Steel, wood, sweat, blood. (T)(O)

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-
Wakizashi Kagame Training
Rank: “D”, “C”, “B”
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: Allows advancement in the wakizashi Kagame style
Special: --
Drawback: --
Description:
“D” Rank – The primary introduction to training in this style involve dodging and evading moves. A wooden wakizashi is used in training and combat at this level. While this may seem simple on the surface, the style requires its user to react in a heartbeat to do some of the techniques. Emphasis on prediction of movements using body movements are used.

-:-

Waterfall village was beautiful, always had been, always would be. The muted roar of the water, the peace of the inhabitants, the tranquility of the environs. It was paradise, locked behind a barrier of white foam and white sound. Victoria had been to the hidden village many times, it was a convenient rest stop if she had the required credentials, and she had a few contacts dotted throughout the townsfolk. Every time that they came however, Tyseus balked at the waterfall, honestly the lithe traveler didn't blame him, it was an intimidating obstacle. <br><br>This time was no different and the leather clad woman swept down from the saddle to coax the gelding through the water with as little fuss as possible, fortunately it took little time to encourage him into the dell beyond and after confirming her identity and presence with the border guards she headed into the village, breathing deep of the clean air. Her mission here was twofold, firstly the obvious mission charged of her by the Takikage, and also she was here to see Hirasi Osamu, a master of the Wakizashi Kagame style of sword fighting.

She had been politely rebuffed in many villages by the masters there, many of them having little time to take on an apprentice of her age, she hoped that Master Osamu would be more accommodating. 

-:-

All paths lead to your destination, her father had once told her this small piece of simple wisdom and she took it to heart wherever she went, stubbornly trekking on until she found her way. It was helpful in some of the more warren like cities and towns she had been to, but here in waterfall she needed little guidance, especially as the wakizashi kagame dojo was plainly obvious in it's elevated profile. The mission of dealing with the rats could wait, they weren't going anywhere and she could deal with them on a free day in the next couple of weeks, provided master Osamu accepted her. If not then she'd be dealing with the vermin much more quickly.

The dojo, like many of it's kind, had several small sleeping outbuildings around it for trainees to sleep in who had come from far away, they were perfect for her goals but they were not her immediate concern as she rode through the gates of the dojo compound. The large frontage of the dojo was slightly imposing and she bowed her head in respect as she dismounted from her horse, tethering it to one of the posts designed for such a purpose. Head still bowed she prostrated herself in the dirt for a moment, calling out to all the deities that she had heard of from far and wide to aid her in her solicitation of the master swordsman.

Rising and dusting herself off the young woman strode forwards towards the doors and opened them confidently, leaving her shoes at the entrance next to many others and proceeding with only her linen foot wraps to cover her feet. Her leathers, while travel stained, were more than modest enough for the setting that she bore witness to.

-:-

A double line of men and women flowed through the forms of swordsmanship that Victoria herself wanted to learn. Allowing herself a moment to admire them she watched carefully as they went through the motions with perfect control and grace. Walking among them was the man she had come to see, a tall figure wrapped in a hakama with a naked blade in his slightly wrinkled hand. Silver hair fell in shaggy folds to his shoulders and a broad chest unbowed by his age supported the well muscled arms of a man dedicated to martial prowess.

He noticed her immediately, the opening of the door would have been herald enough, and she bowed her head in respect as he approached, the other students did not halt in their practice. He stood before her and acknowledged her presence with a typical greeting, to which she responded respectfully and pursued her goal.

"Osamu Sensei, I have travelled far and wide, taking in the great world and I have stopped at many of this dojo's brothers, seeking training from the other masters of your art, I have been rebuffed many times, again I have come, seeking instruction in the wakizashi kagame, will you take me in as a student sensei?" 

The old man studied her for a long moment, taking in her worth as would a true master of any art, assessing her ability to learn. Victoria's heart fluttered in nervousness, would she finally be granted the chance to learn from one of the great masters? The silver haired man bowed his head in thought and she stood stock still, respectfully letting him think, her patience was rewarded.

"You cannot learn with such a weapon, if you advance past the beginner rank, you shall need to purchase true steel, but for now you shall practice with a wooden wakizashi, as all other trainees. You have had a long journey yes? Rest this night, acquire a weapon from the racks and familiarize yourself with it's weight, but while you are here in the compound you shall not don your armor, nor shall you draw your sword or bear your shield. You are here to learn our style, if you wish to practice your own you may leave the compound to do so, but do not do so here."

