Song of the Lion Volt: Verse №1 [Tutor]

[Okada Kaji]

The great northern sky over The Village Hidden in the Clouds was never without the daily rolls of thunder, and a promise of cracks in the sky as lightning struck into the night. High winds were blowing flakes of snow— even in the summer season. A litter of mush caked up on the high-rise above the Library Complex; the central hub of all knowledge and lore within the buzzing mountain borough. Feet within leather riding boots sloshed a few steps through the snow. The man wearing them came to a haze gray gargoyle overlooking the city lights, and leaned against it, cured of any vertigo from the sight. The figure was mostly-covered by a thick earth-toned cloak which protected him from the elements and waved in the wind. Underneath the cloak, the male form held a leather-bound tome against his chest, attempting to save it from what must have been an out-of-season blizzard approaching. A silver badge upon his chest revealed his station, and for many, a name— he was Kaji Okada, first of his name and the Ambassador of the Will of Fire. The Hunter. His hood was down despite the elements, as Kaji needed his full field of view for the task at hand, surveying the village proper. Long strands of raven locks blew in the wind in uncontrolled furies, and the sunset, though masked by clouds, managed to create a glimmer in his wise emeraldine eyes. He was forever searching.

By now, you’re probably wondering why he was up on the rooftop— well, this was a matter of needing elevation for the task at hand: a search. The Hidden Cloud was a magic-filled village with a bit more mystery to it than Kaji’s former homelands. The Cloud had an abundance of nightmarish things that often went unanswered but would strike in sudden sightings, only to vanish and not be seen again for months. As a Hunter, Kaji was often tasked with finding such beings, and being there whenever they struck. However, while he was capable of handling tonight’s quarry, he was being supplied with a little help, in the form of junior shinobi who was promised to be of help to the quest. Her name was Sayomi: a young lady from the esteemed Santaru family. He couldn’t help but feel as if this particular pair was the work of her family, but he knew she’d come in handy, and learn plenty nonetheless.

Kaji peered across the horizon and took note of a clock tower, which was a few ticks from the time he set for meeting Sayomi at this very place. He expected a bright-eyed pupil to emerge from the entry hatch any second, unknowingly keen to become a human beacon for a rare Lion Volt sighting!

wc448mft
Kaji has entered the thread.
Requesting Sayomi

 

[Santaru Sayomi]

And so she stood, taking a deep breath as a building towered over her as great as an obstacle that the future would bring. Night had begun as the sun waned, hidden by the cloudy presence that brought the newest wave of fresh snowflakes that drifted towards the earth, though it was just a normal night for her. Traditional shinobi gear for one of her rank, gennin, with a light layer in preparation for the drop in temperature that always occurs in the dark, was all she wore, along with the metal headband with the mark of the Cloud upon her forehead. Yet, still, the task seemed unreasonable and still hazy to her knowledge, for if she had known little about the mission, the person she was to meet was even more of an enigma. Sayomi was simply young and inexperienced, barely able to wield lightning jutsu, let alone the powerful Storm techniques which made a name for the Santaru.

What aid could she give a foreigner?

What was the purpose of a foreigner in this land anyways? There was rumors, but rumors were all that she heard. A nameless entity that seemed to have pledged himself to the Hidden Cloud, but perhaps who's loyalty was still in question? Thoughts flowed through her mind like water cascading off a ledge, each drop special as they fell only to be forgotten in the pool below. Reaching out, the cool metal touched her fingers, warming instantly as she turned it and proceeded inside. This building was something familiar to her, so the route leading to the entrance to the rooftop was easily navigated until finally, she reached the final ladder.

The option to not accept was still there, perhaps she could be forgiven if she were to not go? It was snowing, a summer cold might be a reasonable excuse if she could will herself to succumb to it. No. It was a vow that was made the day she made genin, the next step would be chunin and she would truly become a full fledged member of the Santaru clan, bringing honor to her family and restoring her branch to prominence.

Within an instant, the hatch opened and soon she stood there, several feet away from the imposing figure, standing atop a light dusting of snowflakes that were already beginning to stick. The brunette couldn't help but shiver, it was in her nature to be intimidated by nearly everything. "M-Master Okada? I'm...I'm Santaru Sayomi! I'm pleased to meet you and...and hope I can a-assist you on your mission!" Sayomi blurted out, a little fast, weak, and stumbling over her words as she had dropped into a bow by the time she reached her own name, completely at a ninety degree angle, staying like such as if awaiting permission to rise.

wc 470
Sayomi has entered the thread.

