Communion

original: https://thegladiusnarutorp.forumotion.com/t1392-communionTimeline: Approximately 1 week after "Resiliency"

Unknown Location, Sensory Division, The Hidden Cloud

"Do you know why they call me The Fisherman?"

Suspended by minimalist architecture from the high cliffs, the room was nothing short of magnificent. Wide, floor-to-ceiling height windows displayed the fiery sunset over the mountains. Brilliant orange and red light flooded into the office. Against the backdrop of the sky, with its billowing clouds, it was as if the office had melted into the clouds themselves.

Soma Takagari found herself in the cold, white and glass office of the Sensory Division's tower. For most of her adult life as a parent, the Mikiri had watched her relationship with Irui with unease. They'd always hovered in the background. Overbearing. She'd found the pressure smothering, they had never trusted her. Soma shifted in her seat at the far end of the alabaster table focused on the at the figure addressing her.

His form was slender, dressed in flowing, decorative white and red Kimono. Silver hair, much like her sons, flowed past his shoulders, bound by matching rings. Gently he cradled a hot beverage in his hands.  "Because, Soma...." He continued softly, and stirred his drink. "The Hidden Cloud is the pool over which I survey. Nothing escapes my notice-- which is why I've brought you here, to discuss your son's... " He strode halfway down the table's length and paused. "Predicament. He violated an oath, one that we "

Soma's eyes flashed. "Predicament?" She questioned

A smile crossed the Fisherman's lips, and he set the saucer down on the table. The man interlaced his fingers and paced back towards the immense windows. "To stand at the top of the world, and look down upon the Five Nations is a privilege Soma. Long, long ago my ancestors came to an agreement with the Hidden Cloud, that we would guard this land's secrets, so long as we did not stray of the Land of Lightning. To live here, so close to the heavens is a privilege, Soma. For your child to have our blood flowing in his veins, is a privilege." He turned again towards her, meeting her gaze with stone. "What do you know about Mora Mikiri?"


___________


Mogiri, the Purgeflame treaded over the marble flooring of St. Memori's cavernous interior. His footfalls echoed into the blackness, quivering and resounding here and there. In the man's right hand he clasped an iron lantern, fashioned from an ancient Flail, trailing a length of barbed chain. Softly he recited the hymns of the old days, gently rocking the lantern back and forth as its smoke lingered and curled through the night air.

"Jashin eléison...." His voice rasped gently. Embers, blessed by his prowess with the Fire Element flickered and danced, alighting on nearby torches. With a sharp hiss and pop, they burst into life in his wake.

The flamebearer had seen better days certainly; his face, half-concealed by a respirator, even in the dim light was pale and scarred-- gifts from his murderous father. His boots, affixed with support devices, clanked heavily against the stone and ivory-work at his feet. Long had he served this institution and the glory of Lord Jashin. Through his miracles he had been reborn, not as a cripple, but a warrior of Jashin, and through his suffering he'd found strength; undeniable authority over the flames that had remade him.  

Now in the grand halls of the Cathedral of St. Memori, he could listen to the overwhelming silence. His life's work had been dedicated to preserving the artifacts and secrets it held. He paused and turned slowly to admire his handwork, and swept his gaze over the throat-like grand hall. Six-hundred and forty-three skulls rested in each block of stone, countless more had been incorporated inside the pillars. All of them sacrifices from long, long ago to the greatness of his Lord and Savior.

He raised a thin, wispy hand to the air, and snapped his fingers. A flash of flame erupted there, and all throughout the Cathedral, candles made of human remains flickered to life.

"....Kyrie eléison" Mogiri sang to the shadows.

A latch replied; the heavy gears of a distant door, grinding and clunking their way into place. Mogiri held his lantern out to the side, dangling it from its length of ornate golden chain, letting the smoke swirl about him. The cowled acolyte paced forward, his eyes searching. A pair finger's crept around the edge of the far door, pushing it aside.  Cold mountain air ushered into the chamber, flowing past a boy garbed in the Hidden Cloud's traveling cloak. He was disheveled, and bore fresh scars, but he had no doubt.

"Irui," Mogiri greeted, his voice a rasp. A shiver of anticipation crept up the burnt man's spine. Lady Supreme had been expecting his arrival. Word had traveled quickly through the Church's eyes and ears from the Land of Water, that one of Mora's kin had failed the Chuunin Exams.

-----

Mora Mikiri knelt before the small shrine of the Necrossiah in her office. She was completing her daily devotions to the earthly manifestation of Jashin when she heard a gentle knock on her door. The woman rose to her feet and called out: "Come in." A tall and profoundly scarred man entered the room. He was dressed in a golden robe and had a dagger tucked in his belt. Sacristan Lee-hei bowed before his Lady Superior, the apology for intruding on her devotions was implicit and sincere. She could see the man tremble as he rose back up. The house arrest was making him restless and agitated. Despite years of discipline and prayer, Lee-hei was haunted by an unquenchable urge to kill. Within the Orthodoxy this drive was a blessing, but if not tempered it could lead to the sect's destruction. What made Orthodox Jashinists far more successful than their cultist counterparts was their fidelity to rules, authority, and structure. They knew when to strike, when to sacrifice, and when to lay low. It had preserved their institution for hundreds of years whilst other sects came and went in the blink of an eye. Sacristan Lee-hei's zealotry had served the Church well. He had fearlessly led a coup against the Loyalists of Kumogakure and had gladly taken the fall when it did not result in an actual change of power. He had agreed to house arrest for the time being until the situation was sorted out.

"Irui Mikiri has arrived your Holiness"

Mora gave a casual nod and waved him away. The far taller man scurried away like a cowed child. He could tell from the look in her eye that she was in no mood to entertain his opinions. The Mikiri was wearing a black tunic with a red stole draped around her shoulders. The article was embroided with scenes of carnage and mutilation. A fitting representation of what her faith was about. Mora grabbed the papal ferula which hung from a place of honor in her study. She left the room and entered the inner sanctum to receive her wayward cousin.

From the moment Mora arrived, Irui would be able to see the anger on her face. Normally, the woman was not nearly as cheerful as Shimiko. Yet she wasn't overly hostile either. It was safe to say that her general countenance could best be described as neutral or solemn. Yet before him was a woman seething with rage. He and the twins had been the Church's representatives in this year's Exams. Yui and Yua were Shimiko's children and therefore outside of her practical jurisdiction. Even still, they had shown promise and wise judgment in how they handled the challenges they faced. Aside from some low cunning in the first round, Irui's performance was a disgrace. He had been yeeted like a ball during the Survival Bouts. He had brought shame upon his clan and his faith.

