Catch Up! (Nari/Shimiko)

Shimiko had learned that her squad had come under the tutelage of none other than the Raikage herself. This was a welcome change and an exciting turn of events. Akashi had proven to be completely useless but with the new interim Raikage in charge of their squad maybe they could actually get some decent training in. Shimiko had some residual hard feelings about her brother's untimely death but she couldn't reasonably blame Nari. Nevertheless, she felt like the world was already moving on from him and it wasn't something she liked. Shimiko made an appointment to meet with her sensei in the Kumogakure training grounds. She had brought her kunai and other gear. She twirled a single kunai playfully while she patiently waited for lesson to begin.

Nariko had been extremely pleased when she was informed that Shimiko had awoken from her comatose state. She was worried that the girl never would have woke up, like her brother before her, the second raikage. Or like her predecessor, the first raikage who had taken up the post again. Or like countless other shinobi and civilians that had suffered from the previous plague.

A part of her was terrified that a resurgence of the plague could happen at any point, but it seemed some were resistant to it. Shimiko was one of those lucky individuals.

Thing was, she had been in a coma for such a time that her team mates were both far above her in skill. If she was going to train them as a squad and prepare them for the hunting mission, then Shimiko needed some remedial training.

Nariko moved towards Shimiko, who had arrived before she had, currently twirling a kunai. Nariko wore her Jounin outfit, which was little more than an average Jounin would wear, the flak jacket on top as most did. Her headband was on her forehead in a traditional sense. However, the hat on her head was obviously the raikage's hat, setting her apart from the average rabble of shinobi.

Raising a hand, Nariko waved at Shimiko. "Good to see you awake. Introduction first. I'm Nariko, your sensei, and temporary Raikage. Couldn't let Kumogakure go leaderless, and nobody else wanted to step up. Tell me a bit about you, then I can figure out how best to train you."

Nariko showed up to the training grounds and waved at Shimiko. She introduced herself formally and gave an explanation for why she had assumed the role. Shimiko was a bit surprised that no one wanted to step up for the position. Perhaps they were afraid that they would look like opportunists or maybe they knew something that Shimiko didn't. Nariko asked for a bit of information about herself and she obliged with a cheerful smile and positive attitude.

"Its a pleasure to meet you Nariko-sensei. I am Shimiko Chinoike, I specialize in Ninjutsu and weapons crafting. As a Chinoike I also use my bloodline limit which revolves around...well...blood" she chuckled at the word play. The girl was doing her best to make a good impression on Nariko. For her that involved being sweet and charming. If Nariko brought her back up to speed she was positive that she could surpass Natsuru and claim leadership of the team. It was the way things should be and probably what her brother would have wanted.

Nariko beamed at the girl, understanding the joke fairly easily. She'd looked into the available information on her already obviously. "Good! So, ninjutsu huh? And weapon making. I remember your guy's files mentioned you all had separate crafting abilities. Remind me to give you some start up funds with your salary."

Thinking for a few moments, Nariko looked the girl over. She'd need to increase her physical capabilities and stamina first and foremost. They were the most basic of things to increase. Seeing as Shimiko hadn't seemed to have an element down yet, she couldn't help as much with basic ninjutsu, as Nariko was more of an elemental ninjutsu user. Once she was a bit stronger though, she'd teach her the shadow clone jutsu at least.

"Okay. I think just some basic sparring to start us off. Help get you back into tippy top shape. You've been in a coma for like 2 months. No jutsu or anything though for now, okay? I just want to push you a bit to help get you there faster. You can start whenever."

Normally, Nariko would take a stance, but she didn't need to do so. She was just going to gauge Shimiko's current level herself, but it was definitely below her level and she didn't need to take a full stance yet.

Nariko's reaction to the joke was positive which was good. It was nice to have a sensei that had a sense of humor. Even better she offered to give them start up funds in the form of a salary. Shimiko nodded and clapped her hands. "Absolutely! Thank you sensei!" she humbly bowed to express her gratitude.

