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Trial by Chakra!(part 7 )
A battle of the soul!
DC:10 above current chakra
Description: Endure the intensity of the new chakra born with you! Integrate this new power into yourself...or perish!
Roll: 10 or above
Train: 9/10

Truth be told, if his life was a story, if he himself was a character in a story, he wouldn’t be the hero. He just wasn’t that sort’ve person. He was the sort of a individual who would most be at home as an antagonist. The villain of a story. He would do as he wished regardless of the moral implications and had he absolute freedom would most likely just the tiniest bit mischievous. There was little hope of him being the sort of person who went out a crusaded for a foolish cause in the name of justice. And even LESS of a chance of him sacrificing himself selflessly for the world at large in some moment of stricken heroism. He was merely the type of individual that did what appealed to him and the things that appealed to him were generally either along the lines of satisfying a whim or answering a question that popped into his mind. A passing curiosity that he found to tempting a possibility to ignore. As such he wasn’t really all that jilted towards becoming a person of high moral fiber. He was much more suited to be the villain of any tale than he ever was the hero. He could just see himself laughing full of hubris and light toned bemusement at his nemesis as he made them dance about and battle for his amusement, playing with them as one might a toy. Yes in fact he supposed not only was he rather suited to be the villain, he probably would have enjoyed it as well.

There was, after all, very little that didn’t bring him smusement when it came to people who were just so sure in their naïve way that what they were doing was the “right thing”. It was positively hilarious. Even Kyojin-senpai had agreed with him on this point, and while, true, he supposed that Kyojin-senpai may have seemed not the best example of moral fiber, the truth of the matter was that he was far wiser than most people gave him credit for, given his somewhat eccentric behavior. Much of how Kyojin senpai acted was because he knew that it unsettled people, and he enjoyed doing that.

Because scaring people was funny to Kyojin-senpai, and Byakuran had to admit that getting a reaction out of people of any kind could often be amusing. Be it fear, exasperation, or anger. He supposed that made him somewhat of a sadist, but that didn’t really bother him all that much. People as a whole were just so amusing. The water continued to climb the roughly hewn passage behind him, but his struggles had taken him a bit ahead of it, giving him time to stop, allow his pain wracked body some time to stop and rest, and more pertinently, give him time to actually examine the passage that he had been crawling through. The passage was certainly not one made by man. It could hardly be called a passage as such at all. It was more a hole in the rock face, a split large enough for him to crawl through that seemed to have been carved by years and years of the oceans tide, the same that was flooding them now, cutting through the rock face. That was indeed the power of water. It’s structure allowed it to be eternal…long after other things had passed into dust. The ocean would be there long after it had beaten this cliff face into nothing more than a beach head, and it would be here long after Water country itself sank into the sea as nothing more than a mere memory.

That was the nature of water…that was the nature of Byakuran. Though the earth that was his clan seemed taller and stronger that he, a mountain before his humble stream, with time and effort he would cut through the mountain, erode it away into nothing more than rubble. It was the destiny of water to erode all things that it touched, save that of living things, to whom it brought life. The fact of the matter was that no matter how hard he tried, Byakuran couldn’t really find a flaw with his comparison. He truly was his element, he truly was suited for the element of water. He couldn’t think off hand of an element that suited him more. Perhaps that was what they meant when they spoke of destiny.

Some people say the future can be seen in the stars, that in the celestial movements one could spell out the future, a few of these people lived their whole lives by the recorded movements and readings of the cosmos around them. That fate was a thing that could be determined, and that as such everyone could not escape the destiny given to them. But Byakuran had never really been one to buy into such nonsense. Even if one assumed that one’s destiny was predetermined, so long as the person didn’t know what said destiny was, they were still acting on their own free will, and thus making said destiny for themselves. One could argue specifics and philosophy all day, but this was surely the truth. And such was the case with his destiny.

Such was the case with his life and the many paths that it would and would not take. It was a path that he himself had mapped out and plotted, that he alone would follow though till he reached the end…if an end ever came. He would continue to persist and fight on to follow the destiny and fate that he had chosen for himself. Such was merely how he was, such was merely the way he had been built.

The light at the end of the rock hewn passage was indeed growing steadily brighter, and though he indeed step by step nearing a conclusion. As though he was indeed at last beginning to reach his goal of mastering this new power. He realized again that this power would not be his just after absorbing it. His body was weak from the experience and would need plenty of rest before it was truly ready to be able to use this chakra, to wield this power, but he was fairly certain that that didn’t matter. He was, after all, ready to defeat what was facing him. He was ready to face anything that might lay at the end of that tunnel and beyond, even if it would lead to his eventual demise, even if it led to more pain such as this and many more trials which pushed him to the limits of his endurance. All these things were how he got stronger, how he managed to fight on and grow and conduct a metamorphosis within himself. How he was able to turn from the child who had been a weak excuse next to his older brother’s greatness to the young man who was soon to reach the rank of Soldier…or rather, chuunin, at least in terms of raw skill and ability. He would be able to finally grasp some bit of dignity as a warrior…and he might at last have some solid evidence that he was moving on towards his destiny that he had been fighting to build for himself. The
fact of the matter was, of course, that he still had yet to be assigned to a genin team. This would be troublesome in the long run for him. He was really starting to wonder if they suspected him of being a spy, or at the least of being an Otobe. There was always the danger of that, of course. He had indeed suspected that he might be caught when his clan came back into the public eye, when they once more took center stage in the history of the land of rice by taking over the governship of the village hidden in the sound. The invasion was still fresh in his mind, the news that it had indeed been successful, and that the village had…accepted them. That in so short a time Lord Orikami had managed to turn an entire village to his cause just like that, bend the teachings and will of the clan to his cause…with no more then a gesture and a speech. It was amazing. That was the power, he supposed, of someone who was truly masterful at bending the will of the people to his whims. Of someone who had it in themselves to be able to control people merely with words on a large scale. In a way it was a little shocking to him that it was possible… but he supposed merely by reputation, if it would be possible for anyone it would be possible for Orikami Otobe. It was, in a way, oddly fitting that he now become the clan head of the Otobe clan… it was as though he had been born to fill the role. Even when he had been younger, fresh from learning to master his second self, and trying to deal with his brother’s constant…problems, he remembered Orikami Otobe. The older young man had seemed so lofty, so apart from everything, as though he was an emperor already sitting on his throne and looking down at the world below him.

