The Island of Keiko

[King of Cats]

It had been a long day of training so far. Renji was sweating profusely as he stood across the dojo from his rival. They were both wielding bone blades. The Bone Draw Dojo was a Kaguya specific Iado dojo in Kirigakure and only the most elite of all swordsman in the clan attended frequent trainings in the small class of swordsman. Renji had been a student of the dojo since before he was a genin and everything he knew was based on the teachings of his master, Seimei. Seimei was a powerful swordsman who was rumored to be able to cause hurricanes in the Hidden Mist by just waving his sword. Renji greatly respected his master and was training his absolute hardest today.

Standing scross from his rival Renji had his eyes narrows. He was judging the distance between them. Renji was allowed to use any Death Bone Pulse technique in his arsenal, as long as he didn't destroy the dojo. Seimei had watched him tear apart half of a swamp on one of the dojo's small islands they used to sparring. Renji was exceptionally talented and he wasn't shy to use the full extent of his powers when it came to winning. The Death Bone Reaper was a swordsman first, but beyond that he was also a talented user of ninjutsu. Renji also had venomous abilities bestowed to him thanks to his mother cursed seal, but he was forbidden from using those in simple trainings like this one.

Renji pointed his bone sword at his rival and began to ossify the tip of it. A small bead formed and Renji fired it at his opponent. Had it been poisoned Renji might have charged forward. A double strike was always good to throw off the opponent, and using venom made everything a touch hairier. However without venom Renji opted to take a less nuanced approach to the fight. Renji began swiping his sword back and forth, the bone bullets firing one after another at his opponent from the tip of his sword. In his white linen tunic Renji looked quite normal. This was a basic Kaguya swordsmanship technique. Renji had plenty of sword to fire off and he did so until the sword was just the size of a dagger.

While the bullets came flying at his opponent the Kaguya named Satoshi he was ready. Using his sword the man deflected each bullet to the ground in a swift fashion. The two of them seemed to be playing music in a band with the level of coordination they were displaying. Renji didn't let up and Satoshi quickly worked up a serious sweat. The man was quite a bit older than Renji and had lots of experiences over the boy, however Renji was simply a better swordsman and had natural talent beside him. Renji fired his last bullet and then tosse dhis sword handle to the ground. Satoshi charged him.

Renji knew that his opponent favored strikes from behind and prepared himself for a fake out. Renji rolled his hips and began forming a tail out of his backside. It was segmented like a spinal column and had a fearsome jagged tip at the end. It was sure to keep Satoshi from charging his back and Renji had just enough time to form another sword while Satoshi backed off and prepared to charge once more.

When Satoshi dashed forward he had his sword sheathed and Renji knew what to expect. He had formed a sword out of his knee cap and held it laxidasically in his hands before him. Renji was on the defensive.

Satoshi suddenly slashed at a great distance, covering the five meter distance with a leap. Renji didn't see it coming but his reflexes were like a cats. Renji deflected the blow with his sword and rolled forward. The tail he had formed furled up to his body and Renji landed deftly on his feet. Reaper drew his sword at Satoshi's waist and ended the battle. It was clear he had finished it off and Seimei, his master, began clapping for the both of them.

"You did good Renji, and Satoshi. Excellent work you two." Seimei was always a supportive guy, although the femalestudents often claimed he was a bit too much into their business. Seimei had a long mustache and beard, with no hair on his cheeks but a long chin beard that matched his long whisokers. Seimei was unusually missing some teeth, which was strange for a Kaguya. His long white hair was held back in a pony tail and he looked especially frail for what he was said to be capable of. Despite his meek appearance Renji greatly respected him and bowed as he was talked to by his senpai.

"Now you two. We know that Renji is the superior, that is without question. Satoshi, you must still strive to be your best. The ebst is not always the victor, and there is always someone better. Now Renji, I have new special training for you to embark on. You will take a ship to the small village of Keiko on a remote island in the northern seas of Water Country. There you will find a group of my students who can teach you about the Kaguya's Death Bone Dances. There are five basic ones for you to learn, and one advanced technique. I do not expect you to master these techniques, they are highly guarded maneuvers of Death Bone Pulse and require years of practice to master. However, learn from the people, discover their culture and grow as a person so that you can bring something worthy of the Bone Draw Dojo name." Seimei turned back around and when he was at a distance he called to his two students, "Now, again." The training never stopped in the Bone Draw Dojo.

A few days later Renji left his slave, a girl named Sakura, home alone to watch his things. Despite being incredibly young Renji had business on a farm for his house and he was a relatively important ninja to the Kaguya clan. It was expected the house remained in pristine condition so the slave would be left to clean and tend to Renji's cats.

On the boat to Keiko Renji found himself e joying the seaside mist of salty water. Renji traveled by sea often. To find places that had spirits that Renji could devour he had to get used to traveling as a child. It was very rare for a spirit be weak enough for Renji to subdue it on his own, though he did as he got older. Instead of battlign spirits and devouring them, the Kaguya clan had long since proffered fortunate relationships in Kiri with villages of Water Country who offered the clan spirits. Most of the spirits had been weakened and sealed up by ascetics of the villages, though sometimes shinobi or even samurai stabbed the spirits to death before Renji got to taste them.

On this voyage, though, Renji didn't have to worry about ethical treatment of spirits affecting his tastebuds, or worse, rampant spirits attacking him. Instead he was simply traveling the country for some trianing and that felt liberating to him. Renji stood by himself on the deck of the boat and took in all the grandeur. He was usually quiet and somber but he had half a smirk on his face in the morning light.

When Renji arrived he wasn't surprised to find the village somewhat "living in the stone age." They didn't use any technology like radios; instead they were all highly adept people with chakra control. Most of the villagers could utilize Fuuinjutsu to some degree and Renji was opleasantly surprised to be there among such gifted people. The ratio of people who could use chakra to normal people was stark, but seeing places like this gave Renji hope for the world.

