Expanding your repertoire (Sithis)

Togirama Hyuuga had given much thought to how he could be useful as a ninja, as a child he had been constantly told that he was either worthless or beneath notice and though it was disheartening to hear such things from those who should be considered family it had not caused the young Hyuuga to give up, it had merely caused him to carefully consider just what exactly he could do and how those things could be put towards a greater purpose. At first Togi had thought his route to usefulness would be through medical jutsu which was a thought that he still very much held on to, but since attending Suna's ninja academy he had come to realise that a ninja with only one skill was a liability. What good was being able to heal grievous wounds if he could not defend himself and therefore remain conscious when he would be most needed. Togi had therefore set about improving himself in whatever way possible. This had involved expanding in to areas that most Hyuuga's did not often dabble in. One such area was elemental justu. Togi had been surprised to learn back at the academy that he had a water affinity ( a very rare affinity in the desert like Suna) but Togi had done very little with that knowledge until very recently.
 
The young Hyuuga currently sat in the centre of a training ground dressed as he usually was in smart light grey robes, on each leg he had a weapons pouch secured while on his forehead he proudly wore a forehead protector complete with the symbol of Sunagakure that marked him as an active ninja of the village. Togi's legs were currently crossed and his lifeless dull grey eyes stared out blankly across the training ground focusing on nothing in particular. Togi's hands however were currently clutched together and forming the Tiger handseal and for those that were capable such as Togi was himself they would able to see that the young boy was currently channelling his chakra. 
 

The strangest thing about this whole situation however was likely the fact that in front of the young Hyuuga was an old metal bath tub filled with water that seemed to very occasionally bubble. Just what Togi was doing with a bath tub out in the middle of a training ground wasn’t exactly clear but fortunately he had made no such move to actually bathe out in the open.

(WC: 410)

Taking on an intense look of concentration Togi simultaneously reached out with his senses while continuing to channel his chakra, thanks to his water affinity as he did so he could feel the presence of the water less than a foot infront of him but it was not enough just to know that the water was there he needed to be able to take control of the water and shape it to his will. The particular jutsu that Togi was currently attempting to learn though only ranked as a D rank jutsu was quite a tricky one as it involved changing the physical nature of the water from being a liquid to being a gas without directly heating up the water. The benefits of mastering the hidden mist jutsu however would be great and the jutsu was uniquely suited for the blind Hyuuga, as Togi did not rely on sight he could quite happily flood his surroundings with mist making it harder for opponents to see without adversely affecting himself in the slightest.
 
Directing his chakra in to water filled tub, Togi began to saturate the water with his chakra slowly pushing more and more chakra in to the water in to the water until it could physically take no more. By this point the water was highly charged and filled with energy, the water was spontaneously bubbling slighting and a very fine layer of mist lingered just above the water's surface.  This layer of mist however was less than a centimetre deep and nothing like what the jutsu was supposed to be able to achieve. Togi had not taken control of the water he had merely energised it.
 
Taking a moment to consider the problem Togi thought about just how water turned to gas and therefore mist. Water in its natural state was well water... water stuck together and rolled over. It was not fixed together and stuck but nor was it completely free... the only water that could and infact did escape under normal conditions was the water on the surface and only if it had the energy to do so... Now instinctively Togi had spread out his chakra equally across all of the water but this obviously would not work in a large body of water such as a lake as the young Hyuuga would run out of chakra long before he had infused all the water in the lake with his chakra. What if however instead of charging all the water with his chakra he just instead focused on the water right at the water’s surface.
 
With this sudden point of inspiration Togi tightened up the form of his tiger hand seal and began to direct his chakra from being evenly distributed and instead focused it and concentrated exactly on the surface of the water. As soon as he did this Togi immediately felt a difference and could observe one too. A small cloud of mist that rose to about two foot now hung above the water. The mist however did not move beyond to foot away from the water's surface and as soon it did this it immediately began to dissipate.
 
'Better but still not perfect...' Togi thought to himself as he observed the effect he had created. 'I would be hard pressed to hide in a mist that size and even if I could it would be pretty obvious where I was... Togi silently added.
 
Continuing with what he was doing Togi then began to not only concentrate his chakra at the water's surface but swirl, move about and agitate the surface of the water with his chakra. This once again increased the amount of mist that was produced but also increased just how thick the mist itself was. The mist now extended out several feet not just up but in all directions.
 

