From the view point of his position on top of the Durian Tree, Sanosuke could see all there was to his village and its people. It was a rather impressive view as it was the highest point that one could get of the village. From the children playing carefree in the streets to the merchants looking for new customers to come to their stands. Everything was up for the silver haired man to view at. This was his village, his home. The fact that the citizens were safe were enough for his heart to rest easy at times when he felt his position as kage was crippling his mind with responsibilities and potential threats. Wind swept his robes gently along the spring breeze as his Raikage cap was gently pushed along with the breeze but staying atop his head. It was rare for the man to be wearing his kage garments, but for this occasion it was at the utmost importance that he would have it on. It was to show respects for the leaders of the village that came before him.

Ayakashi amassing her forces in order to overtake his village was certainly a wake up call for not only Sanosuke but also the infrastructure established by the daimyo of the land of lightning of the potential threat Sanosuke brought to the village. Currently his actions as the Raikage for the personal vendetta between him and Mizukage brought danger to the village that cannot be overlooked without inspection of Sanosuke's place as the leader of the village hidden in the clouds. Sanosuke couldn't say he didn't foresee their being talk of impeaching him. He had prepared himself for being released of his duties as Raikage the second Ayakashi arrived on shores, as long as his last duty as the leader of the village was to defend the village from the lunatic ice witch of the mist village then Sanosuke could rest easy.

All that was left in order to delegate as his last responsibility as Raiakge was to pass the torch onto a candidate worthy of the mantle of the head of the village hidden in the clouds before Sanosuke left. There were many to consider for the position, but one that he had in mind was someone that had always been by his side. She was a fetchling indeed, but perhaps it was time for her to spread her wings and become the leader she was meant to be.  

And so Sanosuke would wait for the woman to arrive at the base of the durian tree of knowledge for her to arrive. As a candidate of becoming the Jyuuichidame Raikage of the village hidden in the clouds, she too must go through the traditions set before her and himself were even born. And as the current Raikage passing on the torch to the next generation, it was his job to see her through this trial. But the question is, if she is prepared mentally and spiritually to go through the trial that was expected of her to latch onto the mantle of being the next Raikage of the village....

Lin had been summoned by the Raikage for something that she didn't expect to happen for a long while, if ever. To become a Kage was something that... well... few ever got to do, or even dream of. Lin gulped at the tree in the distance, for distant it was still. It looked like it was a tree on the top of the hill that she was coming up over, but this tree, one that she had never been around before, was much too big to be on the next hill. She came to the top of said hill and looked out. There were many hills to go before she reached the tree, which was actually atop a mountain of its own.

Sighing, she continued to trek and think about what she might do ask Kage. Perhaps get on the Mizukage's good side would be a good first course of action, considering that most of the people that she knew came from Kirigakure to begin with. She wasn't travelling with Gora, and had only brought her tonfas in case she had a run in with some bandits, but other than that, she was just out for a walk to talk with the kage. Or that is what she was told.

"To be given the mantle if you're worthy." She remembered the messenger saying. Quite ominous if she was going to be honest with herself. She gulped and looked at the tree, much closer than it had been before. She looked behind, and there was the village, a spec in the distance. She would be good for the village, she knew it. She knew that she would be good for it, or die trying. Perhaps she could mend a couple of the broken ties, perhaps with Sunagakure and Konohagakure. They would be valuable allies, and really, the Mizukage could be assuaged, perhaps, by trade opening between the two villages and a formal signed and written apology from the raikage herself. If she got that far.

Lin approached the tree, seeing the Raikage from his vantage point and waiting for him, she didn't know whether to climb up or wait for him to come down, but she waited for a sign. No use yelling though, at his height he wouldn't be able to hear her. Shielding her eyes, she peered up at him, and waited for the ceremony to begin. One which, she really didn't know much about.

WC: 413

Sounds of footsteps padding lightly on the ground with the ground shifting at each motion to get closer to the top of the mountain. Slowly but surely the sounds got louder and louder, it started off far off and distant. But sure enough it was now well into being heard by people who didn't even have acute senses like Sanosuke has. His back was turned to the sounds but the sensation of footsteps evolved now into a resonating presence coming into his sensory focus. Everything about this individual Sanosuke was able to grasp in just a few more footsteps they would take. One step was all it would take before the individual's identity was known to him.

The wind would have died down as each passing step the person was taking towards the tree. It was as though the environment itself was bending to Sanosuke's beckon calls to this individual, and the winds themselves to guide them closer to the eye of the tornado. The silver haired man himself. 

A blast of wind would have suddenly errupted from the cloaked kage's body that should have knocked the individual back quite some distance as though the wind was enough to knock them off their balance. They would be unharmed but distance between them and the Raikage would be assured.

Winds would be hollering circling around the two of them as no words would be spoken of the man as his back would be turned to this person approaching him. Walls of winds were what stood between the Raikage and this new arrival. If they wanted their voice to reach and announce their presence to the leader of the cloud village, they would have to cross the 15 meters that now stood between them. How would they proceed? 

Music:

Lin watched as the wind died down, strange, but then mountainous winds did that sometimes. The fuuton that the raikage used was strong, and it seemed to billow out of nowhere. She was used to strong wind attacks, but there was no need to defend against a non combative wind technique. The distance achieved, she stood there and dusted herself off.

Picking a leaf out of her hair and making sure her nose was clear of her hair, she sighed. She probably should have braided it before coming, because now she must look like she had been through a windstorm. Checking herself once more, she proceeded to put her hair up in a messy bun. No sense in letting her hair whip around in the sudden circular storm.

She approached, cleared her throat and shouted over the wind, “You wanted to see me, Raikage-Flint-Sama?” She knew what about but she wanted for him to say it explicitly. It wasn't out of narcissism or anything, she just wanted verbal confirmation.

And so she stood there, waiting for him to respond, and perhaps tell her about why she was out here with him.

See what she was made of? Did he intend to spar with her? Well, then she would accept. She didn't know what she was made of, quite, and she hadn't sparred anyone since Satoshi when she was a genin. They had decided that they were going to do a sparring match that ended in one win, one loss for her. The win was with Jutsu allowed, the loss came from a no-jutsu training session, when she didn't know that Satoshi himself was a boxing champion.

She shook her head, she didn't know where Satoshi was now, she hadn't seen much of him since the day at the tower. He had been brutally beaten by the servant that the Raikage had that was named Navi, and he and Lin had kept their ninja status. But she didn't know how long it took for him to recover.

Sighing, she flexed her shoulders, when he told her that when she said ready there was no going back. Well, she might as well get ready. Not that it might do much good. She was still only a Jounin, and he was the Raikage. Still, there might be a chance that she got a couple of hits in.

She nodded, backed up to about 5 meters, and stopped, turning around. "I'm not averse to tight quarters, But I prefer to start a sparring match from afar, if you don't mind?" She waited for a nod or some other form of affirmative.

Getting ready, she set herself in a stance where she could move from side to side, her legs bent, her hands readied to make seals, to catch kunai, or the like. She knew that she would have to be smart, calculated, and that nothing could distract her from the spar that was about to happen.

"Ready." She called out.

Lin was confused when the Raikage said, "not so fast." as he had told her that he was going to see what she was made of. She put her hands down, confused. Was this a ploy? A clever trick like Gin had told her to get her to let her guard down? Well, if it was, it wasn't very sportsmanlike from the Raikage. She put her hands down and stood there, her head tilted from the confusion, and waited for him to tell her what he had planned. She wasn't going to go anywhere, and certainly not when she was curious as to why he wanted to spar in the first place. "I thought you had wanted to spar?" She asked the question, placing a finger to her lips before he came close to her and asked for her hand.

Reluctantly, because she had known that Maigo had done a Genjutsu on her by touch once, she grabbed his hand, remembering the jutsu to get out of the genjutsu should she have to use it. Indeed, it seemed a genjutsu when the petals swirled around them, and they took off like some sort of... cloud? cloud would be a good word for it.

