"Free" Time (Private/Training)

[cannotseetheforest]

"...And I'll be the best ninja ever, and I'll be just as cool as you! Bye!"

Shizuka watched, privately amused, as Natsuko ran into the academy building, still shouting at the top of her lungs. Her little sister might be getting quite good at keeping her footsteps silent, or nearly so, but she wasn't going to get any further on her stealth until she learned how to keep her voice down.

Ah well. As an academy student, being loud and obvious wouldn't do her any harm. And besides... It was kind of adorable.

Shizuka shook her head slightly and turned, automatically quieting her footsteps like her sister was just learning. Turn onto the alley here, and up to this rooftop, and no-one who owned these balconies would be awake until noon...

As she followed the path she knew from experience would lead to the least chance of someone spotting her, Shizuka mentally checked her responsibilities. Natsuko would be fine until the academy let out that afternoon, there wasn't anyting that she needed to get right now, and from her count that morning, they had enough money to cover necessities for the next couple weeks. Good. Time to train.

Shizuka vaulted over a low wall and landed in one of the smaller, more isolated training grounds. No-one else was there. She moved to the middle, trying to get as much space around her as possible.

Suzuka had been avoiding it, trying to keep the rest of her skills as sharp as possible in the time she had. Now she had the whole middle of the day available for practice, however, she needed to work on her genjutsu. Even with the bittersweet memories that the illusions carried.

For the first time in years, Shizuka deliberately called up memories from her early childhood. Of her mother calling up bright lights and patterns to amuse her daughter, or creating tiny fantastical creatures for baby Shizuka to chase. Making clones of herself and teasing Shizuka to try and figure out which one was real. Constantly, worriedly practicing distraction and concealment techniques in those final weeks before...

Not that one.

Carefully avoiding the memories more bitter than sweet, Shizuka settled on one just after she entered the academy, when she had asked her mother to show her to show her some genjutsu, since the academy wasn't teaching them any yet. Her mother had smiled and humoured her.

This one is easy to start with, but when you get better at genjutsu you can make it larger and more complicated. Even when you're just starting, though, if you have imagination it has all kinds of uses. That's true for all genjutsu; it's not the technique, it's what you do with it that matters. Start with creating an image of something tiny in your mind. Really see it; hold it in your mind's eye until you can see the whole thing as if it was right in front of you. Gather your chakra and fix that image to it. Spin it until it's in the shape of that image. Then, push it out, keeping it fixed, until the image really is right in front of you.

She hadn't been able to do it then; as an academy student in her first year, she'd barely been able to feel her chakra, much less shape it like her mother was asking her to. Her mother had assured her that it was alright, that she'd get it in time, and to keep practicing her visualization. Now...

Shizuka closed her eyes to concentrate. Something tiny... One of her darts would work. She slowly built the image up in her mind. Dark green shaft, signifying that it would tranquilize anyone unlucky enough to be hit by it. Light fletching to help it fly true. Tiny needle protruding from the end...

It was difficult to add in new parts without letting the ones she'd already pictured slip away. Shizuka focused on the dart, not letting anything interupt her concentration, until finally she thought she had it completely fixed in her mind's eye. Then, she gathered her chakra and... What did she do next? She hadn't been able to get that far when her mother was teaching her. What had she meant when she said to fix the image to her chakra?

Trial and error, Shizuka told herself. Figure it out.

She'd lost the image. Shizuka concentrated, trying not to lose her grip on her chakra, and built it back up. Shaft, needle, fletching... It went more quickly this time, remembering rather than imagining. Soon she had it in her mind's eye again. Now, Shizuka took her chakra and tried to bring it to the image, moving it to where the dart "looked" like it was.

...And all that was doing was gathering chakra in her eyes. Not really useful for someone without a dojutsu.

Alright, if bringing the chakra to the image didn't work... Shizuka focused on the image again. She wasn't really seeing it, which meant that her mental 'feel' of it didn't have to be in front of her eyes. Her chakra didn't have to move through space, and her mental image certainly didn't, so...

There! Shizuka almost grinned as she felt her chakra 'overlap' with the dart in her mind's eye. Now fix it to the chakra... That was just shaping the chakra so that the bit of it that overlapped matched the image it was overlapping with. Easy.

