Starring:
Fudo, Amani, Hiroyasu, Katsurou, Nori
Date: August 26, 2013
Summary:
Finally having found his target, Fudo would engage Amani in one on one combat. When he is about to be victorious, he is betrayed by almost every friend he ever had, including his "Brother".
Poster's note: foul language filtered in obvious places.
"Third Promotion Exams - Utter Betrayal: Fudo vs Amani and Hiroyasu and Katsurou and Hiei and Nori"
Forest of Death
It was quite difficult tracking down someone with such little description given about them. Someone powerful and who strikes without actually hitting and is female. However, there were not all that many females out here in the Forest of Death. Not that identifying someone's sex was easy to do regardless. Fudo had spent most of the day traversing the forest. It was actually getting a bit more difficult to have time to eat or to find water sources to replinish what he was using since he wasn't staying near the camps any longer. Nori had escaped from him, so he wasn't in the clear quite yet, but Fudo was mostly interested in finding out what talent existed in the shinobi world.
Amani was aware of the dangers that came with being in this area. It was close to the end of the road, though the exams weren't over yet. People were probably lying in wait all over. Bunch of cowards. Some she could spot with ease, others she had to lay low and listen for all with her Nejigan activated to its fullest potential. She couldn't waste energy on it, however and used it sparingly. She had better things to do like maintaining the camp she built. She had a meal set up and stocked up on water, so she should be set. All that's left to do is relax.
The sharingan, maintained a low levels, made it far easier to see when people were at or near their camp sites. And because that was a rather common practice, it did give targets to observe and check upon as he moved through the forest. In this case, he would have found another one, and it did in fact seem to be occupied by someone, though who he'd not at all know. In either case, he would prepare to confront them, or at least flush them out in to the open.
Amani looked around every so often, but reserved the majority of her focus on trying to relax and eat. There was no need to be constantly on edge. She was going to be comfortable. Wasting time being tense meant she'd be weak for later, not fit. She needed to be calm so she could be prepared. So, she takes a few deep breaths and begins to eat.
Focusing his chakra, he would take the time and element of surprise to get prepared. It may end up making him shine like a beacon to some for a moment, but it was better to be prepared than to go in to this with no preparation at all. His sharingan would glow a bit more crimson as he grew ready for action.
Amani continued to relax and eat. Getting full is a must at the moment and she's just about done. A good meal, a good rest. A little water here should do the trick. She settled in, but that underlying feeling of being watched was ever present. It had to be in these exams. She stood up and rubbed her arms. That gut feeling was there. She activated her Nejigan and listened for the sounds of the forest. "Hm." Break time is over. She proceeded to focus. "Are you going to come out?" She asked while preparing her bow and arrow.
Fudo smirked. "Sure." He would say as he would step out in to the open along a twisting tree branch that looked over her camp. "Though i'm not sure what difference that will make." Fudo would state as he'd create a hand seal and a massive ball of flame would be shot down from his position towards the camp itself. It wasn't going to be a good place for her to return to after this any how. He would keep track of her chakra signature, and it seemed as if he remained exactly where he was as he would draw his blade out to the side sharply. If she wasn't sharp enough, she'd end up with a wound from an opponent that was no where near her.
Amani grumped. This was going to be one heck of a battle which meant that she was going to have to give her all or get toasted. That fireball was huge and…it burned her camp. How nice. Warfare. Well, she can return that. Of course, with cuts coming from seemingly everywhere, it might be a tough act to follow. "Bah…" She grumbled while extending her hand and forcing out a blast of sound towards Fudo. She then followed it up with an arrow darting through the air towards him.
It appeared that Fudo was not going to move any where, even after he was attacked directly by Amani's counter assault. But as his form would have been blasted and pierced by the arrow, it seemed to waver, as if he was never there at all. Amani might suddenly fall to her knees as an axe kick would coem down towards the back of her head and a draw of the sword would be unleashed as Fudo rotated, sweeping low towards her arms should she not move fast enough.
