Sero stood at the side part of the house. A lengthy gathering area that at one point he assumed had been for some sort of social gathering for someone in a political position. Likely designed by his father to host such events. He almost smirked at the state of it. Windows blackened as they were grown over with the plant life of the area or simply broken to give way to the dark things that grew here. Still it would suit his much more sinister needs well enough and in doing so it would be like marking his fathers simple design even further. Dances and art shows...what warrior had time for such things? His boots carried him through the distance to the door. It looked withered and aged and true to its appearance it gave way with a simple shove of his right hand. The wood crumbling around his pale fingers until there was nothing left but hanging scraps. Quietly he stepped inside of the building and moved across the pale marble floor. Stained as it was he could tell what it was meant to be. Leaves shifted away from him as he looked to the rats scurrying away from the dark thing that nearly drove them to madness.

The paintings on the wall were blackened with age and moisture. Ruined as possible and well beyond restoration. Some eaten by moths and the rats seen only moments ago. His dull grey eyes looked to the end of it before he walked to the right wall and paced to the left. A very wide and long room. Pillars in two rows between with plenty of room for a hallway between the pillars and each other as well as the wall. Wide enough for three halls...three gauntlets for three students. He smiled as his plans were working very well. Still he would need to order a substantial amount of brick...he had repaired the bridge but he had yet to convince the locals the island wasn't haunted and he wasn't welcome in the market. He would need a couple of individuals to collect his supplies for him. He only knew of one in the area he could possibly call on but there was another he looked forward to meeting. A young man who had participated in the exams but quit before reaching the end. A pity. Still Sero could influence some dedication into the boy.

He turned and walked back outside. His boots crunching gravel and leaf alike hidden by the thick layer of mist around foot level. He progressed across the vine covered courtyard to the treeline that held the single dirt road leading to the bridge to the mainland. He stopped there at the road and lifted his right hand. His hand snapping out like a scorpions sting as three silver chakra strings flung out violently and snatched three thin and hungry looking ravens from the tree's. Slowly they struggled to escape as Sero reeled them in...Madness taking them as they became clutched into his pale hands. He grinned once more and punctured their back with his fingernails just a little before feeding his dark chakra into them. Tainting them to feel like him for a short while and infusing the simple creatures with a single purpose. Find Nozomi. His left hand flicked upwards and mist formed in it before a small note and a written payment note attached to tiny strings became evident. He tied them to the ravens and let them fly. The three having to fly in a triangle formation as they were tied together. The note reading as follows.

Special Jounin Nozomi.

I need you to collect a wagon of 800 bricks and 12 doors. The materials to put it all together. Its a lot to bring alone so I suggest finding a young man known as Maigo within our ranks to help you. I am not welcome at the market but if you bring it to the bridge of my home I will assist from there. As well as I would like to speak with both of you.

Jounin Sero.

691

Nozomi was admittedly on edge as of late. The envoy of Kaekio, Sero, and Nozomi had returned not too long ago, and Nozomi hadn't heard anything back from anyone as of yet. She knew it would take some time for everything to be sorted through, but still, the wait was a bit nerve wracking for the young girl. She had been spending most of her time mastering an assortment of jutsu and refining them so that they would be of more use for her in battle, as she realized that she was woefully behind Sero, who had gotten a promotion to Jounin recently. While she was well on her way there, she didn't want to fall behind and become useless to her friends, so her training regimen resumed with furiosity while she passed the time waiting for any news.

She was in the middle of one such training session, or rather, was taking a small break to allow her chakra reserves to fill back up, when she sensed the familiar oppressive chakra of Sero's. Most people were rather taken aback by it, as it felt disturbing, but Nozomi had long since lost all apprehension from the chakra itself, finding small comfort in it, as it meant that her former teammate and friend was still alive and well. The apprehension, however, was present at this moment, because perhaps this meant that she would end up finding something out about Kaekio, and she'd been waiting for a while for it. Looking around, Nozomi didn't seem to see Sero, but a trio of Ravens descended down towards Nozomi, and she knew that a message had been sent to her. Untying the three from each other [Sero could be so cruel sometimes, but Nozomi had a kind heart] she took the note and read it. A bit let down by the contents of it, and the lack of anything to do with Kaekio, Nozomi sighed. Included with the note was a written payment note from Sero, which was nice. Nozomi had no clue how Ryo worked most times, and could often be short changed. Her curiosity got the better of her, though, and she decided she'd do as bid, and went out to go find this Maigo person, not even paying attention as the Ravens took flight, back towards whence they came.

Nozomi recognized the name of Maigo as one of the former Genin that participated in the Chuunin Exams this year, but she hadn't had any interaction with him. She knew they were around the same age though, as most of her squad had been, considering Nozomi and Sero were specially trained and had a lot of experience, more than a lot their age had had. The more recent batch of genin had proved to be cut from the same cloth, and were also going to be jettisoning their training in the recent future to come, and would be her peers soon enough. Maigo was now a Chuunin, which meant he should be treated with respect from Nozomi once she found him, but the problem was finding him, when she knew nothing about him. Deciding the best course of action would be to go to the aviary to find a bird of her own, as it was a quick and efficient way of dealing with other shinobi.

Once there, Nozomi picked out a Messenger Hawk, as she wasn't all doom and gloom as Sero, and attached a quickly written note. "Find Maigo and deliver this please." she said, and watched as the bird took flight, sailing away into the sky with haste. The note itself wasn't anything special, and wasn't all too long either, as Nozomi didn't know much about what Sero even wanted in the first place, but it had offered as much explanation as she could. Written in her cute flowery handwriting, Nozomi's message read as follows:

The Note:

And with that, Nozomi headed out to the market, so that she could have the purchases all done before Maigo arrived so that she would be able to move out as soon as he arrived.

WC: 868

Maigo sat lazily on a bench in the street, he had just eaten at a nearby noodle house in the inner city and was now on the verge of dozing off outside a book shop. He sat sideways, one leg one the bench and his head leaning behind it as he stared into the sky and his eyes began to doze off. The wooden bench provided a decent place to nap, Maigo's sword bent out of the way behind his back and through a crack in the bench as he stretched out and fell asleep. Well attempted to, it was a nicer day, a cool climate and cloudy outside, but just enough sun to shine between the clouds that he'd get blinded every few seconds staring up at the sky. He rested there for a moment before the shopkeeper that the bench was adjacent to came out and started yelling at Maigo.

Nonsense about getting out of here and sleeping in public was indecent or something like that. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, not even 15 minutes of solid sleep, and it was such a nice day out today. It was enough to depress him and enough to force him to find somewhere else to do his sleeping if he could. Standing up from his bench and waving off the old man, a quiet apology as he yawned and he began walking through the street, his katana attached to his hip and his hands in his pockets he looked nearly straight down as he walked through the street. It wouldn't be long as he traveled further into the city, his apathetic attention failed to see a bird swoop down towards him until the last minute. It flapped and landed on a small post to the side of the street, some of the other civilians backed away as it flapped its wings and slowed down in front of them.

Maigo glanced up at the bird and saw a note attached to its body, the bird sat perched on a post and stared at Maigo. He took a second and then walked up to the bird, he held his hand out slowly at first as he approached the bird. Trying his best not to alarm it or anything, he petted the birds head for a moment as he took the note. Reading the note in his head for a moment, the bird fluttered off as he did so. The note was written in a feminine hand writing and flowery in nature, the note asking him to meet Nozomi in the market to help with supplies for someone named Sero. He sighed for a minute as he folded up the note and stuck it in his pocket, it all sounded like a lot of work to him. But, he couldn't simply turn down helping them out, could he? Not reasonably at least and not to where he could hold a decent reputation if he didn't. So, his mind made up he set off in search of the market, which wasn't too far from where he was already.

A quick run across a few rooftops and it would be a few minutes before he arrived at the entrance to the marketplace. And standing at the front with a large wagon of supplies was a blonde kunoichi he assumed to be Nozomi. He jumped down from a nearby rooftop and walked towards the woman, one hand in his pocket and the other waving towards her in hopes of catching her attention. "Hey, I'm Maigo Mugetsu, and I assume you're..." a pause as he grabbed the note from his pocket and opened it, "Nozomi Himitsu?" he would give her a second to take it in and respond before continuing on. "If this is everything then I suppose we should get going?" he would query to her, assuming that the blonde woman with all the supplies listed in the note was indeed the one he was looking for. And if so, he'd also throw in another comment before they gathered everything up and headed out to wherever, "You know, you have really nice handwriting and can write an extremely polite note." he would comment as they began to head off on whatever laborious adventure Maigo had gotten himself into.

[723 words]

Sero waited for a time as he paced back and forth on the dirt road leading to his island manor. Oh how he lacked the patience to wait on others he wasn't entirely sure would actually help his needs. If he had to go to the market himself he was going to draw a load of attention for sure. He didn't like eyes watching him through cracks in window panels. Cowards just staring after him as he walked in plain view and the occasional fool that tried to sue him for therapy costs. That had been an interesting Monday when he had walked into the courtroom and people screamed. Funny enough, face to face with Sero the individual who smelled of his own poo dropped his charge against Sero. Court was truly a simple thing if just by showing up any charges against you were dropped. Still he didn't venture into town much anymore as when he did they tried to form groups to chase him out. As if safety in numbers would really help them against someone like him. Still he was growing ever more impatient waiting on his supplies. He should of stitched those damn birds together to leave a bigger impression.

For now he gave up on waiting at the entrance to his island. He turned away from the bridge and stormed his way back to the manor in question. Making his way through the barren trees reaching out like claws with tiny scraps of meat, fur and clothes hanging from them. Past attempts at escaping his island for pirates and bandits hadn't been successful. What remained of them though was withered and rotten. barely clinging to the sharp branches of trees that whispered dark hints of his history. The water around his particular island was far from better. Bones littered the shallow waters while the deeper waters still had some bodies being picked at by the fish. It had been a fantastic childhood killing everything from burglars to the bells scouts. His island had almost been a staging point for them but he had seen to it that was not the case. Not a single man in that forward camp had made it off the island. Yet the report had never made it in either. With a war going on who was really keeping track of a boy having fun with a few play mates after all?

Still as he made his way across the courtyard towards the manor he glanced at the dogs hunting well away from him on the island. A pack of crazed strays he allowed to live on his island with him so he could fatten them up for their meat. Lovely. He noticed one was fatter than the others as it trotted after them and contemplated a supper for his guests that night. Either way he reached in the door and found the bone paint he had made himself out of some left overs and moved to the room once more. Quietly while he waited he set about marking the outlines of where he intended to set the brick and the doors. Hauling the metal doors in from the back and even a couple of camera's before climbing up the wall and setting to rewiring the personal announcement system. He would need to be able to talk over the speaker if he was going to run the gauntlet. The left over wiring he set into placing the camera into each of the individual rooms...so he would be making 9 rooms in total with one main room at the end. He had plans.

1298

"So, what could you possibly need with all these supplies? It's a little ridiculous, you coming into the market by yourself to get them. Why not bring some help, along with you." one of the men said incredulously. He just coudnt believe this girl came alone to collect building supplies.

"I'm sorry, but I really did come alone for these supplies, and I can't really tell you what they're for, because I don't know myself. I wasn't told, I was just asked to pick them up. Besides, I have someone on the way to assist me hopefully. And it's not all that heavy for me. I am a kunoichi after all. And I don't like all these questions. Why can't you just give me my things and we can part ways." Nozomi said, somewhat irritably. There had been a lot of questions as to why she needed this stuff. And a lot of disbelief that she was in charge of the pickup.

Finally the group of men shrugged, as she proclaimed she was a kunoichi, and they could see her headband and uniform that signified her as such. "Alright, I suppose. I guess it's for some sort of mission or something?" to which Nozomi only nodded. "What do you need it for? It's a lot of supplies." Nozomi shrugged. To be honest, she didn't know in the first place, Sero hadn't exactly explained a lot in his note. And she probably wouldn't tell them anyways if she did know, so she wheeled her wagon away before any further questions came her way. She didn't actually know it, but they'd been trying to hit on her as well, but since she was rather unattuned to social cues in that regard, the petite blonde shrugged off any advances. Besides, her heart belonged to another.

The supplies taken care of, Nozomi simply waited. Luckily, she didn't have to wait long before Maigo arrived, and she got an up close look at him. She'd seen him in the exams, of course, but didn't really spend too much time examining him there, nor was she afforded much opportunity or reason to. He asked her if she was Nozomi, and she confirmed with a brief smile and a nod of the head. Then he complimented her handwriting and her politeness. Nozomi nodded and said "Thank you, as a clan heiress, I did spend a lot of time learning etiquette and practicing my writing. It doesn't matter all that much anymore, but I suppose some of that does come in handy every once in a while."

Her eyebrows narrowed slightly. She'd forgotten about her clan for a while. She'd been thrown out after her own Chuunin Exams, in disgrace for the way she had lost. Of course, she had contemplated taking it over by hostile force, but it had left her thoughts for a while, as she knew she wasn't strong enough to take on her father at the moment, as he was a Jounin level fighter, and had the clan backing. Granted, Nozomi had some sympathizers in the clan who would back her claim, but it wasn't yet the time. Maybe she'd come back to it once she developed a more powerful jutsu, so that she could match her father in power, and have some aces up her sleeve, taking the clan's abilities to a point they'd never been brought before. She was a rare utilizer of Bukijutsu in the clan which specialized in Taijutsu, so she had an edge that few did there.

Surrounding herself in her thoughts, Nozomi continued walking in relative silence, unless Maigo were to ask anything, and headed towards Sero's Island. She'd been there only a few times, but remembered the directions perfectly. If he wasn't waiting for them, Nozomi would just continue on towards his place, until he appeared. She knew how he operated sometimes. They had been team mates at one point after all.

WC: 660
TWC: 1528

When Maigo arrived at the market and started pestering the woman about her being whom he was looking for. She merely smiled and nodded at first, relieving Maigo's worry about having to search long and hard for someone, though he doubted many people waiting in the market would have the exact supplies they needed, or at least close to, at the ready and waiting patiently. Not only that, but she was dressed as a kunoichi and wore the Kirigakure headband, only further adding to the deduction that she was the right person. It was after he complimented her handwriting that he afforded the opportunity to hear her voice, "Thank you, as a clan heiress, I did spend a lot of time learning etiquette and practicing my writing. It doesn't matter all that much anymore, but I suppose some of that does come in handy every once in a while." It was then that Maigo took hold of the cart with the supplies, opting to let her lead the way and Maigo could struggle along with dragging the things.

The walk there was relatively quite, they didn't really say much to one another though maybe Maigo should have questioned what they were doing a bit more, or at all. The journey though seemed rather long in his eyes, the cart being pulled not to somewhere in the village itself but somewhere else entirely? Maybe one of the surrounding islands or to some distinct location outside of the village, he hadn't the slightest clue as he dragged the cart behind himself and behind Nozomi. Luckily for him the wagon had decent wheels and the handle made it easy to pull and push as well as steer but still, after a couple hundred meters he could feel the burning in his arm and would switch hands. Then again he would begin to feel the burn in his other arm after sometime and then the cycle would repeat itself with him growing endlessly tired as their journey would continue to wherever they were going. Maigo felt bad though, he had been spending a lot of time at the docks helping the sailors with their cargo, a cheap excuse to train his physique and keep his stamina up. And now that it was time to put that to the test, he was rather apathetically pulling this wagon of stuff along.

Maigo had no idea on what he was supposed to do, why he was there, or where he was going. What he did know is whom they were going to meet. A guy named Sero, who wasn't allowed in the marketplace for some reason, hopefully for nothing too serious or maybe if it was. At least the part where he was pulling the cart across the village would be a good replacement for his usual training and chores, except for all he knew he wasn't getting paid a minimal amount like he would when he would work on the docks. Either way, if he wasn't getting to take a nap, he certainly hoped that he would at least get some decent training or something out of this. Another day wasted on menial tasks wasn't exactly in his agenda, well not in his agenda, but on his mind? Yeah, that was a fair assessment.

[556 words, 1279 words total]

Sero paused in his labors as he reviewed his work. This gauntlet he was designing was not one which normal people would find acceptable. Still it was basic enough in nature that a genin could handle it. After all with the third room as an exception...the gauntlet was more a test of mentality than an actual test of physical ability. He needed to confirm that these genin that were being pressed towards him for training were going to be capable of accepting his standards. After all Sero was known for his brutality and lack of morality. If he was going to take on students than one could have little doubt that they too would be raised to be killers. He would make them take lives for either his own amusement or just to make sure they could when the time counted. Nozomi would be familiar with this method of his and yet not many were willing to see the worth of taking a life so early on. They were under some illusion that taking a life was something one shouldn't have to do in their lifetime. Sitting comfortably in their homes feeling safe...only able to do so because people like Sero were out there in the night filling graves.

Still someone somewhere obviously saw this function as a necessary evil. After all they were sending more cogs to keep the machine turning. He would place these cogs where they needed to be and with them help turn the meat engine. Still he had paused for a reason. At first he barely heard it...the sound of something clattering against stone with some weight behind it. It was a very loud thing but it was on the other side of the island for the most part. If it wasn't for the superhuman senses Sero was capable of accessing he wouldn't of heard the wagon for some time. As it was he knew his supplies had arrived and with it two individuals he had some interest in. More so than he had before with one having picked up a skill he was focused in and the other because he was also a promising candidate with a weapon in his hand. Another Uchiha come to his island...he had only met a couple before and the last one he had thrashed somewhat thoroughly. He wanted to see for himself if that mindless madness was an Uchiha trait or if that girl had just been foolish.

For the moment he turned and flash stepped out of the building in the direction of the cart. His speed carrying him several meters per step as he sped across the courtyard and slammed through the forest towards the only path wide enough for a cart to proceed. Nozomi and Maigo would be progressing down that dirt road as overhanging branches seemed to scrape just above them for a bit like claws hungrily reaching out. On these tree's only certain ones had leaves and if studied in passing one would notice the roots seemed to be dug into and encasing something within. Bones stuck out of some of the thicker roots but corpses were the main source of nutrition for these tree's. Whether they had been there as placed by a person or the tree's actively caught prey it was hard to tell. Still as they cleared the tree's the fog would clear just a little. A blanket on the ground still but the manor could be clearly seen. A broken and overgrown massive building that looked like a couple of decades ago was a beautiful home now appeared to be haunted. Broken windows and blackened walls were all that could be seen from the outside of the building itself...the courtyard had some horrific partial statues that seemed to watch them. Depicting things such as gargoyles and ghouls. The fountain itself still functioned but a red moss hung around the rim and the water itself appeared to be red. One had to wonder if it was the moss which made the water red...or the water that made the moss red...either way it smelled of blood. Still as they appeared there a feeling would cover them. Nozomi would be familiar with it somewhat but never this potent. Sero had grown considerably and now was something of nightmares. A sense of something in every direction watching them would fill them. Almost an itch like fangs scraping the throats as the presence of this being almost tainted the air with its oil like feeling. Like breathing in a substance of sheer wickedness. Maigo would feel it more than Nozomi by a little since he had less resistance built up to it...he was now meeting a monster for the first time. The phantom of the mist. Then a cold voice spoke up, emotionless as it echoed from on top of the cart where Sero sat. His right hand held up as mist formed and then peeled away showing two ninja cards.

