[fieldbox=Training and strangers, violet]
Aiko Cho
Cho Clan leader | Civic council member | Team 8 jounin |Amegakure
After her talk with Eiji Aiko would take up contact once more with her squad. She was mostly worried about Katsu and Koike. The two managed to act cool and calm, but her mother's instinct was telling her that they were hanging barely in the balance. Sad fact was that she needed the two in the field. The others weren't as experienced as Katsu and Koike. While she had wondered several times if she was biased Aiko realised that was stupid. It was a fact.
With more patrols following after the meeting as Aiko did consider it wise to study the files and information that Eiji had arranged for her, before heading off on another assignment, she was staying up till late. In the living room she was reading the files on the couch with just a candle to shed a bit of light.
As the hours were growing late and the night becoming darker Aiko forgot how late it was. Her desire to go back home was her drive to study the files and formulate a plan on how to use the information for their mission. Only a shout that pierced through the soothing silence made Aiko frown. Her head twisted as she threw a look at the direction from where it came. Worried and alerted the jounin would close and place the files on the couch. Leaning towards the candle she hesitated for a second. Half closing her eyes Aiko would rise up from the couch.
Taking some steps while not making a sound the jounin would sink into the shadows as she would just take a quick look in what was going on. As she would move through the darkness in the shadows Aiko noticed that a door went open. Slowly and quietly Kei would appear in the darkness.The small girl looked around for a second and then sneaked. Aiko was about to apprehend her daughter and make her go back to bed, but she noticed that Kei was heading towards another door. One that seemed already open as the light made it clear that the origin of the scream had came from that room.
The small girl pushed the door further open and Aiko noticed a shift in the girl's facial expression. The calm expression shifted into what one could consider a most serious and disapproving expression from a child. Raising her right hand up to her lips the girl would speak out in a hushed, but harsh tone.
"Ssshhh! Sleep! No shouting!"
Aiko doubted that it would help as Kei had spoken in Chonobi, but remained in the shadows. Kei seemed to not be willing to hear or even consider what was going on in the room of the person who had shouted as she would close the door. Turning on her heels the girl shook her head as she rubbed her eyes. Without any detour Kei headed back to the room where she was staying, closing the door behind her.
Deciding that she should also get some sleep, Aiko wondered if she should later try to explain to Kei that she should not get out of bed, even if people would scream in the middle of the night. There were, after all, some training sessions planned for tomorrow.
Training posts :
Taijutsu training with Tomiko Hyuuga.
Summary :
Tomiko is taught some taijutsu by Aiko. There is also some brief talk about fear as Tomiko also shows that she feels insecure about how the last assignment went by.
[spoili]
Scratching her neck the jounin would wait outside. The coat she wore protected her against the rain - which was good as that was the function of the garb - but she wondered for a moment if the city and whole province enjoyed a moment when it didn't rain. Placing her train of thoughts on another topic she summed up in her mind what she had to do today. First thing was that she had reserved some time to train with one of the genin of the group. Tomiko Hyuuga, the girl that had thrown daggers with her eyes at Hiraku if she recalled that correctly. Then again, if she had been a nuissance yesterday at the assignment then Koike would've reported that. A sigh escaped the woman as she closed her eyes for a moment. Last night hadn't gone well as she was still struggling with the knowledge she had gained the day before. There was a lot that she had to progress - or at least it felt like that.
Raising her right hand she would briefly massage her forehead, deciding to clear her head to just wait and see what kind of training she would give to the Hyuuga.
Heading just outside the barracks, Tomiko tugged at the poncho as it blew slightly in the wind. Of course, the moment she stepped outside; the girl noticed that it seemed to be raining once again. Would it ever quit, or was the village just eternally raining? With a small sigh she would look around until she spotted the woman she was supposed to meet up with. Feeling a little bit of nerves in her gut, Tomiko thought about just
who this woman was. If she were to make herself look a fool in front of the woman, well Tomiko was sure that she'd never see another mission again. Approaching quickly, Tomiko gave a polite bow, then quickly offered a salute seeing as they were on a mission.
"Goodmorning, Ma'am. Tomiko reporting in for training, as ordered." she said in a soft tone before falling silent and watching the woman before her.
"On time. Good. Though," Aiko said as she gestured the girl to walk with her,
"Let's not bow in public. Or well, there isn't much reason to bow to me." She stated, not hiding her amusement. Walking Aiko remained silent for a moment.
"So, what kind of training would you like to receive from me? I must admit that I'm not really capable of helping on all fields, but seeing that you're a genin on this operation, all the preparation we can give you should be welcome." Aiko stated the last, which was more of a thought being made vocal.
Tomiko's cheeks colored briefly from embarrassment at the moment it was pointed out that she shouldn't bow.
"Erm... right! Sorry. As for training... I know I need help in Taijutsu, as Ms. Saki and Hayate-Sensei have pointed out. But then yesterday was my first scouting mission, and I fear I may have messed up. Hon-san had decided to bring me back almost immdiately." the girl said briefly as she walked quickly to keep up.
"I think whatever might be most relevant to the whole reason we are here might be best. I don't want to let anybody down."
Hayate and Saki. The names that she had heard yesterday from Koike. Perhaps she should request a meeting with the Captain-Commander of the Guardians. Trying to gauge if he knew something about she had learned yesterday. Hearing that the girl wanted taijtusu made Aiko simply nod.
"I can help with that. The Taijutsu that is." She said, thinking about the words of the girl.
"And perhaps you had. Perhaps he was worried that you were a bit too spooked." The woman stated, shrugging lightly.
"If you had made a mess out of it then I assume that Koike would've made it clear he wasn't pleased with your work in the field."
"Well he didn't say that he wasn't pleased with my work. Just said 'not too shabby' and took me back to the barracks. I could've helped more, I'd never forget the weird flux." she said quietly, then thinking about something blurted out suddenly.
"Is it normal to get a little scared when it seems you're in danger?" something that had been bothering the girl since yesterday. Was she just a scaredy cat, or is getting a little scared in such a situation normal?
"There you have it. Not too shabby, doesn't sound like you did a bad job." Aiko replied back to Tomiko. As the girl mentioned a weird flux, Aiko decided she would save some questions for later. It was hardly the right time and place to discuss such matters in the open as they were heading to a facility where they had perhaps more privacy. As the girl asked if it was normal to be afraid, Aiko shook her head slightly.
"Yes. Everybody is afraid of some things or people. Or else there are fears that just pop up, cause you care about somebody or something that is important for whatever reason. Most will state that it is something bad, but it is a reminder that you're alive. And as long as you can fear something, you can try to fight it." A pause followed Aiko's answer as she let out a soft chuckle.
"That was what I was taught, anyways."
"Okay... then I might not be a little scaredy cat. Uhm... before we start working on any taijutsu, I should probably mention that I am extremely unskilled in any form of it... Hiraku's parents didn't want me to do it and get hurt. They were kind of overprotective..." she said quickly, looking down at the ground in embarassment once more. She just hoped that she wouldn't been seen as completely useless in this woman's eyes.
"Oh?" She said, raising her left eyebrow slightly upon hearing the response. Not saying anything else they were heading towards a building where this early in the morning not a lot seemed to be interested in going towards.
