Han Solo (Meme Edition)
Elements : Water/Blood Release
![Choku Shoshinku [FMLDONE] Empty](https://2img.net/i/empty.gif) | | Subject: Choku Shoshinku [FMLDONE] Thu Jul 31, 2014 11:44 am | |
| Character Registration TemplateCharacter Name: Choku Shoshinku Titles/Other Names: The Crimson Cloud Rain Man Age: 40 Species: Human Gender: Male Appearance: Choku's body build can be very deceptive. Upon first glance, this pale samurai may appear thin, some might even think him frail. But those onlookers would be sadly mistaken, as Choku is actually quite muscular. His arms are thick with muscle and quite long, at the end of which are large hands with long slender fingers and wide palms. Despite the huge hands Choku doesn't have completely manly hands, as they are mostly barren of hair. His wrists are quite thin and his forearms thick, exaggerating the size of his hands by contrast even further than they are. The man's thick neck is one of the only muscular parts of him visible at a glance, with thick veins sticking slightly out on each side and the muscle clearly pronounced, as though he is always stiffening his neck. His shoulders aren't very broad and slope downwards at an angle, unlike most men's straight, broad, thick shoulders. As far as facial features go, Choku's leave him appearing as a very ragged, run-down man. He has a thin face, with complexion of an aged but not ancient man. His brow is quite small and has slight wrinkles, and mostly covered up by his hair. Choku's chin is sharp and slightly jutting, giving him the appearance of one with a slight under bite problem. His lips are quite thin and usually appear colorless, only slightly pink at best of times. This man's eyes are small and sharp, as if always accusing or examining. His lower eyelids are dragged slightly down by the slight bags under his eyes and wrinkles, and his upper eyelids are always hanging over his eye, as though he is stuck in a permanent state of boredom. Choku's nose is thin, long, and quite pointed, the tip tilting slightly upward and the bridge thin, leaving barely any semblance of a change in depth of flesh between his eyes. Choku takes great pride in his samurai training, which is very evident in the way he dresses. Under all of his clothes, he wears basic fundoshi undergarments, black in color and very rarely seen by others, and even rarer seen not on him. On his legs he wears a dark blue color of kyahan, cloth leggings that cover his shins, and black tabi over his feet. As leggings, Choku wears an undivided style of hakama, light grey colored, and a thick, dark blue uwa-obi sash around his waist. Choku's hakama are designed with a light pattern of light blue rain drops at seemingly random positions all along and all down his hakama. Under his hakama, a hakamashita is worn, a variant of a kimono. The color of his hakamashita is a dark blue, and a pattern is designed near the waistline of dark clouds, going well with the design of raindrops on his hakama. Above the clouds are light waves, rolling high and appearing to rise from the clouds themselves. Choku wears his hakamashita loosely, allowing visibility of the white undershirt he wears and his clavicle. Most commonly Choku will be seen wearing a conical bamboo hat on his head, tipped down to the point of leaving only half his face visible. This accessory is quite a beneficial necessity for him, as being in a land ever drenched by rain, it helps keep the water out of his face. When going outside Choku dons thick wooden sandals, with two bars on each raising them evenly three inches off the ground. These are useful for stepping in the puddles that constantly form around Amegakure, instead of having to get his feet all wet wading around in them. Choku styles his hair in a minimalist manner, barely putting forth any effort to the task at all. His hair is pitch black, as is a hereditary trait in the Shoshinku clan with all blood members having black hair with only the rare exception. It is quite long and brushed back with a silk tie wrapped around forming a ponytail in the back, one that reaches down to between his shoulders. Choku's hair is quite ragged and stringy, but kept in quite good condition for the most part. The man's beard is also black and goes from one side of his jaw all the way to the other, like any beard should, and a thin mustache bridging over his mouth. His beard is thick on his chin, but extends off of his chin into a couple wispy strands. In all of his hair can be seen light gray streaks at random areas, a product of the man's age. Personality:Choku is above all, a man of honor. He grew up teaching himself the principles of honor, and training himself in the way of the samurai. He studied the concept of Bushido, the samurai way of life, and concepts and principles such as that of frugality in the use of resources, loyalty to one's masters and one's self, martial arts mastery, devoting time and effort to the martial arts and the way of the sword, and honor unto death, holding one's self high with respect and defending that respect for the remainder of one's life. These principles were very well exemplified in Choku, as he held his honor, dignity, and virtue above all else. Choku defines honor mostly as self-respect, and although Choku holds himself highly and has the utmost respect for himself, he is a man of quite the degree of humility, never bragging about his own skills or showing overt amounts of confidence in the face of the enemy. In fact, when faced with combat he usually downplays his own skill, claiming that he "probably won't win" or "This is my last battle I guess", despite the fact that this is rarely a true statement. When he wins a battle, he simply expresses surprise with a soft tone, stating that he's genuinely shocked he made it through the battle. This can often lead to very frustrated enemies having been defeated by such a humble man. On the subject of combat, upon entering battle Choku becomes a very serious man, giving off a somewhat intimidating feel in his facial expressions and sudden change in attitude from wise, honorable old man to fierce, merciless samurai. Though he may start by playing his own skill down, in a potentially life and death situation he puts all of his skill and countless battle experience into the fight, and will not spare the enemy. No pittance will come from Choku to enemies who originally planned on killing him. Though, this situation is often occurring to Choku, due to how infuriating he can be to anyone who doesn't know him. First off, Choku has that smart ass old man attitude, always correcting people in an intelligent manner and being annoyed by any verbal statement expressed around him that he believes to be false. He is a very straightforward man, always expressing his opinion directly to those around him, and not really caring for the criticism of others. However, Choku