[Yaseyama] Mission: Spirited Away

[Taiga]

The wind howled through the frozen expanse, carrying with it the whispers of ancient spirits that danced among the swirling snowflakes. Two shinobi from Kumogakure, Hanako and Mariya, found themselves venturing deep into this wintry wilderness on a mission shrouded in mystery. There had been reports from some of the settlement camps of bizarre disturbances... Their mission, assigned by expeditionary force command, was to investigate rumors of strange occurrences in the desolate reaches beyond the mountains.

Reports spoke of eerie lights flickering amidst the blizzards, and travelers disappearing without a trace. As they trudged through the knee-deep snow, the two would likely have the feeling of being watched. Every gust of wind seemed to carry faint whispers that teased their senses.

Mariya stopped.

"Point bravo is up ahead." she said plainly as she pulled her winter poncho and clothes tight It was extremely cold. To some degree she was a little more than annoyed to have been sent here by the Emperor- but she knew it was part of the grand plan. The Emperor had realized that the most peaceful way to fuel and grow the Empire was in this land- a rare chance to gain resources with zero opposition or zero need for conflict or human loss... the only dangers the wilderness itself.

Shaking her head she continued forward on a path that would lead the two shinobi deeper into the heart of the snow-covered wilderness, where towering pines stood sentinel-like, their branches laden with snow. The landscape seemed frozen in time, as if the very essence of winter had cast a spell over the land.

Suddenly, a soft glow caught their attention amidst the swirling snowflakes. Through the haze, they'd be able to discern the outline of a shimmering figure, its form ethereal and otherworldly.

[HotelBravo]

Hanako from Hanamura, genin of the Lightning Empire followed the girl called Mariya. She wasn’t too much older than Hanako herself, and she supported a similar build to Hanako, albeit Mariya was much larger, and Hanako suffered from malnourishment as a child which had halted her growth earlier in her life than it should have - being at a petite 5 feet tall. To Hanako Mariya looked like some kind cat. She couldn’t explain why that the woman seemed to have that resemblance. Perhaps it was the way she moved - lithe and coiled muscles like springs. She moved like a hunter. Hanako was still a Genin, and had likely what some would call the experience of a genin as well - but it was clear from the confidence that Mariya had that she was certainly the Jounin. Hanako felt like she rarely understood the details of her missions, and so it was with this one as well. She had learned to not bother asking for the details because usually by the time she started asking it was too late and everyone was yelling.

They had traveled through the Lightning Country and were pressing their way through the snow which danced like little ice crystals on the wind. It was an amusing sight for Hanako, but she was looking for active threats. She had a sensory technique of her own devising active utilizing the Jikiton style that she had been taught. Hanako produced an electro magnetic field in the area around her which gave her very good sensory data in regards to what metals and people where in the area. Nearly all living things had a magnetic field of somekind and it was charged one way or another - and most ferros metals carried the fields as well. With this technique, Hanako could easily feel which direction was north just based on the pull of the magnetic fields. The oddest thing was that Magnetic fields did actually penetrate through objects, and so Hanako could also sense and detect the Ferros metal that was hidden within the mountain.

She hadn’t detected anything yet, but she was also aware that there was a glaring weakness to her type of technique, that someone could always remove their gear and somehow remove their own personal magnetic field and she would be blind to them. That is why vigilance was required.

Mariya came to a complete stop, and Hanako followed suit.

”Why is it called Point Bravo? It could be called Point Taiga instead - After all that is a very bold and powerful name - one that makes history. I think I even heard about some news about someone famous named Taiga once, but I forgot what it was.” Hanako spoke. The thoughts that entered her head just poured right out of her mouth without much regard for the company or situation. During this trek Mariya would have likely seen this habit of hers and it seemed that Hanako was somehow unaware that she was just speaking her thoughts out loud. Attempts to tell her had always confused the genin. She was certainly an odd one.

As the ethereal being glowed and lit up the snowy pine forest Hanako paused and checked her sensory jutsu to see what information she could gather from it.

549/400 Jutsu Learned

SpoilerShow

Hanako Style Jikiton: Magnetic Sensory Field
S-Rank Ninjutsu
This technique creates an invisible magnetic sphere out to a 50m range. She can sense anything magnetic within the sphere, which includes people and objects made of metal. The Magnetic sphere allows her to have the detail of a general outline of the objects she is detecting so if Hanako is familiar with the object she can identify it.

[Taiga]

”Why is it called Point Bravo? It could be called Point Taiga instead - After all that is a very bold and powerful name - one that makes history. I think I even heard about some news about someone famous named Taiga once, but I forgot what it was.”

To most Hanako was probably weird, but to Mariya, she never really paid it much attention, even if she didn't understand the connection of the comment or timing. Mariya herself was raised by a sociopathic Black Op Commander from quite literally a test tube, and when that was too small, a tank. In many ways the quirks and oddities that made Hanako, Hanako, were the same quirks that made Mariya, Mariya. Without any regards for feeling, she'd be quick to respond back with the same amount of negligence to the situation, unaware if it was potentially cold or mean:

"Now's not the time."

Hanako was small, but Mariya knew from her profile that she was actually a deceptively powerful ninja for her age. She had experience things most hadn't, and she also had raw talent. It was for this reason that Mariya plucked her file from the cabinet when she choose who to accompany her on this mission, and perhaps because she saw a streak of herself in the young girl. Her eyes fixed on her, she watched as the explosively powerful little bod accumulated chakra and weaved an intricate Jikiton jutsu.

Did she just- invent that on the fly?

Taken aback at the near idiot-savant talent of Hanako, who was supposedly a "genin", Mariya shook her head than activated her sharingan as she gazed upon the ethereal being alongside Hanako hoping they could gather at least something. It would have no metal on it, though it corporal form did have some form of a magnetic signature- meaning Hanako could sense its placement.

Mariya blinked as she examined it. Her sharingan didn't tell her much either other than a deep blue chakra color. It definitely held chakra and powerful one at that. She paused and then started to reach for her pocket when the spirit, spritefully did a small danced than rocket for them, then back and off, dotting through the trees of a forest off in the horizon, then stopping as it pulsed with a stronger glow.

Mariya could see the traces of it's chakra.

"I guess, we should follow?" she said looking to Hanako to see if she had further insight or idea of how to proceed.

[HotelBravo]

Nows not the time Mariya had chided. Hanako didn’t make a facial expression, but it wasn’t for lack of having emotions. In fact she was rather surprised at the remark, seemingly having come out from nowhere. So Hanako grew quiet and her face remained neutral mostly out of confusion which wasn’t too unusual for Hanako, she just didn’t really understand her own feelings and didn’t know of how to express them either. It made her come of like she was someone who was emotionless, but that was actually rarely the case. Call her a genius or savant, she felt like she was mostly just a confused teenager.