"I assume that they were overprotective for a good reason." Aiko said, but she didn't have much room to continue explaining what she meant. Arriving at the entrance of the building Aiko spoke with one of the shinobi that was tasked apparently with guarding the entrance. Showing some papers and after a hushed conversation the man glanced at Tomiko and nodded.
"Come. I got ourselves a field arranged. Just a plain grass field." The woman said, beckoning Tomiko to follow her through the complex.
"I think they were just overprotective because I'm adopted." Tomiko said with a shrug before looking around the facility they had arrived at, it certainly didn't look like your average training field. At least... Tomiko was used to them being easier to access and all that. No guards. The girl gave a small smile towards the guard when he looked at her before following Aiko through.
"Well, hopefully it will at least be dry over there..." she mumbled slightly, not particularly meaning for it to be heard.
"Hm? Oh, if you prefer rain then I can ask the field masters to change it for us." Aiko said, an amused tone resonating through her voice. Walking through the Training Facility she was glad that it wasn't over-complicated. It was clear enough where they had to go to reach the field that was reserved for them. After she showed some papers to a shinobi waiting at the entrance of a door, Aiko gestured for Tomiko to stay with her. They would continue to walk from the halls of the complex into a small field that seemed to be out of place. It was a flat field of grass, such as one could imagine and enjoy at Konohagakure.
"Okay, so taijutsu it was? Let us first get started. What do you already know and have you mastered from taijutsu?"
Shaking her head rapidly in response, Tomiko did not want to be in the rain any longer than she had to be.
"Please no! The rain isn't very fun to be in all of the time!" she said quickly, following close behind Aiko until they reached the field.
"Uhm... I got a book and practiced some basic kata... then Ms. Saki has been trying to teach me. I'm afraid not much beyond some basic kata." she said quietly, scratching the back of her neck.
"Oh." Aiko considered her options. It was at least a start, she figured. Raising her right hand to her neck, she pondered on what would be the best next step as she rubbed her neck
"What kind of fighting style have you... Know what?" Lowering her hands, Aiko decided to take a different route. She could ask the girl all the questions, but there was an easier way on how she could learn what the girl could and couldn't do. Next to Aiko water started to gather from the air, starting to form a tangible form. In a moment a water clone was created as the real Aiko would take a few steps away from the clone and Tomiko.
"Go ahead. See it as a warming up."
Whispering quietly to herself, Tomiko would attempt to prepare herself.
"Please don't embarrass yourself." the girl whispered to herself then approached the clone slowly. This time, making an effort to keep herself calm and keeping a critical eye on the clone. Keeping her distance, the girl would wonder what came next. Would the clone attack, or wait on her?
Before a second would pass the clone suddenly moved. Without any warning the hands were raised as the clone would start it off with a simple left punch - aimed at Tomiko's face- after taking two steps forwards to the Hyuuga girl. The real Aiko observed and would just make notes while her water clone would take the offensive, seeing that Tomiko hadn't taken the initivate to start off with an attack.
When the clone began moving forwards, the girl watched for an attack that came almost immdiately. The girl barely managed to her arms up in time to block the punch, resulting in a weak block that hurt bother her arms and face once the hit connected. However, the girl was not going to give up, and made a move to close the distance even more. She lashed out with a quick right-handed punch towards the clone's gut; hoping to take it by surprise.
The clone stepped backwards and used her right hand to swat the wrist of the extended arm that was aimed to deliver the punch. With this distance a kick wouldn't be effective, so the clone would raise her right knee up to attempt it to hit the girl in the stomach while the clone's hands would remain in a defensive stance for any future punches.
Tomiko spun quickly, aiming to throw a back kick towards the clone's stomach. In the process of the spin she narrowly avoided the knee, creating a sense of confidence only for it to vanish seconds later as her kick when wide to the right and hit air. Letting out a yelp as her momentum carried her forwards, the girl began to lose her balance.
The real Aiko frowned and slightly tilted her head to the right as the water clone just would move with the genin. Only as the girl was starting to lose her balance the right hand of the water clone shot forwards. Not intended as a punch, but as a hard shove to cause the girl to either stumble or fall flat on her face.
It didn't take much from the shove before the girl teetered off her remaning foot and fell flat on the ground.
"Long time no see, Mr. Ground" she grumbled before trying to roll to the side and come to her feet, arms raised in preparation for some form of attack.
The water clone would take two steps back and lower her hands by a bit. Aiko scratched her left cheek as she considered something.
"Okay. Well, that wasn't as half as bad as I feared it would be." The woman said, raising her right hand to signal Tomiko to not proceed with attacking just yet.
"Judging from the fact you tried to land a spinning kick, I assume that you're striving to be the kind of fighter that is light on her feet? Though, why did you turn your back on an enemy this close?"
Lowering her hands slightly, Tomiko turned to look towards Aiko.
"The back kick provides more power than a standard one, usually able to stun one by knocking the air from their lungs, staggering them, or if placed correctly knocking an opponent out." she said quickly, recalling exactly what she had read in the book about fighting.
"I was aiming to deliver a good blow at a close range where it would be harder on the clone, and easier on me because I'm much shorter."
"Mhm. Good theory. Though, what does the book say about your opponent? I imagine that it does have something clever to say or warn you when you're basically presenting your back to the enemy." Aiko asked, though she didn't mean it as any offense. She could remember a lot of genin that had considered a pivot movement to be helpful or in some way making them seem more competent at close ranged combat.
Her cheeks coloring, Tomiko turned her attention downwards and through the briefly.
"I don't know what exactly would work for me. I mean, I can dance and I'm flexible but I'm not sure how to translate that over to fighting.stuff she said, feeling like a total idiot. Again.
"Lets start with remembering that it is never a good idea to turn your back to an opponent. Regardless if they have more or less skill, you're prone to be finished off in one attack. I know for one that a back kick provides more power, but you need to consider the situation." Aiko explained to the genin.
"It is hardly of use to attempt a more powerful move if that gets you killed." Pausing for a moment to let the words sink in Aiko considered what the girl told her. A dancer.
"Okay, so you dance and consider yourself flexible. Then I will learn you two tricks. The first is nothing really but a basic move, but it is about to match your opponents movement. Something that you need to do when you're dancing, I believe." Aiko gestured to her water clone, who raised her hands up to take a standard stance.
"My clone will just do forward punches and you need to move with only your upper body. Lean away for a punch, then move back but keep an eye out on which fist will be moving towards you. The idea is that you will not exert too much stamina if you just lean away with your upper body and don't make yourself as easily prone for any shove or kick that is aimed to knock you off your balance, when you would go for a full evasive manouvre."
"Okay... yes ma'am." the girl said as she turned to face the clone once more, taking a deep breath she moved closer until she was in range of the clone. Figuring that she should keep an eye on the clone's arms to see when a punch was coming. Almost immdiately, the clone did throw a forward punch, and Tomiko twisted her upper body a bit to let it pass in front of her. A smile grew slightly on her lips as she got ready for the next punch. Only this time, the clone threw it a bit faster and the girl was turn mid-twist and grunted from the impact. The girl allowed herself a furstrated huff as she turned to face the clone once more. Another quick punch, another time the girl was unable to react in time. Such the process continued itself for a few minutes before the girl noticed a slight movement in the clone's upper body just before each punch. Changing her gaze to watch for it, Tomiko readied herself for the next punch to be thrown.
