---

The sounds of rushing water could be heard as a certain Raikage was standing in the middle of what looked like the basin of just one of several waterfalls that were linked together and built ontop of each other. Each basin was just the ending place of the waterfall above it, and so on, and so on. Sanosuke was sitting on top of the water thanks to chakra control he was manipulating around his body to allow him to do such a feat. None of his clothing was on, besides his boxers, but that was it so it left his body completely vulnerable to the forces of nature. His body didn't shiver in the slightest from any cold it might be feeling, nor did it sweat and leave himself sluggish due to the heat it could possibly feeling. Sanosuke was completely in a state of equilibrium with his body. Listening carefully, the Raikage could hear the sounds of nature chirping as well the animals that were surrounding the system of waterfalls. He was a bit of ways away from the village itself and in the forest.

He was hear because Ame mentioned that she wanted training with Sanosuke in regards to Suiton training. With Kameko gone for a couple of days on a mission, he thought it would be a good time to teach the genin as the other squad member wasn't there. Besides it would do Sanosuke himself good to practice in the arts of suiton as well. Standing up from the water, Sanosuke opened his eyes and clapped his hands together to summon chakra from his necklace that was the very source of all of his chakra. It glowed as the amount of chakra Sanosuke was summoning grew larger and larger. Finally the Raikage slammed his palms right on top of the water. Ripples were created upon impact. A gush of water exploded from the deep end of the rippples into a gigantic water dragon erupted from the gushing and sped out towards the sky like a rocket. Once it hit its maximum peak, it let out a deafening cry into the sky. No doubt Ame heard that while she was on her way to meet him.

The dragon turned its eyes towards Sanosuke and let out another cry before dashing right at the Raikage. It was a method of advanced ninjutsu training. One would use their own jutsu and attack themselves with it. The only thing they would use to protect themselves is the element alligned with the attack jutsu to disperse the technique. Bracing himself with the suiton chakra he was gathering this entire time, Sanosuke got himself into a stance as the dragon was racing to sink its fangs into the silver haired man. When the water dragon was close, Sanosuke moved quickly and grabbed the dragon by its fangs to interrupt its charge. It stopped upon meeting with Sanosuke and now turned into a struggle of dominance as the water dragon tried to overcome its creator while Sanosuke was keeping it at bay using his strength and the suiton chakra in his body. For a few minutes the two struggled for dominance until finally the dragon went into a different angle and instead of trying to push Sanosuke, it pushed itself and by extension Sanosuke upwards in the air so they were both soaring into the sky. Using this time to strike, Sanosuke focused on the jaws of the beast and began mixing his own chakra into the water dragon until he had full control of the beast.

With a roar of his own, Sanosuke ripped the water dragon in half by its fangs so it split right down the middle. The dragon turned into 2 large streams of water that was only being held together in shape by Sanosuke's two palms that were capturing the water. As the Raikage began plummeting towards the ground, Sanosuke brought his hands together and summoned the water dragon once more but this time he used it as a steed and got on the technique's back. The water dragon spiraled him and the Raikage downwards, safely onto the ground so he could leap off the beast. Once its weight as off, the dragon shot off towards the sky and exploded into droplets of rain where the area of it was so large it left the entire waterfall raining for a few minutes. The rain pelted Sanosuke's hair as he still stood on the water looking upwards while panting softly to himself to catch his breath once more. If he listened carefully, he could hear Ame approaching. How long had she been watching he wondered with his back turned to her?

---

WC: 787

Ame kept her pace steady as she moved through the thick, encompassing foliage. She had decided to skip her usual route through the upper branches of the trees and instead moved across the forest floor, her only companion the sounds of nature. She was headed towards a waterfall her sensei had told her about where he would commence training her in the art of Suiton. She could feel the soft butterflies in her stomach, the excitement building in her gut. She had always spent most of her time with Raiton, considering it was the favoured element of her clan. Her weakness to Raiton had been what had prompted her to seek out the training. If she could become proficient in another element, she would have a greater chance of doing well in the upcoming exams. Although Raiton was something she relied heavily on, it was always a good thing to be a more rounded out shinobi. Especially when one Raiton jutsu could potentially stop her from being able to defend herself.

