All Nature is Beautiful - Even Spiders

[TyDie]

Deep in a particularly woody area within the walls of great Konoha, a fierce battle was taking place between a particular spider girl and her own creations -two spiders of immense size, made entirely of rock. It was a favorite training method of hers, to battle her rocky spiders when she didn't have a partner to spar with, and fighting two at the same time pushed her to using her entire kit to it's fullest. Of course, this included her infamous transformation; the girl had already assumed her spider form, her skin having blackened with chitinous armor and her hair having fallen out to make room for extra eyes, while her torso sprouted additional arms. In her arms currently were her glaive, her sword, her shield, and her bow with several arrows in one hand. Her remaining hand was kept open for the use of her wires, allowing all six of her arms to be used offensively.

"Come on guys, give it your best!" The girl said with a silly grin, her voice slightly distorted and raspy due to the transformation. And 'give it their best' they did, as both giant spiders rushed her with their four front limbs, aiming to skewer the young woman with their barbed tips, but Aiya deftly dipped and dodged out of their way as she lashed out with her glaive one handed at the limbs. Sweeping this way and that, she managed to stay just out of reach of the spider's attacks while slowly whittling down the legs of the spiders with her swipes. Once she managed to trim the edges a touch with her glaive however, the fun was about to begin, as with a swift toss her shield went spiraling through the air towards one of the spider's heads, a resounding "crack" echoing out as it collided with the creature's head before bounding off of it towards the other spider's head, impacting both within mere moments of each other.

The spiders, stunned and set off balance by the attacks, were thus left open as Aiya thrust her wires towards one of them, impaling the underside of it's body and pulling herself forward to slide across the ground on her feet, catching her shield as it came back to her in the process. She'd yank herself between the spider's legs, under it's body, before leaping up and swinging herself into the air some 15 meters. Then, she'd yank hard on the wire to send her cascading down against the abdomen of the large creature, delivering an earth shattering slash with her sword that split the abdomen in two, causing the first spider to crumble to dust as she landed back on the ground.

With one opponent felled, the other would be far easier, however she hadn't anticipated it regaining it's composure so quickly as it lashed out at her with it's sharpened legs, three of the four finding their home in her armor and leaving deep gashes in the chitin as she was thrown some 5 meters away. "Tch." The girl clicked her tongue in annoyance as she pushed herself to her feet quickly, bracing her shield to bat away another strike from the spider while flexing the hand holding her wires to bring them back to her arm. In a poof of white smoke, all of her weapons would be stored away in her seal again, and in their place she'd withdraw two of her fuma shuriken, holding them in the same hands that contained her wires.

With a heave, she'd throw both shuriken out towards the spider's back legs while she jumped away from the front legs again, the shuriken seeming to miss entirely as they went too wide. However, a glint in the sunlight revealed that each shuriken was attached to wires - With a flick of her wrists, vibrations send through the wires caused the shuriken to curve entirely, almost colliding with each other as they doubled around back towards Aiya, wrapping up the spider's legs in the process. As the shuriken impacted two trees, she'd have the anchors she needed to pull tightly on the wires, causing them to dig deep into the spider's back legs, severing them completely. With no support, the spider fell forward, and with a poof of smoke Aiya would be holding a spear for the creature to land on. It's tip pierced the spider's head, and it too crumbled to dust.

Breathing some sighs of exasperation, the girl yanked on her wires again, tearing the shuriken from the trees where they were embedded and bringing them back to her hands before poofing them away with a Kai, along with her spear. "The spiders are big and have reach, sure, but they're so weak and predictable... This is no way to train. Ugh, I need more sparring buddies! Where's Takeshi when you need him?" The young girl spoke aloud to herself, not realizing she may have an audience this deep in the woods.

