Ninja Storm (Open, no post order training thread!)

IC Time: Runs alongside "Those Bite!" For Rogue (Takes place while the girls are hunting)
OOC Start: 5/29/2017, 5pm EST
Users involved: Lani, Rackie
Characters involved: Rogue, Anna Kozak

Premise: Basically just training for Anna.

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The more powers Rogue seemed to develop and adapt to, the more often he found himself at the DWMA's training grounds. By now, there really shouldn't be a need for such, one would think, but Rogue knew better; that would never be the case. As such, he was currently balanced on top of a wooden pillar towards the edges of the grounds, sitting quietly and meditating. A soft humming traveled from him, and as the notes to his little tune progressed, different lights came alive over the center of his body, lighting up his chakras to coincide with his meditations.

Anna woke up in the morning with that strange feeling. She couldn't tell what exactly that feeling was, but she knew what might have caused it. She wanted to learn something new instead of practicing something she had already mastered. It took her a few hours of preparations, but she finally left her home and started heading towards the training grounds. Anna hoped to find someone or something that'd inspire her and help learn something new to expand her ninja skills. She had a huge bag on her back in which she put her equipment: Ropes, knives, a few whetstones, a survival kit, a first aid kit and her new short sword. Anna arrived at the training grounds around 5:00 PM. She didn't even look around, the young ninja found her favorite spot which was right in the middle of the area. Young Kozak approached that place and kneeled there, placing her bag beside her. She started meditating to calm her thoughts before the beginning of her training. Her clothes were clearly indicating that she was, in fact, a ninja (especially- her black kimono)

One of the key features of Rogue's meditations is that they automatically triggered his Soul Perception to be active. His was a strange case, allowing him to see and sense souls regardless of whether or not his eyes were open. In fact, it often worked better when he wasn't physically using his eyes, as though he was sensing them through another plane or even the shadows themselves. So, when the other young ninja entered the field, he was acutely aware of her presence. Remaining where he was, he set some of his concentration aside to focus on her, studying and realizing that she was in the middle of meditations, as well. Calming himself down, he dimmed his chakras into invisibility before standing up on the training pole. Putting his feet together, he paused before kicking off of the pillar, dissolving into a haze of shadows with a soft whoosh of air that carried him nearer to her. When he landed, he repeated the gesture, to an extent, stepping instead of leaping this time, appearing about a meter away from her.

During her meditation, some quiet sound reached Anna's ear. The ninja girl wasn't sure what it could be, however, she decided to assume that she simply wasn't alone and someone was approaching her. What if it was only her imagination? It was a possibility. Yet, being careful on the training grounds seemed to be logical. Once something or someone who -as Anna assumed- was responsible for the strange sound appeared close to her she decided to speak: "Who are you?" Anna asked quietly, assuming she was right about her not being alone on the field.

Rogue grinned softly behind his face mask. It came as little surprise that she could hear him --- he had yet to make his Shadow abilities silent --- but it was still nice to know that she was paying appropriate attention to her surroundings. "Jarek Valentius "Rogue" Ackerman," he said, reaching a hand out, waiting patiently in case she reacted, though he still stood a distance away, almost as though he didn't want to approach any further. "2-Star Utility Meister, Assassin style."

Anna smiled and opened her eyes, proud of herself for being right. The ninja girl stood up and turned to face the assassin. Anna's face was covered by her black scarf. The girl looked at the assassin with her pink eyes before bowing slightly as a sign of greeting and respect. "Anna Kozak. One-star meister. A ninja focused on stealth abilities." Said the girl quietly, keeping her distance from the assassin. She looked at his hand unsure about his motives. Anna used her Soul Perception to get some basic information about his soul. She wanted to know how strong he was and according to her, he was strong. "Nice to meet you."

"A fellow ninja?" He asked, curious. The man lowered his hand and, smirking, faded into a shadowy mist. Some feet behind her, he reappeared, arms folded across his chest. "Your focus is on stealth abilities? What all can you do?"

The Ninja girl shrugged like her abilities were nothing worth mentioning. Suddenly, she disappeared in a cloud of smoke and immediately appeared right behind the assassin. "This for example."  Anna whispered into his ear.

*ANNA USED "BLINK"!*
*COOLDOWN: 0 (USED OUTSIDE COMBAT)*

He smirked wide, amused. "Fair enough," Rogue mentioned, stepping back with a bit of a skip and reappearing atop one of the pillars. "What else?"

