Perfecting One's Art

Kiyoshi would be zooming through the air at a rate of forty-five meters per second, as he swung from building to building using his Swinging Threads technique. To most they wouldn't be able to see the threads and so it would look as if he was flying through the air to them, but to those that were attuned to seeing chakra they would see thin purple threads made of chakra leading from the palms of his hands to the different buildings as he moved through the village towards the grand konoha training facility. This was the first time he had used this technique beyond simple practice within his room, not actually swinging but grabbing things and pulling them to him. Moving at three times his walking speed was nothing to shake a stick at either, allowing Kiyoshi to reach the Grand Konohagakure Training Facility in a third of the time it would have taken him to walk there. He couldn't help but think that it was a very odd and unusually long name for no reason, but the name truly mattered little to him as long as he was able to train some of his techniques, he would be happy.

Walking into the grand training facility, Kiyoshi would approach the man behind the desk and request a room for training. It would take a few minutes for the man to find him a room, as it seemed the grand konoha training facility was extremely popular, and everyone seemed to be training. Normally that wouldn't be an issue but considering the fact that he had requested a room to himself away from the prying eyes of others. It wasn't that he was anti-social merely that he wished to have time to perfect his art before showing off his talent to the masses. Once the room was found and he was given the room number, Kiyoshi would ride the elevator up to the floor the room was on and entered the rather nicely designed artificial environment. Making Kiyoshi wonder about the person that made the place, their talent and how he would have to do better than this to get his name as the greatest crafter in the world. Kiyoshi would shake his head and adjust himself to his surroundings before beginning with his Swinging threads once more as he latched onto to large boulders before slinging himself forward at the rapid speed once more.

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Trained C-Rank Custom - Secret Art: Swinging Threads 409/400

Kiyoshi would move himself into the center of the large room that was artificially projecting an illusion that he was outside, what fascinated him the most about was the fact that everything seemed so real. From the rocks and trees to the small river and grass beneath his feet, it all felt so real. How was it all possible, how did it work, question after question would run through his mind. The ingenuity of it all, it was truly the work of a master craftsman like he aspired to be. The questions would stop, and a single thought would come to his mind, one day I will build a building greater than this. A fire would burn within him, his determination now set in stone. He would surpass all other craftsman as well as all other shinobi, and one day his name will be revered among the greatest of both worlds. With this new determination, Kiyoshi would turn his focus to his training. There was no denying that he was a good craftsman, but his talent in combat needed some work.

Kiyoshi would run his finger across the three rings that held Mini-mi, Bumi, and Knives. Releasing them from their seals and attaching his chakra strings to them in a single fluid motion, these chakra strings however were not the normal strings. These were formed from a secret art that only he knew, allowing his puppets to move further than the normal doubling his range at which he would be able to attack while keeping himself out of the way. The puppets would move slightly slower than with the regular strings, but that was the price he would have to pay for the extended range. Though not its actual name, Kiyoshi would refer to it as his long-range show. Manipulating the Troublesome Trio, Kiyoshi would move all three of them out to a range of just over one hundred meters away from him. It wasn't fully double his range, but he didn't want to push them all the way to the limit just yet and would instead bring them back. Slightly disappoint in the slower movement that they were moving at but he would just have to figure out a way to move faster despite the distance. Sending the three out again, this time in three different directions to see his own limitations as he maneuvered the puppets through different positions. He was rather enjoying this, it felt as though this extension of his, feeling as though he could reach out and touch someone from a much further distance now.

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Trained C-Rank Custom - Secret Art: Extended Threads 434/400

