… Well, that was awkward. In an attempt to save face, Kumori’s darkened eyes remained so, not dropping his guard even to the should-have-been-obvious note that Asuka, for all intents and purposes, was the last person in their team who needed medical assistance… on account of being a
medic himself. The comment about his clan’s, say,
interest in him was also new…
"… I’ll have a word with my brothers later,” Kumori promised with a low, almost threatening tone albeit not aimed at Asuka,
"I believe some intel has been kept away from me…” Oh well, as annoying as it was, a problem for later.
At long last, the genin team had arrived in full – upon inspection of the team’s condition, they had been roughened up by plenty of resistance but managed to arrive in one piece. That included Shizuka, his clanic protégé, whom he hoped would take things a little easier from now on to avoid worsening her apparent wounds.
Kobashi received the scroll and rejoined with Kumori, while Asuka followed suit. When Kumori received the scroll, he read through its contents, taking in the note about a heavily guarded individual – accordingly, just one – who was specifically to be taken on by the two groups of highest-ranked shinobi. Such a guarded individual would be tough to reach when they were located in a large keep such as this one, especially since the scroll emphasized that the Red Keep was to remain intact and that they should exercise upmost collateral integrity…
So if he were forced to use big, destructive Ninjutsu, he’d have to make sure that it was close to the edge of a balcony – however, chances were low on that scenario, so Kumori assumed that he’d have to refrain from frivolously spending chakra like that with such a risk at hand.
The scroll commanded them to further command the Chūnin and Sp. Jōnin to advance, and Kobashi quickly established a reliable strategy behind their assets – with the troops advancing forward now, they
could cut off escape from the keep in short time, which would help the higher-ups reach this anonymous, highly-guarded person before they attempted to escape themselves. Nodding in agreement, Kumori formed a handseal and summoned two Shadow Clones, one next to Kobashi and one next to Asuka.
"I’ll leave these clones with the advancing forces for support. Let’s meet up with them,” he decided, coming to a consensus after hearing his teammates’ input that they were to move
now.
And thus, they’d have to keep their heads low, making use of any shrubbery or constructs that’d allow Kumori to hide his form with the
Cloak of Invisibility Technique should a surprisingly curious enemy guard look their way. He was assured that his cloak helped with audial muffling of his steps, and that its camouflage helped him blend in with whatever green he was able to pass by. However, Kumori was approaching the Chūnin and Sp. Jōnin, dividing his clones to each group to relay the command to advance forward and attack the keep quickly. He’d also make sure to inform these groups of their fellow role to prevent escape from fleeing enemies, and that a certain heavily-guarded individual was to be left to the higher-ups to take down should one such being try to escape too – in the scenario that they’d be able to identify such a person, prevent escape, but beware.
Jutsus Used/ SAs Active:
NAME: Kage Bunshin no Jutsu [Shadow Clone Technique]
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu [General]
ELEMENT: None
HANDSEALS: 1
DESCRIPTION:
The Kage Bunshin technique evenly distributes your chakra between one or more clones with form and substance (x2 Clones).
The clones created by this technique are able to utilize any jutsu the original ninja knows, has all of their special abilities, as well as their kekkei genkai. Typically a clone's equipment doesn't retain any special abilities and the clone itself is dispersed when hit with a single attack or incapacitated, although the clone can also choose to disperse itself or be dispersed by the user.
When the clone finally disperses, any new knowledge it has gained along with it's remaining chakra are passed back to the original ninja and any additional clones.
NAME: Kakuremino no Jutsu [Cloak of Invisibility Technique]
RANK: E
CHAKRA USAGE: Very Low
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu [General]
ELEMENT: None
DESCRIPTION:
Using a cloak or a piece of cloth, a ninja may disguise themselves against a nearby object by covering their whole body in a fashion that blends in with their surroundings.
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Shouki Clan Hijutsu - Dokuyoke Master
Kumori possesses his clan’s secret ability to store, produce and release deadly poisons from his own body thanks to the ritual of Dokuyoke. Said ritual has also granted its clan members an uncanny resistance to local poisons and toxins found all over the Land of Water - however, with the decades that Kumori has had to practice their craft, he’s become a master of the offensive Dokuyoke – both in the secret but simple Taijutsu that takes advantage of the release of poisons, and also in the regards of being able to mold and create forms from the poisons released. Only a master who’s had decades to train the clan’s Hijutsu is able to utilize the poisons with this much efficiency and creativity.
Medical Training
Kumori was taught practical, medical skills from a young age – this was to honor his clan’s past as medical experts before the ritual of Dokuyoke changed them forever. His in-depth understanding of human anatomy grants him the ability to treat his own wounds as well as the wounds of others with minimal effort despite the lack of Medical Jutsu in his arsenal. When it comes to surgeries, then he’s confident and very experienced in cutting open as well as patching up human bodies for various purposes. This has definitely flourished during the trials that he witnessed in his clan… and despite his distancing from them, their books and notes did grant him a deeper understanding of human and animal biomechanism. Kumori is able to use this knowledge in combat as well, capable of easily identifying weak spots on the foe's body where critical organs or blood vessels (arteries, capillaries etc.) are located, thus targeting them for the most optimal killing chance. Medical knowledge isn't solely for healing the body, in the end... not in the hands of a shinobi.
Enhanced Chakra Reserves
Old as he is, Kumori’s decades of training and fighting has made his body robust physically, but it has also increased the available pool of chakra that he can draw from. He possesses enormous chakra reserves - much more than the typical shinobi, and he can release Jutsu after Jutsu for much longer periods of time before tiring out. This especially aids him in performing high-ranked Jutsu that usually cause other shinobi casting them to stagger or lose focus due to the huge loss of chakra as a result. The enormous concentration of chakra can also cause visible outbursts from his body upon welding or releasing chakra.
Enhanced Strength
Kumori’s muscle mass contributes to his massive size – it allows him to not only depend on the deadliness of his poisons, but also overpower his opponents with brute force. Every swing of his weapon is like a ravine charging into the target, and the toughness of his musculature alone is able to absorb quite a bit of blunt damage. It’s unheard of to witness a poison user like the Shouki to be this physically fit, but Kumori is something else… he has enough strength to punch holes in the ground, break weaponry with ease and utterly destroy an opponent's body and turn their bones to flakes with simple, heavy punches. Landing on the ground from great heights can cause soft tremors to travel across the ground, and he often deliberately lets foes land hits on him just to flex.
Jack-Of-All-Blades (Bukijutsu Expert)
Kumori seems to just know his way around any sort of weapon that he’s handed. Whether they be a sword, spear, bow, kunai, shuriken, kama, axe, club, staff, chain, knuckle-dusters, metal claws or even blowguns – of any shape and any size – when he wields and utilizes such any weapon, he does so with nigh unmatched skill. He may still have his preferences, but give him any weapon and he’ll kill with style.
Enhanced Hearing
As a result of his tracking missions back when he wanted to become a member of the Oinin Butai, Kumori developed a sharp and unnatural sense of hearing. He usually carries special Ear Protection plugs with him if enemies want to take advantage of this trait, but when freed of those, his ears can catch and distinguish sounds and their sources from long distances. He’s able to recognize usually muffled sounds with ease; the sound of a person’s heart beating slow or fast, the sound of insects crawling on the muddy ground, the sound of a hiding shinobi’s breathing etc.
Active: 5km / Passive: 1km