Starring:
Yuriko, Ishiko, Odin (emitter)
Date: September 20, 2013
Summary:
The day of young Kaguya Yuriko's graduation has finally come. With Kirigakure standing as witness, she and the genin chosen to aid her take the test to see if she has the mettle to join their shinobi's ranks.
"Kirigakure Graduation Exam: Kaguya Yuriko"
Kirigakure's Dammed Arena
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At the foot of the great march of bones that dams this tall canyon of blue-gray granite, under the shadows of the stands: the Kirigakure arena. Rivulets of water still escape the base of the dam and dampen the gravely bed of the dry river. The length of the canyon is limited by a raised platform at the south end featuring the referee's post and a large display board announcing the details of the match.
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Contents:
Yuriko
Ishiko
Today, it will be all or nothing.
Today for the young student, Kaguya Yuriko, there would be graduation. A future as a shinobi of Kirigakure, as the very thing her mother has made herself known for. As the very thing her father and her adopted father have died as. Or… in failing to find her lineage, she will lose her life, her blood staining this arena as so many others' have, the land no more forgiving to this five year old than it is to any other man.
The chosen day suits the reality of the graduation day. It is early morning, the sun still hours from fighting its way above the horizon to lighten this misted realm, and any light that would reach the dammed arena has been jealously withheld from those below by the dark clouds oppressing the sky. They storm, sending a deluge of water to the earth, falling in chilling sheets. They send a foot and a half stream through the once dry river bed of the canyon that makes up this arena, the dam of bone at its head no doubt straining. They batter the flames of the torches that have been set along the stands, referee's post, and canyon walls to combat the darkness some, making them hiss and dance, leaving large shifting pools of darkness everywhere. They rattle against the large cube of steel that sits within the arena, doing nothing to hide the occasional smash sounding from whatever was inside of that sturdy cage.
And indeed, this cage was the other side of the equation that the spectators in the stands would look to. The counterpoint to Yuriko's will. The death to her life and the failure to her success. It was her obstacle. That which she would need to see killed to graduate into the next stage of her shinobi life. And from the sound of it crashing against the metallic walls of its prison, it is powerful. A dangerous adversary and one that this canyon and this contest would allow little chance to escape from.
Fight or die. And it was nearly time to see just which way things would go for Yuriko and her partner. The stands had filled up with the many who wanted to see the Swordsman's daughter and the five year old prodigy on her day of trial, the noise of the crowd too low to be heard over the sound of the rain, despite the great number of faces partially lit by the flailing flames. The referee's post held a figure sitting upon their seat, out of sight of the light of the torch, seeming unbothered by the fact that they were getting soaked. All that they needed, now, were for the participants to enter. The time had arrived. They would not be given direction. They would enter the arena when their will was strong enough for those steps to be taken, the first of their tests. And how, asks the village, will it be handled?
It doesn't matter what hour it is. It doesn't matter how many are in the stands. It doesn't matter what the weather is like or even the fact that she might die in this arena, spilling her blood where so many others have. Where so many others have spilled blood both in victory and in death.
It was another challenge. Another game with extreme consequences.
Yuriko stood just inside the entrance of bare, open hall that leads from t he staging rooms into the arena itself; dressed in black. The color of mourning. The color of death. Her usual vibrant aquamarine eyes are now dull as they stare into the arena, and what bubbling excitement and anticipation she may have had is simply not there. The constant buzzing noise of the crowd barely registering.
Knowing that she would be assigned a partner to this task, the young Kaguya waits long enough for Ishiko to arrive before taking that first step out into the arena itself, without so much of a glance at the other girl. Yuriko keeps her gaze trained on the rattling caged, long kimono sleeves at her sides hiding the fact that she already had her Epigaea Dagger drawn. That it had always been out and in hand, if only out of sight.
Walking into the arena behind Yuriko, Ishiko is no less dark and yet she wears lighter clothing. Its her usual outfit. Her hood pulled over her face as she walks out and looks at the girl who is acting so cool in such a not cool situation. She has her fists clenched. She has no weapons drawn. The girl is a weapon. She's a weapon of death, trained to kill. She looks up toward the rattling cage from under her hood and shows no emotion. She simply stares before looking to the girl and stating, "It will kill you if you let it." She nods her head, "You will die if you are not prepared to kill."
