The Peak [Flashback][Chakra Training]

Subject: The Peak [Flashback][Chakra Training] 5/7/2014, 7:21 pm

I'm Going to Get Better!

“Training! Training, training, training!” Small, 10- year old Moku was jumping up and down in his excitement. He was only an Academy Student in Kumogakure and training was the epitome of excitement for him. Training just like a real ninja! He’d be a real ninja one day. Some day. He’d be a strong one... great. He liked to tell himself he’d be a hero. Well, he liked to. He sometimes had dreams that he mercilessly killed innocent people. Or he’d go into fits of rage and pound someone to bits until some grown-up pulled him from atop his victim. Perhaps a boy took his seat in class. For some reason, the smallest things could invoke fits of rage in the young boy. And yet, when something that matters, like the death of a loved one happened, Moku couldn’t be the least bit angry... he couldn’t find it inside himself.

The thoughts plagued his mind as he headed onto his training field. He climbed the side of the mountain. It was the highest mountain in the Land of Lightning, visible from Kumogakure. The cold entered his lungs and seemed to draw from his being. It seemed to sap his energy. This was why the boy loved to work on his vitality and his chakra. Chakra was the focus for today. He’d be using certain jutsu to push his chakra to the limit, so he’d be technically practicing those jutsu as well, but more than anything, the purpose of today was to increase the boy’s chakra reserves. He would also do physically challenging workouts, because chakra was half drawn from his physical stamina and capabilities. In preparation, the boy reached down to touch his toes in a stretching position, embracing the burn in the back of his legs. He performed other miscellaneous stretches and stood, ready for his first bit of exercise.

He began with a light jog. The summit of the mountain was probably around a quarter mile in circumference, which meant that about four laps around the top of the mountain would be a mile’s distance. Moku stepped off, choosing a fairly easy pace. He made his way around the summit two times and increased his speed to a pace that slightly challenged him. Every two laps, he boy pressed himself harder and extracted more energy. It was apparent after four and a half miles that the knee deep snow would make it nearly impossible for the young Academy Student to run much longer. His knees dragged through the frozen water and managed to create a resistance more effective than ankle weights. Every time he inhaled, he cringed at the sting of frigid air in his lungs. The cold air seemed to grip his jaws and tear them open, reaching slowly and deathly down his throat into his stomach, gripping and yanking out every ounce of physical energy he had. His breath came hard and heavy. After his fifth mile, Moku stopped for a break near a large boulder. He leaned against it as if it were his almighty savior.

Word Count: 521 - 10 CR Increase

Subject: Re: The Peak [Flashback][Chakra Training] 5/7/2014, 9:09 pm

The Absolute Physical Limit

A smile spread across the exhausted face of the soon-to-be Genin. He loved to train. He loved to feel his body strain against him in an attempt to prevent him from pushing harder to a point of danger. He loved watching the steam rise off of his body against the snow, visibly warmer than every bit of his surroundings. It was barely an exaggeration to say that the snow sizzled when the boy’s arm was placed in it. His breath still came ragged. He planned to resume his training once more when he could pace his breath along with his steps. Perfectly aware that it was best to walk after a long run rather than to sit, the boy stood with his hands behind his head, interlocked at about the center if his skull. Raising his arms like this expanded his chest and lungs and gave room to breathe in more air and effectively decrease the amount of time that it would take in order for him to once more regain a control over his involuntary extreme breathing. Slow. Inhale... exhale. Inhale...

Exhale... inhale... SPRINT. Kicking off as hard as possible, Moku sprinted in a straight line through the snow to a rock some 50 yards away, turned, and sprinted back to the larger rock he began at. Back and forth. He pushed. He leaned forward and before his breathing failed him his legs burned. This was more than simple cardio in the fact that the snow gave him a largely decent amount of resistance. It started first in his thighs, a fiery burning sensation that told him he was pushing just hard enough. It moved down to his calves and from there up to his ham-strings. Speed and duration was important here. For speed and duration would press him into exhaustion, and exhaustion was good. Exhaustion would allow him to rebound more physically fit, which should in turn give him a slightly higher amount of chakra resources to perform his jutsu. It was important for a Ninjutsu and Ijutsu specialist to be good with chakra. Lots of chakra.

Moku moved directly from his sprints to another light jog without catching his breath. He didn’t run nearly as long this time, only for about a mile. This time he pushed for speed. Muscles still burning, Moku could almost hear his skin sizzle as he cut through the snow. He didn’t mind the snow... his later training would get rid of it anyway. He may as well use it to his advantage now. It was just another tool. If he didn’t keep moving and stay exhausted... if he didn’t keep up his body temperature, there was no way that he could train up here without suffering hypothermia. Tssssss. Trails of dusty snow rose behind the young boy as he pushed for his final lap. Go... go. GO. The finish line was in sight. The snow crunched. His feet struck the mud rather softly, the slush and liquid dirt absorbing the impact of his feet. Move, move, moooooove. Come on... 20 more yards. Let’s go, 10. FIVE. THREE. Ok, now keep walking, arms behind your head, breathe...

