Training (Haru and Shinji, NK)

Haru stood in the plains of Tenkagure, just outside the gates. The wind rushed through his hair, and his eyes were closed. He liked to get out of the crowded city once and awhile, just to remember there was more to life then the dark, concrete walls of the city. That, and he'd spent a good bit of the day before in a sewer, and he felt like he couldn't stand to be in another cramped space. He was wearing his ninja gear, as always. He never left home without his equipment, just in case.

He was in the mood to do some training, though he had no one to train with. Came a time, he would have been happy to train alone, but those days were long passed. Now, it just didn't feel right to him. Long past were the days where he would run through abandoned warehouses, with no training partner but his dog. Now, he craved human interaction. Unfortunately, human interaction wasn't something that he'd had in abundance in his childhood. He was sort of like the best kept secret of the Hyuuga clan, because up until recently, he'd trained (And lived) almost exclusively in the Hyuuga house.

But for the moment, he was alone in the fields. Whether or not he had a partner to train, he was here for a reason. He was supposed to be meditating. That was why he'd been sent out by his grandfather, anyways. He was supposed to be "Finding his inner peace", according to him. He was supposed to do this every day, though Haru often found himself just goofing off. He sat down on the soft grass, lying back, and staring up at the sky.

(WC: 286)

The office of the Tenkage would be vacant this day or rather Shinji would not be there. Granted he had left an anbu in charge to masquerade as him, but that was beside the point. All the anbu would be doing was sitting through a three hour long budget meeting conducted by the elders and some finical guru. Basically Shinji did not want to be bothered with having to take endless notes like he was back i the academy, so he left it to his ever faithful anbu Cat who was transformed to take on the appearance of Shinji. So, while she was in the meeting Shinji was given a load of free time with which he could do with as he pleased. Although guite frankly he did not know what he was going to do, but for now just walking the streets of Tengakure. He did not feel the need to linger around any streets opr stores. He knew the whole city by heart, but still it delighted the young Tenkage to walk silently through the streets without being mobbed by people wanting his help.

This was in part due to what Shinji was wearing. He wore his baggy lightweight jounin pants and a white short sleeved T-shirt with the Uzumaki clan symbol emblazoned on his back. Although he still carried all his normal gear. The light ticking of his chakra resonator could be heard along with Shinji's slow footsteps that made a slight staccato sound as he went. And to top it off he wore the power bracers-they sat comfortably in their normal spots. And at his hip was the black blade Makaze. This was a blade Shinji wanted to overhaul and make better, but he was still connected to the blade as it was given to him by his foster parents. The thought of the blade constantly reminded him to visit his foster parents whom he loved deeply.

Lost in thought about his family and clan Shinji made his way causally to the village gates. At first he was stopped by the guards asking where he was going, but Shinji merely flashed his identification card and the guards straightened up and asked no more questions. Instead they merely wished Shinji a good day. All Shinji did in response was to put one finger to his lips. The guards took this to mean to keep it on the down low that he was out on business. With that Shinji took off at his top speed through the plains of Tengakure.

It was not long at all before he came up upon a figure lying in the lush green grass. A bit worried Shinji, still moving at his top speed, would move such that he would be standing a bit over the boy on his right. Not wanting to seem like a creep Shinji spoke up in his normal and lackadaisical voice: "You ok, kid?" The boy did indeed seem familiar, but he could not quite place it. For some reason Shinji was sure he had met the boy before, but where? For the life of him he could not remember. Hopfully it would come to him, but for now he waited apprehensively for a response-last time Shinji had ventured out to the plains he had found a dead boy.

{WC: 553}

Haru would not open his eyes. Intstead, he would simply nod his head slowly.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Just taking a nap" He would say. That voice... It seemed familiar to him. His curiosity got the better of him at last, as he slowly opened one grey eye.
"Shinji? Is that you?" He would ask, surprised. He hadn't seen him in forever. Though he wasn't living under a rock. He knew the man had been promoted to Tenkage, and that he was breaking protocols by not immediately standing up and saluting him... or something like that.
"Do you remember me?" Haru Hyuuga?" He would ask, standing up slowly. He really hoped Shinji did remember him, though he wouldn't be surprised. As Tankage, Haru was sure he was introduced to at least twenty new people each day. " I'm Haru Hyuuga Senior's Grandson? You helped me with my taijutsu a few weeks before the Chunin exams? He would continue if Shinji still could not remember him.

Between speaking, Haru noticed that Shinji was garbed in semi-casual clothes, as opposed to Kage robes. Then he noticed the state of his own clothes. By coincidence, he was wearing exactly the same outfit he had on when he spared with Shinji the first time they met. Except, well... it was a lot worse for wear. His last spar had torn a huge hole in the elbow of his sweatshirt, and the knees on his pants were worn all through from days of training. He just hoped that Shinji wouldn't notice, because if his grandparents found out he'd met with the Tenkage in this state, they'd probably disown him.

