After a few nights spent in the Hidden Leaf Rokumaru was still feeling the fatigue from the trek through the desert and forest here, but he did not have the luxury to spend his days resting and relaxing in a cold room somewhere. He would need to make the most out of his time here in Konoha before his need for ryo and his hunt would lead him away. Those days were passed trying to find information in the sections of the library he was permitted to browse, which eventually revealed nothing of value, and soaking in the sights of the supposedly greatest village in the known world, which was much more rewarding. But as it always did the excitement began to wear off in favor of familiar indifference.

What did not wear off were the looks his flak jacket and headband always attracted, even despite the time taken to have the previously dirty jacket laundered, bleached and stuffed with sand. The freshly shined headband around his skinny neck marked him as a refugee to the inhabitants of this village, and while that status awarded him some leeway it also came with various limitations. No one was openly prejudiced towards him for his outsider status, but he was not approached by any of the civilians or shinobi; they lived as though he did not exist until he interacted with someone.

This could have been prevented by Roku enlisting in the ranks of the Konoha forces, but he had refused all offers that came his way. This meant that he was a foreign shinobi and was set with strict limitations; his movement within the walls was loosely tracked and recorded, and the slightest hint of malevolence would result in an arrest and prosecution. He was also barred from the training grounds for fear of spying on the shinobi who used them to hone their skills, meaning the redhead was forced to leave and find a spot in the forest to sharpen his own.

He did so on a cloudy morning after a trip to a small bookstore for a book on the surrounding flora that inhabited Hi no Kuni, looking to see what was edible out in that forest. A lot, to his surprise, and there was a lot that would do much worse than kill him. The book was so detailed Roku had to put it aside in fear after stumbling into the carnivorous bush section. In a small, secluded clearing with high grass located just a mile south from Konoha he found several bushes of vibrant purple berries that he read were safe to eat, though the book did not mention their vile taste. Strapped for cash as he was, he ate many more.

Rokumaru was satisfied with the clearing he had found and, wiping his sticky hands free of juice, dug into his backpack for the generic canvas scroll rolled tightly beside its twin. The scroll was pulled free and after checking the sealed characters to ensure he had the right one it was rolled out onto the tall grass on the edge of the clearing. Performing a few handsigns, a small puff of smoke wafted away to reveal a boneless pile of wood covered in a thin tan cloak. The redhead pulled the scroll free and rolled it up tightly before placing it back in his backpack before turning to the puppet it had contained.

Roku chastised himself for not keeping a spare set of clothes on the puppet, now having only what he wore and a spare set bundled tightly at the bottom of his pack. This meant the skeletal figure was naked beneath its cloak, the hollow bones shifting with sand as he picked it up by the shoulders. Caliban was a construct he had little time to train with before the fall of the village and he regretted not taking the opportunity to train further with the puppet masters who had once lived there. He would also need to look into having it outfitted with a few more modifications as he could fit a couple more into the thin figure.

The redhead straightened the puppet out on the ground before reaching both hands out before him, a faintly glowing thin blue strand of chakra sprouting from the end of each finger as Rokumaru connected each to a different spot around the puppet’s body; each hand controlled one side of the puppet, one of the more orthodox forms of combat puppetry, and with a twitch of his fingers the puppet was pulled onto its feet.

The hood of the cloak was pulled taut against the skull beneath, Caliban’s ‘face’ appearing blank yet melancholic as it stared lifelessly ahead and waited for it’s controllers orders. Rokumaru performed a few simple stretches with the puppet to ensure it had not suffered from storage inside the scroll, though he knew it should be in the same condition it had been sealed in. Satisfied, the pale boy forced it to walk several steps to ensure the movements were smooth and coordinated. His fingers were a bit stiff from inactivity, and the puppet hobbled for a bit as he had difficulty timing the movements of his bottom two fingers in rhythm, but after several minutes the creature began to appear to be pacing back and forth with a graceful fluidity.

Rokumaru knew this would be more difficult to do while under the stress of combat. He focused on moving the puppet while raising its pointed spear-like wrists in different motions, pretending to avoid the blows of a combatant and strike while moving. His ability to multitask helped him in doing so immensely as he could move his fingers independently with great skill, and this certainly supplemented his average-level ability with puppetry. The puppet routinely performed feigned parries with its wrist spears or dodged unseen blows until Roku was satisfied with its movement before speeding up slightly. Controlling only one puppet meant the constructs speed was similar to his own and Rokumaru tried to push his limits, though the movements of the puppet’s arms and legs became imprecise when he went too fast.

He planned to spend the next half hour or so practicing his movements with the puppet before returning to the village, thinking he would spend his dwindling supply of cash rather than forage in the desert again for disgusting fruits and berries.

WC: 1070

Chakra - 190/200:

Kisei had done a bit of stalking in his past, whether it was with that Karisuma, a few other people. His previous obsession with  all the different shades of color chakra could present in people, the Hibana, the Karisuma, that one otter clan, the Uchiha, and so many countless others. Even his guardian wasn't safe from his occasional outbursts to measure his chakra signature. However safe to say that he has calmed down since that time. What he was doing now, wasn't stalking. Really it wasn't. His usual meeting place in the forest might be a bit shady, but it was sanctioned by the Hokage so it couldn't be all that bad. It was just a side thing that was starting to die off anyway, with his shop officially built there was no real reason to exchange merchandise and money in the woods anymore. 


It was right before his latest trip into the forest that he caught sight of one of refugee boys heading deeper into the forest, book in hand. Now, see here, Kisei was also know for one thing besides his obsession for chakra, boys. Straight up; Boys. Especially those exotic kinds. Man I really do sound like a stalker's now. Kisei lamented. 


