The infirmary at Kumogakure Stadium.

All players who are posting in the other thread and are posting as located in the infirmary, post in here please to avoid confusion.

>>> from "Chapter 2.8: Post-Chunin - Stadium"

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Eikitsu arrived just outside of the main entrance to the infirmary just as the medical shinobi attending to Chisame concluded treating her. They had stabilized her and were comfortable that she would recover from her injuries given time and rest. With Chisame’s life no longer in immediate danger, the medical shinobi turned their attention elsewhere. Eikitsu noted the large number of people being treated in the infirmary as some of the medical shinobi redistributed among them. The handful of medical shinobi who didn't move on to aid other patients instead brushed passed him as they exited the large, open room. Some patients had visitors, such as the Leaf genin Nori. Others had to settle for the company of the whirring, beeping medical equipment hooked up to them. Chisame was in the latter camp when he arrived, but that was remedied quickly when he crossed the room casually and stood at the foot of her bed.

"Hikawa Chisame…," stated Eikitsu coolly while he simply watched Chisame. His words weren't directed at anyone. No, he'd spoken her name as a statement of fact. That was all. Eikitsu observed Chisame for several minutes more before he spoke again. He stood statuesque as watched the haggardly girl's chest rise like baking bread only to fall back down again moments later and listened to her ragged breathing. He also noted her occasional grimaces when her pain receptors decided to party. "Why are you alive still, Hikawa-san?" Eikitsu repositioned himself to the side of Chisame's bed just off to her right side. "Victory is life." All of a sudden he drew into his left hand one of the two kunai holstered on top of the weapon holster found at the back of his waist then hovered its blade a few inches above Chisame's face in a manner that could be viewed as threatening. "Failure is death." It was made apparent quickly that the kunai wasn't for Chisame when he raised his right hand beside his left then sliced through his sleeve slitting open his radial artery just as swiftly as when he drew the weapon.

Eikitsu's chakra surged as his bright red blood gushed from the wound in his right arm and splattered all over Chisame's face and her hospital gown around her torso. Of course her mattress and pillow(s) received their fair share of his blood as well. Eikitsu leaned over Chisame then brought his wound to her mouth. He parted her lips slightly with his forearm to make it easier for her to drink but didn't assist her otherwise. Chisame's meal advanced the work started by the medical shinobi. Her physical injuries mended rapidly with each sip of his blood that she took. Strangely, Eikitsu withdrew his arm before Chisame's injuries were recovered completely. Instead, he left her mildly injured but ready to fight once her chakra reserves replenished. In particular, she'd want to exercise some care regarding her midsection. With his task complete, Eikitsu wiped his kunai clean on an untarnished section of Chisame's bed then took a step backward as he holstered the weapon. His right arm was bloodied but no longer bleeding, and his chakra had returned to its idle state while he simply observed Chisame waiting for her to awaken.

Nanami was about to make her way out when she saw this grisly display. Her eyes went wide, and she felt the chakra from the boys gushing wound. It was brutal in her opinion, but realized it must be something else as the boys wound seemed to close. The girl stood there kind of in awe and curious. There were many tales of blood based Kekkai, but she had never seen one "Umm, I am guessing that was some form of healing or something right? I wouldn't see any other reason for the amount of chakra released or covering her with your blood. A Kekkai?" She seemed really interested what had just transpired..

Letting go of his grip on the curtain, Kensuke let his arm fall back at his side.  While he had heard Nori's response, they felt like nothing more than empty words.  After all, what did making the village proud matter if she was dead?  Or going into a situation just to lose?  Potentially even make her chances of attempting again worse due to chronic injury?  Wasn't it a shinobi's job to eliminate risks to success?  To him, it seemed Nori was setting herself up for failure or an even worse fate.  There had been more than enough death today, but the dark-haired boy was too drained to be more charitable than giving the warning that had fallen on deaf ears.  Forget being a Chuunin, she would be lucky if she survived without a permanent injury.  Averting his gaze from the Konohagakure-nin, dismissing their importance as people that were likely soon to be dead by their own foolishness.

