>

[Virtual Dream]

·¤·

c h a r a c t e r . t r a c k e r

The Byakugan
I. Hyuuga Yuu -LG, Magical Kungfu
The Swordsman
II. "Jellyfish" Ren - LE, Spellsword
The Ronin
III. "Iron Maiden" - CG, Sword
The Demon Bound
IV. "Hikoboshi no Natsu" - TN, slipping to CE, Magic Sword
The Yokai
V. Higashi Kohi [Pending Rewrite] LE, Projectile/Illusion
The Black
VI. Hatsuyuki Shiro [Potentially dead.] CG, Magic
The Yakuza
VII. Keisei Ranko LE, Leader
The Corporate Shinobi
VIII. Sajime "Sasa" Sahori LG, Magic

H y u u g a . Y u u

[The Byakugan]

[C A P S T O N E]
Stage 4 jyuuken (+4 Speed, +2 Stamina, +7 Strength, +3 Control)
Stage 3 g.nin.hiddenexplosion (+1 Power, +1 Intelligence)

G u s h i k e n . R e n

[The Electric Swordsman]

[C a p s t o n e]
contentment

K i k u ' i c h i m o n j i . J u n ' k o

[The Iron Tower]

[C a p s t o n e]
stage.6.samurai.sword (+3 Strength, +2 Control)
stage.6.thicc.style (+4 speed, +2 Strength, +2 Tactics)

H i k o b o s h i . n o . N a t s u

[The Demon Bound]

[C A P S T O N E]
Stage 4 miko.pierce (+4 Control, +3 Power, +2 Reserves, +1 Willpower)
Stage 3 miko.deny (+1 Control, +1 Reserves [stage 4 pierce])
stage 3 stam.tai (???, ???, ???)

[Virtual Dream]

Special thanks to Calibur and everyone else who’s been suffering along with me during this crazy ride.

Iwagakure Berserker Style

The Three Paths of the Berserker

Description

Iwagakure Berserker Style is a violent method of combat that incorporates unarmed strikes, body building, and the use of oversized weapons to dominate and destroy the foes of the Village Hidden in Stone.

While there’s a history of mysticism and otherworldly to the Iwagakure Berserkers, the system ultimately is defined by the lessons given by the earth itself – those who survive the harsh climates and the dangerous animals and monsters of the mountains and plains of Earth country hone their body to bestial levels. Iwagakure Berserkers master their bodies through discipline and incredible feats of training, and learn to control their emotional state for better or worse to aid them in the path of conquest and domination.

The whole body is used in Iwagakure Berserker Style, in open palm and striking fists and kicks, as well as using their unique control over their core muscle structure to leverage oversized weapons to pummel their foes. This intense training offers an uncommon resilience to the Berserkers, capable of weathering intense blows themselves, as well as walking through the flurry of attacks from swifter, weaker opponents.

Berserkers, in their path to control their emotions in battle, walk several paths individually, on a quest to reach a true enlightenment known as “zen”. It’s said that this zen can only be found on the otherside of a lifetime of training, meditation, and battle – and none know battle quite like an Iwagakure Berserker.

History

The Howler, the Titan, and the Bloodletter are the three paths that modern Iwagakure Berserkers follow. These ancient warriors, each separated by decades, independently discovered their own zen after a lifetime of battle, inspiring the founding of the Byakkotai (White Tiger Force). The Byakkotai was an ancient proto-shinobi combat force that protected the weaker clans of the Nekozu Rensan mountain range, coming down from the peaks during times of need, to fend off foreign invaders. As modern history approached, eventually the Byakkotai laid forgotten – but their dojos, temples, and shrines remained places where all Iwagakure shinobi could learn their ancient battle methodology. The ancient methodology is separated into three distinct parts that ultimately make up the whole of the modern Berserker method, each school following after one of these ancient and legendary warriors.

The Path of the Howler follows the legend of a tribal warrior who, overcome with primal bloodlust, fought with uncommon tenacity and movement – like a beast let free from its cage. Her heroic symbol is the Mountain Sundered By Sword, from a tale that she once cut a mountain peak in two in her fury. Her tale inspired the Titan.

The Path of the Titan follows the legend of a holy warrior who, overcome with divine wrath, murdered his family and friends. Afterwards, he spent his lifetime atoning for these sins by embracing the path of zen, learning to put aside his mad anger for peace. His heroic symbol is the Rising Sun, from the tale that he spent an entire winter meditating on a mountain top in the worst winter of Earth Country history, until the sun rose on his enlightened form. His story inspired the Bloodletter.

The Path of the Bloodletter follows the legend of a samurai warrior who, overcome with emotionless discipline, became an instrument of war for his daimyo. Eventually, he could stand this combat no longer and cast away his sword to seek a pilgrimage for enlightenment, but a combination of his honed reflexes and bloody history caused him to take up the sword again and again until he turned himself into a sword of the people rather than an instrument of war. His heroic symbol is the Sakura flower, from the tale of his gentle sacrifice of his own needs for the people of Earth Country. His story inspired the Iwagakure Shinobi.

Berserking: While using a special technique that grants you berserking, you cannot use an other special technique that grants you berserking. All berserking special techniques share a limit of one plus your stages in this style, regardless of you spend them all one one form or mix it up between them. To change from one style of berserking to the other, you must first end the first one, dealing with the penalties.

Stage 1
Stat Requirements: 4 Stamina, 4 Strength
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

Shoshin is the beginner’s mind, and it’s drilled into new students of the Berserker schools universally. With shoshin, you treat every exercise and training day and combat experience like you would the first time – maybe not with the same fear, but with the same intensity and fervor. This leads to new insights more often than those who practice purely by rote practice (which is common in the common martial arts styles of non-shinobi and casual practitioners), and offers the ability to learn and react to new environments and situations better. The primary focus to body training is to unlearn poor habits from previous experiences and to focus wholly on the basic needs of the body – training to exhaustion, properly resting, an an appropriate diet.

Combat here reminds one of karate, straight lines and the use of force to topple your opponents. Simple throws and leads are appropriate, but at the fledgling stage, your likely more dependent on your superior force than any results of training.

Those who take advantage of an oversized weapon for this style are learning to properly wield what should be unwieldy, taking advantage of their understanding of core balance to swing their weapon with relative precision and force.

Regular Techniques

Howler Path: Overhead Slam – An attack from above, either using your oversized weapon or both fists clenched together. This is a brutal attack that lacks finesse, but it’s normally enough to end a fight with a less eager opponent. The top of the head tends to be an easier target, even if armored, and the disorientation from the strike can leave an opponent reeling.

Titan Path: Pain Tolerance – By training through exposure to the elements, you’ve grown more resilient to pain. Attacks by opponents who’s Strength is less than your Stamina (with bonuses) are noticeably dampened. Eventually, of course, you’ll succumb to their tiny fists if they’re motivated enough, and weaponry and ninjutsu are just as effective on you as anyone else.

Bloodletter Path: Call of the Wild – Even now, you’re likely to be compared to a wild animal when you fight. Your senses are honed like a beast’s, helping you focus totally on your opponent and react to their movements. Assuming nothing distracts your senses, it’s incredibly difficult for you to lose track of your opponent and be caught off guard by distracting movements. If you’ve been close enough to smell your target, you can track them by scent.

Special Techniques

Killer Instinct - By a certain pose, glare, or otherwise intimidating method (shouting, a phrase uttered, powering up your chakra, etc) you can overwhelm your target with a bloody killing intent. This is enough to stop targets below your character rank in their tracks, giving you time to plot your next action. Against targets of your own rank or above, it broadcasts your willingness to fight or kill, which might dissuade them from taking further action. This can be subtle, used to steer a debate in your way, or a shocking display of force, used to control a crowd of malcontents. For those sensitive to killing intent (or sakki) this can be particularly nerve-wracking.

Stage 2
Stat Requirements: 7 Stamina, 7 Strength, 6 Tactics
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

The energy at this stage can be considered explosive. Practitioners of this stage tend to enjoy their gains from their body training and newfound energy from their dieting, and the combat method becomes more effective. Moving with grace, berserkers have an intimidating style of attack, either with forceful, slow blows of their oversized weapons or moving with all the predatory power of a tiger on the hunt. Taking advantage of their increased stamina, a berserker isn’t afraid to take a few hits if it means getting in to respond in kind with one of their massive blows.

Unarmed combat is made up of more force than before, twisting and whipping the body while moving forward, using leverage and strength to control the momentum of the fight. While using their oversized weapon, a berserker is capable of using the momentum of their weapon to swing their bodies around in battle.

Regular Techniques

Howler Path: Twister – Wielding your oversized weapon has become natural enough to you for you to effortlessly spin it around your body, twisting your wrists and passing it from one hand to the other. This can be used as a flurry of blows or to protect yourself from mundane projectiles.

Titan Path: Dust Dancing - The user stomps their foot or otherwise strikes (such as with their weapon) the ground, striking up dirt, earth, debris, or dust in a fine cloud before them. This dust can be used as cover or in an attempt to blind the opponent, functioning similarly to a smoke bomb. This dust is accompanied by a surprising tremor in a 10' radius around the point of impact, enough to catch nearly anyone off guard. Same rank or lower targets (friend or foe) can be thrown off their balance.

Bloodletter Path: Lash – You wait, showing patience. When the opponent strikes, you suddenly lash out, like a snake striking, either with an unarmed strike or by swinging your weapon suddenly. Up until the point of reaction, your body is so relaxed that it appears you wouldn’t be able to move at all – effective at countering those who overestimate their senses in combat.

Special Techniques

Heart Chakra – By reflexively calling on the reserves in your heart chakra, you can render yourself immune to one attack equal to your less than your stage in this style.
Base – You can activate Heart Chakra once per thread.
Stage 4 – You can activate Heart Chakra twice per thread.

Stage 3
Stat Requirements: 10 Stamina, 10 Strength, 8 Tactics
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

Capable at this stage of swinging their oversized weapons around with one hand, albeit at a diminished control compared to two-handing the things, a berserker dramatically increases their effective range and crowd control. Feinting with the weapon becomes possible, suddenly shifting the weapon around or even tossing it from one hand to the other while in combat. While a two-handed strike will obviously carry more power than a single handed strike, it’s a handy trick to catch your opponents off guard.

Likewise, even while unarmed, berserkers have become more talented at handling crowds of targets – either uneven odds or dealing with a shinobi’s clone techinque.

Regular Techniques

Howler Path: Beast Movement Pattern - You move like an animal, flow like a thought. Your movements become difficult to read by lesser martial artists (either with less stages in a taijutsu style or a lower rank than you), and are otherworldly or even demonic to those who match or exceed your understanding of martial arts. You can use the force of your oversized weapon to suddenly shift your positioning, even propelling yourself while you’re midair. Beastmasters, and other archetypes that study the beasts and the wild, are surprisingly effective at countering this movement method.

Titan Path: Huge Cleavage - You’ve learned to use your titanic leverage in such a way that it threatens the space all around you. You can strike for pinpoint places of weakness on targets around you – weak points of armor, the wooden shaft of a polearm, between the careful stances of a martial artist, and so on – to strike to disarm or disrobe your opponents. Your finesse here is legendary, capable of striking a weapon from someone’s hand without harming them, or rendering a bo staff in two. This helps removes obstacles between you and your target’s softer bits.

Bloodletter Path: Falling Petals – Taking advantage of your uncanny body control, you’re capable of dealing with multiple opponents as easily as you’d take on one. Swifting shifting your body’s stances, using all your limbs in concert, swinging your weapon around your body, and so on, make it difficult for a group to use their numbers as an inherent advantage. Occasionally, you’ll move back in a short tactical retreat to help create a favorable positioning, or suddenly abandon your weapon to take advantage of the flexibility of your body, but you fight all who would challenge you as you’d face one – with your style of domination.

Special Techniques

Berserker Soul – Your body control has offered you insights to managing your internal chakra movements. By entering a trance, you transform your body into a weapon of war. The transformation is relatively minor, but individual. Most feature darkened skintones, the appearance of small horns or glowing cracks in the body – but it’s because of this technique that some consider berserkers to be possessed by spirits, demons, bijuu, or primal beasts.
Base: -2 Speed Scaling, but you can make two of the same type of action (offensive, defensive) in a post, rather than one of each. You can maintain Berserker Soul for 1 post for every stage you have in this style.
Stage 5 As above, but regular speed scaling.

Stage 4
Stat Requirements: 15 Stamina, 14 Strength, 14 Speed, 14 Tactics
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

Shoshin. No longer do students of the Berserker schools look like they’re casually practicing karate in local dojos, having transformed into ferocious warriors well-deserved of the symbol of Byakko, the White Tiger of the West. Still, importance is placed on the idea of constantly striving as one did on their first day studying the paths of the berserker, to reach ever greater heights. From this point on, the path becomes even more difficult.

Berserkers at this stage are capable of impressive feats of stamina, holding their breath for twenty minutes at a time or going days without food or water. This monk-like endurance is reflected in battle, capable of fighting long after others have succumb to exhaustion. A cornered berserker invokes the same respect as the cornered tiger – only death could await those foolish to show hesitance while taming one of these beasts.

Regular Techniques

Howler Path: Erupting – Fighting against someone on the battlefield is different than fighting against someone in a dojo. People fall into practiced patterns and rely on muscle memory in dojos, but on the battlefield – anything goes. By feinting and suddenly dropping to the floor and erupting upwards with a strike from their weapon, foot, or fist, the berserker is capable of launching their target fifteen feet into the air or more – either as a form of respite from the rigors of battle, or to follow up with more carnage.

Titan Path: Burning – The heart rings true in the berserker, and their battle fervor resonates on their body like licking flames. Pain is no longer is a factor for decision making. Even the most terrifying painful poisons, attacks, or genjutsu won't stop the Berserker. Damage that causes this pain is still in full effect--while the berserker might not care their bowels are splattering over the floor, they still won't have the core muscles to swing their arms anymore. Likewise, pain does nothing to reduce genjutsu duration for a berserker.

Bloodletter Path: Finger – The difference between a severing blow and a near miss is often the length of a finger. By taking advantage of their careful battle trance, a berserker can shift an attack by pushing it aside as it comes into range of them. This swatting of an attack can bewilder or even intimidate your opponents. This takes an incredible amount of concentration, using both an offensive and defensive action to perform. This technique can only be performed if the berserker’s speed scaling is equal to or greater than their opponent’s.