Trial by Chakra!(part 8 )
A battle of the soul!
DC:10 above current chakra
Description: Endure the intensity of the new chakra born with you! Integrate this new power into yourself...or perish!
Roll: 10 or above
Train: 9/10

Indeed, though it was rather difficult to see through the encompassing black canopy that cast them into shadow now as they walked, they’d entered a valley that was wedged at the base of the mountain, whose face became so steep at the back that only a creature that could fly could possibly escape it through any other path save the one they’d just cut.

“Seems an odd place to build a temple…” Shale mused slowly turning his head about. “It’s rather like it was intentionally hidden away…I wonder if your tale may have some weight to it after all…at the very least there was something there no one wanted to be found…had we been off course that far in either direction we’d have merely run into the mountain.”

Ranma slipped the map away. “Yeah, looks like it’s a straight shot from here though, if you don’t count all the creey tree’s. I think that we’ll-“ Yet just as he was about to say “be fine” the universe seemed to take on it’s preferred role of keeping him on his toes. From the tree’s above, a flurry whirling blades rained down toward them, Ranma’s figure bobbing and weaving almost on instinct as his swift eyes sought each blade in turn, his nimble fingers catching the very last one cold, before tossing it aside. Shale made no attempt to dodge the assorted projectiles, merely standing jadedly as the metal glanced off his rock hide.

“You shall not prevail this day, foul beasts! Prepare to die!!” Ranma’s face took on a bewildered expression, but he didn’t have long to contemplate the words as several whirling axes and a pole arm careened in his direction. Leaping up over the hail as Shale turned into a more defensive position, a white blur descended from the canopy, landing amidst the dark grass of the forest floor.

Ranma’s own instincts had kicked in, his feet sending him forward before he could even properly register this figure’s appearance, his own blurred hands already unleashing a flurry of blows against the stranger. A flicker of long white sleeves and two blades, like those at the end of a scythe, were suddenly at hand, slashing wildly amidst his own blows in a whistling dance of a battle.

Ranma leapt high over a sweeping cut, only for his own foot to sweep in an almost inhuman aerial arc, his feet touching the ground for only an instant before he sprung once more into the air for a follow up attack. The stranger’s blade suddenly shot from his sleeves, even as he recoiled from Ranma’s attack, the young Saotome barely able to avoid the attack midair, before grabbing the chains attached to the weapons and pulling.

This seemed to do a little good however, for the stranger relinquished them gladly, his sleeves flickering once more as, Ranma’s eyes shot wide, two enormous Oni clubs replaced them. Ranma jumping back only for a moment, resumed his assault, the two clashing now in a flurry as Ranma continued to attempt to drive the attacker back, only for him to replace each broken weapon with another, his savage yet keen attacks backed up by what seemed a nearly endless supply of weapons.

‘What the heck IS this guy!?’ Ranma ducked under a fuuma Shuriken only to have to leap frog over his opponent to avoid a spiked ball and chain, which was then shortly after followed up by a flail. This guy was literally a walking battle armory! Even with the weapons he’d used against Ranma alone, he could have fitted out 30 men!

Shale rushed forward as soon as he spotted an opening, his massive stone fists eager to crush something, only for the white figure to prove too fast. Shale’s fist slammed where he’d been, leaving a blistering crack in the earth, but the nimble foe, almost frightfully similar to Ranma, had evaded the attack and ran up his arm, chains suddenly erupting from his sleeves as he whirled about over the Golem’s head.

Entrapping the stone warrior in these binds of steel, he once more whirled about to face Ranma, who landed a kick to his chest, though not without having to barely avoid a spear aimed at his head. Ranma, having had quite enough, put his full strength into his next kick, and while the staggering the foe as he blocked it with the heft of a newly drawn naginata, he sprung up high into the tree canopy above grabbing several vines as he did so. A flurry of bladed weapons, just as Ranma anticipated, was soon after him, but with creative dodging, the boy merely succeeded in cutting free the vines he was holding.

“Let’s see how ya like a taste of your own medicine!” As he quickly descended back towards his opponent, whipped the vines in his hands about in a similar manner to the chains that the his foe had been utilizing, the thick rope like tree appendages constricting about the fighters clearly deadly arms as Ranma closed in for a focused kick. While the stranger cut free his arms with two fore arm length swords which once more appeared from his sleeves, it wasn’t in time to block Ranma’s kick. The boy’s foot landed squarely on the boy’s face, sending him skidding backwards until a well balanced flip brought him once more to his feet, though now one of his hands was wiping a trail of blood now coming from his brow.

The sound of breaking chains signaled Shale freeing himself, and the sound of shifting earth the rather perturbed stone titan’s rebuttal, a large chunk of earth now well and ready to be hurled at the young man, Ranma retaking his default stance.