" Himitsu, Nozomi. Special Jounin rank....specialist in Ninjutsu and Taijutsu with some rather new skills in Bukijutsu.... Mugetsu Maigo. Specialist in Genjutsu and Bukijutsu...I assume without Ninjutsu according to the lore You follow the Tsukiyomi path of that special eye of yours...Dangerous. Welcome to my island. Tell me....do you enjoy the sword style you use?"

2198

As they walked in relative silence, Nozomi occasionally broke from her thoughts to spare Maigo a moment's glance. He had taken over the heavy lifting, and she wanted to make sure he was doing alright, but her worry wasn't altogether warranted, seeing as he was a Chuunin and didn't seem to be struggling too much with it. At the very least, if he was, it would provide him a bit of a workout, and he might see some improvement physically because of it. Nozomi viewed it as weight training of a kind. She giggled to herself slightly as she thought of someone training in such a fashion, using large and heavy rocks to weigh themselves down and build up speed. To be fair, she could probably commission somebody to make some strap on weights that would be much more concealed and usable in day to day use to build up her speed and strength if she so chose. But she could see some of the lesser intuitive shinobi she knew running around with boulders tied to their arms and legs, and the thought was bemusing. To Maigo it might seem she was laughing at him, so Nozomi broke the silence to air her thoughts. "I wonder if anyone actually trains this way. Carrying heavy things and running, or strapping boulders to themselves for weight. That would be ridiculous to see, but I bet there's someone out there who would." she said, hoping that would be enough to clue in Maigo on what she was giggling about.

That aside, Nozomi's mind wandered back to the bricks almost immediately after. What was it that Sero could need these for? Maybe he was doing some patchwork on his manor, and needed the supplies to fix it up? Heaven knows it was in desperate need of some spring cleaning. Sero's island was known around these parts as the haunted island and invokes pictures of horror and desolation. His house might even appear haunted to some, but that was all part of the facade. So it didn't make sense that he'd be doing some patchwork on his house unless it was literally falling to shambles, and he didn't want to hire a contractor to fix it, but having some trust in Nozomi, would be fine with her assisting in the rebuilding of it? No, that didn't make sense, and was a stretch. Sero didn't strike Nozomi as the type who would bother someone with helping him rebuild a place when he could just move to any other abandoned place he chose. He probably wouldn't stay there out of sentimentality, as he didn't even grow that attached to people, let alone a place of residency. To him, a house would probably be a tool for storage and little more. So that was out of the question. Besides, 800 bricks was a lot, but wouldn't necessarily be able to fix an entire house if it was in that bad of a shape. The only obvious conclusion Nozomi could come up with was that he was building something, but that was more than evident, and answered nothing.

As the pair of shinobi approached the manor, Nozomi got to see it with her own eyes, as she knew where it was, but hadn't actually been to the manor herself before. Underneath the accumulated grime and age of the manor that had fallen into such a state of disrepair was a beautiful place. Nozomi reaffirmed her thoughts that if it was ever fixed up, it would certainly be a place to behold. Through the windows, nothing could be seen inside the dark place, as the walls inside were sure to be even more black than the walls on the outside. Nozomi would wager that it would take weeks of scrubbing, or using a high powered pressure washing jutsu to strip the layers of grime off to clean off the dirt. There was probably mold of some dangerous varieties in the place too. It was the type of place that would be deemed unsuitable for living and foreclosed on if it wasn't a 'vacant' building. Nozomi made a mental note to bring that up at some point, and offer to help Sero clean it up, if only just to make it more suitable to live in. She hated to think that he actually lived in such conditions. A quick glance around the courtyard summated the rest of Nozomi's suspicions as to why people thought the place was haunted. If the statues weren't broken, the place could look like a manor of some highly respected nobles, but they had been broken and scattered, the fountain and its moss were flowing scarlet, whether through blood, or tainted water, one could only guess. And of course, with Sero's ominious presence that would send most fleeing, it was easy to see how anyone would immediately think it was haunted. "I'm going to warn you. Sero can be... unsettling. You'll understand what I mean when you meet him. And I think you'll understand why he's not welcome at the public market." she said offhand, figuring it would be kinder to offer him some sort of warning.

As they arrived, the presence moved towards them with great rapidity. It had strengthened quite a deal since she'd met him, but Nozomi recognized it well, especially after having acclimated to it on her trip back from Kumo. There was a certain comfort she found in its presence, comfort knowing she was safe from harm as long as they were on the same side. Comfort that to her meant a friend was alive and safe as well. She'd asked him for help with Kaekio, and without question, Sero had arranged himself in a way that they could take her out of Kumo without incident. He may not ever admit it out loud, but there was something more between them than just comradery of being from the same village and team. No, they were probably as close to friends as the two could be. Of course, Nozomi knew that Maigo wasn't acclimated, and stole a glance at him to see his reaction to the presence. Not everyone faired well with the feeling. Tainted chakra wasn't pleasant. Chakra existed everywhere, in the ground, the plants, the creatures, even in the air. But when Sero was around, his chakra was invasive, seeping into the very surroundings, twisting it, tainting it, making it dark. And it was certainly unsettling to those unused to it. Then her attention shifted back to her surroundings and she grinned and waved. Sero had a certain flair for the theatrics, but he was always paying attention, so the grin and wave wouldn't be lost on him. "First off Sero, no need to be so formal. You know me rather well. But your information is accurate. Love my current sword style, but wouldn't be averse to learning others. But... what did you want us for?"

She had listened as he spoke, and was surprised about Maigo's information. A genjutsu user? She didn't know too many of those. Bukijutsu and Genjutsu, a very potent combination. And Tsukiyomi path? Nozomi was drawing a blank at that. She didn't actually know anything about the Uchiha clan other than very basic information such as the Uchiha clan had the Sharingan Doujutsu, as well as some basic history. But she hadn't heard of the Tsukiyomi path before, nor did it register in her mind that it was an Uchiha clan trait, as Sero had called Maigo by his clan name of Mugetsu. So for now, Nozomi was left to wonder about that herself. It might be interesting information to follow up on, but Nozomi didn't see much reason for collecting such trivia about comrades in arms. She was still a little naive, and didn't think she'd ever have to seriously fight and attack a member of her own village.

Wc: 1317
TWC: 2845

Maigo continued carrying the wagon across the terrain, walking not far behind Nozomi as she led on. Through their journey he struggled on, not enough to break a sweat or anything, but enough to make him put forth some effort. During their walk Nozomi began to laugh at him, a slit tilt of his head as he looked at her and began to pull with just one arm. She turned back and began to explain her thoughts, something about the ridiculousness of training via weights and other similar methods, like tying a boulder to yourself for added weight. She laughed it off like such a simple idea, "Ridiculous! Lots of people train that way!" he blurted out, but Maigo pondered it for a second, how ingenious! He had been carrying boxes and things for sailors as a way to stay active and do some minor training, but what if he tied a boulder to his back while he lifted them! Then it would be so much more in terms of the effectiveness of it all, and he thought about this, for her to wave off, what he saw as a great idea, as nothing more than a joke must be the difference between a chuunin and a special jounin. He wondered if he would ever have this level of prowess himself for a moment before thinking about the practicality of tying a boulder to oneself. Would a single rope be enough? No, he doubted it, there would have to be an entirely different mechanism for it!

After a quick moment of thought, he deduced that there wasn't a suitable method for tying a boulder to someone. Maybe some smaller weights, but nothing serious, so Maigo sighed and spoke out, "Yeah, a boulder wouldn't be a good idea..." as they continued on with their journey. The journey wasn't bad, the further and further they got the more fatigued Maigo would get, not to the point of exhaustion but more from the boredom of repeated strain. Still, he managed on as they slowly began to approach a nearby island, he had literally no idea where he was at but Nozo seemed to understand. The closer and closer they got, the more things began to grow grim, it concerned Maigo as they journied on. The trail quickly became like the horror stories he had heard around the docks, except not the ones of rogue pirates. Those of demons and monsters hiding across the land, the trees reached out cragged and broken like the arms of the dead. Everything lost it's color in a metaphorical sense and he began to see nothing but grey, black, and white. The moss and water of it was red like blood, and the sanguine smelled through the air like that of a morgue, it was eery and the thickness of the air was suffocating.

His breathe was probably audible at this time as he breathed through his mouth, nothing could really prepare him. Then Nozomi spoke out, a small warning at their adventure, that Sero wasn't someone who was very lax in his affair, whether that be through personality or through appearance. But Maigo's largest concern was merely the appearance of where they were and where they were going. His mind racing, he lost the mood to talk, "Yeah, alright..." was all that he could muster up in the thickness of his worry. Not long after something moved, something was changing and his worry grew, he could feel his heart rate picking up slightly, he activated his sharingan in a fit of habit. He wanted to see, needed to be prepared, this was like Dameon sensei's training all over, being pushed to the brink of trauma. But even with it, he couldn't pinpoint the force, it seemed for a moment like death had descended upon him and it beckoned forth in his heart and mind. A voice rang out from behind him, he turned his head and let his eyes lead forward to catch a man in grey, his voice was as close to the afterlife as the atmosphere around them. He spoke out and began to call on them by name, it caught his attention and rang out in his head.


"Mugetsu Maigo. Specialist in Genjutsu and Bukijutsu...I assume without Ninjutsu according to the lore You follow the Tsukiyomi path of that special eye of yours...Dangerous. Welcome to my island. Tell me....do you enjoy the sword style you use?" his eyes followed and his ears heard. Nozomi seemed lax in the corner of his eye, she waved at him, someone who existed in these parts. He did his best, stood straight up and turned his body towards the man as Nozomi spoke, still holding the handle of the wagon in his hand. As he stood his mind raced for a second, Nozomi spoke to him and he heard what she had to say, this was clearly whom they were meeting, but why such a taste for theatricality and why choose a place like this? One that seemed more haunted than hospitable. But his mind raced on another subject, the man's comment on Maigo's eyes. The Tsukuyomi path or some such thing. He had heard of Uchiha members being excellent in the art of genjutsu and he himself had never been all that talented a ninjutsu user, but he was quickly becoming tired of people knowing more about himself than even he knew. First Dameon sensei, then his sister who he didn't know he had, and now a complete stranger. It also made Maigo wonder, for as beautiful and sweet as Nozomi is, for her to be so relaxed around someone who so embodied what he would never hope to see as an enemy, and he hadn't even seen his skills beyond his speed and the aura he possessed around him.

He did hear his name from Nozomi though, Sero, a name he was sure he had heard before, a previous Kage of Kirigakure, from before his time he thought. Well before his time most likely, as he had no memory of that Kage. He mustered up his voice to speak after, he cleared his throat at first, "Yes, I'm Maigo. Genjutsu is my claim to fame, and I was never all that prowessed at ninjutsu. But I know no such thing as paths and such. I hardly know anything about the eyes themselves at all." he would speak and do his best to look at Sero, but he couldn't will himself to make eye contact for long, opting instead for his torso or shoulders. Maigo continued on though, "As for my sword, I've hardly the motivation for it, it's more a tool than an art for me." he said as he set him palm on the blade and glanced at it for a moment. His attention then turned back to Sero and the two cards he held in his hand, Maigo's heart began to calm and he started to relax, but for some reason he couldn't become as relaxed as he wanted to around Sero.

[1199 words, 2478 words total]
[+1 to RT because Sharingan active]

195/200 Chakra:

Sero watched them both as they each spoke to him in turn. His dull grey eyes taking in two of his allies with no more emotion than the eyes of the dead. He did not blink or move as they each spoke aside from the slow slide of his gaze from one to the other. His skin was pale and seemed to blend into the mist behind him and his aura weighed down making the air feel ever colder. It was something odd to be so close to. If one considered chakra as a pure form..like a crystal clear lake within a person..Sero's chakra was like a thick mud slowly sinking into that lake as it remained close to him. If one was foolish enough to reach out and sense that chakra...to touch it directly it would suddenly seem like touching the face of carnal madness. An endless pit of the darkest parts of the mind no one claiming to have a slice of humanity in them would even dare touch. Yet, this one individual who exuded this feeling in its entirety would not seem to care. Sero was the embodiment of this and its source and yet he appeared to be utterly calm. One had to wonder just how mad he was beneath that cold exterior.

Still Sero tilted his head as they both finished speaking. He wasn't sure what to make of their statements. "Not adverse to..." He droned off into silence as he made the almost bored statement as his dead grey gaze took in Nozomi. However slowly it shifted back to Maigo as he once more spoke in a dull tone. "More of a tool.." It was difficult to tell if he was quoting Maigo or actually calling him a tool and yet it seemed highly unlikely that Sero would even know slang. He wasn't an incredibly social character. It was obvious to see how he wasn't allowed in the market just being this close to him. He was a monster in a human body. He didn't appear to be strong in nature. A pale adult with no fire in his eyes. However one could feel that this one person had touched more death than they had even seen of the living. He was almost an embodiment of war and yet his nature almost seemed to favor order over chaos. Still there was a moment as his pale lips split apart into a smile. His white, almost fang like teeth showing through as a pulse surged through his chakra. That thick mud now seemed to ooze around the two of them and surround them as they could feel his emotion around them. Excitement like something having caught its prey and playing with it now.

"There is plenty of history on your eyes. It is up to you to discover what is truth and what is rumor. What we know as history though is your eyes...or rather people with eyes like yours have nearly destroyed the world more than once. Entire nations and Kage like my father wiped out under that gaze. I suggest you take it seriously before I take you seriously." He paused as he shifted the hand holding the cards and they faded away like wisps of smoke. Yet he held up that hand above his head as he addressed Nozomi now. His eyes and smile directed at her. "Why, I needed supplies from the market of course. I need to prepare for my students that Ayakashi is allowing me to have. You have brought what I wanted and now.....now I will reward the two of you." He gripped his hand into a fist and his chakra seemed to surge around them as mist streamed in over their heads. A low growl seemed to erupt from the cloud like a great beast being summoned as Sero unclenched his fist one finger at a time before turning his hand over and clenching it again one finger at a time. Each time a finger moved a weapon fell from the cloud above them and buried blade first into the ground. First a Kunai launcher landed on the ground with a clatter...two kunai loaded into it and landing in such a way it threatened to accidentally fire them off. Next a whip sword flung out and wrapped its blades around a branch, hanging there. A bastard sword slammed into the ground merely foot to Maigo's right and then a Yari (Spear) to his right by the same distance. Directly in front of Nozomi by the same distance as well an Odachi stood nearly as tall as her. Lastly a strange blunt weapon with three staffs connected by chains fell down and Sero caught it as the cloud of mist above them faded. It felt like there was more within but for now this was all he would show. "Each of you pick a weapon and I will teach you to use it. As payment for services rendered."

3040

Nozomi kept a quiet watch on Maigo's reactions to Sero Osada, as she knew that the first time meeting the man could prove to be rather terrifying for most. She hoped that her own calmness right now would help acclimate him to Sero's presence, and that he could remain level headed. She was rather unique in her view of Sero, and although his presence still instinctively terrified part of her in her core, she was able to find assurance in it, as she hadn't ever really equated the sensation with something bad. Her first meeting with Sero had gone rather terribly, but in her defense, she wasn't paying attention to his aura of twisted chakra rather than attempting to stop someone from attacking her sensei. She hadn't known then that Sero was to be her teammate, nor that she would count him as a friend, only that a shinobi had appeared out of the water and attempted to assassinate Gin. And she had been foolish enough to be the one to stop him. For that, she now carried a rather faint scar down her front, from where he'd sliced her when she refused to fight him, seeing no reason to carry on with further violence. In retrospect, she could have defended herself, and probably should have, but then he'd have continued fighting until she either fought back and beat him, or the end result would have been the same. Despite the way that the events had played out, Nozomi looked on that memory rather fondly now. Because of that, she had ties to a team, and had made some of her first friends. Gin was someone Nozomi's loyalty to knew next to no bounds, and Nozomi would gladly take a lethal blow for Sero, if it meant saving him. Not that she could imagine him in any position that he couldn't fight his way out of and survive.

No, Maigo seemed to be able to hold his composure fairly well. He certainly seemed unnerved, but that wasn't exactly unexpected. She'd forewarned him about it, but a person could only prepare themselves so much, and nerves weren't something most could control. She paid closer attention to his reply to Sero, of course, as she was intrigued by the comment about some Tsukiyomi path, but was rather put out by his response. It seemed that he was in the same boat as she was, in that she didn't know precisely what he was talking about, but she was able to discern that something about his eyes were special. Nozomi looked into them, trying to see what it was that they were talking about. What she saw gave her somewhat of a start. With a little gasp, Nozomi noticed that his usually honey coloured goldish eyes were now blood red, with a black comma-like dot in them. Her eyes flitted back to Sero, to see if he'd expound any further on the matter or not. She was interested in what they were, but still didn't care enough to actually ask out loud, because she didn't want to seem unknowledgable on the subject and be viewed as childish or simple if it was something she should have known. Maigo countered Nozomi's own response to Sero's question that had been directed at both of them, as Nozomi loved her style, but wanted to learn more, whereas he only really cared about it due to it being a tool.

Unfortunately, Sero's response was rather lack luster when it came to any sort of details when it came to the eyes of Maigo, but her curiosity wasn't so great that it bothered her too much. If anything, what he said was enough to confirm that they were extremely special in some sort of way. Apparently those eyes granted the power to become a force of reckoning, and had been used in the past to wage war against the shinobi and nearly destroyed the world many times over. Nozomi frowned. Unfortunately, history wasn't something that was particularly taught in the Himitsu clan, as they lived for the here and now. The main bit of history they'd all learned was of Kirigakure's past as the Bloody Mist, and many had been indoctrinated into believing that the Bloody Mist was something they should all strive for once again. Nozomi was one of only a small amount of Himitsu clan members [former now] that didn't follow that belief. It was sort of ironic, that they chose to debilitate their opponents rather than killing them, but then again, it was usually to take in and learn their secrets. Beyond that point, most captured foes would be killed, so it wasn't as important an issue to fixate on. However, she was able to use their teachings to take people down non lethally, and for that, Nozomi couldn't complain. Still, the fact that Sero acknowledged the potential of those eyes, it was something to consider as important to learn about at some point.

