[Miyamoto Ikana]

Ikana was one of those girls that over the years as she grew older, she'd found herself accomplishing a number of things. From a child to a young lady, she had built a successful entrepreneurial business, selling seals and ninja tools to ninja both high and low, elevating herself as a producer and middle class. She had found herself educating herself on the Shinobi arts, and also getting past the general mess ups of her formal mistakes. In a way, she was now a ghost, a sort of nobody, but she lived life for herself, and had the freedom to make her own choices and mistakes with nobody to otherwise guide or tell her she couldn't.

As she always had. She was fourteen now, and over those years, she had found herself on and off with her depression, taking medication, writing her deepest thoughts in a journal, and trying to find methods to cope and live happily with herself. She met most qualifications necessary to promote, but she had found herself behind in her Shinobi training, instead focusing on the efforts of getting out of the slum. Both emotionally and literally. She moved from her poor apartment and had now been working on getting a proper house for herself. While the wage of a genin was far from impressive, the work was relatively low maintenance, and she was able to sell her goods and work her store, especially after her sentence had come to a close and she faded into obscurity.

She'd sought to educate herself on every number of topics. In addition, disciplined herself, and had become far more polite from being a street rat and urchin. This was one of her days off. As she focused on Suiton. Having struck deals and bargains with other Shinobi from Kiri, she'd began harnessing the power of her ninjutsu, and with much physical strain, her health began to improve, though never quite entirely from the removal of it. She focused on channeling the energy before her, molding herself, growing her energy. She didn't want to just know Suiton, she sought to master it and all of its components as the element she was most familiar. 

She didn't know though how socially isolated she'd been these years. It seemed she'd find out soon. 

[Sourei Kobashi]

The day was relatively warm and the mist which normally permeated the air around the training grounds, as well as the village at large had even managed to burn off to leave the day a surprisingly clear one as well. Among the scattered trees and maintained undergrowth, a member of the seven swordsmen was taking deliberately slow and deep breaths in an effort to counteract his racing heart having just finished yet another set of exercises with his ninjato. The man had removed his usual cloak and scarf, with them being laid some distance away across a tree branch. The belt that usually held the cloak closed and housed the Shibuki within its buckle now rested around Kobashi's waist so as to keep the precious blade close at hand on the off-hand chance that he had need of it.

With the slow breaths having steadied his heart rate some, Kobashi suddenly inhaled a short breath and launched into a renewed assault against an imagined opponent, this particular opponent being based on the first opponent he had fought while on the roof while on his mission with Toru. The Second Seat of the swordsmen was attempting to recreate the fight he had been part of that night, pushing himself to do even better. While Kobashi had obviously been able to survive the fight, there was always room for improvement hence his recreation of the fight now.

The movement started with the *Quick Rotation technique, immediately followed with the * Iai Beheading paired with the *Sabre Technique. As had happened in that fight, Kobashi half imagined, half remembered his opponent fading away as a genjutsu came to completion. He felt so foolish thinking back to the moment, of course an enemy would not be so foolish as to reveal themselves within striking range of an unknown intruder. What else could he have done though? His only option had been to press the attack and hope that his opponent had indeed been a fool.


Even as the self-chastising remarks shot through his thoughts, Kobashi was turning; once again using the *Quick Rotation technique and immediately following it with the *Untold Bourn Fang to deflect a flurry of imagined thrusts directed towards him. After a few heartbeats of blocking imaginary attacks, Kobashi broke from the mold of what he had done and instead tried to do something different. Where as last time he had destroyed the room to drop into a room below, this time Kobashi drew a shuriken and after waiting a second simply dropped it so that it would descend down and onto his spinning sword. Through using the *Mirror Blade technique in a completely unintended manner, the shuriken would get clipped by his spinning sword and launched in a redirected path forward and towards the imagined opponent.