Mora walked up to Mogiri. The man had faithfully served as the Church's Custodian for many years and if not for his delicate touch and discerning eye, many of its greatest treasurers would have been lost in the years prior to the religion's legalization. This matter, however, was not for his ears.

"Leave us Mogiri"

Once she and Irui were alone, she peered into her kin's eyes and spoke the truth:

"You have failed me Irui. You have failed this Church. You have failed your Clan. Recall the words you said to me when you committed your life to the Orthodoxy...."

Mora remembered the day well. Irui had shown such promise as a Jashinist. He possessed a keen intellect, an avaricious spirit, and a desire for guidance. The words were replayed in her own mind.

Irui wrote:
"Lady Mora, I will serve Jashin," He said through breaths, "What I want, the shinobi world cannot give me-- I want more, I want it all."

"You said you wanted it all.....and I will tell you now as I told you then.....For those within the Church.....everything.....for those outside of it.....nothing. However, this liturgy is hard work. And when I read the reports of how you performed in the Exams, I can't help but realize you've done next to nothing with the talent Jashin has given you. Perhaps the Divine Church of Hakkin will be more to your liking? I hear they prefer lilies and invalids.....I asked Jashin for a Spymaster and he gave me a 無能 "

---------

A black, nearly amorphous form birthed itself from the throat of the Church. The Lady Supreme of Jashin, Mora Mikiri. Swathed in the deepest black, Mora Mikiri moved, striding down the center of the inner sanctum. The air around her had twisted: no longer familial presence, it was thick with venom as she moved..

He felt his throat tighten. It was only a matter of time before his journey brought him back to this cathedral, and now he knelt on the cold marble. He'd bowed, out of sheer reflex, a movement only a child would take to appease an adult. He felt his body tensing, his pulse quickening, waiting for the blows that would come. His traveling cloak fell around him, and he lifted his gaze to meet eyes filled with torchlight. Over the crackle of flame he could feel the blood rushing through his veins, his heart accelerating.

"Leave us, Mogiri." Mora spoke.

Irui's eyes moved to the flame bearer as he wordlessly turned and limped down the nearest cooridor with his prosthetics clanking and rattling. His breath caught in his chest as it dawned on him that the two of them were alone. The flickering torches seemed to growl and thunder in the chasm-like expanse of the sanctum. With a breeze, Mora had suddenly crossed the gap between the two of them, and her shadow loomed overhead. There was violence in her eyes, smoldering fury creasing the lines of her face.

He swallowed hard, choking back emotion that clenched his throat; his brain twisting and turning itself over and over. Does he bow for mercy, for forgiveness before the church, does he bow out of weakness?

"You have failed me Irui." The shadow hissed, "You have failed this Church. You have failed your Clan. Recall the words you said to me when you committed your life to the Orthodoxy...."

He knew what he'd said in those dark halls, but Mora enunciated them clearly.

"You said you wanted it all..." The shadow spat, landing its first verbal blow. "and I will tell you now as I told you then--"

He winced for the second lashing.

"For those within the Church.....everything.....for those outside of it.....nothing. However, this liturgy is hard work. And when I read the reports of how you performed in the Exams, I can't help but realize you've done next to nothing with the talent Jashin has given you. Perhaps the Divine Church of Hakkin will be more to your liking? I hear they prefer lilies and invalids.....I asked Jashin for a Spymaster and he gave me an incompetent!"

An incompetent?

An incompetent?!

I've failed the Chuunin Exams. I've failed my Clan, I've failed my Church, I've failed Lady Mora! I've failed so many times, so-- so many....

"I-- I..." Irui's voice came, small and ragged. "I don't-- No, I...I..." The floor had begun to lurch, every crevice and crack had become a gaping maw, as his thoughts swam, tossing and twisting in the cold sea of Mora's words. She didn't want to just punish him, no, she intended to drown him, to hold him under and leave him sucking water into his lungs--

A spark from a torch flared and bounced across the cold floor, it sent embers scurrying.

Your relative needs to decide what feels best for them, and if the Church isn’t the path that they feel is right in their heart and soul, then they need to find what is. Niko's words, warm like flame, crept into the forefront of his mind. Freedom of Choice is one of the luxuries all living creatures should possess.

He latched onto them, coiling his mind and soul around her words. Even if the memories of their training together singed him, it was a memory filled with sunlight, warm summer breezes.

"No," Irui ground out.

A flicker of lightning scurried across his fingers.

"No, no, no... He shook his head. His throat with emotion, and he bit it back, forcing it down. "I may have failed, but I-- I suffered--" He thrusted himself up, standing on his knees, and tore at his collar, exposing the side of his neck and shoulder. Flesh riddled with scars and traces of Ijutsu wound a curling path down the side of his neck, passing his shoulder and collar bone. Out of sight, it continued down his ribs, terminating just shy of the stomach. He'd been hurled across the field, somersaulting through trees before landing in a retaining pond. An unceremonious defeat.

"I, should not be alive!" He retorted with fire in his voice. "I suffered horribly and yet Jashin-sama brought me here!!" Irui cried, his eyes wide and dancing in the firelight. His chest heaved, bellow like as he breathed. He planted one foot beneath him, then another, and staggered to his feet. "I cannot explain it, but I should have died!"

-----

Mora watched as the child cowered before her ire. She had no children of her own. The life of a Sacristan did not allow for such trivializes. However, if she ever were to have children, the most fun part would be instilling fear within them. Fear was a beautiful thing. The Jashinist scriptures had taught them that their Lord reveled in it. His Church was founded on fear. Not fear of death or bloodshed, but fear of displeasing him. Fear of failing to live up to the prophecies and blessing he had in store for them. It was this fear that animated their actions and made them the liveliest religious movement in history.

For Irui to cower in fear before her was a microcosm of their faith. He began to defy and deny her accusations. It started with stuttering and unfinished words before settling on a single one. It was simple in its structure but powerful in its meaning.

"No,"
"No?" Mora questioned.

Does this boy dare talk back to his Lady Superior?

