Talent Hunting (Open)

Nikuyo sat on a cliff with his arms folded over his chest, gazing down at the training ground about ten meters beneath him. It was fairly large, with a handful of large boulders of varying sizes spread throughout. The training ground was about one-hundred meters long and a few meters shorter wide at its widest area. Good for sparring and basic exercises, of which he was hoping to watch and perhaps even partake in the former.

He was transformed into someone who didn't look to be more than fourteen with green eyes and a bald head. The new face also appeared to have a broken nose to help play into the illusion that this was what he really looked like. Nobody would want to fight the Mizukage if they knew it was him, after all. This transformation only affected his actual body however, as he left his clothing and displayed weaponry the way it was. A tight, black long sleeved shirt covered his torso. This was tucked into a loose pair of black pants held up with a sash with the bottoms tucked into a pair of leather combat boots. One weaponry pouch adorned his right hip, one trench knife was on his left and a second was on his right. The hip pouch contained a few assorted weapons and items, though nowhere near his real arsenal of weaponry.

Nikuyo had been watching the grounds below him for almost an hour now, keeping his senses about him in case somebody felt like trying to sneak up on him. He liked to watch the training grounds every few months to see if any worthwhile partners were there or if there was any young blood that looked to have potential. So far he hadn't seen any worthwhile talent and hadn't moved because of it. Either nobody noticed him or they didn't care to challenge him, as none so much as looked at him.

The man sent by Hizashi yesterday had been fun for a time, but in the end that too was unsatisfactory. He was a curious man by nature, despite how corrupted that nature had become over his lifetime. He relished the thought of seeing someone who might stand to be a threat to him one day. Those were always the best fights, and you could tell when you were fighting if they were special or not.

A jonin landed quietly next to him, though the Mizukage didn't flinch from his arrival. "What?"

the jonin gulped before handing him a slip of paper. Nikuyo took it and shifted his eyes down at it. His face was expressionless as it read the report, which he then crumpled into his fist before returning to his previous position. "A scouting party composed of elite shinobi disappeared off the coast within sight of land without anybody seeing or hearing anything? What the fuck do I even pay you people for? Get another squad together and find them. If you run into anybody not from the Land of Water, bring them in alive. I don't care if they're in one piece," he said quietly so that only the jonin could hear him.

The jonin blinked, keeping silent the whole time. "Understood, Lord Mizukage." And just as fast as he was there, he was gone. Still eager for something to do, the Mizukage would wait to see if anybody wanted to have a little fun. After all, he was quite bored as it stood now.

Kirigakure, despite being part of the village, despite being a genin within its abundant ranks, Risu never felt like she belonged to the village. Her parents viewed her as a disappointment because she was gifted in Ijutsu rather than their offensively styled capabilities and when they died, it just seemed that rather than her parents, it was now the village's task to be disappointed in her capabilities. However, she had her uncle's support, a man who had struggled with the same issues, being an Ijutsu specialist himself.

He had raised her to never trust the village, to never show her own thoughts and believes and to always view the village as nothing but a place to stay. He had voiced his opinion quite clearly a few times, calling Kirigakure a cesspool of corruption and discrimination. Risu herself had experienced this first hand when just like her parents, her teachers were pretty hard to please with her rather limited skillset and if it had not been for her uncle's continuous support, she wouldn't have been awarded the rank of genin either.

There was however, a silver lining. For the moment she became a genin, her uncle Enaka begun to teach her more advanced techniques, while completely redoing her basics, making her see the true strength of Ijutsu and by extension its offensive capabilities that seemed to be disregarded by all except himself in Kirigakure.

Now here she was, at the training area, looking around the place hoping that she'd perhaps be able to meet her new friend Nozomi again, yet no matter where she looked all she saw were ex-classmates that had never bonded with her, genin and chuunin almost killing one another just for the sake of showing their brutal nature, their typical Kiri-mindset. "Ridiculous idiots, hoping to get themselves killed for a village that cares less about them than the money it spends on the imported iron."

