Seaside Study (Open)

[Shinomiya Akari]

Shinomiya's eyes drooped slightly, a subtle frown on her face as she walked onwards, her hands full. Her graduation had been recent, and while the day itself had been uneventful save for the ceremony, her parents had insisted on celebrating. The young ninja couldn't say it was overall unpleasant, being treated to lunch like that, but being pressured into spending that much of her day above ground wasn't ideal in her now-sore eyes. As such, she'd made her own plans for her evening, in hopes of salvaging her day.

As she made her way into the Undersea, Shinomiya glanced back and forth. There were a fair amount of people here, but not so much that it was crowded, which was ideal. It didn't take long for her to find a suitably out-of-the-way location by the waterside to sit down at. Shortly after that, Shinomiya removed her footwear, before cautiously resting her heels on the water, supporting herself with her chakra; with her fairly good chakra control, the act on its own was easy for her. But, that was only a conscious thing. It was prudent, she thought, to be able to do such things without thinking about them, and at the very least trying to do so would surely improve her control further.

With her bare feet propped up for now, the young girl reached into her bag, taking out one of the books within. She'd brought a moderate variety of fiction and non-fiction alike, intending to balance study and pleasure to get the most out of her mental capacity, rather than simply tiring herself out, with pauses to meditate as needed. Obviously, that meant she'd start on the non-fiction first; quietly leafing over to the chapter she was up to, Shinomiya reclined slightly, letting out a quiet sigh.

...Though, despite her best efforts, it wasn't long until her concentration lapsed, eliciting a sharp gasp and some instinctual flailing before the girl repositioned her now-wet feet, taking a few deep breaths before continuing.

 

[Toraono Michino]

Deeper into the caverns where the water sank deep into the underground sea-like lake, another shinobi trained. Though on different levels and reasons the two soldiers both young and old connected on a single front - they sought to become better.

Toraono Michino held his breath while keeping his body stiff as a board as he circulated his chakra at high speeds. In doing this he drew in the oxygen of the water around him to form a bubble that kept in a constant state of rotation beneath the surface. He had been under the water now for the last twenty minutes, releasing his breath and taking in the oxygen every five minutes with the weight of his carbon dioxide slowly sinking him further into the sea. His head and stump of what was left of his left leg had began to ache to levels of pain that would of already caused a normal man to break his will and drown by now. Cold sweat beaded up over the surface of his body as the bubble continue to spin faster when he clenched his fists tighter.
He was lost in thought. The pain was nothing compared to the scar left on his Toraono pride. After losing his leg in battle against his own father it was quickly discovered that, even after full recovery, he wasn’t able to use the mechanical prosthetic most shinobi missing limbs wore. The man cleaved from the knee down not just his leg, but the very soul itself. Michino didn’t have the ‘ghost limb’ problem and genuinely felt nothing below his thigh. The nerves at the end were so fried from the attack that surgeons were worried that attaching a prosthetic might be more dangerous than just leaving it as it was; and so another member of the once great clan fell.
In the months following a bitter recovery from his mental status due to help from both likely and unlikely sources, the twenty-three year old was finally attempting to master his body once more and rejoin service in protecting the village.

The girl’s subtle chakra touching the surface of the sea touched the senses of not Michino, but the ‘Other’ inside of him that all ‘blessed’ members of his clan had. Nearly all of the Toraono that were blooded, even ritualistically, had traces of the Tiger Demon King. Those born with strong genes had a bit more of the King than others and, like Michino, the demonic blood usually manifested into some form of subconscious. Most of the Toraono either absorb the demon fully into themselves or bind them into control. The young man spinning in an underwater bubble eventually just came to terms with his dark side and even came up with a name for the dark being. She called herself, “Owari.”
“Pst, hey. Sumthin ain’t kickin right. I felt a thing. Hey. Michino. HE-. Oh, for the love of…”
A black bolt of lighting struck out from the dark-skinned male’s body, causing the remaining oxygen in the bubble to suddenly catch fire, collapse, and then explode. Far off in the distance from Akari a gush of water would explode upwards expelling a young man up towards the cave ceiling. He fell back crashing down into the water without a single move to stop the impact. Once the rain of lake water settled the youth seem to half float on the surface while slowly sinking in. It was unclear if he was okay or not from where the kunoichi stood, but, the boxer simply stared up at the ceiling with eyes that remained in a deep thought as his hand absently rubbed the spot where his knee used to be.

