[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Calm & Casual

A slow breath in. An exhale out. Azarea's heartbeat thudding soft and slow within her own ears as she circulated her chakra through her system. Her Kikaichu humming a near silent symphony calm and lulled by the meditative state of her chakra. As Azarea reached out with her minds eye expanding her senses from where she sat cross-legged on the floor of her hotel room. Her usual shinobi gear set aside for casual clothes of long loose black workout pants and a gray tank top. Her arms, and the various scars dotting the expanse of her skin laid bare and wild mane of red hair allowed to flow freely and messily down her back. Leaving her for once appearing not as the hardened embittered shinobi she had become, but akin to any other twenty year old simply enjoying the quiet calm and novelty of travel.

For today was meant to be not only one of rest, but also training. As Azarea picked up a familiar chakra signature at the edge of her senses. Her hive shuddering and kicking up an octave in their humming in irritation as the ex-Aburame concentrated on soothing them. Toshizou's approach not unexpected, but still nerve wracking as she silently reminded herself of Auntie Kizumi's words. She did not owe him anything least of all exhausting herself to please him with something as shallow as appearances. He could deal with her as she was. Dragging in another slow breath she felt her the Councilman paused just outside the door. His chakra fluctuating in a way she couldn't yet decipher. Thus the only option was to face her own curiosity.

"Come in." Azarea finally called out.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." JUST LIKE I SAID YOU WOULD Toshizou was not expecting to be interacting with Azarea any further during the Chuunin Exams, considering how bad their previous interaction turned out to be, but seemed like the world didn't care much for what he wanted or felt like doing, for it found ways to twist it and put him in another track, another direction. Kizumi, his former student and the current Raikage, who was in charge of taking care of his stranged daughter, asked him to basically swallow his pride and help her out. She explained to him that the girl had been training with Nara Satoshi, to me able to open her Mind's Eye, and since she knew the Hatake was also a user of the technique, she asked him to help Azarea. Well, it was a Chuunin Exam, the girl could use all the help she could get, and she was his blood, despite her feelings on the matter, and he would offer her his assistance. With that in mind, he headed towards her room, and as he stood in front of it, ready to knock, she seemed to have perceived his chakra already, a sign that she was indeed developing her sensory ability. Without a word, he would open the door, looking at te girl sitting on the floor, wearing a more casual attire. He could see the scars on her body, a sign of how much the shinobi life had been tough on her. Toshizou had his share of scars, but not as much as she did, or the Hyuuga boy for that matter; he was pretty decent at not getting injured. "I see you are developing your sensory ability. Kizumi sent word to me. So, you need my help, uh?" he asked, remembering that the last words he had said to her mentioned just that: she would be seeking his help when she needed power. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Training Enters the room [Aburame Azarea] [322 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Breathe

Breathe in... Breathe out...

Azarea does not open her eyes as Toshizou enters the room. The young woman's attention centered solely on keeping her chakra calm and her hive from becoming murderous. In her mind she pictured the world as a lake, little ripples and eddies playing out around her like vibrations through water or earth. The Hatake's presence was, but a passing cloud. Ephemeral and momentary. Here one moment and gone the next. "If you insist on being difficult Hatake-san then you can depart and I can continue my efforts on my own. I'll be certain to inform Auntie that you've doubtlessly had some important duty come up and were unable to spare the time." Azarea stated her voice flat, clipped, and cold. Making it perfectly clear that she expected nothing of him and yet suspected she would still be disappointed.

Breathe in... Breathe out...

"Or if you prefer I could simply skip the pleasantries and resort directly to blackmail. However I will admit it's not a method I am the most fond of," She quips her expression an unchanging, unseeing calm where she sat in meditation, "But I'm certain whatever I have to say will doubtlessly hurt Tokaku-chan and Shinde-chan much more then the likes of yourself. Not that I suspect you care, but I must admit even if I never wish to meet or know either of them, even if they are not my siblings in any definition of the word, I'm not prone to leaving innocent children to pay for the sins of their Father's." Azarea muses with a hum. She was cruel yes, but she wouldn't burn those too on the same pyre she'd been set ablaze upon.

"So it seems we are at an impasse."

