Kei

[color=darkblue][size=1]I'm at odds about this chapter. While it looks like we're finally about to get some plot advancement that actually makes sense, it seems...rushed. I mean, like Ace mentioned in his synopsis, there were a few things that were fast-forwarded through. That makes me wonder just how long all this has taken. And for Naruto to have suddenly surpassed Jiraiya...That's just shenanigans all over again in my book. Though I must say, I am actually looking forward to the devestation that Pein is going to bring on Konoha. Not that I'm suddenly rooting for the bad guys, per se, but it just seems appropriate at this point in time. (By the way, Rurouni, ninja don't sleep; they [i]pretend[/i] to sleep to kill you when you're actually silly enough to honestly fall asleep around them. At least, that's how the good ones play it.)[/color][/size]

[quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]Besides, given how haxed Madara, Pein and Sasuke are, it would be nice to see things even out a bit on the side of a good guys.[/SIZE][/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]Congrats, Gavin, you somewhat got your wish with this chapter. I won't say anything lest I ruin Ace's weekly summary, but all I have to say is "...What."[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]While I haven't been quite as vocal as most who come by here, I have to say that I'm not exactly thrilled by the southward tumble the writing in the series has taken as of late. It is true that Kishimoto has always been a fan of Deus-Ex-Machina, but the level to which he's taken it ever since the start of the year has gotten to the point of ludiocrity. In one fell swoop, he has: destroyed possibly the most influential (and storyline-driving) character in the series (quite literally, I might add); created a team of seemingly-unbeatable super ninja, all with the incredible power to rejuvenate/save their leader; given one of his main characters such a typical teen angst personality and flawed sense of logic that it seems like it's more of a fan comic than a professional piece of art/literature; and created a slew of secondary characters only thrown in (from a close reader's perspective) to advance the plot inch by inch toward what will likely amount to another Ninja War with Sasuke at the center. Which will, of course, lead to the final Sasuke vs. Naruto confrontation (and consequently, Sasuke's probable "My God, I was so wrong! *cries*" moment), which will be interuppted by Pein when Naruto finally runs out of steam so he and his Wonder Friends can snatch the Kyuubi and spread wonton destruction through the countryside with their uber-WMD.* (*What's sad is, at this point, that is a very viable sequence of events.) So, just for that reason alone, I would say that being a bit upset at seeing something that had a lovely amount of potential in the beginning disintergrating into something almost worse than fan-fiction before our eyes is more than a bit justifiable. At least, in my opinion.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Yes, not only the the Beam Blade seems like a contrived combination of Dragonball Z and Gundam, but following in the vein of the Yu Yu Hakusho references, did anyone else happen to catch the fact that Sasuke was not fighting at 100%? He said the wounds he got from Itachi never healed. Hence, he has also pulled an Elder Toguro's classic "THIS IS ONLY 30% OF MY STRENGTH!!" Wonderful. Also, was I the only one who put the "LOL OMG WTF" subcaptions on the first three panels featuring the Hachibi in this chapter?[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Yeah, Dizzy's second ending is the hardest in the game to get because you have to fight Boss I-No twice to get it. Fortunately, Dizzy has Boss powers of her own in the second fight, meaning you can use Hikari no Tsubasa, which, if pulled off right, is essentially a 70-hit Instant Kill. As far as character types, there are essentially four modes: Normal, EX, Shadow and Gold. EX Mode is the first you unlock for any character after beating the first storyline in Story Mode. Shadow is unlocked for second and Gold for third. In order to play as a Shadow or Gold character, you hold down L1 to enter SP mode on the Character Select screen and hit Select to choose Shadow Mode and Dust (usually L2) to choose Gold Mode. Shadow characters are always a little faster than their Normal modes and all have infinite Tension. Gold character attributes depend on the character (i.e. Gold Slayer regenerates for pretty much everything he does, Gold Millia gets SPEED, etc.). Arguably, the best Gold character is Sol, as he is always in Dragon Install, has infinite tension and has regen abilities. He's pretty much death incarnate, especially in skilled hands. EDIT: I forgot about Johnny is his Instant Kill Mist Finer. Yeah, that's pretty broken, all right. Probably why they made Mist Finer all catch in AC. And yes, CATCH essentially means that you have to do the move just as your opponent is coming at you or attacking you. It's like Guard Point only without the guarding, lol. I believe that it takes a total of 96 play hours to get everything via time release, but I'm not certain. I'll check and let you know.[/color][/size]

