Why was it that when he said 'genin' it sounded cool, but coming from her it sounded like she was making fun of him? There was nothing wrong with being a genin, right? Even a fledgling shinobi was more than a match for the common bandit and the sort...Right? Daichi could feel the doubts starting to creep in as she continued to mock him and his skills, face scrunching up a bit as his arms folded across his chest. He couldn't let it show that she was getting to him. He was a trained shinobi of Amegakure, dammit! How could he let this pretty monster lady just come out of nowhere and poke fun at his skills? At this point he was starting to wish that she was actually just here to try and eat him or something. At least that was a sort of attack he knew how to handle.[break][break]
The more she spoke the smaller he felt. She wasn't just mocking his skills, she was trying to tear him apart with her words. Dismantling everything that he had worked so hard to build up. This air of confidence, his sharp wit, the techniques that he struggled to perfect day and night. It was getting harder to keep his brave face, the corners of his lips twitching as he fought the urge to frown at her. Worst of all, the more he contemplated it the more he realized that not only was she right, these were the very fears and concerns that he had fought so hard to put aside. And there she was, so casually confirming them despite being a total stranger. How the hell was he supposed to respond to this?[break][break]
Shit was he starting to blush? His cheeks were definitely starting to feel warm. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have a facade! And it's not gonna crumble. I know what I'm doing, alright? He shook his head at her, his composure starting to crack a bit as she continued to apply pressure on him. In the heat of the moment, he didn't even realize how he managed to contradict himself within the same statement. "I'm gonna start my own clan. Then you'll see. I'm gonna have a ton of students and teach them all my secret techniques and everything. And maybe if you're nice to me I'll teach you a bit too someday." He nodded to himself in confidence once more, slowly building himself back up after she so expertly tore him down with his own insecurities.[break][break]
Everything she said was things he had heard before. Things he had told himself in the past. But he couldn't let such doubts get him down, not when he had come so far already. Though one thing he didn't expect was for her to be 'interested' in him. Not just him but...the him behind the mask? The redness of his cheeks suddenly grew more prominent at that, his eyes turning away from hers as he felt his anxiety starting to peak. "I-I mean...Y-you're not the first pretty girl I've talked to, you know. It's not like it's weird for you to be interested in me or anything. I'm super popular back at the village. Yeah like...Yeah." His ability to form sentences while keeping up the act was starting to waver a bit, but so long as he didn't look right at her he should be able to recover a bit.
The genin was doing his best to stay strong as he navigated the unfamiliar environment of Otogakure. He was so used to the wide plains surrounding Amegakure and those towering metal towers that surrounded him at all sides. He had always assumed that every ninja village was like that, standing at the forefront of technology and development. He knew that they exported a lot of stuff to other places, which he thought would mean they were all the same level. But the people of Sound were all so...scattered. They went through so many tunnels and winding paths to get here, like a bunch of ants that felt the need to have an emergency exit for any situation. It made sense and sounded prudent, but he could also see why his father talked down about other villages. It was kind of sad, really.[break][break]
The trip was coming to an end for the moment, as he found himself standing in front of the barracks he had been assigned to. He held the strap of his bag tightly as he looked down at his missive just to make sure everything was in order. Yup, this was definitely the place. With a deep breath he pushed the door open, bracing himself for the inevitable interactions with his fellow shinobi. Immediately he found himself startled by the uproar that was unleashed the moment the room was opened up to him. Rowdy fighters all shouting and celebrating...something. And that white haired woman seemed to be at the center of it.[break][break]
The boy stepped forward, clearly uneasy as he cautiously scanned the room. Immediately he felt that familiar sensation of not belonging, the knowledge that everyone in the room outclassed him becoming more apparent by the second. But he couldn't let that slow him down, right? His father always said the quickest way to earn respect was to walk up to the biggest guy in the room and speak in a way that commanded respect. And right now, that lady seemed like the closest thing to fitting that description.[break][break]
Daichi's posture quickly adjusted, jaw clenching as he stood up straight and puffed his chest out. He stood tall and proud, fighting against the lump in his throat as he swallowed down his anxieties. He was just as much of a shinobi as all these people, right? He was their equal, and they should treat him as such! And so he did the only logical thing he could think of in that moment. He stepped closer to the wild woman, eyes quickly flicking to the jagged teeth exposed by her grin. The razor sharp claws that tipped her fingers...This was a feral woman to be sure. And it was in that moment he realized something very important.[break][break]
He actually has zero idea what sort of challenge he was accepting. But it was too late now.[break][break]
"I'll ta-" He paused for a moment, his words catching in his throat as his voice started to crack. Fortunately the embarrassment didn't make its way to his features. If anything he only puffed himself up more, tilting his head back and squaring his shoulders as he cleared his throat and tried once more. "I'll take you on. I'm not scared of you." He nodded confidently, silently agreeing with himself in hopes he could trick his brain into bravery. Sure, he didn't know what he was getting in to. But he had to shoot his shot. This was his big chance to prove himself to shinobi across the lands![break][break]
"I, Daishi Konishi, accept your challenge!"[break][break]
...Did he just pronounce his own name wrong? Shit.
