If Death Should Take Me...

Mission Details:

At night time there was no place in the entire continent as beautiful as Sunagakure. The sky was perfectly clear and you had a beautiful view of the stars overhead, never anything to obstruct your view. It also made it extremely easy to see when the warning flares shot up into the sky to inform everyone that there was trouble nearby, and Kensai Tanahashi wasn’t the type to let calls for help go unanswered for long. He carefully affixed his weapons into their respective places, careful with his bow so it wouldn’t be in the way of his swords if he needed to draw them, and grabbed a travel cloak as he made his way out into the village. There was a decent and not overly surprising amount of panic in the streets as people wondered what was going on. Ken didn’t have time to reflect on any of that, not even taking the normal moment he would in order to light a cigarette.

The six foot tall samurai muscled his way easily through the crowds of people, using his training and superior strength to get to the gate as quickly as possible. He wasn’t willing to let any more time pass than was absolutely necessary, and hired a skiff to take him towards the source of the flares as quickly as he could. His golden eyes surveyed the landscape as the wind tossed his white hair and the panicked screams filled his ears as he pressed forward. He still wasnt accustomed to this form of travel, but the skiff was able to move much faster than he could; he’d have to thank Okame for coming up with them later.

He could hear the destruction as he came closer to the nearby village, similar to the size of the hamlet that had once been his home, and he braced himself for what he was about to deal with. He had no clue what could be attacking the village, mostly hoping it was bandits so that he would be able to easily dispatch them and keep everyone safe, but from the sounds of things that simply wasn’t the case. There was no fire, which made him believe it wasn’t likely bandits or raiders, which meant it could potentially be ninjas or something even worse. He didn’t like the odds that it would be something that he truly wasn’t equipped to deal with, but as a Samurai he wasn’t willing to allow the people of the village to suffer without at least doing something to stop it.

When he got his first sight of the beast attacking the village, he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. It was as though they had picked something out of his nightmares, a ten meter long centipede, massive legs and pincers on display for all to see as it wreaked carnage on all around it. Ken hadn’t been afraid in a long time, but this was an entirely different beast from anything he had seen in the past. He held his breath until his head began to swim before he remembered how breathing worked and steeled himself to the best of his ability. His bow seemed like it would be useless in this situation, but he had to try as he pulled it off of his shoulder and knocked an arrow. He watched as the arrow flew directly at the creature, and was disheartened as it bounced off of the carapace of the massive abomination...

Hmm...fuck.

With a massive amount of resolve, and a decent amount of fear, he charged forward to meet the beast and his likely demise, swords ready to try to drag it with him to the abyss...

At least I’ll be with you again Otosan...

(20 exp)

Night had fallen over the village, the stars shining brightly above and the dunes of the Sunrise Desert surrounding Sunagakure was lit dimly by the moon's gaze. Another night, another night spent alone. Sitting atop one of the walls of Sunagakure was The Desert Rogue--Azuma Asakaze. He had again taken to simply sitting along the walls, looking out into the desert, the young Jounin making a new habit of this as of late. It was peaceful, offered a nice breeze to keep him cool in the Desert's days, and at night it was the perfect place to stargaze. Azuma came out here to be alone and think like the edgy MF he isfrom time to time, it made for a nice spot to get away from others.

But tonight it didn't seem he'd get to relax long...his ears burned, the sound of signal flares in the distance. He turned around, looking clear across Sunagakure--and spotting the flares off in the distance, beyond the far wall and across some of the desert. The neighboring village was requesting help...Azuma wouldn't wait around for some order to go, instead he'd jump into action now. Luckily he was always prepared...the man was never seen without his equipment, sans if he was literally naked, packing on him 2 holsters of kunai, 2 pouches of assorted equipment, and a scroll hidden up his sleeve with multiple weapons for him to pick from. Even under the sleeves of his white Yukata, tied loosely about his torso by a belt-like headband, one could see he was packing his arm guards...but he had left his matching shin guards at home. Opps. They was uncomfortable comparatively anyways.

Azuma would focus himself, unlocking some of the mental blocks on his muscles through sheer focus alone, just to get that bit more out of them. This focus was brought to his legs. But no, he wasn't done--his hand came up in front of him, the Sign of Confrontation held up--an unusual hand seal but one non-the-less--and chakra would pulse through his body, his Raiton chakra running through his muscles and further enhancing them, pushing his Speed to the next level. With these out of the way, Azuma knelled down, and with a mighty push off his foot, he launched himself at incredible speeds, blazing a trail rooftop to rooftop, heading towards the danger.

It only took a number of seconds, Azuma traveling 175 meters as every second passed, traversing the entire village's span in under a minute, and he landed on the desert floor, kicking a rooster-tail of dust behind him as he rushed for the nearby village. 'The hell is going on...' crossed his mind. He blitzed across the desert, had Kensai still been on his skiff he would've been passed in a heartbeat, but the head start would mean the GeninSamurai would arrive there first. Azuma was not to far out when he spotted the very tall beast, likely a summon, bearing down on the neighboring village.

And who was there to face it? Well...A Ninj--I mean Samurai, who was attempting to fire an arrow at the large Centipede, but it simply bounced off. Azuma was still a few seconds out when he watched the lone Samurai charge nigh hopelessly for the beast before them. "Shit, he's gonna get himself killed charging in blindly like that" growled Azuma through grit teeth as a scroll slid from his sleeve, and would be opened. He skipped the first weapon in the scroll and moved to the second, his hand swiping over the seal and letting it appear in a poof of smoke.