doesn't really argue his opinions much, just states them and lets them linger, and if someone tries to start an argument he just ignores the attempt and goes on to discuss other things in small talk. Despite being the leader of an entire clan, Choku prefers to live life in a solitary manner, allowing him to be in a state of relaxation and calm at all times. This is likely due to the large part of his life he spent traveling the world alone, his only companions the strangers he sometimes happened to meet. These adventures across the world have left him wise and experienced, and willing to share that wisdom with the members of his clan in a hope to better their lives. In addition, Choku is very knowledgeable on several aspects of the world, knowing lots about foreign clans, their KKG, former leaders, way of life, etc. He dispenses this knowledge to others when prompted to, always happy to tell stories of his youth, which is understandable, as he had quite the amazing youth. While at home, Choku often performs intensely long sessions of meditation, with the only sound the occasional crackle of the wicks of the scented candles he burns in his room. In addition, although he mastered the concepts at a young age, he still today revisits his studies of the ways of samurai and the Bushido code. He also runs a dojo at the Shoshinku clan's compound, teaching young members of the clan the principles of honor and such, as the one thing Choku does for sure have confidence in is his beliefs. He believes the way of the samurai to be the proper way to live, and wishes this lifestyle for young or new members of the clan. In battle Choku prefers direct combat commonly, believing the way of the sword to be the most honorable form of combat. He is arguably a master swordsman, but despite preferring the sword over other styles, he also, in homage to the traditional techniques used by his clan, uses Ninjutsu, having studied the history of his clan and the Shoshinku's Hiden Technique at 20 years old. Choku however, believes the history of his clan to be dishonorable and atrocious, a blemish on the Shoshinku name. This is his motivation as a clan leader, to lead his clan to glory and redemption, though some might disagree that either of those are even necessary. This just goes to show that Choku believes strongly in himself and wishes the best for those around him. Background/History: - Prologue:
Prologue:
Choku’s parents were two poor villagers of a small town on the west border of the Land of Fire. They lived a difficult life, just barely getting by with the wages they made from small time labor jobs. His mother was a seamstress, doing work for anyone who really asked for it, and his father a samurai, carrying out mercenary jobs for local lords or beating up any poor sap who wasn’t particularly liked by anyone who offered more many than the victim. Despite the tough conditions, they were happy for most of their lives, living in ignorant bliss of any catastrophe, violence, or crime occurring around them. This was true right up until Choku’s birth.
The first unfortunate incident to occur to the poor little family was, sadly, Choku’s birth. It was a very painful birth for his mother, and she passed away after giving birth to him. It was left up to his now depressed and spitefully angry father to name him. Choku was the name he thought of, thinking only at the time of how this sad event choked his happiness and brought it to a breathless, cold, corpse, lying at the bottom of the abyss now known as his heart. Despite his father’s anger and depression, he was a good parent to the new child, wishing the best for his child so that his now deceased wife would not have died in vain.
Choku’s father also decided to quit his job as a mercenary and instead hired on as a retainer of a local upstart lord with a small plot of land in the next nation over, a small, rainy, poor country that was known to have used to host a minor ninja village known as Amegakure. His father didn’t really get much work at first, as the place was a small, desolate area that had only just been settled by the lord, whose “palace” was only just starting to be built. Nevertheless, the lord, who had been the spoiled child of a very rich, noble family, paid him very well. Well enough for Choku’s father to move them into a better home, a living quarters that had recently been completed on the lord’s land.
The next event of terrible luck came in the form of an attack. A group of bandits had taken notice of the small-time lord’s land and planned a raid. It took place in the night, and caught everyone by surprise. Choku was only three, and was awakened to the sound of screaming from maids and yelling from undeterminable parties of battle. His father told him to stay inside and not say a word, then rushed outside, picking up his sword on the way out. Choku was in awe, thinking his father awesome for his bravery. The battle was difficult for his father, as the sneak attack had already caused many casualties among the guards on the grounds, and it wound up being just Choku’s father and a couple other guards fighting off a band of robbers. The robbers were unusually skilled, showing some skill in Ninjutsu. This skill likely was the cause of the small group being able to overpower such a large amount of people. Nevertheless, due to Choku’s father’s training in the sword, it was a somewhat even battle.
The battle went long into the night, with many men dying and only one of the bandits dying for the effort. Eventually, they fled into the shadows, cursing the lord and his men, leaving many corpses and many dying bodies. Choku’s father had survived, but had been gravely wounded in the fight. He was tended to immediately, but despite the medical treatment he was given he was left without the use of his left arm, this being a condition that would last him the rest of his life. The lord promoted him to the captain of the watch, even though he would not be able to perform in combat anymore, and paid him a very generous sum of money. Due to his inability to fight any longer, Choku’s father decided it was time to teach his son the way of the sword so that he might defend himself later in his life. Beginning at the age of seven, starting with practice bamboo blades, his father trained him in the way of the blade, practicing both offensive and defensive combat. Choku struggled at first, being a very weak boy in his childhood. But the training didn’t stop. His father was determined to forge him into a respectable young samurai who could fight and fight well so that one day, when his father passed from this world, his son might be able to survive and maybe even make a name for himself as a great warrior. The training continued until Choku reached the age of 14, now having achieved the extent of the combat ability his father could teach him.