As the participants make their way into the arena, a sudden roar pulses from the crowd in the stands, the sound of their combined voices shaking the walls of the canyon and the waters of the stream the pair walk through. There would be contest this night. There would be battle. Kirigakure was ready to see, ready to revel in it, the Kaguya's pride and desire to see success driving their voices to stand out from the rest.
The cheering went on for the approximately twenty seconds it took for the referee to stand and walk to the end of their platform and into the light of the torches. "KIRIGAKURE!" shouted Okumo Meruin into the fading cheers of those from his homeland, his own voice like the echo of theirs. The man looks down at the two in the canyon below, eyes pools of living darkness in the rainy night, the torches unable to lighten them. "We have one who would join the ranks of our esteemed shinobi, and another who has been elected the chance to usher her in. I present to you Kaguya Yuriko and Ishiko no Kirigakure; Raise your voices to them!"
Again, a cheer rose, louder this time as more than those who were simply contest hungry or excited lifted their voices to the two who stepped forward to risk their lives to lead lives worth living. Stone rattled, water shook, and at the height of it, the metal cage rocked, whatever was inside of it being upset by the noise. When the cheer died down, Okumo Meruin spoke once more.
"Kaguya Yuriko. Ishiko no Kirigakure. Stay strong of arm and sharp of mind. Succeed. This obstacle is one provided by the Okumo clan. You will find none like it in the realm of nature. This is the only advice I will see you given. As of now, you live or die by your own merit. Defy fortune; Live in skill." He raises a hand.
"Release the beast!" are the words that echo through the canyon through the drenching rains. In response, there's a short screech of scraping, tortured metal… and then the walls of it simply drop. They fall to the river bed, sending up a spray of water with their toppling weight. The creature was free. Surprised, perhaps wary, it stays where it is, form now cloaked in the shadows of night and storm, just outside of any torch's light.
"Shut up." Yuriko snaps, her voice dark for someone so young. "If anything is going to get me killed today its going to be your arrogance." The heat behind her words simmers as she turns her snowy head away. Almost idly glancing towards the stands when they seem to suddenly erupt with a roar of cheers. Her free hand clenches tightly at her side, hidden beneath the enveloping sleeve.
She was in pain. She was in so much pain and these people only wanted to see blood spilled, doesn't matter who or what. Yuriko exhales a harder breath and dips her chin down, wavy bangs falling into her face as the rain streams off of the ends. She couldn't look up, she could only listen as the familiar voice makes the introductions and announces the event itself.
Then, the beast is released.
Yuriko is compelled to glance up at the cage, blue green eyes narrowing as the scraping of metal marks the beginning of the end. Deafening against the silence now. "If you hinder me in any way, I'll kill you." she says coldly to Ishiko beside her. A simple fact rather than a threat. Already gathering a bit of chakra inside of her gut, right hand clutching the dagger even tighter.
A smirk and Ishiko shakes her head, "Arrogance?" She asks, "I'm no more arrogant than any empty vessel into which hate was poured." She looks toward the open cage, her own fists loose as she looks at the cage and then she shrugs and steps back, gesturing over, "Then feel free to attack." She states, "If I'm so to be in the way, then I will not act at all." She nods, "Obviously, you have no need for others if you are to treat those you don't even know like shit when they were sent to help you." She shrugs and steps further back.
Meruin withdraws to the shadows as his clan's creation enters into the light, a clinking sounding against the collapsed walls of the cage. As it enters into the light, the glint of the flames shines from its shell. A burly form steps into view to the beat of the heavy thuds of its heavily padded and taloned feet. The six legged creature has a muddy brown skin, thick and leathery looking. Its jawed maw hangs open, leaking a stream of saliva from below it's feral yellow eyes.
Those eyes lock onto the pair of people a small distance down the canyon's river bed. A heavy chuff leaves it and it shakes its horned snout before stomping a foot, lifting up a spray of rain water. And then it charges, its six feet starting to build up it's momentum and speed without too much issue, its body glistening with a tinny sheen.
"You don't know me and you're stupid for thinking that you do." She snaps, growling darkly as her left hand clenches tighter. "I should just kill you for even saying that." Ishiko was full of herself to assume that the little girl didn't know anything. She was Kaguya, and this was nothing. Nothing…
Yuriko closes her eyes and lifts her left hand up to her chest, clenching at it with tiny fingers. "You treated me like a kid first, so you're no better than an arrogant grownup. Do whatever you want. A true shinobi doesn't care what other people say." This was her mission, and she was going to see it through regardless if she died alone. Ishiko would just have to live with the shame of failure. While she steps forward, the little girl steps forward, lightly flicking back the cuff of her long sleeve just enough that the tip of her blade could be glimpsed.