Half heartedly moving through the meet as quickly as possible, he set out in the direction of the boy he saw earlier. Umbrella in hand and Pinwheel secured tightly with cloth on his back. With only these two in hand he thought to himself, "Wow, I really need to build some more weapons for me." Before continuing on with his journey. Jumping from branch to branch he scouted the land, keeping ears and eyes sharp trained to any disturbance. All the while Kisei's heart pumped harder than a hydraulic press. Running for no other reason that to meet this boy. Instinct. 


Kisei's head snapped to his left as he caught sight of an open clearing, a pair of people practicing down there. Perfect, maybe they know where he went. Kisei reasoned. With a flip he slipped down below the tree line and landed elegantly on the ground. Grunting with the effort to pull himself to his feet, his knees protesting as they cracked. Kisei winced at the sensation, making a note to practice landing more before he tried that again. His eyes drifted back up towards the two other people, 'alright, here goes nothing.'


Kisei waved to the two as he walked towards them, about to call out when he noticed, there was only one person. The second person was barely concealed by any type of clothing, the lack of disguise showing everyone who looked up close hat it was a puppet. He was roughly fifteen steps away from them then. Curious as to who the other person was. At the shock of who it was blew his mind. 


"I-its you!" Kisei exclaimed excitedly. This guy is a ninja?! Perfect! It means that they get to go on missions together, and eat ramen at the noodle shops around the village in their spare time, if he was lucky. The Ushinatta then noticed the headband they wore. "Oh." Was all he said. A refugee, like him huh? Kisei stabbed his Umbrella into the ground, the grassy ground holding it in place, as he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket. Producing a Sunagakure head band. Showing it to the person. "So, whatcha doing all the way out here, neighbor?" He winked, nodding towards the puppet.

He took a few minutes to run through several simple parries and strikes with his puppet, doing them slowly so the motions were performed correctly and to aid the muscle memory in his hands, and Rokumaru was embarrassed to say he was still little more than a novice at the art of Kugutsu. He had always been so interested in Ninjutsu back in the village, even turning down offers for puppetry lessons in favor of learning a new Jutsu or two, and now that he no longer had the connections provided to him by the village, he regretted not taking the opportunities he had been offered. Now the greatest village of puppeteers was a glassed ruin, and he was not sure when the chance to learn something new would come to him again. Even if he had to train himself, he couldn’t let his skills remain so inadequate.

This thought lead him to who exactly he could learn further about puppetry from. It was likely that he would be forced to wait until he came across another puppeteer to be able to discuss the topic, and he would have to hope that the other puppeteer had no qualms with sharing any tips or techniques they had learned. There were no other villages who were known for their proficiency in the art, or who could even create the advanced and intricate constructs shinobi used as combat puppets. Rokumaru could of course dedicate himself to the discipline, developing his skill through trial-and-error, but there was so much that was too pressing to be set aside for mundane training.

The redhead concentrated in his hands with his undivided attention as he made simple motions with his fingers over and over, trying to see how those he moved affected the ones he did not. It was obvious to him that his ability with puppets was limited only by his inexperience with them, made even worse by the long months spent without practicing and the long months spent without a guiding hand to show him his errors. As a Suna-nin they all had the reputation as being familiar with puppets, even if they did not use any themselves, but Rokumaru felt like his knowledge about the area was too incomplete. He did not want anyone to see his inexperience, embarrassed that he could not match up to the expectations his identity as a Suna-nin set.

He was so focused on the tiny subtle movements in his hands and how they translated into the puppet’s movements that Rokumaru did not know he had received company until a voice closer than he expected broke the silence in the clearing, the speaker seeming to recognize the redhead based upon what he had exclaimed. Startled, Rokumaru turned to face the new arrival, Caliban falling into a boneless heap as the chakra strings faded instantly in his surprise.

The stranger was a young, slim boy with dark hair and vibrant violet eyes carrying an umbrella, of all things. The boy stabbed his umbrella into the ground and reached into his jacket, Rokumaru slipping a finger into the loop of his kunai in his pocket, but let it go when the stranger produced a single Suna hitai-ate and held it out before him. Nodding at his puppet, the boy amicably asked what he was doing all the way out here.

Rokumaru smiled broadly at the sight of the familiar headband, happy to see another that wasn’t his own. “I’m trying to see how rusty I am at this, without any of the locals noticing”. He walked closer to the newcomer and held his hand out to shake, though he wanted to hug the boy when the brunette pulled out that headband. Still smiling, happy to see someone that he felt he could immediately trust without exception, he introduced himself. “Sabaku Rokumaru, proud vagrant of the former Hidden Sand”.

Dropping his hand, and taking another look at the strange umbrella the boy had stabbed into the ground, Roku spoke further. “What brought you here to the Leaf? Thinking of taking the offer for asylum?” While he never would himself, Rokumaru tried not to care that so many of his former countrymen had taken the offer for refuge and become a part of this village, turning their back on the one that no longer existed.

WC: 731 | 1801

"Ah." Was all he said. Kisei knew that sentiment very well, still just barely qualifying as a ninja. His only noticeable skill was his crafting ability and the unique nature of his chakra tech. Truth be told he had little experience in actually using them effectively either, save for that one time in the Chuunin exams. Which he wasn't going to relive.

Happily he gripped the other refugee's hand, taking comfort in the warmth it held from training under the forest sun. Though Kisei eventually had to let go, if he held on any longer he didn't think he'd be able to let go and wouldn't that be an awkward situation for someone he's just met? They introduced themselves as Rokumaru, descendant of the famed Sabaku clan. He instantly flushed at the information. Kisei was actually a pretty big fan of the Sabaku clan. Sure, the Chikamatsu will always be at the top spot simply for their ingenuity with machines but the Sabaku are just as amazing. Hearing that this guy was from that sand shifting, terrain bending clan, really flipped his pinwheel's switches. Maybe it was the exploits of their supposed founder that brought it up to such fame within his eyes but he honestly he couldn't say. What he could say was his brain was malfunctioning before his dream fantasy and he didn't have the tools to fix an easily starstruck heart. Honestly, he had a problem.

