Training with the Beast

[FluffyGinja]

Amiya was heaving several harsh breathes, having been so focused on the moment that she hadn't realized how deep into her own training session she had gotten.

With permission, she was allowed to create some rudimentary clones for the purpose of practicing this particular technique within her chosen style. Wielding her staff, she had been steadily practicing in what almost seemed like a dance of sorts. Each time one of her own self got closer, she would give it a firm tap, not enough to dissipate it but enough to force it back. Subconsciously, her feet carried her around, adjusting and moving on the fly, occasionally stopping hard and giving a pivot to present threat right in time before any of her clones were allowed to get close. All the while, in the back her mind, she was thinking about the people who were forced to supervise her, making sure she didn't go overboard as she didn't want to get interrupted in the middle of training something that was requiring a great deal of work to commit to muscle memory.

This particular training ground wasn't empty but it felt it with how quiet it was. People ignored her as they should and yet, she persisted nevertheless. Sooner than she realized though, her movements had sped up, her strength had started to show as each clone was now struggling to even get close in the first place and the strikes came with a thunderous crack to them, as if she was staring at the source of her own anger and in a way, she was. There was a mild amount of fury in her eyes, her staff whirling and whipping around. Soon, she stopped hard and swung with vicious force, the connecting with the clone before wheeling around and crushing the others. It was all in service to keep herself at the proper distance where her staff was at is strongest and her opponents with far shorter weapons were weaker than her, but she still needed a lot more practice with this technique before she truly began to nail it.

Standing there among the slight puffs of smoke from the disappearing clones, still heaving, she leaned on her staff. "Fuck... I'm out of it... But I think I got it... Those folks in Towers know a thing or two..." She was muttering to herself, recalling the small amount of time she spent there to learn their particular style of fighting and finding how comfortable it was for her choice of weaponry.

Jutsu TrainedShow

421/400 words

* Kushou・Unfolding the Fan
C-Ranked Taijutsu Discipline
While rare for a practitioner of Kushou-ryu to be on the defensive, this technique is designed to facilitate effective defence against other close ranged opponents. The user of this technique is constantly aware of distancing between the opponent and themselves, and therefore will aim all of their strikes to prevent the opponent from closing the gap using their long weapon. This will make it extremely difficult for those with less skill than them to get close to the user safely without somehow neutralizing the user’s weapon.

[Kao]

Her moves were decent enough.

From the edge of the training grounds, Shizuo watched as Amiya trained, blissfully unaware that he'd been watching her for the past several minutes. When the woman had sought permission to use her own clones to train, Shizuo had been immediately notified. He wasn't the one who ultimately granted her permission, but if he'd had any reservations or didn't think it should be allowed, his input would be taken into consideration. He was interested in seeing her in action, so after making a pit stop to pick up a friend he'd headed to the training grounds she planned to use.

"She's not bad," chimed a cheerful voice. and Shizuo pulled his eyes away from Amiya to glance at the woman next to him. She had a hand on one hip as she analyzed Amiya's movements. The woman had smiled when she recognized that style. "I guess I get why you dragged me here on my day off."

"Off days don't exist for you now," he mused, his attention already back on Amiya as her strikes against the clones became rougher. "You're not a barista-slash-server anymore, Yukino, you're a kunoichi again."

"Yeah, yeah, don't remind me. How long are you gonna stare at her like that?" Yukino giggled as his neck flushed a deep red, and his uncharacteristically stern expression momentarily broke. In response Shizuo shrugged and cleared his throat, which made his companion let out a soft, delicate laugh. "You said I'm here just in case, right? I'll hang around while you...work." Shizuo sighed in her direction as she sauntered off, and he paused for a few seconds before heading over to Amiya. By that point she was leaning on her staff, panting from her efforts and giving herself a break.

