"Well, I can't say I didn't expect this, but at least he is still alive and breathing. I watched you earlier, and I have to say, Student Ivar, I am quite curious about that Mana Construct you keep using. There seem to be several different stages of it as well. Is it some kind of ability or a new skill?"
Everyone turned to look at Cynrik, who had his hood down and a strange expression on his face.
"I assume you are asking about my Susanoo. Well, it isn't necessarily a skill; it's more like a technique similar to my sword style. Think of it as something between a registered skill and ability that the System or CSH hasn't yet recognized." As he spoke, a dense particle cloud manifested around Cynrik's body before taking the form of several translucent skeletal rib bones which surrounded his body.
"Sussa, what now?" Instructor Garrison asked while watching the strange multi-colored bones take shape.
"Susanoo, when I was a young child, I found a book about mighty beings, two siblings, Susanoo and Amaterasu. The older Sister, Amaterasu, was once an extremely high Tiered being that could even be called a Goddess in her time."
As he spoke, everyone except Brance had a physical reaction to his words, mainly because Cynrik infringed on a dangerous line. Over time, it had become taboo to talk about Gods and Goddesses; as such, throughout generations, the races of Vinestra had been taught that mentioning or even thinking the names of Deities would bring chaos and destruction.
"The Goddess of the Sun Amateratsu was said to be capable of harnessing powerful Black Flames, which were impossible to extinguish, while the younger brother, Susanoo the Storm God, was a mighty warrior who wielded a magnificent black blade known as Kusanagi."
"However, his blade alone wasn't what made Susanoo such a devastating fighter; instead, it was his ability to manifest a godly humanoid avatar made from his Mana, or as the legend calls it, Chakra. This avatar would then fight on behalf of its wielder." Looking around at his gradient skeletal Mana construct, Cynrik smirked as he mixed the lore of the Japanese Gods with that of a certain red-eyed Ninja Clan.
"The Chakra Avatar was anchored to Susanoo, and he was in turn anchored to the Construct; as such, his movements were perfectly mirrored by the avatar, turning something that should have originally been non-tangible into something tangible. Although the world at the time viewed it as having a perfect and unbreakable defense so long as it was in its perfect form, the technique could differentiate between Ally and Enemy attacks, allowing it to distinguish what attacks it blocks to conserve Resource Stat costs."
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtTo prove his point, Cynrik bounced up and down a couple of times, causing the Mana Constructed ribcage to follow his every movement.
"What do you mean, perfect form?" Feeling lost and honestly frightened by the tale being told by his student, Instructor Garrison still picked up on an essential bit of information that Cynrik seemed to gloss over.
"Sigh, well, doesn't it seem weird that I can only manifest a ribcage instead of a complete dozen meters tall avatar body? The story stated that Susanoo's technique had several developmental stages. The more experienced he became in using the technique, the more layers could be added to it, such as an entire body with limbs and a head."
"The best way to think of what an actualized Avatar would represent is a massive Mana puppet; if I punch, it punches, and so on. However, there are two pretty significant drawbacks to using this technique; for starters, it can only mitigate a percentage of Physical Damage in its current state. Second, it drains the shit out of my MP like real fast."
"Regardless, the way I see it, I can't exactly waltz into the tournament and start murking everyone with ease. So instead of using all my overpowered skills and techniques, I figure I can train my Susanno, which in this state can exert an acceptable amount of power for a Tier-3." Shrugging his shoulders, Cynrik dismissed what he dubbed Base Form Susanno and looked directly at Brance with a slight smirk.
[[You fucking weeb. Why am I even surprised you found a way to cheese the Mana Construct format and create the Uchiha's ultimate skill? I should have known better when you started using Black flames years ago.]] Gritting his teeth and wishing nothing more than to beat that annoying smirk off his brother's face, Brance felt extremely frustrated.
[[Why not? I mean, don't we practically have Sharingan as is? Our [Mana Sight] combines the benefits of three Tomoe Sharingan and Mangekyou without any downsides or drawbacks. To top it all off, we don't have that crazy visual effect aside from some particle flickers in our eyes, so it's practically invisible to anyone not in the know.]] Cynrik stated, but then his attitude shifted, and he got overly excited.
[[HEY HEY BRANCIE!!!! YOU CAN BE LIKE OBITO AND USE KAMUI. I bet I can figure out some way to bend Light in such a way that you can teleport things!]]
[[Hold on, this all seems too familiar…wait don't tell me Darling is recreating Anime shit again; what was that show called again? The one with the orange jumpsuit ninja.]] Looking between the brothers, Selene joined the conversation as she realized her boyfriend was up to his crazy ideas again.
Luckily for Cynrik, Instructor Garrison cut in before he was forced to explain himself to his non-weeb girlfriend.
"You still haven't explained how you came to wield this technique Student Ivar. It is one thing to form a full-body Mana construct, but from what I observed, Sussawhatever is way too high to be considered a basic Mana construct."
