From his vantage point in the sky, his head transformed into an owl and his large black wings spread out behind him against the backdrop of the moon, Shinjiro was an agent of death. He let out the sharp undulating call of a western screech owl. His arrow Malevolence streaked through the ramparts, splitting in two and heading in opposite directions as they pierced straight through over a dozen samurai that had fallen victim to his genjutsu. And just like that their first line of defense, the archers on the walls were dispatched. Of course, other Samurai were rushing in, ones that had been woken up as the alarms went off, managing to avoid his genjutsu.
Still, there was no question that their garrison seemed short-staffed. From the heartbeats he could detect and the vantage point he had he wagered there were no more than two hundred individuals in the stronghold. And of those many were women and children, most of the best warriors having been deployed elsewhere just as intel had suggested. Asami was cleaning up a few stragglers from the initial wave, a few people that had been scrambled out of nearby buildings.
Shinjiro landed next to Asami and drew his twin swords, his arrows circling back and hovering on either side of them as a group of 10 samurai came rushing through a large sliding door. Standing in the middle of the group was a middle-aged man with long black hair wearing light-green samurai armor, a symbol of Konoha on one shoulder.
“I recognize you…Karagata Shinjiro of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, and your apprentice too eh” he stated as light-blue chakra flared around him.
“Men, this position is lost. Full retreat, burn everything!” he ordered as they rushed to relay orders and light torches, heading toward the food stores first. Women and children were already being evacuated, being funneled out of secret passageways down the mountain as soon as the alarms rang out.
“Stop them!” Shinjiro commanded, his arrows already darting forward as he made a series of hoots. And with that the samurai charged, drawing his sword as he moved, releasing a powerful slash of wind that moved at 40 Speed and strength covering a similar distance as he flashed forward in a surge of speed, moving at a similar rate. This opponent was a cut above what Asami could handle and if she handed already moved in pursuit Shinji would give her a flick with his wing to propel her up and toward the fleeing men. His arrows had already managed to strike down two of them though they faltered as his focus was broken, sticking into a doorframe and a barrel after killing their initial targets.
Strafing to the left, Shinjiro manifested an armored turtle shell around him as he released a powerful shout, aiming to divert the advancing wind blade and knock his charging opponent back, though his opponents' attack was much stronger than his and the man himself quite persistent. While he had managed to evade the initial strike, the man was upon him in an instant, slashing with a furious display of 40 speed attacks, his blade enhanced by an aura of wind. Folding his right wing down Shinjiro took the brunt of a few slashes, receiving deep lacerations and shredding his wing but it gave him enough time to settle into a proper Zantou stance, shouting a Kiai as he began to quickly contort his body to evade the strikes, though given the enhanced reach by the aura of wind he couldn’t get within range to deliver a killing blow or properly parry the samurai’s strikes. He could however adapt to his speed and attack patterns. After all, Shinjiro was also a master of Iaido, though it had been quite some time since he had been on the receiving end of someone quite this skilled, the only person comparable being his own father.
• Chakra: 25
• Control: 40
• Endurance: 30
• Strength: 35
• Speed: 40
• Willpower: 45
Jutsu Used:
[Iaido Fuuken • Howling Winds]
B-Rank Nintai Maneuver
Prerequisite(s): 35 Speed, [Iaido • Phantom Funeral].
The superlative speed of Iaido combined with channeling Fuuton chakra, momentarily torquing the muscles in their arms, the practitioner manages slashes so fast that they spawn vacuum blades of Fuuton that follow the trajectory of their original attack. This attack spawns a single vacuum blade that travels up to a number of meters equal to [Control], and hits with [Control] Strength. If this technique is used in tangent with a melee attack, the vacuum blade strikes immediately after the original attack is finished, potentially sealing the opponent's guard and creating an opening. This technique can be used in conjunction with other techniques.
*Fuuton • Flying Swallow
C-Ranked Fuuton Jutsu
After forming the necessary hand seals, the user coats their weapon in a vortex of wind. This extends the weapon's range by 1m while not adding anything to its weight for 5 posts. It also causes the weapon to gain an edge as sharp as your average sword. This also applies the fuuton passive with [Control] Strength on contact with an opponent.
*[Iaido • Sword Spirit Draw]
A-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Overwhelming the opponent with a literal shower of high-speed slashes, the practitioner torques the muscles in their arm to draw their sword and continue to assault the opponent's defenses with a seemingly unending wave of slashes. By torquing the muscles in the arm and twisting the wrist when changing the direction of the slash, each strike of the sword is as fast as if it had been drawn from its scabbard. This technique can be used while moving, and the practitioner can feint strikes within the flurry to throw the opponent off-guard. This technique can be used for up to three posts.
*[Zantou • Polar Bear Roar]
B-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite(s): 35 Strength.
Reflexively torquing muscles around the body, the practitioner releases the pent up energy with a fierce kiai, the amount of energy released so potent that it violently stirs the air up around the practitioner up to a number of meters equal to the practitioner's Strength in all directions with wildly alternating wind currents. This technique is able to destroy bindings and repel attacks, projectiles, and ninjutsu with a strength equal to 1/2 of the practitioner's Strength stat, rounded down, often simply diverting these attacks around or away from the practitioner instead.
*[Zantou • Winter Maelstrom]
A-Rank Taijutsu Stance
Prerequisite(s): *[Zantou • Winter Blizzard].
Building upon its parent technique, this Stance further builds upon further sharpening and refining the practitioner's capacity to focus on the opponent and the task at hand. Drawing in a deep breath, the practitioner also gathers up their energy and releases a kiai. The level of skill the practitioner has attained allows the practitioner to effectively attack and block from a neutral stance without any detriment. While in this Stance, the practitioner can effortlessly ignore non-critical distractions, focusing solely on the opponent(s). They also are able to ignore extreme heat, extreme cold, moderate oxygen deprivation, extreme fatigue, and even extreme pain. They can read the opponents' muscle contractions and body positioning very accurately in this stance, and they are able to read the direction, the type, the timing, and the speed of an attack that is imminent. The opponent can still effectively mask their movements if they have a movement-concealing Stealth technique of equal or higher rank than this technique. While in this Stance, the practitioner is conferred with a +4 increase to Strength and Will Power but suffers a -4 penalty to Chakra Pool and Control. The practitioner may end this Stance whenever they so wish.
*[Zantou • Frost Dragon's Flight]
A-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Prerequisite(s): *[Zantou • Winter Maelstrom].
The practitioner has learned to strike and defend with movements that shift suddenly and ferociously. This Discipline represents the practitioner's knowledge and mastery of movement and muscle control, to the point that their movements, attacks, and techniques have no telegraphing signs until they are already in motion. This makes it much more difficult for opponents to properly react to the practitioner's actions in combat. Opponents must have a sight-based or sound-based Perception technique of equal or higher rank than this technique to adequately read the practitioner's movements, attacks, and techniques.
