[Akira]

Under the shroud of canopy, the dimly lit plateau in a jungle in the fake Takigakure no Sato, it had come time for a fight. Only - this was someone he'd fought alongside and not against just yet. Hotarubi had managed to at this point avoid the 'concussive gel' that the Netsu seemed to possess though his insight or knowledge of it was still limited in spite of seeing it in person. But, it was an opportunity to teach Midori and enhance his own skills of Taijutsu which he had been neglecting a bit for his ninjutsu prowess. This was something that needed to stop if he wanted to become a Jōnin.

As the fated Lord had said. If he wanted it, he should take it. And that manner of ideology was so closely linked to the Yamakira he found himself in agreement once again, that it was almost like the 'ok' to do as he wanted so long as he could actively and actually get away with it.

So, if he found himself a more talented partner then they would have sufficed, but after going through the difficult steps to request Midori in the most diplomatic of manners or the equivalent 'snail mail' she had responded and agreed to meet. She wasn't sore on the eyes and he could appreciate someone who could actually challenge him, if rumours were to be believed about the actual strength of the solid-liquid. So Hotarubi, in his more open uniform of black and white, with no shoes on and wrapped hands was ready to get down and bash the ever loving shit out of her, if she was so inclined.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori wasn't so certain about showing up to a spar in the fake Takigakure no Sato, considering the fact that clan secrets would likely be out in the open this way, but she would just have to bear it for now. She'd already seen some of what the Yamakira clan could do, and he'd already seen some of what the Netsu clan could do, although he probably didn't fully understand how exactly Plasma Release would work. He'd likely be quite surprised at the power she's able to generate, a power that most ninja of her rank aren't really able to contend with. He outranked her, though, so he could probably handle it. It didn't help that her repertoire of jutsu was really quite small, and that the person she's sparring against doesn't seem to have any Raiton capability, an element that commonly empowers Kesshoton.

She accepts the challenge anyway, since it's not like she had much else going for her. With luck, she could learn to perform handseals even faster during this spar, or at least get some practice in for it. She approaches the raised plateau, and although it was nearly noon, the sunlight that leaks through the canopy makes it seem almost as dark as it is at dawn or dusk. Midori is still wearing her usual black and green asymmetric outfit, though a different one of course, with her gloves and boots allowing her to keep her entire body covered and avoiding any of several venomous and toxic forms of life that seem to surround Takigakure. As always, however, her raven-black hair is worn over her back. She arches her back a little as she pops her fingers, with the tightness of her catsuit making her body shape quite visible. She was about as ready as she would ever be, even if she was getting ready to have the ever-loving shit beaten out of her. It seems that Hotarubi was taking a page out of her book in terms of style, as well.

Midori looks across at Hotarubi and shrugs nonchalantly.

"Well, if you're as bad at beating me as you are at fighting millipedes, I guess there's not gonna be too much for me to worry about."

Although her insults were usually quite cutting, this one was actually said in something resembling an actual joke and not just something meant to take a bite out of someone's ego and belittle them before her.

[Akira]

The cluster of bamboo trees were a pretty sight: not that he regarded them in that way but they were nice to look at, orderly, a mixture of yellows and greens and tanned shades which made the place feel right. This was a good training ground and he would intend to use it more. As Midori finally came along, he had finished stretching. A pointless endeavor given that most of the time he wasn't made of flesh but it was a way to 'ease' out the pains and aches that he did sometimes still get.

"Midori, nice to see you." Another ... well. She wasn't strong: but he acknowledged her as not being weak. That was good enough and he was hoping to get a good spar out from today's session, as well as some practical training for her as well.

Ha. Very funny. "You're funny." The lack of his actual expression would give the opposite feeling away. Had it actually been amusing the man might have guffawed, or laughed: since that was not a completely foreign emotion to the rock body. Frankly, Midori did not know what she signed up for when she'd chosen to accept the fight. "Maybe if you trained as hard as your mouth it would be as easy as you say it is." She could absolutely take the wit in response, even though he wasn't particularly intelligent to banter back and forth, a few preprepared insults here and there: it was when Hotarubi was being actively mean that it shone through.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori can't help but to smile when Hotarubi actually dishes back an insult of his own, and she deftly pulls the pair of Hung Gar rings around her wrists, making her arms feel quite a bit heavier than they really were. It would make her strikes that much more painful if she manages to connect. Of course, this was assuming that she'd be able to connect a punch with Hotarubi, considering he was a higher rank than she was and likely had a lot more experience in terms of combat. She might be able to make up the difference in their strength using both her weapons and her clan's specialized elemental release, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to keep up with the difference in speed.

