Where The Wild Things Are

Niko would listen to the Senju rant on about her friends and such. The Senju always liked ranting. Maybe it was some kind of quirk that she had alongside the talking to inanimate objects part. But what really caught Niko's attention was when she took notice of his comment on the prison system and his favorite inmate.

"319 is his code name. I'm not allowed to reveal more. Of course, we use names the numbers are just for organization." Niko would interrupt but upon hearing the use of her statistics Niko would take the opportunity to continue.

"For a lot of inmates there is no rehabilitation. They are not there to leave. Some people do not deserve rehabilitation. They deserve punishment, and believe me when I say that these people are separated from each other" Niko would choose to ignore the rest of her rant. While he could directly contradict some things she was saying Niko took it as a waste of his time. That being to criticize a working arm of Kiri.


Niko would watch Saya change forms. The strength that she had disappearing as soon as it came. Niko would notice that the marks on her body started to vanish aside from the ones that where there from her drawing on herself. Niko would then begin to speak.

"Why don't you start what should we learn today. I have learned some things from daiko but not as much as I would wish from you. You should truly start"
(WC 250 posted 12/22/2021 for advent purposes)

"Okay. So you call them by their real name when you actually interact with them, it's just when you're outside of the prison you use the code name to be like. super secret ninja mode. I guess I get that. " She considered the situation for barelly a moment before an idea absorbed her thought. An excelent idea. A most wonderful one... "Can. Can I come visit the prison and hang out with some of the inmates? I bet we could find lots of fun stuff to do to occupy their time and yanno. It's gotta be hecka boring in there doin nothin all day! Ooh Ooh. I could maybe teach them to sew or like sing! My sister could totally teach them writing stuff! I bet they were so mean cuz they didn't have a creative outlet so they had to like steal and stuff instead. It would be so cool Niko! I bet we could organize an entire choir from the prison and they could do like performances for people and maybe put out a hat and earn some money for when they get out!!!" She was so focused on the increasingly more grand plan that grew with every word that she almost missed the next comment. 

It took several moments for her mind to catch up to what had been said, but it was very clear exactly when she'd understood the statement. Her nose crinkled in disgust at the suggestion. She remembered Niko being a bit of a... What was the word? Pessimist? No that's not it. Glass half empty ty-no that just sounds silly... The word was on the tip of her tongue... 

"Wet blanket." WIth a nod, she'd continue like she hadn't just spoken the ending of her thoughts alloud. "That's silly. Everyone deserves rehabilitation. How can we create a better society if we don't work towards healing the broken and encoraging bad behaviors?! " She could contradic many of the points that brought him to this rediculous conclusion, but for Saya that particular topic was done, and so she would ignore the rest of his mean thoughts on the matter. have you ever felt like there was an echo in here....

"Hm. Well... I'm sure theres a bunch of stuff I could teach you?" Threads would flow from her fingertips towards Niko as she considered, attempting to wrap around his arms and legs in a manner similar to Skillful artistry, but with a slight twist. Using her Perfected performance with a human body he would find if he allowed the wrap that there was less forced control in the technique. Also, and she would make a point of showing this immediately, he would be able to float above the ground. Her hands flashed through several seals, each hand forming their own jutsu as she showcased many of the wood style techniques she'd learned over the past several months. First, Two foo dog heads would split the ground just behind her, pouring from the earth to look down on Niko. At the same time, Two small pink flowers would seem to spin from points on her wrists, two more on her ankles, and two at each collar bone. Thin vines poured from the flowers on her wrists, reaching up to catch the foo dog and lift her up to sit on it's back. 

(TWC 3125

Seal of Tsunade's determination set last post power:250)

Niko would pause after doing his rant to listen to his fellow puppeteer's response. It seemed as if she understood what he had been saying with the prisoners and their numbers. But when her face lit up Niko nearly instantaneously sighed this could not be too good. Though the idea was not the worst Niko would respond.

"I mean there is no reason a chuunin such as yourself would not be able to come to the prison as long as the warden was okay with it. Though we would have to keep your ideas confined to some of the more docile inmates. If you get what I'm saying that is." Niko liked the idea of more events for the well-behaved prisoners. But there were some deplorable people in there. Some people that let's say don't want to write nor join a choir. The thought was kind of funny seeing murders and terrorists singing carols in the street.

Niko would notice Saya's face turn into a cringe after he spoke about the lack of a better option for some prisoners. Her face would contort. Niko would briefly think that maybe she truly was a monster and she was about to shapeshift. Though her face changed when she splurted out 'wet blanket' whatever that meant. He would ignore her thoughts on the topic. Not out of disrespect but as a way of moving forwards with their intended purpose. That being to train. 

