Better than You? [closed]

[kyubichan]

Raiyu skipped down the stone steps that led from the Lune estate to the plains of Nagare. It was a few hours after dawn; a gust of wind blew the grass down just as the young boy reached the last step. He looked at the vast field before him. A long time had passed since he last viewed this scenery. For a few months, he had been locked up in his room, studying for the Academy exams. Now that he graduated to Genin rank, he had more training up ahead.

" Eh, so what do I do here? "

For a few minutes, he wandered aimlessly through the field. The grass was now up to his waist, being the small boy that he was. Raiyu pulled his hoodie over his head; the wind had been blowing all that time and it was starting to hurt his ears. At last, he came to a very large zelkova (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zelkova_serrata) and the shade underneath it seemed to be perfect. The grass that grew under it was very thin due to the lack of sunlight as the tree's branches spread wide, far from its trunk.

" Well, I should train but... ah- " Raiyu sighed as he sat down on the thin grass and leaned against the tree, " I guess a bit of sleep won't matter... "

[kinshoukamikaze]

It's been a while since Adachi had been back in Nagare. As he walked aimlessly around, he let his nostalgia flow through his body. He had missed his good old home village. Time passed quickly as Adachi wandered, coming across the plains of Nagare. The sun had finally began to rise, and Adachi realized how long he had been out. A light breeze blew his hair across his face and a small smile crept onto his face as he watched the beautiful scenery.
Since he was here, why not work on that jutsu design he had in mind? The weather felt comfortable and Adachi could easily spend a day or two out here if needed. In the distance, he noticed someone leaning against the trunk of a very large tree. Perhaps a future training partner?
Adachi made his way deeper into the tall grass until he reached an area where the grass began to recede under the shade of the tree. Being closer, Adachi confirmed that the stranger was indeed asleep. He decided not to bother him for the time and sat down in the grass. He was almost completely hidden in the tall grass except his staff, which he still kept on his back, sticking clearly out of the grass. There, Adachi meditated and began to focus for his training.

[kyubichan]

Shiki had followed Raiyu through the field and kept a safe distance away. He saw a stranger approach though the lion cub didn't want to do anything just yet. When this stranger sat down, the staff that remained visible was like an invitation for playtime. The lion crouched low and began to move through the grass; his sight was set on the staff. As soon as he got to almost two meters away from his target, Shiki leapt up and aimed his paws at the staff.

" Raiyu! Raiyu! I caught the stick! " the lion yelled in Animal Speech.

Raiyu was forced to wake up. He noticed the disturbance in the grass and, being the brash child that he was, he picked up a large stone and threw it towards the lower end of the staff.

" Oi! You there! Show yourself! "

[kinshoukamikaze]

Adachi was completely aware as he was completely focused on charging up his chakra. He had become even calmer as his time away had helped him mature more. Adachi was suddenly awoken by the deafening roar of none other than a lion. Jolted out of his meditation state, Adachi opened his eyes just in time to see a lion bouncing towards him. He realized that the lion seemed to have jumped a lot higher than needed to if Adachi was the target. This helped him realize that the target was actually the end of his staff that was sticking out of the grass. Adachi quickly dropped onto his back and watched the lion soar over his head. He breathed a sigh of relief.

Oh man i've become so much less alert.. there's been too much peace for me eh.. ha..

Ironically for Adachi, just as he thought about this, a stone came flying out of what seemed like no where. It just pretty much showed up as Adachi was covered in a sea of grass. The stone struck his face full on and Adachi's initial reaction this time was to jump up and attack. However, he was able to calmly stop him self and instead, slowly got up from his position. Turning side to side, Adachi easily found the culprit. It was none other than the sleeping boy from earlier. He rose his hand in greeting.

"Yo. Name's Adachi. You?"

Meanwhile, Kuni had witnessed the entire event and assumed that Adachi had been attack. With her tiger eyes, she managed to see who threw the stone at Adachi as well. She decided to have her fun as well and was now sneaking up behind the tree where the boy was. As Adachi talked to Raiyu, Kuni easily and quietly scampered up the tree.

[kyubichan]

" OOF! "

Shiki rolled forward a bit before he stopped on the grassy field. He was annoyed that he wasn't able to catch the 'stick' but being the proud lion that he was, Shiki stood right up as if nothing happened. He looked over to Raiyu and noticed a figure scamper up the tree though he couldn't make out what it was exactly. Meanwhile, Raiyu crossed his arms in front of himself and huffed, looking at the stranger from head to toe and back again.

" Tch - stone to the face... how did that feel? "

The boy frowned and then stepped forward a bit. This person seemed to be too friendly for his own good. Raiyu raised an eyebrow and looked over Adachi again before he finally answered the young man's question.

" Raiyu. Raiyu Rothier. "

[kinshoukamikaze]

Adachi smiled wryly. The boy obviously wasn't very outgoing either. So much for making the effort. He wasn't going to get anywhere trying to be social with this boy.

"Scratched me."

