Weapons! [Open to all!]

[Morishige]

Zaku~ iNPC at the moment

--

So there I was in one of the dojo's with a scroll of various unarmed styles laid out before me. There was no one else in the room, as that was the reason I had decided to enter and practice here. Though, I was not averse to anyone coming into to train along side me. After all, it wasn't like I was going to be using the entire room.

Currently, I was going through the motions of a style that I considered to be quite useful. It was all about disarming people and using their own weight against them. However, with only practice dummies to train against, I wasn't really feeling how it should have worked. In other words, I was learning the theory great, just not learning how to apply it.

So I would stand there going the the motions on one of the more intermediate rotating dummies. Cursing slightly whenever I messed up, and increasing my speed until I needed to take a break. Is it possible that someone would stumble across me? Or would I train alone... Time would tell.

 

[Yukari]

"Training day" She said to herself as she trotted through the Aurora Erudito. She brought a towel and a bottle of water, and she intended to learn something new, today. Learning was one of those things, she felt, should always continue. Besides the duty aspect, she found it fun. She grinned as she entered the dojo, which as she peeked in and didn't see anyone, was empty. "Cool." She said. slipping quietly through the door, and placing her towel and water on the ground. "Now. What sh-" She noticed, among the dummies, a boy, and her grin fell flat.

Hikari folded her arms and seriously considered turning around and- even in the cold weather- training outside. Then something bit at her. Why should she? Why should She run? Scurry away. If he had a problem with her he could eat it. "Hello Zaku." She said stiffly, as she walked to where the training scrolls were, and pulled out one on blunt instruments. She grinned. She did like to hit things. Hard. Sharp things were nice, but she thought Sharp things don't crunch things... So she picked up the scroll and returned to her place not far from the door, to read about it. Try something new. She thought to herself. So, she got back up and searched the weapon rack for something... suitable.

About a minute after she'd started looking, she noticed a mallet. She'd used one once to help her father build something. It brought back memories, so she picked it up and gave it a swing. She liked the weight. It was heavy, but easily controlled, the handle was stiff but comfortable. She turned around and threw herself at a dummy, raising the hammer up, and bashing at the dummy, ducking under as it rocked forward, it's wooden arm swinging roughly through the place where her head had been. She giggled and swung again, this time using another dummy, running at it, jumping and using it as a springboard to lift her into the air as she swung overhead and down at her target. The hammer landed on what might have been the shoulder, with a loud crack. The dummy slumped forward, then swung back and hit her as she tried to land. "Oof!" She grunted from the ground, her middle hurting just a bit. "Where'd..." She looked around, and noticed her hammer just beside Zaku.

She huffed for a moment, as she tried to decide what to do. She knew he'd most likely seen her fall- or at least heard it. So she felt terribly awkward on top of the tense irritated anger of unresolved conflict.

 

[Morishige]

Zaku~ iNPC at the moment

--

When the door slid open, I was finishing up a combination as it was displayed in the scroll laid out beside me. I didn't look right away, for I would have been whacked in three places by the dummy if I did. I quickly slipped out of danger's way in a fluid motion, as I had been practicing in the half hour before she had arrived. A small sheen of sweat glistened on my brow as I turned my head to look at the newcomer, only to hear her words first. I hadn't really been frowning before, but the way she spoke as my eyes met hers caused my expression to turn somewhat sour. "Of all the people to show up..." I thought. I moved some of the hair that was stuck to my forehead due to the moisture and nodded my head towards her. "Hikari." I grunted and promptly turned back to my dummy.

What she was doing was no concern of mine, but there was that strange feeling in my gut that I knew would stay there unless we talked, or rather, rectified what had come between us. But you wouldn't catch me stooping to that position. If anything, I would be sure that it was her that would start that conversation. My stubborn pride would be sure of that. So I reached to each of my wrists and tightened the lithe gloves on my hands and starred at the dummy before me. As I approached for another round of work, I could hear her getting something from the equipment cabinet and forced myself to stay focused. "A distracted ninja is one that get's killed, Zaku." I told myself, quoting words from my previous year in the academy.

Moments later, I had just finished another round with the dummy of doom when the thud's of the hammer and her body registered in my ears. My eyes drew to the weapon that lay near my feet as my ears heard her question where it was. Reaching down, I picked up the hammer, some strain in my eyes as I realized it was heavier than it looked. "Hmph." I grunted and gripped it firmly with my hand, bouncing it up and down with my wrist. My hazel eyes looked up to hers with... approval? Yes. She was stronger than she looked. And that had nothing to do with her blood. She had been training, somehow. My target was that much farther ahead of me if she could go around swinging this thing. "Not bad..." I said in an awkward tone. I flipped it around in my hand so I could hold the head, extended the handle for her.

Once it left my hand, I would promptly turn back to my scrolls. There was nothing for me to read, but I needed to escape that gaze. The awkward tension...

 

[Yukari]

Before she could decide to go over and take it, Zaku looked down and noticed the hammer. Hikari pursed her lips to the side and harrumphed. She started walking toward it, but then he picked it up, and she stopped with about a yard between them. He looked surprised for a second, then, catching her eye she noticed the look was less surprise than approval. Something bitter simultaneously reared up and washed away. She wasn't sure how to react to that look. "Not bad..." He said awkwardly. Well, if the tension he felt was anything like what she felt... definitely an awkward moment.