Niko would notice the chakra threads creep towards him. His face would fill with disgust at the thought of being controlled again. But seeing the calm expression on the Senju's face Niko would allow the threads to wrap onto him. But unlike their shared move this technique was more calm and tame. Focusing more on amplifying the target than controlling them. This, this could be useful indeed. Niko would think this thought would be amplified once he realized that the target could be lifted similarly to skillful.

"Now that right there would be useful how does one use that one?" Niko would ask. Taking note of the wood Jutsu the Senju used Niko would then comment. "I'm a total beginner when it comes to wood-style ill learn a little bit of that on my own time before I try to learn under a master."

(TWC 2210 posted 12.23.2021 for advent purposes)

"A chuunin like....m...OH RIGHT! I completely forgot I'd gotten promoted. Lady Sugi just kinda surprised me with it but I haven't really given much thought to it after that. Thankfully it hasn't required too much extra stuff. Also i mean. Realistically it won't reeeaalllyyy matter if the inmates are docile enough. I have enough chakra threads to hold up an entire wing probably not to meantion These two." she would motion to the two wood style techniques. 

"See. The foo dogs are hecka cool cuz they're super cute and real big. They can hold down targets or even do a chomp! Then theres my Great grasping vines. I made this one with Foo dogs as a base. I wanted something that could move me about if needed, but was more maneuverable yanno? Plus you can spawn the flowers on any part of your body so you can form the vines wherever you need em. " Once more she'd show the seals for the two jutsu, which for me being lazy purposes we'll say just happened. Shifting back and forth between jutsu pages and posting is hard okay? SORRY Narrator narrating stuff. Right. 

"So the threads you feel is a bit different from skillful. There are two versions, A B rank and an A rank. The b rank allows you to control a targets movement with all of the bonuses your threads give your puppets BUT at the cost of not being able to force movement. If they allow you to, you can move em about at high speed, you can make em float, all the good stuff. The A rank is the same thing just like. You can control a bunch more people. If you've mastered thread control with performance of one hundred I believe you can control up to five people or something silly. Theres so many wood style jutsus to learn. Lets see. You can shoot wood bullets from your body and turn your whole arm into a bunch of wooden spikes. You can create wood style clones of course, which can meld with mokuton or be created in a seed form thats good for tracking, You can create a forrest AND you can create a bigger forrest that you can control and attack with. THen there's the creation jutsu I used when we first met. The one I waned to use to drop a chair on you in our spar? Lemme know if any of those sound interesting and I can show you the hand seals." She assumed that he'd learned how to mold mokuton, though his suggestion about being a complete novice made her wonder. If he hadn't learned even that much yet, she could go into a detailed explanation of exactly how one molds the chakra, but she'd give him a moment to actually point out if he needed it or not. 

"Theres bigger stuff too, but That's only for people who have embraced the full power of the Senju bloodline. I have a really cool fuin seal that weaponizes Mokuton chakra directly to absorb jutsu effects!" 

(TWC 3636)

Niko would notice the sudden self-realization of her own rank. It was quite weird that the woman could talk about something and forget about it in mere seconds. Maybe she had some mental disability. It would not be unprecedented.

"That surprisingly is not the weirdest technique I have seen. My sensei was quite the weird tiny one himself. But then he ghosted me. I haven't seen him since mid-time this year. Wonder if he is still alive. No doubt he killed the wrong person with his spicy wings and got imprisoned or something. He was the type of guy to double desecrate like 20 civilians." Niko would sigh maybe he would be able to stop stalling in his studies if his sensei was here. Niko would then listen to Nomo's brief explanation of the abilities that she would offer to teach him.

"I could stand to gain from that B-rank technique. A friend of mine Zaibatsu offered to join me in a patrol outside the village soon. Being able to buff his speed to a similar level as my puppets would be quite useful." Niko would give a quick nod of the head. That technique could be useful if he was able to master it and use it effectively. His friend was stupidly strong. Then with Niko's speed. They could easily conquer any genin. That wasn't a monster like the Senju that stood before him.

"The Senju bloodline. That could be an issue" He would mutter underneath his breath. 

"So where do we begin."
(TWC 2476 posted 12/24/2021 for advent purposes)

"Huh." She hadn't actually considered that he had another teacher. It just made sense that she would be his only teacher, especially considering he used both wood style and puppets. Before she could comment about that, however, He began describing this secret teacher and something felt... familiar? Likes spicy food. Often just disappears for no apparent reason for long periods of time. Is supposed to be in jail for double desecrating like 20 people in the village. She was certain she knew this person, but it was on the tip of her tongue. THen something struck her. 

