31 Team 146
[Name - Kaito | Level 27 Sunagakure Genin [1 100 / 16 200 EXP] | HP - 350 / 350
Title - Sunagakure Genin (+30% EXP and reputation from Sunagakure missions), Tanigakure Enemy (+10% EXP from Tanigakure enemies)
Attributes:
Strength - 18→ 26 (+5) | Agility - 19→ 28 (+4) | Vitality - 23→ 30 (+5) | Chakra - 38 → 56 (+5)
Chakra control: [B-rank]
Perk - Puppeteer (Increased growth rate of puppet-related skills)
Skills: Puppet Creation Mastery (B), Puppet Control Mastery (B), Poison Mastery (C), Information Gathering (D), Sunagakure Taijutsu (D), Shuriken Mastery (E), Kunai Mastery (E), Stealth (E), Sand Serpent Swordsmanship (E)
Jutsu: Mystic Palm Technique (C), Katonjutsu Fire Blast (C), Katonjutsu Rain of Fire (C), Katonjutsu Fire Shuriken (D), Fire Clone (E), Burning Hands (E), Katonjtsu Fire Bullet (E)
Hidden Art: Katon Petrifying Smoke [Emi clan] (D)
Puppets - Jinx [Shuriken Launcher N°42] (B), Sand Serpent (C), Crow (C)
Equipment - Sunagakure Uniform (+4 all), Sunagakure headband (+1 Chakra), Bandit Ring (+1 Strength), Yellow-steel Blade (Increased sharpness), Puppet Brigade Gloves (+5 DEF), Bandit Pendant (+1 Vitality)]
Kaito had become a new man over the past year. Farming missions proved very efficient at increasing his strength. With increasingly more funds from completing missions and from their status of 'elite team' of Taki's platoon, receiving a monthly stipend of 100 000 Ryô, Kaito managed to upgrade the shuriken Launcher to B-rank. Using the Sand Serpent Infiltration mission as a source of inspiration, Kaito created a swordsman puppet.
Training with Eiji in close combat allowed him to become stronger as well, and while the gap between them greatly widened, Kaito was confident he could take on low-level and mid-level genins in close combat, even those who specialized in it. And this was no small feat among puppeteers.
However, his greatest improvement stemmed from his puppet control mastery, reaching B-rank, allowing him to use three puppets at the same time, requiring less strings to control each. The more complex a puppet, the more strings it required to be control, which is why the sky-high limit was 10 puppets at a time, something that was only achieved by Chiyo, a legendary kunoichi in Sungakure. Stories of her taking down an outpost by herself were as popular as always, and she was a role model, even though she had retired after the third Shinobi War.
Although Sasori managed to increase this limit artificially, turning himself into something non-human, Kaito was content to have reached B-rank already in puppet mastery, allowing himself to be more efficient in combat, and much stronger as well, as he could now use three puppets instead of just one or two.
[Jinx [Shuriken Thrower Puppet n°42 Original] - [B→C-rank]
A humanoid puppet that can launch paralysis gas and shurikens through its mouth, arms and belly. Although it is weak in close combat, it is very resilient.
HP: 250/250 → 400 / 400
Defense Power: 30 (+20) | Strength - 30 | Agility - 20 (-5) | Vitality - 30 (+10)
Perk: Tanigakure Steel Plates (-5 Agility, +20 Defense, +10 Vitality)
Skills: Mechanic Shuriken Launch (fire rate: 14 → 18/s, Damage Multiplicator : 1 → 2) (C), Tanigakure Giant Shuriken Launch (E→D), Paralysis gas blast (E→D), Katonjutsu Fire blast (C), Katon Petrifying Smoke (D)
Ammunition: 1600 Shuriken [E], 400 doses of Mutant Steel Tail Scorpion [C], 5 Oasis Paralysis gas Containers [D], 2 Tanigakure Giant Shuriken [D]]
Jinx's increase in rank came from several factors. Knowing that he would be stationary in most fights, he did not need Jinx to have high agility. Thus, he increased its defence, sacrificing some of its agility. It was a necessary sacrifice, and with both Eiji and Aki protecting him at all time, he never encountered a situation when he had to move from his initial spot.
However, this was not the only improvement. He had become a poison expert in the past year, having bred a race of Mutant Steel Tail Scorpion. Using the infamous jar of demonic poison, putting hundreds of poisonous insects in it, the mutant steel tail scorpion adapted and evolved into a species capable of producing C-rank poison. On regular enemies, the poison would inflict between 10 and 30 points of damage per second, depending on their vitality. Regular genins would die in seconds if a shuriken so much as brazed them. This was how deadly Jinx had become. The Tanigakure Giant Shuriken, which he had looted in an assassination mission, were even deadlier, capable of dealing as much as 250 points of damage if it landed. This much made it a threat to chunin, not to mention mere genins.
[Sand Serpent - [C-rank]
A humanoid puppet wielding two swords at a time, and releasing steam through its ears and joint, making it very scary.
