The Lost War and Heart: Finding Hope and Courage to Fight [Original]

[Skitty Cat]

Long raven hair danced in the breeze. Cobbled buildings and paths echoed with a gentle 'thud' of footsteps. Her blindfolded sapphire eyes crackled with laughter, pale skin glistened in the setting sun as she stared at her little sister bolted after her. "Kira!" the girl cried, the bright eyes filled with laughter. Glancing back in front of her, although she didn't see it clearly because of the blindfold, she swerved to the side avoiding a tree.

The wind tugging at her locks, she smiled as she passed a friend as they called, "Lady Kira, how are you and River doing?" Nodding her head in reply. She dashed through the palace gate, heading for the castle's garden. She smelled the gentle scents of roses long before she reached it. She skid to a halt causing her sister to bump into her.

Hearing her grumbling she whipped around her eyes furious as River snapped, "You didn't need to stop so fast!"

Opening her mouth to retort, she closed it again and raged silently, Why do I have to be the only one without my heart magic? Spinning back around she glared at an oak tree, stalking over ignoring her favorite rose. It was white with what appeared to be splatters of blood! Reaching it she ran her fingers over the smooth bark.

Her hand reaching what was etched into it, she frowned and demanded silently, Why is it that this has come to past? Would I still be magically mute within if things were different? Shaking her head dismissing her doubts she thought over a prophecy she had heard a while back.

Kira didn't bother dwelling on the past. She knew that what has happened is not too be remembered, she knew you're not allowed to dwell on something that'd slow you down. Listening as River moved around the garden, she whipped around to face her curious what was troubling her.

Walking over she placed a comforting hand on River's shoulder, she glanced around as her sister asked, "Kira do you know why we are the only ones left of our family?" Her gaze blazing snapped back to the twelve-year-old. Pulling the cloth off she demanded silently: Why do you ask such a question? Do you truly believe we won't be able to survive this war, River?

Realizing she had gone to far as the girl flinched, she frowned wanting to say words of comfort but couldn't. Smiling as the girl recovered quickily since she piped up, "Don't get mad Kira. We can beat any ninja out there if we work together!"

Laughing inwardly as River continued in the same voice, "We'll show any one out there that dares say we're weak!" She was quite a blast to have around. Kira always smiled when her sister was hyper, she knew that she had to protect the rest of the clan before herself. She could easily remember the simple dance steps she was being taught, yet something concerned her with it... something wasn't right about the steps.

~--------~

OOC: That was short I know, but it'll have to do. If you would like to join or if you have questions please go to the OOC and Sign-Up thread in the Role-Play section and post it there.

[planewinds25]

"We'll show any one out there that dares say we're weak!"

"Yes, indeed we will. Hello Miss River and Lady Kira. How fares both of you?" said a calm voice from a distance.

The voice came from a figure standing under the shade of an oak tree. It was from a Moon clan ninja, or rather, a vetren. The figure had four katanas strap to his back in a star-like manner which looked like a giant shuriken holster. He wore an all black uniform which would completely conceal him at night or in the shadows such that of the tree. And his most recognizable trait of this vetren was that he only talked with one eye opened. He came out under the shade of tree and approached the two women.

"I came to ask you whether or not I was ready to attain a ninja rank since you are the clan leader. And yes I am ready to take any test."

Zal had been a vetren for some time now and was wondering whether or not he was ever going to get promoted since it was kinda disappointing for him that he had never taken the test for he was always busy mastering his katanas and jutsus and he would always miss the test because of so. He knew that becoming a ninja will build up pride, which he has little of.

OOC: Kinda short. I think I'm having a mild case of RPer's block.

[Shadows Fall]

The rattling of chains echoed throughout the dark, damp room. A black human-like wolf wearing a black fishnet shirt along with bottom half of a red ninja-gi was the one causing all of the commotion. Its wrists were chained to a set of two-ton iron weights, preventing it from ripping apart what appeared to be a man standing in front of it, all calm and showed no fear against the ravaging wolf.

"Ryohei, you have to learn how to control yourself." said the man who turned out to be Zeke himself. He watched as the wolf -- now revealed to be young expert, showed no progress and seem to tire himself out after his violent nature kicked in.