Even his brother couldn’t help…

 

[Ryu Hime]

Hakuren is what is known as a Tsuchimikado. Tsuchimikado practice the way of Onmyodo, and a telltale sign of this are the Ofuda that they wield in battle; slips of paper inscribed with mystical seals. These special charms are what they use to perform their techniques in place of handseals. Through this slips of paper members of his bloodline are able to set up jutsu like traps and give them certain triggers that would set them off. The Tsuchimikado also have an ability to transfer self-targeting ninjutsu into others with these talismans as well. Hakuren changed the method of his bloodlines art into something more enjoyable to others. Instead of using the customary paper, Hakuren uses food as his talismans. Through a meal he can give a person chakra armor, a barrier, clones or some other buff. Hakuren can also place genjutsu into her food and drink. As mentioned before members of his bloodline are able to set up jutsu like traps and give them certain triggers that would set them off. One such trigger is attacking the talisman. Being that Hakuren’s talisman’s are consumables, eating them would cause the jutsu to be triggered.

Water walking is often used as a training method to gain better chakra control. This technique is more difficult to master than the Tree Climbing Practice, because the amount of chakra that needs to be emitted changes constantly. However despite being used for training, it is still at its core a shinobi technique, a jutsu. Because of this Hakuren wanted to do a little experiment in sharing this jutsu with a being incapable of performing the art herself. Hakuren got a few weird looks as he rode a horse into the undersea. Just along the shores he gives his mare a sugary treat the was imbued with the Water Walking jutsu.

The explosion startle the horse which almost causes Hakuren to fall off. Fortunately he manage to stay in the saddle and regain his composure. Grabbing hold of the reins Hakuren rides across the water. The creatures hooves touches the surface of the water without sinking like it was solid ground. Hakuren gallops past Akari and heads towards Michino. Once Hakuren was next to the floating man, he would call out to him. “Are you alright?”

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

For the next few minutes, Shinomiya's study continued in relative peace. While her control lapsed every so often, it wasn't so frequently that it prevented her from reading, so she made steady progress. Unfortunately for her, that peace didn't last nearly as long as she wanted it to; the Genin let out a quiet, uncharacteristically feminine squeal when Michiro was launched above the surface of the water, dropping her book and letting her feet fall into the water once again. Despite her apparent panic, she was perfectly calm in under a second, merely startled given her intense focus.

Squinting into the distance, Shinomiya rose to her feet. Her eyesight was hardly her best feature, but it definitely wasn't bad, so she could make out the human-shaped thing out in the sea. While she was a tiny bit concerned, or at least she thought she was, for the most part she was motivated by a feeling of obligation, and mild curiosity as to what had happened or was happening. The young girl had only just finished standing before a horse of all things dashed past her, and she couldn't help but pause at the bizarre display, momentarily shocked into inaction. After a few seconds of staring, she briefly debated whether she should sit back down... yet, even if the mounted shinobi was sufficient help, Shinomiya still felt pressured into at least trying to help, her hand forced by the weight of society. Besides, she'd already stood up, so she might as well keep going. Especially when she was still curious, and there was a chance she could still be mildly useful.

While she had no hope of outrunning a horse at her current level, the Genin didn't lag too far behind either. Shinomiya was slightly taken aback by the potentially-drowning man's appearance, but she didn't let it slow her down. Since she wasn't certain how long it would take Hakuren to dismount, she silently held her hand out for Michiro to take; it would've been hard to reach the 'ground' from up there, she figured. Although, even as she offered her help, she couldn't help but shoot glances at the horse every so often. It wasn't the sort of thing she saw every day, after all, especially not one with apparent shinobi training.

 

[Toraono Michino]

While the dark-skinned youth floated in the water with his lost thoughts the surprise of a horse, soon followed by a young girl, came running towards his aid. Mentally he chided Owari for messing with his training but slowly began to regain focus. A large hand lifted from the water and revealed the incredibly toned muscles of his arm. Multiple scars crisscrossed each other leading up to his shoulder as the hand gripped the child’s arm. The strength she exerted for her size told him she was trained, like he was, and the warrior let his fellow soldier guide him back to the surface for he truly was tired.

