House Takagi [Training, Home, PM to Enter]

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

SPOILER: Click to show

Located in the outskirts of the sprawling residential districts, where larger family homes were found with greater distances between them, owing to larger claims of land, the house of the Takao family stood tirelessly as it had for generations.  A simple two-story cottage not unlike many of the others found in this part of the village, it was both simple and elegant in its design.  A low porch slung itself around the front of the house and wrapped about one side, wizened old timbers standing high along it every few meters to support the roof above.  Windows were only present along the front and back on both floors, as one side of the house stood against an ancient, withering old tree that sported fewer and fewer green leaves each spring, while the other side was claimed by the extended porch, boasting an array of homely wicker chairs and a low table, all of which looked to have sat outside for many years.  The front lawn was pocked by the framework of what was once a garden, but no longer bore any plants of any kind.  A heavy granite birdbath, wrought in the likeness of a fat toad stood in the center of said once-garden, and usually saw an array of passing winged fauna from day to day partake of its comforts.  The property bordered a bank of woods to the east - which were, in turn, the dividing line marking the property of their nearest neighbors - and stretched out for an acre to the west and north before meeting a rickety fence line and dropping off suddenly into a farmer's terrace.  Standing near the fence, one could gaze out upon acres and acres of hilly terraces heavy with crops (depending on the season), and just barely make out the homestead of the family which farmed them in the distance.  In the corner of this back lawn, where the fenced hillside met the treeline, there stood a loose array of target dummies, plain free-standing target boards, and a thick post three meters high, all of which were marred by years of steady use. [Household interior details to come sometime down the road.]

0|10:

SPOILER: Click to show

Futon: Kazepusshu
Rank: D
Skill: Taijutsu
Effect: When the user pushes out with there palm, creates a small funnel of air that can push the opponent back or over, but it causes little if any pain. This however can be a very annoying jutsu.
Special: --
Drawback: --
Description: The user quickly gathers a small amount of chakra to there hand and pushes it outward with there palm as a small funnel/gust of air blows out with enough force to push the opponent back or off balance.
Limit: Must have Wind Release.

[enter]

[/i]

Reaching within his cloak, he produced a battered old scroll and five thick strips of parchment - all of which he'd fished out of his mother's old closet, relics of her "glory days" - as well as five kunai. He tucked the scroll under his left arm and approached the target dummy, laying a strip of parchment against its arm and jamming the tip of his kunai through one corner of it and into the wood just enough to hold it in place. It dangled from the dummy's outstretched arm, barely swaying in the slight breeze. He continued likewise, tacking one more slip to this arm, then two to the other arm, and the final one dead center on the dummy's chest. Each strip on the arms was only just held on at the very corner by the kunai blade, and thanks to the tearing of the blade through the parchment itself, would be extremely easy to dislodge. Altogether, they weren't very well attached to the dummy, but that was the idea; he wanted to be able to yank them off easily. The one tacked to its chest, though, might actually hold up to a little abuse before tearing away. Might.

He took a few paces back and unrolled the scroll, poring over the jutsu with scrutiny. It had caught his eye at a glance; he absolutely loved his ability to surf on wind with his feet, and the idea of manipulating it with his hands was quite tantalizing. The practical applications didn't seem all that grand, but he felt it was a good place to start. Something about this jutsu seemed more visceral than his Suiran Rippu technique; that was manipulation without contact, whereas this felt more "hands-on," so to say. Nodding to himself and dropping the already bedraggled scroll upon the damp grass below, he closed his eyes and bowed his head, raising his right hand to his chest and focusing his chakra to his palm. He had to release it in such a way as to physically push the air in front of his palm... that didn't sound overly complicated, but years of not "getting it right the first time" in his Academy days had taught him not to take such things at face value. He held his focus for a few moments, until he could feel the pressure of the gathered chakra almost broiling in his palm. His eyes flew upon, locking on a parchment strip, and an instant later he felt as though he'd taken a blow to the chest.

He went over backwards immediately, completely unprepared for any sort of blow, let alone one above his center of gravity and backed by concentrated chakra. His breath left him in a grunted huff as his back met the ground with a solid thud. Luckily, he had the wherewithal to lean his neck forward, allowing the back of his head a slightly softer landing. For a moment, he laid in the grass and contemplated what had just taken place. You lark, he scolded himself internally, You readied the jutsu with your palm facing your own chest, and released the chakra an instant before turning it out. Generations of dead Takao shinobi are rolling over in their graves, consumed by laughter at your... And so his internal dialog went while he got back to his feet, his previously delighted mood rather shattered by the sudden turn of events.