"Heard you were training," The jounin said casually once he was within earshot. "I assumed our next meeting would be at your place, but I couldn't pass up an opportunity to see your skills. I figured what better way to see what Lord Tsuchikage sees in you than to see you in action myself." As he spoke, he tapped the katana at his hip. Normally he carried a wakizashi and was much more comfortable with its slightly shorter range, but today he had selected an unsharpened blade. "Unless, of course, you object?" A ghost of a smile graced his lips at his last comment; even if she did object, Shizuo would remind her that he's essentially the one with the final say in the matter.

[FluffyGinja]

The voice had caught her off guard, figuring no one would have wanted anything to do with her without something odd happening. When she looked his direction, her hands were grasping her staff firmly before loosening a little bit at the sight of who it was. However, her fingers steadily tightened around her staff as she was looking right at him. If there was something she knew, it was that this wasn't an offer. It was purposeful than that, she was going to have to fight him and she didn't think her prospects of winning were very solid at the moment. That wasn't about to stop her though as she rose her staff up, pointing one end towards him before clutching it in both hands and nodding her head. "Always willing to get my ass kicked, Shizuo-sama." Her eyes were directly on him as she was adjusting her stance to get a little bit lower down and tensed her feet up. If anything, she knew that she'd have to make the first move to make any amount of headway.

Stepping forward with a few quick movements, she had seen this move done a few times and had been practicing it in her off time. 'Don't plant too hard, you'll rupture the ground, just enough to break some loose dirt...' In her mind and head, she was going back through the motions of it in a small field. Digging her staff into the ground and chucking forward a harsh lump of wet earth but it was more than that. It had more finesse and less raw power. Something that was newer to her but she was always willing to try it. Even if it was going to be difficult to do here, she was going to give it a shot as she was stepping closer towards Shizuo. This was definitely the person she had to give as much of herself to in the moment, since he was the person who was her arbiter and she wasn't about to displease someone who she had come to find out was a little more important in her life than she realized.

Planting her foot a little harder than she originally meant to, she grasped her staff with both hands and dragged it across the ground with a quick movement, breaking up some of the dirt and rock with how much force she was putting into it. A little plume of dust came up from the floor, the dirt and debris she had kicked up with this movement being sent towards him, finishing the movement of her action by readying herself right near him, the opposite end of her staff poised to strike while she was focusing on Shizuo's movements in hopes to catch him off guard with a sudden strike when he would hopefully go to defend himself.

However, she knew that was sloppy. It wasn't much in terms of actual debris brought up and she was making quick mental notes on how to improve her actions. 'Little less power in the foot, more in the drag. Just cause he's a shinobi here doesn't mean he isn't an enemy right now... when you spar, you know better' Her own inner critic was pretty vocal to her often but she knew it was correct. If it had been more practiced, she would have likely had larger chunks of rock and dirt, creating more of a threat and a smokescreen at the same time but for now, she knew where to improve her movements.

Jutsu TrainedShow

404/400 words

* Kushou・Watered Silk
B-Ranked Taijutsu Maneuver
The user of this technique will strike the ground with one end of their weapon hard, dragging it in a line. This will fling a cloud of dirt, rock and dust up into their opponent’s eyes as if the user had thrown it. The use of one end of their weapon in this enables the immediate return of the opposite end for a follow up strike at either a blinded opponent or an opponent that is quite predictably dodging the debris.

[Kao]

With a raised brow Shizuo realized there would be no pushback against him joining her training session. Good, he thought as he unsheathed his unsharpened blade. After their initial meeting the joinin had been unsure what to make of her. She was compliant. Polite, to an extent. But he could tell there was something roiling beneath the surface, and what he had sensed could be something other than her curse mark, but he wasn’t sure. They were still strangers and he found her hard to read; whatever it was, it was something he had yet to find a name for.

And he had tried. The woman before him had preoccupied his mind for hours - no, days - after they had met. There was something almost defiant in her lack of shame, in the way she had disrobed without so much of a hint of blush reddening her skin. Shizuo wished he had been able to say the same; it still embarrassed him that he had flushed so easily at the sight of her bare skin. The man still wasn’t sure if he liked her, and he reminded himself of the fact that he was still leaning towards ‘No’ when she lowered her stance. He also realized at that moment that seeing her again muddled that feeling.