The beast is slow to enter the light, the clinking sound ominous as it echoes off of the walls. It was huge, and it was ugly. Yuriko frowns slightly. With that many legs, she thought it may be a spider at first, however it looked more like a six-legged boar dipped with fire. But when it started to charge…
Yuriko smirks. In an instant she pushes off with sudden speed, trying to go so fast that the Beast loses track of her. Then focusing her chakra through her ivory blade she'll strike at its blindside, attempting to stun it and following through with another, harder strike.
"For someone who tells others they shouldn't care what people think of them…you certainly are defensive for being thought of as a child." Ishiko nods and then shrugs, "And as a note." She rushes forward as the creature comes out, "You are a child." She states simply enough and she doesn't go for stealth. She instead takes the more straight forward route. As Yuriko tries to be stealthy, Ishiko is running straight at it, "We are both children." She flips forward her hands landing into the mud and then her foot coming over and heel aimed right for the thing's snout, "It is a fact, not something we are treated as. To expect differently?" Once her kick follows through, she merely lets momentum carry her further to land an arching punch right in between the thing's eyes. She shifts back immediately afterward, "Well, that brings up a question of maturity."
The beast simply continues its charge, picking up further speed and ignoring the movements of Yuriko as she rushed about, instead focusing on Ishiko, who charged back towards it. A heavy snort left it and it moved faster still. As Yuriko swung at what she suspected to be its blindside, she might notice that the creature /did/ move in respond to her nearness, not moving away but moving into the blow. It knew she was there, likely because any sort of swift moving stealth would be difficult with foot and a half of water, unless they could walk atop it to prevent splashing.
And the reason it leaned in towards the blade would be clear to the both of them as their weapons, whether made of bone or flesh hit its hard body and either clanged off of it or was stopped cold without effect. By the sound, its outer skin could literally be made of iron or steel. And worse, for Ishiko, who tried to strike it head on. Able to ignore the danger posed in her strikes, it simply charged a futher, the horns on its snout lowered and streaking for the girl's stomach.
Yuriko is ignored by the beast. And that's the way she preferred it.
Whatever sort of reply there may have been from Ishiko isn't heard, her concentration focus razor sharp upon the task at hand. She took note that it responded to her even before she attacked, indicating that where she thought was its blind side wasn't quite right. And the water didn't help either. Yuriko grows beneath her breath when she quickly realizes just how tough its hide is. It was used to physical attacks and developed the hide to deflect them. But it can't be helped now. Unless Ishiko has more in her skill set than just taijutsu, this was going to be a long fight, potentially even draining them of their stamina. And if that's the case… wasting it on stealth would be useless.
The small scowl itches at her otherwise gentle features as she lands on her feet, landing solidly on the surface if but for a moment before she takes off again, aiming once more at another point on its hide to see if there's a soft spot. Any sort of weakness.
Dancing back from the incoming charge, Ishiko suddenly changes her direction as it comes at her and she jumps up and plants both hands on the beast itself and uses its very momentum to flip up and over it, "Harumph." She basically states as she flips up and over the beast. A foot plants on the middle of the thing's back and then she slides that foot off to the side for her to attempt to slam a knee right into one of the segments of the thing's legs before she falls off complete, plants both hands and one foot. She uses the other foot to send a donkey kick toward the thing's side, "Where is it?" She asks no one in particular.
The Armorhide let out another snort of aggression as Ishiko vaulted over it, its horns rending nothing but air and rain. It feels the clatter of firm blows made useless against its metallic hide and lets out a deep bellow, heavy steps lifting small geyers as it turns itself about to face the two. Rearing on its four hind legs, it swipes at both Ishiko and Yuriko, talons streaking through the air for them, deadly sharp.
Yuriko seems to land a few yards from Ishiko, though her hard gaze remains sharp on the one dubbed 'Armorhide'. Her shoulders tense as she watches it lift its talons, swiping at them with one long, hard slash. The young girl instinctively strikes her blade out to parry the attack away from her, diamond-hard ivory clinking hard against metal. This was going nowhere slowly.
