@yoshua171

It was places like this that brought a genuine smile to the Monks face. Beautiful and natural, unspoiled land that could simply be enjoyed. Out here Ryuku could revel in the elements, unhampered by the constructs of the great races. Out here he could meditate and simply reflect on his past and on his training. He walked barefoot and bare chested through the large forest, with trees taller and thicker than he had every seen; they were tough as well, no lumberjacks ax would feel these mighty behemoths.

His right hand gripped his white-wood staff that was as tall as him and nearly half as thick as his wrist. He had been walking most of the night and just now the sun was beginning its rise in the eastern sky, though the trees did much to block out those early morning rays and he traveled by less by sight and more by his other senses.

As dawn broke and slight breeze was filtered through the trees Ryuku came upon a most curious sight. There, before him nestled among the trees was a tall glass pillar. Oh how the morning light reflected and refracted off the shiny surface. Enchanted by the simplicity of its beauty Ryuku moved closer for inspection, reaching a hand to touch its smooth surface.

It wasn't until he was standing directly next to the pillar that he noticed a glass bridge over-head, leading to yet another pillar of equal height and girth. Curiosity now his driving factor Ryuku bent low to the ground and focused his Qi, a moment later he launched into the air, a sudden rush of wind following in is wake.

He landed lightly on the surface of the glass pillar and despite its sheen he found it no more slick than than stone. He tapped the glass with his stuff and remained thoughtful, staring down at it and at the bridge. Was this truly glass? Would it shatter with the same ease? Ryuku didn't know, and he didn't really want to find out while he was standing on it. Engrossed in his own thoughts Ryuku was soon sitting cross-legged on the pillar, hands on his lap with his staff set beside him, meditating upon this discovery.

*Edit: Added a tag at the top for yoshua171.

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Hunting her target, senses honing in, Kaiu ran through the forest at top speed, her form a blur to the eyes of a normal man and her movements silent. Then, stopping near the clearing with the glass, she checked her senses once more, her sensory technique active, and noted the man's presence. Good, he hasn't gotten away, she observed, drawing her cloak around herself and utilizing a stealth technique while suppressing her chakra to minimal levels. She made her way, in the tree tops, to the clearing's edge where she peaked down at the man, making sure to stay within the shadows. The sight that met her eyes was odd for the man appeared quite relaxed, legs crossed, as he sat upon the glass pillars. stranger still was the construct itself, which connected many pillars of glass to one another. Why was such a thing situated in the middle of a vast forest...? There weren't even any ruins nearby. Perhaps an underground compound? A left over piece of architecture. It was clearly not normal glass to have survived this long if that were the case.

She wasn't sure how she wanted to approach this. She could reveal herself and fight him in earnest, or she could go with her usual methods.... After a moment's thought she decided on the latter of the two. channeling her chakra around a shuriken and attaching a wire to it, she threw it downwards, turning it into a leaf at the last moment so it made no abnormal noise as it landed. She turned it back, allowing it to stick into the ground where it had landed. She let the wire extend with the transformation technique as she made her way silently around the clearing twice. On her second pass she stopped part way around so that she was position roughly 20 meters behind her target in the trees. With this measure in place she moved the wire around the tree she was on--though she did not tie it--and then descended to the ground.

Part way through she'd decided on something in between her earlier options. As she moved she kept her grip on the wire, sending a tiny trickle of chakra through it to reinforce its strength as she turned it into spider silk.

She walked out of the trees, revealing herself in part. She didn't remove the cloak that allowed her to blend in, but instead stopped suppressing her chakra and killing intent as she approached the man from behind; her pace steady, her footfalls silent. She summoned one of her wakizashi to her free hand letting light glint off of it slightly to see if the man noticed.

Every action was measured. Every measured action a test.

The first step towards victory was in understanding your opponent. This was what she intended to do.

