Was saved by Team Six after being trapped, unable to return home due to an embedded kunai.
A fierce warrior of the Land of the Bears who earned his name from his prowess in battle and the silky quality of his fur.
Had zero intention of being a summon, which is why he flipped out when he was summoned by some members of the Guren looking to secure a bear summon. The plan was scrapped after he mauled a few of the slower runners, though he was stuck in Konoha until Team Six pulled the kunai out.
@Pezz570@HokumPocus Ferris fixed his gaze on Chres when he heard the plan. He was to head up on his own? Though that course of action made sense considering the Sightless, it also meant that Ferris would be first meeting and aiding the others of the group alone. While he’d been able to establish himself with Chres and Octavio relatively easily, he hadn’t had to use his magic before he told them about it. Given peoples’ usual assumptions about augaisionists, Ferris preferred meeting people outside battle, but at the same time actions spoke louder on words, especially on the battlefield.
“Getting up there should be easy enough,” he said, looking up as he reached for the bottles along his belt. He would be jumping from a constructed platform into the tower and possibly into an ongoing battle, so strength and speed, perhaps reflexes, would work best. For jumping, his reflexes mattered more than his speed, especially when it came to finding and maintaining his footing once he landed.
Uncorking two vials, he swabbed one finger over each, then mixed the smells on the back of his gloves. Then, corking the vials again, he lifted his mask and wiped the smells onto the back of it before replacing it, checking that it was tied tightly. As he breathed, the thick scent of overripe bananas wafted in, interrupted by the piercing tang of vinegar.
“If anything, shrouding me in an illusion might help, but there’s no point if it fades by the time I’m there,” Ferris said, glancing at Octavio. “As for your familiar, the Sightless have seen him before too, correct? If so, there’s no point in sending him up. He’ll be another target, or an obstacle.”
Looking to Chres, Ferris nodded. “Ready when you are.”
Archie led the way to a quaint little cafe that exuded an air of Chinese dim sum. Keaton had checked the place out once during the past week, mostly as a means to try all the food options The Promise had to offer. Though she hadn’t yet exhausted the list, she’d been pleased to find that decent food was not something the station lacked. At this point, Keaton wouldn’t have been surprised if there were powers out there that boosted cooking ability.
The last time she’d been here, she’d ordered a pretty standard fried rice dish, having decided that she’d judge by the basics. As an L.A. native, Keaton liked to think of herself as someone well-versed in cultural food, be that Mediterranean, Asian, or Middle Eastern. Finding that such options were available to her on The Promise, then, gave her a pang of nostalgia for the cheap Chinese and Mexican options she had at home. Even worse was knowing that she couldn’t call it home anymore; The Promise was where she was trapped until further notice, until she passed whatever tests and trials the system had in store for her and was branded as ‘safe for society.’ That her trust in this system was now wavering didn’t help her situation, especially since there seemed to be nothing the system could do to help win back her trust. After all, it’d been marketed to her as a safe place with a zero-death record, but none of the officers at the station seemed surprised by the corpse that had washed up. Rather, they seemed to go about it like routine, neither announcing it to the station’s occupants nor asking the public to help them find the killer. The whole situation was hushed up, shrouded in secrets that only helped to further Keaton’s distrust.
Sitting down at the aisle seat beside Natalie, Keaton watched as Archie poured Lynn a cup of tea, slightly surprised he didn’t fill the other two cups while he was at it. Was this a sign of solidarity, a show of camaraderie against Natalie and for Lynn? Or was it just a lack of culture and mannerisms, a sign of a hard and lonely childhood? A lack of culture, probably, since Keaton figured she was likely rather sheltered compared to her current companions. While she wouldn’t have called her childhood ideal, it was more happy than fraught, especially in memory.
Picking up the teapot, Keaton filled the other two cups before setting the teapot aside and wrapping her fingers around the cup. It was warm, comforting even, for no apparent reason, but Keaton was fine with that for now. The station was behind her, hopefully, even if the corpse and the killer weren’t.
The waiter dropped off menus, which Keaton opened, looking over her options. Maybe she’d order soup. She could do with something warm. A glance from Lynn, though, prompted her to stare at the girl, but Lynn closed her mouth, dropping her eyes to her menu. Did she have a question? Something to say? Whatever it was, she was nervous, judging by how she chewed her lip. Keaton would ask her later, after food. Ask her alone. She was jumpy, and Keaton did damage control better one-on-one.
