In a training ground not far from the outskirts of the village, stood a shogi table and a chair. The wind was calm on that day, and the sun was not too strong even if Summer was fully underway. The occasional sound of clothes rustling and that of wood tapping against wood could be heard, but otherwise, the only real sound was the annoyed muttering of an ex-lazy failure.
There was a lot to be said for the game of shogi, that it was one of the most worthy ways to pass your time. A battle of logic, mental acuity and skill that links it all together through experience. Raizou had thought that once as he tapped the side of his cheek but right now that didn’t apply. ”I just wanna plaaay…”
He moaned to no-one in particular as he moved the pawn forward once before he jumped to his feet and hopped back before kicking the air in front of him. The first was awkward, he whipped his arm down and turned his hips but he did not flick his leg out nor extend it even a little bit. Leading to an awkward turn on his pivoting ankle. The second was a stronger pivot, a kick out with his leg but the hip turn was slightly delayed leading to a strain on his ankle, and the third was much like the one before, this time he whipped his arm out too much, unbalancing himself this time as he tried to catch himself again.
” Why am I doing this again?” He muttered to himself before sighing again as he sat down on the ground.
That was it, training by himself while playing shogi with himself. Raizou thought that this was indeed the best way to go about this, but he hated the idea now; maybe if he had a clone to play off against that would have made things better. But that was not the case, it was just a pain in the butt of royal proportions. Raizou thought he really understood himself, but he didn’t, the man didn’t have a clue of his own nature. He could have trained fully, or he could have indulged his need to relax and play with others. Old habits were hard to break.
Three more kicks, he made sure to turn his hips with each movement before extending his leg, flicking it out in a singular movement. He tutted at himself, having forgotten to whip his arm out to the side as he did so. Taijutsu, to think he was having issues with even this level of simple actions, he was probably worse than an out of the academy genin at his stage. It was frustrating, but even more so he was disappointed in himself. More so at the fact, he couldn’t get himself to fully dedicate himself to this.
High Impact Shogi
High Impact Shogi
My thread
| Characters | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Rank | Village | Plotboards | Socals | Stat Total |
| Awai, Raizou | Chuunin | Konohagakure | [S:0 A:0 B:0 C:1 D:0] | 3 | 140 |
High Impact Shogi
Today was a good day for Zakuro. The sun was shining. He had gotten good sleep the night before. The kink in his neck was starting to go away, and he had gotten a moment to get away from the office and train for the first time in a long time. It was something that he had little time for, now that they (Fanho) stuck him behind a desk and made him fill out paper, inspect defenses and whether or not people were following protocol, while also agreeing or denying any other changes that might be proposed. Right now he was working on increasing the responsibilities of the Sekkotai so that they could replace Konoha’s current police force. There’s was too little work for the shinobi in the field at the moment. They just sat waiting to be summoned to take down a threat that honestly was likely to never come. Having them patrol the streets and deal with crime and protect the citizens, while a little overkill for most of their talents, would at least make them feel better about being a member of Mamorinuku. After going through the ordeal of setting something like that up and getting all the necessary resources to build a new barracks building among other things, Zakuro was going to enjoy every second of being out of that office that he could. Zakuro’s ideas of “fun” were probably extremely different from a lot of other people’s, but regardless, today was his day. He would enjoy it how he pleased.
Being cramped in that office, Zakuro decided to take things slow and work his way up to a big finish. Despite this, Zakuro was already feeling the sweat drip from his face from his current challenge. He had grown a lot physically while he was away from the village, so finding ways to push himself was beginning to become challenging. Unlike his favorite book hero, Joku, Zakuro didn’t have a magic ship that you could turn the gravity up on. That’d make this a whole lot easier. He could just do his normal exercises and still get stronger. Since he didn’t have that, Zakuro would have to find alternative means to increase his strength. On the Chuunin's back rested quite a massive rock, roughly the size of a small house. Zakuro was leaping from point to point with this rock on his back, trying to get both a good height and a good distance. Everytime his feet hit the ground, the earth shook. This, in a way, made Zakuro feel powerful. Almost like a super strong giant that shook the earth with every step. It was dumb, but it was also small things like this that made him enjoy exercise. The Chuunin’s only goal was to see how far he could possibly go with this much weight on himself. He realized that he had to give himself a lot of height on his jumps because the weight made him plummet to the ground in seconds, whereas normally, he was a lot more floaty.
Someone from the outside may look upon him and assume he was in utter pain over this workout, but if they dared to look upon the blond man's face, they would see nothing but joy. Taijutsu was his thing. He spent his time outside the village practicing bodily control and using his strength and speed to be very precise and tactical, but it was this explosive strength that Zakuro loved. He also loved the looks he got when he showcased it to others.
The smile that was already spread across Zakuro’s face spread even further when he got close enough to see a young man practicing some shoddy Taijutsu and playing a board game by himself. It was one of the worst displays of Taijutsu he had ever seen, but he’d be damned if it didn’t move him a little bit to see the boy trying his best.
Zakuro stopped jumping and began to jog over. The boy obviously needed some guidance, and Zakuro was more than happy to give that to him. Passing on his knowledge to someone that need it this badly was something that Zakuro loved to do. He rarely ever had the chance, but this would be the perfect opportunity to do so. It was likely the boy would see what appeared like a giant rock with legs moving very fast at him, but Zakuro was too excited to even consider putting the rock down. Instead he ran with the full weight of it on his shoulders. Each step sunk an inch into the ground, which would cause someone with less dexterity than Zakuro to trip and fall at some point, but Zakuro did not. He simply kept running like a trooper. Upon reaching his destination, the 6'4" man built of pure muscle balanced the rock on his left shoulder and cradled it with his left arm. The other hand stuck out from under the rock as to shake the hand of the man he just met. It was wet and slick with sweat, and the veins from his arm were popping, making the hand not only intimidating, but also difficult to get a grip on, but regardless, anyone who dared to shake the hand would be met with a firm, inescapable grasp. Whether or not the newcomer could see the hand was unknown but Zakuro would make the gesture regardless.
