[Chuunin Exams]

[Texas]

Akihiko was laughing as he watched the spikes awkwardly get caught up in the previous jutsu. Although a few did aim towards him, with the awkward trajectory and speed reduction... the child knew he could dodge them. With his eyes on two, the boy jumped over one and did a weird dance move to avoid the second one. It resulted in a hip thrust and his right hand up in the air as if he was about to "break it down" or "boogie". Aki didn't know what would work better since he never got to engage in adult juice and experience this type of fun.

Overall the boy listened to Suzuko and his team. He messed up once already, but it was time for him to really show them his stuff. Although them acting as a unit and trying to achieve a goal left the boy having nothing but a smile on his face. The pink haired flopped up when Akihiko followed the stop sign Suzuko had sent out. Her turning around meant business, they were supposed to keep rushing out. With a nod, the grinning child would hold in any laughter and swiftly weave a few hand signs. Upon completing the jutsu an invisible gate opened right in front of the team, specifically in front of Suzuko. Aki would whisper, "it's in front of you when you are ready."

When Suzuko would enter so would Aki, when the other members enter into the invisible portal they would be placed in a black and white realm. One that looks the same as where they were previously but just not drawn in. Black and white.

Jutsu UsedShow

₪Avoidable Strike
D-Rank Discipline Technique
By gazing upon an incoming attack whether it is a kunai flying, sword slashing, fist throwing, etc. Akihiko can determine if the speed of the attack is dodgeable. By determining the speed of an attack and factoring his own speed, he can dodge an incoming attack by moving his body in an untraditional way.

2nd Layer • Full Entrance
C-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling chakra or weaving the proper hand signs, Akihiko focused on creating a crack in the Present Realm a few feet larger than himself. This entrance allows Aki's full body to enter into the 2nd Layer of the Limbo Realm. Aki can stay within the Limbo Realm for [Control/2]. To leave the limbo realm the user must move himself through the same place the jutsu was cast, run out of chakra forcing himself out, or using the [1st Layer • Exit] technique.

[Golnax]

Shiun was the last to leave the area, taking up the rear just as they had discussed. With the scroll pieces stuffed in one hand and her spear in the other she jogged after the others - until, of course, some spikes from the giant pangolin came her way! Most of them were caught in the wind along with it but occasionally some broke through and a couple of them just so happened to fall in her general direction. "Oh, JEEZ!" she cried out, going from a job to a bolt of speed in both instances in order to avoid being struck, the Kinoko putting her high speed to good use by catching up to the others. As she did she would run up behind Suzuko for a moment, just long enough to stuff the scroll pieces into her backpack. Then she took up the rear where she belonged.

As they entered the fog Shiun had to stick closer to her team mates so as to not risk getting lost and in the process was able to stop when Suzuko gave the signal. Oh yeah, she heard those voices too. Suzuko was on top of everything and gave Akihiko the order to 'make them disappear'. She vividly knew what that meant. While the pink haired shinobi was doing his thing, Shiun was trying to think of a way that she herself could be useful. Rio had covered their escape pretty well against the pangolin, and Suzuko had all but disabled it and Akihiko HAD screwed up, BUT, the others had been there to cover his bumbling! She'd... caught some paper so far. She wanted to do more! She wracked her brain for something to do while Aki whispered that their way was open, she was running out of time!

That's when she remembered; oh yeah, mushrooms!

Shiun gathered chakra and sent it out to a point 12 meters ahead of herself, causing a cluster of tiny white mushrooms to appear from the ground. With another quick but prolonged channeling of chakra she made it so that she could both see and hear out of these mushrooms, effectively making her their teams eyes and ears while they were in Limbo! "I've got eyes and ears up ahead!" she whispered excitedly, happy to have done something to contribute to the team effort as she went in after the others, stepping into Limbo. Now it was her job to listen and watch the fog...

Jutsu UsedShow

~Mushroom Genesis
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to a point within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters at a Speed of [Control]. From this point mushrooms grow at a Speed of [Control], covering an area of 1 meter in diameter. These mushrooms have a Strength of [Control] and are constantly creating spores. These mushrooms and spores can be used for other jutsu. The user cannot make these mushrooms grow on metal, stone, concrete or similar materials.

~Fungal Scrying
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to an existing fungus within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters from them. From then on, up to 3 posts, the user can see through this fungus as if it were their own eyes allowing them to see whatever is within the immediate area, able to see as far as their eyes normally would without the aid of other enhancing techniques.

~Fungal Eavesdropping
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to an existing fungus within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters from them. From then on, up to 3 posts, the user can hear through this fungus as if it were their own ears allowing them to hear whatever is within the immediate area, able to hear as far as 5 meters away from the fungus.

[Niro]

"How ya like-wooah!" Leimine was mid smack talk as she whaled on the lizard when it sent a shockwave out knocking her down. As she hit the ground she saw that the chest had fallen and been destroyed. She over heard Kureha talking about the chest and noticed that for the moment the lizard seemed to be targeting her comrades instead of her. Its mistake.

She reached out using the projection to grab the broken chest and its contents before hurling it towards her team. "Grab it and run like hell! I'll hold it off and then catch up!" With that said and done, she would stand up and resume her assault this time punching in sync with the spirits four arms.

Shikon was thankfully saved by the timely intervention of Kitsui grabbing the dog mid air before the club-like tail could strike. The beast wasn't too worried about the pair, if anything, it cared more about the person and spirit punching it. Its thoughts focused on retaliating to the pair only for the tagged kunai to explode in its face as it turned. The beast let loose a roar as it once more glowed with chakra as the Suna shinobi and her spirit closed in. Its huge arms once more struck the ground and rather than rumble, spikes shot upwards intent of piercing through the feet of any who approached and lock them in place for a thrashing of its own.

Between the first jutsu making the ground unstable and the second spikes from beneath, its full attention was now on her.

[Niro]

Masaru noticed from his target's cry of pain that he was likely barely hanging on in a contest of raw strength. Adding to the fact he was previously using his bow it was likely he and the other two specialized on ranged combat. 'Head out of the clouds. While its important to analyze your targets you have to be aware of your surroundings use the man as a shield to get in close!'

"Forward!" Listening to the spirit Masaru would let out another shout to up his morale and to unsettle his opponent. Taking his lessons with Fanho to heart about subverting an opponent's preconceptions to gain an advantage he planned to close the distance using his reach rather than keep his foe at bay. With a horizontal slash he used one end of the lance to knock aside his opponents weapon. Following the momentum of the first strike he'd turn and stab the opposite end of the lance into the foe's chest. He pushed with all his strength towards the camp, keeping his current opponent between him and the others as a shield.

The bandit leaders jutsu fired off first, its trajectory obviously for Kasuri. A missile of super pressurized water shot forth from his mouth at the girl with the intent of blowing her arm off and disabling her in kind. Her own projectiles found purchase and with a trio of cries, the bows the bandits had been holding were dropped only to be replaced with short swords. The trio moved to surround Masaru who had ran through their fourth comrade while their leader once more channeled chakra in preparation to attack the girl.

SpoilerShow

Water Bullet
D-Rank Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals the user will spray water created from the inside of their chest through their mouth as a pressurized projectile with [15] Speed and Strength.

[Niro]

Shiun was the last to leave the area, taking up the rear just as they had discussed. With the scroll pieces stuffed in one hand and her spear in the other she jogged after the others - until, of course, some spikes from the giant pangolin came her way! Most of them were caught in the wind along with it but occasionally some broke through and a couple of them just so happened to fall in her general direction. "Oh, JEEZ!" she cried out, going from a job to a bolt of speed in both instances in order to avoid being struck, the Kinoko putting her high speed to good use by catching up to the others. As she did she would run up behind Suzuko for a moment, just long enough to stuff the scroll pieces into her backpack. Then she took up the rear where she belonged.

