Yamanaka (山中 Middle of the Mountain), Inori (祈り Prayer)

13

Academy Student

Konohagakure

Earth

Though one might not be able to tell at first glance, Inori is the presumed heir to the Yamanaka Clan. Once a shy and obedient kid, puberty appears to have transformed her into a rebel without a cause. With little regard for family or even shinobi traditions, going as far as dying her own hair a different color and using colored contact lenses to match, the girl struggles to leave the shadow of her clan and become someone unique, someone who is not defined by blood or secret techniques. Her attitude has caused those within the Yamanaka Clan to worry about their future. The current head can only hope that her behavior is temporary, or else he'll have to make the necessary changes to assure that his leadership is passed down to a 'worthy' individual. Regardless, the girl does not seem to care, nor does she show interest in whoever may claim the position. When asked why she intends to become a ninja in spite of it all, Inori confesses that 'it's probably the only thing she's good at' and that it'll be 'the easiest and fastest way to leave home', adding that 'if she proves herself to be capable enough, she'll earn good money'.

Following her own sense of fashion [and life], she is not known to quickly cast away others in prejudice. Things like race, physical shape, clan and overall background are not obstacles in forming a bond with her, however, she puts great emphasis in actions and decisiveness during first impressions. She's no stranger to street fighting, so sometimes things simply do not work out. She is not afraid to join a group of outcasts, and has found the Akimichi and Nara clan to be compelling partners to spend the time with. For one, quietly eating and slacking off can be quite enjoyable provided the timing is right.

When the situation calls for it, Inori displays traits of a realist -and sometimes those of a pessimist-, often being overwhelmed by such thoughts in the middle of combat. She's not someone who finds violence exciting, but someone who dominates it like blacksmiths do with their hammer. This may make her appear to be more mature than she looks, but in truth, she's just another desperate soul in need of guidance. Because she is at odds with her family, she seeks answers elsewhere, and industry has found a way into her heart in the way of music. Most of her allowance has been spent in a CD-player and a set of headphones.

Inori´s fist years were no different than those of most. Having been born in a period of peace, she was never exposed to loss and strife, and was able to spend most of her time with her family. At the age of four, however, she was selected as a candidate for a particular investigation that required the mandatory aid of children from the Yamanaka Clan to take off. Seeing as Inori had no brothers nor sisters, and that in the future she would have to become the house head, her parents were naturally against it. However, once they witnessed the results of the experiment in other children, they nodded in approval without a second thought. From that age, every day at evening, Inori´s training regime would begin to include hypnotic sessions. The goal was to create a 'controlled' second personality or 'second mind' that would be able to learn and perform tasks regardless of the user's real motivation, affinity or mental state. For a long time, Inori remained oblivious to the existence of this second aspect of herself and had virtually no recollection of what kind of exercises she underwent during hypnosis. On the other hand, her parents were fully aware, and they were able to witness how their daughter, who disliked kenjutsu and refused to practice it, was no capable to hold her own in combat against someone at least twice her age while in trance.

By the time Inori was enlisted in the academy, she had already learnt about her alter ego. She accepted it and used it mostly like a tool when the need arose. She was proud to be able to study to become a ninja and she was quite excited, as well. So much so, that one day she decided to spend the entire day tracking a group of Genin as they carried out missions through the village. She felt... Betrayed. From pulling out weeds to walking dogs or bringing pets back home, their labors weren't anything close to what she had been told. Unwilling to accept reality, she repeated the process another day, this time with a shinobi of higher rank, a Chunin. She was glad to see that his tasks carried plenty of responsibility. Delivering messages and watching the gate might look tame in comparison to other kind of tasks, but they were really important. They had a meaning and required ninja talent to be carried out in the best manner possible. Sadly, at certain point the Chunin simply decided to put off his duties and slack off while supposedly on duty. This was because there was no sense of urgency and everyone had become accustomed to the villages being at peace. Inori learned that it wasn't just him, a lot of officers did exactly the same thing, even if they had different forms to display it.

The only ones who were different were those who stood out. Their looks and attitude, it was simply alien in comparison. However, you could tell with just a glance that they actually cared about their job. From this point onward, Inori began to see a pattern. Looking generic meant you were part of a collective whose boring destiny had already been carved in stone. This was especially true within her clan. A lot of members looked the same, learned the same techniques and, in doing so, sacrificed their identity. So Inori did what she had to do and it all began with a drastic change in appearance. Because she wasn't willing to part with her beautiful name, she instead changed her hair color. Every family head had had blonde hair, so this made her immediately stand out. She began swimming against the current, and before anyone could tell, she had gone from sweet and obedient to 'problematic child'. Skipping class, becoming involved in fights, they became usual news for the Yamanaka.