Victoria bowed her head in respect to the very reasonable stipulation and waited for any further instruction.

"Go now, I will see you in the morning before sunrise, you run yes? We shall test your stamina."

That night, in the sleeping house, she slept her best night's sleep in years. 

-:-

The morning did not dawn for Victoria, she woke much before it, nervous for her training the day ahead. She had trained before, she had fought, she had killed, but this was a foreign land, with foreign customs, she was accustomed to Waterfall's idiosyncrasies but the dojo itself would be like a whole other world. Rising at the appointed time she headed out to the ring of flattened ground around the compound that obviously served as a running track for trainees.

Standing there in the half light of predawn was Hirasi Osamu like a silver lion in the muted light, an ageless defender of the village.

He put her through her paces that morning, but honestly she was fit enough from her own training and there was little that he could find fault with her physical condition. They moved inside soon after and the young woman hefted the weighted training weapon that she had claimed from the racks the previous night.

Used to practicing a much different style the young woman stepped into her familiar stance only to be smacked on the shins with a wooden cane.  

"Wider stance, balance, movement, anticipation, readiness, these are the things you shall learn. Block in sharp smooth motion, and block only, move with my attacks, do not back down, advance into your blocks, force me backwards, only yield if your balance would be compromised otherwise, use your strength to bat my weapon away, but do so with technique."

His short clipped sentences and phrases were familiar to her of an aged instructor long used to training new recruits. he made it sound so easy, but when he finally took a similar stance and moved forwards to attack it was with such blinding alacrity that only Victoria's existing battle reflexes saved her from a harsh rap on the thigh. Her parry however was atypical of the style she was trying to learn and the master stopped training to correct her. Then went at her again.

In this fashion she slowly learned, making fewer mistakes as time went by, her body began to fall into a rhythm of responding to Sensei Osamu's attacks and pressing forwards with her parries trying to unsettle the older man. It did not work of course he was far too skilled for her to best in such a crude fashion, but she fancied that she was at least improving.

She was given several hours of intensive training that morning before the other, more advanced students, came in the afternoon. Her personal training did not stop there however, she practiced alone, shifting between her own style and that of the wakizashi to ensure that the new training did not obliterate the old, but that she also still learned.

-:-

When she went to sleep that night it was with a distinct sense of accomplishment, she had progressed beyond anything she had previously accomplished and was learning anew.

Her mandate from Pyretown had not suffered either, two hours spent in the company of the other trainees in the eating hall gave her many new tales to add to her cavernous memory.


(Just a note to anyone reading, the idea of learning an entire training method in one day (through the auspices of multiple posts) seems ridiculous to me, this way even if I gain the maximum possible TP for this post, it will still take my character multiple days to learn the techniques at least, which seems far more reasonable.) 

[Father 'Suke]

+10 - though in all seriousness I wish I could give more TP than the max.

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Wakizashi Kagame Training
Rank: “D”, “C”, “B”
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: Allows advancement in the wakizashi Kagame style
Special: --
Drawback: --
Description:

“C” Rank – The next step of training involves using the quick responses harbored in the safety of the beginning classes are put to offensive use. Fast movement and footwork is emphasized here in order to aid in optimal counter-attack placement. Training is still done with a wooden blade, but the student is officially allowed to carry a real blade outside of class.

-:-

The next day nearly crushed Victoria's fledgling apprenticeship

"You possess no chakra talent."

Hirasi Osamu's voice held a distinctly disappointed tinge, as if he himself had missed out on a great opportunity through the auspices of bad luck.

"Much of what I would teach you, I cannot."

Victoria hung her head, part in shame, part in disappointment. It had been blatantly obvious that she had no Chakra molding talent when her mentor had attempted to teach her a technique requiring the art. She said nothing but prepared herself for dismissal, offering no excuses. A rough hand gripped her forearm firmly and she looked up, surprised, into earnest eyes.

"But there is much yet that I can teach you, you shall skip the training of techniques requiring chakra, and we shall focus your efforts on non chakra molding techniques and training. Perhaps one day if you gain the talent you may return to finish your education. You are eager to learn, and dedicated to perfecting your skills, you have the heart and mind of a student, and that is what matters most."

Awed by the older man's generosity and belief in her Victoria bows deeply from the waist, offering respect to her teacher. He steps backwards and hefts his weapon.