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 287 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." REACHING Toshizou scoffed at her words, folding his arms in front of his chest and shaking his head. "I'm being difficult? Shouldn't you look in the mirror? I came here to help you." he started, but his expression took a shift when she started mentioning blackmail and his relationship to Shinde and Tokaku. The irritation, however, was contained, and he walked a couple steps towards her. "Do you have to try and be unpleasant at all times? I'm here to help you, like I said. I do not want you to die in these exams. You may not believe me, Azarea, but I wish you well." he exhaled sharply. "You are my daughter, and that was not something of importance to me once, in the past. When I was younger than you are today. Well... Time passes, people change. It does not erase the things we did, but if you can't let go of the past, you will never move forward." he said, looking her in the eyes that reflected his own. "I noticed you trained with the Hy... With Shigure." that was likely the first time Azarea ever heard Toshizou addressing the Hyuuga heir and future leader by his name. "It seemed to me like you were training your Mind's Eye then. Perhaps more than just training. None of my business. But be careful. This is enemy territory, and he has enemies. Try to avoid hanging out too much." he would warn her. In his own way, he cared about her well-being, otherwise, he wouldn't even be there to begin with. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Training Conversation [Aburame Azarea] [264 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Olive Branch

Finally opening her eyes whatever peace she felt fading like dew before the summer sun Azarea finally met her Father's scarlet gaze, 'Why should I look in a mirror when your face would do just fine?' She wants to snap right back her lips parting, fangs on display and venom on the tip of her tongue before she closes her mouth with a hard clack of teeth. A silent snarl twisting her features into a familiar angry sneer. Each expression so similar to his own as to be almost a mockery from the kami themselves as Azarea draws in a long slow breath trying once more to center herself. Her fingers curling into fists where her nails bite into and bunch up the fabric of her soft cloth pants.

She does not comment on letting go of the past. Her own gaze hypocritical as Azarea watches him with eyes that mirror the color of his own. Though the use of Shigure's name does appear to have won Toshizou some minor stay of execution. His daughter's, and isn't that a strange thought, expression softening ever so slightly at the mention of the Hyuuga. Those eyes that had only ever looked at him with fear, fury, or loathing, for a split second turning soft and warm as mulled wine. "I am aware I am a weakness to him." She states voice clipped, but the edge of her words are blunted now rather then sharp and cutting. The moment of gentleness gone as Toshizou draws closer. The expression of warmth giving way to wary ice. For while Azarea may have grown adept at hiding her physical reaction to him, no longer flinching back with each movement, she cannot yet hide the way her chakra tenses as if awaiting to be struck.

"If you wish to teach then teach." She states defensive and stubborn. A wary fear curling within her gut for when the other shoe would drop as she ignored the way her hive and instincts screamed at her to run. Screamed that he was too close as cold sweat beaded upon the back of her neck.

Azarea however stayed put. Her openness to his presence the only olive branch she could bring herself to give just yet.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 375 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." WHERE YOU STAND With his own Mind's Eye, he could feel the emotions boiling up inside Azarea, as well as notice when it calmed down upon mentioning the Hyuuga's name. She admitted she was a weakness to him, and while that was true in a way. "He is also currently a liability to you. He has made enemies here, and they will try to use you to hurt him, if they realize you have a relationship." he said, pausing and musing for a moment. "You really like him, don't you? Be mindful of his clan, however." in his own way he didn't want her to get hurt, but he wouldn't go outright and say it. So, instead of dwelling on such subject, he would focus on the training they had to do. "As for your Mind's Eye. How far have you come? Its important for me to know that before we can proceed with training." he said, chuckling lightly as he decided to admit to something. "You have a good professor, though. Satoshi, as a sensor, is more capable than I am." Toshizou deeply respected the Nara Chuunin, especially after his work during the Shodaime affair. He almost managed to capture the traitor and would have succeeded if it was not for the presence of the Jinchuuriki of the Eight-Tails. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Training Conversation [Aburame Azarea] [222 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Progress

"Yes. I like him a lot," Azarea admits her voice soft expression hard and wary. Honesty between them isn't something she's used to or comfortable with yet with Toshizou, but she's trying. From the way she sets her fangs and the pained tensing of her chakra it's clear the Hatake doesn't need to spell out the fact that the Hyuuga clan would sooner strip naked and dance through the streets then allow their heir and savoir to be with someone like her as she currently is. Nameless, penniless, poor reputation and all. Even her mission record, impressive for a genin, just looks shameful given her age. She has a long way to climb. Brushing these thoughts aside she focuses on the now.

