With the bodies of literally hundreds of bandits scattered across the place, the riverbank of the Nara river was no more than the site of a massacre and a wholehearted slaughter. It could no longer boast about its tremendously natural view or its clean appearance, for the entire area was now dyed in shades of red, brown and black, with liquids of disputable and despicable origin soaking into the sand and grass of the plains. Though weeks had passed and the carrion birds had already feasted upon the rotting and bloating corpses of those unfortunate bandits, it still remained a horrific site and a terrible sight.

Despite everything, this place attracted the young female ANBU captain going by the codename Lamya, as she wandered through the place, trying to figure out what had lead to this place being swarmed over with bandits and why this went unnoticed to Konoha and Hi no Kuni authorities. Since this wasn’t the Black ANBU’s doing, she deducted that this had to be the work of something or someone else and there was where the questions laying: who or what would be able to amass such a large group of bandits unnoticed?

No matter how she looked at the sight splayed out around her, the young woman did remember a single thing from the moment she had been taking part in the massacre; the fact that she knew at least one of the two others who participated in this gruesome occurrence: Yuru Ren, the kid who she had once believed to be an innocent child and who had beaten her and Chisaki so bad at the water dome spectacle in Taki no sato. Yet again this kid had shown how devious and diabolical he could be when holding a weapon in his tiny hands, but unlike before, Lamya was certain that she would be more than just a match for the kid.

This time she was confident about herself, for she had gained a new level of strength, learned a whole new arsenal of jutsu and techniques and could easily count herself among Konoha’s most elite shinobi, destined to reach the level of tannin or even greater. She knew however that Yuzu Ren originated from Kirigakure and thus had a lot of potential, but also a most likely clouded and rather bloody background. Their Mizukage known as a once in a lifetime genius, their seven swordsmen feared throughout the shinobi world and all that despite the fact that Kirigakure had been nearly wiped off the face of the earth two times already by outside influences.

Even now, the tales and rumors on Kirigakure’s shinobi spread across the land, tales of bloodthirsty and brutality and the rumor about the demon kid was one of them, a name Lamya instinctively acquitted to Yuzu Ren, for she had seen his ferocious nature first hand.

“Poor thing, rotting away in this decaying world,” The young woman whispered through her mask, which made her voice sound as eerie as the cackling howl of a wolf on a moonlit night. “Bringing forth such destruction and devastation, yet seemingly without a goal of your own. Oh I pity you demon kid of Kirigakure, for you have no idea how evil and how dark this world truly is and can be.”

She sighed, bending through her knees a bit, while caressing the naked skull of one of the many corpses, thinking about the words she had just uttered and glad that those words held a meaning, for she was certain that that so-called demon kid had not yet experienced the full scope, the true magnitude of the powers that played dormant in their disturbed and twisted shinobi world.

620/620

The sound of a little boy's feet impatiently hitting against the bottom of a bench as they swayed back and forth. He had waited so long for this day when he heard that Sousetsu might finally have time to meet with his challenge as he nervously waited, like a little boy excited to be going somewhere for the first time. In the end his hopes and dreams to challenge himself in order to become the strongest there is was dashed by the reply of an old lady who simply gave him the usual reply.

"I am sorry, but Hokage-sama is too busy with important village duties to play with you right now."

He pouted as usual as he told her time and again it was a duel not a play date. Why was everyone in this village trying to make a fool out of him, just because he was small and young. His view of the world changed with the time he had spent in Konoha, having him interact with a village which was far more lively then the bloody cold village he had originally come from. He looked very sad and the woman knew well enough that it was not a play date but, she was bored and tired as well as sick of having to sit in the admin building since in Konoha missions were done far more often it seems. In what other village is catching someone's cat repeatedly going to be productive other than them getting money for repeatedly catching the cat of this lady who simply does not know the cat hates being smothered.

The woman sighed and finally thought of something, but she did not want to cause any trouble so she told him what she knew which was not much. "If you looking for someone strong, you could try finding the ANBU Captain... who is really strong, but I have no idea where the captain is right now but just search around the wilderness, it is way better then you sitting waiting here another week for Hokage-sama to no longer be busy." The woman seemed to grin, but she was genuinely smiling feeling she did something good, not realising that if they get into a fight it might cause some serious damage to the surroundings but she did not care she was just tired of leaving him to suffer endlessly waiting for a Kage who is always too busy with paperwork. The previous Hokage Mitsuhide must have ran away from all the paperwork since there always seemed to be too much of it now.

The small boy thought about it for a while, the ANBU Captain is out there somewhere and should be a worthy opponent. How would he find the ANBU Captain though and where on earth should he start looking as he tried to figure it out for himself. He decided he would search around and look for the ANBU, he had to find the captain as this was a test in and of itself. He could finally face someone on an equal footing with him as he went home first before packing for the journey ahead.

He stood in his room as he looked in the mirror before pulling the cloak from his cupboard. The cloak he had been given by the former Shiru Kamikira, who had looked out for him during the Seven Bells War and died. He began to adjust his cloak and realised he never bothered to resize it but it did not matter. He just folded it a bit and he wore it like a robe as it hung around you could not see his hands even when he lifted up his arms so he pulled his arms out of the sleeves and wore it loosely. The hood somewhat hid his face as he walked out into the world in search of his opponent.

Several days had since passed when he noticed something strange within the region of the Naka river. Down at the river bank was a member of the ANBU, she appeared to be a girl with her body which reminded him of how someone once discovered he was in fact a boy straight away which was nice. He was tired of being mistaken for a girl all of the time, as he moved closer waving to show he was not planning to attack as he then would stop once he was within twenty meters of her as he then spoke.

"Hi, I know this may sound stupid, but could you help me to find your Captain, I really need to train and he would be a great sparring partner." He assumed the Captain to be male since Konoha unlike Kirigakure seemed to have the men as the strongest in their village. Then again when the two strongest females in the world happen to be from your very own village it is hard to see males ever taking a leading role again. He tried to be polite and with his swords on his back and some of his gear with him he was hoping to get help, then find the captain and then beat the captain then he was not sure of what would happen next, but he was confident that the only truly strong people were the Kage's and the Seven Swords. He had underestimated the ANBU mainly due to the current captain in Kirigakure not even being of Jounin level strength. Not to mention he was bald and liked using acid which was annoying, he had no other information on that bald guy though since he hardly found him.