"Good, you're getting better at insults. But if you were hoping to hurt me, just words won't be enough..."

With that, Midori focuses the highly specialized Kesshoton chakra to her legs, letting the energy build before she dashes forwards at intense speed, closing the distance with Hotarubi rapidly as she performs a series of four handseals. She times it just so that when she reaches Hotarubi, her sparring partner, the Kesshoton chakra is pulled from her legs, and is now surrounding both of her fists in a neon green light that pulses rhythmically as she slams both fists towards Hotarubi's chest, utilizing the concussive force produced by the advanced nature release along with the added weight of the Hung Gar rings for maximizing the force of the double strike, with her right fist a foot above the left fist. Whether either fist lands their strikes on Hotarubi, she just as quickly pulls back, both hands still covered in Kesshoton energy and the bright green color matching the hue of her eyes as well as the green that made her outfit particularly eye-catching. Her face is lit brightly, too, showing some wide-eyed excitement at the challenge of the spar.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Netsu Hashiru [Heat Step]

RANK: C

CHAKRA USAGE: Low [Per Step]

CLASSIFICATION: Taijutsu

ELEMENT: Kesshoton

HANDSEALS: 0

REQUIREMENT: N/A

DESCRIPTION:

After funneling chakra through the legs the user will create a series of controlled explosions allowing them to dash forward towards their opponent while leaving a streak of Kesshoton behind them propelling them forward at a highspeed. This in turn allows them to quickly close the gap against an opponent and can absorb a Very Low amount of chakra and in doing so allows the user to increase the distance the the stride is allowed to travel.

NAME: Atsuki Ken [Heated Fists]

RANK: B

CHAKRA USAGE: Medium [Initial] | Low [Constant] to High [Constant]

CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu

ELEMENT: Kesshoton

HANDSEALS: 4

REQUIREMENT: Netsu clan

DESCRIPTION:

Rather than expelling the Kesshoton element quickly in order to damage the opponent with a blast, this technique allows the user to cover both their hands in Kesshoton energy, causing them to glow with erratic plasmic energy that can add a concussive component to their physical strikes with their hands, increasing the power caused by their Taijutsu strikes to a level that matches the amount of chakra usage of the technique. Although their hands have a high level of absorption, absorbing such a large amount of electrical energy requires an equally high amount of chakra from the user in order to contain the energy until it can be released through Taijutsu. After absorbing that Raiton chakra or electrical energy, the chakra usage for the technique increases from Medium to High in order to keep the energy absorbed under control for further use of the Atsuki Ken.

[Akira]

Hotarubi had put that life behind him a little bit as he had wanted to become less of a little terror and more of a big terror to people. So while he was happy to let her equip herself with whatever accoutrements that she needed to fight, Hotarubi had brought himself and nothing else. This had, for all efforts and purposes wanted to be supportive of Taijutsu, since he had been training his Ninjutsu rather relentlessly in effort to improve his Doton powers.

She was the starting point and Hotarubi hadn't even managed to get himself into a starting position yet as she engaged with him. "So right awa-" He couldn't finish his sentence with her speed and need to focus on actual fighting than spouting his mouth off. This was an opportunity to find out about the concussive powers of plasma that he remembered her vaguely telling him, the wiggly-squirmy wobbly power of Raiton.

Only, he was made of dirt and rock and not a particularly hard composition to break through and he wasn't off guard as much as the punches she did throw would break pieces off him off. Even if this wasn't allegedly Raiton, Hotarubi felt that was disingenuous as it certainly hit like Raiton did and blew a hole through him: so that she could see from the other side as the noise and clatter of