He repeated the words before yelling out that he should have died at the Exams. Mora was a bit taken aback when she saw the nature of the wounds afflicting his body. She wasn't a doctor but she could tell serious injury when she saw one. He proclaimed that he was alive because Jashin had willed it and judging from the shape he was in, she could not argue with that proposition. Unfortunately, barely surviving the Exams was not proof that he was on some divine journey. The concept of chance did exist in their religion. There was only one way to differentiate luck from blessing. She remained silent for a moment and then suddenly she struck Irui across the face with her papal ferula.

"You think you are alive because Lord Jashin wanted to survive? How dare you. Who are you to divine our God's will? There is only one person in the Orthodoxy with that privilege and she stands before you now. I will be the one to determine whether you survived because you have a life of service and glory ahead of you or whether you survived just so that Jashin could give me the pleasure of putting you down. You will have one more chance to fight for redemption Irui Mikiri and I will be your opponent!" she proclaimed.

Irui was in for a real treat. For the first time in a quarter-century, The Lady Superior of the Orthodox Church of Jashin was going to fight someone.

-----


"I cannot explain it, but I should not be alive!!"

His words tore from his throat, ragged and choked. Within them was all the desperation, frustration and rage accumulated in his being. HIs heart pounded faster than ever before, his veins pumping with adrenaline, by Jashin it felt good to scream out. He wanted his voice more than anything to be heard.

Irui could feel his face flush, and swallowed hard, he knew he must have looked like a mad man to Miora. Let her see, let her take in the sight of her own drowning kin. Irui stared at her, watching the lines of her face crease and become polished cold steel. Suddenly she reached up with a thin, bony hand to the headdress resting on her crown--

smack!

The blow caught him across his face, the numerous beads and jewels smashed into his mouth and face with stunning force. He cried out and grasped his jaw, staggering as he regained his footing and turned to stare in shock at the older woman. He tasted red, felt the salty tang line his gums.

"You think you are alive because Lord Jashin wanted to survive?" Mora returned her words deathly cold,  "How dare you. Who are you to divine our God's will? There is only one person in the Orthodoxy with that privilege and she stands before you now." Her voice sharpened and clear, there was no mercy in her tone. "I will be the one to determine whether you survived because you have a life of service and glory ahead of you or whether you survived just so that Jashin could give me the pleasure of putting you down." Mora continued, her voice rising with malice. "You will have one more chance to fight for redemption Irui Mikiri and I will be your opponent!"

That's how this was going to be. Irui wiped his mouth, vaguely tasting iron in his saliva, and threaded his hands together, one atop the other, wiping the grime and blood from the fingerless gloves. He briefly shook his head, managing a faint laugh at the incredulousness of it all. Niko had been right, but now the choice was his to make.

"You want to be my opponent?" He returned, dry spitting blood upon the floor.  Irui drew himself up, his hair now hanging shaggily, a fresh scratch across his face. His lips parted into a white toothed grin. Both Mikiri stood only meters apart. Mora despite all her malice showing her true colors at the insubordination, it was all so exhilarating. He let his cloak drop to the floor-- it would only get in the way.

This was the price for insubordination to the Church. It would be the same price he'd pay for defying the Mikiri Clan, and so too would it be for any Jounin the Hidden Cloud. Oh this was something else, this was what he'd been hoping to uncover for so long: The Cloud, the Church, the Clan, they were all the same. Factions and organizations, each demanding fealty in one way or another-- life, time, and pounds of flesh in the name of a bloodline, deity and political figure.

"You'll have to hit harder then!"

A trio of senbon flashed into the fingers of his right hand.

With a violent splitting of air, forks of raw energy sprang from Irui's upturned left hand. The electricity writhed and snarled as it flew through the air for Mora's body. He was not going to be caught empty-handed--Tsuki Tetsudashi had taught him that lesson-- and he certainly wouldn't give the Lady Supreme the benefit of an opening.

-------

Mora grinned when she saw Irui's expression after she had struck him. The grin grew more pronounced as she saw the blood dribble from his mouth. The Lady Superior's malicious smile was a reflection of her spirit in that moment. She relished combat. She understood it. It completed her. Unfortunately, her spiritual duties did not leave much time for physical correction and discipline. She left such matters to her Sacristans and where necessary her champion Shimiko Chinoike. The strike reminded her of how good it felt to bend someone to your will with a successful display of force.

Irui's spirit was far from broken though. Either he foolishly believed she'd be an easy opponent or he truly had become possessed by the spirit of their Lord. He spat the blood that she had so joyously spilled. He threw the challenge back in her face and insisted that her attack had been mediocre at best.

Unfortunately for him, he was right.

The senbon that appeared his hands did not escape her notice. The boy then loosed an electrical attack against her. The Lady Superior remained right where she was, not at all preturbed by the second-rate light show. She was the leader of the most feared death cult in the world, and she had grown up in Ligthing Country. What did she have to fear from some sparks.

Mora held out her outstretched hand. It was a normal regular palm. But just moments before it had made contact with the stream of lightning, her bloodline activated. The Inhaling Maw manifested in the blink of an eye swallowing up his pitiful Ninjutsu and adding its power to her own reserves. The religious leader slammed her ferula into the ground with enough force that the marble floor split. The object remained upright and at attention while Mora walked a single pace forward.

As an elderly woman, she tried not to jump around if she could help it. Fighting was a young girl's game and she had arthritis. And yet, despite her advanced age, there was a practiced skill about the way she moved. She grabbed the right sleeve of her top and ripped it off, she did the same with the left. In doing so, she revealed her Juuinjutsu. A series of Fuuinjutsu spiraled from her shoulders all the way down to her finger tips. The inheritance of her Clan crackled to life and a ball of blue flame was emitted from each fingertip. The seals on her arms glowed faintly and she spread her arms wide in a "Come at Me Bro" manner.

"Strength doesn't just come from force...It comes from experience, information, knowledge"

This would either be Irui's first lesson as a student of the Mikiri Clan's power or his last.

With a spark of starlight, lightning met Mora's outstretched hand and twisted, writhing at a single point as it coiled in on itself. The boy could only look on as the energy was swallowed within a heartbeat by a burning diamond-mark on the woman's palm.

