Learning Taijutsu From A Wolf (Salzem)

She watched as he demonstrated the beginners stance, a mixture of disbelief and understanding coursing through her, on one hand she couldn’t believe such a simple thing as bending one’s knees could be a basic taijutsu stance, yet at the same time she figured it only seemed natural for a basic stance to be...well, basic. Once motioned to do so, Hikari mimicked the bent stance Salzem stood in, taking in the knowledge he gifted her with. As she listened, she thought about the pose they were in, feeling the agileness of her legs and how leveled she felt. She had to admit that it was a better pose than the one she tried to punch him with earlier.

He shifted his body ever so slightly, placing most of his bodyweight on the foot behind him, deeming this the weighted stance due to his weight being distributed farther back in case his opponent decided to strike him. Although he didn’t tell her to, Hikari again copied his moves to become comfortable with the stances he showed her. If she leaned back too far, Hikari thought she might fall over, which she guessed might be a good thing when avoiding a strike or attack. Salzem then shifted his weight to his front foot, stating that he was now in a front weighted stance. As she followed his movements, she noted that it did feel easier to use close combat, as she could bring her back foot up to strike with momentum and force if she needed to in a real fight with little to no effort.

Moving on to the next set of stances, the teacher of taijutsu unbent his knees until they were barely bent at all, and his little student followed his movements into the high stance. Although there was little angle in her legs, Hikari could feel a slight difference in agility between the high stance and her standing normally. The Hyuuga thought that might be due to how one moves when they are running or jumping. When doing the aforementioned activities, a person’s knees are bent, yet when standing normally the knees are not always bent, except maybe slightly in certain cases. Then they both squatted lower than the first stance, their bodies closer to the ground than before. The low stance, as it was called, made her feel more even and strong, as if nothing could knock her down. She wasn’t sure how it would affect her punches and kicks, but she believed what Salzem said about it helping power up taijutsu due to its strong and direct stance; however, she could tell it would be harder to move quickly in this stance, due to feeling weighed down by herself.

She chuckled alongside the lycan as he rubbed the back of his head, agreeing that the stances were a bit complicated at first, but that they would get easier as time went on and she got used to performing them without even thinking.

“Haha yeah, it’s a bit much right now but after a lot of training and practicing, I definitely believe I’ll be able to switch between them with ease, as if they were a part of me.” Hikari stated, agreeing with what Salzem had said. “How long did it take you to master taijutsu?” She was curious how much of a pro he was at this style of fighting.

(WC: 3,019)

Salzem smiled as Hikari continued to mimic his various poses, trying to get a feel for each one. It actually made him kind of proud the way she had a natural knack for each one, though he shouldn't be all too surprised as the Hyuuga teach their kids Taijutsu in the form of gentle-fist anyway. Of course, it's well known that a Byakugan was the only thing that allowed people to see other's tenkitsu and therefor allow one to learn those precise gentle-strikes as-it-were. He didn't believe that was the case... Sure, one could simply take an eye and implant it, but the lycan was sure there were other methods to get at someone's chakra points without having to implant organs... Another jutsu perhaps, one of advanced medical knowledge... He'd have to look into that later...

Hikari snapped him out of his momentary silence as she assured him that she'd be able to switch between stances with ease, as if they were an extension of her. While her confidence was reassuring and no doubt her heart was in the right place, he didn't know if she understood how difficult it was to maintain a consistency like a stance in the fluid chaos that was combat. Still... she was older than he and had training in such things... For all he knew, she had been in 5 times the combat he had and already had knowledge of this kind of stuff...

When Hikari asked how long it took him to "master" Taijutsu, Salzem couldn't help but chuckle. He didn't "master" anything! He's just good at it and likes what he does. Compared to a real master of taijutsu (like Koroshi, the hell was he...), Salzem looked more like a mild practitioner than a perceived master.

"I just like hitting things in fancy ways, Hikari." Salzem laughed, shaking his head. "I'm not a master in anything. How long it took me to get to this point, though... Years. My body was already weak and crippled from being poisoned when I was young and I was forced to wear a mask most of my childhood and some of my ninja career to breath. For me, Taijutsu was probably the hardest combat proficiency I could have chosen and yet... here I am, able to punch down trees and smash rocks with my feet. You shouldn't worry about how long it takes, so long as you like what you're doing. Otherwise, it's just pointless exercise."

