Ξ origins [P]

[Ξ CHROME]

The lake scene was truly beautiful and the crisp morning air nipped lightly at the male’s dark skin. Adjusting to unilateral vision had been a difficult feat for him, especially having to relive with the experience of losing one of his main sensory organs as well as dealing with a scarred appearance. The gruesome scar that began at the top of the right eyebrow and ended at his right cheek told the tale of loss and the natural brown hue of his right eye had long been gone and instead had been turned into a haunting white. He brought a hand up to his face, cupping the blind eye as the youth lowered his head, slightly having a relapse as to what had occurred.

…

Had he been naïve? Had he been foolish? Nay, though many would see his choice of specialization fruitless. Genjutsu, the jutsu category deemed most useless. Its utility was quickly debunked by the presence of many Genjutsu-breaking blood lines, those that could simply pierce the illusion via chakra analyzing methods. That was not all. There were many methods of evading the effects of a casted Genjutsu and the Genin was forced to spend that much more time refining his primary Art. Yes, he was classified as a Medical Ninja and that would serve as his primary outlet for Ninjutsu but even so, it wasn’t as if the area of Ninjutsu was completely closed off for him. No, he still hadn’t discovered his chakra nature and the chakra litmus paper procedure hadn’t fared too well for him ( possibly due to incorrect use ). Arate felt a constant heavy burden on his shoulders, an intangible veil of cold steel blanketing his form… but he could find peace in this little area of his and this location almost served as a haven, one that was able to repel the apathy and brutality of the savage Ninja World. A deep breath was taken, filling the male’s lungs with brilliant oxygen and his eyes of mismatched hues scanned the scene before him, taking in the pleasantries of pure Nature…

…

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

[ Enter, Lady HayliNe ]

There was not a particular reason as to why I chose to escape the busy life of Kumogakure to this remote location. One thing was for certain and it was that I wanted to become a stronger kunoichi. As cliche as it sounds, it was something that I had desired to accomplish since I was just a child. I practically hated everyone around me, training together and going on missions to complete a mutual goal. Even though we were all residents of Kumogakure, I always considered myself in a competition with my comrades. They were all growing, developing their skills and becoming a potential threat to my identity. Oh well. In time, I know that I will become a precious gem that everyone will want to acquire, but until then I needed to recollect my thoughts about my life.

Walking through the mountainous environment of Thunder, I would soon find myself staring at the face of a lake. The time was about midday and the temperature was very comfortable, with an occasional chilling breeze. The gentle wind caressed my hair as it began to dance in the air, but it did not bother me. Putting my hands on my waist, I began to strut along the lakeside. 'Hm..' Being alone with such a large volume of water began to make me wonder just exactly how I was going to measure against everyone else in the shinobi world. With a smirk on my face, I began to complete a rapid succession of multiple handseals. Conjuring a burst of my spiritual energy, I would then finish completing my handseals and begin to activate one of my favorite techniques.

"Crystallization Commandment!"

Focusing on a thirty meter area from my position and outward towards the lake, I would then crystallize the water in its entirety. The suns rays bounced off of the new crystallized sheet of pure brilliance and reflected upon my pale face. The reflection of the light even appeared to brighten my black dress, a truly fascinating sight to see. It was as if I was standing in front of a giant lamp, with all eyes on me. Even the darkest color on my person began to shin brightly, an obvious foreshadowing of my future as a shinobi. Though impressed by my ability to create and manipulate such an advanced release, I was displeased by my lack of variety of techniques. There was still much more that I needed to learn and master, and this is the perfect place to do just that.

[Ξ CHROME]

…?!

