For Etsuo Yukimura, each day can foretell of the next in some ways, it wasn't really ever a clear thing that he or anyone else could read, unless of course, you were someone else that was watching his entire life. However, he could foretell of one thing that was going to be happening in the next few days, that his hidden village, Kumo would be hosting the chunnin exams for all of the hidden villages. This meant that there were many new people that Etsuo has never met before would enter the village, most of them of course would be genin, but that really didn't discourage the young Yukimura from looking forward to it. At the moment, he was currently training without the use of his puppets, they were both only set aside, hidden within a tree nearby currently, as he only had one of his kunai within his hands. The exercise that he was currently performing would look somewhat tedious to anyone that came upon it, but he none the less felt that it was need, for him to improve himself as a shinobi.

Etsuo's exercise included that of tossing his kunai at any given tree that was a good distance away from him, and then going on to chasing down said kunai, once that was accomplished, he would begin the process again. The entire exercise was intended to help improve his physical capabilities, the only thing that it really wasn't improving at the moment, was his strength, this is some form or another, could in fact being doing that, without him having to think about it. There wasn't too much to it than just that, but he wasn't giving up on it, so one by one the trees in the area would be struct by the flying kunai, he really didn't have much of a strike path, besides the fact that they were a distance away. The trees in the area in fact, would be covered with plenty of these kunai strikes, showing just how long Etsuo has been at this tedious exercise, as stated before, he was going to be keeping at it, as best that he can. In some form, he was also trying to prove to himself that he needed to grow stronger than before, even though he has already gone so far, and has achieved so much. It still might not ever be enough to stand up and accomplish what he really wanted to do in this world, he wanted to be able to stand on his own and protect his remaining family, and protect his clan.

He also wanted to protect the village that he belonged to, that has helped him grow as strong as he has become, his goal of seeing as much as he could of the outside world was going to have to wait for a while, since these other goals, were going to take a lot more out of him compared to the limitless amount that one could go. Etsuo had to balance out, what he wanted in this world, what he wanted to protect, and what he wanted to experience. He was certain of one of those things, he wanted to protect his remaining family, the young Yukimura, did now want to experience the loss of them as well, he wanted to grow stronger for himself, this village, and them. This was the reason that he continued with his kunai, tossing it at tree after tree, eventually he would come up with something else to improve himself with, but for now this was good enough for him. The sun was only rising in to the sky at the time, yes it was only morning as Etsuo continued to move across the wilderness, it wasn't even noon yet, he still had a very long day a head of him. The sky was filled with clouds, but rarely would they actually cover up the sun in the sky above, due to all of the tree branches that were over his head, Etsuo couldn't notice them.

One of his favorite things about nature, was the sun rising and setting that his older brother showed him years ago. Those days, have long passed, but they foretold that there would be many more chance, Etsuo would have to see such a wonderful sight, with so many different people, these would be the people that he could call friends, comrades, family. The time would eventually pass just like the setting sun, but the opportunity would come again, just like the sun's rising. After all of these thoughts, Etsuo would eventually slow down his pace until he was coming down to a complete stop, after all that he needed to rest for a little bit before switching to what ever he would come up with next. The young Yukimura decided to rest under the same tree that he decided to place his puppets up, within the branches, still within reach of his strings, should he really ever needed them. Some would consider a form of paranoia, but Etsuo considered this a safety precaution, as he never really could have an idea, when his older brother's killer would try an attempt at his or his father's life again. From where he placed the puppets, he tried to make it so that they weren't noticed, unless someone was specifically looking for them in the first place, which meant they had to know he was a puppet user, or was watching him from the very beginning of his exercise, when he put them there.

WC: 926

The night had been long as the small boy with the messy yellow hair and the big red eyes began to think about the things that happened to him. He had begun talking to himself as he was all alone in the darkness of the wilderness.