Silently, he observed Eikitsu's movements when he approached the bed with the severely injured Kirigakure-nin.  When the kunai was held over the girl's face, Kensuke flinched for a moment.  It evoked a memory that had not been long buried as Hikari's body was on the bed behind him.  But, he managed to maintain what was left of his shredded composure and did not try to lunge to save Chisame.  Even though the emerald-eyed boy did not wear any identifying shinobi headband, that did not mean he wanted to start an international incident.  Let the Kiri-nin kill off the other Kiri-nin for their failure if that was what it came to.

Seeing Eikitsu simply pour his blood into the girl's mouth was something different, however.  Though, not unfamiliar with the power of blood himself, Kensuke's face revealed no surprise at the events that transpired.

Kurochi's smile slightly faded once his injuries were mentioned. He sighed and put the smile back on his face, remebering that compared to the other teams, there team had all made it through alive. "My legs will be fine in a while the medical ninja did there best,but they just got trapped and got them crushed a bit in the last battle." he said, slightly shivering at the memory of the battle.

He was trying to think of a way to help his teammates feel better, but he got distracted by Yukka's injuries. Kurochi was wondering what had happened to Yuuka and Kai in their matches. Yuuka was badly injured, while Kai acted differen't from the usual. "Hey, Yuuka, if you don't mind me asking, what happened in your match?" he asked. Hoping that he didn't hit a sore spot when he mentioned the fights in the exams.

<<From Chapter 2.8 Post Chunin Exams>>

Upon hearing the knock on her door, Nori turned her head and saw a battered and exhausted looking Sigmund into the room. "Sigmund..." she said in a soft voice as she sat a little further up on the bed and watched as he sat down in the chair beside her bed. "I never thought that you would kill me. I guess I just...don't know what to expect in our match. I know how becoming a Chunin is important to you. I just hope that we can have a fair fight and come out of this on equal footing. I mean, I'm not you but I want this just as much and I want to do my best. I want to show you what I can do." She clasped her hands in her lap. "I want to do you, Nanami, and our village proud even if I do lose this fight with you. I'd be happy if you were the one to move on to become a Chunin." She gave him a small smile before she felt a shot of pain go up her left leg, causing her to wince slightly and hold onto it. She listened to her other teammates talk with each other off to the side before she looked away from them and over to the girl that was laying on the gurney.

Nori knew that Sigmund wouldn't let their fight result in that, but at the same time, knew that even if she were to move on to fight Kotetsu, that there would be no guarantee she would leave out of here alive. She had to admit that it scared her just a little. In the condition that she was in, would she really be ready to face an opponent that Nanami herself couldn't beat? When she heard Nanami speak up to her and Sigmund once more, Nori turned her head and looked over at her friend, tilting it down ever so slightly and looking at the broken arrow that she was being handed. She grew silent and didn't say anything for a moment or two before she reached out and took hold of the arrow from Nanami. "Thank you, Nanami. I will do my best to make sure this arrow gets back to you in the same condition that it's in now." She looked up to her friend and smiled. "Thank you, Nami."

Yuuka had had some time to think about her defeat in between worrying about her team-mates, but she was reluctant to admit her weakness out loud.  Kurochi, though, was stronger than her and he'd still lost.  So maybe it was okay.

"I... managed to catch him in a genjutsu, but... I hesitated."  If she'd managed to strike decisively then, she might have been able to end the match.  "I... wasn't strong enough to beat him."  She'd thrown everything she had at her opponent, but it hadn't been enough.  He'd matched her ninjutsu with his own and hand to hand combat had never been Yuuka's strong point.

"He was a wood release user - I didn't know there was anyone who could still do that," she commented, her tone more thoughtful.

Chisame slowly regained consciousness, her eyes opening and her nostrils dilating as she took in the overwhelming smell of blood.  She quickly noticed the boy standing next to her bed.  He didn't appear injured, which left the question of why she was covered in fresh blood.  And why some boy was watching her sleep.  Looking around, she appeared to be in some sort of hospital.  The last thing she remembered was fighting that bony guy.