'Getting there...' Togi silently commented as he concentrated harder and grit his teeth. This time aswell as focusing on the water in the tub Togi focused on the water that had risen up to form the mist aswell. As soon as Togi reclaimed control of the chakra within the mist the mist seemed to instantly thicken and grow more dense. ' And now to spread out the mist but to keep it just as dense...' Togi thought to himself will willing the mist to spread out in all directions. Slowly the now thick mist began to drift outwards consuming the training ground.

(WC: 741 claiming Hidden Mist technique (1000 words))
(ooc: Sithis if your still interested in joining this thread please do or else I am going to push ahead with training in this thread)

Keeping up the flow of chakra Togi let the mist rise up and spread further and further and further until it had consumed the entire of the training ground that the young Hyuuga had been sitting in the middle of. Togi was now completely hidden from view in the thick dense mist. From the outside of the mist it almost appeared as a cloud had drifted down and landed on the training ground and from the outside it would be near impossible for a normal sited person to spot the lone Genin.
 
'I suppose this amount of mist would count as having acceptably performed the jutsu' Togi thought to himself as he let his senses drift over the training ground noting how the air now faintly glowed with his chakra that was contained within the mist.
 
'You know after the dry heat of the desert this mist actually feels rather refreshing...' Togi thought to himself as he slowly got to his feet. 'Well might aswell make something useful out of all this mist...' the new Genin thought to himself as he brought his hands together and formed his favourite hand seal, the tiger hand seal. Togi then channelled his chakra in to the mist once again as he concentrated on condensing down the water and chakra in the mist in to two solid forms. Slowly two shadowy forms began to take shape as the mist thinned somewhat due to the fact that the water it was made off was being put towards a new jutsu.
 
Though the outside world could not see it due the lingering mist three identical looking Togi's now stood in the centre of the training ground facing each other. Togi had drawn together the water from the mist to form two perfect water clones. As one the three Togi's (two clones and one original) bowed deeply to each other before dropping low in to taijutsu stances. "Today is about expanding our repertoire so I want to practice more than just the gentle fist..." the original exclaimed though this was rather redundant as he had decided this before forming the clones and the clones therefore already knew this... Still it felt more normal to give verbal instructions...
 
Without a further word the original Togi then burst forwards and in a very un Hyuuga like manner he led with a powerful flying kick... Well powerful as far as Togi was concerned but not in relation to the rest of the ninja world for Togi still possessed physical strength that was of an academy student's level. The water clone meanwhile hastily crossed it's arms infront of it's chest and blocked the blow though it struggled with the force of the attack mostly due to the fact that its strength was based on it's creators less than formidable strength.
 
The second clone then took the opportunity to to charge in with a chakra laced palm thrust aimed at Togi's back. Since Togi however did not rely on normal eyesight and his chakra senses granted him three hundred and sixty degree vision it did matter that the attack was coming from behind, to the Hansho Byakugan the clone itself was a bright glowing warning sign. Togi spun round to meet the attack straight on and slapped the strike off course. The clone and the original then exchanged a rapid series of blows. Each strike that either the clone or the original made however was slapped away by the other so much so that the pair appeared to be playing a super speed version of 'pat a cake pat a cake'
 
The stalemate was eventually broken when the original Togi eventually tried something different, after deflecting the clones last attack Togi dropped low and spun his legs round striking out with a low sweeping. Togi's kick slammed in to the clone's ankles and in one swift movement the replica was swept off it's feet.
 
Togi however had no time to relax as while the second clone was temporarily off of its feet the first had stepped back up to takes it's place. The clone was currently standing on one foot while he held the other leg raised with it's knee bent. Suddenly straightening it's leg the clone kicked out with a blow that was aimed for the original's head. Togi dived to the side and rolled out of the way narrowly avoiding a concussion or atleast a nasty lump to the side of his head. Springing back to his feet Togi found that the clone had not yet given up the offensive and was charging him down once again. The clone then leapt up in to the air as it stuck its leg out infront like a battering ram. Togi had mere moments to react but some how he managed to raise his arms up and catch the clone by its foot. Twisting his hips Togi then spun round and using the clone’s momentum against it he then released his hold and let the clone go flying past. It was then the original Togi's turn to take the offensive and just like the clone had done before Togi charged straight after his opponent and then once he was close the young Hyuuga leapt up in to the air drew his left leg back and extended his right leg forward. The clone was still getting it's bearings back from the unceremonious trip to the ground when the sole of Togi's foot made contact with the side of the clone's head. While it was very true that Togi did not possess a great amount of physical strength for a ninja this attack not only had all of the young Hyuuga's body weight behind it but all of the momentum from his charge. Togi might not have been exceptionally strong but he was fast. The clone's face distorted in to a strange grimace from the force of the blow before it's head snapped to the side. The clone then seemed to shudder before it abruptly lost its form and it reverted back to water. The amorphous blob of water then crashed down upon the dry ground forming a new puddle as Togi lightly landed.
 