His left eye, his functional eye, caught sight of a feminine figure lurking about the perimeter of the great lake. Her physical appearance seemed to be the exact opposite of Arate’s, already given gender differences and she differed even more once she unknowingly demonstrated her unique ability to the observing male. A beautiful crystal materialized out of nothingness, quickly coating the surface of the lake, analogous to that of a pond freezing during winter. The youth blinked his eyes in disbelief and a dark skinned hand came up to adjust the goggled leather pilot’s hat that was donned upon his head. How was that even possible?! He knew that there were six elemental chakra natures that governed the natural world though he was unsure of how it was possible to create pure crystal out of thin air? Little did he know that the crystallization process played upon molecules latent within the surrounding air but to Arate, it was nothing short of magic.

Blinking mismatched hues, the male rose to his feet and began to silently make his way towards the younger female, both working and blind eye fixated on the somewhat miraculous crystalline creation as well as the teenage girl who brought it into existence. The fact that someone else had managed to locate this area wasn’t on his mind and instead he wanted to observe the crystallization process first hand, even if it meant that he had to break out of his shell and interact with the blonde-haired female before him.

…

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

'Intruder?' After displaying my unique talent, I observed a male figure slowly approaching my area. 'Was he watching me the entire time..? Of course, he is most likely an allied comrade considering I was within the safe proximity of Kumogakure, however I was unsure about his motives. Why was he spying on me from a distance? Just exactly who was this guy, anyways? I was not about to let him make the first move, even if he was an allied shinobi. Abruptly focusing my attention to the stranger, I immediately noticed several things about him that intrigued me, if only just for a brief moment.

He seemed to have a scar along his right eye. 'Training error?' I was no medical ninja, but it seemed apparent that he was blind within one eye, how unfortunate. I also noticed that his outfit was rather plain looking, but appropriate for the local genin. He seemed a bit older than me by age, but something was definitely strange about him. He did not speak at all, nor announce that he was present in the same area as I was. Here I was, thinking I was alone and then there is a guy watching me with my back turned to him, nice first impression. Sighing, and placing my right hand on my hip, I would give him a look of utter annoyance. I was not in the mood for fans or spectators.

"Why are you here? Need something?"

It was odd that he seemed to be more fixated on the fact that I crystallized the water, rather than the fact that I was isolated in the outskirts of the village. My reasonings to come to this location were simple, I wanted a peace of mind to just think alone. His reasoning could be the same, however -- judging from the way he analyzed my technique, it seems as though he is just lost; nothing more important to do than to stroll through the mountains. The land of Thunder did have wonderful sceneries, but I chose here to be my personal training ground.

[Ξ CHROME]

The vixen didn’t waste any time as to question the dark skinned youth’s reasoning for being in this confined location nor did she hesitate to convey her absolute annoyance that Arate was spying on her. Spying wouldn’t be the best description of the Medic’s doings though after hearing her rather pressing question, the male summoned enough strength to speak, something that was of absolute rarity.

“…N-No. I don’t need anything. I usually come here to relax.”

Arate articulated, tone being extremely calm and serene. His eyes of varying hues hovered over the crystallized water. As already previously stated, he had not witnessed such an element displayed before, if it could be denoted as such. Curiosity tugged at his vocal cords and it wouldn’t be long before he asked a question of his own. He absently motioned towards the fine sheet of crystal towards his left, adding specificity to his formulated question.

“…How’d you do that?”

The boy asked, adhering to his personality traits.

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

...'Oh.' Though his tone seemed to be rather nonchalant, I still had a feeling that I reacted a bit too strong towards his appearance at this location. Releasing a small sigh, I would deem that his response was more than adequate enough for me to not harass him for being at this remote haven at that same time I was here. I did not want to seem all that bad to the poor guy, so I decided to smile faintly to show him that I could be gracious too. Even though I did not think much of it, I realized that both him and I had something in common. He told me that he came to this area to relax, as did I. It was strange and maybe a bit too soon to think this, but perhaps this could be the beginning of a new friendship?

Observing the young lad, it appeared as though he was still intrigued by my crystallization technique. It was a very odd ninjutsu to use, and not many people even know of that advanced release. Shrugging off the notion that I did in fact of a rare talent, I would listen attentively to his question. I was not one to brag about my abilities nor successes, but I had no problem talking about myself when someone asked. It is the only polite thing to do when someone is curious about you. Clearing my throat, I would begin to speak articulately and a-matter-of-fact. I wanted to make sure that I responded fully to him.

