls with two of each color to launch out in every direction. The lesson had begun for them both.


2539

Somehow, Akira's chuckle instantly drew Yomi's attention towards the tsuchikage, forcing her to look at him for a moment longer than she usually would look at others, making her realize that somehow a chilly feeling crept down her spine. This man was dangerous, that much she knew and somehow the fact that he was having such a focused vision on his squadmembers made her spine tingle even more,  he wasn't just dangerous, but everything in his appearance oozed with a sort of manly authority one could only have when being completely confident of one's own strengths and weaknesses.

Listening silently to Akira's explanation on the test he had deviced especially for the two of them, Yomi looked at her new partner from the corners of her eyes, wanting to see if he would show complete confidence in himself or if he would do the same as her, trying to meassure up the other person's confidence by looking at their expressions during the Tsuchikage's explanation.

When hearing about the conditions to set a victory, the young woman's lips curled into a strangely sardonic smile, a smile brimming with an eerie kind of self-confidence. The very condition which said that if the other wasn't able to continue, she would win, was probably the best way of making this her victory, but that aside, she had to think about the test for a moment, a moment she wasn't really granted by the teacher, as almost a second after the end of his explanation on the task ahead, he suddenly seemed to flip a switch and the panels on which the two students were standing felt…different, not to mention the fact that he had released a rather large amount of those bouncy balls.

Thinking about the hint Akira had given on finding out which balls were weighted and which one's weren't, Yomi decided that kicking against the weighted ones would be wiser, while grabbing the lighter ones wouldn't slow her down too much. If Kurai were to grab the balls she would launch at him, he'd only weigh himself down, so there she had her perfect strategy, so all which was left was a perfect execution of the plan, otherwise things might go bad in the end.

Trying her best to dodge the balls at first, Yomi listened to the difference in 'thuds' made by the bouncy balls whenever they would hit the ground, right at the moment she thought to have figured it out, she quickly slammed her hands together, forming the ox sign, after which her legs became covered by an armor existing out of sturdy rock and flexible mud on the right places.

'thud'  'thud' 'THUMP'

At the sound of the harder thump on the ground, the young woman's right leg instantly rose from the ground, slamming her armored shin against the ball, aiming to launch the heavy ball into Kurai's direction, while at the same time still trying to follow the direction in which the balls seemed to bounce and to pick up their rhythm, by sidestepping every ball and trying to find the perfect moment on which to greab the lighter balls from midair.

'Thud' 'thud' 'THUMP'

This time she had to turn, so that she could use her left leg to launch this heavy ball towards her fellow student, while at the same time she managed to pluck one of the lighter balls out of midair, but now she realized one problem with her outfit: if she tucked the balls in her pant's pockets, they would hinder her movements, while she didn't wear her coat, meaning she had to find a solution for it. Cursing this fact, she still put the first ball, which was a red one, in her pocket, devising that a maximum of two light balls could still be managed, after which she would have to use her hands to get a hold of them. All that was left to her strategy, was making sure Kurai would be more than amptly occupied with dodging the balls she would occasionally launch.

695/1702

jutsu used: earth release-rocking feet 2/2 (-10 chakra)

Kurai's mind was running a mile a minute, trying his best to sort out all the details he had just been bombarded with. Thinking deeper than caves of Iwagakure, he would put his skill to the test. Kurai would appear to be in deep thought to any and all observers. There are 8 bouncy balls. 2 red, 2 blue, 2 green, and 2 that are green. One of each of the colors weight similar to a regular bouncy ball, the other of the same color weighs 20 kilograms. I have to collect one ball of each color or have my opponent be unable to continue in order be victorious. Also, there is another set of bouncy balls with Akira sensei's karate gi that can be obtained to win... Those were the parameters for the competition. The main goal was to distinguish the regular bouncy balls from the others by the sound they emitted. Obviously, it was favorable to get the regular weighing ones, and carrying the 20 kg ones would likely prove to cumbersome to transport. That was not the issue, the issue was HOW. A race would go nowhere. His best option was to defeat his opponent... or I have to try something else first.