"That reminds me. I need to go find Daiko. I'm supposed to take  him to jail for double desecrating like twenty villagers." But who was this mysterious teacher? With a shrug, she determined she would never figure it out and let the thought go. "I'm sure he's a great teacher, whoever this guy is. Sorry he ghosted you, though I also haven't really seen you around the village too often. Maybe its more that you two haven't came across each other by happenstance? That happens with me and my teammate Daiko all the time. He'll show up and we'll train a bunch of stuff or go on missions and then bam. he's gone for a few months. You should meet him! He's pretty cool honestly. Almost sounds a bit like your teacher. " If you were thinking this was the point when the real aha moment happened, with Saya putting 2 and 2 together, Well. You haven't been paying attention to the story. PupAIt let out a sigh of frusteration at Saya's obliviousness. 

"I haven't actually learned the B rank technique yet, but we could work on it together! It's just like. Skillful but you don't force the target, so allow your movements to go with your ally instead of holding tightly to an opponent. As for the Senju bloodline techniques yea. It requires... what did my tutor say.... Oh. Pure Senju blood untainted by mutagenic Blood muddling? I'm starting to think he might have been a little racist. " The last question confused her. She knew that Niko wasn't quite as quick to learn as she was. That wasn't a surprise, who was? But she knew she'd just shown him the hand seals for two of the techniques like twice. As far as she was concerned, that was where they were starting? Maybe she needed to be more clear. 

"Right. So draw mokuton chakra right. And then you do these hand seals for Foo dog heads. These for Great grasping vines. " As she pointed out each jutsu she would form the seals one at a time, choosing to not use her mastery of one handed seals this time. It felt wierd bringing her hands together to make seals. Like who even does this?! Where would she go next? 

"So for cutting technique, which is a pretty basic Mokuton jutsu, you do these seals. This allows you to fire wooden projectiles form your body. You can also fire them from a bunch of Mokuton jutsu as if it were your body." 

(TWC 4152)

For some reason, Niko had the odd feeling that Saya had other things on her mind during his weird outburst regarding Daiko. Had Niko's sensei truly done something bad? Had he died? The thought was mind-boggling. His sensei could bloody teleport. That should be good enough to ensure his safety within combat. Though maybe due to his small nature his organs had outgrown his body. These thoughts would course through Niko's mind before he would hear Nomo begin to speak.

"Daiko double desecrated civilians! I have so many questions. How many civilians? Did they die? And what the HELL is double desecration? Not my sensei..." Niko would be confused. He did not think that his sensei was a bloodthirsty maniac. Maybe his life as a village ninja has softened Niko. Maybe he needed to confront his teacher force the answers from him. "Daiko is my teacher though if half of what you have said is true I have few choice words for him. " Niko would completely ignore the casual breaking of the fourth wall.

" I mean I would love to learn the technique. Though I don't need to be inbred for this to work right?" Niko was shocked. He had just assumed that the Senju was all-natural talent and did not need to be taught maybe that goes to show just how wrong Niko truly was. Niko would attempt the jutsu that Saya had rehearsed noticing that the Senju was stuck in her head like normal.

"I think the issue is obvious here. I don't specialize in Ninjutsu like you. Maybe if you could help me out with that I would be able to grasp the techniques in their entirety." This was a big part of the reason why Niko chose to learn from Saya. She had great strength in Ninjutsu and Niko finally felt ready to expand his repertoire.
(TWC 2796)

"honestly i'm not sure. We had a training mission where we were both showing off all our cool new jutsus and he took me to some wierd pocket dimension and the day after I got a letter from Lady Sugi. It just said I needed to take him to prison cuz he did some stuff. Haven't been able to meet up with him since. Hopefully it's all a big misunderstanding and I can talk to the powers that be about not locking him up. It would be incredibly inconvenient for one of my main team mates and my top student to be locked up for a long time..... Don't worry though. I've got a whole lawyer outfit sewn and ready for when I find out what happned." It was in true Saya form that she crafted the perfect look for defending her friend in a ninja court of law. Had she taken the time to look up and study law so she could be helpful? NO. Did she feel like she had a strong enough grasp without study to be able to prove to a court that Daiko deserved to be free? Also no. Was that going to stop the tiny terror from trying her hardest anyway? That would be no a third time. 

"Wait. So daiko wa.... That actually makes alot of sense. Does that make me your like. grand sensei or something? What's the term for your teacher's teacher?! " She would grin at niko. She'd considered him a student since the first day. Even with the time having passed so greatly there was no question of the skill difference. Even with Daiko, who in their absense had gained power that could arguably put him on even footing with the small senju girl, she would always see him as a student, her goal forever being to help him learn and grow stronger. At the final comment, she let out a deel laugh. How could he have missed such a vital step?! One couldn't learn ninjutsu effectively if they didn't understand how to specialize in ninjutsu! That's just rediculous. 