He flipped her mallet around in his hand, extending the handle toward her so that she could take it. She stared at him, for a minute before taking a step. Unfortunately for Hikari, her foot caught on the base of the dummy, and she lost her balance. She didn't fall right away, she stumbled a step then hopped once and crashed into Zaku, pushing the dummy he'd been working on, so that it's arms swung at the places their heads had been. They both crashed into the ground.

Hikari groaned, feeling the blush before she landed on Zaku. With a wince she grumbled, "Thanks." In response to the awkward comment from mere moments ago... that far away time in which she had Not yet made a fool of herself by tripping, falling, and landing on the guy. "And sorry." She said, as she tried to get up, but her hand slipped and she fell onto him again.

 

[Morishige]

Zaku~ iNPC at the moment

--

"Well gonna take it or not." I questioned impatiently as she just kind of looked at it. She was just making the situation that much more weird by just looking at it. My eyes went between her hand and the handle, urging her with their motion to take the weapon from my hand so I could get back to hitting my dummy. But as she moved forward, something happened to make her lose her balance; I'm not sure what it was exactly. Consequently she did this weird hop that at least gave me time to prepare before she can tumbling toward me. My right hand quickly dropped the mallet back to the floor with a thud as both my hands reached forward to catch her as best I could. It was just a reaction; I didn't even make a conscious action to do so. Her hand tried to base against the dummy, but it just rotated as we fell, one of the arms just missing the tops of our heads on our way to the floor.

My back hit the ground, summoning and audible "oof!" as I looked up to her, my hands on one of her arms and her side. My own mind out of the moment returned as she gave her thanks and I smirked, quickly removing my hands from their position. She was my rival. I should have let her fall. My eyes just watched her, pensive about something as she tried to get up apologetically. How embarrassing! Not only did she trip and fall, but she couldn't get up with my assistance. I smiled; a sly comment forming in my brain that was going to come out whether I wanted it to or not. "Can't be a ninja if you are falling all over the place Hikari." I smiled. It was more of a joke, meant to instigate some kind of response. But I realized I was pretty much pinned under her and there would be no way for me to assert my position and help her up.

"Well come on, get your butt up. I can't sit here all day -- or can I?" I wondered with a smile, snickering to myself. Sure I was growing up, and any guy would want to be in this position with a girl. But this was my rival! Even though my cheeks were aflame with the tension and odd happenings of a girl ending up on top of me, I couldn't let hormones get me stupid!

 

[Yukari]

Hikari was blushing horribly. It wasn't enough that she fell, she couldn't have just taken the hammer back, no. She had to trip. And couldn't just trip like a normal person, stumble then catch themselves, No! She tripped and tumbled into the last person she'd ever want to see her weak. Then, as if that wasn't enough, she fell onto him again. And, of course, Zaku had a comment. "Can't be a ninja if you are falling all over the place Hikari." Zaku smiled.

Maybe it was a joke. It still stung. She coughed and opened her mouth to reply, but she couldn't think of a response. Damn it, he was right. "I-" She shook her head, "Whatever."

She tried getting up again as he quipped, "Well come on, get your butt up. I can't sit here all day." He looked at her in a strange way. and she noticed him blushing, she felt a little more self conscious and a little less at the same time.

She looked at him flatly. "Like you've got anything better to do." Hikari rolled her eyes and braced her hand above his shoulder, shaking out her hair which incidentally caused it to fall about her face as she stared at him. "Well..." She pushed herself up, and back so he could get up. "Thanks for catching me." She said pushing herself back, and picking up her hammer. She frowned at him, "Look, Zaku..." She said. It was against her nature to prolong a fight. She sighed, but the sarcastic tone and biting phrases. She got stubborn again, and the attempt she was going to make to end the fight curdled and disappeared. Still. the awkward tension was killing her. "Anyway... Nice moves, earlier." She said, pulling her hair back into a bun.

 

[Morishige]

Zaku~ iNPC at the moment

--

I smiled at her failure to come back with anything witty.

I smirked at her response. Of course I had better things to do than lay under a clumsy female! There was training to be done! I was going to protest but a mouthful of curly orange hair invaded my oral cavity. I exaggerated a response of coughing and gagging. But it was done with a smile on my face; why was I happy!? No! "She is the enemy. I must remain resolute in my position to outpace her." I thought.

Finally she got up, and I was able top hop up quickly after she moved out of the way. Her face held a frown, and words held something serious, but Hikari just stopped talking making the awkward silence even harder to endure. "Well?" I thought impatiently. Only she changed her mind, in an obvious manner. I huffed silently and folded my arms, gloves tightening as my fingers took on a new shape. "Been practicing all morning, but I can only do some much against a dummy." I said with a firm tone. Normally I would have replied with a compliment of my own. But I hadn't seen her do anything aside from drop the hammer. She had just arrived though, so I couldn't just bash her...again. "Maybe when you get good with that thing we can have ourselves a duel." I commented, a very competitive look in my eye. Turning away, I began hitting the dummy once again.

 

[Shinrya Kahako]

Kahako walked down the halls of Academy with little thought on where exactly she was going. She was focused on a page in the book Kitsune-sensei gave her, trying her hardest to remember what she was reading. As she went over once again the chapter on basic anatomy, she bit into the large onigiri in her hand, ignoring the voice in her head that sounded like her father berating about how ‘proper girls shouldn’t eat while walking.’