What did she just do?! Irui's mind raced while the crone curled her fingers into claws and began tearing at the sleeves. She'd nullified his Lightning Style without flinching, and now with ripping fabric, laid bare tattooed skin. Emblazoned with sealing marks down her arms, she pulled herself into a combat stance. With a sharp cracking of air, blue flame snapped to life at her fingertips.

Mora was calm, un-phased, focused.

Fuinjutsu! Irui's eyes narrowed on the flames. She read through my movement and nullified it. That diamond mark, that's no ordinary fuinjutsu. Its the same as my own, the same as Morikawa's and my fathers. There's no doubt about it....

"Strength doesn't just come from force..." Mora spoke suddenly, "It comes from experience, information, knowledge".

His grip on the senbon loosened, as he calculated the distance between the two of them, then glanced at her hand, and let the needles land on the floor. He bent his knee, dipping low into a partial sprinter's pose. Tsuki and Niko taught me everything I need--

Dragon

Light exploded into the darkness of the church, a Signal Flare, conjured and fired into Mora's eyes and face, as brilliant as the sun itself. He snatched the weapons from the floor--

Half-tiger

-- and sprang to the side, chakra surging through his feet with the Body Flicker. Irui sprinted to the grand columns and wall of the Sanctum.  He moved as fast as his legs could carry him, hoping to put distance between two of them as he moved at a diagonal, now adjacent to her left.  He pulled back a sleeve as he launched from the floor, and gathered the lightning running through his veins. A porous steel gauntlet wrapped around his forearm, now hummed with life--

These gauntlet's gather sound in their frames. Even as I move they're generating sound. When its given form with chakra, it can be weaponized... He recollected, glancing at the device. They turned the body into a living tuning fork, turning kinetic energy into sonic waves. He'd seen the manual and watched the demonstration.

It was nothing short of a technological miracle. A taijutsu or ninjutsu expert could move freely, coaxing chakra through the device's tunnels. At close-range, even if the opponent dodged the blow, the sound waves would strike the target. Its basic application, the "Resonating Echo Drill", was truly insidious as it devastated the inner ear. A strong and stout man had been crippled by his far more nimble sparring partner. Watching it had given Irui hope: He didn't need to muscle his way through the competition, he needed to out-think it. As the man side-stepped his partner's armthrust, he'd staggered and reeled, and when he dodged a second blow, the vertigo took hold and brought the fighter to his knees. Silent, efficient, and ruthless. He'd smiled then, on the grassy hill; sound was vibrations traveling through the air, and only two elements could generate them with unmatched ferocity. Irui had one: Lightning, and with it he'd devised something. Just as the body generated sound, so too did the thunderclouds ringing the village: Lightning itself tore through the air, generating a thunderclap.

He cocked his elbow.

Electricity unspooled from his core and muscles, spidering through his tenketsu until it reached the resonating chambers. Ferocious in its own right, the electrical energy conducted through the metal, electromagnetic vibrations clamored together. He'd felt this before in an instrument; a sort of full-bodied vibration. Tsuki had shown him the importance of weaponry, slinging kunai and wires with her lava release. Niko had honed his electricity, sharpening it into a weapon all its own. Through them both, Lightning had become a living thing, and these gauntlet's would be its harness.

He turned, touching down briefly and twisted his body around. The gauntlet thrummed as he straightened his hand and thrust it forward with an open palm. A crescendo within the Gauntlet was reached, and from it, a thunderous roar of sound erupted as a conical pressure-wave that raced towards her.

Irui-Style Lightning Release:

Glass exploded, flames shuddered in its wake.

Propelled by the sonic blast, Irui tucked his legs and arms in as it carried him to the far wall. He landed on it's face, sandals clacking as chakra magnetized him to the surface, and used the momentum to rebound. He twisted through the air and touched down at the center of the Sanctium's throat, and crouched. A handsign was woven, echo speakers bared. She couldn't touch him with Fuinjutsu of he was able to keep his distance, and now he'd more than tripled it from her.

"I've learned plenty from the shinobi outside this Church!" He yelled back.

------

Note, at Irui's B-rank coordination, he can complete 7 handseals per turn.
-Learning and applying Resonating Echo Drill and Thunderclap.

Irui was shaken by her Fuuinjutsu. It was a shame that the Mikiri didn't reveal the true power of their kekkei genkai to their children. It was quite a shocking event to see people you had grown up with wield such power casually. It often created a certain expectation, social pressure, fear, and a host of other complexes. The elderly woman watched as Irui sealed off his surprise and remained calm. He appeared to drop his senbon but she could tell right away that it was a feint. The older woman saw as he shot a flare towards her. She shielded her eyes from the blinding light.

Very good... she thought to herself. A visual distraction was often an effective choice when dealing with someone who had the ability to neutralize your Ninjutsu of choice. Fortunately, years of worshiping in pitch black darkness had honed her other senses. She could hear as Irui bounced from column to column. He was keeping himself nimble and out of harm's way. She stood perfectly still taking in his ever-moving location. She couldn't very well destroy the pillars of her own Church and given his last technique, he might be inexperienced enough to bring the whole Church down. She'd need to take this fight outside and fast. As he moved, she also became aware of the growing "whirrr" sound emanating from his body. Being an inhabitant of the Lightning Country, she was well aware of the power of the Resonating Echo Speaker. What she wasn't aware of was how the Spymaster had taken the technology and its signature jutsu and made it something to its own. When he touched back down to strike, he loosed a jutsu she hadn't seen before.

A powerful sonic blast was loosed from the technology. It moved at near incalculable speeds. Mora barely had time to think, but fortunately with age came experience. As she had said earlier, she didn't need to be the fastest or the strongest to beat Irui. She had witnessed and participated in hundreds of battles. She could move on instinct and act on little more than a guess. Countering attacks she hadn't seen before was more or less muscle memory to her. One of the small balls of blue flame that hovered atop her finger tips retreated into its respective digit: her pinky. She then slammed her palm into the ground generating an impressive wall of blue flame that erupted just in the nick of time. Had she been a second late then his attack would have hit home.

Irui roared out his defiance. He had been learning from others. Drawing on their knowledge and skill to invigorate his own. Mora frowned in response. It was natural that people learned things from outside the Orthodoxy. It was actually encouraged as there was indeed secrets and abilities not possessed by the institution. The problem was when they credited people and not Jashin for opening up their minds to the mysteries of their craft. It was a heresy that Mora would punish Irui for.