She pushed through the thick foliage, now far away from Kumogakure itself. She was fairly certain she was heading in the right direction. Getting lost would be rather embarrassing, but she wasn't quite yet keen on wasting her chakra using her sensory tracking techniques. She had no idea what kind of training to expect, and it could be rather rigorous so conserving her chakra would probably be a good idea right now. A sudden, loud roar sounded from the direction in which she was heading and the birds that had previously been quietly nesting in the trees around her began panicking and flying off. Ame hoped that it was just her sensei getting started with his training. She was quite sure he could handle any trouble by himself, but you never knew. She was rather far away from the village. Ame sped up a little bit, wanting to figure out exactly what had caused that sound. She'd heard of jutsus that produced creatures made of an element, so it was entirely possible it was just that - a jutsu - but Ame had always been a bit paranoid. She'd have to see it for herself first. 

Ame broke through the treeline, coming face to face with the sight of her sensei fighting a dragon made of water. Her breath hitched in her throat as it charged at him. He seemed completely unperturbed by the fact. Ame had heard of that style of training of course. It was brutal, fighting one's own jutsus, but judging by the way Sanosuke seemed to be dealing with the water dragon it was quite useful. She watched as the dragon changed it's strategy (could jutsus have their own strategies?) and turned itself, sending Sanosuke and itself skyward. She tracked their movement with rapt attention, wondering what her sensei was going to do next. A gasp escaped her lips as he ripped the beast in half, the water reverting to it's old form as two pillars he seemed to be holding up with chakra alone. It was captivating to watch, and Ame didn't bother going forward to announce her presence. At least not quite yet.

Sanosuke fell suddenly and Ame watched as he summoned the water dragon once again, this time riding upon it to safety before alighting on the ground. The moment he slid off of the creature it shot upwards almost dizzyingly fast, before exploding into droplets of rain. Ame shielded her face as the water rained down, soaking into her hair and sliding off the waterproof material of her jacket. It took a while for the water to stop falling, proving testament to just how powerful a jutsu it really was. Ame wondered if she would ever get to that level of power herself. She let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding and turned to her sensei, who now had his back to her. She had no doubt that he could already tell she was there. "Flynt-sama, that was-" Ame thought for a moment, "That was simply amazing. That's how you always train?" She focused on him properly now, noticing for the first time that he was completely nude except for a pair of boxers. She stubbornly kept her eyes on the back of his head as soon as she'd noticed, of course.It would be very awkward if she did anything else. 

---

Words: 744

At the sound of Ame annoucing her presence to him, Sanosuke turned around to face his student. She gotten herself wet from the training he was doing with the water dragon. The practice was something that only high level shinobi would do, but it was a practice known to many shinobi. The only reason why it was done by high level shinobi was the fear of an inexperience shinobi accidentally killing themselves with their own technique. But Sanosuke could understand Ameryuu fascination of the session she just observed. Shaking the water out of his silver hair, the man walked across the water to meet his student. "Occassionally. I usually train at the very top of the Tower of Heaven." Sanosuke answered as he finally reached the girl. It was a large tower in the same style of a cahtedrel where many shinobi and travelers will fight each other on the numerous levels to get as high as they can. Each level was harder than the last as the strength of the people there grew exponentially. There were medics on all the floors so fighters can really go all out without worrying about fatalities.

Looking at her, Sanosuke just now noticed how tall she was for someone her own age. In fact Sanosuke was only a few inches taller than her. Just from her height, someone walking across the street might confuse her for someone older. If Kaekio had that height, no doubt she would try and sneak into a bar to get alcohol. "Practicing water based techniques always relaxes me, it's actually rather useful if you know what you are doing. Which brings us to what we're going to be doing. But first..." Sanosuke added. Moving his hands in a very elegant and artful way, Sanosuke was calling water from the water basin towards him, it was a very large body of water that was following the motion of his hands. It was a lot like a gigantic eel flowing through the air at the command of Sanosuke's suiton covered hands. Of course this might mystify Ame from the show that she wouldn't know what was going to happen next before it was too late. The water was soon placed over Ame's head, and with only a smirk to indicate what was going to happen; Sanosuke let the water collapse on the kunoichi covering her head to toe with water. It was enough for her to leave her entire outfit completely drenched.

"Strip."