It was not a perfectly solution to be sure, and quite honestly he was not sure whether it was a better solution than the one he had gone with in the actual moment back then. Still, it was good to try and at least consider different possibilities during reflectiv training sessions such as this one. Perhaps Kobashi might develop some new technique with this concept as the basis. With a sudden shift, Kobashi brought his spinning blade to a halt and in a smooth action resheathed the sword. Running a hand across his face to wipe away some of the sweat on his brow, it almost seemed like in the brief moment his hand had gone across his eyes; that he was suddenly not alone anymore with a young girl now walking in from the edge of the training ground.


"Do you need assistance?"


The words were genuine and said in his usual calm and soft voice, although Kobashi was a bit surprised to see another person here. Granted though, it was not as if he had officially reserved these particular training grounds or anything. Besides, he was not exactly doing such important or dangerous training so as to need the entire grounds to himself either.

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

Blink. Blink. To see the man before her lashing out in a flurry of blows, slashes, and series of blocks was something that was very fascinating for Ikana to see. Mainly because Ikana was always looking to learn more. She had been bent on learning a new series of techniques and fighting styles of which to augment her otherwise lacking repertoire. Her ninjutsu skills were above average. She had learned the fundamental chakra exercises through experimentation, trial and error. Though he came to ask her. Did she need assistance? She looked upon him, looking at the Wakizashi she held onto quite dearly. "I was looking to train in this."

"But I'm not very good." She said truthfully with some underlying half truth to her statement. Ikana had found herself being quite fast. Daresay, for a child her age, she was quite speedy, nimble, and quick on her feet. However, what she sought to maximize now was her reflexes and her perception of the world around her. Lowering her body posture, she slowly slides her right foot back, before practicing drawing and sheathing the Wakizashi in a singular and swift motion. Iaijutsu. She had heard stories of Samurai from the Land of Iron, men in metal suits that trained daily in the sword and honed their discipline. 

Men that were so skilled, they could cut through boulders with but a single slash of their blades. In Ikana's case, she could do the latter, but not in the same way. That was a result of finesse and control of her energy, not raw skill nor talent. "My name is Ikana. Kyobona Ikana." She found herself gazing at the Sourei in question, and then to the Ninjato in his hands. "It's a dangerous world and a dangerous line of work. So...I suppose there's not much better to do than train. Don't you think?" She said it somewhat cheerfully, her eyes closed with a slight curl upwards of the lips. Tilting her head in a cute manner. She was very girlish. Effeminate and soft looking at a glance, looking upon the man again. 

"I'm a girl that likes to learn a bit of everything." 

[Sourei Kobashi]

As soon as the young girl said she was looking to train in the wakizashi she bore, Kobashi's mind was already moving into evaluation mode. He watched the young woman's footwork, the movement of her wrists, the posture and rotation of her torso; everything was observed and mental notes made on minor alterations that might help. It was just as Kobashi was about to speak that the young girl gave her name, which in turn made Kobashi's words fade before they left his mouth.


Kyobona. . . so this is Ikari's sister, which also makes her the former host.


Admittedly, Kobashi had more or less forgotten the girl existed as soon as the Sanbi was removed from her. While he still had his association with Ikari, knowledge about her sister was not so important as to keep tabs on the girl. While he felt some amount of pity for the girl since she had been forced to go through the removal process; to his understanding it had largely been her own fault, albeit unintentionally so.

Sheathing his ninjato, Kobashi began to make his way over to the girl while she spoke of the dangers within the world. Kobashi simply nodded agreement to the sentiment. He agreed fully that the world was a dangerous place; he faced enough of its dangers on nearly a daily basis. However, it was not exactly true that the only thing to do about it was to train. Training was all well and good, but he most important protection one could have was a level head and the will to carry on. . . at least in his own opinion.


"Knowledge of the blade never hurts, although the best blade you can have is your mind. Now, sword up."