Because the sonic attack was derived from the Resonating Echo Drill, it could still be stopped by chakra-based obstructions. The collision of the two jutsu was loud. It shattered every window in St. Memori's Cathedral and pushed Mora backwards. The old woman skidded away, largely unharmed but clearly shaken by Irui's impressive show of skill. He was not as weak as came off as. Unfortunately, he wasn't strong enough to truly threaten her.

"Irui, you are ignorant as a newborn mule. Everything you learn is by the grace of Jashin. Inside or outside of the Orthodoxy."

Mora flickered through a set of seals and the sealing tattoos on her arms glowed. She struck the ground with both hands and a sea of blue electricity swarmed the ground beneath them. The roar and force of the lightning as it sprawled across the sanctum's floor was deafening. Mora's tunic flapped and sweat began to form in her brow as she arced every square inch of the technique. Mora's chakra control was the stuff of legends. The stream of electricity would toast anything she wanted it to. Any nearby onlookers would be spared, but Irui would not be so lucky. He was right that distance wasn't a bad idea, but unfortunately as a possessor of Dark Release she had Lightning as well. An element that excelled in long range capabilities. If Irui remained on the ground he'd be electrocuted badly.

The violence wrought by them was deafening.

Mora's palm smacked the cold marble, with a wailing scream brilliant blue wall of flame exploded into the sanctum. Her fire shuddered under the pressure wave and only roared back in defiance as it swallowed it in totality. Glass littered the floor, pews had been overturned, scorched and shattered. More than a dozen cracks traced their way from floor to dark rafters. Irui grimaced,  and held his fingers still in a hand-seal as the fire died.

That should have killed her! He thought darkly. That flame she used just now, and the marks on our palms. That's the Kekkei Genkai. The first time with her hand, I thought it was Fuinjutsu by its appearance but her chakra was the same as it is now. He deduced, and focused himself as Mora drew herself upright. Although the wall had shielded her from the blast, it didn't stop the air pressure from repelling her, almost exactly to where Irui had stood. His cloak rested on the floor just adjacent to her. Good.

Whats more... The nature transformation, its use of Yin Release is almost identical to a Fuinjutsu, but rather than manually sealing it, that technique took it in. Irui thought back to the lightning blast, how it collected to a single point in her hand. She may be experienced enough to not need it, but a Horse Handseal would shift the flow. He continued to hold his sign, focusing his chakra for the next round, keeping his Sensory observant.

Our chakra... He watched her with intent. It acts like an Enclosing Method Seal, but with Jutsu. Why didn't she absorb my flare or the thunderclap? Is there a limit or--? His eyes flicked to the collateral damage, mildly impressed with the damage of his attack. He smiled ruefully: It should have killed her.

"Irui," Mora called out, rupturing his train of thought, "you are ignorant as a newborn mule. Everything you learn is by the grace of Jashin. Inside or outside of the Orthodoxy." With a motion, she cleared her hands then clapped them together--

She's weaving signs! He realized, and attempted to match her own fury with a string of his own, and stole a glance at the broken windows--

"Raiton-!!"

--Mora's hand met marble, and Irui could only leap into action with another Flicker. He sprang towards and through the former stained-glass window as Lightning Style clawed across the ground.  All at once, the Cathedral of St. Memori became a roaring thunderstorm as lightning flooded the interior, blowing out the remaining windows, shooting forks into the night sky.

Through the smoke and glass Irui hurtled, weaving handsigns as he reached the apex of his Body Flicker--

--Ox → Horse → Dragon → Tiger → Snake →

He kicked out his legs to right himself, then his arms, allowing him to twist around. Out into the open he'd flown into the dizzying Kumogakure night. Quickly, he reached into his pouch, snatching a tag. Chakra cushioned the impact as he hit the ground and rolled once and dug in his toes. He pressed his hands into the grass and pushed off--

Rat.

He sucked in air, filling his chest as lightning unspooled from his core. It followed a circulatory path, chaining upon itself until the air galvanized it. Particles charged in his lungs, air became lightning. It welled up inside, rising from his throat. Irui gritted his teeth together as the raw electricity gathered at the back of his throat, his teeth gnashing with energy. He opened his jaws wide, Lightning Release gathered like a storm dragon. He knew exactly where Mora was by the signature of her chakra, and he knew with Niko's training he could hit Mora at 100 meters or more. With a crack of thunder it ripped from his jaw, soaring across the courtyard to pierce the Church's wall.

______

Sensory (D)
Body Flicker (D)
False Darkness (B)

Mora watched as her pupil analyzed his situation. He's working it out.... she thought to herself. The boy still had not unlocked the power of his Kekkei Genkai. He didn't even know its characteristics and yet here he was facing it for the first time. He was performing better than she had expected but he still fell far short of where she needed him to be. The electricity blew out every window in the Cathedral. A weighty loss but given Shimiko's position it wasn't anything that couldn't be fixed. Irui dodged her lightning attack via the Body Flicker Technique. She chuckled at that. He was smart to move the battle outside of the Cathedral. If they did any more damage then she'd have to wring his neck on principle alone. He was probably ready and waiting for her outside. Mora shook her head before deciding to give him what he wanted. If he wanted to prove himself to her as a Mikiri Clansman than he'd need to push himself to the absolute limit. She took action the second before he fired at the Church's wall.

Another ball of flame was absorbed into her finger and she pushed off the ground in a jet of blue flame. She landed on a pillar and blasted off with even greater force. The pillar cracked a bit but held. She zoomed out of the window at a speed faster than Irui could ever hope to track. The flicker like movement would obviously complicate his ability to aim the technique that he had prepared. Mora had somersaulted over his head and once she had reached the zenith of being directly above him, she unleashed a torrent of blue flame in the form of a dragon. The Dark Release Technique threatened to crush and burn him into the ground if he did not move. If he tried to counter with the same jutsu he had prepared previously, he faced the prospect of being flattened into the Earth. He'd be a sitting duck.

Like cannonshot, the spear of lightning flew at a blistering speed, lengthening into a beam of energy that knifed the church wall. At such speed, it should have met Mora's chest. He sensed her reaction before he saw it: Yin Release unfolded into a plume of chakra. Suddenly she was on the move, using the flame as propulsion.