"Satoshi-san has taught me the technique and I have practiced applying it to disrupting genjutsu. I can sense chakra fluctuations, but am still learning how to read them as emotions and my range is still only about half of what it should be before it starts giving me a headache with the conflicting flows of information. I suspect that until I learn to interpret them the problem will continue." She states her assessment on her progress blunt well aware her education was more patchwork then she would have preferred, but functional at least.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 215 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." PAKKUN "You covered Genjutsu already? That is good. The emotional aspect is arguably the hardest, but with enough practice I'm sure you will get there. My last student managed to learn it and he is but a kid, who has very little emotional intelligence still." he said, with a nod. "And since you are struggling with the range, let's focus on that then. Analyzing people's emotions, in enemy territory, may be problematic. As for the headaches..." he paused, pointing at her head. "You need to learn to isolate the aspects of it. So when you just want to track, don't try and sense emotions, at least not while you are still learning. Focus solely on identifying the chakra signature. Now... I have a good way for you to train this." and as he said that, he bit his thumb and waived a few hand seals she would likely be familiar with at this point. Slamming his hand on the ground, a summoning circle would appear, followed by a poof of smoke. "Kuchyose no Jutsu!" and from that poof of smoke, a small miniature pug with the Leaf's forehead protector and a blue vest would appear. The pug looked rather bored, but maybe that was just his natural expression. He would look at the two of them, and then widen his eyes. "So this is Azarea-chan, uh? You've grown! And became quite the looker. It's nice to finally meet you." the dog said in a rather friendly tone. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Sensory Training Summons Pakkun [Aburame Azarea] [251 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Dog

"I'm a genjutsu specialist. It seemed the logical first step." Azarea stated ignoring the comment in regards to his other student as she stuck gamely to the old saying of 'if you can say nothing nice then say nothing at all.' Her range she suspected was mostly hampered because of the headaches. Extending her senses beyond that point too painful for her to continue and her mind shying away from the overload of sensation.

"All right how do you advise I tune out the unneeded information? I've concerns that if I focus too hard on one chakra signature I might become sensory blind to other important input." She inquires with a tilt of her head. Before tensing, her scarlet eyes tracking Toshizou's handseals until she identifies a summoning jutsu.

"Wait is there enough room in here for a sum~" Azarea begins reaching out as if to stop Toshizou when a little pug appears in a poof of smoke. Leaving the kumo kunoichi blinking once. Then twice. Then thrice.

"Um... Hello? I don't believe we've been properly introduced?" She hedges her bets with her greeting uncertain how to take the pug at best complimenting her, at worst flirting with her. The dog clearly knowing her, but from a time when she must have been far far too young to ever remember him. Though maybe this was why she'd always gotten along so well with Tsuki's pack.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count:235 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." TOO MUCH FUN He nodded. "You will start by getting sensory blind, that's just how it is. But then, once you grow used to that, you won't have to tunnel vision as much. It's part of the process." he explained, as he knew how frustrating the learning process could be. As he got to summon Pakkun, he didn't bother with her words, for he knew just how little the miniature pug was, so there was nothing to be concerned about. In any case, as Pakkun appeared in the room and talked to the girl, she seemed to not know him, prompting him to instead turn to Toshizou with a grumpy expression. "Toshi-kun! Why doesn't she know me?!" he complained, with a quite upset expression on his face. Toshizou sighed and folded his arms in front of his chest. "We are just barely on speaking terms, so don't complain to me." he started, but Pakkun bit his ankle, making Toshizou grunt and move away. "Hey!" he exclaimed. "No hey! I told you not to leave the girl! Now she doesn't even know me! Why are you like that? You promised me you would be a better father!" Pakkun complained, growling a bit. Toshizou sighed and looked away. "... I'm trying." he scoffed, and Pakkun did the same. "Well... Whatever. Now... Ohhhhh!" the pug's expression turned into quite the lewd one as he approached the girl, sniffing around. "So... You and Shigure-kun have been quite close, uh?! At this pace, you will have grandkids soon, Toshi! Hahahaha!" he teased them, and Toshizou widened his eyes, looking at his daughter. "I... Didn't know you were having that type of relationship. Well... Try to be safe." he said, abruptly interrupted by Pakkun, who burst in laughter. "Safe?! Hahahaahha! You are one to say!!! Still, seems like she is your daughter alright!" and he was having way too much fun with that. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Sensory Training Pakkun is on fire [Aburame Azarea] [322 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Advice