It was time and it seemed strange, but this ANBU member seemed familiar somehow. He just could not put his finger on it at the time.

Words = 968

With quite some shock, the young woman turned around when she heard footsteps nearby, while Uraeus, her white snake had not yet arrived to the point she had given him. However, as she turned to see who it was that approached her, the golden eyes behind her ANBU mask widened considerably, a hiss leaving her lips, giving off a cold and distorted sound thanks to the mask's voice-altering properties.  With a nod of her head, she quickly calmed down.

This kid, this blond boy with his typical feminine attributes, was none other than the Demon kid of Kirigakure, the youngest of the seven swordsmen ever since Hozuki Mangetsu and word had it that he might've been equal in potential to that old legend of the past. Not only that, this was the kid who had beaten her and Senju Chisaki before, despite the fact that she had not even displayed her own full force back then, it was obvious that he wasn't even trying his best to beat her and the Hokage's confidant.

"I am the captain, Yuzu Ren," Risu sighed, pointing at the fact that she must've been the strangest ANBU he had ever seen, given the fact she wasn't wearing the typical grey ANBU armor, but a notably stronger, more elegant black variant, which even featured a few rather weird things like the silver from the right shoulderpad to her collar. "I dont really know why you would be looking for me, but it can't be because of my uncle or because of the slaughter you've been part of in this particular place, isn't it...Demon Kid."

With a chuckle, the ANBU captain bend through her legs a bit, when she could feel the slithering cold from her pet's hide, when he had seemingly arrived to coil around her waste and lay his head upon her shoulder, with his beady red eyes looking straight towards the blonde kid.

"Don't worry, Uraeus," The young woman seemingly seemed to try to calm down the immensely large snake, patting its head in the process. "This kid was asking me something about sparring, right?"

A rather sinister laugh came out of the mask, accompanied by a hiss from the snake. Despite the fact that she remembered how strong and agile this kid was before, not to mention he must've grown quite a bit, the young woman was fairly sure that she would more or less be a match for him now.

"Before you even think about lifting a single finger," Lamya said, raising her hand as a sign for him to wait just a moment. "Do tell me...Demon Kid of Kirigakure, what do you think would happen if you were to wound me if we sparred?"

468/1088

He watched as she turned to face him better, he stood before her as the woman seemed to hiss at him. He thought maybe he was hearing things as he was misjudging his own perception since he was currently somewhat relaxed. He heard her say that she was the captain as he kept looking at her, he was shocked and surprised but at the same time somewhat confused as he was expecting it to be another ANBU member, not to mention some occasions when he found one and they just ran away. Though maybe they were just ignoring him or did not notice him or maybe they were scared.

He kept looking and was not too surprised for she knew his name, but she had a strange set of ANBU armor, but perhaps his oversized cloak would be equally strange. She knew about the slaughter and he began to wonder as he had not taken careful note last time as he looked towards her.

He looked at her bend over before he could reply as he watched a strangely familiar snake as it coiled around her and she called it Uraeus. He began to think back as the name sounded familiar, it was then that he pointed at the snake. "Uranus!! what you doing here? is Risu okay?" having remembered the snake finally from the time it had bothered him during his sleepover long ago, not to mention his mispronouncing of the snakes name which was mostly due to him not hearing it clearly cause he was sleepy. He was thinking of Risu and how she took him into her home even though he was a stranger from Kirigakure. This was cut short once again by an interruption from the Captain who seemed to be borrowing Risu's pet snake Uraeus.

She told him to think before lifting one of his fingers and he began to wonder why he would bother lifting his fingers when he would rather just raise his hands, his literal interpretations having not grown out of him yet. She asked what he thinks would happen if he wounded her in a spar and he just gave a straight forward answer.

"I will carry you to the hospital so you can get better soon, not like i want to kill you or anything", his answer was honest, but his attitude seemed a bit troublesome as if he was annoyed by something. He had been growing in a sense from being completely innocent and cold to being stubborn innocent and confused with only one thing on his mind, his mom and becoming stronger. He was a shinobi who was actually for the most part an honest shinobi who just happened to be brutal on the battlefield.

Words = 968 + 461 = 1429

The young woman sighed deeply when it seemed that the young man did not only not recognised her, but started to annoy her with his innocent act. She had seen through it already, seen his true nature, that of a beast that does not stop until its prey is either dead or gone entirely. A ferocious monster in the form of a mere child, it was quite horrific, but for Risu it was nothing more than the daily life she had from start. There was no mistaking it, this little kid would get in the way of her plans, her carefully constructed future.

"Such a shame you take me this lightly, Yuzu Ren or should I call you the demon kid of Kirigakure?" The Orochi lady sighed, while lifting her mask just a bit, so he could see her mouth and hear her own voice, before she put the mask back completely covering her face again. Her golden eyes shimmered menacingly from beyond the mask, eyeing the young man, while she took a few steps around him. "You have beaten me before, but I can assure you, what I was then is nowhere near what I am now. Sad to say, but I can't have you Kirigakure shinobi lurking around Konoha any longer. You all are getting in the way of my plans...you are an obstruction to my plans and all obstacles must be eliminated."

Giving a slight pat on her snake's head, the animal quickly knew what she wanted, as the snake descended back to the ground, sprawling himself in front of her feet, its eyes locked on Yuzu as it waited for the action to ensue.

"I'l ask you right here, right now boy," The ANBU captain spoke on a rather intimidating tone, with her hands sliding across the sides of her armor towards the two hidden pockets on her back, which held her two sacred scalpels, the heritage of her clan. "What is your goal here, why did you engage against these bandits, why do you continue to invade my area of juridiction, why do you still act so innocent...you little monster of Kirigakure?"

For a mere moment, the young woman’s fingers twitched, holding her back from grabbing the scalpels, deciding that she did not yet need them. To defeat this kid, she would just need to win with honor and not by giving him the worst pain he could ever imagine, she would not resort to such matters…yet.

Yuzu Ren, despite his reputation, despite his name and background, had been so friendly with her, while she was seen as a monster by most of her peers. With those memories in mind, the young woman took a deep breath and crossed her arms calmly, shaking her head a bit to remain focused on this challenge which was presented to her.