Nariko wanted to get them started off slow and easy. No ninjutsu because she had just come out of a coma although in all honesty Shimiko felt perfectly fine. She didn't argue with her sensei though. The last thing she wanted as a reputation as a quarrelsome or disobedient student. Shimiko held the kunai in reverse grip and bent her knees slightly as her demeanor shifted into that of a serious one. She narrowed her eyes and focused on her target before taking off. Shimiko closed the distance between the two of them and made a flurry of quick slashes aiming towards Nariko's chest. She didn't hold back as she knew that the Jounin was probably more than capable of blocking and dodging. She wanted to show Nariko that despite just coming out of a coma she was capable of giving 100%.

Not surprisingly, she was happy to be receiving funding for her crafting, as most would be. Nariko wanted to encourage and enable her students skills to grow though, and that was the simplest fix she had for that.

For now, though, she'd need to move on to the spar. Her attack was very straightforward, launching slashes with the kunai at her chest, putting what seemed to be most of her force and speed into each strike.

The speed wasn't half bad, actually, for a genin. Heck, even some chuunin needed jutsu or special stances to help get there. Her technique was unrefined, definitely not a taijutsu expert, but she was just naturally fast.

A smile played on her lips as she leaned back from each slash, moving a hair out of its range each time it would go to make a stroke. "Not bad speed Shimiko."

Intercepting the next strike with her own arm, careful not to let the kunai blade actually hit her, instead blocking more towards shimiko's wrist, she felt the familiar impact of force on her arm, noting her strength was about the same as Nariko's when she wasn't using body mechanics.

Launching a quick left fist towards Shimiko's chest, she didn't hold back much on her speed, intending to see how well the other girl could take a punch. So far she was mostly just feeling out her relative ability, not really dedicating it to one thing or the other.

As expected Nariko had no trouble at all dodging Shimiko's attacks. She had expected as much. Jounin were not pushovers and it would be a shocking surprise if she managed to so much as graze the woman. Nariko did seem to smile a bit at her speed and skill at arms. The woman complimented her verbally before blocking a blow and then countering with a hard punch. The attack struck her chest and knocked her back a bit. It didn't hurt nearly as bad as Shimiko was expecting it would and then she remembered that Nariko probably wanted to take it easier on her. The genin stumbled a bit and then grinned to show that she was not deterred. She grabbed another kunai from her ninja pouch and twirled it around before holding it in a standard grip. She was not especially ambidextrous but she wanted to show Nariko that she was not an average genin.

Shimiko made a second charge at her sensei this time wielding both weapons as best as she could. Shimiko increased the intensity and speed of her attacks with a bit less grace. She would aim slashes at the woman's throat, arms, and chest. As she did, she found herself smiling with glee as the spirit of her God came upon her. Violence came naturally to an avid practitioner of Janshinism and despite Shimiko's friendly manner of presentation she was absolutely ruthless in combat. If Nariko had lacked the skill or ability to dodge she would end up with several nasty cuts and Shimiko would only offer token gestures of apology in return. In truth wounding someone during a spar was an minor indulgence to Janshin. A mere pittance in comparison to the sacrifices he required but it was better than offering prayers of forgiveness without so much as a drop of blood.

So her body speed was the best thing about her physically then. That much made sense at least in part. It was the hardest thing to lose due to atrophy and general laziness. Muscle memory kept the body used to specific speeds when it came to punches and reactions.

Nariko was fairly certain Shimiko had a hard time seeing her movements when she was going full tilt, as her strikes demonstrated she had the speed to at least try to dodge if she'd noticed the strike sooner, so her perception needed some work.

Beyond that, she wasn't the most durable, Nariko had knocked her back a bit as well. That gave her a good feel for her though, and let her adjust accordingly. She wouldn't use arhat fist or any of its moves against Shimiko, not yet. It was a taijutsu style that optimized offensive strikes more, and with her level of endurance, might break the poor girl if she were to use it just yet.

For now, she'd focus on just blocking the incoming strikes, moving just enough to deal with the blows as they came. Her speed was set lower than maximum, enough for her to intercept strikes and knock them aside without risking getting cut up.

