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Game of the Year: A Naruto Quest

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RedV said:
I would like it if Daisuke could get some more energetic colours like green or purple instead of what he's currently wearing, yeah. Men should not be afraid to show off in style! And style definitely includes colours.
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We've got an Orochimaru partisan here, boys.

On a tactical note, green blends well with leaves and the forests that fill the land of fire (kinda like how Shippuden Naruto's orange & black work a bit like a tiger's colours imo)
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Goddammit, now I'm thinking of the Nine-Tailed Tiger / Naruto's nickname being "Tiger of the Hidden Leaf". I hope you're happy, RedV.
 
Katsuragi said:
I'm saving for a trait, personally.

Edit:

Found some time to do some vector art. Not fully cleaned up, but as much as I'm doing with this one.

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Impressive! Take 140 XP!
Vermeer said:
The morning, you felt, was simply beautiful. The sun was shining high, the birds chirped a sweet melody, and a refreshing,cool breeze fouind its way over the Taijutsu field of the Academy you were currently at. Yet the beauty of the day was at complete odds with the tension that captured you and your classmates. Nobody knew how to proceed forward. For it was the first Taijutsu session Sasuke Uchiha had joined since the complete massacre of his family a few months previous. In a few short moments, one of your class would have to face Sasuke in hand to hand combat.

The last week had been awkward as no one knew quite precisely how to interact with Sasuke. Sympathy and compassion had been rebuffed with stony silence. Friendly gestures were met with glares. And your rivalry seemed to have been replaced with uncaring apathy. You, yourself, didn't know how to approach him. But you did know that if anyone was going to face Sasuke in a fight today, it would be you.

Which is what led you to this moment.

"The next ten minutes is free sparring time. Pick a partner and keep practicing until I announce to stop." Iruka loudly announced.

This setup was perfectly normal for a Taijutsu practice. What wasn't normal was you maneuvering yourself through your classmates to stand beside Sasuke as the class started dispersing. You felt the questioning looks of your friends on your back as you did so, but you didn't let that stop you. As everyone started to pair off, you tapped Sasuke on the shoulder.
At the light tap, Sasuke practically jumped in the air. He turned around rapidly, body shifting into a basic Taijutsu stance. But what drew your attention specifically was the wild, animalistic look in his eye. This was... worrying. You stayed still, waiting for Sasuke to calm down from his scare. One moment passed. Then another. Finally, as if by extreme pressure, Sasuke's shoulders slumped and the look in his eyes faded back into the cold stare that had marked the last week of your interactions with him.

"Satomura. I assume you want to spar?" Sasuke said while putting his hands in his pockets.
You nod, and without another word, Sasuke stiffly marched out to an empty corner of the field. There the two of you faced each other at an appropriate distance before bowing, before taking up your individual stances. After an unspoken amount of time, the battle started, and Sasuke, with a yell, charged towards you.

If you were concerned before about the look in Sasuke's eyes before, now you were genuinely frightened. Not because Sasuke was any more of a physical threat to you than before, but because of how little he wasn't. This charge, quite simply, sucked. Sasuke's punch was telegraphed, his balance was off center, and his eyes were not even focused on you. You were not sure who or what he was actually focusing on, but it wasn't you.

As Sasuke's charge neared, it was as if all your indecision on how to approach him had crystallized in that moment. Should you treat him kindly, and let him take you down? Should you treat him normally, and sweep his leg, as you might have against Uzumaki's wild haymakers? Or should you be more vicious than normal, and make Sasuke remember his training through overwhelming force. This conundrum froze you in place, even as Sasuke reached you.

Finally, it was instinct which acted for you. Your body moved to the side, as you stuck your leg out. Sasuke tumbled to the ground, his yell silenced. The silence born from his fall continued for half a second before being interrupted by the sound of him rolling over, and something else. Something you hadn't seen in all the week preceding this fight, in any interaction Sasuke had had with either teacher or classmate. As Sasuke laid on his back, you heard the sound of him sobbing. At no point was it any louder than a whimper, as he stifled the noise, but it was unmistakable. For a brief moment, you were reminded of the night where you had to kill Tokei, and the tears that came out after.

