[Suzuki Taru]

As of late, Taru had been spending a lot of time at the training grounds. She split her time between the one near the lake and the one near the academy, depending on the weather and how much time she had to invest in training on that specific day. Today, she found herself at the grounds near the academy. The place was bustling with activity and it was slightly harder to set up a mock range, like she had been doing lately to practice her archery, so instead she opted to look around for someone to train with.

Among all the students and other shinobi working on many things, she spotted one she was familiar with - An! The young girl she'd met the other day in the Entertainment District. It made sense that she would be here, given she was still a student. She'd mentioned being interested in kenjutsu, so perhaps Taru could convince her to do a bit of training alongside her. The sword arts weren't Taru's strongest area when it came to bukijutsu, but she certainly wasn't bad at them!

Bounding over across the training grounds, Taru threw her arm up in an excited wave, as she often did.

"Good morning, An! Hello! How are you today? Are you practicing something for one of your classes?" Taru inquired. Hopefully it would be something Taru could help with!

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

The white-blue-haired girl decided to make the most of her extra free time and head to the library to complete the day's homework because classes had ended a little earlier than usual. Fortunately, there wasn't much, so she completed it quickly. I guess that's it. What should I do now? Before deciding to go to the training grounds, she briefly taught. An decided to spend the rest of the day practicing kenjutsu because one of the classes she took today left her feeling unsatisfied with her performance.

Like most days, the practice fields were humming with activity. Finding a vacant seat wasn't difficult because the area was rather large and could accommodate many students. In addition, some students from the grounds would come here to unwind and chat with their peers while sitting on the sideways and barely utilizing the space. She set her backpack down below, took her wooden training katana out of its sheath, and started practicing the fundamental kenjutsu kata they had been taught from their first day at the Academy. She continued doing so for around thirty minutes till a woman with curly hair showed up at the practice area. An recognized the woman right away. It was Taru - the girl she met at the Entertainment district just a few days ago.

An waved back at Taru, who was getting closer to her. "Good day, Taru-neechan!" smiling back, she moved closer to the other, her wooden training katana in her left hand. "I'm fine, how about you?" she asked. "I'm just practicing kenjutsu for myself, not for any specific class," An replied. "How about you, nee-chan, what are you doing here?" she inquired, noting that it was not uncommon for a graduated student to be at the training grounds, as they came by to assist the younger ones, but it was also not common.

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [1/6]
WORD COUNT:308
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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[Suzuki Taru]

As anticipated, An was working on her kenjutsu. She seemed like a good and focused student, the kind who would study a lot. Taru had been a bit more scattered in her Academy days - though that was because so much of her focus had been dedicated to controlling the swell of chakra within her, and she had allowed herself to get distracted with topics that weren't strictly as important as the fundamentals. An would probably graduate very quickly, given her more even temperament.

"I came to practice some of my bukijutsu as well. I've been focusing on archery lately," she admitted. Though it was a little hard to put the bow and arrow to the test against swords, given the completely different realms those two areas of combat existed in. If she wanted to work alongside An, she should probably offer to practice sword fighting with her.

"If you're in need of a sparring partner, I'd be willing to help you work on your kenjutsu, though. I haven't worked on my sword technique in a little while, so I could definitely use some brushing up." She didn't have a training sword on her, but given it was the academy training grounds, it was really easy to find one. Taru picked one up, giving it a few experimental swings to warm herself up.

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

"Archery?” An was taken aback. The majority of those in her immediate vicinity preferred using traditional weapons like a spear, sword, or something similar. Most people didn't choose archery since it was difficult to learn, required a lot of distance, and depended on a variety of variables, including the wind, weather, and many others. The first thing that popped into An's head was, "I guess nee-chan has good eyesight, but somehow, archery seems like something that would suit you Taru nee-chan. Could you perhaps demonstrate it to me someday?” An didn't miss a chance to experience something new.

"I'd love to!" she exclaimed. "I had a kenjutsu class this morning, and the teacher said I did well, but I think I could do better," she paused, "so, I would be grateful if Taru nee-chan sparred with me!" The girl watched as the older one picked up a nearby sword, as she had arrived at the grounds without one. An had already done her kata, so she was warmed up, but she still followed Taru and did a few extra swings and stretching, "I am ready!" An assumed a stance, holding her katana with the handle in her right hand and the cutting edge up in her left hand next to her. She gripped the training katana as if it were the uchigatana, which she preferred to use. She stood with her right foot in front and her body still and motionless as she quickly drew her katana. With the sword firmly in both of her hands, she sprang at Taru. The older woman had to defend herself against such an attempt.

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [2/6]
WORD COUNT:271
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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[Suzuki Taru]

"I'd be happy to demonstrate it to you! Having practice with a lot of different tools can make you a more well-rounded shinobi," she informed An. It was part of why Taru liked switching up her training so often to so many different things. While she would never be the best at anything, versatility would allow her to fill in important roles in many different scenarios. Allowing herself to become eclectically useful was her main goal.

For now, though, it was time to focus on the sword training. An took a solid stance, her form very refined. It was clear that she had put a lot of time into her practice and she looked like she understood the fundamentals well and would be a graceful fighter. By contrast, Taru's stance was slightly looser. She didn't square her body up into a thin target, one foot in front, the way most sword-masters usually did, and instead had more of an L-stance.

It made her positioning a little less powerful, but gave her a little more flexibility to move around. This allowed her to pull her practice sword up into a guard, bracing her hand against the "blade" just above the guard to prevent it tipping. Katanas weren't double-edged, so it was often appropriate to brace a block like that, she remembered.

She pushed her sword against An's, trying to parry the strike to push her off center.

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

Even if Taru's kenjutsu was not as skilled or honed as that of the little girl, the sheer contrast in their physical strength more than made up for it. Taru was on a whole other level from the lightweight An. When Taru dodged An's blow, she was easily knocked off her balance and nearly fell backward. However, just in time, she managed to lightly stab the ground with her katana to avert that fate. Resting was not an option because an attack could strike at any time. "That was a good block, you almost had me!” she exclaimed.

She went on the defensive after regaining her composure and center of gravity, as her opponent had the time and opportunity to continue their momentum and attack. An jumped upwards, lifting herself off the ground a few times above her height, jumping slightly backward as she changed her form. Holding her katana firmly in both hands, An curled her body in a pinwheel motion, going straight for the other. One that was spinning very quickly. Though the attack was quick, it should be relatively easy to avoid for a genin, as the young academy student had no control over the direction and could only go straight on.

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [3/6]
WORD COUNT:205
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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[Suzuki Taru]

Uh oh! It looked like the force of her counter-strike may have been a little much for An. She did need to remind herself that she'd worked a lot on her strength and it might be a little much for an Academy Student. She didn't want to condescend to An by taking things too easy, but maybe easing off a little would be kind, right? At least An had managed to steady herself with her katana to avoid falling over.

"You did good catching yourself there, too! Your strikes are impressive," she said. She allowed An to hop back and shift her form, wanting to see what the young girl could do.

It was obvious she was familiar with a lot of traditional forms, or at least had been paying good attention to the lessons in her kenjutsu classes, just from the ways she was able to adopt stances like that. Taru had already forgotten the names of most of the practiced stances, though she still had muscle memory for most of them.

Taru moved to block the pinwheel strike with another overhead block, then danced back. She flicked her sword out for a quick, almost staccato kind of strike, feinting before coming from another angle. She wanted to give An a good chance to practice her blocks, too, instead of just forcing her to play the offensive role.

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

Taru was a far better kenjutsu practitioner than she had led An to believe. As she watched the faint Taru perform before striking from a different move, she realized that an inexperienced user would be struggling to pull that off. "Taru-neechan, I think you overestimate your abilities with the katana!" as she braced herself for the impact of their swords, An exclaimed. The two wooden blades collided as An moved her katana, tightly gripped in her two hands, into a defensive position along her side, the tip of the katana facing down.

Although she was able to defend her side, An, who was physically much weaker than her opponent, was nevertheless affected by the contact. The majority of the impact was absorbed by her wrist and elbow joints, which left them mildly painful. The little girl finally succeeded in getting away from the opponent and situating herself for an attack after a lengthy exchange of blades with the opponent in defensive mode. The amount of time Taru had to attack this time was limited as An surged forward one after another, attacking from every angle she could think of in the hopes that some of her blows would really connect. This kind of continuous action put a significant toll on the youngster's stamina, which was still developing, as sweat began to drip along An's forehead.

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [4/6]
WORD COUNT:225
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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[Suzuki Taru]

"Ah - sorry, I haven't practiced in a little while, but I try to keep up with my bukijutsu training in general" Taru laughed, feeling a bit guilty if she had misled An. She didn't feel like she was particularly experienced in the craft, and she knew that An would definitely surpass her in raw skill someday soon, but An was still a young student.