Archie opened the conversation with a question about their interviews, which Lynn answered, looking between the table. Her answer hinted that she’d been uncooperative, though Keaton opted to nod instead of smile at her note that she wasn’t provided a lawyer. Surely Lynn hadn’t expected a version of the American justice system up here, complete with judges and juries? At best, they had a room of surly-faced white-collars reviewing their cases. At worst, the police on the station were in charge of policing themselves.
“My interview went fine. I went last, so they already had a narrative in mind when they asked me questions. I mostly just agreed to whatever they were saying, and I recommended that they look at their files on me if they wanted more information,” Keaton said, shrugging. “The older dude that interviewed me said he didn’t read my file, and I believe him, but there’s no way they don’t have files on all of us.”
When the waiter arrived back, Keaton ordered a bowl of wonton soup before settling in and waiting for Natalie’s answer. They’d talked about their interviews briefly at the station, and Natalie said she’d left out the details, so hopefully she wouldn’t set Lynn off again. If anything, Keaton had been surprised at how little Natalie said she’d given away, considering her pro-police agenda the previous day. Perhaps she was more reasonable than Keaton had initially written her off as.
Route 5 || Day 4: Evening || @PlatinumSkink “Yes! Tutu! You did it!” Eryn cried, running out to scoop Tula up and spin the Magikarp around, a grin on her face. “You’re going to grow up to be big and strong and amazing, and absolutely nothing less!”
The ground trembled slightly, marking Peri’s approach, and Eryn glanced up with a grin, patting the rocks making up Peri’s body. What a bunch of big babies, this team.
“You too, Per-per. You’ll also be big, strong, and amazing, but hey you’re more than halfway there already,” Eryn said. “Now, no more learning from Dei, alright? You’re your own individual, and if you’re really going to choose him as your role model, pick up something other than… you-know-what, alright?”
Peri stared down at her, silent, then made the now-familiar, half-grinding, half crunching noise again. Narrowing her eyes, she maintained eye contact with Eryn, as if daring Eryn to say something.
“Fine! Fine, see if I care that I’ve now got two grouches,” Eryn said, throwing one arm in the air. With her other wrapped around Tula, she walked back to her team, muttering under her breath about personality deficiencies and the possibility of Tula being the ideal.
Noticing her other Pokemon crowding together over something, she walked over. “Hey, what’s up? Everything good?”
Kylie turned around with a grin, raising a yellow object into the air. “Maw!”
“Oh, cool, what… is this a beak?” Frowning, Eryn raised the object into the sun, turning and examining it from different angles as she fished out her Pokedex around Tula. Was it bone? Rubber? Some kind of high-grade plastic polymer?
“Well, alright, Pokedex says this is a ‘Sharp Beak’ and ups the power of flying-type moves, which is, well, completely non-applicable to us right now,” Eryn said, sighing. “Into the bag it goes, I guess.”
Rolling her backpack off one shoulder around Tula, she opened it to put the beak in, then frowned, fishing out a large yellow stone, which gleamed with value under the light. “Wait, how—what? Ugh, Electric Gem? You know what,” she said, shoving both yellow objects into her bag, “whatever. We’ll see how much they sell for, at worst. Can’t go wrong with more items.”
Shaking her head, she looked back at her gathered team, which now numbered five strong. Not bad, not bad at all.
“Right, so, let’s see,” she said, scrolling through the Pokedex’s map, “our goals today are to check Peri back in with her parents and catch a water-type so I can phone Wilhelm back about the ruins. Besides that, we’re basically done. Sleep schedule’s ruined, obviously, but maybe we can tire ourselves out so we can head to bed early or something, and—oh, how about checking out that house over there?”
Pointing to the rather misplaced house in the middle of the route, Eryn frowned, checking her Pokedex over. The map said nothing really about a house, so was it a private place?
“Well, no harm in dropping by. Worst case scenario we get a ‘I get this a lot, scat’ or something,” Eryn said, grinning as she tucked her Pokedex away and walked her team towards the house. “Hey Eri, double me again, and if we’re going inside I might have to return you, Peri, alright?”