As they entered the fog Shiun had to stick closer to her team mates so as to not risk getting lost and in the process was able to stop when Suzuko gave the signal. Oh yeah, she heard those voices too. Suzuko was on top of everything and gave Akihiko the order to 'make them disappear'. She vividly knew what that meant. While the pink haired shinobi was doing his thing, Shiun was trying to think of a way that she herself could be useful. Rio had covered their escape pretty well against the pangolin, and Suzuko had all but disabled it and Akihiko HAD screwed up, BUT, the others had been there to cover his bumbling! She'd... caught some paper so far. She wanted to do more! She wracked her brain for something to do while Aki whispered that their way was open, she was running out of time!

That's when she remembered; oh yeah, mushrooms!

Shiun gathered chakra and sent it out to a point 12 meters ahead of herself, causing a cluster of tiny white mushrooms to appear from the ground. With another quick but prolonged channeling of chakra she made it so that she could both see and hear out of these mushrooms, effectively making her their teams eyes and ears while they were in Limbo! "I've got eyes and ears up ahead!" she whispered excitedly, happy to have done something to contribute to the team effort as she went in after the others, stepping into Limbo. Now it was her job to listen and watch the fog...

Jutsu UsedShow

~Mushroom Genesis
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to a point within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters at a Speed of [Control]. From this point mushrooms grow at a Speed of [Control], covering an area of 1 meter in diameter. These mushrooms have a Strength of [Control] and are constantly creating spores. These mushrooms and spores can be used for other jutsu. The user cannot make these mushrooms grow on metal, stone, concrete or similar materials.

~Fungal Scrying
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to an existing fungus within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters from them. From then on, up to 3 posts, the user can see through this fungus as if it were their own eyes allowing them to see whatever is within the immediate area, able to see as far as their eyes normally would without the aid of other enhancing techniques.

~Fungal Eavesdropping
D-ranked Ninjutsu
The user gathers chakra and sends it to an existing fungus within a number of meters equal to their Control stat in meters from them. From then on, up to 3 posts, the user can hear through this fungus as if it were their own ears allowing them to hear whatever is within the immediate area, able to hear as far as 5 meters away from the fungus.

Blue Team vanished into the Limbo Realm within the fog, the lone exception being the mushrooms created by Shiun just before she stepped through. Within the Realm, the fog would take on the color of black with a white outline and continue to impede their vision. Suzuko's sensory from before had picked up a mass of chakra moving throughout the fog and as it got closer to them, it was in fact another team. (Not a PC one, whoops)

The trio of shinobi were obviously from Konoha if their headbands were to be believed. Two boys and a girl chattering amongst themselves as they traveled through the fog.

"I just sensed someone! I can STILL sense someone! Where the hell are they?" The taller of the two boys seethed as he looked around but couldn't find anyone. His sensory was telling him someone was here but the fact he couldn't actually see anyone was driving him mad. It had never failed him or been tricked before; why now!?

"Will you calm down?" The other boy responded as his eyes darted around the fog in an attempt to keep alert. "The more you freak out, the worst things will get!" The trio continued to walk, going wide around the Limbo portal, before finally coming into view of Shiun's mushrooms. The blonde hair of the tallest could mean the boy belonged to the Awai while the raven haired girl in the center of the formation was reminiscent of a Nara. The rear was brought up by a shaggy brunette boy whose head was on a swivel as they walked around.

[Trusted Grader]

Kitsui remembered back to the day his mother came to his room, he was about ten years old when she brought him out to the backyard to reveal to him his birthday gift, she had bought him a dog which he would start his training. Kitsui named him Shikon, as he felt that the name suited the dog perfectly, they spent most of their time together, training and working through their lives.

Shikon being a cattledog made him a great listener but also a very active dog, which forced the Inuzuka to stop being lazy, his prankster lifestyle didn't exactly vibe with the dog at first but with time he came around to it, so when he saw the dogs life flash in front of his eyes his natural instincts took over. Fortunately the Inuzuka managed to capture the dog midair and clear the tail swing.

I will never let you die buddy, I would rather go than you... Kitsui almost shed a tear to the thought but once he bounced off the ground he would peer towards his comrades, panic set in a he feared the idea of losing his teammates as well, for this was going to be a test to see if he was good enough to be a leader. "Run, grab the scrolls and leave the vacinity. I'll keep him busy!"

He shouted as he reached for his pouch and removed one explosive noted kunai and a smoke bomb, he tossed the two of them at the beast in hopes to distract the enemy. He knew that it would be hard to hit the enemies face from this angle but knew that the beast must've had a weak spot. The smoke was tossed below its stomach in order to create a cover for Mimi and Kureha, the kunai was tossed at the beasts tail, right above where the beasts... pooper would be, he knew that it was a dirty move but the surival of his crew was number one.

Kitsui then yelled at them to rush towards him as they needed to make their grand escape, he was ready to toss another kunai at the beast in order to continously keep it focused on him. Hopefully the team would try to run in a way that they weren't within the strike zone of the beast but if things went correctly then they would have the scroll pieces and made it away in one piece.

---

410 words Day 2.

[Kabu]

Kureha couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as Kitsui and Shikon avoided the beast's tail. Said beast was proving to be incredibly resilient as it refused to go down no matter the attacks they threw at it. Perhaps it truly would be best to just grab the scroll pieces and flee before they wasted all their energy on a potentially pointless endeavor. In an effort to help her prepare for the exam Rin had passed on a few lessons to her, most relevant currently being that a good shinobi knew when to withdraw or run from a hopeless fight.

It seemed that Kitsui had a similar thought, though she frowned at his idea. "There's no way!" she shouted in turn, though she nonetheless ran forward, aiming to get past the beast as Kitsui distracted it.

It was as she reached the beast's rear that she had an idea, pulling a length of wire and one of her knives from her pouch. She tied a bit of wire around the knive's hilt and ran towards the beast, slashing with her full strength in an attempt to embed the blade into the creature's rocky leg. If successful she would back up a couple feet and took a firm hold of the attached wire, pulling with all her strength in an attempt to make it lose its balance if not fall over entirely. "Time for this beastie to take a tumble! Though I may need some help if yall are willing!"

JutsuShow

*[Yoshin • Prey's Anatomy]
D-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Detailed knowledge of the human body's vulnerabilities and weaknesses are fundamental to learning Yoshin. This Discipline represents the practitioner's knowledge of the precise location of all major organs, tendons, blood vessels, and nerve clusters on both their body and the opponent's body. This allows the practitioner to accurately target those areas even in the heat of combat.

*[Yoshin • Ambidexterity]
D-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
After practicing for a long amount of time with the concept of using both of their hands with equal skill, the user has developed a level of ambidexterity that allows them to utilize both hands equally and as effectively without any penalty. This extends to other methods of combat or simple everyday life as well.

[Diatenshi]

Mimi would groan inwardly as her team ignored her words and continued to target the creature. She was running out of chakra, the spirit projection being incredibly draining on her chakra pool. She'd been hoping they'd grab the scroll and leave a smoke bomb to disappear. However, she was thankful her team had resolved to not abandon her.

Panting she'd dispel the spirit projection to conserve what little chakra she had left. Her hair and clothes soaked with sweat she'd leap up as the creature reared back, expecting another quake attack. She'd leap frog over its head and roll off its back falling on the ground behind it hard the air rushing out of her lungs. Trying to catch her breath she'd get back on her feet and try to assist Kureha in pulling the wire.