"No matter how I look at it, this is probably what was meant to be from the very moment our paths crossed a few months ago,", Risu sighed, her tone having softened up a lot compared to the moments before. "There is only one thing more thing I need to have answered. The attack on the Hokage, the one armed woman...do you have anything to do with it or is it as I thought it would be, another of my uncle's schemes?"

564/1652

When she answered him with a reference to him being a demon kid, all the memories of the past that he wanted to escape but could never escape as memories of the things he had done. Flooded with emotion hidden from plain sight as he had seen part of her face and heard her voice. Everything seemed to rush into his head as he began to piece the puzzle together as he thought of it for a moment which to him would seem like an eternity. He remembered it as a haze since the warm steamy heat from the hot springs were not too distant a memory with him using the hot springs for regular training due to the water and the steam reminding him of the mist within the hidden mist.

A beautiful white girl who seemed to run off as he had followed her as the first words he remembered her saying were, "you're not a girl, right?". Her words leading him to learn a little bit more about anatomy, but not quite that much since he was more interested in swords then how he looked. As fragments of his memories played in time with them first introducing themselves.

At the time he looked into her eyes, putting the palm of his small hand on his chest as he introduced himself in the simplest way he knew how. "I am Yuzu" As he stood before this beautiful girl she replied in kind with a less straight forward answer of, "You could call me Risu". As if two children meeting for the first time, though it was clear that Risu was not just older but more mature, having an aura of an older sister for him to look up to. Something he did not understand at the time, as many things happened including her dressing him up in a yukata and having a girls night so to speak in the form of a sleepover.

His memories faded as she had been circling him somewhat with a menacing look from her golden eyes as he looked back at her with his blue eyes which were really pale right now. She said that he had beaten her before as he could not understand it, he would never dream of fighting Risu since she was just a nice normal rich girl with her own mansion. She called him an obstacle that had to be eliminated as he looked down as he felt like this was strange and that none of it made any sense at the time. She petted her snake who burrowed beneath the ground as he looked down he still kept her within range of being seen as his focus was really good.

She then asked the boy questions that were far easier to understand that what she had asked earlier. She asked many questions and if she paid attention she would here his answers inbetween as she asked him.

The first question was his goal and he answered her straight forward with, "To find Mitsuhide-sensei and become strong". The second question was why he engaged the bandits and he answered, "They keep attacking me every day when I first came here, they never stop and I could not let them think I am just some little kid they can pick on." She asked him why he invaded her territory and he answered her simply with, "This is my space and you invading it." getting somewhat cheeky, his attitude a sign that he matured in an immature way. The final question was why he was acting so innocent for someone who was such a monster when he finally gave her this answer, "I was never innocent, even if my mom thinks I am"

She seemed to be anxious, her hands seemed to be ready to attack with something from behind her or maybe that was just how she liked to stand. He watched her change her mood and fold her arms as she declared in a strange way that this was their destiny. She finally asked if he knew anything about the person who attacked the Hokage as he looked to her with a serious look as she asked something about his family as he gripped his hilt of his sword as he answered her.

"If I said I know nothing, I would be lying... I can tell you that if she was serious Sou would have died", he then gave her a strange look of confusion and disbelief before blinking. "Risu-ne, you were the masked lady at the Water Dome?", the whole premise finally sinking in that they had indeed fought before. If he had put more thought into it he may have realised that she just through away her advantage as knowing its her from the water dome he now had an idea of what kinds of jutsu to expect. He felt this was unfair, but he was not sure what to do other than await her answer as he waited for her to speak, fight or remain silent. Not that it mettered since no matter what they were going to fight one on one for the first time.

Words = 1429 + 864 = 2293

"If I said I know nothing, I would be lying... I can tell you that if she was serious Sou would have died"

That single sentence, it was certain now, this young kid, this seemingly innocent, yet highly dangerous kid knew what she was talking about. Not only that, it seemed he knew the perpetrator behind the attack on the Hokage rather personally, to be able to know wether or not the attacker was serious or not. In the few seconds that Lamya had remained silent, her eyes were closed, but then she suddenly seemed to come back to the full extend of her senses, something to which the snake nearby seemed to react, as he violently hissed and lifted half its body from the ground in a rather intimidating pose.

"Yes, yes I was the masked woman, the ANBU who had gotten herself in such a careless situation was me, indeed," The female ANBU captain started chuckling, tilting her head a bit upwards, while her golden, snakelike eyes glared towards Yuzu with an almost murderous and freezing cold sensation within their glimmer. "However, now there is nothing to hold me back, nothing to keep me in line. You will realize the error of your ways very soon, you little brat"

Just as she said that, the young woman's hands went down towards the two pouches at either side of her waist, opening them quicker than even a sharingan could see, taking out two kunai with each hand. It was now certain that the ANBU captain was ready and unlike Yuzu apparently, Lamya was absolutely serious.

"Prepare yourself," She hissed calmly, bending slightly through her legs, while crossing her arms in front of her face. "Because here I come!!"

In a mere instant, the young woman launched herself towards the blonde kid, rushing towards him with a speed almost equal to the village's Hokage, which effectively made her one of Konoha's fastest and thus most dangerous shinobi. When she reached the mark of five meters distance, Lamya threw two of the kunai straight towards Yuzu's abdomen, while breaking off towards the left, trying to circle the kid, while throwing the two other kunai when she was about a quarter further in her circle around Yuzu, throwing the remaining two kunai to his left thigh, aiming to incapacitate him as quickly as possible.

"I'll get the truth out of you," The young woman chuckled eerily from behind her mask, her eyes not missing anything. "When we're done, you will wish you never crossed my path."