Chakra control was a simple thing for Michino. Once Akari had pulled him out of the water to an extent he focused a small film of chakra across the surface of his flesh with a thought and used his full knee to push himself out of the clear depths before flopping somewhat unceremoniously onto the surface of the lake. Releasing the Genin the man turned his back towards them and leaned back, unconsciously hiding his stump, as his purple-hued irises stared out towards the greater depths of the water.

Like his half-brother, the doctor Ryuu Tama, Michino stood at a little over seven feet tall, when he was standing, but unlike his brother’s slim frame the Toraono carried his clan’s legendary size. Dressed only in swimming trunks his exposed dark flesh revealed more scars carved into him by both a rough childhood and his life as both a boxer and shinobi. Despite his current brooding nature today, he was generally a man of good humor and got along with nearly everyone who bothered to give him the time; but as of late he had drawn himself into a cycle of self deprivation. Losing his leg on that fateful night in the restaurant forced him into an early retirement and as a ‘blessed’ member of his clan, it struck a fatal blow to his mountainous pride.
Yet this wasn’t some sad tale of a man who had lost everything. His lover, Chiyo and even her bastard father had been at his side through everything. The Steward, the Kazekage, his clan, multiple members of the village who had become fans of his boxing…a lot of people stood behind the Toraono and for the first time in a long while the village was starting to take a better eye on those who raised him. He had accomplished his life goal of bringing his people back into a better light and by all rights deserved an early retirement…but it wasn’t what he wanted to do with his life.

“Horse that walks on water eh? That’s cool, wonder how you do that…” he spoke absently before tilted his head to his left and back to let the long white hair pool against the surface of the water as he look at the Genin, “Thanks, by the way.”

 

[Ryu Hime]

It seems the man was impressed with the horse walking on water and naturally so. Hakuren was proud of his achievements too and had various other ways of using regular jutsu to accomplish strange feats with his bloodline abilities. As for the question, however, Hakeren just says, “I’m a chef-nin.” Hakuren says it matter-of-factly like it was completely obvious. Yes he was wearing a chef outfit so anyone is aware that he is a chef, but what does that have to do with the horse walking on water one might ask. The two of them likely had many question such as: What is a chef-nin? What can they do? And most importantly, is that even… “Yes I am well aware that such a position does not currently exist. However it is my hope that one day I could make it a thing.” That fact that it takes a certain bloodline to do what he does makes teaching his techniques rather difficult. The amount of people that can learn his form of jutsu is small and of those capable the amount willing to learn is even smaller. Due to this it is likely going to remain an unfulfilled dream.

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

The first thing Shinomiya noted - aside from the fact that Michino was, in fact, still alive - was a tie between the other ninja's muscles and his scars, both of which were a bit beyond what the Genin had ever seen before. At the same time, it wasn't enough to make her break her composure; in fact, the only thing that came close was the way he was gripping her arm, which made her feel a little nervous and uncomfortable. She endured it, though. The girl's head tilted to the side slightly when Michino pushed himself up, silently noting that he was in fact a ninja, or at least had been trained similarly. Even on just one knee, he was as tall as she was while standing, maybe even more so, although she didn't feel intimidated yet. Once she'd been freed, Shinomiya closed her eyes and took two deep breaths, letting all thought leave her mind for a handful of seconds as she concentrated on her chakra. It would be much more inconvenient if her control slipped out here compared to at the shore, after all.

"It's no problem. Are you alright? What were you doing out here?"

Initially, Shinomiya had planned to follow her question up with others, having been moments away from going into almost ANBU-esque levels of inquisition. Yet, the third shinobi present managed to completely demolish her train of thought with three single words. She'd never heard of any such thing, and the idea itself seemed nonsensical, even after a few seconds of consideration. Her mind tripped over itself, entirely tangled up by trying to figure Hakuren out. His subsequent explanation only raised more questions; however, Shinomiya had been raised to be polite, so as such, she managed to slow down and ask properly, rather than merely calling the idea stupid. So, she turned to look up at the chef-nin, staring with her big, emotionless red eyes. "Why? What are you trying to accomplish?"