The final step was making it real. Shizuka slowly formed the handseals she remembered her mother using and, keeping the image and the chakra carefully shaped, pushed. Then she opened her eyes to see what she'd created.

The clearing was empty.

Shizuka ruthlessly crushed the dissapointment that welled up. It was perfectly normal not to get a technique on the first try. It wasn't like she was a genjutsu prodigy. Shizuka closed her eyes again, and brought the dart's image to her mind's eye. A few seconds to make sure she really had it... Now gather the chakra... For the second time, Shizuka carefully brought matched the image to the chakra and shaped it to match. It went more quickly this time, her creation more sure.

Now the hard part. Shizuka formed the hand seals, taking care to perform each one perfectly. Then, she made doubly sure she had a grip on the shaped chakra and carefully, concentrating on it the whole time, moved it until it should be just a few feet in front of her, sitting on the ground. She focused until she was sure, then opened her eyes. She stared at the bare dirt.

Was she not moving the chakra properly? Maybe she hadn't suceeded in making it actually leave her body... No, she could feel the minor drain of the two attempts. The chakra had gone somewhere, it just hadn't done what it was supposed to.

Maybe... Maybe she had to do it with her eyes open? It was harder forming the image of the dart with actual sight clashing with it, but she kept at it until her eyes watered and eventually managed to fix it in her mind. For the third time she gathered her chakra, matched it with the image until she was sure she had it, then formed the handseals and pushed the image out until she could almost imagine she saw the dart lying on the ground.

Almost. The spot looked as empty as it had started out.

Stop and think, Shizuka told herself. If you're doing everything right and it's not working, then either it's not possible or you're doing something wrong. And she knew quite well genjutsu was possible.

She was visualizing correctly. The matching had been a result of trial and error, but it felt right. Then she did the hand seals, and...

It was kind of odd for a genjutsu technique to end with the Tiger seal. Most of the time, that was used in fire release ninjutsu. So maybe...

One more time, Shizuka went through the routine. Keeping her eyes open, she formed the image, gathered her chakra, and shaped it until it matched the image. Then she went through the hand seals - except this time, she ended with a Ram. Hardly daring to breathe, Shizuka pushed the chakra out in front of her.

She did grin, this time, as she looked at the tiny dart sitting innocently on the dirt.

SPOILER: Click to show

Bakemono Ikken - (Phantasmal Item)
Rank: "D" "C" "B" "A" "S"Rank 
Skill: GenJutsu
Effect: This technique is similar to that of Bakemono NinJutsu (Ghost NinJutsu) but is quite different. Instead of taking the time to create a technique the user takes the time to push forth in a radius to create what is known as an inanimate object. This technique is quite similar to the at of Bakemono NinJutsu (Ghost NinJutsu) but what makes it quite different is because the master lets the opponent focus onto something else in which creates the very technique. The start of creating is what is difficult but to keep the image going longer then possible is quite simple and allows the user use less chakra then needed in order to keep the illusion up.
Special: "Handseals"
Drawback: Creates no damage, just a large life like illusion that only Specialists and Masters are capable of creating. When the user looses concentration the illusion just disappears.
Description: Depending on the size of the object that the user wish to conjure up in an illusionary manner is dependent on what rank the user knows. If the user wishes to make an illusion of an object that is Fine sized they must know the "D" Rank version of this technique. If the user wishes to create an illusion of an object that is Diminutive to Tiny they must know the "C" Rank version of the technique. If the user wishes to create a Small to Medium sized illusion they must know the "B" Rank version of the technique. If the user wishes to create an illusion that is Large to Huge creation they must know the "A" Rank version of the very technique. Finally if the user wishes to create a Gargantuan to Colossal creation of an illusion they must know the "S" Rank version of the technique. This technique is quite simple. The user uses the Magen: Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu as a concept but makes it slightly different. A user is capable of dropping a staff making it seem as if perhaps it was a snake along the ground.
Limit: Must know Figment Perception of GenJutsus Can only be done as a GenJutsu Specialist but up to only "B" Rank. A GenJutsu Master is capable of going into the whole technique.

0/10

[Deleted]

+10; Learned.

In future, please bold the rank of the technique you are learning ^.^

[cannotseetheforest]

(OOC: Sorry about that. I've edited it above, and I'll remember in the future.)