If Raizou were to take a closer look at the man under the rock, he would see a very handsome, shirtless man, rippling with muscle and glistening with sweat. There was a very toothy grin on his face and pure determination in his eyes. "Hey there! I'm Zakuro. Sorry for my current appearance but I'm doing some training with this nice rock I found in the woods. I see you too are training, and with some Taijutsu no doubt! I would love to train alongside you if you don't mind." Little did the man know that if he said yes, Zakuro was going to turn that pathetic workout into one that would crush the bodies of anyone that dared to attempt it. This was going to be great fun!
[Strength Training 1035/1000 words]
Being cramped in that office, Zakuro decided to take things slow and work his way up to a big finish. Despite this, Zakuro was already feeling the sweat drip from his face from his current challenge. He had grown a lot physically while he was away from the village, so finding ways to push himself was beginning to become challenging. Unlike his favorite book hero, Joku, Zakuro didn’t have a magic ship that you could turn the gravity up on. That’d make this a whole lot easier. He could just do his normal exercises and still get stronger. Since he didn’t have that, Zakuro would have to find alternative means to increase his strength. On the Chuunin's back rested quite a massive rock, roughly the size of a small house. Zakuro was leaping from point to point with this rock on his back, trying to get both a good height and a good distance. Everytime his feet hit the ground, the earth shook. This, in a way, made Zakuro feel powerful. Almost like a super strong giant that shook the earth with every step. It was dumb, but it was also small things like this that made him enjoy exercise. The Chuunin’s only goal was to see how far he could possibly go with this much weight on himself. He realized that he had to give himself a lot of height on his jumps because the weight made him plummet to the ground in seconds, whereas normally, he was a lot more floaty.
Someone from the outside may look upon him and assume he was in utter pain over this workout, but if they dared to look upon the blond man's face, they would see nothing but joy. Taijutsu was his thing. He spent his time outside the village practicing bodily control and using his strength and speed to be very precise and tactical, but it was this explosive strength that Zakuro loved. He also loved the looks he got when he showcased it to others.
The smile that was already spread across Zakuro’s face spread even further when he got close enough to see a young man practicing some shoddy Taijutsu and playing a board game by himself. It was one of the worst displays of Taijutsu he had ever seen, but he’d be damned if it didn’t move him a little bit to see the boy trying his best.
Zakuro stopped jumping and began to jog over. The boy obviously needed some guidance, and Zakuro was more than happy to give that to him. Passing on his knowledge to someone that need it this badly was something that Zakuro loved to do. He rarely ever had the chance, but this would be the perfect opportunity to do so. It was likely the boy would see what appeared like a giant rock with legs moving very fast at him, but Zakuro was too excited to even consider putting the rock down. Instead he ran with the full weight of it on his shoulders. Each step sunk an inch into the ground, which would cause someone with less dexterity than Zakuro to trip and fall at some point, but Zakuro did not. He simply kept running like a trooper. Upon reaching his destination, the 6'4" man built of pure muscle balanced the rock on his left shoulder and cradled it with his left arm. The other hand stuck out from under the rock as to shake the hand of the man he just met. It was wet and slick with sweat, and the veins from his arm were popping, making the hand not only intimidating, but also difficult to get a grip on, but regardless, anyone who dared to shake the hand would be met with a firm, inescapable grasp. Whether or not the newcomer could see the hand was unknown but Zakuro would make the gesture regardless.
If Raizou were to take a closer look at the man under the rock, he would see a very handsome, shirtless man, rippling with muscle and glistening with sweat. There was a very toothy grin on his face and pure determination in his eyes. "Hey there! I'm Zakuro. Sorry for my current appearance but I'm doing some training with this nice rock I found in the woods. I see you too are training, and with some Taijutsu no doubt! I would love to train alongside you if you don't mind." Little did the man know that if he said yes, Zakuro was going to turn that pathetic workout into one that would crush the bodies of anyone that dared to attempt it. This was going to be great fun!
[Strength Training 1035/1000 words]
" A 7 for Zangy for example, is different from a 7 from Envy who is not quite a nuanced writer as Zangy is (sorry Envy), which is different from a 7 for Rain, who has English as his second language." - Onu 2016
High Impact Shogi
There were some areas of training that Yozei simply dreaded and developing his muscles in the form of strength training was settled near the top of that list. Perhaps it was the lack of direction and drive when it came to taijutsu that made honing his body feel like a waste of time, he hardly relied on it for how he fought, sure it would help add a little extra power to his projectiles but for the most part he preferred to overcome sheer physical stopping power with strategy or to enhance his weapons with Katon ninjutsu. Still, he knew as a shinobi and especially a Genin that it was important to keep himself versatile and well rounded. He was still developing his combat style and as much as he dreaded physical exercise, he couldn’t completely cut it out.
Despite not being particularly strong, there was one aspect of exercise that Yozei didn’t mind much and that was running. Being quick and evasive came naturally to him, he was an agile teenager and swift with his weapon draws and lateral movement. It would be easy for him to hone his cardio or speed but first he wanted to ensure he worked his muscles a little, just for the sake of keeping near the top of his year for Genin. The only Genin he knew of that might surpass him would be Nikuya and that was due to her sheer speed and kenjutsu skills, though when it came down to it she seemed to defer to his leadership and strategies.
Then there was Kotaru, that absolute freak of a prodigy and hard worker. Perhaps it was a shallow reason to grow stronger but Yozei was simply too prideful to be outdone. He felt he had to become strong, expectations for him were incredibly high and there was pressure all around for him to succeed. And so he had filled a backpack full of rocks, at least 30kgs, which for a fifteen-year-old genin felt like a sizable amount. Running a jog, wearing a red shirt and grey shorts the auburn-haired shinobi trudged along. The impact on his knees was fairly significant and he had to make sure not to take too big of strides and be careful when running on wet grass or loose footing so as to not pull any muscles in his groin by overextending his legs. Still, the weight felt well distributed across his back, centering well so most of the strain was put on his thighs with a bit on his back and shoulders though as long as he kept good posture then it was comfortable enough.
As he ran his left hand would hold his sword firmly in place, tilting the scabbard up a bit so it didn’t bump against his legs. His right hand would keep on one of the straps of the backpack, ensuring it kept tight but mostly just to keep his hand out of the way and give him something to focus on as he gripped the strap tightly when the strain started getting to him. If he kept up his momentum he figured he could keep going for a while but he knew if he started taking breaks or sitting down, especially if he took the backpack off then he would quickly get demotivated and lazy and call it quits, at best switching to some ninjutsu training and at worst just doing something else entirely.