“Wait!” Ranma was still more then ready for a fight, but Shale at least seemed to hesitate in throwing his improvised projectile, the golem’s narrowed eyes clearly indicating it was more then ready to resume battle.

“You…you can talk? And you don’t fight like monsters at all…” Ranma suddenly looked slightly perplexed, his face going innocent.

“Huh?”

The young man suddenly rummaged in his sleeve for something, Shale raising the hunk of earth again, only for their foe to draw…a pair of glasses.
Ranma nearly fell over as the boy placed them on his face.

The strange youth they’d been battling so heatedly was a fair bit taller then Ranma, his brown hair exceedingly longer and freely falling well behind his back. Garbed in what seemed a white chinese styled martial arts Gi, the young man had looked rather formidable, until he put on his glasses. The lenses alone looked to weigh a good 10 pounds, their distorted vision of focus so intense that the boy’s eyes were now hidden behind their spiraling concentration. He wondered briefly how bad one’s eye sight would have to really be to require lenses like that…

“Oh…” The young man’s face seemed rather passive now. “So you’re not a monster after all…I apologize.”

Ranma looked suddenly exasperated. “The heck!? Ya mean you couldn’t tell!?”

The young man seemed slightly abashed. “Heh…well…without my glasses…ahem.” He bowed slightly. “I apologize…” he stood straight and adjusted the glasses. “Say…you’re Japanese aren’t you? You speak Chinese rather well. As someone fluent in both myself, I’m impressed…and you travel with a golem.” He folded his arms as he connected the ends of his long white sleeves, adapting a more unthreatening stance. “I’ve never even seen one before that actually worked but… that’s what it is right? Are you a sorcerer of some kind?”

Ranma seemed to slacken his own stance, still only slightly on edge. “Ain’t I the one that should be askin that? How the heck did you pull all that hocus pocus with those weapons, and anyway nah, I ain’t no wizard or nothing.” He pointed over his shoulder at Shale. “This is just a friend of mine. Shale. I’m Ranma Saotome, a martial artist.”

“And at the risk of sounding slightly perturbed,” Shale questioned, apparently displeased the battle had ceased. “Who are you?”
The young man nodded, still seeming passive. “I’m sorry, again. My name is Mu Se’, noble…” he sighed “Citizen, of the Amazon Warrior Tribe.”

Ranma looked deeply skeptic. “Citizen my a**, listen pal, I wasn’t born yesterday. You fight like a damned army.” He gestured with his thumb to the clearing they’d been fighting in, and the countless weapons that were scattered about, most of them sunken into the earth and tree’s as though shale himself had chucked then there. “If you’re a normal citizen them I’m a freakin sheep farmer!”

Trial by Chakra! (part 10 )
A battle of the soul!
DC:10 above current chakra
Description: Endure the intensity of the new chakra born with you! Integrate this new power into yourself...or perish!
Roll: 10 or above
Train: 6/10

Mousse tilted his head upwards towards the canopy in thought. “Interesting...if it had this place marked on it, it must have been very old. I can’t even tell you the time I had trying to find it.”

Shale too seemed to take an interest. “Old indeed…I cannot even count the years that I spent secluded in MY old cavern, and yet it too was marked upon It’s map.”

Ranma gave a slight shrug. “Eh, So it’s old. It was in an antique store after all.”

“Well, yes,” Mousse conceded “but at the same time, something like that might be rarer than you know.”

“Yeah? Heh, cool.” Suddenly though, he froze, and Mousse was only a half a second behind him.

Shale too stopped though only after seeing the to more attune warriors had done so, the Golem’s brow cracking as it raised, looking about warily. “Do you…what is it called…“sense” something?” the golem inquired.

“Somethin’s there…” Ranma muttered slipping into a deceptively lax stance.
“Somethin bad…”

Mousse’s sleeves were now both pointed straight down, doubtless prepared to call forth his arsenal at a moments notice. “It’s just like before…this sensation…”

The dark forest all around them seemed to have gone completely still, the distant silhouette of the Temple, a faded stone door huen into the side of the mountain, seemed to suddenly appear much further away. Not literally of course, but as the dark shadows began to creep from the darkness all around them, several blocking off the path ahead, it certainly seemed so.

The creature’s looked…like wolves, but in the same sense that Sharks were fish. Their fur was black, their eyes the color of blood, and something about their boundaries made them seem…otherworldly. Ranma had never seen their like before…

“What the heck are these things?” he muttered as he slid his foot back, preparing at any moment to launch an attack.

“They’re creatures of black magic.” Mousse confirmed with utter certainty. “I doubt that they’re even really alive…they seemed to have been born from some kind of…taint.”

“Taint or not, alive or otherwise…” Shale’s stone hands seemed to flex their fingers readily. “Let us see if they bleed…”

As if the creatures understood this as a call to battle, they attacked, Ranma immediately charging forth as Mousse flicked his sleeves, four kusari on chains ripping forth through the air. Thus began the battle on three fronts, Shale turning to take the beasts which had arrayed behind them, while Mousse and Ranma picked up everything else between them. It wasn’t even a fair fight…for the monsters of course.

While the wolves jumped up in a vain attempt to sink their fangs into Shale’s stone skin, their teeth failed to make a mark, the Golem’s powerful limbs swinging mercilessly upon them, each stroke cracking the skulls of the foe it fell upon, the creature’s, much to Shale’s displeasure, merely exploding into black smoke upon their demise. Mousse’s weapons seemed like a tempest of steel when the boy truly cut loose, swinging chains, pole arms, an axe, and, if Ranma’s peripheral vision didn’t fail him, a portipottie, were all deployed with a deadly efficiency that would have chilled the blood of lesser men. The Dark wolves seemed as completely overwhelmed as any other foe that Mousse had faced upon the full mastery of his skills…save Ranma Saotome of course, but as Mousse checked over to see how that boy was doing, he didn’t at all feel insulted.