As they had approached the strange glowing creature, Hanako had noted that there was not really much information to be gained out of the Magnetic Detection Sphere. Besides that, the technique was incredibly draining for what it was. Hanako much need the magnetic sphere when there was a target in her line of sight. She wouldn’t easily lose track of it. Mariya asked if they should follow it to which Hanako shrugged. How was she supposed to know what to do? This thing was not a dinosaur, and thats what most of her experience was about. It wasn’t easy fighting giant thunder lizards but at the least Hanako wouldn’t have any trouble keeping with this thing and tracking its movements.

Hanako started moving after the strange glowing thing. It seemed somewhat Ethereal, so to Hanako it seemed like her weaponry wouldn’t work all that well against it. ”It reminds me of people with Elemental bodies like that girl from the hidden mist who had replaced her body with poison. Honestly it was such a shame that people did that sort of thing to themselves. It was all done in a pursuit of survival, I suppose, but to me I feel like your senses become less sharp. Not the powers of detection but your sense of life. Like the wind on your skin or other things. I wonder how much you have to give up just to have a little security like that? I really don’t like it.” Hanako was thinking aloud again as she chased after the strange thing.

[Taiga]

Mariya's eyes narrowed to slits as she listened to Hanako talk and the pair moved carefully forward. Hanako had raised an interesting idea that festered into a theory within Mariya's mind. Perhaps the reason it didn't quiet seem like a spirit was because it was an elemental body? She hadn't experienced such a thing before but had to admit the theory seemed plausible. Unless of course, it was a spirit.

While Hanako's quirks led her to keep talking, Mariya's quirks led her to be quite short and cold. Making an effort to say something a little less cold, she added to Hanako's monologue on losing ones self in becoming an elemental body... and her mind flashed to a colleague of hers from her Chuunin days. Chiaki... the memory faded away as quickly as it came as Mariya pushed it out of her mind.

"Humanity is certainly lost..." Mariya added as she gestured to continue, upping the speed and leaping about the snow until finally they were at the tree line near the "spirit"... Something amiss to her though she lacked understanding. She looked it up and down with her eyes whens he realized something peculiar was lodged in the middle of the spirit... something almost like a metal canister...

Was that a core?

"Uh, Hanako I think-" before she could reward the girls creative thinking and surprisingly world-lived experience with praise a lightning bolt fell from the sky melting the water, ice, and filling the air with the smell of ozone. Mariya barely managed to dodge to the side as the spirit suddenly took a more corporal humanoid form. It raised it's arms up before a large arc of electricity was release at the pair, traveling at knee-height. (45 Speed)

Mariya, who had seen the charging on the body, lept up into the air instinctively as she drew a kunai and flinged it at the electrical being, only for the kunai to stop in mid-air, repulsed by the raw current in the air aroud the being.

[HotelBravo]

Hanako was glad that she wasn’t the only one who seemed to think that a sense of coldness would come over you if you engaged in elemental body techniques, a sense of dullness. She didn’t blame someone like Chiaki who had many enemies for wanting to be safe with such a technique, but she would never want to do that herself and never wanted to be in Chiaki’s position herself. She didn’t know what she wanted or what direction in life she would take. She just followed missions mindlessly and while she had tried meeting a few people she was still feeling lonely since she had stopped following Chiaki around. She had learned a lot since that time and had even managed to grow up a little but it was still a part of living that she hated. As cold as Mariya’s remarks could be, Hanako didn’t ever seem to mind them.

Mariya started to say something before a bolt of lightning hit the ground. The sound was stunning in of itself, and in the brief flash a the spirit that they had been following had taken a humanoid form. Hands raised - Mariya was already dodging as an arc of electricity was released towards them. Hanako was familiar with the weaknesses of lightning style techniques. Perhaps it really couldn’t be called a weakness of lightning techniques but a strength and advantage that Hanako had over lightning. What would happen to a lightning technique if you were to ground it? Hanako drew a kunai with a metal wire attached and threw it into the oncoming attack. The wire had been cut short, but was long enough that it dragged on the ground creating the shortest path between the lightning of the attack and the ground. Lightning Jutsu may have acted like Lightning, but there was a noticeable difference in speed - where true lightning was instantaneous the jutsu had a travel time.This that mean that Hanako with her great speed [50] was able to create her response in the heartbeat that it took the attack to travel.

The wire dragged on the ground and as it collided with the Raiton technique, the jutsu was redirected into the ground, causing the ground to crack and crumble under the force of the lightning. Hanako use [Flawless Aim - Rapid Reload] - a disciplined skill she honed over many hours of hard work allowing her to draw and throw another pair of Kunai connected by wire at [50 speed and strength] Hanako-style Wire Manipulation: Garrote Maneuver. Her aim was a force to be reckonwed with as well. Hanako was always Accurate. She always hit her target unless there was something in the path of the projectile.[Flawless Aim - Absolute Aim]


400/400 Jutsu Learned

LearnedShow

Hanako Style: Closed Circuit Taijutsu
A - Rank Taijutsu
The user throw a kunai with a wire attached which drags on the ground. On impact with a Lightning jutsu, if the opponent has less control than the users strength, the technique will be redirected into the ground instead.

UsedShow

*[Flawless Aim Style • Absolute Aim]
A-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Having mastered the art of ranged combat, the practitioner is capable of calculating all outside factors before launching their projectiles. Ambient factors such as temperature, winds, moisture, any terrain, and even lack of sight on their target can not hinder their aim. So long as they have a means of detecting the location of their opponent and no impassible objects or unavoidable defenses stand in their way, the practitioner's attacks will strike their target with pinpoint accuracy without fail. Living targets must have a Perception technique equal or higher in rank to be able to perceive the practitioner's attacks without some sort of additional defense.

Hanako-style Wire Manipulation: Garrote Maneuver
[Corded Weapons] [Throw Weapons]
B rank Taijutsu Maneuver
the user throws a kunai with wire attached at their target up to 40 meters. With a sudden tug the knot on the kunai will come loose and loop onto a target's limb, or neck. The user can then pull the wire to choke or restrain the limb. If around someone's neck - that person can't breathe until the wire is removed. This occurs at [Strength] speed and [Strength] Strength.

*[Flawless Aim Style • Rapid Reload]
D-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
After years of training, the practitioner has learned how to quickly and accurately access their ranged weapon stores at all times in combat. This cuts the effective "reload" time by half, up to a maximum speed equal to the practitioner's Speed score. This also applies to returning unused projectiles to their storage containers or switching between types of projectile weaponry.

