[Yuki Kazu]

Neither of the two individuals was malicious in their words, but Haruka still seemed to think Kazu was speaking ill of Jou. "Didn't mean it in a bad way, it's just a simple fact of life. You have to earn your place in this world, especially as a shinobi. That being said, I understand hearing that might be hard, especially when I mentioned Jou. I apologize for that." He finished. It wasn't that he regretted mentioning his friend. It was more that he was sorry it was hard to hear for the girl.

"Can I ask you a small favor though?" The boy would ask, not waiting for a response, "Can you show me where Jou's at in the tent? I think it would be good for him to wake up to a friendly face, plus a relative." The boy would ask, clearly having the best of intentions in helping his friend. He prayed that Jou would be okay, he didn't want to see a frown on his innocent friend's face.

[Himishi Haruka]

[googlefont="Fleur De Leah"]

Himishi Haruka

Kazu was quick to calm down Haruka, telling her that his words had no ill intention. The girl sighed in relief, he wasn't an enemy, that was good, Haruka was in no mood nor energy to fully go out. She nodded as she understood his explanation. It had sound reasoning and he was right, it seemed to her she was still on edge about everything that transpired, that and her natural urge to protect Jou with all she could. She was certain she didn't see him as just a cousin, perhaps a sibling, or even more, impossibly her own child. The Himishi again nodded at his request before tilting her head in momentary confusion.

"It is great you found a friend in Jou and vice-versa, his personality makes it a bit hard for him to make friends based on my observations." Haruka made a gesture of her head, indicating Kazu to follow. "It sounds nice, I'm sure after what we've been through, he could really use a friend." Haruka waved at Kazu to follow as they traversed in the medical tent. As promised, she led the Yuki to her cousin. Haruka looked at the monitors and then her cousin, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving a faint shake. "Hey Jou. Jou, it's me, Haruka. You have a friend here for you."

The Kunoichi whispered to her cousin, she hasn't seen how he mentally would react at this. She quickly fell asleep shortly after the antidote was administered, she wasn't entirely sure if she should even be up but she wasn't going to stay down. She was known as 'Slacker' in Iwa, but in almost every sense of the word, she wasn't. Not a lot interested her to put in her full energy. She waited for Jou to respond, things need to be taken slow here.

SPOILER: Click to show

SA(s) Utilized:
Tomekenzangan (Tōzasō) | All-Seeing Eye of the Present
Haruka achieved both the rare dōjutsu and the even rarer Tōzasō state of the eye. Being a direct evolution of Iwakusō, boons of both can be accessed by the Genin. With crystal clarity, the girl is capable of recalling information and memories down to a surreal level. As if she could live in it, it also grants her capabilities to look through memories and implant her own or even reconstruct the other's memory through the use of clan jutsu. It can also gives her great ability of her own intelligence locked behind the eye. From the Tōzasō aspect, Haruka attains a great level of perception both in tacking and reading any given situation, exponentially increasing strategic or investigating abilities. The strongest boon is the ability to track movement from both powerups granted by the past and present eye. Every minute detail is tracked at great speeds for Haruka.

Unnatural Intelligence
Even before the Tomekenzangan, the girl has always had an almost metahuman intelligence, able to decipher a large number of details in seconds and map out events with marks like a video into the event. The Genin is even capable of quick, logical thought, all while maintaining a long term-memory of the details. Boosted by the Dōjutsu's passive effects, the girl's ability to recall and process new information increases exponentially. Every cognitive ability is boosted allowing the girl to process and retain much information new or old. Haruka easily surpasses genius levels thanks to both the great boons of her blood and her eyes.

Jutsu(s) Utilized:

Equipment Utilized:
04 | Body conditioning weights (1 per limb) {Continuous)

[Himishi Jou]

Jou laid there seemingly peacefully in the medical tent. He was on a bed with an IV and other medical things attached to him. Everything was stable from the looks of it, and the young Himishi was completely still and silent, eyes closed as he was currently asleep. A lot has happened in the first round...so much that he would not wish the remember, but he was going to have to face it all sooner or later....and it appears that 'sooner' has already come.