The wolves couldn’t even touch him.

Watching Ranma fight was really something to behold. If the fighter was anything less then worthy, anything below the level of someone like Mousse himself, it didn’t even look like a battle. Ranma seemed fade in and out of graceful evasions, almost playful in the way he avoided and jumped about his opponents. His strikes were quick and precise, each one Mousse had no doubt enough to bring low any remotely human opponent…and Ranma never seemed to strike only once.

The Black smoke soon filled the air as the three ruled the field, until soon…they were alone amidst the dark forest once again…

“Whew…” Ranma gave a tall stretch. “Heh, those guys were playing for keeps huh?”

Mousse gave a confident smirk himself, pushing up his glasses. “Indeed…as I thought, when they can’t attack from all sides, they don’t pose nearly as much of a threat.”

“Ah,” Ranma waved his hand. “You coulda taken em, heck, sides my old man yer the only other guy I’ve ever met who could go to to toe with me when I’m going all out.”

“Ahem.”

“Only human Shale.”

“Ah, naturally, continue.”

Mousse actually seemed to have been inflated by the praise, but after a moment looked slightly more serious. “You shouldn’t be too confident…we’re strong, it’s true. But there are opponents out there…” he frowned, his mind drifting to a certain old woman in particular. “-against which no amount of conventional force is enough.” he connected the ends of his sleeves together as he looked ahead. “They may be few and far between, and in my life I’ve only met the one…but they are as beyond us as we are to those creatures.”

Ranma, to Mousse’s surprise, actually looked intrigued. “Hey what, you serious?! You know somebody that strong?!”

Mousse nodded as they already resumed their trek towards the temple, unspoken consensus continuing their journey. “In my village, there is one for certain. She is the unchallenged strongest of us, and…well…” he winced slightly. “I’ve been on the receiving end of her wrath before.”

“It’s a girl then!?” Ranma seemed even MORE intrigued. “Wow…so, it’s a human then, like, she uses martial arts.”

“Yes.” Mousses said still serious. “She’s by far the greatest martial artist I’ve ever seen, but even more so, she’s even mastered magic, and her Chi control is so intense that I don’t even now if you could call her a human anymore.”

“Chi control?” Ranma looked at the other boy once more innocently. “Like, when your focusing for a really strong punch? I know a little about that…”
Mousse gave a slightly grim laugh. “Yes…I can use it myself to some degree as well, and you use it rather effectively, believe me, even if you aren’t aware of it. You’re far stronger and faster then a normal human could possibly be without it.” He seemed to fall more intense. “But the Elder is something else entirely. She could crush a whole host of elite warriors with her Battle Aura alone. If she were to really use her full power, and every secret technique she’s gathered…I don’t even want to think about it.”

They were approaching the door now, Ranma having adapted a slightly devil may care grin. “Heh, now I kinda wanna meet this lady.”

Ranma’s swift kick floored the giant stone door, smashing it cleaning off it’s iron hinges and flattening it cleanly at their feet, the dark passage inside billowing with dust before it finally cleared.

“Ha, you’re a bold one Ranma,” Mousse complimented “I won’t deny you that.” The amazon male began to fumble with a pouch as his waist, withdrawing a torch from his sleeve as easily as he would one of his weapons. After flicking a bit of the powder from the pouch unto the end of the torch, he struck it against the wall, the beacon lighting with a bright flame in an instant. “I’ll tell you what, when this is over, I’ll be heading back to my village. If you really are determined to meet her, I could introduce you.”

Ranma seemed pleased. “Hey, sounds like a plan.” He looked back at Shale.
“How bout it?”

The Golem seemed quite at ease. “It really doesn’t matter, I’m certain IT would get up to interesting things no matter where it happened to go, but I will admit I would be interested to see this village of warriors. It sounds like it might actually be some kind of evidence against most humans being weak fleshy punching bags.”

“Right then,” Ranma confirmed. “sign us up.”

Mousse smiled himself, pleased in spite of himself as he held the torch aloft. He found he actually liked the strange red shirted martial artists company.

“Alright…now…” he stopped as they exited the long dark passage in a far broader chamber.

Various pillars lined the dust filled hall, strange patterns and engravings decorating the walls and ceiling. Off hand it would not have been unfair to say that this place had been beautiful many ages ago, before the indifferent hand of time and the unsettling darkness had settled upon it. Mousse could still feel the strange…corruption in the air, the same he suspected which had given birth to those creatures…whether it was still a threat though, was unclear.

“I don’t like this…” Ranma said to himself slightly on edge now. “I don’t know much about magic, but something bout this place don’t smell right to me... feels like there’s something…” he seemed to be searching for the right word to describe it. In the end only coming up with one that fit. “Evil, here.”

Mousse didn’t even bother denying it. He himself could feel it. There was most certainly something wicked lurking here, it’s festering presence hanging in the air itself. This was undoubtedly what had spawned the creatures…and as they proceeded to walk further into the hall, Mousse wondered if it had even intended to do so. The Evil here felt almost as though it was…asleep.

As though by it’s mere presence had it had given rise to the creature’s outside, their darkness a mere runoff to it’s own. But what sort of thing could it possibly be?