His father was now an old man, as when his mother had given birth to him, he was at an aged 50. Now 64 and weak from previous decades of hard physical labor and fighting, and not helped by the fact that he had been gravely wounded in his left arm, he passed away. But he didn’t die before teaching his son the way of the samurai, and how to lead a respectable life by the principles of Bushido. He also passed down his legacy in another way that came in the form of items. The first was his hat, a conical bamboo hat that helped keep the rain off of his face. The second was his blade, a masterpiece of a katana he had bought in an antiques shop long before Choku was born.
His father’s passing caused Choku great grief, as he now had nobody else in the world. His father had paid the wages on the home they lived in, as although the lord they lived on the land of was kind, he didn’t give things away for free. Without his father Choku no longer had anywhere to live, as the lord evicted him from the home, giving him only some basic traveling supplies and money. With these and the heirlooms he had received from his father, Choku bravely wandered out into the unknown frontier known as the world.
- Chapter 1:
Chapter 1:The first days of Choku’s travels were rough. The further he traveled into Rain Country, the more he got attacked by robbers. Most of them were petty thieves, and with Choku’s decent skill in the sword he fought them off easily, actually getting more supplies from them. However, once he reached the center of the land, he was left in awe by what he saw. He had heard stories about the ruins of the village Amegakure, but had never seen them himself. Choku now marveled before the sight of a large village, composed of several towering, crumbling skyscrapers and surrounded by a lake of water. It was somewhat beautiful in a way. The rain poured down especially hard that day. He wandered into the village, crossing a crumbling bridge that bridged the gap across the water. Choku walked through the village, staring up at the skyscrapers, neck aching after awhile from the angle required to see the tops of the enormous industrial buildings. In addition to the skyscrapers there were smaller buildings all around on the ground, homes, stores, bars, so on and so forth. It really was a marvelous spectacle, but also sad. The ruins of such a wonderfully industrial town were quite amazing to see. Choku’s observance of the ruins left him completely off guard for what was to happen next. They descended on him with incredible speed and suddenness, leaping out from broken windows of skyscrapers, landing with weapons at the ready. One man who had landed, a masked man with a kunai at the ready, demanded Choku drop everything he has. Choku, instead of complying, brandished his sword, taking on a mean face, ready for battle. The man put his hand to his face and sighed, walked up, and slapped him down. Despite how easily he was put down, the man was impressed with his will. Choku got back up and attempted to fight, yet this effort was in vain. After a couple minutes of getting beat down, the man from before ordered the bandits to stop. They backed off of Choku’s beaten body, leaving him there, bleeding profusely from his wounds, the little possessions he had scattered across the ground. The man stepped over and knelt down by Choku, close enough for the stench of his breath to be practically felt on Choku’s skin. He told Choku that he thought him brave, and more skilled than most, and that he was going to spare him today. The man was in a very generous mood today, as they had pulled in a large haul from the razing and looting of a nearby lord’s plot of land just near the border of the Land of Fire. There were no survivors. Anyway, as the man was feeling very good today, and impressed by the boy’s “spunk” in the form of NOT surrendering all of his things and running when he should have, he extended his hand out to him in invitation to come to their hideout. Choku was hesitant at first, for understandable reasons, but accepted as soon as they mentioned food and medical support. They made their way deep into the ruins of Amegakure and stopped once they had descended into the basement levels of a skyscraper, one that in fact, looked like it had barely sustained any damage. They stopped in front of a wall with a crudely drawn symbol of a simple looking eye with a…...tear? And the color of the paint, is that red? These thoughts were going through Choku’s head as the man formed a single one-handed handsign and held out the other hand. It appeared as though he were about to perform some Ninjutsu, and then a thin stream of red came from the extended hand. Was that…...blood?! Choku was thoroughly confused as the stream extended to the wall and licked across the mural like an oven’s flames to the bottom of a pan. It left wet substance all across it, tracing the picture. After the painting was covered, the man put his hands down and bent over, breathing heavily, now exhausted by the effort put into the task. But then another heavy sound came. It seemed distant at first, quiet, soft, but grew in intensity rapidly until the rumbling was just about the only sound Choku could hear. He began to panick. Was the skyscraper falling after all of its years in existence without use? He needed to get out, but just before he turned around to run, the wall before them lifted up, revealing a dimly lit hallway and at the end a large, black, metal door. The party glided down the hallway with haste, carrying Choku along in the flow, until they reached the ominous looking door. The man, still breathing hard, stepped up and knocked on the door. A sliding bar window that Choku hadn’t noticed before slid open, and was soon replaced by a wary pair of eyes. They examined the group, and got to the boy, widening in horror. A heated argument broke out between the eyes and the man, ending with the man saying “He’s one of US”. Soon after, several heavy clicks and slides were heard, ringing out down the hallway, and the door slowly swung open. This was Choku’s first visit to the Shoshinku compound.
- Chapter 2:
Chapter 2:
When Choku was first introduced to the strange Shoshinku clan, he was skeptical at first. This skepticism was appropriate for his situation, considering these people robbed and beat him badly upon their first encounter. But they treated him quite nicely after inviting him to the clan’s hideout. The initial compound area at the closest to surface location was similar to a large pub. There was music being played, a bar, tables everywhere, people laughing, arguing, and my was there a lot of drinking. Despite their rough, ragged appearance, the people were nice. They provided Choku food, drinks, and medicine like they had said they would, and were no longer giving him a “You’re dead” attitude like they were in his first encounter with them.