He would edge his shoulder and neck to one side as his face made a 'not bad' expression, and the hole would already quickly begin to stitch itself back together as he moved forward to her. She didn't hold back, he expected, because she had already seen him break apart: and so he wouldn't hold back either. Stepping forward once, twice to throw an elbow, sharpening that elbow a little bit as he twisted his leg, hip, waist, torso and shoulder that created a sound as it cut through the air, aiming for her upper-chest/clavicle area, and she would also learn either one of two things: the importance of dodging Hotarubi's attacks, or the weight of Hotarubi's attacks as he weighed several hundred pounds, sans chest-space with some surprising gusto.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori barely lets Hotarubi get off his sentence as she smashes a hole straight through the Chuunin's chest with the concussive force of the Plasma Release. While the advanced nature was similar to the Raiton element, it had its own differences, such as its ability to "eat" Raiton techniques in order to empower itself. But that wouldn't really be on display in this kind of spar, it seems, since Hotarubi seems to be far less involved when it comes to utilizing different elemental releases. Luckily, she'd seen the man split entirely in half before, so it wasn't so much of a surprise to see him still fighting with a great hole in his chest. She can see on his face that he's somewhat impressed by the power she's capable of generating with both her Taijutsu and her Plasma Release working in tandem, but she can also see that he's gearing up for a counterattack by the way he's shifting his body around.

Midori figures that being in front of him is far too dangerous, and so she makes a split-second decision that in order to avoid the attack, being behind him would be a far better situation, so... She raises one arm, aiming to grip harshly onto his own collarbone as she flips herself up and over his shoulder in order to avoid being hit directly by the striking elbow, and although the strike is moving fast enough that it whistles through the air, her acrobatic evasion might be just unpredictable enough that she could possibly avoid the full brunt of that elbow strike.

Not that Midori is too focused on evasion to let loose an attack of her own, aiming another full-powered Kesshoton punch at the back of Hotarubi's arm, since he'd just spent quite a bit of energy making a strike with it. If she could manage to sever the arm the same way she'd ripped open his chest, there's a chance that she'd force Hotarubi to expend even more energy on the recovery. Not that there was much of a chance of her outlasting the Yamakira; her own Atsuki Ken fighting style was somewhat draining on her own meager Genin-level chakra reserves, but she felt she could maybe keep up with her sparring partner.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Fukisoku Kaihi [Irregular Dodging]
RANK: C
CHAKRA USAGE: Low
CLASSIFICATION: Taijutsu
ELEMENT: N/A
HANDSEALS: N/A
REQUIREMENT: Taijutsu Secondary or Agility SA

DESCRIPTION:

While any individual can try to jump from the path of an attack, those truly skilled at the art of evasion will find less obvious methods to avoid attacks. Dropping down to a split, flipping just over the area of attack, contorting their body into unusual angles and so on. This technique is effectively just a higher degree of training to use either the terrain or the blindspots of an attack to dodge in usual ways so that the user may either more readily escape or press their counter attack.

NAME: Atsuki Ken [Heated Fists] (Continued)
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium [Initial] | Low [Constant] to High [Constant]
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: Kesshoton
HANDSEALS: 4
REQUIREMENT: Netsu clan

DESCRIPTION:

Rather than expelling the Kesshoton element quickly in order to damage the opponent with a blast, this technique allows the user to cover both their hands in Kesshoton energy, causing them to glow with erratic plasmic energy that can add a concussive component to their physical strikes with their hands, increasing the power caused by their Taijutsu strikes to a level that matches the amount of chakra usage of the technique. Although their hands have a high level of absorption, absorbing such a large amount of electrical energy requires an equally high amount of chakra from the user in order to contain the energy until it can be released through Taijutsu. After absorbing that Raiton chakra or electrical energy, the chakra usage for the technique increases from Medium to High in order to keep the energy absorbed under control for further use of the Atsuki Ken.

[Akira]

The options flooded in his mind that he could absolutely have collapsed around on her like a rat trap, while she was avoiding his attack by using his attack as a sort of shield to fling herself over him. And that arm would unattach by the alignment of Raiton. That didn't principally bother him, and his face would flash with little annoyance at having to regrow another limb but for now it would sever and she would fling over him. His body weight would shift further. His forward leg would become his back for when she met the ground, his 'back' leg would spring out to try and kick her in the kidneys.

But, for the use of his Taijutsu: his kick was peculiar to not even push her back if it connected: it was his heel trying to implant itself in her - to make her sit down as opposed to giving her space. And even then: his foot would stamp at the floor: delivering power to his next strike, one arm down: a slap, funnily enough.