They traveled for, well, Lin wasn't really sure. It wasn't day nor night when they arrived, and the cavern didn't lend itself to time-keeping well either. Her pupils dilated from the darkness, she looked around. The crystals lit the way, yes, and it seemed to have an eerie cadence about it. Almost, as if she were being watched. If she had her cat-ears that she had received long ago from a friend on, they would have twitched, but she didn't think them appropriate for seeing the Raikage.

Perhaps this place meant something special to the Raikage. Before she could open her mouth, there was a cloud of smoke to her right, and she looked where the Raikage used to be and found a small cat. It asked her to follow it, and she tilted her head. A black cat, almost the most stark contrast to Gora that she had found, though, this one was the size of a normal house-cat. Not that Gora wasn't one, but she wasn't a normal... pet... house... well Lin couldn't think about that now.

She plodded along behind the cat, "What does this 'see what you're made of' entail?" Lin asked, and wondered if the Raikage had forgotten entirely that he had asked to see what she was made of. Perhaps he meant in a science experiment? Like... the molecular structure of Lin. But if he had wanted to know that, he could have looked in any anatomy scroll or even asked her. No, perhaps it was just as she had thought, the jargon for a spar. But to do it in this place seemed... almost wrong.

Lin rolled her shoulders as they walked on, she went through the pressure points in the body, naming them one by one silently as they proceeded. She often thought of anatomy, physiology, and... well, let's be honest, her cat Gora when she was nervous. Already putting Gora from her mind, it left her Medical background to fill in the void of anxious energy.

As the two walked deeper and deeper into the cavern, more crystals that were surrounding the two began to light up. These crystals would show the two the path they must take to reach their destination. They weren't too far from it now, from what Sanosuke could sense. The golden rings that clung to his transformed black fur began to pulsate with a golden light to signify that he was indeed sensing something outworldly. It must be the other Raikage attempting to hurry him along so they can meet the new candidate of the seat of Raikage. With a sigh, Sanosuke continued his walk. Thoughts went to wondering if Guru Pathik had felt the same tension when he guided him through the cavern. He must have felt the spirits demanding him reveal his identity to them. Slightly more respect was given to his mentor at being able to stand such an assault of spirits questioning his every step, and still shrug it off with a smile.

Just like how Sanosuke had plenty of questions when he was first being inducted into his first Trial by Thunder ceremony, Lin had her own stack of questions she wanted answers for. She deserved that much, but he would be sure not to say much. "You'll see in time..." The question she asked was way too broad. Any answer he'd give her to that question was on the verge of telling her too much or too little. So it was best to leave it be.

Finally the two reached a rather ancient door that was acting as a barracade to the cavern's most indepth parts; this was where the heart of this mysterious cavern was located. The door was massive and looked as though it had seen generations upon generations of people, like Sanosuke, who had encountered this door. Behind the door was the answers to all of Lin's questions. There was no point in asking if she was ready, it seemed like she was ready for anything that would come her way. Once again the rings on his fur glowed. This time it glowed with a more intense light, so intense that Lin may have to cover her eyes or else it would cause irritation  into them. The door that was before him reacted to Sanosuke's chakra and emmulated the same seals that were on his fur.

A slow creak began to shimmy from the door's henges as it gradually creaked itself open. Both sides opening into itself so to allow the couple to walk through. It was dark inside, but no for long. "Follow me. Everything will be made clear once you step inside. If Lin was experiencing fear or second thoughts, it was too late. She must step forward. At this point she knows too much to not proceed.

With Sanosuke's sharp eyes, the two were still wrapped in darkness, but there were crystals scattered throughout the innermost area they were in that looked similar to crystals they had seen on their way here. The only difference was the these crystals that were around them now did not instantly light up the second Sanosuke passed by them. They were indeed special that demanded a certain release to have the lights radiate. Padding over to a cylinder like statue that was standing in the middle of the rather large cavern, Sanosuke did not need light as it was the only thing that Sanosuke could sense with his chakra sensory network. This was the key. "You asked me previously what I meant by 'see what you're made of.' This will surely answer your question." Sanosuke spoke before he laid his left paw on the statue itself.


Release his chakra out into his paw and onto the statue caused it to glow with a blue light. The blue light acted like a lighting of rods of sorts because what happened next was a result to that. A boom could be heard as a blue lightning bolt struck that exact same statue with such a force, static pops filled the area to let out some sort of electromagnetic pulse all throughout the area. Blue lights from the blast spread throughout the cave touching each crystal in its path. These crystals captured the light and began radiating its own static pops from the energy it was giving out. Those static pops trickled to other crystals for a recursive manner until all crystals illuminated the chasm entirely.

It revealed to be a rather large and open area whose ground was detailed with the same trimmings used to detail the platform for the Battle Plateau. However the ground floor itself looked ancient as though it was built around the time the village itself was built into existence. Held high above the ground itself, was a massive crystal that hung low from its extensions to look like a rather large flower bud. Lightning and static pops snaked through the corners of each crystal giving the place a blue shine. It would seem the lightning bud of crystals was the source of the lightning itself as it hung directly bellow the statue Sanosuke padded over to. The statue's stand eased itself back into the ground. The statue itself was a single cloud that fit perfectly into the ground once it was subjugated. It fit to form the rest of the ground plan so it was smooth. It strongly resembled a vigil of the symbol to represent the village hidden in the clouds.

Looking closer to their surroundings now illuminated, one could see stone representations as statues of all of Kumo's past Raikage. From the first Raikage to the ninth, excluding Sanosuke, they were all there. They each circled the entire cavern that was now thanks to the light looked more like a coliseum than a sort of cavern. The lightning crystal from above them struck lightning at each of those statues. One by one, when the lightning had struck the statues, spirits rose from each statue. Each of those spirits resembling one of the past kages. They all looked around the room and to Sanosuke, and finally their eyes were all transfixed on Lin. Sanosuke included. None of them moved from where they were standing, but only looked at Lin.

"Lin, this place is the ceremonial location where only the Raikage knows of this location. It is where all prospective leaders of the village gather upon their induction to demonstrate their prowess to see if they are worthy of holding up the mantle. This before you, is the Trial By Thunder." Sanosuke finally explained, to break the silence. As if on cue, a thunder clapped resonated from one of the crystals shooting off a blast of lightning chakra from its center and into the gigantic crystal center piece. The effects of the boom generated such force that the wind riffled through the fur of Sanosuke's transformed state. This blast of wind would continue past the door of which the two living entities in the room came into. The ancient door that had transgressed time slammed shut with another mighty boom. The inner linings of the door's frame glowed light blue with a soft light for a brief instant before fading out. The two were now sealed in the room with the spirits. Raikage spirits from all walks of life looked at the girl as though she was an alien. They will be paying close attention as they had never seen someone like her. The one question that was on everyone's mind, including Sanosuke, was: will she last?

Music:

Lin walked with the raikage and didn't know what to expect from the cavern, it was strangely alien. The plant life was only mushrooms, and she wandered behind him, obviously he wasn't going to attack her any time soon, so she might as well take in the sights as she walked, after all, she would only get to enjoy herself a little bit before she got to the serious part of the journey.

She reached out to touch one of the crystals, but thought better of it, perhaps they were hot? Or luminescent because they were electrically charged? Like a cat, her curiosity wouldn't be sated until she knew what their secret was. Sighing, she let her hand drop, no sense in electrocuting herself if her second hunch was correct. She looked around the cavern, the blue light bouncing off of the algae and moss that was clinging to the walls, making the air hang thick with oxygen. It wasn't a surprise to her why the Raikage liked this place, but why did he bring her there?

When he said that she would see in time, she sighed. A cryptic answer if ever there was one. Time revealed all things, but Lin hardly had a century to wait. She was impatient, if anything, and like a cat, she got more and more tense when she waited for something. Lin saw a door appear down the passage from them, perhaps this was the door that led to some sort of sparring pit of some sort. She shrugged, more to herself than to anyone. The Raikage's ears started to glow and Lin looked at the door, more than anything, to avoid temporary blindness in the dark.