[quote name='Malkav']My Johnny game is straight up pressure. Next to Potemkin he's the slowest person in the game (because he has that lame dash-hop) but his range is excellent. Mist Cancelling (chaining into mistfiner stance after a poke and cancelling) more than halves his recovery time. What I really like about him is his streamlined strategy. Most people complain that he doesn't have many options but everything he does leads into the same devastating combos and you can set it up if you mix up properly.[/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]The only reason that people complain about Accent Core Johnny is because they nerfed him by making all his Mist Finer stances catch-only. However, he does have very good range (several people are caught off guard by how far the extension for Johnny Special goes) and he's a damn good poker once you get in range. Besides, when you get EX Johnny, that's all the speed you could ever want right there. (And the animation is damn cool besides.) And speaking of characters that are now a hassle because of moveset changes, let's give it up for Ky. Charged Stun Edge as a Force Break for the FAIL.[/color][/size] [quote name='Malkav']I-NO is hard to play with on a serious level. To perfect her you need to give up the traditional playstation controller and buy a dedicated arcade stick. Then again unless you have a really quick thumb. I've considered switching the attack buttons to the shoulder buttons, but since that's not legal in tournament play I don't.[/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]I'm not gonna lie and say that I-No's not hard to perfect. She's definitely one of the more difficult characters to really get down and dirty with. However, I wouldn't go so far as to say you have to have go joystick to get into her. Quick thumbs are a requirement for many characters in the game (i.e. Millia and Order-Sol for his Instant Kill Super), but she has some solid combos. She's just a really aerial character. And by the way, Phenom, it's easy to get around Megalomania without taking any damage whatsoever. You just have to pay attention to which one she's gonna do. For slope version, just hug the corner and let the orbs whiz on by. For sine-wave version, duck where the arch is and move forward with it as the animation continues. For spread version (which is the one most people panic over), just run up on her and jump over the initial burst (it's done easiest with Chipp, for some odd reason. Teleport and triple jump help). As far as her other combos go, just remember that Stroke the Big Tree is a low hit and block accordingly. It's her main combo opener and one that gets a lot of people since it doesn't seem like a lot hit at all. And no, the all black coloring is Shadow Millia. Gold characters are all gold. So you have that to look forward to. *thumbs up*[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Hurray, other GG players! :3 What they mean by less or more than 180 seconds is the total combined time in the fights that you've had up to that point (say, if you've had three matches before getting to that one, you'll have to have won them all in a combined total of 180 seconds or less/more). As far as gameplay itself goes, Guilty Gear is one of the seemingly underplayed games in the circuit. As far as I've seen in the arcades I've been to, there are no GG machines or anything. Just your standard Tekken, MvC or Soul Calibur. Sad day. Anyway, in terms of characters, Sol and Millia are good, Sol especially. He's somewhat easy to pick up if you're a beginnner, but real mastery pays off when you can pull of monster damage combos that just leave whoever you're fighting sitting there gap-mouthed. I've seen Sol players take people out in less than 15 seconds after initiating a Dragon Install. Good times. Millia is a bit more moderately-leveled, as she has some intricaies that require a lot of finesse. She's one of the faster characters in the game (Gold Millia's speed is legendary among fighting gamers), but she's a combo demon once you get used to it. Lust Shaker is great crowd-control (especially in Izuka). She's one of the better rushdown characters in the game (along with Jam and Zappa). With Baiken, she and Anji are similar in that they have a lot of techniques that revolve around Guard Points (i.e. attacking while guarding against an opponents attack). She does have a few moves that rely on GP, but her real bread-and-butter moves revolve around Tatami Gaeshi (QCF+K) and her Kabari+Tetsuzansen combo (HCF+HS -> S). Kabari is also a good setup for her Kasane Sanzu Watashi Overdrive (QCF+QCF+S). Unfortunately, in Accent Core, they made the seals part of her actual standard moveset, thereby nerfing her to no end. Then again, she was originally a sub-boss turned playable charcter, so it's to be expected. (Fun fact: Baiken was supposed to be a man originally, as she was based off Kenshin from Rurouni Kenshin, but the graphic artists screwed up on her sprite when she first appeared, so Ishiwatari changed her into a woman. lol) In any case, as far as myself, I'm a Jam/Anji/Chipp player who dabbles in a bit of Slayer. I only pull out EX May when you've managed to make me mad, haha. It took me a minute to get used to it, but my old college buddies put me in a trial by fire every weekend and got me up to speed. It helps a lot training with people who know what they're doing to fully understand character strengths and weaknesses and get on that learning curve to glory. Good luck with it. ^^ (Oh, by the way, some of the endings are a bit animated. You just have to find them. :3)[/color][/size]

[center][img]http://i228.photobucket.com/albums/ee132/Runaway511/zelda/kesariavatar.jpg[/img][/center] [color=darkblue][size=1]The dim lighting from a single candle illuminated the small hostel room Kesari occupied. She sat cross-legged on the hard mattress, pouring over all manner of scrolls covered in Old Hyrulian, runes and diagrams. It had become a habit of hers to read before settling down to sleep—one that her hater had instilled in her at a very young age. [b][i]"Always use your time to the fullest. Even while at rest, you can better yourself and the world around you."[/b][/i] The thought rang in her head as she thought of her father and wondered how he fared. It had been a long time since she had left home in the pursuit of knowledge. There was only so much her father had been able to teach her and though admittedly, it was far more than the average Hyrulian would be able to pass on to someone else, limits were still there. She had managed to acquire the basics of the craft from him, but her deeper knowledge and understanding had come from the books and scrolls she managed to get her hands on from various marketplaces and stalls. Still, even their contents were not enough. So Kesari took on the nature of the nomad, traveling from place to place, staying only as long as it took her to learn what she wanted before she was off to another area to attain more knowledge. Many people related strange tales of the world and valuable insight into the realm of magic along the way, something that Kesari was always eager to listen to and record in her own journal, which never left her person. Filled with accounts from various regions and along with notes she wrote to go along with them, to anyone else, it might have seemed an odd jumble of information, but this was the way she had come to know the world: through others and observations of others. Would the knowledge prove useful in the long run? Who could say. There were not many who look to self-proclaimed scholars for assistance, especially considering those of much higher skill within the capital. But, should the need arise, she would offer what help she could. "Do unto the worthy," or so the saying went.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1][b]Name:[/b] Kesari [b]Race:[/b] Half-Human, Half-Hylian [B]Gender:[/B] Female [B]Brief History/Biography:[/B] Born as one inclined toward the magical arts, Kesari has made the ins and outs of their knowledge her purpose for being. Studying under her Hylian father, whom she lived with alone for most of her life, she worked hard toward the pursuit and eventually became somewhat accomplished, though grew to live under the Hylian way of thinking and behaving, despite her half-breed blood. Seeking to further her skills and her knowledge, she left her home and began to travel, stopping everywhere and talking to everyone she could in order to learn more. However, this led to more than a few altercations, having attempted to deal with other species—ones that do not easily set aside the treatment brought upon them by others of a kind. Despite this, she continued to travel and gather knowledge, keeping various records of her journeys. Knowing that a war would only serve to hamper her efforts for travel, she offered what knowledge and skill she had to the war effort, if only to experience and learn what war is like on the front lines. [b]A drawn/painted picture of your character:[/b] [url=http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/9220/mysticmage2byterridolog1.jpg]Link.[/url] (Promise this is drawn.)[/color][/size]