 

[Toraono Michino]

The young female had two good questions and Michino honestly had an answer for both. Though he had never heard of a chef-nin the applications of what it might be and how it could be used for the military instantly shot a few scenarios through his mind. Rations that could restore energy, promote healing, provide a source of hydration, while managing to also taste good, sounded like an amazing moral booster. The current desert rations tasted like a butt despite their amazing nutritional values. A man could easily live the rest of his life traveling the desert on Suna rations, because they also were great about not expiring, but they’d need one hell of a stomach. Also probably no taste buds.

“Same as you, I assume. Training. Mine was just a bit more…complex I’m sure. And while I have no idea what a chef-nin is, if you can make the Suna Ration edible then you can shut up and take my yen.”

Michino smirked to himself as he tilted his head from side to side to pop the joints in his neck. It had been a long time since he had last pushed himself this far and admittedly had a better mood than he had been experiencing in the last few months.
The warrior’s eyes caught the youth’s struggle for composure on the lake. He didn’t give any signs to having noticed in respect for her pride as he leaned forward and pushed himself back into a standing position. With his precise chakra control and years of training he was able to stand on the surface with his one leg. The left hand dug into his pocket to withdraw a small scroll dripping with water that he opened and tossed into the air to activate. Within a small explosion of smoke a large eight-foot long staff shaped similar to a tree’s root appeared. The left caught it and extended his chakra presence to coat the wood so that it would serve as an extra foot.
“Come, let’s retire back to the shore so we can better speak without exhausting our reserves any further. I assume that horse will only be able to walk out here so long.”

 

[Ryu Hime]

The girl was hard to read as her eyes seem to tell nothing. However there are many shinobi that are quite capable of hiding their emotions, which is a nice skill to have in this line of work. “To make a name for myself really.” He answers the young genin as he was rooting around a pack the horse was carrying. The clanking of mettle could heard as he shift things around inside to find a particular item. “Now where is… Ah here it is.” He then pulls out a cutting knife. This blade was sharp and sturdy enough to easily cut through bone, though he has no intention of using it as a weapon. “I agree the military rations they give are rather hard to stomach.” Hakuren has had the unfortunate pleasure of eating one and was one reason he was so eager to learn how to cook.

“Chef-nin, as I am trying to make them, are a type of support group. It would be easier if I demonstrate.” Walking around the horse he reaches into another pack to pull out a Kali Melon, which is a type of fruit that grows locally. The melons are fist-sized and covered by a thick fibrous shell that often requires a knife to break open. Hakuren holds the fruit to his mouth as he whispers something to it. It would be hard to make out what he said and it did not sound like the common tongue. Holding the melon in his one hand, he takes the knife and slices it in half with a single swing. The blade cut so quickly and easily that the two halves did not move and was hard to even tell that it was cut. Hakuren walks over to The older gentleman and tilts the fruit to cause the top half to slide. Once the man takes the top half he would give the bottom to the student. “I’m sure you never had a ration that can do this.” Once they take a bite they would be imbued with a shadow garb jutsu. They would find the shadows around them circling and rising up. The darkness would shroud them in a dark cloak and slink away. The fabric was thin as shadow be as concealing as the night itself.

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

Shinomiya nodded firmly, both in response and in approval. Training was very good, in her eyes; not only did it give one purpose, at least in the short-term, but it provided long-term benefits, making it a very efficient use of time. She couldn't help but be slightly impressed by Michino, or at the very least she regarded his level of training as one she should aspire to reach. It wasn't much longer before the older shinobi suggested they relocate, and Shinomiya nodded again; she didn't catch on as to the real reason behind his idea, taking his words at face value. Not that she'd have objected either way, even if she was moderately confident in both her chakra control and her ability to swim. So, she followed Michino's lead, walking along after he did before turning to Hakuren.

"That's a good reason," she offered. It was as good as any other, at least. "...Though, what made you decide to make that your goal?" Shinomiya watched on in silence as Hakuren demonstrated his technique, taking her half of the fruit once offered. She started intently at it, a mixture of cautious and curious, doing her best to understand at least some aspect of the chef's jutsu or how it worked. Feeling slightly hesitant, she decided to offer her own comments before proceeding. "The rations exist for a reason, though, right? They're cheap to produce, or they don't spoil, or they don't take up space, for example. Those things are all important too, aren't they?" Ideally, she would have preferred to wait until Michino sampled the food first, so that she'd have a better idea of what she was getting into. But whether he did or didn't, Shinomiya didn't want to be impolite, so she eventually began eating regardless, silently musing as to the feasibility of gustatory genjutsu.

