"I didn't touch anything, I promise!" Niha squeals out in shock, nearly leaping out of her skin when she realizes that Tora was behind her. She didn't hear him coming at all, and wasn't paying close enough attention to try to sense him out! She exhales and breathes deeply, putting a hand to her chest to still her racing, panicked heart. The man's smile is enough to coax her own out and after she's calm, she straightens up and holds out her hand in offering to him. "Tora no Seishin." She repeats aloud, making sure that she's pronouncing it correctly. He looked more or less like how the people that caught the tournament described him. There may have been some embellishments sprinkled in as the word bounced from person to person, but he was a man that truly lived up to these lofty expectations.

"It's an honor to meet you in person. They say that you accomplished amazing things at Shroomy's Tournament." Her head subtly cants to the side and her expression gets more inquisitive when Tora questions her motives for seeking him out. "No, not to conquer, sir!" She answers, shaking her head calmly, "Or fight. Oh, well...okay, that's a small lie. Maybe to fight a little. But I only want to keep myself and the people close to me safe. I don't want to hurt people on purpose if I can help it." This was true, while Niha was for the occasional spar for fun, she never tried to inflict any lasting damage on her opponents. She raises her hand high to officially promise to him on her word, "I swear on everything I stand for, Tora, that I will always try to protect life in all its forms. If it means laying down my life to do it, then so be it too." She lowers her hand and watches him walk away to the window, drifting after him to peek through the fog with him.

It really was beautiful now that she wasn't having to worry about getting devoured by things she couldn't see. The fog lazily drifted through the broad leaves and branches of the plants and trees like snakes winding through tall grass. Niha reaches out to touch the window, "I'm not sure..." She answers honestly, "I've always felt...something since I was little. Sometimes I can feel the energy of my friends and people around me. But I've never really known what that other...constant feeling is." Could it have been coming from the world around her? That would make the most sense. Even if the fauna she saw could not move or talk, they still carried the precious spark of life that made everything special and unique. Without it, the universe would be filled with nothing, a deep empty state of nonexistence. Niha watches him find and drag out the mats and makes her way over to hers.

She observes the way he sits down and slowly drifts to the ground to land from her hovering state. She reaches out to pull her feet in to get her legs in the same cross-legged position and then presses her palms flat together. She closes her eyes, breathing in a deep breath that she holds in for a few moments to allow it to fill her being before she exhales it. She lets each breath carry out pieces of her tension and nervous fears with it until her mind and body are body relaxed and calm. "Yes, sensei. I'll try," Niha tells him, referring to him by the title she's heard other Earthlings call their most respected tutors. Things were quiet at first. She didn't feel much different than if she had just closed her eyes to try to take a nap. One thing she had to admit was that it did help her appreciate the sounds of the jungle. The growls had been replaced with the whisper of the wind through the canopy and the joyful chorus of bugs and frogs that were hidden away from her sight earlier.

She remains patient through the learning process. There was no real end goal to be aiming for nor a time limit that she had to adhere to, and she needed to focus on the small steps of what she could do rather than stress herself thinking of the big picture he presented to her. She could feel the presence of Tora near her and she was aware of her own. Once she helped herself focus on getting acquainted with these familiar sensations, she began to expand her senses to somewhere outside the dojo. It started with a bird that perched on the roof of the dojo and moved on to a small mouse scurrying through the underside of the brush. The smaller creatures nearby could be picked out and soon she was able to feel the resounding steps of the nearby giants. Massive tigers and mighty dinosaurs roamed this island, both sides in a constant neverending battle for survival and supremacy with each other.

The living creatures around her came most naturally, but she feared that the flowers and plants were lost on her for a while. She could feel their presence, but they outnumbered most things on the island and it was a difficult feeling to sort through individually. The roots of the trees and grass intertwined with underlying fungal networks and spoke together as one. Niha lowers her head on the verge of defeat before her hands tighten around each other. She couldn't give up yet. It would take a couple of hours, but patiently she would start to unravel the most tangled knots of energy on the island.