 

[Okada Kaji]

First came the creaking of cold steel turning as Sayomi opened the roof’s hatch and revealed her sought acquaintance. The sound of her voice had to be delivered boldly; it had to be spoken with pride in order to interrupt the constant whistle of the night’s breeze passing over them. Kaji took note of her arrival the moment he recognized the hatch opening, but he’s attention did not move away from the skyline until Sayomi spoke up with a greeting. The Sensei of the pair turned his back to the city’s glow and set his attention on his new charge. He looked upon her with welcoming eyes— quite a change for Kaji, considering the reputation of his past. Sayomi was a frail little thing by Kaji’s measure, who looked like she might be carried away by the high winds if enough of the breeze got underneath her. Everything about her seemed brand new, the look of a youngling fresh out of the academy. Her kind of innocence was rare around the likes of Kaji, whom, in the days of his past, was given the hard-headed pupils who were like wild horses who needed to be broken. Sayomi would be quite a change for Kaji, or so he realized as he considered the quandary he faced: how to be nice to his pupil.

“Thank you for making it up here, Sayomi… I’m sorry the weather is being so uncooperative this evening.” As Kaji gave his reply he came down from his perch and drifted closer to the girl until he nearly hovered over her. His movements were silent despite his efforts to be casual, and only his voice indicated his motion forward. He complimented her formal bow with his own, and his lips curved into a slight smile in appreciation of her manners. Thoughts of one of his last pupils, Tatsuo, rushed through his mind— Sayomi already seemed like the rude boy’s complete opposite. Kaji knew he’d like working with this one.

Standing within arm’s length from the girl, Kaji would seem much less enigmatic than when he was perched on high. His wardrobe of earth-tone leather and cotton was complete, and the waves of his cloak revealed a fine blade sheathed by his hip. There was a faint glow of an emerald embedded in the curved sword pommel. The glow matched the light in his eyes, completing the element of magic which seemed to emanate from him. A sense of warmth also came from him, as if he were a fire standing still. He stood nearly a head taller than Sayomi and stood at an angle which shielded her from much of the falling sleet. “You hope you can assist, you say?” Kaji repeated back to her with a humored tone, “You’ll do more than just assist, kid. ‘You ever heard of a Lion Volt?” He looked to her, engaged but quiet just long enough to let her reply. Then, he said “No? Well, it’s new to me, too... ‘Lion Volts are a rare type of aberration… a creature that’s not supposed to be here. They are usually summoned on accident by shinobi practicing things they shouldn’t.” The way he spoke of the thing made the Lion Volts sound like simple creatures, and they were anything but…

“Apparently one has been appearing in the village causing trouble on stormy nights. We’re going to call it down and set things right. Okay?”

wc583

 

[Santaru Sayomi]

The silence seemed overpowering as she introduced herself, feeling what seemed to be a judging gaze upon the petite form of the former academy student as she struggled to stay as bold as she could. Brown eyes would not meet with his in this moment, constantly downward cast as a position as low as Sayomi's demanded, in her mind, at least, so silence was all that she could muster. It came as a bit of a surprise when he spoke in a gentle voice, responding to her own introduction. Perhaps the rumors weren't correct about this person, not all of them, at least. She started to raise her own gaze to judge his form and get a better idea of whom this Kaji was that she would be accompanying for the night, but a bright blush graced her cheeks instantly as their eyes met when the man went into a bow. She instantly redirected her eyes back at the ground, wanting to turn away, but stayed put and strong for the time being.

It didn't take long, as she finally rose herself and found herself within mere feet of the newest instructor in her life and a tad more distraught than she would have liked to be, especially after how nice he came off in her mind. Despite the frigid temperature surrounding the pair, there seemed to be a strange warmth emanating from this man and a glint of light from the metal shone so as to alert the teenager to the blade he carried with him. And she nodded to the first question, remaining silent for the moment yet shook her head negatively in response to his second question, mustering up the courage to answer verbally, but being interrupted before she could. Still, listening intently, she pondered only to picture a lion made up of pure energy, as pure as a lightning bolt from the heavens, striking down and running amuck within the town.