"Did I win?"  She sniffed, breathing in the blood smell.  She could taste it in her mouth as well.  Looking around, she asked, "Did I bite a nurse or something?"  She couldn't see any injured nurses, but they might be hiding.

"Nara Nanami." The name lit up in Eikitsu's mind like a neon billboard sign as he took a step away from Chisame's bed and toward Nanami. "Leaf kunoichi. Threat assessment…moderate." His attention was focused on Nanami now. Silently, he analyzed her taking in as much information about as his senses afforded him. Oddly enough, he didn't make any attempt to hide his analysis by filling the prolonged silence with something, anything. Just when it seemed certain that he was just going to stand there staring at Nanami silently until she left, he offered her what was obviously a business smile then spoke finally. "Ah! You are very perceptive kunoichi-san! I did assist with Hikawa-san's recovery, but I have not been graced with a kekkei genkai I'm afraid. The speed of my hand seals must have improved greatly if a shinobi of your caliber did not see them! Taka-sensei will be so proud."

It was strange. Despite Eikitsu's friendly tone, smile and compliments, all of which were practiced and born from his studies in politeness, his eyes remained trained on Nanami at all times, and his left hand seemed poised to form a seal or draw a weapon from either his shuriken or weapon holster at a moment's notice. Then there was the strange aura about him. Sure, the snow white skin and cobalt yellow eyes were unusual, but there was an unmistakable, slipperiness about him. It was if his imprint in the world was ever so slightly smaller than normal. "Forgive me, kunoichi-san, but I feel somewhat disadvantaged here. You know my most useful ability, yet I don't even know your name." He lied. He knew exactly who Nanami was from her picture on the battle board, but she hadn't any way of knowing how much of the prelims he'd seen.

It was about this time that Chisame awoke, the realization of which caused Eikitsu to take another step away from Chisame and toward Nanami. A careful observer might notice that his new position afforded him a better vantage point from which to combat both girls simultaneously. Nanami was a rival shinobi, and it was always wise to be cautious around someone like Chisame considering what he'd seen and heard about her. Thus Eikitsu divided his attention between the girls and kept both in clear view as he moved to provide some answers to Chisame's question while he awaited Nanami's response. "No. Your opponent controlled the battle from beginning to end with his kekkei genkai and superior speed and strategy. Your absolute ineffectiveness dishonored Kirigakure and Mizukage-sama. As for the nurses, they are safe as far as I am aware. The blood is mine. Though you survived your 'death match', your injuries were most severe. So, I assisted in your recovery. Until Mizukage-sama deems otherwise, you are a valuable asset of Kirigakure."

"He made you drink his blood," Kensuke added as he approached Eikitsu and Chisame, his booted feet barely whispering across the floor.  "You Kiri-nin have some rather strange customs.  I thought 'Kiri-nin drink the blood of others' was some sort of tale mothers used to tell their children to scare them into doing what they were told, but wonders never cease, I suppose."  A small laugh made its way past his lips.  It felt odd to him considering just how much grief he felt, but the expression made the tension ease from his shoulders which actually made him look more visibly relaxed to the others standing in the room.  Hikari's death still weighed on him, but he had passed the most painful point.  Now, he needed to continue to function.  The rest of the emotional hearing would take time.

Shifting his emerald-eyed gaze from Chisame to Eikitsu, he quirked an eyebrow at the pale shinobi.  "Though, what you have said doesn't make much sense," he stated, folding his arms in front of his chest.  "If you didn't know who she was as you said, why would your Sensei be proud that you tricked a 'shinobi of her caliber?'  How would you know her caliber if you didn't know who she was?"  It was an inconsistency, and Kensuke's specialty was finding holes in plans--a skill that often extended to conversations as well.  It was what had made him the brains of his previous team before his teammates died.  After all, without the ability to spot inconsistencies, a team would face imminent danger from threats that often may appear mundane.