That brief reminder lurched your body into motion, in an almost involuntary movement. You really didn't know what to do as you found yourself approaching the fallen Uchiha. But when you reached him, you stuck your hand out, to help him up as you had done countless times before. He looked at your hand with a bewildered expression, as if he was lost as to what was being offered. At seeing his expression, your own doubt grew as well, but you pressed on.

When he reached a hand to your own, you hauled him up. As he caught his balance once more, you murmured a piece of advice for improvement, just like you have since the first week of the Academy and since.

"Don't let your rage make you forget your training, Sasuke," You whispered.

At that, he looked at you, and jerkily nodded. When he walked back to his former position, you saw neither a wild expression nor a lost one on his face. All you saw was determination.

When you both bowed before starting the next spar, it might have been you who made the first move, but it was Sasuke who smiled first.
My first Omake @Vesvius, and totally not what I promised. Still I think it came out better than I thought.
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Very nicely done! 70 XP and Canon for you.
Geedubs said:
@Vesvius could you split my 40xp between Perception and Intimidate, please?
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Heard!
Ridiculously Average Guy said:
That meme did have one thing right, Daisuke's colors are entirely too subdued. At some point as a joke his friends are probably going to give him a tiedyed hoodie or something. And, to countertroll them, he'll wear it completely seriously:

I realized partway through I didn't have the chops to make this actually good, so I made it purposefully shitty heavily stylized.

In lieu of XP can this monstrosity be real? (reversible with the inside being black, they aren't monsters)
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Huh... I actually really like this. Very nice work. Take 100 XP.
 
Vesvius said:
Huh... I actually really like this. Very nice work. Take 100 XP.
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Pls make the hoodie a reality, I'll trade the XP for it. (Reversible, tie-dye outside and black/grey inside)

If you need an excuse for it, it's a half-joking birthday present from the group given to him early for graduation. Nobody expected him to actually wear it tie-dye side up.

Alternatively, It's a weighted hoodie given to him by Gai shortly before Dai gets his official jounin-sensei. No explanation needed for the color scheme.
 
Speaking of Gai, does he know about Daisuke's Summoning techniques? Seems like the kind of thing that'd get him all excited, since that means Daisuke could train literally anywhere. I also kind of like that being the explanation for Daisuke learning to manipulate his Summons' forms.

Regarding using his past life knowledge... Daisuke would probably be better off trying to be a writer, since he already has stage presence and because One Bleach Z sounded amazing.
 
I think this vote is still open, so I'll vote.

-snip-

Or I could be wrong

-snip-

I also feel an entirely non-canon omake somewhere in my brain, but I don't think I'll inflict it upon the thread just yet. It must mature like fine wine. Or dog shit in the sun. Y'know, whichever.
 
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Casual Ino by Katsuragi
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    • Had a few hours to kill this morning. Casual Ino. Tried to run my raw vector through paintschaner. Needed to clear it up a bit in post, but I was legitimately surprised. It's better at coloring and shading shit than I am.

    Might actually use it to learn some things about how to color and shade better.

     
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    • Ridiculously Average Guy said:
    Did someone actually do anything with that, or do you just mean the throwaway lines from my 'lol sworddreams' omake?
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    I don't think anyone did, and I mainly brought it up to back why I think Daisuke would have better odds as a writer instead of technology revolution. Even has the bonus of him actually having to be creative, instead of BSing talent since nobody could call him out.

    Seriously, I want to see someone put together an omake where Daisuke tries to make something coherent from his half-faded memories. Huh, actually... That could easily be what the performance was, Daisuke having put together a script and getting it approved.
     
    Katsuragi said:
    Had a few hours to kill this morning. Casual Ino. Tried to run my raw vector through paintschaner. Needed to clear it up a bit in post, but I was legitimately surprised. It's better at coloring and shading shit than I am.

    Might actually use it to learn some things about how to color and shade better.

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    I don't know if she's thoughtful or murderous, but it's definitely awesome!
     
    Katsuragi said:
    Had a few hours to kill this morning. Casual Ino. Tried to run my raw vector through paintschaner. Needed to clear it up a bit in post, but I was legitimately surprised. It's better at coloring and shading shit than I am.

    Might actually use it to learn some things about how to color and shade better.

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    Wow, this is really good.
     