It did not take long, and Tomiko was able to twist her body out of the way successfully and return quickly to her previous position. The next brought the same result as the girl's confidence began to rise once more.
Watching the clone and genin start to do the practice, the real Aiko was more interested in how the girl moved around. The jounin could remember how several genin had managed like Tomiko had done, though she couldn't remember any dancer in the ranks of people that could claim that they were students of her. Or just had experienced a taijutsu lesson. Noticing how the girl was looking for a pattern was quite obvious, as much as it was 'obvious' how the clone's body moved when it was about to move in a punch. Aiko would click with her tongue, causing her clone to stop and step one feet away from the genin.
"Very well, then let's move it up a notch."
She gestured to her water clone.
"You start to get the hang of just moving away with your upper body. This works with opponents that try to land punches or in some cases swing a weapon. The trickier part is to react back when they try to land an attack. In short, counter-attacking." The woman said.
"What I want you to do is to move away and try to pat the clone's shoulder. Do note that this might seem silly, but if you can pat the shoulder quickly then it is just a matter of small movement and you can do all kind of funny stuff. A stab in the side, a punch to the face and more."
The girl nodded to Aiko, turning her attention back towads the clone.
"So I need to pat the shoulder? Okay." she said, mostly to herself before readying herself against the clone before her. Focusing in again on the upper body, where she had noticed the movement beforehand, Tomiko waited for the punch to come. She didn't have to wait very long, as a punch was soon thrown towards her. The girl twisted out of the way easy enough, but her body was turned entirely too much for an effective chance at tapping the shoulder. Failing that, the girl returned to the previous stance, and twisted out of the way once more. This time, the girl kept in mind to keep her body from twisting too far and tried to pat the clone on the shoulder. Only to find herself with another failure, as she wasn't quick enough and took a punch right to the side. Causing the girl to yelp slightly in surprise as she stumbled back slightly.
Shaking her head in disappointment at herself, Tomiko returned immdiately to the previous position, locking her gaze on the clone's upper body and preparation for the next punch to come her way. As the upper body twisted, Miko once again twisted out of the way and snapped her arm out as part of the same movement. The girl was rewarded a second later as she made contact with the shoulder, although it came off as more a slap than pat on the clone. A huge grin broke out on her face once more, elated at her success... until the next hit got her square in the exposed gut.
"Ow" she mumbled to herself and returned to the starting position she had been using. She would go through many more rounds of this exercise, with varied results between success and taking a hit, though signs of improvment could be seen over the brief time period she was doing the exercise.
Just nodding as answer back to her question, Aiko would remain silent and take a few steps back to allow the genin and the water clone pick up the training. Letting the girl try to find the right manner of adjusting her upper body to evade both an attack and allowing her to try to react back Aiko resulted back into observing the girl. She wondered how the next step would go, but first she had to succeed at this attempt of landing a counter-'pat'. As there was a mixture of failures and successes following each other up, Aiko decided to click with her tongue again. As the water clone took a step back, Aiko threw a look at the girl.
"Catch your breath. You're doing fine." The woman stated, which wasn't a complete lie.
"Is there something you notice that you're doing wrong or perhaps could do better?"
Taking a step back from the clone, Tomiko took a few breaths before nodding towards Aiko.
"Yes Ma'am. First off, I am moving a bit slow when it comes to the counter attack. Most of the hits I was taking were because I was still counter attacking when the punch was thrown. Furthermore, I think the fact I keep returning to the same position isn't helping. I think I should work on those first. Is there anything else that you happened to notice? If you don't mind me asking." she asked, trying to think of everything that she could fix. The girl was getting seriously tired of being terrible taijutsu.
"It is fine. Nobody is great from the start." Aiko replied back on a more casual tone.
"As for what I noticed? I notice that you likely won't become incredible at taijutsu for a long time. Even with hard working. Might be just me, but are you afraid when you're close to combat? Or to fight somebody, at all?" Aiko asked, using her left hand to rub her neck.
"And no need to come up with any fancy answers or trying to hide feelings. We're not on the job, right now. I am still, honestly, feeling scared whenever I get stuck in close range combat."
The girl bit her lip and nodded slightly as she heard Aiko's question.
"Oh... I'm that bad at Taijutsu? As for the being scared... its the being in close combat part. When I can keep my distance and use my bow... I am not as scared." she admitted quietly, a bit embarrassed by the fact that she was scared of fighting somebody.
"How do you handle the fear?" she asked.
"Yes, but that is not a surprise I wager. Nor something you should feel bad about. You are making some progression, but that doesn't make you able to go head to head with somebody who has invested more time and gained more experience with taijutsu than you have." Aiko answered. The girl didn't have to wait long for Aiko's answer as the woman briefly looked away.
"Everybody has their own manner. Some stuff it away and face it later. Others try to just live it and accept it. You need to figure out what works best for you."
Tomiko nodded as she heard what Aiko had told her.
"I don't think that stuffing it away is a good idea for me. I think I need to learn to manage and use it to my advantage." she said softly, mostly to herself as she tried to think a bit on what she should do.
"How do you manage it?" she asked Aiko, figuring she might be able to learn how to manage the fear herself after hearing how somebody else did it.
"Using fear to your own advantage?" Aiko repeated on a manner as if she doubted that was possible. The question on how she dealt with it made the pause following her earlier words longer.
"I manage by reminding me what is at stake. Fear isn't an emotion that is able to grant you strength or fuel you with more energy unlike what many think it does. It is an emotion that reminds you that you're in mortal danger or being confronted in a manner that terrifies you. It is something I consider as an adviser. One that I am not fond off, but that does remind me of what is at stake. Just not an adviser you want all the time or allowing him to take over. Other than that? I just try to g"
Looking up at Aiko, Tomiko looked confused for a brief second.
"Oh. I'd been told different." the girl said quietly before she thought back to the way she sort of froze up every time she got scared.
"Though I don't think what I have heard is correct." she said in the ever soft tone as she thought about how she could use fear. Perhaps as an adviser, to keep her on her toes like Aiko? Then she would need to learn how to surpress or at least prevent the fear from taking control.
"Not surprised. Everybody, after all, threats fear differently. Some shun it completely even." Aiko replied. The woman would wait a moment before she would break the silence and the short break.
"But I said I would teach you two things regarding taijutsu. One of them is how to try to use your upper body to avoid attacks and how you can use it in your advantage. The next one is a bit trickier." Aiko started,
"What you need to do is to mirror the clone's hands. This allows you to react faster on somebody, even if they are armed with short weapons such as knives, while you are unarmed. Today we won't, however, train with any knives or edged weapons but just finishing this training with the hand coordination and mirroring."
Looking up at Aiko, Tomiko nodded slowly as she thought she understood the exercise.
"So I just need to mirror the hands? Like copy what it is doing?" she asked, feeling a little silly for having to do so... but figuring it would be better to be sure in the long run. She quietly waited to hear what the woman's response would be, hoping she hadn't just made herself seem like a fool.
"More or less. It is more trying to move them into a same position and around the same height. This allow you to react a bit faster when you're not armed and facing somebody who has a short weapon. I once heard of an old veteran who hadn't any training for a whole decade taking down a mugger armed with two knives using this technique." Aiko said, hoping that the ankedote would bolster the spirit of the girl. Certainly after the brief talk about fear as Aiko wasn't sure if she was even feeling to continue training. Nodding, Aiko would take a step back as her water clone would move into a rather basic stance. The clone's hands were lifted up, as if she was already wielding knives.