After taking a moment to collect himself, he gave it another go. This time, he fell into the most basic Bôjutsu stance, his right hand out and away from his body as it would be if he were in combat. He gathered and focused his chakra, pantomiming a grip on his quarterstaff - even though he wasn't actually holding it - and using that as a mental cue for releasing the chakra. A beat passed, and he turned his hand outward, a thrill rushing up his arm and a tiny backdraft lifting some of the messy white locks from his forehead. Eyes wide, he watched as one of the slips of parchment on the dummy's left arm rattled violently in the breeze he'd generated, holding his breath for a few seconds, willing it to break free of the kunai and fall to the ground...

But, such was not the case. The slip of parchment held its meager grip on the scarred wood with what he could have sworn was utter defiance. He scowled at it, quickly focused another burst of chakra, and actually somewhat lunged himself forward as he released it this time, mentally daring the damnable paper to defy a second gust. The grin that claimed his face when it fluttered right off the dummy's arm in this more directed gust could only have been called victorious.

Now he just had to do it four more times... and preferably without the theatrics, lest his ancestors be forever ashamed of him.[/ul]

[// One]

+10; Learned.

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

0|30:

SPOILER: Click to show

Slyph’s Orb
Rank: “C” Rank
Skill: Ninjutsu, Offensive
Effect: Causes a small burst of wind to shoot forth from the user’s hand in the shape of an orb.
Special: “Hand Seals”
Drawback: The attack is clearly visible, causing distortion as the orb moves forward.
Description: The Slyph’s Orb is a wind-based ninjutsu in which the user will project a burst of wind, shaped with chakra to resemble an orb, in a straight line towards a target. The user will perform the handseals, gathering the required chakra as they create a small vacuum around their hand. The air, once gathered, will compress itself into the shape of an orb, about six inches in diameter. It is then launched from the user’s hand by the user extending their arm forward in a punching-like motion. The orb itself will move quickly, its’ speed as the orb travels causing a great amount of distortion in the atmosphere. It is capable of easily dispersing most secondary weapons and, in fact, is capable of dragging those said weapons along with them as the orb moves forward. Capable of traveling a maximum distance of ten meters, it will travel at a speed of around 2 meters per second, and then the orb will reach its’ final destination and burst five feet in radius, creating a centralized air explosion that is powerful enough only to knock over objects weighing less than 200 lbs. The main use of this ability is to catch opponent’s secondary weapons as they launch them, or, perhaps, use after your own secondary weapons are thrown, and then cause them to be flung about in all directions at the end of the burst. If at any point the Slyph’s Orb is incapable of moving forward, the burst will be prematurely activated.
Limit: Must have the Wind Release.

[/font] He quipped, rising to his feet and sucking in the breath that had been knocked from him in all the commotion. Across the wide back lawn, his mother was standing near the edge of their porch, a ridiculous grin across her face. She reached within the folds of her sky-blue kimono and produced another raggedy old scroll, similar to the one he'd dropped on the ground before working out the Kazepusshu jutsu. She tossed it through the air, gave a wave of her hand, and vanished without a word. Yep, mother all right, Satoru thought to himself with chuckle as he caught the scroll and unfurled it. As he scanned it over, he realized she must have been watching him learn the previous jutsu; this one seemed like a pretty natural "next step" in projecting wind bursts from his hands. But it also seemed a bit more complex. Satisfied in having understood the basics of what was written, he dropped it next to the other scroll and stood before the target dummy again.

Considering what had happened when his mother launched the jutsu, he elected not to replace any paper strips or kunai for this one; dodging them all afternoon was not something he looked forward to. He bowed his head, raising both hands to his solar plexus and reeling off a series of handseals, gathering chakra into his forearms. As he finished the series of seals, he unclasped his hands, allowing the collected chakra to pool into his right hand. He held it for a moment, turning over in his mind the concept of creating a vacuum around his hand. After a few seconds, the chakra he was holding onto seemed to grow weighty in his hand; he quirked his brow and focused on that feeling, and a beat later, a sort of ripple shimmered through the air above his palm. Both of his thin eyebrows shot up at this, and he dropped the chakra charge; in that instant, the ripple seemed to implode, releasing a tiny burst of air that mussed his hair and rippled through the folds of his cloak.

Nodding to himself with a half of a smile upon his lips, he set his eyes on the target dummy and brought his hands back together in the same series of seals. This time, he let the chakra pool into his right hand from the start, letting the weight of it form the rippling vacuum above his palm as he released the final handseal. Scrutinizing the distortion in his hand, he realized it wasn't quite a perfect sphere - more like a shifting ripple in the vaguest shape of a beach ball that had lost some of its air - but it would do for a start. He brought his arm back, flexed at the elbow as though preparing a straight punch, and then launched it forward. He was almost shocked to see the little sphere-that-wasn't-quite take off from his palm with some gusto; he actually stumbled in the follow-through of his punching gesture and had to right himself before watching the jutsu continue towards the dummy.