He was already sweating lightly, his hair damp and held out of his eyes only by his forehead protector, which given the warm and sunny day was getting to be slightly itchy and uncomfortable. If he took it off though he knew he would just have to contend with his hair falling in his eyes instead. Running along for about twenty minutes, Yozei would come upon a truly staggering sight to behold. A well-built man carrying a massive boulder over his shoulder. Without thinking Yozei’s pace slowed as he took in the sight, ‘He must be almost as strong as my dad’ he marveled. How had he not heard about this guy before? Or maybe he had but he simply didn’t recognize his appearance. Whoever he was Yozei was sure he must have been a Jounin and a highly skilled taijutsu fighter. Just the kind of person he needed to inspire him to get stronger and perhaps give him another perspective. Of course, he had trained with his dad and step-mom here and there but they were both often busy and so far out of his league that he simply felt like a burden to them and besides that nothing they had showed him in regards to taijutsu had felt quite right for him. He was a ranged fighter at heart and the sword he carried was more a family heirloom than something he had actively chosen to train in.
As the large man jogged over to another, smaller blonde-haired shinobi, Yozei would adjust his path and head over toward the two of them. He was only running at a speed of about 10 finding it a little difficult to accelerate past what his muscles could initially provide. For a fresh Genin it would have still been considered on the faster end but Yozei was quite experienced as a Genin, having been a shinobi for a little over 3 years. His Chunin exam was already scheduled, coming up within the next two weeks and only a couple months after that was his birthday. “You’re incredible! Can I train with you to?” he would ask, approaching after the other Genin had a chance to respond to Zakuro and introduce himself. “My name is Yozei” he would introduce, giving a casual wave with his right hand before making eye contact with both individuals so that they would know he didn’t mean to exclude anyone.
977 Words Strength Training
Despite not being particularly strong, there was one aspect of exercise that Yozei didn’t mind much and that was running. Being quick and evasive came naturally to him, he was an agile teenager and swift with his weapon draws and lateral movement. It would be easy for him to hone his cardio or speed but first he wanted to ensure he worked his muscles a little, just for the sake of keeping near the top of his year for Genin. The only Genin he knew of that might surpass him would be Nikuya and that was due to her sheer speed and kenjutsu skills, though when it came down to it she seemed to defer to his leadership and strategies.
Then there was Kotaru, that absolute freak of a prodigy and hard worker. Perhaps it was a shallow reason to grow stronger but Yozei was simply too prideful to be outdone. He felt he had to become strong, expectations for him were incredibly high and there was pressure all around for him to succeed. And so he had filled a backpack full of rocks, at least 30kgs, which for a fifteen-year-old genin felt like a sizable amount. Running a jog, wearing a red shirt and grey shorts the auburn-haired shinobi trudged along. The impact on his knees was fairly significant and he had to make sure not to take too big of strides and be careful when running on wet grass or loose footing so as to not pull any muscles in his groin by overextending his legs. Still, the weight felt well distributed across his back, centering well so most of the strain was put on his thighs with a bit on his back and shoulders though as long as he kept good posture then it was comfortable enough.
As he ran his left hand would hold his sword firmly in place, tilting the scabbard up a bit so it didn’t bump against his legs. His right hand would keep on one of the straps of the backpack, ensuring it kept tight but mostly just to keep his hand out of the way and give him something to focus on as he gripped the strap tightly when the strain started getting to him. If he kept up his momentum he figured he could keep going for a while but he knew if he started taking breaks or sitting down, especially if he took the backpack off then he would quickly get demotivated and lazy and call it quits, at best switching to some ninjutsu training and at worst just doing something else entirely.
He was already sweating lightly, his hair damp and held out of his eyes only by his forehead protector, which given the warm and sunny day was getting to be slightly itchy and uncomfortable. If he took it off though he knew he would just have to contend with his hair falling in his eyes instead. Running along for about twenty minutes, Yozei would come upon a truly staggering sight to behold. A well-built man carrying a massive boulder over his shoulder. Without thinking Yozei’s pace slowed as he took in the sight, ‘He must be almost as strong as my dad’ he marveled. How had he not heard about this guy before? Or maybe he had but he simply didn’t recognize his appearance. Whoever he was Yozei was sure he must have been a Jounin and a highly skilled taijutsu fighter. Just the kind of person he needed to inspire him to get stronger and perhaps give him another perspective. Of course, he had trained with his dad and step-mom here and there but they were both often busy and so far out of his league that he simply felt like a burden to them and besides that nothing they had showed him in regards to taijutsu had felt quite right for him. He was a ranged fighter at heart and the sword he carried was more a family heirloom than something he had actively chosen to train in.
As the large man jogged over to another, smaller blonde-haired shinobi, Yozei would adjust his path and head over toward the two of them. He was only running at a speed of about 10 finding it a little difficult to accelerate past what his muscles could initially provide. For a fresh Genin it would have still been considered on the faster end but Yozei was quite experienced as a Genin, having been a shinobi for a little over 3 years. His Chunin exam was already scheduled, coming up within the next two weeks and only a couple months after that was his birthday. “You’re incredible! Can I train with you to?” he would ask, approaching after the other Genin had a chance to respond to Zakuro and introduce himself. “My name is Yozei” he would introduce, giving a casual wave with his right hand before making eye contact with both individuals so that they would know he didn’t mean to exclude anyone.
977 Words Strength Training
Karagata Shinjiro - Kiri Bannin; Jinchuuriki, Overseer of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Kintsugi
Haziwara Youji- Iwagakure Chunin
Takeda Ichiro - A-Rank Waterfall Country; Black Wake, Chishiki, Setsuzoku
Hyuuga Takeshi - Konoha Special Jounin; Anbu
Jouchaku Shigeko - Kiri Genin; HHD
High Impact Shogi
For Gene to have run into a former associate in the training field of all places had not been planned but nonetheless, he welcomed the experience. Zakuro, who Gene recognized by voice only due to the sizeable boulder covering most of the man's body was flanked by two others whom the Silver-haired specialist could not immediately place. In the wake of a youthful squeak found in most young voices Gene surmised that of the group there were few if any who eclipsed him in age - a suspicion to be confirmed later on as he would find out. More out of habit than any real intent to sneak up on the group, Gene stalked his way toward them stopping only when he'd managed to reach a distance of four meters from them.
