Up To Snuff

The Village Hidden in The Mist had multiple training grounds for people to make use of and Valen let Tsumi to one that was seldom used. It was ‘in the back’ for lack of a better term, past multiple other just as suitable training grounds and this particular one only ever saw use if all the others were full. Moving onto it he would see the training ground was indeed empty of anyone. Perfect for a test of a new shinobi. Tsumi would be able to fight as hard as he wished here, as could Valen. Although the Jounin Commander would need to be careful about injuring Tsumi. He could make a guess as the man’s strength but he couldn’t guess as to anything else.

Moving onto the field Valen would roll his shoulders, loosening them up. A light mist hung over the training ground, slightly obscuring vision and leaving a sort of haze in the air. Provided Tsumi had followed him the Jounin Commander would speak. “I’ll be testing your capabilities Tsumi-san. So don’t be afraid to really come at me. I’ll switch up my styles to see how you deal with different kinds of threats to give me an idea of your specialties. Before we start, is there anything you’d like to say in advance?” He would ask, a dark eyebrow raising in curiosity as he gave the larger man the opportunity to talk himself up if he wished. Or give an idea of his own capabilities from his own perspective. Valen of course was wearing all of his equipment as he had been at the gates. His cloak wrapped around his shoulders. Black shirt and shinobi pants, black boots and gloves to complete the ensemble. At his hip was his own personal sword, the Blade of Ashes, stored in its black sheathe.

All in all it shouldn’t take long for Valen to be able to ascertain Tsumi’s capabilities enough to assign him a rank. He had come as an Ex-Jounin of Kumogakure, but it was entirely possible he had been promoted above his experience and abilities and Valen would need to test that before bringing him on as a Jounin for Kirigakure. At the very least he might make him a provincial Chuunin, pending the completion of some missions to get him integrated into Kirigakure’s forces with an automatic promotion after a number of missions were completed. Still, for now it was time for some exercise.

[1]

Tsumi would follow the man through the training grounds. It was always wet and cold here it seemed. Like he couldn't see as far as he did in Kumo. The thought of what he could see in Kumo brought back flashes of the fire. The destruction spreading as the strongest members of the village did nothing to protect them...as Tsumi could do nothing to protect them. The smell of burning wood still strong in his nostrils and the heat on his skin. He had to shake it off with a shift of his head back and forth. Why would that Kage promote him? Sure he was stronger than the other genin but... they had passed that power onto another and then let them destroy everything. He was feeling depressed about it all. However there was something stirring beneath the ashes of his will. Some part of him that felt a sensation that was new to him. A quiet spark here and there but building within him. He was angry. Angry at them for destroying everything...Angry at the village for being so vulnerable...angry at himself for being powerless to stop it. Most of all though he felt a rage that almost blinded him to anything else.

He hated Raijin.

Still they would arrive at the most abandoned of the training grounds. With it being just the two of them he wasn't sure just how safe he was. He had taken this man at his word so far but....The man wanted Tsumi to come at him seriously.....was he like them? Was he so far beyond Tsumi that he didn't have to worry about him? Tsumi had strength that was certain...however that wouldn't do him any good without the speed to back it up. Or the chakra to maintain his true power. Still Tsumi would roll his neck and shoulders. The sounds of bone cracking would echo across the empty space. Red eyes shifting to the man as he let his eyes shift to the sword. He didn't know shit about swords beyond how much they hurt. No doubt it would cut him if the man wanted it too. Though the more basic weapons were all but useless against Tsumi. His skin had grown rather sturdy. Still he would listen as Valen asked if there was anything Tsumi wanted to say in advance. Red eyes glanced at him with a frown before he would sigh and tell him everything anyway.

"Alright uh...well I am from the Yokai clan and a member of the Oni branch. However my blood has been attuned to our lineage my whole life. I can obtain our clans strongest physical form but....last time I snapped someone's spine on accident. It's why they promoted me. I don't think its a good idea to use that transformation in a spar. You are strong...I can feel it. But if I hit you in the fully transformed demon state....well I don't want to do that. Aside from that uh...well I kind of suck at everything but taijutsu. Being honest there. So what? Do you wanna go hit for hit or somethin? How do we start this?"

Valen would listen to the taller man as he spoke. So he had a bloodline and had fully realized it then, but apparently when he had used his full capability he had broken someone’s spine and was promoted for it. That..that seemed like an odd decision. However Valen wasn’t interesting in the promotion criteria for Kumogakure. He was interested in what Tsumi could do really. He apparently had Taijutsu and that was all but that would not actually be all the Yokai had. He had a mind, a specialist in physical arts could easily rank up so long as they could reason and applied that reason appropriately.