Which... it wasn't quite exactly doing. The ripply shimmer moved through the air, and it did in fact cover ground between Satoru and the target, but its trajectory was almost whimsical. It seemed drunk; wobbling on its flight path and dropping down a few inches every second. It was also moving with all the haste of molasses on an upward climb in a Yuki no Kuni winter. Satoru seemed to wilt as he watched its progress, slumping where he stood and visibly forcing himself to pay attention to the wimpy jutsu. At long last, it met the target dummy - at the very base of its central post, mere inches above the ground. The ripple shimmered out of existence, releasing a pitiful little sigh of air that managed to bend a few blades of wet grass in the immediate vicinity of the dummy.

Ancestors... rolling... in graves... Hanging his head, he allowed himself a moment to recollect before lifting his arms to give it another go.[/ul]

[// One]

+10; 10|30

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

10|30:

SPOILER: Click to show

Slyph’s Orb
Rank: “C” Rank
Skill: Ninjutsu, Offensive
Effect: Causes a small burst of wind to shoot forth from the user’s hand in the shape of an orb.
Special: “Hand Seals”
Drawback: The attack is clearly visible, causing distortion as the orb moves forward.
Description: The Slyph’s Orb is a wind-based ninjutsu in which the user will project a burst of wind, shaped with chakra to resemble an orb, in a straight line towards a target. The user will perform the handseals, gathering the required chakra as they create a small vacuum around their hand. The air, once gathered, will compress itself into the shape of an orb, about six inches in diameter. It is then launched from the user’s hand by the user extending their arm forward in a punching-like motion. The orb itself will move quickly, its’ speed as the orb travels causing a great amount of distortion in the atmosphere. It is capable of easily dispersing most secondary weapons and, in fact, is capable of dragging those said weapons along with them as the orb moves forward. Capable of traveling a maximum distance of ten meters, it will travel at a speed of around 2 meters per second, and then the orb will reach its’ final destination and burst five feet in radius, creating a centralized air explosion that is powerful enough only to knock over objects weighing less than 200 lbs. The main use of this ability is to catch opponent’s secondary weapons as they launch them, or, perhaps, use after your own secondary weapons are thrown, and then cause them to be flung about in all directions at the end of the burst. If at any point the Slyph’s Orb is incapable of moving forward, the burst will be prematurely activated.
Limit: Must have the Wind Release.

[/font] he muttered to himself, "That's a step up, at least."  He considered the situation for a moment; perhaps he was putting too much thought into the preparation, but not enough into the execution?  Just to cover all bases, he elected to apply this query to his next attempt.  He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and dropped back into stance.  Hands seals flew by; weighty chakra surged into that now-familiar shimmer in his palm.  This time, however, he kept his gaze steady on the target, and his mind focused on the outcome.  He envisioned a roaring gale sweeping through their back lawn, its epicenter the eviscerated remnants of his parents' old target dummy, knocking down their neighbor's trees and rolling out over the nearby terrace.  In his mind, it looked about right.  He glanced down briefly, just enough to visually confirm that he'd formed a nice sphere out of the distortion over his palm, and drew his arm back once again.  He did not hesitate, nor hold the position, but simply flung his hand out in the same gesture he'd done twice now, allowing himself a low grunt of exertion as he flung the orb away.

It took only a fraction of a second for him to realize how badly he'd screwed it up this time; the orb went whirling through the air at speed once more, for sure, but he'd released it far off his mark.  It whizzed in a beautifully straight line, straighter than any he could ever draw with a pen, straight enough that it would have been worth patting himself on the back... if it hadn't gone straight by the dummy, nearly a meter off to the right, and angled upwards into the air.  He clenched his fist and cast his gaze downwards, unwilling to watch this particular failure whiz off over the other neighbor's farmland.  He was caught by surprise when his ears caught the sound of something not dissimilar to thunder, albeit much, much quieter and lacking in such ferocity.  He whipped his eyes up in time to see the surge of air from where the sphere had exploded; he'd forgotten that it would only travel a certain distance on its own, anyway.  Though it had struck nothing, the windburst from this attempt seemed greater than the last, visibly rustling the leaves of the trees near where it had exploded.  His bangs caught the very tail edge of a tiny backdraft from it - certainly not really a part of the jutsu, but just a collateral breeze created in its wake - and he allowed himself a small, lopsided smirk of victory.  Damn, that might actually have almost done something if I'd hit the stupid target, he nagged himself internally.

Unbeknownst to him, his mother was perched in the eaves along the backside of their home, knitting a scarf absently as she watched her son's efforts.  Her face was a mix of prideful joy at his perseverance, and another, darker emotion that couldn't readily be placed, knit into her brows in spite.  She smiled in spite of herself as he dropped back into that same fighting stance; from this distance, she could only just make out the movements of his shoulders as he rattled off a series of handseals.  Though she couldn't see it, his face was alight with determination; that little victorious smirk touched the corners of his eyes as he reared back, chakra-pooled distortion in hand, and let another orb fly - this one straight and true, and more importantly, on-target.