Kurai had a wacky idea, which were not new to him. Before he could implement it though, Yomi had already devised a strategy. She's kicking the heavy balls AT ME!! But how can her leg sustain such dense material??!! Kurai hadn't the slightest clue, but for now he would capture the initial one. He opened his gi at oncoming bouncy ball. Once it went into his gi, the force and weight of the ball caused him to spin about 5 times before he gained control. He had one ball, and was ready to put his... "plan" in action. Kurai rushed over to a combat dummy, and he infused chakra into so he could use it a replacement later on.

'ZOOM!'

Another heavy ball came flying at Kurai. Two heavy balls were certainly the max he could handle. He jumped and opened his gi again, enveloping the heavy ball. These are certainly going to slow me down. Kurai also spotted that Yomi had finally snagged a bouncy ball herself. Yomi - 1, Me - 2.

Kurai now rushed towards Akirai sensei. He couldn't explain why he felt there was promise in him approaching Akira sensei. It was weird though, so far in all meetings with Akira, never has he made it an option to interact with him. Why now all of a sudden? What is the third set? Those were just a few questions, but he wanted to see just what would happen. Once he reached a 5 meter distance he shouted, "I want that third set Akira sensei!" Kurai had no idea what was going to happen. Would he expel chakra and simply repel Kurai? Would he entertain himself with a Taijutsu skirmish? He had no idea, but his interest was peaked by the announcement of a third set of bouncy balls and the possibility to interact with Akira sensei. He still had two balls, so if his plan failed miserably, whatever his plan was, he still had a chance to win the competition.



Training: 2758

Akira watched them each in turn. Their tactics were sufficiently interesting. He felt the test was a significantly good choice for both of them. After all it was a test of both speed and endurance. Along with testing ones reflexes and perception while forcing them to use more strength to move with the heavier balls. Truly this test went after all the basics of ones abilities in one shot. This was the second test for Kurai. But the first test for Yomi. He wondered who would prevail. Would Kurai's experience keep him in the spot of the first disciple? Or would Yomi's ambition take that title?  Based on the tactics they were showing he was leaning back and forth on who had the advantage. With Yomi she had shown a surprising tactic of coating her legs in a jutsu and kicking the heavy balls at Kurai while collecting the lighter balls. It was a decent tactic that favored her heavily. But the issue was that the jutsu use and the weight of the balls colliding over and over again with her pushing herself to keep up could rapidly tire her out. Kurai's tactic on the other hand was not using any jutsu. Instead he was using his outfit as a type of catching net. Conserving his chakra for the moment. However he was collecting the heavy balls that way, Akira knew Kurai wasn't strong enough to simply ignore that weight for long. Likely it would drag him down if he didn't alter his tactics soon. Still he was in the lead two to one.

Akira's eyes widened in surprise though as Kurai bolted for him. Seeming intent on taking Akira on instead of his fellow classmate. Akira thought Yomi might be the one to overestimate her abilities and try and take the set from Akira. But Kurai had taken that initiative. Which confused him because he had allowed Kurai to be promoted due to his intellectual mind and quick planning. This was simply foolish. But it was a lesson within the lesson he had initially thought he would be teaching to hot headed Yomi. But now that Kurai was right in front of him Akira would smirk. The kid had his balls screwed on tight that was for damn sure. But if he had truly been trying then Kurai should of used a genjutsu. A head on charge to an opponent leagues above you is suicide. And so the lesson in humility was to be taught already. Akira lifted one hand. Pointing only his thumb and index finger at Kurai. Before suddenly his hand moved faster then a snake bite. His speeds far to high for Kurai to have a prayer to even see. His other hand held his karategi shut in case Kurai was intending to take a hit in order to get a ball. As his fingers pinched on either side of Kurai's neck Akira sent in a pulse of chakra through his finger tips. Slowing the flow of blood in each jugular with his chakra. But only just enough for the desired effect. A wave of dizziness from the lack of blood would be the effect of this jutsu. No permanent damage was needed. Though it would be as if someone had spun him in circles until he was ready to vomit.