"We really need to run whether this works or not. Beating this thing out right is beyond us I fear."

[Kanade]

Kasumi managed to dodge out of the way of the blast, but collapsed in a heap doing it, the blast roared past her and jarred her senses, leaving her stunned at least temporarily and she knew, in her heart, she could have died from that blast.

[Golnax]

Shiun could hardly believe her luck - her plan worked! Inside of Limbo she let out a little gasp as the trio of Konoha ninja came within the hearing and seeing distance of her planted mushrooms, the tiny white caps on the forest floor basically invisible in the dense fog. And really, who was going to mind some mushrooms in a forest? "I can see them!" she announced to her team mates excitedly. "They're Konoha ninja! Sounds like they were looking for us, one of them is a sensory user! The tall blond boy, he's the sensor. There's a black haired girl and a brunette boy with him, too!"

After relaying a brief description of the opposing team and what she knew about them, Shiun pointed right at where they would be in the black fog that surrounded them in Limbo. "They're right over there! 'Bout 12 meters in that direction!" she said proudly before turning to Suzuko. "What do you want us to do!?" She'd done her part for now. Now it was time for the brains of their group to give them directions!

Or at least that's what she would have done if her own brain hadn't caught up with her. The instantaneous inspiration for a course of action made her gasp sharply, the excitable Kinoko pulling her fists up close to her chin as she spoke. "Guys! We can just have Aki open a portal right behind them and then jump them! Knock 'em out quick and take their scroll piece! That's totally solid, right!?" she asked, now actually waiting for input from the rest of her team.

[Diatenshi]

A dangerous glint would appear in Masaru's eyes as the enemy moved to approach him. He'd channel chakra to his feet whilst retreating backwards to prevent the enemy from surrounding him. When properly charged hed stomp his feet sending his chakra into the ground in an attempt to bind the feet of the trio.

His hands would then turn into a flurry as he rapidly made seals. Although he had three opponents in front of him he'd kept his awareness open and noticed his partner was in dire straights. In order to keep her safe he'd raise a wall of doton between her and the bandit leader. The wall would rise up as fast as he could make it, hoping to give Kasumi a buffer period. He'd then refocus on the trio before him and begin waving his lance, making wide horizontal slashes to keep the enemy at bay.

Jutsu UsedShow

Doton • Binding Formation
D-Rank Ninjutsu
After channeling doton chakra into their foot the user will slam the ground within 5 meters of a target's feet with their heel, causing a formation of rock to shoot upwards at [15] speed binding the target's feet at [10] strength

D-Rank Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals the user will form a solid stone wall up to 5 meters away from them at [18] speed. The wall has [10] strength and is 3x3x1 meters large.

[Texas]

The boy was less smiley and less "performative" in the Limbo Realm. There were no others to impress?! However the pink haired child got the opportunity. The plan was solid. Exit out and attack! With a nod, the boy weaved a couple hand signs and focused his chakra on the limbo realm. By utilizing that focus he was able to create a portal behind the group looking at the mushrooms on the ground in a peculiar way.

Aki would turn and nod at Suzuko and Rio before looking back forward. The nod was his attempt of trying to act serious. He had already made a large mistake in the beginning, so the boy was fine just helping. Well at least for now. With his immaturity, his personality might spread out.

Jutsu UsedShow

Limbo • Exit
E-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling chakra or weaving the a single hand sign with either hand, Akihiko focused on creating a small slit in front of whatever is foreign to the Limbo Realm. This slit is an opening back into entering the Physical Realm and exiting the Limbo Realm.

[Nick]

Suzuko was impressed by Shiun's quick thinking, and made no move to change the basic plan her friend had made beyond a couple of hand signals to push people on when to go. She gave Akihiko a look, too, surprised that he'd learned to follow orders this time, but grateful all the same, trying to leave his past mistakes behind him for now as she and Rio got into position. She held up a hand to count down their co-ordinated strike, drawing three kunai in a single hand, while pulling out the bandages with her other hand.

As the countdown silently ended, three kunai would flash from Suzuko's hand, thrown in such a way that the blunt back end of them was aimed at the back of the head of her targets, while simultaneously whipping the bandages out in an attempt to bind the three of them together instantaneously so that they couldn't move or reach for weapons in the case that they managed to catch the surprise attack. This kind of thing was more Rio's area of expertise, but all the same she'd taught Suzuko quite a bit, and she was fine with being second fish to Rio in this endeavor.

jutsuShow

Trajectory Predicition
D-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
After much practice, the practitioner has learned how to read an opponent's movements to gauge where they will be at any given moment without penalty. Effectively, the practitioner can "lead" their shots to account for movement by targets.

Multi-Draw
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has trained such a deftness to their draws that they are now capable of drawing multiple projectiles and more impressively, launching them in a tight spread, capable of putting multiple projectiles into a small bullseye at the same instance.

Anything Can Kill
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has learned deeply the aerodynamics of projectiles to a point where they can improvise or makeshift weapons from anything, be it rocks, broken tiles, a chopstick, or even a tube of toothpaste. They know how to throw it for maximum damage and impact. This means when using makeshift weapons there is no penalty and they are just as effective as if it was a real weapon in the practitioner's hand.

Natural
D-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Prerequisite: [Corded Weapons]
Having spent many hours with different kinds of corded weapons, Goro can use whips, chains, wire, and of course his bandages as if they were an extra limb or prehensile tail.

Grapple
D-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite: [Corded Weapons]
Throwing out his bandages towards a target, he can wrap them around a limb, or even their entire body if given the opportunity, and tighten the bandages down, squeezing and holding tight. He can continue to squeeze down on the wrapped object to inflict serious injuries, or if his strength is high enough, use them to pull the target back towards him.

Fork
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Prerequisite: [Corded Weapons]
As most things do, Goro's bandages have two ends. With many hours of practice, Goro has achieved the ability to be able to use both ends of his bandages at the same time, with the same skill and precision as if he'd just used one.

[Taiga]

So this was the limbo ability that the group had spoken about prior to this excursion. Limbo. It was a strange feeling to pulled into what felt like a separate existence. Something that made the hair on Rio's back stand up and caused the Iron Lady to shiver slightly from within her armor. This- this was the power of shinobi. She clicked her teeth a little as she followed the group along through this dimension she had been thrust into, moving as if she was walking on unsteady ground- skeptic at every step.

Before long Shiun would pipe up.

Of all the warriors she had met Rio had developed a certain kind of respect for Shiun. The girl had was well-rounded. Like an oracle she could sense others. Like a warrior she could throw a spear. And like a scholar she could strategize. The corners of her lips rounded. So this was what it was going to be like to fight shinobi. And with Shiun's alert, it was all the more clear to her.

Quietly, she would ready her kunai, tying wire between it. When the moment was right, the group would raise their attack with Aki's exit portals. Rio watched the deftul work of Suzuko, just as happy as she had been about Shiun. Suzuko was using her moves; her tricks. And she did it damn well.

Following her attack Rio would launch the wired up kunai at the legs of the opponents, timing it along with Suzuko's attack. Her goal was to, without lethal force, bolo they're ankled and bring them down. Along with Suzuko's strikes and work they'd hopefully be successful. Like wise, if need be, she'd pelt whatever she could find to knock them out aiming for a safe part of the head.

These scrolls were all that stood in their way.

USEDShow

Trajectory Predicition
D-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
After much practice, the practitioner has learned how to read an opponent's movements to gauge where they will be at any given moment without penalty. Effectively, the practitioner can "lead" their shots to account for movement by targets.

Multi-Draw
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has trained such a deftness to their draws that they are now capable of drawing multiple projectiles and more impressively, launching them in a tight spread, capable of putting multiple projectiles into a small bullseye at the same instance.