Azuma gripped onto the handle of the Chokuto, drawing the blade into a backhanded position as he rushed in. His speed was so impressive, to Kensai the Shinobi simply have appeared as if he'd simply been able to teleport in place, the blade of his Chokuto amp'd by the power of Chidori Katana, Azuma having channeled his Raiton chakra along the blade to enhance its power. Due to his affinity for Raiton, this blade's power boosted by Chidori running along its edge, the following South-to-North diagonal slash coming in a blur of motion, striking the large beast with A++ power, the rather weak Chokuto boosted enough to cut a gash right into the armored shell of the Summon. This would force it to recoil, as Azuma landed now between Kensai and the beast before him...With the speed he'd entered the battle, surely Kensai hadn't even hardly taken a few steps before this happened in a blink of an eye. Azuma stood, blade held backwards from the more traditional stance with a sword, the spine of the blade softly rested along his forearm as he held it back behind him, knelled and coiled--ready for another strike or to dodge an oncoming attack.

___________________________________
CP: 84/110

Techniques used
Kaminari no Manto ('Cloak of Thunder'), +1 Tier to Speed (Ninjutsu Aura Boost)
Kaminari Hansha ('Lightning Reflex'), +1 Tier to Speed (Bukijutsu Boost)
Ryutai no Kiba ('Fluid Fang') + 1 Tier to Coordination (Bukijutsu Fighting Style)
Chidori Katana + Raiton Affinity Amp = A++ power (Ninjutsu)

Current Buffs
Speed: A +2 tiers = S (Effects of Jutsu)
Coordination: C +2 Tiers = A (Effects of 'Weapon Artist' UA(5CP) + Fighting Style)

He could feel the flare of Ki from the creature that he was charging at, knowing that it wasn’t a natural thing. HE knew full well this wasn’t going to go well, but as he ran towards it, his fear melted away and was replaced with a divine purpose, a feeling of immense duty and the honour that would be given to him and his family for the act. The closer he got, the more horrible the creature seemed, but he didn’t let it deter him as he knew the blades he had been given were of the finest craftsmanship, and in the hands of a master like him they would at least be able to do damage to this beast. To him would go the glory if he was successful today, and were he to die he would be remembered forever as the man who gave his life to let the villagers escape.

Before he got to the monster in front of him he felt another impressive ping of Ki and while he didn’t see what had happened, he felt it, like a blinding streak across his natural Ki “radar”. He looked up and saw a man had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, a Chokuto drawn with the harnessed power of a lightning storm seemingly contained within the steel of the blade. Never in his life had Ken seen anything like it, but it really didn’t take him long to figure out what was going on right now...ninja magics. There was no doubt in his mind that the man in front of him was a ninja; his father had told him of their considerable speed and their mastery of all of natures resources, perverting it and turning it into evil projections of their power. This didn’t look evil, but it certainly was stunning.

The blade pierced the armoured carapace of the massive insect, which made Ken smile as he imagined his blade should be able to do the same, he had been told that Okane’s blades were the best after all by the old Boywer. The traditional system for testing the sharpness of a Katana was seeing how many pigs it could slice through with one draw cut, or the techniques of Iaido, but to his knowledge this blade hadn’t actually gone through that test. He supposed giant armoured centipede legs would suffice as a testing ground, especially now that the centipede was most certainly not going to focus on him. He was used to being the most threatening individual in the area, but for the first time in his life, that simply wasn’t the case.

Ken would press his left thumb into the Tsuba of his sword, holding the Saya with the same hand while also grabbing his Kusurigama with his ring and pinky fingers. It would be one swift movement as he would push the habaki out of the saya before drawing with his right hand at a tremendous speed. This draw cut, the art of Iaido, was something that he had practised since he was a young child, and saying he was good at is was selling him painfully short. The draw would easily sheer the five legs within his range while he simultaneously pulled on the kusurigama, unwrapping it from his shoulder and beginning to rotate the chain and ball end. He would send the ball to wrap around two more legs and pull them together, rushing forward for the second slash and cleaving those two as well. A smile would cross his face as blood from the wounds would hit him, the feeling of warmth something he had missed, as well as the rush of battle.

“This one of yours?” He would yell to the ninja so he could be heard over the panic, avoiding as the centipede moved to step back, nearly getting stuck under the massive legs and crushed by the weight, though his reaction time wouldn’t allow him to be caught by such a thing. The beast wasn’t quite as quick as its smaller kin, the size playing a factor for sure. It was tough, but he legitimately felt that the two of them could defeat it together.

Chakra 109/110 – Sensory
(40 exp)

Two mismatched hues peered to the side as he'd remained in his 'at the ready' stance, watching as the one he figured had a death with at this point pressed on, and with a rather skilled draw of his blade, the sword swinging Samurai managed to remove a solid number of legs from the beast. Azuma wished to keep the Summon's aggression aimed at him, despite being initially impressed the young man could relieve the monster of a number of its legs, Azuma still was unsure if Ken had much chance if the Centipede decided to attack him. Azuma deactivated his Cloak of Thunder, and would shift the Focus to deactivate his Lightning Reflex as well. As the Cloak of Thunder went away, arcs of lightning that once danced about his body faded from sight, but he was still not one to mess with.