It was the same as before. Again, and again, her chakra shifted from one state to another. A flow of positive to negative, a continuous cycle of energy converting to the ephemeral, and then into blue flame. Lightning to Yin, and Yin to the fire, turning raw elements into the ephemeral, and regurgitating it as something new. That was how her ability worked. With each flash of flame, a wellspring of chakra emerged. Her control over her reserves was something else entirely.

A second burst of flame thundered from Mora, and sent her hurtling.

His lightning spear only gave chase as his body moved, slicing upwards and sideways erotically as he moved.  Irui clamped his mouth shut, grimacing as his Senses told him to move, and he dove for cover ( He'd count himself lucky to have been born a Sensor-Type if he survived this fight). The courtyard of the church was decorated with numerous statues, thick hedges, and arcs of black and red roses-- no doubt Mora's favorite-- it offered ample cover.

Brilliant blue-white fire torched the grass behind him as he braced himself behind the statue of a Jashinist saint. He tucked himself, pressing a pair of tags against the marble base while the flames washed over. Irui jerked his head over his shoulder, eyeing the blackened earth.

Every time she uses those flames, the amount of chakra it contains diminishes as well. So she has a pool to work with, a reservoir separate from her own. But this chakra is distinct. It truly is a textbook analogy for fuinjutsu. He thought, and threaded his fingers through additional handseals.

----
Sensory (D)
B-rank Intel, 4-turn precog save.

Irui managed to dodge just in the nick of time. Mora landed where he had been a moment prior and then pressed the offensive. Another ball of flame was absorbed into her fingertips and she jetted along the ground in a sea of blue flames. The woman was not moving her body with anything close to the actual speed she was traveling at. She appeared to be gliding across the ground, skating if you will in a manner akin to a certain Firebending Princess. The elderly woman zoomed across the courtyard to where Irui had taken cover. She would not give him a moment's respite and while it pained her to destroy the icon of St. Heero the Murderous, she knew it was mere marble and concrete. They could be replaced easily. This was a rare oppurtunity for her to show a new acolyte precisely why she was the Lady Superior of the Orthodox Church of Jashin.

In a moment, Mora would have circumvented the statute and appeared in front of him. She kept her hands behind his back but by now he'd be able to use his Sensory tell what was up. An arrogant smile was plastered on her wrinkled face. Both sides of his escape would be covered with blue flames. It was the product of her earlier movements and hopefully it would box him in. Flames on the left, Flames on the right, a statute behind him. Mora shot out her right hand and a torrent of Dark Release burst forth. Taking the form of a giant fist that threatened to shatter his ribs while also blanketing him in 2nd degree burns.

It would be a severe lesson. One that would perhaps cripple him for months if not years to come. But he had to know, he had to learn. The power of Dark Release was not something to trifle with. It was said to be a gift from beyond the stars. She had remembered her own lesson as though it were yesterday...it had taken decades for the scars to heal.

"Today you you will learn the true power of your bloodright boy!"

A peal of thunder rolled through the atmosphere of the Hidden Cloud. The sun had long since set across the village, and now in the Sensory Tower, the Anko Mikiri, the Fisherman watched the village with intent. It had begun with flashes of light from the center of the village, sparks here and there, before blossoming into a full throated thunderstorm. St. Memori's Cathedral had lit up like the eye of a storm, with bolts of energy clawing from its skeleton, casting wretched shadows.

"Soma," He said in between rumbles. "Our Kekkei Genkai is said to be a gift from God itself. Legend says it fell from the stars, and blessed our ancestors-- if you believe in such silly things. We test our children to see if they are worthy of keeping its secrets, and shouldering its immense responsibility." Anko continued with a hushed tone, "This is simply another test for both Mora and Irui."

Another crack of lightning, this time spear like, cut across the rooftop of the Cathedral.

"She once had so much promise-- Mora did." Anko clarified, "This was before my time, but the Elders say she chased her fantasies, her religion she calls it, and abandoned her family, living off the land. They chose to keep her at arms length, like a morbid fascination. Judging by your son's actions, I wonder how he will be seen."

Soma had by this time come to stand along the great window, watching the flickering duel. Not long after the first shots had rung out, an ANBU had burst into the office, proclaiming an assassin had come for Mora Mikiri. Anko, while vexed by the intrusion, dismissed  the spectacle as a test. It was always a test for the Mikiri-- a puzzle, a contest, now a duel. Every obstacle challenged the Mikiri's children to their birthright. Test after test, weeding out the weak-links by throwing children to the wolves until none remained.

"Its always about the tests with you people...." She said after a long while. "I used to think there was merit to it, but after I was told about the tournaments within the Main Branch, I knew this was all...." Soma quieted herself. It was a cult. Families eager to prove their children worthy of the Clan Leadership fought one another for prestige and title, pining to prove they were worthy successors to a "Lady Himiko". It was why so few became Shinobi.

------
------


Mora tore across the courtyard, flame billowing behind her like a searing curtain as she moved. Propelled by her chakra, the Lady Supreme's movements had become almost birdlike, with her arms stretched and body low, gathering and flowing the fire over and past her. Mora turned and raced back up the clearing, drenching the blossoms and trees in thundering flame as she flew.

It was the same as every other iteration of the technique. Energy was absorbed, dissolved into the ether with Yin Release, and expelled later as flame. Each technique, no matter how fast, used the same process. Irui ground his teeth, listening as the air boom and trees crackled as the priest loomed. Her assault had to break, it had to! If anything she was predictable, and his Sensory abilities had informed him of that much.

Irui pressed back to the statue's base and drew himself in tightly as the flames tore through the gaps in the hedges and artwork of the courtyard. Ancient and precious as they might be, Mora didn't care, she's burn it all to cinders to destroy him. With a rush of hot wind, she blew past him, and spun around, teal flames licking the ground in her wake, black cloak tattered and fluttering.

"Today you you will learn the true power of your bloodright boy!"

She raised a bony hand. Teal flame sparked from the diamond pattern--

Don't underestimate me-- Irui's eyes flashed madly as his fingers straightened into a half-tiger seal. "--Sensei!!" Electricity flared.

--Raiton!!