---

WC: 1205

Sanosuke turned to Ame once she'd spoken, shaking the water out of his hair as he did so before answering her question. Ame listened to her sensei's explanation of his training regime and nodded in understanding. She knew of the Tower of Heaven. She had never considered training there before. It might be an interesting experience, considering the competitive nature of the training. She knew her friend Ruvaak would certainly enjoy that. Next time they might she might ask him to train with her there. His next words sounded strangely ominous in intonation,  and she watched as he controlled a large amount of water into a eel like shape. Ame had a bad feeling about what was about to happen and it came to fruition as the water dropped on top of her head, soaking straight through her clothes. She heard the command 'strip' and was fairly sure the expression on her face was a combination of being gobsmacked and absolute terror. Sure, she knew suiton training was bound to get wet, but she had to strip? She hoped that she'd be able to forget about her state of dress once they started. 

Ame unzipped her now useless jacket and shook it out. No point in leaving it totally waterlogged. She was a bit more hesitant to remove her tank top, but it was practically see-through already. Her sports bra stayed on. She certainly wasn't that comfortable with her sensei. Her boots squelched when she pulled them off and she had never been so grateful that she wore biker shorts under pants than now. She put all her stuff to the side, awkwardly standing with her arms crossed in front of Sanosuke (she'd never suspected him of being this sort of evil). She was  as ready as she was ever going to be. "Okay sensei. What next?" She was almost afraid to ask. She tensed herself slightly, just in case he decided to just go at her. She somehow doubted she'd be able to defend if he went all out, but she was going to at least give it a shot.

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Words: 358 ~ 1102

The girl's face said it all as she was trying her best to understand why she needed to take her clothes off. In fact Sanosuke couldn't help that a few chuckles escaped his lips despite the fact that he had a fist over his mouth to prevent such a thing from happening. She most likely thought that from how they would be training, the fact that they're clothed would have been forgotten. Unfortunately for her, she wouldn't be so lucky. In fact he was doing her a favor. Wet clothing would only slow down movement and make them sluggish since they'd be in the water the entire time. But still Ame's reaction was priceless as she gingerly took off her clothing leaving only her sports bra and biker shorts on. As amusing as it was, the Raikage wasn't cruel enough to have his eyes peering into her as she changed so he would close his eyes and take the time to extend his awareness over the area. He could hear the wildlife going about their business in the forest despite the shinobi being here. By the time that Ame had finished, Sanosuke opened his eyes to see the girl with her arms crossed and herself blushing as though her face was a ruby crystal. She was curious of what she was going to do now as Sanosuke stood before her.

Walking back to the basin of the first water fall, Sanosuke applied chakra to his bare feet and padded over to the center. He motioned a finger for Ame to follow suit with him until she was before him and the waterfall. "We'll begin with a small training exercise of basic water control. Simply catch the water and send it back to me, all in one piece." Sanosuke began to explain as he placed his hands in the water and cupped them to contain all of it. With a flick of the wrist, his chakra went into the water so he can control and let the contents stretch out of his hands and towards Ame. She would have to catch the water by pushing her own chakra into the already chakra contaminated water so she can control it. Then she would need to use her chakra to will the water over to him. The water at this waterfall was unlike any other water, it was harder to mold chakra with so just using the Super Natural Water technique was slightly harder to do than usual. He wondered exactly how would Ame deal with the task.

Ame followed Sanosuke across the water surface, applying the chakra to the soles of her feet with practised ease. It felt a bit odd walking across the water, but she attributed it to the natural flow from the waterfall above making the water underneath the relatively calm surface a bit more violent than she was used to. Once she was in front of him Sanosuke explained the first exercise to her and she nodded. It sounded pretty simply in theory, but would probably proved to be more difficult in practice. Gaining control over the water without spilling any would be difficult, considering she had to overcome his chakra first to gain control. "Hai, sensei," She held out her own hands, mentally preparing herself to complete the task. The water drifted over to her and Ame attempted to push her chakra into the water, feeling the resistance of her sensei's as she did so. She pushed a little harder, feeling as the other chakra retreated slightly and the water shape held. Ame continued to so this, the water slowly coming under her control as she did so. A few droplets fell down into the waterfall basin, but she didn't expect to have it perfect the first time 'round.

After a short while Ame had a proper grasp on the water. It was a bit unsteady but she did her best to transfer it back to her sensei, the water moving softly through the air between the two of them. She was sure that she could get it better the next time, if she was correct in that they were going to pass the water back and forth. She just had to practice. Practice really did make perfect. She didn't have much experience moulding water into shapes with her hands. After seeing her sensei's brilliant display with the water dragon from before, Ame was very much excited to see where shape manipulation could take her. It was also applicable in most chakra applications, hence the added benefit of this training suiting the rest of her training. She concentrated on the task at hand, willing herself to get it down perfectly the next time.

