Training is a Necessity [Amakusa Training]

[Amakusa Takehiro]

It was early in the morning, the sun barely peeking up over the horizon. The clouds in the sky almost covered out all of the sun's light, and the wind was harsh and strong. And Takehiro was loving every second of it. With Toshi at his side, Takehiro stood in the center of his camp. At the same time, the two would cup their hands over their mouths and shout,

"RISE AND SHINE, LADIES!"
"RISE AND SHINE, LADIES!"

All Amakusa troops would be ushered out of their barracks and put into ranks once they were awake. Time for some TRAINING.

[Brandt Solveig]

Brandt was already half awake when he heard the drill call. Having dedicated himself to training, he was spending more time around Takehiro. He had decided to sleep in the barracks the night before so that he would be here and ready in the morning.

Wearing no armor, just a simple rough sewn brown tunic and his blood stained pants. He wasn't exactly sure what to expect. But he was going to make the most of his experience here under Takehiro.

Moving from the barracks along with the rest of the soldiers. He did not really consider himself much different thqn the others. He wouldnt try to put himself before the rest. So the giant would file in to rank like the others here for training, ignoring the few complaints from behind stating they couldn't see a thing.

[Kuroshi Maki]

It was still early but I was already awake, it seems today would be a training day and all the ranks had to be present. I hadn't been here for some time as I went off training and in a whole different way not just my body but my mind as well. I had changed but I would not show it here. As I hear Tak shout I would simply make my way there. My armor wasn't really covering my whole body but still it did its job. Holding the Guan Do in one hand and let it rest upon the shoulders. Half my face was covered with a mask. Blond hear dancing upon my head yet I was Asian.

Arriving at the spot I would just lean against a large rock at the edge of the training field and see all the people line up. I wasn't there to play these games. I fought at the same side yes. But I in no place was a soldier used for Tak his own gain. I did noticed a large man standing among the man but size would not always say it all. I seem to be a general in this army so for me standing there would seem wrong.

" Why are you yelling this early in the morning! "

My words directed to Tak, I did not care what the men would think, the ones that fought along side me were of a different kind, we were less peaceful to say the least. We did what had to be done with no second thought.That's how I would come across to those around me.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

[OoC: If anyone wants to hop in later, you're welcome to. But I don't want to put this on hold for too long. It's going to move as quick as we can make it, because training threads are super important for the army.]

"TO GET YOU ALL UP AND ACTIVE, OF COURSE!" the Daimyo chirped, letting out a chuckle. Toshi would smirk, paying little heed to Maki and his act of not falling into ranks. Takehiro saw something in the boy, so he would support him, even if he had any say the brat would be forced into tougher training for his attitude.

"Alright, men! Are you ready to get some work done?!"
"Sir, yes, sir!"
"That was pathetic! How about we put a little energy into it?!"
"SIR, YES, SIR!"
"Much better! Now, I've been pretty lax on you lot lately, and while I feel you all deserved your rest, it's time to get back into action! We are surrounded by threats on all sides - the Tokugawa to the North, the Imagawa to the South, the Takeda to the East, and the Kitabatake, across the Western waters! Dealing with situations such as these, you must be willing to deal with any and all threats, and absolutely any time! So, today will be the first day of many, of rigorous training exercises that will transform you all into battle-hardened warriors capable of fending off even the powerful Imagawa forces!"

The men would let out a powerful battle cry at the end of Takehiro's semi-speech, before Toshi stepped in front of Takehiro. The men would continue their cry until the general rose a hand to quiet them. In mere seconds, the cries ended, and the general began his speech.

"This training will be difficult, as I am sure you all understand. But, I urge you, should you ever feel like it is too much, push forward. Nothing will be gained of quitting, but everything may of perseverance." The men all pounded their fists to their chests once, and rose them in unison, letting out a single roar in response to show their determination. "That is what I like to see," Toshi smiled. "Very well! Your first trial will commence here and now!"