"You will not have the training in the formal stance that aids trainees through this part of the training, so you will learn the hard way, but learn you shall. Now, your training yesterday laid the foundations for a strong unyielding defense that pushes back against it's attacker like warriors sallying from the besieged fortress. You shall now learn how to convert your defenses into counter attacks, giving those sallying warriors weapons with which to strike their foes."

Without warning he slashes at her throat and out of instinct she deflects the attack with her weapon, his sword skating off hers and flicking above her head, the moment their weapons connect he freezes as does she, now used to his teaching style.

"My attack, deflected perfectly, has now put me off balance and I am ripe to attack, you need simply but step inside my guard, slash at my chest with force, and knock me down with your shoulder. This has the threefold benefit of moving your body out of the way of the blow of a potential second attacker, knocking me prone, and inflicting a serious wound. Again."

They both return to their positions, this time he slashes at her thigh and her deflection this time sends the point of his wooden weapon into the floor, they both freeze.

"My attack now deflected, once again leaves me open, a proper defense lending itself to an effective counter attack. Step inside my guard once more and you can slice or thrust at my throat, ending the fight, putting you out of the way of another attack, and once again demonstrating the art of Wakizashi Kagame. These are the battles you will experience from unskilled opponents, your weapon will end them within a single fluid motion. Against an experienced opponent however things may go differently, again."

Once more Victoria returns to her origin and he slashes at her, a backhanded blow aimed at Victoria's chest. There's no easy way to deflect such a blow so she instead parries the attack, moving towards it and bring her weapon across her body, batting his aside and moving her inside his guard. At least that's what she planned. A flick of his wrist sends the point of his blade down to her thigh and what would have been a shallow cut is scored against Victoria's leathers. 

"Your weapon can only be in one place, if you put it in the wrong place, your opponent can move around it and strike at you regardless, you must learn how to anticipate your opponent's movements so that you can appropriately respond to them. In this case moving out from where you are by half a foot would have left you in a much better position to slash at my unprotected throat chest or sides. Again."

And so the two of them go through the motions of mock battles again and again, Sensei Osamu giving hints, tips, pointers and admonishments, and Victoria doing her best to absorb his prodigious knowledge. Soon enough the training moves from instruction to practice, lightning fast strikes being issued by both sides, though Victoria often is unable to properly anticipate her mentor's attacks and accumulates many welts and bruises. By the end of the sparring she is sweating profusely despite her fitness.

Nodding in satisfaction the old swordsman moves off to begin teaching his afternoon students and Victoria takes a much needed break.

-:-

Half an hour of rest and recuperation only before Victoria is back out on the Dojo floor sparring with some of the more experienced trainees. They beat her universally but with each defeat she learns a little more, becomes a little better at anticipating her opponent's strikes, and tightens her movements. 

She trains long into the evening, moving from sparring to self practice when many of the other students have left for other pursuits. The forms flow through her mind like water, attack and counter attack, edge work and footwork, riposte and parry, guard and deflect, balance and movement. She accumulates many minor injuries, bruises, welts and other blunt traumas of minor nature, but she presses on fighting through the pain and earning some respect along the way.

When at last the young woman heads to the meal hall for her evening repast and sits at one of the long benches she finds her legs and arms quite sluggish and as a result spends many hours socializing with the other students, learning not only more of the Wakizashi Kagame, but also of it's heroes, it's public faces, it's folk lore.

Eventually she turns in for bed and allows the soothing nature of deep sleep to avail her of her ailments.

[Father 'Suke]

+10

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Wakizashi Kagame Training
Rank: “D”, “C”, “B”
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: Allows advancement in the wakizashi Kagame style
Special: --
Drawback: --
Description:

“C” Rank – The next step of training involves using the quick responses harbored in the safety of the beginning classes are put to offensive use. Fast movement and footwork is emphasized here in order to aid in optimal counter-attack placement. Training is still done with a wooden blade, but the student is officially allowed to carry a real blade outside of class.

10/30

-:-

The third day of Victoria's training started much the same as the other two, calisthenics in the compound before a bath, then into the Dojo for more instruction. However today was tinged with a slightly different tone, she was not starting a new topic today, but rather building upon the knowledge and skills that came from the day before. 