---

Words: 365 ~ 1467

So far so good. She seemed to have grabbed the concept of the exercise rather quickly. It was impressive that she was able to grab the concept so quickly and without any delay in her transferring of the water. Looking at the water that he received from Ame, he noticed how the shape of the water after Ame was handling it was less focused and concrete as his own when he was manipulating it. Probably a combination of nervous jitters of the assignment and her own inexperience with the task. The water was also a lot harder to get a grip of compared to other bodies of water. When Sanosuke got the water from Ame, it wasn't too challenging from him to inject his own chakra into it to make it his own. As he did so, the Raikage noticed that it was lighter than it was last time, he didn't have to put as much chakra into the water than before. Ame had let some of the droplets go into the basin when she transferred it to him. It was a rookie mistake so he didn't make much of a fuss and kept his mouth shut. Should she mess up again, Sanosuke would instruct her properly but in the meantime he would simply pass the water back to her.

They would continue this exercise for a solid 1 hour straight without any breaks. If she made a mistake from here on out, Sanosuke would instruct her by telling her to control her breathing and stay focused on just making the water her own using her chakra. From there on out it was simple chakra control. No doubt this exercise would sap the strength from the girl than she anticipated since it the water wasn't normal. He believed that she could do this task despite how small her chakra pool was. The man stretched his back as he padded on top of the basin walking to wake his sleeping legs up from not moving for too long. "That's enough now. Now for your next task it'll be something a bit more fun." That same knowingly smile that just meant no good could be hold of the beholder appeared for a split second. Before Ame had the chance to ask what it would be, Sanosuke ask quick as a viper pulled water from the waterfall like he did previously in the other activity and rocketed it towards Ame's face. Should she remembered what they were doing for an hour straight, she might control the water to deflect it. In that case, Sanosuke would get another water bolt and aim it for her stomach. After his splash attack had ceased, Sanosuke stuck his tongue out at Ameyruu mockingly.

"Get some~" Sanosuke sang teasingly as he turned around and bent over to mock his student by smacking his butt with his back completely exposed to the girl.

Ame continued passing the water back and forth with her sensei, improving steadily over the course of the hour. By the end it was easy for her to take control of the volume of water and pass it back to Sanosuke without spilling any. Her legs were getting a bit stiff from staying in the same position for so long but she ignored it in favour of concentration. She followed his advice, steadying her breathing and focusing on keeping her control over the water. By the time the first hour was up she was feeling a little drained, but still ready to continue with their training. No point in stopping now. She let the water fall back into the basin and stretched her own legs as her sensei did the same. He said something about their next exercise being something a little more interesting and before she had time to ask exactly how, she had a spire of water aimed for her face. She brought her hands up instinctively and concentrated her chakra, managing to deflect it away just in time but only barely because of the shock of the sudden attack. He aimed another for her stomach and this time it was better deflected, leaving less of a splash back than before. She didn't bother becoming relieved yet, not knowing what to expect from her sensei next.

He stuck his tongue out at her teasingly before turning around and slapping his own butt. Ame was sure that she looked like a tomato then and there. She let out a small whine of frustration. When people thought of a Kage, they’d imagine someone with impeccable manners and a cool disposition, someone who would always act mature no matter the circumstances. Ame had never imagined this kind of situation when thinking of a potential sensei. Well she wasn’t exactly someone to take things lying down, and she was damn well going to prove it. “Fine!” Ame pulled water from the basin and aimed it for her sensei’s gleefully prepared target – i.e. his ass. She concentrated on making the water move with as much force and speed as she could muster. It was time for a little payback. She chakra filled water shot forward, and Ame was prepared for her sensei to dodge her attack. You didn’t become Kage by being slow enough to be hit by a genin. She readied herself with a second shot, in the event that her first shot missed, something she expected was very likely to happen. If it did, Ame would aim another shot at him, this time towards his face as he had done to her before. She didn’t expect him to not retaliate and moved so that she would be able to dodge or deflect another attack. Things were about to get messy.

