Fight training was good and all but in Kuroki's opinion nothing beat the real thing. He had little interest in learning about techniques and theories, things that would make him wise or observant, since in his mind all fighting boiled down to was hitting his opponent harder than they could in return. It was a crude and very basic way of looking at it, but so what? Instead of fussing over the details wasn't it a better use of his time to play it by feel and work out what worked best for him? He hated the idea of bending himself out of shape to fit someone else's ideal, he didn't want to follow the ways of a faceless sensei he'd never even met. Practice made perfect and Kuroki was willing to fight as much as he needed to, all just to nail down his way. A masterless path.

And so once again he stood upon the battlefield, readied up in his equipment with his companions by his side. As was customary he tipped his head back and let out a lazy call, he wasn't asking for much, just for someone to give him a good run for his money.  

The battlefield wasn't all that far from the pack - he could make it there, have a fight, and get back before dark pretty easily - so he found himself coming out here more and more just to keep himself entertained. He refused to let himself fall into the same stagnant routines of his father and siblings and he wanted to train with more than just Onyx on occasion. He was incredibly tempted to just keep going past the battlefield and do a little exploration around Boreas, but he hadn't let himself just yet. For now just getting into these spars was enough to make him feel like he was making some kind of progress with his life. He hung around the outskirts of the battlefield for a while, waiting to see if any opponents would show up, and eventually he heard someone give the usual howl for someone to spar with. Giving his fire-hued coat a shake, he got up and trotted forward to find them only to find a boy that he recognized seeing around during the Ashen tournament - one of Ikigai's siblings if he had to guess. He kept running into them around here it seemed and it made him want to go visit her again. For now though he could just focus on the boy that was standing in front of him with a grin as he started getting into a battle ready stance. "We can just get right into the fight if it's all the same with you?" he offered, his golden eyes watching the horned boy and his companions closely.

Cináed Praetor

Kuroki spared a cursory glance at the newcomer and noted the familiar scent that clung to his form. So he was a northerner as well? It seemed as though his kind flocked to the Ashen Prince like moths to an open flame, he wasn't really sure why and didn't put much thought into figuring it out either. Maybe it was an opposites attract kind of deal, since all the wolves he'd met from that part of the world were all so serious. Whilst Kuroki well and truly was not- and it would only get worse as he matured. Regardless, Kuroki was quick to step up, as a sabred grin lit up[his features. There's no time like the present and he'd never been fond of pomp or ceremony. "Sweet." Was all he said, all the confirmation the northerner would get. Rushing in, Kuroki dipped low as he approached, his talons digging into the ground as his toes curled around a pawful of small rocks. Whip quick he lashed out his front right limb, sending the pebbles hurling towards Cináed's face. Yeah...by now Kuroki had fully embraced fighting dirty. As long as no real harm was done or the fight was just a casual thing he saw no reason to abide by any rules. And as a wolf he doubted his aim was good enough to pose any real threat to his eyes, it was simply a means of forcing an opening. Giving Kuroki an opportunity to sweep in quick as he rose up to his full height with the full intention of tackling the yearling down into a ground based scuffle. Kuroki vs Cináed  for spar Round 1/2 Age: under 1 year Size: Dire wolf Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Traditional Japanese tanto Defensive Battle Accessory: Black Panther Cloak Companion 1: Akita, Female - Battle Companion 2: Wild boar, Male - Battle *Companion 3: Black kite, Female - Flying Mutation 1: Antelope horns - Defensive Mutation 2: Sabre teeth - Offensive Mutation 3: Eagle talons - Offensive Skills: Expert Fighter & Expert Hunter Specialty: N/A

Ciná was glad to find that his opponent was just as willing to jump into things and skip all the formalities of things. It was one of the reasons why he liked sparring with Onyx because she could just jump into it and always put up a good fight. He squared off with the orange flecked boy with his stance set and some basic defenses in place like his ears pinned back and tail tucked out of the way, his hackles bristled as he waited for the Ashen stranger to begin. He didn't waste any time and ran forward and Cina's golden gaze followed his movements closely, but suddenly a scattering of pebbles was scattered across his face, making him flinch back and shut his eyes for a second to keep the tiny rocks from getting in his eyes, scowling as he shook his head to free himself of the irritating dust.