Again, it was an attack that by itself - a civilian using it would draw no issue. But a Shinobi using something so simple? There had to be a bit more to it. And quickly: his arm began to sprout from his stump past the elbow. Internally, Hotarubi was trying to break down her movement: as far as he was concerned, he was dealing with Raiton. It didn't matter what fancy term Midori had for it, but he would deal with it as was.

Though, it did give him an equivalent to 'hairs standing on his neck' - so that was something.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori is at least as surprised by Hotarubi's sudden body shift to try and kick her as she lands, with a kick aimed right at her kidneys near the center of her body. But her Atsuki Ken is still active, and with the momentum of her fall, she's able to use gravity, inertia, and the full weight of her body to bring her right hand down, aiming a hammerfist punch at the Chuunin's thigh. While her game plan had originally been to simply avoid being hit directly at all costs through avoidance and dodging, it seems that she's going to have to change to a more aggressive plan, as she plans to meet violence with even more powerful violence in order to break Hotarubi apart and force him to take the time to re-form his own earthy body. Should her strike connect, he likely wouldn't be able to put nearly as much weight into the slap that he was winding up. Of course, Hotarubi was probably capable enough in Taijutsu to correct his stance and still deliver the slap.

Should the movement of his shoulders continue, Midori would drop even lower, extending her legs as she falls even further down than before into the splits. It wasn't a common dodge, to say the least, and Midori wasn't about to let the Chuunin have an easy time of it, because she thrust another glowing green fist straight towards Hotarubi's groin in a direct punch. She put a lot of strength into it, using the concussive force of the energy to try and blast her sparring partner away from her and put some distance between them, rather than simply breaking him apart further. Should she succeed in doing so, she'd need a moment to get back up onto her feet before she did much else, and she flips her hair over her shoulder. With her left hand on her hip, she tilts her waist, sticking the left hip outwards in a show of confidence in her capabilities. While she wasn't the most varied with her methods of combat, she was certainly capable, for the most part.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Fukisoku Kaihi [Irregular Dodging]
RANK: C
CHAKRA USAGE: Low
CLASSIFICATION: Taijutsu
ELEMENT: N/A
HANDSEALS: N/A
REQUIREMENT: Taijutsu Secondary or Agility SA

DESCRIPTION:

While any individual can try to jump from the path of an attack, those truly skilled at the art of evasion will find less obvious methods to avoid attacks. Dropping down to a split, flipping just over the area of attack, contorting their body into unusual angles and so on. This technique is effectively just a higher degree of training to use either the terrain or the blindspots of an attack to dodge in usual ways so that the user may either more readily escape or press their counter attack.

NAME: Atsuki Ken [Heated Fists] (Continued)
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium [Initial] | Low [Constant] to High [Constant]
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: Kesshoton
HANDSEALS: 4
REQUIREMENT: Netsu clan

DESCRIPTION:

Rather than expelling the Kesshoton element quickly in order to damage the opponent with a blast, this technique allows the user to cover both their hands in Kesshoton energy, causing them to glow with erratic plasmic energy that can add a concussive component to their physical strikes with their hands, increasing the power caused by their Taijutsu strikes to a level that matches the amount of chakra usage of the technique. Although their hands have a high level of absorption, absorbing such a large amount of electrical energy requires an equally high amount of chakra from the user in order to contain the energy until it can be released through Taijutsu. After absorbing that Raiton chakra or electrical energy, the chakra usage for the technique increases from Medium to High in order to keep the energy absorbed under control for further use of the Atsuki Ken.

[Akira]

It looked good: it was showing an awareness of movement as he glanced up to see her bouncing over him. The dodging was a problem: but that was why he also used Ninjutsu. With everything in tow: not that there was a breath to maintain but he steeled his resolve as he anticipated where she would land to gear up his kick. And it would not pan out: she had acted well in response.

He was tiring of having to reform and would likely need to step it up a notch. It would press at his thigh again and with her not holding back: the traditional fight of 'wearing someone out' was working, but it was not conducive to any good amount of Taijutsu practice. Thankfully even with his leg breaking off he was using his back foot for support: so he would likely loved to have surprised her as she bent down into a split: only for his foot to regrow back.

Only this time: several times faster. Drawing in earth from his surroundings and up through his still foot: she would have been squatted while a new foot sprouted from the stump created to press out another foot directly for her face. It was easier to do. Granted, it might not have done too much if she worked in the moment and ducked underneath it she could still have delivered her original intention.

