Once again, her father managed to sign her up for another training session with someone who she didn’t really expect to meet anytime soon. Unlike the Hokage however, she was nowhere near as nervous or anxious to meet them. It would have been more respectful to simply say she, as this person was one of the most accomplished female weapon masters in the village. The woman known as simply Ai, was one of as much fiction as well as fact. While some people tell tales of her fighting fifty ninja at once, others cut this number down to five or less. Nevertheless, the fact was, she was truly a master at what she did. This was proven through the many duels she’s had at her dojo located towards the the outer part of the village.

This was Yukino’s ultimate destination, however, she first had to speak with her mother. While not as accomplished or connected as Yamato, her mother was a formidable ninja in her own right. She took a much more active role in the village, constantly getting deployed out onto missions that Yukino never heard her explain. This may have been more so attributed to the fact they she still was a ninja, and most missions they took were confidential. While she was nowhere near the task master as her father, her mother still had her quirks that made the young Sarutobi uneasy. One said quirk was her belief that her daughter should be the strongest of her class in the village.

While this could’ve easily been tested during the chunin exams, Yukino missed the chance to participate due to the fact that she hadn’t graduated from the academy yet. Still, her mother prepared her nonetheless, and due to her training, Yukino was able to master the one handed seals. At the time, Yukino had no idea that it was a rare skill, and completely astonished her instructors at the academy. It goes without being said at this point that she graduated at the top of her class, but that would never be enough to her, or her parents.

The young Sarutobi walked into her living room to find her mother had already set up a pot of tea and poured her a cup fill. “Come sit, Yukino. No need to be a stranger.” her mother said in a calm tone. Yukino would choose to respond to this with action, taking her spot on the other end of the table. “Where is father?” Yukino asked her mother as she raised her cup up for a sip. “He is handling business with some Jounin. It seems as though something may stirring within the village.” Her mother would respond. “Your father mentioned that you were training with Ai today; is that correct?” her mother would continue, raising an eyebrow ever so slightly. “Yes, apparently father has set it up. He finds the need to have me trained with weapons when I’m already proficient with taijutsu as is.” the young girl would say, almost whining to her mother.

“It is always good to have multiple avenues of attack, Yukino.” her mother said nonchalantly as she took a sip of her tea. “And Yukino, don't let that witch rot your brain.” her mother finished as she rose from her spot. While it wasn’t clear outwardly, her mother poured out her killing intent all across the room. “Y-yes ma’am!” It was all Yukino could muster out, her forehead starting to form sweat droplets. “Good, well then, make sure you learn something!” her mother replied joyfully as she made her way into the kitchen, leaving her daughter dumbfounded.

After leaving her house, she started to make her way through the village to Ai’s dojo. While the sky wasn’t perfectly clear, it was bright day nonetheless. As it had been earlier in the day, most of the village’s citizens were preoccupied with their jobs. Arriving at the dojo with no issues, she knocked on the front door. “Lady Ai?” the young Sarutobi asked in an elevated voice so the woman in question could hear her. After standing outside the dojo for several minutes with no response, the blue eyed girl checked the door to see if it was unlocked. “Lady Ai? Are you here?” the young girl repeated as she walked into the dojo.

She quickly found this to be a mistake on her part, as she was ambushed by a mysterious figure. It was only due to the recent training that she had undergone that she was able to react in time to dodge the surprise attack. “Ha! I see Yamato hasn’t slacked off.” the woman said as she rested her katana on her shoulder. Yukino crouched on the other side of the room, her shirt cut in three different places. “Although, to be fair, you would be dead if I was actually trying.” Ai finished with a smile on her face.

“I remember when you were still a little one, you’ve grown to be quite capable, young Yukino.” Ai said casually, maintaining her smile. “When have we met?” Yukino replied hastily, confused as to their supposed relation. “Well, you were nothing but a baby. Don’t worry, I’m not your enemy, so you can relax.” Ai calmly responded, her smile still apparent as she shifted her attention to a nearby weapons rack. She set her hand on a ninjato before tossing over to Yukino. The girl caught it and looked at it for a moment before Ai charged her.

Dodging the initial attack, she jumped back from where Ai was, putting a few meters of distance between them. “Draw the blade Yukino!” Ai said excitedly as she once again charged at Yukino. No time to think, the young Sarutobi simply acted as she heeded the older bladeswoman advice. Drawing the blade, she managed to block Ai’s attack just in time, the two blades causing a loud clang as they met. Ai disengaged the girl after a few moments, resting her katana on her shoulder once again. “Good, you pass.” Ai said, her smile once again present as Yukino got her bearings. “What do you mean? You haven’t taught me anything.” Yukino protested. “That isn’t true young one. You used the blade as a part of body just now, thinking about how to block.”

Seeing her confusion, Ai returned her own blade to its scabbard before continuing. “True mastery only happens over time, through experience. However, before one can begin upon the true path of mastery, one must learn to use their weapon as an extension of their own body. No different than an arm or leg.” Ai said as she walked over to the young girl. “That’s all I can teach you as of right now. Feel free to come back to train sometime.” Ai said as she rested a hand on Yukino’s shoulder. “O-okay.”

~Exits Thread~

TWC: 1,164

Training Breakdown: