[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

It was an exceptionally long trip, but Toru didn't mind. He was helping to inspect the building progress on all of the different waterfront trading bases that were put out there. That was, on his way to Yukigakure, since he did want to meet with Shuka. The two had agreed to a friendly training session - though he could only wonder how an older woman such as Shuka could or would fair with someone who was many years her journey and didn't have the threat of old age lingering around the corner - perhaps she could offer him some good words of wisdom in his training.

Despite Toru's station in life, he still enjoyed learning which was very evident by his wander lust and frequent excuses to attend to things alongside his shinobi or solo entirely. Missions and the like, it was always something were a frequent thing for the young Mizukage. To be caught behind the desk, felt like a very cornering thing to do. He had to be sharp if he wanted to protect his nation and he had to be the leader of it all. Regardless of how other's felt about his being on the ground and in the field so often.

He arrived in Yukigakure safely with few storms to weather, and was at Shuka's office soon thereafter. He was standing quietly in front of the door to her office knowing it was soon time for their meet-up. Once the clock struck and signaled he was led inside and he gave the woman a bow of the head.

"Lady Yuki, a pleasure as always." Just a customary greeting, nothing overly warm or calloused.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

S

uch a young leader that Kirigakure had employed. This was not necessarily a bad thing - Kaguya Toru was a young man who had proven very intelligent, capable, strong, and dependable - but it was certainly a dangerous thing. Young shinobi still had many things left to learn and splitting their time between their studies and their leadership ventures was an enormous feat. Stagnation was not an option for a leader and the further they had to spread themselves thin, the further such a thing could happen.

This was, perhaps, her motivation for agreeing to a friendly training session with the Mizukage. She would never say such a thing to him directly - teenagers would find such thinking condescending, certainly. But it was the case regardless. She spent the morning before their agreed meeting preparing, doing slow stretches to loosen her muscles and limber up. Her old age made such practice more difficult for her. Years of hard battle and physical strain had done a number on her joints, but she was still capable and strong anyways, so long as she gave herself time to warm up. It was lucky she had specialized in a branch of techniques that were kind in old age.

When Toru entered, she rose from her seat to give him a bow of the head as well.

"Mizukage. Thank you for your company. It is good to see you again. As ever, I hope the trip treated you well." Not wanting to waste his time, she would move past him to lead him out to the training yard. She had had her guards clear the area of the other shinobi who would typically be training here, leaving a section of the black castle uninhabited for their use.

"I appreciate the opportunity to train with you. Is there anything in particular you have been focusing on of late?"

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

She bowed to him, a simple form of mutual respect. Though a part of Toru still felt strange having people bow to him to show him respect. He realized why, logically, but his mind seemed to always rebel for a split second at the idea of it. He was nothing worth bowing to, in his mind he was a boy with a responsibility and duty. It was not a great deal different from all the other shinobi around. Perhaps more duty and responsibility, but nonetheless it was still just that.

"Aside from a few expected storms, it was pleasant." He would begin to follow after Shuka, his hands clasped behind back. He wore winter ready clothes meant for training. Not his Mizukage garbs or his Daimyo apparel. None of that pomp and circumstance was necessary.

Once they stepped out into the training arena he would linger at a stop at a certain spot in the arena. "I am honored and humbled by your agreeing to train with." He was in fact grateful at least for Shuka agreeing to train.

"It is poison that I have been focusing on. A special kind of poison, though it is impossible to know if it works if I do not test it in a form of pseudo-combat."

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

H

earing that the young man had been training with poison was very interesting indeed. It was a careful skill set, a narrow and practiced one. Working with it could prove deadly to the practitioner if one was not careful. That almost made it surprising that Mizukage would be allowed to train it at all. Though who could deny him, if he were to insist? He was leader of both the land and the village. Shuka had her own hesitance about practicing with poisons, but she had also endured many of them in her long life, and was not intimidated by the prospect.