For the next bit, Moku would need a clear, solid piece of ground. He began moving snow to the sides in one spot, large enough for his body to work inside of it. However, upon reaching the bottom, it was discovered that the ground was much too miserable for any type of training against it to be done. Disheartened, Moku’s hands began weaving hand seals to move onto his next part of practice before he caught site of the rock he’d rested on before. He smiled and his hand seals ceased early. He climbed atop the rock, large, round, and flat, and lowered himself to a plank position. He began doing push-ups. And kept doing push-ups... he counted to 50 at first, but lost count soon and kept going. He pushed until failure, then immediately moved on to the next exercise. Sit-ups. Crunches. J-Lows, Centennial Bicycle, Leg Spreaders, six-inch muscle failure. Rinse and repeat. He went through his circuit five or six times and decided to call his physical part of the day’s training to an end. Now it would be time to have a bit of fun...

Word Count: 730 - 10 CR Increase

Subject: Re: The Peak [Flashback][Chakra Training] 5/7/2014, 10:36 pm

Death Won't Come Soon Enough

“Huff... huff... huff... huff...” He rolled over onto his back. He lay on his rock, feeling his muscles throb. It was a beautiful feeling. It was a feeling that told him that he worked... that he’d be getting stronger, that he’d improve, that he’d become a more powerful Shinobi and become a Genin soon. The Genin Exams were so close, he had to improve on everything he could. He accelled far above most of the other students in his class and he was near doubtless that he’d pass. However, that wasn’t his main concern. His concern was living afterwards. Sure, he wanted to become a Genin, but once he became a Genin he knew that he would soon begin to risk his life. And if he wasn’t powerful the odds would deepen, far out of his favor. The more powerful he could get, the smarter, the more fit, the better he could tip the odds ever in his favor. The more likely that he’d live. With this inspiration in mind, he brought his knees up to his face and kicked upward, carrying his bodyweight and landing on his feet; just barely. Were his muscles any weaker, he may have buckled...

Atop the rock, Moku stood overlooking the summit of the mountain. Miserable. Heh, time to change that. Hand seals formed now. Snake → Ram → Monkey → Boar → Horse → Tiger. The hand seals allowed the chakra in his body to activate. Chakra began to draw from his body and build up in his stomach. As it built up, it began to pressurize and compact in preparation to launch the technique. When ready, the Chakra exploded up the esophagus and transferred into his mouth. Upon the transfer, it transformed into Fire chakra, and erupted from Moku’s mouth in a large and explosive steady stream of flames. He spewed the flame all over the mountain summit, melting the snow and drying all of the ground in range of his technique. The grass would have caught fire, but this was far above the vegetation line... very few plants could actually grow at this altitude, if any. Moku was used to it because he trained here often since it was such a good place to train his physical attributes.

The heat seared and burned his face. The edges if Moku’s eyebrows began to singe and burn from the intense heat given off by his technique. It was the Katon: Great Fireball Technique. He continued to force the technique out long past its normal capabilities in an attempt to drain as much of his chakra as he could. He could feel it slowly draining all of his very small amount of chakra in the first place. The ground progressed from being covered knee deep in snow, to being made of slush and wet mud, to drying hard and becoming a solid rock. He began to become light-headed. The fast loss of chakra could be felt quite obviously, first from physical exhaustion, to light-headedness, to dizziness, to nausea, and finally from the pure struggle to remain on his feet. Finally, Moku terminated the technique. He instantly felt his mental state return to him. His eyes focused, his mind became more devoted to reality and what was going on. His leg muscles regained their strength.

He was immediately struck by the intense returning of the cold. Or rather, the complete dispatchment of warmth. It stung now against his skin, much more powerfully than it had before. It was probably still a bit warmer than it had been, but the temperature difference from when he was spewing flames from his mouth and now to complete barren cold was nearly unbearable. He descended from his rock to go and walk over to the large patch of rock he’d made. He marveled at how smooth and solid it seemed to be. Almost perfect to be an arena. In fact... perhaps one day he would make it into a sparring ring. He could carve edges into it... symbols. He could use the place as his own personal training ground. He knelt and touched the now solid ground and immediately yanked his finger away. It was hotter than he thought it would be. He eased his fingers back onto it and after biting through the initial heat, he could rest his entire hand quite comfortably on the surface. He continued to marvel...

Now, however, he was completely exhausted. It was time for his last bit of training. He’d now go for his final run, all the way home. He took off down the mountain trail and allowed his legs to carry him past all the ledges, bumps, and cracks. Each time he passed an animal he told himself he’d speed up. Quickly regretting it. He was eventually sprinting so hard that he literally could not push any harder or faster. He hurtled between mountains and over them, and up one of the largest. Directly up. This was the mountain the Kumogakure resided on, and as he climbed, he envisioned all the fluids he would drink as soon as he got home. He envisioned his bed and his soft blankets and the warm shower, and... he envisioned sleep. Normally, at this point, he would go on to think about how much stronger he was getting, but at this point all he really wanted to do was push the extra few hundred yards and land himself in his house.

Word Count: 916 - 10 CR Increase