A whisper followed by a gentle shake slowly stirred the white-haired genin out of his slumber. "Ngh...Wh..." Jou moved a bit, his eyes slowly opening. At first, everything was blurry just like his current thoughts...but then one thing quickly came to mind. "Kashiwa!!" Jou shouted, quickly sitting up as his crimson eyes turned purple as his doujutsu activated, his Tomokenzangan spinning rapidly like clockwork. Some of the monitors he was attached to had come loose from Jou's sudden movement. His expression had a mix of worry...and surprisingly anger which was leftover from his outburst...as he was dragged away from Kashiwa's dying body.

But the person he found himself looking at was not Kashiwa, nor that heartless guard. It was a familiar face, one that he was more than glad to see. "H-Haruka-senpai?" Jou blinked, and as he did, his eyes went back to being their normal red color. He didn't exactly register what Haruka had said at first, and practically jumped out of his bed to hug her, a hint of tears in his eyes. "I'm glad you're safe." he claimed with a bittersweet smile...but then he shifted his eyes, noticing that Haruka wasn't the only person to come see him.

"Kazu?" Jou was a little surprised at first to see him with Haruka, but his smile only widened. "You're okay too." there was a hint of relief in his tone. Kashiwa may be gone...but at least these two were safe. Jou would not have known what to do with himself if anything were to happen to them.

Himishi Haruka Yuki Kazu

[Yuki Kazu]

With the initial conversation over, Haruka agreed to take Kazu to see Jou. Hopefully, seeing Kazu alive and well would help the Iwa Genin. He knew it would help him to see his friend immensely. Before they walked over, Haruka made some closing comments to the conversation. Jou having a hard time making friends made sense, Kazu remembered having the same issue a while back. After agreeing that seeing Kazu would likely help her relative, Haruka began to lead Kazu through the tent to Jou's bed. 

Seeing Jou attached to IVs and medical equipment pained the Yuki Genin, but he pushed through. It might suck seeing him like this, but at least he was alive. Kazu let Haruka wake him, he was more familiar with her than Kazu after all. Kazu watched through pained eyes as Jou awoke, coming back to reality. Hearing his quiet friend shout for his now deceased friend... it made Kazu feel as if he was being killed from the inside. Still, he didn't let it show. He suffered in silence. Once Jou finally realized the situation, he greeted his relative, and then Kazu. "H-Hey Jou. I'm glad to see you're okay!" He really was. He didn't know what he'd do if someone allowed Jou to be the sacrifice. He went up without another word and hugged his friend, gentle as he could. "I'm... really glad you're okay."

[Himishi Haruka]

[googlefont="Fleur De Leah"]

Himishi Haruka

She was gentle at waking up Jou, or she thought she was. It was a slow wake-up, she couldn't blame him, after all the events, Haruka wished she was still sleeping as well. Jou waking up was a little cute to her, it could always be better but Haruka didn't want their bond to break. The boy shouted Kashiwa's name and Haruka took a step back, her face practically screaming of shock. "Jou-go?" She instinctively said in an attempt to shake him out of his delirium, after all, she was just terrified of the rude awakening. She noticed his eyes shift and she was so close of slapping him to come back to the present moment but before she could do anything, he came to his senses.

He greeted her as he usually did and Haruka nodded her head, confusion written on her face as some of the monitors went off. She wanted to turn them off as he was now officially considered up and recovered, barely. Alas, she was hindered by the embrace of her cousin. "Jou... I'm so happy to see you again!" Haruka simply stated as she tightened her hug on her cousin. The moment he mentioned the Yuki boy's name, Haruka relaxed her hold and took a step back to give him the space he needed. Haruka went to turn off the monitors as the two were talking, as she did, she saw Kazu go up to hug her kin.

A small smile formed across her lips as she shook her head. "Yeah, Kazu was worried about you, Jou. He had a similar... experience as us and you know, or will know, how harsh it is. I brought him here at his request." Haruka stated with as little as she could, she wanted to see them happy, not lament. So it needed careful words to showcase that.