[Taiga]

Mariya was in a hand stand as her body began to slowly become encased with wind. She didn't prioritize the speed of her shield as her body was quick enough to avoid any danger and instead put focus on her ability to build up a fuuton defense- which would give her a natural advantage against electricity. As she prepare to deal with the wave, Hanako surprised her and unleashed a kunai and a wire, seemingly tanking and redirecting all of the electricity into the ground as it traveled into the kunai and then downwards. Of course for Mariya with her sharingan, this was almost all like slow motion.

What an incredible kunoichi...

While Hanako went on the counter-attack with her projectiles, Mariya would flip onto her feet and then dash for the electrical spirit, preparing to take two heavy blows at it.

---

The spirit let out a hardy wrrrryyyy of anger as the smaller girl made short work of it's attack, and then followed it up with her own. The wire and kunai would strike the spirits body but seemingly pass through, though dragging a bit of the electricity with it. Being made of energy, a plasma really, physical weapons were not entirely useful against it it would seem. Least not at parts of her body.

With anger the spirit would suddenly surge as it shot forth a cloud of hundreds of electrical senbon- similar to the famed Raikage's Raiton * Shuriken Clone no Jutsu. (40 str/spd, a 60m cloud of senbon) Acutely aware of the trick Hanako had just pulled, the spirit was aiming to overwhelm her ability to ground things.

"Leave these lands foolish mortal!" it cried out with a harpie like voice.

USEDShow

nature/fuuton/inner wind
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After the appropriate hand seals Mariya will coalesce multiple layers of wind around her body at [Control] speed. The wind rotates around her with [Control] strength acting as both an offense and defense by pushing away, throwing, and cutting up anything that would otherwise try to reach her. Lasts for 5 posts or until cancelled.
@Control 25 -> 10 speed, 40 strength

[HotelBravo]

Mariya became encased in wind. Hanako could hear the rushing noise and the whistling that wind made when infused and commanded with chakra. At the same time she saw how ineffective her attack had been. It would have been equally useless against someone with an elemental body.”Physical attacks are not effective.” Hanako commented in a very business-like manner. She was commenting about her own kunai and wire attack having been utterly useless against this being. They would probably need some kind of elemental attacks. ”Options?” Asked. Despite the unspoken praise from Mariya, Hanako was realizing that she was actually in a fairly bad match up.

This effectively meant that she didn’t have anything in her arsenal that could deal with this spiritual entity. She had explosive tags that she could apply on her weapons, and that would have to do, but that meant the number of attacks she could make would be extremely limited. Mariya was rather impressive in her own right - she was able to form her jutsus very quickly. Hanako in the meantime felt like she had no opportunities to form a single technique. The Spirit was already preparing for another follow up attack. A single shuriken turned into a storm of shurikens, and she knew that she wouldn’t be able to form any kind of jutsu in time to mount an effective defense. She could use jutsu if only they allowed her the time and opportunity to use it. The only thing that Hanako had going for her was her strength and speed.

She felt very small in the shadow of a 7 meter wide cloud of shurikens. The attacks would be powerful and it would be unlikely that she would be able to dodge or block all of them, and while she was occupied she wouldn’t have the opportunity to counter attack. She didn’t have time to think it over. She acted on instinct. Her hands tore the bandages at her wrists revealing the seals there that she used to store her weaponry, then she began to pull out weaponry in quick succession. She wouldn’t be able to dodge such a large cloud, even with how fast she was. She would just have to create an opportunity instead. An opportunity to avoid damage some how through the storm of lightning shuriken.

There was only one advantage that Hanako had over this cloud of shurikens. She was a master of the shuriken.

She took up a stance [Flawless Aim - Sentinel Shot]. This was a stance that involved throwing multiple weapons at the same time, and so she did take up multiple weapons and her eyes locked onto her targets. Her volley of attacks begin, and while in this stance one was capable of making a near constant stream of projectile attacks. So Hanako with quick thinking and timing combined the volleys of senbon and shuriken with [Flawless Aim - Forcible Redirection] - The angle that each of the shuriken or her senbons would collide with the storm shurikens and change the directions of those lightning shurikens into one another effectively allowing her to hit two or more shurikens per single projectile of her own. It was an unnecessary use of stamina pushing herself this far - if only she had learned some kind of barrier jutsu she could have defended herself better. On top of it all it was incredibly taxing on her mind to try and track so many moving objects at the same time. And yet Shuriken still got through, she was forced to rely on [Flawless Aim - Evasive Maneuvers] which was a taijutsu discipline that allowed her to maintain her accuracy while avoiding attacks.

”These lands do not belong to you. The rightful owners have asked us to help them resolve the mystery in this territory. Surrender.” Hanako spoke between breaths demanding that the Spirit back down rather than herself or Mariya.

Hanako also only had some many weapons she could throw. In this flurry she would use up 50 senbon, 50 shuriken and 20 kunai. Her arsenal would be reduced down to a measly ten kunai. She hadn’t been this desperate in a spar since her time with Chiaki.

It was an honestly impressive manuever, almost hypnotizing to watch her force so many shuriken into one another, but a 60 meter cloud of senbon was not something she could fully stop with just 120 projectiles, although impressive what she had done, her endurance wasn’t capable of keeping up with her, and so Hanako found herself red faced and winded as she get pelted with the remaining shuriken attacks after she had done so much to weaken the attack as possible.

As Hanako was pelted with senbon, she held up her arms and curled into a ball to use her arms and legs as a shield to protect her vital organs against the finally of the senbons. As the attack passed, Hanako had vastly weakned the attack but was still suffering from localised paralysis in her arms and legs from having taken so many hits from such a strong attack. She commanded her muscles to obey her as she looked desperately up for the next move knowing that she had placed herself in a dead end. She could die here. Well… That wouldn’t be so bad she supposed. At least Mariya should have an opening and she’d be able to finish things off with her attack.

It had been a short and sweet time with Mariya. For the first time in a long while she had found someone who she really felt like was her friend and equal and not someone who judged her on her quirks or feared her strength and speed. She hadn’t asked for this strength, she hadn’t ever really found her own nindo. It had always been to listen to Granny, but now Granny was gone and so was Chiaki, and if Mariya didn’t buy her time to recover she would be gone as well. As she was now partially paralyzed she wouldn’t be able to protect herself from the next attack. Still, at least she had survived, and all that with just 120 projectiles. It was pretty damn good considering.