And with that Akira seemed to fade away. One moment he was there and then his form just seemed to fade like smoke. His speed so incredible he had left an after image sitting there. Suddenly his voice could be heard from above. Looking up one could tell he was sitting cross legged upside down on the roof. As if he was ignoring gravity. Though his hands were tucked into his karategi holding the balls in. His voice was clear as day but rang with a tone of warning. Filling the dojo with his teachings as if he was right next to each of them. "And that is part of this lesson. Your objective can sometimes have multiple ways of being accomplished. You must be able to perceive what path is the easiest to take and what is to be avoided. You are not yet able to be on my level Kurai. And you should of known that. Know your limitations and go after the easiest way to obtain your objective. Continue the lesson now. That dizzy spell will fade in a couple of moments Kurai. Yomi, you should take advantage of it while you can. Don't waste any time."

3302

330/350:

To Yomi's surprise, her opponent in this training; Kurai, was actually taking advantage of her tactics, gathering the balls she had kicked into his direction with his karategiri. This lead her to believe using the balls as projectiles wasn't an entirely failproof plan anymore, but right at the moment she was pondering, questioning her entire plan, the Chuunin made his way to Akira, most likely going after the balls the sensei had in his own karategiri.

Looking at the bouncy balls still going at it, she tried to formulate a plan that would set her to victory, but while doing so, she noticed how the Tsuchikage quickly halted Kurai's approach, who seemed to have stopped doing anything completely for a moment, after which Akira vanished from sight in nothing more than an imperceivable blur, somehow ending up at the ceiling. From there he gave Kurai a warning that he wasn't on 'his' level yet, something Yomi acknowledged on her own accord as well, she as well was nowhere close to that sensei's level and despite the fact she hated to admit it…it was the grim reality.

Shaking her head, the young woman wanted to continue following the balls again, but this time her reaction, due to the distraction and the fact she was beginning to wear down, was a smidge to late, resulting in the fact that not only did she miss to hit a heavy ball, but with another ball hitting her balancing leg, she fell forward, only narrowly dodging an incoming heavy ball by rolling aside, while the armor on her legs cracked and dissipated into a black, glimmering cloud of dust.

"Damn, this is harder than I thought," She'd sigh deeply, getting up again like a coilspring, trying to see if her opponent or rather her teammate had regained his bearings a bit. Her chance to use Kurai's dizzyness to her own advantage had long passed, which made it all the more obvious that there was not much of an option left for her, but to devise a new strategy and that with her physique having already taken a sound toll from her earlier plan. "This is really a pain in the ass."

Touching the ball she had already placed firmly in the left pocket of her pants, Yomi tried to follow the rythm of the balls again, trying to see which ball was a heavy one and which one wasn't. Technically she couldn't afford taking too much of the heavy ones, but since Kurai had two of them in his karategiri already, she had to take care of the other two.

thud THUMP thud

There, she finally heard a heavy one again, but instead of aiming to kick against it, she hoped to catch it, though she felt the strain on her body of using the jutsu earlier. All she had to do was touch one of those balls, nothing more, if she could manage that, she could have her victory ensured completely without draining herself to much on chakra or physical endurance, but she had to keep in mind on what the chuunin was trying.

530/2332

chakra: 130/150

Kurai's advance faltered. With a single poke Akira had stifled him. Inside he was beaming with delight. He was truly happy he had such a powerful sensei. Akira's speed was too fast for him to follow. A voice rang out. It was Akira's. Announcing that the route of attacking him was not the best, and went on to encourage Yomi to take advantage. After the spell of dizziness passed from the single strike he endured from Akira, he would locate Yomi, who was apparently too busy dodging balls to take advantage. "My turn now." Already at his max of heavy balls, he activated his sharingan to increase his ability to snag the bouncy balls. His eyes were shrouded a bit by his hair.
 
Yomi had already captured one light ball (red)and she appeared to just have grabbed a heavy one too(?). Kurai currently had a red and yellow heavy ball. So taking one from Yomi was out of the question as she had a Red one and the other... he didn't see the color, but it was a heavy one... so it was either green or blue, but Kurai couldnt handle anymore from that set.
 