Shizuka glanced up at the sun, then at the shadows cast by the trees. South was that way, which meant that way was east, which meant it wasn't quite noon yet. Plenty of time for another couple techniques.

She'd done more than enough calling up old memories today. There was one genjutsu technique, however, that she hadn't learned from her mother.

Invisibility was one of those seemingly basic but incredibly useful techniques that Genjutsu was full of. Even having just graduated, Shizuka had been quick to see the potential for a stealth specialist like she was trying to be and she had found the time to track down scrolls and ask questions. At the time, she hadn't been able to do more than learn the most basic technique and memorise instructions for the more complex ones. She'd always planned to learn the higher ranked ones in the future.

No time like the present.

So, start with the basics... Shizuka gathered her chakra and formed the six handseals needed for the limited invisibility technique. The handseals shaped the chakra for her and she pushed it outwards just far enough to cover her completely. Shizuka paused, held it for a long moment, then released the technique and almost immediately started it again. This time she pushed the chakra further outwards, mentally 'highlighting' the training posts as her dome of chakra passed them. Four metres, five, six... She made it all the way to the technique's limit of ten metres, then stopped. And held it.

Shizuka knew that if anyohe walked by just then, the training ground would seem entirely empty, without even the ubiquitous training posts in the center of almost every training field. So long as she didn't move a muscle and break the technique, anyway. Good thing that one of the things they taught in the academy was how to be completely still.

The technique felt... She would have said it was like a soap bubble, but soap bubbles, however fragile they were, held their shape with a kind of internal tension - until something broke their shell, anyway. This technique felt like the chakra inside it was unstable, like it would collapse in on itself the moment she stopped focussing on supporting it. Like a soap bubble, though, if it was left long enough...

The technique abruptly collapsed in on itself, and Shizuka let out a breath. Like a soap bubble would eventually be dried out and popped by the air, the imperceptable currents of chakra running through the world had disrupted her basic invisibility jutsu.

So let's try the next step up.

Shizuka ran through the twelve hand seals for the basic C-ranked jutsu a few times. This one only worked on one person at a time, but it could apparently hold steady for as long as you had the chakra for it. More importantly, the user could move without breaking the jutsu - and that had all kinds of possibilities.

That was probably smooth enough. Shizuka ran through the hand seals twice more to be absolutely sure, then focussed, gathering her chakra. She held it while she made the handseals, then pushed it outwards.

...And promptly had the technique fall apart. Obviously this one needed more control than the D-ranked version. That made sense, though it was mildly annoying.

The only response was to try it again. One more time, gathering her chakra, doing the handseals, then pushing the chakra out. This time, she kept a careful hold on the chakra she was using, and her chakra 'shell' actually extended out a little before collapsing. Too little chakra, this time.

Shizuka tried it again. And again, refining her control over the technique and the chakra making it up. It took her half a dozen more attempts to narrow down the exact amount of chakra she needed to use, and two more to hold that chakra firmly enough to push it out without blasting it apart. The chakra in the technique, when she wasn't accidentally blasting it apart, was both easier and harder to control than the D-rank version. Easier because when she was controling it properly it was smoother and more stable; harder because there was a lot less leeway in how to move it.

Finally, Shizuka ran through the seals, pushed her chakra out, and felt it reach a sort of threshhold surrounding her - and stay there, slipping into place like a ball coming to rest in a shallow hole. It could go further, but unless she really pushed it, it was going to stay right there.

Finally. Slowly, carefully, Shizuka mentally 'withdrew' from the technique, relaxing her concentration. The shell of chakra stayed where it was, extending to cover her entire body but barely past that. Shizuka stood there for a long moment, feeling carefully at the technique to ensure that it wasn't going to spontaniously collapse... But no, it felt stable. She took a careful step forwards.

The jutsu popped like a soap bubble.

Let's try this again...