---

Words: 476 ~ 1943

The sound of Ameyruu getting frustrated caused for Sanosuke to laugh louder than he already was because of how much of a flustering situation she was. To be taunted by his sensei, in such a childish manner, it must really have gotten to her. "Oh come now, Ame are you just going to take this lying down?" Sanosuke mockingly asked as he turned around. He prepared for her to attack his back when he was turned so that way when he would turn around, the bolt of water would be coming directly towards his chest; there he could easily move his hands and deflect the incoming attack with ease compared to it coming towards his back. But then as soon as he turned, he didn't think that Ame would go and strike his butt that he was flaunting around. After all it was such an obvious target that he wouldn't think his student would attack him there. What's worse was that when he turned around, the bolt was still coming at him towards his lower regions. Quicker than he expected, Sanosuke was sent down towards his knees holding his Flynt Family jewels while the wind was knocked out of his lungs. All he let out was an oof as he was sent sinking into the basin.

At the moment of impact, Sanosuke realized that he had let his guard down and realized there was no way he was going to escape the attack without taking a hit. So it was either allowing him to get hit in his solar complex, which would have done more damage, or get hit right between his legs. He took the later and acted as though the attack did more damage than it should've. It still hurt like crazy, as though someone kicked him there, but there was no way that an attack like that would leave him drifting in the bottom of a waterfall. This was all apart of his ruse to get Ameyruu to come check up on him. Letting out a few desperate air bubbles, he let them stop ominously and waited for the girl to come check up on him. She would wait for her to come into the water, that's where he would let out a rather large torrent of water to rocket Ameyruu out from under the water and back on the surface of the water basin. Moving quickly, he would advance on her and start tickling her sides without mercy.

"Do you give up?" Sanosuke asked with a mischievous smile on his face as he tickled his student uncontrollably.

Watching as her sensei fell into the water clutching his crotch, Ame let out an undignified squeak. She hadn't actually expected her attack to land, much less where it had. She'd heard stories of how painful it could be for men to be hit there and the way he seemed to lose his breath for a moment confirmed it. He sunk into the water, seemingly losing his concentration for a moment. Ame winced and ran forward, allowing herself to sink a little into the water to try and catch him. She could just imagine what would happen to her if she allowed the Raikage to drown. '15 year old genin nails Raikage in the nuts, leaving him to a watery grave'. Ame shook her head and dove into the water, hoping to find him before he sank too far. The lack of rising bubbles worried her immensely.

She saw him for only a moment, as underneath the water it was quite dark. Next thing she knew she was surrounded by a stream of bubbles and thrown straight out of the water, coughing out whatever water she'd accidentally inhaled on the way up. She landed on the water surface, sinking an inch before she circled chakra to stop her process of sinking. She let out a sudden shriek, opening her eyes to find her sensei bending ovre her almost triumphantly with his hands at her sides. Was he - tickling her? She widened her eyes and saw that a mischievous smile had formed on her sensei's face as her tickled her senseless. Ame laughed so much she was sure she was crying, (it could have been the water but...) begging him to stop. She'd always been a strangely ticklish person. This was torture. She wondered if it was punishment for pseudo kicking him in the balls.  

"I- I yield!" Ame gasped, trying to push his hands of her. She could barely breath she was laughing so much.

---

Words: 330 ~ 2273

At the sounds of Ame squealing for mercy, it just fueled Sanosuke's tickling with more fire. Seeing his student at his mercy, with tears down her face from laughing to hard, put him in a good mood. In fact in such a good mood that the Raikage decided to grant his student her wish for him to yield. Sanosuke gave her another chuckle as he watched her try and catch her breath from laughing so hard previously. Cupping some water in his hands, Sanosuke put it over her face and let the water splash on her. "I win." His fingers were lifted to give her student a sign of 'V' for victory that he indeed won against the genin. Knowing the girl, she might be frustrated and that would just cause the silver haired man to laugh even more. "You know, you're not as ticklish as Kaekio. When I tickled her, I made her pass out from it. So remember that the next time you aim for the Raikage family jewels." Sanosuke said waving his finger at the girl mockingly with a silly smile. His words weren't to take seriously as the girl probably figured out by now. He would rather like to continue being a playful, and eccentric kage and sensei. Fulfilling the stereotype of a typical sensei and kage was just boring to him. Life was all about mixing things up.

Walking over to Ame, he affectionately rubbed the top of her head. "Come now little one. Time for us to continue your lesson." Sanosuke smiled at the girl and motioned for her to follow him. The two would walk towards the deep end of the first water basin of the waterfall. Dark blue water was where they stood, compared to the light blue coloring of the water that was closer to the shore. It marked depth of the basin. Just enough for their depth for their next exercise. "Our next exercise, well you might find this helpful to learn. By the time we're done with this exercise, that is assuming you picked up something from this, you'd be able to stay underwater for 2 days before coming back for air." With a wink at her, Sanosuke ensured his student that none of what he was telling the girl was fabricated at all. When she got closer, Sanosuke would begin focusing suiton chakra around his body. Water began to envelop his body as though the water was trying to retake Sanosuke's body and make it their own. Even so, Sanosuke didn't move as more chakra was being pulsed until finally the man looked like he was in a wet guille suit.