During the brief time he’d spent studying black magic, all to master the hidden weapons technique, he’d come across the names and recorded origins of many dark creatures, and most of them his people had directly encountered and battled against in the past. Poltergeists, Ghouls, lichs, tainted dragons, necromancers, black sorcerers, even vampires by one account. But this…this wasn’t like anything he’d read about… and what scared him all the more was that he could feel this on pure instinct. This was something older…nameless. Something had been lurking in the void since before his ancestors had started putting pen to paper… and yet…what was it doing here?

Trial by Chakra! (part 11 )
A battle of the soul!
DC:10 above current chakra
Description: Endure the intensity of the new chakra born with you! Integrate this new power into yourself...or perish!
Roll: 10 or above
Train: 10/10 !!!!

But Ranma rejoined the fray, only slightly favoring his left arm, which seemed to have taken the brunt of the attack. His feet moving beyond the capacity of the normal human eye, he sprung up with all his strength, actually bring him an inch from the rooms ceilinga as he twirled about, and with another great feat of power, pushed clean off the ceiling itself, sending his next attack like a missle towards the hand holding Mousse, the same hand he had attacked before.

The Monster cried out again in agony as Ranma’s kick struck, forcing him to flip back as it withdrew the now mangled hand, Mousse wincing slightly as he jumped back to his feet.

“It’s pretty damn fast for something so huge!” Ranma remarked as the creature writhed in pain, Shale sliding across the stone floor backwards to stand even with them as he was at last kicked back.

“Yet it does not lack in the power such size affords either…” The Stone Golem complained, apparently now actively vexed.
Mousse had actually torn off a section of the bottom of his gi, furiously wrapping it about a deep gash on his shoulder where blood was beginning to blossom. “It’s talons are like knives… we seem to be able to harm it, but nothing we’re doing seems lethal…”

Ranma’s eyes cast about the room quickly, his eyes widening slightly at they fell above. “Hey…I got an idea!”

The Beast roared as the jointed it it’s hand cracked back into place, the blood now pouring freely from it drawing the creature’s bellowing rage out in full. “CRUSH! KILL! DEVOUR YOUR LIFE FORCE!!! YOU WILL PAY!!!!”

“Oh yeah!” It’s attention fixed once more to Ranma, who was standing directly before it with a taunting expression on his face. “ Bring it on!!”

“AAAAAARGGGHH!!” The Thing bellowed as both it’s taloned hands ripped the air, Ranma avoided the cross strikes within a hairs breath, sticking out his tongue as he did so.

“That all you got big dumb and ugly!? Come on! You’ll never catch meat this rate!” He jumped back again as the creatures roared, advancing still within the confined of the seal as it’s leg manacles strained to their fullest, the rust covered restaints breaking as they cut into it’s ankles. It didn’t even seem to notice however, it seemed utterly blinded by rage.

“I’LL RIP YOU TO PIECES!!!!!”

Ranma however, just as the Creature’s head lurched forward, dawned a wide smirk. “NOW!”

The Creature didn’t have time to react, chains suddenly shooting from it’s left, not into it’s own flesh, but to the ceiling above, latching into it as Mousse began to pull with all his available strength.

Meanwhile on the other side of the creature, Shale lifting one of the stray hunk of stone debris, and hurled it directly at the same apex of the ceiling above…

The Creature looked up on reflex, it’s single yellow eye, wedged above it’s mouth, widening it horror. The Ceiling had been badly cracked when Ranma had launched himself off it, and loosened even earlier when Mousse had repeled up to it. Now…

“HAAAAAAAAA!” It’s eye swivled about to Ranma who seemed to be rearing back for some manner of palm strike, only a brief shimmering in the air about him to catch it’s attention. It looked, for the briefest of moments, like a mirage in the air, a gas like distortion of the light…a very primitive battle aura…

“Kaze-Tama-RYU!” His arm shot forth in what seemed a strike against the air, yet an unmistakable blast of pressure shot forth like a cannon, smashing into the ceiling with a startling explosion of rushing air.

The Stone collapsed.

Tons of rock and shrapnel fell down directly unto the beast just below, it’s powerful jaws attempting in vain to catch and grind the rock, only to be overwhelmed by the rushing tide of stone. It collaspsed under the weight as now Mousse and Ranma jumped up as one, both of them aiming for the creature’s expose eye.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!” This time it’s cry began to shudder and weaken, blood, emerald as the forest outside, began to ooze out from uneathe the mountain of rubble. The Things voice was now gargling and sputtering, Mousse’s scimitar buried in it’s eye, right along side Ranma’s fist.

“I…see…” the creature spluttered. “It seems…my time…at last…how…anticlimactic. To be killed by nameless humans…after so long…”

“Heh,” Ranma ripped his hand free of it’s eye, looking slightly repulsed by the slime now covering his arm, but ignoring it for now. “For your information fugly, we ain’t nameless! My name’s Ranma Saotome! And these guys here got plenty fine names to. So don’t go acting all high and mighty after we stomped ya into the dirt!”

The monster began to make a strange sickening noise…it took them a moment to note it as laughter. “Aheah…true…I suppose…you humans have done what hundreds of the lesser among your kind would have found impossible…ones like yourself…were not meant to exist in this time…heh…how…amuse…ing…” The creature gave a last death rattle, and to Mousse and Ranma’s shock burst into black dust, the blood vanishing just as quickly as the slime on Ranma’s arm. The Mountain of rock collapsed inward, filling in the now vacant space, as Ranma and Mousse jumped back to maintain their footing.

As the dust settled, Shale’s thunderous foot falls coming to join the pair, their eyes seemed fixed upon the now still rock, the two humans still reigning in their nerves.