”C’mon Mariya… You can do it.” Hanako said under her breath. She wanted to close her eyes as even though she had no sharingan it was as if she was forced to watch in slow motion

1050 / 350 +3 Willpower

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 • Forcible Redirection]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
The practitioner first launches a projectile at -1 Strength. Then, they launch a second projectile at full Strength, targeting the first projectile. The second projectile ricochets off of the first projectile, capable of changing direction within 360 degrees of the location of the first projectile upon impact. The practitioner first launches a projectile at -1 Strength. Then, they launch a second projectile at full Strength, targeting the first projectile. The second projectile ricochets off of the first projectile, capable of changing direction within 360 degrees of the location of the first projectile upon impact. The second projectile is treated as an attack with a -5 Strength penalty.

*[Flawless Aim Style • Absolute Aim]
A-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Having mastered the art of ranged combat, the practitioner is capable of calculating all outside factors before launching their projectiles. Ambient factors such as temperature, winds, moisture, any terrain, and even lack of sight on their target can not hinder their aim. So long as they have a means of detecting the location of their opponent and no impassible objects or unavoidable defenses stand in their way, the practitioner's attacks will strike their target with pinpoint accuracy without fail. Living targets must have a Perception technique equal or higher in rank to be able to perceive the practitioner's attacks without some sort of additional defense.

*[Flawless Aim Style • Evasive Maneuvers]
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
The practitioner has learned how to accurately launch projectiles while moving through the flow of combat. This Discipline represents the practitioner's ability to accurately launch projectiles while moving at full Speed, while jumping, rolling, sliding off the ground, or while performing other basic combat movements.

[Taiga]

Mariya's eyes watched with pure incredulous bliss and fascination as the storm of shuriken left Hanako's hand. Each and every movement was deliberate- majestic. Her movements were fast enough that even with the Sharingan they appeared an a level unlike any shinobi she had ever watched before and her approach to defending herself against the storm of Raiton shuriken was nothing short of incredible. Such lateral thinking- or perhaps it was more common sense then anything, a true fighting of fire-with-fire.

You trained a wonderful apprentice, Chiaki, for all your sins you did one thing right.

As her feet pounded the ground and worked to lessen the distance between the spirit and herself, she channeled her chakra further to summon yet another layer of wind around her. As she passed by Hanako who was opening up a rift in the attack and an opening into the constant onslaught her eyes would meet for a brief moment before they snapped back to the spirit, and in the moment all that needed to be said was said.

Mariya ha complete trust in Hanako. She had found an equal- a spot that had not been met since Chiaki had abandoned the village. With no time to dwell on the irony of Chiaki's apprentice being one of the few ninja who Mariya felt she could intrinsically work with without the need even for words she powered on forward reaching her full speed.

In the wake of Hanako's brave defense her call to Mariya echoed in the back of the fresh Jounin's mind, as she tensed her core and went for the hit, slamming her fist up into the lightning monster, who until now had been focused on it's shuriken war with Hanako.

"These lands were never anyones to claim!" she screamed as the two layers of wind struck the "lightning spirit" and snaked off her body, her adaptive shielding ability adding even more damage to her punch as it augmented her fist with the cutting winds of Fuuton.

For a brief moment for both girls, they would see the fist connect as the world went silent, and then the spirit was launched off some 30 meters into a tree and through it, falling into the snow. Panting, Mariya raised her arms and prepared to strike again, only for a massive flash to appear.

"Ack!!!" stumbling back blinded- and surprised that the technique was powerful enough to hamper her sharingan Mariya blinked. Recovering slightly faster than normal she'd see the light of the spirit fading off on the horizon as it ran away. Letting out a sigh, she'd turn to Hanako.

"You okay?"

Now that they knew a bit more about what they were up against she'd prioritize confirming safety. They could always lay track later using her sharingan considering the entire monster was a walking energy source. She blinked once as her pupils returned to their typical black.


"Something tells me the spirits plaguing these villages is more like some missing ninja or something..."

USEDShow

nature/fuuton/inner wind
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After the appropriate hand seals Mariya will coalesce multiple layers of wind around her body at [Control] speed. The wind rotates around her with [Control] strength acting as both an offense and defense by pushing away, throwing, and cutting up anything that would otherwise try to reach her. Lasts for 5 posts or until cancelled.
@Control 25 -> 20 speed, 30 strength

[HotelBravo]

Through the hail of shuriken, Mariya had managed to find the opportunity that Hanako was trying to create. Hanako rolled over so she could see the events of the situation better as Mariya drive her wind enhanced fist into the lightning being’s body. Wind had a natural advantage against Lightning and it blasted the creature 30 meters through the air and into some trees far away. Hanako sighed in relief - that was not an easy hit to recover from so she had presumed that they had won a victory only for -”Ack!” Hanako exclaimed in surprise at the flash of light and att the same time that Mariya had exclaimed as well - both having been caught off guard. Hanako blinked away the blindness from the flash and saw to her annoyance that the ‘spirit’ had already took advantage of the 30 meter distance and was escaping.

Hanako dragged her body with her chin and her stomach muscles in a caterpillar-like movement as she crawled towards Mariya. "You okay?" Mariya asked, she had turned back to Hanako and Hanako appreciated that. It seemed that her feelings for Mariya hadn’t been wrong. Mariya was someone who was an actual friend. Business-wise Hanako knew that the right thing to do would be to immediately proceed with the next part of the mission and perhaps she would have if Mariya had been the one who had been hurt. Intnerally that thought hurt Hanako a little that she would have been so heartless to just immediately try and secure the kill and abandon her friend - especially Mariya. Hanako decided that was clearly wrong and that she wouldn’t do that to Mariya, especially not after the kindness she was showing now. It didn’t even matter that if Mariya knew medical techniques or not.

”I can’t feel my arms and legs. Senbon shaped lighting pierced several places in my arms and legs. Fortunately senbon wounds are very small and don’t impede movement once the senbons are dispersed. The real concern is the nerve damage, as the lighting was conducted into my nervous system. ” Hanako said in a rather dull monotone with a blank expression. The tone and the expression were not really a mask for anything - it was just a weakness of Hanakos that she just never properly expressed herself. Being in so close proximity with the ground, dirt had stained where her tears had been - involuntary from the pain but it proved that she still felt and was not completely emotionless. Mariya would have likely have heard Hanako’s rants on the travels here about the various things she liked and disliked which also did not track for someone emotionless. In short Mariya should know that despite the tone and blank expression - Hanako was in pain, and Hanako was scared her limbs wouldn’t recover.