As she dug her staff into the ground, Shizuo adjusted his grip on his own weapon and he, too, closed the distance between them. He quickly figured out her plan, a tiny smirk forming on his lips as he waited for the right moment. Just as the clump of dirt and dirt flung forward, Shizuo tapped into his impressive speed and sidestepped her maneuver. Shizuo didn’t quite have the physicality of many of his peers. He was tall and lean, and with the simple and modest way he dressed it was easy to assume he was just a nerdy scientist who spent most of his time in labs, who rarely saw the inside of a training ground.

That was far from the truth. What he lacked in monstrous physical strength he more than made up with in speed. By the time Amiya blinked to determine if her attack had been successful he’d be at her left side. He brought down the flat edge of his blade on the back of her hand, perhaps with more force than was necessary. The tendon on the back of her hand, responsible for straightening the fingers and extended the wrist would likely seize after the blow. Immediately after he would raise the weapon to tap the underside of her chin. This strike was much softer, more akin to an apologetic hand placed on a shoulder than an attack. Before she could properly react, Shizuo would jump backward just outside her staff’s reach unless she moved forward. With a flourish of his sword and a jerk of his chin, the silver haired jounin invited her to continue.

Jutsu TrainedShow

*[Yoshin • Cripple the Paw]
C-Rank Taijutsu Maneuver
Moving in close to the opponent, the practitioner launches a series of quick, snapping slashes and thrusts to the opponent's hands, causing deep lacerations. These cuts damage the tendons in the opponent's hands, interfering with their dexterity. These cuts cover sensitive areas between the fingers, knuckle joints, or even potentially under fingernails. While the damage caused by this technique is not life-threatening, it imposes a persisting -3 Endurance penalty on the opponent, as well as making it incredibly painful, if not impossible, for the opponent to wield a weapon with their hand or hands. This penalty can be lifted if the opponent receives medical attention.

[FluffyGinja]

There was a sharp hiss from between gritted teeth, audible to anyone paying attention. He could see her hands having almost lost the grip on her weapon and she likely would have had the blow been made with a blade but she was keeping a grasp on her weapon through the pain that shot up the nerves in her arm. It screamed at her, but she took a moment to adjust her stance. This was the first time she was beginning to realize the gulf of skill that was between them. Shizuo had been active for far less time than her and she had lost her touch, her edge, and part of her will. Something about him was bringing that back more and more and she was looking him over for a moment as she was taking a breath to force herself not to get lost to anger like she normally fought. He wasn't just faster than her, he had similar strength... Which meant she had to let him approach her first and she was going to hopefully intercept him. She knew he was clever after all.

What she didn't see though and he would, were her eyes. Two things stood out, since he was more keen to watch her than most. Even if her expression seemed calm, he could get the sense that she stared at him like she was a predator. Hungry, desperate, vicious. Fighting brought that out in most but it usually showed more. Somehow, she was better than most at hiding it. It had this serpentine coldness that was only further augmented by the fact that her normally green eyes had grown a slitted pupil and had lost the whiteness around them, fading to inky black. Whether she realizes it or not, slowly, that cursed seal of hers was leaking into her body and she was accessing it out of instinct. It hadn't overtaken her though as she grinned at him a moment later.

"You're faster than I thought... I look forward to matching you one day but for now... I think I'll enjoy getting my ass kicked here and learning a thing or two." As she said all this, she adjusted her stance, ready to receive an attack as she stepped carefully, circling steadily closer towards him.

[Kao]

He felt it before he saw it. That change. Shizuo had good instincts. His work demanded it by putting him in close contact with beings that would and could tear him apart without warning. The air between the two shinobi changed, suddenly teeming with tension, as if the man had suddenly been transported into a hunting ground. Amiya’s hunting ground. But Shizuo was no prey. A beast in his own right, he raised his brow and scanned her face, curiosity taking over his expression. Such interesting eyes. The man didn’t balk at the change, especially since her words carried no hint of the predacious intensity that radiated from her.