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stats+jutsu+chakra:

He watched as she seemed to be deep in thought closing her eyes as he stood there wondering if she was going to ask anymore questions or if they were going to fight. He did not want to hurt her too badly as well as wanting to have some time to prepare so that he could go and visit his mother in Kiri before she leaves for family business. He felt she might need him soon and he did not have all the time in the world to play with a bunch of leafies, who seemed to relaxed for a nation that is suppose to be one of the strongest, it seems Konoha went from being a land of powerful quality shinobi to being a land of numbers over value. This terminology did not even make much sense since he was not really that good at the math, though in battle his mind and experience normally filled in the gaps for him. He was still fidgeting with his cloak a bit and adjusting his gear so that it would not bother him much, she might not have cared much for the swords on his back, but he did have swords beneath the cloak too. He was a bid burdened since having all this gear on him was somewhat of a hindrance to him. Though not really as he kept observing her she finally opened her eyes as he watched Uraeus get all high and mighty showing off some form of intimidation as he thought to himself.

Is she coming or not, and was she or was she not the girl and as he was thinking of that she answered him. She gave a really awkward laugh as he began to wonder if Risu had started to lose her mind being in this peaceful place so long. She began to glare down at him as if her laugh was more sinister then playful as she started talking about how nothing would hold her back this time. Did she really think she could beat him, even if she was holding back he could not imagine her being that strong since he still had an image of her being this nice older sister with the weird retarded snake butler pet thing. His mind was a bit confused as to what she was really thinking right now as she called him a brat as if he insulted her somehow. When did she get this cold he wondered as she seemed more like the girls back in Kirigakure now.  

He watched as she reached for her two pouches, her speed was impressive and he felt a bit impressed that it was not that easy to see the movements since he once had the best eyes in Kirigakure, before the Mizukage went and did some secret training as he heard rumors of her rising to even higher heights then before. She told him to prepare himself as she bent her legs to change her stance as he kept his standing stance, since if she did bend them she would just drop down to his level so no point in him doing the same thing. She dashed which would have surprised him more if he did not see how fast she was at reaching for her weapons as she did bend her legs to probably sling shot herself towards him.

She finally came within five meters of him as she threw the two kunai straight towards him, if he had not had his cloak covering him in the front at the time he might have had to dodge that as they bounced of his cloak, and he kept his eyes on her as she broke away to circle around him like a shark as she through the other two kunai at his thigh as he lifted his cloak on the left side revealing his sword Tsukiyo as he knocked away the two kunai as he held the sword extended to the side with a serious look on his face his legs spread out a bit since he used them to  add more weight to his swing. He did not need to be serious to be focused which was one of the reasons he was dangerous, and his previous weakness of rushing head first into fights had long been beaten out of him by his previous sensei's.

She spoke on and on as he gave her a quick witted reply. "Don't get cocky just because you as fast as me now." His right arm was hidden behind his back as his stance seemed to become more upright as he brought his legs closer together before tossing one kunai at her face not aiming to hit her but aiming to send a message as it was aimed slightly to the side of her cheek. This was a test to see if she was paying attention or just blindly attacking him. He had developed a bit of an attitude since the last time she saw him and while his win over her made him cocky, he had recently been humbled by a genin not too long ago which showed him needed to do more then just a bunch of flashy jutsu to win a real fight.

Were they going to keep playing games or were they going to check eachother out for openings. The distance between them was short and he could have probably won the fight already if he chose to attack her at this point. However he did not want to win simply because she was underestimating his range or the fact that she was in his best fighting range. Also at this distance there were few jutsus that could defend at this range let alone being fast enough to dodge this close. If the kunai was dodged he would feel disappointed and if she knew it would miss he would fight her seriously.

"Stop treating me like a child and take me seriously, Risu-ne"



Words = 2293 + 1000 = 3293

Stats and Chakra:

Seeing as the kunai proved to be nearly completely useless, bouncing off of the kid's cloak as they were, The ANBU captain's unseen eyebrows arched up a bit in surprise, silently commenting on the young kirigakure shinobi's gear. Surely a cloak with such defensive capabilities had to cost a small fortune, probably an almost equal amount as a regular ANBU armor would cost for a normal person. She had stopped her movement an instant when she had thrown the last two kunai, which were subsequentially tossed aside with ease by the swing of a sword, with the kid surprising her again with his quite spectacular gear.

With a quick jerk, the young woman halted her movement entirely when a kunai missed her face only narrowly, which did catch her by surprise and raised a few questions: was this kid seriously aiming at her or was he purposely missing? If it was the first, he was a lousy shot, if it was the latter of the two questions, he had quite the gal to pull off something like that. Issueing a warningshot like that was normally reserved for those who had the law by their side and in this case, it was Risu or better yet, Lamya who had that privilege.

"Heh, nice one," Lamya hissed softly, while jumping a few meters backwards, slightly enlarging the distance between them from five to seven meters. "Let's see you do that again."

Lifting her left arm upwards, while making a single seal with her right arm, a dense mist came from the nearby river, covering an entire field of ten meters radius around the young woman to oscure her from prying eyes and also covering her next moves, for she was ready to start with a first try to take down the Kirigakure shinobi, which incidentally included using jutsu nobody knew better than those of Kirigakure, the Hidden Mist technique, known from the original Silent Killing techniques.

Making a few handseals, Lamya got some of the mist to form two whip-like appendages envelloping her arms and grew them to a length of ten meters, making a full 360° turn on her location, throwing the whips through the mist, effectively cutting through it, with the aim to give the little kid a small taste of pain. When she had made this turn, the young woman used one of the more sophisticated jutsu from her arsenal, tracking down Yuzu's exact location with her ANBU sensory jutsu to show him what the difference was between the two of them.

With a second swing of her arms, she tried to simultaniously drop the two whiplike appendages down onto the location she had perceived the Kirigakure shinobi to be. "Try to avoid getting hit by this."

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jutsu+chakra:

She complimented him as he lowered his sword down to his side and planted it into the ground. She jumped a few meters back and hissed for some reason. She must have been spending too much time with Uraeus when she asked him to do it again. He was not sure, but he had the strange feeling she was testing him, however he would never expect her to do what she had chosen to do now.

She performed a stance he knew all too well as she performed his signature technique, the hidden mist jutsu was not only his village's signature skill but one of the first jutsu he had ever learned and was the first ninjutsu he had completely mastered. Even if this was a test, this was going a bit too far. Using a jutsu that most Kirigakure shinobi learn at academy level is not only an insult, but she was looking down on him even more than he expected.