SPOILER: Click to show

Used:

• Limited Invisibility
  Rank: "D" Rank
  Skill: GenJutsu
  Effect: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision.
  Special: "Handseals"
  Drawback: Only works for a short period of time, and it only works when the user does not move or is not touched.
  Description: A technique that has a distance of that of ten meters from the user or who the user touches. The center of the effect is mobile with the recipient. The creature or object included becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision. If the recipient is a creature carrying gear, that vanishes, too. Those affected by this Jutsu can see each other and themselves as if unaffected by the Jutsu. Any affected creature moving out of the area becomes visible, but creatures moving into the area after the Jutsu are cast do not become invisible. Items dropped or put down by an invisible creature become visible; items picked up disappear if tucked into the clothing or pouches worn by the creature. Light, however, never becomes invisible, although a source of light can become so (thus, the effect is that of a light with no visible source). Of course, the subject is not silenced, and certain other conditions can render the recipient detectable (such as stepping in a puddle). Actions directed at unattended objects do not break the Jutsu. Causing harm indirectly is not an attack. Thus, an invisible being can open doors, talk, eat, climb stairs, summon monsters and have them attack, cut the ropes holding a rope bridge while enemies are on the bridge, remotely trigger traps, open a portcullis to release attack dogs, and so forth. This technique only lasts a round for every class level the user is starting at their class level "D".
  Limit: Must know Glamour Perception of GenJutsus
  

Being learned:

• Invisibility
  Rank: "C" Rank
  Skill: GenJutsu
  Effect: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision.
  Special: "Handseals"
  Drawback: The Jutsu ends if the subject attacks any creature. If the user who performs the technique attacks, the invisibility sphere ends. 
  Description: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision. If the recipient is a creature carrying gear, that vanishes, too. If the user casts the jutsu on someone else, neither you nor your allies can see the subject, unless those are capable of seeing through GenJutsus. Items dropped or put down by an invisible creature become visible; items picked up disappear if tucked into the clothing or pouches worn by the creature. Light, however, never becomes invisible, although a source of light can become so (thus, the effect is that of a light with no visible source). Any part of an item that the subject carries but that extends more than 10 feet from it becomes visible. Of course, the subject is not silenced, and certain other conditions can render the recipient detectable (such as stepping in a puddle). Actions directed at unattended objects do not break the Jutsu. Causing harm indirectly is not an attack. Thus, an invisible being can open doors, talk, eat, climb stairs, summon monsters and have them attack, cut the ropes holding a rope bridge while enemies are on the bridge, remotely trigger traps, open a portcullis to release attack dogs, and so forth.
  Limit: Must know Glamour Perception of GenJutsus, Must know Limited Invisibility.
  

0/30

[Umehara]

+10

(( Make sure you keep a running count of how much TP it takes to learn the tech and how much you currently have learned in training. And you don't have to quote jutsu that you already know. It's just a training thread, so you don't have to list it each and every time you use it. ))

[cannotseetheforest]

(OOC: Noted. I'm assuming I still have to include the technique that I'm actually learning?)

The technique hadn't gone wrong, exactly, it just hadn't gone far enough. An invisibility jutsu that wouldn't automatically fall apart in a minute was useful in and of itself, but she still needed to figure out how to move in it. Or - not to move in it, but to move the technique itself.

Shizuka began once again, gather chakra, hand seals, and then push - only for a muscle to twitch at precisely the wrong moment, throwing off her control and disrupting the jutsu.

What had...? Oh, of course. She'd been standing in the same position for well over an hour practicing, and with her frustration, her muscles had been unconsciously tensing. Well, that was easily enough fixed. Shizuka shifted, consciously relaxing her muscles, then leaned forwards and started on the simple set of stretches that they had all learned back in the academy.

But as she finished with her legs and moved to pulling first one arm, then the other, across her body, Shizuka realised that the muscle stiffness wasn't the problem. The problem was that something so small had interupted her in the first place. A battle wasn't going to be distraction- or pain-free; she needed to be able to do it right, every time.

Which meant practice. Even her incomplete jutsu would be useful in the right circumstances; she just needed to make sure she could use it.

Shizuka finished her stretches and stood again, moving into a loose stance. Holding her hands out in front of her, she began.

Gather chakra. Hand seals. Push. Hold for a second. Stop concentration, hold for one more second, then drop it.

Gather. Seals. Push - lost it, too little chakra.

Gather. Seals. Push. Hold. Stop concentrating. Drop.

Shizuka ran through the stages that she knew over and over again, each time getting a little faster, a little more sure. She focused on the chakra manipulation in the technique, trying to get a feel not only for what she was doing to move it out to form her 'shell', but also for what the handseals did to shape it.