Reaper walked through the village with his hands in his sleeves and didn't talk to anyone. His boat captain was paid to take him to the dojo and the fat, bearded man did just so. Renji walked happily with him to the compound and even gave him a small tip for his services.

Renji didn't know what to expect at this dojo but he kenw he had worked a long way to get here. Ever since he was old enough to form a sword out of his knee bone Renji had been training hard to get where he was. Renji was an excellent swordsman who used complex ingenuity to attack his opponents in way they would never see coming. He was incredibly intuitive and could read his opponents body like a writer double checking their rough draft. Renji could make an opening out of a turtle shell and he had proven himself in combat many times before. He was a hardened killer by the time he hit double digits and nothing would slow him down.

Standing at the gates of the complex Renji noticed it was incredibly run down. The whole place looked like it hadn't been maintained in years, the shrubbery was overgrown and so was the grass. There were tree's with broken branches all over the place and Renji couldn't help but wonder why the dojo was so poor. In his experience dojo's were pretisgous and typically honored by the people of Kirigakure. The militant minded expected dojo's to be a representation of the style they taught. But Renji couldn't help but think this place looked more like an abandoned school yard than anything. Never the less Renji pushed on into the dojo to get himself a proper education.

OOCShow

WordCount: 1610
Training:

800/800
*[Iaido • Shinigami Draw]
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Losing the use of one's hand or arm in a fight can be a death sentence, but Iaido has found a simple, elegant response to this desperate situation. Using their free hand, the practitioner momentarily braces the edge of their sword against the inside of the scabbard before drawing. While it does not confer the instant acceleration benefit of its parent technique, this Discipline does allow the practitioner to use Iaido techniques at their normal speed even with only one hand.

800/800
*[Iaido • Ancestral Visage]
C-Rank Taijutsu Discipline
Using Iaido to its fullest requires a keen eye and quick reactions, enabling its users to target weaknesses and openings that their opponents present almost instantaneously. This Discipline represents the practitioner's ability to attack openings that present themselves, the practitioner now able to reflexively attack an opening in almost the same moment that it is observed. This Discipline reduces the gap of time between a practitioner recognizing a potential opening for attack and launching the attack to exploit said opening to almost nil.

[King of Cats]

Walking through the doors of the dojo was not what Renji expected. The Bone Draw Dojo was this dojo's sister, and it was magnanimously built with bone floors and bone columns. It had deep maroon colored walls, painted with the finest dyes and tapestries hung from all of the walls, heralding the dojo's accomplishments and ties. This dojo however, it was a low hanging ceiling and drab cyan colored walls. The wallpaper was falling off and the floors were made out of marble. It was not the ideal dojo by any means, but Renji trusted his master Seimei and walked through the dojo to find it's master.

Walking around the dojo Renji saw a few students cleaning up the rooms that comprised the training hall. They were mostly young Kaguya, though there were a few slaves that were bustling around too. Renji thought it was unusual to have slaves in such an honored place, at least so regularly. He tried to make a mental note of it, but when he did he was suddenly welcomed by an old woman.

"Hello. You must be Renji. I can tell by that city folk attire. You have found the right place, my boy. Come over here." Renji turned around and saw a small, frail, old woman. She had long, thick white hair and he eyebrows were long too. She seemed to have her eyes closed and was missing some teeth. She actually looked a lot like Seimei. Renji started wondering if they were siblings when the woman started speaking again. "I know what you must be thinking, and yes I'm Seimei's younger sister. My name is Reiko. Seimei and I grew up in the same home. We started in the same dojo, this one actually." Reiko pulled her fingernails to her chin and started itching. "So you must have questions. Let's go to my office." Reiko waved Renji to follow him and started walking out of the room she had found the young teenager in.

In Reiko's office the old woman sat behind her desk. She sat in a red, felt rocking chair. It was unusual to see such furniture behind a desk but the short woman didn't seem to mind it and Renji didn't say anything. Reiko stared at Renji and asked, "So what brings you to my dojo?"

Renji cleared his throat and replied to the old woman, "Well first Ms. Reiko I want to thank you for having me. It's an honor to meet Seimei's sister." Renji reached into his pocket and pulled a small scroll out of it. "This is a Death Bone Pulse Technique that i specially designed. It's called the Lashing Spinal Tap. It's a perfect technique for binding targets without them suspecting. I want to offer it to your dojo." Renji placed it on her desk and paused for a moment. Reiko grabbed it and then reached down underneath of her desk. She pulled out a box of scrolls and gently placed Renji's scroll inside. She left the box sitting on the table.

"So, what else." Reiko flatly said to Renji. She was only mildly impressed by Reaper's cool politeness.

Renji coughed again, this time out of an awkward desire to speed up this encounter. "Well I have worked hard for many years to become Seimei most prodigal student. I know all of his forms, and stances, and disciplines. I am very skilled as a swordsman, and I am also talented with Death Bone Pulse jutsu. If you would look at the scroll.." Renji scratched the back of his head. "Anyways.. I've come to be taught the Death Bone Dances." Renji put his palms on the table and stared deeply into Reiko's squinted eyes.

The old woman just stared back at Renji, her eyes not opening in the slightest but somehow seeing him. She thought hard about what he said and silence sat in between the two of them for a long second. It didn't take long for her to decide. "Very well kid. I trust my brother. This scroll," she rummaged through her box and pulled out one sealed with a red wax stamp. "Take this. It's the first dance. Dance of the Camilla This scroll will give you the basics of the technique, once you master that you can present your so called talent to me and we can further your training. Practice in these halls, I will watch you." Reiko dismissed Renji with her hand.

Without a word Renji stood up and the bowed to Reiko. He exited the office and went straight back to the training hall to practice what was sealed inside of the scroll. Renji had no idea what was inside of that scroll. He sat on a metal folding chair and laid the closed scroll on the table. Renji peeled the wax seal off and unraveled the scroll.