Kurai drew two senbon from underneath his gi and threw them at Yomi. Before he tossed them he noticed a blue light ball bouncing off to his right. Immediately after he lauched the senbon he chased it down, not waiting to see what happened to Yomi. It was moving fast so he had to act quickly. After he lauched the two senbon at Yomi's torso who was about 10 meters away, he used Flickering Shift while Yomi was distracted by the senbon. He used the jutsu to reach the light blue ball. With his sharingan he was able to just barely grab the ball and tuck it in his Gi. That's three. I just need the green ball now! 
 
A thud grew louder, and before Kurai knew it he was hit in the back by a heavy ball. Crashing into floors face first never made Kurai happy. He struggled to his feet. Scanning the entire dojo, his sharingan was definitely helping him in terms of reacting to everything. After a few seconds he saw the last two balls bouncing rapidly and erratically. By analyzing the sound they emitted he knew which was light and which was heavy.
 

180/200:

Training: 3157

Akira remained seated on the ceiling as he watched the two students separating out. They seemed to heavily prefer long range attacks over getting anywhere near each other. It was a valid set of tactics they were using. Keep your opponent occupied without losing sight of the target. The use of senbon was a wee bit dangerous but nothing he couldn't heal once it was done. Either way as it stood All but one heavy ball was out of play. Kurai had two with him and Yomi was holding one for the time being. Still that put the score at three to two. With Kurai having the advantage. Still it didn't slip Akira's notice the shift in Kurai's abilities. The slightest glimpse of his eyes revealed the cause. The Sharingan had been activated. Certainly a powerful tool to use in such a situation. It might be tough for Yomi to overcome the odds. After all she was a genin and he was a chunnin with a dojutsu. Still all it was doing for the moment was leveling his body out from the lack of blood to his brain a moment ago. The dizzy spell might have worn off but the effects of slowing ones reflexes was still running for another couple of seconds.

Akira stood up then while making sure to hold onto the balls on his person. His legs carrying him as he would pace across the ceiling. His yellow eyes watching them both. Observing their abilities and contemplating. Wondering who would shift in this battle and adjust tactics. With Kurai only missing the green ball Akira wondered if Yomi would be crafty enough to take both green balls out of play. Or vice versa if Kurai would remove the second ball of the colors she still needed from play as well. The test wasn't just to race for whoever could grab the prize faster. But to make your opponent come to you. This was a taijutsu squad after all. And with Kurai weighted down. It would be nearly an even match. However if either of them dropped the weighted balls, then the danger of the heavy balls would increase once more. So they had to decide, Risk engaging in hand to hand and steal your opponents prizes, which in turn would risk your own acquired balls. Or continue simply racing for who could finish a set first. He certainly hoped that they would begin to realize they could prevent each other from winning. Truth be told the only way to truly win was one of two scenarios. The first was to acquire only the light weight balls and play keep away. Kurai would have the best chance at that game. Unless she tricked him into remaining weighed down while only carrying light weight ones. The second way and the one he suspected was bound to happen was to disable the hostile threat. Which means eventually one of them would concede to the other.

of course there was the final option. These where just bouncy balls after all. Even chakra infused the structure of them was weak. A single hostile C rank could wipe out the ball. If one of them was sure they would lose. All they had to do was destroy two balls of the same color. But would the test be over then? Or would the balls in Akira's possession be put into play? That brought up the idea that the only thing left was to take on Akira or surrender in a draw. Kurai had already been instructed on that. But perhaps they thought together they stood a chance? Unlikely as it was still a contest. Even together they would be against each other. Which would not help when facing against Akira. He grinned in anticipation as he watched. Truly an interesting pair was before him. He was happy to be their teacher.

3956

Feeling the weight of the ball in her hand, Yomi's fingers slid across the object's surface. From her fingers connections of chakra were created and attached to the green weighted ball. She lifted her head to look at Kurai, showing her trademark sardonic smile again. Spreading her legs a bit, she just turned towards Kurai, when she could easily see that he was looking at her for once as well, which actually alarmed the young woman more than any physical act could've done.

As quick as she could, she tried to dodge the senbon, but her speed was quite lacking compared to that of Kurai and that of the senbon being thrown at her, resulting in the needles getting stuck in her right arm, with a thin trail of blood trickling from the puncture wounds. However, despite the pain, Yomi actually blushed from both excitement and exhilaration, even getting turned on by the pain as it gave her the best sensation she knew to exist: the sensation of feeling alive.