Anything Can Kill
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has learned deeply the aerodynamics of projectiles to a point where they can improvise or makeshift weapons from anything, be it rocks, broken tiles, a chopstick, or even a tube of toothpaste. They know how to throw it for maximum damage and impact. This means when using makeshift weapons there is no penalty and they are just as effective as if it was a real weapon in the practitioner's hand.


Decapitating Strike
B-Ranked Maneuver Taijutsu
After preparing two projectiles with a thin wire or suitable substitute, the user will throw both projectiles with one hand in a way such that the wire is not visible to those without suitable visual perception techniques. The two projectiles will fan out to the full-width of the wire, pulling it taut as they proceed forward. If the wire strikes a target with a strength advantage of 5 or more, the target will be cut in half by the wire and the projectiles will continue forward with the wire. Otherwise, the wire will get caught on the target and produce a "bolo" effect as either end of the wire with the projectile rapidly wraps around them.

[Niro]

Mimi would groan inwardly as her team ignored her words and continued to target the creature. She was running out of chakra, the spirit projection being incredibly draining on her chakra pool. She'd been hoping they'd grab the scroll and leave a smoke bomb to disappear. However, she was thankful her team had resolved to not abandon her.

Panting she'd dispel the spirit projection to conserve what little chakra she had left. Her hair and clothes soaked with sweat she'd leap up as the creature reared back, expecting another quake attack. She'd leap frog over its head and roll off its back falling on the ground behind it hard the air rushing out of her lungs. Trying to catch her breath she'd get back on her feet and try to assist Kureha in pulling the wire.

"We really need to run whether this works or not. Beating this thing out right is beyond us I fear."

Mimi's quick thinking to vault over the beast as its arms came down saved her life. If she had taken the spikes erupting from below the pair of them in a radius straight on, she'd be left with quite the hole in her chest. But as she came over and down from the maneuver, she'd find herself wedged between the rocks if not with a few scrapes and bruises. The explosive tagged kunai thrown by Kitsui was intercepted by the spikes as they flew upwards, sending shards of rock flying everywhere but not hurting the beast.

Kureha was lucky in her mad dash around the beast to side step the incoming spikes and sink her kunai deep into the summons leg between the plates making up its armored scales. It roared in anger as she tried to pull on it and brought its club-like tail back, slapping her with it in the side and sending her flying into the trees near Kitsui.

[Niro]

A dangerous glint would appear in Masaru's eyes as the enemy moved to approach him. He'd channel chakra to his feet whilst retreating backwards to prevent the enemy from surrounding him. When properly charged hed stomp his feet sending his chakra into the ground in an attempt to bind the feet of the trio.

His hands would then turn into a flurry as he rapidly made seals. Although he had three opponents in front of him he'd kept his awareness open and noticed his partner was in dire straights. In order to keep her safe he'd raise a wall of doton between her and the bandit leader. The wall would rise up as fast as he could make it, hoping to give Kasumi a buffer period. He'd then refocus on the trio before him and begin waving his lance, making wide horizontal slashes to keep the enemy at bay.

Jutsu UsedShow

Doton • Binding Formation
D-Rank Ninjutsu
After channeling doton chakra into their foot the user will slam the ground within 5 meters of a target's feet with their heel, causing a formation of rock to shoot upwards at [15] speed binding the target's feet at [10] strength

D-Rank Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals the user will form a solid stone wall up to 5 meters away from them at [18] speed. The wall has [10] strength and is 3x3x1 meters large.

Masaru's jutsu casts were definitely accurate today. Between the bindings and the wall springing up just in time, the boy was definitely doing the lifting right now. The water bullet from the leader struck against the wall and although it pierced through it, it continued much weaker past Kasuri before finally falling into just water once it fell to the ground in front of her.

The bandit bound by Masaru's other Doton jutsu did their best to fight off the boys lance but one of them suffered quite the slash across his chest, blood pouring from the wound quickly before the man slumped over. The others continued to struggle to break free of the binding and rather than deflect the lance, one of them grabbed it around the fatter portion of its body and began to attempt to rip it free of Masaru's grip.

[Niro]

So this was the limbo ability that the group had spoken about prior to this excursion. Limbo. It was a strange feeling to pulled into what felt like a separate existence. Something that made the hair on Rio's back stand up and caused the Iron Lady to shiver slightly from within her armor. This- this was the power of shinobi. She clicked her teeth a little as she followed the group along through this dimension she had been thrust into, moving as if she was walking on unsteady ground- skeptic at every step.

Before long Shiun would pipe up.

Of all the warriors she had met Rio had developed a certain kind of respect for Shiun. The girl had was well-rounded. Like an oracle she could sense others. Like a warrior she could throw a spear. And like a scholar she could strategize. The corners of her lips rounded. So this was what it was going to be like to fight shinobi. And with Shiun's alert, it was all the more clear to her.

Quietly, she would ready her kunai, tying wire between it. When the moment was right, the group would raise their attack with Aki's exit portals. Rio watched the deftul work of Suzuko, just as happy as she had been about Shiun. Suzuko was using her moves; her tricks. And she did it damn well.

Following her attack Rio would launch the wired up kunai at the legs of the opponents, timing it along with Suzuko's attack. Her goal was to, without lethal force, bolo they're ankled and bring them down. Along with Suzuko's strikes and work they'd hopefully be successful. Like wise, if need be, she'd pelt whatever she could find to knock them out aiming for a safe part of the head.

These scrolls were all that stood in their way.

USEDShow

Trajectory Predicition
D-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
After much practice, the practitioner has learned how to read an opponent's movements to gauge where they will be at any given moment without penalty. Effectively, the practitioner can "lead" their shots to account for movement by targets.

Multi-Draw
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has trained such a deftness to their draws that they are now capable of drawing multiple projectiles and more impressively, launching them in a tight spread, capable of putting multiple projectiles into a small bullseye at the same instance.

Anything Can Kill
C-Ranked Discipline Taijutsu
The practitioner has learned deeply the aerodynamics of projectiles to a point where they can improvise or makeshift weapons from anything, be it rocks, broken tiles, a chopstick, or even a tube of toothpaste. They know how to throw it for maximum damage and impact. This means when using makeshift weapons there is no penalty and they are just as effective as if it was a real weapon in the practitioner's hand.


Decapitating Strike
B-Ranked Maneuver Taijutsu
After preparing two projectiles with a thin wire or suitable substitute, the user will throw both projectiles with one hand in a way such that the wire is not visible to those without suitable visual perception techniques. The two projectiles will fan out to the full-width of the wire, pulling it taut as they proceed forward. If the wire strikes a target with a strength advantage of 5 or more, the target will be cut in half by the wire and the projectiles will continue forward with the wire. Otherwise, the wire will get caught on the target and produce a "bolo" effect as either end of the wire with the projectile rapidly wraps around them.

The sensory of the tall blond of the Konoha group was precise. Unlike the more beginner sensors he knew, his was among the best for his age group. So when the dots of chakra within his mind's eye began to move in their direction, he shot a look to the other team mates. Something was up and it was coming for them. Not wasting any time, the boy finished a short series of hand seals as the chakra signature took up a position behind them and let loose a bright flash of golden light in an attempt to blind who or whatever was next to them. Even if they were invisible, he'd blind them at the least.

"Run!" he called out to his team mates, grabbing each of them and running as the barrage of projectiles came flying out of the Limbo exit portal. The Nara girl had been able to keep her footing and took off into the mist alongside the blond while the brunette wasn't as lucky and was wrapped up by Rio's bolos and Suzuko's wrapping before he could get going although the kunai had missed due to him tripping from the push.