As soon as Renji opened the scroll light began pouring out of the ink embedded on the paper. Renji's eyes were naturally drawn to the light show and as he watched he was placed under a strong genjutsu. Renji could feel a heavy weight on his back and then suddenly Seimei was before him. The two of them were in a dark room, but the light shown on Seimei. Renji was completely in the dark and he had no idea what was going to happen next.

Seimei pulled a bone sword out of his arm and stabbed it forward, then he disappeared. An after image was left behind and Renji tried to tackle it but the weight on his shoulders was too heavy. Seimei suddenly reappeared and stabbed at Renji, this time stabbing him before flash stepping away again. This happened dozens of times before Renji got the idea of the technique. He broke the Genjutsu by snapping one of his bones. After mending it Renji began reading the scroll.

The technique was fairly simple, but it required great speed to pull off and delicate control of the sword. Renji was certain he had what was required and set off to practice the first dance of the Kaguya's, the Dance of the Camellia.

Renji didn't know it but this was only just the beginning of what would be some of the hardest training he would ever endure. Reiko may no have shown it but she was already cooking up plans for Renji. The young ninja was talented, so much so that Seimei had spoken of his skill with Reiko in letter they delivered to each other by seagull. The boy was undoubtedly the best swordsman in the Kaguya, but whether or not he had the skill to master Death Bone Pulse remained to be seen. Of course he would be pushed to the limits before he found out if he had it in him, and Reiko would be an unforgiving master; but Renji had an unwavering resolve unlike any before him. He had it deep in his heart that he would persevere through any obstacle. Nothing would strike him down as long as he worked his hardest.

With unshakable will Renji sat at the table and began molding chakra. He knew he would need to be prepared for an exhaustive display of his skill. Nothing was going to get in his way though, Renji believed in himself and he had already come so far there was no way he was going to let himself down.

Renji didn't know it completely but he had a great power on his side. When he was training personally with Seimei Renji managed to tap into the dormant natural energy of his Cursed Seal of Paradise. By infusing the natural energy with his own chakra Renji manifested a great power through a strong chakra cloak. That was only the beginning however. Through these training sessions his body would adapt to the flow of natural energy in his body, exercised by strong chakra flow. Renji was soon to awaken a mighty power within him and no one but Reiko could have guessed it.

In fact that was the true reason why Seimei had pushed for Renji to travel to the island of Keiko. He could have easily taught Renji the Dances of the KAguya. They were secret jutsu, but like many secret techniques Seimei had long since mastered them. The real reason why he sent his disciple to his sister was simple. Reiko was a sage. She had long since acquired the powers of Monkey's from Shikotsu Jungle. Reiko was well versed in the manipulation of natural energy and Seimei hoped that by training with a Sage Reaper would also awaken mighty powers. Renji had so much potential, Seimei knew with proper tutelage he would make his dreams a reality. Seimei believed in Renji.

As Renji was molding chakra Reiko watched him from the hall. Renji saw her but didn't pay her no mind. She was watching Renji with her sensory powers, observing the flow of natural energy within his body. Renji had a lot of dormant power, but what truly intrigued Reiko was how still it seemed to be while he agitated his chakra network by moulding chakra. Renji truly piqued her curiosity and she watched the cursed seal on his neckbecome visible as his power began flaring up. He was like a walking bomb of natural energy and Reiko loved to see it. She clapped her hands and gave Renji a thumbs up before walking off.

The Monkey Sage planned to teach Renji much about natural energy. In fact he had many lessons ahead of him. He had to master Iado, Death Bone Pulse, Living Bone Hunger, Mist, and who knew what else. Renji was certainly being worked but he lvoed the workout. He was not standing by the table going through handseals and priming his body for an extreme workout.

OOCShow

WordCount: 1639
Training:

800/800
~Death Bone Pulse • Mend
C-Ranked Taijutsu
The user causes the bones injured to ossify, completely fixing minor breaks and fractures over the course of a single post.

800/800
~Death Bone Pulse • Dead Bone Shackles
C-Ranked Taijutsu
The user is able to form a layer of bone on their palm then make a throwing motion, launching it through the air. This bone will attempt to wrap around the target's wrists, keeping them close to each other and restraining the target with the user’s strength.

[King of Cats]

For the coming weeks Renji practiced what he read on the scroll. The Dance of the Camellia was extremely difficult. First the user had to draw a sword from their body, Renji had long since grown accustomed to crafting bone blades from his knee bone or spine so that was no problem for him. The actual act of the swordsmanship was certainly difficult, even for an adept like himself.

The Dance of the Camellia began with a simple downward slash of the sword, and then it became a truly difficult technique. Using years of mastery over Iado, Renji was used to torquing his body to produce extreme instances of speed and power, but the required output he needed to exert was unreal. Renji would practice the first downward stroke over and over again, finding the proper placement of his feet to twist into the next movement of this Kaguya dance.

Once Renji had finished his cleaving arc of the sword he would quickly double back and create a 5 meter distance between him and his target. That was simple enough to plan, but the required speed and strength it took to pull off such a feat was unbelievably difficult. While backstepping Renji would have to create an after image of himself through sheer willpower, then with the distance between him and his target he would lunge forward and strike again, moving so fast as to create multiple after images. While these after images seemingly lung forward and attack, using his extreme speed, Renji was expected to make some of the phantom blows hit. The whole technique was incredibly exhaustive, but when it was executed properly the effect was stupendous.

Unfortunately for Renji it had been weeks of him training and he was barely able to create a second after image. Torquing his body proved to be incredibly difficult, as the speed he needed to accumulate could usually only be achieved in a sprinting fashion. For this technique he had to pack all of his power into creating an after image. It was hard for Renji, but with some practice he was able to form one. Renji stayed day and night in the training hall, practicing and pushing his way through his own limits. Renji believed he could do it, and at first he had some success, but it seemed he was at an impasse now. Renji just wasn't fast enough to keep multiple after images in the air. He would need to step it up.

