Starring:
Kibushi, Yui
Date: January 21, 2012
Summary:
The masks we wear obscure all things except for that which we express from within our hearts.
"First Promotion Exams - Cracking the Masks"
Shiren Caverns
Thrive. Survive. Fight. Struggle. Suffer. Endure.
*PUNCH*
Sweat would fly off from Kibushi's bare arms as he would have sent out the last of a series of rapid punches, stretching and keeping his body fiery a nd ready. Yes, this Kaguya had found time to train. He was not considered an objective due to his lack of a scroll, and thus he found much time to himself in this far less than hostile environment. Flipping forward 180 degrees, he would land on his index finger and thumb, very slowly pushing the length of his body up and down as the sweat from his torso and face would begin to slightly pool below himself. Training was a way of life, to stop was to die as a warrior. Springing back to his feet, he would prepare to train himself again for the techniques he wished to master and that called to his very blood.
Three Strikes…
Five Strikes…
Seven Strikes….
Ten Strikes …
Kibushi's form would move around a column of stone, attacking it as he rotated around it rapidly, sending multiple limbs i nvarious sequences and angles at the target. He danced around the column, rolling, twisting, rotating, sliding, shifting… maintaining his blacne as if he was the very wind moving about the rock face and chipping away at it with his repetative strikes that blurred from his form.
Yui was gone when Yuuka woke up she had wonder off looking for scrolls. She almost had one she fought the blind man who she easy win against but he ran off before she could get the scroll from him. This has put her in a bad mood so she hunting him down when she comes across Kibushi working out. She waits him for a while before speaking, "you keep that up when you have to fight you be to tired."
"My stamina… is beyond that of most men." Kibushi would state almost immediately as he continued to strike and manuver. "But even if I am weak when another comes to face me… that is what battle is. Ideal conditions are rare. To stand still… is to lose forward progress." He would state as his fist and legs and feet continued to pound in to the stone column. "I will simply have to survive in the best way that I can." Not bothering to cease his movements as he spoke with the familiar but unheard for quite some time voice of Yui, Kibusih would wonder, "I assume that you are hunting? Do you have the scent of your prey… or are you merely lurking to find some?"
Yui shakes her head, "now your just bragging." She watches you again and then nods, "A blind man from last night. He has some kind of odd hair power. I faced him and was winning in fact he could not touch me. The blind fool ran instead giving me the scroll even though I was winning. It's a pain since Yuuka won mine."
"I have no need to brag." Kibushi would correct Yui as he would land a heavy kick and keep his balance, looking at his form, unmoving with his shin against the rock face. "Takeshi… was my opponent. If i had better technique… If i could have actually defended myself against him…he would have been too tired to strike me." Kibushi said a bit critically of himself as he lwoered his foot and considered her opponent. "He may be wounded then… but I assume you lost the trail?" Kibushi asked, but he'd also walk over towards Yui as he gazed at her with his cool eyes. "Why do you want to become a Jounin?" he then asked of her.
Yui nods, "remember an unbalance man may roll down a hill instead of going forward. She waits you work out and sighs slightly, "mistress taught me that technique comes with time not pressure. to push a life time of training into one day will do no good." She sits on the ground and crosses her legs, "Yah seems I lost him. How can I lose a blind man he should be tripping and stubbing over every rock." She shrugs some, "I want to lead our clan start to clan wars again and take over the world can't do that at this rank. Also it helps me know what's out there and makes me stronger for the demon."
"You are correct… but this training is nothing. I am a man who rides hurricanes and swims with blood frenzied sharks." Kibushi would state to Yui. It was simply the person he was… crazy or other wise. He knew no toher way to live as a warrior, than to not fear death. "It seems that he is more than you realize. Perhaps he acn sense things in some other way… or that he has sight you are unaware of." Kibushi would explain his considerations of it. "But in the end.. he is your prey. DO not let him get away." Listening to her tale of what she wants to do with the clan, Kibushi would chuckle at her, placing a hand o nher shoulder. "Yui…" he would begin to say… though his face grew serious as he stayed silent for a moment. "Yui. Claim your own strength… stop hiding. And don't tell me you are not… for I have seen you. When we fought, we did not only exchange blows. I do not understand… why you hold yourself back."
Yui looks up at you, "I am not hiding." This coming from the woman wearing a mask, "I hold back because I did not want to hurt you. You are of my clan and your strong you will be needed when the war starts." She looks at the hand on her shoulder, "how many scrolls do you have?"