When she finally stopped, there was no longer a discernable gap between when the handseals ended and when the invisibility fell into place. Good enough, until I can practice performing it while distracted.

So. Now to deal with the movement issue.

Once again, Shizuka cast the jutsu, smoothly pulling up the shell of chakra around her. Not moving a muscle yet, Shizuka studied it.

It's more stable than the other jutsu. More... Structural soundness? If that's the right term. It's holding together without me actively supporting it. But I wonder what happens...

Shizuka twitched a finger very slightly.

Oh, now that's interesting. I didn't feel anything, but the shell sort of bent outwards when my finger touched it. And the jutsu didn't break. But if I do this...

Shizuka swung an arm outwards, collapsing the jutsu and making her abruptly visible again.

The jutsu can't keep up with it, and it breaks. So how do I fix this?

SPOILER: Click to show

Invisibility
Rank: "C" Rank
Skill: GenJutsu
Effect: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision.
Special: "Handseals"
Drawback: The Jutsu ends if the subject attacks any creature. If the user who performs the technique attacks, the invisibility sphere ends. 
Description: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision. If the recipient is a creature carrying gear, that vanishes, too. If the user casts the jutsu on someone else, neither you nor your allies can see the subject, unless those are capable of seeing through GenJutsus. Items dropped or put down by an invisible creature become visible; items picked up disappear if tucked into the clothing or pouches worn by the creature. Light, however, never becomes invisible, although a source of light can become so (thus, the effect is that of a light with no visible source). Any part of an item that the subject carries but that extends more than 10 feet from it becomes visible. Of course, the subject is not silenced, and certain other conditions can render the recipient detectable (such as stepping in a puddle). Actions directed at unattended objects do not break the Jutsu. Causing harm indirectly is not an attack. Thus, an invisible being can open doors, talk, eat, climb stairs, summon monsters and have them attack, cut the ropes holding a rope bridge while enemies are on the bridge, remotely trigger traps, open a portcullis to release attack dogs, and so forth.
Limit: Must know Glamour Perception of GenJutsus, Must know Limited Invisibility.

10/30

[cannotseetheforest]

The chakra 'shell' making up her invisibility technique had popped twice at large movements, which would suggest a limitation there, but - they had also been fast movements. Maybe it could keep up with her if she moved more slowly?

Well, it was worth a try. Shizuka flipped through the hand seals and brought up the technique again. For a moment she stayed still, feeling out the flow of the chakra surrounding her. Then, excruciatingly slowly, she raised one arm.

The technique did not disperse. Gaining confidence, she started to move her arm back and forth a little more quickly - and a little more -

Pop.

Too quick.

Shizuka raised the technique again and started waving her arm back and forth at just under
the threshold. Fast enough for careful sneaking around, but not really useful for a battle.

Could she walk with it? Shizuka, careful to move well below the threshold speed, took a careful step forward. The technique held. Encouraged, she took another step, then another, then started walking in circles. As she moved, she mentally felt for the chakra surrounding her. Wait, I'm going faster than -

The technique failed and Shizuka came to a stop. She had gone faster than the threshold speed, if only for a moment. Was it just that the jutsu was settling in better? The scroll hadn't mentioned a warm-up time. Or maybe...

Shizuka formed the seals and brought up the technique one more time. Suddenly she raised an arm up, as if reaching for something - and this time she pictured the chakra following it, moving smoothly around the arm in its new position.

The jutsu was still active.

So it does require focus, after all. But I bet actions become easier the more you do them - I had been walking for a couple minutes and my subconscious was adapting. Which means practice.

It wasn't like she wasn't used to it. Although...

Shizuka glanced at the sun and shadows again, surprised by how late it was. She needed to leave soon to pick up Natsuko from the academy. Well - she could practice on the way. Non-offensive jutsu weren't actually banned in civilian areas, and it wasn't like anyone ever saw her anyway.

Shizuka started towards the exit, carefully picturing the invisible shell around her moving with her and feeling rather smug as it did. She vaulted over the wall with ease (stopping on the other side to reapply the jutsu, which had slipped), ducked through a back alley, turned into a small courtyard - and stopped.

To get up to the balcony that was the next stage of her route, she needed to tree-walk. Which she didn't know whether or not she could do without dropping the jutsu.