SPOILER: Click to show

SA(s) Utilized:
Tomekenzangan (Tōzasō) | All-Seeing Eye of the Present
Haruka achieved both the rare dōjutsu and the even rarer Tōzasō state of the eye. Being a direct evolution of Iwakusō, boons of both can be accessed by the Genin. With crystal clarity, the girl is capable of recalling information and memories down to a surreal level. As if she could live in it, it also grants her capabilities to look through memories and implant her own or even reconstruct the other's memory through the use of clan jutsu. It can also gives her great ability of her own intelligence locked behind the eye. From the Tōzasō aspect, Haruka attains a great level of perception both in tacking and reading any given situation, exponentially increasing strategic or investigating abilities. The strongest boon is the ability to track movement from both powerups granted by the past and present eye. Every minute detail is tracked at great speeds for Haruka.

Unnatural Intelligence
Even before the Tomekenzangan, the girl has always had an almost metahuman intelligence, able to decipher a large number of details in seconds and map out events with marks like a video into the event. The Genin is even capable of quick, logical thought, all while maintaining a long term-memory of the details. Boosted by the Dōjutsu's passive effects, the girl's ability to recall and process new information increases exponentially. Every cognitive ability is boosted allowing the girl to process and retain much information new or old. Haruka easily surpasses genius levels thanks to both the great boons of her blood and her eyes.

Weighted Training: Reflexive Combat:
After a routine set by Rentaro and further enforced by Haruka, the girl has developed a weaker but enhanced physical trait in two areas, the first being her reflexes to aid in the reactive abilities her Tomekenzangan cues. The second is more of a nimble body to evade larger actions with a nimble intricacy similar to that of a freshly minted acrobatic shinobi. As time progresses, she will have more of a boost, albeit half of that of a dedicated boon in either area.

Jutsu(s) Utilized:

Equipment Utilized:
04 | Body conditioning weights (1 per limb) {Continuous)

[Himishi Jou]

Even though Jou knew that Haruka was given the antidote, he still couldn't help but feel relieved seeing her all healthy...and not in that terrifying state. She could just have easily been the one to have...sacrificed herself back there. Jou was devastated with losing Kashiwa...but he couldn't even begin to think what it would be like if he lost her instead.

Then there is Kazu. Addimidetly, with all that was going on, Jou did not have time to think about Kazu which made Jou feel a little guilty since the two were able to become such fast friends. Seeing him here and alive caused an unexpected wave of relief to wash over Jou, one that became more apparent once Kazu went over to hug him. Jou was clearly not expecting this, a brief surprised pause before his smile returned and he returned the embrace, resting his chin on the Yuki's shoulder as he closed his eyes. "I'm glad you're okay too, Kazu." he claimed. Jou's eyes then slowly opened as Haruka made mention of Kazu being in a similar situation.

"I-I see..." He let go of Kazu and shook his head a little. "I'm sorry that you had to go through that..." Jou claimed as he placed a hand on where his own heart was. "No one ever truly recovers from loss..." Jou said, his tone soft as if he were speaking from experience, and he was...but he wasn't just referring to Kashiwa. He then looked up at Haruka then smiled lightly before looking back at Kazu. "But we must still focus on the present. We're still here, and together..." Jou added. "I appreciate you coming to see me...both of you. I really mean it..." He then started to rub the back of his head sheepishly. "S-So let's all continue to do our best, yeah?" Jou grinned, one that appeared bright and brimming with confidence...but he was mostly putting on a brave face, trying to make the the two, especially Kazu feel better. Kashiwa's sacrifice was still in the back of his mind...and as a result, it also resurfaced his repressed memories of Keiko...

Yuki Kazu Himishi Haruka

[Yuki Kazu]

Hearing Jou's words reminded Kazu of their initial meeting. Once again, he held out his fist. "I told you we'd meet again, didn't I? Couldn't have you thinking the shinobi in Yukigakure don't keep their word." He would hold his fist out until Jou returned the fist bump, just like last time. It was an eerie reminder that despite how much things had changed, they were still the same. Time would move on, leaving anyone it deemed unnecessary behind. 