She watched as the cat slipped through the door, so she stepped, her left foot against the door barely, as it swung open, and swept her right leg in, sliding in as lithely as the Raikage did himself. She watched as he approached a cylinder approximately 3 meters tall, and touched it with his paw. The pillar exploded in electric energy as it was struck by lightning, and the resulting electromagnetic pulse filled the room. When it was about an inch from Lin's skin, it resonated with her natural affinity to Raiton, sending cascading arcs of electricity around her body, her skin crackling with the energy from the pillar, in much the same way as the statues did.

Lin looked, the kage looking at her in much the same way, she speculated that she could tell which kage were which, as she had read about them in her studies. The first was probably one of the strongest of all time, both posessing the strongest shield to be known in the village, and one of the strongest spears. He was a ninjutsu user first, and a taijutsu user second. The rest followed suit, the inventor of the Black raiton standing out to her as one of the ones that she admired the most. He was a strategist, like her, and she would have loved to spar with him when he was alive. Alas, there was no way for her to do such things.

She looked all around the room, and then back to the black cat with the yellow rings in its fur. "Trial By Thunder..." Lin mused, placing a finger to her bottom lip, tapping it there while thinking, well, that was certainly an interesting title. A trial by fire would be a sparring match, what was a trial by thunder. "Forgive me, but what exactly am I meant to do in this trial by thunder?" She asked not only Sanosuke, but the other Kage that stood before her. it was eerie, but she could sense their sentience through their forms, even though they carried with them no physical presence. She could hear their resonating chakra, feel them study her. She was probably one of the first medical ninja to make it this far, and wondered if truly, she was worthy to take up the mantle.

No, it wasn't about her worth, it was about what she would do for the village. Repair broken relationships, nurture the young generation of genin. Restore the balance to the village. That was her goal. She long ago had put her life on the line for the sake of making Kumogakure no Sato whole again. Even if she had to do so a thousand times over, she would do it. Better to die for the cause of helping thousands, than helping herself.

"I just want to know the process, and I will gladly accept any terms set before me. I am Katonrai, Lin. I carry with me the Guanyin clan's strength, both the destructive power to shatter skin, melt bone, snap sinew, and crumble muscle, and simultaneously to nurture and heal the sick, cure the ailed,
mend the broken, and restore the dying. I step forth for the test to become the Raikage, to both dole out the justice that we deserve, and to mend the sickness that has ailed kumogakure.
Hatred has set in, and the people are weak because of it. An ally will help her grow strong. I am here to ensure that she grows and heals her wounds, rather than having them fester. I am here to defend her from the vultures that would seek to pick at the bones of Kumogakure. I am not here to replace the current Raikage, Sanosuke Flint, but rather to succeed him, asking for his help. For I will be the healer of the wounds, and he shall be the hidden claws. Sanosuke, you have taken an appropriate form, you shall be the hidden claws of Kumogakure, an kumogakure will be like a winter-cat. Much like Gora. Hidden claws, silent until too late."

Sanosuke and the other Raikage spirits listened to Lin's words as the young girl spoke to not just Sanosuke but the others as well. It was an address to how she wants to succeed him and other plans that she had for the him. All of which Sanosuke couldn't help but feel as some sort of sensation. She meant well with her words, honestly he did. She wanted peace with him. But for some reason something in him, was awoken. What did she mean by those words? That was what always annoyed Sanosuke about the girl since she came here. Her arrogance. It was what lit Sanosuke's spirit. Did she honestly believe she could overtake him? 

The spirits themselves were noticing the aura that was developing around the black cat who was the Jyudaime Raikage. Some of which were uncomfortable with the aura he was giving out. It was his battle spirit, she didn't mean it but Lin had declared war on the silver haired swordsmaster of the village hidden in the clouds. She not only tried to tame him to work under him by domesticating him with a nickname, but also claim she was going to succeed him. A glint of a sneer came from the black cat at the girl's words. 

Before his words could escape him to say anything, Sanosuke was interrupted shortly by the Godaime Raikage; Darui, Kumo's Black Night. The spiritual specter of the bearded man coughed to cut off Sanosuke's words. "Calm down Sanosuke. She does not know of the facts of this Trial. Allow us to educate her." Darui spoke. His form was scratching the back of his head once all eyes were on him to divert his attention. Looking at Lin, Darui gave the girl a thumbs up to give her support that she had allies of the spirits that were on her side. Seeing this and hearing Darui's words, Sanosuke took a deep breath in to let the aura that he was giving off to die down. There would be time for that later.

With the situation now addressed, another spirit decided to take the reins of the discussion. It was the Hachidame's turn to speak now. Midnight smiled kindly at the girl as his spirit took the liberty to stride towards Lin. First passing Sanosuke's sated but slightly agitated state, giving the transformed cat a tisk. "Forgive my student, he has always been the most impatient of them. I should have given him more spankings when rearing him. But young girl I do believe it is time to understand what the trial by thunder is. You are chosen as a candidate to be the next leader of the village hidden in the clouds. But in order to successfully be recognized as a leader, you must prove your worth to us by challenging one of our spirits to one on one combat to the death." Midnight explained lengthy to the girl.  His words carrying its own weight into the room. At the last part of his sentence, all of the spirits readied themselves as they knew each of them had a choice of being chosen by the girl.

However all of their presence that they tried to exert to the girl was overshadowed by the overwhelming sensation of battle brought onto the entire hall by a certain black cat. It came off as a chuckle, until a full blown laugh. He didn't know what came over him. The fact that he went from a contender competing from the throne to being an obstacle, but it gave him a wave of adredehline that he hadn't experienced before. The thought of someone trying to surpass him excited him. He wanted to prove to Lin that he was no obstacle to trifle over should she chose him.



"Or instead you can just spar against me. When I was a candidate I completed the Trial By Thunder by challenging all of these spirits at once to gain my title. So how about you challenge me instead Lin, after all you did come here thinking originally you were going to surpass me right? Let's see if you have what it takes to control me." Sanosuke said his presence speaking louder than all of the spirits who were even giving the thought of speaking to state their case. It all went to the wind according to Sanosuke's. He knew from the get go that his strength was unraveled to all of the shinobi that was there in the hall. All of the spirits cancelled their aura and yielded to Sanosuke's will. But would Lin's will conceded like the spirits or rise in defiance was Sanosuke's question.

Music:

Lin looked to darui, nodding a bit at his thumbs up. She had unwittingly stirred the Raikage to action, and the sneer that came her way was interesting, to say the least. She blinked twice, wondering if he was going to outright challenge her. The spirit spoke up, the previous raikage speaking on behalf of all of the spirits. She nodded to her, it was good to have a base for what she was going to be up against.

Then the aura came from the Raikage. Lin was a bit startled at first, but then she smirked. Of course she would be up to the challenge. How could she be accepted as Raikage if she didn't try to face the strongest of them all? Sanosuke claimed to be the strongest of them all, having beaten all of the previous kage. Well, if that were true, then she might as well test her mettle against his own. An aura surrounded the guanyin, a blood red aura, and those who knew the aspects of the Guanyin would instantly recognize that she was ready for battle. The aura was a necrotic one, one that she had burned Alwen with when she came to the village the first time, one that she had melted a werewolf with when it had killed the villagers of one of the outposts of kumogakure. It was the aura that crushed the bones of a spy for a cell that was targetting the Raikage, the one that was before her, making him almost die from the sheer shock of the pain that he endured.

She had killed with this aura, she had maimed permanently with this aura, this was the aura of her battle-fury.

"Perhaps you misunderstood me, you have done a lot for this village, but what it needs now is a gentle hand. But if you want to see this cat's claws. Then I shall have to show you. Gora isn't just for show, she knows that I am a cat in spirit, and my claws are sharp. I challenge you, Raikage, to a fight. If I should win, I will not kill you, but the terms are acceptable, I am willing to stake my life on being raikage."