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    30. A Tangled Mess
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    • You think for a long moment and make up your mind. In the end, Naruto barely factors into your decision making. He could be on your team, he could not be on your team. It doesn't matter. All that matters is proving yourself the best. And even on such a small battlefield as the class rankings, you don't want to be anything less than the best.

    "I think," you say contemplatively, breaking into everyone else's conversations, "that I'm going to go for Rookie of the Year."

    All around you there is silence. You glance at the faces of your friends. Most of them have looks on their faces like they can't believe you'd say something so obvious. Of course you're shooting for Rookie of the Year. The idea that you wouldn't be is strange to them.

    The only exception is Ino, whose natural pouting is growing to almost cartoony levels. "Awwww," she moans. "I thought I might take it!"

    You shrug. "You still may. I'm only attempting to grasp the title. There is no promise that I'll have it."

    "Yeah!" Ino replies, cheer instantly restored. "I can take this! I can beat you, and I can beat Sasuke, and I can beat everyone in front of me!"

    Sakura coughs into her hand. "Really?" she says disbelievingly. "You think you have a shot? Are you sure? I mean, I can tutor you in Math if you really want to improve your rankings, but I'm not sure how you'll do."

    A vein pulses in Ino's forehead. "What did you just say?!" she snarls. And just like that, the unity the two had found during Naruto's interruption is gone.

    You sigh and lean back against the wall as you finish your meal. You really need to get to the bottom of whatever's going on there. But you'll have to pick your spot carefully; you don't want to make it any worse. So for now, you just wait.

    Wait, and read the prompt that's just materialized before your eyes.

    Quest Acquired: King of the Classroom!
    To be rookie of the year, your skills need to be the unquestioned best in the class! That's no easy feat considering your competition. But if you can prove the then the honor, the glory, the prestige of being number one can all be yours!
    Success Condition One: Demonstrate your skill to your teachers in 8 of the 12 following fields: Bunshin no Jutsu, Chakra Control, Genjutsu, Kawarimi no Jutsu. Henge no Jutsu, History, Mathematics, Ninjutsu, Outdoor Survival, Shurikenjutsu, Stealth and Tracking, Taijutsu.
    Success Condition Two: Demonstrate competence in at least 3 skills or techniques not taught in the Academy. (1 Currently Demonstrated (Kenjutsu))
    Skill(s): Many
    On Success: Gain title 'Rookie of the Year', gain Achievement 'What Does It Take To Be Number One', Gain Reputation with 'Konohagakure', ???.
    On Failure: Penalties vary depending on degree of failure.

    Well. That seems pretty straight forward. You'll need to show that you're the best in at least eight fields- and you've already got two checked off. You're still the unquestioned king of the sparring ring and your Kawarimi is second to one. Good thing you don't need to be the absolute best in everything; you don't think you're going to beat Yui in substitution.

    You finish reading the prompt and minimize it to find that both Sakura and Ino in the process of storming off, forehead to forehead once again. You glance over at Jabari. "What set them off this time?" you ask.

    Jabari shrugs, scratching his brow with the end of his pencil. "Couldn't tell ya. Wasn't paying attention. Thinking about fighting."

    ...you're not sure why you're surprised, but you are. "What are you writing in there anyway?"

    Your friend tosses you his notepad without a second thought. The front page is covered with your friend's blocky handwriting, so much so that it's hard to tell where one word stops and another begins. The entire thing is littered with arrows pointing from one word to another with no rhyme or reason.

    After a moment's investigation the page starts making sense. The entire page is a battle plan for the next time the two of you spar arranged like a flowchart. Each item on the page is something to do in counter to something you do, with another counter to follow your inevitable counter. "If," you read out loud, "Dai uses Straw for Kawarimi, smash and sweep behind. If Dai uses Wood for Kawarimi, kick it and block from the side."

    You stop and give him a look. "Why the difference in handling my dummies?"

    "Straw is easy to deal with," Jabari answers promptly. "It's soft and easily destroyed without wasting motion or time. Wood takes more effort; if I focused on tearing it down, I lose time. Best to remove it from the field of battle and worry about it later if I have to."

    Makes sense. "But what if you're fighting someone that's not me?" you ask. "Doesn't all this planning do you a disservice?"