 

[Toraono Michino]

The bottom of Michino’s staff tapped the water with an audible sound. It was something akin to wood tapping wood despite the compositions of the solids and liquids hitting each other. This was just a point of how much energy the young retired warrior was putting into the stick, as well as how much weight he placed on it serving as his missing leg. The ripples waving off of the Toraono were nearly waves with each step in comparison to his companions, though it wasn’t due to how much more overwhelming his strength potentially was; he was just tired. Normally a shinobi, a well trained and practiced one, could walk across any surface of water and not make so much as a ripple. Michino in his near-waves showed off his capacity and strengths which, compared to a normal soldier, were frightening but not impossible. Plus it was akin to showing your hand in poker. No matter how good his cards, if the opponent knew what he had they could very well out play him. This was one of the main reasons he retired. There had been many shinobi able to continue their job with missing limbs, even those not replaced with artificial ones. However they all had the ability to maintain the focus and hide their true potential, something Michino had trouble with even when he had all four limbs. Now, it was rather easy to gauge how strong the fallen Toraono was, and that was a dangerous handicap for a soldier to enter combat with.

A few yards from shore the Chef-nin reached into his bags and handed the two soldiers fruit and asked of any food that could compare. Michino, having a strong stomach and a natural immunity to most poisons, didn’t even hesitate in scooping out and tossing bits of the melon into his mouth a little at a time. Shortly after the fist bite his eyes widened. It tasted like a melon, but his demonic instincts told him, ‘nah fam, that’s chakra’. Yet he didn’t hesitate to finish the melon, and when he bent down to wash his hands and the rind is when the jutsu took its effect.
The feeling was very peculiar for him. It was akin to the feeling of rapid digestion. Like a fast metabolism, but on steroids. His stomach suddenly felt empty despite having eaten half a melon but at the same time he could feel chakra and power surging through his body as if he had just finished a full meal. Only problem was that it was not his own. It took a lot of mentally repressing Owari to see the jutsu through, though wasn’t disappointed in the aftermath. Michino raised his spare hand up in mild fascination as he examined with trained eyes on the chakra threads and how it was connected to his chakra through the same way food created their energy.

“I must say, Hakuren, this bodes a lot,” Michino spoke up as his bare foot touched wet sand. With a single push of muscle and chakra the Toraono leapt from the wet beach to a drier part,
“Though it still needs work. I’m not sure how most shinobi react but I had to repress my…” Michino paused. Memories of the church life and the religions that were in Suna caused the slight moment of silence. Despite the age they lived in and how even some of Suna’s greatest heroes were aligned with demonic forces, the soldier dared not explain who or what Owari was; at least not before people had just met. A fight caused by his cursed blood was the last thing the young man needed. Not that he couldn’t handle himself, which compared to how he was before the leg injury a fellow soldier would say that he was a shell of his former strength. No, the dark skinned male stayed away from confrontations due to his murderous fiancee and her literal assassin of a father. The two of them were both hot-headed people and didn’t think twice about killing someone who had offended them.
“…instinct to fight off the foreign chakra. It’s a sensation that’s hard to describe but a part of my brain kept telling me to ‘fight that poison.’ If you get what I mean. My brother might be able to assist you with that though. You ever heard of a man named Ryuu Tama? He’s probably the foremost mind in chakra control and its use in medical science.”

 

[Ryu Hime]

As the two of them took the two halves of the melon they each had their own responses, but none that he is not use to. The young genin was overly cautious, but Hakuren did not take any offense. One student in at the academy refused to even take the food and was very rude about it. When outside the restaurant environment it is understandably common for one to eye the food suspiciously, especially around the younger crowd. Michino goes straight for showing no hesitation whatsoever, but what he said was puzzling. “Most react normally with no resistance.” However this was not the most unusual response he has ever gotten. A Sunaku genin, who has yet learned to properly control his bloodline, tried a shadow grab infuse rice ball and ended up triggering a defense mechanism. Sunaku is a very defensive bloodline and it would be understandable due to the cursed nature of the jutsu, it could trigger such a reaction from them. However no one ever mentioned an instinct to fight off the foreign chakra.