"Oh, how good can you keep a secret?"

I began to giggle slightly because it was obvious I was teasing my fellow comrade (I assumed) by asking him a rhetorical question. Tilting my head to the right a bit, I began to resume my explanation of my ability.

"Well, I was fortunate enough to be able to manipulate an advanced release! But promise not to tell anyone, it's my secret weapon."

I did not want to say too much in case he reacted poorly to my answer, however I did want to see what his reaction would be -- if he had any. In truth, I was a bit self-conscious when I was talking about myself because there was not much for me to say. I honestly feel as though I should be more advanced for possessing an advanced release, and yet I only knew about several techniques within the release. However, before him or I continue prying for knowledge about the others, there was something that I felt we should both cover first.

"However -- I wanted to know what your name is? Mine is Hayline, and I'm obviously a Cloud ninja. What about yourself?"

It was a bit awkward to interrupt my own response to his question with yet another question, but we should at least know each other's name before we continue conversing any further. If he was not a cloud shinobi and just a regular civilian, than the conversation would abruptly end because I did not feel like explaining to him how I am able to manipulate such elements. Despite my resounding feelings towards that subject, if he was a ninja like myself, then things would definitely become more alluring and convince me to remain here.

[Ξ CHROME]

Although minute, the smile that began to curl on the femme’s features calmed Arate, knowing that he had not possessed as a nuisance or a potential foe towards the teenage girl. Even though the question she had posed was rhetorical and was supposed to be humorous, the male only blinked his eyes confusedly before a meek grin appeared on his visage, a dark skinned hand rising upward in order to fiddle with the pilot’s hat donned on his crown. Listening further to the girl’s explanation, the boy’s mismatched hues widened as she spoke of herself possessing the capability of manipulating an advanced release.

He had heard vaguely of these rare elemental releases, formed by the synergy of two of the basic six elemental releases. Equivalent to that of a bloodline limit, these wielders of these unique and powerful elements were definitely not to be trifled with and having the ability to manipulate one of these selected elements was a prestige indeed. Thinking that she was going to go into more about the creation of crystal and its mechanics, the youth was a bit startled to see that she had redirected the conversation's subject and instead wished to learn more about Arate himself. Her name was Hayline, a ninja of Cloud. Following suit, the dark skinned male rose his left arm upward, presenting towards his fellow comrade a crisp headband, printed on gray cloth, that bared the insignia of Cloud.

“…My name’s Arate…and I’m a Cloud Ninja too.”

The Medic stated, his voice soft yet audible.

“…And wow. You…You have a Kekkei Touta don’t you? That must be...nice. Oh, and I…I promise not tell anyone.”

Arate reassured, foot making circles in the shallow dirt.

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

Judging from his response, he did not have any fancy techniques or advanced abilities since he told me that it must be nice that I have acquired such talents. Even if he did not have any sort of high ranking ninja art, he has to have some sort of field of specialty since he too, was a shinobi of Cloud. He did not inform me of what he could do, however that was not a problem to me. I always have my clever ways of figuring things out, or getting my way, so this would be so exception to me. He did tell me his name which is Arate. Though I just met this quiet ninja, the named seemed to fit him perfectly somehow.

Yawning at the lack of interaction occurring, I decided to change the pace of our meeting. Abruptly leaping on my newly created crystallized sheet, I would stand in the middle of the thirty meter surface on water. It only made sense that I would be standing near, or rather in this case, on top of my own creation since he seemed to be so fascinated by it. Pointing directly at Arate with my right hand and index finger extended towards him, whom was now positioned about fifteen meters from my new location, I would then begin to jester.

"Hey Arate, check this out. I'm standing on top of water. Isn't it magic!"

