Evolution

[Kayori]

Throughout the whole morning, the young Jounin had walked through the whole of Konohagakure. Mingling with the crowd in the main streets, hanging out at some of the stalls to chat with the owners he had known since he was kid. Every now and then, Kayori would go around town whenever he had the chance, looking up his friends and acquaintances as a way to loosen up himself and to enjoy a day free of his shinobi duties.

Kayori sat at one of the tables of a ramen store, having lunch with his best friend, Shinigi Kyoura. Most of the people he knew were the normal civilians of Konoha, the owners, shopkeepers and neighbours he had known from young. Friends that were in the same line as him were fairly few, a large portion of them unable to survive the war. The only few left was this colleague in the ANBU, a bespectacled Jounin that was of the same age.

However, in a striking contrast to Kayori's unkempt appearance, Kyou was meticulous about the way he looked. Looking more of a scholar than a shinobi, Kyou always had his hair neatly combed and was always polite. He was the complete opposite of the rough Uchiha, although that might due to him being raised by his adopted family. Kyou, like Kayori, was an orphan who had the luck of being adopted by a kind couple.

Kayori, on the other hand, had lived on his own after the death of his family just after he had made Genin rank. Most of his expenses were paid for through the fees from missions, and by scrimping and saving, the Uchiha managed to scrape through until he attained Chuunin rank and got a better life with the higher salary.

"So, what have you been up to lately?" Kyou asked as he skilfully used his chopstick to place a few strands of ramen on his spoon before putting it into his mouth. Kayori, slurping down his ramen with just his chopstick as a means of bringing the noodles closer to his mouth, swallowed a mouthful before answering his friend.

The Uchiha grinned as he answered. "I was hoping you would ask. After I got back from Iwa, which I've gotten its location marked down on my world map, I took up a mission to slay some giant animals terrorizing some village."

"Giant animals?" Kyou queried as he pushed up his glasses as they slowly slid down the bridge of his nose.

"Yeah, they were gorillas that were twice my height. Imagine that Kyou! I took them down easily enough though," the blonde Jounin remarked as he went back to another mouthful of his ramen. "Must have been one hell of a battle then," the raven-haired Jounin replied as he continued to finish the rest of his ramen.

"Not really. I was the one doing all the attacking. The monsters just fled when they saw me," was the distorted reply from Kayori as he spoke with his mouth full, swallowing the last of his ramen as soon as he finished his sentence. "That hit the spot."

"Yeah, I'm full from this meal too. Kayo, I think I'm gonna have to go now, there's still plenty of paperwork I have to complete," Kyou informed his friend as he placed his chopstick across the lid of his bowl and his spoon in the bowl. "The lack of manpower is really bumming me."

"You were always good as both an office and field agent, Kyou. It's been awhile since we teamed up and hopefully it will be soon."

"You won't have to wait long," Kyou said as he stood up from his seat, assuring his friend. "Anyway, gotta run now. Stacks of paper aren't gonna complete themselves."

Kayori merely smiled and watched as his childhood friend went off in the direction of the Hokage Tower in a hurried pace. He had seen Kyou at work both as an office agent and a field agent. His approach to both positions were the same. Calmly analytical, quick to weigh the consequences of the options open to him and ruthlessly swift decision making. As an ANBU operative, Kyou could have been the poster boy, the perfect assassin.

Leaving the exact amount needed to pay for the two large bowls of ramen, Kayori rose from the table and left after thanking the owner for the wonderful meal.

The sky was blue, puffy white clouds were slowly drifting across it and there was just enough shade to protect his eyes from the glowing sun. It was a beautiful day. And Kayori had the whole day to himself to spend it as he liked.

[Kayori]

With his hands in his pockets, dressed in a simple of set of clothes consisting of a yellow T-shirt which loose round-neck collar promptly displayed his shoulder blades for all to see and a pair of khaki shorts that came just under his knees, the Uchiha walked aimlessly throughout the whole of Konoha. His forehead protector, instead of being tied around his forehead as it had always been, was slung loosely around his neck.

He had planned to spend his day idling about, hoping he could keep his good mood throughout the day. Which was a problem, for in order to really feel alive he needed the quick rush of blood through his veins and the burst of adrenaline that pumped through his blood. He wanted sweat to flow free from his body, to unleash his body into a frenzy of activity.

In his moment of undecidedness, Kayori just stood in the middle of the street, the people around him moving past him as if he was just a stone in a stream. As if his decisions were tangible objects in his palms, the Uchiha held up both hands with the palm up at his waist level at he looked from one palm to another.

One part of him wanted to just dawdle and laze around, while the other part of him prompted him to head home, grab his weapon and get the lethargy out of his body. It took less than five minutes for the Uchiha to make his decision, and it was obvious which part had triumphed as he walked in the direction of his single storey house.

Ten minutes later, the blonde shinobi exited his home appearing to have taken nothing. But the observant ones would have noticed that there was a slight bulge in his right pocket, the bulge resembling the shape of a scroll. Having locked the door to his humble residence, the Uchiha quickly took a road that led to a greener part of the village, covered in trees.