She needed to slow down, use her head and not rush into just straight out attacking it. That metal platting was becoming annoying. Her nose twitches subtly as she narrowing her gaze, trying to look it over as best that she can.
Looking at the beast, she stares and then shakes her head, "Well." Ishiko dodges out of the way of the thrashing beast, her body easily twisting aside from that hit even as she looks at each of the beasts's body parts and then she runs to the side a second before turning her attention to its head. With brutality expressing her style she rushes forward, raises up both thumbs and attempts to aim both thumbs straight for the creatures eye sockets and see if she can't gouge out its ability to see. She then, as if to emphasie what she is doing, tries to bring a knee right up under its jaw…or what passes for one.
The metallic beast let out yet another bellow as a swipe of one of its talons was knocked aside by the Kaguya girl, deflected through the epigaea dagger and Ishiko manages to simply twist out of the way of its assault, remaining maddeningly elusive. It lunges for Yuriko but abruptly turns as Ishiko's dash to the side catches its eyes and ears, and it turns towards the girl. When she rushes at it, thumbs streaking for its sensitive eyes, it swings its thick head, pushing her arms aside with the horns on its snout. The head jerks upwards from the force of the knee but it doesn't appear to be harmed or fazed by the strike, ignoring it as it lunges forward with a pair of bites, trying to tear chunks out of Ishiko.
During the midst of her scanning, Ishiko, once at her side now takes off again. Of course. "Lead it to the lowest part of the arena!" Yuriko calls out, jumping back instinctively from the sudden lunge before Ironside turns its attention at the attacking kunoichi. "Aim for its underside too!"
With any luck and a new strategy, they might be able to pull this off.
Yuriko readjusts the weight of the dagger in her hand as she pushes off into movement once more, running towards its side facing the deepening water. She'll slash at close to its belly as she possibly can, and should she gain the beast's attention, lead it towards the water.
Dancing back and away from the attacks, Ishiko moves with ease and grace out of the way of the slow animal. She turns her attention to Yuriko at the yelling and then hmms as she listens and looks toward that part of the arena. She hmms and then suddenly runs forward, instead of doing what she did before, which was leap over the beast, she slides in like a player sliding feet first to hit homeplate. As she goes under she aims a vicious strike for the spot between head and belly, hoping that the neck of this beast is as sensitive as other creatures. She then plants a hand and spins, kicking a foot up into the creature's underbelly and then using that kick to propel herself out from under it, hopefully quick enough that the dumb beast doesn't realize it can just drop its body weight on her. Already, she is scrambling in the direction of the lowest part of the arena, oppposite from where the creature was facing.
The armored beast growled as it heard Yuriko approach, body once more moving in her direction, out and downwards. The motion kept the stunning blow from striking anything but the steel hide but the blade slipped just under its second slace, scoring a light but ignorable cut a few inches into it's stomach. The creature snapped at the girl before it let out yet another roar as Ishiko evaded it -yet again- and the feel of its prey's heart pumping their lifeblood into its maw is denied. She ran to it and it ran to meet her with a bellow, her straightforward defiance grating against its animal dominance.
That bellow was cut short as she slid through the water and slipped underneath it. This was because the surprising move allowed her fist to launch upwards. Her attack landed off target, the beast's forward motion making it landed further downwards. Which proved fortunate in this case, as it struck just beneath the metal armored neck with enough force to cause it to suck in a large breath and stagger in its forward momentum. Her followup kick is where its momentum proved less fortunate, as her foot landed against the only steel thing beneath its body. The sheathe protecting its — his — reproductive organs.
After half a second of recovery, he turned about to find that Ishiko had used that momentum to slide out from under him and was now rushing away from him. Fleeing. She and the other two legged prey both. he immediately started forward, rushing towards them. With the time to pick up speed, the amount he managed to reach was actually… quite a bit, his power allowing him to overcome his immense weight if allowed the space to do it. And he was given it. Head lowered, horns at the ready, he shot to finally take his prey, spray launching from him as he barrels through deeper waters.
There's only a small bit of satisfaction earned from the small slice between the plates of its steel hide, but Yuriko doesn't linger on it for long, her feet picking up speed as she skates backwards on the water surface. Just as Ishiko slides under its belly.
It was moving. The plan was working now and the beast is running straight at them.