She raised her hand in the traditional manner for a spar, creating half a seal to him, the seal of confrontation that she had been taught in academy. She hadn't raised this seal to anyone after Satoshi Kazuhiko, a boy that was pummeled at the expense of a simple trial that Sanosuke had the fancy for. Lin wasn't arrogant, she was confident. She was going to surpass this man, for the sake of healing the village. They needed a nurturing leader.

Though, for some reason, Sanosuke had triggered her short fuse. She was ready for combat. She watched his every move, waiting to counter what he threw at her, and counter attack. The room was big enough that she could run in both directions to either side of her, her feet were firm in the ground, she had a good stance, one foot in front of the other, bracing for some sort of wind attack to try to knock her off balance, some lightning attack to try to pierce her flesh, or some other trick that the Raikage had up his sleeve. She knew that she would have to endure this to become Raikage herself.

She perhaps didn't deserve it, or she didn't think that she did, but she knew that she would do her best in the spot to keep the village alive, to nurture the younger generation. She would hold festivals and walk among the people, heal the sickness that had set into the hearts of Kumogakure, the fear of war. Kirigakure and Kumogakure were on the very cusp of a war, and what Kumogakure needed was a person that would take into consideration all things that were going on. She was going to do her best, and while she might not be the best person for the job, she was the only one in her position to do so. So she would fight. And so she took a stance that was defensive, trying to plan for every eventuality. She was roughly 20 meters from the Raikage, so she would have to either close the gap or have him close the gap before the battle began, but she also knew that her advantage was having him in her range.

Now, to wait like a cat ready to pounce.

Music:

Just as he hoped for, the challenger's own horn was blasting against his own. Was she really attempting to overtake him? As his intent clashed with her own, Sanosuke couldn't help but get excited. His transformed fur tingled with excitement. He didn't know the breath he was holding in was suddenly released. It had been a long time since he felt genuine thrill for combat. Before  his instincts were to represent the village. He felt locked by Kumogakure to fight on their behalf and never his own. The calls of combat beckoned for Sanosuke to appear once more, but alas he could only pick up the blade in the village hidden in the cloud's name. He was a sword meant for the village. It was indeed an honor, but it was very seldom that he was allowed to fight for himself and no one else. And here before him was he being treated not just as a figure head for the village, but also as a combatant.

"Look, look! She got Sano-chan happy!"

"Luck! We want to play with the girl first San-chan! You better not kill her!!" The twin Raikage spirits chattered amongst each other. The first twin looking rather ecstatic at the developments that were occurring in the ring. While the other was throwing a fit that they weren't chosen. The other Raikage spirits chuckled at the twin's antics at how childlike they were, however if one knew their history of Kumo's leaders: those two were possibly the strongest duo to have ever touched Kumogakure no Sato's history books. It wasn't until Taiya came to coax the two that excitement from the sidelines were quieted down. The combatants were on stage now. Sanosuke was still in his transformed state smirking at the girl. She had indeed grown. Her hand was outstretched to his to form the shinobi sparring seal of the kumite. It was an old practice that was even taught in the shinobi academy since the beginning.

Respecting the sign, Sanosuke maneuvered his tail to grasp hold of the girl's hand to form the seal. Even though he was in such  state, Lin must know that dropping her guard for a second against him would spell disaster for her without a doubt. Her only chance was to not get comfortable for a second. When Lin took her distance, Sanosuke merely stayed in his position as a cat and looking right at Lin. In a single instant a bolt of lightning shot off from the giant crystal centerpiece that was above them, came jutting down and thus striking Sanosuke in his calm demeanor. It was as though he was expecting it. A smoke filled the air in a dust cloud so no one could see what occurred.

When the dust cleared, there were two beings that were now 20 meters away from Lin. One was of Sanosuke but this time he had a faint blue aura around his body. It was as though he was partially emulating the other spirits of the Raikages that came before him. But it was something in between living and death. The other was of Sanosuke in his transformed cat state. It seemed as though the cat was knocked unconscious. To Lin it must be quite alarming to be ready for a spar that is supposedly to the death and just for her combatant to be struck down by lightning.

Reika appeared between the two with her back to the two figures of Sanosuke and her face to Lin. The Kyuudaime Raikage's face gave off a warm and pleasant aura as though she was a mother, or big sister of sorts. She was called Kumo's Hestia for a reason; she made those feel at home with her mothering aura. "Allow me to explain, child. You choosing Sanosuke was quite the choice indeed. He is alive still and unlike a majority of the Raikage in attendance, he is very much alive. And The Trial By Combat must be conducted with the living candidate and the spirit of an elder Raikage." She began to explain to the silver haired girl. She was definitely confused to say the least. Hopefully with this explanation she can begin to understand what had just transpired.Even while he is a spirit in this form, he is nearly at 90% of his total strength. The spiritual fission wasn't as clean of a carbon copy that was made out to believe. Currently Sanosuke had more or less of his original strength but there was something missing as well(OOC: All of Sano's stats are reverted to S Rank flat)  

Reika then walked over to the form of Sanosuke's transformed cat body and held it in her arms as though she was holding a sick baby kitten. "And so what was done was Sanosuke's spiritual presence was given form, while his living body is what I hold in my arms. His spirit will return to his body once the trial is conducted. So you must subjugate Sanosuke's spirit in combat to be recognized as the winner. I wish you the best of luck." Reika finished off her sentence, this time she was by the side of Sanosuke's standing spiritual form. The silver haired man was out of his Raikage garbs but in his shinobi attire. He had a long broadsword at his back that looked rather ancient and had been of use for some years now. His blackened gloves now resembled those of golden studded gauntlet. Before his eyes went to look back at Lin's, who was still 20 meters away from him. Sanosuke exchanged a look with Reika. A look of communication that he must do what he has to do. And with that she left the arena so it was just the two of them who stood in the ring. Reika's intermission being over left the fighters to readjust themselves accordingly to their original positions should they have moved.

"Sorry about that, had to get preparations in check. Scouts honor, nothing else was done in the confusion of the spiritual fission, which is the name of what just occurred. Now then, are you ready..Lin..." Giving Lin the name of what had occurred between the splitting of his body and his spirit to be given form. His arms were crossed as he examined the distance between the two of them, it was definitely around 20 meters between the two of them. It would not matter. She believed that was enough to space to cover herself from him? She was surely about to be mistaken. "This is my spirit Lin, I'm sorry but if you do not come at me with the intent to kill me....THEN I WILL CRUSH YOU, YOU WILL NOT STAND A CHANCE AGAINST ME!" Sanosuke began to say, finally his true intentions coming out in the form of a battlecry to signal the commencement of this fight The aura that he had summoned earlier was once more becoming more and more apparent to all those watching. Winds began to shift to Sanosuke's will as all of the wind in the area was coming towards Sanosuke violently.

Tornadoes formed around the silver haired man, giving him the appearance of a wild demon that was at the heart of the tornado. That tattoos that were on his arms pulsated more chakra into the technique the Raikage was administering towards Lin. It caused the area within a 20 meter radius to be subjugated to Sanosuke's now empowered killer intent as though it was instantaneous. Upon taking in a single breath of the area that Sanosuke was manipulating with his chakra, Lin will be exposed to bits of Raiton chakra that he mixed in to the field of wind that was conjured up. Should she breath in the air, his raiton chakra will have the girl stunned for a moment thus giving him the perfect opportunity to strike. Lin had let her guard down if she believed that she was safe from his attack by assuming that 20 meters were enough to be safe...

Chakra is at 360/385. Jutsu Used:

Music:

Lin tilted her head as he came up and completed the seal. The raikage spoke, telling her that she had made the right choice. She knew that she had, if this man had indeed defeated all of the kage before him, people that were overwhelming in strength, she would have to prove herself against him. She lifted the aura as he clasped her hand, she didn't want to burn him before the sparring match began.