(WC:286 TWC: 572)

Shinji would listen silently to the boy as he spoke. In a heartbeat he remembered who this boy was: Haru Hyuuga. Though not wanting to interrupt Shinji allowed him to go on. Once Haru had finished speaking Shinji spoke up himself in a sleepy voice: "Of course I remember you Haru. So, what brings you out to the plains on this fine day? Surely you are not here for a nap." He chose not to ask about the chuunin exams. He already knew what the outcome had been and there was no reason to throw salt in the wounds. Instead he merely waited for a response from the young Hyuuga boy. Meanwhile both his blue eye and black eye looked to the horizon of swaying grass.

{Sorry for the meh post.}

"Well, I was going to train, but I couldn't find anyone from my ninja team." Said Haru, looking at his feet, and scratching his head. "And training by myself just isn't the same anymore. And then I realized how tired I was, and, well..." He explained, shrugging. Haru loved sleeping more then anything else, and could find time for a nap at any point of the day, no matter what. His grandmother often compared him to a bear, in that all he did was eat and sleep, but if you tried to start a fight with him, you'd be in for quite the battle.
He shook his head. He had't seen Shinji since that spar in the towers, and he was curious to see how his friend had been doing. "So how have you been? What's it like being the Tenkage?" He asked. He always wondered about that job, what life was like as leader of the entire city. Was it as exiting as he heard? His grandfather had filled his head with teas about the Kages who fought monsters the size of Tenkagure's largest buildings without batting an eyelash. That made his Sherlock Holmes-escque missions where he was trying to find out where the killer had ran off to seem very inferior. Well, it wasn't that bad...

Haru was proud to say that he'd become much more athletic then the last time Shinji had seen him, becoming much more muscular, and putting on a few pounds. He also felt much more confident about himself, not like the scrawny kid, fresh out of the academy, who had arrived an hour early at the training towers, and fallen asleep while waiting. Alright, so maybe Haru still would have fallen asleep while waiting, but besides that, he was very different. And at the same time, he looked and felt almost exactly the same. He still had the same spring in his step, the same emotionless expression in his eyes. So maybe it was just his newly found confidence that made him feel so different.

(WC: 353 TWC: 925)
(Did you have a Sharingan last time we saw each other?)

A cool wind blew over the landscape as Haru spoke. It was pleasant and made the grass ripple in a most pleasing way. Though the breeze was not nearly enough to obscure Haru's voice. In fact, Shinji found it rather amusing that Haru was tired. It reminded Shinji of himself and caused a fleeting smile to pass over his sleepy face. Though he did not interrupt and allowed Haru to continue on. At last Haru finished speaking and his last few words warranted a amused look to pass over his face. No one had ever asked him how it was to be Tenkage-maybe they all thought it was a cakewalk. Shinji honestly did not know, but he figured this would be a good chance to express his true feelings about being Tenkage. Thus, at this point he turned his gaze back to the Hyuuga boy and spoke in his naturally, yet deceivingly, lethargic tone: "Honestly? Being a Kage is no cakewalk. The only reason I am out here now is, because I was able to sneak out. If the elders found me out here they would probably skin me alive after roasting me with their words. Then again it has allowed me time to hone my skills, which is something I rather like. Alas I usually have little time for sleep, but I suppose I am used to it now....So, are you up for a bit of training? I need to wake up a bit-do not worry I will not completely crush you." Shinji said the last few words with a smirk on his face.

It was indeed true that he had become much stronger than he had been when Haru had last seen him. Though Shinji expected Haru to be much better as well. Surely this would be a fun training session if Haru did indeed agree to have a quick bout. It had been a long while since he had any real fun in a battle that involved no killing, so this would surely be a nice waker uper. Waiting for a response from Haru, Shinji pulled his Tengakure headband off from around his neck where it was hanging that day. He then proceeded to wrap it around his right bicep, so that it would not get int he way. Shinji internally kknew he would have to restrain himself, but he also figured now would be a good time to work on the control of his chakra chains. Currently he had fairly good control over them, but he knew that it could always be better, so better they would become and hopefully this training session would help with that.

{TWC: 1121}
{And no I did not have it last time}

Haru listend to Shinji intently, surprised to find out that a Kage's life was not as exiting as he previously thought. Well, he never really had aspired for that kind of thing, anyways. He still liked to daydream about stuff like that, however. To let his mind wander as to what it would be like to be Tenkage.

"Yeah, we can spar if you like. And thanks." said Haru. He knew he was no match for Shinji, but he'd like to see if he could preform any better against him then last time. Then he noticed Shinji's eye. Obviously a Sharingan, likely implanted. He shuddered. He had nothing against Shinji, but he couldn't imagine ever giving up his Byakugan eyes... Well, he'd probably be killed on the spot for allowing an outsider access to his Dojutsu, anyways.