He thought in his head as he looked towards her direction seeing some feint sign of an attack. None of that would matter since she clearly was not prepared to take him seriously unless he showed her a portion of his true power. He just spat out some water as the jutsu began bursting with a force unlike the jutsu he had used before. The entire area would be enveloped by water including water from the river as what ever she was doing would be engulfed by the large body of water that had released itself in nearly an instant aiming to engulf their battlefield including the mist beneath a deep lake of water.

During this time he would not hear what she said clearly, but if he paid attention he would have probably get even more upset as the battle field would no longer be a river and land, but a lake in which two of the strongest shinobi in the world would not have a duel. The question though would be if she could see this coming and how she would deal with this godly technique. "Bakusui Shoha"

Words = 3293 + 353 = 3646

Jutsu + Chakra:

Something was happening, she knew it, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Her own mist was slightly getting in her way and her sensory jutsu didn't exactly relay what it was that the blonde kid was doing. However, it seemed everything was still in her favor, her attack would connect, she was sure of it, not that it would do much damage against someone wearing a cloak strong enough to make kunai bounce off like if they were made out of rubber. It was then that her sensory jutsu finally seemed to kick in, relaying a certain sound which she did not exactly find normal, a deep breathing in and a loud exhale.

With a slight panic, Lamya dispelled her jutsu, turning her head towards Uraeus, the look in her eyes already alarming him to rush towards her, as she needed him to at least get within a three meter range of her, which wouldn't be that hard, but still...her guts, her senses and the icy silence in the passing seconds gave way to a suspicion that what would come, was no joke at all. With a quick arrangement of handseals, Lamya threw her hands at the ground, yelling out the name of the jutsu she was using: "Hardening mud snake jutsu!!" with two massive snakes made out of mud rising up from the ground and two seperate locations, one coiling around herself and the other around Uraeus and as they instantly hardened, the thundering and roaring noise of violently crashing water overwhelmed the battlefield.

She used her ANBU-sensory jutsu to discern her surroundings, seeing as the shell made by the hardened mudsnake had apparently resisted the initial shock from the water, but now there was the issue of how long she had to remain in there before the water would pull away. Sure, she had enough breathing space for at least half an hour as long as she did not use too much chakra or moved to much. Knowing that Uraeus wasn't a dumb snake, the ANBU captain knew that he would no doubt reach to the same conclusion as her: waiting and concocting a decent strategy was the best move for now.

Crossing her legs, the young woman sighed and slowed her breathing considerably to a minimum, activating the ability of her armor to hide her entire presence from every kind of sensory jutsu she knew about, at least she hoped she was protected from all of those. shutting her sensory jutsu down, Lamya started meditating, trying to extract the nature's chakra from her surroundings, the only way to preserve her strength in this situation was exactly that.

"That kid, he's stronger than he looks, using such a powerful jutsu," She sighed again, before becoming completely still, using her armor's ability for optimalizing her meditation. If yuzu would check for chakra at this point, he'd probably more or less find Uraeus first, that was at the same time Lamya's greatest blessing, but also something she was afraid for. The snake was fast and powerful, but to stand against such an opponent on his own, wasn't any good for him. "Be safe, Ury."

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He was concentrating as the water rushed across the battlefield, he felt the water let up slightly however it was not as he expected. He expected her to use her mud wall to defend herself, but she must have performed to earth jutsu or at least a jutsu that covered two areas since he felt resistance that seemed to be separated as if a gap had been created as the water began to calm to a stand still. He looked under the water as fish from the river swam passed him and towards and around the areas he had to choose from.

He thought about it as he slowly calmed down having a vague idea of their locations, but without knowing which was which it would be too dangerous to attack. He knew that Lamya could defend herself against the technique she had not been prepared for in their first encounter, but her handicap was ruining the whole purpose of the fight as he slowly began to start swimming to the upper surface of the water as he took off his shoes. He did not see her come up and figured she must have chosen some kind of dome like earth defense as he floated on the surface of the water waiting to feel any disturbances in it as he began to wonder a few things.

He had come here to challenge the strongest person after Sousetsu, and in the end he was facing his friend Risu, the girl who helped him out when he first came to Konoha. This was a fight to show that he was the strongest and that Sousetsu had to stop with the paperwork and excuses and face him. Now he did not feel that drive anymore as he could not believe that she would bring Uraeus if she knew she would have to face him. It was clear that she was just patrolling and was not prepared for a fight, and so far not much was clear from their exchange other than her having some insane degree of perception or some high level of sensory to pick up on his technique and reacting in time. Even with good reaction there were not many people who could perceive this jutsu being performed and it became obvious that she was definitely ANBU. She may be strong and so is he, but as long as Uraeus was here they would not have a serious fight and with the lack of disturbance in the water it was clear the jutsu was not done yet as he looked around.

Why was she fighting alongside her pet when he does not even seem like his trained to deal with a real fight, or maybe he was wrong but his perception was too good to lie, or at least too good to be that far off from the truth. It did not matter if he through away his advantage or whether he had an advantage to begin with or not. All he wanted was to prove himself for himself and no one else, he would wait for her so that he may ask her questions and so that he could find a way to get Uraeus out of the way as this snake was clearly out of his element under water.

Words = 3646 + 550 = 4196
Chakra = 310/340

The nature energy was coming towards Lamya, it took some time, but she just needed to refresh her own chakra reserves with just a tiny bit, just enough to pull off something which would change the fight back into her own favor. Despite her meditation though, the young woman realized that the defensive jutsu she had used earlier to counter the incoming wave of water was in effect also a restriction to herself, because her air was going to run out at some point and the water was still trickling inside the shell, not only that, if this was happening to her, it was also likely that Uraeus was stuck in a similar situation and he couldn't do anything more than swim around in water like this, which would more or less make him vulnerable to anything the Kirigakure shinobi would be throwing at him.

Despite all those fears, the young woman remained perfectly calm, as it was a necessity for her meditation, but as soon as she felt that she had enough chakra saved up for her next show of strength, Lamya stood up inside the shell, touching the sides of the hardened concrete, trying to determine how much water she had to be taking care off. With every inch of the shell feeling slightly wet, it was safe to assume that the water was much higher than she had expected and that the only way to get rid of the danger, was by getting rid of all the water at once.