He tried to locate the clearing in the midst of a bamboo thicket that he had used to train as a Genin and Chuunin, but after one hour of combing the area, Kayori eventually gave up and settled for just any space large enough for him to swing his sword. He fished the scroll from his pocket and easily summoned his sword, a result of repetitive action.

[Trigga]

GM

“What are you doing?”

A voice loomed from behind the man with strands of luminous blonde—approximately ten meters. Garbed in an assortment of finely crafted armaments, with a distinctive katana strapped to his back, the only notable feature visible upon first inspection would be his dark hair, and purple eyes. A body modestly built, with little to no body fat and preponderance muscle, it wouldn’t be farfetched to assume that the man was well trained. Though if you turned your head, and for a moment took the time to glare into his facial prospect, an intent of deceit was evident. You could tell he wasn’t one to be trusted.

Snickering, the man progressed forward a solid two meters, if he wasn’t intercepted of sort, all the while, both respective hands were concealed within his pockets—rambling hesitantly. “You loss?” He inquired, still showcasing a sly grin, akin to a venous snake who attempted to ploy their prey into death itself.

[Kayori]

Raising an eyebrow at the sudden appearance of the man, Kayori mentally chided himself for allowing someone to get within such close range without him noticing. Still, it wasn't too farfetched to think that the man before him was capable of hiding his presence and sneak up on the Uchiha.

Allowing the tip of his sword to rest on the soft ground beside his right leg, Kayori looked back at the man, reflecting the contempt from the man with amusement in his eyes, as one side of his mouth curved to form a one-sided smirk.

"I'm just here for a sweat out, and I know perfectly where I am," Kayori answered smoothly, putting his right hand on his blade while he balanced the weight of his body between his two legs. This man looked like a loose cannon, and he had no intention of being attacked out of the blue.

"I think that's just about right for the amount of distance between us," the Uchiha remarked as the man moved forward. Scrutinizing the fellow before him, the Jounin was sure he hadn't seen this scoundrel-looking person before in Konoha. He definitely as hell wouldn't have allowed someone with such a sly look gain the rank of Genin.

[Trigga]

GM

It would seem someone got offensive!?

Kayori answered smoothly, putting his right hand on his blade while he balanced the weight of his body between his two legs.

While the Uchiha assumed the man was going to give him enough leeway to actually progress his hand towards the handle of his blade, that wasn’t the case. The instant his limb moved over his body, and slid down towards the weapon of interest would be when the opposition’s paranoia surfaced keenly. Without admonition, and almost instinctively, did his hands erupt from both respective pockets, reining a storm of Shuriken ⁽⁵⁾ all with both keen exactitude, and deadly speed upon his prey! With eight meters setting their distance, unless he redirected his focus from his blade, and onto what was happening, evasion would have been unfeasible considering the circumstances.

Meanwhile, instantly transitioning from his projectile Flailing did he vanish? A skillful execution of shunshin carrying the man against the winds roughly five meters to his rear, now setting a new gap between the two.

Hands erupting into a melody of handseals¹, he prepared himself for an expected counterattack. Fingers folding over one another, palms clasping fleetingly, the oddity came with the speed in which he accomplished this feat with. Well beyond that of a standard Shinobi, this was obvious. Senses atoned to his surroundings, the dark-haired aggressor allowed his senses to harmonize with his surroundings. The Uchiha wanted his blood, he’d have to work for it.

SPOILER: Click to show

Shuriken ⁵

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Prep ¹
Hypersealing II

[Kayori]

It was times like this that Kayori was thankful of his large sword. And with Souten Ginrou, it was even better. In the face of the flurry of shuriken coming in his direction, the Uchiha deftly swung his blade in the direction of the ninja stars, deflecting them with the broad side of his sword with several swings before turning to his left and using a burst of Shunpo to further create a distance of 4 meters between them as soon as he sensed the hostile shinobi behind him.

Facing the hostile shinobi with his sword cocked, Kayori immediately noticed the fingers sifting through the hand seals and without hesitation, swung his blade in front of him, releasing a dark blue blade beam from his weapon in the direction of the shinobi. He wasn't allowing his opponent to finish his handseals.

SPOILER: Click to show

Shunpo D-rank x1
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Kousen (Blade Beam) D-rank x1 _{Swiftness I}

[Trigga]

The Uchiha scum and their permeative eyes were nothing more then a blessing in which they didn't deserve. Eyes so powerful that the normal human's oculars could never compare; setting them amongst the heavens and being compared to gods themselves. This was sickening enough and the sheer honor of being able to rid the planet of one was that much sweeter. His ignorant hair color would only match his lack of intelligence and as he deflected the Shuriken, the bait was effective. His prey-- this simple-half-witted animal had fallen into a trap he surely couldn't get himself out of. It was a shame really, as he distanced himself further away, now seventeen meters stabled their new gap. It only made his technique that much more acceptable to connection.