Azarea glanced first at Pakkun then at Toshizou uncertain what entirely was expected from her in this situation before hesitantly raising her hand to interrupt, "Err... technically my 'parental' figures are a wandering Tengu and Auntie." She corrected uncertain why she's entirely bothering to defend Toshizou here. Honestly this was a very surreal situation for her. Though her confusion quickly washes away like a bucket of ice poured over her head at Pakkun's words as the woman straightened scarlet eyes going sharp as she reaches out and snags the pug by the back of his little vest. Holding him up to eye level with her as her lips peel back showing off her fangs in the most sickly sweetest of smiles. The sort that instinctively scent a chill down every male with a lick of common senses spine.

"Pakkun... Pakkun... Pakkun-kun... let me give you a piece of advice in exchange for you so graciously agreeing to help me with my training." Azarea sang out her voice like silk and honey, "Now I haven't met the other two of Hatake-san's hellspawn, but I can probably safely say I am the most reasonable of the three. Why you ask? Because I. Am. Not. Your. Summoner." And she emphasizes each word with a little shake.

"And am kind enough to warn you that embarrassed teenage girls are incredibly violent. Say... violent enough to summon a nosy little pug with a too big mouth into the middle of the ocean or... maybe a bee hive... or a tar pit. My the options really are endless or say reverse summon themselves to you to cause all sorts of nasty terrible distress and chaos in your daily life." She mused aloud her expression thoughtful and cruelly sympathetic for the plight Pakkun might most certainly face in the future if he didn't heed her advice.

"In fact as a grown woman and given I don't really view Hatake-san as a parental figure I don't really care if he knows I bend Shigure-san over and..." She trails off looking thoughtful before giving a little wink, "Ah nevermind. A girl never kisses and tells. But as I was saying. It's still my business to share. Not yours. So i'm going to let you graciously off the hook Pakkun-kun with a firm reminder that I am the reasonable. adult. one. Of the three of us and that unlike Hatake-san I've no intention of leaving children out and about like participation trophies." She states as she sets the little pug down gently with a fond little pat to the top of his little head. After all her proclivities and the knowledge of them really only served to make Toshizou awkward and off kilter which is how she prefers the man.

"Also did you know dog is a delicacy in some parts of Kaminari no Kuni? Just a random little factoid." Azarea adds with a fond little laugh. She's. yet. to. stop. SMILING.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 492 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." ALRIGHT THEN Pakkun was a bit surprised when she grabbed him by the vest, and he just looked at her, bewildered to say the least, as she went on about how things could turn south to him, and much more. He was bit spooked, and that much was clear, and when she was finally done and put him down, he looked back at Toshizou, who just stood there awkwardly, not really wanting to hear that kind of information, but at the same time not being in a position to judge or anything. "She is nasty like you used to be. Guess I will have to have a chat with Kizumi-chan as well..." he muttered in a rather grumpy mood, folding his paws oddly in front of his chest. Toshizou sighed and shook his head. "Well... Let's get done with this subject and get back to what really matters?" he started. "She is gonna chew that boy alive..." Pakkun continued, but at Toshizou's glare, he sighed. "Fine, fine... I will head out." and with that being said, he darted out of the room at an incredible speed. "Well... Let's give him a minute. Then... I want you to track him down and capture him. Don't take him lightly, though. He is quite fast. As fast as some Jounin, mind you. So you will need to use not only your Mind's Eye to its limit, but also try and trick him into a corner. Any questions?" he asked her, pulling up a chair and sitting there, crossed legged. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Sensory Training Pakkun leaves the room. [Aburame Azarea] [262 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Tracking

"You'd better mean that in a 'will rip peoples throats out with her teeth if they cross her' sort of way and not in a sexual partner's sort of way or I'm going to skin you alive and have dog for dinner~" Azarea sang out after him in that same sickly sweet tone like velvet wrapped around a knife's edge as the pug had the good sense to take off. Turning to tug on her boots at Toshizou's instructions the woman paused her expression considering as he asked if she had any further questions. Her gaze briefly sweeping over where the man sat cross legged in the chair and tried not to let herself be disturbed by the fact she'd been doing the exact same thing this morning while eating breakfast.