Now that he was in the grove of things, Kiyoshi would start to loosen up. Puppetry had always come so naturally to him; it was as if the puppets themselves were mere extensions of his own body, they moved as if they were one. Which in his opinion should be how any true puppeteer should be able to maneuver their individual puppets. Separate but a single unit, effective with a unified mind, his. The puppets would act as if they were a hive mind, their movements manipulated by miniscule twitches of his fingers so minuet that only the most observant would even notice that his finger had moved at all. Of course, for the time being there was no one around to see his performance, he was doing this to improve himself before showing off his art. As with his crafts, he had to ensure that everything was perfect. There could be no mistakes, there could never be any mistakes. Perfection was key, it was the only way to ensure that he stayed a shinobi, it was the only way that he could get his name out there among the greats. He had to be the very best, like no one ever was. This was of course easier said than done, there were so many great shinobi out there. In truth he had a better chance of becoming the world's best crafter than he did as the best shinobi, and that was only because the latter had fewer options. This would not deter him from his goal, he would be the best of both worlds and nothing or no one would stand in his way of achieving this goal. Kiyoshi would pull Bumi, Mini-mi, and Knives back closer to him, getting them back to a mere thirty meters away from him. Ending his extended strings and attaching his normal chakra strings Kiyoshi would start working on his next task, a technique that could improve the quality of the puppets by protecting them with a thin layer of chakra. The chakra would be so minuet that only those that could see chakra would be able to see it, and to those that could, it would be as if the puppets were coated in a skin of violet colored chakra. While this skin of chakra would not look like much it would in fact increase the puppet's durability and for just a little more chakra it would also increase the strength of their strikes making them more powerful as well.

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Trained C-Rank Custom - Puppet Performance Art: Chakra Flow 421/400

With the success of another performance in the books, Kiyoshi would turn his attention to a new formation for his puppets. This would be an improvement upon the technique he had just performed, whereas the Puppet Performance Art: Chakra Flow was meant to improve the individual puppets, the Violet Secret Technique: Trio Barrage would use that same principle while the puppets worked together in unison. Selecting one of the training dummies that was approximately fifty meters away from where he stood Kiyoshi would bring Mini-mi, Bumi, and Knives right next to him in the Secret Art: Violet Formation Style. Once his three puppets were in position, a small flick of Kiyoshi's fingers would set the attack in motion. Knives would move out to the left upon an approach of the dummy while Bumi would move towards it from the right, once the other two were in position another flick from his finger would send all three of the puppets towards the dummy. With his coordination, Kiyoshi was able to maneuver the puppets into closing the distance between them and the dummy in half of a second. All three of them dealing out blow after blow to the dummy as Kiyoshi maneuvered them with the minuet twitches of his fingers, Knives would of course be doing the most damage to the dummy. It's blades piercing and slashing through the cloth sack that made up the dummy with ease, each strike destroying the dummy more and more, after a few seconds Kiyoshi would pull the puppets back to him returning them to the original position of the Violet Formation Style. Not quite satisfied with his work with that dummy Kiyoshi would turn his attention to find another dummy, considering the fact that the first dummy was now little more than a stick with a torn sack on it thanks to the blades on Knives. Finding another dummy, he would move himself closer to it so that it would be in range of his chakra strings, and he could reach it with his puppets. Starting the exact same way he did with the first dummy, Kiyoshi would send Knives to the left and Bumi to the right. Once again sending them to the dummy and closing the gap in less than half of a second as he they closed the distance and began to attack the second dummy. Just as before it would only be a matter of seconds before the three puppets managed to destroy the second puppet just as they had the first one.

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Trained C-Rank Custom - Violet Secret Technique: Troublesome Trio Barrage 426/400

Kiyoshi would let out a slow breath, it was starting to be a strain and he didn't know how much longer he could continue with training at this rate. Even with his proficiency in puppetry allowing him to use less chakra for his strings and techniques the sheer amount of techniques he was try was already causing a drain to him. Feeling his chakra lessen more and more with each use, his pool was not exactly large to begin with but he would never get better if he did not apply himself and try to push himself beyond his normal limits. If he didn't do this, then he would never be able to improve himself to be able to be the best that there ever was.

With the techniques that he wanted to learn with the troublesome trio, Kiyoshi would recall Bumi and Knives sealing them away once more and leaving only Mini-mi out. Touching two more of his sealing rings two more puppets would appear next to Mini-mi, both identical in every way, these would be his newest and of course most deadly of puppets, the Wolf model. He made twin wolves for a reason, so that he could continue on his practice of his three-puppet style of fighting. With the two wolves and Mini-mi now in the Violet formation, Kiyoshi would begin running maneuvers for the use of Mini-mi with the two new puppets. The Wolf model puppet was of a unique design, its black claws made of pure ebony able to slice through nearly anything. It possessed a powerful crushing jaw, that while it was not as strong as its claws it would still be able to bite through nearly anything of B quality or below at least. Of course, there was also the dart launcher within the mouth as well, this was why he didn't have more pressure applied to the jaw function, for fear it might damage the launcher. The launcher would of course work just like a Kunai launcher, however it was designed for his special dart ammo. Right now it would be empty, but he would have some crafted soon to fill it, then it would just be a matter of filling the darts with the right poison to have the best effect. There would be a special smoke dispenser that he could use for when he needed to hide his puppets as well, this of course will come in very handy in fights later down the road. The final and probably the most important function of the puppet was it's armadillo mode combined with the roll out function, the too combined made the puppet a virtual wrecking ball of destruction. Capable of taking down most things in it's path as well as providing the puppet, with a near impenetrable defense whiles it's titanium shell protected it. With two of these puppets as well as Mini-mi on the field as well, there would be few that could stop his wrecking ball of attacks.

