"Hahaha, thanks a lot for the birthday wishes! This has been the BEST birthday ever! But now, as the successor to Bushinryu, it's time to get back to my training so I can be the hippest, brightest, and baddest Ninjastar this world has ever seen!"
World Tour
Kimberly Style's: Mastery
Kimberly:"What is strength"? Well hmmm... that depends on the person you ask, I guess. You know what I'm saying?
"The "bushin" in Bushinryu refers to a martial deity. A god of war. "Smite evil from the shadows of society." That's been Bushinryu's motto for over 600 years. We're not spies or assasins. Bushinryu's techniques are specialized for facing multiple foes at once. Pretty sweet, right? I don't want to give Bushinryu a bad name, so I'm training my butt off too."
"One time, right after I moved to this city... I ended up lost in a sorta spooky part of town.
(Answer: Gotta watch your back out there.) "Hey now, don't give me that! I'm usually super careful.
(Answer: Sounds like someone got careless.) "Yeah, no, exactly. I thought I was on top of things...and then boom.
"Anyway, I was in over my head, figured I was pretty much a goner. That's when a ninja showed up. I was pretty freaked, to be honest. It all happened so fast. Hard to even remember the details. But two things stick in my memory. The first is thinking, "Yo, those shoes are CLEAN." The second is the writing on the ninja's back. Yep, you guessed it: "Bushinryu." That was my first encounter with Master Guy. Then I did a little research, poked my head in, and convinced him to teach me the ways of the ninja."
"There's nothing cooler than a ninja, so I get why you'd want to be like one... But being a ninja isn't for everyone. If it just isn't clicking, you might want to consider throwing in the towel."
"So this is going to sound obvious, but bear with me. For a ninja, winning a fight before you even come to blows is the best possible situation."
"Sometimes, I like to study up on how ninja traditionally trained. Most members of Bushinryu have taken up more modern training methods, though. Thankfully, the one I was looking forward to the most is still around today. You know it-standing under a waterfall to focus your spirit! Is there anything cooler? More refreshing? More NINJA? I don't think so. When Master Guy did it, I mean. For me, it was a lesson in the ferocity of nature. But the more I did it, the more I realized the true purpose behind the waterfall training. It felt like I had become spiritually connected to ninja of ages past. Fitting, considering that Bushinryu has survived to the modern day to carry out its mission." (A Bond With Kimberly: 1)
"Study the ways of the ninja and you end up learning a thing or two about Japanese culture too. Like sushi, right? It doesn't get much more mainstream than that. Personally, I've always got room for an egg sushi roll or two."
"You've been to the Buckler gym, right? Any other trainees there catch your eye?"
(Answer: There's this Bosch guy,,,) "I gotcha. A fellow pupil, huh? It's great to have someone like that to face off with, huh?"
(Answer: Not particularly) "Well, dang! Guess that means you're number one then. Nothing wrong with that. Confidence is rarely a bad thing."
"Me, I'm probably the low girl on the Bushinryu pagoda. That means I've got plenty of fellow students to practice against. The other day, I ran into this cool customer named Gou. He showed up on Master Guy's doorstep, and I managed to get a match with him. How'd that turn out? This may surprise you, but... I got my butt handed to me. It's all good though. Nothing like a fresh goal to put a ninja back on track, y'know?"
"I know I'm stating the obvious here, but being a ninja is all about tricky movements. Forget raw power-the perfectly timed strikes are what's important. More than anything, a ninja demands speed. For us that means mastering our sprinting. Practice until it's perfect."
"Traditionally, ninja are supposed to wear tabi on their feet. But me? I prefer sneakers. Same with Master Guy."
"Ninja skills come in two flavors: Movements and techniques. Ninpo, on the other hand, is mostly about the use of shinobi tools. Take my spray paint, for example. That's my spin on a traditional ninpo smoke bomb."
"What cassettes do I listen to? All kinds of stuff, but mostly oldies from the 80s and around there."
(Answer: Very retro.) "Ha ha, yeah, I guess. My parents listened to this kind of stuff when they were my age. In fact, these tapes are right out of their collection."
(Answer: A golden age of pop.) "You know what's up! This stuff is like... It's when pop music POPPED, y'know?
"What's so cool about cassettes? Well... You stick 'em in a motorized chamber that rotates the long magnetic tape inside, and that's what plays the music. Completely insane compared to streaming, right?
"I came to Metro City so I could go to university, and stayed with my uncle while I was studying. I'm glad my school days are behind me... Wha? Surprised someone my age is already done with school? Yeah, well. That's skipping grades for ya. I definitely got my tuition's worth, though. Studied like crazy. I was even on the cheer squad. At the time, I figured I'd pursue a normie career somewhere, but... I wanted to give this Ninjastar thing a shot first."
"Master Guy roasts sweet potatoes by the campfire every now and then. I wonder if that's him using a fire jutsu?"
"This bad boy is my portable cassette player. Cassettes can't hold many songs. Can't skip tracks either. It's not exactly convenient, huh? But honestly? That's part of the charm."
"Ready for your menkyo kaiden? It's basically like a final exam. Hope you're ready!" (Avatar defeats Kimberly) Niiice, that's what I'm talking about! Oh yeah, it goes without saying, but I can't give you the full go-ahead Bushinryu HQ or anything. All I'm doing is signing off on the Ninjastar teachings I've imparted to you so far. Bushinryu's still obviously kind of involved though, so like... "Forget not thine ninja spirit." There. That should do it." (Master Achieved)
"Become both a blade for the weak-and a shield. A Bushinryu adage. Take it to heart, yeah?"