Well, there was one way to find out. Shizuka directed chakra to her feet, keeping a careful 'eye' on the shell surrounding her to make sure it wasn't disrupted. It flickered a bit, but stayed mostly stable. So far so good. She took a few careful steps forwards, then set a foot on the wall. It held.

Shizuka took a step, then another - then almost cursed as the jutsu flickered out. Her focus had been split, and she hadn't managed to compensate for her movements in time. Well, this was what practice was for. Shizuka brought up the jutsu again, then started walking up the wall.

It took an embarassingly long time and two more reapplications of the jutsu, but Shizuka reached the balcony and stopped. She could see the route layed out in front of her, but with the extra time it had taken to achieve acceptable multitasking abilities, she was in danger of being late.

So let's see how fast I can be.

Shizuka lept towards the next roof and took off running.

The first part of her route would have looked very strange if anyone had been around to see her. A teenage girl running a complicated and winding, multi-leveled path, flickering repeatedly into existance, then running through a set of quick hand seals and blinking right back out. By the second half, though, no-one would have been able to see a thing.

I was right; it does need less concentration when I get used to the movements. Attacking would probably always break it though, at least at this level; I'd have to account for my opponent's chakra as well as my own, and I don't think I can. I'll have to watch out for that.

Shizuka came to a halt on top of the building just behind and to the left of the academy, and looked over the crowd. The academy had let out already, and Natsuko was... There, by the doors.

Normally this was where she showed herself, leaving behind the stealth of her private hours. However... Shizuka jumped down with the technique still active, landing soundlessly on the pavement. No-one turned to look at her.

She weaved expertly through the crowd, enjoying the feeling of being right next to them, and yet completely unseen. Probably a good thing there aren't any dojutsu users in Natsuko's class, though.

Finally she reached the door. Natsuko was looking in the complete opposite direction, being quiet for once as she waited for her older sister.

Shizuka moved behind her and dropped the jutsu. "Looking for someone?"

"Nee-san!"

SPOILER: Click to show

Invisibility
Rank: "C" Rank
Skill: GenJutsu
Effect: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision.
Special: "Handseals"
Drawback: The Jutsu ends if the subject attacks any creature. If the user who performs the technique attacks, the invisibility sphere ends. 
Description: The creature or object touched becomes invisible, vanishing from sight, even from dark vision. If the recipient is a creature carrying gear, that vanishes, too. If the user casts the jutsu on someone else, neither you nor your allies can see the subject, unless those are capable of seeing through GenJutsus. Items dropped or put down by an invisible creature become visible; items picked up disappear if tucked into the clothing or pouches worn by the creature. Light, however, never becomes invisible, although a source of light can become so (thus, the effect is that of a light with no visible source). Any part of an item that the subject carries but that extends more than 10 feet from it becomes visible. Of course, the subject is not silenced, and certain other conditions can render the recipient detectable (such as stepping in a puddle). Actions directed at unattended objects do not break the Jutsu. Causing harm indirectly is not an attack. Thus, an invisible being can open doors, talk, eat, climb stairs, summon monsters and have them attack, cut the ropes holding a rope bridge while enemies are on the bridge, remotely trigger traps, open a portcullis to release attack dogs, and so forth.
Limit: Must know Glamour Perception of GenJutsus, Must know Limited Invisibility.

?/30

[Holy Grail]

A few girls and boys were talking together at the foot of the steps, they were speaking of many things, one of which, one boy turned and pointed at Natsuko yelling at the top of his lungs,

20+!

his friends and himself quickly took off to get their after class snack, which may or may have not been ice cream.

[cannotseetheforest]

"Had a good day, Natsuko-chan?" Shizuka asked.

Natsuko nodded. "Uh-huh. The first part was boring, but then Sensei showed us how to climb trees, and I was the best in the whole class! And then in Kunoichi class, Hana-sensei said I had an 'eye for colour'."

Shizuka blinked. Aren't they a little young for that? "The best in the class? How high did you reach?"

"All the way to the top branch! And Sensei said that tomorrow I can start climbing trees that don't have so many branches, and when I get that he'll show me how to climb one without any branches at all!"

Ah. That kind of tree climbing. "I see. Well done." Shizuka reached out and took her little sister's hand. "Shall we go get dinner?"

Natsuko jumped off the step and grinned at her sister. "Yep!"

