Jutsu to be trained:

For once, Toshu hadn't asked Kariya to meet him for training on the lake. He was down in his workshop, getting some things set up. Since developing the Emperor's Glory technique, he'd made some changes to his studio. Sturdy steel supports had been added to the walls, floors, and ceilings, with steel plates running between them. If anyone attacked the smith in his sanctum here, his metal release would make the whole place a deathtrap for the intruder. In here, he was a god. It didn't hurt that this whole room was effectively fortified, either. If anything went wrong, Toshu could handle shit from here.

The giant stood up straight, wiping the sweat from his brow. It had been hard work, but the renovations were finally done. He had personally blended every piece of steel together with his metal release, turning all the many parts into a single piece, a perfectly formed box protecting his work space. He smoothed over the edge of the dirt floor with his foot, and proudly regarded his creation. It was good work, if he did say so himself. The walls had been perfectly recreated, completely concealing the metal. He could attack with ease in here, and nobody would know where it was coming from next. All he needed were some attacks to use.

That was where Kariya came in. The immortal made an excellent testing dummy, among his many other talents. And today, Toshu was developing a jutsu that was perfect for Kariya to test. Lethal to an ordinary human, but it would barely slow the immortal down. They could keep trying until it was perfect. The giant sat on his work stool, waiting for his training partner to arrive.

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Kariya was somewhat surprised by Toshu's latest request. Not that it was yet another technique perfection assistance request, those were fairly common, but the chosen location was out of the ordinary. Usually this type of meeting was held in an abandoned portion of the hidden city or on the lake, not in the Immovable Object's very own workshop. Collateral damage was almost always a given with their "spars", and for sessions more akin to basic trial and error space was usually a requirement, that and blood splatter probably wasn't the most desirable decoration. Nonetheless it was his partners technique that was to be worked on, the choice of location was up to him.

After a few brief bangs on the large steel door that marked Toshu's workshop to notify his partner of his arrival Kariya passed into the Iron Giant's sanctum, wearing his typical "training" uniform of torn blood soaked clothing with his bag in hand. "Good evening Mr. Kajiya." He said politely, closing the door behind him and setting his bag next to it before turning his attention to the mountain of a man. "What are the plans for today?"

Toshu stood, bowing to his partner. As always, Kariya was polite and punctual. The two missing nin had a lot in common. They were quite possibly the most gentlemanly pair of serial killers the world had ever seen. Even when Toshu was preparing to fill his friend with dozens of sharp objects, they were still a picture of civility.

“Ah, Mr. Kariya. Do come in. I don't believe we'll need the bag today.” Toshu was a little disappointed in himself for forgetting to mention that. He hated inconveniencing his friend like this, it was damned impolite. Toshu took the bag for him, setting it aside in a safe spot and gesturing for Kariya to take his place in the center of the room. “Today is more about avoiding an attack and seeing its effects than it is about blocking. You see, no weapon can parry this technique. It strikes from all sides simultaneously. Unless a very comprehensive armor is used, it will slip past the defenses and find a way in. I will be trying to catch you in this jutsu, and you will be trying to avoid it. No need to worry, I have secured everything to make sure nothing is damaged in this scuffle.” He neglected to mention the holes he would be making in the floor. Those were easily repaired anyway, and Toshu didn't want to spoil the surprise.

Toshu took up a stance facing Kariya, forming hand seals. “And we begin in three, two, one!” He formed the last seal. Dirt from the floor flew into the air as spikes emerged around Kariya, all aimed at various spots around his torso. The attack was reasonably fast, but not as quick as it might be.

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"Ah, Mr. Kariya. Do come in. I don't believe we'll need the bag today." Kariya nodded in acknowledgement and handed Toshu his bag, which usually meant a debilitating or offensive technique rather than a defensive or sustained one. Following his partners gesture he positioned himself in the center of the room. "Today is more about avoiding an attack and seeing its effects than it is about blocking. You see, no weapon can parry this technique. It strikes from all sides simultaneously. Unless a very comprehensive armor is used, it will slip past the defenses and find a way in. I will be trying to catch you in this jutsu, and you will be trying to avoid it. No need to worry, I have secured everything to make sure nothing is damaged in this scuffle."

"Very well, whenever you're ready." Kariya replied calmly, taking a more alert stance in the process. If it was an attack that could strike from all sides simultaneously he would need to pay close attention to his surroundings. "And we begin in three, two, one!" With the formation of the last seal Kariya's reflexes went into overdrive, expecting an attack from multiple directions, but this time it only came from the floor. Albeit technically it was still from multiple directions. Multiple metal spikes began to close in on him, but they were too slow to hit their target as Kariya quickly slipped through a gap in their onslaught, one of the spikes ripping a portion of his shirt on the back as he did so.