To punctuate his last words, Kobashi's hands would quickly give something of a lifting-wave motion so as to reinforce what he had asked the young girl to do. Assuming she did, Kobashi's goal was to make those small adjustments to her form. Admittedly the idea of doing so had a certain level of enthusiasm flowing in his heart. Already this conversation was reminding him a bit of his conversation with Ran Ume nearly a decade ago. It proved to be quite the strange sensation for a former host of the Sanbi to make him think of his former apprentice who had ended up dying in the Sanbi's rampage a few years ago.

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

For the most part, Ikana's own swordsmanship was self trained. She'd learned and observed from a distance, and she had some help in the basics, but after that, she had found she had to make her style her own. Drawing forth her sword, her stance was loose along her legs, her shoulders squared, and her hands firmly planted along the hilt, her left hand dominant over her right. In truth, she never knew how widespread the knowledge was of her being the former host, and frankly, she tried not to think about those times. Because they were dark, souring, and made her into a worse person.

"I heard that a sound mind and a sound body makes a sound soul. Though I don't really know what to make of that. Some other people told me it's better to not feel anything." She'd read many books about philosophy, especially regarding ninja. Frankly, a lot of the things she read helped mold a more cynical and depressive young lady at the time. Then again, children were a product of their environment, and Ikana's life up until relatively recently was uncertain, chaotic, and insecure. Now, she felt marginally better. Disregarding those thoughts? Back to her swordsmanship.

Her stance was likely "passable", but whatever mistakes she had at this point would probably be more difficult to root out, despite her young age. After all, she'd have been repeating the same mistakes for years at this point. "I'm looking to sharpen my instincts and reaction time. Get experience too. I haven't fought much against people with swords. Considering my...well. Size and height."

[Sourei Kobashi]

Kobashi listened as Ikana spoke, saying that she had heard that a sound mind and body made for a sound soul; he couldn't help frowning ever so slightly at the words. They were not exactly wrong, but they were not exactly right either. For the moment though he allowed her to continue talking as he reached out his own hands to push against her arms, the tsuba of her sword and after poking and prodding her arms pushed at her shoulder slightly while looking at her feet.

"Your fingers are too tight. Your pinkies and thumbs should be tightest and gradually be more loose as you go up to your index fingers. Right now if you move your sword like that your movements will be more limited and more importantly, they will be more telegraphed. Your arms are fine for the most part, but remember to never keep them too extended. You want to keep them bent until you decide how you are moving you sword.

Your feet need work a bit as well. You need to stay on the balls of your feet and keep your knees bent just slightly. It keeps your weight being supported by the tendons in your leg rather than being solely held by the bones and muscle. You will be able to react a bit faster and will put less strain on your joints."

Kobashi rattled off his criticisms at a fairly quick pace, much like one might recite a passage from a book. There was no condescension nor any arrogance in his voice. For Kobashi he was simply doing his best to instruct someone with less experience than himself. While waiting for her to hopefully make the necessary corrections, his mind considered her later statements about size and height. It was honestly something he did not see as an issue, as he was not exactly tall compared to some of the other swordsmen he had encountered either.

"You will have some issues when it comes to leverage and likely raw strength in comparison to other larger swordsmen, but this can be easily offset with nimbleness and reaction like you said. A more compact body such as ours gives us other advantages as well. We often can make use of the environment more easily and will typically be underestimated. When you can, draw your opponents into spaces that favor your body over theirs."

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

Kami, this guy had a lot to tell her to correct. Fingers too tight? Okay. She loosened the hold a little. Pinkies and thumbs should be tightest? Made sense. She tried adjusting, though it felt uncomfortable. It was good to know that for a self trained swordsman, she didn't get everything wrong. Especially as she watched others fight. "...Makes sense." She responds, trying to adjust her footing. She usually liked to keep her feet more in a triangular stance, mainly because she was used to fighting both with and without weapons, but she found herself taking his critique in stride. It seemed robotic.