    Jabari motions for you to turn the page. You do so, and find yourself staring at a similar diagram for Goro. Then another for Chouji. The entire notebook is filled with diagrams for the entire class, including Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei. Each one is painstakingly detailed and shows signs of frequent revision.
    "How long have you been working on these?" you wonder.

    "Not long. Mebee a few months. It helps to get my thoughts down, ya know?"

    You do known, and these would probably be interesting reading if you had more time. But you've come pretty far afield from what you were asking. You glance over at Yui, who's still packing her used plates and cutlery into their proper places in her elaborate lunch box. "Did you see what set Ino and Sakura off this time?"

    Yui doesn't look up from her work. "What doesn't these days," she muses.

    You'll take that as a no. Which means the only people you can get information from are the two girls in question. You'll need to ask them directly.

    You don't get a chance during the rest of class that day. Instead you're focused on your hand seal drills, your afternoon sparring, and Henge practice. But you find your opportunity after class lets out. Most of your friends scatter to the wind, heading for home or their after school jobs or training fields, leaving you to walk Ino home as per usual.

    Thankfully, your relationship with Ino is far different than your relationship with Sakura. With Sakura, you have to cleverly work your way towards your point in a conversation without stating it directly out of fear she'll clam up. With Ino, however, you can be blunt. And so as you walk down the path towards the Yamanaka Flower Shop, you look over at her and ask, "So why are the two of you fighting now?"

    Ino doesn't bother asking who you're talking about. Instead she throws her hands up towards the sky. "Because she's being stupid!" she almost yells. "Just really, really stupid!"

    You cock an eyebrow and wait. Since Sakura is probably the smartest of all of you, you're going to assume she's not talking about actual intelligence, which means she's got more to say. Sure enough Ino continues a few moments later without prompting. "I mean, look at her! Look at how much she could do! She's got good seal speed, she's freakishly smart, she'd be a natural at so many things if she just tried!"

    "I mean, like put yourself in her shoes. She's pretty high in the kunoichi rankings based just off her big ol' brain! But she doesn't have any real skill in anything practical. If I were her, I wouldn't be sitting around just working more on book work! I'd be branching out, finding more things to be good at! But she won't! She's happy with what little she's got instead of actually applying herself!"

    Ino stops and runs her hands through her hair, ending with them twined through her ponytail as if that will keep her calm. "And the games! The stupid games! That's another thing she could actually be trying to win! You've barely got a lead on her and she could be chasing you down. But no, she won't. She's too busy looking behind her and freaking out about me coming up on her! It's like she doesn't want to improve but doesn't want anyone to over take her either!"

    "And spirits above forbid that someone mentions that to her! Then she starts getting all like offended that someone dares point out her flaws! Like, how dare I want her to improve herself! How dare I suggest I know what she should do! It's not like I practically plucked her up and brought her this far! I must be the stupidest person in Fire Country for actually, like, caring!"

    Ino's rant subsides into huffy silence that you don't break. There's a lot to unpack there; there's more to this tiff than you thought.

    Honestly though? You're just glad no one's mentioned any boy jealousy. Though maybe they're just hiding that from you for some reason.

    You and Ino just walk in silence for the rest of the way towards her parents combination home and flower store. Ino doesn't seem to want to say anything out of shame for going off on such a rant, and you're too busy thinking to breach another topic. It isn't until you make it to the store's front door that she finally changes the subject. "So you're really shooting for Rookie of the Year?"

    You nod, and she smiles widely. "Go for it! But don't expect me to just roll over for you! I'm going to give it everything I've got! There hasn't been a Kunoichi of the Year for like a really long time, and I'm going to be the one to break that streak!"

    "Do it if you can," you reply, falling back into your comfortable banter. "But I'm confident in my skills. I won't let anyone stop me; not even you!"

    "That's the spirit!" Ino cheers. "Try your best. But don't get too upset when you're stuck at your desk when I'm up at the front, getting my… medal? Award? Whatever it is, I'll be getting it, and you'll just have to cheer me on!"

    As she talks, she pushes open the door. A bell rings in the storefront, drawing eyes to the doorway. "Welcome to Yamanaka Flowers!" a voice calls from over near a window. "I'll be right with you!"

    There's a rustling, and a tall blonde man emerges from the foliage with a watering can in hand. Ino's at his side in moments. "Hi, Daddy!" she chirps, reaching up for a hug.

