Rust Blood [P/NK - Naki]

Many, many years have passed since Blades has actually become a Genin. His lack of progress in terms of rising in the ranks were not from the fact he didn't work hard, or have no talent, as much as some people might think as much. No, he simply wanted to enjoy his life in a much more unique way compared to his peers, while also still staying a proud citizen of Sunagakure. Turning into a dreaded Missing Nin simply was not worth it, despite his pension for freedom, and on top of that he has never held too much of a desire to traverse the world at his current status. Instead, under the veil of night, he became a vigilante known as the Ebon Rose. This name was given for the fact that one of his calling cards, upon dealing with any sort of criminal activity, was a singular black rose, with the thorns either left on or removed depending on the situation. Their other calling card was the fact that many of the crooks and thugs he took on were left with two holes in their neck, as though their blood had been taken after getting a clean, concise bite. Usually, he would leave his marks alive, as there haven't been many that actually needed to die, nor were they important enough to even be noticed by the public for the most part. He kept it that way, though, as he did not want to be found, and so he has never told a single soul about his double life.

For his normal, everyday shinobi life, most of the tasks he took revolved around helping the community within the walls. Setting up market stalls, taking care of pets to help someone run an errand, teaching the academy students the occasional lesson after being hired to assist a Chunin for the job... to put it simply, he loved helping his fellow shinobi and citizen alike, and kept to the ground level of any tasks available to him. That's why it was difficult for him to really get any promotions, but in reality he didn't mind it too much. The current level of respect he enjoys is more than enough to live happily. That is, it was enough, but the calling for some greater has lately compelled him to take action. He couldn't figure out why, but the Beast has been hungrier lately. On top of that, he could feel himself getting complacent, stagnant in his growth, and it appalled him. So, why is he at the training grounds today, then?

To shake off the rust from his veins, of course! There's a lot of techniques, methodology and even physical exercises he feels the need to catch up on before he tries to reach his new short term goal; become a Chunin. Not the most ambitious dream to have, in all fairness, but he's comfortable with taking it slow while he's figuring out his own feelings. It wouldn't do him any favors to die on a mission with slightly higher stakes than normal, or to let one of his allies fall in his place. That's why his usual light training needed to be refined, so he could finally move onto more advanced levels of his craft. Later, he might even brush up on his blacksmithing, but for now he's much more focused on his combat capability, and getting more ryo to buy himself some more weapons. His last night patrolling venture resulted in him shattering his last blade, a straight sword, into a million pieces, leaving him with nothing more than a few shuriken and kunai, alongside some smoke bombs and explosive tags. It bums him out, how often he breaks his weapons despite knowing how to use them properly, but he tends to believe that it is simply bad craftsmanship on the people who make what he buys. Egotistical considering his own skillset, but can you really blame him?

Today's first retreading was to be Chakra Infusion. While a basic topic to most ninja and kunoichi, it's quite possibly the most important part of his arsenal to have as a Bukijutsu specialist. Even a cheap, crappy kunai, of which he's currently twirling in his hands while facing a test dummy, can utilize the enhancing properties of flowing his chakra through the metal itself. He felt his control on this basic skill slipping as of late, and that's why he's going through the motions once again, to make sure he doesn't fail when he needs it most. Plus, it's an important building block to many other techniques, so if he can't do this, he won't be able to do a whole heck of a lot more. Putting only a small amount of focus into this, he controls his breathing at regular intervals as he surges his chakra down his arms, and into the small metal blade, letting him strike at the fake target without worry of his weapon chipping or dulling nearly as quickly. With each strike, he felt himself getting better control, but he was a stickler for making sure he was doing it all nearly perfect, so he'd try a multitude of different attack patterns; a stab there, a few slashes to the chest there, even a couple of jab-slice combos. Occasionally, he'll throw a few acrobatic maneuvers, and even step away to practice throwing his weapon, making note of how the energy bestowed upon the object would dissipate quickly without him constantly touching it. All of this he knows, but it'll ensure his success later on.

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