|
Post by Kataoka on Mar 21, 2008 20:57:12 GMT -4
Kataoka stood in the mist and fog of the early morning panting and sweating. He was standing in a large field, with patches of grass spotting the landscape. A thicket of trees could be seen in the distance, as well as a small lake. Beyond that there was nothing but the village itself to be seen, and even that was in the distance, barely visible through the fog. Kataoka had been training since sunrise, and still he had gotten nowhere. Sweat dripped from his hair, which had now formed into brown spikes. His breathing was hectic, at least four or five breaths a second, not that he kept track. All he was interested in was his hand positioning. The scroll on the ground before him depicted the simplest of handsigns. The only thing required for the Kiwarimi No Jutsu. He had performed the jutsu before; many times in fact. He had never been able to perform it on demand without prior preparation however. The problem wasn't in finding an adequete object to switch with, or chakra control, but his god damn hands. He was incapable of quickly getting his hands into any sort of handsign.
And now he stood in the middle of the training group panting and sweating and constantly moving his hands apart and together, trying again and again to get the handsign right without taking a few seconds to perfect it. He needed to simply slam his hands together into the right formation on demand. Why was this so difficult? What was wrong with him that made handsigns impossible for him and so simple for children half his age?
He fell to the ground in exhaustion. He had been at it for 3 hours now, and he'd made no progress. All he had managed to do was sweat, chop two of his target logs in half out of anger, and now have his body give out on him. He swore as he lay face down in the moist dirt, then flipped himself onto his back. The sun gleamed in his eyes and a rainbow made itself known through the mist. He had lost track of the time in his training. He was already late for his second academy class...Not that it truly mattered. There was nothing those hacks of teachers could show him that would suddenly give him the ability to handsign...Training like this was the only way he could attain his one true goal...
|
|
|
Post by Otomeken on Mar 23, 2008 9:05:17 GMT -4
A girl in combat pants, a muscle shirt, a long splinted and bandaged arm, and a konoha forehead protector stepped over top of the boy. She had long red hair pulled back in a pony tail, and her eyes were shut. She 'looked' down at him and used her unbandaged hand to skratch the back of her neck absently. "Ok, I've been watching and watching. You're getting no-where and fast. Want some help?" she offered kindly...
|
|
kumar
Academy Student
Posts: 721
|
Post by kumar on Mar 23, 2008 20:38:22 GMT -4
Up in the trees, Lenore had an excellent view from above the line of the fog. She looked down as she was travelling, and caught sight of Otomeken below her. She stopped on a branch, looking out into the distance. She could tell it was otomeken from the way she stood, but she couldn't make out the bundle at the girl's feet. Suddenly, the bundle moved seemingly of it's own accord, and Lenore's brain immediately started calculating all kinds of potential risks. Still, she sat for a moment, and when she realized that she could hear nothing if she did not move closer, she wrestled with how best to approach the situation. Should she reveal herself? Skirt the clearing? simply walk up and address the woman? She knew better than to sneak much closer. She felt no need to make a fool of herself when the red-haired freak heard her. She decided, in the end, that she was about ready to speak with the woman again. After all, curiosity must be nurtured if the mind is to grow... She jumped down from the tree, signalled to her little pet to stay behind, and started forward. When she was close enough, Otomken would be able to hear a whispered greeting from quite a ways away. "Hello Otomeken-kun. Grant me this in silence?" She knew the girl would have no trouble hearing her, but that didn't mean her considerable talent in stealthy maneuvers wouldn't keep her noise down from the new individual. She waited to see if Otomeken would simply betray her position, or if she would allow her to sit and watch for a bit. She was curious to find out who this new face was...
|
|
|
Post by Kataoka on Mar 24, 2008 21:20:03 GMT -4
Kataoka shot up slightly, his eyes open the moment he was aware of Otomeken's presence...Namely when she began speaking. His hand had instinctively shot for his sword, which he had neglected to bring. He rarely needed it anyway, the village was so well fortified and guarded, that if Kataoka's life was in danger, he would be perfectly safe within Konoha's walls. He calmed down almost immediatly, but didn't get up. Three hours of constant handsigning left his arms unsuprisingly exhausted. Not only that, but he was complacent to remain in a submissive position to the girl, both to give her a feeling of power over him, and because he was unsure how to deal with this new person. If she was easily angered or quick to battle, he was saving himself some trouble by preventing a fight in the first place.