Then Sero's attention was on Nozomi, answering her own question, smiling as he did so. Nozomi noted that it wasn't a malicious smile, not intended to be anyhow, at least from what she could tell of it. That made her shine a little bit on the inside. But none the less, he answered her question, saying that he had only really wanted them to pick up the supplies, and that was all. That was fine by Nozomi, of course, but it was a little perplexing to her. At least, it was perplexing until he explained why he needed them in the first place. Apparently the Lady Mizukage thought it necessary to give Sero students. The young blonde was only sure that she should be surprised. Apart from that, she was feeling a myriad of different emotions mixed in with it. First was excitement for her former teammate, for being able to teach a squad. That, however, was short lived as it was almost immediately followed by a worry for the students that he was being assigned. It was no secret that Sero wasn't exactly someone everyone could tolerate. However, Nozomi then had a moment of intrigue as to the students. Perhaps they were being specially assigned to Sero? If Lady Mizukage Ayakashi had approved of their assignment, then perhaps they were equally as brutal as Sero had been as a genin, and displayed the same potential. Or perhaps it was that they would be able to withstand his training, and that he'd have reason to learn more of a Sensei role, and to be a bit softer. Nozomi couldn't see the Mizukage attempting to use a squad to tame in Sero's darker side, but then again, she wasn't exactly a Kage either, and didn't have the experience to judge her actions properly.

Then again, Nozomi wasn't too concerned about it either. If the Mizukage was fine with him having a squad, then there was no reason for Nozomi to second guess that decision. Besides, Sero mentioned something about a reward for their assistance in gathering the supplies, and Nozomi's interest was immediately drawn to that. Sero's hand gripped into a fist, and he uncurled his fingers; one by one weapons immediately starting appearing into existence. Immediately, Nozomi's threat evaluation of Sero was raised as she processed this new information and skill that Sero had that she knew nothing about. He had certainly gotten far superior to herself. It wasn't unexpected though. She'd never considered herself to be equal to Sero, ever since she met him. He'd always been ahead of her, and that was in large part due to their differing mindsets. Nozomi hadn't cared for killing or fighting for a long time, and really didn't start doing so until preparation for the Chuunin Exams was necessary. It was surprising to her how quickly she'd gotten prepared for it, and how well she'd done with just basic skills and abilities. That said, Sero had not been lax in his training at any point, and when they'd met, he'd already been better than her. The Chuunin Exams played out, and despite the fact that many viewed them as equal at the time for having both made it to the same level of the Semi Finals, Nozomi knew that he would have beaten her in any serious fight had they both passed. Nozomi had lost in large part to her inability and refusal to fight Kaekio unprovoked, whereas Sero had voluntarily left as he knew he would kill the opponent he faces, and didn't feel like it was necessary to continue fighting. Mindset alone, Sero was vastly more dangerous. The gap between them had only widened since that point.

Scattered around Maigo and Nozomi were an assortment of weapons from each and every different style, and Nozomi's eyes fell on each of them as they appeared. A Kunai launcher loaded with two Kunai, which was rather unsafely primed for launch. A whip sword which attached itself to a tree, dangling like some sort of snake or vine. A Bastard sword which was stuck in the ground like some sort of sword in the stone. A long spear buried itself in the ground as well, a beautiful piece of simplistic weaponry. Next to Nozomi, an Odachi that was much longer than suited Nozomi, almost as tall as her, short as she was it was still an impressive length. Finally, the strangest of the weapons, a weird long nunchuck-like weapon with an additional prong. And then Sero spoke, saying that they had the choice in which weapon he would train them in, all they needed to do was pick. Nozomi's eyes widened slightly as she processed what he said. Sero Osada, one of the most deadly and efficient utilizers of Bukijutsu, was offering to personally train the two of them in any given style of their choosing from this selection of weapons.

Nozomi's reaction was one that could only be described as priceless. Letting out small squeaks of excitement, Nozomi bounced up and down and brought her hands together, clasping them tightly. The echo created by that small clap sounded off strangely, muffled slightly and distorted by the surrounding mist and trees, but in that moment, Nozomi didn't care at all. She was absolutely excited to learn more weapon styles, as she was admittedly a new and developing Bukijutsu utilizer, and didn't know much about weaponry personally, beyond that they could almost all be used in a deadly fashion. So, of course, with Sero teaching, she'd learn the most effective ways to use that sort of weapon, as he wasn't one to do any job half way. If it came down to a weapon, Sero would know the ins and outs of every single one, and how best to use it in a normal situation, how to utilize it in unorthodox but effective manners, and most importantly, how to use them correctly. Nozomi had learned since she'd learned Bukijutsu, that it took more than just picking up a weapon and swinging it around or throwing it to know how to use a weapon. She was newer at it, and even still already used her tanto blades more effectively, having been trained in Bukijutsu than previously, when she'd only used them to extend her reach as a longer kunai almost. So now, the difficult part came down to choosing which style she wanted to learn in. Nozomi's eyes scanned the choices of weapons in front of her eagerly, hands still clasped together. And so she considered each choice, in a randomly chosen order.

Option number one presented itself in front of the young blonde in the form of an Odachi. No doubt, this would be the weapon that Nozomi would find most familiar and easy to learn, as she was an apprentice of the Kenjutsu style. Maigo would more than likely feel the same way about it, judging by the katana he had on him. Pulling out her own Tanto, Nozomi unsheathed the beautiful blade and stared at it longingly. She'd, of course, received this one as consolation for killing Nick Saturn, as it was found on his person. It was a fine piece of metal, and had rarely left her side since her acquisition of it, and her twin set of tanto blades usually matched it. Today, however, she'd only seen fit to grab this one. Looking at it upon further examination, Nozomi concluded it was definitely of higher quality than the blade that Maigo carried on him, even though he was more than likely higher skilled than she was in the art of Kenjutsu, utilizing it as one of his main specializations. That being said, Nozomi knew enough about Kenjutsu that she didn't really want to choose the Odachi. It was something she could train in her own time, and would be more prudent to learn a new weapon style. A Tanto and an Odachi weren't TOO different. A tanto with a little extension was a Wakizashi. A Wakizashi was simply a short Katana. An Odachi was a long version of a Katana. So in retrospect, the Tanto was simply an extremely small Odachi. So, no, that option was not for her.

Option number two presented itself in the form of that strange 3 sectioned staff. Nozomi was only really interested in it due to it's strange shape and the fact that it was a mostly non lethal weapon, used to take someone down by beating them into submission. But there in lay the same issues with the weapon that would stop her from taking it. Because it was so non lethal, it took more to physically break someone. As opposed to her using her blade or a petal technique, which would focus the potentially lethal strikes into specific areas to cut muscles to promote easier take downs. Non lethal weaponry tended to be more brutal and less Nozomi's style than the alternative, so she just stayed away from it. Beyond that, the thing looked rather unwieldy and strange to use, so it wasn't exactly her style, although it would be simple to make improve it. Nozomi could picture herself modifying one of those weapons to include small notches that would allow chakra to travel through it more easily, with little slits on the two outer most staff pieces. Channeling her clan petals into the weapon, they would form from the weapon, and she could spin it to have a saw blade of petals. But that just didn't seem as effective or accurate as she could get otherwise from other weaponry. Besides that, Sero knew that Nozomi was more averse to killing than he was, and she didn't want him to judge her incorrectly for choosing a non lethal weapon. So no, that option was not for her either.

Option number three presented itself in the form of a Bastard Sword that was stuck in the ground, as if a knight had just died there and left his blade planted in the ground. Nozomi might have been more inclined to choose that weapon if there was more utility to it at the moment, but much like the Odachi, it didn't offer much more than range to her current style, and there wasn't much reason to take it. Sure, it had symmetrical blades, so it was sharp on both sides, but that wasn't much consolation. It looked really nice to her, and she would definitely learn it at some point, but for now, the Special Jounin would decide to learn something else. It didn't give her any additional utility, as it was just a blade. The handle was too short for it to matter all that much, so she couldn't choke up on it for additional leverage if she needed it, and the fighting styles would be more limited, although easier to master perhaps. So once again, this was not the option for her, at least in the current point in time. Perhaps a later date would do.

However, here is where it became difficult for Nozomi to choose. The first 3 options, she could argue against easily, and had almost immediately decided not to consider an option at all. But the last 3, those being the Whip Blade, the Yari, and the Kunai Launcher, Nozomi couldn't actually decide on. She could come up with plenty of reasons for each of them individually, and to be honest, could see plenty of potential if paired together at some point. In a manner of speaking. The Whip Blade would be hard to implement in with the other two, but it was more the style in her mind. Something unorthodox, not commonly used. If she had the long pole and bladed end of a yari, paired with a launcher of some kind, perhaps senbon due to the smaller and more accessible and transportable nature of them over a kunai. Perhaps she could implement them in some sort of a weapon or device at some point. Her choice would be one of these three, but she wasn't sure which to learn first. They all had their merits, but now Nozomi had to figure out which she could deal without for now, as her own abilities would be fine enough as a supplement and replacement for them. So she took a moment to consider these three with intensive scrutiny.

Option number four was the Whip Blade, a very interesting and unique weapon that Nozomi hadn't actually had much forward knowledge of, but had seen implemented before. They were beautiful pieces of craftmanship and work, and had such potential utility in them. Heck, even one of the Legendary Seven Swords of the Legendary Seven Swordsmen of the Mist was just such a Whip Blade, that's how amazing the potential for these weapons could be. With the interlocking sections of individual blades, it could be either a sword, or an incredibly sharp whip, with blades that could be used to wrap an opponent, lock into themselves, and keep them immobilized for fear of slicing themselves to ribbons. The thing was a work of art, and complimented Nozomi's style extremely well. The range of the whip blade and control she might have through chakra would be like a real life Petal Blade technique, one she didn't have to manifest. The main problem with it, and really her only issue, was just that. Nozomi had petals already, and could manipulate them perfectly. She had to weigh whether or not she wanted to learn that weapon to compliment her style, or whether learning a weapon with different utility to make up for her style's weakness would be more worth it.

Option number five was the Kunai Launcher, a device that could, well, launch kunai. It did exactly what you thought it would. It was a way of making the kunai launch quicker, or remotely launch kunai and make traps and what not. They had less utility to add to Nozomi's skill set, but she could see the application of them immensely improving her abilities to fight and utilize all of her weaponry. Suffice it to say, much like the Whip Blade, it complimented what she was already about. Nozomi had a vast supply of weaponry, and didn't have a bunch of hands of course. If she learned how to work with launchers, she could load them up and carry them on her, latched on somehow, pre-loaded. Then of course, she could launch weapons and stuff have free hands for her techniques if she had them mounted somewhere. But, much like the whip blades again, it complimented her abilities, but didn't exactly offer her something she couldn't do already. These two were fantastic, and she'd have to learn them, because the utility they would be able to provide her was insane, and would make her much more of a contender in a higher ranked fight, or able to take down someone quicker than she would previously. That being said, however, Nozomi's gaze flickered to her final option.

The final choice, option number six, was the long spear, better known as the Yari. Essentially, it was a long bladed spear, with both sides of the blade being sharp. Perhaps one of the simpler weapons, and interestingly enough, considering how quickly she'd dismissed some of the other simple weapons, one that Nozomi was very hardcore thinking of choosing. The weapon itself was something that answered the problem of reach that she currently had, while giving more than simply a longer blade. The blade itself, in fact, was about as long as the blades on her tantos. However, with the added reach she could get on it, the Yari was more versatile. She could extend further attacks physically, she could choke up on the handle and provide as much torque as she'd need, the potential combinations she could make with her petal techniques would be outright insane, and with one end of the Yari being bladed, and the other not, she could easily turn it into a non lethal weapon should she ever need to bludgeon someone, or drive the end into someone's gut to knock the wind out of them. And because of that, Nozomi had made up her mind on the subject matter, although she was still rather hesitant to answer, because she really wanted to learn a couple more, but didn't want to push it.

Looking towards Sero, after Maigo's answer, if he got to it before she did, as she'd spent a small length of time considering the benefits of each weapon, perhaps more than was necessary, but she wanted to make sure she'd chosen one for the right reasons, and not just because it looked cool, Nozomi spoke up. "Well..... I thought about it..." she began, still being a little hesitant. "I already know Kenjutsu. I could just refine that on my own, it would be a waste of your time to help me learn it more, right? Staff nunchuck things don't suit my style of combat all that much either. If I have Kenjutsu, then using the Bastard sword wouldn't be as pressing a matter to learn. I really want to learn the whip blade and the kunai launchers, because they work well with what I have already, but that's kinda like the whole Kenjutsu thing. So I guess if I can only choose one, I choose the Yari." she reasoned out, making sure Sero understood why she ruled out certain items, informing him that many held interest for her, but she wanted the one that would benefit her skills the most at the moment, filling in the gaps of weakness rather than enhancing the strengths she already had.

WC: 3778
TWC: 6623

Maigo stood there, his sharingan focused in around his soundings, he looked towards Sero yet not at him, always focusing on something else and not his eyes, like his chin or even at his nose. It was as if he blurred his vision to focus on the background instead of directly on Sero in some sort of perverted attempt to avoid making eye contact, Sero's chakra presence was ominous in itself and it disturbed him like few things else might also do, maybe the cruel death of a person or unwarranted and cruel torture. The eeriness of his own calmness within the chakra Maigo would equate to madness and to chaos that was his chakra and the aura around him, he was either mad himself or madness himself. Sero tilted his head after he was done with his spiel about how he felt about his sword, a rather pedantic answer for wanting to merely say that he wanted to expand his knowledge or that he found his katana as nothing unique and a tool like anything else. Not so much as his own weapon which he could uniquely build himself upon and build his own legacy on. But, he would most likely have to change that mantra of himself, his dream of becoming a Seven Swordsman of the Mist wouldn't come about from passively wielding a katana, even if it was his only source of offense in a utility made of Genjutsu and Bukijutsu. No, he needed to find an identity in his weapons, one that could take him to the next level and then beyond that, one that would combine his unique ocular powers and potentially his prowess in genjutsu in order to become a real threat and not merely more fodder for the masses of other great ninja. Genjutsu carrying a lot of potency in it's own right, the ability to manipulate an opponent's mind and to change the battlefield or the actions of others within an illusion was an ability worth mentioning. It's potency only dulled by the fact that beyond that, his only skills lied in his own physical skills and his ability with a sword. The katana which he wasn't very trained with and quickly found out in the Chuunin Exams that he lacked a heavy degree of skill compared to other ninja with weaponry. Both in his ability to wield it and compete with others at the base level, and the jutsu he could create for his katana, severely limited in his imagination and in his care to train it. He knew that if he wanted to become great he would need to find a weapon he could build an identity in and train a unique style in so that he can build his own legacy and rise to the ranks of those previous Ninja Swordsmen and women of Kirigakure. Each of them carrying their own legend of prowess within the village and beyond that, each weapon also carried it's own legend of prowess and history that would be known throughout the lands. Of course, for the moment and within his own fear and anxiety he would never dream to banter on about his own inadequacies to either of them. His own rank and age would speak enough for his inexperience, no need to go on about how much more he wished that he had other skills and didn't enjoy the manner in which he fought. There would be no need to rub around his own lack of skill compared to the other two. Sero, he could tell for a fact that he was weaker than, the chakra and aura he had alone gave that away. Nozomi on the other hand looked so cute and innocent, like a stuffed animal but maybe she had a psychotic side that she lets out during fights? That could be incredibly dangerous, best if Maigo avoided making her too mad. Besides, he preferred the quiet and innocent version of Nozomi to some potentially hidden psychopath she may be hiding. However, the psycho theory might prove why she was so comfortable around Sero without being physically out of her mind, or without the appearance of it.

The tilt in Sero's head was ominous in it's own regard, it almost felt like his head didn't move upon it's own accord but instead, the air and chakra shifted around and let his head fall into place. It was like witnessing a dead person full of life right in front of him, and as he listened in, more broken and dull statements. He wondered if his aura and the ominous chakra which he carried about himself was some sort of genjutsu or jutsu of another type, which would explain how Sero could remain so calm within his own fear. But if it wasn't genjutsu then what could it be? A ninjutsu would give it the real affects he could see around him and on the plant life, but was it merely just to instill fear or did it have another purpose in its potency? It would be a thought he would have to deduce on his own accord at some point, if they ever crossed paths again down the road, careful study of it or merely keeping an eye on it that he didn't get caught in some horrific technique. Now, instead of a greeting they were merely two or three word quips at their responses, every word spoken he could feel his heartbeat a bit more. He first spoke to Nozomi but then turned his attention towards Maigo. He couldn't tell if he was questioning or pondering his use of the word 'tool'  but Maigo dared not to meet his eyes with his own, sticking instead to the idea of focusing on the background or onto another feature for the time. Then, the most interesting of emotions embodied itself onto Sero, a smile as if he had found enjoyment in something. It wasn't a feature Maigo thought he would see that day, and he couldn't personally tell if he was enjoying himself or had an idea to bring himself enjoyment or if the smile was even sarcastic in nature. Maigo would definitely fear every option, but of the three choices he thought of, the first choice of smiling because of his own enjoyment would be the weirdest by far and the choice of him smiling at an idea would be the most sadistic by far. But, Maigo didn't know Sero well enough to really make any true judgements on this bit, he based it almost entirely on the horrid chakra he carried and the dull and dreary tone of his words.

Either way, the unexpected shift in his nature felt like he had shifted nature around him. He began to lecture Maigo on his eyes and their history, the power of those who came before and wielded them, all things he had before. But, he stood their with his tail between his legs and listened, he'd also dare not interrupt this either but part of him wished that he could find some real information on who these people that were destroying villages were or of the powers the eyes themselves held exactly other than vagues stories of tempestuous God's and things described as the ultimate ninjutsu or genjutsu. All of it was words and vague ideas to Maigo, exposition clouded in mystery, and wrapped up in a place where he couldn't comprehend. Not yet at least, he was slowly working to gaining understanding, and Sero's mention of his father falling at the hands of eyes like his meant he probably knew more about it. He wondered how much exposure Sero himself had to the sharingan, what he knew of its abilities and whether his own knowledge would be more stories or if he could give him some real details on the Dojutsu and his clans' kekkai genkai. His father the late Kage Sero most likely, and he carrying the same name of Sero; he wondered if he carried any animosity towards the Sharingan inherently but he didn't exactly feel like testing that. In the chance that he did, he didn't want to see what a visual embodiment of the reaper of death could do to him. He ended with a warning to take his eyes seriously, as if he didn't already. Maybe his anxiety made it appear that he didn't understand or hadn't put in the effort to it, but if there was any one thing he was certain of it was that he cared to find out about where he comes from and the people like him. The blood thirsty monsters and edgy introverts that made up the mass of his clan and how they lived their lives, what they could do with their visual prowess, and where Maigo would fit into all of that. Still, he dare not speak unless he was spoken to, he merely sighed lightly and nodded slightly before returning his attention to his feet for a moment. He had released the handle of the wagon and was turned towards Sero completely now, taking in everything thus far.