The people asked Choku about himself, and he told them his story. He told them about his parents, how his mother had died upon birth, his father had been a samurai, all of it. They seemed trustworthy enough for bandits. Upon hearing the name of his father, the bandits were shocked. They turned to each other in whispers, conversing amongst themselves, leaving Choku confused. After a couple minutes of conversing, the bandits stepped away from him with looks of shock and surprise, almost as if they were just as confused as Choku was. Then a man stepped up to Choku and explained.
As the story went, they were currently a clan without leadership. The previous leader had been killed in a duel between himself and another clan member. The clan member who had challenged the leader was named Rah. Rah Shoshinku. He was a man of honor, and respected by all members of his clan as a powerful samurai and great leader of men, being the captain to lead most raids. Apparently, there had never been a failed raid under Rah’s command. But despite his honor and respect he held, he was a man of strict standards, and commonly criticised others who did not follow these standards. One such man was the leader of the Shoshinku clan at the time.
The previous clan leader was a very powerful man, or so it was said. They said that he could take down entire squadrons of guards at a time with his powerful Ninjutsu style and techniques. He was very skilled. But near his time of death, he had become greedy and conceited. He sent out more and more raiding parties into the wastes around them, leaving barely any members at the compound to perform basic tasks to keep the clan functioning. He had even began to draft children into the raiding parties forcibly to increase their numbers in order to loot more and pillage more. This type of bad behavior was unacceptable to Rah.
So Rah Shoshinku, the powerful samurai, challenged his clan’s leader to a duel for the leadership of the clan, claiming that the current path the clan leader was ferrying them down was that of disaster. Infuriated by Rah’s insubordination and insulting, the clan leader accepted the challenge, confident in his battle skills and Ninjutsu. The duel was to take place on the last day of winter. As the time of the duel approached, the clan leader’s confidence increased more and more. He planned several ways on how to kill the ungrateful, disloyal samurai, taking pleasure in coming up with more creative ways of execution. There was one fault in the man’s plans however. He took Rah for a fool for challenging him. He underestimated his opponent, for Rah was a man of incredible skill, and also still in his youth. People said he was one of the rare members of the Shoshinku who didn’t study the Hiden Technique of the clan, but instead had devoted all of his time and training into one style of fighting only. The sword.
On the day of the duel, the two men and a large following of members wishing to see the battle ascended to the top floor remaining of the skyscraper the clan was based under. Once at the top, the audience stood off at a distance, oohs and aahs emanating from the crowd as the two duelists readied into their positions. Just before the battle, the clan leader began to smirk. The battle started. Just when the battle ended, the clan leader finished his smirk and had just started making handsigns. It was over quickly, Rah had killed the man with one fell swoop. Some say they never even saw him draw his sword, and that one instant he was across from the other man, and the next he was behind him, with blood on his back that had spurted from the large cut in the opponent’s stomach and side. The Shoshinku’s clan leader fell that day, and Rah left, leaving the clan without leadership, and never to be seen again. Rah was the name of Choku’s father, who, when Choku knew him, was just an adequate, aged swordsman. But that is the true tale of Choku’s father.
- Chapter 3:
[/size] Chapter 3:
After hearing the tale of his father, Choku was inspired with new motivation to become stronger. He wanted to carry on his father’s legacy by becoming a powerful samurai just like Rah Shoshinku. The members of the clan asked him to be the leader of the clan, as only a descendant of the founder Shoukou was allowed to become the leader of the clan, which Rah and the previous clan leader had been, but Choku denied. He didn’t believe he was strong enough to properly lead the clan. The Shoshinku tried to convince him, telling him that he didn’t need to be powerful yet, that they could train him, but try as they might they couldn’t get him to accept. Choku believed it was also a matter of lack of experience. However, he did stay a couple years to train in the art of Ninjutsu with the clan. Through this training, Choku learned that nearly all members of the Shoshinku clan were born with the potential to use Water Release Ninjutsu. He trained with the other members of the clan, learning how to mould chakra and use it to perform Ninjutsu techniques. He made quick growth, but never showed quite as much talent in it as his other clansmen. They tried instead teaching him Fuuinjutsu, techniques that had to do with sealing. Choku became quite adept with Fuuinjutsu techniques and learned quickly, impressing the clan with his power in that regard. They couldn’t, however, teach him much more about the sword, as Choku had already received extensive training in that respect from his father. That skill would likely increase with combat experience over time and the ingenuity of Choku himself
All this training took about four years before he thought himself ready. Choku’s plan was to go out into the world, seeking adventures and experiences, hoping along the way he would become much stronger and be able to return one day to the clan he was the heir to wielding power that could lead them to glory and honourable living. Little did he know however, that his travels would give him more than power, but several stories along the way of his adventures and knowledge of several places and treasures from across the world. With that in mind begins the tale of Choku’s evolution from inexperienced boy, heir to an entire clan, to a hardened man of many tales to tell.
But before Choku set off on his journey, the clan had one more thing to teach him. They told to Choku the story of the clan’s origins, about the cult of Shoukou, the blood sacrifices, and the slaughter of the cult by Shoukou himself. And above these things they described to Choku the Shoshinku’s Hiden Technique, a secret style of Ninjutsu passed down through generations of the clan, the nature of which shocked Choku. It was a Ninjutsu that allowed the user to manipulate the blood of others and use them in combat for offensive and defensive purposes. The ability was strange to Choku, and somewhat repulsive, yet at some level intriguing. The clan told him that if he was to become the clan’s leader, he must bear the burden of the clan’s bloody history and take on the practice of the Hiden Technique of the Shoshinku clan. For forty days and forty nights, they trained Choku in the art of their Hiden Technique, teaching him how to manipulate the basic shape and movement of blood at first, moving on to more complicated things like hardening blood to use as offensive fighting, to even manipulating one’s own blood, a fighting style that was rarely used due to the harsh consequences on the user for using their own blood for extended periods of time. After learning the Hiden Technique of the Shoshinku, Choku was ready to depart.