Tilting her head to the side for a moment, she stretched out her left arm, suddenly launching the weighted ball with the chakra strings attached to it at towards Kurai while following quickly behind it. She had not seen the red of the chuunin's eyes before he threw the senbon and at this point she wasn't really looking at his eyes either, but more at his movements, using the weighted ball as an obstructive yo-yo to occupie the chuunin's senses and make his movements more predictable for herself.

"If I can't get the balls," The young woman laughed rather frantically, launching and retrieving the weighted ball yet again. "I'll just have to break all of your bones to make you unfit to continue, dont'cha think, honey!?!

With a swift leap towards the cool guy, she lifted her right leg, aiming to drop it down with full force upon the chuunin's head with her heel. At the same time it should've been obvious why she wasn't using her right arm, because the senbon had pierced the tendons of her upper biceps, making it impossible for her to use her arm correctly without it hurting like hell.

378/2710

-C rank chakra strings:-15 chakra
-Chakra:115/150

Experimentation was over. Probing around with reckless strategies had come to an end. Brimming with fortune was the newly appointed Chuunin, having been graced with the time to commit such an error. All the credit could not be given to fate though; part of it had to be granted to his sensei, Akira. Placed before him was a task that he could not have concocted or anticipated on his most creative day. Kurai was highly creative, but it stemmed mostly from his knack for always having something that is applicable to the task at hand. On top of it all, his resourcefulness allows him to find such strategies that most would not have thought of, making him dangerous. This was not the case today. It was foolish for him to think that his wit could at some rare point in time not falter, but he was sadly surprised. Far from defeated though was the Uchiha. Despite his analytical engine getting off to a slow start, Kurai was still poking at every detail and every new development of the challenge. At some point, there will be something I can exploit… when that time comes, I will be ready.

 
Since Kurai had run off for the other bouncy ball right after his release of the senbon, he was unaware of their impact on Yomi. Did she dodge? Was she hit? He did not know, but he soon would. Happening all within seconds after launching the senbon was Kurai’s dash for the blue light-weight bouncy ball, leaving only the green one left for him to capture. After he was hit in the back by a heavy bouncy ball, which he now knew to be a blue heavy bouncy ball, he rose to his feet to see Yomi eyeing him with a cunning expression. Ah, my senbon hit their mark. I now have 4 advantages. 1) She’s injured. 2) She is no longer using her kicking strategy, so she is likely running low on stamina or endurance. 3) I have three balls to her two. 4) My reaction time, even though the strike by Akira sensei is still hampering me a bit, but I can feel it subsiding. The precedent was already set for Kurai making use of projectiles to aid him in this challenge with his launching of the senbon. However, he ruled out using his heavy balls since it would invite the possibility of him losing his advantage. Earlier, his opponent had no heavy balls, so capturing a heavy ball thrown by Kurai was likely. Making it bad choice for him. At this stage, Kurai was prepping a close range assault. His goal was to sneak in close behind a diversion, and then use his experience and physical capabilities to best his opponent. Being a taijutsu specialist, at the very least he would be looking at a draw in close quarters.



Just as Kurai was priming his chakra to initiate an illusion, he witnessed her palming the green heavy ball she had captured earlier. She’s going with my idea from earlier, she is going to throw it… knowing that I have reached my limit of heavy balls I can hold … she’s planning to take advantage. He gritted his teeth at the choice of his opponent. Initially Kurai had only one choice, use his speed and reaction time to avoid the heavy ball, which he did by skipping slightly to his left. To his surprise though, it was retrieved after she threw it, like a yo-yo, and she launched it at him repeatedly. Clever, but two can play that game. Being a student of Akira would prohibit him from simply copying Yomi’s tactic, even though copying is the trademark of the sharingan, he had a much more vicious combo in mind. Making use of short controlled movements to conserve energy, and prevent getting too far out of position with dodging, the heavy ball would just barely whiz by Kurai multiple times. Twice, his ribs were inches away from being caved in. Then, due to Kurai’s preoccupation, Yomi’s leap almost went unnoticed. She’s coming, here’s my chance. This was the moment Kurai had been waiting for, the moment where the fight would betray his opponent’s ambition and run to his strategy. Her right leg was raised to its peak, and she was aiming to bring it down on him. With just enough time to carry out his plan, Kurai proceeded. In the middle of Yomi’s leap towards Kurai was when he formed a single hand sign and laced his hands with katon chakra.