Kisei tilted his head at Rokumaru's question, a small quirk at the side of his lip. Laughing a bit to himself. "Well, for now." He shrugged. The Ushinatta had a few plans for himself but he was indecisive at the moment. The Hokage was kind and allowed him to build a shop, work as a ninja, and leave when he wanted to. A generous deal on their part, but it didn't decide anything for his future. If Kisei decided to stay he'd probably become an official ninja for the Konohagakure. And if he left... Well, there was a few reasons he could think for leaving. Three to be specific, but they needed no explanation.

"I don't have any plans to leave yet, but I can't really bring myself to make a life here you know? It just doesn't seem... Me." He admitted, blushing slightly. "Well, life goals aside I got a suggestion for you. Since you're needing some help with your puppets, and I need to actually use my weapons once in a while-" Jostling the pinwheel on his back and eyeing his umbrella. "-How about we at it? Just you and me?" Kisei winked.

The dark haired stranger accepted his handshake, the two young men clasping hands in greeting though he did not offer his name like the redhead did. At Rokumaru’s mention of the locals and his unwillingness to reveal his weak Kugutsu skills to them the boy had simply hummed in agreement, likely having had his share of interaction with the ones who made this place their home. He had arrived from the direction of the village, just the same as Roku had, and the redhead wondered how long ago he had left Suna for these green lands. Had they passed each other at all in the few days the slim sand nin had been in Konoha? If so, they did not recognize each other.

Dropping the boy’s hand, Rokumaru asked about what had drawn him the Hidden Leaf and if their offer for amnesty was responsible; laughing a bit enigmatically, the stranger answered that he was accepting the offer for now. He was not sure what exactly the boy had meant by that, whether he was simply taking advantage of the village’s hospitality, but if it was temporary then it was okay with him.

The violet eyed boy continued on by saying that although he did not have any plans to not nor anywhere else to go, he was hesitant to lay down roots here in Konoha. Apparantly the idea just did not suit him, which Rokumaru could understand completely. Not having a better plan or idea of what to do, but not wanting to sell out completely to the foreigners. Now whether he would ever join the leaf was something that they may have differing ideas about; whereas this boy entertained the possibility, likely entertaining thoughts of what his life would be like if he did so, Roku would not consider the idea as a possibility for him.

Setting aside that topic, the boy suddenly offered the redhead a proposition; citing his own need to keep up with his weapon skills and Roku’s need to brush up on his puppetry, he suggested that they ‘go at it’. He did not outright say it, but Roku believed he was asking for a chance to spar. He hoped that was what the boy had meant, anyway. The suggestion actually sounded like fun to his ears, and the chance for some combat experience against someone who did not plan to kill him was something that he was not eager to let be wasted. Then again there was the chance that this was a ploy by the boy to kill him, but the idea was so unlikely that he did not consider it.

Scratching his chin and taking a look back at the puppet he had left in a boneless heap, Rokumaru nodded his head. “Alright, I think I have to accept,” he said after a moment of thought. “I can’t say no to a spar, considering my plans for the future”. He walked over to where the construct lay on the ground and raised his hands out before him; from his fingers thin blue chakra strings emerged from the skin and pierced into the various joints of the puppets, and by pulling his hands back Roku forced Caliban to climb to its feet. The needle-like appendages on its arms dug into the soil as it pushed itself up, and a small pile of sand streamed out where it had pierced the ground at.

Walking the puppet made from imported Konoha hardwood to his side, Roku again turned to the stranger. “What is your name? I would like to know who it is I’ll be knocking around this clearing.” He said this with a smirk, but the chance to vent all of his recent frustrations and insecurities out in this fight was something he was looking forward to.

Looking at the object in the boy’s hand, it was hard to picture that he intended to use the pinwheel as a weapon simply because he had never heard of weaponized umbrellas and pinwheels before. If he had the ability to use them with skill then that was something he would very much like to see, and the experience of facing an opponent who used them was a novel idea that he relished.

Caliban stood in place as Rokumaru walked several steps behind it, placing the puppet between him and the stranger as it stared ahead vacantly, waiting for further input. The redhead stopped just a few meters from the puppet and turned around, giving his opponent a fair chance of getting last the construct to him. He would have to thank the boy afterward for this opportunity, as he really had not had a real battle using a puppet yet. Depending on how fast he was it would be difficult keeping the puppet in between them both, but he was eager to try.

Calling out to his counterpart, Roku thought it best to set some rules. “Let’s go until someone forfeits or blood is drawn, yeah”?

Feeling like he had set things up enough, the redhead raised his hands out before him and wiggled the fingers on each hand. The puppet he was connected to slowly obeyed as the construct raised its masked face in the boy’s direction and began to walk forward. Rokumaru planned to engage the boy before he could outmaneuver his puppet, and raised its right arm to point at the boy’s chest as a challenge. The redhead walked behind his puppet stiffly, concentrating on the motions his puppet went made, and waited for his opponent to make the first move that he would react to.

WC: 945 | 2746

Chakra - 185/200:

Kisei didn't answer Rokumaru's question at first, only responding with a smug smile and a blushed tilt of the head. Kisei watched as the Sabaku walked behind his puppet, admiring the view greatly, while he himself readied for the fight. He picked up his umbrella, leaving his pinwheel wrapped around his back, though the massive children's toy could not disguise it's true nature beneath straps of cloth. Especially when the wheel was in broad daylight. Although that particular weapon was incredibly effective Kisei wouldn't want to scar that handsome face too much. (Although with enough blood he might be able to clone Rokumaru...) The temptation to whip out his pinwheel rose steeply at the thought.