After a while, the wolf dropped down to one knee, attempting to attack but ended up giving up, thus reverting back to Ryohei's human form. Panting, the teenager assumed a position and rested on both knees, his hands laying down at his side while Zeke just sighed.

"You're still not showing any progress at all, Ryohei. It's been months already and still, you have yet to control your wolf form. You may be one of the youngest experts here but you still have to accomplish this goal." he explained while Ryohei just bowed his head in shame, not saying a word either. ". . . . But. . . that doesn't mean you won't fail at doing so. It'll take time and hopefully, one day you'll succeed." he added as he took off the restraints.

The teen stood up, his head still bowed as guilt loomed over and added weight on his shoulders. The fact he has yet to even control what appeared to be an easy task bothered him to this day. He was an expert at speed including strength but his disadvantage was controlling his wolf form which was what brought Ryohei down. He just wishes that his training would pay off soon enough so he could live up to his rank. If not, then what was the point of him being an expert in the first place?

[Akans]

Sylfae sighed. Another simple training test. Really, the Wind Clan is doomed if this is the hardest they could come up with.

She glanced around her, and settled into a hole in the tree she was sitting on. The ninja academy was pretty strict though. Every month or so, they had a test.
Each person was given five small symbols, to wear around their neck or wrists, and was let loose into the test forest. Their job was to steal as many as they can from a classmate by defeating them through battle or ambush, though you could only take one away at any time. Anyone without a symbol at the end was thrown out of the academy. Her arm was aching from holding up the twenty or so symbols that she carried.

Everyone here is a fool she thought to herself. At the beginning, she had laid a few traps and almost instantly ensnared three classmates. Afterwards, she got bored of ambushing and decided to go into open battle. There was a tower in the middle where students who relied on power could fight each other. Having arrived, she defeated two more easily, and then got ganged up by a group of three others, which she defeated as easily.

She was pulled back into reality abruptly by the arrival of a kunai. It was very unprofessionally done. She had felt it five meters away. Anything moving within five meters of the air around her she could feel.
Without even trying, she held up her hand and caught the kunai inches from her face, and sent it back deftly with a twist of her fingers.

It landed silently in the bushes.

Sylfae raised her eyebrows. So this attacker wasn't a fool. She dropped to the ground, floating gently on a bed of air, and summoned her scythe. This might be interesting.

[sephiroth2]

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A tall man sat upon an equally large throne in a dimly lit chamber. By every passing moment, his dull day pressed onwards towards its end.
Suddenly the resounding crash of the chambers two huge doors, slamming open, was heard throughout the room.

Looking towards the doors, the leader of the clan, Sleif, watched as one of his members of the Clan of Darkness approached him and his court.
"How dare you barge in here! State you reason for this insolence!"one of Sleifs head warriors said to the man.

"I've come to challenge our so called leader!" the man responded, while pointing at Sleif. This always seemed to happen, almost every day. One of his eager students would just come in here, and demand a battle for leadership.
"You are nowhere near to ...." the same warrior began to say, until he was interrupted by Sleif. "Let it be Zernon!" Sleif said as he stood up from his throne, and began to walk towards the man.

"So, you believe that you are strong enough to fight for this title! Lets begin then!" Sleif said as he simply stood still.
With a roar, the man leaped into the air as he threw three kunai's at Sleif. Two of the three simply landed on either side of him, while the third kunai, Sleif caught with his hand.
As the man neared the ground, Sleif suddenly appeared in front of him, before grabbing and flinging him across the room, and into the same doors he arrived in.

"See to his injuries!" Sleif said to Zernon as he took his place back onto his throne. "Yes, sir!" Zernon said as he left the room with a two other soldiers.

[Skitty Cat]

"Yes, indeed we will. Hello Miss River and Lady Kira. How fares both of you?"

Whipping around to face the ninja. She giggled at how his katanas were placed on his back, feeling her sister's gaze burning into her back River rolled her eyes. "Yes Kira!"