With impressive haste he was able to form 3 hand seals with a single hand, and chakra would become focused within his eyes. Quickly, he was able to open his eyes more, literally taking the pupil and opening it beyond its natural dilation. This opened the man's eyes for more light to come in, much like a camera, more light meant more information, boosting his ability to see beyond its natural limitations. He rushed forward again, still fast enough to be an nondescript blur to Kensai. Azuma's chokuto still hummed to the tune of 1000 birds as Lightning continued to course through his blade, the man dashing up to the beast, then seen running straight up the underside of it as it stood tall, towering over the two humans.

Azuma had stabbed the blade of his Chokuto into the carapace of the beast when he reached it, and now as he ran vertically up the beast's belly, he drug the blade with him, the Lightning Enhanced edge leaving an ever growing gash up the front of the beast. A quick jab with a large leg from the monster forced Azuma to kick off, back flipping out of the way and landing gracefully about 15 meters back, compressing like a spring as he did--his clothing flowing with every movement made. Azuma flicked his blade to the side, rinsing it of the summons blood.

Azuma looked back over to Kensai, by now the Samurai had used a Kusarigama's chain to wrap up two more legs before removing them from the beast like the previous 5. This would pull a smirk to the experienced Jounin's face. It would be pulled away from his features though as Kensai called out to him. A sigh passed Azuma's lips as he came to stand tall once more. "Does it look like I summoned this thing? You got here before I did." he said, voice smooth and deep, clear, but also calm. He said it loud enough Kensai should hear him over the commotion, while maintaining no fear or worry within his voice.

His eyes focused back on the beast in front of him. It was pretty strong, he could handle it--especially with some help from his impromptu dance partner lopping legs from the beast like they was made of butter. But he still wished to make sure they was assured success. That meant keeping him in the fight longer with more energy. Azuma kept one hand on his blade but the lightning that arc'd from it left, and now the simple cold steel shined under the moonlight. His free hand was now positioned palm up as if he was holding something. Soon, he would be, Purple Lightning sparked and arced from his fingertips, condensing together as a small orb of fury within his palm. He thrust his hand to the sky, and launched the orb of purple Lightning towards the clouds, "Shiden: Raijingu Arashi" echoing from his lips as he did. It'd take some time...but this would come in handy for the future.

A moment later he had to dodge another jabbing leg, leaping from the spot with impressive speed, and landing over much closer to Kensai, almost standing directly back to back with the Samurai now. "I keep it occupied while you keep hacking its legs off? Eventually that will make it hard for it to move or attack, outside of flopping like a fish out of water...What you say, 75, 100 legs to go?" the young Jounin tried to quickly strategize with his impromptu teammate, a smirk following the casual joke at the end. Azuma clearly was confident, and surely had zero fear that he wouldn't succeed here. He knew he had this, especially with help.

___________________________________
CP: 63/110

Techniques used
Raiden no Kokei ('Sight of Raiden') + 1 Tier to Perception (Sensor Jutsu)
Ryutai no Kiba ('Fluid Fang') + 1 Tier to Coordination (Bukijutsu Fighting Style)
Raijingu Arashi ('Purple Lightning: Rising Storm') Next Round: Storm Clouds start forming overhead. (Ninjutsu)
Chidori Katana + Raiton Affinity Amp = A++ power (Ninjutsu)--ended

Current Buffs/Debuffs
Coordination: C +2 Tiers = A (Effects of 'Weapon Artist' UA + Fighting Style)
Perception: B + 1 Tier = A (Effects of 'Sight of Raiden')

The shinobi continued his attack, losing some of the light show as he began to stab at it again, dragging the blade down its belly. Ken got a glance at him, but didn’t have time to watch the man work as he continued with his important work of “disarming” the massive creature. He had dispatched a few more limbs by the time the man had told him that he didn’t summon it, which Ken had assumed was the case. He wondered if the man simply misunderstood what he had said, but decided he didn’t really care. It didn’t seem to bother him, and it wasn’t going to bother Ken either. Instead he decided he would attempt to do a bit more damage and wrapped the kusurigama back around his shoulder in one swift movement, popping his wakazashi out and drawing it with his left hand, stabbing into the creatures side with the smaller blade as he made his way down the torso and kept swinging for legs.

Eighty-eight, eighty-seven, eighty-six...

Centipedes got their name from the amount of legs they had, their clear defining physical feature. They also had terrifying pincers and were tremendously strong and fast, being known to kill the most dangerous spiders known to man. They were apex predators and the thought of one being this size was something that Ken kept trying not to think of, but it was nearly impossible. It was a little distracting as he tried to think of all he knew about the smaller versions of this monstrosity, which would throw him off his game somewhat as a tremor from a step caused him to fall back. His impressive training caused him to be able to roll on his shoulder and get back to his feet quickly and without hurting himself, but it was a mistake he wasn’t happy about. He was rusty...

Ken would weave back to the legs that were rising in order to move, hearing the man tell him his makeshift plan, which is more or less what Ken had already been doing, and what he was hoping the man would want. “Eighty-five, eighty-four, eighty-one” He would count out as he cut down five more legs with the katana and the wakazashi together. He was a whirlwind of blades, his movements like liquid as he dodged and weaved through the mess of legs. He couldn’t move as fast as the ninja, but his reactions seemed to be a touch above, something that would cause the Samurai to smirk. Ninja had to rely on their magic after all, where as the Samurai trained their bodies to be their weapon. He would have hazarded to guess that there was a chance the beast would actually have a trouble hitting him, now that he had started scouting it out, but at the same time he didn’t want to take that chance.