Special Techniques

Berserker Soul: Lava Heart – Lava Heart can only be activated during Berserker Soul. The berserker slams both feet firmly into the ground, summoning up a transformation in their body, cycling energy through the earth and back into their bodies. A bubbling, lava-like aura slides across their skin, making the berserker painfully hot to the touch. While using Lava Heart, a berserker’s strikes can cleave through defensive techniques as if they were a Stage 5 ninjutsu.

Stage 5
Stat Requirements: 20 Stamina, 18 Strength, 18 Speed, 16 Tactics
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

”Remind yourself that overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer.”

Combatants at this stage are very capable of encountering attacks that can destroy them in a single blow – cleaver swords, fuuma shuriken, Rasengan, Chidori – the works of ninja that could be called “anti-personnel” class attacks. Relying purely on the body’s sturdiness would be the quickest path to death. Instead, focus shifts to using their stamina to essentially run circles around their opponent. When against such powerful weapons and attacks, berserkers are wise to allow their opponents to tire themselves out and then strike, creating a dance where predator and prey swap often.

Likewise, attacking has become absolutely brutal – a berserker’s oversized weapon strikes are capable of killing a defenseless target in a single blow, easily. Parries crumble under their intense weight, and their fists and feet are an cascade of blows. Fighting at this stage is no longer about technique or study: survival is the ultimate teacher for the berserker.

Regular Techniques

Howler Path: Bone Striking, Organ Grabbing – A berserker’s blows with their weapon can kill a defenseless target in a single blow. Against more sturdy targets, they can strike for the same weak points they train their body against, finding soft spots to penetrate with such eruptive force they crumble to their knees. Against even stronger targets (taijutsu trained shinobi and samurai, for instance), they lose the pretense of an honest fight and strike to destroy bones or rupture their organs. Fighting against a Berserker is like fighting against an avalanche.

Titan Path: Feral Recoil - When struck in melee, a berserker can immediately counter attack, ignoring the instinct to flinch or flee. Even against skilled, speedy targets, a practitioner matches the ferocity with their own. They often win trades of endurance, given their massive stamina, and even if the blows come faster or stronger, one can only punch a waterfall for so long before they grow tired.

Bloodletting Path: Trance – Bloodletting Berserkers can enter a trance, a reflexive meditation that wholly focuses their mind on the target at hand. This trace renders them immune to any thought or concept that would separate them from their path, and would willingly cut through an ally or forsake vows to focus on their singular purpose. The trance helps resist genjutsu that would render one to stop attacking by showing an illusion of an ally, for instance.

Special Techniques:

Kuchiyose: Doton: Dragonslayer Sword
Requirements: Loyal to Iwagakure Shinobi (If you don't fit this requirement, this is a swap slot.)
Description: A sword that resides in the lavaheart of a great mountain protected by ancient Iwagakure curses. It's only able to keep it's magical properties for a few scant posts outside of the lavaheart, but this is a battle-changing weapon.

"That thing was too big to be called a sword. Too big, too thick, too heavy and too rough. It was more like a large hunk of Iron."

This mammoth sword tends to exceed even the shinobi that summons it for length, however, combined with your Titanic Leverage, even it can be held in one hand. It’s sweeping strikes seem to catch the very air alight, burning away obstacles and chakra easily. Clones, genjutsu that create illusion visuals, and any defensive ninjutsu at or below your Berserker Level minus 2 are burned away instantly.

The destructive force of this sword is unparalleled. It strikes chakra as well as it smashes physical objects, making it an ideal weapon for combating bijuu and other mythological creatures. Any benefit of your target that allows them to slip through attacks or objects has no effect on the Dragonslayer Sword. The best method is to simply not stand underneath it’s crushing weight—since swinging a sword this large and heavy takes time.

Historically, it’s primary use was to put the finishing blow on powerful opponents.

You may keep the Dragonslayer summoned for one half of your levels in this list, always rounding down.

You may only summon the Dragonslayer in defense of Iwagakure or Iwagakure shinobi. There is no way to use this weapon for a purpose that doesn’t support. It simply will not summon—or if your intentions change, it will crumble into useless chunks of warm dirt that not even doton will manipulate.

Only the worthy sing with the Dragonslayer.

Stage Six:
Stat Requirements: 27 Stamina, 24 Strength, 24 Speed, 18 Tactics, 18 Willpower
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

Byakkotai. It’s rumored that berserkers of this stage are blessed by the divine tiger itself, their tremendous strength and resilient bodies matching the stuff of legends, entering the hallowed halls of the true path of the berserker.

Regular Techniques

Howling Striking! - You know the body, you know the mind, you know where to strike. After battling or observing a combatant, you know exactly where to time and strike your points for maximum damage. What’s more, your forceful strikes can target the seven chakras, rendering imbalance in your targets. While most shinobi and samurai are intimately familiar with their own chakras, this imbalance can place them off balanace—effectively stunning their ability to mold chakra or chi (or commune with kami, etc etc). Once per thread, per target, a successful attack will render that target unable to make ninjutsu or genjutsu (or miko powers, etc) actions for their next post. Once recovered, their balance is more secure – perhaps you, too, lead them towards zen.

Titanic Fortitude! – Physical strikes with Strength equal to 5 stages below your Stamina are rendered ineffectual against your skin.

Bloodletting Instinct! – Sight, smell, hearing – so long as you have any two of these senses, you fight as if you had all three.

Special Techniques

The Three Paths of the Berserker – Heart Chakra Enlightenment – Some causes are worth dying for, but not all of them: Once every five threads, you can recover perfectly from lethal wounds. This doesn’t regenerate body parts or the like, but so long as you keep your head and torso, you survive.

Stage Seven:
Stat Requirements: 33 Stamina, 33 Strength, 33 Speed, 22 Tactics, 22 Willpower
Stage Bonuses: +5 Stamina, +4 Strength

A hallowed place few enter.

Special Techniques

Iwagakure Berserker – You always gain the benefits of Berserker Soul.

[Virtual Dream]

BUSHIDO
Way of the Warrior


"Righteousness, courage, charity, respect, honesty, honor, loyalty. Seven paths that I've failed, seven paths that I'll redeem."

KAI-MON - Initial Gate
Kai-mon techniques focus on strength. With the initial gate allowing the user to flex the full natural capability of their muscles, ignoring their limits, these techniques usually cause a great deal of strain to the body. The attack performs one great feat of strength that can be followed by smaller attacks.

KYU-MON - Healing Gate
Similar to the gate techniques of Kai-mon gate, the Kyu-mon relies on one burst of strength that pushes the body to the limit. The difference is that Kyu-mon resets the body before the techniques are used, allowing more daring and dangerous combinations.

SEI-MON - Life Gate
Gate techniques after Sei-mon is open can take advantage of the increased accuracy of their senses to perform attacks in quick succession that require specific movements. While a strong blow and a grab isn't that difficult, grabbing specific limbs in succession, or striking specific places on a moving target, are helped by the use of the gate of life being open.

SHO-MON - Pain Gate
After Sho-mon, gate techniques take on a new level of recklessness. The user knows they are ripping their muscles as they use them, but the pain is gone, and therefore the reluctance to push to the limit is removed. The pain gate opens up wild combinations, attacks that put the user's own body front and center as the projectile, and others that would be too dangerous for someone who could feel their own body falling apart.

TO-MON - Limit Gate
With To-mon, gate techniques don't change much from their previous form. One difference is that these attacks are more likely to ignore or shrug off the actions of the opponent. Not that it provides resistance to damage, it just becomes more common to attack into a blow, or continue to attack through a counter-attack.

KEI-MON - View Gate
The most distinct part of gate techniques with Kei-mon is that their every action leaves a lasting trail of chakra. Gate techniques in this stage may even use the aftermath of chakra from attacks to perform physical blows without physically touching, or leave the target enveloped in a mass of expelled chakra.

KYO-MON - Wonder Gate
At the point of Kyo-mon, the line between taijutsu and ninjutsu begins to blur. Gate Techniques allow the blending of the mass of secreted chakra, and physical movements, to blast opponents with all manner of powerful attacks. The names of mythical techniques start to become literal, as the user's essential chakras answer to the call, and take the proper shape to save the day.

SHI-MON - Death Gate
The user's aura itself is now dangerous. The lifeblood chakra spilling from their body is volatile to everyone and everything around them, making techniques able to completely shred enemies just with proximity. Physical blows are earth shattering, god-killing, and life-ending for all parties involved.

[Virtual Dream]

I'll tell you one thing plain: It ain't ever simple, kid.
NARA
SHIKAGEROU

Name: Nara Shikagerou
Age: 42
Sex: Male
Height: 6'4''
Village: Konohagakure no Sato
Rank: Sennin
Division: N/A
Clan: Nara (Shadow Manipulation)

Nindo; "Way of the Ninja": "Sleep in! Work hard! Eat well!"

Physical Description:

A body that’s tasted war and found itself wanting for more, Nara Shikagerou can boast that he’s at peak physical health, even if he occasionally indulges a bit much on the sweets and alcohol. His skin is a tapestry made up of scars and scorch marks, not all of which are self inflicted, and a testament to a lifetime of shinobi activity. His long hair is a tired, wavy map on top of his head, fluttering about rather than being tied back tightly. He’s known for his warm smiles and a play in his eyes that seems to suggest he’s holding back on a secret (or three). His brown eyes are almost golden in the right light, and the lines around them suggest both a lot of laughing and a lot of crying...and the bags underneath perhaps reveal many sleepless nights. While he prefers his look clean-shaven, he’s often a few days out with a dusting of hair accenting his strong jaw.

Clothing:

He’s probably best known around the villages of Konohagakure and her sister village Sunagakure for wandering around in thick robes with open sleeves, typical of a karate-master in mourning, maybe - - but he has a variety of fun colors outside of his typical blacks and browns. On more than one occasion, he’s been seen wandering around in shuriken-print pajamas on his days off, but when the time comes, he dons the garb of the most proud of Konoha warriors - - the samurai-inspired battle plate that the founders of the village were famous for. He wears his headband tied around his shoulder, unless he’s trying his absolute best, then he’ll find the time to tie it around his head.

He’s fond of a “disguise”, that seems to have a fifty-fifty success rate between “totally working” and “absolutely not working”, featuring joke-store glasses with a large nose (that barely fits over his own snout) and a wide, bushy mustache. He combines this with braids in his hair when he’s competing in cognito in his various games of strategy, Onmyodo: the Collection TCG, Otsuchi Fantasy Miniatures Battle, and more classically approved games such as shogi and go. Occasionally he uses this disguise to check in on students and slip around unknown.

Personality:

Shikagerou can be difficult to understand, sometimes. He’s warm and charming and funny, maybe even a bit too friendly - - but he has periods of morose extremes where it can be difficult to get a read on him. He’s incredibly passionate about games, the shinobi arts, and the importance of friendships and romance...but occasionally those very same subjects can send him down a darker mood. In recent years he’s given himself full-on into the joys of teaching and mentoring, eager to stoke the flames of a continued Will of Fire in the village. When he’s not skirt-chasing, he can be downright fatherly.

But on the battlefield, he’s an unparalleled asset. His tactical mind, forged over years of battle and careful study, is a point of pride for the village as a whole. He’s dabbled in every major shinobi art at least enough to pass on a bit of knowledge to others - - and if he doesn’t know it, he knows someone who can. Or can find a book he read once, maybe in this pile over here...no, wait, maybe it was written in this notebook here – you have a second, right? Can you put on some tea?

Bookworm (Ninjutsu Specialist – Genjutsu Specialist)
Special: You may spend up to two rather than one thread points on jutsu. The second point spent on jutsu must always be a Genjutsu or Ninjutsu.
Primary: Chakra
Secondary: Physical
Tertiary: Mental
Merits: +2 Power, +1 Control, +2 Willpower, +1 Intelligence
Flaws: -4 Strength, -1 Stamina, -1 Tactics

-----------------------------------

Statistics

Physical

Strength: 1 [-4 AT] [+30 Pool] 27
Speed: 1 [+30 Pool] 31
Stamina: 1 [-1 AT] [+30 Pool] 30

Mental

Intelligence: 1 [+1 AT] [+27 Pool] 29
Tactics: 1 [-1 AT] [+27 Pool] 26
Willpower: 1 [+2 AT] [+26 Pool] 29

Chakra

Power: 1 [+2 AT] [+33 Pool] 36
Control: 1 [+1 AT] [+34 Pool] 36
Reserves: 1 [+33 Pool] 34

--------------------------------------------------

Jutsu and Techniques:

GLOBAL NINJUTSU
Stage One
Kawarimi no Jutsu (Body Switch Technique)
Requirements: Power 2, Tactics 2

Stage Two
Kinobori/Kabenobori no Jutsu (Tree Walking / Wall Walking Technique)
Requirements: Power 5, Control 4, Reserves 4

Stage Three
Shukuchi (Reduced Earth)
Requirements: Intelligence 8, Tactics 8, Willpower 6

NARA CLAN: HIDDEN TECHNIQUES (Null)
Stage One
Kage Mane (Shadow Bind)
Requirements: Power 2, Willpower 2

Stage Two
Kage Tansetsu (Shadow Forge)
Requirements: Power 6, Control 6, Intelligence 4

Stage Three
Kage Ori (Shadow Weave)
Requirements: Power 8, Control 8, Reserves 6

Stage Four
Kage Kubi Shibari (Shadow Neck Bind)
Requirements: Power 12, Control 11, Reserves 10, Intelligence 12

Stage Five
Kage Anouen (Shadow Unrooting)
Requirements: Power 17, Control 16, Reserves 16, Intelligence 15

WOOD RELEASE: KONOHAGAKURE STYLE MOKUTON
Stage One
Mokuton: Zenchi (Wood Element: A Preface)
Requirements: Power 2, Tactics 2

Stage Two
Moku Bunshin no Jutsu (Wood Clone Technique)
Power 5, Control 4, Reserves 4

Stage Three
Mokuton: Takken (Wood Element: An Insight)
Requirements: Power 8, Control 8; Mokuton: Zenchi

Stage Four
Mokuton: Mokushibara no Jutsu (Wood Element: Wood Bind Technique)
Requirements: Power 15, Control 15, Reserves 13, Intelligence 14

Stage Five
Mokuton: Bunmei (Wood Element: An Understanding)
Requirements: Power 17, Control 16, Reserves 16, Intelligence 15; Mokuton: Takken

Stage Six
Mokuton: Kunekune no Jutsu (Wood Element: Bending Technique)
Requirements: Power 23, Control 23, Reserves 22, Tactics 16, Willpower 15

Stage Seven
Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukutatsu (Wood Element Secret Art: Mastery)
Requirements: Power 30, Control 27, Reserves 26, Intelligence 22, Tactics 20; Mokuton: Bunmei

RYUUJIN-FU: HEAVENLY DRAGON DANCE
Stage Five
Requirements: 22 Speed, 18 Strength, 16 Stamina, 16 Control
Special Technique Requirements: Control 15, Power 15, Reserves 13
Special Techniques
Tenka [Ignition] (Stage 1)
Hanabi [Fireworks] (Stage 3)
Shounetsu [Inferno] (Stage 5)

HIDDEN LEAF GENJUTSU
Stage One
Nirami no Kage (Shadow Glare)
Requirements: Power 2, Tactics 2

Stage Two
Chouba no Kage (Shadow Taunt)
Requirements: Power 5, Control 4, Reserves 4

Stage Three
Kyouboku no Jumon (Spell of the Trees)
Requirements: Intelligence 9, Tactics 9, Control 7

Inventory:
- Fuuma Shuriken [Large Projectile: 1]
- Nara-quality Antidotes [3]
- Body Armor [2]
- Limb Armor (Arms and Legs] [Limb Armor: 1 + Limb Armor: 1 = 2]

Item Points Remaining: 0

-----------------------------------------

Biography:

Someone once told me the Epic Tale of Nara Shikagerou would end up on a lot of “what-ifs”.