“Whatever.” Kahako said quietly to herself, closing the book again and reciting in her head the make-up of the skeletal structure. Finishing the rice ball in two large bites, Kahako paused in the hallway and leaned against the wall. Chewing slowly and going through the same process she had been for the past three hours. ‘An adult’s body is made up of two hundred and six bones arranged in two major divisions; axial and appendicular. There are eighty in axial and one hundred and twenty six in appendicular.' Her eyes furrowed and she swallowed. “Or was it one twenty six in axial and eighty in appendicular?” she said aloud.

She sighed in frustration. She had taken to the new medical information fairly quickly when Kitsune-sensei was there, but as she studied on her own the information didn't come nearly as quickly as she wanted it to. Sighing again, she started back down the hallway, deciding to take a break from staring at various forms of the human body. Realizing that she was near the training room, Kahako stretched and tucked the book under her arm. Maybe some sparing with an artificial, non-human-shaped object would give her the break she desperately needed from artificial, human-shaped ones.

As she walked up to the doors, she caught the tail end of a conversation. She couldn’t quite make out the words, but the two voices sounded familiar. Sliding the door open, Kahako was greeted to a very awkward scene. It was Zaku and Hikari and neither of them seemed all too happy to be in the presence of the other. It felt like a pastel pink elephant waltzed through the room, farted on both of them, and promptly walked out. Kahako wasn’t too sure if she wanted to be in this room right now, but she already opened the door and besides, it was just Hikari and Zaku, right? They were fine the last time she saw them.

She mentally shook the awkward atmosphere and let her usual small smile hit her face. “Hikari, Zaku. It’s good to see you two again,” she said while walking up to the cabinets filled with various weapons and scrolls. The punches Zaku gave filled the air as she turned to the cabinets, trying to find a scroll in particular. “Hey Zaku, you wouldn’t have the scrolls with unarmed styles in them, would you?” she asked quietly. She stared intently at what was in front of her and not them, pretending like she was intently searching for something she knew wasn't there. She began playing with the necklace around her neck like she always did when she was nervous. Unsure about a situation. She wanted to break the tension between her two friends, but what can you do when you have absolutely no idea at what was going on?

 

[Yukari]

Zaku remarked on the dummies. He'd been training all day, but a dummy was a dummy, and couldn't compare to a real sparring partner. "I'd like a little practice with this thing, before I fight anyone. It's my first time using one intended for fighting." She rolled her shoulders. Then opened her mouth, but before she could say anything else, he turned away from her and went back to training.

She pursed her lips and turned around in a huff of irritation, just as she heard someone walk into the room. Fantastic. Someone else to laugh at me when I trip on a dummy. She groused in her head, before turning to look at who it was. "Kahako." Hikari greeted the girl, "Hey." Then she scratched her head, "How's the... you- how are you feeling?" She coughed as the girl crossed the room and asked Zaku about a scroll. Hikari shrugged and swung her hammer, at the dummy, pretending it was a beast, like the one from the academy. "Not very accurate... but it does more damage." When she did hit, she hit hard. She liked that. Hikari grinned, took a few steps back and tried the move from before again. She ran up the face of the dummy, then at the head she jumped, flipped and used the flip to aim her hammer. It hit the head of the dummy, as she did, forcing the thing to give- that is, swing forward and then back, as if on a spring. This time, she was prepared and at the bottom of the lean, she pushed herself forward into a roll, which took her out into the middle of the room. "Better." She grinned, wondering if either of them had seen it. Then she spun about, and in the spin, she swung the hammer into the body of the thing. Connecting hurt her more than she'd have liked to admit, but she laughed loudly rather than give voice to her discomfort.

Then she stopped. "You know what, Zaku? You're probably going to be a great ninja, but you're prejudiced. and more than anything that anyone else will do, that will limit you. When you're actually fighting, in the middle of a battle against something bigger and stronger and horrifying, it doesn't matter what your team mate's blood says he is, it's how hard he will fight to keep you from dying, and whether or not you could trust him to help you up after something knocks you down! I don't know if you heard Anything about the Lunar festival, but it was a disaster!" She threw her hammer to the ground, "People got hurt! People almost died! Know what? We all would have died if it wasn't for each other. That night, it didn't matter what I was, or if I have Santaru blood, I didn't use those powers. It mattered that I was a kunoichi of Kumogakure, and my friends were in trouble! I didn't use special bloodline powers to throw shuriken at the creature, I did that using the taijutsu taught by Kitsune-sensei! I didn't punch it or kick it with storm powers, that was training, good luck, and determination! It was a team effort; Shisou landed the first blow, Kaoru stuffed smokebombs down its throat, and Kahako cut it up from the inside, after she was eaten, and Keiji took out an eye, and eventually killed it by cutting open its belly! Kaoru even saved a kid from being eaten! We all lived through it because we all worked hard together." She picked the thing up and moved so she could look at him without the danger of dummies hitting her in the head, then she looked to Kahako, partially for support, and partially for inspiration. "Some of us value camaraderie over our preconceived notions. If Any of us had been unwilling to trust the others that night, it's very likely we would have died."

Then she folded her arms, and decided that it wasn't worth her pride to keep up a stupid fight. "I'm tired of being mad at you. All it does is make me feel bad. So, know what... For whatever it's worth, even it it's worth nothing," She stuck out her hand, "I hope you and I can fight for Kumo together some day, just like we said we would before we argued." She finished with a tense smile.