As soon as it happened, he was struck by lightning, two Sanosuke's appearing where there was once one, a ghostly blue one and the form of a cat, which the spirit of the Raikage before him picked up.

Lin smiled at the Raikage's words, she would have to come at him with the intent to kill. There was no way to kill a spirit, and so she would be able to go full-tilt. Something that she had not been able to to before. She got more excited, rather than backing down as he lit his aura up. Well. This is going to be an interesting fight eh? her inner voice asked her.

Lin, however was unable to move. She was stunned by his Jutsu, what would the Raikage do next?

Her guard was let down and thus dropped, which Sanosuke took advantage of the girl's carelessness by weaponizing his aura to suppress the woman from moving. It worked as she could only look at Sanosuke's form being caught up in the wind. Her body was still standing, unable to move a muscle. This state wouldn't last long, but it wasn't as though the silver haired Raikage would need much time to do what must be done. His fingers snapped from his gauntlets to summon his twin swords from said gauntlets, lightning pops flung out from them as Sanosuke grabbed hold of them. Just before the swords were held tightly in Sanosuke's hands, the man had quickly closed the gap of 20 meters between him and Lin. Even if Lin was able to remove herself from the body impairment technique Sanosuke had put her under, how quickly Sanosuke closed the gap between her and himself was done in less than a second. The swordsman had closed the gap quickly enough to overwhelm her before she had enough time to launch a counterattack.

Winds gathered around Sanosuke's swords as the man focused more and more chakra until tornadoes had enveloped the weapons. It caused the clothes that were on both combatants to flutter wildly as the winds got stronger and stronger by the passing milliseconds. "Too slow." Positioning his blades for optimum momentum, Sanosuke swung the swords outward in an upward slashing motion to release the tornadoes that had enveloped the swords in the first place. These tornadoes launched itself from the swords and bounded towards Lin in the small amount of space that were now existing between the two. Violent winds would envelop the girl in a tornado of Sanosuke's chakra as it moved with such speeds that cuts would be forming around the girl. Cuts would form around the girl, some being more serious than the others. The tornado that had enveloped the girl would cause injuries that would appear on her to prohibit movements of her limbs. The tornado would shoot Lin out of the eye of the tornado approximately 10 meters in the air.

Before Lin had the chance to open her eyes to examine where she was exactly and take in her surroundings to start thinking of her own counterattack, Sanosuke had appeared above Lin with her swords shining above his head. Spinning his body tightly to make himself like a spinning top that was only getting faster and faster, Sanosuke had let himself be entirely surrounded by his wind chakra. When he stopped his spin, Sanosuke had allowed that wind to form a stream at Lin's underbelly to push her upwards another 5 meters upwards into the sky. Sanosuke had then used that same momentum he had used to rocket Lin to new heights to fling himself even higher than the girl.

With her limbs too damaged for her to use them properly, Sanosuke now saw this was the time for her to attack Lin. She would not be able to defend herself at this point. And now there was little for Lin to do in order to defend herself from Sanosuke's attack. With his swords raised above his head as he let gravity pull himself down onto Lin. Sanosuke's wind of his aura would pull Lin closer to the girl as though she was caught into a vacuum. Upon her being close to his blades, Sanosuke let his own wind chakra envelop them to raise their potency. If Lin could open her eyes, all she would be able to see is the light bounce off his sword and into her eyes. In the blink of an eye, one slash would be delivered to one of her limbs. Blood splattered from the single slash done to her left shoulder, in fact more blood oozed out from the wound than Sanosuke had realized. It was most likely due to the fact that Lin's body was far more frail than the average shinobi. The wounds she'll take will most likely be more painful to her than if it was to another shinobi who had taken the damage.


Before she could even scream from that wound, Sanosuke would appear once more on the opposite side of Lin to deliver another strike to her other shoulder in a similar manner. More blood escaped from the wound and scattered throughout the sky. It would paint the floor itself with more blood as Sanosuke continued his onslaught on the girl until all 4 of her limbs had each tasted the steel of Sanosuke's swords. The final blow came as Sanosuke brought both blades together for one slash across Lin's exposed torso. "Autumn's Dance!" Sanosuke could call out as he made sure this cut was far deeper than the ones she had taken previously. His slash would streak from Lin's collarbone all the way to her hip. How much force Sanosuke had put down into that one attack was certainly enough to send the girl plummeting down to the ground rapidly. From the amount of force that Sanosuke had put into that combined swing of his swords, Lin's body upon impact on the ground would have made a crater a couple of meters deep into the ground.

If it wasn't for the fact that this wasn't Sanosuke's full strength, that crater Lin was in would have been much deeper. Also not including the fact that Lin's limbs would have been cut cleanly to pieces, Sanosuke knew that was not enough to kill the woman. No, he knew very well that things were just getting started between the two shinobi. Sanosuke let his feet lightly touch the ground as compared to the manner that he used for Lin to reach the ground. He landed just a meter away from the crater Sanosuke had left her in. He would look directly down the hole to look at Lin to see how she was holding up with her damages. But still not a move was made by Sanosuke to continue his onslaught. He would wait there at the top of the chasm with his arms crossed and his swords returned to his gauntlets. "Get up Lin. I know that wasn't enough to kill you."

---

Chakra: 310/385:

Music:

Lin was grateful that she had her basic aura up when the onslaught began. She had been unable to move, and so she had taken damage, but the Guanyin aura that she had placed on herself, a pittance of a thing had kept the wounds from prohibiting the movement of her arms and legs, it wasn't anything much, but it allowed for her to move her body in reaction to her perception. She couldn't see him but she could hear him approach, how could one not hear a storm approaching?

She took considerable damage to her shoulder, the tendons almost sheared by the impact of the sword. Good, she was still able to make use of the arm, if only a little bit, it would be painful, but she would be able to go on and fight.

Four more slashes she took, each enough to almost sever her arm, her legs. She hit the ground in a crater-creating blast and she sat there, her blood pooling. Her vision blurry. He ushered her to get up. Fine, she would get up. With a shaky hand-seal and a groan she would explode in teal light. "Advanced Recovery Method." She hissed through clenched teeth. Her aura became that much stronger, the teal aura became a blinding intensity as she stood up, rotating her shoulder and looked at the raikage, not 5 meters from where she was, a confident man, to be sure, he was only 1 meter from the crater that he had left her in. She had fully recovered, if she had taken those damages when she was a genin, she would have died, but not anymore. This was the Lin of the guanyin clan.

She looked at him, made a series of rapid hand-signs and ran towards him, a 2 foot long (.66 meters) needle of red-light coming to life in her hand, she would throw it and if it hit it would plung it deep into his hip, it would start to grow, making his intestines falter, his stomach and kidneys too. The damage would be so intense, and the pain, that he would be doubled over in agony for a bit of time. The needle would travel at the speed of an A ranked jutsu, so there would be little time for him to dodge. She hoped that it would connect.




"Guanyin technique, Drakpo Needle." She would say. Her needle flying towards him.

WC: 362

Chakra Pool:

Sounds of panting and rocks being knocked over signaled to the swordsman that his initial hunch was correct that Lin was very much still alive. A sneer graced Sanosuke's lips as he couldn't but help get excited that his fight was still under way. Sanosuke watched her get up from the crater she was brought down to by him standing tall in some sort of bluish figure. This was in fact chakra, it was so strong that it was very much visible to Sanosuke's naked eye. He didn't even have to activate sage mode to sense this intense nature of chakra. He couldn't help but be proud as he eyed Lin as she was getting serious. All of her wounds were healed. So this was what her clan was capable of.