In his heart Ryuku was a peaceful creature and preferred the quiet contemplation that places such as this afforded him. Still, there was a part of him that longed for action, not necessarily violence; yet that is exactly what form that action usually took place. Sitting still and meditating allowed Ryuku to listen and feel the area around him, the life energy that all living things had could all but paint a picture for the young looking Monk.

Despite Ryukus skill and familiarity in sensing Qi, Kaiu remained unnoticed, by reducing her Chakra levels she was simply another life form in the background to Ryuku. He remained on his pillar, content to just bask in his surroundings for the moment. Deep slow breaths, body sitting perfectly erect, hands on his knees and eyes close Ryuku was a picture perfect description of the words calm and serene.

It wouldn’t be until her second pass around Ryuku that he felt something was off. The animals that he had felt in the background of his meditation; squirrels, chipmunks and birds had left, all but one. Remaining where he was he focused his senses and tuned it in the direction he felt Kaiu. It was when Kaiu sent a tiny trickle of Chakra through the wire that Ryuku knew for certain that he was not alone.

Ryuku did several things simultaneously then; he grabbed his white staff, stood while turning to face Kaiu and reached into Qi, aligning himself with the element of wind and gathering it for use should this meeting suddenly take a turn for the worse. Vibrant green eyes and expressionless demeanor were what greeted Kaiu the moment she stepped from the trees to reveal herself.

He stayed where he was, atop the pillar, looking down towards Kaiu as she approached him. Her intent was clear and the wakizashi in her hand cemented what he had already come to understand. He held his own staff in his right hand, about three quarters the way up and angled away from him with the end resting in front of his bare left foot.

“Good morning.” Ryuku greeted, yet he did not bow or greet her in any other way. He had the higher ground at the moment, out of range of her Wakizashi he knew. “You will be the next then.” He stated, eyes narrowing as he prepared himself for the task at hand.

---

Unsurprised that he had noticed her, the kunoichi continued her approach even as he rose to his feet upon the glass platform to face her. His swift response to her meant he had likely detected her somehow and his words revealed to her interesting things about his attitude, though nothing damning or terribly complex. He had been challenged before, she knew this by his words, his tone, and the way he held himself. He was confident, surely. She shifted her grip on the wakizashi, holding it so the blade's tip pointed backwards, its flat aligned with her arm. "Perhaps," she replied flatly before she drew three kunai in a split second and threw them from the hip with a flick of her wrist. They traveled so that one would graze his side and the other two would strike him if not blocked or dodged. She increased her walking speed, intending to close the distance.

She would need to see if his confidence was justified.

Determined is how Ryuku described the women before him. It was often said that the straightest path was a straight-line and certain martial arts certainly reflected this attitude. Kaiu's approach was resembling that straight-line mentality. Green eyes watched her, but his senses were spread wide and he was aware of his surroundings, straight often meant deception when coupled with his opponents weaponry.

She carried a Wakizashi, but he did not see a Katana, it could mean several things. But, coupling the short-bladed weapon with Kunai and the stealthy approach she used earlier severely limited down the things that Ryuku thought she could be, top among them being a classically trained Shinobi, second being a common assassin that simply favored the orient style of weaponry.

Her actions, while certainly fast, were something that Ryuku could deal with in several ways. Their placement, he assumed, was also no accident. She was trying to force him to dodge a very specific way, likely a set-up for something else. He would not be moved so easily, the higher ground afforded many advantages in combat. Just as quick as the smaller women Ryuku moved his white-wood staff in the proper defense. His right foot slid back and he dropped his center of gravity by lowering his body. In this way he presented only the left side of his body to her and kept himself behind his staff, left foot never moving as his right came in line behind it, weight evenly distributed. The Qi in him continued the process of building, and already aligned with the element of air he would wait for the opportune moment to unleash any of his Qi techniques.