HP: 650 / 650
Defense Power: 40 | Strength - 50 (+20) | Agility - 35 (+20) | Vitality - 45 (+20)
Perk: Mechanic Steam Pressure (+20 Strength, +20 Agility, +20 Vitality) [C]
Skills: Sunagakure Taijutsu [D], Sand Serpent Swordsmanship [E], Burning Hands (E), Katonjtsu Fire Bullet (E), Kunai Tongue (E)
Item: Tanigakure Steel Sword [D]]
His greatest investment came from the Sand Serpent's innovation, in which he put a lot of coal in its body. Tanigakure steel plates had been put as well, so that it would not burn from inside. The innovation of the Sand Support was something never seen before in Naruto, a pure creation from his mind that possessed knowledge of the modern world: steam machine.
By burning coal in its body with his chakra, he could build pressure that would be released whenever he moved it. Although the design was still weak, he had enough coal in its body to last for hours, which was enough for a prolonged battle. The pressure system increased its physical stats significantly, and even though his taijutsu skill were only at D-rank level, and his swordsmanship at E-rank level, the Sand Serpent Puppet could beat any kenjutsu and taijutsu specialist below level 20 with ease.
[Crow - [C-rank]
HP: 150/150
Defense Power: 10 | Strength - 10 | Agility - 35 | Vitality - 15
Skills: Katonjutsu Fire Shuriken Barrage (Fire rate: 10/s) (D), Shadow Wing Slash (D), Cawing Paralysis (E), Sound Transmission [E], Stealth [E]
Ammunition: 200 Shuriken [E], 200 doses of Mutant Steel Tail Scorpion [C]]
His third and last puppet Crow was the least impressive, yet one of the most convenient one. It was weak and small, and lacked any proper defence which made any ninjutsu that landed a threat. However, few ninjutsu specialist could aim accurately at a flying puppet that could rain a fire shuriken barrage from its feathers, 60 meters above ground level. It fared pretty well against genin-level flying summons as well, as its shadow wing slash could deal between 60 and 120 points of damage. Using its high agility, it was enough to deal with most threats in the air.
Making it fly was the challenge, and once again, the steam machine system allowed it to fly as it was pretty light in terms of weight and as long as he sustained it with chakra, he could make its altitude stable. The design was pretty complicated, and he had to make many attempts before getting the right ratio for the wings to minimize the chakra output cost to maintian its altitude. But eventually, he managed to create this masterpiece.
Besides its combat support convenience, it could also spy on people from afar, using the sound transmission skill he had earned from an Otagakure shinobi encountered in a anti-spy mission.
With these three puppets, Kaito was basically equivalent to a team of genin by himself. Even Eiji, who underwent a metamorphosis over the past year, could only barely contend with the Sand Serpent puppet, the difference in sheer strength being too wide.
Still, both Eiji and Aki had shown enough potential to match Kaito's insane training regiment, and enough willpower to farm missions at an inhuman rate. Even if their progress paled slightly in comparison to Kaito's insane growth rate, they were already far above the standards of the Sunagakure Genin Corps.
[Name - Eiji | Level 25 Sunagakure Genin | HP - 510 / 510
Attributes:
Strength - 48 | Agility - 38 | Vitality - 51 | Chakra - 24
Chakra control: [D-rank]
Perk - Swordsman of the Sand (Increased growth rate in swordsmanship)
Skills: Sungakure Wind Swordsmanship Art (B), Sunagakure Taijutsu (C), Transformation (D), Shuriken Mastery (E), Kunai Mastery (E), Stealth (E), Sand Serpent Swordsmanship (E)
Jutsu: Wall of Water (D), Suiton Pillar Thrust (D), Suiton Water Palm (D), Suiton Water Clone (E)
Equipment - Sunagakure Uniform [D], Sunagakure headband [D], Tanigakure Black Steel Sword [C]]
Eiji's physical stats were already above low-chunin standards, and while he was a bit lacking chakra-wise, he had worked on his weaknesses and learned a few more suiton jutsus to be more versatile and more unpredictable on the battlefield.
[Name - Aki | Level 21 Sunagakure Genin | HP - 210 / 210
Attributes:
Strength - 18 | Agility - 20 | Vitality - 21 | Chakra - 64
Chakra control: [C-rank]
Perk - Fan Master of the Sand (Increased growth rate in wind ninjutsu)
Skills: Kunai Mastery (D), Fan Mastery (D), Sunagakure Taijutsu (E), Shuriken Mastery (E), Stealth (E), Sand Serpent Swordsmanship (E)
Jutsu: Wind Tempest (C), Aero Blade (C), Orb of wind (C), Futon Wind Shuriken (D), Futon Wind Bullet (D), Wind Piercing Kunai (D), Wind Palm (E), Blast of Air (E), Zephyr Mirage Clone (E)
Equipment - Sunagakure Uniform [D], Sunagakure headband [D], Kameyo Clan Twin fans [C]]
Aki had really grown a lot, having received a lot of support from a Taki's daughter, a chunin specialized in futon jutsu. While she was a bit lacking in terms of taijutsu, her combat skills in close combat were enough to survive most genin-level encounters. However, her strength stemmed from her incredibly strong futon jutsu. Chakra-wise, she was already at mid-chunin level.