"The clone will try to lash out, feigning that she has any knives to stab. You need to react with what you learned just a few moments ago to either avoid and 'counter-attack' or to defend yourself. A simple move is to use your hand to follow the movement and slap or even punch the wrist. This won't easily disarm an opponent, but it might force the attack into a direction that won't make you end up bleeding or being hurt."
Nodding, the girl turned back towards the water clone.
"Got it." she said quietly to herself, then approached slowly. Raising her arms so she was mirroring the clone's position, Tomiko watched the hands in preparation for the imminate attack. After what seemed an eternity of waiting, Tomiko noticed a small twitch and immdiately twisted her body, using the same motion to reach out and slap the wrist away from her as she was told. Contact was made, and the hand was moved. However, Tomiko immdiately noticed that had there been a bladed weapon, she still would have recieved a wound from the attack.
Not quick enough. Faster. She chided herself, going back to the initial position to prepare for the next attack. Only to find she did not have such a luxury, as the clone lashed once more before she was fully prepared. In a brief moment of panic, Tomiko twisted and struck at the wrist once more. Following up the movement by pushing in towards the clone. A movement which seemed to push the arm further away and get her in close. A small smile cracked on her lips before she slowly backed away, knowing that she couldn't repeat such a movment, but had something which worked.
Another twitch, another attack, this time when the girl twisted and lashed out, she struck just behind the wrist in hopes to force the weapon hand to turn away from her. No luck there, she would have been struck once again. A determined look could be seen in the girl's eyes as she continued to repeat the drill, hoping to apply what she learned earlier and get a bit better at this particular skill. Over time, and various small adaptations, Tomiko met mixed success. Though she noticed the more successful attempts seemed to be those where she pushed the arm inwards and away, or when she got inside the strike range. Towards the end, the effort she was putting in seemed fairly obvious with the way the girl seemed to grow slightly more tired sluggish as time wore on.
"Well, not that bad." Aiko said, with a cheerful tone. She had been watching the whole time, making mental notes about the Hyuuga girl. She wasn't the best taijutsu student she had, but she was at least making some progress. Not enough that Aiko would recommend or advise her that she could handle herself in a taijutsu situation against a more experienced user. But at least the woman was certain that Tomiko was getting the hang of it.
"Let's call it for today," Aiko said as she raised her left hand and snapped her fingers. Resulting into that her water clone would collapse into harmless water.
"Any questions?"
Shaking her head, Tomiko looked up at Aiko once more after the clone returned to a puddle.
"Thank you for training me today, ma'am. I learned alot." she said with a polite smile, trying her best to not look as fatigued as she was currently feeling after all of that.
[/spoili]
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Poison training with Kazumo Sarutobi.
Summary :
Kazumo is taught more about poisonous plants by Aiko. Afterwards Aiko decides that they should relax a bit, but relaxation isn't on the planning when the two are being confronted by a mysterious person who attacks them.
[spoili]
Walking down the hall, Aiko wondered how the operation was going. She had faith in that Koike knew how to handle the current situation and else knew how to proceed without her. Else? She would be contacted on the C channel if there was any need for her or Kazumo to head into the city to give any required aid. For now? She walked through the halls of the Intelligence Division HQ in Amegakure. Granted, it wasn't the HQ of the independent country of the past, but it served to provide a place for Akinian shinobi to request material and equipment that weren't really in use by common soldiers and police forces.
"Should be here." Aiko said on a soft tone. The dull grey walls didn't invoke any cheerful atmosphere into the building, that much was sure. Aiko did sport a faint smile on her lips for another reason. Entering a key that she had been given earlier, she would unlock the door of the room she was told that she could use. Opening the door, Aiko would speak up again.
"I figured that if I'm going to help you become more experienced and mixing some new poisons that we should have a proper room to do so." The woman said, holding the door open so that Kazumo could enter the room. It was filled with cabinets that held shelves with pots and other matters that seemed to function to preserve and contain all kind of ingredients. There were of course also tools present, neatly organized and giving the room the impression that the locals that used this room were keen on keeping it clean and tidy.
Being paired with Aiko was very much in his comfort zone than doing patrols with the others, although he had some skeptisim about what she was planning. So far most of time when he has been alone with her, it led to him pissing himself but not pissing himself. Genjutsu's were oh so much fun to explain. Yet he followed her down the hall looking around at the different apparel they used for decoration, until they came to a door which she opened up with a key as she spoke about what she had in mind for him today. His eyes widened and sparkled a bit with delight as he gazed at the clean, organized room. This is where they made their poison? He always figured such places would be more grimy or dark looking, this had the exact opposite look.
He realized he was making his sensei wait and entered the room, looking at the tools they used. This only made him realize how much of an ametur he was when it came to this art.
"New poisons? Are we allowed to? Actually thats a dumb question, you wouldn't have had the key if it wasn't allowed. Well I have to admit to being excited, j-just a bit of a pre cautionary though.... the new poisons aren't being tested on me in some tricking way right?"
Closing the door behind her, Aiko shook her head.
"No. The ones I'm going to help you learn and how to use them are a bit too risky. Some of them even have a history. Or well, I suppose you could state that I've had a bad start when I learned about them." Aiko answered in return. First, however, she would make sure that they would be 'protected'. Grabbing an apron for him, Aiko turned half around.
"This is certainly useful." Holding it out so that he could grab and put the apron on, she would also put one on herself. Following by also pulling out two pair of gloves.
"Though I realise that using gloves make precision work a bit of a hassle, some of the plants and herbs are ones you don't want to touch. Like the mountain laurel. Gave me the most annoying rash ever."
Ahh risky poison, well that was good that it was too dangerous to be used on him. He nodded along until she handed out an apron to him to which he smiled at as he put his on.
"Most likely is, if were dealing with dangerous poisons." She then pulled gloves out and mentioned that they may get in the way of precision but some you don't want to touch, as she mentioned getting a rash from mountain laurel. He snickered a bit at that thought.
"My dad would agree with you, he explained a bit about what it could do, annoying rashes being one of them. Make great gifts though for those you dislikeeee~" He said chuckling a bit before getting his own gloves to put on.
"Promise you won't use the following plants and poisons on people you just dislike." Aiko said, trying to sound stern, but unable to hide away a bit of her own amusement. Turning around, she would first gesture to the table.
"First we will start with the Calla Lilly. It isn't a particular super dangerous plant." The woman started as she would search the shelves for either dried examples or perhaps some small contained examples of the flower. Finding a small glass jar that contained a few, Aiko would pick out two very carefully.
They didn't look
nasty perhaps, but Aiko would start to inform Kazumo about the dreadful effects that the plant could deliver.
"This isn't just a plant you want in your garden. It looks like a normal lilly but upon contact it will deliver irritation and a rash. Ingesting the plant is a very bad idea. Ironically, I can't recommend to ingest the plant. As one might expect it can lead to a swollen mouth and tongue or sever irrtation at the throat or stomach. Diarrhea is also a common effect of somebody ingesting a part of the plant, for whatever reason they might have had.." Placing one lilly in front of him, she would place the other in front of herself.
