"Uh... My elements are water, earth, and mokuton, wood! I know Medical Ninjutsu too!"
Itazura responded by saying, "Alright. My elements are Katon and Raiton. I specialize in Taijutsu and Ninjutsu. I enjoy fighting with a little flare, maybe a little showy to be honest but I usually rely on speed and short, hard hits to take down an opponent quickly."
And after a short pause, "Anyway... Uh, I hope we're all gonna try our best at the chuunin exams and so we all can become chunin together!"
"You heard the gal Kai-bō, don't lose on our first day."
I ignored Itazura's comment as I began my analysis. I would start with Tsuru.
That combination of elements. I knew from study that wood had the weakness of fire, interestingly enough. But that would be countered by her water style, a handy, almost built-in, safeguard. Hopefully she carried water style jutsu. Otherwise fire would be her biggest threat. But that medical ninjutsu could really come in handy in reducing ANY threat. Now though, how to combat the possible fighting styles? I assume she'll mainly be using mokuton, so I'll think of how each specialization could be dangerously improved with fire.
Taijutsu: Mokuton is especially well-known in Konoha for its ability to keep people at a distance. As long as she made sure that she kept her jutsu in-between her and her opponent at all times, she should be fine.
Fire-style taijutsu: If she runs against someone like Itazura, taijutsu is going to greatly help, in place of hinder, the opponent. They'll be able to cut through Tsuru's mokuton with ease. If she had any water style jutsu, she would need it to reinforce her more powerful mokuton jutsu. If she didn't, there wouldn't be much to do. She wasn't going to win in straight up hand-to-hand combat against a taijutsu expert.
Ninjutsu: Wind style tends to have more range than most styles, so if she spots someone using it, she needs to make sure to get in closer. Actually, the same could be said for all of us. She needn't worry about water style users, as she has earth style, which has an elemental advantage. If she needs to look out for anything specific in fire style, it would be mid to long-ranged combat. If she gets herself into a situation with distance fighting, she either needs to retreat (ironically) or use water style jutsu powerful enough to believe that they wouldn't be able to effectively use fire-style from that point on. She would need to play a mental battle instead of a physical one. Against lightning and earth she should be fine, but she should always be careful.
Genjutsu: Not much I can advise on there. Just that she should make sure to always be on the look-out for the telltale signs of being trapped inside a genjutsu, regardless of the elemental affinity.
Bukijutsu: Mokuton is usually a hardy element, but the way I saw her using mokuton jutsu that included vines, I worry that vines would be a little too brittle for blades reinforced with chakra. She would need to make sure that her vines were quick enough, and most importantly, she needs to use the vines to separate the blade from the opponent. Vines should actually be pretty adept at disarming if the opponent was caught at a surprising time. Still, the risk always presents itself that while she's trying to disarm, he is trying to cut away at her plants. And even if she disarms them, there's still the danger that they have a backup blade. At that point, she would have to either be more careful and surprising in her disarming attempts or give up and just try to attack the wielder, due to the fact that they would certainly be more on guard after the first disarmament. Against ranged weapons, she should have no problem blocking or deflecting with her plant jutsu.
Fire style bukijutsu: This would be one of the MOST dangerous combinations for Tsuru to come up against. The power of fire combined with the sharpness of a blade would just mean trouble for plants. At this point, she would have to forgo her plant style for a round. Bukijutsu users wouldn't be discouraged. Using water style would be recommended. If, by some miracle, the opponent was disarmed, the next attacks should be quick and brutal. No time for tactical thought when you have a very short window of tactical advantage before the opponent switches to some other style of fighting. Most weapon-users have other jutsu, so it would be wise to keep the attacks fast and heavy.
Medical Ninjutsu: She counters what little offensive medical ninjutsu there is with her own. Her medical ninjutsu will definitely come in handy for her in-between fights though, when she can do a better job at anyone at judging the state of her body.
Fuuinjutsu: While not dangerous by itself, it is a huge supplement to any bukijutsu users, giving them an almost unlimited supply of pre-stored weapons. This would greatly aid them in the battle, seeing as how they would be able to pick specialized weaponry dependent on their opponent, along with quick reinforcement capabilities. Combined with the fact that seals don't require much in the way of chakra, bukijutsu users are able to win a battle without much chakra lost.
Kuchiyose/Seijutsu: If a genin was already entered in a summoning contract with something, it was likely that the animal wasn't too powerful. That way, the genin could stay in control. And if someone has an animal as a partner in battle, the animal probably hasn't been trained to jonin-level combat capabilities. This would actually be ideal for Tsuru, as it would spend a good deal of the opponents chakra, and mokuton is known for being able to combat beasts especially effectively. So, here's to hoping that she's put up against a Kuchiyose/Seijutsu specialist.
Kugutsu: Finally, kugutsu. Using vines to combat the puppets while she got in and cut the chakra threads would be the best bet. Of course, fighting against puppets is no easy task, so she would need to be constantly on her toes. It would probably be appropriate to fight against them like they were taijutsu or bukijutsu specialists.
Analysis complete.
Major threats identified: Fire style jutsu, fire enhanced-bukijutsu, and fuuinjutsu-enhanced bukijutsu.
Ok, now for the analysis of Itazura’s fighting style and ITS combatants.
I noticed I was thinking a lot without actually saying anything, so I decided to speak up.
"I suppose it's only fair that I tell you about my fighting style. I use Doton and Raiton ninjutsu, specializing in mid-range combat. I also employ genjutsu in my fighting. And my clan's secret jutsu is the concentration of light and chakra into small black balls which I can use to stun and burn my opponents."
I went back to analyzing Itazura.