"Yesterday you learned the basics of anticipation, understanding that an opponent's visible intentions may not be his true goal, you must think like your opponent, get inside their head and understand what they will do next before they have even made the conscious decision. Bait them into a corner where they cannot escape and then crush them. "

Taking a breath the swordsman continues 

"Your defenses must be as ever changing and complex as the skeins that an enemy will attempt to weave around you with their weapon and body. Footwork is important, move about and try to out maneuver your foe. Body language and tells are vital, learn what your tells are; that is the indication of an action you are about to perform, so that you can feint and bait your opponent into a debilitating action."

He begins to pace, becoming animated

"Many fighters act in the same way, especially if they are unskilled, it should be a simple matter for a skilled swordsman, or woman" He adds looking at you with a smile, "To outsmart such a simple opponent. But too much arrogance and you can end up being the one outsmarted, thus we move on to the three core tenets of this art. Firstly observe everything; your opponent, your surroundings, and so on. If you have innate knowledge of what is against you, and around you, then you cannot make a wrong move. Secondly act as if you are unskilled at first, drawing your opponent into attacking rashly. If you can bait your opponent into attacking to quickly you can take advantage of their momentum and end the fight swiftly. Thrice, you must never underestimate your opponent, understand them before taking a course of action, some enemies will make their nature obvious, ruffians and the like are unlikely to be terribly skilled, but a warrior in armor with a beautiful sword might be a mighty fighter. Equally he might be a spoiled brat with delusions of power."

His lecture continues, outlining various tactics and stratagems for different foes, and the various ways to identify the skill of an enemy. Soon he moves on from simple lecturing and draws Victoria back into practice, teaching her of feints and the art of baiting a foe, eventually this evolves into the usual lighting quick skirmishes that signal the end of her training session each day. Though after lunch Osamu surprises Victoria by informing her that he has no other obligations that day and will happily continue her tutelage. 

-:- 

As the day wore on into afternoon Osamu noticed a peculiar trait of her style that was conflicting with the Wakazashi Kagume movements.

"You act as if you are wearing armor, you allow blows to hit you that others, more lightly armored others, would not, to trade a more significant blow back to me. It is a peculiarity of your mixed styles that I am unsure of. One the one hand you will wear armor in any real battle, and incorporating it into your style is an ideal way to fight, but at the same time it is hindering you from learning how to properly anticipate and dodge my attacks. I shall meditate on this and get back to you in the morning, for now continue with your forms, and I shall see you tomorrow."

Slightly taken aback by the abrupt dismissal after such a long unbroken period of tutelage Victoria stands dazed for a moment before returning to her practice, thinking hard about the conundrum in her own mind.

-:-

As with the previous days Victoria found herself in the meal hall at day's end, socializing with the other trainees. She had formed a few loose friendships with the generally boisterous group of waterfall natives and outlanders. It was the latter that she talked to mainly that night, garnering information about places far and abroad, news and tidings unheard of for many a year.

At last she found herself in her room falling asleep, allowing the powers of restfulness to cleanse her body of the small number of accrued wounds from the day.

[Father 'Suke]

Keep it coming, I'm enjoying it so far.

+10

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Wakizashi Kagame Training
Rank: “D”, “C”, “B”
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: Allows advancement in the wakizashi Kagame style
Special: --
Drawback: --
Description:


“C” Rank – The next step of training involves using the quick responses harbored in the safety of the beginning classes are put to offensive use. Fast movement and footwork is emphasized here in order to aid in optimal counter-attack placement. Training is still done with a wooden blade, but the student is officially allowed to carry a real blade outside of class.

20/30

-:-

By the fourth day of training Victoria had begun to settle into a routine, calisthenics, bathe, lecture, practice, skirmishes. It was a format that worked for both teacher and student and yielded good results, in but two days Victoria had nearly mastered the second tier of training available to those following the Wakazashi Kagume art.

The third day of this training saw the lectures move away from specific tactics and scenarios, and into abstract ideas such as the art of identifying the mental state of your opponent. For several hours Sensei Osamu lectured the young woman on the various great archetypes of warriors she was likely to fight, and what battlefield circumstances might do to their psyche, and thus their actions.

It was fascinating and engaging and Victoria found herself discussing the points with the old swordsman much as she would a peer. There was a certain level of deference involved that reminded both who was student and teacher, but a friendship had formed, one that would serve Victoria well in the years to come.

For the first time Victoria fought against multiple opponents in her practice; Osamu as always, and an adept of the dojo. Both of them put her through her paces that day encouraging her to try to out think them rather than fight them with skill in arms alone. Only once did she best the adept, and never the master.