"Eh, I guess you don't know yet, but my brother and I stumbled into developing…." Before Cynrik could finish his statement, he glanced back at the unconscious Kurza, waved his hand, and transported the poor unconscious fellow into the shadow realm so that he couldn't hear what he was about to say.
"Anywho, as I was saying, my brother and I developed Supreme Mana bodies…."
"YOU WHAT! Hold on back up; what the fuck do you mean you and Student Björn built Supreme Mana Bodies." Just when Garrison thought these two little monsters couldn't become any more abnormal, Cynrik practically hit him with a left hook out of nowhere.
'Who am I? Where am I? Is this real life?' Instructor Garrison thought as his whole worldview shattered with three simple words, Supreme Mana Body.
"Shhh, Instructor, I haven't even gotten to the good part yet," holding up a finger to his lips and shushing Garrison, Cynrik controlled the conversation leaving Instructor Garrison to nod obediently.
"I've been trying to construct this technique for years, using so many combinations that I would go to sleep each night with a headache. Basic Mana constructs couldn't handle the load of pressure I wanted. The final piece of the puzzle clicked into place when I gained access to low-level Aura thanks to my Supreme Mana Body and my newly formed Elemental Manipulations."
"By combining my Aura and Killing Intent, I can build the rough exoskeleton or structure of the Construct before layering on copious amounts of Advanced Mana particles with my Manipulations. The result is as you saw, and although it is still in its infancy, my Susanoo is coming along nicely." Wearing a cocky grin and puffing out his chest, Cynrik finished his explanation leaving everyone except Brance shocked by his achievement.
"I want to congratulate you for pulling this insanity off, but when I look at you and see that cocky smile, I feel the urge to punch your face until it disappears." Staring at Cynrik with a complicated gaze, Instructor Garrison mumbled a line of unprofessional dialog only to be backed up by Brance.
"Welcome to my world, Instructor. I have dealt with this kind of shit since we were toddlers. You are better off accepting the crazy shit he spews with a grain of salt; Big Brother is a little too good at making the impossible possible." Shaking his head, Brance took several deep breaths to calm down.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmWith the confidential conversation finished, Cynrik brought Kurza back from the Shadow Realm only to find out the poor guy had come to in the world of darkness and was shaking like a leaf.
"BIG BRO IVAR, I PROMISE I WON'T BE COCKY OR ARROGANT ANYMORE! I AM SORRY; PLEASE DON'T SEND ME BACK TO THAT HELL." The moment he appeared back on solid ground, Kurza crawled over to Cynrik and hugged his leg with tears in his eyes as he pleaded for mercy.
"Shh, it's ok little Kurza; I just had to say some confidential stuff; once you sign the Mana contract I told you about, you won't have to go back to the shadow realm when we talk in the future." Fighting the urge to burst out in laughter since his "conditioning" had worked wonders on the Arrogant young master, Cynrik patted the young man's head tenderly, causing Kurza to stiffen and look around before noticing all eyes were on him.
When he saw the knowing looks of pity coming from Benny, Selene, Gabby, and Melody, Kurza felt a sense of kinship like never before, and he knew that he had allies when it came to his newly-born fear of the demon lord known as Cynrik.
Jumping to his feet, Kurza bowed to the other members of MyrkLys and introduced himself politely.
"I apologize for my earlier actions, my name is Kurza Reed Bralley, and Headmaster Rivia has sent me to fill in the 7th and final slot on the Tier-3 Competition Team. I am in your care and hope we can all become close friends shortly."
"As you may have heard earlier, I am a War Bishop with Trinity Healing Affinities, Light, Water, and Chloro, and I have been active in the last two Competitions. Thus I know how they are run and can teach you everything I know about the tournament structure. As someone who has been Tier-3 for two years, if need be, I can also explain my experiences and help you all get stronger faster."
[[Holy fuck…Cyn…you broke the poor guy.]] Brance was astonished at how four hours of merciless beating could turn an arrogant passerby into a potentially useful teammate. In his heart, he even felt a little fear when he thought about how easy it was for his older brother to bring this guy to the groveling underling status.
"We can talk about that later, Kurza; for now, go stand over by the beefy red and blue-haired guy with a small head; that's Benny; you will be his responsibility for now. You will be working side by side with him and Selene, the hot, dark-haired girl who looks like she will eat your face off." Cynrik paused and narrowed his eyes when he noticed Kurza checking out Selene due to his introductions.
"Oi, don't be getting any fucking ideas about making a move on my woman, or I will fucking eviscerate you." Adding a bit of Killing Intent to his words, Cynrik watched as Kurza scurried behind Benny while nodding rapidly.
"Good, now then, Instructor Garrison, we should talk about Classes, I am not sure if anything has changed, so we are in your hands again." Smiling with a smile that wasn't a smile, Cynrik faced Garrison and saw the man was confused and a little scared of him now.
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