“That pause suggests that there is more to it than that.” He would assume some sort of third party is at work here. Hakuren has had many different customers with some unique back stories. “However I am not one to pry.” Information was as valuable as money and some would go to great lengths to keep their secrets unknown, but Hakuren could not help being coy “Though if it is what you say, that must make being on the receiving end of an energy transfer rather difficult.” Energy Transfer is a technique used to create a link of chakra between the user and a target, bonding the two together in many ways. One of the most powerful aspects shared with this technique, is that it allows the two to transfer energy into one another, giving or taking chakra from each other so long as this technique is managed.

“Ryuu Tama, Ryuu Tama” Hakuren repeats the name a couple of times to see if it rings any bells. Hakuren did not really keep up to date on positions within the branches, but the name does seem oddly familiar. Was he instructing one of the clan members? Hakuren recalls Jiro was apart of the medical branch. Perhaps He could ask him about it later. “Tell him to come by Nekoya sometime and perhaps we can discuss the matter.”

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

The force of Michino's chakra immediately caught Shinomiya's attention; not only had she never experienced a demonstration of sheer power like that, but it would have been impressive even if she hadn't. True, she'd seen people perform jutsus with actual destructive power, but she'd never witnessed somebody doing it in such a casual manner, so it spoke volumes as to the raw chakra he possessed. The young Genin let herself lag behind a little, keeping some distance between herself and Michino, seeing as not only was it quite distracting in itself, but that amount of chakra coursing through the water made it difficult to properly adjust her own, on top of the movement of the actual surface. Of course, at the same time, she stuck a little closer than was strictly safe, figuring it was a good excuse to get in some more difficult training. She stumbled every so often, and fell over a couple of times, but managed to never drop below knee-level before they reached the seashore.

Having observed the effects on Michino, Shinomiya was content to partake in Hakuren's fruit without any hesitation. It was an interesting experience, having someone else's jutsu cast through her, especially one of such a high level, and she made sure to savour every microsecond and thoroughly study the technique as best she could. Although, in spite of that, the technique itself made her somewhat uneasy. Not on a spiritual level, nor on a physical one, but... psychologically, being obscured like this made her feel self-conscious. Sure, she was covered, but so were her real clothes, so in a sense she still felt more exposed, given she could well have been naked beneath the shadows. While Shinomiya acknowledged it as a bizarre sentiment, she held herself awkwardly nonetheless.

"For what it's worth, I didn't feel anything like that. Actually, it felt very natural; like casting a jutsu of my own, only without any effort." Much like Hakuren, she was content not to probe Michino for further information; in part out of politeness, in part because it didn't really matter to her. As the two conversed, the young girl took a moment to dry her feet and gather her personal effects, casually putting her socks and shoes back on. "Ryuu Tama... ...if he's a mednin, he must be rather busy, no? Especially if he's that important. I heard they've been in high demand and low supply lately." In truth, Shinomiya couldn't deny she had a slight interest, after hearing Michino's claims. ...But, she reasoned a lowly Genin like her wanting to meet someone like that seemed inappropriate, especially given the lack of real, significant purpose such a meeting would have.

 

[Toraono Michino]

Listening to Hakuren reply to what shouldn’t of been too obvious put the creature inside of him a little on edge. Placing a hand on his chest and taking a deep breath he reigned in control of his demonic blood and mentally gave Owari a smack on the head; that was not an attitude to make friends with. Drawing his hands up into the symbol used to release the control of jutsu, Michino flexed his chakra coil to break the ninjutsu. The demon was only too happy to help and the invisible clothing practically exploded off of him.