Once Mariya had approached Hanako, Hanako would awkwardly roll over onto her back and spit the dirt of her mouth that she had gotten onto her face. Her arms and legs were slightly twisted as she performed the action, she looked over at Mariya. ”I can’t feel my body but I think I can feel my chakra. I’m going to try something.” Thinking about to her lessons about the chakra network with Chiaki, all those biology lesson, she had learned how the body had worked and how to treat injuries such as paralysis. It was a little different healing from the inside than it was from the outside, and she would have to try based on feeling alone. Hanako had never tried this technique before but now seemed as good of a time as any to apply it. *[Iijutsu • Paralysis Removal]

She closed her eyes and focused. Immense concentration as she molded her chakra into the proper technique and began to push the chakra through her arms. Oh that was just the worse. She felt a pins and needles sensation as feeling returned to her hands. Hanako blinked away the discomfort and sat up. She then held the ball of chakra for the technique in her hands and applied it to her legs.

Hanako would reach out a hand to Mariya - hoping the girl would help her to her feet which still felt the pins and needles sensation, but were quickly reverting back to normal.

Jutsu Learned

SpoilerShow

*[Iijutsu • Paralysis Removal]
B-Ranked Ninjutsu
The user will channel chakra to their hands and then apply them to the affected area. As this chakra interacts with the temporarily lame muscle tissue, it will restore natural mobility to the area. This lowers the paralysis effects of jutsu and poisons by 2 posts.

[Taiga]

Taking a deep breath as she looked Hanako up and down as the girl rolled over onto her back. She was tough indeed. Thoroughly, deciding she was fine enough, the elder girl would pat Hanako on the shoulder while giving her hand up, helping her up onto her feet as the girl seemingly.

"You'll be fine- with your level of endurance those'll heal soon enough if you don't take any more hits." she said with a nod. Hanako had a very powerful body from what she could tell and as shinobi that were above human, someone like her would be able to passively heal their wounds without even thinking about it as the chakra that coursed through their veins sped up the bodies processes.

Mariya wouldn't baby her or feed into any fears the girl had and would asses her firmly with the same level of strictness any Black Ops operative would of applied in her day- though perhaps with more of a heart as she had prioritized Hanako over finishing off their foe... her biological father had made sure to instill that in her. Care for comrades came first over the mission- a direct contradiction to the ideological weapon-of-the-village upbringing Tada Banri had given her. Her thoughts lingered on this for a fleeting moment. She had no desire to be a tool to anyone ever, and felt probably Hanako felt the same.

"I guess you've never really suffered any crazy injuries but- now a days people get their arms back and all kinds of stuff. So long as your heart beats you'll be okay. I mean- they grew me in a test tube basically..." Mariya said as she shrugged, then looked back at the forest line.

"I'm thinking we should maybe do some investigation because the stories aren't quite adding up and I think we're dealing with people not spirits here... but take some time to catch your breath. I need to work on getting a better grip on a technique I've been training, in case we need it." Mariya said as she scratched her chin.

---

Though her father's genetics meant she was destined to be great at any nature release, Mariya's natural affinity was undoubtedly fuuton. She just had always been interested in Fuuinjutsu and similar techniques. Regardless, she could tell her Fuuton would be important during this mission if they were to stand a chance in beating whatever that spirit was. Based on her Sharingan alone the elemental body user was powerful and capable of Kage level attacks. A jounin and a chuunin would need a bit more oomph if they were to pull things off.

Similar to inner wind, Mariya started gathering the power of wind around her body. She’d carefully craft it about herself and build it up. Unlike inner wind though, this technique wasn’t meant to keep the wind there on her body. She took a deep breath as she walked away from Hanako and towards some trees. She’d modulate the power of her chakra, or control it rather, to be weak, and thens he gave it a try. Her goal with this technique was to make a bubble of wind around herself that pushed off with a strength in a complete orb.

She gave it a go as dirt and snow kicked up into the air around her and the branches of the trees around her rattled slightly, but her move wasn’t precisely 360 degrees as the branches directly above her didn’t move. Biting her lip se would give it another try. This time, she seemed to succeed as everything around her gently moved in the breeze.

The next step was to up the power of her move, which she decided to dub heavenly push. Taking a deep breath she channeled up her chakra and did it as the orb expelled around her. It grew and expanded with ferocious power, and then pushed out, cutting up the trees, the ground, kicking dirt and snow around, and everything. The orb traveled out with its wind for 15m before dissipating into nothing and striking upon the trees. Mariya panted slightly, then repeated the technique. She’d keep continuing it as she called out to Hanako.

”Go collect all the projectiles you threw you can. We’re going to need everything we have to beat that “spirit” if we meet it again” she said, though with some exasperated sounds as she tried again and again to master her technique.

Finally satisfied she’d stop.

405/400 for Heavenly Push

usedShow

nature/fuuton/heavenly push
D-Rank Ninjutsu
After the appropriate hand seals Mariya will expel an orb of wind from her body that expands out at [Control] speed and strength, pushing and cutting up anything in it's path at [Control] strength. The initial wind orb itself holds its form for 15 meters before fading into the area round it.

[HotelBravo]

Hanako took Mariya’s hand, and despite being usually blank faced a tiny smile was on display - gratitude for the small gesture. A helping hand was unneeded for Shinobi. Shinobi, who can go from prone to standing in less than a heartbeat. Hanako could do it too. Thats what made the gesture so meaningful for Hanako - the utter banality of it. Hanako stood and hopped back and forth between legs trying to get the sensation back.

"You'll be fine- with your level of endurance those'll heal soon enough if you don't take any more hits." Mariya said. Her cold tone didn’t bother Hanako, and the factual statement and expression was appreciated. "I guess you've never really suffered any crazy injuries but- now a days people get their arms back and all kinds of stuff. So long as your heart beats you'll be okay. I mean- they grew me in a test tube basically..."

”I’ve fought Dinosaurs in the Land of Stars, I got hurt a lot when I was first trying to do it, but I never felt scared because…” Because Chiaki had been there to tend and mother her wounds. Hanako didn’t add the part that she thought, but the smile faded back into the neutral expression. She just didn’t know what she was feeling and ergo could not express it properly on her face. She did miss Chiaki, a woman who had been a mother when Hanako had needed it. Taught her how to take care of herself in the Land of Stars and despite her elemental body to protect her she had died somewhere in a distant land among the Rock and Pebbles. It had been a brief life but it had been an amazing one, and Hanako couldn’t be forced to believe that it was any other way.

"I'm thinking we should maybe do some investigation because the stories aren't quite adding up and I think we're dealing with people not spirits here... but take some time to catch your breath. I need to work on getting a better grip on a technique I've been training, in case we need it." Mariya continued. She stepped to the side and began to practice her jutsu while Hanako switched back and forth between being an audience and taking care of her own wounds. Without a Sharingan, Hanako couldn’t see the way the chakra was dancing - only the effects. It seemed that she was repelling things from her body with just the power of the wind. She then tried it out again with a much stronger pressure. Hanako could feel her hair getting blown back in the wind as a result.

