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LIGHTNING MAKES NO SOUND UNTIL IT STRIKES

The smile on his face lingered when Seishin dipped in her dress, the whiskers on his chin and lip furrowing over curled skin. As the chuunin medic began to examine his grandson, Maduke trotted over to a nearby wooden table and lean't against its edge. A buzzing noise entered his ear as he looked up to a window that Seishin had opened. A light breeze carried in a swarm of dark insects, in their hundreds, their masses scattering across the room as they hovered over the young Takatora. 

It is rare even in my years to see an Aburame with a rare breed of Kikaichū like this... he mused, looking on at the bugs as they started to gather and land on Josuke. 

Maduke could sense the chakra slowly being eaten away from Josuke as his body suddenly erupted with sparks of lightning. Closing his eyes the Raikage turned his head slightly as the seizure took full effect twisting and turning Josuke unnaturally. He had witnessed this sight too many times now. 

Looking back to Seishin there was little expression in her face but she did give an indication of what the problem was, and what needed to be done next; which the Raikage liked, it reminded him of Benaki's orders.

"Thank you Seishin. Do what you can" he spoke evenly with a smile before leaning back on the desk once more.

Patiently he waited for the healing to progress as mind wandering to another engagement. 

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LIGHTNING MAKES NO SOUND UNTIL IT STRIKES

It only took a few short quips from the Raikage to get the giggles he required from the nurse. Initially beaten and bleary from a long shift she would leave the room rosy-cheeked with a smile on her dial after a quick word from him. It was just how he liked to do things around his village. However as she left the room he turned to Josuke who lay in a basic ward bed with a single sheet over his lithe frame. Upon seeing this sight he couldn't help but feel the rush of boiling blood.

The Takatora were a family widely regarded throughout Kaminari no Kuni and the world for their prodigious use of the raiton element. To see his only grandson broken by the element that gave his family (and village) so much pride over the years tore at his aged heart. Between having a full calendar of events, endless paperwork, and commanding the ninja of his village, he left a portion of his time to correct this ailment; and he wouldn't stop until things had been corrected. 

"Discharge, you reckon?" he voiced in reply to Josuke. He noticed his grandsons reaction to Seishins attire which brought a rye smile to his face. Was he aware of Seishin's true sex? He thought not in that moment. Like many who came across Seishin in the village they assumed her to be a male. But Maduke knew differently and a simple secret like that brought him endless amounts of amusement. "Josuke have you met your new teammate yet, Kousaino Seishin?" 

Maduke hadn't brought the young chuunin here to parade her around in a sundress for his amusement, nor to simply introduce her to his grandson. No, she had a skillset which he greatly admired, a skillset which he hoped would help his grandsons condition.

"Seishin possesses some unique breeds of Kikaichū which I hope can have an effect on your ailment..."

He said before his tone dropped. "So no resistance or complaining, alright?" he knew how difficult his grandson could be sometimes. 

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LIGHTNING MAKES NO SOUND UNTIL IT STRIKES

The edge of his blade cut through her clothing with a clean strike, the fabric wilting and parting in an instant. Oh my...voluptuous indeed the Raikage thought as his dirty old mind wandered for a moment. But what really stood out was her defense as the dark tan of her skin remained unstained from his blade. He watched Makato skip backwards a few meters as she moved to form seals.

While his eyes analysed; his figure kept moving, except not in the direction of his initial strike this time. It would have made sense to continue forward, catching her off-guard with a barrage of strikes before she could form seals - but that wasn't his intention this morning. With his blade sheathed, his movement would curve around to her left side as he tried to flank her, moving her towards her newly formed teammate Seishin who was positioned further to her right. The Raikage and Issho would push the two together, no longer allowing them to have space of their own, they would be herded by the two, pushed to work in conjunction with one another. 

Age had stripped Maduke of raw speed many years ago, but what remained was refined and precise. In close quarters, there was no one who could move the grace and vigor of the Raikage. As Makato came to the end of her seals should would realize the figure of the Raikage was closing in on one meter to her left, the hilt of his sheathed blade glowing¹ as his body remained low like his previous strike. Would she choose to initiate an offensive strike or defend herself once again?

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Issho could feel his fist make impact upon something, but to his discontent it was another swarm of bugs. Commanded by the chuunin, the bugs swarmed around his figure attempting to cling to his flesh and leech the chakra from him. With the initial cloud of insects, plus those used to replace the real Seishin, his figure was now completely disguised by their black mass - something he would use to his advantage near-instantly. Using the insects that surrounded him as a distraction, Issho vanished² near-instantly to reappear in mid-air on Seishin's left-hand side, leaving a trail of bugs in his wake.