It cracked into the dummy with a sound like a broomstick beating a hefty rug.  Mother and son both smiled broadly as the backwash of the explosion rolled by the young shinobi, this one managing to lift his already-messy hair straight up, and part his cloak on both sides.  He was getting there, he could tell; but it still didn't quite seem right.  It was lacking 'oomph;' though he had no delusions of being able to produce the calamitous effects of his mother's use of the jutsu, he still felt he could improve upon its blast force.  Nodding to himself, he reached up and unfastened his cloak from around his neck, shrugging it off his shoulders and tossing it off to the side with an almost comical flourish.  Back from her vantage point in the eaves, his mother gave a slight gasp; her boy was getting serious about this, now.

He stretched languidly, twisting around to pop the bones of his spine in both directions, and then fell once more into his preparatory stance.  It was time to get this right.[/ul]

[// One]

+10; 20|30

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

20|30:

SPOILER: Click to show

Slyph’s Orb
Rank: “C” Rank
Skill: Ninjutsu, Offensive
Effect: Causes a small burst of wind to shoot forth from the user’s hand in the shape of an orb.
Special: “Hand Seals”
Drawback: The attack is clearly visible, causing distortion as the orb moves forward.
Description: The Slyph’s Orb is a wind-based ninjutsu in which the user will project a burst of wind, shaped with chakra to resemble an orb, in a straight line towards a target. The user will perform the handseals, gathering the required chakra as they create a small vacuum around their hand. The air, once gathered, will compress itself into the shape of an orb, about six inches in diameter. It is then launched from the user’s hand by the user extending their arm forward in a punching-like motion. The orb itself will move quickly, its’ speed as the orb travels causing a great amount of distortion in the atmosphere. It is capable of easily dispersing most secondary weapons and, in fact, is capable of dragging those said weapons along with them as the orb moves forward. Capable of traveling a maximum distance of ten meters, it will travel at a speed of around 2 meters per second, and then the orb will reach its’ final destination and burst five feet in radius, creating a centralized air explosion that is powerful enough only to knock over objects weighing less than 200 lbs. The main use of this ability is to catch opponent’s secondary weapons as they launch them, or, perhaps, use after your own secondary weapons are thrown, and then cause them to be flung about in all directions at the end of the burst. If at any point the Slyph’s Orb is incapable of moving forward, the burst will be prematurely activated.
Limit: Must have the Wind Release.

[/i]. He locked himself into stance a bit tighter, tucked his chin down, and moved his hands through the series of seals once again. What had he missed so far? He'd managed to improve the orb's trajectory, its velocity, and even the impact force of its explosion to a certain degree. But it still just seemed... somehow off, somehow lacking. His mind broiled not unlike the chakra pooling in his palm as he turned it over and over, trying to find the missing component.

And then, it hit him. He was working with the wind-style, after all; Fuuton no jutsu, his favorite elemental release and style, the style his mother was most gifted in of the many she'd wielded in her past career, the style his father had excelled in to the point of near mastery. They all took to it as though their very blood blew through them like wind, rather than flowed like a liquid. And why was that? With a chuckle, Satoru dropped the chakra he'd gathered, shaking his hand as though flinging water off after washing up for a meal. He relaxed his shoulders, shaking his arms out while shifting from foot to foot, almost dancing in place for a moment. He relaxed everything within himself. He'd been too caught up in trying to get it perfect; he'd allowed himself to get too tense, too strained in his movements. His mind turned back to his favorite jutsu in the world: wind-surfing. It was the freedom of it that had been so attractive to him. That's what he'd been missing in the application of this jutsu.

A lackadaisical smile replaced his previously jaunty smirk; he slowly let himself fall back into the same stance, but this time with every muscle not necessary to maintain the position as relaxed as possible. He took a slow, deep breath, and then another, focusing on the movement of the air across his lips and into his lungs. He visualized the air moving through his body as he formed the series of hand seals, pictured a rush of wind swirling into his hand as he released the final seal and turned his palm up to cradle the forming distortion. He calmed his mind and he beheld the near-perfect sphere that came to life in his hand, shimmering and hard to look directly at, just as before, but so much more concentrated this time. Rather than trying to force it, he simply allowed the chakra to do what it was able to do.