The shift in stance brought him out of harms way of all three kunai with maximum efficiency while placing him in a stance that he could easily change should he need to adapt to a follow up attack. He had no way of countering effectively at the moment, any technique he used he was sure could easily be evaded. No, either they would play the game of him avoiding her ranged attacks; or she would try to make her way to even ground, in which case Ryuku would certainly try to stop her by using whatever advantage presented itself.

“Come now, child.” He said as the Kunai sped by, his eyes following her every movement. “Are we to play cat and mouse?” His tone was not mocking, nor overly preachy. It was an inquiry stated in the same neutral but polite tone he has used before.

---

Her sensory abilities active as well as the chakra sensing technique, Kaiu was able to discern the alignment of chakra in the area of her opponent's form. She wasn't sure what sort of chakra, but she did detect the disturbance of the energies surrounding the man. Nonetheless, she reacted quite swiftly by preforming one handed handseals with her free hand that had thrown the kunai. In the same moment she began brought her arm forwards and then began to move it back so the blade stabbed behind her. Before it had made any headway, she vanished, a kunai falling to the ground in her place. She had reappeared behind Ryuku, her feet planted on the glass structure and her blade stabbing back towards his spine.

She was slightly crouched down, her back facing the man, though she was acutely aware of his position and any movements he might make. When she had thrown the kunai earlier she'd marked them with her chakra, thus allowing her to utilize the body replacement technique on them. This had allowed her maneuver. She made no response to his words, but remained ready to alter her movement should he respond in a manner which threatened her significantly.

Ryuku had not expected teleportation, he had been taught that it was a dangerous technique and so it was not one he had ever bothered to learn. Clearly his opponent had a understanding of her inner energies that may even surpass his own. The thrill of facing such an opponent sent shivers through Ryuku's body. Loose or win, he would give it everything he had.

As a user of Qi, a fairly adept one at that, he could sense the energy charged kunai when they had passed and so while he had no expected her to simply appear attacking, he was not caught unable to defend himself when he sensed the switch in energy, he moved as quickly as he possibly could.

The whole of his staff would sweep behind him as he pivoted on the ball of his left foot. He maintained perfect balance during his rotation, which would have been enough on its own to carry him out of the blades path. But for Ryuku, every action served a purpose, each step in this dance was merely one of many, of a greater whole.

His sweeping staff was not an attack, though with how close they were to one another it would take minimal effort to extend his left arm slightly and attempt to strike his opponent. Rather it was an obstacle, remaining between him and the Wakizashi should the stab be turned into an attempt to slice at him as he turned. His attack came about with the spin, his right hand striking out in a palm strike that was aimed at the right side of the girls head, specifically at her temple, one well aimed strike could, in theory, remove her from the fight.

It was all timed with perfection, the block with the staff, the strike with his right hand and the placement of his right foot back on the ground after the spin to lend the power to the technique that he needed. His gathering of Qi slowed with his shift from defense to offensive, but it was still there, Qi pooling for the use in one of his many techniques when he deemed necessary.

---

Noticing the swiftness with which her quarry responded, Kaiu began to suspect that he was more than he seemed. Not a simple martial artist, but something else, especially considering the chakra she noted gathering to the man's whim. With her weapon swept towards her back she followed its momentum, turning her body so that she faced him as he completed his turn and tried to begin his palm strike. Reading his movements in an instant, Kaiu took a step forwards and to her right slightly, avoiding his strike by ducking under it. Then, as she took her step forwards not only did she slash with her wakizashi, so as to distract his staff, but she also slammed her left wrist, hand angled downwards to turn it into a point, into the space opposite his elbow, her strike moving sideways somewhat. This, if it connected, would likely cause his right arm to move to his right somewhat, likely bending in alignment with the wrist in the process.

As she preformed these actions she created an axis of non-physical, and thus invisible, chakra just in front of herself, near her neck. It began to pull chakra towards itself, though the effect remained invisible as it did so.