[Trusted Grader]

Shikon instinctively rushed after the chest that had been tossed by Mimi and retrieved the scroll pieces, much to the team's relief, though this didn't mean that they were out of the woods yet. Okay, we should make sure that no one dies now, or else... God! I can't think like that! Kitsui almost shed a tear due to stress and anxiety, he didn't want to think about losing any of his teammates, yet he blamed himself for the precarious situation they were in.

Kitsui couldn't believe his luck, it seemed that no matter what they did they were somehow thwarted, he watched how Mimi managed to dodge out of harm's way, which almost made his heart stop as he feared that something would happen to her, until he then looked over at Kureha who seemed to have a plan on her own, though his gut feeling told him that wouldn't be a bright idea to stand so close to the beast.

Especially since Mimi's spirit didn't seem to be able to hold it back for long, sure, they could attempt to grab the beast by the ropes but the way the scene played out, he could tell that they would fail, yet his mouth didn't seem to react fast enough. This is bad, we have to get out of here before it's too late, we have the scrolls, now we have to escape and then recover. Right as he finished his thought he saw something he had never expected to see.

Kureha was flung by a body slam from the beast, fortunately, his animalistic instincts allowed him to spin and then grab Kureha midair, they landed on Kitsui who slid and spun on the ground before he rolled over to his feet, using the momentum of both his Piercing Fang attack and Psyche, to grab her then roll in order to alleviate any unnecessary pain. He carried Kureha as if she were his bride but quickly set her down as his focus was still on Mimi.

"Get the hell out of there! NOW!" Kitsui shouted, he whistled for the dog to follow suit and once he knew that Mimi was following orders he would mad dash towards the forest, they would use the tall grass and the trees to hide from the beast as they would attempt to make their way back to the pond. It was a do-or-die situation.

---

401

MetaShow

~Piercing Fang
C Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite: ~ Four-Legged Technique must be active.
The basis for the Beast-Man form style of combat, this attack is performed by an individual clan member. By spinning rapidly, the user turns into a whirling mass before launching themselves at his/her target. By putting their full body into the attack, the clan member will hit an opponent or nearby object at full strength with their claws, easily rending flesh from bone.

Psyche!
C Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite: Piercing Fang
The user twirls towards their enemy and stops mid turn and attempts to grapple their target, using their momentum, strength, and surprising skills to wrestle their target down and hold them in a rear naked chokehold.

[Kabu]

While there was some part of her that had instinctively realized standing so close to such a beast was a bad idea Kureha hadn't quite expected her plan to fail so spectacularly. She of course wasn't able to react in time to fully dodge the incoming tail swipe, grunting in pain as she was sent flying through the air... and into Kitsui's arms. She knew full well that this wasn't the time to be feeling like a bride or princess but even still she couldn't help but blush as she looked up at him. "Oh uh, thank you... And sorry about this.... she spoke while blushing, some slight disappointment setting in as her rescuer released her.

As she was placed onto her feet she shook her head to clear her mind. This really was no time to be having those thoughts. Luckily she had a distraction in the form of a throbbing ache in her side. It didn't hurt too terribly bad, though she was sure it would have been worse if Kitsui hadn't caught her, but she was sure the impact had left a mark of some time.

As nobody was in threat of being left behind this time she was more than happy to turn tail from this fight. They couldn't waste anymore energy on this beast and Shikon had grabbed the scroll pieces so mission accomplished.

With that in mind she turned and ran as fast as she could manage with her aching bones, silently following behind Kitsui and Mimi as they ran back towards the pond they had found earlier, where hopefully they would have a moment to rest.

[Diatenshi]

Leimine's instinct kicked in as Kureha got knocked flying by a powerful slap from the spirit. She performed hand seals preparing to cast one last jutsu in an attempt to escape. This whole encounter gave her a much needed wake up all. She'd thought she'd done a good job of wailing on the beast but its most recent actions showed it had far more strength and power than she'd thought.

If anything it was like a bomb with a long fuse. Her attacks had been more of an annoyance to it than the powerful pounding she thought she'd been giving it. In fact, there were multiple times she realized it could killed besides her lucky dodge with the spikes. When it had previously knocked her off her feet it could've stomped down on her as she went to snag and toss the scroll. Sure, she new her role in a squad, but that was simply being a good genin. Had she shown anything worthy of promotion? No she couldn't say she had.

A bitter smile crossed her face as she completed her seals. She'd exhale a large cloud of sand that would float in the air surrounding the lizard obscuring its vision. Immediately after shed cover her face with her cloak and run out of the cloud from where she'd heard Kitsui shout hoping the cloud would cover their escape.

[Kanade]

Kasuri snapped upright, pulling some grass and hair out of her face which had obscured her vision and pawed out a bit of mud, or what she hoped was mud, from her left eye, before standing up and holding Ayago up, "Alright, you bastard, that was dirty." She muttered as she took the stance that her family was known for and snapped off no less than 8 shots in quick succession. This stance allowed for her to riddle her enemies with arrows, but severely hampered her ability to move on her own. With the projectiles that she was firing, however, she would be able to hit her target whether or not he sook refuge behind the wall with a basket-ball sized hole in it. The firing of the arrows went, Middle, through the hole, one over the wall, one to the left of the wall, one to the right of the wall and repeated the same pattern.

Her glowing chakra arrows hummed and twisted in the air as they flew toward their target. Kasuri knew where he was, and all sides would be covered. She would continue to assail him until he dropped, she had resolved herself to the task, and would let her teammate deal with the others, as they were more of a threat. Creating suppressive fire was her job, and she meant to do it.

jutsu usedShow

*[Flawless Aim Style • Sentinel Shot]
D-Rank Taijutsu Stance
Taking multiple projectiles into hand and priming the muscle groups required for launching projectile weapons, the practitioner can quickly shoot projectiles in rapid succession and just as quickly reload. While in this Stance, the practitioner can maintain a near-constant stream of projectile attacks. However, due to the amount of coordination required for this Stance, their movement is limited, suffering a -3 Speed penalty while in this Stance.

*[Flawless Aim Style • Twisting Path]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Preparing a projectile, the practitioner launches the weapon with a slight tailspin, causing the flight path of the weapon to warp as it travels. The practitioner uses this slight change in the projectile's trajectory to hit a variety of targets that could not be targeted by normal means. This can be used to hit a target that is hiding behind another person or object, particularly useful against opponents behind human shields.

[Diatenshi]

Masaru growled ferally as his weapon was grabbed. That is his lance amd to disgrace him by attempting to take it was a grave offense. A smug smirk crossed his face as he paused his swings to remain holding on to his weapon with his three quarters of his max strength as he channeled katon chakra through his arms in to his polearm.

The weapon's shaft slowly began to glow as its metal was rapidly heated, becoming a bright cherry color as flames burned along the length of the weapon. Aiming to take advantage of his opponents reaction, he suddenly increased his strength and building momentum with a full circle spin he'd slam the bladed edge of his weapon into the man's chest.

Jutsu UsedShow

*Katon • Heated Blade
D-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling katon chakra into a metal weapon or blade, the user will cause it to grow hotter and cover the blade in flames. The imbued weapon will be able to carve through defenses of [14] or less strength with ease.

[Nick]

Suzuko had to think fast. This sneak attack didn't work out quite as perfectly as she'd hoped, but they were in it now for better or worse, and she had to trust her teammates to react to the changing situation appropriately. With the man wrapped up in her bandages, she would take the spear attached on the other side of it and jam it into the ground, locking him around it as a central point regardless of whether he could move or not. Fukurou would spit out her armored suit as well, allowing her to leap into it at a moment's notice for safety, fully armored up for any counterattack the enemy team may have been planning.