Of course. Genjutsu. Amani gets the idea, though she ends up securing damage anyway as she's kicked in the back of the head. Falling down, she could only receive the first sword attack across her arms, but the second, she defended against by having his sword repelled by a barrier of sound. Now that he was close enough to her, she decides to take it up a notch. She draws chakra to her hands and lashes out against his legs to sever any connecting muscles and weaken him to some extent. She was damaged, but not down just yet.
Hiroyasu wandering through the forest, looking for the usual food, leftover supplies that people just leave after battles or camping. When in the distance a large gathering of chakra has his attention a very large gathering of just two chakra's. As he had done before, he rushes to the general direction of the battle, he's like a vulture offering assistance with a price of the choicest meat. His own chakra surging in the process, he did not want to be caught unprepared should it be either friend or foe, or foe and foe. Neither were especially palpable.
Fudo had not faced sound manipulation before, so it was certainly a new challenge for him, and he was enjoying it. It was new experience, new chakra to read, and a new person to discover all at once. It seemed to have strong and quick defensive capabiliteis at the very least, and it was hard to track some of the attacks. As he chakra scalpel was used at him with a swipe, he would barely be able to make Amani's convictions waver as he twisted out of the way. Fudo would attempt to force Amani's body to continue to feel the pain of her wounds from the ombat, throbbing and stinging more and taxing her for it. He would simultaneously lunge towards her with his blade, moving to injure her leg and limit her mobility some.
Amani was growing tired of fighting and much of it was due to this game being played. She takes the strikes against her despite defending and managed to keep that blade off of her for another go. "You don't have to worry about any guests." She began to focus once more. "You're a sneak. Not sure I like that. Never thought I'd take my friend's approach, but I enjoy head on. Besides, I've got a bigger picture to focus on, like…what would Nariko do, you know?" She grinned as she went forward and began to attack once again. She had the intent of returning favors. Pumped and ready to go, she went forward to cause some damage.
Hiroyasu finds himself on the group far earlier than he expected, breaching the under foliage he can see the fight in unfolding between uchiha-san and yamayuki-san.. of course it would be that kind of decision was about all he think before that emotional response the one he tries bury often which affects him in ways not prepared for.. that burning cold bubbling feeling which meant stupidity ahead. He grips his knuckles white and his eyes close for a moment as he exhales, when his eye's open they are solid black with a swirling array of seals replacing his pupils. "You know, what this means!" he shouts if they weren't aware of him, they would be. "I will hunt you down, you cannot escape me, you can forever run but you can never hide…. for long." attacking Nori was bad enough and he had to watch because Katsurou was present.. but Amani , Tsukikage , his love and his teammate and his own kind… that was not ever going to work.
Hiei is still making his way around the forest, mostly now looking for Amani and Hiro. With his travelling cloak still draped over his form, he moves slowly within the shadows. He could have sworn he heard someone scream and it came from this direction. The plan was to hang back and see what is what before acting, if he would act at all.
Fudo's focus was entirely on Amani as the fight progressed, he'd keep his eyes on her chakra and movements, and was fully prepared to evade her attack… when he suddenly heard something about not being forgiven or some such from behind him. This would break his concentration a bit, and he'd just barely not be able to remove himself from the touch of Amani. It was certainly an effective contact with the girl, and fudo would slip away only to stagger slightly as he would pay more attention to what was going on around him. Taking a moment to see him, he would notice it was Hiroyasu that was screaming and he'd tilt his head slightly. "Hmm… i see."
His gaze returned to Amani, and he would appear to her as bigger than life. Not in size, simply in sheer presence, in pure power as he'd loom over her with a crushing amount of chakra that was nearly unbareable.
Amani didn't have much to take on…whatever just happened. This guy just became more…intense? She wasn't sure. She burned off effort just trying to resist him and felt a bit more exhausted after attempting to dampen the feeling with sound to no avail. She stumbled backward and shook her head, breathing heavily. "Mmmph," she moaned while looking around. She took note of those surrounding her and then focused back on Fudo. She concentrated her chakra to her throat, shouting at an incredible pitch with a consistent flow.
Hiroyasu is not about to be part of anything of this nature, and just begins weaving seals, the ground beneath him begins to leak bullets of stone to his fingers and he holds them out towards the genin who at the moment he cannot see anything more than a monster, thinking emotionally is not always rationally as the barrage of stony projectiles hearld forth.