It was a fearsome thought and one that she could not allow to happen, but would lightning style work against such a beast? Timidly, she eventually summoned the courage for a reply. "T-That's awful. I'll do my best, but...h-how do we stop such a thing?"

wc371

 

[Okada Kaji]

There were a few answers floating about in Kaji’s mind when Sayomi asked how they’d deal with the dangerous Lion Volt. He was purse-lipped for a second, and looked aside, contemplating. “Well, I have a few ideas, some simple and some not so simple… either way, tonight will be a learning experience for us both.” While he wasn’t speaking as confidently as his apprentice might hope to hear, Kaji was sure that he had at least one method to end the threat of the Lion Volt. In truth, the real struggle was handling the Lion Volt humanely, but the safety of the villagers was a priority.

Kaji’s concentration on the circulation of his innate fire-element chakra create a means to comfort himself and Sayomi as they discussed the night’s plan. Kaji did have a plan in store for the girl, that much he was sure. “This might sound far-fetched, but Plan-A is to try reasoning with it…” As he said this he revealed the thick, leather-bound tome he was hiding from the snowfall, just long enough for Sayomi to notice it. “But if that doesn’t work— it probably won’t— then comes Plan-B. ‘I have ways to shield us from attack. And if we must, I have devised a means to conduct and drain some of the beast’s chakra, at least enough to contain it.”

A good adventure always promised peril to a degree, that was just the nature of the beast when dealing with the many threats looming over the Hidden Cloud. Sayomi could probably count her known combat tactics on the palm of her hand, yet Kaji was confident that she would be of great help in summoning the Lion Volt. In truth, he had done his homework on the girl prior to accepting her as a tag-a-long for the quest. Her repertoire of jutsu was still blooming, but her potential was great. “What I need is for you to show me why the Santaru’s lightning has such a reputation around here.” Then, Kaji pointed at a communication antenna rising from the library, used to send and receive broadcasts through the village. With the storm brewing overhead, Sayomi might have quickly grasped what Kaji intended for her, but he’d explain regardless. “I want you to blast a bolt into the tower, which should conduct the kind of voltage we’ll need to attract our big cat… And don’t worry about any collateral, we’ll just blame it on a freak accident.”

wc431

 

[Santaru Sayomi]

In all honesty, the world was very intimidating on it's own, yet there was now a sort of ease that meeting the mysterious Leaf villager whom she had heard so many rumors swirling about (often terrifying to someone of her meek caliber) left her with. The first impression was that almost every one of those rumors were wrong, but she only hoped that this wasn't a false front that would be dropped and he would gobble her up. Sayomi could often suffer from an overactive imagination and it rarely was positive. The strange warmth he radiated almost served to tug a smile upon her pale cheeks as she fidgeted slightly, listening intently to every word while keeping a close watch on his hands, cautious to an extreme fault.

The brunette nodded every now and then, brushing strands of hair that fell forward out of her eyes and back, often taking deep breaths to stabilize any excitement or nervous anxiety that would build up. One eye quirked out of sheer reflex as he submitted a rather curious suggestion and though she normally knew better than to question a superior, or anyone, it felt so absurd that it simply couldn't go on spoken and before better judgement was served, she was already speaking in her soft tones. "Reason...with a...lion?" She queried, blinking her eyes in disbelief as he would continue on to describe what even the youngest Santaru would agree was the most logical course of action.

A beast that used chakra was something that was terrifying to dream up as it was, but she had no idea what to expect; nothing less than a massive beast more than sixty feet tall and composed of pure golden blue lightning coursing through it's powerful form, composing it's mane entirely was the picture that formed in her mind. Her gaze followed his hand's motions and drifted over to the communication antenna, already making her feel guilty for what he was asking of her. The dislike to actually cause damage or harm to anything, even non-living objects, always was weighed down upon her so she had to look up as if to question if this was appropriate to do for just a moment before nodding in acknowledgement. "O-Okay...if that's what you want?"