Still, she managed to make an impressive show of skill when she launched herself at Taru with a flurry of attacks. Though Taru moved to try to guard and block the swings, she wasn't quite able to meet all of them. An managed to land a few good blows on Taru's arms and side. While they weren't too much of a problem with the wooden blades, in real combat that could've done some damage! It definitely seemed Taru had room to improve.

"Wow, that was good! You move so fast with that blade at times it was hard to react," Taru stated. She adjusted her grip on her blade again as she tried to prepare for the next round of swordplay, this time opting to hold the sword with only one hand.

It was partially to give herself more fluidity, but also partially to handicap herself so that she wouldn't put too much force into her swings against An.

"Are you ready to go again?" If she received confirmation from An, she'd lunge forward to go for a quick strike towards the midsection.

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

It made more than a sense that Taru was a lot better than she had led on if she practiced regularly with different types of weapons, even the ones she was not using actively at the moment. Makes sense why she is so good! She thought as she felt her katana connect with the flesh of the other female. Though the spots she hit were not fetal ones and would not lead to a victory in a real combat situation. "Thank you!” she answered in a high spirit, though slightly tired.

Taru switched to using just one hand to grasp the sword. This caused An to pause and consider her next move since, while using only one hand allows for greater fluidity, it also increases the risk of a slip or mistake because the blade is not gripped as securely as it would be with two hands. When An replied, "Yes!" a rapid succession of non-stop blows to her center came flying in at an unanticipated speed. She managed to parry some of them, but several of them struck her in the stomach, most certainly leaving painful bruises that would last for several days. An made every effort to stay away from them as much as she could and then counterattack, trading strikes and hits with the other.

The smaller female had an idea as she slid past the taller female, using her diminutive stature to slide down and shift to the side while extending her blade to Taru's right rib cage location. An's main objective is to go behind Taru and pass her while dealing a strike that, in a real fight, would be highly damaging. Whether she was successful or not depended on how quickly her adversary reacted.

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [5/6]
WORD COUNT:290
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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[Suzuki Taru]

An managed to brace for the strikes surprisingly well, blocking out a good number of them even if Taru managed to slip past a few times. That would be really good on the battlefield. More than dodging and blocking every single blow, which was often impossible, knowing how to divert those blows to less dangerous areas was a really important skill! Taru remembered learning something about that, at least. It was better to be struck on the periphery than to allow a blade to go towards one's center.

Then An managed to pull off a surprising move! Taru hadn't done much in the way of training her speed or reaction time, so she wasn't quite ready for it. She managed to pull slightly to the side, but An still managed to deliver a strike right to Taru's ribs. With a real blade, it would've slipped right between the ribs and struck deep. Yowch! That was gross to imagine.

Taru playfully flopped over onto the ground.

"I've been slain," she informed An, rather than properly playing dead.

She sat up, and realized she was breathing slightly heavy. That had been quite the workout.

"That was a really clever strike. I couldn't figure out what you were doing in time to block it properly! You're going to be a frightening opponent to face."

[Gurē An]

gurē an

kirigakure no sato

An's an unexpected maneuver made contact with Taru, which led to the older woman's demise. Which, to be honest, shocked An. Or, to be more exact, the younger woman was pleasantly surprised. She laid the wooden katana down and cried, "Yay!" in a joyful tone. Now that the sport was ended, An could sense a good number of interested eyes glancing their way. Observing others' spar was certainly highly intriguing and perhaps even educational for some. It was therefore understandable why the two females became the subject of some interest.

"Thank you, Taru-neechan!” she held out her hand to assist the other in standing up and declared, "this was a good match.” The other appeared to be breathing more heavily as well, suggesting that they both had put their all into the duel. "We should spar some more soon!” An said as she sat her training katana back into the protective garment for easy carrying. "And I want to see your archery too,” as she picked up her belongings, she turned to face Taru. "I'm leaving now, nee-chan, bye-bye, and I'll see you soon!" as An was leaving the training grounds she made a respectful bow before finally departing for home.

-E N D-

[attr="class","lyrics"]LET ME SEE WHAT SPRING IS LIKE ON JUPITER AND MARS

[attr="class","notes"]NOTES:Training for EXP [6/6]
WORD COUNT:202
Suzuki Taru

MADE BY NIGHTBLOOM

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