Hiei says, "Release: Lightning Aura." Hiei watched from the shadows and decided.that his best friend's girl has suffered enough. His body is covered a bright blue aura with bolts of lightning dancing around his form. His muscles become.more pronounced and quiver underneath the skin as if under constant electric shock. This is the power of the Yotsuki. Hiei doesn't say a word as he reaches up to grasp the hilts of both swords. He walks out into the open. His gaze is on Fudo, but his expression.is guarded."
Having identified Hiroyasu as an enemy, Fudo began to grow quite serious… and infact… angered. However, his face would show would a rather judgemental calm. He would be focused and prepared for this betrayal. Able to see the chakra in the air, as well as the curvature of the vibration, he would just barely lean out of the way of the first scream, his hair and coat whippnig behind him as he looked at Amani with near souless eyes. His body would flitt and kip away from the next attack, putting himself equally between both of his opponents as he'd begin to walk slowly, striding towards a boulder as he'd end up using it as cover, as if he saw Amani's attack coming from a mile away.
As he emerged, confident and proud, he would twist around rapidly with a half draw of his sword, deflecting the earthen bullets out of his way as his kunai would be drawn and thrown with the same movement, leaving absolutely no gap between defense and counter offense. He then leaned a bit and ducked under the incoming barrage of bullets as he would see that Hiei was also joining this foray.
Now Fudo's gaze was truly dark, yet he said nothing to anyone. He would leap however, very high, and run up a tree slightly after landing upon it's trunk. Launching himself from it, gaining height above his opponents, he would release a storm like barrage of fire balls upon them all, his hands working very quickly to keep up as shuriken where sent down along with them in a flurry of jutsu.
Amani met Fudo eye for eye. She saw that look and she burned with rage. She saw that very look back in Kumo and fought her hardest to extinguish it. She did that with the help of those that came to her aid. To give up on them now and her friends beyond these trees would be a disservice. Just continue to think…What would they do? She knew what she was fighting. She wasn't fighting a shinobi…just a shell of one. She hissed and expended her reserves to force out another barrier against the fireballs thrown across the field. Unfortunately, she would be seized up and unable to attack. She kneels to the ground and sat still and attempted to break out…
Hiroyasu raises the barrier to the strike which avoids his bullet barrage, It holds just barely, when the manuever from above goes down, he has no choice but to try to shield himself with another barrier but it's not much a match as the fire rains down on him, followed by the steely rain and it's wired attachments.. he was.. unable to do anything.
Hiei attempted to move at high speed but the fire attack singed his back and cloak which he discards as it continues to burn. Then Hiei promptly disappears within a bolt of crimson lightning. He reappears next to Amani, already leaning down pick her up, "I'm not here to fight. I'm here to retrieve my team." He looks directly at Fudo. "Allow us to leave without further incident. I would not want to find out which one of us would die in a full on altercation." He smirks. "At least not today." He sheathed the wakazashi, but the katana is held in his right hand. He begins to walk backwards his gaze still on the Uchiha. "Let's go take care of her, Hiro."
Katsurou had walked up to the scene at the same time as Hiroyasu entered the fray. The Shirayuki decided to hang back while leaning against a tree trunk standing on a large branch to scope out for his window of opportunity to enter the fight…if his assistance was even needed. It looks as though this was a genjutsu dominating fight. A few moments later he sees Hiei enter the fight as well. Katsurou closes his eyes and inhales deeply. He clears his head and calms his mind and soon a link is established with the ancestors of his clan. A pattern of seals form on his bare chest, arms, shoulders, and back. The seals themselves are light blue and give off a faint blue glow. A light blue aura, same as the seals on his body, evolops all around his form. He opens his eyes and exhales an icy cold breath. If anyone were to get close enough they will be able to feel the chill radiating from his aura.
Panting heavily as he would land, noticing that Hiei was not snared and was offering a peaceful resolution because of the importance of her over him, even though this entire contest was based upon surviving attackers and keeping a scroll. Fudo would not be pleased, even with this "offer". Even though he had fought her, one on one, and was specifically looking for a powerful opponent to face, he was still betrayed by Hiroyasu for reasons he didn't understand nor care about, and his target was being protected by yet another would be friend of his. Fudo narrowed his eyes and said, "No." as he would exhale the flames only spoken of in legends upon the wires that bind his targets now. He was not even aware of Katsurou, and he certainly was not in a good mood, not in the least.