A moment was needed as she closed her eyes, building up her chakra within herself and when her eyes opened, her eyes glowed, almost sparked with the innate lightning nature of the Santaru. Hand signs were quickly down and two fingers on her right hand were extended, sparking almost the same as her eyes. "Lightning Style: Storm Bolt Jutsu!" she proclaimed, throwing her arm forward as lightning burst from her fingertips, a simple but effective jutsu as the metal was struck from her attack. Now to wait for his next instructions.

wc: 471

 

[Okada Kaji]

And so, the light show began with a mere flick of the wrist. High voltage emanating from Sayomi's fingertips took light and struck the tower in a fascinating display. The flare of her jutsu reflected against Kaji’s eyes as he tracked the movement and awaited the end result, eager yet nervous about what was yet to come. Voltage licked the steel of the high-rising tower— it didn’t cause so much devastation, just a few scorch marks. But then the atmosphere responded with a rumble from above. “This is it” Kaji announced the very moment he felt the flourishing static energy building around him and the new pupil, Sayomi. “On your guard, it’s coming” he warned, though, as the moment unfolded he began to question if his plans would even work against the Lion Volt. Instinctually, his hand went to the hilt of Eelspine. The song of the blade ringing as he unsheathed it fell silent under the pulse of thunder growling. Half of a dome of green chakra emerged to shield Kaji and Sayomi from the stray voltage right before the cracking bolt came down

A rush of sudden light was nearly blinding as the sky struck the tower. The bolt brightened the vicinity enough to make the sun jealous for a few fleeting milliseconds, and then began to repeat. One after another, bolts of energy hit the tower, so loudly that their ears would ring once the exposure was finished. Stray voltage went wild, vaporizing the fresh snow on the rooftop and bashing against the energy shield.

Through the shielding chakra, a figure could be seen taking form before them… It was everything their imaginations had made it out to be, and more. The thing was massive and colored with a heavenly glow that demanded to be watched. Its very image struck fear in your heart— this was not a creature that made friends, that much seemed obvious. Kaji was still as a stone at first and would have seen just as dead if his chest wasn’t pumping and his heart racing to break out of it, like a prisoner in a rage. “O-ok… Time to try Plan-A…” Though he said it to Sayomi, there was so much doubt that it seemed as if he was truly stating the intention to himself, and convincing himself of the course of action. Kaji put himself in front and felt so foolhardy when he waved Eelspine aside and banished his shield, leaving nothing between them and the creature.

“We summoned you here… We desire peace,” Kaji tried, aiming for some kind of diplomacy against a creature that probably did not understand the common tongue. It was worth a shot but wasn’t worth the shocking results. The massive lion charged at them with fangs and claws bared! The creature was incredibly fast, sort of displacing its form as it zipped about in a zigzag pattern with energy trailing.

“Eelspine defend” Kaji commanded, quickly raising his sword again as the mighty beast closed in upon them. Emeraldine chakra gathered into an opposing sphere, meant to mirror the energy of the Lion Volt back onto itself with the same force, but when the Lion clashed, it merely bowled into them and would force both Kaji and Sayomi onto their backs. The lion continued over them, passing them after giving a mild dose of its power before fleeing over the edge of the roof. At things considered, they might have barely survived the attack with their lives intact. “Are you alright, kid?” Kaji was concerned for the girl and placed a hand on his shoulder as he scrambled back to an upright position. There was a sound of smashing coming from over the roof’s edge— the Lion Volt was on the loose!

wc637

 

[Santaru Sayomi]

The bolt of energy that had been thrown from her finger tips was even more than she had expected as the light died down from her eyes, the sparks vanishing, and she stood alone, in awe and terror of the beast that was forming in front of their very eyes. Sayomi did not need the reminder to raise her guard, she instantly had braced her own self, curling her hands into fists out of fear more than the desire or expectation for battle while the brunette chewed anxiously upon her lower lip. The sheer size and form of it, the lightning that hit the shield of chakra that Kaji had created had caused the young girl to flinch in fear of the hulking creature. So great was the factor of intimidation that she didn't even realize when or how the barrier of chakra had been erected, but she was grateful it had been, instinctively crediting it to the man beside her, though her narrowed eyes remained fix out of fear upon the beast as it began to make it's way to do whatever it wished.