The air cracked, blistering light filled his vision and painted the world in stark white. All at once his skin touched the sun itself as flame crashed into him like a great wave, catching him in the chest it slammed him into the back of the statue. The air ripped from his lungs, a ragged scream tore from his throat. He screamed so loud it fell silent on his ears. Knees and elbows met the ground, his fingers curling on blackened grass. Irui clutched maddeningly at the burning vest covering his body, coils of lightning slicing it apart as his hands and fingers ripped at the thing. He cut and slashed with electricity, shredding his clothing in a bid to remove the burning articles from his flesh. Irui shuddered, gasping and screaming hoarsely as he feebly rolled and pressed himself into the hot ground. Every nerve ending had been touched by flame, his skin lashed and blistered in an instant as Mora's Judgement chewed him.

He gasped as he writhed on the ground, twitching as raw skin scraped the ground. He craned his face skyward towards Mora's black cloak, eyes parting to look upon her. Burnt lips cracked and bled as they parted, sliding across hot ivory teeth. His mouth, thick with iron and ash, opened and closed as he tried to cry out, his words choked by hot air. Onyx eyes fixed, quivering madly on the wraith of a woman.

Mora, the woman he once admired.

Mora, the Mikiri who defied her elders.

Mora, who promised to share her knowledge and power.

Mora, who betrayed him.

He'd suffered in the cage of his clan, suffered for the Hidden Cloud, betrayed his own family and mother. As his skin cracked and smoked, it was in this searing moment that Irui realized that this is what it meant to suffer for Jashin. Suffer for Her, suffer for an institution and government that devoured all life. Young and old, child or adult, it consumed them, fed upon them like cattle, and when they rebelled, it smothered them in flame. It ripped away his flesh, flayed nerves and scorched him with sunfire. This, Irui realized, was what it meant to be a shinobi to the Church, to the Hidden Cloud, to the Clan: kindling for a flame, ground under into ash. To give everything, and receive immolation.

"The Church is simply a path," Niko had said to him softly, "one that you can choose to continue to follow or deviate from as you see fit. You have to do the right thing for you and you alone."

He coughed, burnt lungs heaving, and reached up for Mora Mikiri.

Lightning had spared him from death. It wouldn't be kind to the Lady Supreme. A trap had been sprung at the moment of cremation, a Sealing Jutsu embedded in the tag's placed prior. Electrified jaws of plasma had sprung from the ground, snapping their blades tightly upon Mora's outstretched arm.

"I--" He gagged and spat blood. "I got you-- Sensei!" Irui choked out a mad laugh.

----------

Pre-set Sealing Jutsu activated:

Spoiler:

The boy was defiant to the very end. Even as Mora thundered down on him with a powerful technique, he shot his hand out and delivered his own. The burning flames would have torched him in his totality if not for the Raiton. Nevertheless, he was utterly defeated by Mora's jutsu. It had left him a smoldering husk unable to continue the fight. The woman "cooled her jets" so to speak and began to walk towards him. There was a mixture of smugness and disappointment on her face. He had done a few impressive things during this fight but ultimately he was mediocre. He'd become Chuunin in time, then maybe Jounin, but in the end he'd be another nameless face in a sea of nameless faces. A robot that would be trotted out to die once the time came. The ninja world was infested with this type of fodder and Mora would not waste her time on such trash.

Irui was not done though.

As the burns enveloped his body, he sprung a last minute trap. The flames that she had created were massive and all encompassing. She had figured that by cutting off his escape and demonstrating overwhelming force, she had robbed him of what little fight he had left in him. The last thing she expected was a counter-attack, and yet here he was delivering one. The jutsu was fast. Far faster than it had any right to be. A stream of electricity burst from the ground and threatened to ensnare her. It latched onto her arm first, electrocuting as it made contact. The Lady Superior cried out and her grey hairs stood on end as she felt the energy course through her. In that moment, she had a vision. Jashin showed her all that this boy could be and all that he would be. He was not a nameless "NPC" but a Mikiri with the will and the power to shape the course of human history. In the throes of pain and entrapment, she felt the spirit of her God instructing her. She recounted a vision she had had when they worshiped together in the bowels of St. Memori's Cathedral. The image of a childlike Shimiko and Irui playing together on another world. Two sides to the same coin. The Blood and the Void. Red and Black. The two motifs through which Jashin made his presence known. It was all becoming clear to her now. The pain that Irui had wrought had functioned like a magnifying lens. The Prophet was now fully in tune with her God's will and what he willed was sacrifice.

Mora had underestimated the boy. She had thought less of him even when Jashin had promised that great things would come from this new solider. Mora was wrong to have lost faith in him and now she would be punished. The woman's arm erupted in blue flame as the trap closed around it. It was as if the fire itself was holding back the jaws of lightning. The tattoo marks on her right arm (the one captured) glowed a brilliant blue as fire and electrical energy swirled around her. She stared at the arm with grim determination as the last few balls of flame melted into the fingers on her left hand (the one that was free). She raised the free hand and jets of blue flame lit up the night sky. They took on an eerily sharp form and it looked as though they were cutting the air itself. Black and red rose petals swirled around as the beauty of the moment etched itself into her mind. This would go down in the texts of the religion as being a moment of spiritual significance. There was no lack of witnesses either, as many of the Sacristans had spilled out from the sanctum, rectory, and covenant to watch the fight.

Lee-hei screamed out in horror as he realized what her Holiness was about to do.

Mora brought the hand down. Using the flames of her right hand, she severed her own arm from the shoulder. The chain reaction resulted in a controlled blast that threw her, and possibly Irui, backwards. A trail of black blood flowed from the wound as her eyes rolled back in her head. She was experiencing a mixture of severe pain but also ecstasy. To conform to Jashin's will was the greatest pleasure that one could know. Procreation never interested her. Once she had gotten a taste of divine power, she had chased it for all of her life. She had forsaken friends, family, lovers, and her own country for it. And now she was the Superior Sacristan of the greatest Church on Earth. A sadistic smile was painted on her face as the words of her protege resounded through her mind. A torrent of blood gushed from the severed limb and the Sacristans ran to her and managed to catch her before she even hit the ground. They each began healing and treating her wounds. A small crowed was forming around her. They were cursing, praying, and begging her to explain what was going on.

It was not unusual for Mora to test her acolytes. It was rather unusual that she tested them herself. It was exceedingly rare that during one of these tests she severely injured them. Only once before during a test had someone mildly injured her (Shimiko) and never before in the history of the religion had an acolyte grievously injured a Superior Sacristan during training. The fact that Mora was the one to have cut off her own arm made it even more perplexing.