"Search him. Sorry, Konoha-san." Came her voice, tinny and odd-sounding from inside the safety of the padded suit. She suspected Rio or Aki would be most likely to listen to that request, while she nudged Shiun to watch the perimeter with her. "We have him captured!" She called out into the fog, trying to get the attention of the ones that ran away. "We can return him so you can still try to pass the exam, but we need a couple of your scroll pieces in exchange!"

Hostage negotiation wasn't exactly something that had been covered in her public lessons at the academy, but she had a little experience in how to talk to and negotiate with people thanks to her upbringing from the Mizutane. "If you wont negotiate, we'll knock him out, and..." She had to think for a moment, she wasn't used to being all that intimidating or threatening either, despite being so much larger than life from inside her armor. "Well, you probably wont pass!" Nice one, Suzuko.

jutsuShow

Grapple
D-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite: [Corded Weapons]
Throwing out his bandages towards a target, he can wrap them around a limb, or even their entire body if given the opportunity, and tighten the bandages down, squeezing and holding tight. He can continue to squeeze down on the wrapped object to inflict serious injuries, or if his strength is high enough, use them to pull the target back towards him.

Mount Up!
B-Rank Kichou Discipline
Having struggled her way through the awkward phases of getting used to riding in her puppet, Suzuko has become much more accustomed to hopping in and out of her puppet at a moment's notice. With the aid of this maneuver, Suzuko can hop, crawl, step, or any other verb into her puppet armor at a moment's notice, even able to pull it out of her bag and step in one smooth maneuver to waste absolutely no time in getting battle-ready.

[Taiga]

Helping Suzuko to further constrain and make sure the shinobi was caught, Rio would take careful steps towards the shinobi and begin searching him. She'd call out, adding to Suzuko's not-so-confident threats:

"Konohagakure ninja are famed for their will of fire and the belief of leaving no one behind I hear... of protecting their comrades..." she yanwed, before finishing. "I doubt anyone who just abandoned a team mate could make Chuunin- heck, we could extract a ton of information from him..." she goaded out into the fog. She would try to work their anxiety, worry, and fear of failing to reach promotion. After all that was why they were here.

Meanwhile she hoped she'd find something.

[Texas]

Akihiko was built for this kind of situation. The child giggled as he walked up to the tied up konoha ninja. Based on everyone's announcement, it was clear this was very much a hostage situation. However, he didn't want the hostage to think he was as safe, especially since if he was comfortable he would be more likely to lie. A fun little tactic his black ops mentor had taught him in the past. With a devilish smile, the pink hair on his head bobbed with every step. The boy lowered himself by bending his knees and gazed upon the konoha ninja. "I don't know guys, if he was this slow and got caught... maybe he isn't fit for the chuunin exams anyways. I mean look at him, he has the face of a writer." The implication that the man was ugly, whether it was true or not, the boy just wanted to mess with his allied village ninja.

With a soft laugh, the boy shook his head and tried to hold in his goofy behavior and start searching the individual. He would remove any items, weapons, equipment, etc that he could. It was possible that the boy would find scroll parts on their captive. Whether he did or not, Aki would speak up again. "Their sensor ninja caught us well. Maybe I should take this one and throw him in the abyss. Just because he could sense him, doesn't mean he can get him right guys?" On the off chance the other teammates were either listening or strategizing, the goal was to kill the notion of hope. Whether it was the other teammates or the caught shinobi sitting there, someone was going to give them what they wanted. Now was the waiting game to see what their move was.

Aki's behavior was probably seen as devious than goofy. The child was... an acquired taste and if you didn't know him, he could be possibly be seen as insane.

[Golnax]

Shiun was the last to emerge from Limbo behind Aki, watching as her other three teammates got to work securing the ninja and making threats. As Suzuko nudged her the purple capped Kinoko couldn't help but look at her armored friend and smile. It felt like she'd been recognized for her abilities... but she couldn't help but think that Suzuko was probably thinking the same thing and would have come to the same conclusion if she'd kept her mouth shut. She just got there faster. As she watched and listened to the three of them making varying levels of threats something itched in the back of her mind; an instinct she didn't quite get just yet but she followed it anyways.

"I'm going to go look around for them a bit, I won't go far!" she said, vanishing in a burst of speed through the fog as she ran around the perimeters from tree to tree, pausing only long enough to try and look around for any sign of the Konoha ninja before darting off to another piece of cover. She was keeping herself very deliberately within about a 12 meter radius of her team mates as the mushrooms she'd created were still there, so if need be she could tap into them and see if anyone was approaching while the others weren't looking. In reality she was still close to them, definitely within ear shot if someone spoke up or yelled, so she wasn't particularly worried about getting lost in the fog.

She was worried about the two that had gotten away, though. Rio had said that Konoha ninja were famed for not leaving comrades behind, so she had a hunch that they wouldn't bee that far away. With Shiun patrolling the perimeter she had a roughly 17 meter vantage around her ground (minus the limited visibility of the fog, of course) and was doing a good job of not keeping still. It was just a question of would she find them first, would they find her first, or would they go for her teammates and bypass her entirely?

[Niro]

Masaru growled ferally as his weapon was grabbed. That is his lance amd to disgrace him by attempting to take it was a grave offense. A smug smirk crossed his face as he paused his swings to remain holding on to his weapon with his three quarters of his max strength as he channeled katon chakra through his arms in to his polearm.

The weapon's shaft slowly began to glow as its metal was rapidly heated, becoming a bright cherry color as flames burned along the length of the weapon. Aiming to take advantage of his opponents reaction, he suddenly increased his strength and building momentum with a full circle spin he'd slam the bladed edge of his weapon into the man's chest.

Jutsu UsedShow

*Katon • Heated Blade
D-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling katon chakra into a metal weapon or blade, the user will cause it to grow hotter and cover the blade in flames. The imbued weapon will be able to carve through defenses of [14] or less strength with ease.

The glow of Kasuri's blow and fired arrows was the last thing the group leader would see. The hail of incoming fire was enough to interrupt his casting and turn him into a human pin cushion with arrows sticking out of his chest. The man stumbled backwards for a few steps while blood sputtered from between his lips. With one last glance at the girl the man fell backwards dead.

Masaru's blade grew white-hot and the bandit yelped as he let it go on pure instinct. A gurgle of blood was his reward as the lance's blade tore through the man's chest and nearly bisected him. With the bandit camp now neutralized, the pair would find an ornate box in the wreckage. It would take them a moment to break the lock but upon doing so they would find enough blood soaked map pieces to complete their own portion. Now they just had to escape.

[Niro]

Leimine's instinct kicked in as Kureha got knocked flying by a powerful slap from the spirit. She performed hand seals preparing to cast one last jutsu in an attempt to escape. This whole encounter gave her a much needed wake up all. She'd thought she'd done a good job of wailing on the beast but its most recent actions showed it had far more strength and power than she'd thought.

If anything it was like a bomb with a long fuse. Her attacks had been more of an annoyance to it than the powerful pounding she thought she'd been giving it. In fact, there were multiple times she realized it could killed besides her lucky dodge with the spikes. When it had previously knocked her off her feet it could've stomped down on her as she went to snag and toss the scroll. Sure, she new her role in a squad, but that was simply being a good genin. Had she shown anything worthy of promotion? No she couldn't say she had.

A bitter smile crossed her face as she completed her seals. She'd exhale a large cloud of sand that would float in the air surrounding the lizard obscuring its vision. Immediately after shed cover her face with her cloak and run out of the cloud from where she'd heard Kitsui shout hoping the cloud would cover their escape.