The Amakusa leaped from his podium and to the front of the men, where the ranks began. They would be the perfect set-up to begin this trial, which would be tough on them and Toshi himself. Holding up a single hand toward the army, Toshi would begin to explain the details.

"You are capable of fighting under desirable circumstances - well fed and thirst quenched, in weather that is comfortable to the human body - but you must learn to fight in environments that do not help you. Fight when you are weighed down by heavy rains, or when your lips are chapped and cracked and you feel as though you have not had the wonder of water touch your lips in ages. Do these, and you will come one step closer to being the greatest warriors in Nippon."

The men seemed confused with what Toshi asked of them, but it would be simple with a little trial-and-error. The men would be set up at a course, 100 yards in a straight line. They needed to run from one end to the other and then back. The first length would be run with the runner weighed down incredibly by the moisture in the air, as it would fill their clothes and make them heavy, as well as fill up all their armor with water. Then the second length would be run with Toshi stripping them of all of that moisture, and all of that in the air surrounding them as they ran, harsh, dry winds dehydrating them quickly. They would feel as if their skin were to crack with each step they took. And each and every soldier was expected to complete this run.

[Brandt Solveig]

Brandt had watched carefully, listened attentively and followed suit with the rest of the men when they roared out and banged upon their chests. In a way he felt a little big of nostalgia. Almost as if he and his former Brethren were preparing to head into the raid season.

Takehiro certainly could carry his words. Not only was he good in the field, it was clear he knew how to command a force. Brandt shouldn't have been surprised though. There was a lot the man could do that made it seen as if the gods favored him well and had a special destiny in mind.

Soon enough though, Toshi would bark his instructions as Brandt began stretching in preparation. Those pale green eyes would look toward the end, his mind focusing upon his goal. Nothing would stop him this day, or any foe that matter.

Brandt would wait for the signal and begin his run. The giants agility had certainly improved as of late. There was a good chance he might even outrun some of the others. The current conditions on his first run weren't all that difficult for the nord.
His body was accustomed to crappy, cold weather. He would make it to the other side, his clothes soaked from sweat and moisture alike. Over all though, the giant would still be good to go. Turning back around, he would start the trek back to where he came from.

It was there that he began to have a much harder time. Brandt's pace dropping considerably as he pushed him way forward. A hot environment was something he wasn't so familiar with. Brandt had raided in hotter locations a few times. But nothing like this.

The viking could feel his throat drying up, the dry air running down his throat only making it harder to fight off coughing. Brandt could feel the strain of dehydration throughout his body as well. Muscle cramps and tightening were slowing the hulking mass down, but eventually he would reach start again. Wheezing for air, the giant would take a knee to catch his bearings. That certainly was a little slice of the underworld.

[Ichimura Ryunosuke]

As he heard the Daimyo and his adviser speak about training in the harshest environments, Ryunosuke, who had also woken up to the shout of the two, understood. They had not been exposed to wars lately, and that meant disintegration of the fighting spirit of the people. He quickly girded his howitzer, but he made sure that he brought no ammunition with him - he meant to train on fighting in close-range, and sometimes taking up some boulder and using it as ammunition. But hearing something that the first training course would be a training run of 100 yards back and forth, Ryunosuke decided to join in the run.

When he started the run, it was such a breeze for him, and he covered 50 yards within one second without much effort. But at that moment, he felt something was odd in his clothes, and he felt so soggy. He wondered why, as he was used to running 50 yards without sweat. When he saw his clothes, he was shocked that he was soaked head-to-toe, and it was not even sweat but a huge amount of water. But as he managed to carry the very large howitzer while still agile in his movements, it was no consequence for him as he ran the remaining 50 yards within a blink longer than a second. Not wasting the momentum he swiveled around and started to run back towards the starting position.