The path of least resistance, he thought to himself absently. He turned at his waist, letting his arm flow back gently into a flexed position, and whipped himself back around to throw the punch. His movements were more fluid, but the force of the action was still there, evident in the rippling of the muscles along his punching arm in the follow-through. He didn't tense up during any part of the execution this time, and the orb seemed to launch itself from his palm with true force for once. It raced through the air, closing the distance to the target in just under two seconds, and crashing into it with an absolute bang. The sound of it cracked through his ears like wood being split as the orb exploded on contact, blasting out what could actually be called a gust of wind this time. The grass around the target dummy bent backwards in all directions, flattened for an instant as though some great lummox of a beast had stepped there. The dummy itself rattled violently on its post, rocking back and forth in the concussive burst for a moment. One of the kunai previously dislodged by his mother's blast, which had slapped into the ground on its side only a few feet from the target, was swept up by the blast and went skidding through the damp grasses in a straight line, slicing a neat trough through the green blades for a few feet.

Not giving himself time to celebrate as his eye caught the moving kunai, Satoru quickly rolled out of the follow-through from his previous punch and flew through another series of handseals as the backdraft from the explosion rushed by him. His shirt lifted up around the edges and his hair was positively ruined at this point, but he went on heedless of either, forming another near-perfect spheroid distortion and rearing back before the kunai had stopped moving along the ground. A half a second later, he launched another straight punch, just like the last one, though aimed at the ground around the kunai. The orb flew straight into it almost faster than he could follow, as there was barely over a meter between himself and the kunai at this point. Again his ears were treated to a crack like splitting wood, but this time the effects of the blast were much closer to him. In an instant, he realized he was caught in the very edge of the blast radius as a column of air slammed into him, knocking him off balance from his relaxed stance. He barely noticed the kunai flying off to the side as he fell over onto his back with a thud for the second time that afternoon.

He lay on the grass, a sort of dazed grin playing across his face, his eyes unfocused as he finally let himself feel the slightest bit of pride in what he was doing. An instant later, the shaft of sunlight washing over him was occluded by his mother's worried visage, her brows knit and her hands coming to rest on his heaving chest as he caught his breath. Their sky-blue eyes met and he choked out a laugh as genuine happiness flooded through him. The older kunoichi studied her son quizzically for a moment, before realizing that she had over-reacted; the grin playing across his face and the chuckles squeezing out through heavy breaths made it clear - he was having an absolute blast with this. She hooked one hand under his left arm and hoisted him back up to his feet, still giggling like a fool.

"Come now, little lark," she chided playfully, schooling her face into a playfully stern look. "A shinobi doesn't lay around on the job, you know!"[/ul]

[// One]

+10; Learned.

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

0|10:

SPOILER: Click to show

Slyph’s Orb: Rift
Rank: “D” Rank
Skill: Ninjutsu, Offensive
Effect: Causes the air burst of the Slyph’s Orb to happen prematurely.
Special: “Hand Seals”- Ram
Drawback: Causes the Slyph’s Orb to dissipate, thus it is not traveling its’ full distance.
Description: After launching a Slyph’s Orb, the user is now capable of using their control over their own chakra to cause the Orb to stop moving and instead force the Slyph’s Orb to burst open, flinging whatever secondary weapons the attack has managed to pick up in all directions. This ability can be used tactically in order to catch an opponent off-guard with the air burst or for numerous other reasons.
Limit: Must know the Slyph’s Orb.

[/font] He quipped, making every effort to sound as full of himself as possible.  His mother quirked a brow and in an instant, had leapt several meters backwards, her hands flying through a brief series of practiced seals.  She flung the jutsu he'd been working to master right at him, a playful grin on her face.  He barely ducked out of the way, feeling the draft of it whiz by his left ear with enough force to make it ring.  Whipping around, he tracked the orb with his eyes, trying to pinpoint where it would crash into something and explode.  To his shock, it exploded only a few meters past him, having touched nothing.  With a clap like thunder, the shockwave of it slammed into him, pushing him straight back off his feet.  He barely had time to consider preparing himself to smack into the ground again when he felt his mother's arms wrap around him, breaking his upcoming fall and setting him gently back on his feet.  He whipped around and scrutinized her with shock etched into his narrow face, taking note of the Ram handseal she was waving around playfully.

"As you can see, little lark," she began softly, "The Sylph's Orb jutsu doesn't just have to go crashing into something to explode."  She waggled her hands, emphasizing the Ram seal as she went on.  "If you can focus on the chakra you expend to launch the orb itself, you can detonate it anytime you like with a simple push, helped by the molding influence of the Ram handseal."  She nodded emphatically, brandishing the handseal once again for effect and pointing off across their lawn, away from the dummies.  "So, have at it!"