"All of them are leaving me behind, we were suppose to enter the Chuunin Exams together, but she got so strong they made her one before I could do anything about it. Skye trained me, but his clones gave him a huge advantage. How am I suppose to fight against techniques like those, how do I stand a chance against people who have so many different abilities. I have nothing special about me all I have is my training. I need to train harder and become stronger or everyone I love will leave me behind again. I am glad everyone found homes, but why did I have to be left behind. I will not let them leave me behind again, Ame and Skye-sensei"

He began with basic stretches as he warmed up his body as he knew the sun would soon be coming up.
As he began his training he through his kunai at a tree, followed by three shuriken which seemed to hover towards their target location hitting around the kunai. He then got out his next kunai and threw it into the air and took a deep breathe. He closed his eyes waiting for the kunai to reach him, as he timed it careful he spun in a circle as the kunai appeared next to him as his finger slotted into the hole of the ring of the kunai he flung it at the tree which it hit one meter above the other kunai as he sighed.

He had failed his exercise, but it was not really so much to do with improving his better trained strength or his speed. He had good reactions and his perceptive capabilities were at least Chuunin level on their own, but his skill in general needed to be better for the next technique he was busy working on. He kept up this practice as the sun began to rise when he noticed someone he had never seen before. However his eyes fixated on the blue hair and the blue eyes and began to think of Ame as he followed the stranger who as busy chasing kunai it seems as he grabbed all his gear along the way and his backpack.

He kept following the strange person with blue hair and noticed it was not a girl, but a guy who just had similar features to Ame as he wondered why the person would throw his kunai and run after it and repeat this process as he got an idea as he began to mimic the actions of this stranger as he followed some distance behind him. Whether he was too focused on training to notice the small little copy cat or whether he just was not bothered by him at all. As they kept going for an untold amount of time as the sun had been rising, he finally noticed a stop as he had to stop himself as the repetition nearly lead to him throwing his kunai to the back of the blue haired person.

He approached the stranger who was now sitting down as if he was tired already, as he moved slowly and carefully around the tree the man was resting at he raised his hands as if to show his harmless as he said. "Hi, is it okay if I join you in training?" as he tilted his head slightly letting his hair fall along his face and hang to the side as the hair blew across his face while his clothes were simple boys clothes just a loose t-shirt and a short shorts with some torn up sandals since his previous shoes got burnt down in his training of his new fire sealing technique.

~Words 665~

As Etsuo rested under the tree, trying to think of what the next section of his training would entail, it would appear that he would be approached by what was a fellow shinobi. It would seem that he was too caught up within his own training to actually take notice that there actually was someone doing the exact same thing, he did at times, pick up that someone was nearby at times, he assumed, that since it didn't appear they were bothering them, that he wouldn't bother them either. This fellow that was now before him, appeared to be younger than the Yukimura himself, which made him wonder if he was a genin since he was quite aware that those chunnin exams were slowly approaching very quickly, and they truly wouldn't be long before they were actually upon that fateful day that was being foretold. He, himself was a special jounin, and had become chunnin himself at a very young age, so it would surprise if this one didn't wait on the exams either by any chance. None the less, Etsuo knew that training was a fundamental thing for all shinobi, whether they be of a rank lower or even higher than his own, or right on par with his own. Given that he had never met this individual before however, was something that needed to be taken care of first, as it wasn't use to set up a training that didn't benefit, both him and the young shinobi.

Introduction were most definitely needed that were going to be accomplished very soon by the both of them, he would go on to get up from his sitting position, as he gave a hand out to his fellow shinobi. Earlier, he did take note that the boy was showing his hands as if he was trying to show that he was harmless, and he was of no trouble. Another thing, that he took note of was the fact that this boy stated that he wanted to join in on his training, however he had been resting under the tree that he had picked out at the time. Which meant he must of at least been watching him for a little bit of time as he throwing and chasing down his own kunai from the trees in the area. "I know that you mean no harm, certainly, I would love for you to join with me in my training session, but I think a other things should be taken care of first." He would explain to Elin as he showed an honest smile upon his face. "I'm Yukimura, Etsuo, Special Jounin. You are?" He would continue with as he was making this in to his introduction to the younger shinobi, afterwards allowing him the time to introduce himself, as Etsuo's mind was turning gears trying to come up with, what they should focus on.

There was one last thing that he would decided to go on with as it was still running along within his mind. "Do you plan to get involved in the chunnin exams that are coming up? It is after all in our village this year." That was what he decided to leave off with, and listen for the younger shinobi's responses.