“Oh, I barely went mmm…two thirds of my full speed, I’d say.” A humble brag. “I wouldn’t think someone with your ah…experience would be so easily impressed.” The jounin watched as she circled closer. Amiya really did seem like some sort of predator, a shark closing in. Shizuo turned as she moved, sliding his feet in the dirt. He found that his heartbeat picked up speed in anticipation, and he watched closely as she inched closer and closer. Shizuo didn’t engage in close combat often, so he wasn’t the most familiar with anticipating his opponent’s movements. He knew people had often had tells in the way their bodies tensed just before making movements, but he wasn’t well trained in the skill. Perhaps he should practice with this woman.

“One of the things you should learn is to not draw upon your curse seal’s power at all, as we agreed. Or are you unaware that you’re even doing it?” Try as he might, Shizuo couldn’t manage to maintain the stern and aloof air he took on when he was around someone he didn’t particularly like. He was too interested in her and the curse seal, evident by the sudden curious gleam in his grey eyes. He raised his weapon and pointed it at her, his expression shifting. The corners of his eyes crinkled in amusement as a faint smile graced his lips. “How about this, Amiya-san. If you can knock me down without losing control I’ll send in a good word to the people up top.”

[FluffyGinja]

There was a moment of pause as she was beginning to realize more why those thoughts of aggression and the sudden release of endorphins had hit her so fresh and pure and he could see her eyes widen but she took a deep breath like she was truly breathing for the first time in ages. _{"Hhhhfff... Ffffuck this feels great..."} She was muttering under her breath, hating to admit how addictive it felt to just be in this state. As she listened to him the whole time through, she gave a quick nod of her head. He could see her channel chakra through her body for a brief moment before her staff shifted into what appeared to be a spear, increasing its length. Although, she minorly altered the shape to give it a blunt tip. Providing a quick flourish as she had begun to make her way towards him once more. "You got it, Shizuo-sama." Each step was steadily increasing in pace as she wasn't going to hold back on him just as she figured he was less likely to do to her as well.

As she was growing closer, she quickly pulled her arms back before flicking them forward, using one hand to fully extend the reach of her spear with her arm. Since he seemed to be proficient in catching her hands with that false sword of his, she didn't let that stop her as she let go of her weapon, going to quickly go into a series of hand seals. She was banking on the fact that he wasn't comfortable in close quarters for her to be able to catch him with something he might not be expecting from her. As she finished the last seal, she pulled her foot up and stomped down hard, the charka shooting through the ground. It was going to cause it to tremor the area around them both as she had been hoping that he would stay within range. Even still, she'd let the seal go immediately as she wanted to use it for a temporary action to catch him off guard.

Afterwards, she'd attempt to close the distance and once more, she'd channel chakra through herself, directing it to one of her fists and hoping to tag him with a quick jab with it to give him some extra oomph. All the while, she could feel that urge in the back of her head. The one that was trying to force her to forgo any sort of tactic, to go all out, to bring violence at its purest form. Amiya was gritting her teeth as she was having to force these thoughts away in an almost visible way and it was going to affect her movements, likely making her more sloppy than she wanted.

Jutsu used/Word CountShow

467/600

* Kushou・The Viper Flicks its Tongue
D-Ranked Taijutsu Maneuver
This simple technique involves thrusting quickly with the user’s long weapon from a distance before quickly pulling back their polearm to prevent counters. This techniques most useful aspect is that it can be used while in motion without affecting speed or momentum.

*Doton • Tremors
C-Rank Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals and holding the last one, the user will stomp their foot on the ground, releasing their chakra in it and causing it to tremor violently for one post. The tremors radiate out from the user in a 25 meter radius, knocking down anyone standing on the ground without a stability taijutsu technique of a rank equal to [Control]. Lasts as long as the last seal is held, for up to 3 posts.