The tall man turned back towards the lake, and companions, before flopping down on the moist sands of the beach. His purple hued eyes took on a look of disbelief when they both mentioned that they had never heard of Ryuu Tama. The look would quickly fade as a passing thought crossed his mind, reminding him that his older brother had the penchant to over exaggerate a lot of things.
“I do express some surprise that you don’t know who Tama is. Of course that means he’s either still full of himself or Suna is really good at hiding things...
“He isn’t exactly the…best of people. For example had either of you come across him screwing up training like I did he would of either tried to wipe your memories, somehow, or simply state it was an experiment with a high chance of failure anyways,” the Toraono stuck his staff into the ground and leaned back on his hands, his stump wiggling as one would tap a foot absently, “A lot of people say he’s been around for a very long time though, and knows a lot of crazy things. Most of which involve advanced medical techniques and experimental surgery involving Ninjutsu. He is…surely someone worth meeting once in your life, just, try to be careful. Between his life in and out of the military, as a surgeon, and as a scientist back when everyone was trapped underground didn’t do well for his mental state so he’s a bit…out there.”

Of course the younger brother decided to keep his warning to a minimum as not to hurt his sibling’s pride any more than it already had been. The man had been through a hell of a life and Michino thought it a miracle that Tama had any sanity left at all. Still, it was better to make sure that anyone looking to meet his brother be told before hand that he wasn’t the most conventional of people. The rare few that really grind on his brother’s nerves generally were never heard from again.

“Though, yeah, he is really busy most of the time. However due to his…body, I guess, he only sleeps twenty-four hours out of the week. You just got to catch him after he gets off shift and before he gets home. Once he’s in that damn trailer there will be no getting him back out until next shift start. I’ll let him know about your restaurant though, he’s likely to swing by eventually. Apparently he hasn’t been able to eat food until very recently, so he’s always trying new things.”

 

[Ryu Hime]

Hakuren pulls out a pocket watch from his coat pocket to take a look at the time. Being underground in a place that is always lit, it is sometime hard to keep a track of time. Sometimes he has spent hours down here without even realizing it. “I’m afraid I have to get going. It was nice meeting you both.” Hakuren had originally plan only to be here for a small while to experiment with things. However he did have work to do; hee party to set up. Getting on top of his horse he rides off.

(left topic)

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

Shinomiya glanced in Michino's direction as he dispelled the jutsu; somehow, that idea hadn't occurred to her. Possibly because, though her chakra control and chakra reserves were both exceptional, she was ultimately still young and still training, so doing something like that wasn't exactly trivial for her. Even so, she left things as they were, continuing to soak in the feeling of shadowy chakra coursing through her. That part was rather pleasant, actually. As the older shinobi sat down, so too did Shinomiya, smoothing her outfit in a neat and proper manner as she did.

"I think it's more that, I don't really know who anyone is. I was born and raised here, but I don't really pay attention to that sort of thing. I'd rather read or study, that's all." The young girl listened patiently as Michino talked on about his brother; she wasn't smiling on the outside, but she was enjoying the conversation. "He sounds interesting. And useful. Actually, my specialty is ninjutsu, and I've been studying medical techniques recently." Her head tilted to the side, staring intently. "...What kind of work does he do? ...What sort of things does he like and dislike? And, what makes him worth meeting?"

Her curiosity was interrupted by Hakuren's excusing himself. She turned in his direction, watching in silence for a few seconds as he rode away. "...Ah. I shouldn't be surprised, but somehow, I am... perhaps because he didn't leave immediately, I thought he wasn't busy..." The Genin let out a thoughtful hum, stretching a little. "Ah, what about you? I don't want to get in your way if you have something more important on. I assume a ninja at your level must have a lot to do."

 

[Toraono Michino]

Michino’s heart began to pick up in a slight fear as the youth continued asking questions about his brother. For as interesting as he was, and for all the knowledge that the Hybrid held, getting to know Tama wasn’t exactly a good idea. At best, he would snub the Genin, and at worst, take an interest. The man was unorthodox as one could get when it came to his research. It wouldn’t surprise Michino in the least if his older brother was back to collecting corpses from the Underground again. No, the last thing the Toraono wanted of Akari was to ever run afoul his brother.
Thankfully, Hakuren changed the subject.
Upon the man’s exit, the Genin seated near Michino stretched and gave a considerable hum before asking the dark male if he too had business to attend to. The honest question struck the man’s pride like an arrow, causing a sad smile to slip into his face,
“Once. Yes, once I did have something to do, and maybe one day I will again…but,” he paused for a moment as his hand tapped the stump of his leg while he stared it, “I am retired. Prosthetics don’t work on me due to the circumstances behind how I lost it in the first place. As such, I get a small pension for my previous service, but…I don’t like sitting still. Hence what you caught me in out there on the lake.”