She was about to go home again, maybe visit her uncle's practice, yet when she turned her head, she could see something in the corner of her eyes: someone she didn't know standing alone on one of the fields in the training area. It made her curious that there was someone who's file she hadn't checked and from the looks of it, this kid was somewhere close to her age. Fifteen, no maybe even fourteen years old going by appearance.

Letting her hands touch the two pouches latched the the belt she wore around her shirt and Haori, Risu grinned for a moment. Even if Nozomi wasn't here, she could perhaps still get some training if this strange kid was willing to go for a round with her.

As she verified that she had all her necessary stuff with her, she starting walking towards the area where the boy was standing, tugging a bit at her purple haori, tightening the leather belt and dusting off the black leggings she wore before finally reaching the training ground. "Haven't seen you before, you new?" Risu showed a soft smile to what she perceived to be just another kid her age, while her inquisitive expression betrayed her obvious interest in him. "If you need someone to train with, why not allow me to be your partner for the day?"

The Mizukage's eye darted to a girl who was approaching his location. She was easy to spot, being very pale. Once she got closer he would also take note of her eyes, particularly how inhuman they appeared to be. His expression did not change, remaining as passive as it had been before. She appeared to be muttering something, and with ears sharpened from his mastery of the Silent Killing technique he happened to pick up a few words of what she had said. Enough to get the gist of it. You'd be surprised what seeking your own death can get you, girl, Nikuyo thought silently while thinking about his own past for a few moments.

His eyes did not leave her as she approached him, and they simply stared when she commented on not knowing him and made her offer to be his sparring partner for the day. The sixth sense he had learned to use many years ago activated, the dozens of chakra signatures within the training grounds becoming immediately known to him. He focused on this girl, reading her chakra to try and figure out a bit more about her. Nothing particular stood out to him about her chakra signature and his initial observations didn't lend any credence to her having extraordinary physical potential.

He still had not said anything to her after a couple seconds, but soon enough he would scoot back from the edge of his cliff so that he could stand. Once up, the Mizukage simply stepped off the cliff and dropped to the ground below into a crouch without breaking his legs. Because ninja. The Mizukage stood, his normally massive height cut to 6'2" in this transformed state. His arms were still folded when he finally spoke to the girl, who was about three meters away from him.

"You don't know me because I graduated four years ago and only the files of recent graduates are public record. After a couple years, they may only be read with permission from the Mizukage as their contents become more secretive and unavailable to the public," he stated matter-of-factually. Arms still folded, Nikuyo would continue without allowing her time to speak. "And if you want to have a bit of fun... well, I'm not going to say no." His eyes would bore into hers as he waited for her to make the first move, the real coldness of the Mizukage's heart seeping through his transformation ever so slightly. It was a stare belonging to a man devoid of what most would call a "heart", a look so cold it could send shivers down the spine of even the most psychotic criminal.




Used:

Transformation (times two for last post): 1 point upkeep per post

Sensing Technique- .5 upkeep


Stamina used: 2.5/160

If there was one thing which made Risu different from those she had previously called idiots, it was the fact that she simply saw no reason in throwing away her life for this village, not while she could use that very life to find out what the village was hiding, what darkness it truly held and what secrets it kept within the shadows of its mighty players. Life after all was like a game, a game with just one ending and no redos and she didn't plan on plunging herself in an early grave just yet.

As the girl looked at what she perceived to be a kid, jump down towards her, she was actually surprised to see that he wasn't as small as she thought, but was actually nearly a full foot taller than her. Not only that, but when he spoke about the fact that he had graduated from the academy four years prior and that all academy records of earlier years were automatically locked away as sensitive information, only available to the higher ups of the village, she simply smirked.

It was then that she was taken aback by the young man's icy stare, cold and void of emotion. It was intimidating enough to force her to at least slide her left foot backwards, nearly taking a step back. However, her own eyes did not stray from his, golden orbs with black slits looked straight into his own cold eyes and met his glare with a grin. "That look seriously gives me the shivers, not that I mind though."