Motioning to one of her guards, Asa, she asked the girl,

"Could you seek out a medic and have them come here for observation? We may need antidotes and medication available." Asa, wary but always, reliably, listening to Shuka, nodded, and left to go do as asked.

Perhaps Toru would have brought some antidotes of his own with him for this training session, considering he had a specific poison in mind. If that was the case, the summoned medic could simply hang onto them in case of an emergency.

Shuka shrugged off her heavy fur cloak, as it would weigh her down unnecessarily in combat, and rolled her shoulders.

"Alright, Mizukage. I will allow you to make the first move." This was a friendly spar of sorts. No reason to be so competitive about it as to go for a strike without warning.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

Toru bowed his head to Shuka.

"I have brought the necessary antidotes to thwart potential problems that may arise from being struck with the poison." He explained and would in-turn reach into his coat to bring out a vial. It was full of a green liquid, it was enough for whatever he had in mind to make sure that at least Shuka would come out of this unharmed. He had no need for an ally to be a casualty. Not to mention someone as powerful and well-respected as Shuka. It would be seen as the highest forms of betrayals if something happened. Not something he wanted so the antidote was safe in his coat as he was told that he could start.

So, he would.

A simple step with his foot towards Shuka would ignite the path of coral in large horrendous spikes towards her. The coral itself was quite plain at first glance but as it got closer to Shuka, it started to take form into strangely colored polyps. It was a simple move, and certainly something Shuka would be able to avoid were she paying enough attention. But it was this introduction of the polyps beyond a pale looking stone that would be of interest, that could catch her off guard.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

S

tarting moves were often easy to read. The first strike of true combat made this less so, but in the beginning of a spar, there was very little else to focus on but the position of the opponent, the way he stood, the motions he carried through. Once the spar had properly started and there were many jutsu from competing directions to keep a read on, things became more complicated, and making reads was something that took a very keen eye, something that Shuka hadn't trained as extensively as some others.

Still, as it was an opening move, she was able to anticipate it and avoid it rather neatly. Something that first looked like stone broke from the ground, rising in sharp spikes. She'd seen many moves similar to it. As she dodged to the side, though, she tried to take a closer look and identified something interesting. The surface was slightly more colorful than most stone (though it was made less so by being out of water, she hadn't yet connected those dots). It was the presence of polyps that really tipped her off.

Coral was not quite as common in the northern hemisphere as it was in the warmer waters to the south, but some did still grow even in frigid temperatures. She'd seen some on missions that had required her to delve below the surface of the water, her clan one of few that could stand the below freezing water without special equipment.

Were these the route by which Toru intended to deliver poisons? Shuka didn't know much about this, so it would be interesting to see more. She pulled her sword from her sheath and took an attempt to try to slash one of the coral spikes. Testing the material, trying to see how well it did or didn't cut.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

With Shuka dodging, the coral would halt in its growth, once Toru bid it to do so. The steel sword she had would make contact, but Shuka would find that the coral itself required some of the greatest kinetic force to break and her sword would in fact bounce back as it were little more than plastic or wood against thick stone. But, the polyps were a little softer though they were quite difficult to cut as if they needed to be taut to fully snip off of their source much like a string or yarn was hard to sever if not held quite tight. Still, at least the polyps themselves were not impossible to cut...

Nonetheless Toru was not going to necessarily focus on this trail of coral he had created, instead he was already molding chakra to create a spear in his hand to send flying towards Shuka much like a javelin might be thrown in a competitive sense. It was covered in polyps from one side to the other, the only exception being that there was a small section where there was nothing but his standard coral because he had been holding it.

It flew through the air, a trajectory that was aimed at Shuka's chest expecting once again that she would manage to avoid it. For Toru this was a practice not only in an attempt to poison, but also simply the creation of the polyps themselves en masse, something he had yet to do.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

U

nsurprisingly, the coral was of a very sturdy composition and didn't break under her simple sword. Maybe if she'd had something more powerful and honed to cut stone, but she had never been one for fancy baubles with her weapons, preferring the simplicity and reliability of a humble metal blade. She'd had this same one for many, many years. It wasn't even Ranmantaru steel, as she had first purchased this sword before that alliance had been arranged. The fact it had survived this long was impressive.