    It's a gesture that Yamanaka Inoichi, Ino's dad, wastes no time in responding to. "Ino!" he calls out joyfully, scooping her up into a hug that takes her feet of the floor. "How was your day, Princess?"

    "It was great Daddy! Me and Daisuke beat the others and then I ace'd my history test! And during seal exercises I was in the top four! How about your day? How's Droopy?"

    "That's great sweetie! And it's been quiet today, and no one's bought Droopy yet! But soon she'll be in flower and then we won't be able to keep people from her! They might fight over who gets to take Droopy home!"

    You watch the two of them chirp at each other for a long few moments as you fight to keep your reaction off your face. Every day. Every day with these two. He hasn't seen her in eight hours, tops. But every time it's like he's gone years without seeing his little princess.

    In contrast, his reaction to you couldn't be more different. Once he's done greeting Ino like a soldier gone for many moons, he turns to face you. His easy smile vanishes, replaced by a business-like expression that makes him look like the trained shinobi he actually is. "Daisuke," he greets you.

    "Yamanaka-san," you respond, bowing slightly. "It's good to see you once again."

    "And you," he answers, responding to your near-lie with one of his own. "Are you planning on staying for dinner? I'm certain that we can set out an extra plate for you."

    "Yeah, that'll be great!" Ino chirps, ignoring the subtext, and the fact that neither of you have taken your eyes off of each other since he greeted you. "I think Mom said she was making lamb tonight with a fresh berry sauce! You've got to stay for it!"

    You shake your head slightly, not taking your eyes off of Inoichi. "No, thank you. While I appreciate the offer I have some things I have to take care of."

    Ino releases her Daddy and scratches the side of her head. "Really? Because your Mother said she won't be home till late. Are you just gonna go punch that dummy more? You should really stay and-"

    "Now now, Princess!" Inoichi chides. "If your… friend… has something that he has to do, then we should let him take care of it."

    Ino pouts, but stops arguing just like she did the last thirty times you and her father have had this exchange. Instead she comes up and hugs you with just as much energy as she put into the one for Inoichi. "Alright then! Take care! Don't do anything too stupid without me! See you tomorrow morning!"

    You keep your eyes trained on her father. It looks like what Ino is doing is causing him physical pain. If he was biting his lip any harder, there would be blood. But he doesn't say anything. He just waits for his daughter to release you before offering his own muted farewells and holding the door open for you to leave.

    Once you're outside of Yamanaka Flowers you breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe one day Ino's dad will accept that his daughter has friends that are boys that aren't related to his friends. Until then, every time you leave his presence without new holes in you is something to be celebrated.

    You turn and walk from the flower shop, headed for your own home blocks away. As you walk, you think. You think about all you'll need to do to get Rookie of the Year. You think of Jabari's insane battle flow charts. But mostly you think of how to deal with Ino and Sakura.

    Their problem is complicated and messy and tangled in a way that only girls can manage. If you're right though, it boils down like this: Ino thinks Sakura isn't living up to her potential and is trying to push her out of her comfort zone. Sakura takes that as Ino thinking she's worse than Ino is, and gets defensive. Ino sees that as refusal to change and doubles down. Sakura does the same. And now you're here.

    Seems pretty straight forward. What isn't straight forward though? How to fix it.

    How do you attempt to fix the problems between Ino and Sakura?
    [] You won't. This goes deeper than you thought it would. You'll just let them sort it out in time.
    [] You'll have them sit down and talk about their problems.
    [] That common enemy thing still seems like a good idea to you. Find them a target.
    [] Write-In (Tag @Vesvius for approval)
     
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    • Katsuragi said:
    Had a few hours to kill this morning. Casual Ino. Tried to run my raw vector through paintschaner. Needed to clear it up a bit in post, but I was legitimately surprised. It's better at coloring and shading shit than I am.

    Might actually use it to learn some things about how to color and shade better.

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    Holy fuck that's good. Take 180 XP.
     
    We basically want to sit them down and personally run through exactly where we think the miscommunication is happening. Then, after they've had a chance to say "yes, that's right" or "no, you've misunderstood me" they can talk about the problem.

    @Vesvius does this work:
    [X] You'll have them sit down whilst you describe the misunderstanding as you understand it, and then talk about their problems.
     
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