There’s a zen in passivity, a belief that you can’t change the course of the river, only follow its flow. You and I and any other ninja who’s seen the full brunt of shinobi warfare can tell you that changing the course of a river is a power we all hold, in some way, both literally and figuratively. For me, I still think it would be best to just go with the flow...but that’s not always an option, and I don’t want to end my story on a what-if.

What if I never met you? Akimichi Choyomi, the butterfly’s shadow I spent so much of my life hiding behind. Your shadow was a place of safety, one any timid youth could find shelter in. Your joyous nature and ravenous appetite matched only by your absolute sense of juice. It’s a shame for me to say it, one who’s been protected by you so many times, but I believe people should be able to defend themselves. There was a bitterness, there, always being saved by your infinite compassion. Physically, emotionally, intimately. When we were just kids, and I met the brunt of the worst of childhood cruelty, it was you that would defend me.

Right before you forced me back into the dojo, working my ass off to make a body worthy of a shinobi. No lazy Nara on your watch. The classical Konohagakure clan alliance - - the brains of the Nara matched by the heroics of the Akimichi. It wasn’t long into our academy days that I was strong enough to defend myself by all but the most powerful of our classmates, and to those, I had earned respect. From behind your shadow, I grew into something more. Then we graduated, and got put on a team with Hyuuga Gekko, that one-eyed boy with so much more than either of us to prove. A kekkei genkai that revolved around sight, ruined by a birth defect that left him blind in his left eye. He always said he could do it - - it just tired him out - - something I could always understand. “Work hard,” he’d always say. Overcome your weaknesses. That was the theme of our little genin team, under the tutor of that powerful man, Sarutobi Sanzo. Find your weaknesses, and either turn them to strengths, or overcome them. Gekko learned to fight with a sword, to cover the blind range of his Byakugan. You learned to count calories, to keep your body strong with enough fat for your special brand of body modifications, and in time, I learned to throw away my timid nature. They call me reserved now, which is a nice way of looking at it.

Our combination techniques made us the envy of the village, enough to grant us rivals and enemies both inside and out of the shade of Konohagakure’s trees. That came to a head in the chuunin exams we attended after a mere few months of genin activity, when rivals from across the world who had lost contracts to us, had lost clout and pride to us, had a chance to face is down one on one. Or three on three, as it were. Gekko lost his bad eye, there, taking a shuriken meant for me, but that put my shadow on our target...and when you walloped that guy, I swear I felt it through the shadow itself. We continued on as a chuunin squad, sometimes with and sometimes without Sarutobi-sensei, and made ourselves known for our unique brand of scout-capture-kill. Even with one eye, the Hyuuga clan’s doujutsu was unparalleled to any other form of information gathering we could want for. Between my shadows and my steady practice of taijutsu - - under your careful instruction - - and your overwhelming strength, there wasn’t much that could hold us back. Back in those days, Konohagakure had a lot of enemies from a lot of different countries, and all that time on the battlefield saw one of Konoha’s first triple jounin promotion. Sarutobi-sensei really let that go to his head, always talking about how he raised three rising stars.

It was in one of the hidden Nara research centers, protected behind the enchanted forests in the mountains of our home, that I had uncovered the first steps that would lead me down the path of Mokuton. That hidden, illustrious style of chakra release that these kids these days take for granted - - they have a class now! A class! - - that would become my trademark, my proof to the world of my genius. I really thought I’d be the next Shodai, haha. But there were more secrets, forgotten bits of knowledge in those twisting, illusioned forests that lead us down our path. Promises of hidden techniques that would shape conflicts in the favor of the Fire. Promises of seals and medicines that could act as a panacea, eliminating the need for traditional medicines. Yeah, the horns of the Nara Deer make some solid medicine, but something like that! We had to investigate. Our team spent as much time as we could traveling all across the world, following those dusty maps and handwritten notes by Nara hundreds of years before us. We found a lot - - but we mostly found conflict.

It was an other scout-capture-eliminate mission that put that shinobi known as “Salamander” in our hands. A fire specialist who swore he heard the secrets of the spirits. He was part of the organization that we’d eventually know as the Shades - - each a prominent jounin from the various great shinobi villages, each secretly working towards a common goal that would end in shaking the shinobi world to its core. An other day, an other world-saving mission. We followed the information gathered from Salamander’s interrogation and realized we had to put a stop to their goals: manipulating the spirits of the world, corrupting the shine priestesses and using cursed seals long since forbidden amongst all of ninja kind. Whispers of a demon that could be placed in the heart of a man for unknowable power.

It all culminated in Seirei no Shima, where we lost Gekko. “Work hard!” He reminded us, as the last of the poison made his body collapse in a mess of dust and ash. But we found the head of the organization, and we took him back to Konohagakure and were heralded as heroes, holding back the tide of the true evils of the world. I guess that got to our head a bit.

But even for world saviors, it’s the little things in life that keep you going from day to day. Like the conflict with Snow, where we realized just taking out a few men with eyes on the world didn’t mean you were unstoppable combatants. We found hard against all sorts of people - - do you remember that boy who kept mocking us for holding us back, despite only officially being a chuunin? He was tenacious and the sort of person Gekko would have loved to fight...working hard, indeed. I liked him, too. It’s too bad we had to put him down, as strong as he was. Maybe he could have changed the flow of the river that ended with Snow collapsing.

Then, of course, the Sanada beasts. I’m still not sure what or who was behind that, I’ve heard whispers of Masakage, but those sorts of Sanada politics aren’t easy to get your ear on if you’re not in the office of the Hokage himself. Kami, bijuu, ice witches, and mutant beasts...we really did fight all sorts of amazing things.

It was the reanimated Hyuuga Gekko that really broke the tempo, though. Encountering him during a routine assassination mission, protecting our target in the middle of the Rice Paddies. Even after we got over the emotional shock and dedicated ourselves to put down that deadly, profane shadow of the man we once knew...he just came back, and came back. We were cornered, and you decided to bet it all on black. You repeated that nindo of yours to me – “Eat well,” and chomped down on that forbidden food pill of yours. You sure as hell stopped him, but he started to regenerate and you didn’t.

So now, I guess, it falls on me, the last of the three rising stars, to watch over the nights of this little village of ours. You know, I’d rather sleep in - - since all my dearest of friends are gone - - but I guess you wouldn’t have it any other way. No more “what-ifs” for me. I’ll do what I need to do, so no more of my friends have to go.

- Memoirs from the Shadow of the Konoha Memorial Stone, the private files of Nara Shikagerou

A tale told in several mix matched parts. "A Butterfly's Shadow", about his relationship with Akimichi [redacted], who was his team leader. "The Epic of Nara Shikagerou", about his relationship with the clan and his eventual pilgrimage. "The Will of Fire", a somber reflection on the rule to be an emotionless shinobi conflicting with the will of fire, punctuated by the loss of his lover. Each chunk that relates to an important Konohagakure event includes a link to relevant information, like a case file. Framed in a narrative while he shoots the shit with the acting Hokage, of which he was from the same graduating genin class. Ends on the start of a new chapter or tale, where he hastily scribbles poorly drawn caricatures of people he considers heroes (matches his shinobi ideals), villains (people opposed to his shinobi ideals) and anti-heroes (people who are really cool and hype him up, but are ultimately opposed to his worldview).

Originally Posted by A Butterfly's Shadow

“Twig boy, twig boy!”

“I’m gonna break your little arms! Teacher’s pet!”

“Twig boy, twig boy!”

Nara Shikagerou was named in the hopes that one day he would be a grand warrior, a legend to that stories would be written about. At the age of 10, he was the top student in his class, academically. His eager studying never lent itself well to keeping up with his physical training, so his small frame was the first thing any jealous bully took notice of. Every day was like this - - before class and after class, anyway, away from the protection of the academy teachers. Shikagerou wept and wept, hiding behind his arms, as he was repeatedly bruised and tossed around. Every day, he’d fake sick to try and get out of classes. Every day, he’d pray that one day they’d all just stop.

And his prayers were eventually answered by Akimichi Choyomi, who came blustering in - - as she tended to do - - and made handy work of the kids, before turning her chubby face towards Shikageru with all the same anger and intensity that she threw at the bullies.

“Gerou! How can you let them push you around like that? Huh? Huh?! Aren’t you training to be a ninja, too? If you can’t beat them, how are you going to be any use to the village?”

“I—I don’t know!”

"Don't you give me that. Give me ten push ups, right now, twig boy!"

"My arms hurt - -"

"Hit the floor, twiggy! I can't always rush around to save you, you know. You need to get buff!"

"Y--yes, ma'am!"

"Ten more!"

"Yomi!"

"TWENTY MORE!"

Even as she stood over him, with her arms crossed, forcing him to exercise after being beat up, she looked beautiful.

Originally Posted by The Epic Tale of Nara Shikagerou

Nara Shikagerou was born to the Nara clan with an auspicious name, invoking themes of divine fire and service to the deer clan itself. While his parents pushed for him to maintain his grades in the academy, a majority of his free time was spent focused on his interpersonal relationships: Particularly with his best friend, Choyomi of the Akimichi clan. Her eagerness for a training partner eventually lead to Shikagerou skipping out on his studies to find more time to work out and keep up with her demands, which in turn, lead to him becoming a more well-rounded shinobi. Shikagerou’s strengths always tended to end up as his folly: while his grades soared, his health commonly failed as he spread himself thin. Staying up all night in study or training left him lethargic and lazy during the schooldays, giving him a reputation for appearing smugly disinterested in his classwork.

His mother eventually would straighten this out of him, by rigidly enforcing bedtimes and limiting his time he could spend playing with Choyomi. This was enough to keep his nose as clean as possible: but a young ninja tends to excel at sneaking out whenever possible, anyway. During this time of his life, Shikagerou was being primed to eventually become the head of the Nara clan, so a lot of home study was dedicated around courtly behavior, Konohagakure and Fire Country politics, and the study of the ancestral jutsu of the clan.

The constant bullying he suffered eventually subsided as he grew in his own personal strength, but the rude comments directed towards him never truly faded away. Even after his graduated to become a genin, he wore the reputation of being a stand-offish know-it-all a little too well. He was assigned to a team featuring Akimichi Choyomi (naturally), and Hyuuga Gekko. Their team was focused around primarily their taijutsu strengths - - Choyomi leading the frontline, while Gekko (who suffered astigmatism in his left eye and never could truly use the full gift of his bloodline) would focus on flanking manuevers. Shikagerou, thanks to his various training routines, was expected to fill in the gaps in their strategy by doing a little bit of long distance support as well as filling in as a physical combatant. This was part of his parent’s overall plan for him: to master all forms of ninjutsu and to intimately be aware of the strengths and limitations of his teammates, guiding him to become a master tactician.

Originally Posted by The Butterfly's Shadow

“Ha, ha, ha! Undefeated, as usual!” Choyomi rubbed the back of her hand across her face, then turned to pose with a victory sign at her two teammates.

Gekko, rubbing his bad eye underneath the eyepatch intended to help him focus just using his good one, was sweating all across his pale skin. His sword slung over his back was always an oddity for a Hyuuga, but he wagered he’d never be able to hit chakra points with his maligned eye, anyway. Shikagerou was slumped over the Hyuuga’s lap, begging for his shoulders to be rubbed.

“You wimps! We’ll never survive this Forest of Death with that kind of attitude. Listen, listen, I heard we have to do a battle royale after this. There’s no time to rest!”

“Yooooomiiiii!” Came their whine in unison.

Choyomi lead their team to all-out victories in the field exam portions of the chuunin exams, by sheer brute force and her superior leadership skills. When it came to the written exams, all of Team Six were at least passable. But it was the final battle royale where they truly shined. Each genin team was given three flags to protect, but each shinobi didn’t have to personally carry one. The goal was to defeat as many other teams as possible to collect as many flags by the time the timer ran out the next day. Killing was a permitted, and encouraged, strategy.

On the other side of it all, Team Six finished the royale with just over twenty flags to their name, despite having lost all of their original flags early in the match. Of the teams with three surviving members (a requirement for promotion), the next closest had a measly six flags. Most merely kept hold of their original three - - and some gained a promotion just by surviving as a cell, despite losing their flags. It was for this accomplishment that they became chuunin, and their mastery of teamwork meant their team sensei could move on to train a remedial team.

Originally Posted by A Will of Fire

As time progressed for Team Six, they all started to make stand-out moves for the glory of their clan, as well as independent glories for Konohagakure as a whole. Hyuuga Gekko, with his unorthodox sword style, became more and more well world-renowned as a deadly blade and assassin. Akimichi Choyomi’s fiery personality and mastery of her body manipulation jutsu, become something of a folk hero for the people of Konoha and the greater Country of Fire.

And Shikagerou, by design, impressed his higher ups with his performance, information gathering, and tactical maneuvering, and remained fairly nameless amongst the bigger population of shinobi. There was always a whisper that he was something of a genius, but he was so subtle in his moves that it sometimes seemed like he accomplished nothing at all. As the team grew up and together, they started to learn of the hidden philosophy of the village: The Will of Fire.