With a rush of energy, the young woman dispelled her jutsu, holding her breath, while noticing that Uraeus' shell was gone as well and he was moving towards her, holding his breath as well. In the single second, she could reach out of the snake's tail, she pulled him towards her, while slamming her hands together, making the necessary handseals and slamming her hands against the ground.

A shudder went through the ground, as it cracked open like a ripe melon, swallowing all the water, while the entirity of the area around her was being blasted by tremors and shockwaves, destroying and devouring everything on their path. With the water disappearing in the ripping and tearing earth and with the tremors and shockwaves through the ground closing and flattening the earth again, Lamya was breathing heavily, same for Uraeus, who slower than a snail seemed to coil around lamya's waist, resting his head on her left shoulder.

"That...was close," She coughed, while trying to look for Yuzu, curious to what effect her jutsu would've had on the blond kid. "I should've been more careful against him."

445/3529

jutsu+chakra:

Uraeus CAN swim xD

He was not sure but she spent a long time down under as he took deep breathes as he swam around on the surface wondering if she would come out or not. He thought he saw bubbles but he felt like it might just be from air pockets created by which earth jutsu Risu used. He began to calm himself down as he drew his sword out from beneath his cloak, as  was holding on to his sword tightly as he looked at the blade. He wondered how he was going to attack without risking poor Ury's life, and could she really beat him or was she just going to be all flashy with her jutsu. Though the jutsu he opened up with already was flashy in its own right as he was still enjoying the water as it splashed into his hair. He looked up to the sky for a moment as the birds flew through the sky as the moon was not in clear view, but it was there. As he looked back down slowly moving his feet as he kept to the surface carefully as he had mastered his swimming lessons in Konoha, since he spent too much time in icy cold water he was not used to swimming in the warmer waters of Konoha. He also got used to the different weather and nice sunlight, but things would soon change as his world was about to give way to the future.

The water became slightly restless as he waited patiently only for things to change as he noticed the water dip for a moment showing the removal of an obstacle as he prepared himself as he pulled his sword closer to him and looked down waiting as he felt for the changes in the water. The water moved rash as he just felt the water give way as it splashed as it rushed downwards as he dropped half way down and during that moment his arms up high he reclaimed his firm grip with his blade raised as he focused his chakra as he fell down activating his jutsu as he landed his knees bent upon impact and his legs shifted apart somewhat to the side as the ground was still somewhat wet, as he managed to maintain his stance  before Risu as the area around him had ended up calm as the water weighted down on his clothes as he looked towards her as many thoughts ran through his mind in an instant.

He once read long ago that when two masters fight one another they can understand each other simply from a few attacks. From his end he saw the girl who had taken him in when the village mistreated him and bullied him, but before him he saw a woman who had an ambition, a cause, a need to defeat him while not showing how she really felt. Did she really believe she was better than him, could it be that she thinks she can win no matter what he does or how hard he tries. Did she really have a darker side to her, or was the darker side all an act. The truth he was reaching out to was who the real Risu was. Is Orochi Risu the nice Snake Maiden who looked after and played with him, the girl who had a smile that hid a harsh upbringing in a sense or was all that an act. Was the real Orochi Risu a Dark Snake Mistress whose only goal is to control the world and maybe she was not nice to him at all, what if she was using him. It seems there was something she wanted from him, but what was it that she wanted so badly that she did not even care to send Ury to safety. Did she even have feelings for Ury, or was he just a simple pet she could throw away whenever she wanted. All these thoughts rushing through his head and there was only one answer, the real Risu....

If Risu had been using some form of chakra sensing technique she would probably pick up that his jutsu was not yet complete, in the end he had his guard up as he asked Risu the question he had to ask. However she should feel the chakra pressure from his technique as he landed as he looked to her as Ury seemed completely out of place. The puddles of water and the misshapen earth cracks, and shards of displaced rock. The river had changed its path as it flew towards them passing to the sides before returning back down into a trench some distance away.  "Ury go home you in the way, this is between me and Risu-ne", as he looked towards her with some form of focus showing he wanted to know all about her, he wanted to know the one thing he could not say out loud. 'Who are you?'


Words = 4196 + 830 = 5026

Chakra+Jutsu:

"Well, I think I will accept that offer," Lamya answered calmly, patting Uraeus' head to tell him to go to the Ouroboros compound. Even though the snake was more than capable of holding his own against lower class shinobi, against a jonin like her, he most likely only had a chance of getting himself hurt. "Now than. I haven't forgotten our time together, Yuzu Ren of Kirigakure, but times change and so do people. As ANBU captain I must ensure the safety of my village and that of my Hokage, sadly for you this means that I dont want to see any outsiders in my village, certainly not those coming from the same village as the shinobi who attacked Sousetsu-sama so carelessly."

Flexing her arms a bit, the young woman stood firm, with Uraeus slithering off of her and towards the outer edges of the open area. She wasn't aiming to kill this kid, that would've served no purpose. However, as a member of Kirigakure, he must've had some information, useful information for her to work with.

"Let's make this quick," She hissed, grabbing the two scalpels out of their sheaths, while rushing towards the young man. Along the way, as she was closing in, she quickly made a few handseals, with a ball of swirling wind chakra inside her left hand. "Wind release-Surprise Shockwave!"

From about one meter distance, she tried to stretch out her arm to connect with the ball of wind, hoping that it would touch the kid's chest and send him back flying. However, with Kirinketsu Ryoga held firm in her other hand, she tried to slice at the wrist holding his blade, hoping to inflict the scalpel's most dangerous ability upon the kid. It was a good idea to refrain from using to much power or chakra in this battle, especially since she had already used a lot of her reserves to even manage to withstand that earlier massive wave of water and because she simply didn't see the point of killing this shinobi without first interrogating him.

353/3882 (sorry for the short post)

jutsu+chakra:

She accepted his terms in a duel that could very well be the biggest battle to have happened in a long time. She spoke about their time together and that things had changed, for he was not the same little boy who complained about the slimy body of Ury, or the demon who had come from the deepest shadows of the mist. He had grown to become who he truly was, but even this was hard to see. By becoming the Captain of the ANBU it seems that Risu had taken on a role that made her have to choose the Leaf over him.