 

Yomi was well within range, so if she saw the flames engulfing his hands, she would slip into his Genjutsu. As Kurai’s entire body would appear to be engulfed by arching flames that would blind Yomi for the briefest of moments, Kurai would jump to his right, getting out of the way of Yomi’s strike. Timing was important. Catching Yomi in mid-air was essential. The Chuunin had to wait for a moment where Yomi was vulnerable to amplify the effects of his Genjutsu, and Yomi leaping into the air was perfect. As Kurai leaped away, Yomi would still be airborne and unable to see (If the Genjutsu was successful). In that moment where Kurai leaped away, he would launch his red heavy ball at the ribs of the airborne and highly vulnerable Yomi. Many found that going for the opponent’s legs was the best way to immobilize them or greatly hinder their movement, but Kurai found the mid-section more effective. Just like Yomi, he would make use of the yo-yo effect and attach a chakra string to his mini red cannon ball. This was the part of the plan that made use of his opponent’s earlier tactic. However, Kurai’s version was significantly more lethal due to the attempt at incorporating a powerful diversion.



If Kurai’s plan was a success, he predicted to have ample time to track down the green light-weight bouncy ball, completing his set and winning the challenge.

　

145/200:

Training: 4179

Still in her state of exhilaration, Yomi rushed towards Kurai, jumping in the air to drop her leg upon his head, but when she noticed his hands being envelopped in baton, she was quite surprised. Not knowing his intentions, she proceeded with her leap, her foot nearing the young man's head, when suddenly the flames on his hands turned into a blindingly blazing inferno, which forced her to cover her eyes with her only usable arm and missing the target all together, even losing the control over her ball.

Not prepared on what happened next, the young woman's vision only bettered to late for her to escape from the incoming heavy red ball, which litterally plowed and burried itself against her ribcage, giving the sound of a solid 'crack' through the entire dojo, while she was proppelled backwards and smacked with her back on the ground, coughing up droplets of blood due to the strain the ball had caused on her ribcage, nearly shattering two ribs in the process and adding a painful back to it.

"Gah, Genjutsu…right?" Yomi sighed, laying on the ground and realizing she couldn't get up. Her right arm didn't work, her back and chest hurt like hell and all the while there were still balls bouncing around like crazy. Luckily for her, she had landed near the edge of the dojo, which made it harder for the balls to reach her due to the walls most of the time bouncing them off and warding her from any additional injuries. "That was…disgusting…ouch. Eh I can't get up, so I guess this is my loss. Pfft Genjutsu…there's no fun in that."

Wheezing like a baloon losing air, Yomi started grumbling and mumbling on about how filthy that trick was, completely unworthy of a true taijutsu master. Despite laying there on the ground, she didn't acknowledge Kurai's skill, as she had yet to see anything else besides what she called 'cheap' tricks.

336/2668

It could not be helped he supposed. Genjutsu was a dangerous specialty in capable hands. For Kurai, he liked to only use Genjutsu sparingly. "You should be proud Yomi, I don't use that particular Genjutsu often. With your earlier strategy of weighing me down and then using your single heavy ball as a weapon, I had no choice." Kurai gave Yomi a bow. Just from this challenge he saw a lot of potential in her. With his opponent unable to continue, he looked to Akira sensei. The ruckus of the balls bouncing all over the place was now more distracting than before since the heat of battle as waned... for now. He expected Akira to tend to Yomi at this point; she appeared to be having a frightful time trying to get her bearings. This challenge was tough... this Yomi, she's good, I definitely need challenge her again to get a little more insight on how she thinks and fights. Kurai was looking forward to working with her more.