There was no breaking out, there was only the searing pain and scorching of her skin as she sat and endured these flames, but she dared not yell. She was stronger than this. But oh, did she wail in her mind and heart. This was not an exam. This was not survival, this was murder.
The flames passed over her and dispersed, leaving this whole area burned. This was the nature of this shell. Instead, she reached within her pack and fiddled around until she found the two scrolls. She held them out before Fudo and tossed them to the ground. Her breathing was weak and her body was weaker, but her spirit was strong. It was time to leave this place. "Hiro…" she spoke softly. "Let's go."
Trapped in the thick of it, no where to go, nothing else to be done but watch as the impending pain inches closer. He would watch as it approached and steeled his nerve and his tongue, it would be too easy to just cry out and let someone has the satisfaction of his torturous laments. The searing fire washes across the lines covering him leaving his robe to smolders, the only thing holding the loose tattering of fabric is the woven chainmesh which like oven seared into his bare flesh even after the flames has cleared. He falls over first to his wrists then with a shiver of his elbows and shoulders to his chest, then his face.. "urgh… ok.. Tsukikage.. and Katsurou.. the plan..still..the..plan.." Hiroyasu moans, as his hands dig into the flesh dirt, his arms struggle for him to stand up, he wobbles left and right making his way to Amani, his dirt stained fingers reaching out to grasp her by the shoulder as he leans forward into her.. "I'm sorry.. my love.. my light.. my star.. i couldn't shine brightly for you.." he cries as his hands glowing green caressing her into a hug. "Take me home.. please.. i want to go.. home.." he says with labored breath before slumping into her grip should she catch him. "sorry..so..sorry" he mutters before silence, he was out cold.
Katsurou watches the scene unfold from the treeline. His brows furrow at the destruction caused by Fudo. "You have a dangerous mind, Uchiha Fudo." The Shirayuki says stepping forward. He looks back Fudo to see the two kumo nin still sizzling from the Uchiha's attacks. "You may be powerful, but you do not posess a stable mind to control it." His eyes glance back at Fudo. "I am thankful for saving my life in the gardens but even then you did so in a dangerous way that was hazardous to everyone. You are not the same Fudo I called brother once before." With that said, the Shirayuki forms a hand seal in front of his chest. An Ice clone appears on either side of him. "Forgive me for what I must do." And with that said, the two ice clones sprint towards Fudo. One would attempt to knee him in the stomach while the other tries to headbutt him in the forehead.
Nori is in the area. The chakra levels flaring up having brought him towards the gathered shinobi. He doesn't know who all is around, as seeing that Fudo ambushed him last time, this time he's being careful and stealthing his way in to get a look at what is going on. The boy moves through the ground slowly and cautiously as he approaches.
Moving towards the scrolls, staggering as he was very low on chakra and stamina at this point but other wise fine, Fudo would reach towards them, knowing that Katsurou had his back. That if anyone in here was going to not betray him today, it would be Katsurou. Self proclaimed brother, and the person whose life he saved mere weeks ago. The only reason he survived assassination at the hands of an expert from Sunagakure, one of the world's best. The person who he immediately allied with, as well as Hiroyasu. That person, would not betray him.
But before he was able to even touch the scrolls…. that very thing happened. Fudo's eyes twitched slightly as his chakra welled up during Katsurou's little speech about Fudo's dangerous mind. About how he was out of control. He would stand back up, holding his right eye as he stared at Katsurou… and began to shake with laughter as his sharingan turned dark purple. He would grin as he side stepped his ice clone haphazardly, only to be slammed in the forehead and on to his back hard.