 

[Morishige]

Zaku~ iNPC at the moment

--

I didn't catch that she had more to say, or I might have just kept paying attention. But I was back into the twisting and contorting of my muscles against the hardened material of the dummy, working primarily on getting my body used to this style of fighting. After finishing another round of reps, I turned to face the newcomer; my accomplice in the crime of pick pocketing. "Yo!" I said, waving a hand before setting up my feet for another round before her words interrupted me. "The scroll... oh, duh!" I began in a low tone. "Yea it's right here on the floor. You can come pick it up, I don't need it any more." I concluded with a sense of pride. I had done enough work with it to where I didn't need to complete my practice rounds. The logical next step would be to try it out in a real fight. But it's rare that the teachers ever pitted students against one another, so I would need to plan it...

Hikari's flashy attack methods, or rather just regular attacks with a hammer, caught my attention in the pause of letting Kahako know where the scroll was. A hit from a weapon like that... hell, that was just a training weapon! A true hammer made for actual attacks. I did NOT want to be where that thing was going to land. I wondered what else Hikari had been doing in her spare time, because for a new weapon, she picked it up fairly quickly. Though, jutsu was another story, she swung it like a natural. That was just my opinion however, I am no expert on hammer technique in the slightest.

Suddenly she stopped, and caught me looking...

It all just kinda spilled out. There was no interruption. No rebuttal-- at least not right away. My mouth hung slightly agape and my eyes seemed surprised as it all just came out! I could see that she was just as bothered by it like I was, but had decided to take a different path. Where as I had chosen the fork where I made her my rival, she wanted to conclude it with words. It could never be so simple though. So maybe Hikari was different. Maybe she was the outlier. But the more she spoke the more her words dug into me. Despite this knowledge of some beast being new to me, I was more focused on what she had to say. It almost seemed rehearsed, but that was unlikely. I could only assume she had been thinking on it over the past few days. Troublesome thoughts entered my mind, but she would never understand...

Her hand stretched before me and I looked at it longingly. There was much I wanted to say to her. But it would solve nothing. For the betterment of working together in the future I had to put aside this silly fight. She had not changed my mind, but she had shown a willingness to try. That meant something at least. "I am... me too. It's stupid to keep fighting like this." I replied, my hand moving into hers to shake. Gripping firmly, I nodded my head. "We will, for the betterment of Kumogakure." I concluded shortly. It might had seemed strange that I did not say more. But more was not necessary. She said what needed to be said, and I needed to move past the fight.

But now I had to get my mind on something else, such as this attack that happened that I had not heard of. And of course, Kahako was probably standing by, watching as the situation unfolded. A smile grew and I looked over to her scratching my head. "Sorry about that..." I trailed, looking to Hikari for clues on whether to tell her about it or not.

 

[Shinrya Kahako]

Kahako walked over to where Zaku was training, picking up the scroll. “Thanks much,” she said with a smile as she moved to her own dummy. Placing her medical book aside, Kahako looked at Hikari, proceeding to move her eyes to the ground when she asked about how she was fairing. “...better, Hikari-chan…” she admitted. The nightmares began to happen less often, but when her aunt made crepes or some other sweet for the café, the scent would waft up into their upstairs apartment from the kitchens below. Kahako, rendered momentarily immobile, would have to force her meals down back into her stomach.

Unrolling the scroll, she moved into her own series of stances. At first she felt awkward and sloppy. When was the last time she trained? Ever so slowly, though, she started to fall into a state of repetition. The consistent noise of her fists hitting the doll began to clear her mind. It also helped her deal with the silence in the room. ‘Punch, kick, kick,’ she thought to herself. The punches soon began to be sharper; the kicks, however, held more power to them as she got used to the stance. She liked the output of force that her legs gave. In her mind, she even began to think of ways her legs could be used to force an enemy off balance.

Hikari’s sudden laugh startled her out of her train of thought. Quickly, she had to grab ahold of her dummy so it wouldn’t swing around and clock her in the stomach. However, the outburst towards Zaku made her freeze. Kahako held onto her dummy and didn’t turn around as she listened to Hikari pour her passion out to Zaku. No, she refused to. It brought up too much pain, knowing that these two, who were once so close, were fighting. Too many memories of her past surfaced, and she wouldn’t turn around until their argument was over. She closed her eyes and held onto the dummy a little tighter, regretting entering the room at all.

It wasn’t until Zaku gave his rebuttal that Kahako was able to let her shoulders fall a little in relief. Compromise. It was ironic how those younger than her were able to come to a compromise when those older couldn’t do the same. She turned her head around, able to see the handshake between the two of them. A small smile fell upon her face and her eyes glittered with genuine happiness at the two’s handshake. She didn’t need to know what the argument was about. She was just happy that it ended well.

Walking over to them, Kahako shook her head at Zaku’s apology, keeping her smile. “It’s done and over with, Zaku-san; that is what is important,” she said simply. She then moved her eyes to Hikari, her smile widening a little and a little chuckle covering the very small discomfort. “Though, we were told to forget the event, Hikari-san. You should really be careful when you talk about it.” She looked to the closed door, thinking about the possibilities of someone on the other side. The Headmaster’s orders were very clear to the students of the night, despite Keiji-san finding humor in it. Forget it or die. Looking back to her friend, Kahako reached for her charm necklace. “But I have to ask, what made you laugh earlier, Hikari-san? I was almost attacked by my own dummy.” She said keeping the humor to her voice.