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828/750 words for Endurance Training

[FluffyGinja]

Ever since the Hokage had permitted Ibuku to utilize the training spots deeper in the woods thanks to his natural connection with the world around him. These ancient forests gave off an energy unlike any other, welcoming, familiar, and wise beyond it's years. He still hadn't gotten accustom to the chakra signature of the Sekaigenma yet as it was morphing to better adjust to his body over time. The winter months were coming in, forcing Ibuku to bundle up and step more carefully around trees. Buds of flowers and smaller creatures that were going into hibernation or still doing last minute collecting of resources could be seen everywhere and he was always surprised how fast they could move for being such small creatures. As his feet took another step, he paused. The cooler air carried sound better and he swore he could hear the sound of fighting happening.

His natural curiosity easily got the better of him and he began to step closer towards the noises. It was growing more obvious what those noises were, steel clashing across rock and... wild chittering. Plenty of creatures could make similar noises but these didn't sound fully natural and he was soon able to see why as he had barely made it within eyesight of the battle. Two enormous spiders that looked to be made of stone were chittering away and in pitched combat with what looked like a shinobi among the legs, mandibles and fury. Ibuku would feel a presence near him, one of the Jounin escorts that followed along with him and he seemed concerned, typically not making his presence fully known but choosing to watch closely than further.

It was an impressive display of Taijutsu to himself, far better than his own and he was coming away with small bits of knowledge here or there that we're allowing him to think on what he might be capable of if he were to focus and practice on hand-to-hand a little further. As the fight ended with a climatic and tricky finish, he watched the woman for a moment more. 'One of the Ibakuro... The form... Looks like a black widow in a way. It's got that same spindly nature to it...' As he was thinking, she called out for a sparring partner and while he didn't think he'd ever be able to keep up, he peered to the Jounin escort with him and went to take a few more steps forward to become more known to the woman, the Jounin escort choosing just to watch from the shadows.

"That was really impressive, especially considering how many arms you have... I can't imagine having that many arms myself, I mess up with ten fingers plenty." He was hoping a slight joke would break the ice. Fanho had been rubbing off on him just a touch and he couldn't deny... The more he heard jokes and understood them a little, he saw their purpose.

[TyDie]

Being a trained hunter and ANBU operative, along with the sensory training that came with her skills as an Ibakuro, Aiya was not one to be snuck up on easily. She could feel through the earth, smell through the air, and her hearing and sight were impeccable. However, the clattering and thunderous movements of the spiders masked any tremors, and the boy who approached her smelled like... earth. Like the natural environment, almost like a hunter would use to cover up their natural scent. Even her multitude of eyes were distracted, dust and dirt flitting about in the air, obscuring her vision just enough that between not paying much attention and the low vision setting, Aiya didn't realize she had company.

Until they spoke.

"Ah!" The young girl exclaimed in fright, jumping with a start so bad she felt her heart skip a beat. Her senses returning to her, she suddenly noticed the young boy with the horns who spoke to her. She also realized that there were more people than just him; Judging by the various smells and tremors she could feel through the ground, she estimated at least three other people watching them. But being that they were in Konoha, she didn't suspect foul play at work. Plus, the boy had a headband around his neck... So why would a young shinobi be out in the woods with an entourage like this?

These thoughts were all pushed to the side momentarily, as she addressed the boy's comments with an embarrassed laugh. "Heh...Thanks? It isn't often I receive compliments when I look like this. Most people run and scream." Scratching the back of her head, she let out a small breath as her skin color lightened to its normal hue, and all of the features of her spider blood once more receded. Her hair grew back over her skull, long raven locks falling to her mid shoulder, while her arms and chitin dissipated harmlessly into her body and her fangs receded into normal teeth again. Her extra eyes all closed before vanishing, and a moment later the woman looked completely normal - aside from her strange eyes and massive height of course.

"I'm Aiya. Of the Ibakuro clan. And you managed to scare the hell out of me, not something that many can say they've managed." She shot the boy a sly grin, walking closer to the boy to tower over him with the height difference. "If you can manage that, I think we can teach you to be a little more accurate with your fingers. What brings you out here anyway? And uh, what do I call the horned boy that spooked the spider, hm?"