"I would like to start to dissect the flower and point out how to make it useful for the use of enhancing your smoke bombs or creating another diversion bomb with grinding a part of the flower. Though it is relatively easy to just grind the flower in whole and proceed to place a reasonable amount of grinded pulp into a bomb. Do note that this will create an irritation at the eyes as well and that you've to use it with care for yourself and your allies. If exposed too long to the grinded dust of the plant then the victim can also suffer damage to their eyes, other than just irritation and pain." Pausing, she would wait to see if he had any questions regarding the plant or just to allow him some time to observe and take a good look at the plant.
"Hahaha, okay I promise, no pretty flowers for mean people." He said before she would start her lesson starting with the Calla Lilly, a bland looking plant to say the least as she got a couple of examples out and they did appear harmless. Dried out but harmless, yet as she explained what it could do, it seemed like the side effects from medicine derived from this plant. She would place one in front of him to which he would look but not touch quite yet as she would explain what she wanted to do. He was getting ideas for crazy poisonous bombs these days. The one he made with Koike, which was more lethal than a hinderance though.
"So you do small bits so it has just the right effect you want, and not a bigger one? That way you don't accidentally get yourself or your allies with any dust?"
"Yes. If you can, then I would suggest to use them in small doses and bombs. Minimalises the chance that you accidently deliver a most annoying rash to your ally or hinder their use of their eyes." Aiko replied.
"Though, I must add that it isn't hard to get rid of it. Cleaning your skin with water and else rubbing your skin with some soap can get most of the rash away and if you're suffering at your eyes then just rinse them well with water. In case you might find yourself having suggested some of the plant, though really," placing her hands on her hips Aiko looked down with a frown at the flower,
"I seriously wonder who came up with the bright idea to eat lillies. I wager it was either a fool or a starving fool or perhaps somebody who lost a bet? Anyhow, if you do happen to find yourself in the situation that you ingested any part of it then drink milk. Thouuuuugh," Aiko raised her right index finger as she turned half towards Kazumo,
"Don't drink milk when you're having trouble with breathing. Such as in the case when you're vomiting or suffering a decreased level of alertness. You might else just choke yourself to death otherwise."
Water was a cure? Well that worked up his alley with his numbing agent, with water being able to cure any effects it would bring. His just had less effects, the kind she was talking about was clearly much more of a nuisance to deal with. Should he ingest any Lillies for some odd reason milk would help.... as long as he was choking our puking that is, then it added lethal effects to it.
"Wow..... it makes my numbing agent look like walk in the park, it has so many effects. No wonder people try to crank out antidotes as fast as they can for Poison. Irritation, hinderance, can cause you to crap yourself, or just kill you for you trying to use a cure."
"It isn't a popular poison. It is hard to put it to an effective use without possible hinderance to one self. I would recommend using a mouth cap when grinding this and similar venomous plants and herbs." Aiko explained. She would pick the flowers carefully up and would put them back. Searching for another, she would soon enough return to the table to place two new flowers.
"Veratrum flowers." Aiko said as she would then turn away to grab two small scalpels as well two mouthpieces to provide some protection. Waiting for Kazumo to put on the mouthpiece, she would start to explain about the plant.
"This dark beauty is a risky one. Before I want to hear or see you using, I want to be certain you know how to handle it. The poison from this flower is quite more potent than the calla lilly." Aiko warned Kazumo with a stern tone. She would use the scalpel to point at the root of the flower.
"One way to extract poison is to press the juice from the flower. Applying it on a weapon or making somebody ingest it is the way to deliver the poison one way. You could also try to extract poison from the rhizomes of the plant, but I would recommend using the juice. This doesn't allow a combination with a smokebomb as the best way to not waste the poison is to try to apply and inflict in a more 'direct' manner." Pausing, Aiko would tap the roots softly with the flat side of the scalpel.
"The symptoms of the poison are rather easy to recognize. They occur between thirty minutes and four hours after being ingested or inflicted. They can range from nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, numbness, headache, sweating, muscle weakness to slowing the heart rate, low blood pressure, seizures and irregular heartbeats. Of course, it is rare for all the symptoms to happen and occure all together. One person can suffer this or that symptom while another has to face seizures from being inflicted with this poison." Pausing to see if he had any questions, Aiko would place her left hand on her hip.
He would nod at her explanation as she picked the plants up and put them back where she got them then brought out a more beautiful looking plant called Veratrum, being handed a mouth piece he placed it on. It had more risks according to her as the poison was more potent. She explained the ways to extract it, and recommended it not be used for bombs but applied for a more direct approach. It had a lengthy rate of showing symptoms, but had so many that would be really annoying to deal with. Once she stopped explaining he did indeed have a question.
"So how long does it stay applied for? I feel it would defeat the purpose if you had to apply then quickly strike before it just dripped off."
"It depends on the dose that is being applied." Aiko replied in return.
"It can range from one to ten days. Though if a rather heavy dose is being applied then it is safe to assume that it can lead to a person's death." The woman paused.
"When you try to extract the poison, remember to wear gloves. Though it isn't like the calla lilly causing any irritation, it is better to be safe with this one. Here," she would move the blunt side of the scalpel slowly down the roots.
"When you try to extract, make a small cut and then try to carefully squeeze the juice out. There isn't a direct antidote, but with supportive care and medical attention to combat the symptoms a person can recover quite quickly. Usually takes a day."
It had a decent amount of time it stayed applied, so it had its benefits that way. A large does though could just kill someone though? Was it due to the high amount of poison entering their body? She gave advice and where to cut and how big of a cut to make, and to be gentle when getting the juice out. He nodded at all of this yet rose his hand to ask a question.
"Is that the only cure then? No other remedies that might help besides supportive care and medical attention? It's that risky of a poison?"
"Well, there is of course medical ninjutsu. Though one could argue that you need to know what kind of poison it is first before just trying to pull out a random substance of the patient." Aiko thought for a second.
"There is no really direct cure from what I know. I do know that there is a period that the plant is 'dormant' with making poison. Only at active growth is the juice really poisonous. Some people and clans use the dormant plants to create medicine from it. Herbal medicine to stop itches and treat tinea and scabbies. There is one plant that does help to reduce the potency of the poison, but as for a direct cure? Can't really advise anything else but to give supportive care and try to combat the symptoms."
"So it can be a cure at a dormant state and deadly at an active state? Sounds like one tricky plant. And medical ninjutsu huh? Yeah....I rather them be experts on getting poison out if they have too. Although I rather not be poisoned to begin with. Well it certainly sounds useful in both tame means and painful means." Kazumo said chuckling a bit.
"So is this plant also on the no giving to people I dislike list? It technically can help them."
A smile touched the woman's lips as she shook her head.
"It is best to not poison people. Or as father used to say," Aiko paused for a second as she would pick up the flowers,
"Don't let anybody catch you cheating. Think the same might apply on poisoning." Winking, she would turn and place the plants back.
"Now, I'm going to teach you one of my favourites. It isn't anything in particular special, but the previous plant is a part of the... drug." Picking up several ingredients she would walk back and place them on the table. Also picking up a grinder and other proper tools, she would organise in a quick manner a whole set of ingredients and matters to let him finally start preparing a poison.