As he ran back however, the moisture started to dissipate, and in return, a thick dryness started to envelop his body. Although he also covered the third 50 yards within a second, his muscles started to cramp, and he felt as if his skin was chipping off him like sheets of porcelain as he ran the remaining 50 yards. Only the momentum of his former run aided him as he covered the remaining 50 yards in 2 seconds. But, as he finished the run, he knelt down on the ground, and then the rest of his body fell down, only his arms supporting his body as he was gasping for air, and sometimes swallowing his saliva which he hoped will pass for water in this time.

[Kuroshi Maki]

Hearing him talk, it seems he was really pumping up the men, and then his right hand man started to speak as well about fighting in harse conditions. Hell I knew all about those. I hardly ever fought a battle were I wasn't hungry or thirsty or not wounded. I did understand however that these men are not all fighters from the start. Pushing myself from the rock I would walk towards the course. Walking passed Toshi I would simply gave him a stare. Knowing this men was probably the strongest here without any add of armor or weapons didn't really bother me that much. I had other plans in mind and I had to face them sooner or later face to face explaining my leave. But for now I would help them boost the men. Speaking at those that follow me under my rank.

" Is this all they can bring! We know how it feels to fight when we are wounded, or hungry or thirsty. This is nothing and if I see one slacking off I will kill you as you are nothing but WEAK!"

This would boost those that fought under my rank as they knew what we had been trough. As I would burst into a sprint holding the Guan Do onto my shoulders I could feel myself become more heavy yet it didn't stop me at all. Reaching the other side I would Dash back into a sprint as well. Soon I could not breath or swallow and it was pure survival. Yet even if my body would crack from the dry heat I would not stop. Getting back I would not allow myself to drop on a knee and tried to hold my composure.

[Gabriella Santos]

Gabriella arrived late to the field. Head spinning slightly for too much the night before. Finding out what was expect of them from another. She was actually glad at the moisture in the air. She was already dehydrated and while the water sapped heat from her, it revitalised her slightly at the same time. She lined up and started the run alongside the other men. It wasn't that she was a soldier that she had decided to take part. But that she didn't want to let the other men of the Totomi think that she was weak. 

She pushed herself to run, she was slower then other she knew. She staggered, she panted and her head pounded worse then her arm, but she wouldn't let that stop her. Her kimono slowly getting soaked by the water in the air as she ran through it, plus sweat from forcing herself to do so. Eventually she reached the other side and started the run back. It was then, as the wetness of the air faded, a sapping feeling, like she was drying out. She glared at the Daimyo and Toshi. This weather was unnatural and one of them had to be to blame.

As the wet air turned moisture-less, she cursed once more. Her head pounding worse. She needed a drink badly, ad for once she meant just water. Not a drop of alcohol until her system could recover. Pushing herself on however, she hoped that once she finished one of the men leading the exercise would take pity on her. Crossing the line, she felt like a wreak. She wasn't build for this, she thought slowly letting herself sit down on the ground. She didn't care if her kimono got dirty for it, right now she didn't at least.  

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Aside from the mercenary and the three officers, there were few who managed to make it through the course in their first run. Many collapsed, and needed to be dragged away and given time to recover, due to being unused to the dryness. There were some who did pass with flying colors, however, the most noteworthy of which being six women who breezed through it and showed no signs of being worn out. Every soldier who passed - which would end up becoming every soldier, after several runs - would be rewarded for their efforts and relieved of their dryness. Toshi would increase the moisture in front of them to form spheres of pure water they could drink if they so chose.

"You all did well, and I expect to see that level of enthusiasm only increase throughout the day," Toshi started just as men from the other side of camp started pushing over wheelbarrows filled with stone weights. The weights would then be distributed, stronger and larger soldiers getting stronger and larger weights. "Fasten these to your ankles, men!" Takehiro would shout once everyone had their weights given to them. The men would find that the strongest of soldiers and officers would be given weights up to 600 lbs, while the weakest and smallest had 100 at the lightest. This was not going to be a walk in the park.