“Dang…that thing was actually pretty tough.” Ranma gave an almost defying smirk as he slid into a seated position, now actively cradling the arm he’d absorbed the impact with before. “I didn’t think I was gonna have to use that technique in a real fight just yet… wanted to test it out first…”

Mousse, crouching down now as he pulled a roll of bandages from his sleeve, began tending to his own wounds, most notably the gash on his shoulder. “No better time like the present.” He gave a proud smile of his own, still following Ranma’s gaze to where the beast had been not a minute before. “What sort of technique was that? Did you make it yourself?”

Ranma gave his cheeky grin as slid his pack around, reaching into the bandages he usual braced his arms with while training. “Yep! Shale gave me the idea. When we fought for the first time, I managed to dodge the attack, but still got hit with the air pressure from it.”

Mousse looked sidelong, just finishing up dressing the wound. “So you created a technique on just that?!”

“Sure!” Ranma hopped back unto his feet, returning his pack behind him.
“It’s all a matter of instinct ya know? You just have to focus everything you got into it, then…” he seemed to have to think about how to explain it.

“Dunno…you just sorta feel your way through it from there, extending yourself through the air towards whatever you wanna hit. That’s all I know how to describe it.”

Mousse raised a brow looking fairly impressed. ‘He must have some pretty impressive Chi instincts to be able to pull that off…I’d be interested to see what he could do if he mastered the battle aura…then again, from what he said about his previous training, he probably had to develop them to even survive. I suppose such an affinity was a necessity…not that I can talk.’ He gave a slight smile as he stood, rolling his shoulder slightly to test it’s durability.

“Anway,” Ranma seemed to fall serious again. “The heck was that thing?”

Mousse turned more stern as well. “I’m not really sure…it wasn’t like the ones outside, that’s for certain. It was something older… something on an entirely different level.” He looked over at Shale. “It seemed to recognize you as a Golem, Shale, do you know anything about it?”

Shale merely shifted it’s gaze upward, as though suddenly pondering the matter. “I’m not sure.” Shale stated honestly. “I get the distinct feeling that I WAS familiar with it. But that information, along with my origins, has long passed into the recesses of my memory. I can’t recall whether I’ve fought it’s kind before or even what they were called. Perhaps if you’d asked me a few centuries ago…but no. There’s nothing, merely a distinct impression of déjà vu.”

Mousse gave a nod, connecting the ends of his sleeves pensively. “Even when we first entered I was struggling to think what sort of creature could have such a foreboding aura…now that I’ve seen and clashed with it I can safely say that I have no idea. It wasn’t quite like any of the dark beings I’ve ever heard of…even in legend.”

Ranma seemed to be slightly irked at the fact. “Hm…makes ya wonder just how true the stories bout this place are… I mean…how does somebody get “magic fountain” out of that thing? And how the heck did it get here? Who the heck put it here?”

“Perhaps we are about to find out the answers to those questions...” Both humans looked over to Shale, who had raised a large hand to point plainly at the other wall of the chamber, the wall just behind where the monster had been chained.

Mousse adjusted his glasses slightly while Ranma merely exclaimed. “A door! Do ya reckon…”

“Only one way to find out.” Mousse stated somewhat excited now.

The light of the seal fading as they entered deeply into the ruins, Mousse had to once more procure a torch from his seemingly limitless supply of concealed objects, lighting the way as they continued down yet another dark passage.

“Ya think that whoever put that thing here was trying to protect something?” Ranma suggested suddenly. “I mean…I can think of a few better things I’d want as watch dog, but if you wanted something protected…” he looked at Shale. “I mean, if they did it with golems back in the day…”

“I don’t think so.” Mousse pondered aloud. “If you were going to seal something like that to ensure that no one got passed it, then you why even build a door? It seems to me that whoever sealed it there obviously didn’t have control over it…meaning that they wouldn’t be able to get at what it was protecting either. If you wanted to stop something from ever being found at all…”

“Then why build a way in…I gotcha.” Ranma nodded. “But then…what do you think happened? I mean, someone just happened to seal that big fella where they were keeping a magical treasure?”

Mousse held the torch slightly higher, considering this. “You right, not likely…but…” he seemed to have come to more likely conclusion. “Maybe that creature was actually here to TAKE the item…and sealing it in the room back there was the only way to protect it.”

Shale nodded behind the two. “Indeed. Perhaps that room itself was designed to seal in that creature and those like it…preventing them access, a trap if you will, and that one simply happened to be ensnared. I noticed other, unused sets of manacles along the walls…it’s not an unlikely theory.”
Ranma was nodding. “I guess that makes sense…but…” he looked overly curious now. “I wonder who coulda done something like that… I mean…if that guy had been there as long as he said, you’d have to be some freaky powerful guy to trap him their all that time right?”

“Or possess some form of very advanced magical techniques.” Mousse agreed “Either way, close enough.”

“Right, so, your at least from this general area right? Do you know of anybody who coulda pulled something like that off? Back in the day, I mean.”
Mousse hesitated for a moment. “It’s said the Musk Tribe was very powerful in its golden years before they went extinct, and that certainly would have been a while ago…but just from the look of this place, I’d say it predates even them.”

“Anyone else?”

Mousse shook his head. “No one I can think of. We Amazons date back quite a ways, but there’s some history that’s reserved only for the Elders’ eyes. As it is I think my own tribe would be the only other ones capable of something like this, but if that’s the case, it’s far beyond our current sealing methods, at least from what I know, and it’s never mentioned in any of the histories I’ve read. Again, that doesn’t necessarily rule us out…”

“It just means we’d have to ask one of those elder guys to know for sure.”

“Elder girls actually, but yes.”

“It’s a figure of speech…anyway, I gotcha.” He folded his arms looking pensive, until the walls on either side of hall seemed to fall away ahead of them, and they denoted they were coming up on another chamber.