”Go collect all the projectiles you threw you can. We’re going to need everything we have to beat that “spirit” if we meet it again” Mariya seemed like she was ready. Hanako finished applying antibacterial ointments on the injuries and covering them with bandages to keep the dirt out.

Then she formed a series of hand seals and opened up her hand. *Jikiton • Draw. The Spent Senbon and shurikens, and kunai flew to her hand from their positions. Shinobi senbon were surprisingly durable, and so Hanako was glad to find that most of them had not wrapped from the impact. It seemed lighting wasn’t going to do damage to her weaponry like something with less rigidity would. Besides, they were made of metal and were excellent conductors. The weapons floated before her and she began t o organize them and place them back into the seals on her wrists, and she refilled the thigh holsters on her legs.

”I didn’t think to use a sensory technique during the fight, but if it is an elemental body shinobi instead of a spirit then that means they will have a core. A dense area of chakra. I’ve encounter multiple people with this property and they all had cores. I believe it should be a weak spot that even my shuriken can damage. I do have some sensory jutsu that can help me pinpoint it but it is hard to use those techniques under duress.Your wind jutsu looks like it will be effective against lighting as a defense. One tactical possibility is that you can ran defense while I locate the core and attack it. If you have any sensory jutsu that can quickly find the core that could change up the approach - I just need you to call it out and I’ll hit it with an attack.” Hanako got lost in thought for a moment, spilling out her thoughts in the way that Hanako did when she was too engrossed in whatever topic she was thinking about to exclude the outside world.

800/350 = +2 Willpower

[Taiga]

Mariya carefully watched the other girl as she practiced her technique. She was surprised to see Hanako utilize a simple jikiton technique and raise her arms only for all her projectiles to trickle back to her. It was... a very clever usage of an otherwise mundane jutsu. She was quickly coming to gain a high level of respect for the exceptional shinobi before her. Hmph.

"A core- you say?" Mariya paused and put her hand on her chin. Perhaps, if Hanako could help her find it or if her sharingan could they could destroy this "spirit" threat... but that would be far too easy. Mariya was lost in thought. "I think we should find out a little more though before we end it... Why are they here and how?" Mariya trailed off. This spirit who claimed to own this land brought many questions to her. Perhaps there were others like it- or it had allies. Perhaps not.

Mariya’s hands twitched as she began to tread forward, slowly. She was trying to generate fuuton chakra in it. She’d continue to channel all the while doing it with no seeming focus or attention put to it, but her body going to work all the same. Her eyes blinked once, revealing yet again their weird red color and kaleidoscope pattern. Her eyes looked at her hands.


”I guess we can only proceed and see…. Either way we were hired to do some ghost busting.” she said as she realized the chakra in her hand was moving the wrong way. She mumbled to herself as she let it go, then put her hand up once more, this time blades of wind starting to form as it whipped out in hs her hand until fondly a translucent rotating white blade of wind shimmered off of her hand. She waved in the air, thinking of how she could lunge this through a core.

Yeah, it’d do the trick. Most likely. She’d wave it about a bit as they walked forward, then pick up her pass as she moved more quickly towards the trees, while calling out to Hanako.

”Provide me as much cover as you can and lets get a lock on that core- but lets see if I can wean it first and get some answers…”

401/400 for nature/fuuton/gale blade

[HotelBravo]

"A core- you say?" Mariya’s hand went to her chin. She was considering Hanako’s words it seemed. Were they really that deep? Hanako had lived for some time with Chiaki before she had been forced to return to Kumogakure no Sato. She had grown to learn a great deal about what Chiaki had been able to do as a result of her close proximity. Her lack of a distinct form or function in her physique. She could manipulate her own being to be whatever she had wanted it to be. She was gifted with her chakra control and medicine. It wasn’t a surprise that she had used both to manipulate her form into one that was less vulnerable to such attacks. Mariya returned from her thoughts. "I think we should find out a little more though before we end it... Why are they here and how?"

”Food, Water, Clothing, Sleep, and Shelter. These are the 5 basic needs. An elemental body does not need sleep, clothing, or water. Food would likely be a power source instead of actual food, an elemental body still needs a power source to replenish their chakra. If this is a rogue shinobi or otherwise some bandit shelter would also be very likely as they would need a safe base outside of the great nations to operate out of. The final thing is possibly there could be here as part of a mercenary activity. Shinobi even rogue shinobi accept missions for money - like ourselves.” The information was just the basics. It really wasn’t anything that was new or anything that could be particularly useful to Mariya’s line of thinking, but Hanako went to the basics when asked why they would be here. It made sense that they would be meeting one of these needs that were essential to the human condition.

”I guess we can only proceed and see…. Either way we were hired to do some ghost busting.” Mariya seemed to come to the same conclusion of Hanako in the end - the basics were only conjecture and likely some complication. Hanako then bore witness to Mariya testing her chakra some what and formed a blae of wind in her hand. She waved it in the air, and Hanako winced at the odd sound it made. Violent air of chakra molding wind and air into a high pressure weapon slipping past the stale air that was gently sitting in place made a violently ripping noice, that wasn’t too far from the sound one heard when moving at high speeds. However this one was made while only the air was moving at high speeds causing it to make the noise that Hanako wasn’t finding herself too pleased with.

”Provide me as much cover as you can and lets get a lock on that core- but lets see if I can wean it first and get some answers…”

”I can do this.” Hanako answered. She followed Mariya’s lead as they continued on the path that the creature had departed to. She maintained her guard and maintained a careful awareness of the situation that was around her and the environment. ”Do you have any stealth or reconnaissance techniques?” Hanako felt that she didn’t need much to explain that she was more of a hammer than a delicate instrument of some kind. ”If we are to gather additional information we need longer range sensory techniques and stealth so we can observe and analyze the behaviors of the enemy. ”

Hanako because to step quietly to avoid making any noise. She put as little pressure as she could on her feet until she was able to exchange her weight without disturbing the natural world. She proceeded at a pace matching Miraya’s and yet one that allowed her to weave between the meager trees and mountain cover made available by the terrain to keep herself out of sight. She was wondering how one might be able to avoid sensors and also focus on a tecqhnieu like this one that allowed someone to move without being heard.

700/700 +2 Will Power

[Taiga]

Mariya gave a simple nod to Hanako's assessment, completely in lock and step with the logic and ideas put forth. She even liked the idea of trying to perform a little bit of reconnaissance first. If they could at least confirm whether or not this rogue shinobi was a lone actor or part of some bigger plan to upset the colonists by would be enemies such as Kirigakure, they'd have all they needed to proceed to the "removing the threat" phase of the mission.