"The key is to be one with the water. If you've done that, the water itself will bring you the oxygen you so desperately need." Sanosuke left off cryptically as he submerged himself deeper into the water until finally not a single oxygen bubble was left. Of course upon learning this, Ame would probably feel pretty foolish of her earlier thought of the Raikage drowning. There's no way he could drown, her Raikage can in fact breath underwater; that's probably what was going on in Ame's head. Also for ways to try and decipher her sensei's instructions on how to go about completing this seemingly impossible task. Although he will admit that this exercise was much more difficult than the water exercise he gave her. Actually how much harder it was is to be noted. Ame will have to first surround herself with her own suiton chakra and submerge into the water. If done correctly, the water around her will take the water surrounding them and filter the hygrogen out and incorporate the oxygen into the girl. The key, like any technique was balance. If she focuses too little suiton chakra around herself, then the water around her wouldn't be able to sustain her breath for too long. Too much and she risks drowning herself form her own power.

Ameryuu Ryuzoji, how will you deal with this task now....

Ame breathed deeply once her sensei had let up with his tirade. She was more than a little breathless from all that laughing, and she could feel the strain it had put on her diaphragm. She wiped away the drying tears just as Sanosuke unceremoniously dumped more water over her head, leaving her to splutter indignantly. She sent an unamused look his way, which just seemed to make him feel more victorious. He even made a little 'V' sign with his fingers, obviously very happy with himself. She couldn't understand why though - had he forgotten that she was just a genin? Maybe he enjoyed torturing people who couldn't defend themselves. "Sadist." She muttered under her breath. His little tidbit about Kaekio was certainly interesting. Ame couldn't help but smile a bit at the sentence he tacked on at the end. "I actually didn't aim for there you know, but really? You deserved it." Call her spiteful, but it was true. She had a small triumph now, even if he had ended up using the situation to his advantage. He seemed to enjoy throwing away people's expectations though, and Ame could vouch that her sensei was definitely not what anyone would expect. In a good way though.

He rubbed her head, leaving the shorter strands of blue to stick up and stay that way thanks to the water. She probably looked like a tall porcupine. Sanosuke seemed to be going back into teacher mode though, so Ame paid attention to his explanation of their next exercise. They made their way to the deeper end of the water basin where the water depth was visible. It lacked the clear light blue of before and instead held a darker, more murky colour. Sanosuke's words surprised her greatly. Stay underwater for two days? That was incredible! It could be extremely useful. Not just to escape drowning but also as a way of staying hidden during reconnaissance missions.  He assured her that this was not one of his little jokes, and was in fact actually possible. She was eager to find out how one could do such a thing without some sort of kekkei genkai. She stepped forward a bit in anticipation, watching as her sensei coated himself in Suiton chakra. The water from the basin was drawn to him, wrapping around his form until it covered him head to toe. A fleeting thought of 'can he breath?' went through her mind at the sight. 

His next words only served to fuel her confusion. Be one with the water? How exactly was one meant to do that? Before she had a chance to voice her questions he sank deeper into the water before disappearing altogether, not even a water bubble to be seen. So he could breath underwater then. She felt a bit silly that she had worried about him drowning earlier. Pushing that thought out of her mind she focused back on her current task, wondering exactly how she was supposed to manage this task with the cryptic instructions. She would just have to try it out a couple of times to see what worked and what didn't.

Ame focused her chakra into a shroud around her, just as her sensei had done. It was surprisingly easy to do that now, probably thanks to the previous training she had done with him that had focused on chakra control. The water seemed to cling her feet, pulling at her ankles and trying to get her to submerge. She did so slowly, until her head was engulfed by the water. She held her breath out of habit, keeping her eyes shut as she floated a little ways below the surface. She 'sat' in a meditative position to help her keep her focus. Slowly she ignored her body's instincts and breathed in, half-expecting to get a lungful of water. She was surprised when she didn't, but still felt no relief in the form of air. So it didn't work like that then? She wasn't feeling starved of oxygen, granted she had only been underwater for a minute or so but usually she would definitely start to feel deprived by now. Maybe the oxygen was filtered some other way, instead of through the lungs. It made sense, since fish had gills. She sat there, keeping tight control over her chakra and wondering how long she was going to last before something went wrong. Her sensei had said two days, but she somehow doubted that she had the control for that. She certainly didn't have a large enough chakra pool. She felt a faint uncomfortable feeling, as if she was running out of time and watched as her chakra coating flickered and vanished. She rose to the surface, gasping for breath.