The wide shoulder male drew up his right knee and rested his same arm on it as he leaned forward a little. The chakra training felt like it was starting to catch up to his muscles now. It was good that he was able to sit when he did; any longer on the water and he’d of lost control. It had been some time since he had last really pushed himself, and though it didn’t really show, Michino was exhausted.
“And what of you? Have you no mission or work to do outside of training?” His voice was a little sharper than he intended, but it came out less mocking and more the tone of a concern older sibling. As a protector and newly placed guide of the young in the Toraono Clan, it was starting to become second nature to ask of the youth their problems and how to find solutions. The young man didn’t even realize he had done it as he waited Akari’s reply.

 

[Shinomiya Akari]

Regardless of whether it was fortunate or unfortunate for the young Genin, Hakuren leaving and causing their conversation to shift made her too awkward to try and change it back. Her interest hadn't waned in the slightest, and she had no reason to believe that Michino was outright unwilling to talk about it further, but since they'd already started talking about something else, and Michino himself hadn't brought it up of his own volition, she was left unsure what to do to reach her objective. Then again, her interest was still just a passing one, and it wasn't as if she couldn't make progress on her own, there was no sense of urgency in her desire. Besides, the new topic was interesting too.

Of course, before she could form a response, her own question was turned back on herself. Shinomiya blinked once, then looked to the side, her thoughtful eyes betraying none of the slight guilt she felt. "Nothing ongoing. I only just graduated from the academy today, so I haven't been assigned anything to do yet. I'm not sure exactly what happens now, so I've just been spending lots of time training to prepare. Not that I'm worried."

Shinomiya paused, then frowned, tilting her head and staring intently at the man's missing leg. "It can't be healed with medical jutsu? ...Hm. Even if a prosthetic wouldn't be able to move on its own, surely even just something to balance on would be better, would it not? ...Like a pirate." She bit her lip, then tilted her head the other way, placing her hands on her knees and leaning forward to get a better look. "I'm curious what you had done to it, if something like a puppet leg wouldn't work. Or do you favour taijutsu too heavily?"

 

[Toraono Michino]

Michino’s hand reached down and slapped the stump lightly with a sigh. The leg twitched a few times in reaction. His face skewed up a little at the sensation but with a couple of deep breaths he was able to bring it back under control.
“Long story short, it was cut off by a weapon that can also cut through souls. Which, yes, souls are a very real thing, by the way, but I digress. Since from here down,” he motioned with his hand over the missing leg area, “There is no soul, I don’t even get ghost pains. However, as far as my brother has been able to explain it to me, current prosthetics work on fusing with the soul…” his eyes looked past Akari for a moment back towards the sea for a moment. Then she mentioned him having an actual fake prosthetic, like a peg leg. The very idea of it caused Michino to snap out of his creeping bad mood as a laughter rolled out over the still waters, echoing slightly off the high cave ceilings.

“Oh, man, I can just see the look on Chi-Chi’s face! Ah-ha! Oh, that’s great kid…but yeah, I was a boxer. My clan specializes in a lot of different studies of both Genjutsu, Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu; but we tend to favor the latter. Or at least we used to. These days, the young are showing potential in all branches. Not at all like how I grew up…” His eyes looked to gaze off into his own brain for a moment before he felt a pinch at his ribs. Looking down he realized that the demon inside of him had reminded him he had things to do. Gathering himself up slowly with his staff he looked down at the Genin. In her he could see a little bit of himself in the way she was trying to prepare herself for the harsh land they lived in. Missions around here weren’t easy on a Genin, weak or strong, and the blistering sands had a way of culling the first. Michino could feel the demon tugging in the back of his mind, but something made him stay a second longer to make a decision.

“You know, my brother isn’t exactly someone I’d recommend bothering, but if it’s Taijutsu or Genjutsu training, I can offer help. If you ever need me, just come knock on the Toraono Dojo doors - I’m almost always there training or helping teach our young. It’s been awhile since someone from the village has trained with us, probably a good time to change that.”

After waiting for Akari’s reply, accepted or denied, the Toraono would nod to the new Genin and begin hobbling back towards his home in the Residential District.

[Topic Left]