Starring:
Date: Unknown (log received December 8, 2010)
Summary:
A chance meeting between a Swordswoman, and Genin, brings opportunity for a test of skill. Sekisetsu has not been seen by Sakura, since she was a student at the academy. Seeing the new Hitai Ite, Sakura’s curiosity grows!
"Crimson Fire, and the Little Imp that Could!! Sakura Trains with Sekisetsu!!"
Dammed Arena [Kirigakure]
Dammed Arena [Kirigakure]
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A concrete dam bridges this branch of the river, forcibly diverting the water behind it down another course and leaving a dry canyon beyond. The bones of giants lean up against the dam wall, buttressing their skeletal hands against the weight of the river. The dry bed has been partially enclosed and weathered structures hung from the cliffs to create a grand arena, capable of seating thousands of spectators and easily cleaned of blood and corpses by opening the flood gates.
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A rather bleak, yet hot day seemed to proceed over what would be the most Kirigakure's normally mist haze. It was as if the sun had been arguing down to the fogs that had enshrouded this village, for not allowing it to at least touch its surface. This place had been darkened by what had been the outlying moisture which would keep it hidden from the eyes of the outside world. In the end, the name 'Hidden In Mist', would become more than just something cool to hear, but rather because of this natural phenomenon, became more proverbial with every passing day.
So what did it really mean to be a ninja of such a place? That the mist for which one had shown its allegiance, should be depended on since it represents something much larger.. In the end, Seki didn't have the mind set to think about any of this larger than philosophical jargon. She was still having difficulties picking out what to wear in the morning!! For Kami's sake, there was only /one/ ninja outfit in her closet!! /One/!! And she tended to wear that practically every working and training day!! …. So.. what was our little heel biter doing today? Welp.. she was doing the smart thing.. Training.. Something that she hadn't enjoyed, was something that she would actually pick up and try to do often, all because a certain Old Fart, decided he didn't want to be known as her 'sensei'. So.. in a desperate attempt to 'keep her man', she would decide on training in the techniques she hated the most.. Taijutsu.. And Weapons Taijutsu to be exact..
And apparently, here in the Damned Arena, there were allot of weapons that she would pick up, and get to swinging on.. It was a part of her homework from Takeshi, to test her understanding.. Pick a weapon, see how it works, just from looking at it. If she can identify a set of 15 that were at the Odori manner, then she won't have to play dodge to them while being /shown/ their true purpose. Yep.. sounded like her kind of party… So.. here she was.. trying to figure out just what the hell she was looking at.
At first Sakura didn't enjoy the huge monstrosity of an arena being built. But after the crowds left, and the contestants forgot about it, it became a fine place to train. It had high walls for passing privacy to those passing by. And no one complained afterwards if she uprooted a plant in the garden or kicked up the grass. Simply put, no one ever seems to care to used the Dammed Arena, or care what shape it is in till its next use. That's why Sakura is a little surprised when she comes in upon someone already training there. It happens every now and then, but she sees only one. Usually it's used for spars, with plenty of space.
Well, it's not like it belongs to her. Sakura is about to turn and leave. But isn't that… Sekisetsu? Sakura didn't recall the last time she saw her, either in passing or on a mission. Sakura tsks. Well, best see what she's doing. And if she's using this Arena for any kind of /play/ time… "Hey, Sekisetsu-san," she'd call out. To avoid the time she'd have to spend walking across the arena she simply flickers from where she's standing up to Sekisetsu. "What are you doing here?" she asks, with a note of warning. "Shouldn't you be in classes or…on a mission?"
The funny thing about this arena, is that when it is empty, it has a reverberating echo, that seemed to remain confined to the Arena quite well. A shout could easily make it to the center, and sound as if someone was right behind a person. Seki would hear her name, and spin around.. Sakura would see a slightly taller kid, sporting a plain black dress with her usual equipment, and a scarf… with the Mist Hitai Ite, sown in at his very end… She had amazingly enough became a genin. "….Red Taicho?? Is that you? Well ain't that weird.. No class anymore… Of course, you would know that if you actually came to my Genin Exam.. You are so late!!!! I even sent you an invitation!!", would be said as she would run up to the woman, and wiggle giddly.