The response the younger shinobi gave her was one she had not expected; he chuckled lightly at first, his throat humming with a deep pitch, but then his chest heaved heavily, his voice coming out a higher pitch full of amusement. He was laughing as he informed her that he did not believe he was anywhere close to being a master of taijutsu, he just enjoyed hitting things with grace and style. Hikari didn’t say it aloud, but she still deemed him more of a master at taijutsu than herself, and he was the only one she knew who was specialized in the style of fighting. So to her, he was just as much an expert as anyone else (especially since she had no idea that Koroshi even existed).
 
She she continued listening to her friend, she began to realize that although they deemed one another siblings, she knew little to nothing about him. He probably knew more about her than she did regarding his own story, as she was a rather open book: he saw that her parents and siblings were deceased, he knew the blood that flowed through her veins was of Hyuuga descent, and he knew that all of her friends were also deceased. There was really nothing more to her life, she was a rather plain jane who never did anything interesting, and nothing truly terrible ever happened to her either. Salzem, on the other hand, casually informed her that as a young child he had been poisoned, the effects of such a cruel thing leaving his body weak and crippled. He spent many of his years wearing a mask to just survive.
 
Yet his past shaped who he was. For an unknown reason, he decided to study taijutsu when he was training, something that must have been excruciatingly difficult for him. However, he survived despite the hardships, and can now easily break trees and rocks in half with just his feet as if they were nothing. Hikari admired the tenacity Salzem showed, even if he doubted his abilities. The insight he just gave her renewed to her he was a master in taijutsu, and nothing she could say or do would change her mind.
 
She snapped out of her thoughts as he finished talking, gently replying with a soft tone, “Ah, no I wasn’t worried about how long it would take. I was just curious is all.” She was unsure if she should mention anything about his past, and ultimately decided it was in his best interest to not resurface memories from what could be a dark period of his life. Instead, she continued talking about taijutsu. “...Now that we have gone over stances, is there more I should know? Such as specific ways I should hold my fists to keep from being wild and to stop my moves from being easily detectable? Or do the stances help with those sorts of things already?”
 
Hikari hoped she wasn’t asking too many questions, or too many irrelevant ones, but she wanted to make sure that she was well equipped regarding all things taijutsu. She also hoped he didn’t mistake her silence on his childhood as her not caring, she just really did not want to bring back painful memories, if they were harmful to him.
 

(WC: 3,568)

Salzem nodded as his sister inquired about where her hands should go as well... She was really paying attention to his lessons, asking all the right questions. She always was a great student, actually caring about what she was learning... It impressed him indeed... made him want to keep teaching...

"Well... A lot like leg-placement, there are several different styles of hands, perhaps even more. I'll show you a few, but most you'll have to find on your own and decide for yourself based on your own fighting style."

From there, Salzem would raise his hands, shifting his legs into an unweighted balanced position, his fingertips above his mouth, but below his eyes. The back arm was about a fist's length away from the body and the front, another fist, his arms loose and flexible but not so much that one could easily smash his guard. His guard was a bit high, favoring his upper body as most punches are thrown directly at the head (in his experience).

"You see... from this position, you can more easily deflect or block straight punches with your hands or, with a lift of your forearm, you can block incoming hooks as well as being able to deflect uppercuts by merely lowering your back arm." Salzem demonstrated, raising and tensing his front arm as if in anticipation for a hook coming his way and then, slowly bringing his arm back and lowering his back arm, his hand ready to deflect incoming uppercuts to his stomach or face.

"With your strong arm in the rear position, you make the most of your hip and leg-strength through your rear arm power, using your front hand to measure distance and set up more powerful strikes mainly with jabs."

Salzem shifted his position, this time bringing his arms up near his head almost like a boxer, though his hands were cupped instead of curled into fists, the finger tips hovering a bit of distance above his palms. His chin was tucked down a bit, hidden between his guard of his arms, protecting his eyes, nose, jaw and throat. His position appeared mysterious... elusive... fluid...