Yuriko smirks. "Hope you know how to swim." she murmurs to Ishiko, before turning and running the complete opposite direction of the horned beast, across the surface of the water. She can hear the growing cheers of the crowd in anticipation. Just when you think that it's going to gorge the small child straight through, she pivots on a toe with an swift, elegant spin, dark kimono flowing around her as Yuriko makes another slash at its vulnerable side.
A grimace escapes Ishiko as her eyes go wide and she takes a terrible gut wound from this beast as its horn rips at her side and takes her into the water, too. She lifts both hands and growls as she again attempts to drive her fingers into the thing's eyes but this time, it has her on its horns so will perhaps have a harder time avoiding things. She then will use that to push herself up off of the thing. Once she is off of it, though she attempts to swim to the side leaving it to be blinded and heading into deep water.
The ironhided creature growled as he thumped past the little Yuriko, the girl whirling out of the way in a sudden elegance, his horns piercing only air. But he continued on and soon those horns were bathed in the warm blood he craved. Into and up with driving force, he stabs into the until now elusive Ishiko with a bellowing triumph, feeling the blood make its way onto his snout. That bellow swiftly turned into one of extreme pain as the Kirigakure genin's fingers found their viscious way into his eyes, damaging the sensitive things and causing him to toss his head, throwing the girl from his horns and over his back to let her fall wherever she would. The rain quickly cleansed the blood from his face, but it could do nothing to remove the pain and panic from his actions as he began thrashing in the water, blinded, slashing all around it with talons and horn.
More blood spilled, from the creature and Ishiko, and the crowd cheers louder because of it. Now blinded, it was vulnerable and thrashing everywhere to keep from being attacked, no doubt the water weighing the beast down in the process. Yuriko couldn't help the small smirk. Might as well take advantage of the situation.
The little girl doesn't get close to the beast in order to blind it like Ishiko had. Instead she pulls out several kunai with her free hand and just begins launching them, aiming for its eyes. She wants it completely blind.
Very fatigued and near to exhaustion, Ishiko is pulling herself away from the water and up to her feet, holding her side and eyeing the animal as it thrashes in the deeper water. As it thrashes, she, too, pulls out a set of kunai and throws two toward the creature, trying to hit its underbelly as it thrashes but at this point, she's just trying to force it deeper into the water.
Through the barrage of kunai she threw at the creature's eyes never stick, but Yuriko had spotted one of Ishiko's kunai stick in its side. When it actually comes to an abrupt stop, the young girl narrows her gaze on it for a suspicious moment. After one more large stomp, it sends a large wave through the water. Enough so that she braces against the impact without falling into the gathering pool itself. Raindrops falls steadily, it seems to try to see through the pain and the pouring rain, looking for any sort of movement.
Now it was time to shift gears.
Yuriko tightens her grip on her Epigaea Dagger, but takes off with sudden speed. Her target now are its legs. Aiming between the steel plates to sever the tendons in its two most front most legs. If she can force it to fall, it would increase the likelihood of it drowning.
Noticing it, too, Ishiko does also see that her kunai sticks into its side. She stares at the kunai where it landed and then suddenly rushes forward. She slushes into the water for a moment and jumps up. If she sends a vicious kick aimed right for her own kunai. She then raises up her foot and brings it down with a vicious axe kick toward one of the creature's legs. She then stares toward the work of Yuriko, seems like they had a similar amount of ideas.
The armored creature looks in Yuriko's direction just as she's nearing him and he reacts to her movement, turning to present the front of his leg to her. But her hands are swift, blade finding the small gap in armor at the back of its knee and drawing blood from it. It was a wound, but not enough to take away the motion from its limb. It draws the leg back before swinging it at Yuriko in a powerful blow. It whirls quickly, turning to put its shoulder in the path of her kick, neutralizing it. The attack to its leg is ignored, the armor there more than enough to keep it safe, simply preparing a backhanded blow for her as well.
A small wound, but still not enough to pull the beast down. Yuriko sharply narrows her gaze and in a moment's instant, she quickly dodges, just before that same leg swings back to try to kick her. She avoids the powerful kick but it just gives her an opening to strike at the other. Positioned directly below its belly. Once more, the young Kaguya surges chakra through the Epigaea blade and slashes straight up at the tender underside, releasing that bit of chakra and following it up with two more quick slashes. Just after Yuriko rolls away, before the beast has a chance to catch her there.