The girl was ferocious though, and more than once Nariko had to move faster than intended to avoid a strike that she'd planned on blocking. She was waiting, waiting to see how much stamina the girl had, it was the last thing she had yet to figure out. Watching for the first signs of tiring out, Nariko observed in silence as the spar continued. Certainly the girl had already gone on longer than Natsuru, so she was probably less lazy. Although, to be fair she had been in bed for a couple months, so some might think she was lazy anyhow. Inwardly , Nariko laughed at her joke.

Shimiko did not show any signs of relenting. She was having way too much fun. It appeared that Nariko wasn't having too much trouble blocking and dodging her attacks so she decided to spice things up a bit. The girl performed a strong sweep kick. Nariko's block wasn't anything special and she wondered if she had the strength to trip the older woman up. After the sweep kick, she'd raise back up with grace and poise before aiming to jab both kunai into her sensei's chest. Regardless of the sweep kick and follow up jab's success she'd aim a high kick to the woman's head. Taijutsu was not her forte but she did have enough basic coordination to pull off the maneuver. The training session was not just about Nariko gauging Shimiko's skill but Shimiko gauging her own skill. She had been away for awhile and she wanted to test her body. Natsuru and Ryuko may have sprinted ahead while she was out of commission so she would put every ounce of effort towards catching up.

It seemed she wanted to mix things up a bit as she went for a sweep kick rather than her continual kunai slashes that weren't really getting her anywhere. Jumping over the sweep, Nation was pleasantly surprised to see her jab the kunai forward, having expected her to kumo jump over the kick it seemed.

More on instinct than planned thought, Nariko moved to catch Shimiko's wrists and lashed out with a kick of her own, aimed at the side of the genin's face with her knee, brought closer to her by the impromptu grapple if it succeeded, or with her shin if it didn't. It was a practiced move that was nearly second nature, the grab into the kick, and Nariko nearly apologized, but stopped herself. It was a spar after all.

Regardless, her kick was faster than Shimiko was, and if she didn't catch the wrists, her kick would still interrupt the thrusts forward. If the kick landed, it would lock her away a few feet, and Nariko would land in a low stance, one hand on the ground to catch herself.

Shimiko felt the sting of the kick to her face as Nariko countered with fluid grace. The girl tumbled back at landed on her bottom. She dropped her weapons and massaged her face as she tried to process exactly what had happened. She's fast! It shouldn't have surprised her but it did make her wonder what the upper limits of Nariko's power was. Seigi was feared and respected for his ability on the battlefield. Everyone who was a ninja seemed to know what he could do and what he was capable of. But Nariko was an unknown to her. She figured that anyone strong enough to step in Seigi's shoes should have a reputation to match but it occured to her that Nariko wasn't a household name like the First and Second Raikages. In all fairness she was only a temporary Raikage but all the same Shimiko felt she must have had some reputation in order for the council to allow her to claim the title. Either way, Shimiko was certain she'd find out her sensei's true strengths at some indeterminate point in the future.

Shimiko gathered the two kunai, stood, and took a few breaths. She needed to rethink her strategy. Then suddenly an idea came in her head. The first thing she would do is throw a kunai at Nariko to get her to move. Wherever her sensei moved to dodge, Shimiko would run to that location and focus chakra into her kunai increasing its reach and edge with the Chakra Flow technique. It was a minor jutsu and although Nariko told her not to use it she wanted to demonstrate that she was not some weakling who had been at death's door recently. Shimiko gripped the weapon with both hands and aimed a series of well timed slashes at Nariko's abdoment and chest.

She waited for the girl to regain her footing, her counter had seemed to stun her slightly. That tended to happen when an attack hit and there had been no warning of it. She grinned sheepishly, but cautiously waited for the attack to renew. That wasn't about to end the spar just yet.

Shimiko launched a kunai at Nariko, who rather than dodge it, simply caught it inches away from her chest. Spinning it around, Nariko held it reversed, as Shimiko had done previously , and moved to intercept the chakra flowed kunai with the one she caught, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Good utility jutsu, makes any weapon longer and more viable, though I'd have suggested you used that mid swing rather than telegraphing it by preparing it early." She commented, giving a little advice. She hadnt known Shimiko knew that, and It certainly could have caught her off guard since she wasn't looking out for it. She had been dodging the strikes before just by a hair or so. 5 inches of length would have been more than enough to tag her.