From the position he was in he would have a difficult time moving around the massive beast, so he chose not to try to do such a stupid thing and decided to instead go over it, digging his blades into its armoured carapace and alternating as he climbed it, getting to the things back. It wasn’t an ideal place, but he had a chance to do more damage when he jumped, turned, plunged his blades back into the creature and slid down it, taking out two of the legs and putting massive slashes into its enormous body. He would start on the legs on this side, trying to get it to drop its ass end down to the ground so that it would have more trouble moving. Five, six, seven, ten... “Seventy! I hope I never see another Centipede again in my life...”

Chakra 108.5/110 Sensory
(60 EXP)

Azuma kept an eye on the Samurai aiding him in this fight--the young Jounin noting the other man was quite capable in battle. With the attention on the much faster shinobi, with his more advanced reflexes, it let Kensai do considerable damage to the beast without much fear of attack. In a fluid motion Azuma spun his blade to hold it forward, switching his stance. Once more chakra pulsed through the straight blade of the Chokuto, lighting it with the Azure ripples of Lightning, the powerful force of nature this time loosing that high pitched sound, now only a more normal sound of electricity sparking away. Azuma had activated his Lightning Cutter Wave, a personal variant he'd made of Raikiri...

By this point Kensai had made considerable progress on the legs. 30 down it seemed--judging by his verbal cheer at there being 70 left. This made the Jounin smile, seemed his aid wasn't half bad. Azuma was more experienced, and possessed potentially a wider array of jutsu at his disposal, but the Samurai was carrying his weight. By now the sky above them had thickened, the stars and moon now being obscured by dark cloud cover. Hints of thunder rumbled over the Desert as this storm slowly brewed above, building up its power...soon enough it'd be ready. For now Azuma had to wait. Luckily, the Samurai's attempts to lop off legs was more successful then he imagined, and now it was his turn.

His mind went to work, Azuma wasn't some top tier 1% genuis like some, but the man was still highly intelligent, an elite even among academics and scholars. He'd wait for just the right moment, watching every movement made by the now nigh half crippled beast. Finally the moment came, in a thrashing move, for just a moment, the Centipede was going to line its body in a mostly straight line. He leaped, "Raikiri Nami!" called out with a mighty swing of his blade, the entire blast from his Raikiri Nami released at once, traveling at reasonably considerable speed. This released a large 5m wide arc or crescent of pure sharp Lightning energy, and it ripped through one leg after another after another down the side that had less taken off by Kensai's work. Hopefully the Samurai was smart enough to not get himself in the way of this attack. This wave of energy ripped down 90% of the beast's body before it hit the dirt due to its downward angle and simply sliced deep into the desert floor.

With this, he's removed nearly all the legs from that half of the beast--sans a few near its head, and maybe 1 at the tail. This caused the beast to loose its balance, and was to crash down on that side, slamming into the desert floor and rolling onto its back. With the performance Azuma seen, he had little worry the Samurai was able to escape the beast's fall. This left it squirming, but quickly rolling in the sand. It was curling up, Azuma's hues going wide. "Its gonna coil up like a spring and  then spin rapidly, get away from it." he called out to Kensai, voice cutting through the battlefield. This was followed by the echo of thunder...it would be a matter of seconds before the storm begun.

___________________________________
CP: 47/110

Techniques used
Raikiri Nami ('Lightning Cutter Wave')
Raiden no Kokei ('Sight of Raiden') + 1 Tier to Perception (Sensor Jutsu)
Ryutai no Kiba ('Fluid Fang') + 1 Tier to Coordination (Bukijutsu Fighting Style)

Current Buffs/Debuffs
Coordination: C +2 Tiers = A (Effects of 'Weapon Artist' UA + Fighting Style)
Perception: B + 1 Tier = A (Effects of 'Sight of Raiden')

Ken could hear what was going on behind him, clicking his tongue as his eyes would flash while he focused his Ki within himself before expelling it in a burst that would cause him to move faster along the body of the beast, removing the rest of the legs on his side while the other man had seemingly channelled the storm to tear the legs from the other side of the beast. To think that a shinobi could do such a thing was truly stunning to the Samurai, but he tried not to dwell on it as he instead focused on what was important, the task at hand. His sword made quick work of the remaining limbs on the side that the explosion of heat and light wasn’t dealing with, the movement boost making it so he could very quickly make his way along the ten meter creature. He wasn’t as fast as the shinobi, but he didn’t care.

He could feel the earth shake as it fell, he could feel the tremors of the beast as it wriggled, but what he only just caught was the warning being sent out to him. He knew that he was going to have to make a drastic move in order to get away, and that’s when he did something he hadn’t thought of in years, since he had to use it when he was a young teen surviving in the desert. He focused the power of the wind into himself, his eyes glowing as his Ki was focused into his centre, and then moved to his hands as he jumped into the air, facing the beast as its body coiled up, blasting a wave of wind that would push him well back out of the way of the creature.

His wind techniques weren’t the strongest, but against an already damaged creature it couldn’t hurt to fire them off. He would focus that ki into his mouth now, remembering the techniques that his father had taught him when he was younger as he moulded them into small pellets that he would fire off at the beast after he had landed, while simultaneously doing the same into his hands, slashing with his swords as a massive blade of wind would fly towards one of the large wounds on the centipede. As this was happening his Ki would flare up, eyes glowing in a visible display of his mastery over his power. He watched as both techniques connected with their target, going into one of the wounds as he smiled a wide grin.