Stumbling back and away from the water. She pulls out kunai and starts throwing them one after the other, "Gotta finish it." She nods, "I'm almost about to fall down." She nods her head and looks to Yuriko, "I don't know how much longer it has but I for one am shaking on my feet."
As Ishiko's kunai are clanking off of the creature's metallic hide, he takes a step towards her, letting out a threatening bellow. It is here that Yuriko's blade first flies upwards, hitting against the steel sheathe on his underside. Once more saved by masculinity, the creature moves to quickly try and step away, but the young girl is able to get out a pair of quick slashes on his underbelly, bloodying its form in the first significant damage done in one sweep thus far. Pain sounds from the creature and he lashes out at Yuriko with his serrated jaws, looking to snap her up and toss her away.
Rolling several feet away from Ishiko, Yuriko glances at her out of the corner of her eye for a pause before quickly nodding, focus returning to the beast. So close. "Get yourself to a medic." she murmurs. It was now the Kaguya girl's time. She had to finish it. And the time was now. Before Yuriko's able to tell whether or not Ishiko gets away, the creature snaps at her with his large jaws. Using this to her advantage, she dodges forward, darting beneath its belly to aim more strikes at the tender area. Chakra surges through the ivory of her Epigaea Dagger as she swiftly slashes, followed by two more deeper slashes. Now, blood stained her kimono, stained her skin and trailed over one cheek.
It seems it is for now, it is Yuriko's time to shine as Ishiko has used up quite a bit of her reserves to even do the damage she had done. She's nearly to the point of exhausion and bleeding still from the nasty wound the creature gave her. She now can only settles back as she scoots away to watch the young one prove herself to the village.
The creature lets out a coughing bark as Yuriko slips under it once more. It had managed to rise above the initial chakra laced slice, but the two more determined ones both connected, parted flesh, and drew more blood. The Okumo creation let out a low groan at the pain and its fading strength, attacking the girl in the best manner it thought it could at that moment. Dropping the whole of its body weight onto her. The metal bonded creature collapsed its legs, allowing its press to strike Yuriko and send her underwater, pinning her to the bottom.
Two more successful strikes, and more dark blood pours out, soaking into her clothes with the rain water. The thunderous groan is a signal to Yuriko, and when it began collapsing she pushes off with speed once more, managing to completely dodge the massive weight before it pins her in the water. But without pause the small Kaguya takes a page out of Ishiko's book, leaping up on top of its head, out of its reach to stab twice, hard and deep into its eye socket.
Ironhide's head shifted tiredly as Yuriko landed atop it, throwing off her first stab. As the second comes in the animal gives a sudden, mighty heave, tossing the five year old girl off of its body with a spray of water. A throaty grunt leaves the creature, nearly bovine in sound as its body begins shaking. Slowly… so slowly… it begins lifting its massive weight from the waters of the flooding river bed. Just to crash back down with another splash, bubbles lifting from where the struggling creature's head submurged.
Thrown off of its head, Yuriko flies and flips rightside in midair before landing on her feet in a low crouch. Her sharp eyes narrow on the creature, able to peer through the growing rain its massive figure struggling to push itself up on its feet, groaning with pain and shaking.
Just like the free hand at her side. Even though she was uninjured, she was using the last of her energy just to keep from collapsing. But she can't stop now, and she had to make sure that it'll be finished. Bounding forward, Yuriko jumps up to land on its head again, her weight insignificant to the Ironhide. If it still lived though she wanted to be in a place to strike deep and hard.
Small but enough. Her weight kept his head under the water of the stream, the weight of it's steel body simply too much to lift again with the energy it had left. Which was next to none. A sudden burst of bubbles marked when the creatures lungs fully emptied themselves. More weak struggling, shifting… but eventually, it would stop moving, the girl atop it victorious under the eye of the village and the fury of the drenching rains.
Kirigakure cheered for their warriors.
The moments seemed to stretch. Only the sound of the rain and the bubbles escaping the water several feet beneath her. Then, the last movements stop. Bubbles ceasing. And it took a longer moment after before Yuriko allows herself to take a longer breath. The cheer from the stands becomes a thunderous roar as her eyes glance up at the people. So many people. She may hesitate briefly, but Yuriko lifts her right arm straight up in the air, pointing her dagger towards the darkened sky in victory. It was expected of her, and they cheered all that much more because of it.