Now, though, she knew it was coming and began to combat it more directly, clashing her captured kunai against that one near the base of it, where the other kunai existed, in case Shimiko tried to slip past her by deactivating the chakra flow.

Nariko blocked her attack and offered some advice. Shimiko nodded to indicate she understood as Nariko countered her attacks blow for blow. The genin had extended her Chakra Flow the full five inches and used it to the fullest extent possible. As she swung and slashed, she was beginning to feel a bit tired but nevertheless she pushed past her limits and continued to attack her teacher. Shimiko spun the kunai by its ring and placed it in a reverse grip before continuing with a rapid series of attacks concentrated at her sensei's center mass. I won't let Ryuko and Natsuru down! When push comes to shove I'll kill anyone who stands in our way!

As the two clashed blades, the raikage noticed that Shimiko was starting to breathe more heavily, her assault was starting to wear her down a bit, something to be expected. She made the vital choice to push through it though, to improve herself and push her limits, which was good. It was the final thing Nariko was looking for.

Forming a seamless one handed seal with her free hand, her skill to the point that she was no slower with one hand than she was with normal seals, Nariko vanished from Shimiko's reverse strike, a cat appearing where Nariko had been, as she used the transformation jutsu again, just as she had against Natsuru, except she didn't crawl up her back this time. Dashing forward, using the surprise of the random transformation, Nariko would release it mid dive, turning back into a person and slamming into Shimiko with her full weight.

It... was a stupid trick. But it worked more often than one would think. If it did work, Nariko would be laughing on the ground. Well, she'd be doing so even if it didn't. "We're good on the sparring for now!" She'd say cheerfully. "What did you learn?"

Shimiko's assault was chugging along pleasantly when her sensei decided to do something truly unexpected. The woman formed a handseal and before Shimiko could aim to interrupt the execution of the woman's ninjutsu a small poof of smoked erupted and Nariko was gone. Shimiko looked around with confusion and then noticed a random cat where Nariko was.

No...No way...

Shimiko had never seen anyone use the Transformation Jutsu in such a bizarre and unorthodox way. Before she could react Neko Nariko accelerated and tackled her to the ground causing her to fall back and land with a thump. Nariko found the whole affair amusing and began to laugh. Shimiko just looked at the woman dumbstruck. She closed the sparring session for the moment and asked what Shimiko had learned from the experience. The blonde scratched her head and replied:

"Any ninjutsu can be used to your benefit...oh and always leave room to prepare for counter-attacks no matter how relentless your assault is"

She had spent so much time throwing all her power into her attacks she had been caught off guard more than once. Shimiko fancied herself the primary direct combatant of her squad she couldn't rely on teammates to back her up if she got to caught up in the heat of battle.

The raikage simply nodded at her explanation of what she had learned. Shimiko was rather bright it seemed, able to figure out what her lesson had been for the most part. "Exactly. I told Natsuru the same thing. I tricked her by turning into a squirell, running up her arm, and turning back into my usual self on her back."

She propped herself up on her elbows, chin resting on her hands, not bothering to fix her position beyond that. "I'm really only a half decent fighter for the most part. Base to base, my strength, speed, perception, reaction time, all that, it's nothing out of the ordinary for a jounin. My real skills lie in the perfection of what I do have though. My stamina is great, but other than that, I'm somewhat of a master of the basics." Delving into her own skills a bit, she thought that she could explain more on how useful things could be if mastered to a high degree, even basic things.

"See, I got Jounin because I was innovative and clever with my use of jutsu. That, and my willingness to take up any missions I could get, dangerous or otherwise. Most of them kept me out from the village for a while, so I racked up a large deal of experience first hand, out on the field. In That time, I realized, not much separates a genin from a jounin. Sure, Jounin have high level techniques, but they get arrogant, forget the basics, and even get caught off guard by someone doing something like a basic clone technique or a transformation mid battle. It's a fault that is hard to reconcile. With high level techniques, you don't need low level ones anymore. You don't need to use them as much, grow rusty, unaccustomed to seeing them and using them. I never stopped, and that set me apart from my equals, and even my superiors."