Haruka's words made him a little embarrassed though. She wasn't wrong, but did she have to say that! He was supposed to be the cool relatable friend, now that reputation was tarnished. Still, she helped him out of a bad spot. So, he cut her some slack. "I-I wasn't that worried! I knew J-Jou could handle himself." Even Kazu could tell his words wouldn't convince anyone. Still, he hadn't properly responded to Jou apologizing that he had to go through something similar to them. Turning his head away to hide his embarrassment, he spoke once more. "No need for you to apologize Jou... Did it suck? Absolutely. But there's not really any reason for you to apologize. You're not to blame." Then again, Kazu wasn't really to blame either. No one was. However, if it was pinned on anyone, it'd be Kazu and Asuna. "Of course we'll do our best Jou! We'll do amazing in the second and third rounds!" Kazu wasn't worried for Jou, he didn't seem like he'd get emotional in the following rounds. Haruka on the other hand... She seemed like she'd mostly be fine, but he could tell she would do anything for Jou's sake. She was the one that worried him.

[Himishi Haruka]

[googlefont="Fleur De Leah"]

Himishi Haruka

Haruka just listened in on the two conversing, it wasn't her place to give input, let alone be there. She could feel herself becoming a background character and she was relatively okay with that. Haruka knew she couldn't always be there for Jou but she could at least try, That there was the least she could ask for. She was happy Jou showed genuine honesty when addressing Kazu and how his loss may have affected him. The Kunoichi simply smiled warmly as Kazu tried to play off his emotions. She understood why someone would try to act like a cool and stoic individual but it was a bit disappointing, it chipped away at the authenticity of the matter. But, she wasn't in charge of how people acted, like everything else, it came and gone.

Haruka nodded at Jou when he looked at her, part of her more than happy he was starting to get it, but dealing in this scenario, actions spoke louder than words. Kazu had a good character, she could start seeing why they became friends so easily. The Yuki responded to Jou by stating they should all do their best in the following rounds, the female Himishi nodded silently, fairly certain she said enough. "I'll leave you two to it, I've done my part and I'm a bit tired." The girl covered her mouth with another yawn. "Good luck and have fun guys!" Haruka stated as she made her way to find her room.

SPOILER: Click to show

SA(s) Utilized:
Tomekenzangan (Tōzasō) | All-Seeing Eye of the Present
Haruka achieved both the rare dōjutsu and the even rarer Tōzasō state of the eye. Being a direct evolution of Iwakusō, boons of both can be accessed by the Genin. With crystal clarity, the girl is capable of recalling information and memories down to a surreal level. As if she could live in it, it also grants her capabilities to look through memories and implant her own or even reconstruct the other's memory through the use of clan jutsu. It can also gives her great ability of her own intelligence locked behind the eye. From the Tōzasō aspect, Haruka attains a great level of perception both in tacking and reading any given situation, exponentially increasing strategic or investigating abilities. The strongest boon is the ability to track movement from both powerups granted by the past and present eye. Every minute detail is tracked at great speeds for Haruka.

Unnatural Intelligence
Even before the Tomekenzangan, the girl has always had an almost metahuman intelligence, able to decipher a large number of details in seconds and map out events with marks like a video into the event. The Genin is even capable of quick, logical thought, all while maintaining a long term-memory of the details. Boosted by the Dōjutsu's passive effects, the girl's ability to recall and process new information increases exponentially. Every cognitive ability is boosted allowing the girl to process and retain much information new or old. Haruka easily surpasses genius levels thanks to both the great boons of her blood and her eyes.

Weighted Training: Reflexive Combat:
After a routine set by Rentaro and further enforced by Haruka, the girl has developed a weaker but enhanced physical trait in two areas, the first being her reflexes to aid in the reactive abilities her Tomekenzangan cues. The second is more of a nimble body to evade larger actions with a nimble intricacy similar to that of a freshly minted acrobatic shinobi. As time progresses, she will have more of a boost, albeit half of that of a dedicated boon in either area.

Jutsu(s) Utilized:

Equipment Utilized:
04 | Body conditioning weights (1 per limb) {Continuous)

[Himishi Jou]

Jou couldn't help but snicker softly as Kazu tried to play things off. Even with the short time these two were able to get to know each other, Jou knew enough to tell how embarrassed he must've felt. Of course, Jou noticed Kazu's fist. It reminded the young Himishi of the fist bump the both of them shared during their first meeting despite Jou's frantic attempt at trying to leave. It was their sign of becoming true friends, and Jou was more than happy to give his Yuki friend a fist bump once more, nodding with a hint of confidence as he did.