One day Renji was seen by Reiko, leaving the island of Keiko by way of boat. He assured her he hadn't given up on his training, but wanted to visit a friend of his in a nearby village. Where Renji was heading was only a four hour voyage and he promised the old woman he would be back before duck. She didn't quite know what was going on in her newest students mind, but Reiko was familiar with the struggle that Renji was enduring. It was incredibly hard for Reiko to achieve speeds like that which were required for the Dance of the Camellia. She, of course, simply trained for five years to get the skills she needed. Renji on the other hand, he had a different scheme in mind.

As a ninja Renji was very familiar with the application of Fuuinjutsu. When he was eight years old Renji managed to achieve his first class A example of the sealing arts of ninja. Renji had worked very hard, spending two years studying the proper penmanship required to create sealing tags. It was at the academy that he had been enrolled in Storage Fuuinjutsu classes. Renji was incredibly talented, and among those talents came with him an astounding chakra control. Renji could focus his chakra with natural ease that generations only saw once. He was unbelievably talented and proved to be able to perform the Hidden Mist ninjutsu by the time he was seven years old. Renji did good at what he did, and his instructors encouraged the boy to expand his horizons. Renji was destined to take up the art of Fuuinjutsu.

At first the classes proved to be a lot of history. Renji learned about the various types of fuuinjutsu, he learned about the different ways fuuinjutsu can be sealed, what can be sealed, and most importantly how to seal chakra. Renji was a natural, as always, and picked up on the concept with ease. When it came to conceiving his very first Fuuinjutsu Renji knew exactly what he wanted to do. As a prodigy student he had impressed his teachers early on in his ninja career by being able to perform the Hidden Mist ninjutsu. To seal it inside of a paper tag, Renji thought that would most definitely be a feat worthy of the title of genin. He had spent two long years practicing the calligraphic strokes that were necessary of a ninja to create a seal, and it was time to put that practice to use.

Once Renji had crafted the seal it was up to him to seal the jutsu. Unfortunately the Hidden Mist jutsu was very large and Renji would need to condense the required chakra for the jutsu, that was hard but he figured it out with some practice. Of course he had tore the seal he first crafted, a product of repeated failures. When he had a second one ready he tried to put some of that exemplary chakra control to use and shrink the chakra cost of his Hidden Mist jutsu to fit inside of the seal. With that done it was just a matter of moulding the chakra at such a miniscule level into the form of the proper jutsu. Renji nearly passed out twice trying to get his handle on the chakra he was moulding. He wasn't even ten years old yet.

With some trial and error Renji achieved his goal and passed the class with flying colors. He was an official sealing ninja and he was proud of himself.

Now of course he was much more proficient with Fuuinjutsu, though on this day he would need a specialist; and Renji had just the friend in mind. Among his travels searching for spirits to devour, Renji had come across a small village in the west waters of Water Country. This village was home to a spirtualist named Genki. An old made who spent much of his life hunting spirits, Genki had came to Renji hoping to cure his village from a dastardly woman demon, Tsukamushin. Tsukamushin was a spirit of vengeance and kidnapped children from their beds. After a long battle Renji was able to devour her and make Tsukamushin a part of his army, but it came at a great risk to Genki. The old man had helped Renji seal part of the spirits body in chains so that he could approach her, but in the battle Genki lost both of his eyes. Luckily Renji was able to save him with quick thinking and quicker actions. Genki was incredibly thankful and offered Renji anything he had. Renji was modest though and promised to recieve the kindness when he needed it.

That day had come, and Renji sailed the sea to find Genki once again.

When Renji entered Genki's home it was incredibly clean for a blind man's home. Renji wondered if he had a servant in the village take care f the place for him, but he didn't waste any time with small talk. "Genki, I've come to you to ask for a favor. You see, I am training a very difficult technique. I need to break my physical limitations. I know you said you would be willing to help me, and you are a master of fuuinjutsu. Is there anything you can do for me Genki? Please sir?" Renji was especially formal and humble with what he said. Genki was a particular man, but Renji had earned his respect so all of that was unnecessary to him.

Genki explained to Renji what he could do to help him. Genki explained that there was a seal known as the Hundred Strength Seal that could help Renji. It was a seal dedicated to conserving chakra for explosive use in taijutsu. Genki explained he knew how to place the seal on someone, but it would likely draw much strength from Renji in the beginning. The seal would temporarily weaken him while it gathered chakra from his body and stored it for later use. Genki didn't suggest the Hundred Strength Seal though. He did say that it would make his physical strength greater, but the effect could also be achieved by simply training hard. Renji simply could not wait and asked Genki for that favor.

The seal was placed on Renji's two palms. Typically it went on the forehead, but due to Renji's strange spiritual composition Genki was forced to divide the seal into two functional pieces. This offered Renji all of the benefits of the Hundred Strength Seal, and gave him a unique functionality too. While typically the seal simply stored chakra for later, with it being divided into two meant Renji could operate this function in two parts. He could also open a flow of chakra consumption for his body to feed on, which granted him enhanced regenerative properties. The Hundred Strength Seal proved to be a fine addition to Renji's arsenal and he thank Genki a million times before he headed back to the island of Keiko.

It took him a few months to recover but in that time Renji practiced with understanding the seal that had been placed on him. It would take some time for the seal to take effect, but that was time well spent practicing how to use the seal for healing. Meanwhile Reiko watched her student, waiting for him to unveil the fabled Dance of the Camellia.

As he recovered from the seal's placement Renji continued practicing the Dance of the Camellia. With the added boost of strength from the Hundred Strength Seal he was able to achieve some degree of application of the technique, but he knew it would take practice before he mastered it. Nevertheless the prodigy felt comfortable presenting the technique to Reiko. He headed into her office early one morning with a very serious look on his face. Renji was determined to get to the next level of the clans sacred Dances. He had spent the last six months living on the island, practicing every day, it was time he got some recognition for what he had accomplished.