"Sounds perfect." Kisei nodded, a soft smirk on his face. "Though person who loses buys the next meal." Kisei added quickly. Anything to stay longer with you. The Ushinatta mentally slapped himself for his weakness for men. But sighed quietly to himself.

Slowly Rokumaru approached, feet steady and fingers gently urging the lifeless puppet forward. "By the way... My name is Kisei, you handsome boy." He winked playfully before dashing backwards, umbrella aimed straight at Rokumaru as he clicked the trigger. In an instant a massive sphere of blue energy launched itself towards the puppeteer. Kisei hadn't come across a ninja who could dodge a near direct shot from this weapon yet, and he was hoping that Rokumaru wouldn't be an exception to this. Though he had no shortage of counter measures if this was the case. A lot of history went behind every shot this umbrella made, and let's see if he can add to it today with another clean shot.

Regardless of whether or not his attack went through Kisei would deftly whip out a small cartridge from one of the outside pockets of his jacket and begin to reload the weapon. In all his fights he only had the upper hand when the his opponent couldn't predict him, and although this wasn't a real fight he was taking it just as seriously.

Puppeteers are a great way to deal with close ranged opponents, though can lag a bit under a few conditions. One: The opponent could quickly close the gap between you and them. Two: They can safely attack from a greater range than you. Three: When you're separated from your puppet.

Kisei was confident in his ability to outplay a puppet, but who's to say he had the advantage either? The strength of his opponent was unknown, a mystery variable in this fight. They admitted to being of the Sabaku clan, why Rokumaru would choose to fight with puppets Kisei has no idea, but he didn't want to get to close unless he was certain of victory. A lesson that was beaten into him time and time again with every defeat. From his long lost friend, Ryo Chikamatsu, and his during the Chuunin exams when he got scorched by Izumi Karisuma. No, he wasn't going to fall for this, if Roku wanted to win, he was going to step into his range.

Let the match begin.

200/200:

The stranger did not immediately identify himself after Rokumaru asked his name, but the redhead paid it no mind. The company of one of his village mates was worth putting up with his strange behavior and habit of staring, and he had no issue turning his back on the boy despite having just met him. A spar was also more than he had been hoping to get out in the woods, as he really did not trust any Konoha-nin not to hurt or kill the wanderer. An umbrella was also a very unusual and unorthodox choice of weapon, but sometimes that unpredictability worked in the wielder’s favor due to an opponent lacking experience while facing them. Scythes were much the same, an ordinary farming implement that could be extremely deadly in the right hands.

While he reconnected to his puppet Roku was glad to hear the boy had accepted his offer, and even raised the stakes by betting a meal on it. Normally one that was not very competitive, the redhead nodded his head agreeing to the bet. As he marched his puppet into place across from the newcomer, stretching his fingers and rotating his wrists, Roku saw the violet eyed youth had pulled the umbrella from the ground and held it at the ready. Sling across his back was another long weapon of some kind, but due to its shape he could not identify what it was. Likely something else that was just as outlandish as an umbrella, and Rokumaru doubted he could guess what it was anyway.

The stranger spoke up again as Roku settled into his ready stance, stating his name was Kisei and calling the redhead a handsome boy. The compliment was unexpected, and his surprise was only furthered when Kisei immediately jumped back after speaking, starting the match. Rokumaru had expected the boy to engage his puppet with the umbrella, or attempt to get around it to himself directly, but creating space was not expected and he made to move his puppet forward in pursuit.

As Kisei dashed backwards he had pointed the tip of his umbrella towards Rokumaru in what he had thought was a challenge, but the sound of a click was accompanied by a sudden wave of visible blue light. That he was using ranged attacks rather than engaging directly meant his weapons were modded, and while not explicitly against the rules, it was sort of a cheap shot. But shinobi were trained to be unpredictable in combat and Kisei had succeeded; this was what Rokumaru had time to muse on as he watched the surprise sphere of blue streak towards him until it collided with his chest.

Had he been younger and weaker the attack would have been enough to throw him from his feet, but his endurance allowed him to keep his balance despite the sudden ache through his chest and the tightness in his lungs from his wind being knocked out. Roku’s fingers lost their strings as his right hand clutched his ribs, feeling the warmth of broken blood vessels beneath the skin, but after only one second he was able to recover his breath and connect to the puppet that had again fallen into a heap. It seemed that Kisei was going to take advantage of their lack of set rules, even going so far as to taunt and confuse him with a compliment. It had worked, and Rokumaru had eaten a hit from that umbrella that made a rib ache every time he inhaled air, but it only made him internally applaud the boy’s initiative.

But if the dark-haired teen was going to use what he had, so was Rokumaru; while his fingers quickly reconnected to the puppet’s joints one by one he focused on the sand that lay beneath the surface of his puppet’s wooden bones, and forced Caliban to expel it all. From behind the puppet’s cloth mask sand flowed from the holes of its skull, it flowed through the points of its wrist spears hung low to the ground, brushing grass with its point as grainy tan bled from its body, streaming through the air to rest in a mound of sand just in front of Rokumaru. It was not a serious amount, just a bit more than 5m³ and would have to be used wisely until he had an opportunity to make more.