"...I see. I might need some advice on how to better parry or protect myself against bigger opponents then. I'm pretty quick, I know that, but I'm not going to be able to dodge everything." Making that pretty clear, as she listened to him talk about the environment and making use of her smaller size? She could agree to that. Her Wakizashi was pretty useful in tight quarters, and what's more? "To compensate, I learned how to do this on my own." With his help in adjusting her, she slowly funneled chakra into her sword. Watching as the blue sheen or hue wrapped forth and made an almost ethereal extension, the humming as she could feel the sharp vibration.

"I heard you couldn't be considered a true and proper swordsman in Kiri until you at least could master this principle." Evidently, this meant either Ikana was lying when she said she wasn't that experienced, or she truly thought so little of herself. After all, she was a genin, a relatively young one to have mastered this chakra sword technique. "I think the thing I'm lacking the most. Is probably a good bit of experience." No truer words could be said really for her. 

[Sourei Kobashi]

Kobashi listened as Ikana stated that she needed some manner of parrying attacks from stronger opponents. Even as she continued to correct her stance with his guidance, Kobashi was already contemplating what advice he could give her towards such a goal. As he was considering what advice to give, Ikana went on to state that she had tried to compensate for her skills by learning a technique which was followed by a demonstration.

With a slightly raised eyebrow, Kobashi looked on at the demonstration of the Sabre Technique. Pulling a kunai from a holster, the Jounin quickly ran the edge of the kunai up and along the chakra enhanced wakizashi. Pulling it away at the end Kobashi went on to examine the very large gouge left in the edge of the blade.

"It is certainly a critical technique for those wishing to focus on Bukijutsu. There are a great many methods of defense out there which are near impervious to bare steel, but are still susceptible to a blade coated in your chakra. By its very nature, knowing that technique will increase the lethality of almost any other bukijutsu technique you come to understand."

Holstering the damaged kunai to where it belonged, Kobashi circled around Ikana once more looking for any more criticisms he could make when it came to her stance. After further examination he found no other flaws that would not be fixed with time and experience.

While he may not have tried to convey it, Kobashi was actually somewhat impressed how few corrections Ikana had required and more importantly how easily she seemed to correct them once told. He had given such criticisms to a great many would be swordsmen in his time and unfortunately a lot of them had been incapable of unlearning their bad habits or flawed techniques.

"As far as defending yourself goes, there are a few tricks you can use to help yourself with that. When using your blade to defend, your goal is not to block the attack, but to deflect it away from yourself. In situations where you absolutely most stop the movement of the blade, then you do so by keeping your blade on the low end of theirs and then rising up the length. This puts pressure on their wrists and minimizes the impact you need to deal with as the point gains more speed and thus momentum at the tip in comparison to the base."

There was a bit of a pause in Kobashi's words, in part this was to give the girl time to digest his words, but also it gave him a moment to consider how to phrase his next words as they often were not easy for the young to embrace wholeheartedly. Unfortunately those who were inexperienced often had notions that taking any sort of wound meant they lost or were not skilled enough.

"At times you will be unable to dodge, parry or block. In those instances your focus should be on minimizing your wounds. The most important things to protect then is your head, legs especially in the thigh region and your torso.

Head wounds bleed a lot and will obscure your vision. Your thighs has the femoral artery and overall if you lose your legs you lose your mobility. Your torso obviously has your most important organs. Taking a gut wound or losing the function of an arm is not pleasant or great for your survival, but you retain more of your fighting capacity by taking blows there than other places.

Unlike those focused on ninjutsu and the like, we do not rely as heavily on handseals so we can afford to lose the functionality of an arm and still be a threat. As for experience. . . there is sadly no shortcut or tip for that. You just have to fight regularly and learn from your mistakes."

His words as usual were on the softer side and mostly spoken with an absence of passion save for his last sentence. His tone stayed mostly the same for the last sentence, but the look in his eyes became a bit more distant as his mind drifted to various memories of the many battles he had endured and those who had lost the chance to learn from their mistakes.