Unfortunately for Renji he had not quite mastered activating the seal. He couldn't do it in bursts yet, which meant it was a serious drain on his body to keep it going throughout the whole use of the technique. Nevertheless he was determined to show Reiko what he had accomplished and master the technique in record time. After explaining the process of training he went through, as requested by old lady Reiko, Renji led her to the training hall where he would show her the technique.

Standing before he Renji bowed, then he bend over and took a knee, from which he drew a long bone sword out of. The sword was thin and noticeably sharp. Renji worked hard to craft a perfect weapon for his display. With a dash Renji slashed forward and activated his Hundred Strength Seal. The power of his chakra flooded his body and Renji torqued his body backward. With a quiet "skrrrt" of his feet Renji doubled back and left an after image. He could already feel the strain of the seal wearing on his body. Renji darted forward and left another after image, slashing the air in front of him. He did this about a dozen times, leaving illusory clones of himself attacking the thin air before him.

Renji had perfectly executed the technique, but it had cost him gravely. Renji was downright wore out from the seal he activated and when he had completed the technique he fell tto his knee once again. The sword he was wielding dropped to the ground and Reiko was clapping. "Very good Renji, you did what took me five years, in just six months! A true prodigy! Congratulations! Now! Stand up!" Reiko wasted no time leading Renji back to her office where he would get his second scroll.

OOCShow

WordCount: 2066
Training:

(1200/1200)
Death Bone Pulse • Dance of the Camellia
B-Ranked Taijutsu
The user will either draw a blade made of bone from their body, or use one they have already created. With a 25 meter dash the user comes full speed forward and slashes with their blade, then they turn on their heel with all of their speed and double back five meters. With extreme effort the user creates an after image of their body, attacking and doubling back. They repeat this process 6 times, leaving 6 after images striking their opponent. While the after images strike the user flash steps between them and surprises their victim with a series of strikes. In order to see through the after images a Perception technique of equal strength is required.

(800/800)
*[Iaido • Death’s Gate]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite(s): 15 Speed.
Drawing upon the superlative speed of Iaido, the practitioner momentarily torques the muscles in their body to draw their sword from its scabbard and deliver a blindingly fast slash before sheathing their blade. Properly reading this attack requires the opponent to have a Perception technique of equal or higher rank than this technique. Otherwise, they cannot accurately read the attack and will be unlikely to completely avoid the attack, if at all.

[King of Cats]

Reiko followed Renji into her office. It was a dimly lit room full of paper walls to seperate it from the hallway that connected it to the training hall. Reiko walked exceedingly close to Renji's feet and he couldn't help but wonder just what kind of fire was lit under her robe. Renji tried to walk faster but the old woman was occasionally stepping on his heel no matter how fast he went.

Eventually Renji made it to the office and he let out a cough, then he said to Reiko, "After you ma'am." Renji was always a polite young man, even in times when it was more favorable to let someone know what he thought of them. Renji was somewhat disturbed by the way Keikeo had been rushing him. The old woman mumbled a soft "thank you" and proceeded to rummage through the scrolls that she had previously set before Renji. There was a thick film of dust covering most of the box and many of the scrolls inside of it. There was no top to the box, and from the looks of it it hadn't been touched in the last six months since Reiko gave the first Kaguya Dance to Renji. She heaved it onto the table where she did her paperwork, letting out a soft squeak as she plopped it down. It was a pretty heavy box. Renji stayed standing up and leaned overtop of the box to get a peak inside.

Reiko spoke to her student in a noticeably more favorable tone than she had previously done. She had a sort of happiness flowing from her and Renji noticed it was definitely something he had done. He figured he had impressed Reiko with his show of skill, and he was right. Renji decided to get a little brave with his sensei as he was peaking over the box, and she started talking to him. "Young Renji, you did well. You went great lengths to achieve your goal, and I must say, I am proud that Seimei pushed you in my direction." Reiko reached her old hand into the box. Her skin was pale white and Renji noticed for the first time the old woman painted her nails purple. Renji's favorite color was purple, but he didn't say anything. He merely kept it to himself and continued listening to his sensei. "Now, the next dance. Before I tell you about this one, I want you to know it's one of the most difficult techniques I can teach you. This dance features a complex creation methodology that can only be attained through natural skill. Not everyone of my students can perform this technique properly, and as such there have been many delinquent techniques forged in the attempt to achieve this Dance's beauty." Keikeo handed the scroll to Renji. "This Dance is called Dance of the Clematis: Flower. This technique is but one part of a whole maneuver, but certainly the most difficult to achieve. The next Dance will be of a similar learning curve, but with this technique mastered I believe you can perform the Breakthrough maneuver. It will certainly take skill, Renji. I believe you have it. Your bone sword is of exceptional quality, of which I expect no less from Seimei's greatest student."

With the scroll in Renji's hand, Reiko reached into the box and began rummaging for another. She spoke while she did so. "Now, I'm not unreasonable. To learn the Clematis: Flower, you will be best suited to practice another technique. I'm sure you are familiar with this technique, it's Seimei's signature move in a swordfight. Ten Finger Drilling Bullets."

When Reiko told Renji that he would be learning his senpai's signature technique his eyes lit up with stars. Renji had always wanted to learn the Ten Finger Drilling Bullets technique. Seimei had always told him a day would come, but he had no idea just what exactly the old man meant by that. It seemed all of his training was truly paying off. Renji was practically drooling when he heard this, and he had an unusual smile painted on his face. Renji didn't often smile, but this was a rare occasion.

Looking down and into the box, Reiko didn't see Renji's star struck look. As she talked she reminisced of her brother and she had a soft whisper to her elderly voice. "I'm sure you saw him fire the bullets many times. He was always inventive with the technique. I think you can do it, you got skill. He wouldn't have placed you with me, or forced you- eh?" Reiko looked up and saw Renji's daydreaming face. He looked quite unusual, smiling and glossy eyed. He was struck by a strong desire to thank Reiko, but he couldn't talk or move as he dreamed about himself firing the finger bullets. "Anyways kid, here ya go. Practice that technique and then I think you will be able to grasp the Clematis: Flower." Reiko handed her pupil the second scroll and without another word she waved him off. The earlier fondness she had in her voice seemed to leave her, but she had high hopes for Renji and set him off with her best wishes.