“If you aim for the wounds you may be able to take it apart from the inside...or if you open one up enough, I can...” The thought wasn’t something that he was overly excited for, but running into the body of a flailing giant centipede seemed less terrible than it had several minutes ago when he had first seen it. He would give it a second to see if the centipede would calm down, also giving the shinobi a chance to either make his move or tell Ken what he wanted him to do. It was unlikely the beast could make its way towards them, but if it started to roll he wouldn’t be overly surprised, and it could be a danger for all around them...

Chakra – 95/110
Sensory
Body Flicker
Fuuton: Slash
Fuuton: Great Breakthrough

(80 EXP)

It seemed for being nothing more then a ragtag response force, the two swordsman made quite the pair in battle, and both was able to handle the situation with precise action. The makeshift team was able to coordinate some symbolance of teamwork, and had succeeded in ridding the beast of most of its legs. Azuma watched as the Samurai begun to show signs of using chakra, or ki as he would likely call it, and perform something that didn't rely solely on his skills with weaponry. This would both serve as an attack, as well as a good way to create distance, Azuma watching Ken distance himself as he'd advised. At least he wasn't too headstrong to heed the Shinobi's warning. The two joined up once more, short enough distance for a more casual conversation.

As Azuma stepped to stand side-by-side with the slightly older Samurai, rain would begin to fall over the Desert...finally the effects of his earlier jutsu kicking in. Flashes of natural lightning crossed the skies, and even would arc between the clouds and desert below in bright and loud flashes. Thunder roared over the sands and would make for quite the show. This was the power of a skilled Shinobi, a master of the element most attuned to him. A small smile graced the tall man's features as his gaze kept on the enemy, watching the squirming beast. "I appreciate the backup...I know its an odd time but I'm Azuma by the way." he said to Kensai, voice deep and silky smooth, laced with a kind and even friendly hint.

"I prefer to meet new people under less pressing situations...but it could be worse I suppose." he said, casting a friendly smile to the Samurai. How confident did the Shinobi have to be to be so casual in the heat of battle against such a large creature? The man turned his focus back to the large Summon, features shifted back to a much more serious and cold tone. "Pleasantries aside...its time to finish this. If you don't mind, I have this handled." he said, his voice holding much more venom then the kind words he spoke seconds before. He knew how to flip the switch...and now it was time to turn on the lights.

Azuma slid his feet apart, the hand with the Jounin's blade in its grasp would lower, holding the blade low, parallel with the ground. His body and legs formed a V to ground him firmly to the desert floor. His free hand shot up--sleeve falling to reveal the bandages from previous injuries for only a split second. What came next happened in a flash, so literally it hurt. A bolt of Lightning as thrown by the Storm of Gods himself was went straight for Azuma's extended palm, striking the Shinobi. This came with a blinding light and loud snap of thunder, rumbling everyone in the vicinity to their very core. Azuma's hand slowly lowered as lightning coursed over his body in quick momentary flashes, before dissipating all together. For the Samurai who'd never had a true experience in the presence of a Jounin in the heat of battle, this bending of nature itself to Azuma's will, harnessing the true power of the storm that raged above himself and calling upon it for its energy.

The Shinobi had trapped some of this natural Lightning in his very core, and converted it to chakra via his Echoing Thunder ability, a unique blend of the understanding of the force of nature, and applying these concepts to use the power of the storm itself to aid him in battle. Re-energized, Azuma's hues almost seemed to glow with the power of Raijin himself. Azuma flicked his wrist, blade held out to his side and at a low ready...Raiton chakra once more would channel through the Chokuto, first a small spark jumping from the handle to the tip, followed by the loud burst of it roaring to life. The Chidori Katana echoed the song of 1000 chirping birds, and could almost pierce the ear for the overly sensitive.

Once more he focused himself, mentally unlocking the barriers meant to keep him from tearing muscles, enhancing the muscle and reflexes within his legs to amp his Speed. Azuma wasn't finished just yet...he deactivated his sight of Raiden, and activated his Cloak of Thunder--the man using his Lightning chakra to form an aura of lightning around him, pushing his speed to the limits. Azuma knelled low, and burst off towards the beast at a blistering 175 meters a second. Just as Azuma did this, the Centipede had released the coil it made with its body, and begun spinning rapidly.

Azuma literally stepped off the air itself, 'running' on the air to position himself perfectly. With a Chidori lined blade he would meet the beast's head, and in a literal split second, he'd appeared, blade out to the side and knelled in a landing position on the opposite end of the monster from where he started. The Summon had still been spinning as Azuma zipped past at unthinkable speeds, and as its body slowed from the spin, the monster would unravel, the sharp blade having peeled the Centipede straight down the length of its body, and now it simply looked like someone had run it through a shredder.

The strung out body pieces fell to the desert floor in clumps and long strands, it was a rather gore filled sight...and luckily, it wouldn't remain. A huge explosion of smoke would blast from the body of the Centipede, whatever was left of it had un-summoned itself...but no way would it have survived such an assault. The smoke cleared slowly and Azuma stood up, flicking his sword to the side again, ridding it of blood...he would slowly pull out the scroll from earlier, and within moments he sealed his blade within its contents. If Ken had tried, this gave him time to approach Azuma while the shinobi would seal away the blade.