"Your next task is simple: Run an obstacle course with 19 walls in the way. The first is a single foot high, the second is two, the third is three, and so on until the the tenth wall being ten feet tall. The nine after it all decrease in size by a foot, so the obstacle course is the same from whatever side you run it. You must make it over each of the walls one way, and then run the obstacle course a second time. This must be done with your weights on."

It was time to see how well the men could adjust to being weighed down so heavily.

[Brandt Solveig]

Figures.. Takehiro really likes those weights.

The giant was as ready as he would ever be, having rehydrated thanks to Toshi's spheres of water. Some things these people could do seemed amazing sometimes. That was for sure. But now his mind would step upon the new task before him. Thankfully Brandt was not unfamiliar with this kind of thing either.

Takehiro himself had introduced the Nord to his own pair the day they had met. That would help a little bit but he doubted very much that this would be easy to complete. It was hard enough to simply walk with them, let alone climb walls. Guess it was a good thing he was so tall.

Brandt would strap the weights to his ankles as he had previously done, and then he would begin the course. The pace he chose wasn'tthe quickest, but the giant was looking toward the endgame. These weights drained stamina quickly, so he would be careful not to over work himself. After all, he would be carrying over twice his weight.

The first three walls would give the giant the least issues as he could step over them without much of an issue, however as they got taller he realized how much of a pain in the rear it would be. However the Nord would not give up. He would continue until he reached the middle wall.

Brandt knew this would be the hardest part, but he had the determination of the gods. His body was already sore, sweat drenched his clothes. The giant would bend at the knees and jump to grab the top of the wall. His fingers would lose grip however, the pull of the weight tearing the skin of his hands as it happened.

Swearing under his breath, he would attempt it again with injured hands. Roaring out as if in the heat of battle he would grab the wall and strain every muscle in his body as he lifted himself and the weights up. It was slow going and he nearly thought his arms would pull away from his torso. Bit they held as he managed to make it over the top and dropped with a mighty crash upon the earth.

The worst was done, but he still had the last half of the course to finish. The foreigner would revert to his previous tactics as he finished crawling over the last of them and made his way to the end. Dropping to bis knees, the giant would relish the rest as he awaited the next test, tearing cloth from his pants to wrap his torn hands.

[Ichimura Ryunosuke]

Ryunosuke was surprised when he became reinvigorated immediately, and also when a ball of pure water appeared at his front for him to drink. Whoever that new assistant of Lord Amakusa was, he surely was someone very powerful to make them feel like they were soaked in water, or make them very dehydrated. After gulping down all of the water that was at the front of him, he made himself ready for the next challenge before him.

Strapping the weights onto his ankles, Ryunosuke then tried to walk. The weights bore on him heavily, as if he was carrying the equivalent of his howitzer on each of his ankles, but as they were smaller, it felt much heavier. He struggled to walk with those weights on, and as he saw the next challenge before him, he knew it would never be a cakewalk. He just walked forward, his face wincing because of the weights, and stepped through the first two obstacles. When he reached the third obstacle he used his hands to lift him to the top of the wall, and just dropped down on the ground and walked towards the fourth, in which he used the same movements up to the fifth. When he reached the sixth wall however, he had to jump so that he could reach the top of the wall, and at the seventh he made his highest jump so that he could clear the wall. At the eighth however he had a problem: no matter how high a jump he made, he could not clear the wall. And so he resolved to using his hands to support him on the ground, and then he vaulted himself upward. It seemed that it was a success; he cleared the wall and was going towards the ninth. But it seemed that the ninth wall was too high that it could not be cleared with a single bound. Why was he born with short limbs anyway. Cursing himself for the thing in him that would never change, he then searched for some spot on the wall that could be climbed with bare hands, and then set himself on climbing it. It was a very hard work, but since his weights served as a sort of anchor, he did not use his hands to lift much, and so succeeded in climbing the wall without any problem with his arms whatsoever. Although the tenth wall was taller than the wall before, he climbed it in the same way as the former wall, and succeeded. The last set walls were finished in the same fashion as the walls before, and then Ryunosuke turned around to finish the course again. Although his legs were stretched to its limit due to the weights that he had to wear on his feet, and his arms were sore due to the amount of lifting that he did, he finished again the course with the same procedure that he did on the whole course before. After the whole training, his arms and legs were both reddish due to the amount of force that was exerted with them. He then sat down and took a nap, since although he was not that tired due to the obstacle course, what happened at the former training took a toll on his body.