Despite being victorious, he expected little to no praise from his sensei. Kurai was a Chuunin now. Even though he wasn't that far ahead of the current Gennin pool physically or jutsu wise, his experience was. The missions he had accomplished and the many fights he had been in gave Kurai a distinct advantage. The challenge, be it unorthodox, I still was favored. Even though I won, I still need to improve a lot more. Kurai was less than satisfied with his performance. After all, he was forced to use his most powerful Genjutsu against a Genin. Also, for the most part, Yomi had Kurai running around. First with her launching heavy balls at him from the beginning, a strategy he could not employ himself due to his poor strength and endurance. Secondly, Kurai had no real counter to her strategy. Lastly, he made the huge error of thinking there to be any favorable outcome in taking on the TSUCHIKAGE. Next time, if I can't come up with a strategy, it will be best if I just stall instead of choosing the worst possible move.

Yes, Kurai had entered a favorite, but throughout the course of the challenge he was trailing. In summary, he got lucky. Now that the challenge was over, he would await his sensei's orders. Would they be dismissed and have another training extravaganza to look forward to... or was today's challenge only beginning?


Training: 4590


Trained Speed from D-0 to C-0: 1700 words
Trained Reaction time from D-0 to C-0: 1700 words

Training (remaining): 1190

Akira finally stopped pacing as Kurai's blows landed. He could hear the crack of the ribs and see the sudden look of pain on her face. So the genjutsu had served its purpose for covering his movements for a split second while he landed a blow. But not just any blow. One of the heavy balls to the ribs could cause serious damage. He watched her tumble to the ground as he figured the match was likely over. The two of them were not yet on a level where they could ignore such wounds. Or at least not motivated enough yet. He watched her bounce as she hit the ground before coughing up blood. Well that was to be some what expected. In terms of Skill Kurai was slightly ahead of her. Perhaps even to a point that she could yet reach him. Though she was aggressive enough to keep him on his toes. She would prove more then valuable as a contender against Kurai. She was just behind on training was all. Had this been a straight up match her aggressive fighting style might have pushed Kurai into making mistakes. If she had just been a little bit less up front about it. But in a way she was too honest for underhanded tactics. Still he would try to teach her how to feint eventually.

Still it only appeared as if Kurai was being pushed back for the match. With that Sharingan active it was unlikely she could of hit him. Not with her having just started out. And he had proved that difference in physical ability a couple of times. The first time when he negated her jutsu use of throwing balls at him simply by using his Karategi. The second was how fluid his movements were when dodging her flail attack. However Akira was slightly disappointed. After all with that difference of skill the use of Genjutsu was simply insurance in landing a hit. A waste of energy had she simply prepared an escape jutsu prior to the encounter. Instead Akira would of preferred the boy preserved his chakra and went for the set up he had already managed with the senbon. It was obvious she was already wounded enough to have lose at least some of the use of her arm. While she was mid air had he simply targeted the side with that injured arm she would have very little choices for blocking. And even less chances for escaping mid air. Aside from that countering her kick was also an option. Had he used that weighted ball on her ankle instead the impact may have done enough damage to keep her from walking on that leg. Ensuring his victory regardless.

Still Akira seemed to disappear for a moment from where he was standing on the ceiling. In that moment he collected all the remaining balls into his hands. Stopping all the bouncing. Pulling the ones out of his Karategi he walked past Kurai. The chakra that had been making the balls bounce was obviously gone now. Had it been set to end by then? Or had Akira been feeding it chakra some how? Either way he walked over to Kurai and smiled. Before holding out the balls for Kurai to hold onto and then dropping all of them. Forgetting how much some of them weighed. "Hold these a moment." And then he turned to walk over to Yomi. Kneeling down next to her. He ran his fingers tenderly along her ribs and then around the senbon before whistling aloud. He then spoke with an amused tone. "You sure did a number on her Kurai. Picking on your genin squad mates, For shame young man. Still that is the second time you have won against an opponent with Genjutsu when you could of won without it. By the looks of it this arm you hit is useless. With her up against a chunnin and one arm down, you should of been able to pull this off with just your bare hands. Not to say you didn't do well. For a genin she is stunningly aggressive aren't you Yomi? But you need to learn to plan instead of just attack. Had you prepared an escape jutsu before hand then you could of evaded that attack. Even positioned yourself to his blind spot before attacking him from behind. After all he already took a blow to the back. Another one might of crushed his spinal column. Regardless the match goes to him. Here let me take care of these though"