"This is an ideal Street-fighting stance. It's not traditional nor is it something ninjas are normally taught, but fighting like an animal is still a martial art, believe it or not. Unlike most arts that depend on fluid strikes that fall within their criteria, these rely more on self-defense techniques and cheap-shots, some that might actually save your live one day. It is important that you know how to separate this stance into it's three stages: Kicking, Punching and Grapple and be proficient in all three because often... you'll have to explore them in battle. This stance provides a solid defense if the guard is held up, giving a solid foundation while also providing good elusive capability as well. You are able to though your whole weight into your arm-guard from here, or duck out of the way of an oncoming blow."

It amazed her how knowledgeable Salzem was about fighting, knowing things she never knew existed before this moment- which is probably why he was teaching her after all. Who knew there would be so many different stances regarding hands and feet, she wondered if she would be able to utilize them properly in battle, or if she would clumsily pick the wrong stance. Then there was the fact that some positions she would be finding out on her own, most likely within the heat of combat, with little time to prepare and test the stances.
 
Just as with the first set of stances, Hikari watched Salzem raise his hands as he shifted into an unweighted stance, the tips of his fisted fingers above his mouth but underneath his eyes, with one arm closer to his body and the other a little bit farther. She placed her own body in a similar stance, her right arm closer to her body with her left arm in front of her right the same distance away as his (a fist length away from the body for the right and one fist length away from the right for the left arm). Instead of rough and rigid, his arms were more lax and able to move quickly. Hikari noted this stance protected one’s head area the most, but could still defend the torso if needed. She listened to what the younger shinobi said this stance was useful for, being able to efficiently block punches with your hands and stop hooks with the forearms, even being able to block an uppercut just by lowering the back arm. Hikari noted that this stance was best suited for blocking an opponent’s hands, but she wasn’t sure how it would fair blocking a kick.
 
Salzem demonstrated the aforementioned abilities of the stance, deflecting against both a hook and an uppercut. He raised his front arm, tensing for the imaginary hook coming its way. Once his front arm went back into position, he lowered his back arm, blocking an uppercut to his stomach or face. The way he moved was fluid, as if he wasn’t even thinking about where to place his hands, he just moved and they followed, keen to where they already needed to go. Then he began speaking once more, stating how this particular stance utilized the most of one’s leg and hip strength through the back arm, the stronger arm, while the weaker arm gauged distance and prepped for stronger attacks such as jabbing.
 
Shifting into the second stance, both of their arms were higher, closer to their heads. It resembled a boxer’s stance, yet instead of fists the hands were cupped, their fingertips a fair amount of distance from their palms. Their chins were tucked down, their arms guarding all the vital points on their heads. The stance made it more difficult to land a strike on their faces, giving them also the capability of ducking from an attack with ease. Salzem gave this stance a name as he began describing in detail what the purpose of such a stance was.
 
It was a street-fighting stance, something Hikari never thought one would need in the shinobi world, but as he continued describing such a stance, it began to make sense to her why it could be effective. With this stance, it relied more on self defense and cheap shots rather than criteria for striking, and could be broken down into three stages: Punching, Kicking, and Grappling. Salzem noted that these stages had to be explored during combat, and Hikari wondered if they would be able to potentially go over such tactics beforehand, instead of waiting till she was in a fierce battle to attempt such things. It was so much for the little Hyuuga to take in all at once, but she was somehow able to retain all the information given to her.
“You said these three stages had to be explored in battle, so is there any way you could perhaps show them to me or have been attempt them? I’d rather be at least familiar with these beforehand, if that is alright with you.” Hikari inquired, her tone light and unsure. She didn’t know if such a thing was a good idea, attempting to test skills in a spar that wasn’t a life or death scenario.
 

(WC: 4,290)

Salzem nodded as Hikari asked if he could show her or possibly demonstrate the three ranges of street-fighting. Yes... He was getting to that...

"Come here, Hikari... A little more than a yards length from me." If she obliged, she would be just out of his arm's length without him advancing further, but also within the general range that was kicking. Salzem's arms would remain raised, as if remaining in combat as he continued to explain.