[Gabriella Santos]

Gabriella drank her fill when it was provided by Toshi, her mood somewhat being settled by the act. However when the next task was set, her sour mood came back in a flash. Why did she stay in Totomi, she briefly though. She doubt that if she had followed Maki that she would be doing this. However she didn't let herself stop, she was prideful, and hated to show her weakness. Accepting some of the weights, 200lb, not the heaviest but not the lightest either for the sake of appearance. She struggled to strap them on with her arm.  

Gabriella would tackle the obstacle course with everything she had. The first couple of walls, were easy enough even for her. But as the walls grew, she started to struggle. Until eventually she was unable to proceed, she tried to jump it and pull herself up, but she didn't have the strength for it. Sliding down attempt after attempt. She gave in. She couldn't do this. However she wasn't going to just do nothing. Crouching down, she'd place her good arm on her leg, and start to give others also struggling and hand up. She wouldn't be able to make it even with help, didn't mean she couldn't help others. 

[Amakusa Takehiro]

[OoC: If anyone misses a round, they can just do multiple posts at one time to make up for it.]

While the soldiers were finishing off their runs, Takehiro and Toshi would begin heaving in enormous slabs of granite, laying them flat on the ground next to each other. In total, there would have been fifty, fifty feet long, fifty feet high, and three feet wide. Takehiro could carry these slabs on his own, but it was a strain on his arms, whereas Toshi would have had to drag the slabs through the grass to get them there on his own. That's how heavy they were.

"Alright, good job, men! But no letting up just yet!" Takehiro roared, once the runs were completed. He wiped a bit of sweat from his brow, ordering the soldiers to file in by the slabs. "Ten people to a slab! No more, no less! You are to take these slabs and carry them from here to the armory, where they will be cut down and shaped into armor!" The armory was 500 yards away, and those slabs were unbelievably heavy. And, to top it off, once the group was half-way done, Toshi would increase the moisture around the groups to make them heavier, and he would fill the holes in the slabs of granite with water.

Oh, and they were not instructed to remove their weights.

[Brandt Solveig]

By the gods! How does this man keep up with all this!?

Brandt had stared slack-jawed as Takehiro and Toshi began to move in and line massive rock slabs up for what he assumed would be another test. Takehiro's strength still amazed the giant. He surely was strong for such a small frame. Brandt would stand up again. He could still feel the burn from carrying so much weight, however he was growing use to it.

However the test that came took him by surprise, though maybe it shouldn't have. Takehiro ordered ten soldiers per slab, to pick them up and move them to the armory. Brandt would glance back and fourth at the distance between the two. This was not going to be easy.

Not recognizing anyone specifically to pair with, Brandt would move to settle himself at one of the slabs. The giant would stand tall as he waited for his group to gather. Once they were settled he would communicate to them.

"Three at each end, the rest support the middle with me.. I shall try to bare the weight in the center.."

Once they positioned themselves, they would carefully lower the granite slab, straining and grunting as Brandt prepared himself to haul this the best that he could. It was as if he was trying to hold the planet itself up. His teeth would grind as they began to slowly move the granite slab toward it's destination.

"D-do n-not.. Let this.. D-damn thing f-fall on me! M-move in unison!"

The task would not be by far the most difficult so far. The weights upon his ankles bore down on him and to top it all off it seemed to get even heavier when they reached the halfway mark. He would soon feel the patter of water upon the top of his head. However refreshing it was, the added weight was no help.

"H-hold stead-dy men!"