Without any level of ceremony he tugged out the senbon. He knew it would hurt but only for a moment. Even as he pulled the last Senbon out however green chakra began to swirl around him. The swirl growing in intensity until it began to pass through him. His whole body began to glow green. Then with his fingers touching her arm the chakra began to swirl downward, passing in an out of his arm before moving through his fingers into her. Passing into her and then disappearing. And then after a seconds delay she began to glow green as well. The chakra swirling around them before suddenly her wounds began to close. The damage from the Senbon gone in under a second. The damage done to the ribs fading as the ribs reformed and became whole again. And then it was over. Akira stood and took a few steps back before addressing them both.

"Alright then. The match is officially over. As is the lesson. Bow to each other and show respect. This has proven to me your both ready for technique training. However we will rest for a couple of days first. Let your body recover naturally Kurai and both of you reflect on what you learned from this match. Kurai since you won you get to go to a five star restaurant in the area and send the bill to me. You make take one guest with you. Yomi, Since you lost you are to scrub down the floors of the dojo before you leave and put away the balls. Other then that you are both dismissed to do as you wish."

4996
Endurance B ~> B-1
Perception C-3 ~> A

Remaining word count 71

Yomi groaned and grunted, out of pain, anger and most importantly disappointment. Her strategies had backfired, her plan had crumbled and now she was the one lying down on the ground like some helpless puppy left to her own devices in a sense. For a moment, she was surprised though when Akira started sliding his fingers gently across her ribs, looking for the fractures and bruises, while assessing her physical condition at the moment, while also lecturing Kurai for his quite brutal kickback at the young Yamada woman, but also reprimanding him for using genjutsu, which instantly prompted Yomi to give a glare at the young man with the white hair. After his lecture against Kurai, his words were directed at the young woman he was healing, which made Yomi's eyes quickly turn towards her new sensei.

"Meh," She sighed, though only with a ragged breath, feeling the still stinging pain of the ribs, which are starting to heal themselves. "I was taken by surprise, who wouldn't shield their eyes when seeing such a blaze. I know it's part of strategy to know your opponent, but this was the first time we've meet, so I couldn't base any strategies on his capabilities."

It was a more than plausible excuse. When there was no intel, it was common to use your own advantages, but in this case, she had obviously drawn the short straw and been dealt the worst hand, as her opponent wasn't only faster and stronger, but also more experienced and sadly in the possession of a skill she had not yet encountered before.

When Akira pulled out the senbon, Yomi didn't even react, except for perhaps on a way the Tsuchikage wouldn't have expected, as she let out a rather exciting moan when the senbon were pulled out of her skin and muscle, her eyes having a slightly feverish glow in them. As the sensei started using his chakra to heal everything, the young Yamada woman only let out a deep sigh, trying to get up properly when he was all done. Sadly for her, when the Tsuchikage gave them his final words and orders, Yomi heard her new task and let her shoulders hang slightly.

"Ah well, could've been worse," She sighed, while getting the mop and bucket to start mopping down the floors of the dojo, though giving a glare at Kurai and Akira, determined to win the next task her unconventional squadleader would concoct for the next squad meeting. "Oh for…this'll take some time."

430/3098

training:

Kurai had predicted his sensei's words. It was true, he was all other the place in this fight. He had sifted through at least 3 different strategies. Seconding what his sensei had said, he needed to bunker down and stick with one. Akira had tended to the reluctant and slightly annoyed Yomi. She was feeling all better, for now anyway. She would have to scrub down the floors of the dojo. Insult to injury. I'm almost tempted to stay with her... but that would be undermining my teacher... Kurai bowed to both his teammate and sensei, and exited.

Kurai was exited about his prize of eating all he could at a fine dining establishment. The replenishment was much needed. Despite a sub par performance he was happy still. He felt he was starting to come into his own as a shinobi. With his sensei sharing his wisdom, his knowledge was expanding. Also due to his sensei, he was physically becoming a more capable Chuunin. Kurai was eager to continue his progress with this squad. 


Training: 1366

Exit thread. I shall inform you both once my jutsu are approved and we will begin technique training.