I'm Born to Run

[Nick]

Like Oh Emm Jee.

As it turns out, Zekkas statistical allotment was quite low, despite being incredibly high for his age and rank, and so he really needed to improve that before it became an even bigger problem. Makes sense, right? His physicality was probably the weakest part to him, and luckily he just happened to have met a very physically strong woman named Mari the other day, and she like, totally dug him and wanted to hang out and stuff. And so it made a lot of sense for him to train with her, and it had nothing to do with the fact that he sorta kinda liked her, not at all. In fact to even say or think so would be improper. She was, for lack of a better term, a nobody, and he doubted his father would approve of such a relationship that couldn't hold beneficial relations with another clan, or at least a merchant family in Suna. He would be sought after by the time he turned fifteen, expected to become the suitor of a similarly politically placed woman.

All the same, the Shuudoushi boy had sent a letter to her home, and asked her to meet him in the same training field they had first met in, as such, the young man began his own trek to the field, nervously waiting on the spectator stands, abandoned in the current time of day, a light wind blowing a small amount of sand through the air, though nothing a native inhabitant of the grand deserts of Suna wouldn't be used to.

[ComicalNerd]

Mari hadn't expected to hear back from Zekka as soon as she did. Part of her honestly expected to never hear from her new friend at all. She hadn't made the connection that he was part of a higher class than her until much later, and realized at that point it was highly unlikely that they would be friends at all. He lives in a much different world from her after all.
The letter came as a huge shock, but she felt almost relieved. It's not like she has a crush on him or anything, god no that would be inappropriate, but she still has a new friend.
It didn't take long for her to mosey her way down to the training field where they had originally met, and see her Zekka sitting where she had first laid eyes on him.

[Nick]

Zekka had waited, having arrived early to his own meeting, as he usually did to most meetings, often uncomfortably so. In fact, if he wasn't the first one there, but was still overly early, he would often wait around the corner from the meeting place and only pop out five minutes before the designated meeting time, in order for it to be polite without being over-eager. Having been early, and with no direct way to tell the time from the field aside from the sun, he was almost worried she was late, or worse, not showing up at all, when in reality he'd just been waiting for far too long of his own accord. All the same, when she finally came into view, he was mostly speechless, having been twiddling his thumbs under his sleeves for several minutes, instead he looked up to lock eyes with her, his constantly changing hues meeting her own green set, and his throat went dry, his tongue becoming a salted slug.

"Ahh, Mari!" He was finally able to croak out after what felt like hours, his voice cracking as was common for boys his age, but all the same his cheeks took on a tinge of embarrassed pink, his eyes following suit with a dark purple color. He cleared his throat and swallowed a bit of saliva, attempting to fix the problem before speaking again. "Ahem, ahh... Forgive me." The spirit hosts voice came out as normal this time, his cheeks returning to their natural pale shade, eyes sliding down to a neutral blue-grey as he smiled, taking his hands out of his sleeves to bow as he approached her. "I thought you'd like to get some training done, and well... My Chuunin exam is actually only a few days away, so I figured if nothing else, this would be a good warmup." He admitted after a few seconds, feeling almost selfish as he spoke. "Would you mind giving me your all?"

[331/1500]

[ComicalNerd]

Mari smiled, hearing the light crack in his voice, but restrained from laughing. As she examined him, he seemed so nervous; his ever changing eye colors and flushed cheeks revealed the anxiety he was seemingly trying to hide.
As he stood and approached her, she managed a deep bow, "It's nice to see you again, Zekka-"
She listened intently as her rambled along, and a wide smile found its place across her face, "Of course, I would love to spar with you, after all, I believe I did offer after our last meeting-- This time we'll have to give it our absolute best. I don't know how much help I could possibly be, however, if I could, I would like to help you prepare as much as possible!"
With a laugh she sets down her canteen over by the spectator stands, "You chose the perfect day to spar too, the wind is so nice, and it's cooler than normal-- we should have a great match."
She wanders back over in front of Zekka and takes a moment to relax, opening her senses and relinquishing her total control over her own body, "Whenever you're ready, come at me--"

[193/1500]

Jutsu UsedShow

*[Skitter Step • Senses Open]
C-Ranked Taijutsu Stance
The main jutsu of the Skitter Step, Senses Open does exactly what the name states. The user takes a moment to focus their bodies, then releases it. While in this stance, the users sensory input is increased, allowing them to receive more information quickly. This causes a +2 in Taijutsu, and a +4 in speed, but a -3 in Ninjutsu and -3 in Control. This stance will remain in effect until deactivated by [Stop]. Practioners of this technique will find themselves fidgetting and constantly moving, which can make it difficult for them to use this style while on stealth missions.

Justsu EffectsShow

Taijutsu: 17 (15+2)
Speed: 9 (5+4)
Ninjutsu: 1 (4-3)
Control: 1 (4-3)

[Nick]

The young boy smiled at his companion, grateful to avoid the awkward pleasantries that often came with a meeting such as this, also happy to avoid any awkward stammering over trying to talk to a girl he had a bit of a crush on except totally not that totally wasn't a thing ahem. "Thank you, my friend." Dressed in a set of robes that was a light purple in color, interrupted by strokes of yellow in the shapes of lightning bolts, once again it appeared Zekka was not the most prepared for combat, however this was his preferred dress all the same, and in general it was better to fight in what you were comfortable in. One of his legs slid back, his feet turning to the side as he drew a line in the sand, his hands coming up in a traditional low fighting stance, though the boy held no true martial art to his name.

"Lets see if you learned from our last fight, hmm?" He spoke with a lightly playful tone to his voice, slowly advancing on his opponent now, rather than the sudden explosion of action he had participated in previously. He decided he was going to warm up, take things easy at first, and actually enjoy the fight rather than end it quickly. All the same, as he neared her, he would open up by suddenly dropping lower, performing a leg sweep, heel dragging along the warm sands as he aimed for her ankles, in attempts to throw her off balance, or perhaps just make her move.

[596/1500]