Seki would run her fingers through her hair, and primp some before saying, "I /am/ here training though… I don't wanna but it seems it has to happen sometime… Where in the hell have you been though?? Still playing the Stop Sign of the Seven Swordsmen??" Yep.. Same old Sekisetsu, different rank altogether, though if one really took the time to actually examine the girl, there was a slight bit of maturity to her. She would actually seem, slightly nicer, though, the margin was always hard to tell with Seki.
Sakura has disconnected.
The funny thing about this arena, is that when it is empty, it has a reverberating echo, that seemed to remain confined to the Arena quite well. A shout could easily make it to the center, and sound as if someone was right behind a person. Seki would hear her name, and spin around.. Sakura would see a slightly taller kid, sporting a plain black dress with her usual equipment, and a scarf… with the Mist Hitai Ite, sown in at his very end… She had amazingly enough became a genin. "….Red Taicho?? Is that you? Well ain't that weird.. No class anymore… Of course, you would know that if you actually came to my Genin Exam.. You are so late!!!! I even sent you an invitation!!", would be said as she would run up to the woman, and wiggle giddly.
Seki would run her fingers through her hair, and primp some before saying, "I /am/ here training though… I don't wanna but it seems it has to happen sometime… Where in the hell have you been though?? Still playing the Stop Sign of the Seven Swordsmen??" Yep.. Same old Sekisetsu, different rank altogether, though if one really took the time to actually examine the girl, there was a slight bit of maturity to her. She would actually seem, slightly nicer, though, the margin was always hard to tell with Seki.(re)
Sakura simply stands there and takes in Sekisetsu's tirade. The girl seems genuinely happy to see her. Respect she's used to, or admiration or obedience. So why is it everyone but Sekisetsu acts this way? Worse, Sakura actually allows it. She ought to just smother this, but instead she finds herself saying, "Maybe I'll come to your Chuunin tournament matches. So Genin don't take classes as well…interesting." As some would know, Sakura was something of a late comer to the village, and apparently lacking in some very important details as to the difference between Student and Genin. She continues to listen to Sekisetsu, but as the girl would speak, Sakura actually crouches down to be within eye level of Sekisetsu for a moment, and hold out her hand as if measuring the height, before straightening up to her full height. "Well, you've grown. In more ways than one, it'd seem. Since we're here…shall we spar? Try to hit me, and I'll tell you if you ought to be a Genin." She'd actually beckon Sekisetsu and stand there, not tense, but not as relaxed as she usually is either.
Meanwhile, Seki, would just be smiles, as the woman would answer her modestly, not appearing at all affected by her genuine lacking of honorifics and demeanor. "Well, you better!! I mean, really, you missed so much!! It was full of explosions, and monsters, and I was partnered with this blind girl that slowed me down, but I just kept going!! Hell I even took down a large beast from the inside!!! I reeked of awesome, yes I did!!!" Seki would make one of her straggly arms into a muscle, before then stopping and peeking up to Sakura as she would measure her height. When she was told that she had grown, Seki would say, "Really? You thi-..Hmph.. I mean.. Damn Straight!!!" Poor girl never was the modest type.
But then came the challenge.. Seki would smile, and say, "Hmm?? Sure!! I mean.. I was looking over a few of these weapons, just to try and figure out how each of them worked.. But hell, I haven't seen you in a /long/ time.. And you sure didn't get to see anything I could do back in the exams.. Okay then.. Lets do it!!"
Seki, would seem to emanate a sudden heat, almost on impulse, as she would stand there, her heat seeming indicative of a raise in chakra, as she would look to Sakura, preparing for what would probably be a real hard challenge. Difficulty, however, wouldn't seem to quite dwell on Seki's mind.. She never did think things like that through.. Instead.. she knew it was a fight, and whether first hit, second hit, or other.. She had an intention to fight.