It seemed like there was...fear in Kaji's voice as well, hearing it break and stutter for just a moment as he reiterated his plan on confronting the beast, though if the teenager doubted the possibility of success before, this was beyond a shadow of a doubt now that the great demonic beast was before them. The piercing eyes of crimson light, a stark contrast to the body of living lightning, seemed to pierce into her very soul, making it impossible for her to speak, to breathe, to think. A sense of self-preservation kicked in, however, as the shield was banished from sight, leaving them very much unprotected from the gigantic feline before them, the youth took a step back by instinct. "B-Be careful..." was all that could be mustered in response as she watched the man who held the oddly shaped blade try to reason with the great beast.

Of course, it amounted to nothing, which was to be expected at this point as the roar that filled the air seemed to scatter it's voltage along with the blaring sound that echoed loudly. The sight of the next actions of attack in synchronization with it's roar caused the young girl to wince, turning around and crouching out of fear from nothing more than sheer instinct. And then Kaji protected them once more with the chakra, the impact knocking her and the senior shinobi back, causing her arm to scrape against the roof as she landed on her side. The pain a solemn reminder of what happens in the face of cowardice.

It wasn't what she needed. Not what she wanted.

The slightest touch of the older man's hand upon her shoulder caused pressure on the opposite arm as it was still cushioning her from the ground and she groaned gently. "I...I'm alright...I can do this. I won't be afraid, I'll be strong. I'll become a great shinobi!" reassuring herself more than anything that could bear even a semblance of a direct response. The smallest Santaru struggled to stand once more and took in the horrible atrocity that had been unleashed due to their actions with the ensuing guilt consuming her. However, with guilt, came a desire to set things right. "W-What...what can I do, Mister Kaji?"

wc:564

 

[Okada Kaji]

The chill of the night and Howling winds of the village hidden in the clouds had never felt as cold as it did then. It was the defeat that made it chill him so deeply to the Core, the sensation of endangering a new pupil who had trusted him to keep her from harm. Kaji felt foolhardy for handling this scenario so amateurishly, and he along with Sayomi almost paid the ultimate price for it. As the duo collected themselves off of the frigid concrete deck of the roof, Kaji’s mind churned with new theories based on the encounter. Kaji scrambled to the roof’s edge in what looked like a suicidal dash, not even climbing all the way to his feet before he bent half of himself over the edge to set eyes of the madness occurring down below. The Lion Volt was on a rampage with no particular aim, moving in flight with a running motion as if it was drifting across the solid ground. The beast had little regard for solid matter and was crashing through things as it made its way down the wide Hidden Cloud streets.

“Raiden strikes it down” he cursed, saying the damning phrase he picked up from his lover. “I know that could have gone better, but we have to go after it!” It wasn’t like Kaji to be so ill-prepared for a foe, but that happens to everyone from time to time, and Kaji wasn’t about to stop after a first botched attempt. He still had hope in his eyes when he looked to Sayomi, who also seemed undaunted by the failed encounter. They could still do this, and they knew that it was never going to be easy. The lesson was that of perseverance despite the odds and fighting through fear. They would live, and both learned from the encounter.

Ready for more, Sayomi asked what she could do to help. In truth, Kaji had a new plan from the moment his first attempt at peace-talks failed. He felt like a fool for not trying it first but didn’t want to risk putting Sayomi in front of the creature before trying to communicate with it himself. Of course, it didn’t speak the common tongue, it was made of lightning… “Lightning” Kaji answered cryptically, still heavy in his thoughts. “I tried to speak with it, but its made of lightning, like a construct. Perhaps the only way to communicate with it is through lightning chakra.” He knew it sounded like a gamble, and expected his pupil to give a resounding no, finally tired of his crackpot strategies. “We attracted it with lightning, so I bet we can drive it away with lightning as well.”

Turning his sight on the glowing dot flying across the skyline on a path of devastation, Kaji only knew of one means they could attempt to catch up with the creature. He jumped to his feet and went to a spacious clearing on the rooftop, waving for Sayomi to stay where she was for the moment. “Don’t move Sayomi, I’m going to call us a lift!” Kaji then rolled up one sleeve, revealing a winding red reptilian tattoo which spiraled around his right forearm. He aggravated a fresh nick on one of his fingers with a nibble, and smeared a dot of blood onto the tattoo mark before performing a flurry of hand seals, and mashing on palm directly onto the roof.