Sero remained where he was, the cards in his raised hand vanished into a veil of smoke, and yet he kept his hand raised as he began to speak again, this time towards Nozomi. Maigo slowly brought his composure back, a few steady breathes as he began to speak, it felt like he was thanking the two of them for helping him out, explaining that he needed the supplies to prepare for students of his. It brought back a short flash to his own sensei, Dameon Shikyo, whom he thought was tough enough with his own styles and his own threats and yet under all that. Dameon was an incredible sensei and extremely powerful in his own right, though he may not always show it. It was an interesting thought, that someone who was so fearful would be getting students. He thought about the idea of him having been Sero's student and how different he might have been now if that were a reality. He also wondered about the irony of Sero getting three good and kind hearted genin to train, their own fear paralyzing them from becoming effective. It would certainly have a learning curve to become the students of Sero, but then again, he had quite the curve for the harshness of Dameon's training as well. Maigo felt a bit silly thinking about the sad students who would get stuck with the Grim Reaper, but his idea of chuckling or even grinning at the thought was struck out, frozen in his own thought as he listened in. He was glad at the very least that they brought the stuff he needed, the idea of failing would normally be something that could easily be corrected but for someone not allowed into the market and for now obvious reasons, going back to get more stuff or replacing something that might have been ordered wrong would be a pain. But then again, he was glad that it was Nozomi who retrieved everything, she was clearly capable to say the least, Maigo himself would have jsut taken whatever they would have given him and probably not known what half these tools and items are.

Maigo also had his interest piqued at the idea of being rewarded for such a simple thing, it was really no big deal in itself but he wouldn't argue or interrupt. Sero then gripped his hand and mist began to form around him, he glanced at it from left to right, it was all around their heads, and he could feel his heart rate being to move again. But Maigo himself remained calm as he watched and took in the theatrics of what was about to come next. A beastly growl filled the air, his ears twitched at the sound and he watched as Sero began to raise his fingers and command weapons of varying sorts to fall around them. With every motion a new weapon fell to the ground and implanted itself around them, first a kunai launcher fell from the ground. It was followed quickly by a whip sword that wrapped itself around the branches of a tree and then a large bastard sword landed and cemented itself into the ground right next to Maigo, his eyes turned and watched it. He became slightly paranoid at the idea of being impaled by a weapon or something of that nature, but he didn't move, as scary as Sero was he trusted a fellow Kirigakure ninja not to kill him within the first 20 minutes of meeting him. It was the 20 minutes after he met people that he would worry about them killing or mauling him. More weapons continued to fall to the earth, a Yari fell again about the same distance, only further driving his anxiety, as if Sero was teasing at his nerves. An Odachi fell in front of Nozomi and then lastly a strange staff made of three sections began to fall, Sero grabbed that one as the mist faded around them.

Sero then instructed them to choose a weapon as payment for their services, and he would train them in how to use it. Maigo quickly became excited by the venture, however it was palled in comparison by Nozomi's response. She began to bounce up and down, squeaking bits of air out as she clasped her hands and continued on, Maigo thought it made her look even cuter than before and he couldn't help but chuckle at her for a moment. He had already known her to be quite attractive and though older than Maigo, it was in that moment that he thought even less of making some sort of romantic advance towards Nozomi that he thought of her more as like a little sister stereotype. Combined with her innocence in attitude around Sero, he could just pick her up and squeeze the life out of her, but that would be weird right? Maigo being younger and yet a lot taller, and he didn't even know if Nozomi had a type of guy that she cared for, if guys at all, or anyone at all for a matter of fact. Given a different set of circumstances he would have definitely pushed the envelope on this a bit more, declining to on the way to Sero's purely out of professionalism but there was only so much taunting in her own adorable manner that Maigo would skip over. Maybe an offer to join him for dinner one night or a chance to take a midnight stroll? He didn't know, he'd have to play it by ear assuming she didn't outright slap him and yet that possibility didn't scare him so much as the reality he was in now. That being that if he made a move or started acting a fool, not only could he piss of Nozomi but to annoy the living embodiment of fear would be even more worrisome. Not to mention they knew each other, maybe he would be defensive of her, no no. Maigo knew it was a bad idea, and yet, she was incredibly lovely to the point that he would fancy a chance to hang out with her or really anything at or beyond that and it would be that thought would be ever present in the back of his mind.

Then came a tough decision for Maigo, he turned his attention to each of the weapons around them, he now had to decide on what he would like to learn, truth be told he would love to get some practice with all of them. And then decide what would be the best for him and his future identity in bukijutsu, but for now he needed to narrow it down to a single immediate choice. The weapon he chose here could very well determine how he would develop his skills in the future from this point forward and would become part of his notoriety, if he gained any at all, in the world and in the village. Maigo began to ponder his choices, rubbing his chin and debating as quickly as he could over each choice, they all looked so tempting for him to want to go after. Each weapon carried with it a set of pros and cons that he would go over carefully, examining if he could see himself using that weapon or any others like it, and then building a list of which weapons he would like to use or learn in order.

The first weapon he ran his mind over would be the kunai launcher, an interesting choice at the very least. He took a quick second to imagine himself with a bow on a battlefield or a crossbow, sharingan active and cutting people down at a distance. Hiding behind trees and striking without them having any idea to him ever existing, it would certainly be a subtle weapon if he ever knew one. Perfect for quick assassinations and existing in the shadows, but the theatricality in Maigo's fighting style often times came from being front and center and engaging his enemy directly and giving them their own fighting chance. It would be an excellent change of pace for Maigo, going from a forward confrontation to being able to keep himself out of the line of danger most of the time. But he had to debate on whether he could find himself in it, the idea of striking from shadows where never seen and quickly killing his enemies. It would certainly detach him from the kill more so than say a katana would, but was it something Maigo could see himself following suit in? He was after all a lover of theatrics when needed, but this gave him no opportunity for that but it would be a safer weapon as far as he thought. Though he wasn't one for the theatricality of death in any manner either, but a quick death being sniped at a distance was probably better in his mind than having to drive a spike through their heart. But, this style certainly did match Maigo in his own choice to do everything with as little effort as possible and in a much more efficient manner. The debate between going sword to sword with someone in hopes of besting them or to snipe them down with an arrow from meters away, in terms of efficiency and effort, there was a clear winner between the two. But still, Maigo wasn't too lazy that he would ignore the safety of it inherently and the efficiency of the kill rate, as long as he could stay hidden and out of his enemies perception then coming away with a clean kill would be almost no problem whatsoever. So, the kunai launcher would stay on his short list for now, an appealing choice but he wanted to consider all the choices he had before him.

The list he was building in itself was merely something he thought of in order to keep his logic sound and to rank the weapons in order of his own preference or their practicality. Firstly, he was going to let Nozomi make her choice first, so in case she took the weapon he would like to learn then he would have a fallback and one after that as well. Then, if he was given the chance to dip into the styles of the other weapons, then he would know in which order of weapon he should focus himself into. He certainly had an interesting idea of him using a staff in the most finesse fashion and using it in a way that no one could get anywhere near him to deliver their own strike or to wield a scythe and to combine it with his sharingan and become a reaper of some sorts. The theatricality of his later image was more fun to him than anything, but using a unique weapon like that was a really cool idea in his mind. But, as far as Maigo was normally concerned, he was only trying to act logically because he didn't want to waste Sero's time. If he were himself and not under an extreme amount of stress from being judged by him and the anxiety his chakra came around with, then he probably would have just blurted something out based on which weapon looked the coolest, taking little to no consideration for those around him. But he wanted to be nice to Nozomi and to make it appear as if he wasn't a total dunce, even if it were only for a single afternoon and evening.

The next weapon on the chopping block was the bastard sword, it was wide and huge compared to the katana of his own that he carried with him. His thoughts ran towards Maigo on a battlefield with multiple enemies, first he tilted the sword to give the flat face vertically, blocking a few kunai and then leaping forward into action. As he did so he eyed in a target and spun in a wide arc, the sword doing what it did best and then cleaving his enemy nearly in half. The weapon gave him a broad range and reminded him of swords used by the Seven Swordsmen in the past, though he would have to increase his strength some to use it more effectively,a  more powerful swing was never a bad thing. Not to mention the weapons increased mass would lead way to more forceful blows delivered by him in general. The idea was intriguing and it was certainly a different sword style in itself than the finesse based style the katana and kenjutsu warranted, but was it something that Maigo could get behind in his own regard? The old Executioner's blade of an era of Seven Swordsmen from long ago was something he himself constantly thought about. Part of him would have loved a chance to wield it and cut his enemies apart with a force that they couldn't resist without extreme effort but the other weapons of that era bored him and he was a bit glad that they had been lost or replaced or something else. Maybe at some point or in a time of need or if he wanted only a slight change of pace in his choice of weapon. However, if he couldn't find himself within a katana, he didn't imagine that a bastard sword would do much better for his existential identity crisis. Therefore, the bastard sword would be a latter choice if at all for him, though he would be grateful to learn it's art he wouldn't push the envelope to use it.

The next weapon his eyes turned to was the whip sword hanging from the tree branches. It was in doubt incredibly unique and in both it's uses and styles, offering a wide range of abilities and powers it would give him quite the mobility and an extreme change of pace. Maigo thought about himself wielding the whip sword, it started at his side with a limp blade hanging to the ground, the last two or three bits bent backwards as he walked forward. Several enemies charged forward at him and with sone wide swing, the sword expanded and the many sections of blades cut into them quickly, then he turned his wrist and cut back against them in the other direction. The blade itself he imagined gave him an incredible range, and in a fight where the first person able to deliver a strike often times wins, the whip sword could give him a unique chance to expand upon that idea. Maigo also took a second to carefully reflect upon the weapons unique craftsmanship. A weapon like that would take care and skill to build and use, no doubt that any missed step or miscalculated stroke to use it like a literal whip could risk him striking himself with it. The unique weapon in itself would absolutely take the most care to use and utilize at the risk of the user. Sure, someone could cut themselves on a katana or on a kunai, but a whip sword was an entirely different game. The very idea of it intrigued Maigo extremely, he loved the idea of taking a weapon into battle that someone would most likely have never encountered before and then to wield it masterfully, there was identity in that beyond his own prowess. He moved the whip sword to the top of his short list, and if the decision were left to those three weapons then he would absolutely take that whip sword to learn. He thought about becoming a master swordsmen with a whip sword, being unique enough to have people know the blade by it's name and his name as its wielder throughout the land. It certainly met his requirement of being a bit more theatrical and flashy in nature, but it also gave him a bit more safety in its range and expanding lengths. That same unique skill reminded him of how he felt unlocking his sharingan for the first time, though the one tomoe'd version had very few skills compared to it's more advanced versions it was still a rare skill in Kirigakure and a taboo to many. It was a gift and a curse and many people knew him as one of the only Uchiha in the village and beyond that he was one of secret origin, which to him raised a lot of questions about whom he was and what sort of powers he would inherit. Each step further along was a mystery for him, and the unique style of Onojutsu and a whip sword would help embody his quick, volatile, and sporadic development where each turn and decision would be unique and mysterious in its own right.

The next weapon Maigo's eyes fell upon was the Yari, a large spear. Immediately he didn't know much what to think of it, it being a powerful weapon and a chance to use the weapon with finesse and power at the same time. Leaning for more to the power side, and with some skill anyone could be taken down by it but Maigo tried to think of the weapon in his own hands. What he saw was a sharingan user wielding the weapon in a far too finesse'd manner and rather than using the weapon to stab or cut he would be using it to swat and swipe. Of course, in the moments of striking the spear would stab and could even be thrown to traverse a larger distance if need be but in his hands he would see him spinning it to deflect things away and swatting people's arms and hands away. Even though he would use it uniquely it wouldn't restrict the weapon's true potential and instead would only add onto the versatility he could find with the weapon. The bladed end or ends would remain there and he could use the pole to deflect or provide blunt force trauma to his opponents, giving him multiple ways to attack and catch his enemies off guard. Despite the simple pros and cons that he could come up with immediately, the weapon was interesting to him to say the least, the idea of taking a weapon and using it in a unique style was probably just as interesting if not more so than having an inherently unique weapon. Maigo would end up tying it with the whip sword, he was severely interested in the spear itself and more in the style at which it could be used but he also thought a unique weapon would be a good choice.

It was on to the next one then, he focused in on the Odachi that was nearly as tall as Nozomi was. His thoughts became almost exactly as similar as his thoughts towards the bastard sword. Swinging his enemies in half and bringing them down, but then it was him and not the weapon, nothing but a tool again. He was already a specialist in kenjutsu and used a katana of his own. In fact, despite it's appearance was one that his sensei Dameon passed down to him and a sword that was passed on to him from the current Mizukage, Lady Ayakashi. The sword he carried by his side had a severe history and now it was at his side, but he couldnt' find his identity in a ninja in it. And beyond that, the bastard sword was a different style than his own katana whereas the Odachi matched his katana in style and was merely an upgrade in size, requiring a slightly different approach but nothing strenuous. It was his own want to  learn a sword style like that of the Kubikiribocho of previous generations, which led him to start with kenjutsu. But as of late his interest had wanned and now here he was without being able to motivate himself to advance his skills with the katana or anything within that class of weapons. Therefore he dropped the Odachi to the bottom of the list he was building, he would certainly like a chance at using it some day and training with a different weapon, but of his choices before him he knew that he wouldn't solve his crisis by falling back into the same old skills.

The last weapon, but certainly not the least was the three section staff that Sero held in his hand. Maigo looked at it for a moment, it certainly seemed interesting to say the least, unique in weapon and looking into the potential style it was also unique. He thought about the weapon, it would be a weapon that would be used in much closer combat and a more intimate style with each section moving in independent rotations and movements, but his sharingan would help him keep up with it even in the most complex movements. His eyes saving him from a curse that not everyone might be able to imitate so easily. As he thought for a much longer section, he saw himself in a room, staff in hand with enemies everywhere, attacking in one direction but then changing quickly to attack with the opposite section. It was versatility in his eyes, but each hit didn't cut or stab or tear into his opponent. With every hit he could land, his opponents would take a lesson in pain, the hardest hits with the strongest weapon could shatter bones and bruise through areas completely for a huge area. The three section staff he carried was like an advanced set of nunchucks, which was something that was almost entirely finesse and used momentum of spinning and the users movements to build power. That bonus was nice for Maigo as his sharingan could keep up with the far more complex movements that attacking with a staff might be compared with the swing of a katana. But, for all it's damaging power, it wasn't as lethal a weapon, there was no assassinating someone with a staff like he might with a kunai launcher or stabbing their heart out like he could with a spear. This detail didn't bother Maigo in the slightest though, he wasn't one for inherently killing someone, especially not unless they were the true core of the evil he sought to eradicate or seek justice upon. That meaning the target of his kill, not their underlings or inferiors, though they may deserve it there was an ideology he carried in the influence of others and the mistake of their upbringing that brought people to evil deeds and unkind actions. With a staff, he could easily take out those extra men, the fodder their bosses throw to the wolves, teaching them a lesson in pain and their own indignation but still the chance to beat those of truly evil intentions into their puddle of bones and blood. Yes, the very idea was great, and Maigo stuck the staff itself at the top of his short list, and if he got the chance then he would love to take a chance and begin to perfect the art of Bojutsu.

Maigo stayed looking towards the weapon that Sero held, he waited politely for Nozomi to make her choice, it was after all her that did most of the work. Even if she hadn't done most of the work in retrieving everything, her outbreak of cuteness earlier was enough for Maigo to want to be polite and nice to her and give her the first choice of the weapons before them. And besides that, even if she did pick the weapon that Maigo would most like to learn, then he could just pay close attention to Sero's words and try to absorb the details of using the weapon and then go back to it on his own. After all, despite his pure laziness, if he put his mind towards something then Maigo could impress and surprise anyone with a surprising burst of strong will to achieve a task or reach is goals. She had been thinking quietly for a moment just like Maigo was, and when she spoke up Maigo turned his attention towards her so that he could hear what she had to say. Nozomi began by explaining that she already knew kenjutsu, a skill they shared in common and therefore she could refine that on her own, then she spoke about the staff being not in her style. He took note of their similarities, of which they shared a few, maybe they would end up being friends after all even if Maigo ended up acting like a total fool at some point. A severe amount of relief hit Maigo as he was glad that she didn't take the weapon he held into the highest spot on his own list. If she had, then it would be a lot more work for Maigo to learn things and it would upset his own listing of weapons, but thankfully she hadn't taken his top choice, even though he might have enjoyed the competition and strain to learn multiple things, he was glad that he wouldn't have the idea of her stealing his choice of weapon right off the bat. She was so nice after all, he'd hate have the groundwork for any serious annoyance or animosity to come about between them. Though, if he had to be serious it wasn't a huge issue to him and he would keep his mouth shut about something like that purely for the chance to be polite and keep his chance at making another friend and gaining an ally within the village alive. She continued to detail her thoughts on each weapon and why she would choose the Yari. It was interesting to Maigo, she had gone through the same reasoning and train of thought to reach a logical decision, though they would arrive to different conclusions. She had turned her attention to Sero to explain everything, and once she was done, Maigo would follow suit as he imagined would be the norm for Sero. Nozomi after all, had known him and much more than Maigo and was far more comfortable around him. So, if she felt that explaining her choice was necessary then so would he.

Now came his own chance to take a weapon, he had thought more baout this decision than most of the decisions in his life, including amjors ones that impact him still today. He was relieved that Nozomi didn't take his first choice in weapon still, but as it stood his list was now: The three section staff, the whipsword, the kunai launcher, the Yari, the bastard sword, and then lastly the Odachi. Maigo would direct his eyes towards Sero once Nozomi was done, if there was a moment for the pair of them to make direct eye contact up to now, it would be in the moment that Maigo would turn himself and begin to explain his own choices, "Right, well..." he spoke as he began to clear his throat some and potentially give himself a chance to adjust to making eye contact with Sero and adjusting his anxiety even further if need be. Continuing on with his own choice, "I'd like to take a chance at learning the three sections staff if possible. Like Nozomi, kenjutsu is a skill I, maybe am not proficient in, but already possess. And I'd like something I can find more identity in, so the Odachi is out and by the same logic the bastard sword as well. The rest are so tempting though, each having their own pros and cons towards use, but the staff will fit my own skills best I think. It gives me the best chance to be merciful but to still teach my enemies a severe lesson in pain if need be. Combined with my sharingan, I think that something like the staff with its more complex movements and change in directions would mesh well, giving my heightened reaction time a further advantage in a close fight." he could feel himself beginning to rant on about the topic, so he gulped lightly and then gave his final bit. "Anyways, I think the staff would be the most worthwhile choice." he would then wait to see how Sero would respond, whether he thought he was a fool or if he would... well any reaction would probably worry Maigo. Still, he would stand there diligently waiting for Sero to say something, make a comment or to hand the staff over to Maigo and let them begin their lesson. A lesson he would no doubt, not forget for some time to come, this meeting coming together differently than his first meeting with Dameon, and yet there were a lot of similarities he could pull. Both their love of theatrics and lecturing, but before he could say more, he would have to see how Sero trains in action directly.