She picked out the grass, the trees, and the flowers to connect with them on an individual level not aiming to stop until she's brushed over the feeling of every plant on the island. It was almost like she could feel the delicate touch of the petals against her fingertips or feel the strength of the mighty branches steel through her own resolve. Everything, plant and animal, living and dead were united and connected in a precarious but harmonious utopia of the ecosystem. "It's beautiful.." She whispers quietly to Tora, unintentionally breaking the solemn silence of the moment.

Post Count: 2 | WC: 1,042
Tora

Niha opens her eyes and looks up to watch Tora climb to her feet. She smiles warmly and smiles from bashful embarrassment, "Oh, well...it was hard at first, but I just tried to relax like you told me to and that helped me find it eventually." She unwinds her legs from over one another and floats to her feet. She dusts herself off, "And I don't care if it won't be easy! I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get better." Tora's question for her does leave her hesitating though. She wrings her fingers and frowns, glancing away from him and avoiding his eye contact. She wasn't sure if he would be safe knowing the truth, but it would be safer than continuing this training living a lie. At least if he knew the potential consequences of being around her, then he could decide for himself if he wanted to take the risk and prepare for it.

"I will not lie to you, sensei. I am not exactly of this world. I think that is why it is difficult for most that are unused to it." Niha attempts to carefully explain, drifting after him as he steps foot outside into the jungle. "I am from the Other World, from the land of the Kai. My people are known as Shinjin. People call us...divine." She clears her throat and skirts past that admission, "It doesn't change that much if you ask me. But...I have found that we have our fair share of enemies. The demon kin that lives amongst the mortals tends to hate us and seek our destruction. It's...it's partly why I fled the planet I grew used to." She expels a heavy sigh, looking down at her feet. She didn't want to overwhelm Tora with her story. It wasn't an overly sad one and everyone she knew still lived, but it still disheartened Niha to think on.

A life living constantly on the run from forces beyond her power and understanding. Never being able to settle again and feel at home. These thoughts struck Niha with fear as she had never experienced before. "I cannot promise that the same fate will not fall on this island. But if it seems like it, then you do not have to worry. I will flee and attempt to take it with me, and you will not have to worry yourself over it." She had hoped that would both reassure him and ease her guilt for putting him at risk at all and leaves the topic at that. Now that the challenge was presented, Niha nods once and watches the man instantly vanish from her sight. She closes her eyes and focuses on the energy of the island as a whole. She uses what she learned from him to find Tora's signature through the rest of the white noise. Niha had a destination, so she kicks off and flies to it. She is not slow herself, reaching speeds that would make her blurry and difficult to focus on with the mortal eye as she cut through the air leaving a wake of wind in her path.

Her blue locks of hair whip and snap through the breeze, and Niha tucks her arms tighter around her so she has less resistance she needs to push through. She comes to a grinding halt a few feet above the crag where she can look down on where Tora waits for her. A smile crosses her lips and she waves at him eagerly. She felt a sense of pride for being able to pass this next test of his and looked forward to seeing what her new teacher would have her do next! Her shoulders sink gradually when the realization sets in that he wants to fight her, but she tries to muster her smile back to its full strength with a nod. "Okay sensei. I'll warn you though, it's not going to be very hard to beat me. But may we have a good, fair match and win or lose it'll be my pleasure to fight with you!"

With her staff in her hands, she raises it high above her head, making the orb flash brightly with a sparkling light before it showers down its angelic protection around her. She gathers her Ki up and levels an open palm down at Tora, gathering her energy to cast down an icy beam his way. She struggles to keep it trained in a straight line, leaving jagged zig zags of frost wherever the beam touches. After that, she tries to quickly fly over to him hoping that he's caught off guard, and tries to swing her fist at him and spin her leg around for a kick to his side. She didn't want to just use Tora as target practice like she was used to right away, and knew she'd need to step out of her comfort zone to even have a chance against this opponent.

Post Count: 3 | WC: 829

BATTLE TRACKER




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