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

"Thank you for the explanation." She said with a twist of her stance, the chakra flow ceasing to her blade as she looked at his now damaged Kunai. "You know, you can get another one of those at my store for five hundred yen." Industrious as always. Pretty good to get a sale, considering the hustle was always important. The way she said it was so deadpan and serious, it didn't have any child like humor to it. Her eyes narrowed in a cutesy manner. Though, she came to turn and resume her stance, shifting momentarily for the corrections he mentioned before.

Listening to his lecture on deflecting the strikes? She felt that was going to be something easier said than done if someone was drastically larger with more weight. She could slant or guide the blade away, but she felt like that she wasn't exactly the right physique to do such. Though she listened to the lecture all the same. Until he explained that thing about taking wounds. Where she'd ideally want to get hit. "I'm already familiar with that..." Her voice sounded a little bit colder then as she thought about those words. She'd been mauled by a tiger before as a mere toddler. Had taken more than her fair share of blows from time to time.

"...The problem with what you're telling me is, I'm so small, a single hit is all you'd need to deal something decisive. I'm hard to hit, but there isn't much of me." He sounded softer than she'd expected, and frankly, when he mentioned no shortcuts for experience? That she'd simply need to fight and learn from her mistakes? She found herself thinking, especially on those last lines. "I'd know a lot about mistakes sir...I was one after all." Maybe either some dark humor, or some self deprecating statement, she too had her mind drift to different times. Vaguely happier, but also now bittersweet memories. She felt disgusted in herself then.

"I'm sorry."

"...I'm grateful for your time and your help. You're one of the first people in a long time that's taken the time to mentor me." She proclaims, giving a practice swing downwards vertically, as she leans into the slice with her shoulders. Getting a familiar feel for it as she remembered the times she spent practicing, attempting to perfect on her own. "Life feels unfulfilling and lonely. Darker sometimes than I could ever imagine. Sometimes, it feels easier to just go to sleep and hope I'd never wake up."

[Sourei Kobashi]

The remark of her being a mistake actually did manage to draw a reaction from Kobashi, a faint frown combined with eyes that seemed to focus entirely on her for a moment. He even opened his mouth for a moment as if about to say something, but upon her apologizing he seemed to decide it was unnecessary. As far as Kobashi was concerned, no individual was ever a mistake; mistakes were solely limited to actions taken or not taken in his eyes.

As she expressed her gratitude for him taking time to help guide her in swordplay, she continued on to speak of how her life seemed unfulfilling and lonely. It seemed quite apparent to him at least that the girl was obviously in a state of depression, but he was not exactly trained on how to deal with such issues. He could always suggest she speak with someone more qualified, but part of him felt that such a suggestion might just alienate her even further. Taking a moment to try and collect his thoughts, he slowly spoke.


"The shinobi life is often a lonely one and darkness often infests it. That is where a strong soul becomes critical. As for what makes a sound soul; a sound body and mind are definitely helpful, but more than that a clear purpose is paramount. When you do not wish to wake up in the morning, you need to find some reason to wake up and cling to it like a drowning man clinging to a piece of driftwood. If you lose that purpose, you find another and another. So long as you draw breath the possibility of a better future exists. Death is not just the end of you, but the end of all possibilities."


Kobashi had sincerely wished for nothing, but death when Sukiko had died and had been beyond consolation. What had initially saved him had been thoughts of petty vengeance, but eventually he found responsibilities to take on which he could focus his mind towards so as to ignore the ragged wound where his heart had been. It may not have been the healthiest way to deal with such feelings, but it had kept him alive for over a decade and still helped him to wake up each morning. Currently all that kept him moving right now was a promise to a man he had respected. If he were to somehow fail in that task, he hoped that he would be able to find some other purpose to continue pushing on.