Clearing her throat she put her hand up as the air around them lulled and both girls found themselves slightly levitating off the ground. Mariya's body also seemingly became encased in wind.

"I can make us quiet at least- but we'll have to use the trees and everything else if we're to do any better..." she noted. With a mighty leap she'd go up into the trees as her sharingan darted about the place. There were golden streams floating in the air- streams of the electricity that had diffused off the body of their opponent as it made it's escape not unlike a wounded animal bleeding out onto the forest ground.

"This way." Mariya said as she made her way through the trees, quietly, and with careful visual awareness of all around them.

---

Staggering as the door swung open the now "human" appearing body of a middle aged woman stumbled her way to the desk, clutching her side and arm. A bottle filled with pills was over to the side- struggling to take some then laying down they desperately tried to coax more chakra out, trying to reform their body fully.

Shinobi where here- shinobi had found her.... had disturbed her.

She just wanted to have peace.

Who were these Cloud Shinobi and why had they been sent here? Just like the rest of these louzy colonists they were coming to land they had no right to own, and while she realized she too had no right, she still wished to have the claims she staked first be respected.

SilenceShow

nature/fuuton/silence
C-Rank Ninjutsu
After the appropriate hand seals Mariya will cast a wind that levitates her and her allies within 30m that removes all drag, muffling noise and silencing them for up to 4 posts or until cancelled.

[HotelBravo]

Hanako followed Mariya through the wooded mountain side. Mariya was on guard and had used a technique to muffle their approach. Good. It was a pleasant feeling with the bubble of wind around her, cushioning her steps and reducing the drag to a degree. There was only so much speed one could obtain when trying to move stealthily, but the sensation was fun for a lack of a better word. If it was Hanako on the run, she would have known that it was inevitable that she would be followed and would have set traps. What kind of traps would a person make of lightning set? Hanako saw the glint of something metallic. She pressed her hand into Mariya’s chest to bring her to a halt before she accidentally triggered any of the traps that were on the way ahead. It was a delaying tactic to be sure but it was an effective one. It would alert the spirit of their approach and could potentially damage the two kunoichi.

Hanako weighed the options. What if they proceeded on a path that simply wasn’t one that could have been trapped. Above the treeline, but still low, and close to the trees. Hanako pointed up gesturing to her intention and formed handseals. She then drew out a hand full of shuriken and infused them with her magnet style chakra. *Jikiton • Hover Grip The shurikens now were hovering at Hanako’s discretion. She formed a rudimentary staircase that would allow the kunoichi to get above the tree line and above any traps, and additionally to move using the shuriken as steps. Hanako certainly had to reign in her pace a good deal, as her control was not quite high enough to keep up with her impressive explosive speed. With the matter of traps and alarms neutralized.

Hanako would move the shurikens creating steps for both herself and Mariya, and with Mariya’s wind nature jutsu adding an extra layer to silence they were able to approach closely. Hanako didn’t have much by way of expectation, but what she didn’t expect was that the hide out of the so called spirit was a some kind of temple. It was an ancient place, with an architecture that was very foreign to the mainland, but it was clearly old. It appeared to be made out of stone, and was mostly reclaimed by the environment so that it was essentially camouflage. If they hadn’t been led directly here they would likely never have found this place. The things that stuck out to Hanako were the statues of foreign gods. They weren’t the kami that were known so well, nor were they even the Genma. They were overgrown with moss, vines, and plant growth. Hanako lowered to the ground and examined a fallen statue. She pulled the vines and foliage freeing the statue of a woman, in pieces, but at one time it was clear that she would have been something glorious to behold.

What was the spirit doing in a place like this? She clearly wasn’t taking care of this temple. Was she just squatting? It might be worth checking this place out further, but not when there was someone who was still hostile towards them in this place somewhere. Hanako looked over to Mariya. Hanako’s own facial expression was blank as it usually was but she tilted her head to indicate that she was curious how Mariya wanted to proceed.

[Taiga]

Mariya nodded thankfully to Hanako for stopping her before she tripped any traps. Somehow she hadn't noticed it. It was also a quite clever usage of shuriken- and carefully using Hanako's steps the two would make their way further to and into the forgotten temple they had found. It was unkempt- something was odd about it. It was clear that this spirit likely wasn't really a spirit to this place and the working theory based on Hanako's observations and her own was that.... most likely, this spirit was just an elemental body person squatting.

With wind infused around her body and ready to strike, Mariya would suddenly perk her ears as she heard the sound of foot steps in a hall, around a corner from where they were.

Her eyes would dart back to Hanako.

Quietly she'd signal "non-lethal". If they could perhaps subdue and learn more about the spirit and this temple they could better aid the expansion into this new continent. From beyond the wall suddenly all noise would cease- the foot prints disappearing suddenly as if the spirit- assuming that's who it was had stopped existing. While the Sharingan could see many things, it could not see through walls.

What the he- before Mariya could mouth the full phrase suddenly lightning shot out of a metal pipe exposed in the ruins of the ceiling for both her and Hanako. Mariya tried to leap back as the lightning pierced through the wind effect of her body and tore through her left bicep and she fell back to the ground. Though she had avoided paralysis through her wind armor, her arm was injured and becoming numb.

Shit.

She began to channel her fuuton chakra- but would she be quick enough? Just as quickly as the lightning had exited the metal a body formed revealing the spirit itself. It raised its hands as lightning cackled about.

"Leave this land! I lay my claim to it!" it shouted. Mariya's eyes tried to focus- but whenever it seemed to use lightning the shape of its body fell out momentarily. Something was strange.

---
357 for + Control

[Taiga]

NotesShow

Hotel has quit Hanako/removed the character, so I am finishing this off solo

The lightning cackled through the air with enormous force as the spirit’s arms swung in wild motions delivering reprieve to the pair of Kumogakure shinobi. Mariya had been slow; too slow. Her sharingan a blaze as her eyes moved of their own volition capturing each and every spark and motion she was forced to watch every minute detail, yet incapable of doing anything to intervene, her mind imprisoned in the weakness that was her body. She did all she could to dodge out of the way of the continued blasts of lightning but with the slight tingle of the first hit and her already slowed state it was meaningless.

Drawing her final breath as her throat knotted upon itself, suddenly an arm grabbed her and flung her out of the way. Viewing the world in hundreds of frames per second she saw it all, every detail.

The young and small kunoichi had grabbed her and thrown her out of the way of the lightning storm as a flurry of shuriken and magnets expunged out of her and into the depths of the opponent. Yet still, the spirit’s lightning found it’s way straight into Hanako, sending her to her knees, her body shaking as she convulsed on the ground.