As it would prove that day, Renji had his work cut out for him. To utilize the Ten Finger Drilling Bullets technique he required an expert skill with ossifying the bones in his fingers. These were, of course, the most difficult of all bones to ossifying. Next to maybe the toes, or perhaps the ear bones. Renji had actually never considered ossifying his ear bones before the very moment he realized it was incredibly difficult to produce bullets from his fingers. This scroll didn't have an enchantment tied to it so when Renji started learning he was doing it au naturale.

The Kaguya never expected he would be challenged so finitely with ossification. He had always been pretty good at whatever he did. Renji could form sword bones by the time he was seven years old, and by eight he was a skilled trainee with them. Crafting had always come liek second nature to Renji, he had never been truly challenged. There were some hard techniques like Dead Bone Shakles, which were formed on the hand but not from exactly the phalanges. He was able to use those techniques with skill, and he learned most of them before he hit double digits. This was something entirely different.

To craft a bullet from his bones Renji needed to focus chakra into his phalanges, but differently than when he was moulding chakra for hand signs. This came fairly earily to REnji, he had crafted tens of thousands of swords in his lifetime, he knew what to do and how it felt. As the bones began to ossify it was up to him to control the ossification so that his fingers didn't lock up. Then was the actual formation of the bullets. They needed a cone shape with spiral grooves so that they properly soared through the air. This was hard, but doign it ten times was even harder. Renji started with just one finger.

It was a painfully slow process for Renji to endure but as the weeks went on he was able to create suitable, not perfect, bullets from each finger. Next he had to learn to fire them which proved to be incredibly difficult too, but with practice he learned how to shoot one finger at a time. The technique was proving to be incredibly draining. The way Seimei had artfully employed with in tandem with his bone sword, REnji would have never guessed the technique required so much chakra. Renji had to take lots of breaks. These breaks included lots of naps, but he was lucky to get himself a delicious meal too.

Due to the All-Killing Ash Bone procedure that cured Renji of his ossification at birth he had a singular scar on his forehead. He was different from other Kaguya. Renji didn't have two red circles on his forehead, just the one. It was also bigger than most Kaguya's, but it was just as meaningful to Renji as any others would be. Renji painted it every morning with sacred red paint that came from the pollen of a rare lotus flower.

Part of being different from the All-Killing Ash Bone procedure included Renji being unable to eat normally. Where most KAguya's body remained untouched by the modern procedure of the Kaguya's, that one which removed the rare bone ossification disease the clan is born with; Renji's physical form was vastly altered while under the knife. For one Renji's tenketsu system had been rearranged, and he actually had twelve less tenketsu than the normal person, with large points occupying certain parts of his body. For two Renji's procedure wsa not able to completely prevent the ossification of his body. Renji's stomach turned to hollow bones.

Fortunately Renji was able to provide life energy to his body through devouring other bodies, that being spirits. By devouring a spirit he could harvest it's life energy for his own and live off the body of the spirit inside of his hollow-bone stomach. Thanks to the tie this gave his body to the spirit Renji was able to use tenkujutsu to summon the spirit for battle too, a favorable trait to the KAguya clan and the reason for Renji's uniqueness.

While training the Ten Finger Drilling Bullets technique Renji was feeling aprticularly exhausted. It had been a few months since he ate, and he figured it was about time. Renji had been saving a spirit for him ina scroll. It had been weakened and placed under a paralysis fuuinjutsu. All Renji had to do was eat it live, and he happily did so. It tasted like anchovies.

For days Renji woudl experience a vitality burst from eating, and with that energy he practiced fervently the technique known as Ten Finger Drilling Bullets. Eventually he was skilled enough to properly perform the technique, with a bit of a twist. Where he had been taught to fire the bullets all at once, Renji learned to carefully flick the bullets one at a time, maximizing aim. He named the new technique "Ash Bone Drilling Finger Bullets." Renji was incredibly happy to make his master's technique his own, and he expected that once day he would surprise his senpai with the ultimate bullet technique.

With the precursor technique mastered in just a month Renji was feeling confident. He didn't know what exactly the scroll had in store for him, but he was certain that he would master the Dance of the Clematis: Flower.

Renji had no idea how difficult this task would be. The dedication it would take him to achieve the mighty lance of the Clematis was only granted by the gods once in a generation, but Reiko hadn't told Renji that. She had suggested it, but she didn't want to burn out Renji's star. Reiko knew if she put faith into young Renji he would grow like a flower under the sunlight. She could see the darkness that surrounded Renji, in the way that he danced with his blade it was obvious to her that Renji would master the dances of the Kaguya. It wa sup to her to give Renji a proper service. She was his master now, and Reiko wanted to give her student a proper teaching. She had plans for Renji, but first he would have to learn to craft the illustrious bone lance of the Kaguya clan.

In the training hall of his new master's dojo Renji held the scroll tha tcontained all of the knowledge he would need to msater the Dance of the Clematis: Flower. Renji was absolutely shaking, but he wasn't scared. He was nervous with excitement. Just thinking back on how far he had come since arriving to the ISland of Keiko, Renji could feel power in his hands unlike ever before. The Hundred Strength Seal was flowing in his body and granted him amazing buffs and healing, but what truly amazed Renji on his journey so far was the work he had put in. Renji had always had things come easily to him, but now for the first time in a long time he was constantly putting forth incredible effort. Renji was growing as a man.

The young Kaguya known as Reaper sat at the bench like he had last time and opened up the scroll.