WC: 543
Total WC: 1,469

He watched as the man stood up and extended out his hand as he lowered his hands before holding them close to his chest. He was not sure why the man was holding out his hand, they had only just met so he was still a bit confused and he was also told not to take the hands of strangers. Even though he had made an exception with Ame, however he was smitten with her and would let her get away with almost anything.

He listened as the man said he understood the boy meant no harm and that he would love for him to join in the training session. He became a bit worried since he thought the guy might be lonely, he was not yet fully used to dealing with other people having been in the hospital for so long until Ame set him free. Though the man gave a smile he remembered seeing on Ame as he felt the guy really looked a lot like Ame, until he blinked a bit and realised they were actually quite a bit different in terms of height and his lack of a chest. He finally heard the man introduce himself at Etsuo of the Yukimaru clan he thought. He was not sure since it was hard to tell since people sometimes used other last names like him. He also mentioned being special jounin as his eyes gathered a bit of fear since he was a strong guy and he was still some weak little genin boy, even though he was already sixteen and the nervousness made him a bit nervous as he finally introduced himself as well.

He took a deep breathe and put the palm of his hand on his chest and said proudly. "I am Lane, Elin. Genin. I am sixteen years old and I am sorry for bothering you. I do not want to hold you back by being weak." He was not really as much scared out of fear for his life, but out of fear of disappointing the strong and powerful man. He was still worried until the man asked him if he was going to enter the upcoming chuunin exams. As the boy heard this blushing nervously as he looked down slowly which was a failed attempt at nodding as he said softly.

"Yes, Et...su...o...sem....pai...."

~Words 665 + 395 = 1060~

Etsuo understood that it this world, there were some people that were a lot more shy compared to others in the world, it was something that was unique, sometimes, people just didn't like shaking hands as a greeting, it was something that Etsuo had to accept. Going forward, he would retract his hand, all the while, listening to what the younger shinobi had to say to him as an introduction and answers to his questions. He was quite glad with how the boy was answering him, since he started to remind him of his own shyness that he had on occasion, when he was a few year younger now. He was glad that he would be able to help a genin, and especially one that was going to be participating in the chunnin exams, representing the village in it. In the Yukimura's opinion, it was a very great honor, especially, since he was truly taking notice of the magnitude of people that were coming to the village in order to take part in it, or merely observe.

Going forward, Etsuo was going to prepare a little exercise for the genin that was before him. While he was unlikely to get too much out of it, he was sure that Elin would benefit much more from it, making him a better shinobi for the exams that were ahead of him. "Well then, Elin, I'm not sure what exactly your sensei has taught you, but I'm fairly certain that seeing my skills and your skills will make this much more simpler for me to evaluate, how it will be best for us to train." He would explain and raise his hand into the air, chakra strings would flow from his hands and reach out to one of the puppets that were up within the tree. Once they reached their intended target, the puppet would come down into the view of them both, after that he explain a bit more to Elin, before asking if he wanted to start. If he observed the puppet, he would notice that the thing was shaped like that of a bug, pretty much like a firefly, the most notable exception was the kunai that were held under it's wings.

"So I'll be starting with a pretty universal exercise..." He would lead of with as he tossed that one kunai, that he was using previously into a tree that was about 15 meters away, it made it's way into the target.

"Your objective is disarm me or the puppet, or claim the kunai out of the tree. I'll be holding back, but I'm going to have you require to give this your all, if you can't confidently disarm me, or secure your objective by another means, things will be a lot tougher for you coming up." He would go on to explain.

"Are you, okay with this, Elin?"

WC: 480
Total WC: 1949

He listened to the man whose name he had to think on to keep remembering, it was Etsuo as he kept repeating it to himself as he heard him mumble something about showing each other their skills. He then watched something strange and then as he was spacing out he saw a puppet. This was a weird puppet that looked a bit like a bug and had a really nice kunai under its wings.

The man with his blue hair began stating that they were going to perform a rather universal exercise as he wondered whether it was going to be that silly exercise with the bells he heard about.He watched a kunai fly passed and hit into a tree roughly fifteen meters away as he then looked back carefully to Etsuo not sure what he had to do yet. His objective was to either disarm the man, disarm the puppet or get the kunai out of the tree as he thought to himself and began speaking. He nodded as he excepted the terms and was going to prepare to fight but first said one thing.