"Well-well, isn't this a surprise." A stoic Gene bellowed, speaking loud enough to be heard by the group and then some. Due to the cloth fabric obscuring the entire lower half of his face Gene often needed to project his voice louder to compensate for any sound that would have been muffled out because of his impromptu disguise. Still, his Auburn colored hues remained every bit as sharp as they'd been before Zakuro had left the village - the only difference now was that there seemed to be a lack of warmth in them at the notion of a reunion. Gene was happy, this much was true. But he wasn't taken off by the circumstance by any means.
A loner by choice, seldom was Gene spotted among the populace or mingling with others unless some part of his mission had called for it. Things were much easier to handle in this way because he hardly needed to worry about his role in the many, many social circles outside of his professional obligation where the Order could not be questioned. In other words, although he'd certainly matured since the last time Zakuro had seen him; Gene was a far cry from the warm hearted Fanho who seemed to rejoice at the prospect of cracking jokes and shooting the shits as they called it. Gene was only focused on if whether or not the man before him could and would perform his duty without putting the lives of his colleagues in jeopardy. "You all plan to stick around a while?" Gene asked after some time, "I was about to do some light work and could definitely use the challenge." Spoken more to Zakuro than the other two, Gene adjusted the Ninjato resting behind him and then folded both of his arms across one another.
Still...he had not approached the group.
"Well-well, isn't this a surprise." A stoic Gene bellowed, speaking loud enough to be heard by the group and then some. Due to the cloth fabric obscuring the entire lower half of his face Gene often needed to project his voice louder to compensate for any sound that would have been muffled out because of his impromptu disguise. Still, his Auburn colored hues remained every bit as sharp as they'd been before Zakuro had left the village - the only difference now was that there seemed to be a lack of warmth in them at the notion of a reunion. Gene was happy, this much was true. But he wasn't taken off by the circumstance by any means.
A loner by choice, seldom was Gene spotted among the populace or mingling with others unless some part of his mission had called for it. Things were much easier to handle in this way because he hardly needed to worry about his role in the many, many social circles outside of his professional obligation where the Order could not be questioned. In other words, although he'd certainly matured since the last time Zakuro had seen him; Gene was a far cry from the warm hearted Fanho who seemed to rejoice at the prospect of cracking jokes and shooting the shits as they called it. Gene was only focused on if whether or not the man before him could and would perform his duty without putting the lives of his colleagues in jeopardy. "You all plan to stick around a while?" Gene asked after some time, "I was about to do some light work and could definitely use the challenge." Spoken more to Zakuro than the other two, Gene adjusted the Ninjato resting behind him and then folded both of his arms across one another.
Still...he had not approached the group.
ACTIVE CHARACTERShow
High Impact Shogi
Raizou ran a hand through his hair, he had been busy at work playing shogi and kicking the ever-present enemy known as air. But something in the corner of his eyes caught his attention...Was that a boulder? Was that for real? Raizou took a few seconds as he watched the boulder move before shaking his head and looking down. ”Course it’s a person.” Why did he think it was moving on its own anyway? It didn’t matter, shouldn’t have mattered. He straightened himself out and turned his body in the direction of the boulder, tilting his head a bit. His usual smirk turned lopsided, surprised at just what it was he was seeing, the edge of his lips twitched a number of times as his the number of his blinking rapidly increased.
He saw the hand that the person underneath showed, looking at it for a few seconds. Before he stepped to the side and shook the person’s hand, a man he assumed. Raizou’s own hands were rather soft, there were old dips that had long since softened again, and the odd new blister, but even so hard work was certainly something new to him. ”Zankoru?” He said the name, it sounded familiar but he could not place it.
”Nice to meet you!” He said with a smirk. ”My name’s Raizou. I think it would great to train with you, sir!” Raizou put some energy that he did not feel into his words, keeping some respect there. It was only natural to assume that someone of such strength was definitely not a genin like him. Well if anything, a man capable of lifting a rock would have a very good training regime. It wasn't like they would be starting at a point beyond his level right?
Before he had a moment to think about it, another person came onto the scene, before he could even give a proper look to the man behind the boulder. Around his age it seemed, maybe a little younger. Brown hair...No maybe it was Red? Raizou moved his head to the side. ”Yozei huh, nice to meet you as well. I’m fine with it if the big man is.” He said as he patted the boulder, another person of hopefully around his level should maybe limit the difficulty of the training...No.
That was far too optimistic, Raizou had been skirting his training for the last few years. He needed to realize this more, that he was behind everyone. That meant he needed to train harder than anyone. ”And another one, it seems your boulder is really grabbing everyone’s attention Zankuro.” He didn’t interject more than that, he got the feeling this guy wasn't looking at him at all. So Raizou stepped back, more so to actually get a look at Zankuro.
Blonde and muscled, well chiselled would be a more correct term. Where he, Yozei and that other guy seemed to be on the lithe side. ”Hey. Why so far away? I don’t think anyone will bite you.” He gave a smirk, a part of his old self still remained; a cocky little brat that he restrained just as it began to rear its head.
”Who else here has heard of blitz shogi?” He said with some energy. ”Begin a training action at the start of your turn, if you fail to complete it in that time frame, you lose out on your turn...” Well it was a slight twist on what he was doing before this point, so perhaps this would work to ease him into it. "I'll give you an example I guess. Instead of usually just moving one of your pieces, you get told to lift a boulder up and drop it ten times within a time-frame, if you can't do it or you take too long, it switches to your opponent's turn." He said simply enough as he crossed his arms over his chest. Well there was always the chance that the challenges set were made too hard for either party to complete, meaning that the game of Shogi goes unplayed.
He saw the hand that the person underneath showed, looking at it for a few seconds. Before he stepped to the side and shook the person’s hand, a man he assumed. Raizou’s own hands were rather soft, there were old dips that had long since softened again, and the odd new blister, but even so hard work was certainly something new to him. ”Zankoru?” He said the name, it sounded familiar but he could not place it.