Well, he did agree to having some fun, so she nodded to notify that she understood what he meant, bending forward slowly, while both her hands went calmly towards her hip pouches. Last time she was at the training area she had decided not to use her tools, but now she somehow had this weird feeling creeping up her spine that this was not someone to take lightly.

In a swift motion, she drew out two of her kunai and threw them into the man's direction, yet not straight at him, but with the actual intent of having both weapons miss his head by an inch or two, after which she'd quickly form a snake handseal and hold it, with the intent that if her opponent would actually see through her ploy of missing him with the kunai, she could simply use her Verdant Mountain Gale to have the kunai change course ever so slightly and direct the two kunai towards his shoulders. "As you said, let's have some fun."

stamina: 37/40

Techs used:

The girl commented on Nikuyo's stare which would remain the exact same along with the expression on his face. He kept his sensory abilities up and going which allowed him to detect the build up of chakra indicating a jutsu of some sort was going to be used. It wasn't a large shift of chakra which meant it was probably a low level technique, and with her grabbing for the pouches he assumed had weapons in them, it would likely be a ninjutsu using weapons as a medium of some sort. Chakra Flow, probably, he thought to himself. When she brought her hands to her pouches, Nikuyo would uncross his arms but would keep his hands in front of him.

When her hands flicked the weapons out of her pouches and at him, Nikuyo found he had no issues tracking how quickly the weapons were moving. He also saw the seal Risu made immediately after throwing the weapons, and his sensing detected trace amounts of chakra within her kunai. Not Chakra Flow then, but something else of similar or weaker power. The Mizukage's hands both shot up, nowhere near his full speed but still fast enough to likely cause a bit of an issue in tracking them on Risu's part. He kept track of the weapons, being sure to adjust his course as necessary should the weapons do any kind of funny business. When each was a couple feet from his shoulders, his hands would have intercepted them and grabbed both weapons from behind by the hilt before they could reach him. While his speed was lower than usual, his precision always remained and allowed for such a feat.

Nikuyo brought the kunai down to eye level and examined them to see if they were of a particular quality or not. It appeared as if they were iron kunai, fairly popular among the lower ranks of the military due to their cheapness. Without a word, he flicked the kunai in his left hand into the ground and buried it halfway up its blade. Nikuyo had no need for two of them, and injuring this girl the moment after the spar began wouldn't get him much fun so he chose instead to dispose of the extra. He slipped his pinky in the ring at the end of the weapon in his right hand and spun it around so that he was holding it in a reverse grip instead of an orthodox one. He continued to stare at Risu, not wishing to miss anything this girl did so that he might come to a better conclusion as to whether she had talent or if she was just one more genin among thousands. "You're going to have to try a bit harder than that," he commented flatly. The Mizukage still had not moved from his initial position, though both of his arms now rested at his sides instead of being folded across his chest.



Active:

Transformation
Sensing


Stamina used: 4/160


Stats:

Strength: C
Constitution: C
Stamina: A
Speed: B
Coordination: S -> B+ in regards to the speed of his hands, S rank for precision
Intelligence: D
Perception: A

Well, that was certainly unexpected. Risu's eyes widened in amazement as she let go of her snake seal, completely surprised by the fact that not only did the man seem to have figured out her entire ploy, but he had also managed to grab her kunai in midair, plucking them out of the air while they were launched towards him from what she had thought to be a blind spot. "That...was interesting."

She wasn't sure, but the fact that he had earlier said that he had graduated from the academy four years prior to her and the fact that his skill seemed to be far surpassing hers, made it clear this guy was not the usual genin material. In fact, she highly doubted her opponent even was a genin, even chuunin seemed slightly underwhelming for someone displaying such speed and reflexes. This guy was no doubt jonin material, maybe even top tier jonin.

Letting out a sigh, she straightened herself while looking at the man holding her kunai in a rather expert fashion. Risu wasn't sure what she had to do now, continue this training and more or less risk the fact that if she made a bad move, this guy would no doubt be able to grind her into dust or quit and take the safe route by surrendering.