With the sand from the puppet laying just in front of him, Roku felt just a bit safer knowing he would be Kisei’s main target, not the puppet. Only a few moments had passed since the boy’s attack had hit him, and he knew he would feel the aching throughout the whole match, but he was quickly ready again to fight. It seemed Kisei was waiting for him to engage as the boy had not moved from where he had dashed to; his umbrella had been reloaded with some small object, meaning he would need to keep in mind that the weapon was suited for long and short range encounters. It was not limitless though, and if he could draw out another attack like that and keep Kisei from reloading, it would be one less thing to worry about.

Feeling that it was his move, as Kisei did not press his advantage, Rokumaru flicked his fingers forward and watched as Caliban walked sedately towards the boy. His puppet, without any sand within, lacked any long-range capabilities and would be forced to engage at close-range, but Roku was still curious to see what sort of fighter Kisei was. Did he favor speed and agility over skill and strength? The dark-haired teen did not seem to have an especially muscular build and this would likely mean his speed was his biggest strength, but Rokumaru was also one who valued speed over endurance. His eyes were kept on Kisei as his puppet approached the boy, expecting him to attempt going around his puppet and striking the redhead again with that blue ball of concussive force.

He would force the boy to move first, and this what what he had in mind as his construct closed the distance between the two of them. The puppet broke into a jog once it reached 10m of the boy, hoping to put some pressure on him, and Rokumaru lifted his stringed hands forcing the puppet into a tackling position: its frame was bent slightly, bony shoulders squared and its clothed head bowed low. The puppet would barrel towards its opponent and leap from its feet with both wrist spears jutting out in front of it, looking as though it was trying to spear through the boy unless Kisei moved.

But Rokumaru would pull back on the strings of his puppet as it flew in midair towards their opponent, momentum instantly pulled in the opposite direction as its feinted charge was stopped and it returned to its feet, though its right wrist spear still jabbed at the boy in case he did not move. This would bring the puppet close to where the boy had stood, and if the boy jumped into the air over the puppet or dashed in a separate direction then his puppet had the chance to engage him before Kisei could recover from his dodge. Puppet’s were so much more flexible and agile than most shinobi, as they could shift momentum in midair using strings and use their puppeteer as leverage to move around, and Rokumaru tried to take advantage of that.

1262 | 4008

Chakra - 175/200:

Kisei felt a bit guilty knowing that he was the cause of that grimace on the red head's face, but now he had a decent view of his body from around the area of the shot, scorched clothing was yes. Kisei was caught on the line of guilt and ecstasy and he felt he could tip either way. The Ushinatta boy held an insatiable thirst for boys and men, the unavoidable corruption of an abrupt and brutal end to his first relationship and the lack of time to healthily cope with that loss. Anything to fill the void. But none of that was important now, right now he had to deal with his opponent, charming but opponent nonetheless. He couldn't be distracted, well, not too much anyway.

His dash brought him twenty five meters away from his opponent, a modest distance of clear unobstructed field between them. However it was stained by the touch of desert sand from Rokumaru's puppet, leaving a garish puddle of desert essence in front of the Sabaku ninja. If he recalled the sand clan's most notable tactic was being able to convert the battlefield into their favor. This was not
e going to go his way in an extended fight, but he wasn't going to change tactics, per se. He would just need to exert enough pressure to keep him from doing anything.

Kisei readied his Umbrella against the charging puppet, his right grip tightening against the handle. Rokumaru's puppet was quick but he could handle it. As it charged towards him, weapons bared, Kisei flicked his umbrella open and blocked the attack head on. The metallic fins holding strong against the puppet's assault. In a moment the the pressure was released and drawn back. Taking the opportunity to disengage he flicked the umbrella closed and charged his chakra into it as flung the weapon into the air. Tilted slightly backwards to match up with his next action.

Kisei bent back, falling, he pushed up with his hands, a shallow back flip. However the second time around he pushed further, faster. In the middle of his flip he gripped the pinwheel on his back and ripped it from its bindings, and on his third flip he slammed his feet on the ground, ending up on all fours.The bottom of his pinwheel pointing towards Rokumaru while the flower of curls pointed away from him. Kisei's current distance from his opponent estimated to be about thirty five meters. To his right his umbrella struck the ground tip first. Undamaged from its fall. Quickly Kisei hopped onto his pinwheel, charging chakra into his feet mid-air, allowing him to activate his jutsu as soon as he hit the metal pole. As he shot off the Ushinatta stood up and reached out, grabbing the umbrella with him, returning to his low stance afterwards.

He wouldn't charge directly to the puppet, instead curving around it in a five meter quarter circle on his right before dashing straight towards Rokumaru, a secondary burst of speed taking place. When he was two meters away from the sand piled in front of the sand ninja he moved around it, keeping a two meter distance as he circled it to his right and pressed forward till he passed three meters past Rokumaru. At which point he spun around in a curve to end up a straight three meters behind him. As the blacksmith circled around the ninja forward on his pinwheel surfboard he also began to spin clockwise like a top. The chakra rotating his weapon making such an action possible, setting up his next play perfectly.

As he was dashing throughout the battlefield he had been channeling wind chakra directly into his weapon, releasing it only when he had positioned himself three meters behind Rokumaru. The vortex of wind would drag the ninja towards him, where his umbrella would be lying in wait to slam straight into their body.

150/200:

His opponent did not fall for the puppet’s gent and instead met the wooden construct head on with his umbrella, opening the long parasol that halted the sharpened points of its spears. Roku pressed harder against the barrier which Kisei used as momentum to push himself away as he jumped back, closing the umbrella before tossing it into the air. Performing several back handsprings to create more distance between them, which distracted the redhead as he halted his approach to watch, the other youth pulled the weapon from his back in midair and dropping it onto the ground while landing beside it. The abandoned umbrella landed point-first into the earth beside him.

