Going through the basics took half an hour. By the end of it, Sukuna was neither impressed nor disappointed.
"Your basics are above average with good stamina. Considering our particular situation, it's a given."
It rather would be disappointing if she didn't do better in this area when she most likely poured all her time training everything which wasn't Ninjutsu, like him.
Daily training with the group had kept her fit and maintained. And her physique made her strong as well, like Sakura and himself.
She had good Taijutsu skills, likely because she trained with Sasuke every now and then. As for Genjutsu, knowing Izumi, Kiyomi's strongest point should be this.
Unfortunately, he couldn't test it. Almost none of the Genjutsu worked on him.
"I can't help you with Genjutsu. Your Taijutsu is solid but could use some work. I saw you're not taking full advantage of that strong body you have."
"That leaves us with your curse energy manipulation and its application."
"Finally." Kiyomi rolled her eyes, like expecting him to bring this up as the first thing after they started training.
"So... what you got." he asked expectantly.
She looked at him with a flat look. "What you mean?"
"You know, your curse energy manipulation. How good are you? Normal curse energy manipulation, its efficiency. How well you utilised your technique. Have you ever performed a Black Flash, that will heavily determine your mindset about curse energy, and the lingering binding vows you have active. And of course, can you use reverse curse energy? If so, then it would rather make things easy."
He pointed out one thing after another, making her dizzy. Might as well chuck a domain expansion or two in that list. She internally cursed. Who the hell did this guy think she was, Yuta freaking Okkotsu.
After a bit of hesitation and embarrassment, she finally spoke. "Only basic curse energy manipulation. And my technique is very inefficient."
...So, meaning she hasn't improved a bit from her JJK time. Sukuna wanted to taunt her so much. It was his inner Sukuna who wished to smack this girl verbally at this point, but he restrained himself.
"Cool, then we'll start by testing the limit and efficiency of your current CE reserves. Go punch that tree with your curse energy enhancement on."
Kiyomi grumbled something about freaking curse monsters before striding towards the pointed tree.
Bang...
A single punch shook the entire tree, causing many leaves and a pair of squirrels to drop. Sukuna observed the area closely and noticed a noticeable dent where the punch struck.
Physical strength on point, however, the curse energy application is shit. It almost reminded him of Sakura. She dealt with the same issue. Poor girl thought her chakra control was top-notch because she blew up the tree, when half of the work was done by those hidden muscles of hers.
"Climb the tree."
"Excuse me!"
"You heard me, climb it, shinobi style."
A silent moment passed between them, neither saying anything, before finally Kiyomi asked, "How?"
"What you mean how? Stick CE to your feet and do it."
"That shit is chakra territory. How do I do it with CE?" She looked even more annoyed, like totally convinced he was pulling her leg.
Grumbling, Sukuna hopped on top of the tree to show her. "Like this."
"But... but how? It's not possible with CE."
"Tsk... Tsk... Tsk... Tsk... we have a lot of work to do, it seems."
He dropped off, pondered a bit, before finally saying, "Perhaps we'll start with water walking. That should be easy with CE, right..."
"That... well, I can do it, though barely."
"Show me then."
So she did. They found a nearby body of water and the girl walked on it wobblingly. Sukuna knew this would be easier since he himself had experienced it. CE doesn't have that excellent sticking property to surfaces like chakra. However, floating over water is relatively easier since it's all about covering the feet with CE and maintaining it.
Of course, during the testing, he didn't let her use her Sharingan, which would be cheating.
"Alright, your curse energy manipulation needs work and your efficiency is shit. So we'll work on that as well. Of course, the fastest way to fix both is to land a Black Flash..."
Kiyomi's eyes twitched, hearing him say it like it was picking a toffee from a candy store. "No sorcerer can land a Black Flash at will." She spat with irritation. Somehow, all her weaknesses were being pointed out, making her feel defensive.
"You sure about that?" Sukuna grinned. Without saying more, he walked towards a nearby tree and took a punching position.
Focus... and Sharingan...
To Kiyomi's horror, the flash of black tore through the entire tree and charred the ground in a single punch. Then she felt it, a vibration of curse energy around Sukuna.
Dark, sharp, and warm.
Again, a combination which never made sense to her. However, it resonated around him with such harmony that it was almost enviable.
"From now on, you'll dedicate all your time to landing your first Black Flash. While doing so, use your Sharingan to improve your chances..." He grinned, dusted his hands while he was still in the zone, slowly waiting for his hyper-focus to wear off.
"...wait, you mean now?" She was baffled.
"So when, after I invite you to dinner? Get to it."
"But... but what about my curse technique and my Mangekyo powers?" She asked with a baffled look, half expecting him to focus almost entirely on those two and half expecting him to just skip this basic if possible.
"Who are you kidding here? I told you, remember, I know your curse technique. If you could really use it, then you would have long ago. It's basically unusable until you get your efficiency on point. As for Mangekyo..."
"...the more you use it, the less you have. So better use it when you're in a condition to use it." Sukuna left with that ominous remark, leaving her in confusion.
Kiyomi knew of the Mangekyo Sharingan thanks to Izumi; however, the older woman never explained the backlash of using such power, mostly because she didn't wish Kiyomi to worry about her.
Kiyomi pursed her lips, wanting to ask further, but he was already gone, leaving her alone.
"Show off..."
Gritting her teeth, she bit her cheeks to focus herself and got to the task given.
Punch after punch hit the tree trunk, trying to land a single Black Flash.
Sukuna, who only pretended to go away, was still observing from further away. Kiyomi punched repeatedly, making the dent deeper, however, not even a single instance of Black Flash.
I want power… he thought he heard her say this. That was so similar to when Sasuke said it, or when he himself sought it.
As the girl landed more punches on the tree trunk, Sukuna fell into a trance. The fight against the Raikage played inside his mind.
I won the fight… but only because the Raikage was already weakened. I went all out back then, used everything besides a few crazy vow ideas I didn't dare implement.
If the Raikage was at his prime, then I might have really lost. At best, I could have claimed a tie.
A Kage level at 13 years old was not bad.
But…
Unconsciously, his fist clenched up. Remembering what kind of horror this world would face one day, even after Madara and Zetsu. Kaguya would one day find a way back, or perhaps those aliens who would come someday.
''What if I were in a coma like that, how would you feel.''
That one line from Sakura had rooted inside his mind deeper than he realized.
But honestly, what can I do… forget about those aliens, I can't even handle humans like Hashirama and Madara.
He just kept observing the girl hitting the tree while contemplating his own condition.
Am I too relaxed recently, especially after getting Kamui? I had five years to develop it and I still haven't opened my domain.
The more his thoughts went on, the more uncertainty crept in.
"I'm still not strong enough. I need more…"
"More power… I need more power."
xXx
A/N : I too Need More... More Stones ! Give Me STONES !!!
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