Meeting her sister's gaze with the same usual taunt, she purred, "Wouldn't you like to be able to do this?" while she began to shrink into her lithe feline form. Staring up through blue-tainted pools, her pelt glistened in the moonlight. Smiling with her eyes as she stared up at her sister. She frowned when she saw how injured she was, River couldn't understand the rule.

Shifting back she listened as Zal commented, "I came to ask you whether or not I was ready to attain a ninja rank since you are the clan leader. And yes I am ready to take any test."

Searching her sister's blindfolded gaze for approval. She picked out the faint glint, turning to face Zal she replied for Kira, "Yes, you may. As for your assignment, I know that Kira has to go to one of the other Clans very soon to ask permission for their assistance in this up coming war. Would that be okay Kira?"

Glancing over her shoulder to see the nod in approval, River grinned a childish grin as she met the young man as she questioned, "Will that work Zal?"

[booklet3]

All around Kiran was darkness. 'Where am I?' Then there was a scream. Looking down Kiran saw the body of his father. With that, Kiran's eyes shot open. 'Ugh, not another nightmare.' Kiran arose from his bed to see his mother standing at the door. "Well, hi mom," Kiran said.

"Hi, honey," she responded. In her hands was a scroll and one thought came to Kiran's head: orders. His mom started to speak. "A messenger stopped by this morning and dropped this off for you. I am guessing the Clan Leader has another mission for you." She handed the scroll over to Kiran. Kiran opened it and began to read. "Well, it seems to me, that they want me to drop by and check up to see how training is going for our ninjas-in-training." 'That's it?' "And be ready to leave the village soon." 'They must be putting the specifics of my mission together.'

Kiran looked back up at his mother. "Well, I am going to put some basics together then be on my way to check on training." "Ok, honey," she replied. Kiran did not usually pack much. He knew the forests well enough that he could find food, but always took a little just in case. He pack a couple of kunai's and some scrolls to write on for spells or letters. 'I think that will do for now! Once I get the specifics, I can fully pack.' He attached his reverse blade sword to his side, said goodbye to his mother, and went on his way.

It was a nice day in the Wind Village. The weather was warm, and there was a nice breeze. Kiran started off as a walk, then decided to quicken his pace and took to the trees. It was not long till he reached the training grounds. 'I better go find the man in charge... What the?' Kiran stopped at a distance away, but could see a girl with a rather painful looking scythe floating in the air. On the ground he notice a kunai. 'Opps, did I walk right into a training session!' Kiran decided to lay low and watch. It would be a good opportunity to see how some of the students were progressing. There, he watched and waited.

[Akans]

Sylfae frowned as another person entered her aura sphere. The attacker's aura had suddenly faded, and then another, stronger aura had appeared behind her.
She quickly gestured with her left hand, and released a simple, yet effective Jutsu.
"Wind Vortex Jutsu!"

The air around her spiraled outwards, and ripped away nearby bushes and many leaves, leaving dust in the air, and a clear circle around her.
She saw a glint of brown hair, and sighed.
Sylfae landed on the ground and her scythe disappeared from her hands, to dissolve into the wind and form a bracelet, which wrapped around her left hand.

"So it was you. Kiran. Were you the one who attacked me?"
Seeing the expression on his face, she sighed again. "Apparently not, or else I would be dead by now."

"What are you doing here? You're not a student."

[sakurablossom07]

The sun was shining down brightly onto the village of the Ocean clan. Sakura had finished dressing up and was ready for training for the day. Many of the villagers had opened their shops and was ready to make their profits for the day. The children in the village were playing with their friends. The boys were running around, chasing each other and getting dirty; on the other hand, the girls were playing "house" with their dolls, acting like they were a housewife of some sort. Sakura began warming up her body by doing simple stretches. When she was done, she started jogging outside of the village, to her secret spot.

When she had arrived, it was peaceful, like it always was. It had a great lake in the middle which always glimmered, due to the light of the sun shining down on it. This is the spot that Sakura had been practicing and training herself for a while. She would come here every morning before meeting with the ninjas of higher rank than her. Taking out her bow and arrows, she set the target on random objects and shot her arrows at it. She was getting better and better at aiming and shooting the arrows with a lot of force; she knew she was improving and was proud of herself.