[FluffyGinja]

There is a brief pause as he watches her basically jump out of her skin from the fright that he gave, unintentionally. It was a moment of surprise that he had even managed to scare anyone at all, considering he was used to standing out these days. "Maybe I need to look into stealth techniques... It may help so that I can sneak up on people while actually meaning it." It was clear he was taking a mental note to himself on that one as he took a moment to nod his head. "Uhm... Hitoke, Ibuku. I'm not from a clan, I'm afraid... I... don't actually know, honestly but I wouldn't say I am." With a little look up into the air, he was debating on that fact as he was trying to reason out anything on the thought he just gave to himself but after that, he shrugged. "Well... the forest is old, it resonates with natural energies and it lets me... focus more on training." He was looking around as he was debating on how to properly explain this but he figured that would be the best way to say it since she didn't ask up front and he had been given many reminders to be more discrete even if it was difficult to be. "Are you training out here because of the same reason?" He decided to ask concerning the fact that she was a large, spider woman, since he had heard about the clan but hadn't known much about them.

"Those spiders... made of doton chakra? They looked powerful but it was difficult to tell... I don't know much about your clan at all other than the name and the relation to spiders. You... look like a black widow though. Er... I should... say more specifically, part of the widow species, I can't confirm which one since I don't know if you have the markings of one or another." There was a slight shrug from him as he was looking around the area. He knew there were larger fauna in the area, as purposes for keeping out intruders and for training, but he hadn't seen anything like that particular species before.

[TyDie]

Aiya crossed her arms under her chest and cocked a hip as the boy explained himself a bit more, giving his name as well as the reasons for him being out in the middle of the forest. A real tree hugger it seemed, the boy simply liked being in the natural environment when he trained or relaxed. Well, Aiya saw that appeal too of course. "Mhmm, makes sense." The girl said with a small nod, closing her eyes in thought. "My views aren't quite as spiritual or philosophical I'll admit, but there's something to be said about the feeling of being out here, yknow? There's no distractions... well, usually." She spoke with a chuckle, giving the boy a quick wink as she clearly jabbed at his interruption of her training. "I'm teasing by the way, I could honestly use a small break, hehe." The girl smirked at the young Ibuku and gave a slight nod of her head to an overturned tree trunk. Next to it was a bottle of water, a towel, and a box of snack foods - Aiya had clearly been intending to train out here for quite a while.

As she sat on the trunk and produced a sweat bean bun from the box, she'd offer one to Ibuku before taking one for herself. "You're right on both counts." She said with a simple nod to the remains of the large spider constructs. "The spiders are the strongest sparring partner I can make on short notice. Sadly, they're still not very strong. Chakra and ninjutsu and stuff, not really my forte, haha" The girl scratched the back of her head with slight embarrassment as she admitted her rather weak understanding of high level ninjutsu and genjutsu techniques. She was a physical powerhouse through and through, and taijutsu just came as naturally to her as breathing did - She'd be a fool to ignore that talent.

"How about you huh? What do you have a knack for, Ibuku-chan?" The spider's head tilted in curiosity, a small grin forming as she waited for the boy's response.

[FluffyGinja]

As he went to follow after her and take a seat opposite of her, he reached for the bun and grasped it, pulling it close. With curiosity, he tore it in half and could smell the difference in aromas that hit him from what he expected. It wasn't meat, which was nice as he preferred plants and the like. He took a small bite and the sweet flavor hit him, which was a change of pace for what he normally preferred but he was thankful for the change of pace in this regard. With a slight mouthful, he pressed it to his cheek to speak a little more freely. "Ninjutsu, specifically elemental." He was doing his best to chew through the bun somewhat quickly as he was staring at the grass, thinking on how he would explain his skill set but he didn't really have much else to him. "I started out with Katon but... I suddenly had a strange knack and affinity for Raiton and it is proving useful to me." He was stuffing the last bit of the offered treat into his mouth before finishing it off fairly quickly.