Clearly, he now knows about my ability to crystallize nearly anything at a whim, but that was not the only talent that I had. ... Okay, so I lied. I did not yet learn any other techniques besides that of my advanced ability, but it did not mean that I could not some how get deceive him into thinking that I was actually stronger than I really was. I mean, I did have an advanced release, so that should be proof enough, right? Continuing with my playful manner, I would subtly challenge the boy to a fun game.

"So, you know what I can do, however I have no idea what you can do. Instead of telling me what you can do, how about you show me."

Chuckling to Arate, I began to position my body into a comfortable stance in order to defend, evade, or counter attack as need be. My eye carefully focused on his abdominal area, waiting to see if he was a taijutsu, ninjutsu or even a genjutsu user. Depending on his first few movements, I would already begin to formulate a strategy to defeat him. I was just that type of girl; amuse me.

[Ξ CHROME]

The female yawned which could only be interpreted as complete boredom. Shifting uneasily, the boy struggled to find another medium of conversation and before he could even utter another syllable, Hayline leapt into the air, landing neatly in the center of her fine sheet of crystallized water. Pointing out towards the dark skinned boy with a pale finger, she called for the youth to observe this mystical event for she had the ability to stand on the surface of water. Even though Arate knew that standing on top of water was possible through precise chakra control, he only stood silently, a look of slight surprise plastered upon his features once the blonde demanded that Arate demonstrate his abilities. She even went so far as to adjust into a comfortable stance, making it an easier process to retaliate to whatever the male might conjure. Blinking his eyes and then nodding silently, the Medic shifted his stance as well though it was nowhere near as refined as the girl’s. He really wasn’t one for Taijutsu and his battle stance reflected that. Observing the scene before him through unilateral vision, hands came together to expertly dart through the needed sequence of seals to manifest a most convincing illusion.

Upon the final seal, Arate concentrated as he began to probe at the female’s sense of touch and it was then that the technique soon came to life. She’d begin to feel her legs loosen, almost as if they were purely composed of viscous glue and should she attempt to move, well, she’d become fully aware of her complete absence of balance. T’was a simple Genjutsu and Arate would’ve told of his ability of such however he abided by her wishes. He didn’t speak of it and only presented a small sample of his prowess.

…

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

Here he goes, I watched Arate as he began to get into a rather weak stance, clearly not a taijutsu user -- or he was overly confident that he did not have to try as hard to defeat me. Whatever the case was, he began to use numerous handsigns before stopping, activating his jutsu I assumed. I looked around in anticipation as to what sort of technique he could have possibly used, but I did not see anything. No fireballs being spewed from his mouth, no water techniques being launched from behind me.. I was quite confused. Just what did he do?

'Hmm..' If he used a genjutsu, it did not work seeing as though absolutely nothing had changed, so I began to laugh a bit at his misfire.

"What's wrong, Arate? Afraid to hit a girl? Come now, do not hold back -- and let us truly begin this friendly match."

If he was not going to be the first to attack, then I was going to have to pressure him into attacking, or at least defending. Beginning a quick string of handseals, I began to smile mischievously at Arate. My crystallized technique would dissipate from my current position and extend behind me seven meters, only leaving about seven meters of the crystallized sheet from my position and in front of me towards the bank of the lake. The sheet still separated the both of us, but I had a slightly different strategy to use against him now.

With the releasing of part of my crystallized sheet, my small frame would soon begin to sink almost instantaneously as I was still forming my handseals whilst falling. With his loss of sight of me, I figured that this would not only add to the suspense of what my next move would be, but also give me a higher chance of succeeding to connect to him. Finishing my handseals from beneath the lake's water, a crystallized clone would soon form and sprout out from beneath the water. Unknowingly to him, it was only a mere clone. My true person remained underneath the water for a follow up surprise attack, assuming my plan would work. The clone would leap from the water's surface, and of course leap over the crystallized sheet that separated it from Arate.