___________________________________
CP: 51.5/110

Techniques used
UA Echoing Thunder +27.5CP
Chidori Katana
Kaminari Hansha ('Lightning Reflex') + 1 Tier to Speed
aminari no Manto ('Cloak of Thunder') + 1 Tier to Speed
Ryutai no Kiba ('Fluid Fang') + 1 Tier to Coordination (Bukijutsu Fighting Style)
Enclosing Technique (Sealing Chokuto in Scroll)

Current Buffs/Debuffs
Coordination: C +2 Tiers - 1 Tier = B (Effects of 'Weapon Artist' UA + Fighting Style, w/Debuff from 'A Wolves Gaze')
Perception: B +1 Tier = A (Effects of 'A Wolves Gaze')
Speed: A + 2 Tier = S (Effects of 'Lightning Reflex' and 'Cloak of Thunder')

As the two stood near one another the Shinobi would introduce himself as Azuma. Ken would nod in turn and smirk “I’m Kensai Tanahashi...but my friends call me Ken. You can decide if you wish to call me that...” Azuma would mention the situation of their meeting, and make somewhat of a joke of it, which Ken would chuckle at and nod. “I can tell you I’ve met people under much stranger circumstances.” Ken’s voice was calm, gruff but not unfriendly. He wasn’t generally the most social person, but at the same time he knew how to navigate a conversation, and currently this Shinobi had gained his respect, which meant something very important to Ken. He told Ken he wanted to finish off the creature, to which Ken would simply nod and sheath his blades, preparing to watch the coming storm and ready to throw in support if needed, though he would quickly see that would be unwarranted.

The storm brewed in the clouds above, something Ken hadn’t noticed had gotten so bad so quickly. He assumed this was the ninja’s doing and confirmed his thought when he sensed the tremendous amount of his “chakra” inside of it. It was an impressive thing to see, the Samurai ability with winds not being nearly so refined. As he held his hands up to the heavens, Ken was reminded of a legendary figure that his father had spoken to him...Raijin, the Thunder God. Ken would have thought that the man was showing off if he could focus on anything but how tremendous the powers of his ninja magics seemed to be. He wondered if every ninja was this strong; if that was the case it was a good reason for his father to have been worried. He’d have to look into his father’s techniques to dissipate their chakra, but that would be a task for another time.

The attack itself was too fast for the eye to see, even for a trained eye like Ken’s, but the feeling of the man’s Ki made it unmistakable. He tore through the creature instantly, causing it to disappear in a glorious puff of smoke and lightning, seemingly disintegrating it on the spot. Ken didn’t know what to think at this point It made no sense to him, and he would move forward to examine where the centipede had just been. The disturbed sand and glass from where the heat of the lightning strikes had scorched and melted the sand was a sight to behold, especially considering the seeming lack of the creature that had been there previously. He knelt down and focused his Ki once more, focusing it into his palm as his eyes would light up once more and he would release it to kick the sand up around the glass, cooling it and picking it up to examine it.

Ken would tuck the large piece of glass into his belt, a token to remember this by, as though that would be a problem. “Where did it go? How can one attack simply remove such a creature from existence with no trace but disturbed sand and glass? Is this the true power of the shinobi...” He shook his head and stood, realizing he had said that out loud with Azuma standing nearby. “Apologies, I’ve never beheld...well. It doesn’t matter. I appreciate your timely intervention. It was...good...to get to fight alongside one of your kind. I had heard stories of the power of the ninja magics and their control over the elements and of their “chakras” but this was quite the display.” He would pull a cigarette out of his tin and put it between his lips, lighting it and inhaling deeply into his lungs before allowing the smoke to pass through his nose and dissipate into the night air.

Chakra – 89.5/110
Sensory
Fuuton: Gale Palm

(100 exp)

Before Azuma had put on a bit of a show to finish off the beast, he'd have gotten the name of his partner in this impromptu mission, the unlikely duo of a Suna Shinobi and a Samurai was odd, but made for an interesting dynamic right off rip. Granted, Azuma only had suspicions so far that Ken may not be a Ninja, he'd have to wait for them to be confirmed. Now that the beast was gone and Azuma was free to relax, he wasn't rushing to seal away his sword, taking his time. As he did this, he overheard a thought out loud from Ken, the sensitive ears of the man burning with his gruff tone.

For now though he ignored the Samurai's talking to himself, finishing up the sealing and sliding the scroll back up his sleeve, just in time for Kensai to speak again, Azuma turning to shift his gaze in Kensai's direction, the shinobi's mismatched white and amber hues watching the Samurai as he spoke to Azuma. His words, they confirmed the man's idea that Ken was not a Ninja. Samurai then...Azuma had met some before, the Land of Iron was home to many, but it was strange to see a Samurai this far south of the Land of Iron. He was intrigued. The man slowly would step closer to the man, who was only a bit older then Azuma--but Azuma's scars and expressions made him appear more mature then his age suggested--looking a man of nearly 30 then 24. He would come to stop a couple meters from Kensai as the man lit up a cig, taking a drag from it.

"I appreciate the courage to step up in a dire situation, you handled yourself well out there. Judging by your weaponry and style, plus what you said, I don't think I'm wrong in thinking you are Samurai. Am I correct?" he'd ask for further confirmation, even if he was sure by now. Azuma's voice was deep, but smooth, less gruff then Kensai's, and he spoke with a kind tone--polite to the ears. Azuma smiled, a friendly smirk, as he would take a step closer, offering a hand to shake to Ken. "I understand if shinboi's abilities are foreign to you. When I did that final attack, Mr. Centipede took a lethal blow, and tried to escape it by un-summong itself back to its natural home. But the move was to quick...it only sent the corpse back." he went on to explain, clearly having overheard the confusion from Kensai over its disappearance.