A rumble from overhead marked Peri’s agreement, and a glance behind her revealed that Eri had already donned her skin.
“Alright, nice, now, anyone home?” Eryn called, peeking her head in through the open door.
Actions: Checking out the random house on the route.
Movement from the corner of Branna’s vision as Mors took off prompted her to look back, her grin opening to show teeth when she spotted one of the lordling’s men following after her. If she remembered correctly, he was a wyvern rider as well, though he didn’t seem to prioritize his wyvern as much as his sword. A pity.
Now that she was closer to the forest, the lone guard she’d seen revealed himself to be an axe-wielder. Better equipped than the lowly thugs she’d fought in the burning city, he looked like he’d seen a battlefield or two, and Branna preferred when prey put up a fight. Positioning her spear, she let Mors direct the dive, her teeth cold against the wind as the dropped towards the unsuspecting target. That the non-riding wyvern rider was there to distract him was unnecessary, but she wasn’t one to pass on an easy kill.
_________________________
Status: Fine Class: Wyvern Flier Exp: 10/80 Inventory:
Iron Spear (3/3)
Vulnerary (3/3)
END: D STR: C MAG: E DEX: D SPD: C DEF: E RES: E LCK: D
Natalie looked up. The girl she didn’t know the name of was asking her if she was okay, and introducing itself. Natalie sat up straight, and cleared her throat. ”Yeah, I’m fine. Just made a fool out of myself on the way back. Didn’t the younger of the two staff have....kind of a thousand yard stare? His eyes looked like mine. I asked about it and he told me to mind my own business. Anyway. I’m Natalie. Ellis.” she replied, reaching over to offer her hand.
“Keaton Plasse,” Keaton said, taking the offered hand after a split second of hesitation. This was the girl with super strength, after all. “And yeah, he looked like he’d seen some things, but he’s a member of The Promise’s disciplinary force, so that’s probably natural. You tried talking to him though? I didn’t bother. We were here to get interviewed, so he probably just wanted to maintain some professional distance,” she said, shrugging. “I’m sure you’re fine though. You meant well, even if your question was a little nosy.”
Nosy? Was Natalie being nosy? Maybe she was. She wanted to share her thoughts with others and find out about them. After two years of no normal conversations, she was in a sense, craving them. But at the same time, she was very bad at them. Natalie didn’t reply, just looked a little sheepish and stared at her hands which were folded on her lap.
The intercom came on overhead, announcing that the four in the waiting room were free to go. However much Keaton was relieved to hear that she’d been cleared, she still felt a stab of alarm. Amelia—why hadn’t she been cleared? Should they wait for her, or was this something more?
The nearest guard betrayed nothing, and the hallway remained empty, as far as Keaton could tell. But, if Amelia really got detained, she doubted that the police would let them all leave. They were witnesses, in one way or another, so maybe her interview was just dragging out. That could happen; Amelia hadn’t exactly been in a talking mood the last time Keaton had seen her.
Natalie saw that Keaton was still looking down the hall. She sussed that Keaton was wondering why Amelia wasn’t with them. Natalie leaned forward again and spoke in a hushed voice. “Remember. Amelia said she saw something weird in a classroom on the first day. I think we’re all clear, but what she knows might be helpful information in catching the killer.”
“True. I didn’t say anything about her telling us about that,” Keaton said, her voice dropping as well as she looked to Natalie. “Did you?”
“I left out the actual details but I told them she said something. It’s ultimately her decision how much she tells them. But we’re innocent. It’s not like we need to lie in order to protect each other. The truth is on our side. I’m just going to keep telling it if we’re asked any more questions by staff.”
Keaton stared at her for a second. Natalie was being practical, but was there a shade of willingness to hang others out to dry in there? At the moment, Keaton felt a certain loyalty to this group, having spent the last eventful day or so together, but that was in comparison to the loyalty she felt to the system aboard The Promise. Whatever system was running this ship, it was neither one Keaton had lived with on Earth nor one she’d wanted to be subjected to. That didn’t mean she owed loyalty to her fellow parahumans, but she certainly felt an air of a us-and-them situation, so Natalie’s words were a blunt reminder of reality.
“That makes sense,” Keaton said. “I deflected instead of lying. I doubt they’d let me out as fast if I had lied.”