"I do not mean that you hide your body. I mean that you hide your heart." Kibushi would explain. "You seek power… so that you can overcome that weakness. I don't even know if you realize it yourself. You are cold and calculating, and do your best not to feel anything. But you strive forward towards a goal that i nthe end… will leave you an empty husk as you are eaten away inside. Perhaps I am presumptuous… but do you not see that what you are looking for is a place where you can feel alive or die trying? The glory of the unimpeded Kaguya? Taming a demon with your flesh? A war to end all wars? All of these things lead to oblivion. What is it that you really want, Yui?" Though, he would stop his speech long enoguh to say hat, "Takeshi obtained my scroll. I have none. At this point, the game has become cat and mouse… and some of those mice are truly dragons in disguise."
Yui is silence for a long while at your comment, "you….." She stands and shakes her head, "you don't know what your talking about. my goal is for the glory of my self and the clan just as my father always wanted. The clan should rule this land and all lands and I should rule the clan. It is simple as that." She not ready to face her inner demons yet it would take more pushing.
Kibushi stared at Yui with his cool gaze, unphased by her reassurances. "Your words cannot shield you from me." He would explain to her with his same, calm tone that resembed his gaze. "However… I will play your game for the moment. When you rule all… what will you do? You have your demon… the clan… the world at your finger tips… then what? You sit empty… without purpose or life upon your throne of skulls. No one can touch you. Nothing can get close. You have absolutely everything…but anything at all. So… Empress Yui… what next?" He removed his hand from her shoulder and moved to poke her nose. "Do you wish to join the unbalaneced man… rolling down the hill?"
Yui looks at you the tilts her head, "then I take a husband. Have a daughter and a son. The clan will need strong leaders after me I can't let the empire fall when old age takes me." She shakes her head, "no rolling down hill for me."
"You should try it sometime… and laugh." Kibusih would advise, smirking slightly. "Or your husband and children will gain nothing from you but an empty inheritance." Turning and moving back towards the pillar, Kibushi would raise and loon at his hands, palms, then knuckles. "So your answer is that simple? Rule the world… take a man… make him give you children, and then die?" Kibushi would say aloud before looknig back at her. "You cannot raise strength… wtih an empty heart. You cannot cultivate affection… with a drained spirit. You cannot tame a demon with your body alone. You cannot conquoer a world with a blank heart. To do these things…. would be to be inhuman. Humanity defies things that are not capable of understanding them."
Yui tilts her head. She does not know what to say about that. She shakes her head, "why are you fighting this. You should want to clan to be unmatched as well. We are suppose to be strong. We should rule."
"Strength is earned. It is not given. To take everything by force leaves all that inherit it weak. There is a balance to everything, even war and conqouering." Kibushi would reply. "We are strong… because we rule nothing." Kibushi's fist would slam in to the rock face without hesitation, echoing a powerful shake through the area. "We are strong… because we fight and scratch and rake, and crawl and sprint towards strength and independence." Kibushi would send his other fist at the column, retracting his first, bloodied fist. " But every generation must struggle… or we will become weak. The blood remembers… but the body and the mind are what carry on that memory. If everything falls to our whim, we will have to consume one another until nothing is left." Kibushi turned around and looked at Yui fully. "Just as you are being consumed now… we all would be in that future."
Yui winces behind her mask as you punch the stone. She shakes her head, "so we should struggle forever never having anything so we are strong." She then sighs at the thought, "I don't like that logic."
Kibushi shakes his head. "Not forever. Until we find true strength. Until we find ourselves." Kibushi would search through his pack, getting some bandages from it, but dropping it as his slightly busted hand didn't grip quite enough. It would roll to Yui's feet, and Kibushi would ignore it for now. "Life is a journey. We cannot live it as if we have all the answers, but we can life it like a dream. If you dream of having everything… then you dream of eventually also obtaining nothing. What would our people do with the world? What would your children and husband who have not been able to touch your heart do with it when you are gone? What will you do.. atop that throne of skulls… aside from procreate and die?" He would ask her again.
Yui picks up the tape and hands it to you, "I don't know. I have not thought that far ahead." She shakes her head, "and what are your goals what are your dreams. What makes your dreams so great you feel like crushing mine?" He voice is not cold or flat she raising it and it sounds mad.