His voice full of concern for the girl's feelings, he spoke slowly and thoughtfully, "I'm very apreciative of the gesture...Truly...But I believe I'm past assisting." It wasn't that he didn't want her help, he just didn't want to waste her time. Even worse, she may get frustrated or angry with him if she did attempt to help him. His mind swam with different things he could say, but he ultimately settled on a neutral introduction. "I'm Tessai Kataoka...It's good to meet you miss." He smiled and spoke in a genuine tone, and even managed to keep himself from demanding her name. His blue eyes met the girl's...eyelids. He seemed a little confused, but decided not to question her about it. If she were blind and touchy on the subject, things could end badly. He decided to let her make the next move.
((Kataoka is still unaware of Lenore))
|
|
|
Post by Otomeken on Mar 25, 2008 9:08:37 GMT -4
The redhead cracked a half smile and refrained from laughing. She lowered her un-bandaged hand down to him to offer both a handshake with her name, and assistance up off the ground. "You may call me, Otomeken. And quite frankly, I don't believe anyone is beyond assistance... You've never had to try to teach the blind to use genjutsus," she said with a little chuckle...
In the back of her mind, Otomeken wanted to whirl around to stare at Lenore, especially when she spoke, but she felt it would be enough just to remain very aware of the girl's presense for now. If she tried to attack, Otomeken would deal with her then... Outwardly, she kept perfectly calm and complacent...
|
|
kumar
Academy Student
Posts: 721
|
Post by kumar on Mar 25, 2008 17:07:12 GMT -4
Lenore, too, chuckled. Quietly, of course. Signing with hands? Now this was where Lenore was a viking. She moved around so when the boy stood, he would have his back to her, and she stood, knowing Otomeken would hear it, but the boy would not see it. Roughly six yards behind the boy, Lenore stood and leaned back on one leg and crossed her arms, listening and waiting. more than anything, she was amused.
|
|
|
Post by Kataoka on Mar 26, 2008 12:40:37 GMT -4
Kataoka took the hand and helped himself up. His arms ached but it wasn't truly a problem. The girl kept her eyes closed even after he was up, and Kataoka was beginning to let his curiosity wander. Was she really blind? How could a blind ninja fight? How did she know he was there? How did she even know he was having difficulty with handsigning?
"If you really wish to try, I will try to be a good student" He smiled, though she couldn't see, and his voice was full of hope and admiration now. If she were really going to teach him, he prayed she wouldn't become overly frustrated. He stood now, looking at her...eyelids, unsure of her still. Otomeken was it? She was beautiful...That much was sure. He now found his eyes wandering over her, and quickly fixed his gaze on her...eyelids once again. It was unnerving to him that her eyes remained closed, and his curiosity now overshadowed his admiration of her.
"How shall we begin then? I've had countless isntructers, but I'm always open to anything new." He smiled again...Not that she would see it.
|
|
|
Post by Otomeken on Mar 26, 2008 14:59:16 GMT -4
Otomeken's eyes moved beneath her closed lids, but without iris or pupil, it was next to impossible to tell in which way they were really pointing. Perhaps they were looking at him, but perhaps over his shoulder to the other person whom Kataoka still did not discover, but that was neither here nor there. Her stance, her breathing, her focus; nothing seemed to indicate she even knew that this boy was 'checking her out.'
"The muscles in your hands. Are they always as tense as they are right now, or is that from the strain you put on them while training just now? Because either way, we must alivate that before anything else. Your hands must be able to move freely if you wish them to ever obey you..." While still expecting an answer, she reached out and took hold of the boy's left hand in her own and began to press into his skin with her thumbs, slowly working out the kinks and tension, seemingly, she was paying attention to nothing else...
