(D1, EA) Not Quite a Spear, Not Exactly Dancing

[Kuni Yasu]

Pretty welcome? "Yeah?" There's a shift to her, possibly her posture...straightening a bit, just seeming a bit lighter on her feet, perhaps. "Yeah. I...keep expecting there to be a catch, honestly." Her tone is only half-serious as she inspects the practice weapon for damage. They were dangerous enough without bamboo splinters to contend with.

"I'll grant you've got the strength for it, Tanabe-san, and you know your way around a sword, yes?" She's seen him wearing his daisho and has made assumptions. "Ever work with spears, for that matter? There's bits as carry over from both."

"I think...it makes sense to show first, then see how you look with that before any kind of advice." Yasu has not taught anyone to use this weapon before, so they would both probably learn things. But it seems safer to at least have some movement in common rather than jumping straight into sparring when one of them is unfamiliar with the weapon.

Settling into the very first stance she'd learned, Yasu swings through a kata that includes a core of defensive and offensive moves. Powerful sweeps of the blade, that would easily be deadly, interspersed with smaller moves that seem like they would redirect someone else's strikes. The other end of the weapon comes into play as well, as Yasu easily reverses with a sharp thrust of the blunt end up into what would be someone's face. She runs through the sequence once, relatively slowly, before repeating it at speed and pausing with the practice naginata at rest beside her. "Run through it with me slow?"

[Susaki Tanabe]

That got an eyebrow raise out of the Otter "A catch? What do you mean?" He asked as she got settled into her stance and started to go through her kata. Tanabe watched with interest and focus as Yasu walked through the form slowly and watched further as she went through it faster.

As she asked about his weapon experience he nodded "Yes my father showed me how to use a sword and I've plenty of experience around a spear but that is more against fish than people if im honest." He said with a bit of a chuckle as he set up across from her. "Sure let's take it nice and slow."

[Kuni Yasu]

"Slow to start at least. With that experience, I suspect we'll pick up a little pretty quickly." She bows after he seems to be set, shifting into the same grounded stance she'd shown earlier, the bamboo blade dropping to be held nearly parallel to the ground, one hand counterbalancing the weight, held near her hip.

The early moves of the form can mirror one another, nobody clashing. Yasu holds the long shaft with the ease of years of practice, the weight well chosen and easy to maneuver as she sweeps up, knocking an imaginary blade away and shifting grip for a downward slash that could easily cleave a thigh or hip, her feet moving easily through the paces with a rustle of fabric."

This *is* slow, so there's room and focus left to talk. "When things seem too good, a bit too spot on to be believed, don't you wonder what you're missing?"
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Fluffy roll to finish things out. Teaching is very stressful! Apparently. Will use this to get a bit fancier in further posting.

Fluffy sparring to finish narrative D2. Using Earth. | TN: 2 | Success: 6 / Opportunity: 1 / Strife: 6

[Susaki Tanabe]

Tanabe followed along with her moves the practice weapons mirroring eachother swishing through the air but not clashing just yet. Despite her initial concerns he handles the weapon easily and has little issue maneuvering it about. It's clear he lacks specific training with the weapon but he has enough cross discipline and combat knowledge to make up for it.

He smirks at her "No I typically just assume that means I'm even better than I think I am." He says with a confident but somewhat teasing tone.

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D1 fluffyartial arts Melee earth roll | TN: 2 | Success: 4 / Opportunity: 0 / Strife: 3

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu chuckles, foot thumping hard on the mat with the forward thrust, that is torn out to the side as they pivot to, presumably, face an attacker to that side. The thrust goes by Tanabe's right as she turns left. Mirrored, the maneuver leaves them back to back, and he doesn't see the troubled look that shifts across her expression, though her more serious tone hints at it. "That's a dangerous overconfidence in my line of work though. Most anywhere to the south, really. Too many things want to trick you with offers too good to be true. We learn distrust early."

[Susaki Tanabe]

An eyebrow raises a little though she can likely only hear it in the question he asks "distrust of others sure, distrust of offers makes sense but distrust in one's own ability? Seems to me in a dangerous situation where you can't be sure what's true or not trusting in yourself is one of the only sure things." He said his breath slightly heavy from dealing with the unfamiliar weapon.

"I'm just guessing though, you're the expert out of the two of us. Tell me down south in the thick of it what do you trust in if you can't even trust your own training?"