Unfolding his arms, the dark-haired boy shrugged.  "Well, it's none of my business anyway," he mused.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:23, Sat 28 Jan 2017.

Nanami chuckled as she shook her head. Even she could see the facade that the boy in front of her was putting on, and the sarcasm was a bit sickening. But she didn't let that get to her, as why would it. This person didn't even have the right to address Chisame the way he was, and devaluing her just because she lost. Nanami turns his head towards Eikitsu "You don't really have the right to devalue someone like that, as you didn't even participate in the exams. I know of the Hidden Mists brutal past. But that brutal past is in the past."

The girl moves away from Eikitsu..

Nanami looks towards Chisame "You fought well Chisame. Sigmund is a strong ninja..  I am glad you didn't die, and there is always the next exam to train and look forward to. I am sure we will meet again then, or perhaps on some joint mission or something. Either way I will look forward to it." She turns and walks back to Nori.

Kurochi listened to what Yuuka went through, feeling a bit bad. "At least you managed to catch him in a genjutsu huh?" Kurochi pointed out, trying to find the good points of Yuuka's battle. "Hey, once we get back to the village, you, me and Kai, we will all train even harder to become Chunin, next time the exams come around we three will ace it. Maybe you can teach me some genjutsu sometime." he said, trying to help out.

Once he heard that Yuuka lost to a wood style user, he chuckled a bit, then stopped knowin it was rude. But he couldn't help but chuckle not because she losr, it was because they both lost to the same person,"Well Yuuka, you and me got something in common, we both lost to the same guy then, his name was Senju, right?" he asked, curious if they faced the same guy.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:15, Sat 28 Jan 2017.

"Okay."  Chisame smiled, seemingly unbothered by the other mist ninja's words.  "Maybe I'll get to fight him again.  HAHAHA... ow."  Chisame's laugh was cut off short when her still-injured abdomen decided to object to the excitement.  She frowned.  "He was kind bony though.  Probably wouldn't have tasted that great anyway."  She paused and considered for a moment.  "Do they have any food in this place?"  She was kinda tired, but she was more hungry, and the strong smell of blood wasn't helping.

Despite her left arm still being heavily bandaged in some sort of sling and constant twinges from her abdomen, Chisame managed to push herself up into more of a sitting position and started looking around.

"Senju Katsuma."  Yuuka nodded confirmation.  It made her feel slightly better, knowing that Kurochi had lost to the same person.  Obviously this Senju was strong.  And Kurochi was right.  They'd all train harder and do better next time.  "At least we're all alive.  I... heard that some genin have been..."  She hesitated before continuing.  "...fighting to the death."  The idea made her uncomfortable, but she wondered if that was the kind of determination that was needed to pass these exams.

"I want to train harder and do better next time, but... I don't think I want to kill anyone... not for a test..." she trailed off.

Eikitsu knew enough of human interaction to identify that Nanami was attempting to lessen the impact of Chisame's loss to Sigmund on her, but he never understood why people felt that lessening the truth was somehow beneficial. With the unadulterated truth, Chisame knew where she stood and could work toward restoring her honor and proving that the Mizukage's faith in her was not misplaced. However misguided, he found Nanami's attempt to help Chisame, a rival shinobi curious. Did she not understand that the nature of shinobi meant that the girl she tried helping today might be her assassin tomorrow? That death matches persisted in the Chuunin Exam during this supposed time of peace between the shinobi lands was the best proof of this. Any attempt to educate Nanami would have to come another time because she quickly retreated back to her fellow Leaf shinobi. On the bright side, Nanami's departure afforded him greater ability to focus on the intruder from Rock.