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Trained B-Rank Puppet Wolf: 512/500

Now that he had gotten accustomed to his new puppets it was time to put their performance to the test, with a flick of his fingers he would activate the smoke screen function on both of the Wolf Model puppets. The smoke screen would surround them in a ten meter cloud that would be able to prevent most from being able to see his puppets, with all three of his puppets shrouded in smoke Kiyoshi would pump more of his chakra into his first puppet mini-mi. This additional chakra would then be used to coat the puppet in a thin layer of chakra which would then act as a cloaking device so to speak for the puppet making it invisible to the naked eye. Of course this technique would be useless against those that could see or even sense chakra as the chakra he pumped into the puppet would make it more visible to the sensor. Only the most perceptive would be able to see the small shimmering of the air around where the puppet is that would give it away. This was a tactic that he would most likely incorporate whenever he needed to hide or even perhaps perform an attack from a hidden position, if they can see the puppet it would make it harder for them to defend against the said puppet. This would give Kiyoshi an advantage, in addition to the sheer speed that his puppets could move under his masterful coordination, he would be able to perform attacks in secret without risking damage to his puppets. As a puppet master this was an appealing aspect of the technique and the main reason he was so amped to practice it, using his puppets to protect himself was natural of any puppet master but the desire to protect and preserve his puppets was equally important to him. If his puppets were to get damaged then he would have no defense, not to mention the time he would have to spend just to make the repairs to the puppet after the damage was not something Kiyoshi would look forward too. If he had a chance to be able to protect his puppets from damage you best believe that he was going to use it and extort it to the fullest extent of his own abilities. Pumping chakra into both of his wolf puppets, Kiyoshi would cause them to disappear as well before the smoke screen dissipated.

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Trained C-Rank Custom Puppet Performance Art: Hidden Puppet 409/400

Kiyoshi's hands would be moving feverishly as he manipulated his puppets once more, though he would drop the invisibility jutsu as it was not really needed for this training. His effectiveness with three puppets purely flawless, but he wanted to push his limits further. He would bring Bumi and Knives back out from the sealed rings, controlling all five puppets at once. Their movements would be slowed, it was slightly more complicated to wield the five puppets as well as continue his own control over the puppet armor that he wore. So, in truth there would be six puppets that he was controlling, now only capable of moving a sixty meters per second rather than a hundred meters per second as they could when he was only manipulating three puppets and his armor. The slower speed would be something that he would have to get used to, at least if he was going to be operating so many puppets, it was a sacrifice that had to be made in order for him to be the puppet master that he wanted to be. It would take him time to work on it, but it would be the only way he could increase his coordination so that he could handle more puppets without their speed dropping so low. He would pull in Bumi, Knives, and Mini-mi close to him, sending the two wolf model puppets out to the max distance of the chakra strings of sixty meters. Once the five puppets were all in position Kiyoshi would activate the Armadillo function of both wolf model puppets before making them begin to spin in place as the Roll out function would also activate, he would then manipulate the troublesome trio into forming an upside-down triangle in front of him. Of course, this maneuver was meant more for defending against ninjutsu attacks, today he was going to test its resistance to a frontal assault. Once everything was in position Kiyoshi set his plan into motion, both wolf model puppets launching forward towards Kiyoshi and the other three puppets. In the same instance he would pump chakra into the other three puppets, using this chakra to form a barrier between the three puppets just before the impact of the attack from the wolf puppets. It worked flawlessly, the barrier capable of blocking the attack and stopping the two puppets in their tracks before Kiyoshi would pull them back and end the technique.