A few minutes later, she placed her bows and arrows down, and held her sword within her hands. Sakura remembered the first time she held this sword and giggled to herself. Although she was too weak to weild it before, she had gotten stronger now and was now able to fight with it. Realizing how much time had passed, she started heading back towards the village.

"Time to head back to the busy life," she thought to herself.

[BladeMaster Zane]

"Let's see here...you were too slow, you have no aim with shuriken, and you should really consider being a messenger instead," said a smiling Albireo from a tree branch. Below him on the forsest floor were three newly promoted Veterans. They were completely out of breath as they layed on the cool grass. The three of them had asked Al for training earlier that day. Al's task for them was to lay one hit on him before he finished an apple. Munch! He had taken the final bite of the apple and began tossing it's core up and down. "You three do have skill, though you should also consider taking a small break. It is important to not over burden yourself with work and training." The three Veterans, still looking wiped out, got the their feet and nodded to their Leader. "Good, lets make out way back to the village then."

It had only been 5 months since Albireo was appointed Leader of the Wind Clan. By the title alone the job seemd difficuly and time consuming. Yet, as the days went he soon realized it wasn't as hard as it seemed. Well, maybe thats partially due to his carefree and optimistic nature, but he knew always got his work done. Unlike many of the other Leaders who chose to wore a special robe or gi to signify their rank, Albireo usually wore a plain brown cloak over black pants a simple shirt. "Now...where to next..." he said to himself as he wandered through the streets of his village.

After 10 or maybe 15 minutes of walking he happened upon the Training Grounds. He had arrived just in time to watch Kiran hide in some bushes and watch what appeared to be a sparring match. Albireo couldn't help but laugh a little as Sylfae revealed Kiran's hiding spot. Many of the Experts told him of her great power and potential. As she dissolved her sythe, Albireo walked closer to the training grounds.

"What are you doing here? You're not a student."

"I could be wrong, but I believe he is looking for me," Albireo said, basically answering for Kiran. "So you must me Sylfae, finally nice to meet you. I've heard quite a bit about you," he said as while playing with some wind in his right hand. "Now, why don't you return to your training Sylfae. Kiran here has a mission coming up and I think I should tell him about it." After a small bow towards Sylfae Al turned his head to Kiran and said, "Whenever you're ready come over to the entrence of Council Chambers." With that, he walked through the Training Grounds ahead of Kiran.

ooc: Sorry if I'm late to the party lol-

[planewinds25]

"Will that work Zal?"

"Why, it would be an honor to do so. Excuse me as I prepare for the journey then."

Zal's humble words hid the excitement and joy he was feeling inside of him. At long last, he was going to be a ninja and all it had to take was escorting Lady Kira to another clan's village. He rushed off to his home to prepare for the trip. He gathered all the necessary items he needed for the task since he knew it was more than a simple meeting to another clan. Among his items were a map, a kindling set, and a scroll of bushido style justsus, even though he was a ninja.

"At long last I'm going to be a ninja...after all the long nights of practicing...but I wonder why the assignment seems easy." Zal muttered to himself.

After packing everything he could find, he raced back to where Lady Kira and Miss River were but along the way he noticed something very wrong with how the wind was raging and how the sun was hidden away by the clouds.

"It's a bad omen. I wonder if this means...No! It couldn't mean I would fail!"

Zal ignored what seemed to be a mark of disaster and misfortune. He doubled his haste and arrived where they were waiting.

"Lady Kira...This meeting with the other clan isn't like any other is it?"

OOC:Sorry for the delay ^^"

[Akans]

Sylfae's mouth twisted in a grimace as she turned away. She hated this training thing. Even though the Leader of the Wind Clan knew about her, it was frustrating to be forced through the training.
Though she was surprised that the great Albireo knew about her. There were a few hundred student ninjas, and he had singled her out? Interesting...

"Arrogant ass." She whispered to herself as she walked away. The Wind Clan was weak. Even though there were a few strong ninjas like Albireo and Kiran, there were not enough to ensure the survival. No matter how well the high-ups tried to hide it, the ninja clans were at war. She wanted desperately to join, but her rank was below miserable. Not even a veteran! What chance did she have of being enlisted? None at all.