As for apologizing, Jou shook his head a bit after Kazu said that Jou didn't need to. "I-I know, but still..." Jou still wished he could've done something. He wasn't exactly sure how things went down with Kazu's group...but Jou imagines that it was just as hard for the Yuki boy to deal with as it was for Jou and his group. What matters now is that the three of them were alive. Mourning is always a good thing, but Jou believed that neither of them should dwell on the sacrifices that were made for too long. They needed to work harder...to ensure that those sacrifices weren't in vain...at least that's how Jou is picturing it.

"Thank you, Haruka-senpai. Don't oversleep." Jou said as he waved her goodbye. The moment Haruka was far enough away, Jou sighed a bit. "When is she ever not tired..." Jou said before chuckling a bit. He still finds her amazing...but Jou believes that Haruka could stand to be a little less...lazy. Of course, this was something he'd dare not say to her face. But as he thought of Haruka, then looked over at Kazu, the white-haired Himishi just realized something.

"S-So, it seems that you are acquainted with my cousin." Jou pointed out, having not initially processed that until now.

Yuki Kazu

[Yuki Kazu]

Jou seemed to be sad that Kazu told him he didn't need to apologize. It wasn't his intention to make him sad because of it, but it was something he probably should've expected. "That's not to say that I don't appreciate the thought, I'm just saying don't feel like you have to yknow?" He asked rhetorically. Then Haruka left, saying she was tired. Honestly that was understandable after the first round. Kazu himself was more tired than usual, and he relaxed as much as he could. 

Based on Jou's comments, Haruka seemed to be lazy as well. That seemed strange to Kazu. Haruka seemed like she always wanted a schedule to him, like there was a time for everything in her day. Yet, she was lazy. Jou's question pulled him out of his thoughts. How was Kazu supposed to explain to Jou the reason the two knew each other? Kazu didn't want Jou knowing how weak he was at times, the primary example of that being when he met Haruka. The only solution he could think of was not giving Jou too many details. "She helped me to calm down after the first round basically. We had just met before coming to see you. What's with not mentioning you had a cousin in the exams though?" He joked, lightly jabbing his arm in a playful manner. 

[Himishi Jou]

Jou could appreciate how Kazu was quick to not want to make Jou feel bad, which was something Jou appreciated, not that he was too upset over that. Jou was aware that this wasn't his fault...but that apology was also partially for not coming to Kazu's side as soon as this round was over. Of course, part of that was due to Jou needing to recover just like everyone else...but still Jou was quick to feel guilty about things at times. He was still a bit surprised that Kazu was quick to think about and be concerned about him. Jou felt lucky to have met him.

As for the subject of Haruka, Jou smiled a bit as Kazu mentioned how they first met. "Haruka-senpai is really nice." Jou claimed...Though even he can acknowledge that she can be a bit rough around the edges at times. He didn't expect their introduction to each other to be this recent though. He then rubbed the back of his head and chuckled lightly at the question and jab he was given. "You never asked." he joked a bit in return. "I would've introduced you to her eventually." Jou claimed truthfully. "Haruka-senpai is a really great person. I learned a lot from her." he claimed, looking over once again where she headed off at. "I'm glad she's my cousin." he added a bit absentmindedly.

"Oh." he then looked back at Kazu, realizing something. "Should we depart too? Think we're well enough to leave."

Yuki Kazu

[Yuki Kazu]

Jou made a good point, he didn't ask if the Iwa Genin had a cousin. Obviously, they were joking around, but that part was still on him. He went on to mention that he'd learned a lot from Haruka, Jou definitely looked up to her. Kazu wondered what Jou thought of him. Though, that was a topic for another time. "She seems pretty cool, I'm glad you have a good cousin though. My relatives are just... strange mostly. Excluding Lady Yuki of course." Somehow, he felt like Lady Yuki would hear about this conversation. That lady wasn't strange, just scary.

Jou brought him back to reality once again, asking if they should leave too. "I'm fine, but do you feel like you're good to go Jou?" He asked, almost accidentally using the nickname Haruka had used. Kazu didn't know if that was something between the two of them or not, so he didn't want to use the nickname without Jou giving him the okay. If Jou felt ready to leave, Kazu would help him out of bed. Taking the various medical equipment off of the boy and letting the medical personnel know. Once that was done with, Kazu would look at Jou's red eyes once again. There was a sadder look to them than before, the first round had affected them both.