Dazed a bit, his eyes continued to fiercly glow their dark amethyst color as he would say, "You have no idea… what my mind is capable of. But you will find out… soon enough…"
Those eyes. Katsurou had seen them once before. The Shirayuki now knew more than ever that Fudo had to be stopped. He couldnt allow him to advance further. His hands blur in a series of hand seals. Once his technique was activated Fudo would feel a gust of chilling winds surround him. The winds pick up so intensely that if Fudo becomes trapped inside, his body would levitate a foot or two off the ground. The chill from the winds alone would be enough for anyone, but inside the twister are tiny crystals of ice that rip and tear at a person's skin and clothing.
Perhaps her mind didn't want to conceive of it. She has endured so much at such a young age. She knows this exam wasn't supposed to be like this…was it? She didn't even know. Why…is Hiro approaching her like this? She didn't have the will to ball her fists in blatant anger at what has happened. "You don't have to apologize…" She said with shaken voice and broken body. But that little he passed to her…she choked up, but shook her head while embracing him in a hug. She had the strength to ball her fist…once behind his back. Her weakness soon returned.
Of course, she'd capture Hiro in her arms and hold him with eyes lacking expression. She was feeling so many things at once that she couldn't possibly force her body to accept all of them. "If you want to go home, we can…" She sobbed softly. Even though she doesn't have much left, she couldn't bear the weight of seeing him in this condition. So, she uses what she can to restore even a little. He didn't deserve this no more than she did.
Nori focuses energy from under the ground. Those who can sense chakra flow would know someone was inbound below-ground. Once he's focused, his head pops out of the ground up to his eyes, much like a fish coming out of the ground to see what is going on. After a quick peak, he blinks. Katsurou is attacking Fudo? This was a change of events. From there, he rises up a little more out of the ground; bitting his thumb and pressing it to the ground as he goes. A large owl poofs into existence out of nowhere on a tree-branch near-by. The young Yamanaka spots Hiroyasu in Amani's arms…and then gasps, "Snitch." Katsurou and Fudo are forgotten and the young boy comes completely out of the ground and rushes over to Hiroyasu and Amani. He stops short with his hands raised separately, "What can I do to help him? I'm not a mednin, sorry…"
Laying there, considering his options, Fudo only had one move left to use. If he was able to avoid the icy whirlwind, he may just be able to slip from their perceptions and get away. He jsut didn't have the resources to make sure he had a good chance. He was nearly utterly spent already, before everyone came to betray him. Over an over… betrayal after betrayal. He was left alone in the storm, tossing and turning about, being chipped away at by his "brother", by someone who called him family. Nori, an ex team mate that he spared being teamed up on to be fair and test his skill, earning admiration from Fudo for just how talented he had become, betraying him to help Hiroyasu, who attacked him without provocation that he was aware of. Hiei, who was more concerned about saving his village mates from defeat than respecting the fact that Fudo had defeated them both single handedly, even after being betrayed. Amani, acting as a coward… unable to face the challenge of one single person fighting her for her scroll and nothing more.
This was the reality that Fudo would see as he spun about helplessly, unable to even move his body at all. This is what his sharingan would record, would burn in to his memory. Betrayal. Deception. Loss. He should have known better than to trust, to allow anyone to get close to him. He should have remembered what it was like in Fuuma Alley, and never bought in to the lie of friendship and family and comradree. It did not exist. Not for Fudo. And he would never forget that lesson again.
Katsurou notices Hiei from the other side. He holds out his hand towards the Kumo as if telling him to hold his position. The Shirayuki releases his Freezing Whirlwind technique that had trapped the Uchiha. He watches as his limp body lands on the ground with a thud. "It is done." Katsurou says quietly. His gaze turns on to the rest of the group. He watches as they care for each other. His face was of shame and mild regret. Though he knew it had to be done. He silently walked over to Fudo's body. First he checked to see that he was still breathing. Seeing that he was still alive just comatose, the Shirayuki searches the Uchiha's body for his scroll then gently lays him back flat on the ground. Being careful not to further injure him. He turns towards the other scrolls that had been given by the Kumo nin. He kneels down picks each one up into his arms.
Katusrou looks to each person standing nearby his eyes stop on Hiei. "How many scrolls do you posess?"
After Hiei answers, Katsurou turns to Nori. "And you?"