Sylfae sighed. Well, the only thing she could do now is to complete the test as soon as possible, and prove her worth. Maybe then she'll be seen as someone to be respected, rather than a pathetic "Why don't you return to your training".

Spinning a kunai on her finger, she leaped up onto another tree, and headed towards the Tower in the distance.

[booklet3]

((OOC: Really sorry bout being late))

On closer inspection to the girl, Kiran saw it was Sylfae. Every time Kiran has checked on the training sessions, he has hear great things about Sylfae. Kiran sat in the tree as watched her closely. Then a thought hit him, I should probably lower my chakra level so she doesnt find me, also so I don't make her nervous." Upon that, he saw Sylfae use a Wind Vortex jutsu tearing up everything around her. Kiran saw the attacker scurry off probably knowing that he was fighint a losing fight. Looking back at Syflae she was staring right at Kiran. With a little laugh, "She found me."

"What are you doing here? You're not a student." she asked.

As Kiran was about to answer her, a voice came from behind him. "I could be wrong, but I believe he is looking for me." Kiran turned to see that it was Alberio, the Clan Leader. Alberio exchanged some words with Sylfae and sent her on her way. Kiran heard he whisper something, but decided to keep it to himself. It put a smirk on his face. Kiran then turned to Alberio, and he said, "Whenever you're ready come over to the entrence of Council Chambers." "Yes, sir!" Kiran responded. He watched Alberio walk off.

Kiran sat on the branch looking around at the scenery. He remembered when he was at these training grounds. 'Man, it was only 5 years ago' he thought. Now he was one of the head Experts in the village. "Time goes by so fast.' With that, he stood up on the branch, turned to face the Council Chambers. "Alberio is probably waiting for me," he said.

It did not to take Kiran long to get to the Council Chambers. It was not a really big building. On the front it had the insignia of the Wind Village. Kiran looked around, and did not see Alberio. 'He is probably inside, so I guess ill wait at the steps' he thought. Kiran sat down on the steps and waited for Alberio. "Probably another mission that has to do with the war, my mom is gonna be worried sick again," he said with a sigh.

[Skitty Cat]

"Why, it would be an honor to do so. Excuse me as I prepare for the journey then."

Smiling at the vetern's humble words she picked up the faint note of excitement and joy in his voice. She hid her own concern and exitement until he left. Jumping around Kira's eyes sparkled as she smiled, listening to her sister's purrs in amusement she flushed and stopped as her sister purred, "I don't get it Kira, are you sure this is a good idea?"

She looked over to the vetern as he asked, "Lady Kira...This meeting with the other clan isn't like any other is it?"

Shaking her head she pulled out a paper and wrote something down. Moving over she placed it in his hand and moved away. Frowning she pulled the blindfold off and looking around as she waited for him to reply, since the words on the paper read: Correct, we are going to ask for their help in this battle with Darkness Clan. We might not come back, I hope you understand that risk.

~--------~

OOC: It's the best I can think of, so sorry it's so short. *frowns*

[Shadows Fall]

Ryohei stood up after kneeling down for a good ten minutes, Zeke's lecture about learning to control his wolf form now becoming a bore to him. Letting out a sigh the young expert placed on his pair of red Converse Chuck Taylor All Stars, lacing them up before commencing with Zeke's next training which would hopefully aid him in the controlling factor.

"All right, Ryohei. Time for another spar."

A spar? Was that all Zeke could ever think of at the moment? It left the teen bewildered and stricken with confusion, wondering why his mentor would simply want to challenge him rather than conducting a lesson about an important issue. Seeing how Ryohei barely speaks to others around him-- including Zeke himself, all he could do was nod his head in response as he rolled his neck and relieved his shoulders from any tension so that his body was more loose. After a brief warm-up stretch, both clan members readied themselves in their own specific stances as they seemed to await for the other's first move. All Zeke managed to do was smirk as his student did the same, silence now looming within the room itself.

"Care to make the first move? I insist." the mentor stated boldly, tested Ryohei to see if he would really listen and be foolish enough to be the first to spring into action.