From midair, it was planning its descent back onto the ground behind Arate about three meters. The clone would turn its body to reface the young shinobi as it would pass his body overhead in order to turn the match into a close combat one. Once the body landed, if it was able to without disruption, the clone would simply attempt to strike Arate with a single handed punch with its right hand towards his back/torso area. However if he had attempted to flee from this proximity, the clone would simple redirect its position to follow.

[Ξ CHROME]

The boy blinked different colored hues, lowering them and twisting his lips once he had observed that his technique had had no effect. Even though the girl was stationary, she should have had faced the effects of the Genjutsu regardless lest she was secretly part of some bloodline that were blessed with eyes that could pierce through weaved illusions. Abandoning the illusion then, the youth watched as Hayline partially dismissed some of the crystal at her disposal only to go plummeting into the depths below. Blinking confusedly, it was needless to say that the Medic was surprised once he witnessed the crystal utilizing shinobi leap from the lake, soaring above the dark skinned male’s head and landing neatly three meters behind him. With haste, the boy’s right hand slid to his side, gripping the sturdy tonfa constructed out of synthetic materials. Just as the girl was poised to land a fierce punch on his abdomen, Arate brought his tonfa upward, gripping the extension part so that the shaft was parallel with the upper portion of his arm. The result was him successfully blocking the punch though upon making contact, it didn’t sound as if flesh and bone were colliding with the blunt weapon but rather, something harder…tougher.

?!

Unless this girl was made of crystal, this doppelganger before him had to be of something else. Not sticking around to find out, the Medic pivoted and leapt back three meters to the clone’s right, both his dark brown eye and milky white blind eye a bit widened in surprise.
Just what was Hayline planning?

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

With careful timing, my true form would begin to rise from beneath the water to expose my head only at mouth-level. By doing so, I was able to breathe fresh air through my nose and peek out directly at my clone landing and attempting to hit Arate. To my surprise, he drew out a weapon that I did not know was even there from when we first began speaking. It began to make me wonder if he was a taijutsu user that specialized in weaponry, but no matter the case he only decided to block the punch with his object. Judging from his reaction, I could only assume that he knew from the connection made my clone was in fact made of crystal, a very fine and hard substance known to man.

Jumping from the water and landing onto my crystallized sheet of water in front of me, still remaining about ten meters from Arate before he fled to the clone's side, I would simply shout out, "Just kidding! I'm over here!" Waving my arms frantically, I would begin to laugh at the confusion the boy is probably facing at this time. He had no idea that I could use such a doppelganger technique. Even though I chose not to follow up my distraction with another attack, it should prove more than enough about my tactics. Releasing my crystal clone, it would soon dissipate into dust and float in the wind.

I began to walk closer to Arate ,and with each step that I took, my crystallized sheet on the lake would also disperse. I used up more chakra than I had intended for this small gathering, so I wanted to save my remaining strength. Once I reached the natural ground again, I looked at Arate and asked him a question. "So what technique did you use earlier, or was that just to fake me out? I did not notice anything happen, even when I went beneath the water-- But I saw you using a weapon, are you a taijutsu weapon specialist?" I was not sure how would he choose to answer me since the whole point of our very short spar was to display our talents, but I had hoped that he would respond to me fully.

[Ξ CHROME]

His estimation was correct, there was something odd about this perfect replica of the crystal using girl, considering the strange “clang” that was made didn’t reflect the sound made when flesh hit a harder material. Nevertheless, the Medic jumped upon hearing the femme’s high pitched voice, body whipping around to notice his sparring partner waving frantically in hopes of catching the half blind boy’s attention. The youth blinked his eyes confusedly, witnessing the dissipation of the clone through his peripherals. Well, she was certainly a clever one and after but a moment of thought, Arate had realized as to the trick she had done. The male watched as his sparring partner closed the distance between them, tonfa still gripped within his right hand. She immediately questioned as to why nothing had occurred earlier, despite the Medic’s obvious display of handseals and her other assumption made Arate shake his head a tad bit, causing the pilot’s hat on his head to slump over slightly on his right hand.