"You do not need to hold back, I will give you everything i have." He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them as he shook his sleeve as a bracelet slid down to his wrist after which he took off his backpack and tossed it one side as he focused some of his chakra into it. He took a slightly widened stance as he took a deep breathe before charging forward full force. His speed was not that exceptional, but it was on the upper end of what most genin could achieve as he through a kunai which appeared to come from the bracelet as he then spun around to give a round house flying spinning left kick to the puppet. While the attempt might be simple, he had already thought up a plan the moment he was given the objective as he was going to give it all with every skill he had on him.

~Words 1060 + 345 = 1405~

The circumstances that Etsuo presented to Elin had many outs, and as such, there were many different ways to approach this, and in addition, unknown ways that it could be accomplished, since he was not aware of Elin's capabilities were after, as to why he choose this exercise, no matter how difficult or easy the genin found it to be. There were certain things however, that would catch the Yukimura off guard, or perhaps just one thing alone, was that fact that Elin would respond telling him to not hold back. He really didn't expect such a response, but he would have to guess that the younger boy wanted to be taken serious by all means, even against that of a special jounin. It was at his discretion, as to if he wanted to use full, none, or any mix of what he happened to be capable of, he wondered however, if the boy truly wasn't bluffing and was well capable, even at his current rank.

Etsuo would not however, call upon using his other puppet that Elin was most likely unaware of at the given moment, using both of them, could prove to be both a disadvantage given that he needs only disarm a puppet, but he would also be facing against another thing that would be targeting him, the Yukimura would however, take this as a time to experiment with what lingered within his blood as he would quickly blink. His eyes would shift from their normal color, to something that could only be recognized as a shade of red. The more that he made use of the eyes, the better that he could identify and define the abilities of the eye, even though he had most of them down, he was currently going to be feeling for their spectrum range, how far and how little could they go.

"Very well then, I hope you understand what come with all that you have asked for." He would respond, and things would so be underway, as Elin was making opening motions.

Going Forward, he stayed calm as he made a full observation of how he was approaching, it was a little bit of shock as a Kunai came from the genin's braclet, he had to maneuver his firefly quickly, ejection on two of the kunai that it had to deflect, and send them flying off course. He had wished that the genin didn't take such a quick approach to the puppet as it the current state of things the puppet was far more threatening and deadly compared to the controller of it. In all honesty he wouldn't have made the kunai deflection, but he worried about the true weakness of a puppet, the strings that were currently very weak, and the controller that had to be wielding it alone at the moment. He really prayed that this boy could notice what was coming and stop himself as he started the second mechanism of the puppet as it's main body still faced towards the ground.

"Yukimura Art, Firefly Dancing in the Night." He would state for Elin to hear as the puppet began to show the effect of it's mechanism, and shift into the air above Elin's reach, but not directly above, the genin as it was staying in it's spot.

A flamethrower would blow down from the bug shaped making almost a small pillar of flame pretty much, that could be quite painful if Elin stepped into, he gave him the chance through as he did this as far in advance as he could, given the puppet moved at speed with a chunnin. Afterwards, the puppet would move from left to right, making a wall of flames on the ground that would have to be crossed, if he wanted to make another straightforward assault. Or he could go away the around the two trees that the firefly placed it between. A true dance of the firefly, would have made the flames much more directive, but Etsuo was capable of making less flashier defensive uses with it. He was curious now though as to what the young genin, would be doing next, if he got burned or not.

"Try not to get yourself to badly hurt, the flames on this firefly, will inflict moderate burns." He would explain.

WC: 718
Total WC: 2,667

He got a positive reply as the man's eyes changed red, he was a bit confused as he carried out his attack as he felt the need to ask about them so badly. He had never seen anyone else with red eyes before, could they be related or was this just a freak occurrence or some new technique. So many questions, so few answers and so little time as the attempt was now underway.

He looked on as the puppet shot a kunai at his kunai which he thought was cool in a way as his eyes looked more in awe like an excited child then that of shock or surprise. He was shocked even further as some name of something was announced as the puppet flew up and into the air. He was looking up at it as he backed away since he needed to see the puppet and Etsuo as well as this strange feeling that bothered him somewhat.