”Nice to meet you!” He said with a smirk. ”My name’s Raizou. I think it would great to train with you, sir!” Raizou put some energy that he did not feel into his words, keeping some respect there. It was only natural to assume that someone of such strength was definitely not a genin like him. Well if anything, a man capable of lifting a rock would have a very good training regime. It wasn't like they would be starting at a point beyond his level right?
Before he had a moment to think about it, another person came onto the scene, before he could even give a proper look to the man behind the boulder. Around his age it seemed, maybe a little younger. Brown hair...No maybe it was Red? Raizou moved his head to the side. ”Yozei huh, nice to meet you as well. I’m fine with it if the big man is.” He said as he patted the boulder, another person of hopefully around his level should maybe limit the difficulty of the training...No.
That was far too optimistic, Raizou had been skirting his training for the last few years. He needed to realize this more, that he was behind everyone. That meant he needed to train harder than anyone. ”And another one, it seems your boulder is really grabbing everyone’s attention Zankuro.” He didn’t interject more than that, he got the feeling this guy wasn't looking at him at all. So Raizou stepped back, more so to actually get a look at Zankuro.
Blonde and muscled, well chiselled would be a more correct term. Where he, Yozei and that other guy seemed to be on the lithe side. ”Hey. Why so far away? I don’t think anyone will bite you.” He gave a smirk, a part of his old self still remained; a cocky little brat that he restrained just as it began to rear its head.
”Who else here has heard of blitz shogi?” He said with some energy. ”Begin a training action at the start of your turn, if you fail to complete it in that time frame, you lose out on your turn...” Well it was a slight twist on what he was doing before this point, so perhaps this would work to ease him into it. "I'll give you an example I guess. Instead of usually just moving one of your pieces, you get told to lift a boulder up and drop it ten times within a time-frame, if you can't do it or you take too long, it switches to your opponent's turn." He said simply enough as he crossed his arms over his chest. Well there was always the chance that the challenges set were made too hard for either party to complete, meaning that the game of Shogi goes unplayed.
My thread
| Characters | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Rank | Village | Plotboards | Socals | Stat Total |
| Awai, Raizou | Chuunin | Konohagakure | [S:0 A:0 B:0 C:1 D:0] | 3 | 140 |
High Impact Shogi
Zakuro heard the voices of two people while stood there, underneath his rock. The first, he had no reaction to, besides some slight excitement at the prospect of getting to train another young shinobi. On the other hand, the other voice, it was cold, distant, and familiar. Hearing it shocked Zakuro for a moment. He almost had a hard time placing it, but he remembered the voice, although different. Gene… Zakuro wondered what his companion had been up to during his absence. All of his peers had grown so much while he was gone. It was rough being behind them still, despite how much Zakuro thought he had grown while being away. Before he felt jealousy towards them, now that feeling was replaced with determination and ambition. It was why he was here. Zakuro didn’t know how much Gene had grown, but he heard of the man’s exploits and his new promotion in ANBU. It was a dark and secretive organization, so Zakuro really didn’t know to what extent the power of it’s leader had to be, but he heard whispers of the things that happened there. He knew Gene had to be stronger than he was. It seemed that Gene was as interested in seeing how far Zakuro had grown as Zakuro was with his growth. Zakuro rolled the boulder off of his back and into his arms. It was a very difficult thing to grasp due to its sheer size, so Zakuro improvised and shoved his hands into the side of the rock, making impromptu handles. With a bit of struggle in his voice, “Gene, you fucker, how’ve you been?” With a big smile on his face, Zakuro jumped and twirled in the air, using the momentum of his spin to launch the boulder towards his masked friend. He didn’t throw it to hard to endanger him, but he just wanted to watch him get out of the way. Just a little test to make sure his buddy was on the alert.
After landing and watching Gene dodge, Zakuro would cheerfully ganter on over to his buddy and attempt to put his sweaty hand on his shoulder. “It’s great to see you again man. Why don’t you join us. I promise that’s all the boulders I had to throw at you.” He gave out a hearty laugh and walked back to the group.
Raizou gave as noble of an effort with pronouncing Zakuro’s name as he did with coming up with an idea for a game, but Zakuro was already planning on taking over this game and twisting it into something much more fun, stressful and probably painful. A single action, or challenge wasn’t enough to truly break a sweat and feel pain and struggle. Instead, a non-stop contest of wills seemed as though it would be best for training. Zakuro had the perfect idea for what to do. “Good idea Raizou. Also, it’s Zakuro. Z-A-K-U-R-O. Not whatever you just said. Anyways, by good idea, I mean it sucks, no offense. Solid effort though. I suggest that since there’s typically two players that do a game of Shogi, and there’s four of us, we split into two teams. I’ll go on one, Gene will go on the other, just to make things fair.” He gave a nod towards Gene. “For the other two, I’ll let you discuss which team you want to be on. Gene might look frail, weak, kinda like a wet noodle, and a wee bit like a weirdo, but I promise you he’s a good guy. Also, I’m pretty sure he’s a special jounin now, congrats on that promotion by the way buddy, while I’m just a Chuunin, so it’s safe to say that the tables are decently even between us.” This time he gave Gene a wink with a cheeky smile. Zakuro didn’t know Gene to have much of a personality, but Zakuro wanted to see him react to getting messed with a little bit.
He continued, “Anyways, while you’re deciding who you want to team with, I’ll explain what I want to do with this training. If anyone has any ideas on how to make it more difficult or interesting, let me know. For now, this is what I’m thinking. We all start at a point about 20 meters back, then at the same time, we make a mad dash to the shogi board. If you reach it, you’re allowed to move only one piece on your side of the board, and then in order to move another piece, you have to go behind the starting point and make your way back to the board. You’re allowed to stop your opponents from reaching the board in any way you see fit, but it’s just a game so there’s no need to hurt each other.” As Zakuro said that, and he was looking at the tiny shogi board sitting next to him, he came up with another idea. “Actually, instead of playing on that board, let's make a giant shogi board in the dirt and some large objects as pieces. How about for team Gene, you take a few trees, cut them up and draw the piece symbols on them. Me and my teammate will do the same but with big rocks. While you guys set that up, I’ll move this big boulder I brought over here, and that will be our starting point. Any questions or objections?” Unless there were any questions, Zakuro walked over to the giant boulder and heaved it up over his head. Again, every inch of movement caused the muscles in his arms to ripple and expand, making him look even more muscular and intimidating. He quickly brought the stone to a respectable distance and set it down. This was going to fun with Gene here.
