Post by 'Sai on Oct 7, 2007 15:33:26 GMT -5
Clan History
[/u]Back when the village was new, several shinobi were sent out on a low-ranked mission... And only one returned alive.
They were attacked by missing-nin, and Kadohata Raiko was the only survivor. He managed to recover from his wounds, and ran away...
No.. It's not true... It can't be!
A young man, looking about twenty years old, ran. His long black hair swung into his dark eyes. Bandages covered his hands, and he winced with each pant. Behind him, he could hear people calling his name.
But he wouldn't go back. Not yet.
Raiko veered suddenly into the trees, running as fast as his wearied body would go. Some time later, he reached a small clearing. A shallow pool lay in the middle, reflecting the night sky. The man stumbled over to it, falling to his knees.
His eyes burned with tears he longed to shed, tears for his lost comrades.
But he would stay strong. His hands clenched into fists. He would avenge them.
Raiko slumped back, exhausted. His eyes slowly began to shut on their own accord. No... I can't sleep... Not... now.. he protested silently, then darkness enveloped him.
"It took you long enough."
"Oh hush. See, the boy's waking up."
Raiko opened his eyes suddenly. The clearing he had fallen asleep in was no longer empty. He quickly sat up, eyes wide.
"Calm down. We're not going to eat you."
Raiko stared. The clearing was filled with twelve different animals, each starry form looking at him. "Oh, really?" he asked sarcastically. "For all I know, you're a bunch of demons."
A tiger, the largest Raiko had ever seen or heard of, growled menacingly. "Fool! We are the Zodiac. I would hope that you know us!"
A much smaller form chuckled. A rat, stars glittering in his dark form, shook his head. "Tiger, calm down. The boy's terrified."
Raiko bristled. "I am not a boy!" he hissed.
The fluffy form of a sheep stepped toward him. "To us, you are a boy," she explained gently.
The boar snorted. "Sheep, stop babying the boy."
Tiger nodded, and Raiko slowly stood up. The whole Zodiac surrounded him in a circle. He could see all of their star-filled forms: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Boar. All of them here... But why?
Rabbit looked at Raiko sadly. "We saw when you and your fellow ninja were attacked."
Snake nodded. "We are not happy with that. Not at all. And we all know what you must do... And we can help you."
"Help...me?"
Dragon stepped forward until he was right in front of the man. "We offer you a way to fight. A new kind of ninjutsu. This jutsu will allow you to take on the form of an animal."
Rooster nodded eagerly. "Yes. Any animal, as long as you fulfill certain requirements."
"Re.. requirements?"
"Stop repeating what we say." Dog growled impatiently. "You have a working brain, yes? Use it!" he finished with a bark.
Sheep rolled her eyes, while Monkey coughed something that sounded suspiciously like "Idiot," into his hand.
Dog whipped around, only to face Horse. "No fighting. At least, not now," he amended.
Dragon glared at Dog for a moment, then turned to Raiko. The air between Raiko and Dragon shimmered for a moment, then condensed into an area about the size and shaped of a playing card. A light flashed, and Raiko covered his eyes with a arm. When the light faded, a single metal card lay on the ground.
"Pick it up already," Dog barked.
Raiko hastily obeyed. The card had the emblem of the Leaf Village engraved on one side, and the picture of a noble-looking dragon on the other.
"He always enjoys making himself look noble," Monkey whispered too-loudly.
Dragon flicked his tail, looking at Raiko still. "A small offering of blood on the card will suffice," he said quickly, stepping back into the circle. Suddenly, his form started to fade. Finally, he disappeared entirely.
"Wait, suffice for what?" Raiko yelled, looking from animal to animal.
Snake chuckled, while Rat almost fell over. "That's good," he gasped, wiping a tear away with a claw.
Sheep shook her head. "You don't expect us to tell you everything, do you?" she chided, stepping back, fading out just like Dragon.
"Don't worry, you'll do fine," Rabbit called. Then she too faded away.
Dog grumbled something, and Horse gave him a hearty shove. "What happened to the loyalty?"
"I'll show you loyalty!" He bared his teeth, and both of them slowly disappeared.
Snake tipped his head to one side. "You're the first to do this, but you'll do very well indeed," he predicted. Then he was gone.
Ox just looked at him, calm and dependability in his eyes. Tiger seemed to have a half-smile on his face as he left, while Boar just looked impatient -and slightly amused? Monkey and Rooster chattered on obliviously, and then there were none.
Reiko slowly stirred, opening his head carefully. The morning sun's brightness greeted him, and he smiled, shaking his head at the odd dream. But something was digging into his hand.
He looked down, and his mouth dropped. He still gripped the card.
And that's how the clan started. At least, that's what the grandmothers want you to believe. Did it really happen? Who knows. The choice is yours.
Overview[/u]
This Clan technically doesn’t have a Kekkei Genkai, but jutsus known only to those in their Clan, the Seirei Jobidashi No Jutsu, otherwise known as Spirit Call Jutsu, and the Yuukai no Jutsu, or the Fusion jutsu.
The Seirei Jobidashi no Jutsu requires a blood sacrifice and the proper handsigns before it takes places, while the Yuukai no Jutsu only needs a set of slightly different handsigns. Only those born into the Clan can perform these jutsus.
Traits[/u]
The Kadohata Clan is famous for being able to transform into animals. Their jutsus make them good spies and close-combat fighters.
When a child is born into the Clan, the head of the Clan uses a secret jutsu known only to the head to decide what the child’s animal should be. The child can later acquire more cards, allowing him or her to turn into different animals, but only after mastering - to a certain extent – their original animal. After a long period of time, subtle signs of animalistic traits bleed into the human form. One of the stories says a Kadohata man with a bat card eventually gained a taste for blood.
Some of the most common characteristics that appear are a refined sense of balance, and heightened hearing and sight. Others are more specific to the animal.
The animals that can be mastered are wide a varied, from anywhere from a fly to a dragon, although the latter is extremely rare, only one in every couple hundred generations. Most of the Clan have larger-than-normal chakras.
Members[/u]
Hishou Kadohata – Grandfather, age 63. Former ANBU member, with over twenty animals mastered. His original animal is a crow.
Harikonotora Kadohata – Grandmother, age 62. Former ninja, with no animals mastered. Sometimes referred to as Hariko
Ichiro Kadohata – Current ANBU member, age 32. Famous for mastering over one hundred animals. Hayaka, Natsuko, and Hoshi’s uncle. His original animal is a dragon.
Toraneko Kadohata – Jounin, age 30. Former ANBU member. Mother of Hayaka, Natsuko, and Hoshi, and sister to Ichiro. Unknown number of animals mastered. Her original animal is a tiger. Mostly referred to as Neka.
Uragiru Kadohata – Jounin, age 34. Currently deceased. Little is known about him, except the fact that he is the father to Hayaka, Natsuko, and Hoshi.
Hayaka Kadohata – Genin, age 12. Daughter of Uragiru and Toraneko Kadohata, sister to Natsuko and Hoshi. Her original animal is a cougar, over which she has little control.
Natsuko Kadohata – Age 10, currently at the Academy. Daughter of Uragiru and Toraneko Kadohata, sister to Hayaka and Hoshi. Her original animal is a fox, over which she has much control.
Hoshi Kadohata – Age 8, currently at the Academy. Daughter of Uragiru and Toraneko Kadohata, sister to Hayaka and Natsuko. Her animal is a panda. She has just started training.
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