Rokumaru looked at the strange object that Kisei carried with him in curiosity from afar. A long metal rod with what looked to be metal disks or wheels of some kind at the top, which pointed towards himself ominously. The stranger jumped onto the thin rod of the pinwheel and, without a visible sign of chakra,  string of handsigns, or any such warning, rode the weapon that was now being propelled rather suddenly towards Roku. The umbrella was pulled from where it had landed and was now being carried in Kisei’s hand.

The dark haired boy rode the metal pinwheel like some sort of surf board as he strafed the puppet that stood between him and the redhead it was connected to before making a dash straight towards Rokumaru; said puppeteer was very alarmed that his opponent had attained superior mobility so suddenly and unexpectedly, and ran towards his puppet while forcing the construct to sprint towards him as well. Sand trailed behind the redhead as he moved to place the puppet between himself and his very agile opponent, determining that he should not leave himself defenseless again. Caliban was still meters away when Kisei suddenly accelerated even faster towards Rokumaru, and the youth turned to face his pursuer. He stopped suddenly, though the sand trailing behind him snaked between his thin legs as it prepared for an attack.

Kisei turned suddenly when he came within 2m and circled around, putting the redhead between himself and the puppet that moved to trade places with its controller. The stranger halted its movements when his pinwheel began to spin, with himself on it, causing strong sucking winds to pull Rokumaru and his sand towards him suddenly. Surprised, Roku was pulled from his feet by the powerful vacuum between them and shot through the air towards his waiting opponent, his sand pulled into the vacuum along with him.

The redhead did not know what would happen if he was pulled into the clutches of the spiraling Kisei, whether the metal discs of the rod on which he rode would cut him or simply leave him open for an attack from the umbrella, but what he did know was it would be best not to let Kisei get to him at all. The sand that had laid at his feet was now in the air around him, victim to the strong winds of whatever technique his opponent was using just as Roku was, and the boy felt the strings to his puppet dissipate as he concentrated on pulling every grain of sand around him closer. There was only a few seconds that had passed between being pulled from his feet and colliding with Kisei, but he had been prepping this defensive jutsu since the boy had hopped onto the metal pinwheel and was able to form it despite the stress and danger of being pulled through the air violently.

Grains of sand overpowered the suction of the attack as it streamed towards Rokumaru in an instant, hardening into a thick tan wall that completely enveloped the airborne Sabaku in a spherical dome. Inside the ball of sand was only darkness but the screeching gusts of wind caused by Kisei’s attack could be heard through the solid, yet porous material, and it appeared that the weight of the Sand Barrier was not enough to overcome the strong vacuum he was caught in. The heavy dome of sand, with a very worried redhead contained inside, was pulled towards Kisei. The puppet slid along the grass in a tumbling heap as it’s connection had been severed, clanking audibly as it too was pulled into the whirlwind.

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Chakra - 150/200:

The world was a swirl of colors and noises. However when he saw a massive blob of sand coming his way, from what assumed was the sand pit Rokumaru conjured before. 'Using the force of my jutsu against me huh?' Unfortunately for him he has dealt with more than enough times this jutsu had been used against him. So as he saw the streaks of sand he instantly charged chakra through his body and shot up into the air.

As fast as his jutsu was though his legs still hit the top of the sphere and it sent him spinning as he flipped over the sphere, just barely, and landed over about two meters from his pinwheel. However given the structure of the wheel it simply kept rolling away from him. A good distance of ten meters between them was created before it finally stopped. Kisei didn't feel any cuts on his person, thankfully, this match was getting interesting. He couldn't use his main movement jutsu for a bit, so that was going to be a problem. However while his mobility was hurt Kisei's offensive and defensive capabilities had not diminished.

Thrusting his left hand towards the pinwheel he attached a number of chakra strings on it. Yanking it towards towards him with rough clanking of metal and dirt. His right hand was preoccupied holding the hilt of his umbrella. Charging his pinwheel with raiton chakra Kisei flipped the switch with a quick motion with his right thumb. Relishing the purring the metallic garden weapon made as the wheel spun.

Kisei gripped the bottom of his weapon with his palm facing up, the button of the pinwheel facing down. He drew it back, and flung it horizontally. The wheel shot forwards toward the barrier, hitting the center of it, the electricity sparking around the center of impact but not piercing the thing. The wheel returned back into the top of his pole with a click of steel, still spinning.

At this point Kisei didn't have any means to break the shield Rokumaru had created, so simple. He just had to wait until they either ran out of chakra or took down the barrier before he could attack. So he readied himself for the moment Rokumaru lowered his guard.

120/200:

The dome of sand crashed against the ground violently, throwing its occupant against its solid wall where he lay in a heap as he struggled to catch his breath. The screeching sound of displaced air that Kisei’s technique had caused could not be heard which meant he had cancelled the attack, but did he have time to move? Was he caught somewhere beneath the tan orb that Roku had hid inside of? Considering his luck it wasn’t likely. He took a few moments to catch his breath in the stuffy container he hid inside, not eager to open himself up to combat again.

Obviously he had underestumated Kisei’s prowess with his weapons as he had several unexpected techniques he could perform with them, though he was as quick and agile as his slim frame made him appear to be. With his puppet so barebones in design, no pun intended, the best he could do with it was move into close-quarters and duel it out. But his opponent was completely uninterested in bothering with his puppet at all and chose to press Rokumaru instead; without any really large quantity of sand, he was beginning to realize how defenseless he was. The amount he had was barely enough to use his basic sand techniques with, and it pressed him towards using his other ninjutsu. But he had wanted to practice his puppetry skills and felt that using anything more was escalating the fight, admitting that he needed to use his full strength to beat Kis. The sand didn’t count of course, that was his crutch.