Eventually the group would reach their goal, exhausted without a doubt. Brandt would once again find himself resting upon the ground, his back resting upon the cool surface of the stone slab. Id this was all for naught, he would not stay here to endure such trials. But the giant knew he would emerge a refined warrior above the mediocre. Thus, he would absorb the abuse and strengthen his will.

[Ichimura Ryunosuke]

Ryunosuke woke up at the feeling of the earth below him shaking, and, as he woke up, he was shocked at what he saw the Daimyo and his assistant was carrying. They were slabs of granite, each one of them enough to build a small house made of granite. The enormity of the slabs was as if a granite mountain was torn down just to create those slabs. And they just asked the soldiers to carry them, 10 soldiers for each slab? Now that was...

"Difficult at the very least," Ryunosuke muttered under his breath. Just looking at the slabs would tell him that each weighed 400 tons. Now that enormity could not be compared to his puny howitzer, which weighed only 1 ton. He was trained for speed in wielding such weapon, and what the Daimyo asked him to do was really out of his league as a marksman who moved around the battlefield quickly. But...

"I'll try," he muttered again, not promising himself that he could do it. He then selected his group from his immediate companions in the militia, and, with five people on either side of the slab, they started to carry it towards the armory. They had to synchronize their every step, since one slip meant that one would be crushed by the enormity of the slab.

"One, two, three, march!" Ryunosuke shouted beneath his breath as he directed every move of the other people in his team. By their every step, they progressed half a foot from their starting point, and their synchronization made them not suffer much strain on their bodies as they inched closer to the armory. Slowly but surely they have reached the armory, the added heaviness of the water not posing not much of a threat to them as the slab was inherently heavy to start with, and an added 50 tons was too puny to affect the 400-ton weight that they carried. After some rest and a good massage on their arms by their fellow teammates, they proceeded to the training area again. their arms somewhat reddish by the gargantuan weight that was forced upon them, but ready for another round. Ryunosuke himself took another nap before the next exercise would start.

[Gabriella Santos]

Gabriella rested as best as she could as the other men finished the task set out before them. Eventually returning to the start, back where Toshi and Takehiro where and waiting. A disheartened and apologetic look on her face. She hated not being able to keep up with them, and while some had given her glances she did not like, no one said anything. The memory of Takehiro agreement with Maki when she joined up in their minds. She wondered would Takehiro prevent them from saying anything if she continued to fail like this. 

How ever as the men returned and the next task was listed, Gabriella cursed in her native tongue. Was the man trying to kill her. Seriously tempted to walk away, and give up completely for the rest of the day. Something caught her eye. A man much taller then Maki but build like him to some extent. There was nothing wrong with riding on someone else'scoat tails as it were. 

Gabriella would step up behind Brandt, as he got the men to lift the slab. And while she did not add much, due to her physical weakness and useless arm, the much larger man was much better set to take the load then some of the other men around here. She added what she could however, and now that she was closer, notice something was off about the man other then just his size. He was a foreigner she was sure, and not a member of the Totomi. She would recognise and man of such physical height. 

[Amakusa Takehiro]

As the slabs were being placed by the armory, Takehiro and Toshi would wheel out crates of weapons of all kinds. There were swords, spears, zanbatos, broadswords, hammers, halberds, every sort of weapon you could think of for close-quarters combat. Once the crates were all wheeled out, Takehiro and Toshi would drag the slabs into the the back of the armory, where Kanbe would be able to do his thing, and then they'd get to re-addressing the soldiers.

Once more, orbs of water would appear before the soldiers, and a smile graced Takehiro's lips. "You lot are performing admirably!" Not a single soldier had given up. Those who were but ants in comparison to the Demon's strength continued to fight on through his own methods of training and managed to complete them. That was a sign of a worthy army. "Continue to fight on for a little while longer and I assure you, you will reach heights other armies could only dream of!"