"What I'm going to teach you now is to create a poison or well, a drug, that doesn't have any scent. It is aimed to make the victims experience nothing too troublesome at first glance. They won't know what is wrong until they try to dodge an attack and realise that it didn't work. Still getting cut, hit or whatever happens. This is because this drug will lower their reflexes without making it too obvious. First," she pointed to the grinder and matching bowl,
"Grind the veratrum flower into a very fine matter. It isn't a real requirment to make the drug, but I like it when there is that little certainty that the victim is being poisoned."
"Don't let anybody catch you cheating? I guess that would be the motto of an assassin." He said assuming it menat to not get caught being devious toward your target and not literal cheating. Then again he could never tell with his sensei. Yet what came next make his eyes shine again, as she brought out the ingrediants, tools and everything else that would be needed to make one of her favorite drugs! So with everything set out in front her first step for him was to grind the Veratrum flower into a very fine matter. Making sure his mask and gloves were fasten and on as best they could, he would grab the bowl and grinder setting them near him, and would gently pick the flower up and put it into the bowl. He would then begin grinding it, having some experience since his own required grinding first. He didn't even ask any question, he kept focused on what he was doing as to not mess up.
Nodding, she would remain silent as he focused on grinding the plant.
"The best way to use this odourless poison is to hide it," she said as she would shove another ingredient towards him. She reckoned he would pay attention to the plants and material that he was going to use, so instead of making it into a long winded story that would be a lot to take in, Aiko decided to give a run down on how best to use the poison.
"What I usually aim for is to use a smoke bomb and explosive tag. This is both to expand the smoke and poison into the air, making it harder to escape from it. I would suggest using wind ninjtusu to else create the same effect when you're short or don't have any explosive tags. In your case, I can't advise that, though," she said as she would pause for a second,
"Another way is to prepare the field in a way. Throw kunai around with explosive tags and don't let them explode. Perhaps even give the idea that they are fakes to lure the enemy into a false sense of security or just to intimidate them more to be restricted instead of moving around freely."
He would nod as she pushed another ingrediant towards him, adding it in and grinding it as well, while she explained ways he could use it.
"So hide some of it in a smoke bomb, and with an explosive tag expand it. Thats a pretty mean combo. But wind ninjutsu huh? Does Koike have this same drug? He has wind ninjutsu, so he could make it work better than I could." He next way was to prepare the field, with kunai and explosive tags but not lettign them explode.
"So a trap of sorts? Where would the drug be in this scenario?"
"I taught him the recipe and it is true, he has wind ninjutsu. Though, doesn't mean that he can use it better. Just depends on how good you use it. Or in some cases, how ignorant your opponent is. Or how dumb. Both can work actually." Aiko said.
"To throw or prepare the poison with or near the explosive tags. This way they will be spread in the air and seeing the fact that you can't smell them it is hard to realise that you're being affected. Which is just one part of the deal. Without any antidote, the poison can linger for day. Making combat quite hard for even experienced foes when they are affected."
"Ah so hidden with them, more so with the explosive tag concealing the poison? So spreading all the kunai out and not exploding them right away, would create this wide spread range it would be delievred in? Man I'm really glad your my sensei. You'd be terrifying to be an enemy of."
"Hm, no. The explosive tag is needed to spread the poison in the air and possibly distract the victim." Aiko replied.
"To spread the explosive tags with the kunai is just one way to ensure that a large radius of terrain will be affected for a short moment with the poison. Do note that it won't remain too long in the air. If a person somehow manages to evade breathing it in then you can assume that they aren't poisoned. Though a bit of caution won't hurt, I suppose, when you're needed to walk through an area that was affected with the poison."
"Okay I understand that bit, sounds like one of those things where you have to get it right on the first try or it ends in failure.... Unless they are stupid enough to avoid the poison then walk right back into it that is." Kazumo said as he continued the process.
"So how much can you usually make from this amount anyway?"
"Half a dozen. I usually tend to use more powder, but it is really a bit of expermenting how much you prefer yourself. Sometimes people get really paranoid when they face others in combat and will even distrust a cloud made of smoke or dirt. Or if they somehow spot a tiny difference to what they are used to." The woman said, a hint of amusement in her voice.
"Then there are those who would rush into a cloud that is dark green and are surprised when they find themselves poisoned. So it is really all up to you how much you want to use in a bomb."
He was nodding along and even chuckled at knowing the paranoid feeling. Having a bit of it himself sometimes. Yet he stopped slightly to look at her when she mentioned those that rush into a cloud that is dark green.
"Hahaha no one is that stupid..... r-right?" He said figuring she was making a joke, no one could be that stupid.
"Half a dozen though huh? Seems about right, I have to use more for my own numbing poison."
"If I could only say that nobody is that stupid. Believe me, once you've served as long as I have then you start to see some people without a brain." Aiko could remember the particular chuunin exam battle in which she saw that Hyuuga run straight into a the poisonous cloud of Koike. It was both amusing as worriesome thinking about it.
"Good. Now, you must memorize the ingredients, but I'll else make a list for you later. Most of the ingredients aren't too hard to find and else can be found on most markets back home. Perhaps I should write down which markets you've to visit to get the required ingredients, but any questions?"
He chuckled a bit nervously at what she said, not really wanting to believe that stupidity could go that far. She told him that all he had to do what memorize the ingrediants but she would make him a list later anyway. Even that some markets sold this stuff, which seemed a bit questionable, but she said would perhaps write down which markets would sell it. Were these.... shady markets? So when she asked any questions, he shook his head.
"No, but since were on the topic of poison. Koike and myself actually made one not that long ago. Maybe once were done, him and myself can show you how to make it? It combines two regular household cleaners." Kazumo said chuckling a bit.
"Really? Interesting." Aiko replied. She wondered how the two had met and bonded, but she was pretty happy about it. Thinkin about how Koike had been in the past it was certainly an improvement that she could hear that the young man was gaining more friends. Or at least people he was open to work with while not even being on a mission with them.
"How about we keep it here for today and go get some lunch? My treat."
"Yep it really is! Although its really dangerous..." Kazumo said rubbing the back of his head as she suggested to go get lunch on her treat. He didn't mind but it felt a bit bad considerign others were on patrol and here he was learning about poison and about to go get lunch with his sensei.. Meh he will get over it.
"Sure! Is the food different over here than in Konoha?"
"Really? Perhaps you can show it to me later?" Aiko asked, genuinely interested in the bomb that they had designed. A soft chuckle resonated from Aiko as she shook her head.
"Not that much different. There are some local dishes, but there is also the same kind of ramen, soup and other dishes that we're used to at home. What would you like to have for lunch? Seeing you have been on the military rations for a few days now with the others, I suspect something tasty, no?"
"Sure thing. Although it will have to be in a safe place." Kazumo replied with before thinking of what he might want to eat.
"Not sure, anythings better than military rations, but I don't want to be typical and eat what I usually do at home. Not sure honestly, maybe a salad of sorts?" He asked not wanting to say meat again considering thats a good bit of what he ate since he hunted for his own food sometimes.
"Huh thinking about it. I remember me and Kiyomi were going to eat fruit cake at one time. Any place have that?"
She nodded. Clearly it would be a bit foolish to test or show a poison bomb in the midst of a civilian gathering. At least, as long they aimed to not hurt any innocent bystanders. Shoving her hands down into the pockets of her pants, Aiko would start to lead them out of the complex as she thought of his reply.
"A salad? You're the first student who ever brought that up." Amused, she did thought of a potential place where they could perhaps get some fruit cake. Before they left the building they were given their rain coats seeing the weather outside.