“Huh…they sure do like these large rooms of theirs, whoever they are…”

“Agreed…” Mousse held the torch aloft, so as to widen their field of view, but as soon as the light reached the center of the room… “What the-!?” suddenly stars shone above them, and Mousse nearly dropped the torch from shock. They no longer needed it to see by, but this time the source of light was no mere glow from the floor.

A strange, literally unearthly scene was depicted around them, the stars merely the backdrop. The stone temple, outside the passage they’d come through, seemed to have vanished, and now in all directions was a soft terrain of white with a similar consistency to sand. Along the likewise colored marble path that connected with the passage they’d come through, numerous ornate pillars far more decorative than the ones in the previous chamber dotted the sides, the pathway leading up to, sure enough, what seemed a fountain of special magnificence. The walls and ceiling seemed vanished, the starry sky having replaced them, and what was more where one might have expected to see the moon, only the enormous looming figure of…the earth?! Dominated the horizon.

Ranma looked out right blown away “What the heck!?”

“Interesting at the least.” Shale remarked impressed. “Was this some sort of…portal? Is this not space? How is it that you squishy humans are able to breath up here?”

Mousse seemed to recover from the initial gawk. “No…I don’t think it’s a portal… it’s more likely this is some kind of…magic based illusion…”

“So…it ain’t real then right?” Ranma walked to edge of the path and stuck his foot unto the white sand carefully, his air cautious. “Hey! You’re right! It still just feels like an ordinary stone floor!”

Mousse nodded. “But then…how much of it IS real.” Their gaze followed his to fountain, as they all continued to walk forward.

“Why the heck would you make a place a like this?” Ranma muttered in wonder. “I mean…it’s cool and stuff… but...why bother with an illusion or whatever?”

“Perhaps Magical illusions were in style then.” Shale jested. “I would never presume to predict human reasoning. I admit that it often eludes me.”

Mousse tilted his head curiously as they approached the fountain, the water within still flowing with a pleasant cascading flow. “I’m not sure…maybe…” he frowned, suddenly looking nervous. He stared into the waters as they stood before them now, the path ending with the miraculous font of water. They seemed to glisten invitingly…and Mousses couldn’t be sure but he could almost feel a slight power with its depths…as though his very life force could detect the magic here.

“Well?” Ranma encouraged patting him on the back and nearly making him lose balance. “Are ya gonna try some or not?”

Mousse sweat, regaining his balance, looking slightly frantic. “W-well…” he coughed and regained himself. “Of course…but…” he looked back at the water. “I just…”

“What you scared?”

“No!” Mousse denied indignantly. “I just…we don’t know for sure what this water will do.”

“You want me to try it first?” Ranma pointed to himself.

Mousse seemed surprised by the offer, but also seemed resolved by it. “No…it’s fine. It was my wish to come here and find this water…” he withdrew a cup from his sleeve, looking stern as he held it out over the water. “If this water is to carry some curse…I shall suffer it, and no other.” He reached down and scooped some of it up, his face still as he slowly lifted it to his lips…sweat covered his brow…

He took a drink.

Ranma and Shale stood in silence, their attention fully focused on Mousse as they waited for any sign of reaction… after a moment…

“So…ya feel any different? Are yer eyes better?”

Mousse removed his glasses, and blinked. “No…I feel the same…” he sighed. “I suppose such a legend was too much to-“ yet suddenly his body seized up and he dropped the cup, Ranma and Shale starting slightly with surprise. Mousse’s eyes were wide as he suddenly seemed to be looking horror struck into space, his hand suddenly reaching up as though trying to grasp at his own eyes.

“Mousse! Hey Mousse! You okay!?”

Mousse seemed to be a great deal of pain, but he wasn’t making a sound, he merely sank down to his knee’s, his eyes still frozen open as though something horrifying was unfolding before his eyes. Ranma took a step towards him but suddenly the entire building began to tremble. “W-what the heck!?” Ranma looked around in shock as the waters from the fountain began to drain away, the vision all around them flickering on and off with the quaking. “Shale! Quick, grab him and let’s go! We gotta get outta here!”

The Golem needed no further prompting, lifting the Amazon over his shoulder like a limp doll, the pair took off back the way they’d come, just as parts of the ceiling began to crack and shudder.

“This entire place is coming down around us!” Ranma cursed as the shaking followed them into the passage, the Torch Mousse had been using retrieved by Ranma was they’d started to flee. “What the heck did that fountain do!? Was that another trap!?”

“I am unsure.” Shale admitted trying his best to keep stride with the far faster martial artist. “However I do not think it would be wise to stick around a investigate the matter.”

“I heard that.” Ranma agreed fully. They headed at top speeds out through the Demon’s former prison, and out back through the first hall, the thundering sound of the temple’s collapsing echoing behind them. It seemed as though the entire mountain was bearing down upon them. “Will you hurry up ya great big pile a rocks! The building ain’t waiting for you to tie yer damn shoes!”

Shale, slightly irritated as the rushing sound of the destruction was fast approaching them, retorted. “I would like to see IT run when it’s made of stone! Perhaps YOU should carry the incapacitated human!” The dim light of the shadowed forest beyond seemed akin to the brightest noon day as they emerged in to the the open air, Shale just clearing the debris in time to slide to halt beside Ranma as the two looked back at the collapsed temple, the entrance of which now being little more then a pile of rubble against the mountain side....