Satoru stared at her for a moment, his breathing having calmed to a semblance of normalcy, and reached up to dab a few beads of seat from his brow.  His mother had often helped him with learning many aspects of chakra molding and its applications, but she'd never been quite so emphatically hands-on in her approach.  This whole thing seemed a bit out of character for her, but he wasn't about to let her wisdom fall on deaf ears.  He gave a brief nod and turned around, settling into the relaxed form of his fighting stance that he'd adopted mere moments ago.  He took a few long, slow breaths, summoning up more chakra and molding it together with that tireless series of seals.  He drew his arm back after forming the orb - it was a perfect sphere now, within its shimmering cloak of aerial disturbance - and flung it forward with that almost-straight punch.  It flew straight and true, whizzing across the lawn and leaving a trail of waving grass in its wake.  He let one second pass, and then another, before bringing his hands together in the Ram seal, as his mother had shown.  He locked his sights on the orb, reaching out to feel the chakra he'd placed into it.  Another second passed, and it fizzled out of existence.  No bang, no rush of wind; just a quiet, pitiful sigh - not unlike the very first attempt he'd made at it altogether.

He could feel his mother's gaze on his back.  He didn't turn around to look; he didn't voice any questions.  If he asked her what he did wrong, she'd just tell him to evaluate what just happened and form his own hypothesis.  He took a breath to center himself, shrugging off the welling pit of disappointment in his belly; he hated messing up when he was alone, but with his mother watching?  It was crushing, to say the least.  He allowed a few seconds to pass, steadying himself and reaching deep for more chakra to use.  Oh... that's almost too obvious, idiot, he berated himself internally, realizing the critical error he'd made.  Summoning up his own chakra was the perfect analogy:  he visualized it internally as reaching into a deep well with a bucket and pulling it out, scoop by scoop, to store in his arm through the handseals used to prepare the jutsu.  During that process, he was mentally and spiritually engaged in the act of moving his own chakra around.  It was simple chakra molding, the most basic thing he'd ever learned to do.  Every time he'd thrown the orb, he'd lost that mental grip on the chakra that was contained in it, letting it fly off to do its thing.  If he was going to detonate it by will, he'd have to maintain that grip while it was in flight... at least, that's what seemed to make the most sense at the moment.

Satisfied that he'd come to a fairly safe solution, he went through the motions again.  Settling into the stance, reeling off the handseals, rearing his arm back, and launching the orb, all in a matter of seconds.  It was a flowing motion that he could get used to, with practice.  As the orb left his hand, he kept his focus locked on it.  It felt completely different; in a strange way, somewhere in the back of his mind, it was like he could perceive its motions.  Almost like a little part of himself was flying along with it.  And of course, it was; it was his own chakra, after all.  He followed it for two seconds, raised his hands, clasped them together into the Ram seal, and let out a whoop as the orb detonated instantaneously - and with all the might it had when he'd been hitting the dummy.  He whirled around and flashed a huge, toothy grin at his mother, before whirring through the series of hand seals yet again.  Mei's eyes widened as she realized what was coming, somewhat caught off-guard by the speed with which he'd launched into the jutsu again.  She vanished seemingly into thin air - to the young shinobi's eyes, at least - and clapped a hand on her son's shoulder from behind as he detonated the orb successfully, right where she had been standing barely a second before.  He nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden contact, having been unable to track her movements at all.

"Not half bad, ya little shit," she taunted in his ear playfully, though not without a tone of genuine pride in her voice.  Satoru grinned in spite of the adrenaline rush her sudden movements had caused, and perched his fists akimbo once more.  He really was made of hot stuff, after all.[/ul]

[Deleted]

+10; Learned.

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

0|10, first time learning:

SPOILER: Click to show

Slyph’s Orb: Size Increase Training
Rank: “D” Rank, Possible Repetition (Maximum 6 Times)
Skill: Ninjutsu, Offensive
Effect: Increases the physical size of the Slyph’s Orb by one inch diameter.
Special: Dedicated training in increasing the size of the Slyph’s Orb.
Drawback: N/A
Description: This special training method allows the user to increase the physical size of the slyph’s orb. This means that as the orb is moving forward, it is capable of catching more secondary weapons within its’ wake. This training also slightly increases the ending burst of the jutsu, increasing the radius of the burst by six inches. This training method is only capable of being repeated a maximum number of six (6) times.
Limit: Requires Slyph’s Orb.

[OOC:  A bit more fluff than normal for a D-rank tech in this post, as I'm wrapping up and planning to 'exit' this particular setting, after this tech is learned.  Sorry in advance I love you all.]

[/font] he began slowly, narrowing his eyes and peering off across the terraced valley that bordered their property, taking in the waves of wind through the grains in the now rapidly-fading evening sunlight. Everything was taking on a misty, purple hue; it seemed to him that they could probably expect a small reprise of the day's earlier storm in the coming hours. "I mean, I know you were like, an AnBU Falcon and you're a registered Chuunin and basically made of all kinds of power I can't even imagine, but like..." He trailed off, his eyes downcast for a moment as he pondered his next words. Mei tilted her head slightly, the tiniest grin perking her lips; she knew where this was going. "Well, exponential power differences aside, why is your version of this jutsu so much more... well, epic?"