"Here, we are at the longest range, Kicking range. From here, a fighter would try to disable an opponent quickly with a strike to the knees, busting their knee-cap..." Salzem demonstrated, bringing his foot forward slowly almost like a curb-stomp, his heel tapping Hikari's knee before being retraced back to it's balanced position. "...the thigh...." Salzem again demonstrated, this time bringing his leg around wide but just as slow and balanced, the sharpness of his shin-bone made an ample weapon at full force. His shin would lightly tap Hikari's thigh, letting her analyze each and every bit of the move and stance that came along with it. "....And finally to the chest and head if your opponent is getting to close." Finally, he demonstrated the push kick, raising his leg forward, the ball of his foot gently tapping his sister's chest below her breasts but above her stomach, giving her a gentle push, a mere taste of it's actual purpose. He retracted his leg, bringing himself back to his position, this time gesturing for Hikari to come closer, stopping her once she was within 2-3 feet's distance.

"This is 'punching' range... Here has a lot more options for both you and your opponent and a lot more deadly and 'cheap' attacks. For example... I could punch..." He raised his front fist, thrusting it at his sister's face, stopping just short of her nose... one of the weakest parts. "...Use my Elbow..." Salzem would step in, swinging his arm around almost as if to hook, but the hand fell short and the rest of his arm came around, halting next to her face, right above her ear and beside her eye. He retracted back to his original position. "Or.... You could even claw. I don't think I need to demonstrate that to you, but as dishonorable and dirty as it is, ripping someone apart is often the best way to get them off you. Don't be afraid to chop at their throats, barrage their eyes with a flurry of quick blows or anything considered uncouth. Your life IS on the line."

Again Salzem gestured for Hikari to come forward, this time, instead of stopping her, Salzem reached out and wrapped his hand around the back of Hikari's head, pulling her into a standing grapple, forcing her face down and making it awkward for her to see, let alone land a solid blow.

"In Grapple position, you're at your most dangerous, but also when you're in the most danger. Here... you'll want to bite at my fingers, slam your knees into my torso, scream and wrench yourself free because from here, I could do the same to you and with my superior size and strength.... you'd want to do it all first..." He didn't think he needed to demonstrate exactly what she needed to do, as it was all self explanatory, so he moved on instead. "Headbutting is a great way to get out of a grapple and into punching distance, the surprise of your head in my face would... make it easy to pull away." Salzem reared his head back before throwing it forward, his forehead lightly tapping hers as he smiled gently.

The lycan would let her go, stepping back a bit into relative kicking distance if she wanted to actually fight using these techniques.

"The most important thing is that you're not fighting to win... you're fighting to live and that means you can't be afraid to get bloody and hurt. Taijutsu is a full contact sport."

As Salzem gestured for her to come closer to him, the Hyuuga girl did as requested, walking until the distance between them was about a yard away. She was out of arm’s length for him, but he could easily still kick her and thus, Hikari figured he was going to demonstrate the kicking stage first, although his hands stayed raised as if he were still in combat and expecting a strike.
 
She was proven right as Salzem lectured her on the stance he was in, stating it was the kicking range. In this stage, he emphasized kicking the opponent in the knees, aiming to bust their knee cap and disable them from moving any closer to strike even if only for a few moments. Hikari felt a light tap on her knee as he demonstrated what he meant, bringing his heel up to lightly tap her knee. Since his was a gentle tap, if left little to the imagination how much damage such a strike could do to someone. It was a very powerful move. Continuing the demonstration, he slowly brought his leg around widely, tapping her thigh with his durable shin. If he had been using his full power, her thigh would have easily been bruised by the sheer power of his shin pounding into her skin. His last demonstration using his legs involved raising his leg up and moving it forward, using the ball of his foot to gently push on the area above her sternum. At full force, this move could break ribs and send someone flying back several feet. It was a very useful stance to keep someone at bay.
 