OOCShow

Wordcount: 2082
Training:

(800/800)
*[Iaido • Peace in Death]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite(s): 15 Speed.
An abnormally aggressive technique in Iaido, this technique serves as a preemptive counter, attacking the opponent in the split moment between drawing back to prepare an attack and launching said attack. Violently torquing the muscles in their legs, the practitioner more quickly accelerates to their maximum speed (or instantly accelerating to their max speed if their Strength is equal or higher than their Speed) than with normal movement. With this movement, the practitioner bolts toward the opponent and launches an attack, cutting the opponent as they pass to their side. This technique can be used while moving to immediately change direction instead before launching the attack. Properly reading this attack requires the opponent to have a Perception technique of equal or higher rank than this technique.

(1200/1200)
Death Bone Pulse • Ash Bone Drilling Finger Bullets
B-Ranked Taijutsu
The user will ossify the tip of their fingers and create a bullet shaped projectile at each of the tips. For 5 posts the user to able to fling any number of these projectiles with individual Strength.

[King of Cats]

With his fair skin coloured hands Renji opened the scroll. As the print unfurled it began glowing blue and Renji was blinded by a flash of light. When the light faded Renji seemed to be trapped in a Genjutsu. He was standing in a dark hallway, much like the one in the dojo hall he was training at. Renji felt an eerie familiarity to the scene and it was clear that he had been there before. The lights were dim and it was hard to see, but Renji could make out the figure of a short old man. The man had the silhouette of a long mustache and Renji instantly recognized the elderly man's figure as Seimei. Renji couldn' thelp but smile at the idea that Seimei was with him on his journey, but his smile quickly faded.

Seimei plunged his arm forward and Renji saw bones grow out of his forearm. The bone formed into long shafts that extended far part Seimei's elbow. Then at the other side, Seimei's hand was covered in bone panels that extended well past his finger tips, forming a sharp bone point. The transfiguration wsa truly incredible but it wasn;t nearly over with yet. Seimei flash stepped before Renji and the boy noticed he was paralyzed, not tha the could have done much in that incredibly short amount f time. Seimei was fast, and though it was just an illusion Renji knew the old man was truly that swift. Renji just watched as Seimei drew back the lance and stabbed him, then he was awoken from the illusion.

A lot of time had passed and it was now afternoon the next day. Renji felt groggy and he could mysteriously feel the strong weight of the illusion freed from him. Renji wondered just what kind of genjutsu Seimei had used to help portray the jutsu he was trying to learn. Renji stood up from the bench he was at and stretched out his body. He had been locked in a sitting position for many hours and the poor gey could barely feel his toes. Once he popped all jis joints and stretched out all of his ligaments Renji sat back down at the bench to learn the jutsu. The scroll had lots of details written about the jutsu, the illusion was just a visual guide. Renji poured over the technique for hours. He tried to take in everything he could.

The details on the Clematis Dance was noticeably less specific than that past dance. Renji was given specific faults to beware of in the construction of the lance, and he was given model descriptions to craft, but ultimately there were simply not a lot of details written down about the Clematis. Renji was told correct, it would take natural talent and prodigal skill to construct this jutsu. He felt some pressure on his shoulders as he read, but he didn't let the high stakes get to him. He wanted to get Reiko's approval and of course Seimei's too, but the young Reaper had much more than just his own pride riding on his shoulders.

As the only wielder of an ancient, forbidden Kaguya techniue, Living Bone Hunger, and the All-Killing Ash Bones too; Renji was famously invaluable to the Kaguya clan. It was well known among Kawazaiwa house that the KAguya clan was the backbone of the dealings the house made, in fact there were some particularly riveting changes involving a KAguya and another house, going on in the village at that very moment. Renji didn't know it but the house he was bled to would soon be depending on him for serious matters. Renji was expected to grow to become a very powerful man. He had been born with all of the traits. He was gifted physically and mentally, he was a leader, he had a tenacious will, he was a cold blooded killer. Renji was a complete package and the Kaguya clan planned on using him for extreme circumstances. With his control over spirits Renji had power unlike any Kaguya, and the secret to it all lay in his bones. Renji was very valuable. How well he did in every mission reflected his capacity as a servant to the Kawazaiwa house, and the Kaguya clan. He was still out of the loop, but the clan had big plans for him.

Renji was being trained, unbeknownst to himself, by Seimei. His father had encouraged him tot ake up Iado training under Seimei, and the two had known each other for a long, long time. They had once been ona team together, capturing spirits for the KAguya clan to do experiments on. Renji always thought that his introduction to Seimei was merely just the result of an old bond between men, but he was far from the truth.

Seimei and Takato, Renji's adopted father, were colleagues in a secret study conducted by the Kaguya clan. The clan had subdued a tree spirit and wanted to utilize it's powers to help the houses farms grow crops. Seimei, Takato and several other Kaguya performed several heinous deeds to the spirit. Sometimes they were trying to coax certain physical reactions out of the spirit, it's tears were capable of accelerating the growth of flowers. Sometimes they were trying to coax knowledge of magic out of the spirit, using torture. It was a very messy project, but thanks to this tree spirit Takato was able to construct a map of underground, collapsed tunnels the Kaguya clan had once created for a secret ritual. By discovering this from the tree spirit Takato found knowledge of the ancient ritual to bind spirits to the KAguya bones. This little scroll was found in an ancient thaig the KAguya had built, along with other treasures the clan thanked Takato and Seimei for.

Thanks to this discovery Renji's life was gifted with miraculous potential, but he also became something like a weapon to his clan.

Through these ties Renji was introduced to Seimei. He didn't know it but the clan had been orchestrating his whole life. The freedoms he was given were meant togrant him the illusion of freewill, but he was destined to become a weapon of war whether by choice or not. Renji's life was experimental. He lived on the whim of the clan, but for now he was unaware of that. The stress he felt to satisfy Seimei and Reiko seemed soft to him. He would never fold under such pressure.

Renji read on in the scroll until he had read it all, then he reread the scroll and again. He wanted to make sure he memorized every detail he could about the jutsu before he attempted it. Renji had high hopes. He had learned the finger bullet jutsu relatively easy and he expected this one would only prove a moderate challenge.