Her eyes seemed to move towards Mariya confirming her safety as her hand, against all the odds, rose in the air, her shuriken rising up with her.

Dusting herself off as the spirit prepared yet another attack, Mariya understood the risk Hanako had taken. The risk to protect the pair and complete their mission. Her shuriken were lightning rods and she had cleared a path for Mariya to deliver the striking blow.

”This land is no more yours…” she shuddered as yet again a brilliant armor of wind surrounded her body… ”As it is ours….” A second beautiful and violent layer of wind surrounded her body again, giving her a count of three. Her body itself seemed to almost glow green as it absorbed the essence of wind nature, and an element combining with her inner tenketsu itself and changing the properties of her body.

”Die!” the spirit screamed as it wretched itself and a storm of electricity shot out. Mariya’s eyes saw the trajectory, the frames. She closed them and took a deep breath as her body hurdled forward, leaping over the first lightning.

Time stood still as she weaved through the lightings throes; and straight for the path of shuriken and magnetism that had been created by Hanako. It was in this tunnel that she would be safe, and no amount of manipulation would touch her as the lightning would draw to the shuriken.

”My blood is fire…” she grumbled. ”My body stone…” her eyes opened ”My blood is water…” as she barreled towards the spirit. ”My heart born of fire…” ”My impulse lightning…” she planted her foot and wound back, as she swung her fist up into the belly of the spirit.

”And my spirit wind…”

Her fist collided with the spirit, the two layers of Wind almost immediately being consumed and destroying considerable amounts of the spirits body, who swung its arms to grip at her. Mariya activated her ten-fold seal as her body was suddenly surrounded in seals, sucking the energy of the monster within.

As it’s arms faded away, she carried through with her naked fist driving it into the core of the spirit, and as her fist collided, it did so with her spirit itself.

Imbued with the powers of the winds herself, what her fist did not break, suddenly the gashes and cuts of the passive of wind did, as the glass core began to shatter. But it did not break.

The spirit screamed out.

And Mariya released the energy of the seal, rocketing her fist through the glass as it exploded, lightning filling the room like a flash grenade as she stumbled back onto the ground, tossed nearly all the way to Hanako.

---
1017 for + Control

[Taiga]

…
…
…


Darkness turned to light as Mariya slowly opened her eyes to the world around her. To the side of her was Hanako; breathing. Seemingly okay. From what she could tell she had only been out for minutes. Pushing herself up to sit, as she rubbed the aches away from her head she took a deep breath and scanned the stone room of the temple. It had indeed been here for ages; perhaps centuries or millennia. A sign of seemingly extinct civilization and the gods they had respect… or perhaps feared.

And clearly the spirit had not been part of that equation.

She scratched her head as she peered over to the shattered core on the far side of the room. It sputtered about slightly on the ground, sparks every now and then flying out in the air as if whatever soul was in the core was not completely gone and was attempting to will a body back into existence- yet all the same did not have the energy or a core complete enough to do so.

She scratched her chin at the thought. They were, for all intents and purpose, exploring this new continent to fetch whatever lore, history, or findings they could. Even if her mission was to protect the colonists from spirits, there was something to learn here. Hanako’s words reminded her as much.

Her hand glowing with chakra as she reached into her side pouch and procured an inked brush, she walked over to the core. Perhaps she could do something to maintain whatever was left so that the fuuinjutsu and iijutsu corps could likely revive whatever this “spirit” was and gather intel. Tracing delicate ink over the core and placing it in the middle of a circle she drew on the ground, she put one finger to the apex of the drawing and then made a seal with the other, closing her eyes and focusing.

She could see the foreign chakra still there in the core, even if shattered and prevented from taking form. She could tell that that energy could be manipulated- yielded to her will with the correct formulas. Her chakra made it’s way through the ink as it modified it in her signature binary format, and slowly she enacted an encryption about the seal, and she continued on wars until finally she felt her way around the flow of chakra.

Intricately designed seals allowed her to control the channels in which chakra moved… to redirect it. It had unlimited potential she had used to service her empire and make long distance energy and communication possible… but it had even more potential in that she could very easily.

She envisioned the five elements as the seals coagulated into trigram patterns and pulled tight on the ground, shrinking and flowing onto the core itself. The core begin to spin and sputter, sparks shooting at in the lest shreds of resistance the core could give, but she tightened her hand seal, drawing her other hand into the fold as the two worked together.

Sweat flowed from her brow, but in the end, she succeeded in her new technique. The seals captured upon the core as it went dim, its light extinguished momentarily under the strangling girp of Mariya’s fuuinjutsu. This technique would seal chakra and keep it latent. It would be useful in a variety of situaitons, including stopping a core from exerting its body or further repairing itself.

With a deep breath she opened her eyes then picked the core up in her hand. Putting it into her bag, she took a moment to relax and look upon the room, making mental notes of what she saw. While she awaited Hanako to awake, she'd roam a little.

Perhaps the secrets of this land could help her further master her chakra control even. This mission so far had given her an opportunity to grow, and she assumed those opportunities would only come in this kind of adventure. As she wandered the halls of the temple she acutely looked out for anything that carried writing. Notepads, scrolls. No matter the language or who it was by, it probably had secrets. Of particular interest however was a scroll she found which she believed to belong to the spirit. It described the process of making ones self and elemental body- what their “spirit” must of been. Just a normal shinobi who gave up their humanity.

Her mind shuddered at the thought.

“Sealing one's soul into a core to become an elemental body is a complex and risky process that requires impeccable chakra control and deep knowledge of Fuuinjutsu.

First, the practitioner must create a suitable core, often a carefully designed crystalline or metallic object. This core must be capable of containing a significant amount of chakra and spirit energy without breaking.

Next, the practitioner prepares intricate sealing formulas around the core. These formulas serve as conduits for chakra flow and boundaries for containing the soul. Proper alignment of seals is critical, as any misalignment can lead to catastrophic results.

The practitioner must then perform a ritual to gradually transfer their soul into the core. This process involves deep meditation and precise chakra control to ensure a smooth transition. The chakra flow must remain constant, avoiding disruptions or surges that could destabilize the core.” She looked further, finding intricate designs of the seals and directions on chakra control.

Whilst she had no desire to follow suit of their tormentor of the day, it was of mild interest for sure. Interesting none the less.

Oh well.

When Hanako came too, she would take to exploring the rest of this temple along with Hanako, collecting any useful information along the way before returning to the people of the village to assure them their spirit problem had been taken care of.

With each new event, the Empire was growing on this new continent, thriving, and finding more of it’s mysteries. Mariya wondered, perhaps, if something long forgotten to the mainland could exist.

Something more powerful than Genma, or even Shinobi

Thread End

---
2000 + 2 control