Sakura almost feels a tiny bit of regret that she hadn't come to see Sekisetsu's match. Not because she was ever particularly interested in Genin exams, or even because Sekisetsu had fought a monster, but mostly because Sakura wanted to see how well a blind girl would fight. That would be…amusing. "Very thrilling, no doubt," Sakura says dryly. However it's when Sekisetsu accepts her challenge that Sakura smirks. It's very short lived, and not a full fledged smile, but she has to be slightly impressed. Not many go unhesitatingly into a fight with her. Sakura would wait only long enough to push her hair behind her back before digging her toe into the ground of the arena and giving a kick that'd send a good amount of sand right into Sekisetsu's face. It'd be followed by a lunge in a sweeping kick that'd knock the girl right off her feet.
Hearing the sarcasm behind Sakura's voice, Seki's brow would twitch before she would say, "…Try and at least seem interested as at some point? I mean I may not be Meruin-smart, but I do know when some thinks I'—…" and that’s when the sand would be kicked up.. The scroll behind the girl would seem unreel, and flatten out in front of her almost immediately, without any seals what so ever, protecting Sekisetsu from the sand to the eyes.. Unfortunately, it made for a pretty good distraction for the sweeping kick, which would flatten Seki across the ground rather suddenly, despite the fact that the girl was emanating an rather durable aura of heat and haze..
Seki would seem to just fall to the ground.. "Ugh… I hate Taijutsu..", would be said rather blatantly, as a sleight of hand, would place a tag beneath Sakura's feet, while the girl would move to a stand. "I suppose I deserve that since I wasn't looking.. I just hope that you weren't looking either.", would be said, before a lone hand seal, would cause the tag, decagram sealed, to go off with a sudden blast of light, sound, and fire, to envelop Sakura in it all.. Meanwhile.. Seki would have been focusing on the women's chakra system immediately, sending a shock to it, that would prepare it for linking.
"We all have our strengths and weaknesses," Sakura points out. It takes her a moment to hear the fizzling sound, and notice the tag near her. Why that…! Sakura skips to the side to avoid the initial blast. However, the second explosion of light and sound blinds her. This allows Sekisetsu to be successful in establishing a link. If Sakura notices the connection, she doesn't show it. She glances then at Sekisetsu. That was fairly tricky. Sakura quickly makes a few hand seals and create a dart of flames that'd fire towards Sekisetsu. She'd also feel the air beside her becoming uncomfortably warm before it'd burst into a small flame aiming to catch her sleeve on fire.
As the trap would go off, Seki would have only counted on really one of two things happening. None of them included her link being set. She had been looking to Sakura for a few things that would actually prove her points.. One of them, had been that low sweeping kick from earlier.. It was something she would take into consideration even now, as Sakura would speak of weakness and the like. "Hehe.. that’s easy for you to say, Red Taicho.. I'm not seeing much of that weak part from you right now.." This would be said with a rather devilish grin, as Sekisetsu, pretty much did something she rarely did in the pass. Bluff. She had spotted a few ways, though at the moment, she figured that Sakura, was doing something different.
The fire darts, would hit Seki dead on, seeming to toss her through the air. The peculiar thing about it was that she would so no signs of burning. In fact, the darts, would go through her, before she would soon poof into smoke!! So where was the real thing? Well, Sakura, would obviously think she had seen her to the left, and thus, air would began to soon heat just beside a Seki that wasn't there. However, just when the attack would seem to heighten into full flame, a rather large, and scaly mouth, horned, and sporting a dozen scattered, and disorganized eyes, would just from the ground, and appear to snuff out the flame!!!
Sakura would see it snarl, before retreating into the ground, just before Seki would shout, "You're looking the wrong way!!!" Seki would soon be seen, whipping her arm in front of her. From her arm, would grow for jagged and white semi-circles… Wait, is that bone? So.. Seki's a Kaguya? Well, not enough questions to ask, but it would be more of a distraction than the tag was.. Bone-saws, would be launched at Sakura with a whip of her arm, from one direction. Meanwhile, from behind, seals would be made in a blaze. Seki's real attack was shining through.. Three lines of fire, would shoot from the girls feet, circling Sakura, before surrounding her, and combining in a white hot tornado of fire and flame!