It burned within them, and tasks that seemed like a drag before suddenly seemed like incredible opportunities to serve the village. As time passed, they completed more and more missions - - routinely taking missions below their rank when there was nothing better to do - - until the missions office would desperately find anything, anything to sate their ravenous hunger for activity. Team Six was rumored to never even spend time in the village, for all the time they spent on the field. This was the peak of their youth, and they were embracing every moment of it.

This, eventually, garnered them enemies inside the village and out. Some were bitter that their own accomplishments (as great as they might be), would be quickly swept aside by the next adventure of the “showboating” Team Six. Outside the village, their names were quietly added to the bingo books of various villages and organizations: a bounty placed on their heads. No shinobi could hope to be that active and not gain the attention of the most unsavory parts of the underworld.

When a nukenin hailing from an unknown village was hired to assassinate them on a routine patrol mission, Gekko was forced to fight with his clumsy Jyuuken when his sword was parried and thrown away from him. If not for Shikagerou’s clutch Kage Mune, he surely would have fallen to the assassin. In his grief for being shamed as a swordsman, Gekko plucked out his bad eye in a gruesome show of force.

Chiyomi seemed to blame Shikagerou for this - - considering his Kage Mune to be an underhanded tactic that robbed Gekko from the opportunity to prove to himself that he could fight like the Hyuuga should.

...but wasn’t the rule of a ninja to never show emotion on the battlefield, and just complete the mission? Where did guilt and pride play into that?

Originally Posted by The Epic of Nara Shikagerou

The endless hidden complexes of the Nara Research Center sprawled alongside the mountains of Fire Country, protected by mysterious, enchanted forests protected by the otherworldly deer that the Nara clan was known for caring for. It was said none but a Nara could successfully navigate these forests, much less find the Research Centers.

So, of course, Nara Shikagerou was only half-surprised to find his team waiting for him on one of his ventures deep into the forgotten libraries hidden underneath the ground. The bad blood between the team had grown since Gekko had lost his eye, and they shared a solemn vow to put their personal feelings aside for the betterment of the village. They placed their hands together and gave a shout that shook the dust off the bookshelves, like they had normally done as kids - - and started down a path towards becoming the most elite of ninja in the village. To become jounin, they wagered, would at least mean if they went their separate ways, they would be prepared for any challenges to come.

Shikagerou spent a lot of time studying on his own, as their personal relationships slipped farther away and farther away into the mists, leaving only the bonds they forged as combat partners. Losing the intimacy he shared with Akimichi Choyomi - - an intimacy that had once blossomed into love and physicality – was particularly troubling for him. She had always been his motivation to improve as a ninja, and now he feared and further growth would mean losing her forever.

That, and every time Gekko flipped up his eyepatch to reveal that gnarly scar, he felt guilt stirring around in his stomach.

Team Six had last its spark, but his obligations to the Nara clan could keep him busy. He spent months into years mapping the forgotten labyrinths of the research centers, always looking to uncover forgotten techniques and arcane lore, until he found a half-completed manuscript, written by a Nara from a hundred years or more before: a meditation on the clan and its place in Konohagakure.

This inspired him to not look at the failed relationships of his Team in such a negative light - - he wagered that anyone could be a friend, but only a true bond could be formed battling alongside those you cared about. The private things would pass, but the legacy of their operations would hold true. Protecting the village that nurtured those became his primary motivation.

He did that best following in his father’s footsteps, becoming an academy teacher and acting as a personal tutor for upcoming talents. While the rest of the Team Six found these practices unsavory, as field work had always been their forte: Nara Shikagerou’s decision making was always their first plan of attack. They trusted him with what they considered a folly, but in secret, routinely took missions without him.

Team Six was quietly disbanded by the missions office after a few months of this, leaving Shikagerou free to focus on his research and teaching. He became a well-known face in the libraries and planning centers of the village, even offering advice to the Hokage.

Originally Posted by The Butterfly's Shadow

“You IDIOT! Why did you come out here alone?” Chiyomi’s face was furious.

“Tactical misstep. Thought I could head this guy off before he became a problem. I didn’t expect him to come so...” He bit the end of his thumb. “So prepared. I missed something.”

“I’ve only got one eye and I could have seen this was a trap from a million miles away, Nara-sama. You might be losing your touch.” Gekko leveled his blade in perfect parallel to his shoulder, ready to fend off an other attack.

“You got a plan for this, then?” Chiyomi asked. Even when he was being berated by his former team, even after he was foolhardy, they still trusted his judgement.

“Yeah, yeah. That gem in his forehead, that’s how he’s performing chakra release without handseals. If we can break that, he’ll probably be disabled.”

“Probably?”

“Yeah, probably! I’m not a mind reader. If anything, he should have to at least perform hand signs. That’ll give us an edge.”

“He’s right,” Gekko said, his eye practically glittering as he activated the enhanced vision of his bloodline, as stunted as it was. “Or at least, I think he is.”

“Okay, okay,” Chiyomi said. “But after this, you’re gonna have some explaining to do, Gerou. We’re friends, right? Why wouldn’t you trust us?”

Friends. It hurt to hear that, especially from her.

“Yeah. We’ll do the Folding Origami Pattern. Ready?”

“Ready!”

“Go!”

They moved like they always moved, like a single thought spread across three bodies. They moved onto the mutated man, a mastermind that had been carefully holding a grudge against the trio since they were still chuunin, who had been willing to find any method he could to exact that grudge in a gruesome murder. He was targeting the Akimichi clan, first - - it was Chiyomi that had severed his original arm. His replacement, something made from what appeared to be mokuton, was proving difficult to fight against. He had become inhuman. But as his shadows peeled down the bark of his twisted flesh, and Gekko’s sword sung through the air to deflect the projectiles he was spewing from his mouth, Chiyomi’s mightly punch landed true directly on the forehead. As the gem shattered, she was bathed in light, looking as beautiful as she did the first time she had protected him from an attacker.

Originally Posted by A Will of Fire

“Is it the Sanada?” The jounin Hyuuga stared over at Shikagerou behind his facemask. His eye looked more tired than angry.

“We don’t know that,” Shikagerou was exhausted himself, leaning back in his hair and puffing away at a cigarette. “It’s definitely not our Sanada. I don’t think so, anyway. I can’t blame them, all the suffering they’ve had just trying to survive. Public opinion isn’t high, though.”

“This isn’t the happiest circumstances to be reuniting Team Six,” She said, stress eating from a bag of low-calorie gummies. “How long has it been?”

“Too long,” The cyclopse said. “If I had an eye to spare, it’d be welling up right now.”

“Can you fight like that?”

“Yeah, no problem. I eat through a bunch of chakra keeping this thing on, but it’s not like I’ll die or anything.”

“Okay, then. What’s the plan, advisor-san?”

“Other frontline teams have reported enough information for us to stage a solid defense. You’re not going to want to get too close, in case they mutate and stab you in your vitals. Easy enough behind a sword and a giant arm. Their inhuman musculature means they’ll probably snap right out of my shadows, though, so I’ll be watching your backs. Listen, if it gets hairy, and I call you back, you have to come back, okay? We’re not going to beat this thing through sheer brute force.”

“Never stopped us before!”

“Yes, but these things will. It’s not just our pride on the line, it’s the people of Konoha looking for us to save them. We won’t let them down. That’s our Will of Fire.”

“Our Will of Fire. I like that, Shikagerou.”

“Don’t get sentimental on me, One-Eye. Let’s get out there and save some lives.”

Originally Posted by Konohagakure Memorial

Hyuuga "One-Eye" Gekko
Perished in the line of duty. His valiant actions ensured the safety of his two teammates and countless innocent lives inside the walls of Konohagakure. He is survived by his wife, Hyuuga Usami, and his daughter, Hyuuga Eriko.
Remember his Ninja Way well: "Work hard!" May we strive to match his service.

Originally Posted by The Epic of Nara Shikagerou

“You can’t keep yourself holed up like this.”

“Only Nara are supposed to be able to get down here, you should leave before the deer find you.”

“Gerou, I’ve been feeding these deer my left over snacks since I was ten years old.”

“You shouldn’t do that, they’ll get f---”

“They’ll get what?”

“...fond of outsiders.”

“I smell like a Nara, anyway. They can’t tell the difference.”

She put her hand on his shoulder and tried to get him to turn to face her, but when he didn’t, she fell back. She, perhaps for the first time in her life, felt small. “It’s not your fault, you know.”

“I told him to retreat.”

“Hyuuga don’t know the word. His family celebrates his sacrifice. His will of fire.”

The Nara slammed his hands down on the table he was reading from, enough to send the stack of books next to him clattering to the floor. “And I didn’t plan for it! I thought he’d just do what I said! I should have known better, I could have maneuvered you to be there.”

“Hey, I know I’m hot shit, but I was gianted-up holding the gates from breaking, remember? I can’t be in two places at once.”

“What if I had---”

“What if, what if, what if. The epic of Nara Shikagerou, always on the “what if”. What happened was a good man died so that many, many good people could live. This is what it means to be a ninja. You serve, and then you die. We all knew that going in. We always danced with death.”

“I don’t want that to be my way of the ninja. It’s not worth it, to lose the people you care about to save strangers.”

“You don’t mean that. Who’s a stranger in Konoha to you, with your finger in every pot and your whispers in every ear? You’re a centerpiece to this village. Everyone is equally valuable.”

“He was my friend. I should have known better.”

“We grew apart, Shikagerou. That’s just growing up. This life doesn’t lend well to friends. You’re not expected to track everyone all the time.”

“That’s what I do.”

“Well, obviously, you don’t. Gekko’s had been looking for any excuse to prove himself, for decades, since he lost that eye. Not to himself, not to his clan, but to you. Did you see it? Did you see him protect those people?”

“I did. And as I did, I saw a thousand ways I could have stepped in and save him, a thousand better plans. All in retrospect, all--”

“--all what-if’s. Are you going to give up being a ninja? After we worked so hard to get to this point in our careers?”

“A career without Gekko – a career without you, what’s the point?”

“The point is to survive, and become better for it. I can’t always be here to drag you out of the shadows, just like you couldn’t be there to save Gekko. We all take responsibility for our own way. That’s what it means to be jounin, that’s what it means to be a shinobi of Konohagakure.

Now, come on. We have a mission. There’s some clean up that needs doing in Snow, and we’re on the roster.”

Originally Posted by The Butterfly's Shadow

“That’s the sixth S-Class we’ve bagged this month.” Choyomi said, grinning over at me. As always, she was beautiful, even splattered with the blood of our target. These last few weeks in Snow had been exhilarating.

“It’s incredible the amount of conflict such a desolate country can have. Without the village, there’s been absolute chaos.” I mused, biting down on my thumb. “How many more could there be? I could use a bath. Hot tea. Gummies!”

“Oh, believe me, I’ve got you covered there. Listen, Gerou, when we get home, maybe we should try and...you know, hang out more. Outside of all of this.” She gestured around herself, the bright moon illuminating her tanned arms as she was clutched in the shadow of the frozen forest. “Like old times.”

“Very old times. We’re getting old, you know.”

“Maybe you are. I still feel as chipper as I did when I was sixteen. Maybe it’s all the weight I’ve lost.”

“You lost weight?”

“You didn’t notice because I still have these.”

“Shinobi Handbook: A shinobi shall never show emotion on the battlefield.”

“Yeah, yeah. Hey, Gerou?”

“Yeah, Yomi?”

“You feeling better, out here in the field?”

“Would it be bad if I said yeah?”

“This is what we were born to do. Live or die. I wouldn’t trade being a ninja for anything in the world.”

I don’t remember what happened after that. There was a lot of heat, a lot of energy. When I came too, there she was, as beautiful as ever - - chakra spiraling out of her spine like butterfly’s wings. She was pushing a bag of gummies into my hand, her secret Akimichi foodstuffs, and was covering me in the snow with her other, giant hand.

“What---what’s happening?”

“Shh, listen, you can only eat one of these every few hours. It’ll kill you otherwise. You need to report back to Konoha. There’s something – it just doesn’t die, but you don’t wanna tangle with it. You go home, okay? You go home. I can’t always be protecting you like this.”

And I saw him, coming from the trees. One-Eyed as ever, sword over his head. He shouted out as he came down, and she smacked him away with that giant-sized fist of hers. “Okay? I’m gonna get him away from here. You hide until you heal up, then you book it, okay? Eat a gummy.”

“Chiyomi! Why is he here?”

“I don’t know! Just live for me, okay?”

As I lost consciousness, I remember dreaming of my chuunin exams. The last time I felt like...well, anything.

Originally Posted by Konohagakure Memorial

Akimichi Choyomi
Perished in the line of duty. Her valiant actions saved her teammate on a classified mission. Her service to the Akimichi clan and Konohagakure are unparalleled. Remember her Ninja Way well: "Eat well!" May we strive to match her service.

Originally Posted by The Valiant Tale of Nara Shikagerou

“So, that’s why I’m here.”

The Hokage, and his three Centurions, reminded me more of gods than of men. Each powerful on their own right, an internal checks-and-balances system. Each that I had grown with, trained with, and fought with over the years.

“We can’t allow you to just...leave the village,” said one.

“You hold too many secrets, and are too powerful of an asset to be denied,” said the other.

“Retirement might be an option,” said the last.

“I can’t retire. I need to...live. Grow. Become something more. I don’t think sticking to the same routines will do me well. I’ve always had a natural affinity for working more from the shadows, so to speak. Given the time to dedicate myself to study, to nurturing new talents, I can better spread this will of fire that’s burning in my chest now. To bring the memories of my fallen teammates to as many people as possible. To become a greater shinobi.”

Kamui shifted back in his chair. After knowing him since we were both in the Academy, I couldn’t help but feel it didn’t fit him. It was odd to see someone I had grown up with in this most prestigious of positions. But maybe he was thinking the same of me? A tired old man, reaching the peak of what it meant to be a shinobi...and desperate for more.

“What do you expect to learn, from this so-called pilgrimage?” He finally spoke, folding his hands across his face in a tented fashion.

“I’m curious about the foundations of our village. Not the history books, anyone can read that...but what it was that lead the disparate clans of shinobi to come together to create something better. To foster life, to encourage others into our fold...to bring our children into this shadowy world. The Nara Clan, the Akimichi Clan, the Hyuuga Clan, the Senjuu, and the others. Now, it’s just an accepted way of life...but once, there was a great struggle to bring it. I’m suffering from a loss of way, borrowing the nindo of my friends. But I want to learn a new one, and I want to see this world for what it is. I think an extended leave of absence could allow me to truly explore what it means to be a ninja.”