Adachi pointed at the line of blood that now appeared on his cheek. The damage from the stone wasn't great, but this small wound was evidence of his carelessness. In any case, Adachi could use a training partner. Perhaps this boy was willing..

"You a Genin?"

[kyubichan]

Shiki crouched low and moved through the grass, heading for the tree. He sniffed the air and noticed the scent of another animal. It wasn't familiar to him so the lion knew that it wasn't just his 'brother' Ermine snooping around after them. The figure was much bigger than a normal cat anyway.

- A stray animal, or a pet?- he wondered.

" Yeah, Genin... so what? " Raiyu scoffed, " What are you doing here anyway, so close to our estate... got business with the Ikeda or the Lune? "

Raiyu was a smart boy, but his ego would get the better of him at most times. Common sense dictates that one shouldn't just converse with a stranger, but he was doing it anyway. It was an opportunity for him to brag about his mother's clan and his father's rank.

- Pssh... that old pervert... - the boy frowned a bit as he remembered that it was Raiden who sent him off to train by himself.

[kinshoukamikaze]

Now up the tree, Kuni found a comfortable large branch and began to nap in the shade. It was a very nice, breezy feeling after all. She had dozed off in no time at all. A habit that apparently rubbed off from Adachi.

"Mm.. So nothing?.. Oh Ikeda/Lune estate eh.. nope no business."

Adachi just realized that he was at the home of Yukari. Well obviously he didn't notice earlier. He'd been gone for a while, so he couldn't recognize the place anymore. He hadn't realized it had been this long until now. Though, the kid did sound as if he knew this place well, or perhaps belonged to the family.

"So you know Yukari?"

[kyubichan]

" Ehhh? " Raiyu looked over the Adachi once again and stared at the young man's face.

Meanwhile, Shiki dashed towards the base of the tree and was supposed to jump up to the animal that was right above him, but he didn't sense any hostility. The lion cub sat there, a bit quizzical about this creature but he wasn't one to attack other animals without being provoked. Playtime was an exception though and he would usually tackle Ermine out of nowhere, but Shiki only does that to animals or humans that he is familiar with.

" Hmmm... of course I know her, you twit, " the haughty Genin continued, " She's my mom. And how do you know her? An old acquaintance, friend... or enemy? "

At that, Raiyu put a hand on his staff that was hidden under his jacket and sweater. Shiki's ears perked up at the word 'enemy' and jumped over to the boy's side, growling at Adachi.

[kinshoukamikaze]

Twit.. wow he needs to work on his manners..

"An old friend i suppose.. stop acting like such a child, its soiling her name."

Adachi laughed a bit. So Yukari was a mother now. Perhaps she had surpassed him after all this time. Boy, things really went by quickly while he was gone. Adachi reached behind him and flipped out his staff, locking all the joints so that it became a normal, long staff. He held it with its butt end pointed towards Raiyu, as a challenge.

"Well, how about a quick spar to see how well you've been taught."

Taking not of the lion beside Raiyu, Adachi realized that he just might need Kuni's help. But then, he'd try to hold the two off for now. A genin and his pet versus a chuunin. Even with his rust, Adachi should be able to hold his own, for a little bit at least, so he thought.

[kyubichan]

" Well DUH. I am a child, " Raiyu quipped as he got himself ready for a spar.

Adachi had a staff with him, just like Raiyu, only the Chuunin's could be joined into one normal-looking staff. The Genin still didn't know his opponent's fighting type though when someone uses a staff, it could usually be deduced that, that person is adept with Taijutsu. The boy took out a weapon of his own, but only one kunai, the ring on its handle slipped right around his middle finger.

" Let's do this, old man! " Raiyu yelled as he put his hands together and began forming handseals.

This was another chance for Shiki to upstage Raiyu, or so the lion cub thought. He circled around Adachi, keeping at least two meters between himself and the Chuunin. He was supposed to be just observing Adachi's moves to relay them to Raiyu, but the staff woke up his playful side. The lion braced himself onto the ground and then leapt towards Adachi's weapon.

[kinshoukamikaze]

Adachi let slip a short laugh at Raiyu's quip. He seemed confident in his Taijutsu as he pulled out a single kunai. Though, he began hand seals and Adachi quickly deduced that Raiyu was probably the type who liked using Genjutsu/Ninjutsu in combination with a small weapon to maximize damage. Adachi's train of thought was broken as a small lion lunged towards his staff.

Is he playing around? Or is it actually trying to disarm me...

Adachi lowered his staff a little and watched as the lion sailed over it. He suddenly realized that Raiyu had just gained time on him in performing handseals and quickly started his own to counter. He'd need a nice flexibly jutsu in case of whatever the kid could be planning.

"Gimme everything you got!"

[kyubichan]

As Shiki sailed over the staff, Raiyu grinned, finishing his handseals. It wasn't a perfect plan but it would have to do. When the lion landed on the ground, Raiyu began his first attack.

.Kawarimi.