Oh, how he was wrong.

The first day that Reaper practiced his new technique he could barely get the shafts of bone tha tgrew out of his arm to form a point. It was very ugly and curved. The technique was also nowhere near complete as Renji couldn't form the proper back end of the lance. The bones extending from his elbow were also jagged and filled with imperfections. It was incredibly difficult to manipulate such high density bones at the degree required to make the lance. On top of all those errors, Renji was also completely exhausted after just two attempts at the jutsu and he had to retire for the day just before noon. It wasn't a great day for the teenager, but he promised himself that he would press on with his mastery of Dance of the Clematis.

As the days pressed on Renji's skill proved to carry him and he slowly learned how to properly craft a stabbing point for the technique. Renji had to take a lot of breaks but he did have a deep chakra pool to draw power from. He was quick to learn how to from a stabbing point, but when he tried it on a tree the reverberations shook his arm so violently that he was certain he could never use the technique as is. Renji kept practicing.

Eventually Renji had enough practice under his belt to form a perfectly smooth exterior for the Clematis lance. It appeared like a proper coke with sharp points on both ends. Renji felt pretty comfortable with his adeptness with the technique and tried it out again, but instead of a tree he tried it against one of the students of Reiko's dojo. IT did not go well. Renji's opponent was able to easily see flaws in Renji's creation and he shattered it to pieces. Renji didn't even get the chance to try it out.

The next day he went back to a tree and tried to stab it. The lance pierced the tree, and the reverberations weren't too bad, but when Renji tried to withdraw his arm the lance crumbled to pieces. It was clear to Reaper that he needed more practice. Renji didn't give up, he kept at it and for weeks he tried every day trying to master the technique.

Eventually he felt confident in his Clematis and went against his hard opponent yet, a concrete wall.

In a small arena Renji stood facing off against a wall. He extended his lean, fair skinned arm and made a fist. Bone began to grow out of his wrist and spiral around his hand. More bones began shooting out of his forearm, erecting themselves in a spiral fashion around Renji's arm. The dense, pure white bones made a sickening squelching sound as Renji's skin folded over and made room for the bones to exit his body. The clematis formed perfectly. A cone shaped protrusion was attached to Renji's arm and he was ready to test his might.

Renji slammed his fist forward and the lance collided with the wall. A loud bang sound was made as Renji's bones pierced the cement and collapsed the wall around him.

With his arm stuck in the wall it was time for Renji to make the final test. Before when he tried to remove his arm from the Clematis it fell apart, showing signs that it couldn't sujrvive the clanging of weapons in battle. Renji was hoping for the best and pulled his arm back. The lance moved smoothly with Renji's command and, thankfully, it didn't shatter.

It seemed Renji had perfected the technique. He was incredibly proud of himself and left the dojo's training arena to report to Reiko.

When Renji arrived in Reiko's office she was sitting in her chair writing a letter. Renji wondered who she was writing to, but he decided he didn't know her well enough to ask. He was feeling high on his success and gave the elderly woman a smile before he sat down in her guest chair. "I've performed the Clematis to perfection. I'm ready to show you." Renji gave her a thumbs up. He wasn't smiling, that just wasn't his thing but he did have a heavenly vibe to him. His words were spoken clearly and loudly, he was excited.

Reiko agreed to see his progress and the two headed to the arena where Renji repeated the display of Clematis that he had done before. Reiko was quite impressed and the two walked bakc to her office to talk about their next steps going forward.

"You did excellent Renji, I knew you could." Reiko spoke with a soft fondness that Renji noticed was new to her. Renji seemed to be growing on Reiko and she smiled as she spoke to him. "Now I'm sure you are wondering what is next. And I am pleased to inform you that the next technique is notably easier. Though don't be fooled by my words, it is incredibly difficult by normal standards to produce a suitable example of the Dance of the Larch. I've seen you capabilities though, I think you can do it." Reiko pulled out that old box of scrolls from her floor underneath the desk. She heaved it up onto the table again and began sifting through it. She pulled out a dusty green scroll and handed it to Renji. "Alright now let me tell you a little bit about this Dance. This Dance was created to be a protective measure against physical attackers. It requires extreme perception, fine chakra control, and superb bodily function. You must be able to produce multiple bones in various place sof your body at a time to make this technique effective." Reiko smiled warmly at Renji, the kind of smile a grandmother would give her favorite grandchild. "Now hurry off, I believe in you."

Renji grabbed the scroll Reiko handed him and gave her an awkward smile. He wasn't used to recieving love. Mostly in his life his adopted Kaguya mother was the only one who seemed to care about him, but the way Reiko smiled at him gave Renji a familiar hint of motherly affection. It was nice and he kept that awkward smile on his face as he exited Reiko's office and headed directly home to take a nap. It was still exhausting performing the Clematis and doing it perfectly twice in an hour beat Renji down. He knew he just needed a little rest. Renji fell to sleep soundly, sleeping the whole day away and dreaming about his sensei's Seimei and Reiko.

OOCShow

Wordcount: 2244
Training:

(800/800)
*[Iaido • Shinigami’s Wrath]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Prerequisite(s): 15 Speed.
A technique refining the concept of targeting multiple opponents with a single draw, the practitioner uses their sheath hand to reverse grip the hilt. Using the one hand, the practitioner quickly torques their body and cuts with a reverse hand slash a full 360 degrees before immediately sheathing the blade. This technique can strike multiple opponents at once, and the reverse grip of the sword allows the practitioner to more easily defend against counterattacks immediately after.

(800/800)
Death Bone Pulse • Dance of the Clematis
C-Ranked Taijutsu
The user will put the arm forward and ossify the bones of their entire forearm until they have created a 1 meter long, cone chaped, lance tip at their fingertips.

(400/400)
*Moving Mist Technique
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, the user will cause the mist to shift and move in whatever direction they please. This mist moves at [Control] speed, and while casting this technique the user cannot move or cast other techniques.