Lucky to even survive, Kitsui's team limped back to the glowing green pond of water located closer to the entrance of the exam arena. It would be easy to see the pond lose it's glow as each person was dipped in and after the first two were restored, the glow faded and it no longer provided any healing. Those with minor wounds would have to suffer through them.

Their luck was strong and after they would check the contents of the box to find enough pieces to fill out their own map pieces. Now, they just needed to fight their way to the exit and survive.

[Niro]

Shiun was the last to emerge from Limbo behind Aki, watching as her other three teammates got to work securing the ninja and making threats. As Suzuko nudged her the purple capped Kinoko couldn't help but look at her armored friend and smile. It felt like she'd been recognized for her abilities... but she couldn't help but think that Suzuko was probably thinking the same thing and would have come to the same conclusion if she'd kept her mouth shut. She just got there faster. As she watched and listened to the three of them making varying levels of threats something itched in the back of her mind; an instinct she didn't quite get just yet but she followed it anyways.

"I'm going to go look around for them a bit, I won't go far!" she said, vanishing in a burst of speed through the fog as she ran around the perimeters from tree to tree, pausing only long enough to try and look around for any sign of the Konoha ninja before darting off to another piece of cover. She was keeping herself very deliberately within about a 12 meter radius of her team mates as the mushrooms she'd created were still there, so if need be she could tap into them and see if anyone was approaching while the others weren't looking. In reality she was still close to them, definitely within ear shot if someone spoke up or yelled, so she wasn't particularly worried about getting lost in the fog.

She was worried about the two that had gotten away, though. Rio had said that Konoha ninja were famed for not leaving comrades behind, so she had a hunch that they wouldn't bee that far away. With Shiun patrolling the perimeter she had a roughly 17 meter vantage around her ground (minus the limited visibility of the fog, of course) and was doing a good job of not keeping still. It was just a question of would she find them first, would they find her first, or would they go for her teammates and bypass her entirely?

The blonde Awai listened through the fog for the team that had appeared out of thin air and captured their teammate. His temper only grew more and more as they talked loudly about what to do and how badly they could hurt him before his remaining teammate motioned for him to be quiet.

"We'll trade you our map pieces for him. You guys get what you want and we can go look for more pieces for ourselves. Deal?" She called out while tugging on her teammate to follow her as she rotated to the left around voices to keep away and would be attached.

Their team mate, meanwhile, roped up and in the middle of the enemy silently watched and waited. They might've prevented him from making seals but that didn't mean he couldn't channel. For now, he'd bide his time to see if they'd take the deal or not.

[Diatenshi]

Leimine hung her head low as she soaked in the pond her injuries healing a bit. She and her party were exhausted but mostly rejuvenated from the pond. Looking at her comrades she smiled as Azir tried to deride them for a shitty performance.

"We survived the lizard, we got the scroll pieces. Now all thats left is to get to the exit, hand over the completed scroll, and wait for evaluation. Rally up this is the final push!" She cheered in spite of Azir's negativity whispering in her mind. She then helped her comrades to their feet after their short rest and began heading to the southern exit eyes on the alert for potential danger.

[Kanade]

Kasuri watched as the ninja bandit leader fell and sighed in relief, "Well, that's one way to handle the situation." She watched her peer take care of the rest before picking up a scroll fragment and holding it up, "This is part of what we need, do you have the other piece or pieces?" She looked with her partner for the rest of them and then sighed, "Finally, let's get the heck out of here. I want to soak in a tub for a long time after this." Kasuri looked up at the sky as she said this. It was a good day for a Chuunin exam, all things considered. "I think that we should probably check to make sure that we are giving it to the right people, don't know who is waiting for us at the finish line."

[Diatenshi]

Masaru would add their scroll piece to that of bandits and keep them all in the chest. After picking up the chest he'd head back to the exit with his partner. He'd ensure they traveled stealthily to prevent any ambushes. Wouldn't want to male it this far only to fail or lose their pieces. He'd verify the hand over procedure then turn in the scroll pieces completing the mission.

[Taiga]

Since they had checked him for scrolls while he was bound and he seemingly had none, Rio would waste no time in swiftly delivering a blow to the back of their captives head/neck with the right amount of force to get a knock out, but not be lethal. Unlike the others in the group she was a seasoned Bounty Hunter and had participated in many a hunt now. Someone who had nothing was nothing more than a liability.

When his teammates would finally call out to her she would quizzically tilt her head. There was no guarantee they would return anything, and given their promotions depended on not losing their scroll pieces it was even more likely they would try a counter-attack ambush.

Quietly, letting someone else respond and do the talking, she'd speak quietly to the group.

"They can sense us through that weird thing you do pinky..." she said as she looked at Suzuko and Shiun. "You three make some clones. Go into Limbo and get ready..." she said without explaining everything. She'd stay put out here with the captive.

Clones would trigger a false positive- it'd make it hard without using their eyes from far out to gather where the positions of the real them in limbo was, as to their sensory it'd all look the same. The noise would help strengthen an otherwise glaring weakness in Aki's techniques and give them the opportunity to have surprise.

[Texas]

Aki blushed a little bit. Pinky? Really? Lil ole Aki liked the nickname. At least he was noticed for what he wanted to be noticed for... being different. Although, was that a quality trait he should continue in the future?

Now wasn't the time to do a deep dive into the reason for Aki's actions or go through an identity crisis mid-chuunin exams. The pain in the ass nodded at the commands. That was simple enough. Aki weaved a few hand signs and to the group, nothing seemed to happen. The child smiled and decided to make things difficult for the sensory and his teammates. Instead of staying, he would lead the clone to the little exit crack he had created while leaving the Silhouette behind. The sensory could probably sense what was going on, but unless he was giving commands, it would prove difficult to inform his teammates of invisible targets.

With that in mind, the boy started to run towards the exit crack. Except he would instead, weave hand signs again and put a Layer 1 crack near them. This way, there were a few exits and if the portals needed to be used for offense, he could as well. With the new portal created, he would lead the clones into it.

Jutsu UsedShow

1st Layer • Akihiko Silhouette
C-Rank Ninjutsu
Create a Limbo Realm being, not to be mistaken as a clone, although it does share size and features. This is a silhouette that attacks and defends based on commands given mentally upon creation. The silhouette's speed and strength stats are dictated by the [Control] stat.

1st Layer • Full Entrance[/color[
C-Rank Ninjutsu
By channeling chakra or weaving the proper hand signs, Akihiko focused on creating a crack in the Present Realm a few feet larger than himself. This entrance allows Aki's full body to enter into the 1st Layer of the Limbo Realm. Aki can stay within the Limbo Realm for [Control/2]. To leave the limbo realm the user must move himself through the same place the jutsu was cast, run out of chakra forcing himself out, or using the [1st Layer • Exit] technique.

[Nick]

Suzuko nodded from inside of her puppet, then realized nobody could see her, and voiced her affirmation instead. "Copy."

Weaving a set of handseals from inside the body of the steam golem, a good-enough looking replica of the girl would pop out using the basic academy clone technique. She took a moment to look at herself, make a face, realize that she didn't really look like that did she? Before hopping into the portal behind Aki. She was reasonably safe inside of here, she knew, but all the same she wanted to make sure this prisoner transfer went over smoothly. She kept her projectile launcher in her left arm raised, ready to strike at a moment's notice if this team from Konoha didn't intend to play ball.

She'd heard dark enough things about Fire Country natives thanks to the war, including a rather large collection of now-senior kids who had come from Grass Country and had some unfortunate things to say about them... But Suzuko had to hope that these genin were on somewhat of the same mindset that she was; a late victory was better than risking no victory at all. She had to believe in Rio's plan, and was prepared to back her up with as much force as necessary.