"Right. Understanding nin is a pretty big part of being able to use it. Uh. Let me think for a second. I kind of came by the specialization naturally if i'm being honest. I've always just been able to use nin. " How could she explain the complexity of freaking ninja magic to someone who didn't already know the craft?

"So ninjutsu is the art of using chakra to create physical constructs. It often involves elemental chakra. uh. It's like the strait forward aplication of chakra in order to create an effect. Think of it like making your will be executed by your power. You want to fire a huge wave of water, that's ninjutsu. Want to create giant Wooden constructs, that's ninjutsu. Huge earth quakes that destroy large sections of the surrounding area is Ninjutsu also. Every other chakra based spec kind of has it's roots in nin I believe. Like theres space time ninjutsu and medical ninjutsu so this is the primary starting point." 

(TWC 4666)

"As far as I am aware there is no ninja court of law for people that double desecrate civilians. Though considering Daiko's personality it's possible that he could get himself out of the prison in due time." Niko would ponder if he truly wanted that. While he may not truly know that much about the situation his teacher had put himself in Niko was well aware that Daiko was a little twisted. Everybody knows that he is a little twisted.

"You were Daiko's teacher. Honestly, I'm not surprised. You are both crazy and decently evil. Though for some reason I had the odd feeling that you both enjoy screwing over others. " Niko would deadpan at the Senju.  The two were strikingly similar. At the very least in terms of harassing the poor butler. Though that seemed to be something that just about everyone was doing nowadays. Though Niko would wait and listen to the Senju's admittance of her natural skill.

"Wait so you cant teach me? Maybe I should just talk to Pinnochio. Where is the little guy anyway?" Niko would ask. While the two 'people' may have gotten off on the wrong foot. Saya had managed to make the puppet as close as possible to a real boy. That was some dedication. While talking to yourself via puppets was still something that an emotionally sane person would not do Niko could admire the craziness within the Senju. He himself used to have that spark, that will. That drive.

"So puppet ninjutsu? Ehh ill figure it out. But the rundown will definitely help with me understanding it. That is truly the key to my success. Thanks, saya." Niko would give thanks to the Senju before trying the jutsu that she had performed before. But unlike his previous attempts this time he would notice a small vine work its way up to his arm.

"Well that's a start wouldn't you say?"
TWC(3108)

"Well yea. That would be hecka specific. Theres a regular ninja court of law, where I'll represent Daiko as his lawyer and they'll hear the case of his double desecration and I'll simply explain to them how cool he is and tell them about the time that he got me yummy fish and completely changed the way I look at food and they'll be so moved by his kindness they'll never believe that he purposely double desecrated a bunch of people. Honestly. I feel like the term double desecration doesn't actually hold up in court because one. It's not a real thing and 2. I just made it up right now despite having not heard much at all about what the heck actually happened with Daiko. I just thought it sounded cool. But yea. My plan is to represent him and use my awesome lawyer skills to get his sentence revoked completely....You. You don't by any chance have an idea where I could get awesome lawyer skills do you?" There it was. The great flaw in Saya's plan. 

Often she would plan for a situation that needed to be handled by creating hypotheticals that deal with the problem under the understanding that she has a certain base of knowlege. Does she ever have this base of knowlege? That's a hard no. There was a bit of luck in the planning process though. Through all of this, She'd missed the comment calling her evil. Her mind glossed over the comment made by her student. Like all information taken in, it was put on hold in her brain until it could be fully processed, and with her mind elsewhere, Ai's mental division was able to take that small aspect and whisk it away before it had the chance to upset her. 

"Wh. I'm not crazy. I'm just a genius. And i've never screwed someone over in my life! Except for the hunter I beat to a bloody pulp. And the hunter I killed. And the hunter whose entire hideout i crumbled to nothingness so that they couldn't use it for nefarious purposes. And the guy whose cart I kinda messed up on the way here. But other than those people.... No one. " The question about Pinochio was vexing. She wasn't actually sure. He was around the village but he'd taken to his own endeavors since he'd been made livi--Niko totally didn't know that Ai and Pino were people now. Play it cool. 

"Oh. Probably in his forge at home or training somewhere with his Taijutsu and weaponry friends. Yanno. Now that I've used terrifyingly powerful ninjutsu to bring him from a wooden construct to a fully real living entity he's been kind of doing his own thing. Learning to be his own person and like. studying the ninja arts he likes and getting tatoos and stuff." WIth a shrug, she'd move on to the topic at hand. Ninjutsu. 

"So like. WIth ninjutsu. You just gotta feel the raw power of your elements and chakra. Really let it flow through you and don't filter it into any specific stuff. That's how you get other types of jutsu I think. You focus on medical stuff to make it med and stuff." WIth a nod she'd thumbs up his little vine. 

"that's a start!" 

(TWC 5215)