[Strength Training - 967 words + 35 over the last post = 1002 words]
After landing and watching Gene dodge, Zakuro would cheerfully ganter on over to his buddy and attempt to put his sweaty hand on his shoulder. “It’s great to see you again man. Why don’t you join us. I promise that’s all the boulders I had to throw at you.” He gave out a hearty laugh and walked back to the group.
Raizou gave as noble of an effort with pronouncing Zakuro’s name as he did with coming up with an idea for a game, but Zakuro was already planning on taking over this game and twisting it into something much more fun, stressful and probably painful. A single action, or challenge wasn’t enough to truly break a sweat and feel pain and struggle. Instead, a non-stop contest of wills seemed as though it would be best for training. Zakuro had the perfect idea for what to do. “Good idea Raizou. Also, it’s Zakuro. Z-A-K-U-R-O. Not whatever you just said. Anyways, by good idea, I mean it sucks, no offense. Solid effort though. I suggest that since there’s typically two players that do a game of Shogi, and there’s four of us, we split into two teams. I’ll go on one, Gene will go on the other, just to make things fair.” He gave a nod towards Gene. “For the other two, I’ll let you discuss which team you want to be on. Gene might look frail, weak, kinda like a wet noodle, and a wee bit like a weirdo, but I promise you he’s a good guy. Also, I’m pretty sure he’s a special jounin now, congrats on that promotion by the way buddy, while I’m just a Chuunin, so it’s safe to say that the tables are decently even between us.” This time he gave Gene a wink with a cheeky smile. Zakuro didn’t know Gene to have much of a personality, but Zakuro wanted to see him react to getting messed with a little bit.
He continued, “Anyways, while you’re deciding who you want to team with, I’ll explain what I want to do with this training. If anyone has any ideas on how to make it more difficult or interesting, let me know. For now, this is what I’m thinking. We all start at a point about 20 meters back, then at the same time, we make a mad dash to the shogi board. If you reach it, you’re allowed to move only one piece on your side of the board, and then in order to move another piece, you have to go behind the starting point and make your way back to the board. You’re allowed to stop your opponents from reaching the board in any way you see fit, but it’s just a game so there’s no need to hurt each other.” As Zakuro said that, and he was looking at the tiny shogi board sitting next to him, he came up with another idea. “Actually, instead of playing on that board, let's make a giant shogi board in the dirt and some large objects as pieces. How about for team Gene, you take a few trees, cut them up and draw the piece symbols on them. Me and my teammate will do the same but with big rocks. While you guys set that up, I’ll move this big boulder I brought over here, and that will be our starting point. Any questions or objections?” Unless there were any questions, Zakuro walked over to the giant boulder and heaved it up over his head. Again, every inch of movement caused the muscles in his arms to ripple and expand, making him look even more muscular and intimidating. He quickly brought the stone to a respectable distance and set it down. This was going to fun with Gene here.
[Strength Training - 967 words + 35 over the last post = 1002 words]
" A 7 for Zangy for example, is different from a 7 from Envy who is not quite a nuanced writer as Zangy is (sorry Envy), which is different from a 7 for Rain, who has English as his second language." - Onu 2016
High Impact Shogi
Yozei jumped a little at the voice that seemed to appear from nowhere. While he wasn’t known for being particularly aware of his surroundings it was still impressive to be able to sneak up or move quickly enough to not be noticed at all. The newcomer had a distinct presence now that he had made himself known. Surely he was a skilled shinobi and Yozei was curious what kind of capabilities he had. “Yeah. Just got here” Yozei affirmed, though as he spoke of a challenge he didn’t answer. He was only a fresh Chunin and he doubted he would be able to pose any threat to someone like him. He would observe as Zakuro and Raizou talked for a while. It was all a bit much for him he typically preferred to keep to himself unless he was on some kind of diplomatic endeavor. When it came to training he would try to force himself to interact with new people but most of them ended up being disappointments and thus he generally preferred to either train alone or with highly skilled shinobi such as Jounin and Bannin. Still, he didn’t exactly have any friends, not real ones anyway. A handful of acquaintances and former teammates but that was it. The closest person to a friend that he currently had was probably Nikuya and that was just because he had been working with her recently. Even his family he mostly interacted with during training sessions or if it was time for dinner.
At the thought of playing Shogi, Yozei was indifferent. He had played the game when he was a kid and was fairly good at it, if a little out of practice but he had hoped to get a bit more physically fit, seeing as it was one of his weakest areas of being a shinobi. Ironic considering his father and stepmother were two of the most fearsome taijutsu practitioners in the village, just more pressure and expectations to be piled on though he was fairly used to it now and it wasn’t something he complained about. A little bored he began doing some squats while still wearing the weighted backpack while he listened to the rules. Honestly, he hated working his muscles, but he knew that if he didn’t do it today, he would slack off for the rest of the week. Zakuro explained his version of the game and it certainly sounded a lot more physical which is what he needed. The enthusiasm the larger man displayed was exhausting, indicating a high level of stamina that was sure to outwork the rest of them. When the instructions were finally done, Yozei would stretch out his thighs after having done about fifty squats. His legs were comfortably warmed up now and only a little sore. “Alright. I’ll go on your team then since we’re both Chunin” he stated, indicating toward Zakuro. He couldn’t be certain but he had a feeling Raizou was below his skill level and thus this would create the most balanced teams. Moreover, moving the boulders seemed a bit more physical and at least for today, he wanted to push his body. The more he did today the less he would have to do for the rest of the week after all.