'Well that was a bit stronger than expected...' Togi thought to himself as turned to face the remaining clone. Both Togi and the one remaining clone dropped low in to matching taijutsu stances and then as if responding to some unseen or unheard signal they both simultaneously burst forwards and began charging towards each other. The two Togi’s ran at each other as though they were mirror images of each other and then us one they both leapt up in to the air and stuck their legs out as they flew towards each other. The two Togi’s then collided with a loud thud before they bounced off each other heading back the way they had came. One Togi landed on his feet and skidded backwards while the other crash landed upon the ground and roughly skidded back across the sand. Once the second Togi came to a stop his form briefly quivered before with a burst he turned back to water and splashed down upon the dry ground.
 
’Water clones are really useful for taijutsu training when you don’t have someone else to spar with, I seriously doubt I would have got this much benefit from just training on a combat dummy or training post…’ Togi thought to himself as he took a moment to catch his breath. ’This mist is surprisingly long lasting too…’ Togi noted in surprise as there was still a thick covering of the mist concealing the training ground despite the desert heat. ’I should probably focus a bit more time on my foot work, I have fallen in to the usual Hyuuga trap and up till now focussed far too much on not only the gentle fist itself but techniques that use my hands so much so that my kicks are likely somewhat lacking…’ Togi thought to himself.
 
After he had recovered some of his energy he then strolled back across the mist covered training ground until he stood roughly towards the centre. ’The key to an effective kick is not only speed and power but knowing where to hit and having the accuracy and precision to hit where you wish to hit…’ Togi silently declared before taking one last deep breath before getting back to work on the taijutsu training. Raising his hands up fairly high but in a form that was reminiscent of the gentle fist Togi then lashed out, the young Hyuuga did not lash out with a chakra laced palm strike as would be expected of a Hyuuga though he was in a position to do so he instead lifted his right leg and kicked out skywards with his right foot. Remaining balanced on just his left leg Togi then kicked high with his right leg once again and then again and again. Once Togi had finally got a rhythm going and felt that he was able to kick in quick succession even if the power of his blows were not that hard Togi then switched up his foot work and while he kept kicking out with his right leg he instead began to perform low sweeping kicks. Togi did this once, then twice and then three times until once again he was confident that he could perform these kicks in quick succession. ’Now this is supposed to be the easy part the hard part is combining the two moves and moving fluidly from one to the next’ Togi thought to himself as he recalled what he had heard years back when he used to observe others training before he was allowed to openly train himself.
 
Taking a deep breath to focus himself Togi started with a high spin kick and quickly moved in to a low sweep kick. While Togi performed both moves quickly they were somewhat disjointed and did not flow together, they more resembled two completely and separate techniques rather than two parts of a whole. Frowning slightly Togi tried again spinning high and sweeping low, again both parts were performed quickly but not that smoothly. ’Well I guess I have the basics I just need practice to improve my form…’ Togi thought to himself as he clapped his hands together and formed the tiger hand seal with his hands.  Channelling his chakra Togi began to concentrate both chakra and water from the mist until they formed two distinct forms. Finally once he was done Togi once again stood facing two exact duplicates of himself.
 
”Ok so I just want to practice my kicks, don’t fight back just yet just block or dodge my attacks…” Togi instructed the clones. The clones then gave a simple nod in response. Offering the clones a small bow Togi then slipped in to his opening taijutsu stance. Without any further warning Togi then lashed out with a high spin kick that one of the clones deflected with the palms of it's hands, Togi then went straight in to the low spin kick which the clone then easily jumped over. The combination was still somewhat disjointed though against an actual physical opponent it felt slightly smoother. Not wasting the momentum Togi then went straight in to the next repetition of the  combination. Twisting rapidly on the heel of his left leg Togi added a bit of extra power as brought his right leg spinning round. This time clone was forced to duck under the blow rather than dodge it and when Togi spun back around with the low sweep the clone was still in a somewhat awkward position and Togi’s kick slammed in to the clone’s shins. ’Better but surely the kick should actually do something rather than merely make contact, when I saw this move performed back in Konoha the opponent was literally swept of their feet...' Togi thought to himself.