 

[Yukari]

Catching the look from Zaku, Hikari grinned, and shrugged, "Disagreements, due to anger and harsh words that went too far. No worries, Kahako-chan, you saw us make up. No hard feelings ehy Zaku-kun? I'm glad you feel better though. Of course... you're right, I disobeyed orders." She grimaced, "Well... I'll keep my mouth shut from now on. Hey, Zaku, what I told you is just between us, correct? I let my mouth run away with its self, and technically shouldn't have told you." She grinned nervously, unsure what might happen. Technically she didn't own a bolter, but the headmaster might not find that fact pertinent.

Kahako asked, "“What made you laugh earlier, Hikari-san? I was almost attacked by my own dummy.”

Hikari put her hands on her mouth to keep from laughing, then, with a grin, "I'm sorry, Kahako!" She said, "I... well, sometimes I laugh when I'm in pain." She said, "It's kind of strange... I swung the hammer at the dummy, and when it connected... well, it was jarring. My hands, and my shoulders. I'm fine though. Don't worry."

Hikari went back to the scroll she was working off of, and read on a new attack formation, then she turned around and went to practice. She swung up at the arms of the dummy, making them spin clockwise- toward her- then ducked beneath the arm, trying out the scroll's suggested techniques. She went until her breath was labored, then she tried again, running up the face of a dummy, then jumping, turning in the air, and hitting the dummy in its middle. It's arms spun, but she landed clear. Then she walked away from the dummies, sat down heavily on the floor, and sighed. "Guys... I like this hammer. I really like this hammer." She stretched to reach her toes, and grunted, "What kind of weapons do you guys want to specialize in?" She asked.

 

[Hameru Ren]

"Donuts make you sad. Donuts make you cry. When the person you like ups and says goodbye. I'm feeling so plain. I'm feeling old fashioned. My live is kind of stiff. My days have no passion. There's a hole in my life. I've lost in my twinkle. It hurts so bad right here in my sprinkle. But now I'm moving on to better days! I'll powder my nose, I'll put on some glaze. My pain's a day old. No I won't be a quitter. Someone will love this sweet apple fritter.. It feels better now. Donut!" Natsu hummed as he made his way back towards the dojo. He had heard the wonderfully ridiculous tune yesterday and it had been stuck in his head ever since. The fact that both his name and the contents of the little bag he was carrying along were related to the song had nothing to do with it. Not at all.

He had been practicing in one of the many available dojos at the Academy. It felt good having all the professional equipment available once more. During his undercover mission opportunities to train had been few and far between. He had kept up a basic training schedule, but it paled in comparison with the luxury of dummies with various difficulty settings, stacks of informational scrolls, racks with weapons of every kind and Raiden knew what else. Of course, no person could keep up a rigorous training program without nourishment. So he had set out about an hour earlier with the intention of grabbing a light meal. Intention being the keyword.

You see, as much as Do Natsu disliked people mistaking his name for the type of pastry that sounded very similar, he also absolutely adored the small spherical piece of dough. And so, as he walked past one of his favorite stands he had been unable to resist to buy a few. By now, most of them had been devoured. He still had three in the bag, hidden away in his backpack. It demanded all of his willpower to resist the scent of the donuts, their aroma escaping via the openings of his pack. Soon, my dears. Do not worry, all of you will be eaten in dear time! And if I've got anything to say about it, that time will not be far away either. He assured them in his mind, already licking his lips in anticipation.

He slid one of the dojo's door open and was treated to a most peculiar sight. His training spot had been taken over and by the look of things not necessarily to train either. A red-haired girl straddling a blond boy, atmosphere simply buzzing with raging hormones. Natsu's eyes flashed wide open, quickly slinking back into the corridor and sliding the door shut as quietly as possible. Then again, with the intense moment the duo had been sharing he doubted they'd noticed him. Contemplating his next course of action just outside the door, Natsu faced a dilemma. He didn't want to appear as a pervert who was ogling couples and their business. However, the training rooms were public property and most certainly not intended for such things.. right?

His mind working on solving this equation, a challenge more difficult than deriving the Helmholtz theorem, he stood there with a pensive frown. To a random by passer it'd probably quite a curious sight. An 18-year old Chunin hiding from a bunch of kids. Finally coming to a conclusion after a minute or so, Natsu figured it was his duty as Chunin to see to it the training rooms were used for it's proper intention! Sliding the door open just an inch again, he noticed the two weren't dry humping each other anymore and instead a girl had joined them. In the room, not in the dry humping. Don't let your fantasy run wild! Thank Raiden he was rid of the plight of informing the young ones about the birds and the bees. Though odds were they already were quite aware of such things.

Would it be safe to leave now? Or would they try and continue as soon as their companion left? Would she join in perhaps?! Hey, don't blame me. I said you shouldn't let your fantasy run wild, not that Natsu would have such control. Just as he was about to step in, the girl burst loose in a torrent of words. A love confession? Now?! Natsu thought bewildered, before the words got registered and it became clear it wasn't anything even close to it. Had he been mistaken all along? Well, that certainly was awkward. But it also allowed him to get away without an embarrassing reprimand. It was then he realized the flap of his backpack had fallen open and the aroma of the donuts had been creeping into the room for a good minute or 2 now. He face palmed, hoping they wouldn't notice the lovely scent of pastry coming from the door he was hiding behind.