- Chapter 4:
Chapter 4:
Choku left the ruins of Amegakure at the age of eighteen, now officially an adult and mature enough to take on the world as a traveller. Not only was he now mature enough to go out into the world, he was powerful enough as well, having trained all of his skills at the Shoshinku clan compound. He first travelled north east, heading towards no general destination he had in mind, but told by an elder of the clan most interesting things would be up that way if he headed towards the ocean. He didn’t really understand what the man meant, but decided it was as good a place as any, considering Choku didn’t really have anywhere he wanted to go. It was a long trek until anything really interesting happened, but when he did, it was quite interesting indeed. He came across a party of men dressed in uniform, walking through the forests of the Land of Fire in quite a peculiar way. They were all crouched, as though hunting some exotic prey that was easily spooked by predators. Choku ducked down and hide, not very confident he could take on all these men at once. He circled around the party, coming up on their left flank. Despite the size of the group, considering that the Shoshinku clan was a group of thieves he might as well try it for the first time here.
Now on the left flank of the party of men hunting through the forest, he noticed that they all had quite a lot of weapons on them. Not a single one of these people were traveling without some sort of sharp armament, as Choku saw among them an assortment of wakizashi, kunai, shuriken, and a couple with katanas. Though, the condition of their weapons and the way they wore them told Choku they weren’t very disciplined or skilled in the use of the armaments they were carrying. Choku decided that as long as no surprises came up. It was in that respect that he made his first mistake in the brave new world he had embarked into, assuming there would be no surprises.
Despite the obstacle he was about to face, Choku still performed exceptionally well in taking out the men. He snuck up on men one after one, unsheathing, slitting, dragging, and moving on. As he carried on taking down the ninja he progressively grew more red in color, covered in a variety of blood types from his victims. He had cleared out about half the group when something unusual happened. One of the men at the front of the group called out, warning the others of an intruder. How in the hell had he noticed Choku? It was a very strange occurrence indeed, and very much so complicated things for him. Each of the men started searching around, and the inevitable happened. Choku was discovered.
The following battle that ensued was quite intense, bringing Choku to use near all of the skills he had been trained in over his short lifetime to fight off the men who had discovered him. Once discovered the man who found him immediately attacked, lunging at the crouched form of this samurai intruder with a kunai. Choku gripped his sword and dashed forward to the side of the man, unsheathing and then sheathing once more as a cut expanded across his abdomen. The man fell, but many, many more came to take his place. Choku, cornered, drew his sword and began sidling around in a circular manner, getting a feel for how many enemies he was facing and how difficult the battle ahead would prove to be. It honestly wasn’t that hard surprisingly.
One after one the men rushed at him foolishly, aiming to cut him down with their mediocre weapons, only to be struck down by Choku’s blade with shocking swiftness. A circle of bodies quickly formed around Choku, who was now exhausted from the drawn out physical effort of fighting the waves of enemies. However, he was successful in repelling the opponents, as there was now only one other man, who was glaring daggers at Choku with a katana drawn and intent on fighting. Due to how tired he was, Choku however, was not so intent. He fled, heading up further northeast hoping that once he crossed the borders of the Land of Fire the man would stop pursuing him. Choku constantly had to stop to rest before continuing his sprint through the woods when he heard his hunter catching up. How was the man keeping up with him so well? How could he keep finding out what route Choku was taking? It seemed like it would be an incredibly difficult task yet this man seemed to chase him down with relative ease.
Eventually, Choku reached a port town on the coast and had to stop. He wasn’t exhausted anymore, but this would still be an incredibly difficult fight. He drew his sword and waited for the man to catch up with him, breathing slow and focusing on his senses. Citizens gathered at the town’s entrance, curious as to the bloodsoaked stranger who seemed distressed. Eventually, Choku could make out a figure through the mist, walking slowly towards him. After a minute, he could fully see the figure stepping out of the mist. It was his pursuer, and now the two men had a good look at each other. Choku noticed something strange about this person, something off. His eyes, they were near pure white. Very peculiar, he noted. And why were there signs of strain and veins around his eyes? Choku inquired about the nature of this man, and he described.
The man was named Shi, and was a rogue member of the clan Hyuga, a clan with a unique bloodline that granted its members a special dojutsu, a visual ability, called the Byakugan, which allows the user to see great distances and see the inner organs and tenketsu of other people. Choku still didn’t quite understand, but was still determined to fight this man and win. Shi no longer wielded a katana, but instead went into battle with a kunai. The two men rushed at each other, bloodlust in their eyes. It was a fair fight, with an amazing fighting skill in both men. However, constant use of Blood Release techniques throughout the battle allowed Choku to get the upper hand, and eventually defeat the rogue Hyuga with a stab to the throat. Choku was bloodsoaked by the end of it, breathing heavily, and collapsing to the ground from exhaustion.