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

Ikana found herself focusing on her form, as she found her back turned to Kobashi as he spoke. Swinging her sword out experimentally as she corrected the imperfections in her stance. "I'm growing, and frankly. Nothing in my life is clear. Never mind my life's purpose. All I know is that I seek growth. Power." She says, slashing outwards with a swish of her blade. Though power for power's sake did seem relatively pointless. Didn't it? Maybe Ikana wasn't the best critic to discuss in that manner. After all. She was an awfully cynical being.

"Because power is the ability to enact change. Over oneself. The world. Without power, nothing can be accomplished. Regardless of purpose. A sword has a purpose. But it's useless if it's flimsy and poorly made." The same could be said about ninja. They were tools to be directed for some purpose or another. Beyond their normal menial lives, they were soldiers. Their purpose was designed and given to them from up above, and frankly, Ikana could find perhaps some smaller comfort in that. She lived day by day instead of thinking too deeply and darkly anymore about her future. She'd abandoned thinking hard on her past as well. Because those were irrelevant.

If she thought about those things, it'd consume her further than it already had, and it would leave her destroyed.

"Death is the end of all things. It's true. But it's easier to die. It's hard to live." Ikana says with a somewhat exasperated expression. "Especially when you don't see good things to live for. I suppose. Still. I concede. You're absolutely right about opportunities. All I know for certain is that I must become stronger. To bring those possibilities to fruition." Sliding her foot back, she slowly raises her blade, holding it parallel to her body as she holds the point forward. Proper footwork was one of the most important things about swordsmanship, and she wanted it to feel as natural as she could possibly make it. So far? She'd say she was doing a good job. 

[Sourei Kobashi]

It was a strange thing to see Ikana simultaneously sounding very much like Ikari while also being so different. Their goals in Kobashi's view were almost a perfect mirror of one another, while the foundational rationale behind those objectives were worlds apart. A small nagging voice in the back of his mind noted how Ikana's current instability made her a perfect target to potentially cultivate to be loyal towards him and another useful tool for helping to safeguard Hisao; some part of his mind thought quickly pushed the thought aside however. Whether that part had been what little humanity still remained in his heart, the cautious tendencies he had or just some aspect not wanting to admit he had been already doing it to some extent was unclear however.


"So, seek this power for the time being. You can find towards what purpose you will direct it towards later."


The words were said in a very matter of fact manner, similar to how he had deliver instructions earlier on how to correct her stance. As he spoke he walked around her again, his eyes moving between her fingers, wrists and then feet before giving a nod of approval towards the changes she had implemented. It was not perfect, but then again Kobashi was a critical enough individual that he would not even call his own stances perfect. It was certainly an improvement however, with the main hurdle to cross now being Ikana making her current form the one she adopted reflexively.


"It will take you some time to unlearn your previous habits and incorporate the new ones, but time and effort is the only solution for that."


There was a pause for a few moments as Kobashi considered just sending the girl on her way. A slight frown formed on his face as he considered what exactly was the right call here. Part of him wished to disengage, but an even larger part of him thought the girl needed someone's help in this moment and for whatever reason it just felt to Kobashi as something he would regret not doing.


"If you still need more help I can set up an exercise for you to test and improve your footwork."

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

Ikana was never necessarily the best person at reading between the lines when it came to verbal wordplay. Instead? She was more focused on the details of battle. In a way, despite the lack of rigor and hardship that normal training would entail, she was learning excellently from this man before her. For he was training her in something that she had now been self consciously doing. Paying attention to details. Small and minute ones at that. That was a key to becoming a great ninja, and so far, she was paying close attention to him; as well as herself. Her instincts were telling her that she needed adjustments. It validated his words in those moments.