[Kuni Yasu]

Yasu is quiet through the next maneuvers, possibly due to the extra effort to keep her own form while glancing back to observe his, since she was instructing and all. Keeping an eye seems particularly important her grip and stance shift for a powerful low sweep, rising into a thrust that would be reasonably similar to the same sort of move with a spear.

“I think we’re talking a bit about different things, she says swinging back around to face Tanabe, her own breath coming heavy with this third run through the form. “But yeah, you have to trust your abilities…but entirely honestly. Overconfidence gets you and others killed. Told you, nothing’s unbreakable. When things around you seem like they’re going too easy? If you know your abilities, you don’t think it’s easy because you’re good, you start thinking about traps that want you thinking like that.”

He really is handling the form with relative ease, so she starts shifting from mirroring the form, to playing the part of the imaginary moves the form is busy countering and attacking, wooden blade meeting his blocking moves, haft blocking his.

[Susaki Tanabe]

Tanabe went quiet as well as he moved through the motions she showed him. When he focused on training his big personality dimmed some and gave way to a focus similar to what she saw before they started wrestling. He didn't joke, or grin but focused on the movements maneuvering the wooden weapon through the space faster and faster. He was clearly still a little uncomfortable with the weapon just due to unfamiliarity but he possessed a physicality that made up for it.

his own breath was a little labored as they finish that pass through "Works different muscles." he said off handedly as he rolled his shoulders. He thought about what she was saying and nodded seriously when she finished "That makes sense." he said after a second "So you need more than just muscle and prowess to fight that fight. Need smarts too. Can't say I've dealt with anything like what you're describing, most of my opponents have just been either sumai where you just bulldoze your way through or drunk ronin or bandits." he shrugged his breathing calming to normal "But i have no problem admitting my ignorance of something, and listening to the advice of those that know better." he said with a small smile giving her a significant look.

As they started back up again he went to it with fervor blocking the moves and launching attacks in turn the gym filling with the sound of their hard work their breathing and the sharp sound of wood on wood.

[Kuni Yasu]

It was reassuring, how quickly he took the point, that he could and did step back from the bravado he wore as easily as breathing. A thoughtful smile lifts the edges of her lips with the crack and slide of bamboo on wood as she meets his blade and slides it aside to step closer, her long blade only just sliding across his ribs. "Good to hear," she said quietly, meeting his eyes for a moment.

The small smile grows to a fierce grin as she scoots back with two long sliding steps to reset her guard as they begin to spar in earnest, leaving little breath for conversation. She can see where to offer advice later as time and his inexperience with the weapon tired him a bit faster. Even then, the strength behind his weapon when they connect is formidable. Her skill lets her keep a solid center to keep pushing the blows away and return them with solid whacks of her own, but she can see that in the chaos of an actual battlefield, it would take very little for things to turn the other way. She falls into the flow of bodies and weapons with evident enjoyment, until she calls out, "enough!" between panting breaths and scoots back out of engagement range.

"Really good, honestly, Tanabe-san," she says when breath allows. Sweat from her forehead has terminally smeared her mask since she hadn't set up with a headband today. It's looking pretty awful by this point, the painted eye seeming to melt, and white running down onto her neck. Cleaning and reapplying that would certainly go along with the necessary bath after this.

The strained ankle had not seemed to bother her overmuch through the familiar moves, though she shifts now to give it a rest. She flexes her free hand, working out the sting from their solid blows. "Form's solid enough, mostly, and a little practice'd get muscles used to it. I'd be happy to practice with you while we're here at least."

[Susaki Tanabe]

Tanabe shivered ever so slightly at the gentle touch of the practice weapon against his ribs his eyes meeting hers easily. As she stepped back his grin remained and he settled into a stance that mirrored her own.

This was different than the practice, his blows were fierce but restrained moving fast and furious the weapons clacking against each other again and again. The blows that land are stinging but not debilitating and as they sparred his smile only grew as he too became almost entranced with the flow of combat the back and forth, skill versus raw power. Had they been on a battlefield it could have been anyone's guess who would come out alive. That thrill was what he loved about competing. As she called enough he took a step back his breath labored but the enjoyment clear on his features.

at her compliment he chuckled a little "Well what can I say, I had a good teacher." he said giving her a wink. If her running face paint bothered him or blunted his clearly sharp interest in her he made no obvious hints to that notion "I'm sure I have a lot to learn Yasu-san I'd be happy to have as many meetings as you're willing to offer. Though I hope we'd be able see each other outside the dojo as well. Another trip to the baths wouldn't be unwelcome either. But I'd hope you don't get sick of me." he said with a wink as he held out a hand for her weapon to go rack them both.