Natalie wondered why Keaton would need to deflect. Between everyone leaving the crime scene, to Lynn’s paranoia, to even Keaton’s apparent skepticism of the staff, Natalie was starting to wonder if there was something they knew that she didn’t. Their paranoia was almost giving her a little herself. Natalie was no expert on anything. Person A beats a dog for two years and then person B gives it a bath and a treat, the dog is inevitably going to trust person B. But was it right to do so?
Before she could communicate any of this to Keaton, Archie asked the group as a collective if they wanted to get something to eat. Natalie was admittedly scared of being so close to Lynn for that long but she did want to ease the bad blood between them, however it got this bad. Natalie nodded at Archie, and walked behind him and Lynn as they left the waiting room.
“Food sounds good,” Keaton said, glancing at what was left of the donuts Archie was eating. Whether or not she was actually hungry didn’t even matter—she just wanted to get out of here. Maybe try and take her mind off this all while she was at it, if that was even possible.
At Lynn’s question, Keaton looked at the girl, her eyes widening slightly when she saw the smoke curling off her hair, which was now a mix of bright red and blue. Her powers included changing her hair color, apparently, but why? Was it a completely separate power? Was she one of those people who’d won the power lottery and drawn a pack of abilities instead of just one?
Keaton made a mental note to ask about that later, preferably in a way that didn’t set Lynn off. “Breakfast or brunch, so pancakes?” she said, standing from her seat. “There’s a waffle house around here right?”
Though Branna had stayed on her feet the last few days, picking up odd tasks here and there as the little lordling bade, the small tasks didn’t present satisfactory enemy counts. As a result, she’d been forced to start feeding Mors rations on days when missions took too long for her to send him off hunting. Though he was an efficient hunter, he was also a loud one, and it only took a few days for the local wildlife to catch onto his wingbeats above the trees. This was another reason why she preferred to stay on the move, just as it was another reason why she disliked taking long jobs, but her restlessness only served to amp her up for the current battle.
After fidgeting through the lordling’s brief, stroking Mors as she looked between the wyvern and her new compatriots, Branna figured a few things: That there were a few too many stoic faces in the party asking for some hassling, and that she could count on the enemy actually putting up half a fight this time.
A broad grin broke upon her face as the fort’s sentries began their shouting. The lordling in charge commanded them forward with a dramatic wave of his sword, and that was all the signal Branna needed to urge Mors into the air, coming to a low hover just high enough so she could make out the full perimeter of the wall. It seemed the gates they were looking at weren’t the main gates, which were instead to their left. Urging Mors up again, she made out a few guards at the front of the fort, which saw fewer posts than the gate directly ahead. Interesting, convenient, and exploitable.
“Low over the forest,” she croaked, hefting her spear.
Mors veered towards the forest towards their left, angling downwards as they approached, then rearing back for a dive as they neared. While his wingbeats were audible, his diving wasn’t, which is why hunting people on ground was easier than hunting deer in forests. They left themselves open, looking for an enemy on foot rather than one falling from the sky, and this fact widened Branna’s grin as she angled her spear.
_________________________
Status: Fine Class: Wyvern Flier Exp: 10/80 Inventory:
Iron Spear (3/3)
Vulnerary (3/3)
END: D STR: C MAG: E DEX: D SPD: C DEF: E RES: E LCK: D
Lakewatch Town || Day 4: Early Morning || @PlatinumSkink Eryn left the ranger compound both riding a high from a night well spent and feeling like she could fall asleep on the spot. While she was giddy from just doubling her savings, thus making back whatever she’d spent earlier, she’d also just completely wrecked her sleep schedule—something she hadn’t done since a few, rather unpleasant nights during her third year of high school. But, again, it was worth it, and all she could do now was damage control.
“Righto, to the Pokemon Center,” she said, smothering a yawn. Rubbing her temples, she looked down at Kylie, who flashed her a tired smile. Beside her, Eri mirrored Eryn’s grin, showing her how tired she looked.
“I said, to the Pokemon Center!” Eryn repeated, fixing her grin and scooping up Kylie before setting off down the street. “We’ve got a few more things to do before we call it a night—morning. Whatever.”
The lobby of the Pokemon Center was, unsurprisingly, pretty empty at this early hour, so healing went pretty quickly. After thanking the nurse, Eryn headed outside again, searching out a rather secluded part at the edge of town before calling out Peri.