Before the boy even had a chance to start thinking up his next quip or toss another set of kunai he found himself being rudely interrupted by an unfamiliar voice. Now this would have been the perfect opportunity to put everything he practiced to work. He always told himself to expect the unexpected, to be ready to react to anything no matter how crazy it seemed. All he had to do was turn toward the mysterious figure, kunai pointed in her direction. Tilt his head up a bit, wipe the smile from his face and stare her down real intense like. Then maybe open up with a line like 'i don't remember asking you, stranger.' Or something like that. That'd definitely show her this was more than a facade.[break][break]
But no, it didn't go so smoothly. Instead of any of that he found himself paralyzed by the sourceless voice, his anxiety spiking at the mere thought that someone saw him doing something so humiliating. His eyes frantically searched his surroundings for a source, nervous fingers clenching his kunai as he readied himself for an attack from this mysterious force. Then there was the heavy THUD behind him, his mind immediately turning into overdrive. No doubt this was some monster of a woman that was addressing him judging by the sheer weight of that impact. He would have to brace himself to overcome the most overwhelming of odds. With a deep breath he quickly spun to face his onlooker, legs bending a bit to lower his center of gravity as wide, panicked eyes locked on to hers.[break][break]
Only to find that she was...small. Really small. Like almost half a foot shorter than him small. The confusion showed plainly on his face as he watched the woman, the little remains of his previous 'cool cat' facade crumbling as the gears started to quickly turn in his head to parse this information. It was then that he went back over her words, actually paying attention to what she said this time around. Dammit. Why did she have to call him out like this? And she looked so cool while she did it, too! And kinda cute too... No! He had to focus![break][break]
His face scrunched up a bit as he corrected his posture, standing up straight and allowing his arms to fall to his sides. It seemed the only thing she was here to attack was his ego, which almost made him wish this encounter had been a more violent one. "...Well the plan was that if they saw me kill their friend they'd be like... 'oh no that could've been me' or 'I'll be next I better run'. So..." He gave a little shrug of defeat, shooting a glance back toward the tree he actually managed to hit. It made sense at the time, at least.[break][break]
But that little moment of deflation was short lived as he quickly caught himself starting to sink and steeled his expression once more. "A-and before you start thinking you can get all high and mighty, I'm not a kid. I'm a genin. One of the best!" He puffed his chest out a bit, tilting his chin up as he fought to regain his air of confidence. "I don't need a mask to get people to stand in awe. I'm the real deal, you know. So you better be careful with what you say." Even if that vague threat was at all intimidating, his body language remained stiff and defensive, arms moving to fold across his chest as he spoke. He couldn't let this random girl get to him so easily. He had a reputation to build here, and it wasn't one of a coward.