"Atta girl. That's more like it. I suppose I should start getting serious as well. After all, it's only fair." Sanosuke said to Lin as she was staring back at him with her impressive aura that seemed to be regenerating the damages that he had inflicted upon Lin previously. Her eyes wanted nothing more than to get vengeance upon Sanosuke for what he had done to her. But would she be able to do so was the question. Closing his eyes himself briefly, he allowed for the demonic energy that had existed within his necklace to slowly creep into his conscience. Demonic voices filled in his head asking him questions: Will we be able to kill Sanosuke? Let us kill the girl. Let us show her our real power. For years Sanosuke had trained in order to subjugate those voices from controlling his movements and thus giving himself entirely to darkness. But for once, he'd let those voices full his head and instead of subjugating them; he'll agree and let them work with him.

Let's do it then. Was the only thought that crossed Sanosuke's mind as he reopened his eyes.


They were marked with the contract of the demonic influence that had originated from the source of his necklace. Previously only one eye would be marked with the demon, but now he allowed himself to give himself entirely to the demon. For once the demons and Sanosuke were in agreement on something: the girl, Lin, must be crushed at all costs. His body was in a state of euphoria, all noises that were plaguing his mind had suddenly stopped. He felt his body rushed with adrenaline, his conscious mind was racing but calm at the same time. This was what it was like to give himself entirely to the demonic spirits. He'd smirk at Lin as she herself was getting ready for an attack.

Her hands flashed through several hand seals as she ran up the crater and directly at him. With her seals completed, she formed a rather long spear in her hand and proceeded to chuck at him. Sanosuke couldn't help but whistle at how hard she was able to chuck the spear considering how weak and fragile Lin was. At the moment now was not the time to act impress. It looked like it would do massive damage should it hit him. Forming chakra into his hand via his golden plated right handed gauntlet, Sanosuke allowed his demonic chakra to make it stronger. Blue chakra now radiated with dark energy in his hand. It formed a sharper blade that he could maneuver like it was one of his own.

With a flick of his wrist, Sanosuke directed his hand fashioned chakra blade at the incoming spear attack launched by Lin as she was quickly approaching him on her own. When the two attacks clashed, Sanosuke gritted his teeth as this attack was struggling to push back Sanosuke's own in order to dominate it. With a mighty shout, Sanosuke pushed through the spear, slicing it clean in half right down the middle. It dismissed the attack by sending it behind the swordsman. His attack had taken much out of Sanosuke than he realized as his right hand was twitching with difficulty from the strain of his attack. Even with conducting his attack through his gauntlet, the demonic energy was still able to affect his hand.

That didn't stop Sanosuke as he conducting that exact same chakra into his other hand. His right hand wouldn't be able to continue his attack using the same jutsu, so his left hand would have to do in order to continue his attack. Growling as more chakra enveloped his left hand, Sanosuke dashed at Lin to meet her. She was a long distance fighter, yet she was meeting him head on in close quarters combat. There were few who could match his own might in close combatant, and Lin had challenged him to this by charging at him. It would be insulting if he didn't meet her with the same intensity as she did.

Chakra: 265/385:

Lin watched as her Guanyin needle crackled against his blade, as soon as he started to shear it, she let go of her concentration on it, it wasn't going to hit him, and she might as well put her energy elsewhere. She Jumped back as soon as he jumped forward, trying to maintain at least a meter between them, it wasn't going to work for long, but she had a plan. She wove some more hand-seals and pointed at Sanosuke.

Raging Panther Jutsu! she called out the jutsu's name as a cat of red blazed forth. It bathed the chamber in a red-aura, almost drowning out Lin's own bluish aura. It streaked towards him, hopefully catching him quite off-guard. Her left foot caught against the side of the crater and she jumped in a ninety degree angle to her right. propelling her to her right side. All the time, she kept her eyes on Sanosuke, her battle-fervor working itself into a frenzy in Lin. She would beat the Raikage, she would make Kumogakure less hated. She would win this fight. This was for Maigo, This was for Satoshi, this was for Syn, and Alwen. She didn't fight for herself. She wanted to protect those she loved.

Not that Sanosuke couldn't do that, but she felt a sense of responsibility. Like she needed to step up to the challenge of Raikage. Fine then, she would step up. The panther ran at Sanosuke, its maw open wide, its jaws a deeper red than its body, blazing red eyes burning into his soul as it raced towards him.

Chakra pool 200/300:

As he ran right at Lin, Sanosuke noticed how the girl was tracking backwards to gain difference between her and the rampaging swordsman. With his chakra bladed left hand charging at her, Sanosuke was an impeding threat to the girl. She was someone who fought at a distance, the silver haired man had already known that. That was why he'd do what he can to ensure that gap wouldn't get any larger. The fibers in his wasp clan boots lightened his footsteps as he moved to quicken his speed in one burst. Before he could get into striking distance, Lin had finished completing a rather complicated set of handseals that were numerous in number but she was able to complete it despite the amount of pressure she was under to do such a feat.

A panther made out of red colored chakra leaped at Sanosuke after the distance between the two of them were less than a meter. Ruby lights filled the chambers as the panther rushed at Sanosuke at speeds that mimicked his own rushing at him. The beast was like a representation of himself; rushing to sink its teeth into its victim. But the chakra beast that Lin had summoned through ninjutsu will soon learn who the true beast is. Raising his bladed dark colored chakra hand with his left, Sanosuke let out his own battle cry to match the panther's growl. The two were looking at each other eye to eye before he brought his weapon down on the beast in one mighty swing.

His demonic influences from the necklace pumping more base into his voice, Sanosuke let called out of the name of his technique that he used to counter the beast that was coming at him. "Ekusukaribā!!!" More darkened, demonic infused chakra erupted against the flow of his chakra blade as he met it head on with ruby panther that Lin sent at Sanosuke to attack him. The two techniques struggled for dominance of the other as Sanosuke let more of his demonic contract flow through his body thus giving him the strength to overtake Lin's own technique. Moving his bladed hand in one motion, Sanosuke pivoted his ankle and his position to direct the flow of the panther technique right at Lin. "Don't you think you can get away from me!"

Chakra- 185/385:

Music:

Lin switched her tactics as she saw him struggle with her panther, hitting it with a sword like a base-ball bat, it was time to get serious with him. She started to form some hand-seals while he tangled with it, and was surprised to see it coming back at her. She jumped out of the way at the last second to the left, almost breaking her ankle in order to gain enough speed to do so, and slamming her shoulder into a pillar. The cat dissipated, having run its course with the distance that it had traveled in total. She was getting up when there was a flash and a snap from the Raikage, she looked up and was blinded by the light from the technique that he sent at her. Her chakra burned red for only a moment, but it was enough to shred the tendons in her legs, break her hip bones, and burn her from the waist up in second degree burns.

She grunted in pain, dropping back to the ground. She wouldn't give up, and thinking that he was out of those kinds of tricks, she quickly formed a seal, a half tiger, and she blazed forth, this time in a more subtle teal light, she wouldn't be defeated as easily as all of that, but she was wearing down. She stood up and growled in determination, not with malice, but with perserverance as her bones mended, her burns dissipated, and her lacerations from the jutsu turning on its master were re-absorbed and mended. She stamped her foot, making sure that it was weight bearing again, the right one that she had all but broken to get out of the panther's range, and huffed.

She wouldn't be beaten back by this, she would perservere, as long as she could keep up with the growing pains to her chakra reserve. She held up her hands, ready for a fight, ready to make seals, and her stance brooked no quarter, she was only 3 meters away from the Raikage, and he was approaching fast, but she would be ready for whatever attack he would assail her with.

She would be ready, she still had one trick up her sleeve, she wouldn't let her own life dwindle to nothing, she had worked too hard. Everything seemed like it was in slow motion. What was she doing here? She wasn't a fighter, she didn't know much about fighting, and when she had been in fights, it had always been a support role. So... why this? Why was she locked in mortal combat with Sanosuke? All of this took but 1/10th of a second to flash through her mind, too small to be perceptable even, then the determination came back. She would defend against Sanosuke to the last. She didn't have much else up her sleeve, but she would try to at least keep up with him.