He wondered about how his training might differ from Dameon's in terms of harshness and in difficulty. With Sero's chakra, he was certainly menacing to say the least but was he cruel all the same? Maigo had absolutely no clue on who Sero was as a person outside being scared of himself and his prowess in theatrical appearances. He knew Dameon well though, he was tough and not too merciful in his actions and his tasks, trapping him underground for a week in a hazardous environment with air so poisoned that it was tough to breathe and mold chakra in. It took him quite some time to fully adjust, and during that there was no rest for the weary, sparring with bokken and an interesting exercise slapping water in order to build strength in his hands. That water slapping exercise alone lasted for several days with no rest, and each time he began to fall asleep or slack off, Dameon would be there to hit him back into consciousness. Then after all that, they went onto sparring for another day before resting, no food to quelm his hunger. And at the peak, Dameon nearly killing him, Maigo's stress and worry activated his sharigan and he was able to avoid it before falling to the ground, his body broken and his chakra pushed to the limit. He wondered if Sero had the ability to drag someone to that point and push them into unlocking powers that otherwise they might not have ever known that they had.

To Maigo though, Sero seemed more of the sadistic type, not taking pleasure in the pain of others so much as he would set up the pain and let them find a way out of it. It would fit the mantra of fear he had been building, and for all the times Maigo had been threatened or pushed to the brink, the ominous chakra that Sero carried still gave him anxiety like he had almost never known from another person. The idea of dealing with his presence everyday would be stressful enough, though he might adjust to it after some time, it was certainly not a thought he made lightly. However, it might make missions and things more interesting, with the mere presence of your sensei enough to drive someone absolutely crazy or to have them shaking in their boots if they weren't truly prepared for what was to come. It would certainly make things easier at the very least but would it be worth his own torment? Maybe he would have to meet these students of his one day and do a before and after examination of them and their psyche to see how he really would affect his students. That and his lesson from Sero himself would certainly add on a good bit of understanding for his style of teaching, depending on how tough he was with Maigo and Nozomi teaching them different weapons styles as a reward might say a lot about how he would train his own students from the ground up.

For now though, Maigo would wait to take on the staff if he was allowed and to begin his adventure into Bojutsu and to finding his identity within bukijutsu as a whole and beginning his adventure on the path to trying to become a Seven Swordsman. Or to begin his path to notoriety and a quick death due to a bounty on his head, sometimes the grandeur that comes with being powerful and the notoriety of being deadly would only further put himself at risk, but it was too late for him to question his decisions like that. He made his choice and now was time to follow through with that decision and to make something more of himself.

[7054 words, 9532 words total]
[+1 to RT from 1 tomoe sharingan]

190/200 Chakra:

Sero eyed each weapon as they fell. Truth was he had grown attached to these and his history with them over time. His memory was close to impeccable if not for some of his early years that he could hardly recall strictly from being an infant. His mothers tired and scared face so blurred in his memory...he never saw his father aside from paintings and photographs that hung around the manor like specters watching over him and his actions as he grew. Each stain on the wall and broken thing in that building just another part of his heritage falling away. Never did they scold him though. Not once did those still figures ever speak to him outside of his own imagination. For years he would sit in front of them staring at the closest thing he had to human companions. Silent and still as they were even as the paint began to fade and the pictures to darken with age and moisture. Even as the faces faded away he would sit there, as still as an image and watching them as if actually being near family. His only friends never moving or speaking and yet always watching him. His mother used to smile while his father was always stern in expression...soon all that faded though until he was sitting in front of a wall of pictures and paintings long since molded over. Even in death they found a way to leave him. He would sit there still sometimes at night as he ate dinner and drank his tea. He would tell his father of his missions and progress towards ranking up...addressing the painting he knew to be his father even though it held no resemblance to anyone anymore. His mother he would discuss who he met that day. Sometimes he would talk about Nozomi to her. She was always quiet but he took that as a supportive smile towards him making friends. His father was always stern with him and that frown told him he needed to keep working hard to grow stronger. If he was ever going to be as powerful as his old man he would need to progress. Once an assassin had tried to take him down during his time with family. A senbon had managed to miss Sero and hit one of the completely faded photographs of his mother. The Assassin had been the most unfortunate soul ever to tread on that island. In a mouth frothing rage Sero had pinned the girl down by her throat. Ignoring as she struck out at him and screamed. He couldn't feel the blows against him anyway. He never could feel anything. He couldn't feel it every time the senbon punctured her skin after all. He couldn't feel the pressure of it pressing against the flesh or the give when the point punched through. Yet he was skilled enough not to go to deep. He started with her face and by the time she finally stopped struggling..stopped breathing and screaming...she was a mostly skinless body on the floor. Still he wasn't done with her. She had harmed mother. She had struck out at mother before he had a chance to. So he dragged her to the play room. He was careful to use cpr to revive her after being dead about a minute...She choked on some soft screams and mewled for mercy and death...and yet Sero couldn't allow that. She had to be punished. One could not strike out at mother...no one other than him could that was. Once he found that woman he would do far worse to her. He would hold a team of medics hostage to keep her alive and regrow her skin over and over again. However he needed to prepare for that day. He needed to see how his knowledge of the human anatomy was in comparison to before when he first began to plan his move against his birth giver. He was going to tear into his guest and see how much he could press the boundaries of human anatomy. As the girl began to fade once more to try and lose consciousness he growled and slammed down a meat hook into her right shoulder right through the bone. She sat up with far more energy than she had demonstrated a second ago and screamed as weak, bloody, skinless fingers gripped and slid across the cold metal trying to yank it out without the strength left to do so when Sero smiled. The girl begged in between screams to kill her but he just wouldn't pass up this opportunity to truly experiment. He reached over and picked up the rope and with a yank jerked the girl up into the air with a loud cracking noise as her shoulder cracked in several directions and she hung there in the center of the room dangling from her shattered shoulder. It was then that Sero truly began to work on his experiment. After all he was going to discover the limits of the human body again. Slowly he began to cut into the girls muscle tissue with an old and rusted Kunai still covered in the blood of the last victims. Carving his way passed the muscle tissue as he separated it like a door. Taking the two flaps of meat and stapling them to her sides before setting to work on what was on the inside. Careful to avoid arteries he sawed away piece by piece of her. Placing her liver, kidneys and large intestine on the table before finally moving on to the rest of her. She was as good as dead but each time she passed out he woke her again by scraping a nerve directly. He worked on her until lack of those specific body parts finally overwhelmed her and she died once more. This time when he attempted to resuscitate her it was pointless. She did not awaken no matter how much he worked. Three hours was the limit of his skill. Without med nin anyway.

His grey eyes twitched away from the memory as the first weapon descended from the mist above towards the ground. The wooden grip and metal barrels so dull they didn't reflect any light. The memory of that particular weapon was one of his first. He had begun with simple Kunai and a rapier.....but this was his first true weapon. The double barreled Kunai launcher had a simple design of two spring loaded clips that unlocked when the hammer was pulled back. The trigger when half compressed released the left Kunai but when fully compressed it released the right barrel. Both Kunai sharpened and unique in design for the specific weapon currently loaded into it. He had more ammo for it but this design was one he favored. It was a thing crafted for the means to attack an opponent in times of war. So it was that he had purchased it for that purpose alone. Yet he could recall the first time he had used it. A simple genin at the time he had entered into a battlefield that was raging on. Some remnants of the bells war had raided an outpost for supplies. They outnumbered the men and women stationed there and Sero had been closest when the call for reinforcements had been sent out. The out post itself was unique in the way that it sheltered not only shinobi but a small town as well. A community that combined its resources to supply the needs of all of Kirigakure. Truly a port of trade that kept the nation well fed. Hence why an outpost had been placed there. It was strategically an important place to the nation. That was the reason that group had chosen to attack there. With the resources at the end of the harvest that particular outpost could provide they could weaken kiri while remaining well fed for the winter and come the end of the winter when Kiri was half starved they would lay siege to it. Even if they were outnumbered a weakened enemy was a simple one. So they found a strategic target of high value and attacked in the night. Sero himself arrived well into the fight. As he stood outside the wreckage of the outer most wall he looked over the burning wreckage of the advanced defense. They had attacked without warning a fire bombed the armory. Three charred bodies could be seen laying in the wreckage long since dead. Likely the people in charge of the armory tonight. Two guards and the keeper of the armory that assigned and reclaimed weapons at the end of a shift. His grey eyes took them in as casualties and considered that as a weakened force now. The war had stretched out the army considerably so each outpost only had maybe fifteen shinobi in it. He hopped over the burning wreckage and would let his boots slide him down the hill to the remains of that building. His position stopped as he clutched the kunai launcher in both hands across his chest. His eyes scanned the burning area to see if any remnants of the enemy force were still scavenging for salvage....or had even started yet. He was tiny in comparison to adults so he might be overlooked. After all at the time he was just twelve years old. Still he saw one adult kicking about some debris as he was looking around for some weaponry probably. Still he hadn't noticed Sero's approach yet which gave Sero the advantage. From that far away he wouldn't feel Sero just yet and if they had left this guy behind he probably wasn't a very capable fighter. Still Sero was at the maximum range of his Kunai launcher. If he got any closer the individual would feel him and be alerted. Carefully Sero lowered to his belly and placed the Kunai launcher between two charred pieces of wood and aimed it at the man...using them as a mount for his attack. He controlled his breathing and steadied himself as he adjusted the aim to the wind conditions. He knew the man was moving back and forth erratically but he was sure he could find a pattern if he just watched for long enough. He slowly let his barrel follow the mans movements. It wasn't about taking the quick shot and the easy kill. He was just a genin after all and if he missed this shot it could cost him his life. At the very least he needed to wound the man. If he was left behind he might also be a look out or a scout. Let them know if reinforcements were coming. So hobbling him might not be enough. He would have to quiet him as well. Luckily he had two shots....one target area would be the leg obviously but the other would need to be the neck or lung. The neck was a smaller target than the leg but it would be easier than the lung would. Still he saw the man stop finally. He had found something on the ground and bent down to kneel and collect it. Both target spots were perfectly lined up for the first time since Sero had arrived. He just had to wait for about three minutes. His finger slid over the trigger as he blew out his breath. He aimed at the leg first and pulled the trigger lightly. The first Kunai flung out of the barrel and before it cleared the distance Sero had readjusted to two inches he needed to aim at the neck and pulled the trigger the rest of the way. Both Kunai flew through the air one just behind the other. The first slammed into the targets thigh with a splash of blood and before he could move the second slammed into his neck. Sero was already moving the moment he saw the neck wound and cleared the distance. He didn't even spare the man a second glance as he reached down and yanked out both kunai and moved along. The man gurgled and clutched at him weakly but it was pointless. He was going to bleed out in under thirty seconds. Sero didn't bother wasting time as he popped open the Kunai launcher and reloaded. He moved quietly up towards the sound of fighting and the town. They were going to need Sero to collect more kills if they were going to survive this fight. He was fine with killing more enemies really. He didn't care that his fingers were stained with blood and so was the handle of the launcher. Blood that would never wash out.

Sero let his dead gaze fall upon Nozomi as the next weapon to descend from the heavens...or perhaps from hell. It was hard to tell with the way Sero used his chakra. It was a tainted thing that marked all it touched in this pain of existence. Most would of been beheaded by now for having something so dark about them and yet Sero had proven time and time again just how useful he was alive. The sheer body count of Kirigakures enemies had risen since the day he put on the headband by leaps and bounds. People feared Ayakashi far more but she could hardly hope to stop every evil thing that happened in her kingdom. She needed soldiers willing to move at her command and destroy anything that stood against her rule. The truth was this was a military based country now. Their import was bodies and their export was death. If another country was in need of someone to fill coffins Kiri got contracts signed. Yet that put undo stress on Kiri as it was considered dangerously powerful. Every other nation lacked having as much strength and so they were nervous by every move Kirigakure made. Perhaps that was why Sero had only left the country once....and the country he returned from was now dealing with stressful relations with kiri. Was it his fault? Not really and still he had been in the center of it. He had been a part of the main reason for the stress. He had taken a treasure of theirs so to speak. And ended her too. He was yet to speak with Nozomi about that and here she was too distracted to ask....yet he was not about to bring it up in present company. There were far too many complications as was for him to do so. Not to mention if she fought him seriously it would likely end much the same way his fight with her significant other had and he had no way of saving her life should she press him that far. He wondered for a moment if she would attack him straight out. They had a history together before she met the girl but it was strained at best. They had fought back than in a way...she had hit him with a jutsu before trying to surrender without a fight as if he wouldn't strike her if she didn't fight back. A scar across her front would be a due reminder that he did not care for civilities of combat. To him a shinobi even if unarmed was a living weapon. Too Dangerous to simply accept a surrender from. Without the proper equipment one could not lock down their chakra and without being able to do that they still had a canon waiting to go off next to them. Something that could spew fire and throw lightning...or in Nozomi's case create bladed petals and shred the flesh. She was not someone he would take lightly in any given situation. Still she was calm even with so much of her life riding on the line. Did she have some other reassurance that everything was going to be alright? Sero was still stuck trying to find his place around others but Nozomi blended in well enough. Sero had purpose moving alone to eliminate a threat but Nozomi was different. She could interact with others on a regular basis and no one ever seemed to mind. She was what he could not be. A soldiers others accepted and looked up to. Someone they could feel comfortable around. If nothing else her comfortable demeanor around him actually seemed to calm others. It humanized him to them when all they felt was the monster within. He usually found that people fearing him was a useful thing that kept others from bothering him but as the day had demonstrated he found that to be problematic at times. He could not even collect his own bricks and so he had to look to others to bring them to him. Along with that no average citizen would come within a league of his island for any amount of ryo so he had to approach shinobi he knew. Even among them there were few and far between that felt they actually owed him anything to even give his needs a thought. Nozomi was the acceptation it would seem. If he had to put a label on her he would consider her the closest thing he had to a friend. It was hard to imagine anyone truly being friends with someone that wouldn't hesitate to end them if the situation required it,. Yet Nozomi kept accepting him for who he was for some reason beyond his reasoning skills. She was unique and if she ever did die he would need to study her to see if she was troubled in some way. Science was a finer art than killing but he was curious to compare her brain to that of an average person...perhaps a tumor sat somewhere and altered her brain patterns. Or she was simply a stronger person than most when it came to willpower. Either way she was proving to be more useful than almost anyone else on this massive island. The fact that she had even brought one of the chunnin exam contestants from Kiri with her for him to meet only meant she was far more impressive than he would readily give her credit for. He did follow her career though as she progressed without him. He had taught her to kill and he supposed because of that she was still alive. However there was a percentage of doubt there that he had much to do with it. After all most of her interactions he had read did not involve him and she was relatively close to him in strength. Actually he wasn't sure if they were allowed jutsu that he could handle both her and Maigo at the same time without sustaining injuries himself.

Still the sound of the whip sword wrapping around a thin branch drew his attention as metal blades rattled against dead wood. He let his gaze flicker yet again to that weapon. A shined steel and yet the edges of the blade had the tiniest of chips in most of them and just a hint of blood in some of the grooves. Soaking the blade only did so much for cleaning a weapon and a mans insides stained steel permanently after a while. It was a unique weapon that was hard to use and even harder to block if used correctly. However it was also easy to manipulate if one knew how to defend against it an was faster than the person using it. While the movements were hard to predict and blocking one section did not mean blocking the whole weapon it had a significant weakness. If one tangled it around anything simply yanking on the weapon did nothing but tighten it. After which it became a contest of grip and strength. On the other hand he had used it for exactly that purpose before himself. Disarmed and opponent far weaker than him simply to discourage the others from even trying his patience. Or lack there of. Still it had its risk in use and if one moved their fingers or wrist wrong...took one step out of place they chanced carving up their own limb or cutting out their own eye. It was a complicated weapon to be sure. Still it drew him back to the memory of that battle as a genin. He had just finished off the one soldier and was running with the shaft of the kunai launcher in one hand and his finger off the trigger and his other hand cradling the barrels. The battle raged ahead as he approached the barracks as fast as he could on foot. Here he could see that the firebombing hadn't been a separate attack from the main force but actually the main and only attack force. They had charged straight up the road after lighting a huge fire attack to draw attention to themselves. It had been a foolish move lacking any battle tactics. They had intended to get by on sheer force alone and it had cost some of them dearly. It appeared at this point six enemy soldiers had been dropped randomly along the road a few meters from each other. Each one with an arrow sticking out of their chest or face. An Archer had gotten ahead of the attack and armed himself before they could reach the barracks...perhaps one of the guards on shift that was already armed. His eyes scanned the area as he slid to a stop and planted his back against the barracks. He saw the archer on the ground a few feet in front of the door. His bow was broken and a sword was stuck in his chest from where he had finally been dropped. No other bodies had been left there so he had to assume the man had covered a tactical retreat and payed for it with his life. A significant loss in Sero's mind. An Archer was excellent to have in a battle. Perhaps if those in the barracks had been faster to retreat he would not of died. Not to mention if he had recognized his own strategical value he might of retreated himself in time. Still dropping six enemies on a moments notice was significant. Too bad he would never be able to do that again. However Sero was so distracted with the dead ally that he was caught by surprise when the wall he was leaning against suddenly burst out on either side of him as two thick arms shot out and wrapped around him before yanking him back through. A rather large man that had stayed behind to rustle through the mens things and eat what food they left behind had sensed Sero nearby. Still he had managed to catch the little version of Sero off guard and yanked him clear through the dry wall before chucking him through a table. He chortled as he realized how little his enemy was as Sero recovered from the sheer power of the attack against him. The throw had been disorienting for him as the room spun for a second. Still he glanced down and realized he still had his grip on the Kunai launcher. Quickly Sero pulled back both hammers and rolled onto his back before pulling the trigger all the way back at the same moment both barrels were pointed at the large man. At this point getting an attack off was just as important as anything else. Still the large man raised his arm just fast enough and took both Kunai to his arm before he roared and charged forward. His large hand reached out and grabbed Sero by the neck while his other hand reached up and slammed Sero's wrist and hand holding the launcher up into the wall. He chortled again as Sero struggled for breath under that grip. So sure he was that he had taken the one weapon from Sero he could use. Yet Sero was hardly done for. Even as a child he had understood the use of a hidden weapon and so the belt he was wearing was no simple belt. It was in fact the disguised weapon known as slicer (Not very inventive I know) that he had designed as his own hidden weapon. His free hand slid down slow enough not to be noticed. He was focused on acting like the arm was dangling even as he realized he would need air soon or die. Still he patiently and quietly undid his belt before gripping he hilt and with a flash flung the whip blade out and wrapped it around the large mans neck. His eyes widened as he let go of Sero to try and undo the blades quickly but it was too late by far. Sero yanked hard on the hilt and dragged the blades through the mans throat....sawing his neck open as blood sprayed on Sero. With that Sero had collapsed and sat there as reinforcements finally arrived. He simply watched them run passed the door before he slowly rose to his feet. He collected his weapons from the corpse and walked through the growing puddle of blood out the door. The fight was already over for the most part so instead of being mistaken for an enemy he snuck back out the way he had come. As usual avoiding conflict with the other shinobi.