The four murmured to each other, despite being in the same room, I couldn’t make out what they were saying. An advanced technique, maybe – the ANBU were known to have ways unknown by the common man.

“You will be closely watched. My ANBU are more than capable of taking out even an accomplished shinobi such as yourself. These are...difficult times, for Konoha. But perhaps you can find some truth to these recent events, and perhaps you can bring something new to this village. You have my permission to take this quest of yours, but I expect you back here once a year to report your findings.”

“Thank you, Hokage-sama. And, uh...”

“That’ll be all.”

Other Info:

Additional Information:
- Sennin Slot granted by Cayuga (from his 2015 Engi Donation Rewards)

Thread Ratings:

[Virtual Dream]

HISAN no SEKKAIKENFU

SCATTERING STONE FIST STYLE

A: Reserves
B: Control
C: Power
D: Strength
E: Stamina

Basis: Chakra / Doton: Fist

Style description

HISAN no SEKKAIKENFU is a shinobi martial art system that incorporates teachings of various native EARTH COUNTRY schools. To the average person, the temples hidden in the mountain ranges and deep in the forests represent a lifetime of pilgrimage and study - - but all these styles eventually came to the heart of martial innovation in the country, the great IWAGAKURE. The shinobi in this hotbed of combat and study eventually gave birth to a new system of combat, the mystic and magical flurry of their stone gauntlets a mere distraction for their mastery of their chakra arts.

Characterized most accurately as a hybrid style, it’s relative youth means a lack of rigid structure in the training methods of the physical martial arts in the style. Most practitioners of HISAN no SEKKAIKENFU tend to be innovators themselves, and it’s an exciting time for growth and glory in the school’s development. Some opt for stances and aggression inherent in the bone-breaking taijutsu arts from those originating schools that emulated the great bears of the forests and the terrifying mountain tiger, where some find themselves more comfortable with the internal FLOW agreeable with styles that looked towards mythological dragons or heavenly military generals for guidance. The signature stance for the style, however, shares a consistent thread amongst all actors in the Scattering Stone Fist – crossing one fist over the heart or face, and the other over the groin or outer thigh, the artist protects their most sensitive external and internal parts, while also opening up their chakra system to allow for maximum FLOW. This combination of the physical and spiritual martial arts is what transcends the school from a Gakuryoku Library special to a terrifying weapon on the battlefield.

(Combo OK) – any number of these techniques can be chained together in a devastating blow, assuming you have your opponent’s permission

(On Hit Confirm) – if this follows up a (Combo OK) technique, it requires a stroke of luck or genius to evade.

(Combo Finisher) – ends a combo, typically with flurry or flourish

Stage One
Stage Requirements: Reserves 4, Control 4
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

The foundation of Scattering Stone Fist lies in the combination of shinobi-style ninjutsu and taijutsu training alongside the study of the traditional style martial arts of the Earth Country. To get to this first step up the mountain trail, the artist has likely already learned and mastered a half dozen or more traditional styles available to civilians and monks of the area - - these courses and rapid study programs make up the heart of the shinobi academy’s taijutsu training, although some had the opportunity to travel and study under various masters.

Stance and posture tend to be one of personal discovery, but it tends to follow the simple rule of protecting high and low, one hand over the face or heart, the other over the groin or external thigh. While the traditional stance involves crossing the arms over the body, some opt for more aggressive stances.

Regular Techniques

Pickaxe Strike (Combo OK)
Description: A leverage attack that uses the artist’s own body weight and strength to deliver a blow. A sharp elbow or the broadside of a hand or the heel of an extended leg is brought down or out and away from the artist in a swinging form. This “long” strike helps establish optimal range for the fighter to follow up with other attacks.

Rising Force (Combo OK)
Description: Using the core of the body, the fighter brings up a powerful uppercut or rising knee to either launch their target a few feet airborne or to splinter their defenses and open them up for additional abuse.

Cave-in Palm (Combo OK)
Description: An open palm strike that targets the solar plexus. A direct hit can knock the air out of the opponent. (A deep breath or resetting your stance is all an experience taijutsu artist needs to reset this condition.)

Special Techniques

Earth Flow Disruption: Shockwave
Description: Assuming their basic stance, the fighter opens up their chakra flow and violently expels it from their feet. Anyone on the same surface and within a number of feet equal to the fighter’s stages in this style suffer a sudden disruption in their footing, like a train car shifting. Has no effect on airborne targets or targets that have two or more stages of taijutsu training than you.

Stage Two
Stage Requirements: Reserves 8, Control 6, Strength 6
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

HISAN no SEKKAIKENFU

SCATTERING STONE FIST STYLE

"Behind every Fist; another Fist."

A: Reserves
B: Control
C: Power
D: Strength
E: Stamina

Basis: Chakra / Doton: Fist

Description:

It only takes one solid punch to break someone's jaw. Hisan no Sekkaikenfu practitioners embody this concept with a deadly precision, by striking their fists and feet out in a no-nonsense, brutal fashion towards their target. This style is a meditation on what it means to strike an opponent, and that meditation has given rise to the iconic stone armor of this style. Bursting forth from the heart of the martial artist and being made manifest in a flurry of "earth" and "spirit", this armor floats alongside the fighter and mimics the motions of their body, granting length to their strikes and enlarging their point of impact. Chakra taijutsu styles that embody weapons such as these are sometimes referred to [Stand] jutsu--because their weapons [Stand] next to their fighters. This style is as effective as it is unorthodox, taking advantage of chakra training alongside physical training to mold oneself into a spiritual warrior. Traditional practitioners of this style tend to be on the smaller side, with their doton-infused armor making up the bulk of their silhouette on the battlefield. Those great taijutsu-focused specialists that come to train in this style, however, make a horrible visage--hulking bodies protected by floating pillars of stone.

History:

The taijutsu masters of Stone's history likely practiced the golden pure taijutsu arts, such as Gouken-fu (Iron Fist). As with many collections of ninja, eventually the study of this style splintered off and evolved to different schools and forms. For a time, a style known as "Stone Body" was trained and taught to Stone shinobi, mixing the teachings of Gouken-fu with the village's Doton-style ninjutsu. In the past few years, however, practitioners have begun to truly mix their mastery of stone ninjutsu with their fighting forms, creating the new style known as [SCATTERING STONE FIST].

While just a few decades ago the forerunners of this style were mocked for their ineffective use of chakra combined with forceful body motions, Scattering Stone Fist has quickly formed itself into a capable school of elegance and control. As the style has become more and more refined and developed, a unity has been found between body and chakra manipulation--making the efficiency something of local legend. This new form of Stone Fist has become a testament to the ingenuity of Stone shinobi.

The style that will become an archetype all of its own: [NEW STONE BODY].

Training Methods:

Scattering Stone Fist Style warriors train all three major forms of spiritual martial arts--mind, body, and soul. Body training is the same as any taijutsu style that splintered off of the ancient tekken (Iron Fist), strength and core training and repeated and rote memorization of attacks and defenses, as well as carefully training in pairs and groups to train muscle memory. Mind training is found in the deep study of doton, chakra manipulation, and meditation. Soul training--or chakra training--comes simply from purification of the body and use.

Weight training is common for those who chose who plan on having some downtime from field missions, leaving weights on their body during daily activities even during times of presumed rest so they aren't slowed down by their armor when the time comes. Doton mastery is also incredibly common: this style is born from the mastery of earth manipulation.

Due to the theories inherent in the style, these artists tend to be relatively well-read and studied on various forms of taijutsu. Choosing to walk down the path of the [Stand] fighter doesn't exclude oneself from other forms of combat.

Stage One
Stage Requirements: Reserves 4, Control 4
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

The gloves are on. The first stage of this style is one of discovery, in a number of ways. Discovery of the body's capability for taijutsu, either for the first time as a neophyte martial artist or a rediscovery coming from a different school, the practitioner spends most of their time in study of the forms, katas, and chakra molding techniques that will become more useful down the line. In this basic stage of combat, strikes are done in a way very similar to Gouken-fu (or to karate in the non-shinobi world), swift direct strikes.

The ability to form the [New Stone Body] is limited to gauntlets, worn around the user's hands and forearms. These gauntlets offer all the same protective qualities of standard gauntlets, as well as enhancing strikes with their jagged form.

The discovery of self--of the eventual [Stand]--is found here. The gauntlets are formed both from the aesthetic tastes of the warrior as well as something deeper rooted in their heart or soul--formed from dust, rock, metal, precious stones, or just about anything else that fits firmly in the concept of "EARTH", these gauntlets all have a design unique to their user.

Regular Techniques
Yamaken Keisei (Mountain Fist Creation)
This is the first iconic technique of the style. Typically by striking a practiced pose that helps open the chakra pathways from the core to the limbs, the user forms a pair of unique gauntlets to cover their arms. These have all the typical properties of a pair of gauntlets, as well as additional jagged edges from their natural stoneworks to include in their strikes.

In Inventory System terms, they are Limb Armor (Arms) [1].

Special Techniques
Threatening Posing
The kinesthetics of this style lead to an intimate understanding of all the portions of one's body, which leads to an air of confidence that can be physically felt. By striking particular pose unique to the user, they are able to emanate an aura of that confidence, as if revealing their great combat strength to their opponent.

Striking this pose for an action increases your taijutsu capabilities for your next action. If you pose as an offensive action, your defensive action has +1 speed scaling. If you pose as a defensive action, your offensive action has +1 strength scaling.

(Two Open Swap Slots)

Stage Two
Stage Requirements: Reserves 8, Control 6, Strength 6
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

The gloves are off. Focus shifts away from the direct punches and kicks typical in more standard styles at this point, as combat maneuvering becomes more important. The user is trained to look for openings or exits as often as possible, to take non-standard routes towards their enemy (running along a wall, for instance), or to be prepared to duck and weave as much as possible. This comes in tandem with the more important part of this stage--

The user has begun to generate their unique [STAND]/[NEW STONE BODY] at this point.

Regular Techniques
[STAND BY ME] (Stance)
All armor created by this style can be commanded to, as a unit, float alongside the user within one arm's length of themselves. This armor mimics the actions of the user as if it was still being worn, extending their effective striking range. An attack from the [Stand] carries all the strength it would have if connected physically to the user. People who can see such things see a chakra aura around the user that the [Stand] "swims" in.

Special Techniques
Hisan no Sekkaiken (Shattering Stone Fist)
Requirements: In a [Stand] Stance
The user strikes a pose they find aggressive--crossing their arms, sticking their hands in their pockets, leaning forward like a street punk, and their [Stand] strikes forward in a devastating flurry of blows. These blows can be too numerous to count, but they have to be within one regular arm's length of the user, and the user cannot move. Since the user's chakra is in a swimming field around their body and their muscles are relatively relaxed, this is particularly effective against people with extrasensory crutches. At this stage, this attack gains no benefits from taijutsu bonuses.
Stage 3: This attack can start one arm length away from the user, making the effective range two arm's lengths.
Stage 4: You gain your taijutsu bonuses for this attack.

(Two Open Swap Slots)

Stage Three
Stage Requirements: Reserves 12, Control 8, Strength 8
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

At this point, there's no turning back--the user has become a [Stand] warrior. Using their [Stand] in tandem with their taijutsu training, they become an effective force in any combat situation. Their mastery over their [Stand] allows them to turn the area within their arm's length into a deadly flurry of floating blows.

This is the stage in which they gain the ability to form an almost full set of armor, which combined with the [Stand] stance, generates an avatar of their fighting spirit.

It's not uncommon for Shattering Stone Fist users to name this armor a unique epithet or moniker. (Feel free to add a description of your [Stand] to your character sheet.)

Regular Techniques
[STAND PROUD] (Stance)
In this stance, the floating [Stand] gains no taijutsu bonuses whatsoever.

In exchange, as long as it stands within one arm's length of the user, they can act independently of each other. Keep in mind the [Stand] is an animated suit of armor by the user, and has no senses or intelligence of its own. Effectively, the [New Stone Body] becomes an extra set of floating limbs. The [Stand] could protect the user while he weaves complicated hand seals, or attack while the user tends to an injured friend, for instance.

For those who can understand or see such things, the Stand is filled with the user's swimming field of chakra, making it even more difficult to precognate its actions.

Regular Techniques
Funkatachi Keisei (Erupting Body Creation)
This it--that glorious avatar of your fighting spirit, a unique creation from deep within your heart. The ERUPTING BODY is a set of armor you can wear by performing the “Yamaken Keisei” pose from back in Stage 1. Notably, the design of this armor on the user's body versus the armor when in a [Stand] stance can have different designs--truly, the [Stand] is becoming a unit all of his own.

Limb Armor (Arms) [1] Limb Armor (Legs) [1] Helmet [1] Body Armor [2] = 5 WP

Special Techniques
Attack, My Stand! Passive
While the ninja has to form the handseals themselves, the Stand can be the point of origin of any of their Stone Village or Global Ninjutsu jutsu or swaps, as long as they're two stages lower than their highest stage in [SHATTERING STONE FIST] style. This only applies to ninjutsu and taijutsu--the Stand cannot release Yin/genjutsu chakra.

(Two Open Swap Slots)

Stage Four
Stage Requirements: Reserves 15, Control 14, Power 14, Strength 14
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

You gain one additional WP for the purposes of customizing your Funkatachi Keisei technique.

Stage Five
Stage Requirements: Reserves 20, Control 18, Power 18, Strength 16
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

You gain one additional WP (total 2) for the purposes of customizing your Funkatachi Keisei technique.

Stage Six
Stage Requirements: Reserves 27, Control 20, Power 20, Strength 18, Stamina 18
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength

You gain one additional WP (total 3) for the purposes of customizing your Funkatachi Keisei technique.

Stage Seven
Stage Requirements: Reserves 35, Control 28, Power 28, Strength 22, Stamina 22
Stage Bonuses: +3 Strength\

You gain one additional WP (total 4) for the purposes of customizing your Funkatachi Keisei technique.

[Virtual Dream]

Return of the Six Stroke Shooting Star...!
_________________________________

KOSAI "ROKU" RYUUSEI
_________________________________

The Dunepunk Windboarder with the Gear Arm!


The Last Ace in a Lost Hand

[Name] Kosai Ryuusei
[Age] 24
[Sex] Male
[Height] 6’4’’

[Character Type] Shinobi

[Country/Village] Kaze no Kuni, Sunagakure no Sato
[Rank] Jounin
[Division] SUNA - Officer

[Physical Description]

Like an explosion in freeze-frame.