- Chapter 5:
Chapter 5:
Choku woke from unconsciousness without vision in his left eye and a white cloth wrapped around the left side of his face. He lay in a cot staring up at a thatch roof with a small lightbulb hanging from the ceiling, just barely illuminating the room. A heavyset old man with a straw hat sat in a chair next to Choku’s bed, scratching away at a wooden figure with a small knife. The man noticed that Choku had awoken and told him to relax. He explained that Choku was found in a nearby town collapsed and bleeding profusely. The man had heard about the battle and took Choku into his home, further up the coast, healing him. He also brought the corpse of the guy he had fought, thinking maybe it would have some importance to Choku. Though it wouldn’t have, it ended up being very important, as Choku was missing an eye from his fight. The only possible eyes this man really had available were, well, the eyes of the guy Choku had fought. Having quite a bit of knowledge in Ijutsu from his old war days, the man transplanted the left eye of the Hyuga into Choku, saving his life and his vision. However, it would take a couple days for him to fully heal, and a lot of time for him to rehabilitate and get his eyesight from his new implant. Choku was fine with all of that, he was just tired.
After a couple days, Choku was back up on his feet, and, determined to pay the old man back, started helping out around his home. As it turned out, the old man was a retired ninja mercenary, clanless and living solitarily, now a humble fisherman on the coast. Choku would go out on fishing trips with the old man every once in awhile, loving the smell of the sea and the feel of the wind in his air. It was a nice change from the closed environments of city ruins and dense forests. The old man taught him how to fish, and Choku was actually quite good at it once he figured out how. It was a good life. Relaxing by the sea and having no worries, living how he wants.
Then one day, at the age of 24, Choku got a wake up call. His Byakugan eye was finally functioning completely properly. He accidentally activated the eye and was astonished by all the things he could now see. His range of vision had been drastically increased, and could view and react to everything that he could see with great precision. It was really an incredible ability he had been bestowed. Choku closed his eye and deactivated the Byakugan, wincing at the strain caused from his very first use of the dojutsu. This reminded him however of his true purpose in life. He was meant to be a samurai, not a fisherman. He was to lead a great clan down the path of glory, not lead a small crew on a whaling trip. Choku asked the fisherman if he knew of any good places to hone his skills. The fisherman knew of none, but offered him a weapon. It was a sword, a strange one he says he found on the ruined shores of the Land of Water one day on a scavenging run. It was a needle in appearance with an incredibly long length of wire threaded through a hole in the hilt, the length of a sword and very sharp indeed. According to him, the blade was legendary, and used to be known as Nuibari.... Choku took it, thanking the fisherman profusely. He then bid the man farewell.
Choku started his journey back to the Shoshinku clan compound from the small port town on the north shores, intent on using his skills and new experience to lead the clan forward to victory in this harsh world. Despite his still quite small amount of experience, he gained more over time during his travels back. He met lots of people along the way, traveling caravans carrying supplies between clans in trade, travelling salesman peddling rare goods, and even some members of other clans, such as an Uchiha, who he had an intense battle with that ended in a draw, both of the men tired beyond belief by the end and with a new mutual respect for each other and each other’s clans. This battle gave Choku some degree of insight as to the nature of the Uchiha clan’s bloodline, the Sharingan, a very powerful dojutsu not unlike Choku’s own, the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan that he hid under cloth wraps. He even met a member of the famous Senju clan, a powerful family living in the heart of the Land of the Fire. Choku sat down and had tea with the man, discussing politics of the world and debating different philosophies. The Senju argued for the principles of family above all while Choku argued for the way of Bushido and the code of honor of the samurai. They parted ways at night with friendly waves.
Choku often stayed to rest at towns for years at a time, always liking to settle down in different areas to see what life was like there. In this way he gathered lots of knowledge on the way of life of citizens from all types of different lands, getting to know what the people there were like, what they traded, exported, imported, and how wealthy various towns were. He was sure the clan would be grateful for this info, as they were a group of bandits after all. Choku didn’t care too much about how the clan operated, stealing from others and giving to themselves. It was how they got by in life, and Choku understood that, his father having been a mercenary after all. He only cared that his family led noble, honorable lives, and didn’t disgrace the Shoshinku name. There was enough disgrace in the clan’s past already……..
In his travels he came across a small town based in the ruins of a larger town, once called “Tanzaku Quarters”. There were lots of scavengeable supplies here, as it seemed like the town in its prime used to be a major tourist attraction. As such, it had many restaurants, casinos, hotels, and so on. Choku explored the town, meeting many people, talking with the shopkeepers, and having a pleasant rest in the lobby of a small rebuilt hotel. There, he met a wise old man by the name of Itsuka. He was well over Choku’s age, as he put Itsuka at about 60 or so while Choku at the time was only 32. Choku had noticed the blade on Itsuka’s person, and been interested in why such an old man carried a weapon. As it happened, Itsuka was a retired shinobi of a now extinct clan, having been purged in a massacre by their enemy leaving only Itsuka alive. Itsuka told Choku his story, and Choku was enthralled by the tale. Apparently, Itsuka had encountered one member of nearly every recorded clan ever. Some Choku new of, such as Hyuga and Uchiha, which Itsuka went into detail describing his experiences in battle with members of those clans, and others, such as Uzumaki and Shikyo, Choku had never even heard of. The old man didn’t feel he had the time to explain any information about them, so Choku never learned anything about them.
The pair headed to Itsuka’s home for drinks, and Choku told the man of his own adventures. He described taking down ninja in the woods by himself, fleeing from the battle due to fatigue, and then fighting the dangerous Hyuga man. He even showed Itsuka his eye, the milky white orb that had replaced Choku’s eye that had been destroyed in battle. Itsuka was amused at this, feeling that Choku was not skilled enough to take on the world. Severely offended by this criticism, Choku felt the need to defend his honor. He challenged the old man to a spar. Choku felt that due to his age, the old man would surely lose. He couldn’t be more wrong.