-:-

Lunch was an exercise in patience, Victoria was given instructions that a boy from the village had been paid to run up into the hills around the town bearing Victoria’s lunch, and the meal hall staff have been instructed not to serve her until dinner. If she could anticipate the boy’s movements and track him down within an hour she would have her lunch, else she would return to the dojo hungry and still be expected to train.

Grimly she set out, using all the knowledge she had garnered in the last few days to essentially hunt down the young man. It took her a quarter of her time to find his trail, but once she found it; it was almost easy as she ran down the younger boy with ease. However when she found him she discovered that it was not a young man of the village as she had been told, but a female adept. Gritting her teeth Victoria drew her wooden practice weapon and met in combat with the adept, understanding the task before her.

They met in a clash of wood multiple times, feinting around one another and trying to gain the upper hand. The adept was somewhat more skilled, though Victoria was not overly far behind; personal daily tutelage with a master of the art will of course yield benefits unknown to those trained en masse.

In the end the adept won out, utilising a chakra technique that Victoria hadn’t seen to bat her weapon away with a gust of powerful wind. Disgruntled Victoria made her way back to the Dojo but kept up her training with the typical fervour that she displayed.

-:-

Osamu talked with Victoria at length about the fight and the efforts she took to track down the adept. Osamu was initially surprised that Victoria was able to track the young woman so easily but when Victoria explained her trail savvy wandering background the master swordsman understood clearly. From there it became a discussion of tactics, reaction and counter reaction, followed by a recreation of the fight including the adept’s finishing stroke. 

She explained a revelation she had had about her inability to mold chakra and her mentor had agreed solemnly, training would be harder for her, but the rewards would be greater.

-:-

That night in the meal hall the adept came up and apologised for using a trick on Victoria in their fight, she had been unaware that Victoria was a non-chakra molder. The auburn haired wanderer shrugged before saying.

“I am of the minority, the many use, will use, and will continue to use chakra whether I can or not. I cannot cry foul when fighting for my life, I must simply learn to overcome the deficit, thank you for making that clear to me now.”

Later that night as she lay in bed she realized that it had been not the adept’s ability to mold chakra that had won the other woman the fight, but Victoria not expecting it; silently she vowed to understand the arts of chakra molding wherever she could research them, even if she could not use them herself, if only so that she would not be caught off guard again.

[Deleted]

Going to call this a solid +10. Interesting read, I'm eager to see more.

[LGreymark]

-:-

Victoria woke early on the fifth day of her training and went through what was fast becoming a morning routine, a ritual even. When she reached the Dojo however she was in for a shock. Arrayed before her as she entered were fifteen men and women, all adepts, save Osamu himself who stood in the middle, three women and four men to either side of him, over his right arm was a broad yellow sash.

Victoria bowed her head low in respect for the adepts and master of the Dojo and knelt as was proper before such an audience. Her mentor spoke in ringing tones.

“Victoria Kun, you have trained diligently, far more quickly than we are used to people progressing through the training regimen. You have honoured our rules, our traditions, and you have embraced the Wakizashi Kagume way of life here in Waterfall. When you entered into this Dojo it was a somewhat unorthodox union. And so I was hesitant to give you the white sash of the pupil, for fear that you would dishonour this Dojo by abandoning your education. However, you have proven yourself worthy, not only of the white sash of the pupil, but the yellow sash, of the intermediate.”

Stepping forwards two paces to be a mere meter in front of you he continues.

“This sash, given to you in honour of your diligent training in our Dojo, is conditional. You must, at your earliest opportunity, go into the village, and purchase for yourself a Wakizashi sword of steel, not for training, but for use in the world. I understand fully that you will likely use your own weapon when fighting a true battle, but our rules are strict. You have until the end of this day.”

Victoria was speechless as the old warrior bid her stand, then an adept came to tie the sash around her waist in a simple belt. It lent weight to what she was accomplishing here. Fighting back tears of true emotion she dipped her head in thanks and respect before bowing deeply and exiting the Dojo. When she was outside she finally let the tears of happiness fall down her face. This was accomplishment, this was success. The joy of competency rushed through her and she couldn’t help but laugh, sparkling tears adorning her cheeks.

-:-

The ride into the town proper did not take long, and she quickly found a store that would suit her needs.


