Kuno Uchiha strode confidently toward the Sandy Arena for the second time in the last few days. The last time he had walked this path, he had been doing so to face off against an official from the capital of the Land of Wind. He had walked into the arena, overconfident and arrogant, believing that any official from the capital could not possibly best him. Boy, was he ever wrong. He had walked in there, taken off his jacket, and drawn his sword, preparing to go easy on the man that he saw standing there, unarmed and unafraid. The battle had been a short one, with Kuno allowing his temper to get the better of him and rushing into the battle head first. He was unable to land a single blow, and in the end he was sent flying by a single punch. It was embarrassing to say the least.  The man who had identified himself only had Deno, had then expressed his disappointment and left, telling Kuno that he would be there all week and to come back when he had grown up.

Today, as Kuno strode down the road toward that very same arena, he had a similar agenda. Though today he had a better perspective. He had gone to the administration building and had requested a meeting with the man once again, to spar and to give what he had referred to as “a true representation of Sunagakure no Sato’s genin that was untainted by pride and arrogance.” The message had been passed onto Deno, and much to Kuno’s surprise, was accepted by him. So today, as he walked into the arena, already removing his jacket while looking around for his opponent, he was doing his best to remain calm. The man from the capital had managed to get under his skin once before, but it would not happen again. Today Kuno Uchiha would make his village proud.

Deno was already in the center of the sand pit, standing like a statue with his arms crossed and his long hair blowing in the wind. He paid Kuno no mind more than a nod, his stoic gaze following the young Uchiha as he set down his jacket on the same bench as last time. Finally, Kuno broke the silence and walked toward the man. “Good afternoon sir, I appreciate you giving me this opportunity. I know last time we sparred it was a disappointment to both of us. This time, I assure you that it will not be the same." Deno’s face remained a mask of apathy. “To begin this bout with boasting does not bode well for you young man. To me that means that you have not improved at all. Though I hope, for your sake, that is only confidence and not bravado.”  Kuno sighed and stepped back from the man, putting a distance of 15 metres between the two on them. His right hand fell across his body and onto the hilt of his miao dao. “My apologies. I must say though, that I have in fact learned quite a bit over these last few days. I have more experience from the missions I’ve worked on, and I have the confidence of my Kazekage.” As he said those words, his mind wandered to the face of Midori Ningyou, the Kazekage who had walked and talked with him through their home, entrusting him with a special mission for he personally, and showing him just how worthy she was to hold the name of Kage.

He smiled at that memory, nodding confidently toward the official once again. “Sir, I am here to show you that the Village Hidden in the Sands is not just a hotbed for hot heads, but that it is a home for powerful shinobi, including out Genin. I will be using my sword again today, which I hope is alright with you.” The Genin then drew his blade slowly, letting the light reflect off of it as he slowly maneuvered it to point at the ground to his right. Deno nodded as he continued to stand in the same stop, unmoving. “Very will boy, show me what this village can do.” Kuno took a deep breath, “Very well, sir.” He then stood there for a moment, his sword drawn and his strategy running through his mind. Finally, he nodded.

Imbuing his blade with his fuuton chakra, he threw it in the wide arc of his boomerang blade technique, sending it toward Deno without hesitation. At the same time, Kuno jumped up and forward before tossing his three shuriken to the man’s left, right, and rear, forcing him to step either back and to the right or back and to the left or take a hit of some sort. The man moved with a blurring speed, but the young Uchiha saw him stepping back and to the right. Twisting his body into a sideways flip, Kuno formed a tiger seal at his chest and inhale so that the moment he landed he could release his fireball jutsu. Everything went just as planned, with Kuno landing back and to the left of where Deno had originally stood, facing him as he exhaled a ball of fire at the official. Simultaneously, he reached out his right hand and caught that sword that would return to his hand, thanks to the justu.

Looking up, he saw only smoke from his jutsu for moment, before bursting forth came Deno, unburnt and undeterred from the fight, striking with full force. Surprised, Kuno brought up his blade to block it, but it was no use. The punch landed on his rides again, and Kuno felt the already weakened ribs crack a second time. There was a moment where everything seemed to slow down, and Kuno looked up at his opponent. Instead of the scowl that he expected, he saw Deno smiling. And then the moment was over, with Kuno flying back a full fifteen metres once again and landing face down in the dirt. Though this time the sword was still in his hand. As stood up slowly, groaning, he heard Deno talking to him. “Much better Kuno Uchiha. I’m glad that I will be able to change my report to the capital.”

Nodding and smiling, Kuno looked up at the man, “Thank you sir, so am I. Now…could you help me get to the hospital please?”

[Exit Thread]

WC: 1074
Mission Complete! (1000/1000)
Unused WC: 74