Tales of a Ninja Magician: Of Journeys We Make

Stepping Over

"That thing Mana said, I think we need to change how we confront the enemy," Skaven declared as the two remaining Stars rushed ahead of the hectic backstage corridor that has become a setting of a genuine nightmare for the squad.

"Damisan fell for the trap too, and that was after we warned each other to be more careful," Shige-H replied in a quiet, reflective tone.

"Damisan acted as a protector for the dolls. He hadn't changed his approach to how he acts on the battlefield or adapted his approach at all. We need to be better," Skaven said.

"But we're the only two left," Shige-H responded after a moment of awkward silence between the two. It was apparent that both young ninja knew what this meant, though Shige-H spoke up just to set it in stone and extract Skaven's promise.

"Yeah, I guess I must take charge then," Skaven nodded with a hefty sigh.

"Okay, I'll stay behind you. Watch out and don't hit the enemy by accident. I can treat the knife wounds, you know." Shige-H stalled a bit to fall behind the Nara as the two rushed faster and faster toward what they could have sworn was a looping bunch of corridors as they took random turns every time. Regardless of this dire approach to pathfinding, they took their turns together without questioning each other or bickering about it.

"No, you stay behind in battle already. You need to step out and cause havoc. Break free, whoop-ass for once. Fight like it's your last day to do so and like you're willing to enjoy every last bit of it," Skaven denied Shige-H's request.

"Well, I guess you're the leader for now, so..." Shige-H was the one sighing now.

A wall of grinning, red-eyed shadow clones of Purini-D with knives and curtains in hands blocked off their paths. Cackling emanated from the walls themselves as the two prepared for what might have become the Stars' last stand to decide their ultimate score of this exercise. Chakra flares lit up around Shige-H's fists and blew up in size, changing color to an emerald hue of her Unmaker Fist that reverses the effects of a healing ninjutsu technique.

"Genjutsu: Bearer of Darkness!" a version of Purini-D yelled out in a visceral tone after weaving a single Tiger hand seal. Shige-H's fighting spirit faltered as she backed up a few steps. The woman looked around as the dimly lit room around her became darker and darker still until she couldn't see anything other than blackness.

"Don't lose your head. This illusion only covers up one sense, you can still sense the other clones in different ways," Skaven barked out directions as a genuine leader would.

"I don't need to!" Shige-H yelled out from the bottom of her chest as she slammed her burning arms together, causing an eruption of an emerald shock wave around her that passed through Skaven like thin smoke, expanding all over the place to cover up as much of the room as possible.

"That's reckless, you might hit a clone with the seal trap!" Skaven reacted, but Shige-H shook her head.

"That's fine. The range of this attack is insane, so if I hit the right one–it won't matter. Remember what Mana said, the user of this technique needs to be conscious and focused for it to work," Shige-H replied as the frightened clones all vaulted over the expanding destructive ring. Despite passing through an entire mass of inanimate objects, the shock wave barely showcased any of its effects just yet, though the clones and Purini-D himself knew better than to lower their guard just because of that.

Medical ninjutsu wasn't meant for inanimate objects. Neither could reverse medical ninjutsu show off the true fearsomeness of its effects against them.

A version of Purini-D, true or false became impossible to tell without Mana's chakra sensory on their side, vaulted over the Stars, flinging a handful of tomato-sized and shaped sizzling objects at them before shooting up its arms with knives from behind its back and sticking them into the ceiling to stay above the opposition. The tomato-bombs splattered, as squishy vegetables were known to do, but it wasn't healthy and pudgy innards of one that spilled on the floor, rather a wine-colored gas cloud filled the entire space.