During their battle Itsuka experienced two things he had never before witnessed nor even dreamt of as possible in his life. The first was teleportation. The old man teleported at incredible speed during the fight! How could this be possible? Choku had no clue, never having witnessed Space-Time Ninjutsu before in his life. Choku tried to keep up by tracking the man with his Byakugan, but Itsuka was too fast. He had struck Choku down not long after the duel began. Feeling merciful and impressed by the young man’s skill, Itsuka did not hurt him. This was twice now that Choku had been spared from death, which wounded his honor permanently. He would never forget this day.
Itsuka took Choku into his tutelage, teaching him advanced techniques with the sword and training his basic skills through intense exercises such as daily sparring and workout routines. The work was rough on Choku, but helped him become a much stronger man. He undertook this training for four years, honing his already amazing skills even further. He still wasn’t much of a match for a veteran and master like Itsuka, but still. During training, Choku was constantly practicing using the abilities granted by the Byakugan. During sparring sessions he aimed for the small points all over his opponent’s body that were now visible to him, recognizing them as a system of weak points of sorts, similar to pressure points on the human body. He focused his training with Byakugan so much so that he developed a combat style based on the combination of this dojutsu and the use of the sword, calling it the “Gentle Rain” style, likened to the title of the Taijutsu style Itsuka told Choku about that Hyuga were well known for using.
At the age of thirty four, Itsuka felt Choku’s training complete. He challenged his pupil to a duel, with special rules this time. This battle would be--to the death. Itsuka felt he had outlived his stay in this world, and that there was no better closure for him than dying to a man who would carry on Itsuka’s legacy of skill and mastery. And Choku had acquired this mastery, as he was now nearly on the same level, if not above Itsuka. He had honed his skills in the sword, and was now an absolute master of bukijutsu fighting and the use of Nuibari, and practiced with Byakugan, now being extremely adept in its use. But Itsuka still had the advantage in his Space-Time Ninjutsu. This was kept well in mind with Itsuka, and he figured he had a way to counter it. He would have to use the sword fighting style of iaido, a style where the user strikes with his sword by unsheathing it out into a slice. Hopefully he could perform a lethal blow before Itsuka could manage to perform his Ninjutsu. Otherwise, Choku would be done here. But that couldn’t happen, he had a clan to lead, a generation to teach, and battles to win. He would not die here.
And die he did not. The battle began and ended in a single instant, with both men dashing at each other at incredible speed and drawing their swords as they passed each other by. Blood gushed from the slice across Itsuka’s stomach, covering the floor in the liquid. With his last words he christened Choku the Rain Man, now being a master samurai. Choku sheathed his blade and exited, shedding a single tear in silence.
- Chapter 6:
Chapter 6:
After having defeated the master swordsman Itsuka, Choku felt he was finally powerful enough and worthy enough to lead the Shoshinku clan. Heading northwest from Tanzaku Quarters, he returned to the land of the ruins of Amegakure. He was sure the clan would be awestruck once they saw his new skills and mastery in the art of the sword, and interested in the many tales he now had to tell. They would probably also be proud of him for acquiring a Byakugan implant, seeing as it was one of the most important secrets of the Hyuga clan and he had gotten his hands on one. All of these contemplations put Choku in quite the good mood as he strolled through the watery wastes in the land of neverending rain.
Once he returned to the compound, he approached the wall that led to the hidden entrance of the Shoshinku clan hideout. It had been so long since he had been here, near twenty years in fact. Choku had grown exceptionally in that time, and now was a figure of monstrous power. But despite those facts, would the clan receive him well? What would they think of him? Would they be angry with him leaving them behind for so long? These thoughts rushed through Choku’s mind as he performed the entrance ritual, covering the wall with his blood. Due to his improved stamina and endurance, he did not get very tired after performing with his own blood once, and entered the hallway ahead calmly. He knocked on the door. Silence. He knocked again. Silence. One more time. The bar slid open, dark eyes replacing it and widening in surprise once it recognized the face of the man before him. The door swung open immediately.
The clan members welcomed him home gladly and with open arms, telling him they had been worried about his safety and desperately awaiting his return home. The Shoshinku clan worked for awhile without leadership, but ultimately, they were desperate for someone to guide them. Without a clan leader, they did not know what to do with their lives other than pillage, steal, and live. They felt purposeless, having no real meaning or effect on the rest of the world. It was a sad, sad existence. When Choku arrived home, he told them the countless stories he had collected from his travels around the world, telling them of the clanspeople he had met, the battles he had had, the weapon, Nuibari that he had acquired, and so on. He showed them his Byakugan too, and they all gained expressions of awe and fear from the sight of the milky white eye. And finally, he met with a man who claimed to be the new clan leader.
Apparently, while Choku was gone, one man among the clan had been training and become arrogant, claiming himself the new clan leader and saying that he was a direct blood descendant of Shoukou, founder of the clan. Nobody believed him, due to the fact that any members filling that description were an increasingly rare thing to find these days what with how diluted the blood of the Shoshinku was. Choku met the man, who was a powerful Ninjutsu user, and talked with him, explaining that he was not the clan leader, but that Choku was taking over. The man, now enraged, challenged him to a duel over the clan’s leadership. Choku thought this situation somewhat familiar to something he had heard about before, but couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Choku accepted, and they ascended to the top of the highest skyscraper in the ruins of Amegakure. The battle was about to begin between these two men.