___________________________________
CP: 51.5/110

Life had slowed back down as he recalled seeing the shinobi make his weapon disappear into a scroll, a distasteful disregard for ones weapon if he had ever seen one. He would frown as he put that scroll up his sleeve, shaking his head and subconsciously brushing his fingers over both of his blades as he did so. He would take another drag of his cigarette as Azuma asked him if he was a samurai, something which would make Ken smirk. “I am Samurai, the last of my family lineage of Samurai. We have lived in the desert for generations, protecting the small villages from the evils of bandits and the ninja alike...no offence meant.” The shinobi would explain what had happened to the creature, talking about it summoning itself back to its home; another distasteful ninja perversion of nature.

“I find it disturbing the way you think that you can enslave creatures such as this to your will...er, well. Not you per say, you know what I mean. To drag it from its home and force it to fight for you is simply inhumane. I can only hope that you yourself do not engage in such practices. After eight years being employed by a caravan and then another year of living in poverty it saddens me to see such things. I am only glad that my position was never akin to slavery, but it is unfortunate to see certain situations taken advantage of. But enough on that subject...” Ken eyed up the shinobi and cocked his eyebrow as he did so, having several questions he wanted to ask all at once, but deciding it would be overwhelming to ask all of them at once. He would try to start with the most burning question he had.

“You didn’t teleport, I could sense your Ki...er...chakra, as you moved. It was a truly impossible speed. How are you able to move at such a speed without tearing your body apart? Is that another of your ninja magics? Forgive me if I sound ignorant on such things, I have met very few shinobi in my life, and I’ve never observed one fighting in such a close capacity.” His question may have sounded stupid, but he didn’t really care. He had a lot of things when it came to shinobi that he was curious about, and realistically this was the most impressive thing he had observed today.

(120 exp)

The tall Shinobi caught sight of the smirk after asking if Kensai was a Samurai, it seemed to draw some pride out of the Ronin as he briefly gave the gist of his family's history with The Land of Wind. As for the comment about Ninja's, followed by the 'no offence', he didn't have to worry about it. Not all Shinobi was nearly as honorable as Azuma or most of the fine folk of Sunagakure. What followed though did spark a hint of something within Azuma, but it was more a wish to correct a misconception the Samurai had about Summonings. But he understood it, from an outsider's perspective what he said seemed true--and even was in some cases. But not all Summoners was like this, and Azuma did feel the need to respond.

"I understand that point of view, and you're not wrong--some less then worthy Summoners do basically force them into battle. But not all are like that...most who sign a summoning contract will befriend and bond with their summons...it becomes a partnership, and they fight along side their summoners as equals and comrades." Azuma fairly quickly, at least as quickly as he could for a somewhat lengthy response, would try to guide the Samurai to understand just a bit more of Shinobi Culture.

"Basically...not all are like that...think of them as a teammate--not some pet forced to fight against its will. They do have their own free will you know...most need to earn the summons respect before they can even start working together." He'd finish with that. But it seemed Kensai had another question--Azuma was ok with this...he would rather educate the Samurai then let misconceptions skew his perception.

But Ken had the question of how he was able to move that fast, or rather, how his body withstood such forces. Azuma reached up and rubbed the back of his head as he thought a moment on it, how to explain it. "Well...I've conditioned my body in such a way that I'm able to travel pretty fast without even aiding it, naturally. But I am able to enhance my body further with chakra...you should understand the basic concept--earlier you used a body flicker--didn't you?" he'd ask, but continue on before letting Ken reply. "I think you may have noticed but...I use Lightning, my chakra is naturally attuned to Lightning and can replicate it for my Jutsu. I am able to use it to further push my body's limits...and when I'm at top speed I am using a Ninjutsu to give myself an aura of Lightning...basically it protects me when I'm moving at speeds that could rip someone else apart." he'd finish, giving Kensai a slight smile as his hand dropped back to his side.

The explanation from Azuma about summoning didn’t do anything to put Ken’s mind at ease. He knew that it was easier to catch a fly with honey, and that if you wanted to get someone on your side you would tell them what they wanted to hear. He wasn’t sure if he imagined that Azuma would treat creatures as such, but at the same time he had seen the way he fought and wouldn’t put it past him. Ken didn’t necessarily distrust the man, no more than he distrusted anyone realistically, and they had fought on the battlefield together which was a good way to get the measure of someone. He was flashy and bold and Ken wasn’t a fan of that, arrogant might be the word he’d use to sum him up, but at the same time he didn’t have an issue with him. He was a good fighter, and that’s all that mattered.

“I don’t know what you mean...I focused my Ki into allowing me to move faster to get into a more strategic position. My father taught me how to do it when I was a child...I suppose it makes sense that you’d be able to do similar things with your chakras.” The man was smiling, something Ken didn’t return, though again, not because he was being unpleasant. This interaction wasn’t unfriendly and it wasn’t something Ken wasn’t enjoying, he simply didn’t show emotion often, and thought it would be unwise to do so with such a dangerous potential foe if the shinobi had been deceiving him. He would put his hands together and rub them for warmth now that the battle was over and the night wind was more noticeable.