180/300:

While making his advance towards Lin, Sanosuke could feel his own body act sluggish from how much chakra he was outputting at the moment. His body ached as the demonic chakra that was invading his body was suddenly taking its effect. His body ached tremondously as though every fiber in his skin was on fire. There was no guarantee how long he could continue this act of bravado that he was invincible. It was beginning to show as his sprint slowly turned into a walk as he slowly approached Lin. Raising and falling, his body began to pant from exhaustion. It was fairly evident that his body was reach its breaking point. Lin was reaching that point as well as she was prepared to fight Sanosuke to her final breath. But for a split second there was a moment of doubt. Even with his demonic eyes, Sanosuke could see very clearly the look of despair that was on her face. It would have been concerning if she still wasn't afraid considering that she was practically at death's door.

Stopping where he was to look upon Lin, there was now 2 meters that were between Sanosuke and Lin instead of 3. His eyes met with Lin's as he was like a predator sizing up his his prey before going in for the kill. His breath was slightly more ragged than usual. His breaking point was near, this fight would draw to a close very soon. So was Lin, it was merely a race to see who would break first: the challenger or the challengee. That was the real question. Sanosuke couldn't help but smirk at the developments. Lin had turned into a fine shinobi before his very eyes. Now between the two of them, Sanosuke had no idea who would be left standing out of this fight of tenacity. It was exciting to him.


"Lin, you're nearing your limit too aren't you? Let us end this fight between us, once and for all. You've done well to come this far, but now I'm not holding anything back!" A deep breath was taken into by Sanosuke as he clenched his fist and allowed the chakra that was around the cave and their shared environment to invade his body. It wouldn't take long before the integration between his chakra and the chakra of his surroundings became more. A beastly roar rumbled out of Sanosuke's throat as he allowed more and more chakra to take a hold of him. His hair began to get twisted tightly into braids from how the chakra changing his genetic make up. Strands of Sanosuke's silver hair began to darken as silver markings covered up his eyes. Silver chakra bolstered with Sanosuke's darkened demonic chakra as they became one and the same. This was Sanosuke Flynt's true power. This was the power that Sanosuke had wielded to protect the village for as long as he did, this was the power that shook the foundations of the Trial by Thunder, and this was the power that Lin would have to overcome.


His voice was augmented by the senjutsu chakra that had flooded his system as each word in his battle cry buzzed with power. The buzzing of Sanosuke's own chakra bounced off the walls of the cavern as nothing but the sounds of a thousand bees plagued the entire cave's airwaves. "LIN! COME! WE END THIS NOW!!!!!"

---

Chakra- 135/385:

Music:

Lin was breathing hard, her hands were shaking, and she still had some of the wounds that she had taken from the reversal of her own chakra. Was this the way that the beast had felt when she had melted it, shredded it when she had torn it to shreds with her own chakra? She felt like there were some muscle tears, like her tendons didn't work quite as well anymore, and that she was more brittle than before. Damn. She would perservere though, no matter what.

The blue Raikage walked up to within 2 meters of her, shouting a challenge, she thought, but she couldn't comprehend the language he was speaking, perhaps it was a different one altogether? she pieced it together in her mind, her neurological pathways a bit slower to react than normal, yes, she understood. They would end this here and now.

She groaned, placing a hand on her knee as she almost fell to the ground, there was not much she could do with this stance. She took a huge inhalation through clenched teeth and grunted, standing upright, placing her hands together for a series of hand-seals, "I will show you that I can take up the mantle, I'll burn through every reserve that I have to to make you understand that!" She took a shaky step forward, and with that, her hand-seals were done, She opened her mouth and let out a roar.

Akin to a fire-technique, it started at her open mouth and spread like wildfire, but this technique was not a katon technique, it was a Guanyin one, one that Lin had used to save a child from death, save his parents from the pain of their suffering as well, all in one fell swoop. She had used it to save lives, and now she turned it against the essence of the Raikage, wanting to burn his chakra reserves out, wanting to make him acknowledge her as a formidable foe, as a person that wasn't just a girl, wasn't just someone that needed help, guidance, but could provide it. It was a roar of defiance, of hurt, of self-worth. It was a roar that came from Lin's very toes, and she used in emergency situations only. She felt the weight of the loss of her chakra, and she needed to break through whatever this was. It seemed like a senjutsu of some sort. She had been studying it, flipping through scroll after scroll, book through book, article through article on it, and only the most advanced ninjas had actualized the power.

She now stood this power in the face and answered with a gutteral roar that shook the cavern, if it hit him, he would feel the instantaneous necrosis of his very essence turn upon him. It was a much faster, much more deadly technique than the advanced healing technique, and if she had been hit with the panther, it would have done the same amount of damage. It was a healing technique, meant to bring back a person from the brink of death.

Only, this was reversed, this chakra was red, not the usual teal. A fly buzzed into the edge of the cone, a fly that usually lived in the cavern, and hadn't been killed by the huge surge of electricity. Its insides boiled, its wings cracked and exploded, its exoskeleton formed microfractures and cracked, the limbs broke every which way, and finally it was turned to a limp lump, still midair, the jutsu took instantaneously.

She had been deemed by tsuyo, a master of healing techniques, "the lightning healer" and she now turned that lightning fast technique against Sanosuke. She knew it wouldn't kill him if it hit him. He wasn't alive. This was a projection of him, and she knew that if he was there, only 2 meters away, since he had challenged her, he would take significant damage. The damage sustained would include broken bones, lacerations of 2 inches all over his body, and would burn him, necrotically for minor 3rd degree damage.

It was a devastating attack, and it took a lot out of her. She closed her mouth to see if it had affected him at all, and hoped that it had, perhaps it would slow him down just the bit that she would need.

third degree tissue damage explanation:

WC: 5,318

Chakra remaining 140/300:

Everything around Sanosuke felt like it was going in slow motion as he analyzed what Lin was attempting to do. Her hands flashed through a series of complicated hand seals. Sanosuke would let her do this as she let out her own battlecry. There was no time for words anymore. His actions will speak for him. He wanted Lin to surpass him. She had the inner workings of someone Sanosuke was sure he'd be able to call an equal some day. But for now that was not her time. She had to survive. Just outlast him and that would be her victory. Lin would have time to grow and become a stronger shinobi to fight him on even grounds. But she must live. And in order to live, Lin must get past Sanosuke as the obstacle in his path. The buzzing in his aura lit itself strongly in Sanosuke's palm as silver tainted chakra coated it with such pressure that it was looking to take shape. As Lin prepared more hand seals, the more the shape in his hand began to develop to form a spiraling disc of chakra that was discharging raiton chakra at a high rate. This indeed would be there last exchange.

With them both taking a step, Sanosuke chose his step to be more of a leap as he held is spiraling disc in his hand charging right at Lin. Once Lin had finished her series of hand seals, she let out a breath of chakra that was crimson in colored. Snaosuke had only gotten to see the start up of his technique of a crimson fire developing in the middle of her mouth in time to indicate something was coming at him. At his rate, there was no other action to counteract this technique that Lin used other than to cut right through it. Bringing his feet to a grinding halt onto the ground as he was skidding this time towards Lin, Sanosuke had brought back his hand and released the spiraling disc right at Lin's before the technique fired at him. "Destructo Disc!" Sanosuke bellowed as the technique went right through Lin's own. It would head over to Lin at a startling pace at speeds that ran up to 40 m/s. It would cleave off her leg should she not have the speed necessary to dodge the disc.