"What can you do? Nothing. We're both in need and I didn't have much more to assist him. Of course, as a medic, I'd want to dedicate all the energy I have, but it was expended in a battle…" Her voice trailed off as she looked over in Fudo's direction. "I used the rest of what I had on trying to restore some sort of health to him…" She sighed. It's amazing she has any mind or voice left to speak. "We have to recover, rest…live," she shook her head. "Something. We have to go. Somewhere…anywhere."
Nori nods to Hiei as the boy tells him what he can do, "Check. I'll make sure they both get there safely. I've got a few wounds that are still oozing under my clothes, but Hiroyasu bandaged up all of the other ones," and indeed, he's bandaged up quite well. "Making sure they get to safety is the least I could do." Nori frowns and turns to Katsurou as he is asked a question, "What? How many scrolls do I have? None, I gave mine to Hiroyasu for healing me," and that is the truth. "I'm not sure what happened here Katsurou…but I haven't forgotten what happened earlier, still, if what happened is what I'm guessing happened, then thank you for not letting Fudo-san hurt Hiroyasu-san further." So he might be wrong, but who cares…
Nori looks back to Amani, "So you are Amani. I wish I could say we met under better circumstances, but it is an honor to meet Hiroyasu-san's girlfriend. I am Yamanaka Nori. Please, follow me. My owl can carry Hiroyasu-san immediately to the proctors. Then I can make sure you get there safely too. I can create shelter, bring you food, protect you from the wildlife. Hiroyasu-san is a dear friend of mine, I'll make sure you are both safe." He nods twice. "Are there any herbs or anything I can look for while we move too for you?"
Hiei looks over at the ice guy. "Are we going to have to worry about you too?" He nods to Amani. "I'll carry him. If you can't move, I'll.carry you both. Let's go get you two healed up." He looks a Fudo, a pained look. "He sees betrayal where.there is none. Killing him now ensured that he doesn't become even more powerful in the future. But…I want to face him. Without distractions."
"Do not thank me. What I did was no better than what Fudo had done to them." Katsurou says looking towards the injured Kumo nin. "And I do not ask for forgiveness. Not today. I not yet deserve that…from anyone right now."
The Shirayuki turns to Hiei. "Worry about me? No. I am no threat to you all. I do not plan on engaging in anymore battles during this round if I can help it." He looks back to the injured nin. He does not say anything but his concern expression says what he does not.
"Yeah…me too," Amani states to Nori. Better conditions would've been nice. "I'll follow you. And…thank you, but…I have to ask…why did you help me?" She questioned. "Us, I mean…This…this wasn't normal. This fight…" All these…no, it's too much to think about right now. "Thank you." She lifted her hand to wipe away the tears, but her skin burned. She was scorched and clothes nearly ruined. She was going to need ointment and many other materials. "I'll tell you along the way. Let's make sure he's safe, first," she points out Hiro while stroking his head gently. "I haven't had time to study what's around here. I need something for burns. Cuts. I also will need constant maintenance. I took a hard blow to the head…" It still hurts.
When the others approached, she observed them only for a few moments. "I don't think I can move on my own. Not without assistance. I'm completely drained. Of chakra and energy."
The large owl swoops down from its tree branch and acts as a nice sturdy ride for Hiroyasu should they allow it. Nori would state, "This is Daifukuro. He rides smoothly with a passenger, even if the passenger doesn't hold on. That being said…we should still strap Hiro down just in case." And whatever they decide, Nori would help. He would look to leave as soon as the rest are good to go.
Katsurou watches as Nori and other Kumo nin help the injured ones to a better location to hide and survive the remaining days of this round. The Shirayuki sighs then places the scrolls he had collected in his bag. Normally most people would be excited to be in this position, though Katsurou was not proud of how this all came to be. He looks over to the Uchiha's body and found himself a little upset that the other did not show any concern for Fudo. He was still human at least damnit. Frowning he made his way over to the Uchiha. Then again, Fudo's well being was Katsurou's responsibility afterall and he took it with pride. Carefully picking Fudo up, he drapes the Uchiha over his shoulder and makes his way towards the tower. Ironically enough, he remembers this path for when he had dropped Atsui off. He could only imagine the rumors that was buzzing about him in Konoha right now. "Katsurou the Betrayer" stuck out in his mind as he disappeared into the woods.