Ryuusei is a man of extremes - - towering over most other ninja with his six foot four height and filling out his weight-class neatly with a muscular figure without an ounce of extra fat (citation needed), he's a hulking figure of a soldier with a crazy dark brown mop of curly hair fluffing around on top of his head. His eyes - - blue like a Husky, but speckled with a brilliant rainbow of colors due to his manipulation of some weird mystical starmetal - - are INTENSE, always on the look out for the next big thing. Like any great warrior, he's always busted up from one adventure or the next, but when he does clean up nice he kinda has a boyish charm to him.

You can't dodge the question too much, though! His left arm was lost in a horrible accident while he was protecting the ideals of his ninja village! That mass of metal and woodworks is inspired by his own father's puppeteering magic is a hand-built machine perfectly suited for his unique chakra-enhanced fighting style. While the gnarly scar around the shoulder/torso port of the arm and the inhuman engine sounds it makes, it sure as hell makes the man more striking than he ever was before.

He moves with a sort of grace that's hard to overlook. With enough finesse to handle himself on the most wicked tempests this side of the country, but strong enough to topple his enemies during shinobi work, Ryuusei's always been a shining star of the sport -- keep your eyes open, ladies! A guy like this has to settle down sometime.

--Windboarder's Annual Special Edition: The Greatest Heroes of the Sport

[Clothing]

To be honest, if it wasn't for his warrior's physique or his handsome, boyish charm -- Ryuusei's daily wear would be better suited for the pages of Cringes Weekly. However, he wears his printed anime t-shirts and jeans with a certain self-aware humbleness that's consistently charmed us here at this rag as well as nation-wide fans of the sport. His athletic shoes can definitely be called SNEAKERS, since they're the only designer brand personally endorsed by a high ranking shinobi of Sunagakure, soft soled with enough grip for windboarding but breathable enough for the wall walking technique. His weapon-kit harness perfectly matches the boarder's style, hanging on his hips with a proper cowboy style. That green jacket of his is practically legendary - - covered in the patches of his sponsors as well as running tally of his accomplishments, both on the board and on the field as a ninja.

There's been a few shots of Ryuusei caught in the traditional shinobi attire of the Sunagakure elite, or even darker and lighter clothing for work outside of the country, but good luck catching shots of a ninja in proper action.

--Dunepunk Essentials: Gear to beat the Grime

[Personality]

Impressively tenacious, infectiously motivated, impetuously daring. My boy Roku's really turned his life around. It's like he's always moving with a groove in his step, lightning in his feet and wind at his back. He's got a weird way with words, where it feels like he can really get it, even if he doesn't get it. That nerd says it's called empathy, but I call it friendship. We used to always call him everyone's second best friend - - he's a loner that seems to always have your back when you need it. A real selfless type who's always sticking his neck out for others. Back then, he used to lead the worst of the dunepunks and got us on the straight and narrow - - mostly. Nowadays he's ruling over entire squadrons, keepin' the whole village safe! An' my boy is STILL humble! Yeah, sometimes he talks a real big game, but that's like, intimidation tactics. He's kinda deep, though. I guess when you've gotten so close to dyin' as many times as he has, you start to see the world different. To me, Roku represents the best of us. Never backing down from his ideals, sticking true to his heart even when it pushes people against him - - he's got these creepy resin anime girl figures all over his room, it's like, dude, do you even get laid? But that's Roku for you, man - he knows who he is and he ain't pushing against it.

I just wish the dude wasn't so hard on himself. Roku, if you're reading this, none of us blame you for what happened with your Pops, and you know the few of us that didn't get on track sure as hell aren't out there doin' god knows what out of some spite for you. You're the man, man. Stay true, fly high.

--Blog post by [redacted]

[Nindo; "Way of the Ninja"] "Stay true. Fly high. Never surrender."

[Bookworm] (Chakra, Physical, Mental)
(You may spend up to two rather than one thread points on jutsu. The second point spent on jutsu must always be a Genjutsu or Ninjutsu.)
Archetype: Ninjutsu Specialist (+2 to Power, +1 to Control, -2 to Strength, -1 to Tactics)
Archetype: Genjutsu Specialist (+2 to Willpower, +1 to Intelligence, -2 to Strength, -1 to Stamina)

-----------------------------------

Power: 1 [+2 AT] [+20 CP] 23
Control: 1 [+1 AT] [+20 CP] 22
Reserves: 1 [+20 CP] 21

Strength: 1 [-4 AT] [+19 CP] 16 [+15 Precision Fist]
Speed: 1 [+15 CP] 16
Stamina: 1 [-1 AT] [+16 CP] 15

Intelligence: 1 [+1 AT] [+13 CP] 15
Tactics: 1 [-1 AT] [+14 CP] 14
Willpower: 1 [+2 AT] [+13 CP] 16

--------------------------------------------------

Jutsu and Techniques:

Sunagakure Style Ninjutsu: Wind Release
Stage One
Fuuton: Hanpatsu Kaze no Jutsu (Wind Element: Retrieving Wind Technique)
Requirements: Willpower 3, Reserves 3
Stage Two
Kaze Kawarimi (Wind Replacement)
Requirements: Control 7, Power 7, Willpower 6
Stage Three
Fuuton: Bouseki Tate no Kaze (Wind Element: Spinning Shield of Winds)
Requirements: Control 9, Power 9, Willpower 7
Stage Four
Fuuton: Tei Hakusha (Wind Element: Air Riding) [Windboarder's Specialty Technique]
Requirements: Willpower 14, Intelligence 13, Tactics 11, Power 10
Stage Five
Fuuton: Kaze no Yaiba (Wind Element: Wind Sword)
Requirements: Willpower 17, Intelligence 16, Tactics 16, Control 15

Sunagakure Style Genjutsu
Stage One
Kazeoto (Sound of The Wind)
Trigger: Whistle
Requirements: 3 Willpower, 2 Control
Stage Two
Nigemizu Fukumen (Mirage Veil)
Trigger: Your Own Body
Requirements: 6 Reserves, 5 Power, 5 Intelligence
Stage Three
Hanasu (Division)
Trigger: Click
Requirements: 8 Reserves, 6 Power, 8 Control
Stage Four
Koujin (Mundane World)
Trigger: Whistle
Requirements: 14 Reserves, 13 Power, 11 Control, 10 Intelligence
Stage Five
Kimitsushitsu Wana no Jutsu (Airtight Chamber Trap)
Trigger: Thumb and Index Fingers Extended
Requirements: 17 Reserves, 16 Power, 16 Control, 15 Willpower

Konohagakure Style Taijutsu: Precision Fist
Stage One
Stage Two
Stage Three
Stage Four
Stage Five Control 22, Power 18, Reserves 16, Strength 16

My Shinobi Handbook: Global Ninjutsu
Stage One
Yoso no Te (Element Hand) [Just in case...]
Requirements: Power 4, Control 4
Stage Two
Kinobori/Kabenobori no Jutsu (Tree Walking / Wall Walking Technique)
Requirements: Power 5, Control 4, Reserves 4
Stage Three
Shukuchi (Reduced Earth)
Requirements: Intelligence 8, Tactics 8, Willpower 6

Inventory:
Unique Arm [3]
All Purpose Heavy Cloak [3]
(http://www.narutorp.net/showthread.php?t=43800)
Windboarder's Goggles [2]
(Night Vision)

Item Points Remaining: 0

-----------------------------------------

Biography:

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Interview

Response.

Other Info:

Thread Ratings:

[Virtual Dream]

Amagiri Gedo
[The Macabre Magus]

[The Long-Haired One]
11 years
onee-san
4'7"

shinobi academy student in otogakure
path of flesh

physical description
"It's like looking into the mirror..."

Gedo grew her hair out, taking to carefully trimming her bangs and brushing out her hair every day to train it out into a long and silky cowl, only to be disappointed that people still couldn't tell her apart from her short-haired, spunkier sister. Try as she might, she couldn't ever get the small sprigs (sometimes, "ahoge") of stray hair to stay tucked away on her head. Despite insistence that her eyes were a steely grey -- or at least a shade lighter, they were virtually identical to her sister's rich sky blue. Sharp and small describe their nose and eyebrows, quick punctuation on youthful faces. Without a doubt, Gedo and Naido where near-perfectly identical twins.

Older by four minutes and forty four seconds, Gedo carries a stigma as the left-handed twin. Her internal organs, the parting of her hair, her primary handedness are all a mirror image of her sister's, as if they laid next to a perfect mirror. The most obvious identifying trait between the two girls is a small mole they both have below their breast--Gedo's left, Naido's right. Until Gedo was old enough to start growing out her hair to make the distinction easier, the Naga researchers would occasionally toss items at the girls, checking who caught with which hand. The clever girls have become ambidextrous in an effort to confuse their caretakers.

Slinky like a snake, Gedo stands at her full height with a slight impatient twist to her hips almost always. Her body language carries a bristling energy to her, like she'd always rather be somewhere else or doing something else. That sort of energy can be infectious, helping her lead others to action. Despite using her height and strong stance to look down on others, occasionally with a sneer, she's actually rather helpful and sweet, eager to assist in any way she can. This is represented in the softness of her face and her relatively open stance, puffing out her chest in pride and keeping her hands relaxed. Compared to her sister, she has more pale skin, and a thinner frame--she doesn't carry the muscle of a more advanced shinobi.

Her face is incredibly expressive, so it could be said she wears her heart on her sleeve--but she has an unfortunate flaw in that she comes off as a bit severe. A smile can seem like a sneer, concern can look sarcastic, and frustration can be exaggerated. Those who get to know Gedo learn quickly to read her facial expressions for what they are, but it makes it more difficult to bring people in close. The very air around her is prim, proper, and a bit snooty--pride manifested.

On the back of her left, dominant hand is a small faded scar, the beginnings of a curse seal slowly being worked over the recent months by her Naga benefactors. Her right arm tends to be hidden beneath clean and twisted bandages and a soft silk glove, to hide her arm cannon surgery. Despite the implant being a relative success, Gedo hasn't mastered the art, so it's an embarrassing reminder of how far she has to go.

As a child of the Naga, she never received an eighth note tattoo.

clothing/dress
"Even if it's a bit much, she looks comfy!"

She's fond of the color red, if only because it contrasts her eyes and make them look lighter than they really are. The color of passion and forward thinking, the wild flare of her rebellion, and a comforting warmth amid the dark caverns of the Necropolis. Even if she doesn't make it a major part of her outfit, she tends to splash it in somehow--if only just in the ribbons in her hair.

Her long hair is held in place with two ribbons, giving her a set of twin tails, but even more hair spills down the back of her head. Occasionally she'll opt for braids and a single more elaborate bow, but that's more for special occasions. Very rarely will she let her hair down entirely, either a result of her prim attitude or out of a modesty. While recently she's become a bit more adventurous in her clothing, she's very fond of keeping most of her skin covered up. High socks, boots, layered clothing with jackets or dresses, half arm gloves, and the like. She can come off looking a bit like a foreign princess, or maybe someone who's a bit much into gothic lolita fashion, but everything comes together nicely on her frame.

Her tastes can be a bit on the elaborate side, more idol than researcher, but more likely than anything it's an attempt to hide away the nastier parts of her life in beauty--a poisonous flower. Her ninja garb is a skintight black leotard, typically paired with leggings of the same material, with her bandages wrapped around her off hand and her good arm bare.

Occasionally, she's not as brave as she had planned, and pulls over a jacket or sweater to give herself a bit more modesty. She half-hardedly calls this her gothic shinobi aesthetic...but only to herself.

personality
"She has a smile just for me...but I hope one day she can wear it always."

Rebellion.

She doesn't look like it, with her prim posing and elegant dress, but Gedo is a hot-blooded rebel. Headstrong, stubborn, and more than eager to prove herself, Gedo doesn't take well to authority and constantly tries to push the limits around her. While she understands the reasoning for law and rules, she doesn't understand the concept of following just to keep the status quo. Like an elegant ghost, she slips through the systems of Otogakure with a practiced poise, always willing to find any loophole or oversight to manage her gains. While not a criminal or lawbreaker, she's hardly morally clean.

Perhaps a side-effect from her overactive coil system, but once Gedo manages to wake up out of bed, she's a tightly wound filament of energy. She's capable of staying active at full tilt, studying or training or exploring, keeping her mood elevated. This is marred by occasional periods of depression and lethargy, but even a prodigal Naga needs time to rest and recover.

Her dedication and drive would be considered unparalleled for her peers, if she was anywhere but Otogakure. She has the researcher's knack of an high academia student and the eager trendsetting of a upstart entrepreneur. Her energy can be infectious.

While more solitary than social, she has a sweet disposition and an understanding personalty that makes her a bit popular with her peers. She's a practiced "older sister", even to someone of the same age. This same disposition lends her to be a bit apart from the others.

Despite her tragedy, she smiles. Despite loss, she gives. Despite her sorrow, she finds joy.

nindo, "way of the ninja" "Something out there will bring me to balance."

archetype
beast master (+2 to Speed, +1 to Willpower; -1 to Intelligence, -1 to Tactics, -1 to Control)
healer (+2 to Intelligence, +1 to Reserves; -1 to Strength, -1 to Speed, -1 to Willpower)

-----------------------------------
statistics

physical
strength 1 (-1 archetype) 0
speed 1 (+1 archetype) 2
stamina 1

mental
intelligence 1 (+1 archetype) 2
tactics 1 (-1 archetype) 0
willpower 1 (+/- 0 archetype balance) 1

chakra
power 1
control 1 (-1 archetype) 0
reserves 1 (+1 archetype) 2

jutsu and techniques

1. beast master
2. medical ninjutsu

• s1. kinjutsu: shibito tankyuu (Intelligence 4, Willpower 4)
• s2. kinjutsu: henge shibito (Control 7, Power 7, Intelligence 6)

3. sound ninjutsu

• s1. myaku (Control 3, Tactics 2)
• s2. kaze senbon (myaku, Control 5, Reserves 4, Power 4)

4. naga curse mark slot
5. n/a

naido
novice trainer - genin
key trait: supernatural beast (naga experimentation)
beast trait: ...
beast trait: ...

caster

statistics

physical
strength 1
speed 1
stamina 1

mental
intelligence 1 (+1 pool) 2
tactics 1
willpower 1 (+1 pool) 2

chakra
power 1 (+2 pool) 3
control 1 (+1 pool) 2
reserves 1

jutsu and techniques
miko: pierce
stage 1
Hikari no Hahen - Shards of Light
requirements: 2 control, 2 intelligence
Tamashii Kagayaki - Soul Glow
requirements: 3 power, 2 willpower

theAMAGIRIfamily
"The Amagiri clan has mutated chakra coils--often with 50% more capacity than a regular man. To the Amagiri themselves, these extra coils are like the appendix--useless, wasting the body's precious resources. But to the Naga..."