The sun was setting over the densely packed towers of Amegakure, the long shadows stretching across the western outskirts of the city. It was there that the young genin stood, standing confidently on the sturdy branch to get that perfect view. The gentle breeze of an approaching evening rustled the leaves around him, gently tossing his scruffy excuse for a hairstyle as it did the blades of grass across the nearby valley. The shinobi pulled in a deep breath as he took a moment to watch the city as all the lights started to come to life in reaction the sun's descent. This place may not have been his home, but none of that ever really did matter. Not to him, at least. But he didn't have time to ponder the whole mess of rain versus sand. There was too much work to do. [break][break]
With another deep breath of the fresh valley air, the shinobi focused the chakra into his feet and started his descent. His stride was smooth and casual as he made his way down the side of the tree, going completely horizontal as he walked down the side of the trunk. It always left him just a bit winded, but there was no way to improve without a bit of practice. It was important that the process look completely effortless if he was going to impress his fellow shinobi. "Oh, this?" Lips curled into a cocky smirk, a hand moving to rest on his hip as he gestured causally toward the ground. "I dunno. I just figured I would give it a shot. Turned out it was super easy. Just focus the chakra to your feet and boom. Walkin' on walls like it's nothing."[break][break]
A hand moved to brush through his hair, ruffling it up a bit as he smoothly transitioned from the trunk to the ground. Oh yeah, that felt perfect. His smirk grew to a toothy grin of self satisfaction as he turned to walk deeper into the forest that bordered the valley, giving himself a bit more privacy for his secret training. Couldn't have some random passerby see all the effort that went into his skills. The genin twirled a kunai on his finger, leaning back a bit as he made sure his gait carried that air of aloofness he sought to capture. "Three on one, huh? I like those odds." In a flash he suddenly turned around, his other hand swiftly slipping into his pouch before flicking out to release two more kunai. At the same time he threw the one held in his hand, arms moving in opposing directions as he threw the three weapons out in an arc.[break][break]
The first hit the tree directly in front of him, but the other two flew at more of a downward angle and unceremoniously stuck into the ground. "Dammit.", the shinobi muttered under his breath as he realized that the arc of his left arm was off. Quick, he had to think of how he would recover if this happened in public! "How about uh...That? It was a warning shot. Figured I'd give you two a chance to run. And it's the only one you'll be getting." He nodded confidently to himself as he leaned down to pick up the two kunai from the ground and yanked the third from the scarred up trunk. Clearly not the first time the boy had come here to throw sharp objects at things. "...Yeah. Yeah they'd totally buy that.
The lives of children are always shaped by choices outside of their control, and Daichi Konishi is no different. When he was but three years old his father decided that he wasn't satisfied with his life as a shinobi in Sunagakure. He claimed that they refused to promote him to jonin because they were out to get him or something. Even after years of hearing his rambling complaints Daichi doesn't quite understand the reasons down to this day. What he does know is that his father decided to defect to the village's enemies, Amegakure, offering valuable intelligence as a show of good faith. The family patriarch claims that this intelligence was vital to the downfall of Sunagakure, but not even his own family believes that to be true. In fact, all his boasts do is further ostracize a family whose reputation was now built upon betraying those they had sworn loyalty to.
Ever since he was old enough to begin training, Daichi's father began pushing him toward being a shinobi. It was his duty as the only child to make a name for the family, and to establish them as a key force within their new homeland. While he never cared much for his father's delusions of grandeur, the father's manipulations still managed to leave a mark on his son. The boy was strongly motivated to become not just a shinobi, but a man of great renown. Even without his father's prodding, he started to work day and night to further his training. He needed something, anything that would set him apart from the other prospects. Unfortunately, he was always a terribly ordinary child. No special bloodlines, no hidden potential and no grand master to guide him. He would always be nothing more than ordinary.
But what kind of hero gets where they are through pure hard work and no talent? No, if he was going to be recognized it had to be because he was special. And so he took to training in secret, sneaking off to isolated places to try and perfect his jutsu where no one would see it. Maybe if he appeared to be someone who was naturally gifted in the arts he would be worthy of attention. Unfortunately, this training did little more than allow him to keep up with his peers. Even after graduating to the rank of genin, he was just another young ninja looking to serve. The only thing he was known for was his pushy father constantly trying to find ways to give his son an advantage.
Daichi is little more than a young ninja doing his best to stand out and be seen. There is nothing he wouldn't do just to have someone look at him with eyes of admiration. Nothing is more important than being cool, as vague of a notion as that is. Though to a 15 year old it couldn't be more simple. If he just pretends to be aloof, snarky and 'too cool for school' then surely people will see how awesome he is. Why bother being genuine or true to himself when he could just put on a front that people would actually like? It's not as if there was any value to just trying to be himself.