Being around the same weight and size as his pet was an advantage on the boy's part. He could easily exchange places with Shiki when he wanted to though he would not send the lion directly into combat. He first planned to just switch with Shiki as the lion circled around the Chuunin, but then the lion leapt at their opponent and Raiyu had to improvise on the spot.

- Tsk... -

As Raiyu switched places with his pet, he ducked to Adachi's side where he did not hold the staff, and attempted to slash the young man's legs. Without a moment to breathe, the boy rolled away and then began another series of handseals.

.Paranoia One Shot.

If the Genjutsu does not fail, Raiyu would take the chance to move in and lodge his kunai onto Adachi's left kneecap. It was a barbaric, ill-thoughtout move, but Raiyu wanted to finish the fight quickly. If this man was her mom's "friend", he would surely be at par with her, he thought. After that attempt, he would move to the man's left side, somewhere away from Adachi's weapon.

[kinshoukamikaze]

As Shiki flew over Adachi's staff, his eyes lingered on the lion's movement for a bit before zipping back towards Raiyu. There was a poof and smoke replaced the lion. He quickly figured out that a Kawarimi had been used for a Genin ninpet shouldn't have such ability just yet. With his quick reflexes, Adachi swiftly tried to knock the boy down with his staff with an axe like motion as Raiyu seemed to charge fowards, at Adachi's feet. He was able to prevent Raiyu from reaching his legs though the boy had quickly rolled away once more.

Raiyu had begun performing handseals and Adachi decided not to give the boy a chance to finish. He pulled back with his staff in hand and threw it with a fair amount of force to send it spinning towards Raiyu, attempting to disrupt his concentration. After, Adachi quickly began handseals of his own as a devious plan began to form in his mind.

[kyubichan]

The Chuunin reacted much faster than Raiyu had expected. As the young man's staff flew towards the boy, the latter quickly changed the set of handseals that he was making. Before the staff hit, Shiki made one powerful leap to knock the Genin out of the weapon's path. As Raiyu rolled on the ground, he kept the last seal on his hands and finished the set when he laid eyes on the sky.

Bunshin no Jutsu

It was something that his mother was quite horrible at and because of that, Raiyu trained himself in chakra control so that he could be as good if not better than her. As Shiki stood up and shook the grass off his fur, from a light covering of smoke, four blue-haired boys emerged. All four moved identically to the others and surrounded the Chuunin; they began making handseals, with the same intention as before Raiyu was interrupted by the staff. Shiki kept an eye out for the weapon which seemed to be a plaything to him.

In sync, the clones and the real Raiyu formed handseals for Paranoia One Shot. One of the blue-haired boys though stopped making seals right in the middle of the set and just stared blankly at the Chuunin, looking as if he had nothing in his mind at all.

[kinshoukamikaze]

Adachi smiled as he saw that Raiyu created bunshin of himself. He had been planning a similar course of action. Kaze Bunshin no Jutsu. Two more Adachi's appeared next to him. Though, no evidence of wind condensing into the clones were visible. Hopefully Raiyu wouldn't be able to predict that Adachi's bunshin were solid, unlike his. Adachi assumed that the boy's bunshin were only illusions since he made 4 of them. It would take quite a lot out of the boy's chakra pool and hopefully he wasn't as rash as that would make it seem. As the Raiyus circled Adachi in one direction, the 3 Adachi's circled in the other direction, hopefully causing at least some confusing as to which Adachi Raiyu needs to be focusing on.

All the Adachi's pulled out knuckle blades and began to swipe at the Raiyus in front of them. Attacks to the shoulder, leg, chest, arm, everywhere. It'll be easy to find out which Raiyu is the real one in this manner. Plus, even if the Raiyu managed to snag the real Adachi in some kind of trap, the two free bunshin would immediately attack the revealed, now vulnerable, real Raiyu.

[kyubichan]

Raiyu cursed under his breath since his eyes could not keep up with the clones, nor with the real Adachi. As each one of his own clones began to disappear, the boy was too focused in the spar that he didn't notice his lion which already crept up behind him. The lion had decided that he wouldn't let the boy take the glory for this 'fight', since to Shiki everything was a fight for attention. With one leap, he sprung onto Raiyu's back and pinned the boy to the ground, his face buried into the grass.

" What the heck?! Mmmf! "

The Genin could not speak anymore since Shiki laid down on his back, purring contently. The lion had 'won' this fight. Raiyu was lucky that it wasn't a real fight though he still had doubts as to whether Adachi was a friend of Yukari's or not. The boy laid on the ground while attempting to shoo the lion away by flailing his arms, but his pet was far too muscular compared to him and would not easily budge. A 'bright idea' dawned upon the creature and he lifted Raiyu by the hood of his jacket. Shiki then stood up and began to drag away the Genin from the scene.

" What... the... "

Raiyu could do nothing but protest loudly to his pet's behavior, as he was dragged away for a few meters, before the lion let him go. Exasperated, the Genin decided to leave the Chuunin and then headed back to the Lune mansion.

[EXIT]

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OOC: I told Kinneh I'd leave this thread.