Anna closed her eyes and started gathering her mental powers. She felt a slight shift in the air around her. The ninja was focused- she wanted to use one of her most advanced techniques. Suddenly her shadow copied itself and that copy of her shadow started gaining a physical. It was controlled with her wavelength, yet it looked very weak. The shadow started moving on its own- slowly approaching Rogue.
*ANNA USED: "SHADOW"*

His brows furrowed as he watched the ability, surprised by it. Mostly, he used his own shadow-based abilities for movement and invisibility. Rogue had never tried to duplicate himself. "That's very impressive, when did you learn that one?" He stepped forward, off of the pillar, fading and landing in front of her shadow duplicate.

The ninja girl kneeled on the ground, her shadow disappeared as fast as it had appeared. "Quite recently to be honest. I plan to use this ability for reconnaissance..Though, I still need to master it." Explained Anna quietly with a calm voice. She needed a few seconds of rest, using her shadow was a tiring experience.

He nodded at this; it was a clever trick, and one that he, himself, could not remember seeing. Honestly, he wouldn't mind if she taught him how to do it. Looking over against the school wall, his eyes settled on his bag. A few Flash Steps later and he returned to her with a bottled water, smiling behind his face mask. "I'll admit, I'm quite envious of the trick."

The girl searched her own bag- She found her favorite juice that her cousin brought her from Europe and stood up to face the assassin once again. "That technique was born from one of the classier shadow blending techniques. In a normal technique, you stand in the shadows, using your soul wavelengths to create a camouflage, using said shadows- you become almost invisible. So instead of using the shadows as a material to create an invisibility field, I duplicate my own shadow and start controlling it through my wavelengths... It's...Easier to use than to explain, if we're being honest." Explained the ninja calmly and adjusted her glove.

Rogue grinned at this, taking the water bottle for himself when she retrieved her own drink. "That's quite the clever trick. Is it one that you developed or did someone show it to you?" He thought back to his own abilities; Rogue concentrated far more on his chakras than his shadow control.

"I've developed it myself. By an accident, but still." Explained the ninja, then she pulled her scarf off her face and opened her favorite apple-mint juice. An almost invisible smile appeared across her face.

"An accident?" He inquired, drinking from the bottle by moving the bottom of his mask. He was genuinely curious about the ability and she'd come to use it.

Anna closed her bottle of juice and closed her eyes to gather thoughts. "Yes. I'd tried to learn Soul Menace, however, instead of channeling my wavelength into an attack, I've caused my shadow to duplicate." Anna explained and crossed her arms over her chest. "I've dropped my Soul Menace studies and focused on mastering this ability instead." Added the girl.

He looked to her even more curiously at this, raising a hand. As he did so, shadow wisps began to swallow up his hand and forearm. "Why not both?"

Anna looked at his arm with curiosity in her eyes. "I believe that focusing on more than one thing at once is less efficient." Explained the ninja girl as she kneeled down on the ground.

"I mean, make it part of your soul menace." He said, though he sat on the ground in front of her, on his knees, looking to her curiously. "Actually, how about this: teach me."

"Huh?!" Anna was surprised by the assassin's sudden request. After a short moment, she nodded. "Fine.." The ninja girl adjusted her position and switched to sitting cross-legged. She took a deep breath. "Alright...If you know something about shadow manipulation, then learning my technique might be a lot easier. First..Let's start from putting ourselves into a state of deep meditation..." Anna Kozak immidately started clearing her mind from unnecessary thoughts

That was a strangely easy task for the Meister, who meditated more often than not. Doing so triggered the sequence of lights down his center, as it was how he focused, but he kept his chakras dull enough to not interfere with her own concentration. "As you wish, sensei."

"Sensei..? It sounds..so odd. You're clearly older than me." Commented Anna, almost whispering. She was calm and concentrated. With her eyes closed, she focused on her soul and its wavelength. "Now...Try to.. "see" your wavelengths.. Then, try to become an absolute one with your shadow...You need to start thinking about it as a part of your own soul. You need to...Throw some life into it... If you'll feel the connection and notice slight movements, then you're doing it right." Explained Anna, while trying to do the same. Her shadow, started to duplicate. One of her shadows was the living one, the other one was "dead". "I still can't really explain why it creates two shadows though.."

Rogue nodded, eyes remaining closed as the vibrancy of his soul became more apparent. The colors of it fed into the shadow he cast, a hint of the dark grey wisps accompanying it as it melded into the counter-light. Slowly, it began to form, though it was taking him far longer.