That had been the end of that mission for him. He hadn't saved any lives and had only managed to kill two scavengers but he had done so as a genin. None of the weapons currently on the field were from his days as chunnin but the moment he had gotten access to them as special Jounin he had purchased a few A ranked weapons. Not the least of which was the next weapon to drop down and slam right next to Maigo into the ground. Perhaps his heaviest weapon out of all of them. The Bastard sword had its flaw of being double edged but of all his weapons that one was for sheer power behind the weight of it. It was far to heavy to use with any fines but that didn't matter when you where doing a downwards chop on an opponent. It was almost purely an offensive weapon and required a different blocking style from the other weapons which only had a blade along one side. It was extremely useful for breaking apart a strong defensive stance focused on blocking but any stance focused on speed almost negated the use of the weapon. However it was also considerably longer than most other swords so simple back stepping out of it was far more difficult. It was almost always a bad idea to fight using wide swings and downwards strikes but that was where the power in this weapon sat. The steel seemed to reflect Sero's grey eyes as his mind reflected back on the first time he had taken a life with it. It wasn't that long ago but after the time spent in Kumo it felt like ages had passed since then. Still with his memory it may as well of been yesterday for him. Sero was moving on another solo mission only this time he was to investigate a stolen freight ship.that had some valuables on it as well as a couple of unknown containers the dock manager had reported. He had been found with his throat slit in the office and the ship itself already sailed out of the port. It had been about four hours since then and patrols had been sent out with sensory. One of the objects had a chakra signature to it so it was not hard to locate. Within that time they had ran the shores and found a hidden bay where the ship had been anchored. The pirates were gathering the freight on the shore line but most of it was still on the ship along with a crew of about fifteen pirates. More than enough to guide the ship along and probably either scrap it or sell it later. Still they were confident they had managed to get away with their goods and managed to kill the only witness that knew about their nefarious deeds and were now comfortably drinking and had even lit a fire out of some furniture on the deck. A Beacon to Sero if ever there was one. Still he moved quietly. Only two of the crew were on the shore for the time being. Mist rolled in around them and they froze...quietly one called out to the other in a loud but hushed voice. In response all he heard was the ring of steel against something in the mist...he strained to see further into it before suddenly something passed by him. He spun to see what it was before he suddenly coughed up blood. He looked down and saw his stomach split open like a cut piece of paper. He dropped into the sand as just another dead body as Sero was already making his way to the ship. The crew were aboard and singing and drinking around the fire so it was only natural that they completely missed the sound of a steel blade slamming through wooden boards as their life boats sank to the bottom. Slowly a thick mist rolled over the freighter and cut off sight as night fell and darkness with it. The pirates looked a little unsettled by it but continued their jovial behavior as the fire kept it at bay. Still one of them finally split from the others to go take a leak. He moved into the mist and out of sight...for a few minutes they drank and forgot about him before they began to think it odd that he would be gone so long. One of the men shouted into the mist for their lost companion joking about him being eaten by a shark if he fell overboard. In response half a body, the upper half slid across the deck into their sight range leaving a trail of blood behind it. Panic ensued as eight men immediately split for the boats. Only four drew weapons and remained in the light provided by the fire. They listened into the nights as shouts became screams. two men died in the mist before the other six discovered the boats were gone. As they ran back for the safety of the light four more were yanked into the mist by a flash of silver and then nothing. As the last two returned out of the mist full speed their own crew reacted and cut them down out of fear they were the thing coming for them. With only four left a dark chuckle filled the air. Their leader dropped his weapon as he realized who it was and knelt down next to the fire as he spoke. "Boys...the demon that has come for us...they calls him Mercy...but he won't have any for none of us. I have seen what he has done to our kind before and ye don't need that to be your last sight lads. I am doin ye all a favor by taking that sight from ye...it was great knowing you all while it lasted. Forgive me in the next life." With that he picked up a flask of water and doused the fire. Darkness and mist set in as they were plunged into it. Hope faded from their eyes as their leader gave up and in the night they died one by one.

Next was the Yari....this weapon was different than the others. It had a feel to it that suggested it would keep anything at bay and that was exactly what it was designed for. The concept of the weapon was to attack enemies at a distance from yourself while keeping control of the weapon itself. It was a mixture of finesse and power where as the others were either or on one side. If there were scales for those two parts when deciding what a weapon was capable of he would say the Yari would be about even. When stabbing and using small slashing motions it was a quick and versatile weapon that could change direction on a dime. Yet if you adjusted your stance and moved your grip a little bit closer together or further apart it quickly switched into a powerful jab or wide swing. There were even a couple of moves using leverage to create more power and speed. Truly the weapons versatility made it a powerful and its ability to switch length to either taking on an opponent on horseback or one directly on level with you made it a strategic necessity to Sero. Still the fact that Nozomi had reached for the weapon that had wounded her friend made a little bit of a nervous situation. Could she sense the blood and flesh melted recently on that weapon to be familiar? It wasn't impossible with Sensory but he wasn't familiar with Nozomi having that high a level of sensory or any senses above par. Hopefully she couldn't pick out Kaekio's scent on that particular weapons blade out of the others that had long since been rinsed off. However Sero dismissed it for the time being as impossible. The acid on the blade alone would of burned most of that off and tarnished the rest. Still he felt out for any change in demeanor from her. Her friend should not of approached her yet without him but there was a chance she had managed some how. Would they blame him for carrying out his orders? Would they hate him for being the loyal soldier he had always been? Along with that same note would she tell nozomi of the moment of hesitation Sero had shown in killing someone he had been 'ordered' to kill? Especially if it had been through reasoning of not wanting to lose Nozomi as an ally? Even with the medical provided it had taken at least a four inch chunk out of Kaekio's side. He didn't doubt even with a high level medic around it left some scar there to be explained. After all the muscle and skin had been melted clean away. He couldn't picture someone simply regenerating that entirely without so much as a mark. He wasn't the medic his father had been but what notes he had seen there was almost always a scar and perfect surgeries were rare. With all the other work done to her that must of left something behind. Just how much did Nozomi know? He would have to be careful with her. For the moment though his thoughts drifted to the first kill he did with that particular weapon. He had been hunting a dojutsu hunter from another land along the length of Kirigakure. Tracking him had proven difficult but as a special jounin Sero was considerably capable of tracking someones passage through unfamiliar lands. For instance the man hadn't known that even if you covered your footprints through the swamp mud by dragging a light and flat surface behind you the footprints still left indents that the fresh layer of mud would sink into the foot prints leaving a slight path to follow. So it was that Sero had tracked them to the main bridge leading off the island. He had almost lost the path once he hit the main road but a murdered merchant that had been strangled let him know he was looking for someone wearing the merchants clothes and without the merchants cart. The merchants of this particular company wore a uniform so finding one without any goods would be simple. Still he had some information suspecting the individual was a Karisuma. A clan from Suna known for a stunning eye technique that could paralyze anyone who got caught in that glance. Funny that someone with a dojutsu would be hunting more to sell. Still that meant precautions needed to be taken if he was to proceed safely. As he moved onto the main road he stepped forward as mist seemed to peel off of him to the left and the right making clones. He let them run ahead while he kept behind at a safe distance and summoned his Yari. He would keep it gripped near the center but he would need to keep it low so as it didn't stick out. Still him and his clones moved through the crowd checking as they went with the clones about ten meters ahead. They moved along the bridge until suddenly the target stepped in front of one of Sero's clones and made eye contact. In an instant the clone simply zoned out as if its connection to the host had been disconnected. With a flick of his hand the dojutsu hunter sliced the clones throat. However the clone suddenly swelled outwards and burst as acid rained down burning everyone around including the target. In that moment his other clone took the opportunity to launch an attack. Quickly the clone drove a Kunai into the targets back...with a yell the man spun and sliced this clone across the face with a dagger he had been hiding. This clone also burst and covered the man in more acid blinding him this time. The main body confirmed the target could no longer use his eyes to stun him as the memories of the second clone returned to him...the opponent was blinded so Sero quickly stepped forward. The crowd had split apart and scattered as acid began to rain down and a fight had broken out but he was sure there were just minor injuries. Still Sero flashed across the distance that opened up between him and his now flailing target. He adjusted his grip to be spread out with his back hand on top and his front hand underneath and drove the Yari into the mans throat before using the leverage to lift the man upwards clear of the bridge. The blade slowly slide along the twitching mans neck as his blood dumped down his front by the liter and splashed against the bridge before he went limp as the blade finished cutting clean through his neck with his own weight and he dropped dead to the floor. Sero had flicked the blade clean then and turned to leave....the police force would clean up the body and tend to the injured.

The Odachi was where he looked next. The weapon stood resolute like a blade left unbroken on a battlefield. Its cloth wrapped handle showing the Osada clan emblems carved into the hilt on copper pieces. This weapon was honestly one of his preferred tools of war. Each had their own use and it wasn't as versatile as the others in any way and yet he had chosen it even when others considered it a glorified long katana. For a long time he had used every other type of weapon and he kept coming back to Kenjutsu eventually. He owned a Katana and a wakizashi and yet he preferred this weapon over all others. Its long blade glistened in the dim light with a polish that showed signs of attention to it. This weapon he cared for and cleaned. With a mixture of fire and water he cleansed the blade after each use and in truth he even had a bit of a ceremony for it. He would take the blade out of the hilt and place it on a holder with the blade up. Slowly he would breath Fire along the edge making it red hot and run a brush over it to remove any imperfections. He would then take the weapon and drip warm water over it to prevent the metal from cracking before letting it cool and finally taking a cold rag to it to wipe away any remaining burn marks. He would then oil the grind stone and carefully sharpen the edge to perfection before turning the blade and looking down its length to make sure it was straightened. If it was bent one way or the other he would gradually apply bare handed pressure to it until it was perfect. Once that was done he would take the hilt and check it for cracks...if there was any he would replace it and if not he would soak it in polish. Once it dried he would put the blade back into it before re-wrapping it with fresh wraps. He truly cared for this sword above the others because it held some value to him. His Uncle who was supposedly alive somewhere had left it in the basement as a part of their family heritage. He had been branded a traitor to Kiri by Sero's father and eventually he would have to be hunted and yet...Somehow Sero was relieved to know someone of his blood existed out there. A man who had been considered for Kage status in his clan before his father had taken the position and had been a powerful Jounin when Sero Sr. was but a genin. The bloodline that Sero was descended from had a potent level of power to it and he was sure he could learn something from that man before he gutted him. After all unless Ayakashi took him out of the Bingo book he was an enemy of Sero's. And as was his duty Sero would hunt down any enemy of Kiri. Which brought back the memory of the first time he had actually set out in search of his uncle. He had started with a man that was considered to be a criminal adviser that had evaded capture or death every time ANBU came for him. Sero had breached a system of caves and collapsed all but the one entrance that he could find. The people he had interrogated had directed him here after a line of them finally succumbed. When Sero wanted answers no was not in his vocabulary and he grew confused when someone used the word or anything close to it. In his confusion his guests usually lost fingers. It was impressive what someone would tell you when you were eating all the fingers off their right hand after deep frying them. Still he wasn't prepared for the individual to actually match him in strength and speed. The target came crashing down the cave entrance with a great ax in hand aiming right at Sero. With only a moments notice Sero had summoned his uncles sword and used it to block with one hand on the hilt and the other on the back of the long blade turning the blow away from himself. Still the man saw the sword and the symbol and Sero saw the recognition in his eyes. He knew the weapon and especially the symbol on the hilt. He had encountered an Osada using this blade before and suddenly he was pushing Sero with all his might out of the cave. He knew he was in a bad position already with an Osada in a cave. How he knew about it Sero never did find out. Still they went over the cliff together and utilized supernatural walking practice to fight while running down the cliff side. Each time they would cross paths the great ax and the Odachi would clash in a fit of sparks as the rocks around them would crumble away from the sheer impact of the collision. Still the two of them continued to fight as the ground below raced up to meet them until finally they pushed off and landed in the treeline. Each of them launching from branch to branch as the battle drew on. Soon though Sero began to gain the upper hand as the range of the blade on his Odachi was greater and he began to use that to his advantage. During each clash the blade would turn the enemies blow away and use the blade closer to the hilt to cut his opponent. It wasn't much of a cut but each time he drew more blood. After a minute Sero landed on a branch across from the man panting as he could see his movements slowing. Yet he was yet to actually bleed. His opponent on the other hand had suffered considerable damage. The man knelt on a thick branch across from him with a weak grin and blood soaked marks all over his arms and body. He was exhausted and could barely keep his balance on the branch and yet he was smirking at Sero. It was something that a teenage Sero couldn't understand. It was then that that man spoke. His voice carrying across the distance between them as he sounded cheerful. "You know...I fought a man like you once...the original owner of that sword was about as strong as you are now. He pushed me passed my limits too....only he spared me for my useful talents at the time....before you waste our time I don't know what became of him. However he had a saying he liked to say every once in a while....or I think it was him anyway...He always said years ago that we all have a little evil in us....just some more than others. I guess you just picked up all the evil no one else wanted eh hehehe" The man coughed up blood as he chuckled but Sero had heard enough. This man had no useful information on his prey and was simply stalling to prolong his own life. Sero rose to his feet and took a deep breath before clasping both hands on his sword as he placed the back of the blade across his shoulders. One hand had grasped the hilt and pointed the hilt at the man. The other held the tip of the sword and those fingers turned white with pressure as he held it tight. He pulled down on the hilt at the same time as he prepared for the final slash. The other man shifted and chuckled once more as he began to fall from the branch. However Sero wasn't about to let the man get away from him by falling to his own death. Instead Sero flash stepped just above the man and spun himself. He pulled hard on the hilt mid spin and let go with his other hand once the tension was at its peak and let the rapid power slash roll off his shoulder. With the speed of it he spun and cut into the man over and over again on the way to the ground until about a meter above it he spun one final time and stopped planting both feet into the mans chest to use him to cushion his own fall and angled the tip of the blade at the mans throat. As they hit the ground Sero's boots crushed the mans ribs as he bent at the knees to absorb the impact and his blade drove through the mans throat. burying all the way through and into the ground beneath. The man was dead by a great deal with his body mutilated at that point. Still even if he wasn't satisfied with losing a lead Sero had cleared up a question on if his uncle was a criminal or just had a misunderstanding. When he eventually met the man he wouldn't hesitate. He would simply destroy him.

Sero watched as the final weapon fell to his grasp. His pale hands wrapping around the hard surface of the only purely blunt weapon he owned. One would assume it was a lesser weapon than the others but it truly was not. The weapon was in the right hands truly a force of complete destruction. Turning bones to powder and bruising everything around it. Truly blunt weapons were just as effective as a killing weapon in the hands of a master. A single blow to the head was enough to fell any man with the weapon her currently held. Even with Ayakashi if he managed to land a solid hit along her head region she would suffer serious damage if not deadly. Typically with bladed weapons bones were a way of protecting vital area's but with a blunt weapon, bones turned into sharpened jagged things that damaged the body with every movement. A pierced lung or a bleeding brain was a death sentence without rapid medical attention. Yet it could be used in another way just as well. A master with the weapon also knew how to avoid any vital areas and it was far easier than with a blade. A bladed thing during torture drew blood and had to be heated to prevent the victim from bleeding out. However with a blunt weapon the arms and legs could be broken over and over again until they were little more than powder and no matter how many fractures one made the pain remained. Slicing skin was its own pain but in comparison to fractures it was minor league. Bones breaking was a whole new level of pain that no amount of mental control could ignore. He knew this even as he held the weapon in his hands. Yet this particular weapon was far more suited to combat. It had its role to play but it was unique in its own right. Three metal bars each attached to another via a chain link. The weapon did almost nothing with strength and was almost purely a finesse weapon. One had to acknowledge near infinite possibilities when facing against such a weapon. Grips could change in a second from holding it as two steel bars to using the center one to block or strike out with all the way to launching a medium range attack by holding one of the side bars and flinging out the other two as a flail. The chain was short enough that one couldn't simply wrap their weapon in it and if they tried the metal bar was long enough it could possibly still smack them in the process. The only real way to use it was to continuously move with it. Altering from using patterns and shifting your grip so that each attack came at a fresh angle and design. The purpose of the weapon was to be random and remove the opponents ability to create a planned defense. Without being able to plan a defense and having to deal with each attack as it came allowed the enemy to grow flustered and a flustered enemy was one that eventually messed up. Attacks could even change mid strike with a flick of the wrist. His first kill with this weapon had actually been considerably different than the others. The other weapons he had used in actual combat but this one had been used to an enemy that had simply survived an encounter with him only to wish they had died on the field like the others. After all no one actually looked forward to a very very slow death filled with pain. Either way Sero wanted to know everything the criminal knew without actually asking for anything specific. After all if you got specific they just tried to tell you something you wanted to hear in hopes of mercy. Oh how funny it was that they always thought you would be prepared to let a murderer go free without distributing justice to them. A life for a life was how Sero functioned. Still he had the person chained to the wall via a dozen chains across their torso pulled tight on the other side of the wall so they were on tippy toe. No way to move to really do anything. For fun though he had left them with their hands and legs unchained so they could at least try. After he watched them struggle for a time before giving in he emerged from the video room with the steel rods spinning in front of him. A slight whistle from the motion and speed of it cutting through the air. Almost a ringing noise from the sheer speed and blur of it. At first Sero just watched the individual struggle and waited. He let the man feel his presence and eye the weapon before he began to realize what was about to happen and that he had no hope. Sero only really smiled when he saw all hope in the mans eyes die out in place of fear and resigned sadness. They always seemed to know they were going to die eventually but it was only truly special when it happened before Sero even had to reach out and hurt them. Still he started with breaking the mans hands. Spinning the rods and striking out as the man lifted his hands to defend himself. Fingers crunched each time and bent in new ways with each scream. It wasn't until those hands would likely never be of any use again that Sero finally began to inquire about the mans daily life. Every time the man hesitated or refused to acknowledge the question with a direct answer another bone would meet metal rod and a scream would sound out. For a while he begged but when begging brought pain he stopped. It lasted far longer then bladed torture did but it was just as satisfying in the end. Still once he had decided he knew all he could gather knowledge wise from the individual...going over his daily habits on more time from waking to sleeping he finally cracked the man upside the head and his skull split open as brains poured out. Always a difficult thing to scrub up brains...