He wanted to ask about the eyes and then he noticed the pillar of fire that soon became a wall of fire as he looked on a bit confused as he wondered why he shouted out the technique beforehand. Though it was not much of a change, since he would have dodged it anyways but this was the chance he needed as he nearly laughed. His first plan was out the window, there was no way he could fly to get the puppet or pass the fire. He wondered though why he would cut off his attack knowing he has to keep him from getting the kunai out of the tree as well.

He had to keep track of his gear and he had two kunai left not to mention three shuriken as well. He had to think of a way to get the kunai as soon as possible so he could ask about the strange red eyes and how the puppet can fly. He had not learnt much on puppet jutsu and hence was curious about how it worked as he faced his first puppet master.
He took a deep breathe as the fire was raging on.

"Prepare yourself for my new technique." He focused his chakra into a kunai as he held it back for a moment before tossing it forward as it had a white glow, the radius of the technique was around a meter as it made a hole into the fire as he jumped through it as the kunai was heading straight for Etsuo's arm. He also sealed his bag in the one scroll before entering the hole he made for himself as he landed on the other end of the fire.

"How was that?" as he would expect his attack to be countered easily as he would now begin the second phase of his plan.

~Words 1405 + 474 = 1879~

The young Yukimura was not quite sure what to make of Elin's plan of action at first as Etsuo utilized his puppets motions the best that he could, in all honesty though he did need to protect the puppet and himself, while also making sure that the kunai remained in the tree behind him. Another fact that came to mind was that Etsuo was ill prepared for this without other rules implicated, since he was not by any means able to easily disable or disarm the genin without a lot of pain or injury. The quick approach of the chunnin exams made Etsuo not want to risk this one's chances on the ending of a training exercise, but he would make the boy have to work for it, if it was the only thing that he could properly do. He was also quite glad that the boy backed off as the puppeteer was a much more easier target, unless they are well versed in handling multiple things.

It was right about then, that things would get more interesting as Elin decided on how he would make a continuation of his plan, which he would have to commend him for he appeared as if he wasn't going to go around like the wall of flames suggested that he did, but instead, he received a sight that made him believe that the genin had an answer for this wall of flames. It was times like this that Etsuo thanked the gifts of the sharigan as he watched the flames that were images of chakra, flow into a kunai, that Elin held at the current moment, he could only guess from the current position that the plans would be including the throw of a chakra infused kunai, at either him or the puppet. Given the circumstances it was unlikely that he was going to continue against a ranged puppet outside of close range, it was around the that Etsuo called the puppet to come closer to the ground and him, on the Yukimura's side of the wall of flames.

Then, it would seem to be the moment that the genin decided to use a technique that Etsuo had not seen before, at least he was pretty positive of that, even though it was viewed by his sharigan eyes, he felt there was a certain skill that he lacked preventing him from taking on the technique as his own. None the less, this kunai equipped with chakra shot through the wall of fire, that left a gap large enough to step through. The Yukimura, had that kunai as a problem to deal with, but he could of made another choice of action. He didn't have many options left, but he decided that it was worth taking an option as the puppet would move to intercept the boy moving through the wall of fire. All the while, Etsuo needed to dodge the kunai strike that was coming and so he would try shifting to the side as quickly as he could, he didn't seem to be quick enough through as the edge of the technique cut across his arm, leaving a decent amount of a cut, blood dripping a little from it.

He still made his move however as that puppet of his whisked itself toward Elin and it's mechanism flamethrower came to life again, but now it was acting with great haste as he would make it attempt to circle around the genin, giving him at best a meter of distance from the flames, if he happened to get caught within.

If he was caught within, the boy would find the kunai of the puppet looking down upon the genin, Elin would be asked a simple question.

"Do I have you pinned?" The special jounin would ask, hoping for a yes.

If not then he would keep his guard up and wait for the next step in the boy's approach.

WC: 656
WC: 3,323

His first phase went better than expected as his opponent did not choose to counter the attack and rather went for evasion. He was being observant as his plan was set in motion as the puppet was moving quickly and releasing fire as he released his bag and through it across towards the tree. As he watched the flames encircle him as he kept vigilant as he looked around thinking of how to meet his objective which completely worked in his favour as impossible as that was in the face of the huge gap in their natural ability.