The strain of keeping the barrier of that very sand was beginning to press on him and he took that as the sign for his rest to be finished with. The redhead picked himself from the ground and stood up in the dome of sand, rubbing his sore chest as he did so. He had no idea if Kisei was literally a foot away from the dome waiting for him to emerge, lacking any sort of ability to let him look outside. Most likely the other boy would have something planned and it would be up to him to dodge it or block it, if he had the chance. Overall his body was beginning to feel beat up and strained by the fight; he couldn’t last much longer without going all out.

Reaching into a pocket for his kunai, Rokumaru held it in an icepick-grip as he prepared to drop the barrier between himself and Kis. A sudden impact against its edge hinted that his opponent had tested the defense of the barrier and found it to be impenetrable, at least to whatever he had hit it with. Having confirmation that the other boy had dodged the giant sand ball Roku felt somewhat better, and again prepared to release the barrier. With his left hand he held an open palm against the smooth grainy surface, and the sand lost shape where he touched it before cracks spread around the entirety of the dome. Beams of light illuminated the darkness he had been enveloped in as streams of the substance fell around him, a fair bit collecting on top of his shaggy head, and he held his kunai at the ready as he looked for the dark-haired youth.

He stood several meters away with the pinwheel in his hands, the circular disks at the top spinning ominously. It was obvious he had been waiting for the redhead to emerge from his barrier; putting in a token effort to continue the fight, knowing his defeat was only a matter of time, Rokumaru cocked his arm back and hurled the kunai in his hands directly at his opponent’s chest. Easily dodged or blocked, but it was something. He just wanted to rest.

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Kisei braced himself for a counter attack as soon as the sand began to crack and grind, falling towards the ground. Kisei readied his umbrella to intercept an attack while keeping a close grip on his pinwheel for an attack of his own.

Sure enough a kunai flew towards him. Kisei pointed his right elbow upwards, the umbrella in his hands doing well to block and the inferior weapon fell to the ground. Kunai, really held no worth when compared to this kind of technology did it? Not to push salt in a wound, but you would think that people would've figured out how to mechanise chakra at this point. If they did, inefficient weapons like this wouldn't be around.

Kisei flipped his weapon at Rokumaru. Kisei shifted his stance, simultaneously sliding his left foot in a semi circle behind his right he swiped his umbrella in a vertical circle to face the puppeteer. Nonchalantly he flung the weapon straight at Rokumaru, aimed a bit above him to allow Kisei a possible head shot. Mean while he ran forward, sliding to the ground. The balls of his feet supporting him on the sandy grass as he spun, lowered. Kisei had his pinwheel thrust out away from him, the wheel expanding outward as he spun. The action reminding him of a death spiral in figure skating. The grind of sand and the tense reeling of the pinwheel's wire. It was the sounds of combat. A familiar territory for him but not one he exceeded at. However despite his failures in the past Kisei never hesitated. Neither did he now. Even while tipping towards exhuastiom for nothing but a training match he was ready to put as much effort as he could for the sake of success.

Kisei did feel a bit guilty for promising to help the Sabaku boy practice his puppetry, since he ended up going all out and ditching the puppet anyway. However, who the greater crime be letting him off easy or going to hard. Better one be prepared for a fight than ill-weaponed.

120/200 (No jutsu used):

Just as anyone would have expected Kisei had no difficulty deflecting the kunai with his umbrella, swatting it to the ground with a simple sweep. The longer he had to see it in action the more Rokumaru began to appreciate the umbrella in particular that his opponent wielded like an expert; not only was it very well made, and still able to serve its purpose as a rain-deflecting tool, the teen had several techniques that he could channel through it. It was very likely that Kisei also had a few techniques for his pinwheel that he had up his sleeve, but that weapon made him more anxious than curious. If the battle went on much longer they would both be forced to escalate their attacks and that was not something the redhead was eager to do.

After lobbing his kunai at the dark-haired umbrella user, expecting the weapon to be easily blocked, Roku quickly inhaled a breath of air that he spent several seconds enriching with Fūton chakra in his lungs. These few moments gave Kisei the time to knock the kunai aside and immediately shift into an attack of his own by swiping the umbrella in a verticals circle to face the redhead before hurling the weapon at his head. The quick-moving projectile arced towards his face, it’s pointed metallic tip on a frightening trajectory towards his face, but the few seconds it took the kunai to reach Kisei and the umbrella to be sent in return were enough to complete the signless jutsu he needed.

Releasing a long dense breathe of condensed Fūton chakra from his mouth the umbrella was effortlessly knocked aside, halted in the face of the wind gust it had run straight into. The technique only furthered the pain in his chest that resulted from the concussive blast that had struck him before and left the redhead breathless, holding his side with his right hand while bent over trying to catch his breath. Kisei meanwhile had pressed his assault and ran a few steps forward while sweeping his pinwheel to the side, it’s metallic head detaching to reveal a metal wire that connected it to the pole, but the wall of wind would just barely touch the boy before it reached its 10m range. It may not have been enough to throw off the arc of his pinwheel and so Rokumaru let his legs buckle in order to drop to the ground, though this was a welcome change in stance due to his shortness of breath.

He had deflected the umbrella as that was the most pressing danger and had moved to avoid the sweeping metal pinwheel by falling to the ground, hoping it would pass above him in a horizontal arc, leaving Kisei overcommitted to the attack and off-balance. But rather than follow with his own attack Rokumaru would throw his hands up in the air and sit up to face his opponent. Having caught his breath a bit he was able to exclaim “Stop stop stop!” before Kisei could continue his attack while in such close range. With no way to heal his wounds there was no sense in making this a violent spar so long as he lost, and the redhead made it clear to Kis that he wanted to end the battle. “I concede,” Roku quickly added.