"Seeing that I doubt we're really needed we can just walk around and perhaps do some sight seeing. Last time I had been here was for the Chuunin exams and I hadn't seen much of the city's features."
The first student to mention salad? Really, but it seemed so common, maybe the others asked for more complex things?
"Is that a good thing or bad thing?" He asked smiling a bit, walking to the exit of the building where he would put on his raincoat. She mentioned sightseeing which sounded quite fun.
"Well its not every day you get to see another villages sights, and how was that? The Chuunin exams that is? I hear those can be a bit tough on the student's senseis. With all the risk and such that can come from them." He asked, thinking he heard stories about someone being foolish enough to keep fighting when pulled underground.
"Perhaps a bit of both?~" Aiko would say back. Pulling up the hood of her raincoat, she would think for another second. How did the last Chuunin exams go in her opinion?
"It was in overal perspective quite a success for my team back then. Koike and Katsu both participated as I deemed that they were fit for the challenge. Katsu managed to pull out a draw, but didn't got a promotion. Koike, well, think that is quite clear." Aiko remembered that particular match.
"Remember when I said earlier about somebody storming into a poison cloud? That happened between Koike and a student of Team 7. Not sure what is up with that guy, but Koike went to the next rounds. Went pretty great. There were some other people who I had mentored before or still now and then offer some advise and mentoring that participated. Though think that only one of the others outside Team 8 became a chuunin afterwards."
Throwing a look sideways, Aiko became a bit amused.
"You're not going to tell me that you're nervous by just thinking about it, are you?"
Nodding along it was good to hear her team did fairly good last exam, then she mentioned the team 7 guy fighting Koike and had a blank look on his face.
"I still have to wonder how thats possible.... Well sounds good for you overall that is. And someone else besides Koike? Kiyomi?" He asked only to be given the question of if he was nervous thinking about it.
"Well I can't deny being a bit nervous. I'm not exactly all skill and finesse. I would have to pretty much be as tricky and decieving as possible to even win probably. Besides the exams arent for a while and I doubt I'm ready for them."
Shaking her head, Aiko would response back as they kept walking down the streets.
"No, Kiyomi was already back then a chuunin. It is actually the jinchuriki of this city." The woman calmly stated. She wondered what Kuni was up to now, but Aiko actually enjoyed a moment of 'peace' with just Kazumo. As Kazumo stated on why he was a bit nervous, Aiko scoffed lightly.
"Perhaps not, but you'll get there. Just give it your all and you will see. And if that doesn't help, I got a pretty good record of training chuunin. That has to count for something, I suppose."
The jinchuriki of this city? Well she certainly was the popular one to be capable of doing such. As usual though when he thought lowly of himself she tried to make him think abit more highly saying he would get there eventually, and that she did have a good record on training them, which caused him to laugh a bit.
"Well I can't argue that logic, but thanks for believing in myself, mostly when I don't haha." He said giving her a smile as he continued walking besides her. Wondering how people ever could live in a city that rained nonstop. Was their bodies just more use to it by nature?
"Hey, no problem. And if stating that I believe in you doesn't help, I will just have to kick your butt. Also a very effective manner I have found out with several pupils." The woman said in a cheerful manner. Walking further Aiko frowned. Perhaps they had walked into a wrong part of the city during their talking, but there weren't many people present on the street. Looking around, she figured tha they had walked probably out of the district into where people lived instead of where they could get some fruit cake from some nice establishment. Just as she half turned around Aiko noticed somebody up the street staring down at them.
"Eerie fellow, huh?" She mumbled as she eyed the only other soul present on the street. He was wearing a dark brown rain coat with a hood covering much of the features. Judging by his size Aiko guessed it was a bloke.
"Lets be real, you would have done that with or without my acknowledge. It's what you do, and half the reason I get a bit skecthy when I do training with you alone. I either end up pissing myself, or shitting myself." He said smiling to show he didn't mind the sometimes really harsh training sessions. Yet as they continued it was clear that they might have been lost a bit, which was okay they were after all going to enjoy the sights a bit. Until a figure further down the street was staring at them wearing a raincoat. Aiko mumbled something to which he agreed to.
"Yeah...and speaking of sketchy... Should we head back?"
"Probably a good idea. Thought we could use a bit of time to take it easy, but let's head back." Aiko mumbled. Just as she was about to turn around to start walking the figure at the other end of the street started to run towards them. Turning around once more, Aiko shifted her language into Chonobi.
"Seems like trouble." The unknown fellow was particular fast, closing in the distance with the two at a rapid speed. Seeing that she had no weapons on her at the moment, Aiko would simply vanish into thin air as the rain seemed to take her place.
Just as they were about to turn around the figure started running at them, at a rather fast pace as well, causing him to step back a bit in surprise.
"I need to stop jinxing myself!" He stated in Chonobi before Aiko would vanish into thin air. Causing him to start jogging backwards, reaching into his back pouch. Grabbing two Senbon he would launch them at the man.
Okay calm yourself, she is around. She wouldnt just ditch us. He thought to himself, preparing himself for the persons attack.
The two senbon would hit their mark, but a soft thud would sound through the air afterwards. The eerie fellow would come to a halt, almost if Kazumo wasn't even there. Looking around, the hooded figure seemed to be on the look for something. Pulling out a crude looking thin knife there was a soft grumbling originating from the stranger. Turning his attention back on Kazumo, the stranger would start to walk towards the genin.
Kazumo would continue jogging back peeking behind himself every once in a while to make sure no one was there, so it was a bit of a shock when his senbon hit. Yet that sound wasn't normal. So when he came to a halt Kazumo wasted no time in weaving handseals, for his basic earth style jutsu. So when the kinfe came out which sent alarm bells through his head, he finished the handseal and would jump backwards to get a bit more distance. As he landed though his body started sinking into the ground.
The eerie stranger suddenly started to charge as it spotted that Kazumo was trying to get away, raising the knife as a cold, chilling sound was produced by the stranger. Just when Kazumo sunk completely into the ground, the stranger lashed out and missed the genin. Growling sounds would be produced from underneath the hood as the stranger looked left and right before starting to run off.
Breathing heavily after barely dodging that attack, he staye dundeground until he ehard the sounds of feet running away. Yet why would he do such? He seemed bent on killing them why run away? Oh shit! Popping his head and arm out of the ground, he had two more senbon in his hands, which he threw at the person's head. If hitting the body didn't produce anything, the head always would.
The senbon didn't miss but neither seemed to stick as they pierced through the cloth of the rain coat. Only to bounce as some hard substance seemed to be in the way. The stranger didn't seem to even care coming to a halt. Looking around, it then suddenly looked right and started to run again, the crude looking weapon held at the ready as it went into an alley.
It didn't work? They just fell to the ground? How the hell did that work? Kazumo wondered as he was now ignored as the man ran into an alley. Kazumo was about to move when he clamed himself to think a bit.
Sensei isn't this stupid, she wouldn't go to far away from the scene He thought before looking around.
"Sensei if you are there show me a sign?" He asked in chonobi knowing that if the man was waiting he wouldn't understand what was said.
A silence plagued the streets for some time. Out from the alley a sharp grinding sound would be produced, followed soon enough by some small pebbles being blown out from the alley. The silence soon returned on the street, faintly disturbed by soft sounds coming from the alley.