In Old Otogakure, the Amagiri ninja family was more than capable, often producing strong and stable shinobi for generations. There was a legend that the family had been granted a portion of divinity by a wise and terrible dragon, so they wore the symbol of a coiled winged serpent fashioned as an ouroboros as a family crest.

Inside the serpent's clutches rested six triangles, three stacked into a pyramid like the ancient Hojo clan, and three spanning outwards on the junctions. These were said to represent the two paths towards divinity--the path within, enlightenment, and the path out, wisdom. The empty core in the center was said to represent a dark void, a shadow that was at the heart of all ninja. For truth, the Amagiri always considered their blessing of health and luck to be one end of a terrible curse: No Amagiri ever lived into old age.

During the Soundfall, there wasn't many Amagiri healthy enough to run or fight, and those that did became scattered. It came to pass 11 years ago that a pair of twins was born to the last known remaining couple of Amagiri. The mother died in childbirth, an unfortunate trend of Amagiri births, and the father, a proud Nomad warrior, died in combat not soon after. His teammates claimed he was mad with grief and rage, made poor decisions--and that left his two little girls without anyone to care for them. A group of traders appeared, offering to take the orphan girls in exchange for medicine and treatments for the tribesmen. This was worth more than gold--and definitely worth more than two helpless, orphaned infants. These two girls would leave with the traders and would be brought back to the Catacombs of the Naga --- never knowing the group that was responsible for their parents' deaths would become their adoptive family, their doctors and researchers, the coiled snakes around their hearts.

This is the story of the oldest of the two remaining survivors of the cursed Amagiri clan...

[Virtual Dream]

ENTON

(BLAZE RELEASE)

Sometimes referred to as "Inferno Style", Enton (Blaze Release) is considered to be the pinnacle of Katon (Fire Release) techniques. Previously thought to be the result of a kekkei genkai, other fire specialists outside of various bloodline clans have managed to command these unique flames over the years. Enton creates black flames known as "Kokuen", which are unique, lingering curses that can burn for seven days and seven nights even without a fuel source. It's said only the creator of a Kokuen flame can extinguish them. Luckily, Kokuen flames burn slowly enough that inflamed clothing can be cast aside without much injury. Simply casting an Enton is a serious commitment by the user: the black flames burn so hot that creating them in your chakra coils causes lasting, sometimes permanent damage. It's for this reason that the Hokage, past and present, have labeled this dangerous form of Katon a Kinjutsu ("Forbidden Technique").

Kinjutsu - Enton: Amateratsu
Stage X

This technique doesn't require handseals, but holding the tiger seal while performing this technique can help reduce some of the strain on the user. Temporarily going blind in one eye, the shinobi casting this forbidden technique conjures Kokuen in the line of sight of their other eye (which eye is dependent on the user, but can never change, even in the event of the loss of an eye). These Kokuen flames are slow burning, but impossibly hot flames that can devour any known material. Due to the slow burning nature, common defenses to this technique involve simply discarding the clothing or armor that's burning, pushing the flames away with wind or other materials, chakra absorption techniques, or even using fuinjutsu, such as the Fire-Sealing Method or Evil-Sealing Method. You can safely cast Amateratsu once per thread with a one thread cooldown. Every additional casting of this jutsu within this period of time causes damage to your eye which causes temporary blindness for a post (although your other eye recovers normally). Being blind, of course, removes your ability to cast this jutsu. The flames created by Amateratsu are roughly one square foot and can't be extinguished by traditional means (smothering with sand or water, removing oxygen from the area, or even Katon-defeating ninjutsu), but the user can will them to disappear, which is useful if the flames are pushed back onto them.

Eye Damage Structure (Over a Two Thread Period):
Once cast: Pain to the eye and chakra coil, but otherwise recovers normally.
Twice cast: Blindness to the eye for the rest of the thread after the technique is completed.
Thrice cast (ie, casting in three threads in a row, or casting twice in one thread and once in the next): Permanent blindness to the eye. The eye can be replaced by the standard means (implants, etc) or healed by a jounin level medical ninja, but only by a jounin level medical ninja that also knows this technique.

VD'S Super Simple Mission and Reward Structure

To keep in theme with Naruto, missions are arranged by a letter grade rank, with S+ and S++ suggesting SUPER difficult missions for FUNSIES. All missions listed regularly are intended to be completed by anyone who wants to take them and fits the mission rank. No "oh, that mission is important to Sunagakure's plot, so only my character can do it" SEIKON

But, wait! There's also a slot for personal request missions for characters in the village. Everytime you rate a thread / someone rates a thread for a character in your village, if they don't already have a special mission, generate one for them. It's okay if it's a generic mission (go get this, go kill that, go whatever), but try and base it around two things: The character's specialization (A Hyuuga might be needed to investigate a crime, or to punch a chakra-trained warrior) and the player's general interests (VD likes shounen threads and crying threads!), so a good mission for Hyuuga Yuu might be: [C-Rank. Hyuuga Yuu, assemble a team and investigate the murders around [Town]. Special Information: There's a chuunin nukenin from Snow there, and he's hurting people! But he's doing it out of the grief of his own village.] Or something. Yuu's all about this kind of shit, mechanically, and VD's all about having SAD BOY, SCREAMING YOUR NINDOS in his threads. Win win!

Everytime your character completes a mission, they get a token based on that mission's rank. These tokens are "low, mid, high" grade. They change based on your rank. Performing missions above your rank are possible, and they grant you BONUS tokens. Players don't have to know about the token system specifically. These tokens are used to trade for rewards (if the players aren't offered tokens specifically, offer them the bonus after their next rated thread). Example rewards: special items. (Konoha's White Fang, Madara's Fire Control Fan, a Jar that Seals Bijuu). "forbidden" techniques (Say, a stage 3 technique that has a stage 4-5 technique, but comes with a terrible cost to the user [like being frozen in pain after]. These scale to their appropriate stages to be used as a special technique, later on in character development). Summoning lists. Introduction into Special Forces. "allied shinobi list" jutsu selection (How many threads has Yuu done in Sunagakure? All of them?). "Oh, but these are really powerful items/jutsu/rewards!! I don't wanna give them to just anyone!" yeah, dummy, they're going to the people actively playing in your village and showing an interest in your plots.

The general mission list can be generic. People can be encouraged to make their own missions if they don't like the generic ones. The primary benefit is getting a feel for the types of threads people like to do so you can make the missions specific to the character. This makes people feel invested in their characters and feel that the GM cares about what their characters are up to. People shouldn't feel like the GMs hate them for blowing up islands or don't appreciate the effort they make in their threads. Rewards should be given openly and regularly. The difference between a character with a lot of threads done and a character with 100 AP should be obvious: The character who's actually put in the work has access to things AP can't buy.

Overall goals, like Sunagakure, is also cool, I'll be stealing that.

Leaf Rewards: Summons, special fans that control fire without handseals, Mass Shadow Clone no Jutsu.
Stone Rewards: Tons of unique artifacts. Jars that eat chakra, fans that spit all five elements. Introduction into special forces. WP that goes additional to the typical caps of WP (we rich.)

[Virtual Dream]

Name: Yaken
Age: 16
Sex: Male
Height: 5'8''

Country/Village: Ta no Kuni / Otogakure no Sato [Information]
Rank: Kitaeru (Genin equivalent)
Division: Naga Experiment: Homunculus - Path of Flesh

Y a k e n
e l e c t r i c ·¤· w o r r y

"One goal keeps me going: take back what I lost to the bosses of greed and fear."

Physical Description:

"What are you writing down? Hey! I killed that guy, right? Don't you have to tell me what's going on now? If you don't talk for fifteen minutes, doesn't that mean I get to leave?"

He wears a weariness on his face unfitting his years, the furrow of his brow and sneer of his face a near constant, sullen visage. Perhaps more unfitting for his years are his broad shoulders, impressive height, and muscular structure: garnered gains from a what appears to be a lifetime of physical training. His straw-colored hair is a deeper tangerine color in it’s thick bodied curls, a military-style shaven undercut keeping his hair away from his ear line. The thick curls spill over his brow, covering his forehead, a haphazard haircut done more for ease rather than style. His wide eyes, typically tightened in a sharp glare, are black in color with the sharp intensity expected from a trained warrior. His body is a patchwork of scarring from the rigors of combat, contrasting his rich olive skin with twisted white patches of flesh. His torso and back, in particular, hold the worst of the scarring: these from the repeated surgeries he’s been subjected to as a Naga experimentation. His habit of smoking cigarettes leaves him smelling like burnt tobacco and smoke, combined with sweat and a typical lack of hygiene from his station. He carries himself with a certain rigidity, a tense fidgeting as if he stays on edge and impatient all the time. Just to the left of center on his throat is an eighth mark tattoo, branding him as an Otogakure shinobi for life.

Clothing:

"I don't know, I literally just get stuff off of dead guys. It's not like New Otogakure has set up a lot of great thread shops."

A varsity jacket with extra pockets, whatever t-shirt he could find, long pants and sneakers. His entire wardrobe is made up of stuff he robbed from the corpses of whoever he had to cut down, combined with straps and belts to fit his shinobi kit. If he was given an official uniform with the rise of New Otogakure, no one would know – he’s grown fond of his collection of spare clothing. Hoodies, jackets, or bandages wrapped up his arm: He’s grown tired of people asking about his gnarly scars. The extra padding on the back of his head either from a hood or a thick collar gives him some weird sense of peace, as if there aren’t eyes glaring at him from behind. Perhaps a great sin, but he doesn’t wear socks with his sneakers – do shinobi even know what socks are?

Either way, he covers himself up as much as possible even when it’s hot out. Maybe he’s just cold hearted.

Personality:

"What do you mean doesn't play well with others? I'm a GREAT teammate! Just stay out of my way!"

A lifetime of being the butt of some cosmic joke has turned Yaken into a bristly guy, but being a punk teenager has turned him sarcastic and cruel, too. These winning personality traits make it difficult for people to trust or admire him, or even offer sympathy for his treatment in the past. Scrappy and tenacious, he has a habit of pulling himself out of dangerous situations and rising to the top: but being the lone survivor on more than one occasion has given him the reputation of being a “Team-Killer”, despite it being well known among the people that he’s worked with (and that have survived), that he’s a fierce protector of his allies and even desperate to uphold his twisted views of justice. He’s obnoxious, loud, and incredibly defensive, but goes out of his way for others when he can.

While he doesn’t want admit it, but his upbringing has given him the survival skills to make it as a shinobi, so his views on the adults that forged him are a complicated mess of respect and distaste. His sweet, protective side is normally swallowed up by his angry boasting and fierce obsession with personal growth. Those who have earned honor are worthy of respect.

Nindo; "Way of the Ninja": "The true path of the shinobi is through introspection, a deep understanding of the heart and nature. You see, chakra is a delicate expression of the spirit, and through combat, we become our true selves...in a way, we love those we subjugate, right? I'm just kidding. Kill or be killed, that's my ninja way."

-----------------------------------

Stray Dog
Once per thread, the Spitfire Stray Dog can use one Ninjutsu technique Stage Four and below two times simultaneously in one post, counting as only a single use. Specific jutsu rules still apply (eg. a jutsu saying it can only be used once a thread).
Combo Archetype: Spitfire
Primary Archetype: Taijutsu Specialist
Primary: Physical Secondary: Mental Tertiary: Chakra
Stat Merit: +1 to Strength, +1 to Speed, +1 to Stamina
Stat Flaw: -2 to Reserves, -1 to Power
Secondary Archetype: Cavalier
Stat Merit: +2 Speed, +1 Power
Stat Flaw: -2 Intelligence, -1 Reserves

Bang, bang, bang, bang
Vamanos, vamanos

Bang, bang, bang
Vamanos, vamanos

Statistics

Physical
Strength: 1 + 1 AT + 5 Pool = 7
Speed: 1 + 3 AT = 4
Stamina: 1 + 1 AT + 5 Pool = 7

Mental
Intelligence: 1 - 2 AT + 3 Pool = 2
Tactics: 1 + 1 Pool = 2
Willpower: 1 + 4 Pool = 5

Chakra
Power: 1
Control: 1 + 2 Pool = 3
Reserves: 1 - 3 AT + 4 Pool = 2

--------------------------------------------------

Jutsu and Techniques:

Chigatana no Kenbu (Bloody Sword Dance)
Stage One [Strength 5, Stamina 3]
Stage Bonuses: +4 Strength, +3 Speed, +2 Stamina

Daidoumyaku (Great Pulse Fist)
Stage One [Speed 4, Strength 4]
Stage Bonuses: +3 Speed, +3 Strength, +3 Stamina
Special Techniques:
Stage One - Mimi Senshi (Ear Stab) [Intelligence 2, Tactics 2]

Sound Ninjutsu (Melody Release)
Stage One
Myaku (Pulse) [Control 3, Tactics 2]

Hyouton (Ice Release)
Stage One
Hyouton: Dokuji Seppen (Special Snowflake) [2 Reserves, 2 Intelligence]

Inventory:
- Iron 1 [Large Blade 3] + [Sound Elemental Weapon 1] 4
Iron 1 sings with threatening vibrations, it's invisible cutting edge a boon in combat.
- Iron 2 [Medium Blade 2] 2
Iron 2 is a smaller double edged sword with a row of teeth for parrying.
- Shadow Windmill [Large Projectile 1] 1
A large, collapsible fuuma shuriken.
- Razor Wire [1]
Now in five fun flavors!

Item Points Remaining: 0

-----------------------------------------

Biography:

"It does one - - no honor - - to belittle those lower than he or she."

Bang.

"Those who - - have earned honor - - are worthy of respect...it does one no honor - - to belittle those lower than he or she."

Bang.

"Does beating me make you feel good or something?"

Bang.