That brief bit of distraction and impairment was enough of an opening for his opponent to swoop in, tackling into him and making him stumble and stagger, only just barely able to catch himself since they matched each other in height and build and since his stance had been so solid before he pulled that dirty trick. Ciná caught himself and pushed back into his attacker to stop his advance, snarling as he hunkered down to fight against falling to the ground. He turned his head to try and reach for the horned boy's scruff, turning this into a shoving match and a test of their balance and will as he tried to get a stronger hold on his opponent to be the first to shove him to the ground instead.

Cináed vs Kuroki for Spar
Round 1/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Skills: Advanced Fighter & Intermediate Intellectual

Cináed Praetor

Kuroki was willing to give credit where it was due, his opponent was quick to shake off the distraction and caught himself as best as he could. The best case scenario would have been to knock the red wolf off his paws, but since he clearly had no intentions of yielding just yet the Ashen Prince was more than happy to give him a little more persuasion. He gritted his teeth as the northern yearling grabbed a hold of the scruff of his neck and used it as further leverage in their shoving match. Kuroki knew pulling away would run the risk of tightening his hold and might even inflict some damage, so instead he stayed up close and personal just as before, shoulder meeting shoulder as they continued their shoving back and forth. Just to be a pest, he twisted his neck, hoping to reach around and give the tip of his nose a playful-if not annoying- nip. Sooner or later someone was gonna lose their footing and fall, might as well throw in one more little trick before it got to that. Kuroki vs Cináed  for spar Round 2/2 Age: under 1 year Size: Dire wolf Build: Medium Offensive Battle Accessory: Traditional Japanese tanto Defensive Battle Accessory: Black Panther Cloak Companion 1: Akita, Female - Battle Companion 2: Wild boar, Male - Battle *Companion 3: Black kite, Female - Flying Mutation 1: Antelope horns - Defensive Mutation 2: Sabre teeth - Offensive Mutation 3: Eagle talons - Offensive Skills: Expert Fighter & Expert Hunter Specialty: N/A

They ended up in a shoving match, the fairly equal opponents in a stand off with his teeth holding the other boy's scruff as they pushed each other back and forth with very little progress being made from either party. He felt the Ashen boy twist his head around and for a second he thought that he was going to try and bite at his muzzle or face, but instead he just received an irritating nip to his nose. He narrowed his golden eyes at his opponent, his muzzle twitching with annoyance. He was getting tired of this stalemate they were locked in so he waited until the horned boy was about to shove back into him again and then at the last second let go of his scruff and jumped to the side, hoping that his opponent wouldn't have a chance to catch himself before he went face planting into the dirt.

Cináed vs Kuroki for Spar
Round 2/2
Age: Over 1 year
Size: Dire wolf
Build: Medium
Skills: Advanced Fighter & Intermediate Intellectual

Cináed Praetor

And the winner is...

KUROKI

CINAED must give up by submitting, fleeing or passing out. Totals: KUROKI Attack Roll: 35 Defense Roll: 95 Agility Roll: 50 Perception Roll: 54 Total: 234 Attack[35] + 80% Bonus[28.00]: 63.00 Defense[95] + 20% Bonus[19.00]: 114.00 Agility[50] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 50.00 Perception[54] + 10% Bonus[5.40]: 59.40 Total[286.40] + 5% Bonus[14.32]: 300.72 CINAED Attack Roll: 53 Defense Roll: 60 Agility Roll: 78 Perception Roll: 5 Total: 196 Attack[53] + 15% Bonus[7.95]: 60.95 Defense[60] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 60.00 Agility[78] + 0% Bonus[0.00]: 78.00 Perception[5] + 10% Bonus[0.50]: 5.50 Total[204.45] + 15% Bonus[30.67]: 235.12