“First, don’t pull your punches, you won’t have to worry about ‘hurting me’. I’m going to come at you in various ways and I want you to try to work your way out of the issues. Counter what I do as best you can. When I’m satisfied you can handle yourself appropriately we’ll finish up but for now I want to test your reason and ability to apply it.” He would say before lifting up a single handseal and channeling a small amount of chakra. Immediately a thick mist would cover the area and reduce visibility to effectively zero. Even the distance between them would be nothing but hazy mist and Valen would begin to move silently, using his hearing to tell him where Tsumi was. He could hear the man’s very heartbeat thanks to his silent killing technique and he opened the distance out to fifteen meters to see how Tsumi reacted to the initial situation.

[2]

Tsumi would listen with a little concern before nodding. This man was the Jounin commander of the village. Chances were that someone like Tsumi wouldn't be able to touch him. He knew instinctively there was a distance between them. Likely Valen held an assortment of various techniques that could end him. Though that would not be his goal surely. As he said he would see how Tsumi reacted to a series of different tactics. However there was a sad point there for Tsumi. He only really played one card. He knew he wasn't as fast as the others had been or as quick with his hands. His chakra levels were average in comparison to some of the others. However with that said he had trained with a Raikage as a genin. His taijutsu practice had really started with someone he couldn't hope to keep up with. Now he was standing at the same precipice. He could feel the same kind of tension from this one as he had with her. If not for that he was likely less gentle. If Tsumi held back here he would probably be demoted and even asked to choose a different career. He needed to impress somehow.

Still the sudden mist rising up around them would bring his red eyes to shift left and right. Well shit. This was new. He hadn't ever had to fight blind before....He sniffed the air a little but that didn't do him much good. He even tried to listen for foot prints but again there was nothing. Slowly he would begin to back up as his mind raced. He couldn't see...smell or hear his opponent....this was likely the first test and he wasn't able to disperse it normally. Someone had said Kiri nin fight from stealth but of course he hadn't prepared for it. No matter how he strained his eyes he couldn't see Valen. Was he going to fail right away? He grew frustrated as he continued to back up. Hands at the ready. Until he backed into a large tree. Solid against his back he looked up. He couldn't see the top but....if he wanted to disperse the mist....it would work like a fan maybe? There weren't really other options. So trump card from the get go it was. He just hoped Valen wasn't within reach of the massive makeshift weapon. Or that this wasn't someone's favorite tree.

Tsumi would turn and face the tree before his body began to expand. Growing in mass and muscle until he was a ten foot tall red skinned demon. Rippling muscles that looked as strong as steel shifted along his person as those red eyes gained a glow that Valen would see easily even in this mist. With his body transformed like this his strength was at its peak. Tsumi would reach out with both hands and grip the base of the tree with his massive hands like one may a handle for a weapon. A loud shifting and cracking of earth would echo through the mist as instead of breaking it, Tsumi would haul the entire tree up from the roots. Perhaps if the tree survived the fight....he could replant it. Either way the ten meter tall tree would be ripped from the ground as Tsumi shifted it into a bear hug. It was too unwieldy to just hold in his hands. He needed to shift his whole body weight. So with his feet planted Tsumi would lower the tree to about four feet off the ground and swing it at bordering on S rank strength. The surge of wind from the massive tree being swung meant to clear the fog. If Valen allowed any of that he would see Tsumi's trump card at use right away. He stood in front of a literal demon.



Name: Demon Arts: Demon Form
Rank: B
Power: B
Activation Cost: -
Upkeep Cost: B [15]
Range: Self
Speed: -
Element: -
Skill: KKG
Classification: Clan Exclusive [Yokai]
Requirements: T3 of any path
Parent Technique: -
Hand Seals:
Description: Even though the Yokai generally maintain a sense of humanity so as to remain (mostly) undisturbed, there are moments where they find the need to 'unleash hell' upon the world in the form of unbridled, pure-blood demonic pride. By tapping into their demonic ancestry, the yokai discards the human masquerade in favour of their demonic form. This activates the already present mutations inherent to their path, and forces them into a temporary transformation as the technique brings out their cursed bloodline in full.


Oni

In this form, the oni rivals the most powerful of its kin, threading upon the pathways of the Greater Oni legends. Fully transformed, their skin is hellish red. Horns and nails turn black, and their face becomes the reflection of malefic intimidation. They receive a boost to strength (+++) and constitution (+++) and are more than eager to make the world tremble in fear.

Valen of course had no way to see what actions Tsumi had chosen to demonstrate in order to clear the mist that he had spawned around them. The Jounin Commander of Kirigakure was just as blind as the man and was as such using different senses, senses that he had honed for the purpose to offset this problem, in order to track his target. So the first indication that something might be happening was when he heard the wooden crackle of roots beginning to give. Oh, he had heard the man back into the tree, heard him place his hands upon it. But that did not mean the man knew what Tsumi was going to do with it. Still, there was nothing wrong with Valen’s memory and he knew the tree’s in the training grounds were thick with leaves.