“Per-per, hello, sorry about putting you away so quickly earlier,” she said, hugging the rock-type, who was cold and rough to the touch. She should have seen that coming. “I can’t let you out inside the Pokemon Center, but get ready for some work when I wake up! We’re gonna get you on your feet—foot—whatever. It’s too, well, early in the day for this, so sorry and I’ll see you later, alright?”
Peri’s rumbling felt stronger than it sounded, vibrating the rocks she was composed of, and Eryn looked up at her with a lazy smile as she reached for her Pokeball.
“Night-night, Peri. Sleep tight!”
Then, returning to the Pokemon Center, Eryn was finally able to get ready for bed, releasing all her Pokemon but Peri. And, after she told them all to get a restful sleep in preparation for a good day, she crashed into the bed, falling asleep with the Pokedex in her hands opened to Phoebe’s newest message.
Route 5 || Day 4: Afternoon “I present to you, Peri, our very big team baby!”
Eryn beamed at her team as she called out the Onix, looking between their faces expectantly. As usual, Dei gave his ‘I’m not impressed but I’ll acknowledge you’ snort, and Tula flopped up and down, her eyes as flat as ever. Eri, on the other hand, looked somewhat impressed, warily eyeing the Onix who towered high above his low vantage point.
To her credit, Kylie seemed rather excited, but her level of excitement was beginning to concern Eryn. It had occurred to her that Kylie had a rather flat range of emotion; she was always happy, and though that happiness saw shades of difference when she grew tired or annoyed, it never varied enough for Eryn to term it anything but happiness. While Eryn wouldn’t go so far as to assume the emotion was fake, she wasn’t about to assume that Kylie was only capable of happiness either, so the options were up in the air. Either Eryn was just not very observant and kept catching Kylie when she was happy, or the happy mood Kylie was always in was intentional.
However, Eryn wasn’t about to go and confront Kylie about it. Her mood was the easiest to deal with in the team, even if it was also the hardest to read. Besides, though looking for the Mawile’s underlying motivations in her smiles always proved a challenge, Eryn was getting better at it. Right now, for example, Kylie’s smile said she meant no harm as she walked towards Peri, reaching a hand out towards the Onix’s side. When her hand touched Peri, her smile widened slightly, and with a happy “maw” she hugged the Onix, the clank of rock and steel sounding as she made contact.
“See, this is what I’m talking about. This,” Eryn said, indicating the hugging pair, one of whom was looking down with a rather curious expression that bordered on confusion, “this is the sort of excited you three should be.”
Once again, Dei snorted, Tula flopped, and Eri stared, a frown gracing the Jolteon form that Eryn was having him practice. In all honesty, a confused Jolteon was pretty much the cutest thing Eryn had seen in a while, but unfortunately his lack of excitement was not.
I introduce to you the confused Jolteon face
“Alright you three, get over here,” she said, walking over and picking up Tula before herding the other two towards Peri. “Say hello to your new teammate, and no more smoke from you, Dei, or I’ll pick you up too.”
After a forced hug and another few minutes of empty staring as Eryn gave Peri a quick run-down of her teammates, covering Eri’s illusions while she was at it, they were back to walking along Route 5. The goal for the day was to get Peri up to par with her teammates, and though that might be a tall order for a single day, Eryn figured her teammates weren’t too far out of her league just yet. Further down the line, catching new Pokemon might mean a more substantial power difference, but right now she figured it would be alright.
“Okay, two-vee-ones aren’t illegal when it comes to wilds right?” she asked, glancing around for the Caterpies her Pokedex told her were around here. “Dei, you’re going to help Peri take on bug-types, and Kylie will help with flying-types. Sound good?”
Other than an agreeable “maw” from Kylie, the team was silent, some opting to nod or snort instead. Eryn wasn’t about to name names or point fingers, but she didn’t exactly need to. The sounds and actions from below assigned themselves.
A strange sound—something of a mixture between a grind and a rumble—prompted Eryn to look up, her brows furrowing. What was that? Wait. No.
Her mouth dropped open a little. “Did you just…”
Peri repeated the sound, leaving no room for doubt.
“Damn it, Dei! Look what you’re teaching your teammates!”