She thought for a moment, trying to figure out her next point. "Take, for example, I have access to Katon ninjutsu that can burn down the entire village if I wanted to. Or my Black Raiton which puts me in a league closer to actual Kage. Or the Lightning Raiton Armor technique that drastically increases my speed and strength. I dont even use them, never have except to train them and make sure I could use them properly. Being a strong shinobi, a strong leader is not about who can throw the strongest jutsu, the strongest punch, move the fastest. None of that. It's really just knowing how to use the tools you have to ensure your task is completed. All of your tools. And knowing when to use the big guns, and when to go for moderation."

Shimiko stood up and listened to Nariko's lecture. She took in all the woman had to say. Nariko explained that she had knowledge of a wide variety of ninjutsu and used them to her advantage. Shimiko admired that. She was always thinking of new and interesting ways to utilize her techniques especially that of her bloodline. She nodded to indicate her understanding. It was incumbent on her to learn more ninjutsu and use them strategically when the situation called for it. The techniques that the Raikage mentioned sounded interesting and she wanted to learn more about them. They sounded quite powerful and were probably known by her older brother as well. Shimiko also picked up on the fact that Natsuru had fallen for the same trick. This caused her to chuckle a bit knowing that Natsuru was no wiser when it came to fighting.

"I understand sensei"

Nariko was pleasantly surprised when Shimiko listened on in raptured silence. To be honest, she was expecting at least some sort of interruption, it was just something she was used to from younger people. It was nice that she soaked up the information and actually tried to understand what it was that she was saying. "Okay, so. I'm going to teach you a jutsu that I'm sure you don't know. I think Ryuko was going to show it to you, but I might as well make myself useful as a sensei."

Pushing herself up, Nariko cracked her neck and then formed the clone seal, channelling her chakra. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" A poof of smoke popped up around her, and when it cleared, there were two Nariko's standing next to each other. "The difference between this jutsu and the academy clone jutsu you'd have learned is that this makes a substantial clone. You can't really make a lot of them, because you have to have a certain amount of chakra left from your full reserves, but these clones have the rest of the split chakra. I only ever use two of them at a time, but having what is effectively a second fighter is highly useful, especially for front line fighters. I don't recommend relying on it as your ace in the hole, but it's a good jutsu to have in a pinch."

The clone dispersed, her chakra returning to her as it did so. "Basically, make a clone as you would an academy one, but pour more chakra into them, splitting it evenly. It also requires a little bit of yin and yang chakra to create a physical living being, but otherwise isn't difficult to do. The main issue with this technique is that you don't have access to your full chakra store, and if you use too much chakra or take too much damage yourself, the clone will destabilize. Luckily, your chakra from the clone returns to you, if they haven't used all theirs. In addition, you gain all the information that the clone had, making this useful for gathering intel or scouting ahead. Go ahead and try it out."

Nariko switched gears and began to talk about teaching Shimiko a new jutsu. The technique was called Shadow Clone Jutsu and she had a bit of exposure to it. Their old sensei Akashi had used it as part of a training session. She had always wanted to learn the technique herself and now would be as great a time as any to master it. The technique's description made it sound very useful but Shimiko still had a few questions about it.

"Sensei, when you make a shadow clone. How far can it be from you?"

It was a question worth asking even as she copied her sensei's handseals and began to focus her chakra in preparation for the execution of the techinque.

122 WC

"Unlike other elemental clone techniques, the Shadow Clone jutsu creates the clone right next to you, within a couple of feet perhaps. However, it trades the ability to create clones at a distance for a vastly larger range. The clone can move from you to a distance of 1 kilometer without any issues. I know there are elemental clone jutsu that are used for battles that actually are weaker, with less chakra placed into them, and less range, but I prefer shadow clones and the upgraded version, Lightning Clones."

She gave a bit of a straightforward and text book response, but not any less true. She always preffered increased range. The jutsu was a lot more useful if she could be somewhere else. She didn't have to be present for her clone to do any fighting, and even if she was defeated in a fight, then she was safe due to the range of the jutsu.