[quote name='Solo Tremaine'][COLOR=#503F86]You just know it's building up to that chapter where Naruto wakes up the day after his graduation, to find out IT WAS ALL JUST A DREAM.[/COLOR][/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]...What's sad is, that's [i]entirely possible.[/i][/size][/color]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Like a lot of people have said, it's the people that I met and made friends with over the years that I miss the most about OB. Especially Solo, that silly wolfman. ...In a strange way, I almost miss the "Rate My Team" sticky that was in the Pokémon forum. Back when there [i]was[/i] a Pokémon forum (it will always be my long lost baby...). But then I think about how quickly they dissolved into something vaguely reminiscent of the Yu Yu Hakusho forum, haha. (May that forum rest at the bottom of the Internet for all eternity. That is a primordial evil that should never again be released upon the world.) Anyway, I also miss when we did Otaku Big Brother (though that may stem mostly because I actually made it to the finals...). Oh, the randomosity that ensued in that thread. The [b]Golden Chainsaw of Damnation[/b] will forever live on in my heart and memory. XD ...Is there any way that could come back? Please?[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Hey there. ^^ I've recently become a slave to Yakitate! Japan, so I was wondering if it was at all possible for someone to lend me a hand (and some talent) and make me a banner and avatar of one of my favourite characters, Kuroyanagi. I have some pictures attached, but if you're able to find better ones, please feel free to substitute them instead! :3 You're free to do it in whatever style you wish, but the funkier, the better. All I ask is that the banner include the following: Bread. It's serious business. (People who've seen or read this understand what I mean. ^^) Thank you so much in advance. Regards, Kei Links to pictures: [URL="http://www.sonymusic.co.jp/Animation/yakitate/character/image/kuroyan.jpg"]Here.[/URL] [URL="http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/7371/ryoukuroyanagi4jz.png"]Here.[/URL] [URL="http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f343/kljs/ryoukuroyanagi.png"]And here.[/URL] (Sorry, upload tool is being weird...)[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]The head of the clan is the strongest member of that clan. It's the face that is most prominent and represents the clan to the rest of the community. If the head of the clan is weak, the clan will be seen as weak. If that happens, they can come under attack or lose face within their chosen community. So yes, being a "kick-*** ninja" does help when choosing a head of clan. I will now sink back into the background.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Should my understanding be correct, it would be to cut down on wind-resistance and therefore, increase speed. Would be nice if it worked in the real world to a noticable level, but meh. Anyway, I am right happy that Iruka has come back at random in this chapter. Like Gavin said, he's the one that has been the most fatherly to Naruto (and Jiraiya playing Grandpa is just as awesome) and has grown to becoming one of my favorite characters, so it's nice to see him back in the fold. As for Naruto's reaction, I, too, think it was justified. And I agree that Naruto should have gotten uppity with Kakashi as well. I mean, that was his sensei, too, and far closer in ways than Kakashi was to him. He has a right to be a little edgy and explosive about the deal. (To be honest, though, I was surprised he handled Kakashi like he did. Is our little noisy ninja growing up?) Anyway, I overall approve of this chapter, but I'm wondering what Shikamaru initially came to see Tsunade about...[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]...And I thought only such terrible levels of punning could be reached by the guy that does Dominic Deegan (I love Mookie, though.)[/color][/size]