"Natural position." Hotarubi was looking down on her.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori is extremely surprised at how quickly Hotarubi is able to reform himself, as she had thought the Yamakira's ability to reform had been slower. Then again, he likely could have focused on the mending of his own body in order to bring his limbs back even more quickly. She didn't really know how the Yamakira's earth body worked, no more than Hotarubi knew precisely how the Kesshoton chakra nature would work. She couldn't duck much lower, and although she had been fast before this point, the constant dodging was tiring her out, making her react more slowly than before. While she takes the foot to her face, not being in a position to dodge well anyway, she's at least quick enough to try and bring her glowing green fist up to smash away at Hotarubi's ankle and move aside, her face slightly red from where the foot had landed as she winds up with her face in an embarrassing position.

However, if the Chuunin had been expecting a blushing girl when he looked down at her, he'd be rather disappointed.

"Yeah? Lemme guess why."

With that statement, she follows up with a strike from behind and below, aimed at his posterior. If his body wasn't made of earth, he likely would have ended up with a glowing green stomach from the force of her rising uppercut. As it is, he'd likely just end up with a pretty sore body. Of course, such a strike would do more to lift Hotarubi upwards, if it connected as she had intended, due to the compression of stone being much harder to break through. Whether that strike would land, however, Midori would use the momentum of the attack to pull herself up onto her own two feet. She could feel her ligaments starting to tire and it was really quite painful, but she wasn't sure if she could stop the spar to remove the Hung Gar rings, as she knew their weight was likely the cause of it.

"Uff... Time-out, all right? These weights are killing me right now..."

She certainly hopes he lets her take off the Hung Gar rings, but just in case, she waits for him to drop his fighting stance before she does anything; she doesn't even drop the Atsuki Ken until she sees that he's not going to launch an assault as soon as she starts pulling the weights off her limbs. Should he do so, she'd start with the ones on her arms, as they're doing the most work, and turning off the Kesshoton chakra to be able to remove them safely without melting and blasting away at the metal weights. Of course, if he doesn't, she'll just have to keep going.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Atsuki Ken [Heated Fists]
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium [Initial] | Low [Constant] to High [Constant]
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: Kesshoton
HANDSEALS: 4
REQUIREMENT: Netsu clan

DESCRIPTION:

Rather than expelling the Kesshoton element quickly in order to damage the opponent with a blast, this technique allows the user to cover both their hands in Kesshoton energy, causing them to glow with erratic plasmic energy that can add a concussive component to their physical strikes with their hands, increasing the power caused by their Taijutsu strikes to a level that matches the amount of chakra usage of the technique. Although their hands have a high level of absorption, absorbing such a large amount of electrical energy requires an equally high amount of chakra from the user in order to contain the energy until it can be released through Taijutsu. After absorbing that Raiton chakra or electrical energy, the chakra usage for the technique increases from Medium to High in order to keep the energy absorbed under control for further use of the Atsuki Ken.

[Akira]

There was a solid feedback with his feet and it pleased him to have hit something back in return though he felt he was getting better at responding to fights. Between him and a Genin, he didn't feel concerned: he would need tougher enemies to fight. Practicing his Taijutsu against a Jonin - that would be better. Knowing that something was coming, as she knocked his ankle back he would step back, once, twice: off to the side at an angle (Diagonal) to her and away from her punch. A quick disengage before going to dive right back in: that was the answer considering that with her legs out of use, it needed to be her arms if an attack was coming.

When he went to step back in she asked for a timeout. The battle of attrition was in Hotarubi's favour; and he was happy to oblige her. He was already winning in his mind - but not for the reason he wanted in this fight. "Yeah. Go ahead." Hotarubi nodded as he abandoned his fighting position. And why wouldn't he entertain her demands since he was so clearly winning? Whether it was against a mouse or a snake: it didn't really seem to matter to Hotarubi that he was defeating something. It did bring him joy to know that she had yet to do anything other than meaningfully damage him. It didn't provide him as much joy as when he did it during the chunin exams: but he was stronger now. Stronger meant he needed to go for bigger targets to get the same hit.