Sero felt those thoughts he had almost been lost to shatter though as suddenly a noise he had never heard before emanated from Nozomi in such a way that made him stare at her. The sound was jovial and in no way could he think that she was taking the whole situation seriously even with him right there. She squealed and any breeze in the area simply died down. The tree's stopped shifting in the wind and all was still on the island. Nothing seemed to move or breath aside from the three of them as Sero sat there on his perch where he had arrived. He stared at her in disbelief as slowly the bricks around him began to shiver and shake like the ground was shaking and yet no such thing was happening. His hair shifted back and forth for a moment almost lazily even though there was no wind when suddenly a flicker of black chakra shot up around him and his hair blew wildly back as he rose. Wind howled away from him in every direction as suddenly the area would rapidly heat up as if someone turned on a furnace. Tree's bent away from him as he rose and dropped to the ground as they both finished speaking just before the wind picked up. Nozomi would recognize this true aura of Sero as the ground beneath his feet sizzled and anything there simply burned away. Steam rising off his shoulders and head as he stared at her. It would feel like that terrifying presence to her just like before in the chunnin exams when their squad first met and yet the distance between them was greater now. A shift in reality that showed that he was no longer a child and neither was she. However for poor Maigo the experience would be considerably different. Nozomi was fine because she was closer to Sero even if she would feel the pressure of him there but Maigo was further away in every sense. To him the world would suddenly be nothing but black and white as everything would feel twice as heavy and the air would feel too hot and thick to breathe. The pressure of the dark chakra was mind numbing to anyone chunnin and below as pure chaos seemed to want to seep into their minds and corrupt what was there. It seemed to almost reach out and devour the deepest and purest most innocent parts of the soul. When he spoke it would seem like a great beast was speaking into this plain and it should not be. A hundred voices echoing out in a cold and dead way. "Nozomi! You will take this training seriously. There are no half measures here and this will be live weapons training for the both of you.against me. One wrong step and I will have to put your arm on ice." He stood in front of her now with dead grey eyes that left no option for argument. It was obvious that he would not tolerate anything less than entirely focused training and live combat training. A second later all the chakra pressure died off and Sero stood there before them as he was almost normal in comparison and yet that hint of what he had just demonstrated still remained. The feeling like the fangs were still at their throats and yet he hadn't lifted a hand to them. Still as he pushed the weapon idly into Maigo's hands in passing he wouldn't tame his pure physical strength and just the hand off would possibly make Maigo slide back a couple of feet if he wasn't planted there. Sero wasn't going to take either of them lightly for the time being and they would be doing live weapons training. Still he snapped his fingers and the weapons they hadn't selected faded to mist and in his right hand the kunai launch while in his left the whip sword dangled. He calmly walked passed the cart into the tree line where each tree was perhaps only three feet in some area's apart or two feet in others. Hardly any real maneuverability for the weapons they had chosen and yet as Sero spoke his cold voice pointed this out. "For now we will be practicing with limited space. With those weapons your enemies will be making an attempt to force you into a situation like this. Maigo...feel out the length of your weapon and feel its shifts...do not bother with your eyes as the weapon can trick you...feel how it moves. Nozomi, grip your spear near the center and try to stay back away from me using mostly quick stabbing gestures. Be quick about it so I can't grab a hold of the end. Lastly use the tree's as constant cover to try and avoid getting shot. My whip sword can fly out but it also will force me to be careful of the tree's...both of you come at me at the same time. No jutsu for now and just get a feel for your weapons...if you mess up it is going to sting." With that he didn't give them a second to argue. He would force Nozomi to help Maigo by getting him out of the way first off. For the moment he jabbed out his hand and launched the tip of the whip sword in a straight line for Maigo's right arm. Combat had begun and Sero was already making the first move. However what was odd was he hardly seemed to try and strike out at Maigo. To him it was a simple flick of the wrist that sent the blade flying across its length in a straight line at its maximum range. A simple enough movement and yet he seemed to do it effortlessly. To him the whip sword was just an extension of his arm and he was going to let them feel pain because pain as he had heard was a perfect training tool they might never forget.

10055 words
13095 total

OOC: Putting in the Non-Combat part in a spoiler, because it's a lesser matter at the moment, and it'll be easier for you to figure out my combat stuff if it isn't in a block of text.

Non Combat:

Nozomi's eyes widened as Sero started his attack right off the bat, not giving her much time to do anything at all. It was a good thing that she had a grip on the Yari already, because she would have dropped it had she not, as she leapt backwards and to the right, reaching out to Maigo as she did so, snaring his sleeve if he didn't move, and yanking him with her, to move him out of the way of the oncoming whip blade's tip. If he moved on his own though, the gesture would be unnecessary, as it was simply something she'd done in case he hadn't already begun moving. Out of the way of the whip blade herself, and regardless of Maigo, Nozomi would run forward, to get into the tree line and provide herself some protection. Of course, it would hinder her own movements slightly, and she would find it harder to maneuver the Yari, but as Sero had said, it would hinder him as well. The difficult part for her was going to be figuring out how not to get it stuck on trees and such, when there was only about a yard of moving space in some places, and anywhere she'd be able to strike from, he'd already know where she was going to strike, as it would be impossible to position the Yari without giving herself away if she found a tree large enough to hide behind. Maybe Maigo could provide suitable distraction, but she would have to focus on dodging and defending herself more than hoping he'd create an opening. Of course, she'd also have to distract Sero enough that he couldn't just blaze through Maigo, and enough so that Maigo would still be effective, so there wasn't going to be much resting for Nozomi until the match was over.

Safely in the tree lines, Nozomi did as directed, and kept moving, constantly on the prowl, always making sure to keep obstructions between herself and Sero. Once she got in range of him, she jabbed forward with the spear, towards his left leg, retreating it as quickly as possible in order to not give enough time for him to relinquish any of his weapons and make a grab for it, and to prime herself for another strike, which she would launch as quickly as possible, repeating the actions until Sero made a move to counter it. Once his attention was on her, Nozomi would retreat, keeping the spear primed vertically so that it wouldn't snag on something behind her, and she didn't have to worry much about branches as it wasn't long enough that it would hit most of the lower branches, those it did, easily broke through without so much as hindering Nozomi. While retreating, Nozomi would simply rotate to a new thicket of trees and wait for an opening large enough for her to strike out of again, hoping not to be surprised by a whip blade or Kunai while she did so. Her guard was up, but he wielded those weapons like they were part of him, so even hindered by the woods, he had the definitive advantage on the two of them.

WC: 3846
TWC: 10469
Born-Ill Neg SC: 1/8

Maigo stood there before them, his confidence waivered as he watched Sero gather himself. Maigo's natural reaction was to laugh at Nozomi and her giggling and excitement, but Sero had a different reaction in itself. Though not one that Maigo didn't expect, it was like the anger of the Reaper beginning to surface. The bricks underneath him shook, the room grew dark as the atmosphere around him began was heavy and he could hardly breathe. The pure horror of it all, it felt like the life was being sucked out of the entire area, at the rate that Maigo had thought that only the deepest level of the darkest pits of hell could produce. Perhaps he was exaggerating due to his own fear but the color of the world had changed, everything in that moment was now just different shades of grey as Maigo became stiff, his very breathe worrying him over the noise it made. He wanted to hide away from it as Sero spoke towards Nozomi as to scold her for taking it so lightly, as if that were even an option for Maigo. He stood in front of her as he spoke, she began to respond to which Maigo's heart dropped, his only thought would be to tell her to just keep quiet and tuck her tail between her legs for their own safety, and yet he wouldn't dare speak for anything. If he hadn't before, in those moments that his presence grew he wanted to run, to flee to some safe place and never return, hoping to never endure it again.

It made Maigo think though, that Sero here was a true demon, he wondered how many others were out there in the world, and how much he would have to grow in order to even compete with them. All the jutsu and skill in the world, it would still take a better ninja than himself, someone more mature to deal with the presence he created. One day he might even surpass Sero, very far down the road, and yet he had no confidence in the dream of ever being able to compete with him directly. He had no motivation to, what he might convince himself that he could do, he had no urgency to want to compare himself with Sero. Whether that because he wanted to avoid so closely associating with death, or rather he wanted to avoid becoming a competitor of Sero directly, it was a thought that would leave Maigo's mind quicker than he could imagine the future of such.

From there, the omniscience of his chakra would die off, a literal boulder lifting off Maigo's chest as he exhaled, not having realized that he wasn't actually taking breathes for most of that period of time. Maigo stood there, a bit more comfortable with the norm after having been exposed to such pressure, but it wouldn't last as Sero would push the unique staff into his body. Maigo not fully ready for it would slid back a few feet, using his toes to push the dirt and leave a small wake there, both hands grasped at the staff, holding it like one might a newborn who was falling. Horrified at the idea of dropping it, he let it fall apart into the three sections as Sero spoke. Maigo listened as his hands gripped the middle section and the other two fell and pointed towards the ground, he felt over the wood of it and listened to the clanking of the chain as it bounced, "For now we will be practicing with limited space. With those weapons your enemies will be making an attempt to force you into a situation like this. Maigo...feel out the length of your weapon and feel its shifts...do not bother with your eyes as the weapon can trick you...feel how it moves." Sero spoke towards him directly. Maigo took heed to it, his shifted his grip and took hold of one end, letting the other two sections fall to the ground and the last one rested its end to the grass where they stood.

Sero continued on about advice towards Nozomi, his whip sword he carried, not using jutsu, and a steep warning not to mess up. A slight gulp at the last sentiment as Maigo glanced down towards his weapon and began to take its measure with his eyes before they began. Maigo's right hand held tightly to the weapon, his slight glance downward was all it took, he felt a quick tug at his sleeve pulling him quickly to the right. Another glance to the right as he lost his balance and he quickly caught wind of two things, that Nozomi had grabbed and pulled him and that the ship sword had been launched towards him, but towards his arm. The pull to the right, if quick enough, might be enough to clear him of the distance but to help even further Maigo fell towards the ground as well, as to duck under it and further make an attempt at evading. Though to the onlooker, it might appear as if Maigo wasn't ready and had left his feet behind him, but it was not! All part of a masterfully developed improvisation. And partially leaving his feet behind him. If there was any one thought that he could have while falling towards the ground, it would be the sentiment that these jounin play rough, or perhaps it was just the way of the Grim Reaper.

---

Assuming Maigo would escape the first incident with the whip sword, avoiding it however narrowly that might be, he would quickly shift his weight and kick his legs into the air. Rolling backwards on his neck and shoulders and then pushing off the ground, staff in hand and dragging behind him, its size became apparent as it dragged behind him. Once he would land he would continue to push back, and follow Nozomi into the tree line for a little more cover and a chance at maybe outmaneuvering him, however slim the chance might be. As he made his dash into the trees, it was also apparent at how far behind physically he was with the two of them, he would have to pick his movements carefully and do his best to compliment Nozomi's attacks anyways he could. With his left hand, Maigo took hold of the end of the first section of the staff and with his right, he took the center of that first section as well. On top of the whole not getting stabbed or dying, he also had to improvise and figure out how to use the weapon in his hand.

If there was anything apparent, the staff was broken up to spin easier, building momentum and maybe give him a shot at putting more power behind the swings easier. After all, his first goal was to learn the weapon, so as Nozomi found a suitable tree to position herself and strike out at Sero, Maigo would continue on. Moving as quickly as he could, beginning to spin the weapon to his right and moving in an arc to try and get behind Sero. He wasn't entirely in sync with Nozomi, but he would keep an eye on her and Sero, trying to stay within a few meters of her as best he could. Spinning the staff itself, keeping one section in his hands and the other two, he would have it tilted slightly but close to vertical on his right side as he ran around, just hoping to keep up with their speed. His eyes glanced towards Nozomi, keeping an eye out for when she would make her attack towards him, definitely having to wait until they closed the distance between them and by association, with Maigo as well.

When Nozomi would make her attack towards Sero, assuming she would keep it simple as a spear could, stabs and things to start as she got hold of the weapon. Maigo would take to the theatrics of trying to create a distraction for her. When she moved in to attack, Maigo would jump to a branch above them if he could find one, as thick as possible, the dead branches wouldn't hold his weight but that was the point in some essence. He would jump up, using his hand to grab himself and launch himself over, combining a little chakra as he grabbed hold of it to prepare a substitution jutsu before launching his own attack. It would take less than a second to prepare it, and he would do his best to do it all in the same movement, then he would jump from the branch over to Sero, spinning the two sections over his head as he lept forward. Bringing his spin in front of him, he hoped to catch Sero off guard if even a little, and then bring his attention up towards Maigo rather than Nozomi. His staff would gain an incredible amount of speed and momentum in the swing as he pushed it to its limit.

His first attack would be simple, spinning the staff and aiming the tip of the staff in the spin to lead the charge in attacking Sero. The staff being spun in front of him as he fell and tilted downward, not only would it let him attack, but Sero would have to find a way around the staff in order to land a hit on Maigo, which would give him if only an extra second to change his plan or move or improvise. In Maigo's mind though, he had no doubt that Sero could easily avoid his hit and counter Maigo to deliver a blow of the utmost painful upon him. But that was kinda the point, he wanted Sero to worry about Maigo, so that Nozomi could strike more cleanly than he hoped he could.

[1666 words, 11,198 words total]
[+1 to RT from 1 tomoe]

180/200 Chakra:

Sero watched as his attack failed to land on Maigo as Nozomi countered him in full fledged battle mode by yanking the kid to the side. The whip sword sailed through the space Maigo had just occupied a moment ago with nearly a whistle from the speed of it. A genin would of never even seen it coming and yet Nozomi had seen it and reacted to it with both herself and another. Even as Maigo rolled the blade of the whip sword sawed through the bark of a tree with an audible crunch as an entire chunk of the thin tree was full on ripped away with splinters falling everywhere. The tree itself toppled but that hardly was the concern as the whip sword twitched back into a sword as Sero adjusted his grip and pulled it back. The links of it falling into place as Nozomi and Maigo were already creating space from him through the tree line. It was a smart thing to do if he was being fair to them. Keeping him at the length of his weapons effective range while remaining just within their own but still giving themselves enough time to react to anything he did to strike out against them.

Still he shifted and persued them keeping pace with Nozomi as he was careful to gauge himself and try not to make the whole event impossible for Maigo to keep up with. Even though the individual was an Uchiha he obviously was below Sero's level by too much for Sero to go full out. At the same time Nozomi was far closer to him. Her abilities would make it challenging in a one on one which could make a two on one even more so. He would simply need to turn that to his advantage instead of hers. Pace it up so she would have to cover Maigo while taking Sero on. Force her concentration to just as many fronts as Sero's. The issue was opportunity. He casually adjusted pace as she went for a stab at his leg and stopped just short of the maximum thrust range of her weapon. The tip just barely missing his pants as it was yanked back. He knew she would focus quick jabs over follow through due to his knowledge of the weapon. She couldn't risk him taking the weapon from her so stepping into that stab to follow through was out of the question.

Still as they moved his grey gaze noted Maigo moving above them as he considered firing a Kunai at the young mans tendon about the back of his ankle. If Sero hobbled the young man Nozomi would not be able to cover him long. Becoming immobile in a battle like this was many a warriors downfall. He highly doubted she would simply leave Maigo to that fate and take Sero on alone as needed though. Not to mention that Sero would need to stop the bleeding with a fire or acid technique which meant a longer recovery time for the Uchiha. It wasn't an option for the moment. Still Nozomi was coming in for another attack and it appeared the young man was going for the same opportunity. It appeared they would be going for a joint attack with him coming from above with a downwards rapid strike and her with a quick jab at a lower region of his body. Neither would be a good hit to take but neither of them were familiar enough with their weapons. He was about to teach them each a lesson. First was Nozomi. Her grip was for quick and low jabs but it was designed for speed. It wasn't designed to hold up against impact and her grip and stance were not practiced enough to switch in time. Maigo on the other hand had begun spinning the weapon at full speed in hopes of gaining enough momentum to increase his damage but by doing so he had given up the defensive properties of the weapon. In order to block properly he would need to catch another part of the weapon, possibly hurting if not breaking the bones in his hand in order to create a full block. Both of them were going to see how these issues quickly stacked in one move.

As Nozomi went in for the stab Sero spread his stance and tightened his grip on both weapons. The whip sword was still section locked in place like a sword now and with that he crossed it low in front of him with the Kunai launcher in the path of the stab as fast as he could before ripping both weapons upwards with enough force to blow the grass away from him. He was going full tilt all the sudden as his weapons would crash upwards with a resounding bang under the spear and with full force knock the rapid thrust upwards right into Maigo who was falling towards him in the same moment. The sheer force of it sent a bit of a shockwave the bent the tree's away just a little. Had the trees been healthy it probably would of failed completely to shift them at all. However as Nozomi ducked around the tree again Sero moved once more letting Maigo deal with however he would get out of the situation presented to him. All of it happening in one moment as Sero spun with his counter and smashed his elbow into the tree between him and Nozomi shattering the tree itself as it toppled around them. Branches and tree falling as the entire area became a jumble of broken and dead branches. Suddenly Sero was gone. He had stepped as fast as he could back into the mist during the distraction and now he could be felt nearby but he could not be seen. He had summoned his ANBU gear to himself and now the mist in the woods swallowed him whole. He was with them but now not even the one tomoe would see through that ANBU gear. Sero however had shifted from his position. He waited until Nozomi was positioned on the other side of Maigo from Sero and shifted the Kunai launcher out of the mist behind him using his body to hide the movement from Nozomi. He would then tug the trigger fully to launch two Kunai from only three meters away at Maigo's back just between the shoulder blades.

14178

Nozomi breathed an inner sigh of relief as she mentally clocked that the whip sword had indeed missed Maigo. It wasn't that she cared much about the boy, but she recognized that Sero was her superior in terms of both skill and mastery of weapons. She may be close to him in skill level, but without that mastery, it would be more one sided. That said, Maigo may not be much of an asset, but he still was one in terms of a distraction. It made a fight that was impossible to win still rather unlikely, but no longer out of the realm of possibility. But without Jutsu being involved? It wasn't going to be setting her back very much. The extent of her jutsu in normal combat was a substitution jutsu, maybe some puppetry strings to return her projectiles. As most of her combat oriented jutsu were ranged, and Nozomi was involved in a melee fight,. Nozomi's main use of jutsu was to completely forgo a melee fight, and to keep distance. As for Maigo? He seemed to be at least accustomed to Bukijutsu fighting, so melee was his forte. If anything, the jutsu rule was more of a detriment to Sero, so Nozomi didn't look down on it, and instead embraced it.

Even as she had manuevered and started launching her attacks, Maigo had been getting his positioning done. Her own attacking was effective at keeping Sero's attention. She grimaced as he had stepped just out of her range, feeling the spear's tip drag slightly on the edge of his left leg, before he had backed up enough that she couldn't reach him without stepping forward. Doing that would mean that the spear would be in his grabbing range for too long, and she could find herself disarmed of the weapon. Rather than following through, she retreated for now, finding a new position before he found it prudent to shoot at her with the kunai launcher. With Maigo in position to attack, both the girl and Maigo moved in tandem, to flank Sero and divide his attention. Nozomi spun around the tree that she'd been using as cover and launched the Yari forward once more for another strike at him, and a moment of shock registered on her face as she realized the mistake she'd made far too late. It was the same principle and flaw that the Gentle Fist technique had, something every Himitsu knew when learning to adapt it into their Taijutsu style. Speed tended to sacrifice stability and unwavering strength and was more easily countered. The Gentle Fist of the Hyuuga clan wasn't focused on strength strikes, rather at hitting pinpoint areas, but it was more easily knocked to the side and deflected than a stronger strike, which one would have to focus more on dodging. However, with the Yari having so much range, a deflection was harder to reset from. At the end of her range, he could knock her attacks up and direct them elsewhere more easily than if they were in taijutsu range though, and she hadn't accounted for that. And that's exactly what happened.