"Ok let us try that one more time..." Togi declared as he took and single step back and took two deep breaths to prepare himself. The young Hyuuga then surged forwards leaping up this time as he brought his right leg swinging round in a high spin kick. The clone once again raised its palm's to block the attack but this time the force of the blow was more powerful and the water clone's hands were batted out of the way knocking it off balance. Togi then pushed the attack immediately dropping low and sweeping his legs low. Togi tried his best to keep the momentum going and swung his legs as hard as he could manage. This time Togi also managed to sweep his legs round his opponent more and instead of slamming into the side of the clones legs Togi managed to hit right at the back of the clone's shins. The point of impact was perfect and the clone's legs were swept out right from under it and Togi observed in almost slow motion as the clones chakra signature fell back down to the sandy ground.

"I think were getting the hang of that technique..." Togi declared as he held his hand out for the clone. The clone smiled from it's prone position on the floor and then reached up and grabbed the originals hand. With a slight grunt of effort Togi then pulled the clone back to its feet before releasing it's hand and taking a step back. "Thank you clone-san" Togi then declared bowing to his clone.

"I believe we might be ready to try these kicks in combat now... clone-san and clone-san you may now begin to fight back..." Togi instructed before bowing once again and slipping back in to his taijutsu stance. The two clones then mirrored this action bowing back to the original before slipping in to their own taijutsu stances aswell.

Deciding to start things off with a bang the original Togi immediately charged straight towards the nearest clone and leapt up in to the air while thrusting forwards his right leg. The clone did not even get a chance to move and Togi planted his foot on the duplicates sternum. The clone however had decided to make it not so easy for the original and what happened next came as a surprise. In a burst of chakra smoke the clone disapeared to reveal a simple training log. The clone had used a substitution jutsu to escape it's creators attack!  The kick however still had a fair amount of power to it and the log was launched backwards and ended up skidding and rolling across the sand.

With the first clone having put some distance between itself and the original the second clone took the opportunity to charge forwards. The clone lashed out with a quick palm strike which Togi deflected away with a quick slap, the clone then followed up with a second but Togi once again deflected the attack away. Togi then finally countered pushing off with his left leg as he brought his right leg up and simultaneously spun round with a high spin kick. The clone countered as it had done before by attempting to deflect the attack with the palm of it's hands this time however now that it was allowed to fight back the clone channelled chakra to the palms of it's hands. The force of the kick was enough to knock the hands aside but Togi felt a sting in his ankle and his keen chakra senses could see that a tenketsu had been plugged. 'Now I know first hand why most ninja either choose not to or are unable to use standard taijutsu against the gentle fist...' Togi thought to himself. A single sealed Tenketsu however would not be enough to stop his attack though he knew that in a prolonged fight the gentle fist would be able to gradually slow down an attacker using this move.  Pressing on with the move Togi kept up the spin as he dropped low going in for a sweep kick. The clone however was ready for this and jumped over the attack. Determined not to have suffered a sealed tenketsu for nothing Togi kept going and spun his legs round once again. The clone had not expected this and the second pass caught it just after it had landed and knocked it off balance. With the clone off balance Togi quickly jumped up in to the air and kicked out with both his feet. The soles of both feet slammed into the clones chest and it let out a loud grunt before stumbling backwards. There was then a loud clang and a big splash as the clone fell in to the now forgotten about metal tub filled with water.

Togi then suddenly found himself on the defensive as as shurikens began to fly his way. The spinning metal discs of death flew at Togi from the direction the original clone had disappeared off to. Rolling out of the way of the first volley of ninja stars Togi then jumped back to his feet and charged towards his clone occasionally dodging and weaving every time a shuriken came to close. 'I don't remember telling the clones to use jutsu or weapon's but I guess clone-san wants to give me a really authentic training session...' The young Hyuuga thought to himself as he just barely tilted his head out of the way of the last set of shuriken to be thrown his way.

Having successfully closed the gap Togi once again leapt in to the air and flew forwards with a jump kick. This time the clone raised it's arms and crossed them infront if it's chest to block the attack hopefully meaning it was not or had not performed hand seals. Having braced for impact the clone did not suffer as badly as it could have done and merely skidded back across the sand. Togi meanwhile having met resistance pushed off with his legs against the clone's braced arms and landed back upon the sandy ground a short distance away. The clone then charged forwards cocking it's arm back before thrusting its palm forwards with an attack that was aimed at the original's chest. Togi however merely twisted on the spot and allowed the attack to fly past. Giving in to instinct Togi's own hand then flew out with a rapid counter as he formed a two finger strike with his index and middle finger and tapped the clone's wrist. For a moment the clones arm wobbled as though it was about to burst in to water though it just managed to maintain its form. Using the tenketsu needle as a distraction Togi then lashed out with a heel palm to the clones chest that knocked it backwards. With the clone stumbling Togi then leapt up in to the air before throwing all his weight to the side in an effort to twist his body as he brought his leg round in a rapid spin kick. Togi's foot then slammed in to the side of the clones head stunning it before he dropped low quickly moving in to the sweep kick. Throwing his legs round in a single motion Togi then swept the clone straight off of its feet. Togi wasn't done there however and as the clone was falling he brought his legs round once again slamming them in to the clones stomach. With an eruption of water the clone then exploded, water droplets flying in all directions.