"Where'd you learn to fight like that?" he crossed his arms, waiting for her to be ready again.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori is feeling a bit winded from having to fight with weights, so she observed Hotarubi while she removed them, glad that he had decided to give her a moment to prepare for the next portion of their spar. She can tell from looking at him that her attacks have actually had very little effect on him, and she wonders if she shouldn't try a different tactic. Perhaps removing his connection to the earth would give her a better chance of making things difficult for him? But she didn't have much of a way to do so if he didn't want her to, she now realizes. While her attacks would have been far more effective on a normal fighter, against a member of the Yamakira clan, her Taijutsu techniques did very little that couldn't be fixed almost immediately, regardless of both the Kesshoton element and the Hung Gar rings. He was also much faster and better at reflexive reactions than she was. She could only just barely avoid being killed in this spar, and she knew he was holding back.

After pulling the Hung Gar rings off her wrists and ankles, she definitely feels a lot better, though she knows she's going to feel very sore tomorrow. For now, she just had to focus on putting her ideas into action and hope that she'd be able to at least put up a bit more of a challenge for Hotarubi. It was likely that a much better fighter would have already realized that the only way to really do much against a Yamakira would be to remove their connection to the earth that they draw their body up from, but she'd thought she would be able to tire him out more effectively through that method. It was clear that it wasn't working. She's a bit surprised by his question as she puts the Hung Gar rings back inside her weapon pouch on her hip, but she answers it honestly enough. He'd earned that much respect from her.

"I'm self-taught. I learned to use my Taijutsu in conjunction with Kesshoton Meditation myself."

Speaking of Kesshoton, she performs the four handseals necessary for the Atsuki Ken once again, causing both her hands to glow a bright neon green once more, illuminating her face from beneath as she smirks condescendingly at him. Midori hunches down a bit lower, which might have been almost imperceptible to someone less observant, but Hotarubi would likely catch sight of.

"Time in!"

With that, Midori drives herself forwards at her target, her arms open in claw-like shapes, but instead of leaping directly at him, she suddenly stops and changes her direction by digging her left hand into the floor of the sparring arena and tugs herself sideways, leftwards specifically, as she drags her right hand across, aiming to smash through Hotarubi's thighs in a way that she's hoping will cut off his direct connection to the earth. While she's not so skilled with Taijutsu that she can seriously challenge a Chuunin, perhaps her tactical planning will put her in a position to at least be a little bit of a challenge for her sparring partner.

SPOILER: Click to show

NAME: Atsuki Ken [Heated Fists]
RANK: B
CHAKRA USAGE: Medium [Initial] | Low [Constant] to High [Constant]
CLASSIFICATION: Ninjutsu
ELEMENT: Kesshoton
HANDSEALS: 4
REQUIREMENT: Netsu clan

DESCRIPTION:

Rather than expelling the Kesshoton element quickly in order to damage the opponent with a blast, this technique allows the user to cover both their hands in Kesshoton energy, causing them to glow with erratic plasmic energy that can add a concussive component to their physical strikes with their hands, increasing the power caused by their Taijutsu strikes to a level that matches the amount of chakra usage of the technique. Although their hands have a high level of absorption, absorbing such a large amount of electrical energy requires an equally high amount of chakra from the user in order to contain the energy until it can be released through Taijutsu. After absorbing that Raiton chakra or electrical energy, the chakra usage for the technique increases from Medium to High in order to keep the energy absorbed under control for further use of the Atsuki Ken.

[Akira]

Watching her pull off the large rings, he wondered what they were for. Weighing her down? Obviously he hadn't 'felt' the impacts given that he was having portions of his body blown up whenever she made some form of contact with him. On the bright side it gave her opportunity to actually hit without being reticient about it.

"Half dumb." Hotarubi blurted out quite headstrongly. "You entrench mistakes without proper practice." And it was truth - a punch shitly thrown would be a punch that broke a hand, irrespective of how many times it was refined. All one would learn how to do was break a hand cleanly. It was more the concept: but even Hotarubi would train with other people, much like he was now: to test what was effective and what was not. Like he taught Touwa at the academy, without knowing a plethora of moves and attacks and defences: you were useless whenever someone did something you weren't familiar with.

Luckily: the Yamakira was made of earth and so such things had less impact, but that meant that any of his poor judgements that he'd made would only amplify themselves when against someone truly powerful: and that was what he was keen to avoid. It had been the entire reason he'd learned defensive doton techniques against those who might have the capability for Suiton.