"I want to learn all of the chakra natures I can, at least with what is provided within the village. Maybe some Fuuton next... But I'm not sure." He was looking over towards where the spiders had been a moment ago and was thinking on that particular jutsu. He hadn't thought about doing clones before, it wasn't his forte in the academy but he was realizing that it might be useful to have one around... At least of one of the elements. "Right now though, I'm learning to master nature chakra more than anything else." He stated somewhat openly, since it was just them out here. Well, and his one escort but they were currently hanging back and just watching for the time being.

[TyDie]

Aiya chowed down on her own bun as she let Ibuku take the time to explain his own interests and talents to her, the sweet taste filling her mouth and causing her to smile with delight. The boy seemed to have a penchant for all things ninjutsu, especially when it came to the basic elemental affinities - She hadn't heard of anyone quite so dedicated to learning all of the elements like that. "Impressive, to have even two elements figured out at such a young age. Each element requires you to shape and mold chakra in completely different ways... I tried Raiton once actually. Figured it'd be good if I could wrap my wires around someone and then give them a shock through the wires, but uh... Turns out I don't like being shocked, haha." Aiya rubbed the back of her head and laughed with slight embarrassment as she recalled the jolt she had given herself the last time she tried to use lightning ninjutsu. Eventually, she decided it simply wasn't for her - It was going to be rocks forever for Aiya Ibakuro.

But towards the end of his explanations, he mentioned "Nature Chakra", and a puzzled look crossed the young spider's face. "I'm not sure I understand. All chakra has a nature to it, that's what the elemental affinities are right? Doton has earth nature, Katon has fire nature... I've never heard of anyone developing "Nature" techniques. Anything you'd care to show me?" She wasn't doubting the boy per se, more so just doubting her own knowledge. It wouldn't be the first time she learned something new, after all, and perhaps whatever this was could become useful to her own arsenal in the future.

[FluffyGinja]

There was a thought about how he would show it... Jutsu is the most obvious way and he could... he thought he could take the first form. That second one... It was a lot more strain in his already rough mental state. He went to stand up and dust himself off as he was looking towards the person who followed him, a Jounin who watched from a distance, and he gave a affirming nod to let him know all was okay. He took a deep inward breath as he felt that strange release of power, the wood from his antlers creeping down across his body in subtle ways until they wrapped over his hands in these gnarly claws that he flexed briefly and took a deep breath.

Without elaborating since he figured there were going to be a lot of questions, he went to channel chakra through his body, directing it towards his feet. The chakra itself looked like budding flowers and cherry blossoms, steadily cascading around him. It was a relatively simple channel as he was fairly proficient in the skill and soon, without much time, the grass around him was sprouting up all over with abundant and rapid growth, obscuring him from sight for a brief moment before the path between them was given a clear patch so they could still see each other.

"It... isn't like normal chakra... According to others, it can't be sensed. It is too much like the natural chakra that flows through the ground and the air."

[TyDie]

Aiya thought she had been prepared to witness just about anything from the young boy, as he made clear that his jutsu style was unique. She had thought wrong, that is. He wasn't just performing a technique, he was gathering a tremendous amount of power within him by just tapping into whatever this power of his was. His body shifted and morphed as he took on a strange appearance, his horns shifting and growing around him, as his chakra gathered around him. Chakra, mind you, that looked more at home amidst a field of cherry blossoms than it did like chakra. Her eyes grew wide with awe as the boy allowed this chakra to flow into the earth beneath his feet, and a moment later the foliage in the area grew to an incredible size all at once. She had never heard of anything like this, the Senju had powers over wood but this went far beyond what they could do.