Kayori immediately noticed the fingers sifting through the hand seals and without hesitation

With hands that moved at the speed of gods for a lack of better words, the deranged shinobi immediately slammed his palms into the earth prior to the execution of the second swing. Before the Uchiha's attack would meet the open air and rush to devour its prey, would the ground around him spiral, and all debris, loose essences of rock and earth, and mother nature's products would rush inward, attempting to crush the Jōnin in the midst of his execution. While the Uchiha had the right idea in mind, he failed to consider two things. Distance, and the man's skillfulness with kata.

Needless to say, the man was in no real danger at all as he waited out the results of his attack.

SPOILER: Click to show

Hyper Sealing II
Chakra reduction I

Doton Ryouuken (Earth Dominion)
Rank: D, C, B, A, S
Type: Supplementary / Doton Ninjutsu
Range: 0 - 50 meters
Chakra: Mid
Special: Establishes the area of earth a user can control for their techniques. Dominion extends 10 meters in every direction of the user, and goes up 10 more with each rank learned.
Description: The basis behind the majority of Doton techniques lie in the user's ability to control the very earth around them. 'Earth Dominion' is just as its name implies, a fundamental supplementary jutsu of Doton nature that allows the user to intermingle their chakra with that of nature, harmonizing the two in order to create complete control over the earth around them. Once this link is achieved, the door is opened for greater creations to be made.
Domain: Doton.

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Retsudo Tenshou (Revolving Split Earth Palm)
Rank: D, C, B, A, S
Type: Offensive / Doton Ninjutsu
Range: See special!
Chakra: Mid - Very High
Special: The whirlpool is created with the victim(s) always at the center. User’s Earth Dominion rank determines the size and range of the whirpool. The higher the rank known of this technique, the larger and more dangerous the churning rocks, boulders and the whirlpool itself will be.
Description: This technique allows the ninja to control nearby stone and rock, allowing them to create a circular whirlpool of earthen death for their opponent’s to enjoy. When the ninja forms the needed handseals and slams their palm to the ground, surrounding rock around their victims will begin to churn and twist up crushing all those trapped within it.
Domain: Doton. Earth Dominion.

[Kayori]

Despite the crescent arc of chakra flashing through the air towards his opponent, Kayori recognized his impending doom and knew it would arrive sooner if he didn't do anything soon. Holding on to his sword with his left hand, gripped tightly, the Uchiha gathered katon elemental chakra to his right palm with swiftness and pressed the very same palm into the spiralling ground around him that threatened to churn and crush him along.

A targeted explosion ensued, freeing the blonde shinobi's legs as he made use of the opportunity to leap out of the danger zone to a relatively safer area. The earthern whirlpool was now five meters to his left. His pants were ragged and torn from the explosive blast of fire from his palm earlier, but apart from that, he had managed to escape unscathed, with minor scratches around his ankles.

Kicking off with his left feet, Kayori dashed in the direction of his opponent, his sword chambered by his side, arm muscles tensed in preparation to strike. As the distance between them began to zero, Kayori pushed himself into the air with his right feet, using the momentum of the dash. His sword held high above his head, the Uchiha dropped from the sky above with his sword poised for a devastating slash downwards.

SPOILER: Click to show

Crimson Burst (Shinkou Sakuretsu)
Rank: B
Type: Katon Ninjutsu
Range: 0-10 meters
Chakra/Stamina: High
Special: Blast radius at 10 meters towards the front in a conical shape. At close range or point blank, targets may suffer from second degree burns as well as broken bones. However, depending on where the user uses it on (eg: head), there maybe chances of mortal injuries capable of killing the target. For targets that are within the 5 to 10 meter range of the technique will only suffer from first degree to second degree burns with minor bone fractures. Capable of destroying equal-ranked barriers.
Description: An explosive burst of flames from the palm at point blank range with a blast radius that increases with rank. However, the blast has been calibrated so that explosion blasts outwards in the direction of the opponents to prevent any damage to the user. The blast is powerful enough at point blank to blast through concrete.
Domain: Katon

Saigo no Kage (Last Shadow)
Rank: D, C, B, A, S
Type: Offensive / Specialty Taijutsu / Ju Kenshi
Range: See special!
Stamina: Very High
Special: Highest rank known determines the height and speed of the user¡¯s leap before dropping down on the enemy. Damage is reliant on 'Zanbatou Mochi' plus the user's highest rank known, resulting in bonus crushing damage.
D: 1/4th kunai speed (5 meters)
C: Half kunai speed (10 meters)
B: 3/4th kunai speed (15 meters)
A: Kunai speed (20 meters)
S: Double kunai speed (25 meters)
Description: The Last Shadow is a lightning fast leap into the air and to rapidly descend with a crushing blow down on the enemy with extreme force before they can see it coming. Aptly named the Last Shadow, the user¡¯s shadow on the ground is the last shadow the opponent will see before their death as the Ju Kenshi drops from the sky above their opponent to deliver death from above.
Domain: Ju Kenshin. Zanbatou Mochi of equal rank.