Training, missions, and the thousand little issues that cropped up when you were living on your own meant that Shizuka had little time to cook. Fortunately, the village had a number of cheap restaurants and stalls with healthy and reasonably good tasting food. Shizuka had memorised the locations of and paths to the ones nearest both their apartment and the academy, and she and her sister were soon settled with bowls of udon.

"So did you do ninja stuff today, nee-san?" Natsuko asked between bites.

"Of a sort," Shizuka replied. "I practiced my genjutsu illusions."

Natsuko perked up, eyes wide. "Nee-san, can I see? Please?"

Shizuka hesitated. The first technique was... Possible, but a little too painful to think about at the moment. The second would probably be a bit too noticable, with the street busy with people getting home or to dinner or evening appointments. She opened her mouth to tell Natsuko no - but closed it again after a memory struck her.

There had been another technique referenced in the beginner's invisibility scroll, made for hiding weapons or items that a person might be carrying. She hadn't focused on it much, but she had memorised the hand seals for potential future use.

"I'm going to try something new, Natsuko-chan," she said.

"Okay!"

Shizuka gathered her chakra, then (after glancing around to check that no-one was looking at her) flipped through the six handseals and picked up her pair of chopsticks. She could feel her chakra already shaped by the technique, so she pushed it carefully out to surround the chopsticks, expecting them to disappear.

The chopsticks flickered for a moment, but the chakra simply passed over them and dispersed.

Hmm. Shizuka glanced at Natsuko, but her sister was still watching her with round eyes. Alright... The chakra hadn't stuck to the chopsticks at all. Why?

What was the difference between casting invisibility on herself or another person and casting it on the chopsticks? Well, the chopsticks had no chakra of their own, which probably meant it was harder for foreign chakra to 'find' it. That meant she needed to direct it more firmly.

Shizuka put the chopsticks down for a moment, running through the handseals again. This time, she focused on the chopsticks, picturing them in her mind as she gathered her chakra. Then she picked them up again and pushed that shaped chakra not just towards it but around it.

This time the chopsticks actually became fully invisible, though only for a second before the jutsu destabilised.

"Wow," Natsuko whispered loudly.

"One more time," Shizuka murmured. The chakra 'shell' had formed, but without any chakra inside to 'hold' it, it had slipped off. But if she anchored it herself...

Shizuka dropped the chopsticks again, performed the hand seals and concentrated not just on the image of the chopsticks in her head, but on the ones sitting in front of her. Then she picked them up.

This time as she surrounded the chopsticks with her chakra shell, she 'reached' towards it, anchoring a bit of chakra to the chopstick itself, not just immediately surrounding it. She held it for a moment and let go.

There was nothing in her hand.

Shizuka looked up to see Natsuko staring at her 'empty' palm. With a hint of a smile,
Shizuka handed the chopsticks to Natsuko.

"Ah!" Natsuko fumbled the chopsticks until Shizuka reached out to correct her grip. Then, moving hesitantly, she dipped the utensils that she could feel, but not see, into her bowl.

As soon as they touched the food, the chopsticks blinked back into existance. Natsuko looked delighted, and Shizuka watched with contentment.

SPOILER: Click to show

Conceal
Rank: "D"
Skill: GenJutsu
Effect: A technique where the user is capable of causing one item they are carrying that is one size smaller then that of the user to become invisible. (This means if an item is small, and the user is medium sized it is capable of becoming invisible.
Special: "Handseals"
Drawback: The item still creates a noticeable bulge in clothing or packs, but it does not mean someone would automatically they are being affected. 
Description: A technique where the user is capable of causing one item they are carrying that is one size smaller then that of the user to become invisible. (This means if an item is small, and the user is medium sized it is capable of becoming invisible. The object remains invisible until the user uses the item in which it is supposed to be used such as striking an opponent. This technique is mostly used to sneak items past guards or otherwise making the person less prepared they normally would be. 
Limit: Must know Glamour Perception of GenJutsus

[Holy Grail]

10+

Sent from my LG-C800 using proboards

[cannotseetheforest]

Shizuka put down her bowl and stood smoothly. "It's time to leave, Natsuko-chan."

Natsuko slurped the last of her noodles and jumped up. "I'm ready!"

With her little sister trailing behind her, Shizuka disposed of their utensils and departed.

Exit Thread