Toshu was pleasantly surprised. Even though that attack hadn't been as fast as he'd hoped, Kariya still hadn't managed to completely dodge it. He'd taken a gash on his back from one of the spikes. Not even an inconvenience for the immortal, but potentially dangerous for any mortal that got caught in it. He was a bit curious as to why Kariya had darted between them rather than jumping over, but he could ask that later. He had an immortal to catch.

Toshu formed the hand signs, trying to catch his comrade as he landed. He would have a tougher time dodging in the air. It was close, but the giant wasn't quite fast enough. The new set of spikes started emerging a split second after Kariya had landed. These ones were faster, going at a speed more appropriate for a B-rank attack. This time, Toshu had the added advantage of not counting down. Kariya would have to be ready on his own as the old spikes sank back into the floor and the new ones came up to greet him.

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It didn't take long for Toshu to react to his dodge. In fact, it was almost instantaneous, but the need for hand signs provides just enough of a delay for those quick enough to react. And Kariya was definitely in that category. A second set of spikes erupted from the ground as the first set sank back into it, however this set was even faster than the first, giving Kariya less time to react. The only option he had was to jump straight up, well, that or get impaled. So he took it, leaping straight into the air while tucking his body into a variation of the fetal position in order to minimize the possibility of one of his limbs getting caught.

This tuck gave Kariya a slight roll as he rose into the air, allowing him to land feet first into a crouched position on the ceiling, sticking the landing by latching himself to the ceiling with one of the most basic academy jutsu. "It seem's that you have the speed down, but does it have the reach?" He said, calling down to his comrade. It was true, the speed was impressive, but if it was limited to the height of an average person then it provided a treetop safe haven for them to escape to. Needless to say he was only expecting an attack from the ground below, anything else and he would be caught completely off guard.

“One could say that.” Toshu said with a smirk. Kariya had done an excellent job dodging so far, but he was expecting an attack from below. Like its predecessor, the Earth Flow Spears, the Pinned Butterfly jutsu didn't have a whole lot of reach. It was meant as a trap, springing up from the ground to impale its victims. But in this workshop, it was far more versatile. The steel in the ceiling answered his call as he made the signs again. This time, the attack came from above. Steel spikes ripped through the plaster, aiming to impale Kariya.

Toshu relaxed, approaching his sparring partner. They'd tested well enough for today. The jutsu worked, and only Kariya's speed and his advance warning had kept him from it for so long. “I admit, that is a bit of a flaw. It does have a short reach. It's meant more for ambushes than pursuits. Still, I think it's ready for battle. What do you think Mr. Kariya?”

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"One could say that." Kariya watched suspiciously as Toshu smirked, wondering if he had been holding back this entire time. Maybe his technique really did have the reach, or perhaps it was something else. Expecting a quicker attack originating from below Kariya prepared himself to move along the ceiling, but something seemed off as Toshu repeated the set of hand seals once more. Nothing emerged from the ground, was he building up chakra for a more powerful version? It didn't take long for Kariya to come to a realization, the attack wasn't coming from below, but even then he had far too little time to react as the steel spikes ripped through the plaster of the ceiling and closed in upon him. It wasn't often that Toshu caught him completely by surprise. Kariya barely had enough time to detach himself from the ceiling before the spikes ran him through from multiple angles, effectively catching him mid air, giving Toshu a new ceiling ornament.

"I admit, that is a bit of a flaw. It does have a short reach. It's meant more for ambushed than pursuits. Still, I think it's ready for battle. What do you think Mr. Kariya?" "I'd have to agree." He replied in a professional tone, hanging from the ceiling in a fashion that resembled a sky diver with his arms out to the side and his legs just about parallel with the ceiling, steadily dripping blood on whatever lie below. One could say that he looked like a pinned butterfly. "You managed to surprise me, and I was expecting it. I believe it's more than ready for field work." He said, complimenting his partners ingenuity in the same professional tone, waiting patiently to be unstuck from the ceiling.

Toshu released the jutsu, and the spikes withdrew from Kariya's body and retracted into the steel plate in the ceiling. "Thank you, Mr. Kariya. Your assistance is appreciated as always." Toshu bent down to offer him a hand, helping him up. He would never cease to be amazed by his partner's immortality. He had just been impaled in a dozen places, and he was talking like he wasn't even minorly inconvenienced. "I shall have to try it out sometime. I think I'll call it the Pinned Butterfly, that sounds good." The Smith smiled, pleased with himself. He lumbered over to a cabinet and poured them each a glass of fine wine. "To our continued success, Mr. Kariya." He handed Kariya a glass, and they toasted a job well done.

[End of thread]