"You speak damaging words, shinobi-san." Already it was obvious to Eikitsu that Kensuke was more dangerous that Nanami. As such, he took the Rock shinobi much more seriously than he'd taken Nanami. "I have not spoken any falsehoods. I present you with three facts. First, my cell and I fell into the lightning trap during the first exam. Second, I watched two shinobi point her out as the only survivor of Kotatsu-san while I eavesdropped on them. Third, Kotatsu-san and his reputation are known to me through my cellmates." Eikitsu allowed Kensuke a few moments to process the three facts presented then continued. "With these it is known that the Leaf kunoichi advanced beyond the first exam. To my knowledge, the only known instances of direct combat between examinees have been during the third exam currently in progress. Therefor, it can be deduced that she made it to the third exam. Lastly, Kotatsu-san's reputation suggests that she must be incredibly strong to suffer defeat against him yet survive still."

Eikitsu was most interested to see whether Kensuke would accept or attack his argument. While he awaited Kensuke's response, he glanced back in Chisame's direction. She was a unique one to desire food with blood quite literally on her lips still. Most people would be more concerned with cleaning up in his experience. It appeared Chisame wasn't most people though. Eikitsu flashed his practiced smile, then answered her question. "What kind of food would you like, Hikawa-san? I will confirm with the staff whether they have it."

”MEAT!” Chisame immediately answered.  This was the first time she’d actually been asked what she wanted to eat while in hospital.  Hopefully this meant she could actually get some real food.  And if not, well, the smell of blood was really making her feel like biting something.

In the meantime, ”I guess this means the exam’s over then,” Chisame reflected.  ”It was fun, I guess.  I didn’t get to kill anyone, but at least I got to eat part of that guy we interrogated.  Having to fight a bony guy was annoying, though.  Why couldn’t I have gotten a guy with barbecue sauce powers?  Mmm, barbecue.”

Saori walked into the infirmary.  The tall girl looked around and spotted Eikitsu and Chisame over at Chisame's bed.  She walked over and gave them both a nod.  "Eikitsu-san.  Hikawa-san.  I am glad to see that you are recovering well."  As it did seem that the sword wielder she had sparred with often enough at the Academy was recovering rather well.

"You fought well, despite not advancing onwards.  Most of those observing in the area I was in were impressed with your determination."

---> from Chapter 2.8: Post-Chunin - Stadium

Izumi stepped inside soon after Saori had made her entrance. The tattooed kunoichi gave a look around and made a face. She really didn't like the clinical smell of the place but she had to work on that if she ever wanted to realize the dream of becoming med-nin. At this point she hadn't even had the guts to voice it so that was worry of the future anyway.

Dropping the thought Izumi approached Chisame's bed and gave the shark-like girl an amused look."You had us worried. I'm surprised they even succeeded in patching you up Hikawa-san. The medics in Cloud Village really know their field." She nodded in greeting to Eikitsu, unaware of things that had transpired just minutes ago.

"We would have brought snack if we'd known you were in this good condition already, Hikawa-san. Any idea when they are going to let you out here?" Only now Izumi noticed the unfamiliar people eyeing them, Eikitsu to be specific, suspiciously. Had she missed something?
This message was last edited by the player at 04:06, Tue 31 Jan 2017.

"Meat," Eikitsu confirmed in his familiar, insincerely polite tone, "understood Hikawa-san." He looked in Kensuke's direction then continued. "Shinobi-san, please excuse me. I shall return shortly." Eikitsu bowed to Chisame respectfully, wheeled around in place, then set off in the general direction of the information desk just outside the entrance to the infirmary. Along the way, he encountered Izumi and Saori, whom he greeted once again, but otherwise continued on his way to the information desk without interruption. Upon arriving, the medical shinobi on duty directed him to the cafeteria, which became his next destination.

It had been nearly 10 minutes since Eikitsu's departure when he returned to the infirmary bearing a bento box loaded with meat and fish primarily but also with small portions of fresh vegetables, noodles, and tempura. Given the general portions of a typical hospital bento box, there might be just a little concern over how he'd managed things. On the bright side, there didn't appear to be any new blood on Eikitsu, and there wasn't anyone screaming after him as he stopped beside Chisame's bed then extended the box of food to her with both hands. "Meat, as you requested, Hikawa-san. I took the liberty of balancing your meal to help expedite your recovery." If one ignored the emptiness of his words, his gesture could almost be viewed as sweet. Instead, it was as artificial as everything else about him. Once the box of food was safely in Chisame's hands, he backed a few paces away from her bed then looked to Kensuke to see if the dangerous Rock shinobi was ready to admit defeat.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:18, Tue 31 Jan 2017.