[OoC: Busted!]
[Word Count: 833]
[Marked for Training]

 

[Morishige]

I smiled at Kahako and her understanding of the situation. It was good to have a friend who wasn't as stupid as some of the fools I had seen over the past two years. I stood there, watching the two girls smile and laugh about how this event was supposed to be secret-- wait, secret!? Now I was really interested. One could almost say my ears perked up as I scooted closer in a dorky way, trying to act sly. As if trying to listen in case they dropped any kind of hint. No hint, but a request of secrecy about this event I had been informed of. "Cross me heart and hope ta die." I said with a smile, making the action with my finger across my chest.

They continued talking while I kind of drifted off into thought. I had already gone through the style for while so I could allow myself this break. My thoughts went to the others Hikari talked about and how they overcame the obstacle together. "I bet they got some commendation.. Why couldn't I be there to show my stuff..." I thought to myself. I nearly laughed at my luck. Perhaps it just wasn't in the stars to shine... "No! I must not think like that. Hikari is my rival, and I will surpass her!" I smiled, my hand forming into a fist, with one finger out. Lifting it up into the air, I pointed at her for just a few moments. I couldn't tell if she had saw in her thoughts, but I was on my way back to my dummy when she spoke up next.

I couldn't help but chuckle at how she talked about that heavy hammer. I couldn't see myself using something so slow; I just felt it would slow me down in a fight. I reached down and pulled a Kunai from my projectile holster. "Kunai and fist are all I need to get the job done. If I have to fight face to face, I have already failed at being a ninja right?" I said with a cheeky smile. It was good to be on better terms, made jokes I made seem a lot more genuine. But just then, I smelled something that I just adored. The smell of donuts... My head turned each way looking for the source of the smell until my eyes fell upon the doorway. Someone must have walked by the room with a box of them... needless to say my saliva glands became overactive and my stomach growled.

[Marked for Training: 406]

 

[Oshiro Saki]

The Aurora Erudito was not solely erected for the education of the next generation, though that was the main reason for it. There was a section of it that was connected to the Academy, but it was more of a public recreation section, where people could go do most whatever they wanted. Popular with the civilians was the work-out room and sports center, but that wasn't where Kosei was headed. He needed to blow off some steam, and a weak civvie workout would never soothe his mind like nailing a target with his sword, or better yet, destroying it completely with Lightning jutsu. This was why he walked for the Target Practice building, built for shinobi who didn't have any other access to another form of training regimine.

Of course, being in the ANBU branch, Kosei had access to the ANBU training facilities, meaning he could practice in a high-end, top-of-the-market, best-your-yen-could-buy facility... but given he was supposed to be punished in a few days in the Sileo Tempestas itself, he didn't exactly feel like going there at the moment.

The air of the Academy was cool, but with every step nearer to the Rec. center, the air grew thicker and nastier with the hard work and sweat shed by everybody and their mother in the workout room. Kosei passed that portion quickly, and made his way towards the training room. Inwardly, he pondered whether or not the Academy had finally purchased the ninjutsu-absorbive dummies that didn't break if you used anything higher than a C-Rank ninjutsu on them... but he doubted it. They were expensive, and most people didn't need to use them, given that the majority of everyone who used these facilities were students and Genin. But you never knew, sometimes Genin turned out to be prodigies...

One turn around a hallway pushed any previous thoughts out of Kosei's mind, for he smelled... donuts? In the training room? Standing by the door, peeping in, was a brownish-blonde haired guy who looked to be about Kosei's age... at least from the back. His backpack was open, and there... right inside of the pouch were two or three glorious round tokens of everlasting joy and comfort, practically begging Kosei to take them and let them envelope him in their warm, glazy goodness.

But Kosei didn't do anything. In fact, he thought it was a little weird that there was a guy staring into the training facility, since the AiT could hear what sounded like students coming from inside. The teen walked up behind the donut-man.

"You ok? ...Gonna finish those donuts?"

MFT

 

[Shinrya Kahako]

Kahako began to worry for Hikari as the red-head turned around to continue training. Since she was newly appointed to Mednin in Training, she it necessary to stop her friend and at least take a look at her wrist. What if it was sprained? It only took a second wrong hit on the dummy to break a wrist bone. But before Kahako gained the courage to ‘attempt’ to pull rank on her friend, Hikari’s question interrupted her. Kahako looked to her own hands as Zaku answered first. “I have to agree with Zaku-kun. I don’t have a shinobi family like the two of you do. I didn’t grow up in a ninja household like many of our peers did. As a result, I don’t feel safe learning a weapon… at least… not for a while.” She said, clenching her fists. Shaking her head, Kahako focused again on Hikari’s possible injury. “Either way, Hikari-chan if you hurt your wrist you shoul—“

That was when a certain sickly, sweet smell suddenly stopped Kahako’s train of thought. Her face paled and her stomach turned. There was something sweet smelling in the Academy, and Kahako’s mind zeroed in on a very irrational thought.

“Nian.” Kahako said almost breathlessly to Hikari. Her mind losing touch with reality as her vision blurred. Memories resurfaced of the time when she was trapped in the stomach of the giant cat, fighting for her life like she never had before. On the outside, those around her would notice her frozen form; her eyes looking around frantically, as if trying to locate a source of something. Only seeing one door partially open, and a shadow move on the other side, she sprinted. Kahako pulled her arm back ready to punch, and with the other hand slammed the sliding doors open the rest of the way.