I already knew from experience what his fighting style was like, and I knew it was something to be reckoned with. However, I did notice that he relied a little too much on his katon jutsu, and not very much on his raiton jutsu. If he used raiton jutsu in our fight, he might have been able to notice my weakness to it. So even, if he has more raiton jutsu now, I can assume the main chakra nature that he's going to use is still going to be fire. Which means that he's going to have a disadvantage fighting against a water-style user. I'll factor that it to my considerations of style match-ups.
Taijutsu: Against another taijutsu user, it rally just comes down to being the fastest, which I know he excels at. Strength matters too, but when it comes to a battle of taijutsu specialists, what really matters is who gets the first hit. Which means that in this type of battle, that little flair he was talking about would have to wait, unless he was just making a pun on the homonym.
Water-style taijutsu: Fighting against someone like this would be very dangerous, as Itazura's kekkei genkai could easily be blocked by any defensive jutsu the opponent would have, or even any offensive jutsu that crossed paths with Itazura's fists. He needs to make sure to be careful of how much chakra he spends, using it to increase his strength instead of supplementing it with jutsu. Then again, if he has effective raiton techniques, he should have no problem.
Ninjutsu: Water is obviously going to be the most dangerous to him. He needs to make sure to get as close as possible as quickly as possible. Water is good at long and mid-ranged combat, while he's best at close range. Catching the opponent off-guard would be the key to winning that type of battle. Against katon and raiton, he can save chakra by using his flammable gas and having his opponent light it for him. Futon and doton should be no problem with him, as his elemental affinities are strong against those typings.
Genjutsu: Same thing as Tsuru, essentially. Look for the genjutsu, and don't spend too much chakra getting out of it.
Bukijutsu: Against bukijutsu, Itazura should fare well. He's got the speed to dodge a blade, so what he needs to do is a rapid succession of hitting hard and getting out. This would actually be a good time for showboating, provided that the opponent isn't too much of a threat. Aggravation, a specialty of Itazura's I've found, would cause them to think less with their strikes, making them easier to predict and dodge. Medium-range attacks like the flammable as combo actually wouldn't be bad if used effectively in this circumstance.
Water-style bukijutsu: If the blade can't touch him, it doesn't matter what the affinity is. This isn't any more dangerous than regular bukijutsu, theoretically.
Medical Ninjutsu: There isn't very much offensive medical ninjutsu, at least not to my knowledge. But if he sees the chakra scalpel jutsu, he should be extra careful in hand to hand combat.
Fuuinjutsu: Body seals implemented on Itazura could prove very detrimental to a ninja dependant on chakra flowing to the right places at the right time. If he sees the opponent has any scrolls or body seals on themselves, Itazura should make sure not to get hit. I realize "Don't get hit" isn't the most reliable strategy, but Itazura's existing strategy should do fine against a fuuinjutsu-user.
Kuchiyose/Seijutsu: To re-iterate my earlier point, companion animals and summons most likely won't be too powerful when used by a genin. Still, Itazura would have more trouble with this than Tsuru would. I don't know if he would have any qualms about hurting the animals, but I wouldn't think that he would. The best bet in this situation would be to ignore the companion unless he knows that hecan defeat it quickly, easily, and without using too much chakra. If he spends more chakra than it took to summon the animal, in terms of kuchiyose, then Itazura would just be left at a disadvantage. In the case of Seijutsu, it might be worth it to knock out the animal first, but in most cases, it is wiser to attack the ninja first. Attacking the animal would be too much of a distraction. The ninja would be able to prepare a trap whilst you were focused on the companion. Of course, the ninja would fight to protect their companion (and vise-verse), but most low-level animals can't prepare strong jutsu when you're focused on the ninja. It would just be a battle of taijutsu, which Itazura luckily specializes in. I would have to use the same strategy, but would not fare quite as well.
Kugutsu: And again, kugutsu wraps up the analysis. Now the first instinct when facing puppets might be the same as when facing an animal, but puppets are designed to defeat ninja. They do have tricks up their...uh...wooden sleeves. The flammable gas jutsu would be the best bet, as it encompasses a wide-range, and diminishes the possibility that Itazura would have a trap sprung on him. Of course, another possible strategy would be for Itazura to somehow distract the opponent while Itazura cut the chakra threads. But I'm not quite sure how he would do that.
Analysis complete.
Major threats identified: Water-style taijutsu, water-style ninjutsu, seijutsu, and kuchiyose.
I had already analyzed my own fighting style prior to even leaving for the exams, so luckily I wouldn't have to exhaust myself further whilst thinking about even MORE possibilities.
Once again, I spoke up.
"Ok, I've thought about your fighting styles and I've thought of some things you guys should look out for. You probably already know all this, but I just want you to make sure to visualize fighting against ninja with certain specialties. Tsuru, I think you should definitely look out for fire style ninjutsu and bukijutsu, and fuuinjutsu-enhanced bukijutsu. Itazura, I recommend thinking about WATER style ninjutsu and taijutsu, and anything to do with companion animals or summoning contracts. Sorry guys, I just get worried about this type of thing. I want you to make sure you have contingency plans specifically for fighting against THOSE opponents. I think you would probably be able to take care of the rest with relative ease."
Even as I said this, I knew that our opponents were thinking about the same things. They were thinking about how they could use their jutsu to defeat US. In the end, it really came down to a matter of dumb luck. But in the end, so did most things. I knew they were probably zoning most of it out, but I spent the rest of the trip discussing what they could do in each situation to ensure the best possible outcome. I wanted to have confidence in them, and I tried to show it, but I might've just ended up looking like a pompous wanna-be strategist. No matter what I looked like though, I really did want to help them. I just hope they understood that.
Wordcount: 2432+1835=4267
Jutsu used:
None
EXIT THREAD
Final Wordcount: 4267
-600 (Travel)
-3500 (Genjutsu Reversal Training)
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Remaining Wordcount: 167