As she spoke of Sousetsu being attacked by a shinobi of the mist he looked down with sadness in his eyes as he lowered his sword for a moment. He then looked up to her as he spoke, "It's not fair Risu-ne, the real threat is your village. Mitsuhide-sensei was a good Hokage, but I just can't understand what Sousetsu is trying to do. The bandits on the streets have grown in number, the shinobi of Konoha have gotten weaker and he will not take any time to face me. If someone that weak rules the nation, someone might take it from the shadows. That is why, hidden in the mist and bathed in blood, Aya-ne." He shook his head and then gave a more serious tone to his young little voice. "Mizukage-sama will rule both worlds that all shinobi live in. I serve the world's strongest and without Mitsuhide-sensei this village..." He got a bit upset as it frustrated him that this village was so peaceful. "How can everyone here be so peaceful when the war isn't over!!"

Uraeus took his cue to leave as the wind began to blow harshly as the time for change and the time for revelation was soon going to be at hand. The warm up was out of the way and they greeted each other as friends and as shinobi. Now it was time for them to clash with their beliefs and with their own ideals, this was not the time for them to play around anymore. He was no longer a child, even though he still was. Risu was also no longer a nice lady, but more like a woman who when chosen to follow the path of Light, decided to go down the path of Darkness in order to protect the Light.

He gripped his sword firmly with both hands as Risu began to flex her arms just a bit before standing firm. They had their talk and the snake was out the way. She told him to make this quick as he raised his sword in anticipation as she hissed pulling out two scalpels as she rushed towards him. He watched her form handseals as he focused with the remain chakra still left in the blade. As she closed in his right foot made a step back as his blade came down as the chakra that seemed to form in her hand became dispelled as she must have felt a great weight similar to earlier as he brought his blade down as he aimed his blade towards her weapon she attempted to attack him with as well as the blade passing by her neck to her chest to clash against her armor unless she stopped or avoided it due to the length of the blade. The true test would be whether her weapon could withstand the force of his Masamune a pure class of swordsmanship but given the situation she might back away due to the blade's range making it possible for her to lose her arm if she did not pull back her attempt now that her jutsu had become useless. However he had something up his sleeve, a way to turn the tides so to speak. How would she deal with this boy and his well balanced form and technique.

Words = 5026 + 666 = 5692

Jutsu + Chakra:

OOC Info : Might make edits, please pm me some feedback if their are any problems in the posts.
Due to the rank of your armor is she going to avoid the hit, cause it at very least would be able to cut 2.25-inch into you with your armor taken into account, also gives me more range too so you probably going to have to react since you can not close in on me without avoiding my sword. Thank goodness for armor I do not need to worry about killing you by accident.

It was quite a shock for Lamya to feel her own wind chakra being drained away in an instant. In that very instant she could feel the pressure on her, seeing her opponent raise and slash down his blade, she knew enough. She had clearly remembered how he had used a sword before, which almost like an illusion had lengthened to unnatural proportions. In the mere moment she had, she reacted by quickly taking a single step aside during her rush, yet apparently this was not enough to avoid her jutsu being erased in its entirity.

Underestimating this kid was out of the question, he was equal to her, maybe even stronger. A rather unwelcome thought for someone who had done her outmost best to reach the level she had attained on to that point. With a smile hidden behind her mask, she continued her rush, swapping the scalpels in her hands an instant before reaching her opponent.

Not aiming to withstand the force of his second slash, Lamya held her Koketsu scalpel slightly diagonal, knowing it would break if she would let the two weapons clash, only aiming to change the trajectory of the boy's downward slash, without slowing herself down.

Ducking down while doing this, Lamya lept forwards, swinging her other arm with the Kirinketsu scalpel towards Yuzu, trying to slice the kid's thigh with her Kirinketsu Ryoga scalpel, after which she made a tumble, putting her scalpels back instantly in their sheaths and turned towards the back of the kid in the blink of an eye. With pushing herself to her limits, she hoped to at least surprise the kid who now would most likely have the downside of wielding such a large sword, making the tiger, horse rat seals in an instant, Lamya's hands started to glow with her dark purple chakra envelloping them. "Chakra Scalpel Technique, let's see you dodge this."

With a simultanious jab of both her hands, she aimed to cut the tendons at the back of both of the kid's knees, which if it would work, would surely end this fight without anyone having to die. This kid, Yuzu Ren was way to valuable to be killed and way to important to toss aside. There was no question about it, she needed him alive, but she also needed to win.

393/4275

jutsu+chakra:

training:

Part 1: Reasons

In all the years that he had trained, with all the experience he gained during his search for Mitsuhide. He never thought that the toughest opponent he would ever face would be her, the girl who gave him a chance and was willing to accept him. Now she was fighting him in a way that showed she was eager to win or desperate to win. He was also eager and it was also a case of him also being desperate to win. This day had started off peacefully and things were meant to stay this way, however in the end when two masters have no one left to face they have no other option but to face each other. There was no other choice and no other way to prove his strength. No other way to prove that he had indeed risen to a level that could one day touch the podium upon which his mother and father stood. Not to mention the silhouette of the one he looked up to from far below, the Butterfly who flew higher then this young caterpillar could ever dream of, however he would go after her even if it ment becoming a Moth chasing after a flame. The flame that was the Strongest, so that one day he could truly say he was the strongest there is...

The Mizukage, Ayakashi also known as the Ice Demon Witch and the Butterfly Sage. She had faced him long ago when he was just ten years old in order to test him. He was a bit naïve at first thinking he was truly a match for her as he felt the War had prepared him to face her. In the Fusa Prison Monument she descended from the sky like an Angel from the heavens, to her right side was the blade she used in the war, to her left was a blade he would soon learn to hate, Sesho-Sekki the blade of the Captain. Then on her back stood blades that called out to him, the twin blades Kukan and Sozo. As members of the Jounin Ranks had surrounded them in the colloseum. He was nervous and mostly excited, but he had not yet learned the truth of the battle as he accepted she gave rules which seemed to make the fight fair. As the battle began he did a combination of attacks to face her own and nearly died, though he did not understand how dangerous the fight was at the time. He managed to scratch her just barely, however he got to see that she was leagues above him even though he won the trial, he lost to her deep down in his heart. Inside he felt that one day he would master the twin blades and become a shinobi able to stand on top of the world with the woman who ruled it with her Icy Fist.