Keeping his backpack of about two hundred pounds on him, Yozei would run over to the nearest boulder, a rock about a meter in diameter. Despite looking a bit on the smaller side for a boulder it still weighed about four hundred pounds, at least if he were to give it a rough estimate, judging the weight as he got into a low stance and began to push at the rock. The weight of his backpack actually helped to anchor him quite nicely and give him a good center of gravity so his feet didn’t slide back at all as he rolled the boulder, lifting one side off the ground before it flipped and landed heavily on the other. Slowly and methodically he would continue to move the boulder closer to the assigned playing area that would be their giant shogi board. ‘It’s amazing that we’re the same rank’ he thought in awe as he reflected on the way Zakuro had tossed that massive boulder which was at least ten times the diameter of the rock he was moving and significantly more than 10 times the weight. Once Yozei moved the rock into position he considered going back to try to find another one when he remembered he was also supposed to mark the pieces they brought over. He considered cutting it with his Katana which was stronger than most weapon steels but it would have been a bit of a difficult thing to carve with precision using a sword, quite awkward and unwieldy and it being a sacred weapon he didn’t want to utilize it for such a trivial task. Instead, he pulled out a kunai, channeling chakra into the blade and reinforcing it with Katon, giving it a stronger edge that would sear and burn through materials as he cut into them. Even on a rock, it would help to score the surface and do more damage than the cold steel alone.
Using both hands and positioning his body in such a way as to guard his eyes from potential sparks or shards of rock, Yozei chipped away at the surface, delivering precise and powerful strikes and thoroughly engaging the muscles in his arms and midsection as opposed to the legs and back which were highlighted in moving the boulder. He was now beginning to sweat and notice a moderately elevated heart rate. In fact, this kind of training was actually almost fun as it gave him a goal to complete that was also a competition against another team. And this was simply the preparation for the game. This Zakuro guy had some decent ideas when it came to training. Yozei wondered if he also had good leadership and tactical skills, being able to think of something like this on the fly. He did seem like a bit of a muscle head though so perhaps not but looks were often deceiving so he wouldn’t make any decisive judgments.
977 + 1036 = 2013 Words Strength Training (+2 Stats)
At the thought of playing Shogi, Yozei was indifferent. He had played the game when he was a kid and was fairly good at it, if a little out of practice but he had hoped to get a bit more physically fit, seeing as it was one of his weakest areas of being a shinobi. Ironic considering his father and stepmother were two of the most fearsome taijutsu practitioners in the village, just more pressure and expectations to be piled on though he was fairly used to it now and it wasn’t something he complained about. A little bored he began doing some squats while still wearing the weighted backpack while he listened to the rules. Honestly, he hated working his muscles, but he knew that if he didn’t do it today, he would slack off for the rest of the week. Zakuro explained his version of the game and it certainly sounded a lot more physical which is what he needed. The enthusiasm the larger man displayed was exhausting, indicating a high level of stamina that was sure to outwork the rest of them. When the instructions were finally done, Yozei would stretch out his thighs after having done about fifty squats. His legs were comfortably warmed up now and only a little sore. “Alright. I’ll go on your team then since we’re both Chunin” he stated, indicating toward Zakuro. He couldn’t be certain but he had a feeling Raizou was below his skill level and thus this would create the most balanced teams. Moreover, moving the boulders seemed a bit more physical and at least for today, he wanted to push his body. The more he did today the less he would have to do for the rest of the week after all.
Keeping his backpack of about two hundred pounds on him, Yozei would run over to the nearest boulder, a rock about a meter in diameter. Despite looking a bit on the smaller side for a boulder it still weighed about four hundred pounds, at least if he were to give it a rough estimate, judging the weight as he got into a low stance and began to push at the rock. The weight of his backpack actually helped to anchor him quite nicely and give him a good center of gravity so his feet didn’t slide back at all as he rolled the boulder, lifting one side off the ground before it flipped and landed heavily on the other. Slowly and methodically he would continue to move the boulder closer to the assigned playing area that would be their giant shogi board. ‘It’s amazing that we’re the same rank’ he thought in awe as he reflected on the way Zakuro had tossed that massive boulder which was at least ten times the diameter of the rock he was moving and significantly more than 10 times the weight. Once Yozei moved the rock into position he considered going back to try to find another one when he remembered he was also supposed to mark the pieces they brought over. He considered cutting it with his Katana which was stronger than most weapon steels but it would have been a bit of a difficult thing to carve with precision using a sword, quite awkward and unwieldy and it being a sacred weapon he didn’t want to utilize it for such a trivial task. Instead, he pulled out a kunai, channeling chakra into the blade and reinforcing it with Katon, giving it a stronger edge that would sear and burn through materials as he cut into them. Even on a rock, it would help to score the surface and do more damage than the cold steel alone.
Using both hands and positioning his body in such a way as to guard his eyes from potential sparks or shards of rock, Yozei chipped away at the surface, delivering precise and powerful strikes and thoroughly engaging the muscles in his arms and midsection as opposed to the legs and back which were highlighted in moving the boulder. He was now beginning to sweat and notice a moderately elevated heart rate. In fact, this kind of training was actually almost fun as it gave him a goal to complete that was also a competition against another team. And this was simply the preparation for the game. This Zakuro guy had some decent ideas when it came to training. Yozei wondered if he also had good leadership and tactical skills, being able to think of something like this on the fly. He did seem like a bit of a muscle head though so perhaps not but looks were often deceiving so he wouldn’t make any decisive judgments.
977 + 1036 = 2013 Words Strength Training (+2 Stats)
Karagata Shinjiro - Kiri Bannin; Jinchuuriki, Overseer of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Kintsugi
Haziwara Youji- Iwagakure Chunin
Takeda Ichiro - A-Rank Waterfall Country; Black Wake, Chishiki, Setsuzoku
Hyuuga Takeshi - Konoha Special Jounin; Anbu
Jouchaku Shigeko - Kiri Genin; HHD
High Impact Shogi
While he wasn't entirely caught off guard by the sudden lobbing of a large boulder in his direction, Gene made note of the fact that his colleague had not considered the possibility of striking a bystander in the event that he'd chosen to simply avoid the rock outright. Thankful now that he had chosen not to approach the group and instead speak from a safe distance, Gene took a small measure of comfort in knowing that his instincts had not yet begun to fail him. However, there was still the matter at hand: How was he going to deal with this rock?
To his credit, while Zakuro had not intentionally thrown the boulder with an obvious intent to harm there could be no doubt about the strength existing behind his throw. In fact, if Gene were to guess he'd imagine that the man had not yet become aware of just how strong he really was which...in and of itself was a problem. All of this was to say that the boulder thrown harmlessly by one had actually been moving at an alarming rate of speed in which all but demanded Gene act in the most swift and reasonable manner possible; dodging, while a simple task on its own would not have yielded a full on escape because of the rocks size which meant that begrudgingly, Gene would have to split the damned thing in half saving himself, time and energy in the process in addition to building a strong mental note for later whenever the two could afford time to reminisce.