"Just my luck to be facing someone who outclasses me in practically every way," Though, as she said that, Risu was reminded of how she was treated by her parents and the academy teachers just because of her lack in so-called offensive techniques. They were right, she was far from an offensive styled genius like her parents, but just like her uncle, Risu had something to compensate for that problem: smarts. "I guess you're right, I should really try harder than just randomly throwing a few kunai."

Letting out another sigh, she bent slightly through her knees and lurched slightly forward, keeping a close eye on this remarkably skilled opponent just to give herself some sort of false feeling of security. "Let's try this again."

There was no harm in showing off some unique jutsu to this person, after all... given the uniqueness of the jutsu and the fact that this guy seemed to know just as little about her as she knew about him, she might very well use this opportunity to show some stuff that could very well surprise him.

Making the dog, ox and rat handsign, Risu suddenly pressed three seperate spots on her thighs, allowing her legmuscles to engorge themselves on her chakra, forcing them to tense up and slightly increase in mass. Concentrating herself, she then launched herself straight towards the strange man, quickly forming a half tiger seal as her speed kept increasing dramatically, already equaling that of at least a high tier Chuunin.

She needed to run circles around Niyuko, preferably around three to four meters away from him, waiting for that one moment to strike as she reached for her hip pouches again, this time however, she got herself one explosive tag, which she stuck to a kunai while running and threw it towards the strangely powerful young man, just to further assess his capabilities and strengths.

Stamina left: 28/40

important UA:

Techs used:

stats:

Nikuyo tilted his head when the genin began to lament her luck facing someone she declared as obviously more skilled than herself. That confused him a little bit though, he hadn't shown much other than his quick hands. She had to have been remarkably perceptive to be able to get that much out of such a short encounter. Maybe this wasn't a waste after all, he thought with a hint of anticipation. He stood still as she began to weave seals, but by the time she got to the third one Nikuyo would make his counter. His right arm bent quickly at the elbow, snapping the kunai at the genin's right thigh as the "Rat" hand seal was created by Risu. By the time she moved to use her odd jutsu to make her legs larger and stronger, the kunai would have buried itself into her leg. He wanted to see how she reacted to sudden attacks and whether she had the capacity to do something about a counter attack. She would not have the time to proceed with her plan of attack, whatever it may have been, with this quick counter by Nikuyo.

He wouldn't have used weapons if she hadn't started with them, but Nikuyo now believed that they were fair game. As his right hand threw the kunai, his left would be focusing Ice release chakra into the form of an icicle shaped spike with a flat tip. Meant not to kill, only to hurt. The Mizukage would watch her carefully, and would throw this dulled spike at Risu once she dodged the kunai. He was aiming for her solar plexus, wishing to drive the air from her lungs. He didn't throw it his maximum speed, keeping himself contained to the same level as he had started out at.

"Do better." He kept that same cold and focused glare on Risu the entire time, keeping track of her chakra system via his sensory abilities in order to widen his grasp on what her game plan was. So far, nothing out of the ordinary other than either her seemingly above average perception. He wished to test those limits to see what he was working with, and whether it was worth continuing.



Used:

Transformation 1 point upkeep
Sensing .5 point upkeep
Short and Sweet 1 point activation for the the ice spike

Stamina used: 6.5/160


Stats: Same

It was quite a shock to see a kunai suddenly stuck in her leg, showing that the guy wasn't going to let her do as she wished. It was a good sign, since this meant at least that no matter how good a shinobi someone seemed to be, they couldn't risk letting their opponent use a jutsu they did not know about.

Clenching her teeth, Risu pulled the kunai's tip out of her leg and as she noticed that the man was making something and hurling it towards her, all she could do was throw the kunai at the object with the intent to prevent it from reaching her. It didn't matter if it was made to kill or made to hurt, at this point, it was more important for her to address the shallow wound in her leg than deal with this man's attacks head on. She needed to be at full capacity after all, not to be limping around with a possibility of her wound getting infected.