So, Tsumi had no jutsu that could disperse the mist, but he was improvising instead. Valen could have stopped the action, could have cut the tree in half with his weapon and made the effort a waste. But that was not the point of the exercise. So instead he simply waited, he knew the distance, and knew the tree’s around them weren’t tall enough unless Tsumi threw it and that would do him no good until the mist was cleared.

The swinging of the tree would disperse the air clear enough of the mist to see by. It wasn’t perfect, but for an ‘off the cuff’ improvisation it worked well. Besides, the point was to regain the sense he had been robbed of and he had. He could see Valen now, and Valen could see him. His eyes saw the new form of the Ex-Kumogakure nin and took in the new appearance. So that was the demon form he had spoken of then. It looked formidable, and the man wondered how their strengths would match up. Given the early demonstration of physical power when Tsumi had plunged the fire sword into the street and Valen’s subsequent removal of it. They were probably of a level when Tsumi was not in this demonic form. Although with the form Valen probably lost out. Still, there were probably disadvantages to counter the gains. “What benefits does that form give you?” He would ask simply, his tone curious as he moved forward to stand directly in front of Tsumi.

“I’m going to hit you as hard as I can without my sword. It’s just another test.” He would say, bending at the knee’s to prepare to throw the punch. He wasn’t an unarmed fighter by any means but he knew the basics well enough to not be stupid and throw a good solid punch or a kick. He took a deep breath and threw the punch as hard as he could straight toward the newly transformed Tsumi’s abdomen. The intent to see how the man took the punch. There wasn’t a need to see if the man could take the blade of Hai no Ha, he’d found nothing that could and he had no intention of seriously injuring or crippling the man.

If the punch landed Valen would feel the backlash of the impact up his arm, of course his physical durability was also powerful and did not hurt him whatsoever. Tsumi would probably feel the pain of the blow but it would not be enough to cause any lasting damage. Although he might realize that if Valen landed too many more of them then they would indeed take their toll over time. Should that happen without issue Valen would nod and pat his own abdomen. “Now you.” He would say, waiting patiently. The reason Valen had gone first was to show the larger man that he could both dish out raw power, and take it too, given his own body didn’t break from the blow he’d thrown. Valen moved his cloak aside to give the man a good open shot at the same spot Valen had thrown his punch at on Tsumi and would wait wordlessly.

[3]

Tsumi would see the mist disperse. Red glowing eyes would take in the man a moment. He was far enough away that the tree had not reached him. Eyes searched for a reaction quietly as the man took in the new demonic appearance. He was a massive wall of red muscle now with horns. Most would be afraid of a fully transformed Oni. At least in Kumo it was known that one didn't tangle with the demon form. At least not on a physical level. Still it had been some time since any member of the Oni branch in the Yokai clan had been any kind of famous. Born of need these beasts for war were known for their sheer physical power. Tsumi himself was on a precipice of obtaining that level. So close to S rank strength but not there just yet. Yet before him stood a man of average height. The heat between them picking up on the breeze. He did not look afraid or cautious. Instead he would step forward. Asking about advantages the form gives.

"Well uh...My strength grows a bit....and so does my durability. I guess for my taijutsu it gives me a lot more reach too. "

Valen would step up to him. Explaining that he was going to give his all into a punch now. Another test and not an effort to kill him? Well that was a good step in the correct direction. Still Tsumi had been in enough taijutsu training to see the speed and power of that punch. Even without a proper stance Valen would throw a solid full effort punch into the abdomen. Tsumi would brace his feet to keep from moving. His feet digging into the ground as the impact of the blow rang out. A burst of kinetic energy erupting from the collision as it flattened grass for a second. Tsumi would grunt as it had certainly hurt. But not much more than he could take. Still it was impressive coming off such a small man. Well he was small while Tsumi was transformed after all.

Still Valen would give him a moment to recover. Red eyes watching him now as Tsumi listened to the instructions for him to try the same. Tsumi would nod before shifting back. Even in his demon form he would shift to a side stance. One foot forward and slightly lifted while the one in the back was planted firmly. A stance known as spring chant. He needed to impress here so beyond just power...he would need striking speed. Suddenly his right hand would flash out at B rank coordination. Of course it wasn't as fast as Valen but it was a decent striking speed. The sudden impact of a fist the size of his torso would flash out. Nearly at S rank strength his fist would slam out to the abdomen of Valen. He wondered if the man would brace himself as well or if he wanted to be knocked back. Either way Tsumi would maintain Demon form and spring chant for the time being. Watching and waiting.

exit thread 3 posts at 20 a post = 60 exp