Boom went a sudden burst, as silvery steam shot upwards from an interplanar rift, and a massive creature with mighty wings emerged within the plume. The creature was over ten feet tall with an incredible, twenty-foot wingspan. A hard, pick-shaped head popped up with red eyes glaring at his summoner. There was a loud, aggravated roar from the thing, which instantly cringed at the cold weather. “What the hell is this? W-where the— Kaji! What the hell is this?” The giant creature was full of fury and looked about with its head swiveling when the strong winds blew away the steam. As a native of the Lightning country, Sayomi surely had not seen such a creature before; a Leatherwing. “Hey Sayomi, you can come on now, we gotta go” Kaji called to the girl, attempting to sound kind and sweet to the best of his ability, despite an angry Pterosaurs cringing behind him. “Arrrgh it's so cold! Send me home you bastard! I hate you!” Caerroth was livid, but Kaji was motioning to beg the creature to aid them. “Please Caerroth, only you can help us… We are after a Lion Volt, and its rampaging through the village! My oath is to serve the cloud just like I serve the Oasis… Please be of service to us, and I will bring you a whole box of fried fire feathers!” The giant winged lizard was stoic as it looked down to Kaji, who got on his knees to beg. Of all the Hidden Oasis lizards, Caerroth was by far the most stubborn. He hated humans— admittedly he hated Kaji the least, but still, he couldn’t stand them in general. Now Kaji wanted to use him like transportation? Caerroth made a low growl, but then notice the smaller human trailing behind Kaji. There was something pleasant about the little one, perhaps less annoying than Kaji if anything. “Fine,” Caerroth settled, looking to Sayomi rather than Kaji. “I will give you both a lift, but not because you asked me to… I won’t be able to live it down if I return to the Oasis and have to admit that I refused to aid our mighty protector… What a sham, blah!”

So it was settled for certain. Caerroth planted his massive wings on the ground and bade Kaji and Sayomi to carefully climb upon his back. It was boney and rigid, perfect for both shinobi to sit and grab a hold upon. Kaji climbed on first, and offer Sayomi a hand to follow and then hold onto him for safety. “Let’s roll,” Kaji said, admittedly excited to fly for the first of hopefully many times. “Hold onto your butt, this is gonna be a wild ride! Off to catch the Lion Volt!”

wc1052
To be continued in Song of the Lion Volt: Verse № 2
Topic left unless stopped.

 

[Santaru Sayomi]

The creature was quite as terrifying as anything that Sayomi could ever have expected and twice as formidable as any opponent ever possible in the wildest of nightmares that might have confronted the young shinobi. She silently concurred with the idea that talking to the creature was rather ridiculous, if anyone were going to be honest about this, but it would be incredibly rude to say so, especially at a high tension time making it inopportune and probably a bit upsetting to be flinging "I-told-you-so"'s, particularly when she had never mentioned it to begin with.

Lightning chakra, however, made things feel rather uneasy as it probably meant that she was still required to face this beast with Kaji and she would have rather avoided continuing it, but to confront such a powerful creature was no small feat and she would have to be a brave person if she were to do so, summoning up every ounce that was available to her and even what was in reserve if she were to succeed. If they were to succeed, perhaps it would be a first big step on her way to accomplishing her goal of becoming a chuunin, if that were even possible. Still, the young teenager remained silent and nodded to his suggestion of calling a lift.

Lift? What did that mean exactly? The brunette's eyes widened in wonder as the older shinobi performed a summoning, something that she knew of but had never seen, though this was quite the ferocious creature and snapped at Kaji with a temper that was quite unbecoming of a summon, after all, they were supposed to be servants of shinobi, weren't they? It was incredibly rude of this bat...thing to act this way, in fact, the youth half expected it to fly off without the pair from how upset it was with her mentor, but he seemed to talk some sense into it. Some of her locks fell to the side as she tilted her head in confusion, muttering to herself a question softly "Protector?" she whispered as her gaze drifted back to Kaji. The idea of mounting the beast was far from a comforting one, but comfort was not supposed to be the life of a shinobi. And the creature certainly was not comfortable in the least, a fact she quickly learned as she obeyed and sunk her teeth into the bottom of her lip. She certainly did not share the same excitement as Kaji did about flying, whimpering as the creature took off to the heavens.

wc:424