Single Act Circus

Valrose was walking through the wilderness surrounding the Village of Islands. He had been dragging a sack behind him for a long while. In moments of madness, he often forgot the purpose for what he was doing. In this case, he knew where he had to go, but he knew not what dwelt within the sack. Whatever it was, it struggled and kicked viciously now. In the depths of his shattered mind, he had a vague memory that it didn't before. The struggling only made the mad clown laugh. Oh, how he loved a challenge. It made what he was planning to do all the more rewarding. He entered a small patch of forest, throwing the bad against a large tree trunk, hard. A quite squeak escaped the bag as it slumped to the ground. The noise was hilarious to the clown, grinning like a fool as he tore open the bag and dumped out it's contents. What fell out confused Valrose somewhat, for what laid down on in front of the clown was a child, perhaps 5 or 6. As the kid's terrified eyes met the mad, yet confused eyes of the clown, something clicked. Valrose remembered that child... He was one he saw watching him from the safety of the gates, an ever-present look of.... Hate? Distaste? He wasn't sure. All he knew was that it wasn't a smile. And he wanted that smile. One night, the kid had strayed too far from the gates and Valrose struck. What happened next was static... and the next thing he knew, he had the kid in the sack. Eager to get down to business, the twisted clown grabbed the kid's throat and slammed him against the tree so that his toes were barely touching the ground. The kid couldn't scream, too terrified to even say a peep. At the child's expression, the clown's own fell. He puckered his lips and looked the kid over as if he were a master artist looking over a painting. There was something about this child he didn't like.... what was it... what was it.... after looking over the kid a third time, the clown snapped his fingers and his smile glowed to life once more. it was the child's face that was the problem! He dug around in his pockets for something, pulling the insides out before looking at the terrified child and shrugging his large shoulders exaggeratedly. Now where did he put that... Oh there it was! He pulled one of his larger juggling knives he had notched in his belt. He held the blade behind the kid's left ear, smile widening in anticipation to the beautiful red smile that will replace the child's expression. However, he noticed motion below him. He looked down, taking his knife away from the child's throat. A scroll laid beside the jester's feet. Curious, he forgot about the child he had pinned against the tree, releasing his grip on him and using his free hand to pick up the scroll. The child dropped to the ground, first scuttling away from the clown before finding his feet and running back in the direction of the village. Valrose noticed this but didn't stop him. Eh... he would find him later. Now... what goodies awaited him in this scroll? He slipped the knife back into his belt and opened the scroll to it's full length.

"Words... words.... words...." The clown muttered, skimming over the scroll, bored, before coming across a diagram. "OOOOOO! Pictures!" he grinned as he studied the diagram with great interest. Something about chakra, whatever that was, something about balance, (Like on a pole?) but it was the hand signs that truly caught the clown's attention. It looked like some form of patty-cake that he had yet to see. He began to mimic the signs with his hands in order, muttering the Patty-cake song under his breath. Suddenly, something, perhaps instinct compelled the clown to focus his energies into a point separate from himself, about 5 feet away. Ignoring the madness within him momentarily, he did as this instinct commanded, causing a poof of smoke to appear before him. Alarmed, the clown leapt back in a comical fashion, landing on one leg, then the other. As the smoke cleared, he saw.... him. He lined up the clone, it lined him up. He stepped to the right, it did as well. He stepped forward, towards the clone, it stepped toward him with the same foot. Valrose found this fun! It was like a game of Mirrors!

"Hey! You look like me!" Valrose laughed. Although the clone mimicked his lips, it didn't seem to have a voice of it's own. Intrigued by the scroll he had just read, he picked it back up and sat down reading it. The clone mimicked him here as well, except where he held the scroll, the clone held air as if it were holding a scroll. Valrose giggled quietly to himself as he read the title: Clone Jutsu. The heck was a jutsu? He felt a strange Deja Vu when he read the word. He looked over at his clone. It looked over at him. Valrose got up. It did the same. He raised a hand, it did as well. Valrose threw his hand forward towards the clone in a 'high-five' but when it would have come into contact, it went right through as if the clone's hand was nothing but an apparition. Just as he passed through it, the clone disappeared in another cloud of smoke. Valrose blinked, then he fell on his back, laughing until his chest hurt. Oh, that was rich! That was funny! That was humor! After he caught his breath, he repeated his steps and summoned a new clone. For the next two hours, he and the clone danced together in no contact mirror dances. Valrose enjoyed himself greatly and when his energy was expended, he reached out a fist to fist-bump his double but like before, his fist when right through the clone and it disappeared. He cackled to himself for a while longer. He had no idea why that was so funny! After catching his breath a second time, he looked about for the kid, his eyes falling on the empty sack. Oh yeah, he ran off. Valrose wandered through the forest, dancing in something resembling a waltz. He had to show this trick to someone!

"Where did that kid get off to..?" Valrose asked out loud, in time with his steps and strides.

(EXIT)

WC: 1087

Claiming 5 stats and Clone Jutsu