"Step up and take a weapon, soldiers!" Toshi instructed, pointing to the crates. Not a single soldier would be given their unique, powerful weapon. They would be given a standard-issue weapon of their choice, to level the playing field that was about to form. They had to fight while they were still tired, as well, to further their training. "Your task will be simple! Each of you must work together against your Daimyo and his advisor. The exercise will end when you can all land one hit on both of us!" Takehiro would take a standard-issue glaive, and Toshi a standard-issue spear.

"Remove your weights."

Takehiro threw his weights to the ground at his side, and a powerful cloud of dust was kicked up.

[OoC: Tak's dex is now 95. For Toshi's stats, refer to his sheet in the Important NPCs board.]

[Brandt Solveig]

[OOC: Unsure of what dex boost is for weights.]

Turnjng on heels to congratulate and celebrate with the rest of his slab moving partbers, he would give a small nod to the female close by that had joined him before returning his attention toward the task at hand.

Their next trial was sure to be a difficult one, even with the number of soldiers on their side. Knowing Takehiro's abilities in battle, they had their work cut out for them. Brandt would move foreward and grasp the standard issue Zanbato from the weapon rack and then turned to face the Daiymo and his second-hand.

Dropping the weights as instructed, Brandt's whole body would thank him for it. However he was still growing tired from such an intense regiment. However he would not allow it to hold him back and slow him down. Soldiering through, the giant would rush in without hesitation.

Once he neared the two men head on the behemoth would side-hop toward the left to bring his sword across the front of both men, howevee the apex of the sword strike aimed more directly at Toshi than Takehiro.

[Ichimura Ryunosuke]

Ryunosuke woke up at the sound of the crates being moved, and from the jingling of the things inside the crates, he would know that within those crates were pieces of metal. He stretched his body and yawned as he stood up. As the challenge was heard, he scrimmaged through the crates for a weapon, or weapons that will suit him the most. Fishing out a pair of standard-issue chain sickles from a crate and removing his weights, he would charge at the advisor of the Daimyo, delivering a series of blows to him, noting every weakness of his defenses and capitalizing on them. As much as possible, he would make sure that his opponent's spear would be in contact with one of his sickles so that he could move towards him with ease and great speed.

[Gabriella Santos]

Gabriella listened to the instructions and finally gave in. She couldn't do this, but she could at least make a show of effort. Gladly she removed her weight from her legs, and went to the crate and retrieve a weapon for her use. A simple training sword, that could easily be wielded in one hand. She would form up with the rest of them. Making sure however to place her self as far back as she could. In no short order, did she actually want to be forced to get involve in the fight against the daimyo and Toshiii. 

How on earth did Lord Amakusa believe this would make them stronger. The man was a wreaking ball, a unrelenting force, and a skilled fighter and while some amoung the men were good she doubt that many would come close to what he could do. Maybe with numbers they could were him down, but surely they had to believe they could do it, if they had anyy chance. Obviously the man would have to hold back some, their was a limit to how many soldier could surround one man, and Gabriella wouldn't be surprise if he could handle it. 

[Amakusa Takehiro]

[OoC: No official dex boost for weights, as they weren't really bought. For the sake of the training, though, assume your character is faster now than they typically would be.]

Takehiro would notice Brandt's and Ryunosuke's co-operative attacks, and rather than swat Brandt's large weapon away, he would allow them to work against each other. Stepping under Brandt's greatsword, the weapon would continue to charge at Toshi, who would step back and allow it to ram right into Ryunosuke, who kept up an assault where there should have been none. Toshi would then slam a foot forward toward Ryunosuke's chest to push him away, before jabbing his spear at Brandt's now-exposed ribcage.

"Work in tandem with the moves of your allied officers!"

Allowing the heavy-hitters of the force to remain preoccupied with their own bad decisions against Toshi, Takehiro charged straight into the conglomerate of soldiers he challenged. Stabbing his massive glaive into the ground, he would rip it upward, sending out waves of gravel to smash into all who charged at him. He would then spin his weapon around himself, using the flat of the blade to slam into any who still surrounded him.