[Golnax]

This fog was pretty quickly becoming an issue for Shiun to overcome! As she continued to dart around and look for any signs of the Konoha shinobi, it became apparent to her that she did technically have a way to circumvent this fog blocking her vision. If she just sprouted more mushrooms and took a peek through them, she could likely find them pretty quickly! But as she mushroom capped samurai turned her head from side to side while poking out from behind a tree, she considered how much of her chakra that would eat up and felt like she had to be smarter than that! Her foes were probably not going to do anything too foolish, so -

Oh, well, nevermind, then. The moment the girl called out Shiun stopped and turned in the direction she'd heard them! "Ha ha! Gotchya!" she said quietly to herself, readying herself to dash forward through the fog... except... well... The fog. She still couldn't see more than 5 meters in front of her at a time. She couldn't see or hear her teammates, and she only had a general idea of where the Konoha ones were at from the cry. Did she really trust her sense that much to just blindly dash forward into the fog and hope for the best? What if it was a trap? And the sensor! He'd see her coming probably wouldn't he? So then, how useful was she actually being right now to her teammates...?

Shiun started to spiral and her knees started to buckle together. Self doubt was weighing on her and that caused her to hesitate for a moment, something that could have been a lethal mistake were these circumstances different. Realizing this, of course, made her remember all the times that her teachers had told her that 'hesitation was death' and so she quickly steeled herself, steadied her legs, and jolted forward through the fog quick as she could, covering the 12 meter distance in a blink in the direction where she had heard the ninja speak from!

Where they still within 5 meters of her sight? Was she prepared to start a fight with them if need be and cause a ruckus that let her teammates know where she, and they, were!? Shiun wasn't really thinking tactically like that. No hesitation, no death! That was about as far as she had gotten.

[Niro]

Masaru would add their scroll piece to that of bandits and keep them all in the chest. After picking up the chest he'd head back to the exit with his partner. He'd ensure they traveled stealthily to prevent any ambushes. Wouldn't want to male it this far only to fail or lose their pieces. He'd verify the hand over procedure then turn in the scroll pieces completing the mission.

A pair of middle aged chuunin were leaning against the beams holding up the exit point talking to each other like there weren't children fighting for their lives just inside. The two laughed and gestured wildly with their hands, obviously in the middle of some story retelling, before finally picking up on Masaru and Kasuri approaching them. The two fell silent and turned to face the genin, a look of seriousness also now decorating their faces.

The taller of the two reached out to take the map from Masaru and began to verify the pieces. It took a moment but the guard nodded in satisfaction before stepping back and gesturing for them to leave.

"You pass congratulations."

[Niro]

Leimine hung her head low as she soaked in the pond her injuries healing a bit. She and her party were exhausted but mostly rejuvenated from the pond. Looking at her comrades she smiled as Azir tried to deride them for a shitty performance.

"We survived the lizard, we got the scroll pieces. Now all thats left is to get to the exit, hand over the completed scroll, and wait for evaluation. Rally up this is the final push!" She cheered in spite of Azir's negativity whispering in her mind. She then helped her comrades to their feet after their short rest and began heading to the southern exit eyes on the alert for potential danger.

Compared to the summoned lizard they had fought earlier, the trek through the woods and plains to the exit station was a cakewalk. The section of the forest was silent after their battle and the commotion it caused, allowing the team to hear anyone who may try to approach them while they travelled. Lucky for them, no one had set up an ambush as they approached the station.

There a single man leaned against the left most beam making up the structure smoking a cigarette. Only once the team got close did he toss it under his heel and crush the ember. With a single hand he gestured for the map pieces before taking them and verifying each piece and the fact it was a complete map. Satisfied, he nodded at them before stepping back and letting them through the entrance.

"You pass, congrats."

[Niro]

Suzuko nodded from inside of her puppet, then realized nobody could see her, and voiced her affirmation instead. "Copy."

Weaving a set of handseals from inside the body of the steam golem, a good-enough looking replica of the girl would pop out using the basic academy clone technique. She took a moment to look at herself, make a face, realize that she didn't really look like that did she? Before hopping into the portal behind Aki. She was reasonably safe inside of here, she knew, but all the same she wanted to make sure this prisoner transfer went over smoothly. She kept her projectile launcher in her left arm raised, ready to strike at a moment's notice if this team from Konoha didn't intend to play ball.

She'd heard dark enough things about Fire Country natives thanks to the war, including a rather large collection of now-senior kids who had come from Grass Country and had some unfortunate things to say about them... But Suzuko had to hope that these genin were on somewhat of the same mindset that she was; a late victory was better than risking no victory at all. She had to believe in Rio's plan, and was prepared to back her up with as much force as necessary.

The pair continued their half-circle run around the other team, the Awai channeling as they did so in the chance they didn't say yes. The boy waited for any sign or signal to fire off his jutsu.

Meanwhile, their dark haired team mate who was tied up grunted as Rio's blow struck his neck and then...sunk into it before rebounding back, his neck contorting around the shape of her strike as it did so. "Ah. Sorry, I'm made of rubber. That won't really work. THEY'RE NOT DOING IT!" He yelled out before inhaling a massive amount of air. The boys body began to expand against the bindings before snapping them. Now free, the dark haired youth let go of the breath he was holding and was sent flying backwards from the force of it into the depths of the mist.

The Awai clicked his tongue before firing off the jutsu he was channeling in the direction of his team mates voice. A sphere of light 1.5m across shot forth from his hand and illuminated the mist, showing the pair Shiun not even 10m from them. The Nara blinked in surprise before recovering and flying through hand seals. Her shadow shot forth [20 Spd/Str] with the assist of the light ball in an attempt to connect and bind Shiun in her grasp. The ball of light continued to fly towards the group before exploding in a cloud of bright yellow lasers [20 Spd/Str 25m AoE] where he could sense them.

[Nick]

Things were going poorly fastly and that was badly. "How did that happen?!" She cried out as the boy suggested that he was made out of rubber, to which he presumably replied from deep within the mist "Yo-ho-ho I took a bite of gum-gum." Which, if he did, would have made his position easier to track and a cluster of 5 senbon would be shot in his direction. As the light lit up the arena, too, Suzuko would power up her puppet completely, giving her the speed needed to backtrack away from the explosion at an angle that was beneficial and allowed her to close in on the pair. She hadn't spent all that much chakra thus far, and more importantly had time to rest and recover her reserves between events, plus being able to top up at the fountain from before meant she had plenty more give and go in her.

With her projectile launcher still raised, and steam starting to fill the battlefield from its intense action, she lit her flamethrower up and blasted in the direction of the pair. The light from the flames would serendipitously interrupt the casting of shadows towards Shiun, but just as importantly would force the pair to take first degree burns or scatter away from eachother if they could even manage to avoid the [15] strength/speed jet of flame cascading towards them. All the while, too, she would channel chakra through her body, readying herself to cast a fuuton ninjutsu at hopefully both of them, but prioritizing the Awai if the two scattered. Regardless, this gust of wind would be likely to disperse the mist, giving her companions clearer vision of the battlefield from further away.

JutsuShow

Fuuton • Great Breakthrough
C-Ranked Ninjutsu
By performing the needed hand seals and bringing their hands to their mouth, the user can release a wide blast of air. This wave of air moves outward in a cone shape at a 1:1 ratio, 1 meter away from the user being 1 meter wide and a 25m width at the end of the cone. The wind moves with [Control] Speed. This cone of wind both cuts and pushes away with [Control] strength. This blast goes out for a maximum of 25m and can be held for a maximum of 2 posts and moved side to side to cover a large area so long as the user remains stationary. This technique was developed by Takeshi.