The flames had him encircled as during this time the kunai from earlier that had aimed just cut the arm of the special jounin somewhat showing either a lack of practice or carelessness. Either way the kunai continued on its path just barely hitting the tree as the tree got a few random scratch marks which just loosened the other kunai slightly. He had hoped for a more direct attack and having the path now cleared he flung another kunai through the air as it was falling down aimed directly at the kunai in the tree that was his target.

Being encircled in fire was no threat to him as he waved to the puppet as the special jounin asked him if he had him pinned down only to be greeted by some puff of smoke and a backpack as the boy appeared roughly five meters from the tree, with his kunai he had thrown either knocking the intended target or being stopped by the special jounin. He would now make a dash for the kunai if it had not been knocked by his kunai already as he would make a full hearted attempt to get it. Whether he would be cut off on his approach would remain to be seen.

~Words 1879 + 309 = 2188~

Etsuo couldn't quite tell that there was something fishy going on, as he found the genin trapped within a wall of flames, but he proceeded to instead, toss his backpack outside the reach of himself, the puppet, and the wall of flames. The Yukimura's eyes worked quite well but he, himself, couldn't quite see through what this genin had in mind. It would be something that would likely go on to make the special jounin smack himself on the forehead as he couldn't thing through the plans that were being put into motion, but he wouldn't let this go so easily. Etsuo had given himself a number of handicaps, but he would accept and bare them all, but he would work out his own loopholes, making of his own plans. He would bring the puppet to the ground away from the flames, as Etsuo knew that he didn't want it close to them for this next part.

The kunai that was tossed at the kunai in the tree would find it's mark as Etsuo was aware of its intentions, as it would crash into the other kunai, wedging it from the tree that Etsuo placed it, in response the Yuimura would sigh, as the genin charged forth. He would hope that the genin would understand that this wasn't victory for him, as Etsuo was very specific in saying that he had to "claim it", however it did place him in a better position as he approached, with his puppet much further than it's distance could cover. He would show the avaliable threats that could come from the puppet controller, as he started weaving hand signs, even with the chakra strings causing his puppet to fly all over the place. When he happened to be finished with the signs, his hands would be pointed out towards Elin, lightning would strike out from them if the genin, he would feel the lightning shock him slightly, and forced to be pushed back at least a meter or two.

The Yukimura, would take this time to explain somethings to the genin as he resumed control of his puppet, calling it to him after it's very large spasm from the hand signs. "I'm glad to see that you are quite skilled, although I believe you made this hard for you. I said that you were to claim the kunai from tree. In comparison, this exercise could be compared to that of trying to securing an important object, taking down the ringleader, or the actual body guard." He would explain.

"All are answers, to the mission, can you see how this very mission can become a real thing. Also take this to heart, unless some have an extremely useful skill, many puppet masters are very defenseless, while controlling there creations. In the exams though you might find one of those that can multitask very well, be mindful of them, they are skilled and use to a different way. Puppets are a tool, and another piece that puppet controllers use on the battlefield, if you notice they leave holes in their own defense, strike them down, and all the bodies come tumbling down. I'm sure there are plenty of examples and analogies that could be used in place for that." He would continue with.

"Now then, we can continue for however you like." Etsuo would finish, his puppet now only a short distance from him.

WC: 568
Total WC: 3,891

The kunai hit its mark as the kunai fell from the tree as he had planned as he charged forth feeling like he won as he looked to see what the response of the special jounin would be, he looked on as he noticed that the man was preparing a jutsu with a few hand seals as he held his special scroll kunai in his left hand and faced his right hand towards his opponent for this exercise.

The lightning blasted out from the man's fingers which he thought was really cool as it seemed to gather towards the palm of his hand as the jutsu broke down into lightning and was sealed into the scroll creating a scroll of lightning nature as he had prepared himself for an attack that would stop him. He expected it sooner as he stopped next to the tree hitting into it slightly as he had lost some of his balance.