Mei laughed heartily at that; she'd known basically what he'd ask, but she hadn't expected the adjective he'd chosen. Epic wasn't something she'd ever apply to anything she did anymore. Not since falling ill after Satoru's graduation, at least. She hardly felt she was half the kunoichi she was back in her prime.  She lifted a finger to her chin and made a show of pondering the question, as though she was absolutely strained to find an answer.  Satoru's expression slowly fell, as he internally kicked himself for thinking he had any way to approach the kind of power his mother wielded.  Crestfallen, he slumped where he stood, and was about to suggest they just retire for dinner, when his mother spoke up again.

"Oh, don't get mopey, kiddo," she chided, giving his left shoulder a playful but somewhat firm punch.  "All you have to do is work with it a bit more.  The more you apply yourself to it, the more natural it will become, like any skill.  There are many aspects of this particular jutsu upon which you can improve."  Before continuing, she paused to rattle off handseals and summon up a small, shimmering orb in her palm to demonstrate. "A good one to start with is its size; all it takes is a little more effort.  And chakra."  As she spoke, the orb seethed, expanding in her palm by an inch or so, then another, and then nearly tripling in size to Satoru's eye.  His brows shot up in awe at the pulsing sphere, excitement rising in him once more.  He hardly paid attention as she launched the orb away from them, too busy setting himself up to bother witnessing the masssive explosion as she detonated it several meters away with a Ram seal.

In a trice, he'd gone through the motions and formed a perfect, seething spheroid disturbance in his palm.  He had to take a moment to relax, excitement being more of a burden than a boon given his slowly mounting fatigue.  Reaching deep within himself, he summoned up even more chakra than he had been, urging it to flow into the sphere he'd formed.  His eyes widened in delight as it seemed to writhe, quivering in his palm before expanding ever-so-slightly.  A grin perked his lips and he turned to face his mother, expecting a look of approval on her face.  The next two seconds were a whirl; the only thing he could take note of was the sudden alarm that gripped his mother's visage, before his world went sideways.

His lips twisted into a grimace; his ears were ringing and there was an odd little pain in the back of his head.  He was vaguely aware of his mother hauling him up by his arm and brushing grass and debris off of his back and out of his (now absolutely ruined) hair.  His mind pieced together what had just happened; in his excitement over increasing the size of the orb, he'd lost his focus, and the thing had detonated right in his hand.  He wasn't exactly sure what happened right after that, but given the twinge on top of his head and his proximity to the target dummy, he had a general idea he'd blown himself over (third time today!) and just so happened to knock his head on the post.  After a few seconds, his head cleared and he gave an embarrassed chuckle to his mother, who had elected not to say anything.  She knew he'd beat himself up enough internally, and work out his mistake on his own.

Taking a few steps away from the dummy, he closed his eyes and started it all over once more.  Those flowing handseals - they were getting quite smooth to execute, now - and the weighty rush of chakra to his hand... he was now getting quite tired; he could tell he was scraping the bottom of the barrel, as it were.  He shook his head lightly, willing himself to stay calm and relaxed and focus the chakra into his hand.  The now-familiar ripple shimmered into life, a beautiful little sphere over his palm as he expected.  He gently willed the extra chakra he'd molded into it, watching silently as it grew, slowly but surely.  He began to feel a slight strain as it reached an expanse of about an extra inch in his palm; satisfied that this was at least a step in the right direction, he locked his eyes on the battered old target dummy and launched the orb away.

There was a decidedly sharper crack to the concussive blast when it smacked into the target, and he could tell that the blast radius was a bit wider - even if only by a few inches.  Heaving a great sigh, he cast a sidelong glance at his mother, hoping to find approval in her eyes.  He didn't have too much left in him, but he'd give it another go if necessary.  He wouldn't stop until he got it right - or fell over from over-exertion.  Whichever came first.[/ul]

[// One]

+10; Learned.

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

[OOC: Transitional post for personal plot organization and timing of technique availability for missions and so on; no grading needed of course.]

[/i][/font] - and laid his cloak over him like a blanket as he dozed peacefully.  He'd need food when he woke, so she set off to the kitchen to busy herself in preparations for dinner.  Her thoughts turned deeper inward, and she was, for a moment, glad her son couldn't see her dampening face.[/ul]

[exit]

[| Satoru Takagi | 悟高木]

0|10:

SPOILER: Click to show

Charged Projectile
Rank: D
Skill: Ninjutsu
Effect: Charges a metal throwing projectile with lightning adding lightning damage.
Special: ---
Drawback: Can only do enough to slightly numb and paralyze (Only for a quarter of a post), if the user tries to make it stronger, it will end up backfiring and paralyzing their hand. Can only charge up to 5 slots at once
Description: The user holds as many kunai/shuriken, or metal projectile for that matter, as they can, up to 5 slots in their hands, and charges them with electricity. Extra lightning damage is added which will slightly paralyze or numb. The projectiles will shock the opponent weakly even if they don't make contact, but at least come close to.
Limit: Lightning release.