No time for further sentimentality. Toru had forged a spear coated with the poisonous coral polyps, launching it directly towards her. All of his moves were very direct and well-telegraphed. He cared more about the practice of making these developments feel natural than anything else in this fight, which was quite good for the both of them. She dodged to the side.

However, just remaining on the defensive was unlikely to be what he was looking for. Toru wanted practice performing these feats while under the pressure of combat, which meant she needed to give him some returning fire if she wanted to pressure his skills. Still, she would give him the similar benefit of telegraphing her intentions.

With the formation of a few hand seals, done uncomfortably around the sword in her grip, she formed three swords out of ice and launched them, in succession, at Toru. She knew he would be able to dodge, but would he be able to counterattack with his polyps while in motion?

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

Toru was indeed waiting for Shuka to fight back, so when she shot back with some ice spears of her own, he was forced to move. Of course, he could have summoned more coral but the use of extra chakra was unnecessary by definition. Instead, he jumped up and over. It was a vulnerable position to be in, but this was a battle simulation not a real battle with intention to kill each other. Still, the movement made his trajectory of the polyps waver significantly. He was getting better at this junction at making sure that they were maintained, but he was not yet perfect at it.

Still in the air, he focused on the chakra within his mouth and after a quick slightly discomforting moment he sent out a series of coral senbon towards Shuka from his mouth they too were made of coral though as they flew he was focusing on birthing the polyps along the coral itself the trajectory was uncontrolled though because the senbon had less aero-dynamics due to the growing polyps. Still the amount he sent out should be enough to have at least *one* manage to strike Shuka if she was not careful.

Soon his feet were planted firmly back on the ground, once more he was stable.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

T

he attack seemed to strain Toru's control over the coral somewhat. Any technique was naturally going to be harder while done in motion. Being able to control it at all signified that he'd already spent a decent amount of time working on this ability. The wavering, however, meant that he still had some time to go before he was truly an expert in it. He was young, so he would have that time. Shuka hoped, at least.

While mid-air, Toru engaged in another strike, spitting out a series of senbon covered in the encroaching coral. Now that was a particularly devious tactic. Poison on senbon was always a tremendously deadly attack to threaten. Most people underestimated the potential damage of senbon and sometimes even failed to notice if struck in an indirect place that wouldn't immediately draw attention. With poison, that could be very, very deadly.

Forced to react quickly, Shuka pressed her hands into a hand seal to perform the lazy spinning top technique. A small swirl of wind billowed around her in a defensive form, managing to divert the trajectory of the senbon so that they spun around her rather than hitting her directly.

Most of Shuka's skill set laid in genjutsu, which would not be particularly helpful to Toru here. It made this a sort of interesting mental exercise, forcing herself to utilize a differing set of skills than she would ordinarily employ in combat.

She formed another hand seal and dropped low to touch the ground. Ice crystals dashed along the earth and through the air towards Toru. While it wasn't immediately evident what technique this was, it was certainly projected that it would be a good idea to dodge.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

Toru lowered himself a little bit to avoid the trajectory of his own senbon being thrown aside with the lazy spinning top technique. Of course, Toru did not feel any particular way about hitting Shuka or not, because he knew hitting her would mean they would soon have to stop their fight and get her some antidote. For now, the battle could continue or spar more like. If this were a real battle they might have blown something up already.

Shuka sent out a wave of ice, and as before Toru did not want to meddle with it, because it was ice and he had seen enough of what the Yuki clan was capable of to know that standing in its way dimwittedly would do no good. He jumped off to the side quickly, and in an attempt to break the ice itself sent out his own wave of coral to intercept and shatter it into ice fractals. But once that was done, he was trying to focus the trajectory of the newly formed coral towards Shuka, sprouting some polyps the best he could that looked strangely like tentacles trying to tickle her more than anything. They were almost comical and hardly all that menacing were it not for the poison.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

S

ending the coral to intercept the ice was a very interesting strategy. When it came into contact with the moving ice, the frost blossomed outwards, quickly creating the form of a beautiful crystalline ice tree. Luckily for Toru, he was not caught within the ice tree's grasp given his successful dodge and rather that coral and that ice became entwined, forming an interesting decoration, fragile ice over a solid coral base.