"Sure. Do you conduct ANBU interviews seated like that?" The quip slips out before she can quite stop it as like Pakkun she darts out of the hotel room at a high rate of speed before he can respond. Long red mane trailing after her as she takes to the Kuwana skyline. The woman breathing in deep as she tries to focus on the feel of Pakkun's chakra from before. The pug was small so she was looking for a networker far below average in size, but with more chakra to spare then a normal dog or cat. The girl's brow furrowing as she tries to tune out the white noise and ignore the prickle of unease deafening her sensing leaves her with even if the focus does ease the budding headache behind her eyes.

SPOILER: Click to show

Justu Goes Here

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 266 | Hatake Toshizō

[Hatake Toshizō]

"cracks in the mask". "A man who can't uphold his beliefs is pathetic, dead or alive." CHASE Pakkun didn't even bother responding that, as he didn't want to get into that topic. She was very much like younger Toshizou, and he had been complicated to deal with already, so it was a hard pass for the Dog. As it darted away, Azarea would look at Toshizou sitting down and ask him a question. However, he was a bit puzzled by that, as even her emotions were so complex there, it was hard to read with his Mind's Eye. "Yes... I guess..." but he responded that to no one, as Azarea had already darted out of the door, trying to chase Pakkun. Contrary to what most people would think, Pakkun had quite the respectable chakra pool for a dog his size. And gosh, he could run, leaping from rooftop to rooftop as a little blue blur. He was moving in weird patterns on purpose, trying to keep his body out of her sight, so that Azarea had to rely completely on her Mind's Eye of the Kagura to track him down. Toshizou, meanwhile, would focus on keeping his own Mind's Eye open, so that he could track their progress from Azarea's hotel room. He would give her a feedback once this was done, he had promised Kizumi as much, and he also wanted to help his daughter get stronger, and more ready for the exams to come. "You can train a dog with food. You can buy a person with money. But there isn't a man alive that can put down the Will of Fire. Some things will never change. The Will of Fire will never be extinguished" KME Sensory Training Pakkun running from rooftop to rooftop [Aburame Azarea] [238 words]

[Aburame Azarea]

The Devil That You Forgot

Wings

Azarea drew in a slow breath and concentrated. She needed to find a dog. A ninkin summons which meant larger chakra pools then your average hound and... what else had she noticed about Pakkun's signature in their brief exchange? Summons were tied to their summoners and often mingled chakra. The Hatake contract was nearly as old as the village and the clan all tended towards having that same bright white chakra that melded with their blades. So she just needed to find that unique signature which should be mingling with the hounds own and... wait? Was her chakra white too? Was that why her signature was so strange compared to other Aburame? She'd never focused enough chakra to her skin to ever actually tell the color and she'd been focusing too hard on removing the genjutsu the other day to really examine herself, but....

No. That was a mental rabbit hole to investigate at a later date when she didn't have a pug to catch and potentially skin for not answering her. FOCUS AZAREA! Slapping her cheeks lightly the young woman sharpened her minds eyes comparing Toshizou's chakra signature to others and then casting the net of her senses wider to look for ones similar. Finding three in her efforts. Two human... she won't think about those either... and one rapidly erratically moving canine.

"Right maybe I don't stand a chance catching you on foot..." Azarea growled out as she took a running leap for the edge of the roof her hands forming into seals.

"But Riku gave me a chance to earn my own wings and I'd bet their faster then your paws." She quipped as the true transformation technique took as Azarea's form shifted to that of a Kite's as the woman turned bird beat her wings taking off over the village at a good clip.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Henge no Shin [True Transformation]
RANK: C
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium (Low Drain)
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: N/A
HANDSEALS: 4
TRIGGER: N/A
DESCRIPTION:
After four hand-seals, the user is capable of transforming themselves either into a person or animal, as long as the creature is less than 10 meters tall. Unlike regular henge, this technique allows the user to completely take on the characteristics of the said animal, though they lose their ability to perform jutsu while transformed. They're also capable of holding the form in battle, even after taking considerable damage, though the more damage they take the more taxing the technique becomes.

Damage is retained between both forms, so a broken arm in one's original form would make it impossible to fly if you transformed into a bird; and any damage taken in their transformed state is retained when they return to their original form. If this jutsu is used to transform into someone with a higher rank, you're still limited by the physical capabilities of your rank and specs; this same rule doesn't hold when transforming into an animal that might have natural physicality beyond the user.

流人

                           Made by Keen of FBNRP | Word Count: 308 | Hatake Toshizō