This was a sad day.
The young man....he called himself Koizumi Taede.
The village....they called themselves Suna-gakure no Sato.
These spectators....they called themselves ninja.
But what do any of those things mean?
Such a thought was unfit to be had so nearing this event's start, at least the start for him. From the ring of lookers-on, he and his opponent, one Kikisu, were called to the ring. His stride was neither unnatural nor rushed; he walked as if he wasn't a shinobi, some sort of mistaken civilian that was pushed into a competition of ninja. His face held neither confidence nor dread; what was adorned with a forlorn expression, was his countenance. He could only count on the fact that he would be forced to fight here and now....
He was right to think that, as the proctor had the two of them walk to opposite sides of this square ring. The thing that was odd here, however, was that there was so much more room here. Whether defeat or victory loomed in his future due to this expansive battlefield....he wouldn't be able to tell.
This....hn, they just had to put Suna versus Suna. Well, nothing we can do about it now. Best luck. What went through his head now was only means after means to triumph. He leaned on his back foot to stabilize himself; he wasn't obsessed with winning here. He supposed that autonomy his body had separate from his mind was obeying his superiors rather than himself. From the shelf in his room, he had taken his hitai-ate, wrapped 'round his left arm this time. In addition, his left hand held a Pumpkin; a rarity in the deserts of Suna, the Wind Country Diamond. A hard fruit if there ever was one. Once they had gotten to their respective corners, he set it down, in the fashion he seemed to do everything: so gently. In the same way, a bird fluttered down from above, landing on his shoulder as he managed a weak smile.
His opponent...or opponents, rather....were amply ready to begin, here; all set, twenty meters from him. They each had an ample five meters behind them until the ring dropped out. It was rather sad that he wouldn't be able to exchange proper greetings with Kikisu before their match. He supposed that he'd have to try and befriend the puppeteer after the bout. That is, he knew that these weren't human. At least one of them, anyhow. Minotaurs didn't exist.
Did they?
Unwilling to involve his mind in an internal debate about how people are so closed-minded as to dismiss and yet so firmly cling to the past.....He widened his legs a bit, just over shoulder-width, and awaited an attack. Anything that a Genin could throw at him....yes, almost anything he could take.
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490]
- Spoiler:
One Pumpkin and Dhalsim are present in this thread, as well as all my Natural Armor and Hitai-Ate.