(Training will resume shortly, go to this thread for shop interactions 
narutoforumrp.proboards.com/thread/85177/universal-shop?page=2)

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Arms of Topaz

Rank: “C”

Skill: Taijutsu

Effect: See description

Special: --

Description: When an opponent makes a thrusting attack (punch, blade attack, etc.), the user of this technique raises their wakizashi to meet the opponent’s hand. At the same time, the user spins into the attacker so that their back is mostly facing them, positioning their rear foot behind the closest of the attacker’s. The wakizashi is turned to the inside of the opponent’s hand/arm during the spin to prevent an attack from that hand. The user then slashes up and out with the wakizashi in an attempt to disable the opponent’s arm, while an elbow thrust is sent to their chest. Ultimately, the move is designed to trip the opponent..

Drawback: User must turn their back to their opponent for a split second, and balance may be lost if done improperly

Limit: Wakizashi Kagame Style, Rank “C” Training

-:-

Returning to the Dojo, not even an hour after leaving it earlier that morning, Victoria felt a sense of satisfaction, and excitement, hopefully now the old master could begin teaching her actual techniques that would augment her abilities, the framework was in place now she could learn greater depths of skill.

Upon entering the Dojo she was greeted by Osuma who took her to their usual place and began pacing, the ceremony of before had been brushed aside by his typical practical demeanour.

“You have learned well the art of a strong defence changed into an effective offense. You have learned well the art of reading your enemies and you have also learned the art of understanding the flow of a battle and how to respond to it. It is time for us to move on, your skills are well crafted, but blunt. We need to hone them to a razor edge. The first thing you will learn, is the Arms of Topaz, it is a natural extension to one of the core movements of the Wakizashi Kagame, to origin.”

Obediently Victoria steps into what is known as ‘origin’ the basic stance from which every attack and defence flows forth. Osamu thrusts for your chest but halts as you are about to parry his attack.

“From here, your parry should become a guard, block the weapon and turn inside my guard, placing your foot behind my leading foot. From there you can twist away further, slicing the blade of your weapon across my arm and dragging with your foot to overbalance me, follow this through with an elbow to my chest, that should knock me prone with some ease.”

Victoria goes through the motions with care and finds it rather easy to topple the older warrior. Respectfully she helps him back to his feet.

“This is an effective technique for evading to attacks thrown at you simultaneously, especially in a crowded space, it might also take one of your opponents out of the fight, and few people can fight with a mangled sword arm. Be wary however of using this against an opponent who uses two weapons, you become very vulnerable when you put your back to them, now, again.”

The practice becomes skirmish as the minutes bleed into hours, not only does Victoria learn the Arms of Topaz, but Osamu ensures that her core teachings, the training that she has already been through with him, is not forgotten.

-:-

Lunch comes and once more Victoria is sent into the hills chasing another adept, this time expecting a much more challenging fight. She tracks her quarry for nearly half an hour before she finally finds them and they clash.

The fight this time is shorter, for whatever reason this adept seems easier to engage than the one had the day previous, and she lays him flat without much trouble, claiming the bundle of food as her prize.

Osamu is pleased to see her back so soon and discusses the fight with her as they eat. It becomes apparent to Victoria that that particular adept is one of the weaker of the group and Osamu had been debating whether to strip him of his rank and knock him back down to intermediate tier. The fight today had been the deciding blow, Victoria felt almost bad for him, but then remembered the hours of gruelling training she had put herself through to get to this point, and realized that anyone who didn’t also commit to the training in such a fashion wasn’t worthy of her respect.

After lunch Victoria joined the other intermediates in their training, going through sword forms in unison under the careful eye of Osamu himself. They did not let up for many hours and when Victoria finally reached her room after dinner, it was with leaden limbs, but a happy heart.

[Father 'Suke]

+5, good interesting read but very little training to the technique.

[hass]

+5

Ryooo ._.

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Arms of Topaz

Rank: “C”

Skill: Taijutsu

Effect: See description

Special: --

Description: When an opponent makes a thrusting attack (punch, blade attack, etc.), the user of this technique raises their wakizashi to meet the opponent’s hand. At the same time, the user spins into the attacker so that their back is mostly facing them, positioning their rear foot behind the closest of the attacker’s. The wakizashi is turned to the inside of the opponent’s hand/arm during the spin to prevent an attack from that hand. The user then slashes up and out with the wakizashi in an attempt to disable the opponent’s arm, while an elbow thrust is sent to their chest. Ultimately, the move is designed to trip the opponent..

Drawback: User must turn their back to their opponent for a split second, and balance may be lost if done improperly

Limit: Wakizashi Kagame Style, Rank “C” Training

5/30

-:-

The morning routine was now well established and Victoria went through it without fuss before heading into the Dojo, Osamu had a thoughtful expression on his face as she approached.