Climbing back to his feet slightly breathless after the rapid combination of moves Togi lightly brushed himself down knocking the loose sands off of his robes.

The last remaining clone by this point had climbed out of the tub and seemed somewhat revitalised perhaps due to being submerged in the very material that it had been created from. Still dripping with excess water the clone charged forwards intent on quickly closing the distance with the original. The chakra senses granted to him by the Hansho Byakugan quickly alerted Togi of this movement and he turned to meet the attack.

The clone began the assault with a quick palm thrust aimed at Togi's chest which the young ninja slapped to the side preventing the blow from reaching his body. The clone was undeterred and thrust the other hand forwards but again Togi lashed out and deflected the blow away. The key to fighting the gentle fist as Togi knew well was to either dodge the blow completely or to deflect the attack away by striking some other part of the opponents body that was not channelling the chakra. In order to dodge the opponents attack completely and with out fail required that you be faster than your opponent though to deflect the attack you only needed to carefully time your counter. A gentle fist strike could be redirected by blocking at the forearms or by landing a blow on the elbow that would knock the attack off course but Togi found that the simplest and most effective method was to strike the hand from the side and batter it out of the way with a swift slap. Ofcourse this method had a certain amount of risk to it as if your opponent was sufficiently faster than you were then they could adjust their attack and strike your arm as you came in to batter them away and potentially seal a tenketsu or two but against his own clones who he had the advantage of speed over this was not much of a risk.

Picking up the pace Togi then switched from merely knocking the clone's attack away but to actually counter attacking as well. When the clone made it's next attack Togi slapped the hand away with particular vigour and immediately followed up the attack by forming two outstretched fingers and then snaking his hand forwards before quickly tapping the clones wrist and releasing a small needle of chakra. The clone hesitated for a moment but attempted to strike with it's other hand. Togi once again slapped the offending hand aside before snaking forward with a two fingered strike a tapping the clones other wrist and sealing another tenketsu. With the chakra to both hands sealed off the clone seemed to be at a loss for what to do but Togi did not allow the clone to come up with a new strategy and quickly kicked out slamming his foot in to the clones chest. The clone stumbled backwards cartwheeling it's arms seemingly out of control. Togi however pushed the advantage and darted forwards with a hand slightly glowing with chakra. Togi then slammed this hand right in to the centre of the clones chest and with another burst of water this clone then dispelled in quite a similar fashion to the first.

"Thank you clone-sans" Togi declared bowing to the now empty training field as he panted somewhat as he attempted to catch his breath. "That was quite some work out you put me through..." Togi added as he wiped his forward with the back of his hand wiping off a combination of mist, water droplets and sweat. "I guess I earned a break..." the young Hyuuga declared as he quickly formed a single hand seal and dispelled the mist. Slowly making his way back towards the centre Togi then pulled a small scroll out from the golds of his robe and carefully unrolled it. "Can't leave this here..." Togi then exclaimed as he placed the scroll next to the old metal tub. Placing the palm of his hand atop the scroll Togi then channelled his chakra in to the scroll. This immediately caused a huge burst of chakra smoke and once it was cleared the tub was gone and there was a glowing seal on the scroll in front of Togi. The young Hyuuga then took his time rolling the scroll back up before tucking it inside his robe.

Climbing back to his feet Togi left the training ground in silence and slowly made his way home. Perhaps the next time he had a spar he would have a few surprises for his opponent who would likely expect him to solely rely on the Hyuuga art's. But now Togi slowly began to realise he was starting to obtain quite the respectable repertoire not did he know a few interesting taijutsu manauevers but he now knew how to perform a couple of elemental jutsu, medical ninjutsu and some generic ninjutsu aswell. 'I will have to start thinking about the best way to combine these abilities... It's bit just what you know but how you use what you know that is important...' Togi thought to himself as he continued his slow walk home.

(WC:4122)
(TWC:5273 claiming 26 stat points Hidden Mist (1000 words) Discipline (500 words) Dynamic Entry (1000 words) Leaf Whirlwind (1250) words Leaf Gale (1000) words)
(Exiting)