Eventually, swayed by music and the mentality of the new world, her faith for Shinobi decayed and together with it, her drive to become someone truly special. Since it was likely that, even if she put all she had into it, she would end up just like all those 'slackers' nonetheless -And even if she did manage to become special, as things were, her talents would not be needed-, as breaking fate did not simply entail a change in appearance, she figured she might as well stop trying and join the flock. Nowadays, her rebellious nature remains present in her entire being, however, her look on things is now much more realistic/pessimistic.

With a mindset unlike her peers, Inori has seemingly lost her faith not just in the ways of old but in what the future departs, and with it the passion that comes with becoming a 'true' ninja. Having decided to live life in a selfish way just so she can be at ease, watch her struggle as reality continues to prove, time after time, that being a shinobi isn't as easy as she initially thought. Will she succumb under the pressure of hardship and loss, choosing to escape, abandoning the life of a ninja just to continue moving forward? Or will she be able to recall, to re-ignite the embers of a dying flame that some people call 'The Will of Fire'?

Street Fighter: A lot of Inori's fighting experience comes from unarmed fights where no rules are involved. Granted, these were normally small skirmishes between her and other problematic group of peers her age, resulting in the incidents having little consequence. That said, since she was more often than not the one being outnumbered, she has learned how to anticipate and deal with coordinated attacks executed from different directions, how to properly use the environment in secluded spaces to her advantage and has developed certain resistance that allows her to recover faster from attacks that would normally leave one dazed for a good second or two. Naturally, this has come at the cost of Inori being the one at the losing end for quite some time.

Combat-Knife Expertise: Despite seemingly being a natural fist fighter, Inori excelled in Kunai duels during Traditional Shinobi Sparring at the Academy, especially in the ones that involve dual-wielding, managing to emerge on top of her class. Being no genius, however, the spotlight was taken away from her in most other disciplines. Proud of her achievement, though, she has continued to train the art and even purchased her own personal knife weapon, which she can wield as well, if not better, as the regular kunai.

Hit and Run Specialist: Inori might not be the fastest one around, but she is one of the few who has learned how to take advantage of her small stature. In battle, she prefers to sacrifice offensive potential if it means coming out from an exchange unscratched. Rather than someone who aims battles in a single act, Inori likes to play the long game and exhaust opponents, weakening them little by little through 'chip damage'. Through feints, slides and carefully planned jumps, Inori constantly moves around the battlefield, leaving and resuming combat at a fast pace. Naturally, she's at her best against taller foes on closed locations like the inside of a building. In the open, she often needs to resort to the use of traps or outside support.

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Sarutobi Asami

12

Academy Student

Konohagakure

Fire

Asami considers herself a practical dresser. If she's going to battle, she's going to wear an armored jacket with lots of pockets, pants, and keep her hair up. Ironically, wearing cutting edge battle gear of Konoha ninjas is basically the traditional battle gear of the Sarutobi clan at this point. That said, when she does have an opportunity to dress up, she does so to the nines and with a traditional sensibility. Just because she thinks the old ways are obsolete, does not mean she cannot find them beautiful. Quite the contrary.

The first impression of Asami is often that she is quiet and shy. She would prefer the term "reserved". She doesn't simply doesn't feel the need to go out of her way to make herself heard. She knows how to have fun when it is called for, but doesn't particularly desire to be the loudest voice. She celebrates, but is quite happy to let someone else be the center of attention. She's also considered somewhat of a studious bookworm. And, well, while certainly true that she studies hard and gets good grades and maybe doesn't have the most practical experience, she would say that she gets enough for her goals, which she considers modest.

One of the things that can easily break that perception of her being shy, is seeing Asumi around a new animal she hasn't met before. She is always enthusiastically overjoyed to meet even what most might consider the creepiest of crawlies. When she awakes to find a spider on her arm, she does not spasm and shake to throw off the poor hapless thing that was probably just looking for somewhere dark, but she shepherds it outside and peacefully release it with a smile on her lips. Sometimes the death of these creatures is inevitable, whether because every step in tall grass might crush a bug, or the bug may be caught in said spider's web. That is the natural way of things and she will not intervene, but Asumi will never kill an animal for fear or disgust. And if the animal is big enough to hug, like say, a big fluffy Inuzuka ninja dog? She will definitely seek out a hug. Immediately. Even if she probably shouldn't get hair all over her nice clothes.

Probably her most outspoken trait, given the lack of controversy in "fluffy dogs are adorable and I want to hug them", is her opinion of the modernization of ninja. She views it as inevitable and beneficial. In her own words,

“Ninjas should be as ready for peace as they are for war, lest they find it beneficial to seek war for their own sake.”
“Traditions are beautiful things, and they are even more beautiful when turned to the artistic and constructive arts.”

Which might make one think 'who has been letting this 12 year old listen to political talk radio'. She hasn't. It's her perhaps slightly excessive reading habit that makes her talk like that about this subject. She believes that a real and present danger is a clan that refuses to modernize to adapt to peace, and so seeks to return the world to war. To be prepared for peace as important as being prepared for war.