His mind made, Gene brought his left hand up to the Ninjato handle resting behind him and swiftly snatched the weapon up and out of its sheath positioning it perfectly above his head as his other hand found perfect placement higher up along the handle. Don't panic. Just...breath. He thought, calming his mind and focusing on the muscles necessary for what he was about to do and then...
Bringing the sword down in a ferocious two hand swing, Gene relied both upon his own physical strength and speed in addition to the forces of gravity to carry his weapon forward and into the oncoming mass before him. What Zakuro wouldn't see from his airborne position however, was the crescent shaped burst of wind that had surged from the edge of Gene's blade serving both to split the boulder completely in half and if he were lucky, to strike the falling Chunin somewhere across his torso as a painful reminder never to let his hot-blooded nature get the better of him. Splintered rocks and debris fell hard but most had been sent headed the opposite direction in lieu of Gene's slash, making for an unintended two-point attack that he waited patiently to see how his colleague would deal with.
If Zakuro thought that he would be getting off the hook with a stunt like the one he'd just pulled considering Gene's nature...he had another thing coming. Chunin or not there was a statement to be made here and that statement was: you don't throw things at people - especially not ridiculously huge boulders! Although he would have liked to have started things on a much lighter note (call it an old slackers plight) Gene realized all too quickly that he could no longer afford to take Zakuro lightly, at least not now.
Ironically, without hearing much else about what other instruction his colleague had for him Gene had ultimately created several pieces to be used in the form of basketball sized rocks of which certainly could double for life sized shogi pieces if necessary. Though this was the extent of the Silver-haired Jounin's cooperation as an unintended consequence of a defensive measure taken all too quickly. Only once the dust had settled and his colleague handled his end of things would the Jounin adjust his focus to fit the situation.
[Shinden • Whiplash]
B - Rank
Pseudo Heavenly Tai Maneuver
Prerequisite: 35 Strength, 35 Taijutsu.
Description: Lifting their sword above their head the user of this technique drives it down in one fluid motion with their blade aimed to slash through or into whatever they are attacking. The force of this technique is amplified by the fact that their stance is aimed to enhance muscle tension and torque, allowing them to make the single slash a very powerful one. Furthermore, a pressurized wave of air is sent in the direction of the swing at 2/3rds the users strength which may do additional damage.
To his credit, while Zakuro had not intentionally thrown the boulder with an obvious intent to harm there could be no doubt about the strength existing behind his throw. In fact, if Gene were to guess he'd imagine that the man had not yet become aware of just how strong he really was which...in and of itself was a problem. All of this was to say that the boulder thrown harmlessly by one had actually been moving at an alarming rate of speed in which all but demanded Gene act in the most swift and reasonable manner possible; dodging, while a simple task on its own would not have yielded a full on escape because of the rocks size which meant that begrudgingly, Gene would have to split the damned thing in half saving himself, time and energy in the process in addition to building a strong mental note for later whenever the two could afford time to reminisce.
His mind made, Gene brought his left hand up to the Ninjato handle resting behind him and swiftly snatched the weapon up and out of its sheath positioning it perfectly above his head as his other hand found perfect placement higher up along the handle. Don't panic. Just...breath. He thought, calming his mind and focusing on the muscles necessary for what he was about to do and then...
Bringing the sword down in a ferocious two hand swing, Gene relied both upon his own physical strength and speed in addition to the forces of gravity to carry his weapon forward and into the oncoming mass before him. What Zakuro wouldn't see from his airborne position however, was the crescent shaped burst of wind that had surged from the edge of Gene's blade serving both to split the boulder completely in half and if he were lucky, to strike the falling Chunin somewhere across his torso as a painful reminder never to let his hot-blooded nature get the better of him. Splintered rocks and debris fell hard but most had been sent headed the opposite direction in lieu of Gene's slash, making for an unintended two-point attack that he waited patiently to see how his colleague would deal with.
If Zakuro thought that he would be getting off the hook with a stunt like the one he'd just pulled considering Gene's nature...he had another thing coming. Chunin or not there was a statement to be made here and that statement was: you don't throw things at people - especially not ridiculously huge boulders! Although he would have liked to have started things on a much lighter note (call it an old slackers plight) Gene realized all too quickly that he could no longer afford to take Zakuro lightly, at least not now.
Ironically, without hearing much else about what other instruction his colleague had for him Gene had ultimately created several pieces to be used in the form of basketball sized rocks of which certainly could double for life sized shogi pieces if necessary. Though this was the extent of the Silver-haired Jounin's cooperation as an unintended consequence of a defensive measure taken all too quickly. Only once the dust had settled and his colleague handled his end of things would the Jounin adjust his focus to fit the situation.
Used/learned | 470/400Show
[Shinden • Whiplash]
B - Rank
Pseudo Heavenly Tai Maneuver
Prerequisite: 35 Strength, 35 Taijutsu.
Description: Lifting their sword above their head the user of this technique drives it down in one fluid motion with their blade aimed to slash through or into whatever they are attacking. The force of this technique is amplified by the fact that their stance is aimed to enhance muscle tension and torque, allowing them to make the single slash a very powerful one. Furthermore, a pressurized wave of air is sent in the direction of the swing at 2/3rds the users strength which may do additional damage.
UsedShow
Distinction]
B-ranked discipline
Prerequisites: Perception concentration & 20 instinct
Description: As a Shinobi, it is imperative to be able to distinguish between the sounds of nature and those that are unnatural for the sake of one's own safety. To that end, Gene has gained enough experience to be able to tell the difference between natural sounds and those of a battle. Additionally, he may tune out sounds to focus on specific sounds and noises making him much harder to fool.
B-ranked discipline
Prerequisites: Perception concentration & 20 instinct
Description: As a Shinobi, it is imperative to be able to distinguish between the sounds of nature and those that are unnatural for the sake of one's own safety. To that end, Gene has gained enough experience to be able to tell the difference between natural sounds and those of a battle. Additionally, he may tune out sounds to focus on specific sounds and noises making him much harder to fool.
ACTIVE CHARACTERShow