Kibushi would smile inwardly, but also wear a mask before Yui at this point as he gazed at her with the same cold eyes. "My dreams are small… insignificant against the Empress of the world itself. And i have told you already. I desire to be the ultimate beast, a demon, strength in carnate." Kibushi would say to her as he took the wrappings and began to apply them to his hand. "So that I can tame myself… and live without such concerns." Tightening the bandages, he would place his hand high on her chest, but close to her heart. "Have you ever stopped to consider the beats of your heart? The pumping of your blood? The music of your body? It is not random… it is not without purpose. It is a reflection of your state of being. I cannot crush your dreams… only you can do that. Why does your voice raise? Feel it… discover why that occurs… trace it back to the pit of your stomache… your chakra… your heart… everything. What causes you.. to change just that little bit now?" Kibushi pushed her to consider herself entirely, focusing on her and watching her responses.
Yui's body language change with your touch. She leans into the touch some. She tilts her head, "are you mocking me now?" She sighs, "you poke me and my dreams endlessly why?"
Kibushi's brow narrows slightly. "You say… that you want the Kaguya to be strong.. that we deserve to be. That it is our right." He'd say as his brows would lighten again, his tone remaining the same. "Why can i not want the same thing that you do? And why can i not seek to shatter that mask of yours to allow for you to gain that strength?" He asked of her as he seemed to hold her up with that his hand just a bit. "Poking at you may be enough to keep me from losing strength myself… remembering what is important. At least important to me."
Yui's looks up into your eyes, "and what….what is important to you?"she reaches up and strokes your cheek with her finger tips. Her tone is softer now and less harsh but not the normal cold flatness it is normally.
Now it seemed that the situation was reversed, with Kibushi's features remaining as stone and Yui's features softening as they spoke. "What is important to me… is that every step made is forward. For myself… and for those I care about." he would explain to her. "The past.. present… and future are linear in our perspective… but we only have control… limtied as it is… over what happens in these moments. Beyond them, and before them, are simply out of our reach. If you want to become my Empress… you will have to earn it… but you earn it now and keep earning it.. until it is true. And in doing so… dreams become reality. They are shaped by actions… as is the person who takes the steps to make them occur. So what is important to me… is that you take a step forward, and don't look back. And I shall do the same… until the road ends." Kibushi would remove his hand from her clavicle and wonder if she understood what he meant.
Yui looks at you for a long moment, "move forward and not look back?" She lifts her mask looking into your eyes. She then moves to her toes and kisses you on the lip. She then lowers her self and steps back. She pushes her mask back down over her face.
The kiss, stolen as it was, did not recieve a large reaction from Kibushi. It was not quite what he meant, but in a way, it was also a distinct possability. One that he wanted… to be sure was of the same place that he was trying to reach. "Now hold that moment without regret, and continue on." Kibushi would state simply, measuring his words very carefully. He would move then, heading towards where his clothing was and kneeling beside them. He palced his hand on to his armor, and seemed to pause there. "Allow yourself to feel a bit of joy and pleasure, instead of merely what ever pain that you suffer from… because of your blood soaked past."
Yui tilts her head, "move on?" She thinks about this for a long moment. Move on from a kiss. She has to think what comes after a kiss finally she nods and her hands moves up and unlock the strap around her breast and discards it on the ground. This is followed by the loin cloth and finally her mask. She walks over to you and kneels next to you, "okay."
Kibushi watched her, somehow still enduring this and maintaining control over whims and thoughts. As she knealt down, Kibushi would follow her with his gaze. "Did I not tell you before, that a man claims his woman?" He would say to her before looking to the articles of clothing. "A Kaguya especially… does not recieve gifts well. If this is what you want, you will have to earn my gaze as well as win my heart." Taking hold of Yui's chin so that he can gaze at her eyes fully, he'd continue. "Strive to become a woman… who can bare tainted sons and daughters… and show them how not to be devoured by the world. That is when a man will undoubtedly claim you. And if at that time, you still chase me, you will know what you find out what it requires to keep my attention." Kibushi told her openly and perhaps discouragingly, that even with that one step… she had many more to take to reach him in this regard. The core of his primal beliefs.
Yui seems to smile when you grab her chin. She has stated what she expect a man to do to earn her. In truth if you did take her now she would just melt into your wants. She listens to you then speaks, "I been trying to get your eye for a while you seem clueless. Mistress told me I should take charge and not expect the man to make the first move. That men have grown weak in this time of peace and will not clam a woman like during the war." In truth it is her that is clueless she has no idea how to act around men she likes. She never liked a man before
"Then she underestimates me. I am not like the rest of the Kaguya. I do not believe in peace. I do not believe in war. I believe in life… Vicious… Sweet… Harsh… Beautiful… Savage… Serene life. I believe in seasons. The elements. The spirit." Kibushi would state as he placed a hand atop Yui's head. "But she is right about one thing…" Kibushi was going to explai nthe two primarily things men are easily attracted by… but seeing as she was very literal, he decided that he'd stay on point this time… "… a man looks for certain things. Those things, he will spot in the darkest night from the top of the heightest mountain. But in this, every man is different. In this… is where they find their truest mate, the oen they cannot resist. The one they cannot let go. The one that fuels their passions and keeps them from burning themselves to ash. In that, men and women are the same." Kibushi would explain that much at least.