[Brandt Solveig]

If Brandt did indeed hit his comrad by accident, he would have to apologize later. However he could not focus on such a thing now. His ribcage would feel the blow from Toshi's. Weapon jab. But he would attempt to pull his blade back across his body to connect with Toshi's weapon yo try and knock it away.

The Nord would then twist on his feet and thrust himself backwards, bent so that he could try to slam into Toshi and knock him backwards. If it worked, he would attempt to continue following through with.his spin and try to bring his blade around to strike at Toshi once more. The nord had battled Takehiro once before. But not Toshi himself. He was interested to see what kind if warrior he was.

[Ichimura Ryunosuke]

Ryunosuke did not expect what happened after his planned moves.The ponderous sword of Brandt, instead of connecting onto the advisor's body, instead ended up plunging towards him. He ducked the slash, only to see the advisor's foot coming towards him, coming right towards his head instead of what the advisor intended to target, due to his ducking motion. Using his remaining momentum on his charge last time, he again descended towards the ground, slipping towards Toshi and evading the kick almost completely, only that because of the force of the kick a wound was formed on his middle forehead, droplets of blood generated in the air as he skidded towards the advisor, quickly closing the gap that he might have produced when he strode backwards to evade Brandt's slash.

While Brandt was busy parrying the weapon of the advisor, he would plunge his scythes towards the flank of the advisor unprotected by his spear. He was sure that the advisor could not evade this dastardly tactic due to the burst of speed that he would give on those slashes. But if for some reason it would not connect, he would take notice of whatever the advisor would do against him, and when he would attack, he would dodge it and then issue a counter-attack towards that part of the enemy laid bare by that attack.

[Gabriella Santos]

Gabriella still near the back watched as the daimyo and Toshi put off the assault of the troops.  Even though she felt a little more spry then normal after getting rid of those god forsaken weights she still didn't feel like she could keep up much with the much superior fighters that they were. Her little combat experience with melee weapons also made her feel like she would be getting in the other men's way if she was even to attempt to assist. however their way more then one way to skin a cat as they said. 

With a flick of her wrist, she threw her training weapon upwards, so that he hand was free and raised her hand skyward so that the ring on her finger would catch the light around. Rainbow patterns would come forth surrounding her and those close by. The men would feel invigorated. A burst of energy coming from seemingly no where, taking the edge of the tiredness that the training up to now had caused, and would really let the men make the most of the extra speed they felt after taking off the weights. "Don't attack from one side flank them on all sides." She called out to the men, including Brandt and Ichimaru. A head on assault wasn't the smartest idea. Catching her weapon as it came down, she moved in adding to the men encircling the Daimyo and Toshi so they had less option of movement around the field. 

(OOC: Activating Ring of Inspiration, allied troops gain burst of energy and morale. )

(OOC 2: Sorry for the lateness hadn't realised I was up.)

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Despite not being the fastest man in the army, Toshi was incredibly formidable, and it would take a lot more than Ryunosuke's quick movements to catch him off-guard. Quickly, he would pull his spear back so as to not have his movement impaired by the giant, but he would not immediately dodge, as one might think. Given Ryunosuke would be stalled for a moment with the kick connecting against his head, his attack would not have come nearly as fast as he'd intended, so Brandt's would come first. The push would connect, though not as Brandt would have intended. Striking outward with his palm, Toshi would create even more force to launch himself backward and out of the way of Ryunosuke's strike. Upon landing, he would kick a spear up from the ground and launch it toward the smaller man's chest, before parrying the Nord's strike and keeping up a defense. He noticed he was being surrounded, but he would let it play out for a moment.

Takehiro, meanwhile, continued to blow men away with each of his strikes. No matter how often his soldiers tried to circle around him, he would knock them aside and leap out of the area, before continuing to knock his soldiers off their feet. They'd need to think cleverly if they wanted to get anything done here.