"Shit." was all she said, as her spear got knocked up towards Maigo, who was in the air, and wouldn't be able to position away from the jab. But she still knew what she needed to do. Rather than fight against the motion of the Yari, Nozomi moved with it, sliding the Yari back, reeling in the shaft until the back of the spear had collided with the ground behind her. Using that force, Nozomi launched herself forward, low to the ground and rolling, now behind Maigo, until she had crossed the length of clear space and was behind a new tree. Her heart was beating at the mistake she'd almost made, but she couldn't let up. Maigo couldn't take Sero on his own, and she wasn't doing any good at the moment simply hiding behind a tree. She made a quick mental adjustment to the tactics she'd take, and knew she'd have to force this into a closer ranged fight. Even as she had planned her next attack though, Nozomi heard the splintering of the tree, and she tucked and rolled to the side as the dead tree hit where she had been moments before. It wouldn't have done much if it had hit her, but it had done what had been planned for. Nozomi had lost track of Sero. "Shit." she repeated, and looked around, eyes scanning not for Sero, but for the smallest bit of movement, or anything out of place. Most people made the mistake of searching for someone by looking for their entire person, but the true key to finding a hidden opponent was to spread your vision wide, so that any small movements would be caught, and give away the direction of the enemy. It wasn't pinpoint, but it took less time, and was a smarter tactic. She also relied on her ears though, to hear any crunching leaves or branches, as it was harder to move silently in a place like this. She moved around to the other side of Maigo, trusting in his eyes to watch her back, while she scanned around the area, spear at the ready, held with a sturdy grip that would allow for quick movements as well as a rock solid grip.

She heard it before she saw it, on alert as much as she was. The clicking of the launching mechanism. Nozomi wasn't fast enough to move between them and stop the kunai from hitting Maigo, but she was close enough that, she could touch him if she moved quick enough. She felt slightly bad about it, but hitting him would move him out of the way of the Kunai, and better to be hit by her than to be hit by the Kunai. "Shit." she said, while lashing out with the bottom of the Yari, Nozomi's strike was meant to knock Maigo's feet out from under him, so that he'd fall forward. The Kunai would miss him and hit her instead, but that was of little consequence, as Nozomi had her Flak Jacket on, and it would protect her from the brunt of the damage. Of course, if Maigo was alert enough to dodge himself, he could get out of the way without being hit by her, which was mainly the purpose of her slight things. The slight tug that wouldn't have connected if he'd moved on his own. The slight knocking him off his feet if he was still in the same area. They would be easily circumvented if he moved. Regardless of what happened, Nozomi lurched forward, presumably with the Kunai lodged in her flak jacket, towards where they originated. Sero had given away his location, and Nozomi was going to press him. It placed her in more danger, as a close quarter fight with him using his familiar terrain and weapons was a bad idea, but she couldn't protect Maigo and fight efficiently unless she was constantly pressing Sero, so she'd have to trust that she was giving it her own all in order to give Maigo the opening. Or perhaps overwhelm Sero herself, which was unlikely.

Presuming she was able to get him before he disappeared back into the mist, having locked her eyes onto him, Nozomi pressed the engagement, and started to send a flurry of attacks from the Yari, utilizing it more like a staff, attacking with both the bladed and the blunt edge, using the drawback of each end for the momentum for each attack. It was the beauty of pole weapons, each attack primed a new one, to allow for both speedy and strong attacks. He'd launched the Kunai already, so the weapon wasn't something she'd have to watch for other than a blocking or bludgeoning attack, but the Whip Sword was always a danger. She kept her eyes peeled on the weapon in order to counter it, but hoped to press Sero hard enough that he wouldn't have time to load his launcher.

WC: 1352
TWC: 11821

Born Ill Neg SC: 2/8

Leaping into battle, improvisation on what? Two other jounin, Maigo was horribly out of his league here and despite the idea of not using jutsu, he had prepared a substitution just in case. A back up in case his inability to use the weapon he had in his hands and Nozomi's lack of her own weapon would fail against his own expertise. Holding back or not, Maigo was lazy and ridiculous, not an absolute dunce. Maigo made his attack along with Nozomi, using his theatrics almost purely as a distraction, his hopes of actually hitting Sero were bar none. So, in his attack, he kept a close eye on how Sero would act, hoping that everything would be focused upon him rather than Nozomi's attempt to stab him.

It was in the air, that Maigo watched as Sero expertly worked his way around their attack with finesse, he used both weapons with an extreme amount of power and forced Nozomi's spear up into the air. Directed right towards Maigo, and closer to stabbing him, all the while Sero moved from out of the way, the shockwave of the blow could be felt on Maigo as he fell towards the ground. With some bit of maneuverability and the increased reaction time of his sharingan, he began to rotate himself in the air, using the staff and his own momentum to throw his feet above his head and rotate away from Nozomi and the tip of her spear. Combined with her pulling it back as quickly as she could, he should be able to clear enough space to avoid becoming a shish ka bob during this training. As he fell towards the ground, letting the momentum of the staff slow to a point where he might be able to grab it, a tree shattered and lay across the battlefield. Sero was gone from the immediate area, Maigo gathered himself on the ground and stood back up, looking around frantically.

Maigo moved closer towards Nozomi as she moved around to the other side of him, they were both searching intently for their opponent through the mist. Even more perfect, he thought to himself in the brief moments they had to catch their breath and to rethink their strategy. Maigo turned away from searching for Sero for a brief moment and looked towards Nozomi. He spoke softly and quietly, so as not to draw attention to severely though they were no doubt being watched even at that very moment. "Hey... Nozomi... we've got to change things up. I have no idea how to really use this weapon other than pure imagination and there's no way we'll get anywhere with you constantly watching my back..." he was cut off by Nozomi's remark of fear. Her eyes shifting not to him but rather in an attempt to look behind him, at the same time she lashed out with her spear, using the end of it to aim at Maigo's feet.

He was totally unprepared for it, he had no idea what was going on, but his instant response was to jump, bringing his knees up to his chest and letting the spear slide under him while he called out, "What the hell..." but he was cut off as the stinging sensation of two blades dug into his back. His eyes would widen on contact and his jaw would drop, he knew what he would have to do, both of them lodged just within his shoulder blades and dug in deeply. Without much forethought, Maigo activated his substitution jutsu, switching places with the log from which he originally placed it upon. A puff of smoke almost immediately as he activated it and in his place now fell a log, with two kunai placed into it. Maigo himself reappeared upon a tree not far from where he substituted from, perched upon it and over looking the battle. He had no idea how Sero was going to take his use of jutsu, so he held tightly onto the staff and looked around, waiting for anything to happen and for Sero to appear or to join in the fray if he went for Nozomi.

[702 words, 11,900 words total]
[+1 to RT from 1 tomoe Sharingan]

170/180 Chakra:

Sero watched as both of them had detected him a moment too late. His cold gaze seeming to fill the mist and blend into it from behind that smiling leather mask as it showed nothing of life. The gaze of the dead watching war play out before them. He wasn't being kind to these two, he couldn't afford to lose even with the numbers against him. He could never actually afford to lose any fight. Nor had he as far as he could recall aside from training sessions with Gin. Those however could hardly be considered fights. She dominated him in raw ability and experience each time he tried her. The meeting they had in Kumo had nearly ended with him dropping a tower on her and half the village though. He was a fan of being thorough. Still his irritation at never rising above her caused his grip to tighten on the weapons in his hands just a little more. He hated not having the ability to challenge someone. He was the walking form of death, the approaching pestilence and the famine on crime. He was war. Each of those who truly wished to battle him would one day fall. That was how it had to be.

The Kunai had appeared to hit home despite Nozomi's attempt to rescue him yet again. It was to be expected though. He was used to fighting teams that had been trained specifically to take him down. Two individuals who were not accustomed to fighting him nor each others tactics could not be expected to compete against him in his own territory with weapons they hardly understood. Still even as the Kunai hit home the boy before him poofed and where Maigo had been now fell a branch to the ground. Its bark chipped and worn. Still he could easily tell where Maigo had landed as the chains on the three section staff rattled like a bell. His grey eyes glanced at Maigo for only a moment but in that second a sensation would wash over the individual. That glance would seem like law had been placed on him in that moment. A sensation that left no doubt if he continued after using a substitution jutsu that Sero would no longer limit himself. Jutsu would be on the table at that point and he would burn Maigo without hesitation. That moment of complete violence in a glance lasted less then a second. After all Sero had one more that posed to much of a threat to look away from for a full second.

Her attack was already after him even with only a moment that he looked away. If he had gone any longer her speed would of cost him a wound. Still he was well aware that he could not simply step out of the range of the weapon anymore. She would of learned from that earlier. If she had been paying attention she would simply step into the thrust and he may not be able to retreat away in time. However there was a little voice in his head. It whispered to him that she was being more daring now. She was pushing without concern of the range of his launcher anymore. Her eyes gave it away...they stayed focused on his whip sword as he used both weapons to knock each thrust to the side. Sparks clashing each time as she pressed him. However he was watching a pattern forming, however loosely. Still he waited and timed it until the start of a new thrust. Suddenly Sero stepped into it. It was an odd move to make that gave her more chance to cut him and yet, suddenly , if he was successful, it would become apparent that she no longer controlled the direction of the blade except for backwards. His launcher had slid over the tip of her weapon and now he powered forward. He pressed with all his might to force her and the weapon backwards into the fallen branches where her back would be forced against something and he could get within range of his weapon. The whip blade would launch outwards and attempt to slam into the bark next to her face. He was implying it could of cut her fatally.

"Do you both feel you gained some experience from this? If so release your weapons. Go home and study before collecting your own weapons suited to you."

14922

Nozomi's attempt to knock Maigo out of the way was unsuccessful, but only because he had done that himself. It was a shame though, because in using jutsu, he had eliminated himself and Nozomi wasn't skilled enough to take on Sero by herself. At this point, the spar was going to be focused more on mitigating her own damage. However, Sero made the mistake of taking his eyes off of her and to glance at Maigo for a moment. Despite him being out of the fight, Nozomi would make use of him once more, ironically, getting her best chance against Sero from Maigo once Maigo was no longer actively trying to be a distraction.

Rushing forward, Nozomi proceeded to blast Sero with a barrage of hits, but by this time his focus was back on her. Despite being ready for him to back out of her range again, Nozomi was glad he didn't, as it meant she'd be able to force him onto the defensive for the moment. Even so, the attacks weren't effective, and with the whip sword and the launcher, Sero was able to defend against all of Nozomi's attacks. Eventually, Sero slipped the tip of the Yari into his launcher and pushed Nozomi backwards. Even though Nozomi was shocked, her unwillingness to rely on one weapon, and having already established that she viewed weapons as great artisan tools to be used in certain situations, allowed her to drop the yari, letting the weight of it and the torque throw Sero off kilt a little. Even so, she moved back as he pushed, and had already pulled out her Tanto, the perfect weapon for the situation, and attempted to deflect the oncoming whip sword, which found itself instead stuck into the tree behind her, having just been deflected away from her face. She realized though, that he hadn't been aiming for her face, and it wouldn't have hit her regardless. Nodding, she realized the spar was over.

Resheathing her Tanto, Nozomi caught her breath, and nodded again as he spoke. She'd need to review the fight in her mind in order to see what was necessary for each point. Plus, she needed to process how he had used his own weapons. Utilizing a Shunshin, Nozomi disappeared, going back home as bidden. She didn't want to stay on his island much longer than necessary, especially if she'd been dismissed. Sero was in a fighting mood, and staying too long wouldn't bode well for her physical health.

WC: 417
TWC: 12238
Exit Thread

TRAINED:
Bukijutsu SubSpecs:
Onojutsu: [1500/1500]
Sojutsu: [1500/1500]
Kyujutsu: [1500/1500]
(0 Ryo)

Stats:
Strength: B-1 to B-3 [1700/1700]
Speed: B-2 to B-3 [900/900]
Endurance: B-1 to B-3 [1700/1700]
Perception: B-1 to B-3 [1700/1700]
Reaction Time: B-2 to B-3 [900/900]
(1725 Ryo)

Jutsu:
Petal Platform: [500/500]
(50 Ryo)

Total WC used: 11,900
Total Ryo: 1,775

Maigo wondered why Nozomi had gone after him in that moment but the instant the kunai landed into his back he realized why. A quick substitution brought him up to a tree branch, he knew jutsu was forbidden during this exercise, and he knew his opponent was merciless. So it may come of question why he would risk so much for something so little, but a safety net was always worth it in his eyes, even if it was technically a forbidden one. Could anyone really blame the chuunin for having a back up in a fight with two other jounin level ninja, even if he was only against one of them.

A slight bounce upon the limb, he began to search frantically for his opponent, not wanting to get caught off guard in the event that their fight wouldn't end immediately. Always better to b prepared and not regretting taking a whip sword to the back or a few more kunai at range. His sharingan wandered around the forest, Nozomi doing the same, his grip with each hand on the end sections of the staff, waiting to potentially block whatever he could. It was a brief moment in time before he caught himself gripped by fear, he hadn't even truly found his opponent but a sensation poured over him.

Fear. Horror. Angst. It was all coming over him like water of a river rushing over him, it was suffocating even beyond what he had seen so far. His muscles tightened along with the feeling, his search slowed, part of him didn't want to find his opponent and yet, his eyes glanced down to the floor below him. For an instant, his every movement was locked up, like a muscle cramp throughout his body, the fear of someone hunting him with the intent to kill. He could hardly bear it, but it only last a second. A second that felt like an eternity, but it was broken by a quick action from Nozomi.

She burst forth with her spear and charged at Sero, Maigo rotated his head quickly to watch the ensuing action. The speed they were moving far outmatched Maigo's and with a grace he didn't exactly hold himself, especially not compared to their skill. Maigo watched near paralyzed, looking for an opening but not finding one, he knew getting in between any of their movements would be hap hazard at best and risky to himself and Nozomi. No, he stayed on his branch that he landed and watched as they each used their weapons, observing Nozomi go after him with the spear without fear. Aggressive play from her countered by Sero's cleverness, using the kunai launcher as a make-shift sheathe, and forcing her back. The whip sword following suit and being knocked away and imbedding itself into the tree where she had fallen, followed by a nod. Maigo held his breathe in the instant she went down, it almost looked like he would miss but Nozomi guarded anyways, a close call none the less.

Maigo would exhale heavily as they stood to catch their breathe, "Jesus, jounin play rough." he whispered to himself as he cautiously jumped down from the tree he was perched on to the ground. Sero spoke up, "Do you both feel you gained some experience from this? If so release your weapons. Go home and study before collecting your own weapons suited to you." Maigo let his head drop to the three section staff as he tossed it up and let the section fold into his hand as they fell back down. The staff was an interesting weapon, but then again so were the rest. He would have an interesting choice to make, and a lot of practice to get under his belt before he would be ready to really advance his skills in any on specific area.

Still, he calmly released his weapon and turned to Sero, "Thank you. I definitely have a lot to study and a choice to make. Figuring out if I want to use a staff, or one of the weapons you guys chose. Either way, I'll have a long ways to go and need to do more than just observe someone else using the weapons." he spoke to Sero, clearly as not to offend. He truly was grateful but his presence was something that would take time to overcome.

Once all was said and done, Maigo would depart and make his way back to the village, following along whatever paths and roads he could find. The quicker off that haunted island the better, a creepy vibe just ran through his spine while he walked on that cursed ground. Hopefully, he wouldn't have to make a journey back too quickly, or maybe he could meet up with Sero somewhere else outside the village. Who knows when that will be, for now, he had a lot of practice and training to do.

[831 words, 12731 words total]
[+1 to RT from 1 tomoe sharingan]
[Exit Thread]*

[165/200 Chakra]

Training:

Sero watched with the same undying blank face he had fought with or the entire fight. It hadn't been exciting after all. Neither of them were familiar enough with the weapons to actually be a threat to him. Perhaps that was why he had set the conditions for the fight. To keep himself from getting too excited. After all if they had been allowed chakra and his life had been put on the line his blood lust may have erupted forth again. If that had happened he could not of guaranteed both his students for the day would survive. Nozomi could of escaped but Maigo would of been another body feeding his tree's. Likely some disciplinary action there. He needed to learn to control himself beyond the simple interactions of to fight and kill or to fight and maim. The fact that neither of them were injured was remarkable and spoke of their ability to shift and prepare for a situation at least. Not many could keep up with him even if he held back as much as he had and when Nozomi engaged him that wasn't much. She had grown strong in their time together and apart. If she ever turned against the nation it would take a personal touch to put her down and some tactical preparation.

However his attention was drawn away from them leaving his presence. Maigo had fled or at least left in a hurry as soon as the fight was over after a brief acceptance of his need to train further. Nozomi had flashed away from him with a similar thought process even faster. Many were eager to leave his line of sight it seemed and yet they were not wrong to do so. He was hardly human was what he heard from others and his would be infamy. He was discomforting to even the bravest who knew him personally and Nozomi was one of those. Maigo having stayed as long as he had and not reeked of piss was well on his way. However now it was neither of them that drew his attention. Something else was shifting through the tree's and heading for him. Long hair covered legs shifted through the mist as several beady eyes took him in. His reflection seen within them as he let his weapons and ANBU armor fade like smoke from himself and the ground where they fell. He waited for it to acknowledge he was no longer armed and finally it approached him. A spider much larger than Sero himself now stood before him. It's voice guttural but clear as it spoke.

"Yet again you impress us grey one. Not only do you move silent as us, you grow the nest in strength. The web you weave is nearly complete. All that is left of you to do is the purge we demanded of you. Once you do so....Our power becomes yours."

With that the spider reached out one long leg and held it out in front of Sero. Waiting for him to accept the offer. Sero was not one to hesitate though. Trading his humanity for a chance at increased power was only natural for him. Even with the dangers present in doing so he reached forth without hesitation. A pale hand held out palm up under the hairy leg. As it reached down and touched him a seal would gradually form over his hand before removing and forming a thin mist. It would gradually fade and show a hint of a child like Sero before it raced away towards the manor. So it could live without him. Interesting. Still as it left him he could feel energy around him. Considering he couldn't usually feel much this was a new sensation for him. He smiled as he followed to the manor. He was now a sage.

15570

7000/7000 Sage mode B rank trained
8570
Speed A-1 - A-3 2450/2450
6120
Reaction time A-0 - A-3 3450
2670 words remaining.
Endurance A-0 - A-2 2150
520 remaining
Exit thread