[Himishi Jou]

Jou couldn't help but nod in agreement happily as Kazu spoke about Haruka. "She's someone I can really trust." Jou claimed. Jou believes that Haruka was someone he can always depend on...someone that would never betray his trust.

As Kazu mentioned his relatives, it just started to click to Jou that the Yuki Lady, the one in charge of Yukigakure...is considered one of Kazu's relatives. It made sense in retrospect given what Kazu said before about the two of them being from the same clan. "Oh right. You two would be related." Jou claimed, placing a hand on his chin. He felt a little silly about that, not picking up on that sooner, but he didn't dwell on that for long. He was a little curious about why Kazu thought of his clan as strange. He didn't question him about it though. Jou couldn't really relate. Like Haruka, he had pride for his clan even if it didn't show as much as most other Himishi.

"Huh? Oh, don't worry about me." Jou claimed as he placed his fists on his hips and closed his eyes, trying to show a wee bit of bravado. "Takes a lot more to keep a Himishi down." he claimed, but as he opened his eyes, there was that hint of sadness that Kazu would end up seeing, a small hint that he still hasn't gotten over what happened...along with a few other repressed things that have resurfaced as a result...

Still, Jou tried shrugging this off with a smile and went to check out with Kazu. "So...What should we do?" Jou asked. He wasn't really expecting Kazu to show up to begin with so it wasn't like he had anything planned.

Yuki Kazu

[Yuki Kazu]

Jou felt that his cousin was someone he could trust, which put a smile on Kazu's face. He was glad his friend had someone he could confide in. The closest person he had to the relationship between Haruka and Jou was his sensei, or maybe Lady Yuki. But none of them were really close either.

Jou seemed to have a lightbulb go off as he realized Kazu and Lady Yuki were related. Kazu let out a small laugh as his friend voiced the realization. "Yeah, she's one of the only normal members of the Yuki clan that I know of. One of my other team members is one and she's... more than strange." An image of Yuriko at the hot springs appeared in his mind. Yeah she was definitely a strange one. 

Thankfully, Jou felt healthy enough to leave. Kazu hated hospitals and even though this was a medical tent, his hatred for it was still there. Kazu laughed at his last statement, "Yea, takes a lot to keep me down too. Can't speak for my whole clan though, you'd have to ask someone more knowledgeable." This statement of course was an attempt to cheer up his friend. He could see the sadness in his eyes, for one reason or another the end of the first round had affected Jou more than most people.

As they went to check out of the tent, Jou asked what they should do. "Hmmmm. I haven't eaten much today, what about you?" Kazu's stomach grumbled in response to his words. Yeah, he was hungry.

[Himishi Jou]

Jou couldn't help but chuckle a bit as Kazu went on about how weird most of his family was. The Yukis must be some bizarre clan judging by Kazu's words. Kazu himself didn't seem all that weird though, probably taking more after that Yuki Lady. He even has a Yuki as one of his squadmates. "Hey, don't tell me you have a secret cousin attending the exams too." Jou said, poking a little fun at this. Jou didn't know what it was like to have squadmates. A part of him felt a little envious about this. Sounds like it would be a lot of fun to be in a proper genin squad, but alas Jou was not as lucky. He refrained from speaking about it though since he didn't want to dampen the mood.

As Kazu spoke about not being able to speak for his clan, Jou would chuckle lightly once more. "Sounds to me like you're the odd one out...if you're not as weird as you claim your family to be." Jou joked. The more Kazu speaks about them, the more Jou's curiosity for the Yuki grows. He wondered what they were capable of. Do they have a kekkei genkai, hijutsu, or doujutsu just like his clan? Perhaps they didn't have anything particularly special, not that it would be a bad thing. The Okada are a prime example of that.

As the duo left, Kazu mentioned something about getting something to eat. "Yeah I could go for something to eat." Jou claimed...but then he had an idea! "Oh!" JOu stopped before looking at Kazu. "Instead of the mess hall, we should head to the dorms. I can cook us something." Jou said with a grin. It would be a far better distraction from the evens of the first round...and Jou will literally find any excuse to cook. "Any preferences?"

Yuki Kazu