"Wow... it's like you're actually controlling nature itself. Not just the element, but the actual world. I've never seen anything like it, kid." This was Aiya's first exposure to a Jinchuuriki in Konoha, and she had no real idea what she was looking at. She knew of the other host, Taiga, but she had never interacted with the man personally and had no clue what his powers actually were. He was just famous, or infamous depending on who you asked. And of course there was Shinjirou, the infamous jinchuuriki from Kiri that she had bumped into when she was in Aroma country years ago... He was a prick, but admittedly he taught her a lot. Before her stood what was essentially a being of unquestionable power, trapped within the prison of a young boy, and Aiya was none the wiser.

"Well, I see why you're putting such an emphasis on your ninjutsu capabilities Ibuku-chan! I would too if I could do stuff like that, haha." She looked up at the grass towering over her, stunned by the potentials for a power like this, as she finally thought to ask the question - "How do you do it, hm?"

[FluffyGinja]

As she asked that question, he naturally went to reply... but he found the words caught in a lump in his throat. The muscles in his chest tightened up in phantom pains as he paused momentarily. He could hear that chiding voice in his head and he had to force himself to refocus back in the question that he had just failed to answer right away. "It's... Nothing special. Just... something I'm not worthy of and that I'm only being used to contain it temporarily." He had fumbled a bit at first but he said the rest casually. As if it was something he had internalized. He didn't even think twice on the words he chose as he was going to look around at the grass near him, seeing how high it had grown. At least for a moment, he was lost in his own mind as he was going to brush his hands across the grass.

He was stronger in Raiton than anything he could do with this... and he gave a slight shrug as he figured he'd just say that. "I can do more with Raiton than any of this..." He took a seat carefully and watched the grass swaying around him, now not able to look at Aiya.

[TyDie]

Aiya could sense that something was amiss as the boy struggled to give an answer to her simple question. He could've said it was just a unique mutation of his chakra, or some body modification he had undergone, but instead he was 'containing' it? It was only then that she finally began to clue in a little bit, a hand stroking her chin in thought. "Contain it? What a strange way to describe your power, Ibuku. You remind me of someone I bumped into a few years ago. A Kiri shinobi who could morph into anything his mind could conjure up... He even copied my spider form, and my venom. Honestly he terrifies me to think about even now. But now that I think about it, your powers remind me of his..."

She paused a moment as she too passed her hands through the massive blades of grass, pushing them aside as she approached the young boy in the middle of his overgrown meadow. When she passed through the grass enough that she could once again see him through the obscuring foliage, she crossed her arms and smirked at him. "You're a jinchuuriki, aren't you?" She said the phrase as if it were so simple, as if she had just explained a basic concept to somebody... as if she wasn't speaking to a child housing the powers of a demigod.

[FluffyGinja]

'I don't know... are you?' his own voice rattled in his head, venomous and angry. Subconsciously, his hand reached and touched at his chest, a dull ache radiating through him. He could feel the thudding of his own heart in his chest as he took a few moments to focus himself. Enough moments that Aiya would see through that veneer of aloof and quiet that he had otherwise. He was looking at her for a moment and one of his eyes had darker tint to it for a brief moment before he shook his head a few times and looked away, going to stand up quickly and move away for a second. "I... don't know..." He muttered as he went to look around the area, not able to look towards her for a few moments. After all of what had happened to him recently, he wasn't sure about anything anymore as he touched the grass, a small amount of Katon escaping his hands and burning down some of the grass around him.

It didn't burn much as he quickly snuffed it out with his other hand as he had lost himself for now, clearing his throat as he looked towards her once more, and only briefly again. "I... should get going..." He wasn't really sure if he should but he didn't know if he could be around anyone all of a sudden, quickly moving through the grass as it parted for him without him having to think about it at all. His steps were easily to follow, since he still gave her a way out, but part of him was having trouble actually leaving as he had paused once more right outside the little field of grass he had made.