Using the momentum of his high-speed movement he would spin in the air, launching a spinning back kick³ into the side of Seishin in an attempt to thrust his body into Makato who was meters to his right. Bugs remained clinged to his clothing and skin, draining his chakra, although fewer than before as a contingent were lost by his high-speed movement. However this did not concern the man, as for now he was focused on forcing the two students together, and if all was successful Seishin's figure would crash into his new teammate.

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1. Tsuka Dageki (Hilt Blow) (C-Rank) (-30)

2. Shunshin no Jutsu (Body Flicker Technique) (D-Rank) (-10)

3. Konoha Gouriki Senpuu (Leaf Strong Whirlwind) (B-Rank) (-50)

LIGHTNING MAKES NO SOUND UNTIL IT STRIKES

"Oh, against Issho and I of course."

He said as a smile gleaned from his face. Pulling the towel from around his shoulders he threw it off to the side as it cut through the slight breeze in the air before falling. It seemed that neither of them had heard of C.R.O.W which pleased Maduke. It would be easier this way.

Looking at his two students he noticed the readiness wash over them when a spar was mentioned. How wonderful, he thought, as he witnessed the black beetles swarm around the young Aburame as he moaned about it all. His minions seemed to be more excited than he was,  but Maduke liked that about Seishin. The village had a culture for pranksters and jokers who were all in a competition to better one another. But Seishin, his moodiness cut through all of that like a hot knife through butter. It always seemed to make the Raikage laugh the most.

Releasing a slight chuckle he looked across at Issho who was waiting on his command. While Maduke's breaths were slightly heavy still, Issho seemed fine as he looked on at the Raikage, waiting for the signal to begin.

"Alright" he almost shouted as his loud voice swallowed the silence atop Raijin's Plateau. Dawn was fading as the new light of the day shone down upon Kumogakure's elite. Coughing, he straightened his voice out to sound more like Issho. "Mr. Yotsuki's Intermediate Training will now begin..."

As his words trailed off the Raikage's stance widened in the dirt below as he leap't from his position towards Makoto in an attempt to close 3 meter distance, the palm of his hand resting atop his blade's hilt.

Upon watching the Raikage, Issho launched himself from his position also, except this time towards the beetle covered Seishin. They would test these new recruits in the good old fashioned Kumogakure way. By giving them a good ass-whipping.

"Come on! show me what you've got," he shouted, in an attempt to get their adrenaline racing and blood boiling.

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LIGHTNING MAKES NO SOUND UNTIL IT STRIKES

A flurry of kicks and punches came his way as Maduke lived up to his title, ducking and dodging what his partner threw at him as if he were a shadow. In the cool air of the early morning his breath was visible and the only trail left by his movements, as it floated still in the air before fading.

Even short intensive workouts at this altitude were exhausting. The thin mountain air lacked the same oxygen found at lower levels, making the blood move slower as it circulated the body. While all Kumogakure natives were acclimatized to live in these heights, the plateau's location afforded an area to train the body for a competitive advantage. Maduke had been coming to this location for many decades, training his body in the clouds so it could endure more on the surface below. 

It was only when he heard a call for him that his concentration broke. The Raikage stopped his action to turn to the noise causing Issho to pause mid-punch and step back. "Oh, Makato, hi there!" he said with equal parts surprise and enthusiasm, too much for how early it was. Wiping sweat from his brow he grabbed a towel passed to him by Issho and held it to his face and wiped his glasses. 

After a couple of dabs he swung the towel around his neck to rest over his shoulders. By this time Seishin had just arrived causing Maduke to barrel another welcome out. "Seishin, good to see you received my notice.." he spoke with a smile before turning to Issho and then back to the two shinobi.

"I guess we're all here then, very good. The first training session for Team Raikage can start." The training was a proposition they might have both expected by the location and his appearance, but he hadn't informed either of his intentions to form a team, and gave them little time to digest it before speaking once again. 

"Oh, and of course, you will be team mates from now on. So...turn to your neighbour and introduce yourself" he said with a hearty chuckle referring only to the two shinobi that took his invitation.

Issho turned to the Raikage and introduced himself jokingly, taking Maduke's words for his own game. "Hi I am Issho-san, Head martial instructor for the village."

The Raikage looked at him shaking his head, giving the kind of look a father gives his son when they need a clip around the ear. 

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