|
|
kumar
Academy Student
Posts: 721
|
Post by kumar on Mar 26, 2008 21:54:02 GMT -4
Lenore took a few quiet steps closer, and whispered for only Otomeken, "Be careful where you touch him. The boy already looks ready to either swoon, or piss himself and run away." She strode forward, slowly, coming within three yards of the boy. Here she stopped, and considered. If it came to using one's hand for differentiation, she knew she could be of invaluble help, but mostly she was just curious to see how Otomeken would handle this. If her assistance was needed, she would offer it. She made a few quick handsigns with her right hand, words "tree," "lenore," and "cat" before shaking the one out. as she did, the knuckle in her index finger cracked, loudly, unmistakably, and lenore winced, berating herself for making a noise. the extent of the crack was enough to alert anyone to her presense from three yards away.
|
|
|
Post by Kataoka on Mar 26, 2008 22:55:46 GMT -4
He wasn't truly unnerved by her physical touch, but rather the repricussions of the sudden touch; they had just met. It was rather sudden and unexpected for this relative stranger to suddenly walk up and begin massaging his hand, but he dismissed his slight anger and disbelief of her actions. Her friendship was more important than his social honor in any situation as it was. Her hands were warm and smooth, and the motion itself was very soothing. He had never even realised how tense his hands were until the salvation of the hand massage reached them. He slowly realized how much pain his other hand was in as his left hand became more and more relaxed. "I'm not sure...this isn'-" His ears perked up as a knuckle cracking broke the near silence. His hand tore from Otomeken's as he whirled around reaching with his left hand for his dagger, his right for his longsword. They grasped only air, as his weapons were at home. He relaxed almost immediatly, remembering the saftey of his location. "Sorry...Habit," His tone was true and apologetic, and he gave a slight shrug. "I'm Tessai Kataoka...It's good to meet you." He gave a slight bow of his head to the newcomer than turned back to Otomeken. "Sorry...about my hand...I kind of tore it from you...Did I hurt you in any way?" He stepped towards her again, his tone now full of concern.
|
|
|
Post by Otomeken on Mar 27, 2008 7:48:53 GMT -4
By this time, Otomeken had her arms crossed across her chest, she didn't look pleased with Lenore. Rather than say anything accusingly or anything of the like, she just sighed. "No, it's going to take a little more than that to injur me," and she forced out a little chuckle. "Come on, let's see the other hand, see if we can't get it working too..." In the same way, she reached for his right hand and began to work the kinks out of it too.
Without looking up, she added, "and no, I don't think he's swooning..." she said to Lenore as if somehow they had shared a telepathic conversation that Otomeken just now broke...
|
|
kumar
Academy Student
Posts: 721
|
Post by kumar on Mar 27, 2008 8:06:20 GMT -4
lenore looked sheepish for a moment about the cracked knuckle. When the newcomer bowed to her and such, she looked surprised, but said nothing. When Otomeken made her little comment toward her, Lenore chuckled. "Yes," She whispered. "Because this one looks so steady right now." She shrugged and walked over closer to the two, then plopped down in the grass, watching them. She turned her head and let out a loud whistle, expecting it to carry the hundreds of yards to the trees. Respectfully, though, she turned away from Otomeken, and cupped a hand around her mouth, trying to keep the sound from battering the girl's sensitive eaerdrums any more than necessary.
|
|
|
Post by Kataoka on Mar 27, 2008 14:24:39 GMT -4
Kataoka's confusion was mounting again. Who was this new girl? How long had she been there? What were she and Otomeken talking about? He decided not to think on it, and instead returned his attention to Otomeken. "What did you say?" He wasn't entirely sure what was going on, and he wanted to at least know what she and the new arrival were discussing.
((Sorry bout the short post >_> There isn't much for me to do with this situation...))
|
|
|
Post by Otomeken on Mar 27, 2008 18:53:33 GMT -4
The faintest hint of blush rose on Otomeken's cheeks and she just shook her head. "Don't worry about it," she said with a little laugh. "How do the hands feel now?" she asked, still not letting go in case they could be better...
(Don't worry, they get short once an a while lol)
|
|
kumar
Academy Student
Posts: 721
|
Post by kumar on Mar 29, 2008 19:12:17 GMT -4
Lenore chuckled. "Cramped, yes?" She asked, in her thick accent. "It can happen if you're straining them too much." She offered. roughly a hundred yards away, something could be heard bounding through the grass, though it was not yet seen.
(You should see some of the six-, or seven-word posts. They can be filler, or sometimes the most important part. Don't worry about trying to shake the earth with your post, just stay true to the character, and you'll be okay. ^_^)
|
|