Proficiencies
Taijutsu [Rookie] Most definitely not his specialty, but Daichi is aware that it is an important aspect of his training. One never knows when they will be forced to directly engage with a target without the benefits of weaponry, right? Though for the most part his specialty is less in actually winning a fight in close quarters and more surviving long enough to get some distance from his opponent. Daichi tends to focus more on defending, choosing to block and evade strikes rather than attempting to land any of his own. Even compared to other genin he isn't exceptionally strong, his strengths lying more in the realm of speed and wit. So instead he tries to bide his time and wait for an opening to make his blows count.
Shurikenjutsu [Rookie] Something he has been working on for quite a while now, but has yet to yield the results he has been hoping for. Shuriken are well suited to his preferred methods of fighting, as it opens the door for many potential strategies using a variety of different tools. Though at the moment he is still working to perfect his usage of shuriken and kunai, as his adventures with tags thus far have done more harm than good. He is always more comfortable with a kunai in his hand, and is always looking for opportunities to put it to use. While close quarters combat isn't his style, he always fares much better with a kunai in hand than with his bare hands. So far his accuracy is solid, but he struggles to reliably hit a target if he throws more than one weapon at a time.
Stealth [Rookie] Moving unseen is one of the most basic ninja arts. And while it is the one realm where his father could be considered a master, it is not something Daichi has caught on to just yet. When all you want is to be seen and impress the world, the art of remaining undetected tends to take a back seat to the more overt techniques. That being said, he definitely has potential to be covert. His natural skills and talents would make one think that he's a natural. And he would be if he could be convinced to put more practice in. But until then, he will remain mediocre at best in all things sneaky.
Earth Release [Journeyman] Though hard work and dedication to refining his techniques, Daichi’s unique ‘Dust Style’ has finally started to take on a tangible form. In addition to using standard earth techniques to create simple structures, he has discovered a means to control the individual particles of dust he has created. This technique is extremely specific, centered around using the chakra within the dust itself to form bonds between them. This allows him to control large amounts of dust particles without any more drain on his chakra than standard techniques, as each piece of dust is virtually weightless. Even grains of sand would be too heavy for this to be an effective means of manipulation, making this an extremely specific technique.
By utilizing these principles, he is able to control the flow of the dust he generates. This can take the form of moving and shaping a cloud, or condensing dust into solid stone. This serves as an effective means of disruption as well as attack, as it allows him to launch solid projectiles from his dust clouds to attack from unexpected angles. This chakra infused dust of his is particularly irritating as well, causing those who come into contact with it to suffer from lingering eye irritation and bouts of sneezing. It’s a strange form of Earth Release, but slowly Daichi has started to show that he might be on to something here.
Rhinoceros Contract [Rookie] Daichi has signed a contract with the rhinos. Performing the summoning technique, they can now summon [1/2/3/4/5] different members of the rhinos contract.
↳ Kodokuna Hori Kodo is among the youngest members of the Idaina go Tsunoyama, and she absolutely hates it. The young warrior is constantly seeking to prove herself in battle, and will never hesitate to throw herself into a conflict without a single question asked. All she needs to know is who she's supposed to be skewering with that pointy horn of hers. Personally, she believes that entrusting herself to a human was a poor decision on her patriarch's part. But she has had to take enough lumps from those above her in this quest for glory that she knows not to go against what she's told. And so she reluctantly offers her services to Daichi, even if she's fairly sure HE'S the one who should be listening to HER.
The young rhino's connection with the earth is natural, much like most of her kind. Though she chooses not to use it beyond enhancing her own physical abilities. She much prefers getting in the thick of it, skewering and stomping her opposition with her own brute force. As such, she has learned to use doton to enhancer her mobility. Along with being able to walk along any vertical or horizontal surface, she is able to burrow underground with ease. While submerged, she is able to move with as much speed and power as she would above ground, and is even able to dip under or pop out mid stride. While underground, she is able to use her horn to sense the movements of those above, allowing her to track targets down even when she can't see them. While only standing at about three and a half feet tall, her broad form is capable of easily transporting a human adult. Though any additional burden would significantly slow her down and make combat more difficult. Though she wouldn't admit that any time soon.