So with a few swift handseals, she created a small volatile orb of pressurized wind and rather than throwing it at her opponent, Risu decided to throw it to the ground in between the two of them, intending to grant herself some cover as the orb would no doubt whip up a cloud of sand, dirt and dust when it touched the ground, granting the genin enough time to coat her palms with chakra and press them upon the wound to at least make sure that it would stop bleeding and close properly. "Do better...I'll show you better."

Stamina left: 23/40

Used:
Wind release Concussion
Ijutsu-Healing Hands

Active:
Pressure Strike x3 2/3

Stat changes:
Speed: B->C (body flicker deactivation)

(Since you never used Body Flicker due to being interrupted you actually get that stamina refunded)


He hadn't expected her to take the kunai so that she could fully execute her technique. It surprised him a little bit to be honest, though his expression remained as rock-steady as it had for the entirety of this brief exchange. He sensed a build up of chakra after she wrenched the weapon out of her leg and deflected his spike with it. Nikuyo waited to see what she would do, noting the sphere of wind. She cast it into the dirt, causing the earth to spit up a screen of dirt between the two of them. A smokescreen. Hmph. Nikuyo sensed another technique being activated, though she appeared to be using it on the area she had been stabbed with the kunai. Healing, perhaps? How truly arrogant, he thought with disappointment.

Using his sensory abilities to lead him through the dust, Nikuyo would finally move. The Mizukage kept at his regular level of speed, puncturing the cloud of dust in a beeline for this genin's chakra signature. As soon as she was within line of sight, he would make his move. The Mizukage's right hand shot out once he was within range with the intention of grasping Risu by the throat. His grip was tight, enough to cause shortness of breath just by itself. His leg went around Risu's, tripping her as he pushed down with his arm to slam the genin into the ground and knock the wind from her lungs too. From the looks of things, she had indeed been trying to heal herself.

He glared down at her, a slight frown on his face. "Stopping in the middle of a fight to heal yourself is the best way to get yourself killed. Don't ever let me see you do that again, or I'll kill you myself. There's no room for people who lack basic common sense in Kirigakure." Malice laced his words, though not of his conscious effort. Speaking as such had become such a common practice from his miserable life that it was natural to talk with such malicious intent.

Nikuyo released her throat after this, likely leaving bruises for her to discover in a couple hours. "You show merit though. Don't waste it." With that Nikuyo would turn and dash out of the training grounds, leaving Risu to tend to herself and without even asking who she was. He had no need. Her unique appearance would make finding her file fairly easily. Dealing with this latest development in the assaults on his country properly would likely be a good thing too.




[exit]

Risu hadn't expected to have the stranger react so suddenly to her disruption and her attempt to distract him from what she was doing, resulting in her not finding the time to react properly to the man's tight grip around her throat and his leg forcing her to trip and be slammed against the ground rather forcefully enough to make her lungs feel like they had momentarily collapsed. However, she grinned as she laid on the ground with the man's hand clenched firmly around her throat.

"Stopping in the middle of a fight to heal oneself is a perfectly reasonable strategy," She blurted out, her voice cracked and barely audible due to the pressure on her throat. "Though again, I guess an oaf such as yourself wouldn't see the benefit of Ijutsu even if it stared you right in the face, nor the use of having someone come near you of their own volition."

Apparently, he had not heard her words properly and as he vanished after releasing her, she coughed a few times and got up again, dusting off her clothes and using her healing hands on the stabwound again, this time intending to fully heal it rather than using her technique as a stopgap meassure.

With her teeth clenched together, she grinned rather eerily as she went about and gathered the kunai she had used during the little bout. She wasn't stupid, this was no mere genin or chuunin, this person was at least a jonin or some higher ranking person. Only those in power would dare to spout such arrogant words and lecture people about using Ijutsu. This person was like her parents, strong and almost overwhelmingly so...but unlike her, apparently lacking patience and the intelligence to see the broader spectrum of the world. "You mad dogs bark all you can, while you kill yourself...I'll get stronger. Kirigakure already lost its basic common sense, you're all just too blind to see it."

With her things finally gathered, she looked into the distance where the stranger had vanished and grinned yet again. "I think I'll have uncle check my throat...it feels kind of sore."

[exit]