“We did a good thing today. I’ve visited this village when I wandered the desert in my youth. They are hard working people, doing all they can to survive. Many families who live in poor conditions who need all the support they can get. They don’t bother anyone, and they simply wish to live their lives in peace. There are no warriors, that beast would have wiped them all out. This is the threat that the ninja present to this world. This is why the Samurai exist, to keep the peace and protect those who can’t protect themselves. There are many evil people in this world...I don’t believe you are one of them. You seem to have a good heart, and I can appreciate that.” Another drag from the cigarette and Ken would sigh. “I wish there were more like you.”

(140 exp)

As Kensai responded, explaining he had no idea what the Shinobi had mentioned about the Body Flicker Technique, then giving his own version, the rather intelligent Shinobi was putting the puzzle pieces together. Guess it made sense that the Samurai would do something similar, but call it something else. This was made more clear when Ken referred to Chakra as 'Ki'. By the sounds of it they was one and the same, the energy derived from within the warriors of the world was universal, the only ones not using such chakra being the summons who can take in nature energy--the lifeblood of Sage Mode. But calling it something else made no difference, and Azuma simply let it go with no further discussion.

Azuma's smile had faded to a simple look that showed he wasn't in any sort of bad mood, joyful without too much shown. This was more or less cause the Samurai offered no such emotion in return, but the man was very used to this--stoicism was rampant among Shinobi, even he had his moments, and it seemed something even the Samurai was known for exuding. The Shinobi watched him rub his hands together, surely the cooler night in the desert mixed with the face Azuma had literally brought a storm over them--which would extent over Suna as well--wasn't helping things as the rain fell down on and around them...this storm would be here for the next day. At least this didn't extend to his willingness to speak, Azuma listening to Kensai as he went on to speak, explaining his knowledge of the history of this small village they had just saved. Azuma's eyes shifted past Ken to the village for only a moment before landing back on the Samurai, The Desert Rogue nodding. Azuma was aware of the village, he'd spent half his life nearly here in Sunagakure--and being a village that basically counted as an outskirt town only a few miles out, literally within sight of the great walls of Suna, Azuma was very familiar with it. But still, it was great to hear Kensai had such a connection to its people, it forcing just a bit of a small smile back onto Azuma's features, although subtle now.

His smile faded quickly though, Kensai saying he wished there was more out there like Azuma first shocked the young Jounin. But it was short lived, the subtle smile returning after. "Its nice you have a connection to the people of this village, I have only come out here a few times, this place makes for a great pit stop before venturing out into the Sunrise Desert. The people here are always so friendly with Suna shinobi since we protect them...glad to see we're not alone and others wish to protect them too...you seem to have a good heart Ken. I know these people appreciate your willingness to help defend them...the fact someone sent something to attack this village sickens me."--with these words his smile faded to a much more serious look.--"Speaking of which...I think I'm going to stick around and see if I can find any clues about who is behind this attack. Creatures like that just don't summon themselves...after that I need to do my Mission report. I appreciate your blade by my side in that fight, Kensai." he'd say, tone shifted to a more serious one, clearly unhappy with what had happened.

But, with that, a hand extended...palm opened in an offer to shake Kensai's hand--the Shinobi looking the Ronin straight in the eyes as he did so to show this was no trivial shallow offer, but a true handshake towards a possible friendship that he meant. If Ken was to refuse the handshake, Azuma would simply give a nod and likely be on his way, but if the Ronin did shake his hand, he'd add something as their hands met in a firm grip. "I know Ninja n' Samurai have bad blood, but I hope you'll see someday we're not all bad."

The Shinobi dropped the smile and became somewhat more serious, something that Ken could appreciate. He imagined this had happened because he himself wasn’t showing much emotion on his face, but that was a fairly normal thing for the people he had encountered. He told Ken that he appreciated his connection with the village, and talking about his own experience with it and the people. He followed that up with a compliment to Ken before telling him that he was going to look for clues and more or less dismissing him, but not before holding his hand out for a shake. Ken would cock an eyebrow, always wondering what the ulterior motive would be behind such an act, but decided there was no point in looking for something that wasn’t there...at least this time. He would clasp his hand to the Shinobi’s, shaking and hearing him speak.

“At least one of you isn’t bad...the verdict is out on the rest. Next time we meet, I hope it is once again as friends. I’d hate to face you on the field of battle.” He chuckled and let go before walking away, moving back towards the skiff that would take him back towards the village...

{Exit Thread}

(Exp 160)

Azuma seen the eyebrow hiked up when he offered his hand for a handshake, but the Shinobi showed zero signs of wavering for the moment. When their hands met and shook--Azuma did so with a firm but not too firm grip, hearing the Ronin's words. Hearing the stoic samurai chuckle at his own words brought back that subtle smile before their hands fell back to their sides. "I best get a better sword if that was to happen." he'd respond with his own light chuckle following. "I do hope we fight side by side again, Samurai." he added with a single subtle 'see ya later' wave.

The Shinobi watched as the Ronin turned to leave, and Azuma about faced as well, knelling down and coiling like a spring, before with a leap he zipped off into the village that had been attacked to ask the townsfolk what they saw. It wasn't long later, surely Ken had only made it half way back to Suna, when a shrieking bolt of speedy Shinobi at full tilt speed raced across the desert, only a delayed rooster tail trailing behind his wake as he sped past Kensai's skiff, off towards the village. Maybe Kensai was a little right, Azuma was just a bit flashy...but he never meant to be.

--Exit post