Byakuran’s eyes snapped open as water began to clog his lungs. Coughing and sputtering wildly his body seemed to be barely holding itself together, the chakra within his system still bearing down on him like a weight upon every inch of his body. The water was covering him now, the tid having brought it up to meet him as he was once more forced to splash and splutter, his fever still high as his body seemed to trying desperately to tame the power coursing through it. He seemed…he seemed to be losing the fight…for only a while there…the dream he had had been far and strange…reminding him of the stories that…someone, had read to him when he was younger. He couldn’t remember the details, but he was quite sure that those had been the basis of the bizarre dream…a story of two new friends and an odd creature of stone fighting back an ancient evil… he really must have had the most vivid of imaginations.

Still that wasn’t important. He had to keep going lest he be swallowed by the water. Retaining this chakra would do him no good if he drowned...it would...would...

The it happened. The power rushed through him as almost immediate relief seemed to flood his system, the certainty, the assurance, that his chakra had been assimilated into him, filled him. His fever vanished as quickly as it had come, the weight on his limbs vanished, and he suddenly found he could move so much faster. With a smirk he suddenly found himself sliding out along the passage out, the sunlight fast approaching him...

Until he burst through out a whole at the base of the cliff, the waters of the tide behind him as he stuck to the cliff wall with chakra, his body feeling tired...but amazing. He had done it...he should have dreams such as that more often...it had seemed to stir the energy within him and make the time pass by much quicker within the cave through that arduous process. He gave a smirk. Well...that was MORE than enough training for the day. He felt that he would need to sleep for a week before he was fully recovered enough to actually get the boone from this training...

Even if he felt more than ready to take on an opponent right now in his elation.

It would become somewhat a point to note that one should be careful what they wish for...

Byakuran Usotsuki
LV. 7
Experience: 85/400
Hp: 105
Cp: 56
MHp: 91
Dodge Bonus: 18


Byakuran paused, turning his head slightly... he got an odd feeling from the air... still... he often did it seemed nowadays. His recent vast expansion of his ability to use his second self always seemed to lead him into misinterpreting signals and vibrations. He supposed he'd grow accustomed in time.

He turned back to the path ahead of him. Yes, it was probably nothing. He stretched his muscles slightly. They were felling a little stiff after using his just his chakra for so long, but, luckily for him, he was naturally limber, so they should loosen up fairly quickly. He gave a slight sigh. He supposed that he should be getting around to meeting his...somewhat impromptu team members. He began to walk off in that direction, his mind somewhat occupied. He suspected the chakra in his system was still taking a bit to grow accustomed to it's new state. It wouldn't likely register for a little while. He'd have to wait to see the fruits of his labors. Still...he suspected it would be well worth it. Had he been paying attention, he probably would have taken notice of the odd vibrations in the air...but, unfortunately for him, his mind was off elsewhere at the moment...

Forgot to roll

5+14=19 7-10 dmg
17+6=23 2-5 dmg
14+1=15 Miss
15+6=21 2-5 dmg
5+1=6 Miss

11-20 dmg

Byakuran Usotsuki
LV. 7
Experience: 85/400
Hp: 105-14= 91
Cp: 56-12=44
MHp: 91
Dodge Bonus: 18

Int Check to see through clones:
DC:14
Roll: 17+2+2=21 (Black jack) (See through the clones)

Byakuran was caught full on by this explosion, his face turning to one of sudden shock as the kunai flew out from shadows, his last ditch efforts too avoid only allowing him to avoid two, one slashing passed his shoulder and leaving a long cut passed his chest. Rushing at him from out of nowehere it seemed, was what seemed to be three opponents, but it wasn't that easy to fool his senses. Clones...but not ordinary ones. Judging by the vibrations of static in the air, as though someone had placed their hand on an exposed wire, they would most likely be lightning...meaning that any close combat was out...engaging Lightning clones in melee made for...unpleasant results. Still, the real one was easy enough to pick out. He actually gave a slight smile.

"Not even a word of greeting...there's assassination and then there's just poor manners." his hand thrust out, his face falling almost...heartless, as a sudden intense, ear splitting shriek entered the air, Byakuran himself apparently unaffected by the wave of sound. The air all around him seemed to shimmer slightly as though the air was shaking, the intense low frequency vibrations directed towards all in the vicinity.

"You in a way I'm glad you chose to attack me alone...but after seeing me use this..." his smile returned, if somewhat more of a smirk. "I'm afraid I can't let you live either."


Name: Minor Vibration
Description: +10 Chk Cont, +8 Nin (15 for both in order to be used in conjucture with other techniques without hand signs.)
Rank: D
Cp Cost: 12
Attack Turns: 2 (0, but can only use as such once per 5 possible attack rolls and must meet requirements, in addition to preforming extra training stage)
Reflex Save: N/A Unavoidable if used for physical damage
Will Save: 10+half user's level+user Chakra control (If attack is aimed for mind)
Damage:5-10 either MHp of Hp depending on the use of low or high frequencies.
Requirements:Otobe,+10 Chk Cont, +8 Nin (15 for both in order to be used in conjucture with other techniques without hand signs.)
Training: 2 stages (3 if preform extra)
Stage I: DC: Chakra control DC of 20, focus the sound waves in the air around you, use your chakra to guide manipulate them.
Stage II: DC: Constitution DC 15 Control the sound waves within one's own body and emit the proper frequency into the air, finally working out the proper technique for both low and high frequencies. A failed roll here will result in 5 mhp or hp damage.
Stage III(Extra): DC:40 Chakra Control. Fully master the technique, till emitting the sound waves becomes nearly second nature to you, allowing you to preform it without hand signs, or indeed any real effort.
Special: Anyone in the area besides the user -5 to all listen and balance checks for 5 turns. (This effect does not stack when used multiple times.
Owner: Oto