He pulled his puppet close and said he was glad that the small boy was rather skilled as he began to smile at being praised. He then said that he was suppose to claim the kunai from the tree not knock it out of the tree as he felt that did not make a difference since he could just pick it up right now. As he listened to the lecture then pouted before stepping on the kunai with his foot hard causing it to flip in the air as he grabbed it.

"You just did not want to admit that I won.", he was showing a more bratty side to him. Though it did not last long as he looked to the side. "Do I have to try and get it again?" as he felt like he was about to cry as he felt he was being cheated, though that was just a misunderstanding on his part as the moment was getting awkward as he seemed to be leaving it up to Etsuo to do something about the situation. He was a bit too emotional for now as he still had many questions in his mind that could burst out from his mouth at any time.

~Words 2188 + 364 = 2552~

The Yukimura smiled a little, even as Elin was trying to call him out on the way to victory, which was something that reminded himself a little bit of himself, younger. He recalled also, that his younger self, would have been quite frightened if instead of saddened, Elin was more frustrated or angered with him. Before his years as a shinobi, he didn't take anger, bloodlust, war-like attitudes, very well, but he had to grow up understanding that such things were going to come with the world that he was currently pursuing a life within. The genin did however, manage to get the kunai in to his hands, and was able to stop the Yukimura's jutsu via a sealing technique, something that Etsuo certainly was not even familiar with all that well at all, but that was a true advantage for the young genin.

"Hmm..." would be heard from the Yukimura after Elin had spoken, and would lead of everything else that he wanted to say.

"I never say that you haven't won, nor should that truly matter hear, you secured the kunai in to your possession." Etsuo would explain.

"Remember that the chunnin exams rules will be very vague at some parts, while at other parts, they are very clear cut on what they want you to accomplish. I said, I wanted you to claim the kunai from the tree, simply knocking it out is enough if you understand, you had to get your actual hands. Since the kunai doesn't appear to have any apparent damage from being removed in such a way, I'll give you the passing grade in my book." He would say showing a bigger smile, letting go control of his puppet, and giving the genin a thumbs up.

"Next time, I'm certain to come up with something that can work for the both us... but for now I'm growing hungry, would you like to come with me and get something to eat in a nearby shop?" He would ask.

Whether the answer would be yes or no, the Yukimura would go wonder on to get packed up, wrapping up, his used puppet, back up in cloth and placing it on his back. Etsuo would also go on to retrieve the puppet that was still up in the tree that he decided to rest under earlier, before they decided to do this training exercise. All the while, he would listen for anything that Elin had to say or ask of him during this time. Within his mind, he would also go on to ponder if he could do something similar, when he was stronger, and when he was going to be capable of handling a squad. The thought delighted, the Yukimura, as he was looking forward to a bright future, within the present time.

WC: 468
Total WC: 4,359

He was told that he secured the kunai and something about it being a misunderstanding in the lecture as he really did not like the lectures, though he felt good about having someone care enough to give them. He was also told something about the chuunin exams also having these lectures and special rules as well as some stuff about. Then he in a sense lost all respect for his teacher in the moment that a thumbs up appeared before regaining that respect when he mentioned something about eating food in a nearby shop.

He smiled and nodded his head and started fidgeting a bit as he was happy to be going out to eat again. He enjoyed his food and he loved eating and with his small figure it was hard to tell. He watched as the sensei Etsuo started packing away his puppet and all is stuff as Elin felt it looked silly, even though he began doing the same thing before sealing items within items within scroll and eventually sealing the backpack itself into his bracelet for easy carrying.

For some reason the sensei appeared deep in thought as Elin moved in close and punch hard into the sensei's ribs. As hard as he it, this was a playful hit so it was not something even worth dodging but it was basically his friendly way of saying he approved of Etsuo and that he was getting a bit impatient and wanted to go out and eat already.

~Words 2551 + 251 = 2802~
TRAINING C-RANK JUTSU EARTH SEALING = 1000/1000
TRAINING D-RANK JUTSU DROP ROCK = 750/750
Training Words Left 2802-1750 = 1052

The Yukimura was quite glad, that things worked in the end quite well, Etsuo had met and assisted one of the genin in the village that would be going on to take part in the chunnin exams. He was only able to pass on a few thing that he knew and was capable of, to the genin known as Elin, but the chunnin exams were very quickly approaching. Etsuo would have to go forward from this putting trust in what he was able to provide, and the abilities of Elin's squad sensei, along with that sensei's capabilities as a sensei. It would appear that the genin would accompany him for food, so after he was finished and packed, he would be taking off to make that they did not waste nearly anytime.