Despite Eryn’s glare, though, Dei looked pretty pleased with himself, his chest puffed forwards as he continued on down the road.
Actions: Spent the morning sleeping, now looking to train on Route 5. Plan is to have Peri double-up against wilds, but if that’s not allowed (are there rules in the wild) Eryn will just toss and swap her out. Eryn’s seeking out Hoothoot and Caterpie to pit against Peri first, maybe throwing Tula out for one or two (if that’s even effective). If there are stronger Pokemon around, she’ll stick with Dei or Eri against them. And, as always, she’ll run back into town a few times for heals when her pokes get too roughed up.
Night || Land of Fire: Konohagakure — Mumi Village At Koharu’s words, Natsuko startled awake, blinking rapidly. “Huh? Yeah? Bear?”
When, upon scanning the orchard floor, she found no bear, she relaxed, flashing Koharu a sheepish grin. “Sorry, Haru-chan. Waiting is just sooo booriiing,” she whispered, her voice hushed. She didn’t want the bear to hear, after all, if it was even coming.
“Ugh, my clone poofed.” She frowned, then shrugged. “Eh, Minoru-sensei can handle himself.”
Then, remembering her plot from earlier, Natsuko grinned. “Hey, say, you’re the clone Haru-chan, right?” she asked, cupping her hands around her eyes and peering into the darkness towards where Koharu’s post should have been. “And Kazu-kun’s clone… yep. Yeeeep. No need to thank me, Haru-chan. I’m just doing my job as a teammate.”
Wind Release:
Gale Palm: User increases the velocity or density of wind to form a powerful gale capable of knocking over a person.
Dark Release:
Kusunemasu [Weak]: User absorbs chakra from others and uses it as their own. Possible through direct physical contact or from a distance with more concentration
Kazuhiko Taketori
Night || Land of Fire: Konohagakure — Mumi Village Natsuko was up again, thankfully. Koharu had made sure of that. Honestly, Kazuhiko would have volunteered for lookout duty with a clone or two if Minoru had made that an option. It’d have been more efficient, for one, though rather unnecessary considering that they were up against a simple bear. Without chakra, the amount of resistance their enemy could show was minimal, so they could stand to take a few mistakes from Natsuko. What he couldn’t stand, though, were Natsuko’s plots, which had been mounting in intensity since the morning. Unfortunately, Natsuko seemed to have a sixth sense for which ideas would be particularly irksome, and while Kazuhiko could usually brush her antics off pretty easily, her current angle was, to say the least, jarring. Specifically because it didn’t just involve Natsuko; it involved—
A rustle in the leaves snapped up his attention, distracting him enough to have him flinch when Koharu grabbed him. Freezing, he had a few thoughts run through his mind: that she looked scared, that she wasn’t popping like a normal clone would, that she wasn’t a clone, couldn’t be a clone, that she was currently clutching onto him, that she was actually currently clutching onto him, and that she was currently very, very close to him.
Her surprised voice brought him back to his senses, and, hesitantly, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He’d done just this earlier during tag, having noticed the fear on her face when she looked below her feet. Of course, he hadn’t forgotten that she was afraid of heights, but touching a clone would dispel it, and… that didn’t apply right now.
“Y-you okay?” he asked, then cleared his throat, focusing his eyes on some random point across the clearing. The point he chose, though, was close enough to Natsuko’s post that he caught her waving and making heart shapes at him with her hands before blowing him kisses and giving him two thumbs up.
Naturally, he quickly looked away from her, and his eyes ended up on Koharu, causing him to freeze again. This time, though, he squashed the instinct to immediately avert his gaze, instead meeting her eyes hesitantly. Was she alright? With this?
Keen Fist:
The Taketori style of Taijutsu that uses their Sensaigan’s nerve-cutting abilities to compound the damage done to struck areas. This style of fighting emulates the movements of staves and spears, aiding the Taketori in landing their Sensaigan techniques.
Lightning Release:
Thunder: User creates small sparks of lightning that can hit multiple targets at once.
Thunderbolt [Needs Practice]: User creates arcs of lightning that can hit multiple targets at once.
Lightning Strike [Needs Practice]: User creates a strong arc of lightning that can hit multiple close targets or be extended to hit a faraway one.