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Chakra - 140/200:

Kisei had missed in his first arc but his momentum didn't stop and he was spinning for a second loop. He was going to win. This was his-! 


"Stop!"


The words didn't reach his eyes right away and he kept through with his attack until he realized, Roku was going to die if he went through with this attack. Time seemed to slow down as the true horror of the thought dawned on him. There was no way to stop this spin but as long as he didn't hit Roku with the pinwheel...


Just as he was about take a slice of Rokumaru's head he threw it. Sending it flying into a three a few meters behind them. The pinwheel sliced through the wood with the grinding sound of a lawnmower as it cut effortlessly through the tree; landing onto the grassy ground behind it. 


Meanwhile Kisei was also thrown by the sudden change in force, landing, not nearly as elegantly as his weapon,  on top of Roku. Kisei collided face first into the red head's chest, arms tangled around the lithe frame of the other desert ninja. A plus for him, but perhaps not as much for his partner.


Kisei rolled off to Rokumaru's left side, not moving to far because he didn't want to separate to far from the man next to him. (Great priorities brain, totally straight.) "Dang, I almost killed ya, huh." Kisei gulped nervously. He took this too far again. He always got too invested in a fight. Back when Ryo damaged his umbrella in their first meeting, when Kuno was winning in their fight, that time Izumi- no, he'd rather not think about that... 


"I'm sorry Rokumaru, I'm such a jerk. I offered to help you spar but then I ended up going all out. But, that was only because you're a really tough opponent, and I'm... Kinda a nobody, nothing too special about me. A genin is honestly a lot more well rounded than I am. Sorry I'm rambling again..." Kisei apologized. Nervously blushing. 


He never really knew how to talk to others, well that wasn't true, he didn't know how to talk to people  whom he almost decapitated. Gosh, if he didn't destroy any chance of being able to date him Kisei was lucky beyond the stars. But for now, it was probably best to leave. 


Sitting up Kisei turned to Rokumaru. "I'll be willing to give you a ride on my back to the village if you need it. My umbrella blasts are hardcore, trust me I know." Kisei winked weakily. 


If the red head declined him then he would shrug. Turning back towards the village, discreetly dropping a business card in his place as he went to gather his items and seal them in his scroll before heading home. But if Rokumaru accepted he would beam widely as he ran to seal his items, and ran back to gather Rokumaru. A noticeable skip to his step as he walked the both of them home.


[Exit]
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Training Swordsmanship, Bojutsu, Sojutsu, and Kyujutsu.

Forgetting to do the hand signs in his haste the Stream that was expelled from his mouth was little more than a strong breeze that his opponent did not even notice, too focused on getting in another hit with the bladed discs of his pinwheel. So aggressive was Kisei that for a moment Rokumaru wondered if the dark-haired boy actually wanted to kill him while using the excuse of a spar gone wrong; he’d done nothing of interest to gain anyone’s malevolence as far as he knew, so it wasn’t likely. But at the very least Roku would have used his full arsenal from the start if he had not assumed the umbrella and pinwheel would force his opponent to close in, and the redhead paid the price by being unprepared for distance attacks. He’d been on the losing side of the fight since the concussive blast he’d been hit with from the umbrella. At least he had proof that all the physical conditioning was improving his endurance, seeing as his ribcage had remained in one solid piece.

Despite the Stream he breathed being unfocused and unsuccessful Roku had no issue slumping to the ground in a sloppy dodge of the pinwheel. This proved unnecessary as Kisei had accepted his halt to the spar and chucked the pole his pinwheel was attached to in the direction he had been swinging it; rather than occupying the space where his head had been the bladed discs sliced through the thick trunk of a tree, landing in the grass somewhere. The violet-eyed youth certainly kept his weapons sharp, that was for certain. The redhead pondered whether the other boy would tell anybody if he was killed, or at least have the curtesy to bury him, as he caught his breathe from the unexpectedly intense bout.

Laying prone on the forest floor was more restful than he realized and Roku applauded himself on making a maneuver that looked like it would have dodged the pinwheel had Kisei not halted the blow while ending in a relaxed position; he might have regained his breathe fully if Kisei had not fallen directly onto him. The boy wasn’t heavy, thankfully enough, as Rokumaru really, really disliked having the wind knocked out of him. Kisei rolled off to the left and mused that he had nearly killed the redhead, an unintentionally derogatory remark towards his performance. Roku silenced his pride and let the boy gloat if he wanted, knowing that underestimating a foe usually had far more dire consequences than that.

The dark-haired teen apologized for trying so hard in their spar, explaining that he did not think he could beat such a difficult opponent such as Rokumaru otherwise, which the redhead did not feel was true. Maybe if he’d ditched the puppet and focused on making sand and using Ninjutsu then the battle would have been more even, but without the longe-range jutsu he knew Kisei had smoked him. He waved off the other boy’s worries. “You did just as you should have, it was my mistake to underestimate you. I did not think an umbrella could be a useful weapon.” He’d offered to spar expecting a more swordsman-like approach to combat from Kisei but the boy had much better range than he planned for. Wouldn’t make that mistake again, for certain.

Kisei offered to carry Roku to the village on his back in consolation but the redhead did not feel as hurt as the other boy thought he was, rising to his feet after savoring a few more seconds on the ground. His chest still ached and would likely have a large circular bruise by tomorrow, but he still retained enough chakra in the fight that he did not feel particularly drained yet. “No need,” he declined politely. “You beat me fairly, so I guess I owe you lunch. Today or another, doesn’t matter to me.”

Rokumaru stopped to reseal the puppet, looking disdainfully at the lack of modifications on it, and hurried to follow the one who had beat him back to Konoha.

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[Exit]

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