*[Ninjutsu • Chakra Burst]
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After channeling chakra into one of their fists, the user will then attempt to strike their target and if successful, they will release additional concussive force in the form of an outward explosion with [Control] Strength from their fist. If the user does not strike a target within 3 posts the jutsu dissipates.

[Kao]

Shizuo somehow wasn't surprised that Amiya's weapon transformed. He was taken aback, however, when she thrust forward with the spear and then immediately dropped it. He had sidestepped the attack and had raised his own weapon to slam the flat edge against chest. But instead his eyes widened slightly, and he watched as Amiya flew into a set of hand seals and then stomped the ground.

Evidently he miscalculated. Despite his efforts Shizuo couldn't stay upright. He stumbled and fell forward, one knee hitting the ground painfully as he steeled himself so that he wouldn't fall over completely. Luckily for him, his still-raised weapon was in a favorable position. The ground shook for only a moment, giving him time to recover enough to turn his wrist so the blunt sword was between them horizontally. With a squick surge of raiton through the blade he was able to place an obstacle between himself and Amiya's fist. Rather than hit him directly, her blow hit the charged weapon first, releasing a small burst of lightning that arced and curved around his weapon. Shizuo had no time for an immediate follow up. The moment her strike his his weapon an additional strike exploded into him, and this time he was knocked flat onto his back.

Shizuo blinked, the impact of his head hitting the ground sending him into a brief daze. Though his head was pounding he quickly recovered enough to raise his knees to his chest, using the momentum to kick up and then rock forward to enter a crouch. The jounin glanced at his weapon, unsurprised that the impact of her strike had completely shattered the blade and left him with nothing but the hilt and barely two inches of jagged metal. He cut his eyes back to her, irritation seeping into his glare. He channeled his chakra again, replacing the broken blade with one of pure raiton. He briefly noticed that Amiya looked tense, as if she was struggling in some way, but all that mattered to him in that moment that she still had control over herself. Refusing to stop to acknowledge the fact that Amiya had immediately fulfilled her end of the bargain, he arced the raiton-enhanced weapon, moving much faster than she could possibly see and swiping it towards the back of her ankles and aiming for the sensitive tendons there.

JutsuShow

*Raiton • Conductor
D-Ranked Ninjutsu
After performing the correct hand seals, the user will coat a weapon they are holding in Raiton electricity for 5 posts. This causes the shock effect to be produced on any contact with a target, while also granting blunt weapons the ability to cut through skin to produce shallow wounds. This also works for thrown weapons, however if the projectile remains out of contact with the user for more than 2 posts the technique will dissipate early.

Blade of Raijuu
C-Ranked Ninjutsu
Shizuo channels chakra to a bladed weapon, causing it to be imbued with raiton chakra. The raiton adds an additional 6 inches in length to the blade, and allows Shizuo to apply the raiton passive to his strikes and the lightning cuts through defenses with [Control] strength. This technique lasts for 10 posts or until dispelled. 35 Control; adding 22 inches of raiton to the broken blade

*[Yoshin • Sever the Tendon]
C-Ranked Taijutsu Maneuver
Dropping low to the ground and hooking their blade around the back of an opponent's ankle, the practitioner draws a heavy slash against the ankle's tendon, immediately causing a jolt of intense pain. The pain causes even the slightest step to send shocks of pain through the nerve. Aside from causing significant pain, this technique also imposes a persisting -3 Speed penalty on the opponent due to being unable to place weight upon the foot. This penalty can be lifted if the opponent receives medical attention.

Slash with 44 speed, 28 strength

[FluffyGinja]

Amiya had surprised herself. Her hand tingled like hell at the moment, the strike having been blocked with a Ration infused blade, which she was silently thankful for... but the follow up that was coming her way made her realize how much she had done to him. That cutting look was immediately displayed alongside a replacement to the sword she had shattered. Raiton that crackled and made some of her hairs stand on end just from being this close to it. As she watching him, there was a moment where she lost sight and she felt a tingle up her back that made her head turn all too slowly. It let her catch a brief glimpse of him... and there was a tensing up her muscles out of instinct all too late.