Lee-hei cared not for the historicity of the moment and instead walked over to the medium-rare Spymaster.

"HOW DARE YOU BOY! I WILL HAVE EVERY INCH OF YOUR SKIN. I WILL TAKE IT FROM YOU SLOWLY AND MAKE YOUR FAMILY WATCH!"

He drew the dagger he kept in his golden robe and was just about to bring it down when Mora shouted:

"No! Lee-hei stand down, in the name of Jashin, you will not harm him!"

The man froze. Irui would be able to see the hatred in his eyes. The yellow pupils bulging with fanaticism and a desire to kill. He remained right where he was, the blade hovering over Irui's chest. He turned to Mora and saw that she was looking right at him. He wanted to kill Irui but his Lady Superior had demanded otherwise. He lowered the knife and eventually sheathed it before turning from Irui. He began to mutter curses in a language that the younger Mikiri wouldn't be able to understand.

Lee-hei joined the group that had crowded around Mora. As Irui endured severe pain, none of the attending physicians would dress his wounds or alleviate his suffering. Meanwhile, Mora's wound had been stabilized and her arm retrieved.

"Your Grace...if we act quickly we can re-attach it, it won't be the same bu-"
"No."
"Your Grace?"
"You heard me...No. I cut it off for a reason. A sacrifice to Jashin for the blessing he has given us."

Mora would point at Irui.

"I have seen it in a vision twice now. There is no mistaking it. That boy.....no....that MAN.....Irui Mikiri will go on to serve Lord Jashin in capacities that you can only dream of. Him and Shimiko are of the same stuff and Jashin sent them to us for a reason."

He had shown ingenuity, defiance, and a relentless hunger for power. All of the things that would make him a useful soldier not just of Kumo's but of the Church. It was time for him to unlock the next stage of his power but for him to do this, he'd need to be unshackled from the failures of the past. The Mikiri Clan had passed him over. The Chuunin Exams had routed him. Yet despite all of these failures, he had managed to take the Lady Superior's arm. A feat that no other acolyte had achieved. Mora smiled. It was a broad, genuine, and shockingly warm expression. It lacked the sinister character of what she had shown him previously. She stood up and would have fallen if not for the Sacristans holding her up. They realized her intentions and slowly carried her to Irui. She made a gesture and the Sacristans began to heal him. They could only stabilize his condition, the real work would need to be done in a hospital.

"Irui Mikiri, by the power vested in me as Lady Superior of the Orthodox Church of Jashin, I hereby acknowledge your deeds today as being worthy of canonization. With your ruthless determination you have aided me in divining the will of of our Lord. A task that is crucial to our survival given the various uncertainties plaguing the world. For this act of service to the Orthodoxy, I recognize you as Ascendant. It the first step to Sainthood within our religion. From now on, you will work closely with myself, the Defender of Faith, and the other high ranking Sacristans."

Mora motioned to the Sacristans and they'd bring her severed arm to show him.

"Normally this would be grounds for the most painful of executions.....but Jashin has shown me that this was a necessary sacrifice for your development. We will have to replace the stain glass windows and I believe at least one of them should commemorate your victory today....Spymaster Irui."

She gave a lighthearted chuckle. The Sacristans knew better than to doubt the woman's sanity. She had seen too much to have been driven mad by losing an arm.

"I've got you, Sensei!" A new voice, scorched and tortured, slid from between his bleeding lips and blackened skin. A strangled mockery of laughter followed while Mora howled and screamed. Warm, deep red, splashed across his face as flesh and bone were ripped and cleaved. Irui's hand fell and he watched from the ground as the wraith that had been Mora, suddenly became mortal.  He turned his head to the side, watching her form crumple and collapse, clutching the ruined, mangled mess of her limb.

With the sacrifice of his flesh, he'd take her Kekkei Genkai, and break her Shadow. He remained transfixed on the woman. For all her threats, and punishments, her praise of the great Jashin, it was all empty. Agony etched itself into the wrinkles of her face, and he studied them, burning the image into his mind. He wanted to remember it, wanted to always recall that look of defeat. This is what it felt like to destroy and maim, to break someone of their resolve.

He'd craved control and strength for so long and now he'd tasted it. Irui wanted more.

A slender man parted the crowd in golden robes, and stormed across the courtyard, shouting and waving knife. Drowned out by the rushing of blood in his ears, Irui could only bare his teeth in a smile, narrowing his eyes on the man.

Mora's words stayed the man's hand, even as Lee Hei's knife hovered over his charred chest. He didn't have to hear, or understand the man's words, he said everything through his actions. Irui had insulted the Church and soiled the reputation of its highest official, of course he'd made enemies. Wordlessly, as Lee Hei stood over him, Irui mouthed out: "You're next."

She was gesturing now, pointing in Irui's direction with a bloodied, trembling hand, shouting something. Her passion was painted on her face, it moved Lee Hei and he returned to his master's side. He didn't care for words, or praise, the pain wracking him was too great.

Even now as he lay on the smoking grass, his skin blistered and cracked, fresh trickles of blood ran down his sides. Every breath came harsh, and filled with fire as tissue deep within split and disintegrated. As the adrenaline subsided and the pounding in his ears waned, he heard the scraping of his lungs. A voice, no longer his own, took its place in his throat-- one that had been raked across coals. Through blurring eyes, the Sacristans carried Mora closer, setting her down before him.

"Irui Mikiri," Mora spoke quietly, while the green light of healing ninjutsu spread across his skin.
"-- by the power vested in me as Lady Superior-- I-- eeds today as being worthy of canonization. --tion you have aided me --ll of of our Lord. A task that is crucial to our survival given the various uncertainties plaguing the world--" Her words were skipping, as his consciousness faded. He tried to hold on. He couldn't focus, couldn't see her through the dark correctly. Mora, in the light of their jutsu, melted with the night.  "--For-- nize you as Ascendant. It the first step to Sainthood within our religion. From now on, you will work closely with myself, the Defender of Faith, and the other high ranking Sacristans--"

He felt his eyes rolling, the courtyard began to spin. He turned his face towards Mora, looking up into her face lit by jutsu. Through half lidded eyes, he watched strange shadows flicker across her creased face before surrendering to the ether.

[temporarily lost consciousness]