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As he neared the beach Yuri paused and crouched down and tied twine around his ankles after putting on his boots. The next step was an odd one of pouring sand into his pant legs before cinching his pelt around his waist again. With those preparations done as well he turned and looked at a shortcut to the beach through some trees.

Capoiera stage 2 1/8


With a slow exhalation he looked around one more time before starting down the path that lead into the trees and from there would take him to the beach. The plan was to begin training with a run. The sand would soak up sweat as he ran and grow heavier to improve the training to his legs as well as his cardio pulmonary system. Smiling he flexed slightly before starting to run at a light lope, his movements were smooth and fluid as some things seemed to carry over regardless of what form he took and in this case it was how he moved.

2/8

As Yuri ran along the path he ignored the weight as a vague existence on his body as he flowed through the woods. He had found that after starting his capoiera training his strength, stamina, and speed had grown though it was less impressive than what occurred when ki came into play. Moving quickly along the path he shifted his weight slightly to help in dodging around trees as he departed the winding path for a straight route through the forest.

3/8

It was a joyful feeling to have the wind flow along his body cooling him even though there was no breeze shifting the leaves save for those he passed as he ran. Smiling with the thrill of the run his eyes naturally scanned his surroundings before he focused on his true destination again. He was running to the beach today and fully intended to get there faster than he had on previous trips. Training himself he focused on his destination instead of simply his surroundings.

4/8

As he focused on what was beyond his literal next step he fell into a casual breathing pattern as his mouth opened slightly and he took deep breathes through the noise before releasing loud exhalations from his mouth. Even as his body shifted from the upright stance normally used for long distance into a slightly forward lean more common for sprinting while he moved up a level on the speed he was exerting. He would need to be able to transition speeds better to outperform opponents.

5/8

Exhaling sharply he felt his body beginning to grow slick with a sheen of sweat even as his legs began to way heavier as the sand absorbed the moisture and grew heavier with each step. Smiling wider he kept up his pace even as his heart rate began increasing in response to the exertion. He was surprised to find though that he was already more than half way to the beach that he preferred to train at due to it being more natural than the campus.

6/8

As he burst out of the trees and slid to a halt in the sand he paused only long enough to remove his boots. He then began sprinting once more this time in the loose sand where his footing was not as reliable and forced him to use more muscles especially in the foot to stabilize his body as he began running a series of suicides between the water and the trees. It was an unusually refreshing feeling to simply run blindly across the sands and push himself.

7/8

He kept the pace until his legs burned and he felt his joints begin to strain from the forced transitions in speed and distance that he pushed them in the unstable sands. As he came back to a slower pace and finally a light jog he headed to the water once more ready to begin the next phase of his training which in many ways was more difficult now than it had once been. Yet there was no way to gain power without loosing something as well.

8/8

Standing and moving into a normal stance Yuri pressed his staff into the ground and pulled out the book on stage two techniques. Flipping through it quickly he looked at the next level of skills for it including a scissor kick and a spinning kick. Nodding to himself he set the book on top of his staff and moved a short distance from it to try the moves out.

Scissor Strike 1/3

Moving smoothly he shifted his weight back and planted one hand in the shifting sands tightening his fingers so that he was balanced. Letting his weight flow into to his torso as he balanced on his hand and lifted his legs to make a sharp sweeping motion in opposite directions with both legs. He nearly had it but the motion itself caused his hand to slip in the sand making him fall on his shoulder.

2/3

Rolling from his shoulder to a crouch Yuri made a low sweeping motion before planting his hand again and scissoring his leg back from the sweep while kicking the other forward. This time starting from a low position granted his arm more stability and let him set his arm to rotate slightly with the movement. As he completed the move he spun slightly and raised himself into a handstand to begin on the next technique.

3/3

The V spin was one he was actually familiar with from gymnastics and training with his parents. It was a great show move for gymnastics but an even better sweeping kick for a fight as he knew from experience. Today however he was going to be trying a variation of what he was accustomed to and see if it was something he could master.

V spin 1/3

Shifting from the normal handstand into one with his legs spread out he worked on slow spins that let his legs travel in arcs. Shifting from a hand stand into a position where his legs were extended but his body was right side up. Sweeping his legs he moved his body around and used his abdominal muscles to stabilize himself as he moved back into a traditional hand stand.

2/3

Smiling as he got a feel for the movements he sped up into a half speed version that would conceal his full capabilities in such a public place. Spinning he let his legs split as he swept in a circle before letting his legs drop into a low sweep then raise again in a disarming motion before going back into a full handstand and rolling out of the position to slam his heels down on the ground at an imaginary opponent.

3/3

As Yuri looked around the sandy beach he frowned before laughing at himself, he did have the perfect tool already. Pivoting slowly he turned back towards his staff and the book before walking towards them. Looking at the staff matching his eye level he nodded before taking the book off the top and placing it in his back pocket.

Crow's Offensive 1/6

Patting it slightly before making sure it was turned enough to prevent it from easily slipping out and falling in the sand. With that he placed a hand on top of the staff and jumped moving himself into a hand stand on the top of the staff. Smiling he stretched himself to his fully extended length and spun downwards suddenly.

2/6

As he did his hand slipped from the top of the staff causing him to fall on his a** once more. He laughed as he realized that his loss of balance was because of the small surface area especially when compared to a person's shoulders. If he could master the technique using his staff to balance it would be child's play to use it on an actual person.

3/6

Standing again Yuri once more moved into a handstand a top the staff and worked to first stabilize his balance. The staff shifted slightly under his hand but after a minute he found his center and was well balanced. Exhaling he swung down again and kicked out but found he was falling before he could get his legs around causing him to kick the center of the staff and knock it out of the sand instead of hitting the top which was the target.

4/6

Landing lightly on his left leg and rolling backwards he stretched before moving to pick the staff back up. While he had not hit the area he targeted he did notice a good bit of power from the hit as the staff had flown quite far. Picking the staff up and planting it in the sand once more Yuri had a pretty good idea of what he had done wrong and was prepared to remedy it.

5/6

Once more going into the hand stand Yuri this time kept his hand on the top instead of releasing it as he begun to swing his legs downward. By keeping his arms extended he raised the fulcrum to his hips instead of shoulders resulting in a more compact swing. Despite that the speed was actually increased as he released the top when the momentum from his hips lifted his torso resulting in him hitting the top of the staff and knocking it over. Landing lightly Yuri raised both arms to the sky and reveled in his accomplishment. Punching his open left hand he once more retrieved his staff and headed back towards the school and the library.

6/6

Main Theme: Just a Man
Battle Theme: Full Out Brawl
Battle Theme From the Edge of Madness (Crazy Mode)
Battle Theme: Gilgamesh (Hyper Mode)
Battle Theme: The Failed Brother (Sibling fight)