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As the Genin stood in the rain, she could hear the sound of approaching footsteps. They were very soft; only the sound of water beneath them gave her warning. Turning Aiko leaped backwards, narrowly avoiding the blade that had landed a mere inch from where she had been standing. “So, Yukina finally graduated!” Ashi teased cruelly, lifting his sword and holding it in offensive position. Aiko growled, listening to the sound of metal as she drew her whip. Did she really need to fight so quickly after the exams? “Back off, Ashi.” She replied icily, her voice much steadier than the last time that they had met. For the last year, she had grown familiar with that particular boy. He was an older student who had recently graduated the Chuunin exams. He was a ruthless piece of work who had spent most of their time together teasing her and doing his best to make her miserable. His attitude had changed since she had begun to undergo puberty however, and she didn’t like him anymore now than she did then.

She watched his eyes widen at her reply, his lips curling into a smile as she drew her weapon. ~So the little girl has finally grown up…~ He thought silently as he moved forward to strike. Aiko anticipated his movements, quickly leaping to the side and sending her chain whip soaring after him. A smile graced her lips as Ashi turned and deflected the blow before moving forward again. A year ago, she would not have been able to so much as avoid him. Her speed training was finally beginning to pay off, so long as she could keep him at a distance. The Genin watched him approach once more, waiting for the opportune moment before leaping into the air. With a somersault, Aiko jumped over him and landed behind him. She turned quickly to attack him a second time and gasped, lifting her chain just in time to block a swing of his sword. He had approached her faster than she had anticipated. The ringing sound of metal on metal echoed as the shinobi began a full assault, Ashi’s sword clashing against Aiko’s chain.

Aiko grunted, her ears ringing with the sound of metal as Ashi’s sword continued to slam against her chain. It was becoming more and more difficult to hold him off. She had let him get too close. The Genin could only defend herself at such close range, and if he continued in that manner, she wouldn’t be able to do that either. Bending her arms slightly, she allowed Ashi’s sword to penetrate her defenses, stopping it inches from her face. Aiko watched the smile form on his face, believing that he had one. With his guard down, the girl caught him by surprise, thrusting her chain forward and knocking his sword back long enough for her to make seals with her hand.

Ashi recovered quickly, stopping when he saw her hand seals. The air around him began to grow heavy as it fell under a misty haze. The temperature lowered as the fog set in, thickening and making it difficult to see and breath. Ashi’s eyes narrowed as he raised his sword into defensive position, ready for her strike. Aiko smiled and turned, taking advantage of Ashi’s distraction and making her way out of the area. The Chuunin was so focused on the risk of preemptive attack, he didn’t notice that Genin making her escape.

With a heavy sigh, Aiko fell to her knees. The day had been long and the training harsh. Unfortunately, neither had been able to compare to the past three hours. Her teacher had taken it upon himself to make her after-school session a living nightmare. The last one hundred and eighty minutes had consisted of her sensei ruthlessly beating the hell out of her while she tried desperately to defend herself. Bruises adorned her arms and legs, making her thankful that she chose to wear such concealing clothing.

As she sat on the ground panting, her sensei shook his head and left his fighting stance. “I don’t know what your problem is girl, but you had better figure it out… unless you want to die out here.” With that warning, he turned and made his way back inside of the building leaving Aiko sitting miserably outside in the cold, wet training grounds of the school. Sighing, the girl remained on her knees, feeling far too tired to move.

For twenty-five minutes Aiko sat outside in the rain, deep in thought. What reason did she have for her poor taijutsu skill? Her father had never been interested in her and certainly hadn’t taught her how to battle at close range. Her mother had passed away when she was eight years old, so she hadn’t been able to teach her either. Looking down at her thin, bruised arms, Aiko shook her head. Her frail body was not cut out for close combat. She barely had the strength to swing a sword… What was she doing in the shinobi academy anyway? So many questions…
“Hey Yukina!” a male voice caught the girl’s attention, returning her from her world of thought. Rising slowly to her feet, Aiko turned around. Jumping in surprise, the girl found herself staring face to chest at one of the boys from her classroom. Two of his companions stood behind him with michevious smiles plastered on their faces. “I couldn’t help but over hear Sensei. You should straighten up your act or someone might hurt you.” He said cruelly, smiling down at her.

“I…” AIko stammered, unsure of how to respond to such a comment. The sound of flesh connecting with flesh sounded as the boy’s fist connected with her face. A sound very close to a whimper escaped from the girl as the boy’s friends joined in kicking her while she struggled to get to her feet. Of course they had been talking about themselves. Who else would be standing in a school yard waiting to ambush a twelve-year-old girl?

“What’s Yukina? What happened to the power of your bloodline?” he taunted, his foot colliding with her side. Aiko squealed in pain, her bruised body curling into a ball as it was battered. What had she done to deserve such treatment from people? Why did people despise her and her bloodline? The boys laughed and taunted her, making the girl feel even worse than she did. Finally, Aiko had had enough. Growling angrily, the girl used her right hand into the form a seal, calling upon her chakra to aid her.

“Leave me alone!” she shouted, willing the rain around her to form into icy swallows. The birds flapped their wings, circling the boys gracefully as they homed in on their targets. Finally the birds turned and dove, pelting the boys like small icy rockets. Yelping the boys backed away from her, waving their arms and swatting at the birds. Taking advantage of their confusion, Aiko rose to her feet and darted from the training grounds. As the boys settled down, the birds disappearing from existence they looked around in surprise as they realized that she was gone.