She moved to attack the ‘alleged’ monster on the other side, her face fierce and ready to take down the sugary creature… only to realize that she was looking into very human eyes. Very human and probably VERY surprised eyes.

 

[Yukari]

She didn’t know why, really, but after she started talking to Kahako, Zaku raised up his fist and pointed at her. She looked behind her, then back to him. “Zaku… what are you pointing at…” She asked hesitantly. “You look like a crazy person.” She said. It seemed like he was having a moment. Perhaps she should just let him have it…?

Zaku's snarky remark about if he had to use something other than Kunai, he'd already failed at being a ninja made Hikari chuckle, "This isn't like the stories, Zaku-kun. Ninja fight wars now. What happens when you run out of kunai in the middle of a fight, yet your enemy still hasn't fallen...? What happens if the enemy requires more force than a pinprick can provide?" She shook back her hair and hefted her hammer so that it leaned back against her shoulder, "Yeah, if that happens, you're gonna wish you had thought to train with something you'll keep on hand. Personally, I'm gonna do more and more strength training, that way, when you run out of kunai, I can come save you.” She winked, returning his cheekiness. If he could dish it out, he had better be able to take it. “Besides, Kunai do miniscule damage, and this hammer? This training hammer that probably does half the damage a real one might do… Well.” She grinned, “If you get hit in the leg with a kunai you can pull it out and get back up. If you get hit by a hammer in the leg, that leg is broken.” She stuck out her tongue. “How do ya feel about that, Zaku?”

Kahako stated then that she didn’t feel quite comfortable with the idea of learning a weapon so soon. “Come on, Kahako chan,” Hikari grinned, “He who dares, wins, after all. I could see you with a cleaver.” She grinned, naming off a random knife which her friend’s merchant family might have used in their restaurants. “Anyway, although I have relatives in service, I don’t know them all very well, and growing up, my parents kept me away from the academy. I don’t know what happened, but a long time ago there was a falling out between my ninja family and my civilian family. Never been the same since. So, ya see, I don’t really have much of a jump on you, Kahako.”

Kahako seemed focused on something else, and Hikari didn’t really know what, until she said, “Either way, Hikari-chan if you hurt your wrist you shoul-“

“My wrist?” Hikari laughed, “Nothin wrong with that, my friend. No worries…” Just then, she smelled something. Something which might once have smelled mighty good, but now made her stomach slightly uncomfortable.

Kahako froze, “Nian.” She said.

Hikari looked around, “Kahako, I don’t think-“ But before she could finish her sentence, the dark haired girl launched herself toward the door, and toward whatever was smelling so sweet. “Kahako, wait! Damn it, every time something happens, somebody rushes off and attacks without a thought as to what if they’re running into a trap!” She rushed after her friend. “Kahako chan, you heard the sensei, they are an uncommon beast!” She shouted in vain, because her friend had already burst through the door, ready to attack whatever stood on the other side, which, Hikari was fairly certain, was probably human.

[mft]
[559 words]

 

[Hameru Ren]

Sitting there hidden behind a not quite closed door, hiding from a bunch of kids, Natsu really wondered how he had gotten into this situation. Granted, he'd been in plenty of awkward situations. From being chased around town by a woman wielding a remarkably sturdy frying pan to falling face first into a donut pile. That last one had actually turned out more delicious than awkward in the end. The donuts on display at the market had smelled too wonderful to resist taking a closer look, and he had lost his balance when someone had bumped into him. There were worse things than getting your face covered with donuts. He reckoned this was such a thing. Figuring it'd be best to leave, Natsu grabbed his backpack. However, just as the Chuunin was about to get up and sneak away, something he probably should have done in the first place, a male voice called him to attention. Raiden, you cruel being of a god.

"Huh? Oh! Yeah! No, I'm fine." Think Natsu! Think! What would Baby Saito say to get out of this situation? He'd probably just be too cool for this situation to ever happen. Damn it! Thinking quickly on his feet, Natsu came up with what he figured was a reasonable lie. It was one of the benefit of living in the capital city for a while. You learned a few tricks for your own sake. "I just thought I recognized my.. niece in there, training. Turned out to be someone else though so I'll just get go-" Natsu wasn't able to finish his sentence. A shout from inside the dojo and a door flying open made him look right at a berserker girl, flying fist first towards him. At that very moment, there was a large variety of thoughts running through his head.

The first one was that she had green eyes, just like him. It wasn't the most rare of eye colors, but it wasn't often he saw others with green. Certainly not from this close by. Another thought floating by was that he shouldn't forget to grab a carton of milk when he returned home later. The next one was more closely related to the matter at hand. If he grabbed for the man who had addressed him just a moment earlier and dodged to the side, he might be able to avoid the girl. Grabbing the guy would just ensure the wouldn't crash into a wall as a result of his evasive action. The following two ideas continued the line of thinking. First of all, why is this random girl flying towards me anyway? And secondly, why would I have her assault the guy instead of me? The final one, right before her fist connected with his cheek, was that he didn't have too firm a grip on his backpack he had picked up again earlier.