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Trained C-Rank Custom Violet Secret Technique: Trio Triangle (410/400)

Kiyoshi would drop the threads controlling the two wolf model puppets, the pair both falling limp where they stood as he did so. He would pull Bumi, Knives, and Mini-mi back to him so that they were right next to him, this next technique would be simple compared to the last formation he had tried as it only involved one of the puppets rather than all three like the last one had. His knew that eventually he would have to start working on more complicated techniques, but for now ensuring he had a grasp on the simpler techniques were more important. At least in his mind, they were more important. If he couldn't perform these lesser techniques, how could he hope to perform the higher more complex ones? He had to ensure that he could do what was needed to be done, start at the bottom and working his way up was the only way for him to truly achieve perfection. This next move he would only use Mini-mi, though he would keep his strings attached to both Bumi and Knives, unlike the wolf model puppets. He would inhale a slow deep breath as he readied himself for his work. If he got this technique down perfect it would be the one that helped him in the future, flowing chakra to his hands to before sending it out to Mini-mi causing the small puppet to move at a higher speed than normal. This sudden burst of movement would be much faster than he could normally be able to, but it would be unfortunately short in the distance. It was meant to allow him to move his puppet out of the way of danger should an avoidable attack be made against it, of course it would have more than just that as a functionality as well. He could use it to rapidly close the distance between his puppet and a target if it was a puppet like Knives that needed to be in close in order to attack. At least if the distance between them isn't that much that is, or he could use the technique to move the puppet away from someone rapidly as well, if they got to close to the puppet. Or it could be used to simply move the puppet into position for another attack, the possibilities were endless, but one thing would remain certain. This technique would come in very handy in the future.

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Trained C-Rank Custom - Puppet Performance Art: Puppet Flicker (413/400)

Kiyoshi would exhale a breath, having finished the puppet flicker maneuver. He was running low on his chakra, but he would have just enough for one last technique before he called it a day. The Secret Art: True Puppet Master Technique, would be the strongest technique Kiyoshi would have in his arsenal. It was also the most draining on his chakra, which is one of the reasons he decided to save it to be the last technique that he was training today. For now, it would not do much but boost his coordination a little, however once he achieved high levels, he could change his coordination drastically. He would be able to increase his coordination to such a degree that no one in the world would be able to match him, or at least that was his goal. His dream to be the world's best puppet master, was how he was going to be the world most famous shinobi. It was only a matter of time before he would achieve this goal, but he had to continue to work at it. He was driven by his desire to be the very best, like no one ever was. It was this drive that allowed him to make it through the academy, despite everyone telling him that he wasn't good enough to be a shinobi. He showed them when he was able to not only disguise one of his puppets to look like him but manage to even fool the instructor into thinking it actually was him. It was then that they put him to the test, seeing just what all he was capable of doing with puppets. It was those skills and those skills alone that saw to him gaining the rank of Genin, and now it was those skills that would see to him mastering this technique. Kiyoshi inhaled a slow breath as he began to focus his chakra into his hands, feeling it as the chakra did what it was meant to do. Increasing the circulation of his blood and his chakra to the point that it increased his overall coordination, though at this stage it would only be a minor increase to his puppets movement. Still, an increase of fifty meters per second was bound to come in handy, it was more than enough to increase the movement of all three of his puppets without worrying about a limited distance that they would be allowed to travel. After a few minutes of this, Kiyoshi would throw his threads to the two wolf model puppets. Their addition would cause some strain, and the overall movement of his puppets would drop, but through the use of this technique he was able to maintain a consistent speed of a hundred meters per second. This would still be considered an incredible increase in Kiyoshi's eyes, considering just moments before their combined speed was only sixty meters per second. This would go on for hours as he did his best to push himself further and further each time, it was the only way that he was going to be able to stand up with the rest of the shinobi of this village. It was the only way that he would be able to stand up to the threats of other shinobi against this village this was his home, and he would do whatever it took in order to protect it. He would push himself everyday if he had too, and he would not think twice about it if it meant that he was able to protect his home. Kiyoshi could already feel the strain the technique was putting on his chakra as he tried to maintain it, he would not be able to keep this up much longer. He would continue it for a few more minutes before finally calling it quits, pulling all five of his puppets back to him before placing them each within their individual rings. Once his puppets were put away, Kiyoshi would take his leave of the training area heading home to rest. There would be no evidence of his training save for the two destroy training dummies, his movement slow as he left through the front door of the training area on his long trip back to his home. Tomorrow he would return to crafting, the training he had done today would be more than enough for now.


{Exit Thread}

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Trained Multi-Rank Custom - Secret Art: True Puppet Master (734/700)