Yui tilts her head still sitting naked, "I don't understand what are these things? How can I do them?" She is a 16 year girl and every 16 has boys on her mind even strange ones like Yui. She seems relax for being next around you. She seems not shy about her body but she also does not try to draw attain to it.
Kibushi pondered shortly, before nodding to himself. "How about we approach it like this… What about me interests you? Is it that I am male? Every man is male… so that is not special or unique. Is it that I am Kaguya? There are many of them, that also is not unique to me at all. Is it that i am a warrior? You are in a clan of warriors… Do you understand what I am getting at? There is a difference between sheer attraction, and what drives someone to one or a few specific people. If you can identify that in yourself… then you can understand, that the other person has the same inclination towards others. And as i told you just now… there is a certain fortitude that i and others tend to look for first. But no one can see you, behidn your mask… unless they face your heart as I did in the Cold SPrings."
Yui thinks about it, "the way you fight, The way you speak, the way you fished me out after the battle….. They way you looking at me now. You are looking at me not my body. Her cheeks darken some after that last part. She nods then, "Is that why mistress did not want me to wear my mask?" She looks down at her lap then back up at you, "do you feel anything like you describe about me?"
Kibushi would listen to Yui. She had apaprently been apying more attention than he had given her credit for. A deeper appreciation than he had anticipated. These were all simple, natural things… and those were the things that mattered the most. "It may have been why she asked that of you. I do not know. But what i do know… is that a mask is part of a persona.. a uniform… something that projects an image that is not entirely true. I cannot say i truly know who you are, while you are wearing a mask around me. I can only guess." Kibusih would explain to her. "During our battle, when we spoke of what we desired, and when our blows dispalyed who we truly were, that is the only glimpse of you i have had thus far. From there, I have only been guessing."
Yui always wore the mask to hide her self to keep the world away from her and to keep the pain inside. She frowns, "I'm sorry." She looks away, "The mask…. The mask is the only thing that kept me sane all these year. It's my death mask a reminder that death waits for me and no matter what I do it will collect me one day." She looks back, "I sorry you feel like you have to guess about me I'll tell you anything
Kibushi would take his hand from her head and offer it to her. "Stand with me… and I will discover who you are one step at a time. Reserve your mask for when you are a weapon for a cause. But beyond that, be yourself. Endure the pain and savor the pleasures of your life. But keep moving, or I will leave you behind." If she would take his hand and get to her feet, he would cover her with his short kimono as he took her ovr near his armor and clothes. "We must survive down here. Find your prey, and your mistress. There is work to be done. Do you wish for my company on your journey?" Kibusih asked her, gazing back at her as he would slide his armor over his body.
Yui does take the hand and stands. She listens to him still surprise at his control the last man to see her naked had to force him self to look away and she suspects he was still looking at her. She blinks as you cover her and wraps it around her. She openly smiles and nods, "okay. but not sure where he went."
"In the hunt… most of it is about finding those answers. Give me as accurate a description as possible. And tell me of your battle with him. You said that he seemed to manipulate his hair and is blind right?" Kibusih would state, putting his brain to work and preparing his instincts to handle the information. "He is of Chuunin level… It is not surprising that he cannot harm you easily if at all. Your body does not allow many to touch it without your whim, I have learned." Kibushi commented as he considered the situation.
Yui nods, "that's right he can control his hair and he was blind. He was good at moving out of the way of my attacks. Most times only one would hit him out of two or three." She thinks and gives a deception of Ryoji as she remembers seeing him. As she does she slips on her clothing again but wears her mask on top of her head not over her face.
"In that case, let's go. I will help you find him." Kibushi would state, letting her keep his short kimono and begining to move through the caverns swiftly. "If you need food and water, i have plenty if you are willing to endure bad tastes and strange smells. They will fill you with energy, but they are not tasty." Kibushi would warn about the food he had.
Yui nods, "I am fine now. I have cold chicken and rice to eat." She nods to a pack she picks up with some water, food, clothing, and a few personal girl things. She joins you, "any idea which way to go?"
"Not a clue.. yet. The first part of the hunt is for tracks or traces." Kibushi explained as they both went off in to the caverns to look for Yui's prey and finish her battle in what ever way it will end.