Yikes…Sakura's pale eyes move over the barrage of bone saws. She has very little fondness of getting stabbed by bones of late, so she weaves between the bones with a few well timed dodges. But…where are they? Sakura is about to glance over her shoulder at the no doubt vanished bone saws before fire comes whipping out at her. Sakura ducks below the whips before flipping aside to avoid the tornado engulfing the area. "Not bad!" she says, already making a handful of seals. Another ball of fire would burst towards Sekisetsu. Seemingly straightforward attacks, but she'd continue her seal making until a pillar of earth rams from the ground to hit Sekisetsu in the back and send her sprawling.
This fight was rather confusing.. Seki was trying to figure out just what angle this woman was coming at her at for a while.. That is until Sakura started to move.. The Red Taicho, would become a read blur in eyes, moving out of the way of practically nothing but illusion at one point, and then, seeming to avoid the tornado o' flame, the second time around.. These small things, were giving Sekisetsu clues.. Though she would see that her attacks were getting somewhere, she was expecting more from the Swordsmen, and unfortunately, the more would come soon.
The large Comet technique, would seem to smash concussively on hit, exploding as it neared proximity to Sekisetsu. Sakura would see a large explosion, as expected from a technique of her own use.. Unfortunately, the comet hadn't hit. Or at least it didn't hit Sekisetsu. Out of the explosion of fire and light, Sakura would see shields, connecting in formation like a Roman Phalanx to form a wall. The shields were all beaten and bruise, and yet, these octagonal antiques would be quite decorated.. A wall of red kanji denoting the word, "Fearless", has protected Sekisetsu from the first wave of attack. The shields would poof back into her scroll, being re-sealed. This was a big mistake, only because the attack, had not been over. Seki hadn't expected the use of earth jutsu, and it would show, as stone would blow into her back, and send her flying forward, skipping a few yards.
Seki would come to a slow stand as she would then look to Sakura, her eyes showing a glare, yet her face showing a stoic and unusually concentration. This wasn't the Sekisetsu, Sakura had left.. Sekisetsu would seem to be enveloped in a blaze of flame and fire, that would tower high into the air. The fire, after a few moments, would dissipate all at once, revealing a different form of Seki.. An improvement.. Sakura would feel and see anger concentrated into something useful. Seki's temper would be personified, a devious smile on her face, as fire would make up uneven horns, and a imp like tail, pointed like an arrow. Her skin, would be red, seeming scaled only because of veins colored black, and visibly upon her skin. Her eyes, would seem non-existent, replaced by black smoke that would irradiate from the holes in her head.. and about her body, would float a black inky kanji, for the number "1", almost as if it had been a minion of hers.
Seki would giggle impishly, a rather seductive voice saying, "You like? Well, I didn't get to use this from at the genin exam.. I wish I had.. Maybe I would have turned a few heads.." Seki would say this moments, before beneath her skin, something would seem to awaken.. It would unravel, almost seeming to grow inside her body, causing her skin to swell.. Soon.. her body would blow up grotesquely, all at once, and before long, Seki, would explode, seeming only now as a damage container.. Her contents? Well, they would be seen as all manner of demons, snaking, and flying through the air, in a school as thick as a cloud, roaming about the arena's stands and ring. There would be literal thousands.. Meanwhile, Sakura may realize all to late that it was nothing but a big distraction.
Sakura almost gives an approving nod when Sekisetsu blocks her comet attack with some strange technique, but the second attack caught her anyway—as she hoped it would, after all. It was the first wound inflicted in this match, but for all that Sekisetsu was showing some real experience in contending with her attacks. Sakura leaves this unsaid of course, and watches Sekisetsu as she…changes? Sakura's golden eyes widen as she sees the transformation Sekisetsu undergoes into that of a demon. She watches not stunned but fascinated as Sekisetsu simply blows up. The demons swarm all about, but now Sakura doesn't move as none seem to be trying to touch her where she is. She can't see her, but a question is forming at her mind. A technique this great for a Genin, even a talented one? "An illusion?" she says thoughtfully, and then very dryly, still trying to make some sense of this mess, "You linked me."