He would step back, putting a fair amount of distance between him and Shinji, and take up his gentle fist stance.
"Let's start, then" He would say. He wanted to attack first, so as soon as Shinji indicated he was ready, He would charge him down, activating his Byakugan eyes.

I've got a couple of new moves, let's see how you hold up!" He would shout, an edge of cockiness in his voice. He knew he wasn't going to win, but he was going to fight his hardest, keep his head held high till the very end. As he neared Shinji, he would let his chakra to flow to his hands, opening up with his gentle fist technique: Eight Trigrams: Sixty four palms, (Boosting speed by 10) attempting to strike at Shinji's temple, left hip, and neck, in that order.

(WC:300 TWC:1225)

Shinji merely waited for Haru. When the Hyuga boy mentioned his new moves Shinji could not help, but activate his sharingan and close his left eye to prevent any weird conflicting signals from messing up his brain too badly. Thus, when Haru made his first move Shinji was ready-more than ready in fact, as Haru took his first step Shinji reacted with blinding speed. It had been a while since he had unleashed his full speed. Last time it had ended in death, but this time it was merely a spar, so Shinji was not too worried. Of course the blinding speed was not not used for real movement all it was was for a smile that passed across Shinji's face-his chakra chains would do the rest. As Haru neared Shinji's position two chakra chains would fly from Shinji's body. One from each shoulder. These chains were on a direct path for Haru. The chain that came from Shinji's left shoulder was aimed for Haru's left shoulder and the right chain was aimed for Haru's right shoulder. Though these chains would not hit each other as they crossed paths, because Shinji guided them with a rather clumsy direction. If Haru continued his assault in the way he was now then he would be skewered by the chains. Shinji was interested to see how Haru would react to the new obstacle.

{Sorry for the meh post. Chains have a speed and strength of 50}

Haru would block hard as Shinji launched chains from his body, made out of... Chakra? Yes, that was it, he could tell by the blue color from the Byakugan. He had never seen this technique before. What did it do? He didn't want to find out, so he would dodge to his left, sidestepping the chains. Just to make sure they couldn't bend to follow him, Haru would make a quick series of hand signs directing his eyes to Shinji's right side, several feet away from him. He hoped that this quick glance would misdirect Shinji's Sharingan reflexes, since he appeared to be trying to move to that point. If he finished the hand sign, he would finish the Body Flicker technique, disappearing in a blur of motion, and reappearing directly behind Shinji, well within striking range. If those chains were made of chakra, Shinj was sure in for a surprise...

Last time they met, Haru didn't know the gentle fist style, or any taijutsu techniques, for that matter. Now, he was much stronger, faster, and more capable then he ever had been of preforming the complex technique. Using the Byakugan, Haru identified the tenkutsu of Shinji's body; The chakra points for him to target. Deciding to disable Shinji's shoulders, since they were where the chains sprouted from. Because of Shinji's Sharing an eye, Haru knew Shinji would be able to react to the Body Flicker very quickly, but he only needed a few strikes to disable his shoulders, so the split second advantage might just buy him the time that he needed.

He would aim his first strike on the back of Shniji's right shoulder, letting chakra flow to his hands, in order to preform his Eight Trigrams: 128 Palms. Usually, this technique could be lethal, but he doubted that Shinji wouldn't be able to handle it. If he somehow couldn't defend against it, Haru would make sure to stop before any serious damage as caused. If his strike to Shinji's right shoulder made contact, Haru would strike again at the back of Shinji's left shoulder, blocking the Tenkutsu in both of the places the chains emerged from.

(WC: 362 TWC: 1587)

It would seem that Haru had gotten quicker on his feet. However, Shinji saw the dodge coming due to his sharingan and common sense. After all who would willingly run into two sharp chains? And, thus Shinji acted accordingly by pressing the attack. As Haru moved to dodge Shinji made to advance. In a burst he was moving at full speed-not for Haru, no. Shinji had a different goal in mind: the end of his own chakra chains. To the untrained eye Shinji would seemingly appear at his destination with a chakra chain held in each hand. Haru would have just finished executing his dodge and Shinji would be on his right. However, Shinji knew he had to stop it there, so he did what any sensible person would do he stopped the battle right then and there, well hopefully anyway. Assuming Haru did not continue to attack him Shinji would speak up as his chakra chains withdrew back into his body: "I am sorry Haru, but I must be off for I fear that the elders will be after me at any moment. If anyone asks you if you have seen me then just deny this ever happened. Cheers!" Shinji may sound paranoid, but he was pretty sure he saw an anbu following him as he came out here and that thought nhad been eating at him. He did not need a babysitter to follow him around, so he deiced to shake whomever had been following him and had probably been watching the brief spar of sorts. With that Shinji would disappear in a burst of speed. If he got back before whatever informant had been sent after him then he could deny everything-not a flawless plan, but a plan nonetheless.

{Possible Exit}