Later he was injured as his clan had rejected him and exiled him from the clan for reasons unknown to him, all he knew was that he was abandoned and alone. People came to adopt him, but being who he was he could never accept a family weaker than him. Then a stranger appeared wrapped in strange bandages and carrying a strange sword. He refused to show her any emotion and had only hatred in his heart, until she showed him her blade which had him trapped in awe by its beauty and its strength. He touched the blade known only as Soul Cutter, a weapon that seemed to be perfectly made for him though he would not get to have it as it belonged to someone who was stronger than him. To the people outside these walls she was known as Shinobu, to those who knew her secret she was the Gin, the Great and Powerful. To him she was his mother, the only woman strong enough to take on this problem child who was stubborn at first and had taken time to warm up to her. Her use of her sword as bait, her hugs that sometimes were too tight but made him feel loved and being carried by her he felt at home. However he learnt that she was far stronger than him and this hurt as she became someone he would love to protect, but how do you protect someone stronger than you. He was faster than her, but he heard about her being injured and her time as the Kazekage. She was once a shinobi who stood at the summit, she was once a shadow like Ayakashi. How could he compete with this, how could he one day become the strongest when his mother could break entire mountains with her fist. He did not know how and only knew that he had to do it, no matter how long it takes.

He had not forgotten Kenji or that man from Iwa long ago known as Nanashi, but of all the men he looked up to their were two that stood out from the rest of the bunch. The White Flash of Konoha, Uzumaki Mitsuhide, the former Hokage and his father, The Wasp Sage of Kumo, Flynt Sanosuke, the Raikage. Both of these men had trained him in arts he had yet to master, Mitsuhide began the training to show him the power of Fuuinjutsu as well as showed him that it was more then just setting traps or making people stronger. It was about sealing all that you could and releasing it to the world far stronger than it had been before. He also became a sage under the training of Sanosuke, the man he denies most of the time. However deep down inside he had accepted Sanosuke long ago, though he did not fully understand what his father kept doing in the Strip Clubs as he entered one day and got redirected to a secret area and told to not go any further. He could force his way through but the place belonged to his mother and being as young as he was at the time he understood none of it and thought it was just an important meeting place that he was not allowed into yet. In his search to find his sensei one day in order to show off his Fuuinjutsu all he found was a village without a Kage, until he met Sousetsu the man who he could not accept as the new Hokage. He challenged the man and even though the challenge had been accepted, the attack by his mother and various paperwork and other issues kept them from ever having this duel. While he did not fully understand it, a part of him understood that Sousetsu was not just all talk as he would one day reach a day when he might add one more name to the list of people he needed to beat.

Dameon the new Captain of the Seven Swords was not someone he got along with, but in terms of speed he could rival Ayakashi and that alone was a bit much to handle as he looked around and began to wonder what it would be like to be that fast as he trained every day to become faster and faster. However they were all there, but a new figure was creeping into the back of his mind, the eyes of someone beautiful and deadly. Orochi Risu... the final brick in the Great Wall of people he must defeat.

Part 2: The Fantasy of a Trap, the Reality of a Disaster

His downward slash could not be taken lightly and the switch of her weapons did not change his objective as he had it planned out in his head.

He would strike her down or stop her movement with a clash of their weapons, then he would release lightning from his body to disable her for a moment. Then hit her as hard as possible in the face in order to knock her out. As simple as it was the tactic seemed flawless however things never going according to plan as the clash became something else entirely. From a carefully made trap to an exchange that could mean life or death. Which is why he originally took a step back in the first place, his instincts told him to not underestimate her and come prepared for anything.

She held her blade in her right hand at a diagonal as she deflected his blade's original path while only slightly off course it became clear that she was going for the attack and that she definitely had strength to rival his own. Had he been rushing towards her as well they might have clashed hard but without a running start he realised that the strength gap between them was even smaller than he thought. She ducked under as he pulled back using his right leg as a pivot and pulling back fully with his weight and his removed his left leg out of range of her attack as he performed a diagonally rising horizontal slash in order to aim for his original target which was the main weapon she had in her right hand at the start.

If her other arm had not been swung forward along with his blade he might not have made it, as he pulled back his left leg lifted off the ground in order for all his weight to be used. The clash of their blades could be heard, however his footing was not as good as he was knocked off balance falling to his side as she would continue forward.

The shock from being knocked over was a bit much as through out this entire fight he had not even managed to slow her down for even a moment, but her she was knocking him off balance and seeming to have the upperhand. She seemed to tumble forward as he looked back with a sense of surprise before his face went pale with confusion as his mind could never accept this. There was no way that Risu, the nice girl who took him in, the lady who made him feel at home in a land so far away could be this strong. She had put her weapons away as he let go of his blade and began mumbling to himself.

She began with her handseals as he felt he needed to do the same not sure what jutsu she would use against him. She performed her quick three hand seals and he performed his single hand seal the Yin seal before clapping his hands together, whether she remembered this technique or not would be a deciding factor in this duel between rival friends however his back was turned towards her so she could not see the seal he used clearly which would have been a dead give away having used this technique in front of her before.

She asked him to try and dodge this as her hand had a purple chakra formed over it like a chakra scalpel. He gave her a look that said she was speaking way too much as the water vapour in the air around them condensed as water formed within twenty meters of the young yuzu rotating around him. How would she deal with this rotating vortex of bone breaking proportions, though not something that would kill her, it would still hurt a lot and this was not counting that he had used this jutsu in order to back up the next part of his combination. He had a plan whether she attacked him and took the full force of this attack or whether she found a way to escape the vortex only to be crushed by the waves when they come crashing down as the land would for the second time in this duel, become an Ocean.

This moment would be burnt deep into the hearts of both Yuzu and Risu for the rest of their days.

Words = 5692 + 1988 = 7680

Training Fuuinjutsu A - S = 7158(Previous Threads) + 1842 = 9000/9000 Complete
Training A-Rank Jutsu Fuuinjutsu no Ichi : Mukōnisuru = 2000/2000
Training Ninjutsu S - SS = 3838/9000
No Words Remaining

Jutsu+Chakra:

***EXIT THREAD***

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