The fact that his attack was stopped and arm pushed ever so slightly did little to deter Ryuku’s actions, he merely adapated. His attack had been akin to a boxers straight, it had much farther to travel than the simple jab. But it also meant that to effectively hit the crook of his elbow the women would need to close the distance. Ryuku was taller, his arms longer, he had a distinct advantage in reach. The fact that the women stepped forward and to the opposite side of the attack also meant that she had farther to strike, giving Ryuku all the time he needed to react, similar to what he had done a moment ago with his longer strike.

Kaiu’s s block would be effective in that it stopped everything from the elbow to the shoulder from moving and pushed it slightly up and right, however, from elbow to fingertips was not so. Knowing his attack ha no chance of reaching its mark his forearm would swing down like a fulcrum, hand outstretched to try and grab a hold of the collar on her clothing.

Ryuku’s staff was already in place, set to prevent the exact attack that Kaiu was performing with her small blade. He kept the staff between him and the blade, using his bulk and strength to simply stop the blade as it slashed at him. His own attack would come if his right hand had found purchase on her clothing. Once again using size and strength to his advantage he would attempt to yank her forward and up slightly. Yanking her down would have allowed her chance to widen her stance and perhaps resist the attempt, yanking her up would be far easier.

If he was able to yank her up, he would press off with his right foot with blinding power and speed and he would try and send his knee up into the women’s ribs with more than enough force to shatter a grown-man’s ribs easily. But, against this opponent he wasn’t sure exactly what effect it would have, if any.

Should the attack land Kaiu would find herself being released and pushed away, possibly with enough force to send her tumbling from the glass platform. The blocks and attacks had forced Ryuku to stop gathering Qi as well, what he had amassed so far was still there, but blocking and countering required full concentration. His opponent had already proved she could teleport and he did want to be caught unaware by such a trap.

Of course, should he fail to even grab hold or his opponent had some trick to evade everything entirely then there would be no reason for him to stop actively pooling together his Qi, and he would renew with vigor, building up the energy he knew he would need for the technique that he planned.

---

His retaliatory attempt was swift, but her own adaptation was just as fast for as his hand grasped at her collar, she released control of the axis of chakra near her own neck. The chakra would erupt in a controlled detonation aimed entirely at the hand, likely blowing it aside till the arm aligned with his shoulder, perpendicular to his neck. Akimbo more or less.

Kaiu, if this did not afford her this amount of room for activity, would slam her foot down, ceasing her momentum before reversing the polarity of the chakra upon her feet, pushing her back and away from the man in an instant. However, if his arm did indeed end in the aforementioned position or one of equal leverage on her part, then she was likely to press on ,shortening the blade of her sword and allowing the blade's metals to morph around the staff, locking it into a ring within the blade. The transformation technique was exceptionally useful to a master and she intended to use it to its fullest. Should she get this far, her hand and wrist would snap forwards in the air, chakra gathering in her fingers and around them, reinforcing her hand, as she attempted to plunge it right into her adversary's exposed shoulder.

Should her position be significantly disadvantaged however, she'd be more likely to retreat and re-evaluate her circumstances and tactics to suit the mans skills.

His own attack was easily foiled by a well-timed explosion of chi the pressure was enough to throw Ryuku’s right arm back and away leaving his right side exposed for a counter attack. On top of that he felt resistance on his staff as the metal of his opponent’s weapon enclosed around it, preventing him from whipping it across his body for defense. A change in tactics was needed.

He shifted his upper body, rotating his torso clockwise and bringing his right shoulder back and away from the knife hand strike. Ryuku also released his staff, using the momentum given to him by the chi explosion that sent his arm back to throw his body into a side long spin which would carry him off of the glass pillar. There would be no counter-attack, he needed the firm ground beneath his feet and not this glass pillar.

He would not continue to gather Chi either, rather, the moment his feet touched the ground he would realign his Chi from the air to the earth below him. Its steadfast defensive techniques would of much more value than the fast paced air ones he had planned on using earlier.