However, it wouldn’t be a very difficult battle, as the man was nowhere near on par with the absolute power of the man Itsuka that Choku had fought and defeated. This battle was unlike Choku’s previous ones however, as it would last a couple minutes, due to Choku wanting to toy with the arrogant man and get him mad. Easily sidestepping and countering the opponent’s Ninjutsu with seals and Water Release techniques of his own, it was clear Choku was superior to the man before him, and the battle never really went anywhere. After thirty minutes of long, drawn out toying with the man, Choku ended it. The man used a Water Release technique, spewing forth a wave at Choku, but Choku dashed and cut through it, advancing to the man’s position and jabbing him through the heart with Nuibari. The man died and Choku had claimed leadership of the Shoshinku clan.
The next three years were very peaceful. Choku watched over trade and raiding for the clan, making sure the clan always had enough supplies to survive and constantly buying new armaments and hiring on mercenaries to assist in guarding and raiding. Choku was now at the age of 38, and feared or respected deeply by every man that knew of him. He was well known to those nearby for being a fearsome clan leader that joined and led every raid they made, charging fearlessly into battle and fighting with his men. Under his command there was rarely a casualty, and the power he held was very well feared by the men who hoped to never encounter him. He had been gaining himself and the Shoshinku clan some reputation with the local lands, and life was good.
One day however, while out for a walk about the land of Amegakure, he came across a group of bandits. They appeared to be Shoshinku clan members by the looks of things, and noticed from a distance that they were well armed and quite powerful. He was glad with this, as members of his clan SHOULD be powerful so that Choku had something to work with when he got back to the compound. Choku approached the group and noticed that they were fighting someone. He activated his Byakugan focusing in on the person, no, two people, they were fighting. From the looks of it they were girls, and very young too. Choku dashed up to the party fighting the girls and observed from a couple feet away. Despite the clear difference in power, the two girls fought viciously, even taking down one of Choku’s men. He noticed something about them though that sent shivers up his spine, something ominous. Their eyes, Choku had seen eyes like that long ago in battle, and recognized them as the Sharingan, bloodline ability of the Uchiha clan. Choku called off his men and approached the girls, who appeared homeless. He invited them to live with him and under his protection, and they accepted. Having Uchiha clansmen in his group could provide great benefits up the road, he figured. And who knows, he might raise them to be respectable, skilled young women.
- Epilogue:
“Epilogue”
Two years have passed since Choku adopted the Uchiha sisters into his clan, and he has been training them intensely to hone their skills as ninja, so that one day they might join him on even more raids and missions to aid the clan. They were great assets, as well as pleasant children, as Choku thought them to be as though they were his own daughters. That is, when they weren’t fighting. It is at this point in time, Choku having reached the age of 40 and well known as an incredibly powerful man, wielding monstrous skill and the Nuibari and Byakugan and known as the fearsome leader of the Shoshinku clan, that we leave off in his tale. The rest of his story is for you to find out as he makes even more of a mark in the world, leading the Shoshinku clan behind him to glory.
Clan: Shoshinku Rank: Blood Chief (Clan Leader) KKG: Shoshinku Clan Hiden Technique (Not KKG) Items: Choku, being the current Blood Chief of the Shoshinku clan, has possession of the very first scroll to document a Shoshinku Hiden Technique. With each generation, the amount of techniques developed through practice of the Shoshinku Hiden Technique increases, as more chiefs and clan elders add upon the list over time, though usually these are kept in personal records and often lost when the creator passes. Choku carries a tiny, thick scroll detailing the Shoshinku's generic Hiden Technique in a hollowed bar of one of his sandals. Also, being a criminal sometimes requires some degree of stealth, and for such situations Choku is prepared. He has several armaments highly capable for distractions, the more complex of which will be detailed as weapons below. The list goes as follows: -A large coin, made from bronze, engraved upon it on both sides the face of Youkou, founder of the Shoshinku clan, clad in a cowl. This coin is used for a small distraction, thrown to get the attention of guards drawn elsewhere when necessary. -Four miniature smoke bombs, in individual size fitted pouches sewn into the inside of Choku's left sleeve. -A katana, sheathed in a scabbard hung from his left hip -The legendary blade of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist, Nuibari, with a long length of wire-mirroring thread attached at the "needle" found at the hilt. Is found strapped to lower back in a horizontal position, similar to way a tanto is carried -An implanted Byakugan, one of the famous Three Great Dojutsu, implanted in Choku's left eye socket Abilities/Perks:-Master Samurai's Instinct
- Due to a huge amount of combat experience and his samurai style training, Choku can dodge attacks with 1.5x increased max reaction speed, and block/cut attacks with up to 1.5x his Strength in force, but only while wielding a blade.
-A Man at Peace With Rain
- Choku has lived long within the ruins of Amegakure, and is very experienced in Water Release specialization. As such, he is able to use water of rain and mist in his techniques, able to manipulate and gather water from both, solidifying mist into water when necessary, and use those sources for his technique, giving him an adaptable and versatile source of water in combat for jutsu use. Along with this, he can change the state of the water from water to mist and back again.
-Iaido Mastery
- Choku has mastered the samurai fighting style of iaido. Iaido is associated with the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword from its scabbard or saya, striking or cutting an opponent, removing blood from the blade, and then replacing the sword in the scabbard. When striking with this style, Choku's Strength is increased by +75, and he may cut fully through techniques or weapons whose Force is half or less than the force of Choku's own attacks.
Last edited by Josh on Wed Aug 06, 2014 11:49 am; edited 1 time in total | |
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