[enter; 6 hours elapsed]

[/font] he started, rubbing his injured hand with the other and glaring down at the kunai; he could see a few blue-white sparks fizzle out around it as the charge dispersed into the still-damp blades of grass.  He must have overdone it with the charge; it was a metal object, after all, and his hands - despite being partially covered by his fingerless black combat gloves - were pretty good conductors of electricity.  He'd have to watch that next time; he wasn't sure he could even use his stronger arm to practice throwing these for a few minutes after that shock.  He dropped that arm to his side, shaking out the paralyzed hand and willing it to regain sensation.  In the meantime, he leaned down and swept the offending kunai back up with his left hand, not content to sit and wait for such a small handicap to pass.  He wasted no time, already channeling chakra into it before he was even fully standing.  This time, he halted the flow shortly after it passed the point of charge needed for the kunai rashinban, and flung it under-handed at the target board in a way that had caught him a lot of flak in his Academy years; his final instructor being the only one not to scold him for poor technique, recognizing that it was an effective way to counter the lack of finesse borne of using his off-hand.  

The kunai arced through the air, slamming into the target board well off-center.  His aim with his left hand may not have been so great, but the under-handed toss at least gave it enough force to embed itself firmly into the target.  He'd expected to see some sort of discharge of the electricity stored in it, but there was nothing of the sort.  Just a kunai thwacking into a target board.  He pursed his lips in consternation and picked up another kunai from the grasses.  The only thing he could come up with was that he'd been too conservative in fear of electrocuting himself; perhaps the charge had been so little as to have dispersed while the kunai was in flight.  Hoping this was the proper explanation, he again channeled a measure of chakra into the kunai, willing himself to push the charge a bit further this time.  There was a point at which the comfortable thrum of electricity shifted to a more vibrant state; that was where he'd stopped with the last one.  There was quite a bit more he could send into it before the point at which he'd shocked himself; he went for what seemed like the middle ground between the two extremes, stopping the charge only when he could feel the beginnings of static dance in his palm, setting the hairs on his bare forearm standing on end.  It was a peculiar sensation, but not necessarily uncomfortable; satisfied in this, he hopped onto one foot, stood on his toes, and spun in place, whipping the kunai through the air under-handed again as he brought his other foot back down to smack the ground and steady himself.  A moment later, the kunai smacked into the other side of the target board, and there was a decidedly rewarding little fizzle and pop of white-blue discharge as it did so.

He let off a chuckle of satisfaction, and noticed that his better throwing hand seemed to be coming back to life.  He flexed his arm and twisted his wrist, opening and closing the fist to make sure it felt comfortable.  It was still a little stiff through his fingers, but he could at least move them now.  He stooped down and scooped up six shuriken, carefully grabbing each in the space between two fingers of either hand, so that they were like little spiky claws between each knuckle as his fists closed.  This was his favorite way to throw shuriken - if one or two missed, there were still four or five that could do some damage.  He crossed his arms before his chest, hands up by his ears with palms to his back.  Bending his knees and sinking down somewhat, he summoned up his chakra and charged both hands with electricity.  This time, he could feel the charge potential a little more clearly, and pushed it to that critical level with ease.  He took a half-step forward and flung his arms outwards in great arcs, releasing the pressure of his fingers upon the shuriken halfway through. They flew towards the target at speed and five of them smacked into it in various places with that same satisfying sizzle. The sixth went goodness-knows-where, but he was almost sure he could hear a sizzle from it too as it hit the ground or, perhaps, some unlucky woodland creature.

"Shit, this is fun," he said aloud, perching his offhand akimbo and ruffling the back of his hair with his other.  This was the kind of thing he could see himself putting to extensive use on those glorious missions he kept telling himself he'd start going out on soon. Just for good measure, though, he reached down to grab a few shuriken with one hand and a kunai with the other, with the idea of testing his ability to balance the charge between both hands when they were wielding different levels of mass.  Eyes on target, he set himself up; the kunai in his good hand, held at waist level while his left arm crossed over his chest with the shuriken between his fingers, resting on his shoulder.  He leapt forward onto one foot and set himself in a spin, an absolutely ridiculous grin upon his face.

Lightning flashed overhead as four thwack-fizzle-pop combinations rang out in the little yard; as the deep rumble of thunder followed this peal of lightning, the young shinobi couldn't help but thinking that this was absolutely the life - whatever that was supposed to mean, anyway.[/ul]

[// One]

+10; Learned.