Then he motioned for her to come even closer as he settled back into his original position. She stopped within two to three feet of him, entering the punching range. This range aided both sides, giving each an equal opportunity to strike the other. Salzem demonstrated how he could quickly punch her, his fist stopping just short of touching her nose, the movement sending a small current of air blowing across her face. Had he not stopped, her nose would have been shattered, blood pouring out from the wound. Although it was a small probability of happening, it is known that people can even kill someone if they break their nose in just the right way to send the fragmented shard of bone up to the brain, piercing it and causing death. Next he showed her how one might use their elbow in close combat, moving his as if coming in for a hook, but falling short as the rest of his arm kept going, his elbow landing in the area above her ear and next to her eye, the temple area. If Hikari remembered correctly, a critical blow to one’s temple could render them unconscious, and an elbow would surely be sharp enough to cause such trauma. His last demonstration in this range was unnecessary, for it was clawing. Her younger brother explained that although clawing was a cheap and dirty tactic, if her life was in danger she had every right to pull out all the stops in order to survive.
 
Once the shinobi finished talking, he again gestured for her to come closer, closing the gap between them as they entered the last stage: grappling. Instead of stopping her as she got close enough, he merely reached out, placing his hand on the back of her head and pulling her down into what she could only guess was a standing grapple. It was difficult for her to see or land any meaningful blows in that position, her head locked in place unabling her to strike without feeling pain in her neck. Hikari figured she might be able to get out of the grapple if she knew more advanced Gentle Fist techniques, such as Gentle Fist: Art One Blow Body. If that didn’t work or was not even feasible, Hikari took note of what Salzem said to do in order to get out of such a grapple, as if can be dangerous to opponent but even more dangerous to herself. He mentioned biting at their fingers, kneeing them in the torso,and  screaming and trying to get herself free as options for escaping the grapple. He also said that headbutting would work just as well, possibly catching them off guard. He demonstrated by leaning his head back and then ramming it forward, gently tapping his forehead against her own, a soft smile upon his lips. Had this been a real fight, Hikari knew her forehead would be bleeding from the impact.
 
Just as soon as she was put into that position, he let go of her and stepped back a few feet, entering the kicking zone. Hikari had never thought of taijutsu as a sport, but after training with him today, she believed Salzem was right. It was a sport alright, one that could lead to death.
 
The extent of his knowledge astounded the Hyuuga, as she had never met anyone with such vast experience as he. “Thank you, Salzem. All of this wisdom has helped me greatly.” Hikari remarked, awe in her voice and a light smile playing across her features. “O’ wise one, is there more for me to learn or is it time for me to put your lessons to good use?” She hoped he appreciated her tiny joke, she couldn’t resist treating him like he was a master of taijutsu.

(WC: 5,200)

"O, wise one?" Salzem snickered, shaking his head in his humor. "What am I, a prophet?" He caught the smile that flash across the hyuuga's features and he too smiled wider, happier with his sister than he had been in a long time. When she asked if there was anything else she needed to learn, the lycan brought his fore-finger and thumb up to his chin in the comical thinking pose, though he was seriously probing his mind for any more relevant information that would be of use to her.

"Lets see... train your body every day for strength and cardio... Protect your knuckles when doing punch-practices but you should already know that... OH! Diet. Diet is important." Like all good ninja should have, Salzem withdrew a pen and pad from his weapon's pouch, scribbling down a list of item he expected her to buy once they were all done here.

"Lets see... You need to eat lots of meat... meat is good for building muscle... Milk and other dairy products as well for bone-strength... Don't neglect your vegetables in any of this, Hikari because it doesn't matter how strong you get if you can't move your body right..." Though these instructions were mostly mutters, she would be able to make out his words, if with a little effort. With the list constructed, Salzem would tear the paper from the pad and pass it to his student, stuffing his materials back in their proper place.

"Also... Try to replace some of your grains like... buns or sweet-breads with stuff like dried fruits or trail-mix. They make for great energy and strength-building materials, as well as giving you the fats and stuff for longer-term energy. " With that, Salzem really had nothing else to add, besides offering giving her one-on-one sparring training to get her into the feel of using her body. He slapped his hands together, dusting off his palms as if there were something on them before stuffing his hands into his jacket pocket, content with his instruction.

"Other than that... I really don't have anything else for you! You now have the knowledge to go out and punch things fancily. If you want... I could give you some hands-on instruction in a sparring class tomorrow."