“I have through long and hard on the problem that we discussed two days ago, the way your armour, though not present, is causing problems in your learning. There are several solutions, most of them permanent I am sad to say and unpalatable. There is one however that may work.”

Victoria’s ears prick up at a potential solution to the conundrum that had caused consternation in both pupil and teacher.

“Your armour is a part of you, it is part of your fighting style, and it is something you wear often to compensate for your lack of chakra, am I wrong?”

Victoria shakes her head earnestly.

“Then we shall do nothing, the way you fight, allowing a light strike from an opponent to be traded into heavier strikes of your own is a good strategy for one who wears armour. The fact that you are not learning to avoid and parry all of my attacks does not matter if the attacks you do not avoid or parry are of no true harm to you in a real situation. Indeed I shall do my best to cultivate this strategy in your training. You are not a pupil solely of this Dojo and I should not treat you like one. Now, we shall move onto our normal training.”

He steps forward and takes a breath before speaking again.

“The technique you began learning yesterday is one that most of the students of the Wakizashi Kagame disdain, or even forget entirely, why? It is because it is not a killing blow. Followers of this fighting style often prefer to put their opponents down with a single killing stroke that ends the fight quickly, which is both an effective strategy, and an unnecessary one: If you can disable a foe without killing them, perhaps by slicing the tendons in a sword arm, or by breaking some bones. You can learn from them through interrogation, you can take them hostage for safe passage out of a bad situation, or even ransom them. If they are dead they are useless to you. As such techniques that disable a foe are infinitely more valuable to the fighter who has time to spare or one who is trapped and needs to escape. Therefore someone who is in a hurry or is simply trying to kill their target should prefer killing blows.”

Victoria nods to her mentor, understanding his teachings.

“This technique in particular is a powerful one for someone such as you to learn. Because of your ability to shrug off lighter blows in a fight you can utilise this attack against a much greater variety of targets, and without too much trouble you can convert it into a much more varied technique, for instance slamming outwards with your shield instead of an elbow. And following through to stab after turning, can turn this technique into a killing blow, even if your slice to their arm yields no tangible results you can still end the fight with one smooth motion. Alternately if you shove harder with your shield you can turn your opponent into a projectile and use him to knock down other foes if you are outnumbered.”

The lecture carries on going through various ways of converting the technique and using it for a variety of other goals than the simple expedient of knocking a foe prone. This lecture morphs slowly into practice as the swordsman walks Victoria through many of the actions he had described, expanding her repertoire of abilities greatly through variations on the same technique.

End the end though they come back to the original, drilling it for several hours with a variety of foes both from the intermediate and adept classes. There are still some issues with the technique in Victoria’s execution of it, such as her proclivity to forget to slice her opponent’s forearm and simply knock them prone. Or how she frequently puts too much weight on her sweeping foot and overbalances herself while acting out the technique.

Lunch time sees Victoria running over the hills once more for her lunch and the routine would repeat itself many times over the next few weeks as Victoria began to learn more and more about the fighting techniques of many of the adepts and how to fight them individually. That day was a failure, but she would go roughly even in her stay at the Dojo.

-:-

After lunch she joined the group of Intermediates doing their daily forms and was shot a dirty look by the adept she had trounced the day before, now wearing a yellow sash instead of his prior red one. The twenty or so Intermediates practise in unison for several hours before splitting apart to eat, once more Victoria returns to her bed tired, but confidant with her progress.

[Father 'Suke]

+10
Note: You are now at 15/30, since two staff grades cannot be applied to one training as per the rules, so just the +5 for the fist post and then +10 for this one.

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Arms of Topaz
Rank: “C”
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: See description
Special: --
Description: When an opponent makes a thrusting attack (punch, blade attack, etc.), the user of this technique raises their wakizashi to meet the opponent’s hand. At the same time, the user spins into the attacker so that their back is mostly facing them, positioning their rear foot behind the closest of the attacker’s. The wakizashi is turned to the inside of the opponent’s hand/arm during the spin to prevent an attack from that hand. The user then slashes up and out with the wakizashi in an attempt to disable the opponent’s arm, while an elbow thrust is sent to their chest. Ultimately, the move is designed to trip the opponent..
Drawback: User must turn their back to their opponent for a split second, and balance may be lost if done improperly 
Limit: Wakizashi Kagame Style, Rank “C” Training
15/30

-:-

Victoria’s morning routine was well established by now and she moved through it with the alacrity of practice before moving into the dojo for her morning lecture and training.