“…It was a Genjutsu. I’m surprised that you weren’t affected by it, that is, unless you possess another unique ability or some sort. I’m a Medical Ninja but I also specialize in Genjutsu. I was never any good at Taijutsu so, I felt that Genjutsu as well as Ninjutsu would be my areas of focus. The illusion I used wasn’t at its full power, which is why you didn’t feel the effects.”

Arate explained, dark skinned hand rising upward to rub under his nose.

“…That was a good strategy though. You tricked me.”

His meek voice continued, vaguely trying to pass a smile the female’s way.

[¤ Tenkai ¤]

"Whoa, you're a medical ninja?! That's awesome! I'm sure in the future you will be the deciding factor between life and death for your comrades."

Joyously grinning towards her newly acquainted friend, she concluded that they should probably begin to head back towards the inner-parts of the village. However, it did not mean they could not walk together and finish their conversation along their walk. Resting both her hands on the back of her head, she would begin to lazily strut down the pathway of the secluded area and back to the busy parts of the village.

Staring at the sky, a bad tendency that she has, she began to drift away into her own little world and asked Royal another question.

"Do you ever feel like.. you won't measure up against the world? I mean..."

She paused between her words, not knowing exactly how to phrase her question. The blonde was a deep, spiritually connected girl, but there were even things that she did not understand in the world.

"Sometimes, I'm just tired of trying. There are ninja who train literally every day of their life but -- that's just not me."

Looking over towards the medical genius, she wasn't sure if he would even understand her revelation but it was worth mentioning anyways. They were both going to have a long journey ahead of them within Kumogakure no Sato, so it was probably best that they had both figured out why they wanted to become shinobi and what they were going to do once they obtained a higher rank and more power. The responsibility would rise and in due time, they would probably end up going to war with other countries. Were these two genin truly ready for that? Of course not now but, how soon could they posses such experience?

Hayline could only wonder...

[Ξ CHROME]

A slight smile appeared on the boy’s visage upon hearing the femme’s reaction towards his choice of specialty. It was true, medical ninja were the ones who were often the deciding factor between whether or not a team perished or survived and Arate knew that that pressure would be on his shoulders in the future. Still, the youth listened as the crystal utilizing kunoichi began to go onto a more personal subject, wondering if the Medic ever felt like he didn’t measure up to the rest of the world. Strangely enough, the boy could relate to the boisterous girl’s experiences. When he had registered into the Academy, he found himself struggling to keep with the designated “prodigies” of his graduation class and his choice of specialization had drawn even more criticism towards him. Of the three Arts, Genjutsu was often denoted as the most useless as most did not see its potency or “flashiness” compared to Ninjutsu and Taijutsu. Arate’s choice to chose Genjutsu as his primary Art definitely caused confusion amongst his class mates although the higher – ups of the Academy had told the dark skinned male that his choice was a rare one however if he continued to refine his Art, he’d be blessed with unbelievable power. It mattered not if he didn’t belong to a esteemed clan or was in possession of a unique element, it didn’t mean that he was doomed to failure. Now, if Arate could only convince himself of such…

“…Sometimes. It kind of reminds me…of when I lost sight in my right eye. It was a training exercise and I was put up one of the top students of the Academy. My Genjutsu wasn’t particularly refined and as a result, I ended up taking a…bad injury.”

He gestured towards the gruesome scar on his right eye, his eye almost looking as if it were a glassy soulless orb.

“…But I have to keep telling myself that I can’t let shortcomings stop me. I may not have any special abilities or be affiliated or a member of a clan but I strive to become the greatest Medical Ninja and Genjutsu specialist that I possibly can. We seem to have something in common, both of us feel that our efforts are wasted. Maybe we can convince ourselves that our efforts aren’t meaningless, that we can rise to our own personal heights.”

The boy explained, head turning towards the blonde ninja.