The astounded, and slightly distracted, Chuunin was sent flying backwards into the opposite wall by the dynamic entry. Only an instinctive reaction of his kekkei genkai averted possible brain damage. The bone-covered head did place quite a dent in the wall, but that was the least of his worries at the moment. Rubbing over his sore bum, apparently the control over his bloodline hadn't reached such a high passive level, he looked up with the intention of demanding an explanation. Instead, his eyes grew in size as he saw his backpack adorning the girl's face. Quickly realizing that due to the flying lesson he had received, the pack had slipped from his hand and the item must've been launched upwards and landed right atop the girl. Quickly rushing over to her, he'd attempt to help her out of it. "Are you okay?" The worry in his voice as he posed the question sounded sincere, even though he was the one who'd just been sent crashing into a wall.

[Word Count: 650]
[Marked for Training]

 

[Morishige]

My hair waved through the air as I nodded my head. Kahako agreed with me over Hikari, and that was as much a win as any. But Hikari was prepared to fire back with logical reasoning of her own. And while it made sense, I wasn't just going to give up! My point would be made, and even though it was just put playfully, I was hinting at more serious matters meant for the leaders of the village to deal with. "When is that last time there was a ninja war anyways? Face it Hikari! We are sneaky witch thieves!" (Points if you name the game) I said with a chuckle. "If I run out of Kunai, then I deserve to die; that's how serious I am about my training!" I said in a retarded, gleeful attitude. I reached into my pocket and pulled out a Kunai, twirling it on a finger before throwing it into the head of the farthest dummy. "With my aim, all I need is a a pinprick to do damage to critical areas, or to inject posion into their system. Dont'cha know?" I said sticking my tongue out at her. Obviously, the throw was to validate my comment about aim, and maybe - just maybe - brag a little.

She retorted with her hammer being able to crush bones and do some serious damage, which, was quite true. But, I simply folded my arms and smirked. "I think that your hammer takes forever to swing that any true shinobi could dodge it!" I said with a wink and tugged at a piece of string in my hand. The kunai popped free of the dummy and clinked along the ground, on it's way back to it's owner. The ladies were talking about some injury until the feeling in the room changed. My eyes perked up as the Kunai slipped into my hand, my fingers tightening firmly around it. "What?" I questioned. It would seem my question would go unanswered.

Kahako threw herself towards the door they had all entered through. "What on earth could it be..." I questioned, not connected Hikari's words to the incident they had just mentioned moments before. I promptly followed after Hikari, Ol' Reliable in my hand ready to do some damage. But what I saw next was not what I expected.

The voices in the hall didn't register through the tense situation and all I saw was Kahako send the man flying backward. Which made my mouth drop and hang for a good bit of time. "The power..." I muttered. "Do I have a new rival in sight?" I questioned. I wasn't even sure if Hikari had that kind of mudcle strength. To send a grown man across the room...adrenaline and chakra were a powerful combination... Anyways, as the scene progressed, my eyes followed the backpack in the air as it came tumbling toward where Kahako was now situated. A single donut fell out of it as gravity forced it downward. "So that's where the smell was coming from..." I commented loudly, folding my arms again. Then it occurred to me-- the smell never actually left. Had this man been watching us train?

In my time of thought, the man who should have been pretty beat up had made his way over to assist Kahako with the donut infested backpack on top of her. "He's not injured!? I questioned in my mind, my expression rendering the thought almost audible. I mean, I healed quickly, but this guy was something else... I looked to Hikari for an explanation, not even sure if she would notice or not.

[Word Count: 250+]
[Marked for Training]

 

[Oshiro Saki]

The first thing that Kosei noticed when the man turned around was his eyes, a verdant green that peirced through the somewhat dim hallway. He didn't know why, but the eyes were what he always saw first when he looked at someone. You could tell a lot from a man's eyes. For example, crow's feet at an early age usually meant that the person was more of a jolly soul; quick to laughter, and quicker to smile. However, this guy didn't have said lines. Kosei had no idea who this guy was, what he was like, or why he was here. He was assuming that he was peeping in on a couple of little kids, but hey, you never know. Yea, huge age differences in dating and marriage were normal, but there was usually consent in relationships. And, assuming that Blondie Peeps-a-lot over here didn't know any of them (hence the peeping), that made him a stalker-pedo-man. WHich isn't cool.

Of course... there was always the possibility that his neice really was in there, and he was just checking on her... but it seemed much mless likely, given his young age. Not that it was impossible, it just didn't seem too feasible at the time.

Before Kosei had a chance to say anything, the door next to the two of them came flying open, and a brunette girl from inside nailed Mr. Peeps-a-lot right on his face with such force that he was sent flying across to the other side of the hallway. Kosei's eyes widened in shock, but his body went numb from the surprise. She'd barely missed Kosei himself. Maybe he'd made the right assumption. This girl obviously didn't know him, and had obviously been enraged at being spied on...

The guy got up, revealing an indentation made in the wall... just how hard had she hit him? But that wasn't what really caught Kosei's attention. No, what he was really concerned about was the white shield growing out of his face, formed into a nearly perfect half-circle curve, blocking all damage that would have come to his face from smashing into the wall. That white stuff was what gave himi a reason to be here. It defined what he was, his lifestyle, and all that he had gone through in his life up to this current point. Peeping or no peeping, this man was a Shinobi.

"Kaguya..." he muttered, almost inaudibly.

Kosei had never met anyone from the Kaguya clan, but he'd heard stories of them. Manipulating the bones within their bodies to use as weapons was their specialty. The AiT looked over at the girl, and before she could do anything else, said, "I don't know him, so don't hit me too, ok?"

Bad post... sorry. It got deleted the first time I tried to submit it :&