"For now, just focus on your daily training, 'kay? You've got this."
"I've been active ever since I was little. Been part of the cheerleading squad forever. Cheer is a performance, so it's gotta be flashy. You go big on every movement. More than anything, the way you move has to be clean. It's not easy. But you can't let that show. You smile and tough it out. Now ninjutsu, that's all about making your movements unpredictable. Gotta be tricky with it. I think cheerleading and ninja-ing share more than a few things in common, though. For me, it's all about combining clean movement with the deceptive arts of the shinobi. That interplay is probably what made me want to start walking this path in the first place." (A Bond With Kimberly: 2)
"What's "Ninjastar" mean? Take one part "ninja," adda a heaping scoop of "star," and bam. Real complicated equation, right? One cool way of putting it would be to say it's, like... an attitude. A lifestyle. I want to help the weak, show the world how Bushinryu ninja do things. With any luck, that'll inspire others to follow the same path. Just like I did when I saw Master Guy for the first time."
"What did I study in school? All sorts of stuff. Like... computational complexity theory. You know. Yeah, I hear ya. "In English, Einstein." It's about figuring out how hard certain things are to calculate. Some calculations take forever to figure out, but are trivial to check. Like how you can check the answer to prime factors with simple multiplication. When you think about stuff like that long enough, you realize something. Our world looks complicated and random, but are simple, beautiful algorithms humming away happily behind it all. Studying that stuff made me feel like... like it's sort of rubbed off on me." (A Bond With Kimberly: 3)
"Did I ever mention what I was doing when we first met at the SiRN building? So I'm in the middle of an investigation. My uncle used to work for the Masters Foundation. That is, until he got caught up in an incident in Nayshall...and died. He was a great guy who just wanted to do his job. And he was shot? I couldn't believe it. When I looked into the details, I realized there was more going on than meets the eye. SiRN isn't directly involved, but they're a contributor of sorts. I figured I could find a clue or two by poking around. If there's one thing I'm sure of... It's that my uncle would have wanted the truth to come to light." (A Bond With Kimberly: 4)
Master Missions
Bushinryu's on the Scene!
"I doubt you've missed it, but there's graffiti all over town. Graffiti's all about outdoing the competition's designs, marking territory... You know the drill. But when it's taken too far, it can be a real pain. So us Bushinryu folks got to thinking... What if we get in on this and use it to get our name out there? Y'know, show people we're on watch? That's the idea, anyway. You in? If you are, you think you could repaint all the marked areas for me?
"So how'd it go with the tags? You let them know that Bushinryu's on the scene? When people see that, hopefully they'll realize ninjas are on the watch. Might make things safer around here. It's a nice though at least, right?" (After painting over three graffiti's)
Grinding Down Mad Gear
"You know about Mad Gear, yeah? Can't fool me. I know you've been hanging with them. You know they're up to no good, right? Nah? As a practitioner of Bushinryu, I'd love to sweep those guys off the streets... But whose side are you on, I wonder?"
"You took 'em out? Veeery nice! Guess that means you really ARE all in with Bushinryu. Huh? What would I have done if you betrayed us? You didn't. That's what matters." (After defeating 3 Mad Gear Bulls)
Learning a new technique
"Let me teach you a new move. Don't get carried away and neglect the rest of your arsenal, though. There's no substitute for a solid foundation."
"You think yourself capable of grasping the quintessence of Bushinryu? I'd like to see you try. Mwahaha!"
Sparring
"How goes the training? Fighting one-on-one's the best practice you can get. So hey, whaddaya say?
(Answer: Yes) "Let's jam!"
(Answer: No) "Takin' a pass, huh? Hey, no worries!"
"Hey, got time to train with me for a sec? It's sparring time!"
(Answer: Yes) "Thanks"
(Answer: No) "No prob. I'll make you say yes eventually, count on it!"
"How's your ninjutsu coming along?"
(Answer: Yes) "Come, then. Have at you, my disciple."
(Answer: No) "Check thyself...before you wreck thyself."
"Care for a match?"
(Answer: Let's rock!) "Now you're speaking my language!"
(Answer: Let's not!) "Wait, no? I mean, suit yourself, I guess."
(Avatar or Kimberly Wins) "Hmm, not bad. Let's do this again sometime!"
Master Assist
"So hey, if you're ever in over you head, go ahead and ring me up."
"If you ever need a helping hand, call me. Bushinryu will be at your service in a flash!
Gifts
"A present? Aww, you're too kind!" (Giving a gift to Kimberly)
"Another present? Yay! Thanks so much!" (Giving a gift to Kimberly)
"Aww, thanks! I owe you one." (Giving a gift to Kimberly)
"Hey, thanks! I'll be sure to put it to use!" (Reaction to gift)
"Ooh, I know this one. A real emotional tour de force. Or so they say, anyway. I haven't seen it." (Reaction to The Answer Lies in the Heart of Love)
"Oh, I've heard of this. It's a serious tearjerker. Yeah, I tried watching a little bit of it, actually. Definitely seemed like it was charging up some serious gut punches" (Reaction to The Answer Lies in the Heart of Love)
"Whoa, is this- Whoa, where'd you get these earphones? They match my cassette player! Sick! I'm losing my mind! Where did you find these!? Sound quality is one thing, but I just love these colors!" (Reaction to Vintage Earbuds)