Was it really a link? For now, Sekisetsu was no where around to tell the tale. Demons, in her place, would seem to swarm about the arena, some seeking a way out, while others seemed to look at Sakura with the intent for a meal. Meanwhile, one large one, would seem to move outward from the rest. It had been one for which had been very large, the head of an eyeball, and hairs surrounding the base of whatever had been its 'neck'. The eyeball would seem to blink, before then widening its iris. At its center, would be a glow of something bright like flame. Soon, a large fireball, would come directly from its pupil. Had this been an illusion? The line of reality, and illusion would blur at this point, for Sakura would feel hit from it.. Great heat indeed as it would go sailing into the Swordswomen.
But whether or not this potential illusion had been real or not, the feeling of fear that Sakura would have later on, would seem quite real. With every step the Swordswomen would make, she would feel complete and utter hesitation. Her heart would beat unreasonably fast. She would feel nausea, and fatigue. This would be accompanied with a deep sinking feeling, that only those who are feeling the impending doom of death most often feel. All of these things, would soon be realized to be associated with one emotion: Fear… Unrelenting, and self preserving, Fear.. The only solace from all of these symptoms, would seem to be to remain completely, and utterly still. Otherwise… they would continue to persist, even growing worst with every step. The fatigue, would become greater..
Sakura would hear the roar of thunder and almost feel the crackle of the fireball coming towards her. Once she realized that, it was easy to dodge. A Great Fireball Technique was immensely powerful and destructive—if it found its straight, predictable mark. However as it passed her she'd begin feeling the growing edges of panic. It'd gnaw at her. Then it would slowly edge its way into an overpowering fear. Sakura would suddenly look furious and then put her fingers together in a seal, dispelling the genjutsu. She looks to Sekisetsu and says quietly, "It's not that I'd wonder why I would be fearful in this fight. I haven't felt such irrational fear since I watched my father being beaten." A strange thing to say. And a strange look on Sakura's face. Then she would draw her sword to stab Sekisetsu right through her right arm before aiming a kick at her knee.
Seeing the seal that would be put up, Seki would sigh, and walk toward the ring, all the while, still in her more enhanced, and obviously demonic form. "Well hell.. I thought I was doing pretty good for a minute there.. I thought I had you..", being said with folded arms. She would look to the woman's face, as it seemed to have been showing one who had been annoyed, or at least finding this whole thing to become unpleasant, and hear the explanation of what had been her previous bout of such horrible fear. This would go above Seki's head for a moment, prompting the girl’s face to scrunch, before soon, a sword was being whipped out at her!! "Eeeee!!", would be let out as a scream, before hand seals, would happen, releasing the shield from its scroll once again to fend off the attack. The shield, would keep Seki's arm from being stabbed, but not her shoulder.. The blade would skim across it for a nice deep cut.
Seki would wince, before the kick to the knee, would encounter heat projected in barrier form yet again.. The barrier, along with the girl, would be sent flying back a few yards.. "Well.. this is turning out to be more work than fun..", would be said with a mutter, as Seki would have begun refocusing her chakra, seeming this time, to be much more tired than she was earlier.. "Before you go ahead and beat me up more.. I gotta get at least one more try!", would be said with a giggle.
Sakura shakes her head. She doesn't understand people who try to use ninjutsu to defend. It takes time to make those hand seals while they're getting carved up. She still looks a little ominous though, not at all her laid back self, as Sekisetsu gathers herself for another assault. Then, she'd actually smile. Coldly. "The greatest reason for sparring isn't about satisfaction," she says, as Sekisetsu is gathering chakra. "Nor is it even about getting stronger. It's about pain. On a battlefield with a competent opponent you will not be fighting whole and unharmed. You'll have to be holding that slash wound in your side, or fighting even though all your back is burnt, or your arm is broken. Learn it here, where you can go to a medic afterwards, and you'll have less to learn to keep yourself alive when you face a deadly opponent." She draws her sword then. "If you want…you can give up," she says, not at all playfully or lightly.