As she prepared to use a technique again: Hotarubi was ready to get back into it as well and he cast over his own stance once more. Hotarubi was less likely to give her the space and would try to take it up a notch himself. She dove herself at him and he stepped in to her space, aiming to not give her the chance to fully wind up her shot: but as he blew a punch at her, a haymaker, she ducked well underneath her - for him to look down and too late to fully pull himself back. Frankly, he should have seen that one coming since she had already been dodging him quite a lot - and he would resolve to use lighter attacks, as opposed to the heavier ones.

For now: his legs broke and like she had anticipated, it would sever his connection with the earth - but only for a moment as he already began to fall back: she had an opportunity to follow up, and Hotarubi continued to resolve that he would not use ninjutsu: but would instead try to grab her as she neared - and she would learn that even with half his body missing, he would feel like a bag of bricks that held onto whatever he could grab.

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[Netsu Midori]

Midori's eyes go wide, but her pupils seem to constrict, causing her eyes to have a wild look while she lifts Hotarubi from the ground. He's actually insulted her on something she considers herself passable at. Thankfully, she'd been able to sever his connection to the earth, and so Hotarubi was now working only with what he had, while the Genin herself had the core of her strength constantly with her, concentrated in her stomach. She actually allowed him to grab hold of her, which might have seemed like a horrible choice, and indeed the grip that the man was able to produce was far harder than she had expected from someone who could now be considered to be in a less favorable state than he had been before.

The strength in his fists as he grabbed her was hard, but Midori still had a somewhat crazed look in her eye and, well... her fists were still glowing. Midori reacts to the grab the same way she reacts to everything in this berserker state: she strikes out with extreme violence and deadly force. She twists her body as soon as she feels his hands gripping her, forcing his heavier body around, and she suddenly reverses the rotation by pivoting off her right foot, allowing her to catch a new steady base to punch from. With the twisting motion followed by the sudden reversal of the previous motion, the Genin aims a strike directly at Hotarubi's elbows, an attack that would likely sever his arms at that important junction. While it would likely remove him from her, Midori didn't seem to have a plan afterwards, and in this case, Hotarubi could re-establish connection to the ground, but it was likely that Midori would have made her point if she had done so.

"Hmph. I'm half-dumb, but you're half the man you once were."

[Akira]

For the most part he had been fighting with an indifference (and ideally with the aim of helping her) and he had noted that she was upset, but opted not to say anything or do anything about it. Why would that bother him? Grappling onto her, and she swung him that he would not have the chance to punch her in the face for her trouble, she would blast through a wrist and then the opposite elbow successfully, letting him thump against the floor - so that he would be on his side, and there she chose to spoke.

And there he was: just a torso, some stumps and a head. It was smart - He hadn't been using his all: again. Like the Chunin exams and his fight with Shosuke - he wasn't allowed to harm. Well: reasonably, so he had to result to all this fancy pants Taijutsu. But she'd taken it to the next level.

He felt flushed (though he was earth) and his breathing quicken. It had been a while since someone had gotten under his skin - and he did feel her to be beneath him - and as he stared at her, and unlike the exams when he'd been tired, he could feel the petulant child that he was knocking at the door and it was begging to come out. Hotarubi would have to remind Midori why he had been called the King of Ruffians. It didn't seem to matter to his psyche that he had started it, but that he didn't appreciate enough the banter. "...You know I'm a ninjutsu specialist, right?"

Like a whirlwind, so many things would happen. Earth would flurry and pull toward him at speed that it would pelt past her body and leave little stings - like hail on a cold day. He would become... the best way to describe was formless. It was still Hotarubi but he regrew - like his torso was beginning to spin in what was actually his body simply losing its 'joints' - she would get to see some things he had been working on.

Most notably: if she attacked, it would blow away but it was different: he was no longer made of rock but dirt - significantly less humanoid in nature as the drawn form of Hotarubi attacked her, with arms that were about a foot too long: bending in ways that should not have been possible as they delivered straight punches for her, and with a significant change in pace and aggression from Hotarubi. If she ducked through or tried to grab, Hotarubi would not even need to turn as the formless ferrofluid like face formed wherever the attacks needed to go. If she moved far enough away that warranted actual movement: the dirt would form spindly long lines that would bridge the dirt - for the rest of the dirt to funnel through into the steps: that at speed, and it made for perhaps damning appearances.

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