Asami's mother is Sarutobi Akane, the older sister of Sarutobi Sho. Her father, however, is Inuzaka Juko. Rather few people know this and Inuzaka Juko is not one of them. Asami was conceived in the waning months of the civil war 12 years ago. Since then, Akane has chosen to keep the parentage of her child a secret, stating that she does not know who the father was, having been drunk at the time. While true, she wasn't THAT drunk. Whether she has kept the secret because she doesn't want to cause conflict, or simply doesn't want Juko being a parent to her child, is as much her secret as who the father is in the first place.

Asami would like to say that having no father in her life hasn't really impacted her development as a person. She has the entire Sarutobi and Monkey clans as family, after all. But even though her uncle Sho visits frequently, Asami can't help but feel that's more out of duty that Akane is a single mother, than genuine care. Still, she is certain that things are fine, she is a fine, if unambitious ninja, and that she knows her purpose and will seek it out. Even if that dream is half inspired by the simple memory of contentedly watching fireworks with her mother.

Asami has a lot of room to grow in terms of Ninja prowess. She could be heir to the innate strengths and hidden techniques of both the Sarutobi and the Inuzaka. Her monkey partner could someday learn the great techniques of the Monkey to become a weapon that rivals legends. She could learn to meld her Fire nature with the very close second affinity for Wind she does not yet know she has, and tap into their synergy. She could continue to master the basic, but effective, academy style jutsu until she herself fights like the Monkey King. But these are all "could". Without an inciting incident or inspiration, Asami's goal is to perform well enough not to embarrass the Sarutobi, learn and master Fire Style, and meld it with fireworks, to create wondrous and accessible fireworks.

On the other hand, Asami's political views and personality are already quite strong. That does not mean they are immutable, but she definitely already has things she believes in and aims for. She's not just aimlessly getting stronger. That said, there's a disconnect between her beliefs, and her ability to enforce them. She believes following her passion of fireworks will set an example, but if some clan actually did start a war, she is unprepared to react to that. Should someone who believes in peace be ready to kill to protect that peace, that is a question she has not yet answered for herself.

And, of course, there is the fact that the circumstances of her birth have quite a bit of unresolved drama about them.

Bookworm: Asami wouldn't consider herself a bookworm... Buuuuut she does spend a lot of time studying, and is generally good at book learning. This doesn't necessarily mean she learns jutsu faster or anything. But she can definitely tuck her way into a history book and come out ready for an exam in just a few hours. She definitely doesn't find it difficult or odious to study, and sometimes, that can be all the edge on needs. She keeps very good grades on written exams.

Juko Is Definitely Not Her Father: Asami has remarkably good sense of smell in particular, as well as other senses, and can understand dogs... HMMMMM.... Fortunately, because she doesn't know how to increase her senses further with chakra, it's not super immediately obvious. She also has an affinity for Wind style chakra that is so close to her affinity for Fire chakra that sometimes the chakra sensitive paper gets confused. She would have a fairly easy time learning either of them as her first Elemental Transformation.

Momoko: What's better than a Monkey? A NINJA Monkey! And Momoko is the best ninja monkey! Even if she's kinda small, can only transform into small items that are definitely not on par with legendary treasures like Kusanagi, can only clone herself four times, and isn't very strong or anything. But Momoko is still a dexterous tricky monkey, and anyone who underestimates her for her smol cuteness may be in for an explosive surprise! Much the same could be said of Asami, really, but she's a fair bit bigger.

Monkey Techniques: Asami has trained relentlessly in the basic academy techniques, Clone, Transform, Body Replacement, and Cloak of Invisibility, with Momoko, to both teach Momoko the ninja style of the techniques, and eventually, learn the Monkey style version of the techniques. Asami can, for example, momentarily Transform into a hard pole (definitely not Adamantine Staff level yet though), to withstand kunai attacks before transforming back to human form to continue fighting. The Cloak of Invisibility technique is quiet handy but requires you to have pre-existing camoflauge to enhance, so Momoko will transform into the cloak that Asami then enhances. Asami and Momoko have also trained together so that they can use Body Replacement on each other, rather than some random log. There are some E Rank techniques, however, that Asami has not trained extra with, such as Rope Escape, Sexy Technique, or One Thousand Years of Death.

Elaborate: Asami has a tendency to overcomplicate things. Sometimes, this is a good thing, as an unexpected method of chaining attacks together takes a foe off guard. It's what enables her rather baffling speech patterns for a 12 year old, combined with her propensity to read tomes few others of her age would read. Of course, elaborate does not always mean "best", and there are many statements to the effect of "keep it simple stupid" that Asami blithely ignores, unless fluffy doggos are in the equation. Then the answer is, of course, hugs.

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Bo Staff
2 Kunai
4 Explosive Seals
4 Flashbangs
4 5m lengths of wire.
First Aid Kit