Gritting his teeth he would sink further into the ground keeping eye just above the ground level as he moved in slowly to gaze at what was around the corner, if it was indeed a trap he would just sink completly into the ground again.
Lowering herself, Aiko would skid backwards as the knife moved her. The weapon would grind against stone, but didn't seem to blunten or stop much of the attack. Being visible there were a few scratches and torn marks on her rain coat but no blood seemed to be drawn from the woman. Before the woman could launch a counter attack, the stranger started to attack again. Driving Aiko into putting her effort into dodging and backing away from her attacker.
Fearing the worst his sensei was indeed being attacked causing him to clench his hands underground before sinking in fully and moving forward towards them. Why couldnt he ever just have a nice day without some sort of annoyance or painful thing happening with his sensei? He could feel his sensei backing away while the attacker moved forth, when close to being underneath he would try a pretty risky move, of grabbing the ankles from below and pulling him under.
As Kazumo grabbed the ankles a cold sensation would spread through his hands and arms. The stranger tried to pull, wanting to move forward to continue his attack. Aiko would skid backwards as she brought her hands together to form several handsignals. Focusing the jounin would take a breathe in and form a wind sphere around her right hand. Lashing out, a sharp arc of wind chakra traveled to their foe. Only to vanish as it neared the stranger. Kazumo would also feel the cold sensation to become worse, draining chakra at a slow, but steadily rate.
Grabbing him was already seemingly dangerous as one touch sent a chill throughout him. Yet he held onto the man despite the cold feeling for Aiko to attempt a attack yet nothing happened and the cold feeling became worse. He grunted a bit as continued holding on and continued to try and pull him under. He seemingly can block attacks but if they could jsut limit his mobility then that was all they would need. So he continued through the chilling pain, for this one ploy.
"What?" Confused Aiko stared for a second as her technique - the Wind Blade - had just vanished. How? She couldn't fanthom how the stranger coulddo that. As she tried to consider a way to get out of this mess she noticed how the unknown foe started to resist Kazumo trying to pull him down. Somehow the earth technique of the genin didn't seem to work, causing Aiko's eyes to widen.
"Kazumo, get away from there!" Shouting the order, the woman started to run towards their attacker in order to draw his attention away from her pupil.
Kazumo tried and tried through the cold feelign and all, yet no matter how hard he pulled down, the man just wouldnt sink. How was this even possible? Did jutsus and regular attacks not work on him? He heard Aiko command him to get away, but if he did what would happen to her? Yet he would reluctanly release his grip sinking his hands into the ground. Reaching into his pouch he held a circular glass object in his hands. Taking a deep breath in he resurfaced with his head and arm.
"Hold your breath!" Kazumo shouted in Chonobi before shattering the glass on the ground, which would release the powerful odor. This was a literal last line move he could use, if poison didnt work then he didn't know what else could.
The woman kept running as the stranger tried to regain his balance. Opening her left hand as she wanted to make another move, Aiko's lips would part as her eyes widened. Just when Kazumo shattered the glass blood dripped on the ground, to be washed away by the rain pour. The stranger made a soft hissing sound, twisting the knife further into the side of the jounin. Shocked, Aiko didn't move as the poison also started to spread in the alley.
Suddenly Aiko bursted out in water. Water that started to use the rain to form a sphere around the opponent. A muffled, chilling scream orginated from the attacker as the water mixed with the poison created a blurry water prison. Appearing slowly in vision as she stopped to use her Hiding in the Rain technique, Aiko looked with a cold expression at the trapped attacker.
"You okay?"
Kazumo halted and looked in horror at what just happened. Did... did he cause this by not running? Shit! How much he wanted to reverse this error of his, he didnt want his sensei to die because he didnt want to leave her alone with a mad man! Then a blank look formed in his eye as she bursted into water and swirled around the attacker. Mixing his poison and her water prison. He stared blankly as he resurfaced looking at his sensei.
"I swear, you are going to give me heart issues later on in life."
"Hm?" Glancing over her shoulder at her student, an apologetic smile briefly dawned on the woman's lips.
"Sorry, thought you were aware of my tactics. Anyways," turning her attention back something seemed off with the sphere. It started to shrink.
"Damn it. Okay that is it, let's pull out, now!" That having said, Aiko would turn on her heels and started to run.
"I really should by now...." He stated sighing before she stated to pull out, and rightfully so. The sphere was shrinking which probably meant poison didnt work. So nodding he turned around as well and started to run away with her. Now the big question they would have to ask later is what the hell what this monster?
Running through the streets with Kazumo it didn't take long before they were back in the more populated streets. Panting lightly Aiko threw looks around.
"Are you hurt?" She asked on a hushed and worried tone, using their culture's language. Throwing another wary look around, she would gently push him to continue walking with her. Not sure if they were yet in safety, Aiko decided that they could perhaps take a breathe being in public.
They kept on running until they reached an area with more people in it, taking a slower pace as he panted she would ask him if he was hurt.
"No, but when I grabbed him it sent a literal chill through me and it kept getting worse. I could feel my chakra fading as I held onto him." He stated in their language looking at his arms to make sure they were fine.
"What the hell can't be harmed by attacks from physical, ninjutsu, or poison? It makes no sense."
"It doesn't, no." Though that was why her ninjutsu hadn't the desired effect. That stranger had absorbed her ninjutsu and apparently even getting physical contact allowed the person to drain chakra. Then again what kind of person produced such sounds as their assaulter had made? It didn't add up that poison wasn't working either.
"Let us first get somewhere we can breathe and take it easy. For now, keep this between us. It is bad enough that we can't be certain who we can and can't trust in this city."
He nodded to her instructions.
"Okay sensei. Yet shouldnt you report it to the higher ups in Amegakure? Wouldn't they want to know about someone that is seemingly invincible?" He asked, understanding keeping it between them in the group, but were they allowed to keep possible threats secret from the city it was in?
"I will. But first somebody else needs to know about this." Aiko said. She tugged the hood of her rain coat further over her head, trying to hide her features better.
"And hey now," she said on a more cheerful tone,
"Nobody is invincible. I almost had him there, didn't I? Heh." The woman snickered for a second afterwards.
When she made the joke he couldnt help but frown a bit.
"Well it certainly did trick him long enough, and me. Yet if he isnt invincible then I'm having a bit of a hard time figuring up ways to harm him that won't get someone stabbed." Kazumo said grumbling a bit, still a bit upset and relieved at the ruse she pulled earlier.
"Here I thought that kind of stuff was reserved for messing with me in my mind."
"Not really. I could pull something better off if I had the space and time to do so. That old, cheap trick with the water clone and prison isn't a new one. But it work on occassion." Aiko said. Patting him on the shoulder, she smiled a bit.
"But don't worry. Next time we at least know that some of our tactics don't work. Perhaps we did some damage and injured it? Lets for now not break our heads over it."
She told him, while remembering what she had heard from Koike. So this was what he and Katsu had fought? Now she was certain that the group she was leading wasn't going to be enough to tackle whatever those people were.
"True, so far the only tactic we didnt try was punching it, but I get the feeling that wont work. But yeah lets worry about it later. I for one am exhuatsed now. Between fighting, having my chakra sucked out from me.... and then running I'm wiped out. I say we skip the fruitcake and just ehad back and rest."[/spoili]
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