Thundering Kunai: User channels their Lightning Release technique into a kunai, thus charging it. This technique can be used with different ninjutsus to create varying intensities of electricity inside the blade
Lightning Clone Technique: User creates a tangible clone that is dispelled with very little damage and cannot perform jutsu. The clone will also dispel if enough time passes.
Natsuko Rinha
Night || Land of Fire: Konohagakure — Mumi Village Natsuko was cackling, clutching her belly as she balanced laughing and not falling from her perch. “Oh god, this is too good, too good,” she said, wiping tears from the corner of her eyes. “Too. Good.”
She paused, mid-wipe, her brows furrowing as her hand went down to her side. “Wait a minute… what…”
She turned to Koharu’s clone with wide eyes. “Haru-chan, do you actually like Kazu-kun? Like like like? Not just… that you’re embarrassed cuz he’s cute or something? Which he is, obviously, but like…”
At Koharu’s expression, Natsuko clamped her mouth shut, slapping her hands to her cheeks. “What? Whaaaat?”
Her hands went up to her forehead“Oh my goood,” she said, her voice pitching up impossibly high at the end. “Oh my gooooooood.”
The loud crunching of leaves below, though, quickly drew her attention, and she looked down to see a goddamn monster. Black with a silvery sheen under the moonlight, the thing was huge, stirring up stray leaves as it moved forward through the orchard. Another moment or two of staring in awe allowed Natsuko to place the monster as Nusu, and she realized with a thrill of fear that she’d have to get close to that thing soon enough.
“A-all right, one distraction coming right up,” she said, signing to release a breeze in Kazuhiko and Koharu’s direction. It’d draw Nusu there to investigate, most likely, and then everything would go according to plan, just as it had during the team’s game of tag. Well, hopefully it did.
“Haru-chan, get ready,” she said, flashing her teammate a grin as she pushed the breeze towards its destination. It blew over Nusu’s head, whistling past bark before landing not too far from the tree her teammates were on, rustling up the leaves there and scattering them in a small flurry of debris.
Across the clearing, Kazuhiko looked like he tensed, signing his jutsu as well, the signal no doubt close. Now, Nusu just needed to take the bait.
Wind Release:
Gale Palm: User increases the velocity or density of wind to form a powerful gale capable of knocking over a person.
Dark Release:
Kusunemasu [Weak]: User absorbs chakra from others and uses it as their own. Possible through direct physical contact or from a distance with more concentration
Seeing the woman storm up to Lan and shout at the gym leader was enough to cement Aedre’s shock and slight admiration for her. While shouting at people was undoubtedly rude, it proved the purple-haired woman’s confidence. However, instead of being deterred, it seemed the pomp of the new challenger only served to further incense Sophia, who readily leaped to the challenge.
Though Aedre listened to Amber’s addition to the conversation about Pokemon, waving at Nyxx when she arrived back, Aedre was distracted by the two trainers duking it out over a gym challenge. Sophia was proud, yes, but she had shown a sensitive side that proved her receptive to others’ opinions. Poison, as the purple-haired woman had introduced herself, seemed to have no such side, even going so far as to call Lan a ‘dumb nerd.’
“Oh my,” Aedre breathed, covering her mouth with a hand. Insulting the gym leader you were challenging—what a move.
Needless to say, Sophia wasn’t about to back down, quickly calling out her own Pokemon to match Poison’s challenge. The typing weakness would heavily skew the battle in her favor, but considering that both were looking to challenge the gym leader, Aedre couldn’t say participating in a trainer battle was a good idea right now.
It was at this point that Alexis decided to reenter, confronting both Sophia and Poison at once. Just as the situation couldn’t get any worse, Ty interrupted, cheering everyone on as they headed towards the arena doors. Aedre looked to Amber with wide eyes before breaking out a chuckle.
“Good luck, everyone” she called as well as they walked into the main arena. She herself quickly made her way to the spectator area, Little hopping onto the nearest ledge beside her. When Amber joined her, as well as whoever ended up being forced to wait for their match, she grinned, waving.
“Watching battles is pretty fun too,” she said. “Plus you can think of going later as a preview of Lan’s team and strategies—right? I think that’s how it works.”
Savo
Xaltwind
Timemaster
mickilennial
Azure Bubbles
Joshua Tamashii
Enarr
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TokyoPewPew
Festive