However the blast of the technique Sanosuke could not ignore as the aftermath of Lin's technique did graze him. The flames licked at his skin as he tried to endure the blast. It burned. Even though the technique itself didn't hit Sanosuke directly, it seemed to be enough to damage the swordsman. A cry of pain was let out of Sanosuke's throat as he couldn't swallow down the pain that was beginning to form in the back of his throat. It was a blood curtling cry that was only enhanced by Sanosuke's senjutsu chakra buzzing loudly to match the intensity of his pain. This wouldn't be the end of Sanosuke's onslaught, to his dying breath the swordsman will show Lin why he was the strongest Raikage. If she wanted to surpass him, Sanosuke would have to be even greater than him. He may be broken, but the silver haired man could still fight. "Not yet! I can still fight. I won't let it end here!"The glint of his demonic eyes that still stared deeply into Lin's eyes  despite the chakra eating his skin alive. Despite the pain that threatened to eat his existence alive, Lin would see very well the Kumo's black cat still had fight in them.


Bindings of his own chakra wrapped tightly around Sanosuke's own body like a harness. Each thread of silver tainted chakra bounded Sanosuke's movements, creaking the man's body into working order despite the pain of he was enduring. This was nothing to the man as demonic chakra darkened the silver portion of his chakra until the man was covered in dark chakra to match his demonic seal in his eyes. He had to move, even if it broke him. Sanosuke had to move, there was no other way but to continue his assault he had to move. The bindings of his chakra, began to buzz loudly until finally it sounded more like the screams of spirits bringing deafening sounds down onto Lin.

In a flash of movement, Sanosuke leaped as fast as he could with his augmented abilities to appear right above Lin just as the ninjutsu attack Sanosuke used at Lin earlier. She would be now before a two pronged attack. A kunai was grabbed in Sanosuke's hand as he focused chakra into the kunai to form a blade made entirely out of wind chakra to be leveled at Lin's body. Just moving his body so quickly was very much painful to the man as there was no possible way for him to continue this fight after this one attack of his. His body was battered and beaten from Lin's previous attack more than he wanted to admit. But there was more at stake for Sanosuke than what his body can allow. He wanted to win. Sanosuke really wanted to win and crush her. It was selfish for Sanosuke to think such a thing, but it was true. If Lin didn't meet Sanosuke's overhead charge it would spill the end for the girl. Considering her speed, she would have still the ability to form one more attack to meet his own wind covered blade.

"LIN!"


This would end the fight between master and student...

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Chakra 20/385:

Music:

Lin felt something tear through her leg, ripping apart the sinew right below the patella. It didn’t split her bone, and tore through ligament, muscle, tendon, and skin instead. Her aura still up, it kept her from bleeding out, but the wound made it so that she had to balance on her left, dominant leg.

Damn, he took the hit from her attack but was still going, if only he wasn’t a ghost, that would have put him down for sure. She looked up at him, reappearing, somehow teleporting, above her. She didn’t have time to think that he might have done a substitution. She had enough time to react, summoning up all of the chakra that she could muster at the moment, it was a split moment but it was a moment, and pooled it into her hand.

Electricity poured out from between her fingertips, snapped at her wrist and balled up in her hand. It felt like an electric snowball, she fell, placed her hand on the floor, she didn’t have time for this. She placed the patella of her now severed leg onto the ground, an electric jolt of pain shooting through her, giving her the adrenaline to push off with her right hand, holding the chidori in her left. She would end this, one way or another. As she pushed off with her right hand, she aimed herself at Sanosuke’s chest with Chidori and kicked with all her might, shooting upward.

“Here I come Raikage!” Her teal light blazed forth, finally closing the wounds that had accumulated from the chakra reversal of her advanced healing technique as she sped toward him, her palm open the chidori’s tendrils lashing, she put her all into this attack, all her speed, she couldn’t change direction, couldn’t move in midair. That was a Fuuton’s territory, not a raiton, it screamed in her hand.

WC: 5,640

Chakra remaining: 100/300:

Even with her leg severed off her body, Sanosuke could see the look in her eyes that she wanted nothing more that to defeat Sanosuke and assure him that she was strong enough to hold onto the mantle. The mantle itself was something that couldn't be held so easily. It was a heavy burden. The actions you do will reflect on Kumo's future, the title held weight. Despite that, Lin rose to the occassion. Just like the birds chirping loudly in her lightning covered hand, she too took flight and dashed at Sanosuke with her own might. So this was the all mighty chidori. The technique that was made popular by Konoha legends, Hatake Kakashi of the sharingan and Uchiha Sasuke. It was an honor to combat a technique used by these legends. He couldn't help but get excited as the techniques drew closer to clashing with one another. He would test his mantle with the technique rumored to be one of the strongest during its time of its creation. Thank you was the only thought that crossed Sanosuke's mind before his wind blade clashed with Lin's chidori.


An explosion of chakra and lights filled the cavern as the two clashed for dominance. Winds from Sanosuke's blade and the lightning bouncing off Lin's hand danced across the room as the two shinobi fought to dominate the other. Buzzing from Sanosuke's darkened aura fought to overpower the loud chirping emanating from Lin's hand. The two attacks strained to not yield to the other. Both combatants wanted to win. Sanosuke wanted to win for the sake of winning, while Lin wanted to win this for her village. It seemed like she may be close to be ready to take up the mantle of Raikage. Assuming if she could make Sanosuke yield. A sudden tinge of pain bolstered itself into Sanosuke's eyes as he felt his entire body pulse from the painful ripple that he experienced. Clenching his teeth, Sanosuke fought back a yelp of pain. He had no idea how much chakra he had used of the demonic contract but it seemed to be enough for his body to start experiencing a backlash.

His attention was diverted for a single second, but it seemed that second was all that was needed for Lin to gain the upper hand. Lightning began to ripple through Sanosuke's system as he cursed under his breath from the atttack's immediate proximity going through his nervous system. Sanosuke's kunai he was holding was sent flying from his hands to the opposite side of the cavern. Its wind element departed from the ninja tool once contact between it and Sanosuke's hand was broken. With his body now exposed to Lin's attack, Sanosuke simply closed his eyes and waited for the attack to pierce his heart. Pain came immediately as her palm went into Sanosuke's chest. Blood erupted from Sanosuke's mouth in a gush similar to a geyser releasing water. Her entire hand was through his chest as the silver haired man's body rested upon Lin's with very little strength left to get himself off Lin.

Chakra began to leave Sanosuke's body as he no longer had the chakra to maintain sage mode any longer. The buzzing of Sanosuke's aura had been silenced and completely overpowered by Lin's chirping. His hair reverted back to its original shade of silver as his eyes did the same thing and reverted back to its normal shade of blue but with less light in them. His chin rested on Lin's shoulder as he allowed himself to rest on it. His breathing was ragged as Sanosuke's chest was just impaled. He only had a few moments to speak before darkness would swallow him whole. At first his mouth was at a lost of words as he tried to force himself to speak, but nothing was coming out. He had lost. Sanosuke Flynt of the village hidden in the clouds was defeated. Was this how losing felt? He hadn't realized that Lin's body was leaning on his own. That was right, Lin's leg was severed. Even through all that pain, Lin was still able to match him.

As he rested his chin on Lin's shoulder, Sanosuke finally began to find the words he wanted to tell the woman. His ragged breathing would indicate that to Lin that he didn't have much time. "You did well....Lin Katonrai. I couldn't be....more proud of you..than I am now...." Sanosuke began to pant out more and more. It was getting harder and harder to focus on his words. But this was his duty to pass onto Lin the message, his last words as Raikage to his junior. "Listen to me Lin.....the title of Raikage will call upon you...you will no longer represent yourself anymore...you will represent the people of Kumo. It's a shame that someone....as young as you have to carry such a burden...you will be giving up your individuality to become a representation of a whole..." More blood coughed out of Sanosuke's wounds. He didn't have much time. His heartbeat was close to a pulsating stop.

"Lin....are you wiling to give yourself up entirely...your identity, your dreams.......your desires, your very soul to be Raikage...?"Every syllable Sanosuke fought to pronounce was its own difficult battle to stay conscious to ask this question. He was sure that the answer he would get from Lin was something he could sleep well knowing that his mantle of Raikage was being passed onto someone who truly deserved the title of the leader of the village hidden in the clouds. But he would wait for the girl's answer before allowing the darkness to take him away...

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