Back on the actual battle front, Toru was forming tentacles of coral. They were interesting to look at, almost like abstract art one might find in a foreign art book - their almost comical look not betraying how deadly they truly were.

Thinking quickly, Shuka decided to form an ice clone. Allowing Toru to actually land a strike on something might be a good idea, since the application process of the poison was likely just as important as the process of forming the coral in the first place.

Knowing its role, the ice clone dashed forward, bracing against one of the tentacle strikes with a manual block intentionally. It was sturdy enough that it could handle the single strike, and wasn't truly alive so would not feel the full effects of the poison, but it was at least a good mock-up of the concept when applied in a true fight.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

The clash of coral and ice was in a manner of speaking rather pretty to look at, and Toru was lightly impressed. Though he did not outwardly show it - as this was not in his nature - he was interested in the ice tree forming outwards from more plain coral he got almost distracted by it when the ice clone came running in the direction of the coral. Of course, he wasn't sure what the intention was with getting struck but he wouldn't complain. Toru would pull back the coral after the clone was struck though it wasn't destroyed. He wondered what kind of effect a clone could have from the toxins... It was made of chakra presumably and would not have the same cardiovascular system so this would see the test of time.

In time, the clone would likely begin to feel the effects - if Toru had done it correctly - of the toxin. A slowed and sluggish mind, difficulty breathing. There were several beginning symptoms, but how severe would they be with the clone? These were the kinds of things that were genuinely hard to gauge and he was simply standing there in the midst of their pseudo battle almost waiting to see if it worked not wanting to continue until he could see something for himself.

OWL

[Yuki Shuka]

Yuki Shuka --- TAG Kaguya Toru - - WORDS - - -

N

ot a living being, the clone would certainly have a different reaction than a regular person, but there was also sure to be some kind of response. Clones were emulations of human life. Even an ice clone, which was less truly human than a shadow clone, would have some kind of reaction to a poison if given enough time as the poison tore through parts of the body. Shuka was interested as well, observing.

The clone stood confident for a few minutes, but quickly felt the effects, hunching over. Breathing short, chest straining. The effects didn't have a chance to linger for long, though. As it clearly began to set in, the clone dissipated in an icy haze, causing the air to be filled with a heavy, cold fog. A destruction as though the clone had been struck.

"That seems like a rather severe effect," Shuka commented. Good thing she had avoided being struck by such a blow so far. Even if an antidote was readily available, she would rather not feel the effects of that personally.

"I am going to resume now." With the fog still in the air, it seemed polite to warn him that an attack was incoming so he could get back into reactive form.

She raised her hand and produced several icicles from the frosty haze between them, then launched a few Toru's way.

ISHY of THQ & ADOXOGRAPHY

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world Yuki Shuka

The two were at an impasse simply watching the clone in its suffering. It was a bit strange to see and watch so neutrally. Almost like a cruel experiment. It was not cruel, it was just a clone after all, but it was still an emulation and thus a part of Toru's humanity felt bad for it, a pity when it disappeared into a haze to not be seen or heard from again. He had always wondered how clones experiencing existence. Did they feel the same way? A desire to not die? He couldn't reach the end of the train of thought as Shuka was speaking of resuming so he looked back towards her and nodded.

Some sharp icicles were tossed his way, and he became very quickly defensive, and with a soft flourish of his arm he would create similar sized coral spears to send in the direction of the ice with the intention of them colliding somewhere in the middle, though likely closer to Toru since he sent his a little after Shuka had sent hers. Of course, this was unlikely if Shuka could in fact control the trajectory mid-air, if not then the two would collide and likely stop each other's velocity completely and clatter to the ground.

OWL