Chisame was surprised to see more of her fellow mist ninjas appear.  She hadn’t realised that they had come to the exams as well.  “Hello!” she greeted them.  Are you doing the exams as well?

”Dunno,” she replied to Izumi’s question.  She was still fairly hungry and tired, so she’d probably just leave when she’d had some food and rest.  Her injuries certainly didn’t feel that bad.  She waved her arms around a bit experimentally.  As well as she could with one of them in a sling, at any rate.  They twinged a bit, but otherwise seemed okay.

Any further self-examination was interrupted by Eikitsu’s return.  ”Yummy!  …ow”  Chisame greeted the arrival of food with her usual enthusiasm, quickly digging in.

”Haff ‘ou guysh sheen Shinji aroun’ here anywhere?” Chisame asked through a mouthful of food.  She swallowed.  ”I think he tried to fight the bony guy as well,” she explained, unaware of her team-mate’s death.

"Observing this go around.  I'll be participating next time, I expect," Saori responded.  She wanted to improve a little more before she stepped back into the challenge of the exams.

Then Chisame was asking about her squadmates.  The girl adopted a more serious look.  "Hikawa-san, I am afraid that you are the only member of your squad who took the exams that survived the day," the girl said.  Chisame was a very direct person, so Saori wasn't going to dance around the fact.  Saori's voice was a little softer than normal when she delivered the news, however.  She didn't know the others in Chisame's squad particularly well, but it wasn't news one ever wanted to deliver.

Nanami leaned against the wall, listening to everything going on around her. At the moment she didn't seem interested in any of them. She paid the most attention to the group around Chisame. Their discussion seemed the most interesting, since she was waiting for Sigmund and Nori's match. She was concerned for Nori, but knew all she could do was cheer her on and support her and Sigmund. Even though she wasn't extremely fond of her teammate, he was reliable.

When the topic of eating flesh came up Nanami laughed silently to herself -"Such an odd bunch, I suppose its no more odd then people would call our team."- Thoughts like these flowed through her head as she stood there. Seeing as there was nothing better to do at the moment she walks back over to Chisame, Saori and the others "Too many genin died this year. Many were killed by Kotatsu.. Some by others I don't know.. I have my pride, but my pride tells me to stay alive at all costs. Not to die for something I can retake next year."

   Simund remained quiet as he thought about the next match. It was going to begin soon. He wanted to get this out of the way before he went out there. He looked at Nori, with an expressionless face, only a look of determination and seriousness plastered on his face.

   "I'm only going to say this once," he began, breaking the silence between them when Nanami left to go be with the incredible weirdos from the Mist. Perhaps Nanami kinda fit well with them. They all seemed to fit like puzzles pieces because every single one of them was odd and weird in their own way. Some were blood-thirsty carnivores. Another was in some sort of vampire cult. But all they all seemed to enjoy butting into each other's conversations, Nanami being one of them. He paid enough attention to his thoughts, focasing back on Nori.

   "You are in no condition to fight. I'm giving you the opportunity to give up now before we even begin. You're going to be unable to defeat me and even if you do, Kotatsu is going to kill you. Give up the match now, Nori and save me the trouble of making your injuries much worse than they need to be. Your so called pride is not worth getting yourself killed for," he told her sternly. He knew she didn't stand a chance. And even if she could defeat him, which was highly doubtful, Kotatsu wouldn't even hesitate to defeat her and kill her in the final match. Kotatsu was the type to finish a match very quickly with the intent to kill. It would be a perfect setting for him because all the Kages would be watching and the final match is the one that counts the most.