It made the young girl beam with joy as Salzem found her joke humorous, a big smile radiating off of his face. She chuckled as he added his own witty remark, asking if he was a prophet. If the shoes fits why not wear it. After she asked if there was anything else she needed to know, her little brother brought his hand up to his face, his thumb and pointer finger resting on his chin in a cliche thinking pose.

Hikari began taking mental notes over what the lycan said, although most of it was basic knowledge all shinobi should already have. As he got to the topic of diet, a light bulb went off in his head and he quickly pulled out a pen and paper, scribbling the foods Hikari would need to get. Despite his ramblings being low and jumbled, she easily could make out what they were with a little effort on her part. Hikari would need to buy meat, milk and other dairy products, and vegetables to help keep her body in tip top shape. Salzem tore off the paper and handed it to her, she gratefully accepted it and placed it in the weapons pouch connected to her right thigh. It was strange to have a weapons pouch yet not use the weapons inside of it, although she kept it on in case she ever needed an extra weapon, yet that probably would never actually be the case due to her hands being weapons. Maybe if she couldn’t activate her Byakugan, then she might need those extra kunai and shuriken. Perhaps.

He added a few more notes about the diet for her to follow, replacing grains for dried fruits and trail mix as the latter foods provide longer lasting energy than the former. Then Salzem slapped his hands together, dusting them off and placing them in his jacket pockets, finished with his lesson for the day. He offered to have a hands on sparring class tomorrow, giving the Hyuuga some much needed practice on how to move her body correctly and get used to moving it in such ways.

With the smile having never left her face, Hikari replied to all that her brother had said and done, “Thank you so much, Salzem. I really appreciate all you’ve done for me today, I learned more than I ever could have alone.” She walked closer to him, her arms open wide for a hug. If he let her, the Hyuuga would give her brother a gentle embrace that lasted for a few seconds, not too long and not too short either. “I would love to have a sparring class tomorrow, I think it would be beneficial to both of us.”

Hikari then released the embrace, unless Salzem held on longer then she would wait for him to be done before letting go. “Well, I think it's time I go do a little grocery shopping. Thank you again for spending the day teaching me, little brother. You are welcome to come join me, but if you have other obligations to attend to then do not worry, I completely understand. You have spent the majority of your day guiding me.”

With that, the Hyuuga would gather her things and set off with Kuro to the market, with or without Salzem walking alongside them. If he chose not to go with her, she would glance back and give one last wave of farewell to him if he was still in the area. Unless he continued their conversation, then Hikari would reply accordingly and wait to gather her belongings.

[Exit?]
(TWC: 5,800)
(Claiming: Taijutsu spec 5800/2000, 9 stats which brings me to be at max stats from 1800 words, and 40 ap from the left over 4000 words. I’m sorry if I have done this incorrectly, first time claiming ap from words ^^’)

Of course, Salzem stepped in and embraced his sister, holding her close for a few seconds before letting go. She thanked him profusely for teaching her all of this today and he merely nodded and smiled, happy she got something out of it. He was glad she gave him something to do today.... Otherwise, he would've just kept laying around, training just enough to keep himself from getting any weaker. It was people like these that kept him motivated... At least one of them would be getting stronger from all of this... He only hoped his teachings wouldn't fall silent eventually... that they wouldn't end with just her.

"Of course, Hikari." Salzem grinned, gently patting his older sister on the shoulder. He didn't care about their age gap, but he thought of himself as the older brother. He was taller... stronger... He taught her more than she did him.... Of course, this wasn't to say she didn't make a good one! He... well... just thought he was older... He certainly felt older... It was weird... When she said she would love to have a sparring class, Salzem's smile grew a little wider.

"Okay! I'll be waiting her around lunch-time. We'll grab some food then spar."

Hikari then mentioned that she was going to need to go shopping and, of course, he was welcome to join her if he wished, provided he didn't have any obligations.

Heh... The only obligation I have is to my nap... He muttered under his breath. But... I can put that off for a bit...


"Sure! I'll tag along! Have to make sure you pick out the right stuff, right big sis?" The lycan would let out a long yawn, crack the joints in his neck and stuff his hands in his pockets before walking beside Hikari back into the market-place.

(EXIT)
WC: 4172
Claiming 40 AP....? Maybe...?