Tangerine Harbor

Tachibana Minato was born to Tachibana Hayato and Tachibana Minoru. He was their oldest child, with two younger sisters: Tachibana Fumiko, born two years later, and Tachibana Mei born two years after that. The family was well-known for their sturdy stock of shinobi, and Minato was no exception: he took well to ninjutsu training and subjected himself to intense study and physical training to prepare himself for the Shinobi Academy of Yukigakure. This paid off handsomely, as he quickly rose to the top of his class and demanded the respect of all who observed him. This child, it was said, would be something special. In his second year of academy, he stole off into the cold of Snow country to find a rare blooming vine to celebrate Fumiko’s acceptance into the shinobi program.

He was presumed deceased, but no body was recovered.

In Rice Country, there exists a mammoth structure of a snake, dipping and curling through the country side, that eventually bites down on its own tail. It’s incredible size and length means that entire temples, towns, and trade routes can be plotted on its ridges – and on the 88th coil where an ancient and grand dojo is built, filled with monks and miko and the occasional shinobi. It was here that Minato was awoken, body mostly destroyed by frostbite and blunt trauma, to the desperate attempts of Amagiri Gedo, Naga researcher. His memories of his life before were distant nightmares, but being stitched back together by this woman made him feel a sense of comfort and attachment. He wouldn’t see her again, properly, for many years.

He was left with the Sound nomads, given an eighth mark tattoo on his neck, permanently branded as a tool, and labeled as a kitaeru. While bits and pieces of his previous training leaked through, he was years behind the others due to his restored body and hobbled mind. Every time the Naga – then disguised as typical nomads – would make their passes to check his progress and to perform their studies of his growth, they treated him as little more than an object or tool. That treatment eventually imprinted on others within the nomads, until he was subject to daily abuse from those with authority. It was a game of stress relief, to lay into the boy, until he was isolated from his peers and considered an outsider, despite his tattoo. Despite this, his performance was well-regarded. Excelling particularly in combat missions, an uncommon luck (or perhaps a blessing of the Naga) kept him alive in the worst of situations. On more than one occasion, he was the only one to return from a mission.

This created the cruel rumor that he was a team-killer, either catching revenge for his abuse on the field or simply cutting anyone that got in his way for his objective. His obsession with growth and his crass attitude didn’t help quell these rumors. Still, the other kitaeru knew the truth: “Yaken”, as he had been named, was uncommonly gentle to those below him in skill and stature. While he didn’t mind talking shit to the adults that used him, lashing out like a dog on a chain, he treated the rest of the nomads as his siblings and protected them as best he could from the worst of the nomad lifestyle. He would always come back to the camps from missions with new treats and prizes from the outside world, a habit he didn’t remember ever making.

After the resurrection of Otogakure and the reunification with the Naga, he saw her true face for the first time in a long time – Amagiri Gedo. While she had seen him quite often, in disguise or under a mask, he was finally made aware that she had been a guiding hand in his development. Gedo’s influence had kept him from the catacombs, allowed him some semblance of a normal life, but she was also the one that had sacrificed him to the Nomads and given him this life in the first place.

Yaken’s love for his “siblings”, the other nomadic kitaeru, and his self-reliance built from his harsh time as a nomad, has given him purpose to become as strong as possible. With his connection to the Naga made public knowledge both to him and the others around him, fear of the secretive organization has protected him from the most overt abuses, but it has done nothing to mend his reputation. “Team-Killer Yaken” is considered a powerful kitaeru asset, but a dangerous and hostile individual deserving of his castigation.

His first goal is to take advantage of that reputation to become a feared operative for New Otogakure.

Other Info:
- Has a collection of headbands, prizes from genin teams he tangled with during his time as a nomad.
- Has a weird sister complex. He likes to protect imouto types and has a weird thing for his "older sister" Amagiri Gedo. He wasn't figured what to do with that, yet.
- Learned his birthright Hyouton, unknowingly through the guidance of the Naga. He thought he was just a special snowflake.

Thread Ratings:
Chikushou (A man reborn as a beast, "God dammit") Modo - GMAP Spent: blahblah
Dollar for Dollar - Personal AP Spent: blahbalh
Thread Title - TP: blahblah
Snarky comment.
Thread Title 2 - TP: blahblah
Snarky comment.

Doctor or lawyer
I'll never be
Life of a drifter
The only life for me
You can have your riches
All the gold you saved
There ain't room for one thing
In everybody's grave

[Virtual Dream]

Name: Amagiri Gedo
Age: ?? (Late teens, early twenties)
Sex: Female
Height: 5’5’’

Country/Village: Ta no Kuni / Otogakure no Sato Information
Rank: Senshi (Jounin equivalent)
Division: Naga Researcher – Path of Flesh // Senior Officer, SAM-C

Physical Description:

Beauty soured by a lifetime in the shadows, glory turned to vanity.

Standing around 165cm, but weighing in at barely 45kg (100lb), a strong breeze could easily threaten to uproot her. This malnourishment renders her skin an easily bruised ruddish color, typically slick with sweat and oil. Her hair, originally a rich black, has lost its luster and hangs from her head in a haphazard cut with the edge of a kunai. It’s typically some shade of blue or purple, for the few days out of the month she suddenly cares what she looks like. She has pale and thin lips hiding sharp teeth, a prominent nose, and thin eyebrows that betray her natural haircolor. Her eyes are a snake-like yellow, and typically shaded by deep bags of sleep deprivation. Underneath her left eye is the nai lof a snake tattoo that curls around the back of her head, coils around her neck, and crosses down her back and across her breast and up her left arm where the simple striking snake head lashes at her middle finger. This simple yet massive tattoo serves in the place of an eighth note – as a Naga experiment turned researcher, she only recently considered herself a part of the Sound collective.

Clothing:

Like most of the Naga, she’s a secretive person, typically clad in heavy robes and hoods that blank out her tiny frame. She makes use of earth tones to camouflage herself against the underground, but a flair of her youth appears in the rich red lining. Her garments underneath—if she has need to wear anything at all—tends to be typical shinobi garb made up of a black shirt and pants.

Recently, she’s been acting as a shinobi for New Otogakure. Here, she’s like a drastically different person: wearing a typical shinobi outfit including a green flak jacket, she almost passes for a normal functioning human being...so far as you can, being a magical ninja warrior. The difference can be night and day compared to her typically drab appearance.

As a child, she was very fond of dresses and ribbons, an almost forgotten part of her past.

Personality:

Gedo has dedicated her life to her craft – researching a long forgotten technique – and her life in the underground, graduating from an experiment to a researcher has left her a twisted example of humanity. Once an eager overachiever, she’s become an impatient and viciously efficient machine of a woman. Results can take years to turn over in her line of work, so to keep herself from going mad, she fills her days with as many projects and tasks that she can to keep her hyperactive mind busy. This isn’t successful: she’s quite mad.

Having suffered the brunt of unrestricted experimentation in her youth, she’s cold and uncaring of the cries for help and pleas for a quick death from her own experimentations...but something inside of her, a slithering and frightening monster, feels remorse. One day, she tells herself, when she’s mastered the Edo Tensei, she can make up for this lifetime of blood.

Her fool’s errand has made her incredibly jaded and cynical, and the life of a Naga researcher is one of jealousy and sabotage.

In nearly all ways, she represents the snake.

Primary Archetype: Beast Master
Stat Merit: +2 to Speed, +1 to Willpower
Stat Flaw: -1 to Intelligence, -1 to Tactics, -1 to Control
Secondary Archetype: Healer
Stat Merit: +2 to Intelligence, +1 to Reserves
Stat Flaw: -1 to Strength, -1 to Speed, -1 to Willpower

-----------------------------------

Statistics

Physical

Strength: 1 [-1 AT] [+7 Pool] 7
Speed: 1 [+1 AT] [+18 Pool] 20
Stamina: 1 [+15 Pool] 16

Mental

Intelligence: 1 [+1 AT] [+17 Pool] 19
Tactics: 1 [-1 AT] [+17 Pool] 17
Willpower: 1 [+16 Pool] 17

Chakra

Power: 1 [+22 Pool] 22
Control: 1 [-1 AT] [+20 Pool] 20
Reserves: 1 [+1 AT] [+18 Pool] 20

--------------------------------------------------

Jutsu and Techniques:

Beast Master List
Great Trainer (3 Key, 6 Basic)
Key Trait 1: Naga Experimentation – Homunculus [Naido]
Key Trait 2: Naga Experimentation – Homunculus [Chiji]
Key Trait 3: Naga Experimentation – Homunculus [Rinno]
Basic Trait 1: Advancing Trainer: True Speech [Naido]
Basic Trait 2: Advancing Trainer: Additional Beast I [Chiji]
Basic Trait 3: Great Trainer: Additional Beast II [Rinno]

Medical Ninjutsu
Stage 1
Igaku Kunren (Medical Training)
-- Control 2, Willpower 2
Kanrinin (Caretaker)
-- Control 3, Tactics 2
Kinjutsu: Shibito Tankyuu (Forbidden Technique: Corpse Search)
-- (Intelligence 4, Willpower 4)
Stage 2
Fuuin Toushisha (Seal Person Frozen to Death)
-- (Intelligence 6, Willpower 5, Power 5)
Stage 3
Chiyute no Jutsu (Healing Hands Technique)
-- (Control 8, Power 8, Reserves 6)
Kinjutsu: Kichou Hitomigokuu (Forbidden Technique: Precious Human Sacrifice)
-- (Control 10, Power 10, Tactics 8)
Stage 4
Kinjutsu: Boukon Kioku no Jutsu (Forbidden Technique: Departed Soul Memory Recollection)
-- (Control 15, Power 15, Reserves 13, Intelligence 14)

Global Ninjutsu
Stage 1
Kawarimi no Jutsu (Body Switch Technique)
-- (Power 2, Tactics 2)
Stage 2
Kinobori no Jutsu (Tree Walking Technique)
-- (Power 5, Control 4, Reserves 4)
Stage 3
Fukuwajutsu (Ventriloquism)
-- (Intelligence 9, Tactics 9, Control 7)
Stage 4
Tenkuu Hokou no Gyou (The Art of Walking on Air)
-- (Power 15, Control 15, Reserves 13, Intelligence 14)
Stage 5
Chidori (Thousand Birds)
-- (Intelligence 18, Tactics 17, Willpower 17, Control 14)

Inventory:

Item Points Remaining:

-----------------------------------------

Biography:

Twinned girls, stolen by the Naga. A terrifying experiment. When one dies, the other lives in her place. Whispers of Edo Tensei, a powerful technique that can bring back the dead. An obsession for power. Snakes, radical 80s scifi, mutants and masterminds.

Other Info:

Thread Ratings:

--------------------------------------------------

Name: Amagiri Naido
Species: Naga Experimentation - Homunculus
Age: Undead
Sex: Female
Height: 5'2'' (disregarding horns)

Physical Description:

Made from the corpse of the original Amagiri Naido, she shares a shocking resemblance to her creator -- at least, frozen in time ten years ago. The mutation of the process has left her with long protruding horns, feral claws on her fingers and feet, but she typically keeps all that unsightly mess carefully hidden underneath human clothing and wrapped bandages around her hands. As the "oldest" of the Homunculus children, she has the longest horns.

Personality:

Capable of human speech, and even passing as a human, Naido has the most defined personality of the three homunculi bonded to Gedo. While incapable of aging like a real human, she's been next to Gedo for long enough to have grown a bit wise and experienced. Untouched by the fear of mortality and unable to feel the passing of time, she doesn't share her creator's desperation or obsession, but provides a calming, patient demeanor. She features a measure of control over the other two, capable of quelling their rages.

--------------------------------------------------

Statistics

Physical

Strength: 1
Speed: 1
Stamina: 1

Mental

Intelligence: 1
Tactics: 1
Willpower: 1

Chakra

Power: 1
Control: 1
Reserves: 1

--------------------------------------------------
Applied Traits
Naga Experimentation - Homunculus
True Speech

Jutsu
Physical Focus - Great Pulse Fist.

Inventory

Other Info:
--------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------

Name: Amagiri Chiji
Species: Naga Experimentation - Homunculus
Age: Undead
Sex: Female
Height: 5'5'' (disregarding horns)

Physical Description:

Created from the corpse of of a traveling ateji miko, she still wears the fine garments of a traveling priestess. Her long, blonde hair is decorated with ribbons, and her yellow kimono with red flower accents suggests some summer festival. The thick balls that serve as a belt were stolen from one shrine or an other, the original meaning having something to do with purity and balance, now perverted as an accent on a risen zombie. She wears a rope tied as a bow on her backside, harkening to the earliest days of Otogakure. She has no need to hide her massive horns or feral hands and feet, so she doesn't. The edges of those blood red mutations spiral out to her skin in beautiful designs, a testament to the once overeager creator.

Personality:

A holdover from her corpse's life, she features heavy curiosity and wanderlust, typically acting as a front line in combat situations. Her inability to speak beyond the incredibly basic limits her ability to act as a scout, but she's grown effective at communicating with her Master as well as any other beast pet.

--------------------------------------------------

Statistics

Physical

Strength: 1
Speed: 1
Stamina: 1

Mental

Intelligence: 1
Tactics: 1
Willpower: 1

Chakra

Power: 1
Control: 1
Reserves: 1

--------------------------------------------------
Applied Traits
Additional Beast I
Naga Experimentation - Homunculus

Jutsu
Genjutsu Focus - Fool's Bane

Inventory

Other Info:
--------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------

Name: Amagiri Rinno
Species: Naga Experimentation - Homunculus
Age: Undead
Sex: Female
Height: 4'8''

Physical Description:

Created from the corpse of a failed Naga experiment, her rich brown skin is a side effect from the homunculus process. Her small horns are still growing in, but her sharp eyes and careful grace warn that she's still a direct threat. She features lavender hair and eyes, and her foreign fashion sense definitely sets her apart from the rest. Maybe her original corpse was a gaijin? She wears a turtleneck sweater underneath a white robe with flowing sleeves, a small cape and thigh high boots, and a tight leotard to hide her mutated body. Like her horns, her fingers and toes only feature the smallest of mutations at this young stage.

Personality:

The origins of the corpse are unknown even to Gedo, but the personality is a bit severe. She's very serious and responds to orders well, perhaps a reflection of the evolving personality of the master. She's very direct in combat and even more direct with her simple one-word communication.

--------------------------------------------------

Statistics

Physical

Strength: 1
Speed: 1
Stamina: 1

Mental

Intelligence: 1
Tactics: 1
Willpower: 1

Chakra

Power: 1
Control: 1
Reserves: 1

--------------------------------------------------
Applied Traits
Additional Beast II
Naga Experimentation - Homunculus

Jutsu
Chakra Focus - Precision Fist

Inventory

Other Info:
--------------------------------------------------