Her body felt uncomfortable in more than a few ways. "You speak a lot of sense." If he told her to pursue power? Then she'd do so. Though, when he mentioned it would take time to unlearn those habits of hers? "It feels uncomfortable. So. I suppose if I'm feeling aggravated, I must be doing it right." There was a bit of fallacy in that logic; but as of now? He offered her footwork. Training. Further guidance. Something that made her surprised for a split second. Before she swiftly drops her stance, looking him head to toe. "Gladly." There was a shift to this small genin then.

She spoke more refined, with an inner grace then. "I'd be happy to learn anything and everything you have to teach me." Flicking her blade outward towards her side with the flick of a wrist, she stretched her arms and legs; as well as the odd feeling from them. It hardly felt right. It definitely didn't feel comfortable, as she tenses her fingers along the handle. The next question though was very telling of Ikana's mindset and nature.

"I never asked...What's your name sir? And what do I owe you?" She looked at him deadpan in the face, deeply, almost a soul reading stare as her brown eyes looked into his. "Nothing in this world's free. So. Name your price before we continue."

[Sourei Kobashi]

Upon Ikana accepting his offer to provide some additional training, Kobashi nodded his head and began scanning the nearby area to assess where exactly would be the best position to create the little training exercise he had in mind. He of course turned his gaze back towards her whenever she spoke, nodding to the second affirmation that she was prepared to learn whatever he was willing to teach, before the conversation shifted.

First just a request for his name, but then quickly moving into a darker sentiment that was not necessarily unwarranted given the world they lived in. What did he want? Kobashi was a creature who had long ago gave up caring too much for any personal desires. The only thing that kept him going currently was ensuring that his younger siblings were cared for, he simply could not consider anything else until he was sure that they would be safe.

He had not intended to demand anything for the training, he had not even sought the girl out intentionally although it was quite the coincidence that she had ran into him given his history with her sister. Part of him acknowledged she had already been through a great deal and it was clear that she was looking for something to give her some kind of purpose. . . would it really be so cruel to potentially help fulfill that need? Could he really afford to pass up the potential to build another tie that he might be able to rely on if the worst outcomes were to happen?


"I don't particularly want for anything, if you like we can call it a favor owed."


The words themselves were not a lie, this was not something he just wanted for, but rather something he saw as a necessity. He needed to garner allies where he could that he could either make use of to help protect Hisao, to help them escape Kirigakure if the secret came out or maybe, just maybe if she somehow could prove deserving of true trust Kobashi could potentially bring her into the fold of knowing who Hisao was. After all, regardless of his intentions or duty he was likely to die before Hisao would or rather he would be damned to let the boy die before he did and if that was the case he needed some who knew to be able to pick up that mantle for him.

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[Miyamoto Ikana]

A favor owed he said. That sounded dubious. However, in this world, she could not deny the prospect of training. She took what she could get, and she held onto it greedily, for there were few possessions or items of worth to Ikana in this world. Self progression and power was everything. There was no real deepened sense of duty or obligation. The mundane items were meaningless in this realm. Taking the liberty to look him over, she dragged her hand up her arm. "Consider it done." Fair was fair.

With it though, she couldn't help but notice how he wanted to keep his identity reserved. What a drag. Taking the liberty to look up to the sky, she found herself slowly stepping forward, and then past Kobashi. "You've guided me through the proper stance and hold. Now I need to work on my dance. I feel like that part, I can do better on my own. You've given me a bit to think about." To have a mentor, a proper mentor. That was something she didn't know how to feel about. Mainly because even her own Jounin Sensei, she was dubious to learn anything from. Instead, she, much like a monster, lived in the solitary and did things alone. Her distrust of anyone and everyone was prominent. However?

If he was asking for little in return, and would only get to see so much of her skills? That'd be fine enough. She could keep her little secrets, and in turn, she could obscure. Control what others saw. "You'll be able to find me. Along a store in the market district. A shinobi convenience store if you would that I run. If that's all. I make my fair departure." She proclaims, and with it, with a handseal, and a swirling splash of water, she vanishes off into the distance with the body flicker.