During these moments, those red eyes of him woud fade away, returning to their natural color, which it was very likely that the genin would pick up on this, although the Yukimura took note that Elin had red eyes as well, they weren't like the kind that Etsuo possessed by any means. None the less though, they were an interesting feature that he had, which not many others could likely claim for themselves. Eventually, he would feel a playful punch coming from the genin, it would go on to catch his attention as he was finishing the packing and ready to get going, he decided to do nothing in return, but he would ask something as they were heading out of the area.

"So Elin, is there any place around here that is your favorite place to eat by any chance?" The Yukimura would go on to ask, wondering if he could get a good answer, with the direction that they were going in. He also take the moment after to allow the younger genin to ask anything of him to answer, if that didn't occur he would go on to make this point of matter clear to Elin to pursue, if he so chooses.

"Do have any questions for me, Elin? Whether they be about our training session just now, the exams that approach very quickly, or anything else that might be on your mind." He would go on to say.

WC: 374
Total WC: 4,733

Etsuo asked him where his favourite place to eat was as the young boy just pointed in a direction before keeping quiet as he started walking closer and closer to Etsuo. It was then that Etsuo would make a grave mistake of asking if the small young little boy had any questions to which he nodded as he blushed and then smiled and then gave a look of wonder, awe and excitement as his rambling  began.

"Etsuo-nisan, what happened to your eyes, why did they turn all red and they had like two or was it three dots or something inside the eye instead of one, and why did you hide the second puppet and can't you use your puppets and jutsu at the same time, and how come you not that strong even though you a special jounin, were you hiding your power, did someone injure you too." He paused for half a second to breathe before continuing further.

"Etsuo, why you have blue hair like the Ryuzoji's though they got blue eyes, and what about your clan the Yu-something or other I sort of forgot sorry, do I have to write that down and Etsuo-nisan is it okay to call you nisan or am I suppose to call you something else. Oh, and have you ever met the Ryuzoji's they all nice girls especially Ame, she is awesome and have you met Skye he taught me how to use weird weapons but he made me feel weak with all his clones. Your second puppet what can it do, and why is your first puppet look like some kind of flying bug and the flamethrower looked cool, oh and why did you not try and stop me yourself or is your puppet the only one who can fight. Are you fast Etsuo-nisan, and how strong are you really can you show me some of your stronger jutsu. Are you also fire element too? Do you like burning stuff and how tough are you and have you ever been to that one burger place it had lots of burgers its cool and this one place the guy gave Ame an umbrella and I slept over with her but when I woke up she was gone so sort of was sad bout that. I also got this other friend too and do you know Kenji... I think it is Kenji Chikara, he is going to be my new Squad Leader, but I never met him yet is he scary too. Oh and this other weirdo I met in the cave also had puppets but his puppets could talk and looked a bit creepy but they were super strong. How much money do you have cause I do not want to make you broke by eating your wallet empty, I still need to do more missions and do you think I will win and are you okay with helping me out some more some time and did I really do good and do you always give long lectures and what time we going to get there."

He stopped for a moment looking down before his eyes got a bit watery

"Etsuo-nisan, can you carry me the rest of the way please my feet starting to hurt, I still need to get new shoes but they sort of too expensive right now since I spent my money on getting Ame a present and I hope I not talking too much sorry Etsuo-nisan and thank you for training me a bit I will sort of remember most of what you said I think."

Waits as he looks more down blushing and then looking a bit worried as he felt he was requesting a lot, but his feet were hurting again as a result of the burning of his feet that happened some days back.

~Words 2802 + 649 = 3451~
TRAINING C-RANK JUTSU EARTH SEALING = 1000/1000
TRAINING D-RANK JUTSU DROP ROCK = 750/750
TRAINING C-RANK JUTSU WEAPON CONTROL = 1000/1000
Training Words Left 701