Raiton chakra surged through her whole body when it made contact and simultaneously, her legs felt like they were screaming in agony. She dropped down to her knees as she struggled with that violent shocks from the Raiton chakra. It hadn't been the strongest, but it had caught her so off guard that combined with the blade that had cut at her tendons in her ankles, she wasn't able to keep herself upright. Shizuo could see those flickers of Raiton coming from her, shocking her and yet, he could see that after a time, she did try to stand up again. Her teeth gritted, her eyes closed, fists clenched and body struggling the whole way but she forced herself to her feet.

All the while, she was forcing herself to stand up and keep her cool, her fingers dug so firmly into her palms that she was bleeding onto the ground from her hands. Shakily, as if each step was a force of will just to stay standing, she turned to face him and grinned. "Knew you were... Holding back on me..."

[Kao]

As she went down, Shizuo resisted the sudden urge to follow up with another punishing blow. The feeling surprised him. He normally wasn’t the type who had any desire to engage in hand-to-hand combat. It was always something of a last resort, or a means to buy time by injuring an opponent in a very specific manner. But there was something about this woman that kept his curiosity piqued. He wanted to see how far he could push Amiya, and determine how far she was willing to go in order to make a new life in Iwagakure.

His feelings toward her were still mixed. Shizuo told himself that he still wasn’t sure if he even liked her. But that uncertainty again wavered when she turned to face him. Despite himself, he returned her smile. ”Of course I am, it’s just a test. Going all out in a spar is unnecessary and not my style.” The jounin opened his hand and dropped his altered blade, and it crackled loudly as it pierced the ground just enough to remain upright. ”I underestimated you. As…frustrating as it may be, I’m a man of my word. I’ll say something nice about you to the other people in charge of you.”

With a small sigh, the jounin closed the distance between them, his eyes on her legs. Maybe he’d been a bit harsh with that last attack, but he was glad that it was something that Amiya could handle in stride, no matter how much pain she was in. The man supposed he should do something about that. Once he was directly in front of her Shizuo kneeled down and directed healing chakra to both of his hands. With his hands hovering just above her ankles the jounin looked up at her to meet her gaze. ”I’m glad sometihing like this wasn’t enough to make you lose control, Amiya-san.”

[FluffyGinja]

"Underestimated me? Huh... Not what I expected to hear you admit..." As he was approaching her, she felt herself shift on her ankles out of instinct, which sent some pain up her spine that she forced her to grit her teeth. "I learned a lot out there... That I likely could have learned here as well. However..." She paused as she could feel the pain disappearing as he was knelt down in front of her and healing her wounds, the pain easily evaporating as she was fairly sturdy all thing considered, even with the strong hit she took from him. "I don't think I could have learned how important home was without missing it." She was shrugging as she could feel the wounds having settled entirely and she took a few steps back, bouncing carefully on the balls of her feet. Sore, sure. Mobility was back though and she'd take it for what it was worth.

"Thanks... Forgot for a moment you were more than just a scientist... Won't make that mistake again though." She was smirking slightly as she reached up behind her, grasping at her neck and giving it a firm crack back and forth, audible and crunchy the whole way through. "Ya know, while walking around, I heard about something... Some sort of... re-opening of Oas- Aroma... country. Damn, shits changed a lot hasn't it?" She waved a hand in front of her face to dismiss her own words for a second. "Anyway, figured I'd uh... see if ya wanted to go? Shinobi are allowed and well, ain't been to a beach since... some stuff happened." She huffed through her nose as she took a few steps towards her weapon and picked it up with a quick toss up from her foot, changing it back in midair before she rested on it slightly.

"Whatcha say, Shizuo-sama? Think ya could be seen relaxing with me?"