"…Man.. You are still such an adult.. Its a damn shame.. You almost sound like my old stick-in-the-mud uncle Niyami..", would be said as she would have listened to Sakura's words, mocking her silently with mouth gestures that would seem to lip sync with the woman's gestures.. "I don't understand or think about all that stuff when I am fighting.. I mean sure, I could die at any moment. Sure, I could pretty much be de-limbed, and hurt at any moment within that time.. Hell, even with that smirk on your face, and that boring way of speaking, its a chance that I might lose my head.. But that to me, in the end, really doesn't matter.. I don't think that much… But like all adults.. you do /talk/ too much." Soon the Seki in front of Sakura, would have been a poofing cloud of smoke.. A Clone
Meanwhile, in the air, the real Seki would have been holding her large scroll. With a spread of her arms, the paper would unroll, allowing seals of all kinds to be shown, almost like the designs of a long flag. A hard thrust of her palm, would release chakra into the paper, causing all the seals to glow, before multiple poofs of smoke, would release a shower of weapons onto the ring floor, and at Sakura!! But this was not the end.. Only the begining.. The field was being prepared.. And even /if/ the weapons had not hit, Sakura would probably notice that at the handles and tips of many of the weapons, blunted and otherwise, explosive tags, would be dangling, and glowing, before soon.. BOOMBOOM!!!
There's many sickening thuds as every projectile finds their mark. Sakura is literally pin cushioned with various projectiles. The explosive tags would hit all around her and then blow her steel-ridden form far away to land in a mess where. Then there's a loud POOF as a log now bristling with weapons thumps to the ground, leaving one tree deprived of one of its branches. In the meantime without word or warning Sakura is flickering right behind Sekisetsu to aim her boot right against her back. "A good combination of techniques," she says. "But careful if you use too many tricky moves, they may become more readable." Sekisetsu seems to have no end to the variety of moves she's using though; Sakura is still wary, especially after that genjutsu.
But to the contrary, Sekisetsu had run out of moves.. She had pretty much exhausted her chakra and to this point, even if Sakura would not have been the more experienced of the two, she would have outlasted Seki by miles.. But in regards to the situation, the boot to Sekisetsu’s back would send her snowballing down to the ground below.. The girls body, had been more resilient thanks to her transformation surely, but after such damage over time, Seki could honestly say in her head.. Enough was enough. As the dust would clear, Seki would say, "Well.. At least you can say I didn't leave a scratch on ya..", as she would lay on the ground, giggling, and refusing to get up.. She still could, sure, but, why do so, when everything still tended to hurt on her body.
"I don't think I can move all that much..", would be said with a laugh that would trigger an, "Ow..", from flinching ribs.
Sakura shrugs. "I may boast if I kill someone, but never if I beat them at a spar," she says. "Testing someone's prowess by a spar is like testing someone's intelligence by an eating contest." She rubs her head slightly, as if she can still feel that strange genjutsu. "Besides…you pass; as a Genin. A student wouldn't have been able to make me budge from my spot. Your attacks have the right potency, but now you just have to build up and polish your execution." She looks out over the arena almost fondly. She really does like this place. It's know effort and blood and staked pride on the line. Then she looks back to Sekisetsu. "I'll say this for you. I consider your growth another reason for me to start training on defending against genjutsu. Else wise, I'd be at your mercy within…the year, I'd say." Then she flickers from the arena, leaving only her footprints behind.
Seeing the woman leave, the place where Seki lay, would explode in a burst of flame.. Soon, Sekisetsu, would come limping out from behind one of the decorative statues, saying, "Damn.. she must have saw it was a Fire Clone…", before kicking dirt and reverting back to her own regular self. She would look to the woman's leave, rather disgusted but in some ways, rather encouraged.. She got a Seven Swordsmen of Land of Water, to shake in their shoes. Was it worth the rest of the beating? You bet it was.. She would look to the battlefield, and then sigh, and say, "I think I better go before someone makes me clean this up..", with a sweat drop, before she would then make her own exit… by simply running off with a limp.. Nothing fancy, but hey, it works..