"It's got its uses in combat for sure, but I like to use it for other things. Scouting ahead and fighting proxy. Keeps you out of harms way and still lets your find things out, or take out enemies."

Shimiko liked the concept of a Shadow Clone. They could be used to divert any enemy's attention and to assist with follow up attacks. The girl made the handseals again focused her chakra and after a few tries she was able to conjure an identical clone with a poof of smoke. Shimiko looked at the clone and waved. The clone waved back. It was really trippy seeing a copy of yourself and for a moment Shimiko was even afraid of the thought. Was the clone self-aware? Did it know it had no free will? But the more the clone existed the more she realized it was more or less just an extension of her will and conscious thought. It had the same thought as her because it was her. The minor existential crisis rapidly abated as she realized that the Shadow Clone was a tool nothing more and nothing less. It was no more a threat to her personhood than Chakra Flow was. Shimiko made the clone poof, made handseals and created four clones this time.

Wow...

She felt very winded by the action though and soon those clones were gone as well.

"Thanks! I think I got it sensei!"

222/200 WC Shadow Clone Jutsu learned

Nariko nodded. "Good good. And you're welcome." she replied as Shimiko was successful in her endeavor. She tried to make more, but noticed the drain was too much, so quickly dismissed the clones. That was completely fine, better to have a trial by error in a controlled setting than it was to try it in combat and pass out from exhaustion.

"So, a little bit of additional uses, as you may have figured out by now I try and think outside of the box. The basic function of this technique is making a physical clone, which is great, but there's a little more too. When any clone is 'popped', it turns back into its base element. The Water Clone is reduced to a puddle. The Lightning Clone turns into a discharge of electricity. The Shadow Clone, while not shadows, poofs into a cloud of smoke. Now, since the Shadow Clone returns the chakra it was made of when destroyed, it is very useful for distractions as well. Popping a clone in front of an enemy can obscure their vision. Things like that are always useful."

Shimiko was intrigued about elemental clones. She had yet to discover her own element (if she even had one) but she liked the sound of the lightning clone. Nariko continued her lecture on the subject and even added some cool tips on using a shadow clone in combat. The multi-faceted use of the shadow clone was very interesting for her and so she had would use it to her advantage in combat.

"I understand sensei"

"Alright. I want you to rest up now, reflect on today, and we'll have another practice again soon. This should be a sufficient lesson for the day. You got some physical training and learned a new jutsu, as well as uses of normal jutsu that people don't think of. Your homework is to come up with new strategies with your skills, and how you can use all the tools at your disposal to overcome your obstacles."

Gathering up her Raikage hat, placing it on her head, she winked at Shimiko. "Keep up the good work and you'll be able to take my place some day, 'kay?" She was really interested in getting somebody up to the level required to take over as Raikage, and actually like it. She herself had focused on building up the military and defensive strength of the nation, which it required for the moment, but that was just a bandaid for the time being. She just needed to get Kumogakure as strong as possible so that her successor would have a nation at a place that they could do better. Shimiko was the younger sister of the former raikage, so she was a future candidate for sure.

"Let me know if you need anything. My door's always open to my students." With a wave, she disappeared in a flash, the body flicker carrying her away.

-Exit-

And just like that their training session came to a close. Any apprehension Shimiko had about not liking the new Raikage evaporated. The woman was pleasant and thoughtful. She was also a fantastic teacher. She had been given homework and she vowed to complete it and impress her sensei even more. Nariko even hinted that she may be Kage material herself. This caused Shimiko to blush and call out in excitement:

"I won't let you down sensei!"

Nariko was cool. She didn't seem to have a killer instinct but then again Seigi only showed his murderous side to their enemies. He did not manifest a murderous intent towards others at least not while she was around. Shimiko wondered if Nariko was the same and guessed that it had to be the case given she was interim Raikage. The girl bowed politely and was left alone in the field. Shimiko spent a bit of time doing some physical training and conditioning before deciding that it was time to call it a day and go home.

Exit