[quote name='Matt']Alan Moore does comic books...and manga ARE comic books. They are just different enough in style that we give them another name.[/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]I am well aware of that. However, manga is a term specifically designated for comic books of Japanese origin (though the term is abused nowdays). Under that logic, it would be an appropriate assumption that people would not expect to find a discussion on American graphic novels in a forum primarily focused on Japanese graphic novels. Hope that explains my mindset, at the very least. Please continue with the topic at hand.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Gonna go ahead and move this to Anthology. I have a feeling more people would be looking for it there. ^^[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]That may be the case with Kisame. It's not like he's an uninformed member of Akatsuki; he might have been on to what Itachi was up to from Jump Street. *shrug* We can't know until he shows up again. Anyway, the whole "Eagle/Snake" thing was more a ties back to the question Madara asked way back at the beginning of this arc: Will Sasuke become an Eagle or a Snake in the end. It's something that straddles the line of lame when you think about how cliche it is. :/ As far as Team Eagle and Akatsuki joining forces, I'm not entirely sure about that. I mean, Madara is with them for now, but Sasuke probably considers himself far and away from Akatsuki as a whole. And I don't think Sasuke's new Sharingan (has it even been named? Or is that the Eternal Sharingan?) is a snowflake. It seemed to be several eyes overlapping and forming somewhat of a complex kaleidoscope. But I could be wrong. ...But I do agree it looks a little bad. Anyways, I have a feeling we're going to have a shift next week, since Sasuke's plans have been fully revealed. How long it will stay shifted is up to Kishi.[/color][/size]

[quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]As I said, it was just those Uchiha who seemed... well, nice who were killed that didn't fit. I just don't get why Itachi was spare his brother and yet kill his mother.[/SIZE][/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]I suppose I get what you mean, but you have to consider that Itachi's ties to his brother were damn deep. I mean, he put on that show at the end, but you can gather that having to do all those things at the end with Sasuke had to have crushed him deep down inside. He was given the order to kill the ENTIRE Uchiha clan, but he spared Sasuke against orders (hence why he asked Sarutobi to protect him) because he loved him so much. As to why he killed his mother and the others... I suppose it might be because of the whole potential threat thing. Or it might have been because Sasuke's mom was actually a ninja and therefore a threat (the mothers of Konoha can be pretty badass when they want to; look at Kurenai). It's something that really can't be explained at the moment since we don't have a magical Viewing Globe into Kishi's head. But if the question it posed in-universe and Kishi determines it important enough to answer, he shall. I mean, we've been asking for years what happened with the Uchiha Massacre and he finally told us. Though it took him six years. ...So we'll probably figure that out around 2014, if we're following the pattern. And knowing Kishi's style of drawing things out to death, Naruto will probably run that long. --;[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]It would be really cool. It seems like Sarutobi was one of the most influential Hokages that Konoha has ever had: everything ties back to him in some way or another (usually for the positive). I think it would add another dimension to both his and Itachi's characters if that were it. In regards to this chapter... I'll be honest. I cried. I don't know if it was the fact that I was so happy that Itachi turned out to be such a bitching big brother or I was channeling Gai and Lee with their "THE LOVE BETWEEN BROTHERS" or student and teachers or whatever so happens to move them, but the way Madara described Itachi just got me all goopy on the inside. He was a hell of a guy and I'll miss him. But, it seems that Sasuke is out on his own now (and bearing the clan symbol). Seems like we're finally going to get to see what he decides to do. But really, I'm starting to wonder what's happened to the rest of Team Hebi at this point, not to mention how the S.S.R.S. (Sasuke Search and Rescue Squad), as I have dubbed Naruto & Co. is doing. I suppose Kishi will tell us when we need to know.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Well, I was happy to see that I wasn't too far off the mark with my initial hypothesis in regards to what actually went down (though what I said in the edit was completely off, lol). I must say that I'm glad that the image that has been built up over the years of Itachi has been shattered somewhat. I mean, I liked him before as a villian, but he's always been the type that seems better as a hero sort. In a way, this new revelation makes him exactly that (though in a very beat-around-the-bush way). Though I'm sure there are a lot of fanpeople that have gone completely nuts over this in a negative way. In my view, it just adds that much more depth to his character. *shrug* Anyway, Sasuke has already shown the signs of complete mental collapse, so all we have to do now is wait and see how many more chapters he lasts. Though, like Gavin, I am interested in seeing what Madara's plans are for him.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]We've got an Artist & Writer's Recruiting Thread at the top of the forum for just this purpose. You can take your inquiry there. :) No need for this anymore, so I'm going to go ahead and [b]close it.[/b][/color][/size]

[quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]I suppose either is possible, at this point, we just don't have enough information about what happened to make anything other than vague estimates. I just can't see the Uchiha massacre being sanctioned by Konoha, that is to say, I can't see the Council and Danzou going behind Sarutobi's back to do something as huge as that. [/SIZE][/QUOTE] [color=darkblue][size=1]Why not? Danzou put out a hit on Sasuke presumably without Tsunade's knowledge. Tsunade would probably have tried to stop him if she'd known, what with he allowing Naruto to go out and attempt to find him on his own (I can't remember if she actually made it an official mission or not at the moment). Besides, all of them knew full well what happened with the Uchiha in the past, but it said in the chapter that Sarutobi was the only one that actually stood up for the Uchiha. Though he was Hokage at the time, that doesn't mean that they couldn't have gone behind his back and set up something that elaborate. They're shinobi too, after all.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]That seems to be the way it's shaping up: Uchiha vs. Senju - Round 3 (Round 2 took place before the time skip, lol). But this does turn things on their head a bit. I mean, now that it's fully been explained (unless Madara has epic Bluff, which in all likelyhood he does) that the Uchiha were actually planning a full overthrow of Konoha, the reason for their extermination seems a bit more clear. If that's true and if it's true that Itachi was forced to betray his clan on orders, it also explains him a little better. I mean, in all likelyhood, Itachi lied to Sasuke in order to protect him from the truth of what his clan was really planning. Even though it resulted in lots of turmoil and misdirected hatred, Itachi likely thought it would be better for Sasuke to direct his hatred toward him instead of the village so he wouldn't really get hurt. (After all, Sasuke is gifted, but not as gifted as Itachi in ninjitsu—Itachi might have thought he'd always have the upper hand on him.) So, yes. I would say that this an interesting chapter, even though Sasuke being constantly being hit with Mindblow no Jutsu is going to have some sort of negative effect in the long run. Guru might be right when he said Sasuke might be taking his brother's place with Akatsuki. EDIT:[/color][/size] [quote name='Gavin']More likely, I think Itachi actually eliminated/identified members of the coup who were then eliminated by Konoha, but that nobody within the Uchiha realised what he was doing until it was too late.[/quote] [color=darkblue][size=1]That may be, but that would mean that Madara killed off all the other members of the Uchiha. Itachi probably didn't take to that kindly and might have tried to fight Madara off, though he didn't seem too worse for wear during the flashbacks we've seen of the night of the massacre. Either that, or the Uchiha did get hip to what Itachi was doing and attacked him, but he beat them off in self-defense. Still, in the long run, whatever way you look at it, the Uchiha are responsible for their own downfall. It is true that what the Senju did to them was pretty crappy, but it's what happens when clans like the Uchiha spring up: they were too much of a wildcard so the Senju stacked the deck in their favour. Traditional power politics.[/color][/size]

[color=darkblue][size=1]I'm a tabletopper, actually. D&D, Vampire, Fudge... I've played a lot of various things during my time in college. Been in many games and DMed (Dungeon Mastered) a few. It's really quite a lot of fun once you get a hang of the system. (For all you out there that have yet to try and want to, don't be a cleric your first time out. You'll just give yourself a headache, lol.) Anyway, I've played almost every edition of D&D that's out and readily available except 1st and I have to say that I like 3.5 the most out of the lot. ...Really, anything that doesn't have the THACO system (it's a system that determines defense and attack in the game, for you all that aren't regulars) is a blessing to the masses. But I and my friends are more than a little leary of 4th Edition. We're really reserving judgment on the system as a whole until we see the finer mechanics in action, but most of us have determined that we'll likely still mainly play with 3.5 until we see how certain things are set up.[/color][/size]