The Arms of Topaz technique had proven to be a vast wealth of skill all formed into one technique, and today’s teachings did not do anything to change this impression. Osamu went through many ways of altering the technique for; multiple combatants, enemies with two or more main weapons, enemies with larger weapons like spears and pole arms, and even enemies making a thrust attack with weapons you wouldn’t normally expect a thrust attack from, like an axe or war pick.

Not only that, but the training extended into Osamu helping her to fix many of her balance problems that Victoria was still having with the technique, and it was determined fairly quickly that her balance issues only existed because of her natural tendency to move as if she were wearing armour and bearing a shield, overcompensating slightly for the amount of gear she was wearing and throwing herself off balance.

Once pointed out she almost immediately fixed the problem by simply concentrating more on what was going on than allowing herself to fall into old habits.

The practical session of their training became something a melee as two other intermediates and Victoria fought to a standstill with their techniques and skill with Osamu making sure to remind them to practise whatever technique each was learning, and just giving general pointers along the way.

One of the things that Victoria was still struggling with about the Arms of Topaz was the inherent risk of opening up her back to her opponent, if only for a moment, she was used to fighting face to face with her foes and weathering the storm of their attacks on her armour and shield before counterattacking with force once they were out of position. Osamu had made a point of addressing her concerns that morning.

“The art of moving about your foe is just as effective, and safe, as hiding behind your armour and shield Victoria Kun. You must learn to trust the movements you make, and your sword arm to distract your foe. Reliance will come with time, but for now, learn.”

-:-

Victoria’s mid-day run across the hills for her lunch ended in a challenging fight with one of the more mediocre adepts at the dojo who Victoria eventually overcame with a combination of superior footwork and slightly greater body mass from her extensive training. The victory felt hollow but she had no idea why.

After lunch she continued on with the group training and had her discussion with Osamu over the fight in the hills. Not only was her morning fast becoming a familiar routine, but so too were her afternoons. The repetition brought a sense of stability to the young woman’s life that she had not experienced for several years. Before dinner she made a point of taking her armour and arms into the hills to practice her other combat forms and was disappointed in herself to find her skills slipping, she would have to make a more concerted effort to maintaining them.

Dinner and sleep were, as usual, a much needed respite.

[Father 'Suke]

+10

[LGreymark]

-:-Training-:-

Arms of Topaz

Rank: “C”

Skill: Taijutsu

Effect: See description

Special: --

Description: When an opponent makes a thrusting attack (punch, blade attack, etc.), the user of this technique raises their wakizashi to meet the opponent’s hand. At the same time, the user spins into the attacker so that their back is mostly facing them, positioning their rear foot behind the closest of the attacker’s. The wakizashi is turned to the inside of the opponent’s hand/arm during the spin to prevent an attack from that hand. The user then slashes up and out with the wakizashi in an attempt to disable the opponent’s arm, while an elbow thrust is sent to their chest. Ultimately, the move is designed to trip the opponent..

Drawback: User must turn their back to their opponent for a split second, and balance may be lost if done improperly

Limit: Wakizashi Kagame Style, Rank “C” Training

25/30

-:-

The eighth day of training seemed to pass very quickly. Victoria’s morning routine flew past and it felt very abrupt when she ended up in the dojo listening to Osamu’s lecture for the day. The day’s instruction seemed to be mostly polish now, and indeed Osamu mentioned that he hoped they could move on, four days spent on the same technique had yielded a masterful understanding of it for the young woman but both pupil and teacher felt like time had been wasted somewhere.

Nevertheless practical training was fierce but Victoria was proud to say later that she held her own in the rapid skirmishes; Osamu and his pupils only landed two hits on her in the dozens of short rapid engagements that took place. She used the Arms of Topaz technique to great effects in many of its forms and finally solved her balance issues for good. All in all a productive training session that flew by.

-:-

After lunch Victoria took several hours to make sure she had every facet of the technique down, going over all of the variations in the technique and it’s more esoteric uses. Once she was certain that she had it perfect, or as close to perfect as anyone could get, she went back to the group training and easily fell back into the regular patterns that the rest of the group was going through, all accompanied by Osamu’s constant heckling.

That night Victoria went to sleep happy that she was one step closer to a mastery of this art form.

[Father 'Suke]

+5