Her sensei had yet to emerge, meaning that he was probably still going fine. She felt frustrated, wondering what she had done wrong. Maybe she had used too little chakra? She had been trying to conserve what was left of her reserves which was a little less than half. More this time then. Ame dipped under the water again, this time the chakra around her thicker and more visible. Almost immediately she felt the pressure of the water against her body. She came up spluttering, coughing to get the water out of her lungs. That was obviously the wrong thing. Whereas before she had lasted for a short time with little chakra, with lots of chakra she was overwhelmed in a matter of seconds. She had to strike a balance, but how did she find the right ratio? She took a deep breath, this time adjusting the flow of her chakra, just a bit more than she had had the first time, before sinking underneath the surface of the water basin once again. Every time she felt that uncomfortable lack of oxygen she adjusted the chakra flow acordingly, making sure not to add too much. She didn't want to end up having a couple liters of water in her lungs. She wasn't sure how long she was under for this time, but she was feeling severely drained of her chakra. She hadn't made it two days, but it was a start.

She didn't like that she hadn't quite found the correct ratio of chakra to water yet, but she felt like she was close to the answer. Tommorrow she would come out here to practice again until she got it right. Ame hated being unable to do things. She would just have to train extra hard from today onwards. "I'll make you proud, dad." Ame whispered, closing her eyes and all but collapsing on the shore. She could tell that she was going to have a tough time getting back home. She completely forgot about her sensei, too busy feeling the lack of chakra circling in her system. She was an easy target where she was, but had become too comfortable with Sanosuke's presence to really worry for her life around him.

---

Words: 1184 ~ 3457

The Raikage sat underwater while in deep meditation as he only let a small bit of his consciousness out to monitor Ameryuu's progress with her training. The girl was tough, that much was for certain, she was going on and on like this until she struck a good balance between the two polar ends of chakra control. By now she must have realized the need for balance. She focuses too little suiton chakra around herself, it won't be enough to be suffice enough to maintain her breathing underwater. If she focused too much suiton chakra and the very chakra she gathered will turn against her to drawn herself. Finding the correct ratio was definitely a challenge but Sanosuke was sure she would figure it out eventually. Each time Ameryuu would raise up from the waters, Sanosuke would noticed from the feeligns of the water around him shifting from one of the reciepients exiting the body of water. Then once Ameryuu would enter it once more, the shifting waters would notify him of such a change. He felt this happen every time she wanted to try again. The interruptions became less frequent as time went on. She was finally getting the timing right, or getting rather close to it.

While she did that, Sanosuke would spend most of his time meditating with his thoughts. He hadn't done this in a long time with everything that had happened. There was a lot to take in. He hadn't had nightmares of Kikyo in a long time, mostly because his mind is occupied with other tasks required of a Raikage, but ever so often Sanosuke could feel her scratching at his conscience to fill his mind with turmoil. Bubbles escaped his lips as Sanosuke clenched his thighs in his hands. Calm down, calm down. Sanosuke chanted to himself as the water barrier he made around himself slightly fizzled and threatened to give out. His breathing went back to normal and his suiton chakra stabilized shortly afterwards. Memories of talking to the Suna Ex-councilman filled this head. He was apart of a clan, moreso, his mother had the same kekkei genkai as himself. They were apart of the Court of Owls, assassins that always killed their targets. What did they want from him, and why now?

His thoughts jutted out of his head as he realized that he couldn't feel Ame's presence in the water any longer. What happened to the girl? Sanosuke wondered as he let himself drift towards the surface and he began standing on the water. It was nightfall already? Last time he checked, the sun was still high in the sky. Now the waterfall they were using for training was cloaked in orange light of the setting sun. Towards the shore, Sanosuke saw his student collapsed. She probably drifted towards the shore from chakra exhaustion. Sanosuke scratched his head as he walked towards the blue haired girl who was unconscious. The Raikage picked up the girl from the ground and carried her bridal style away from the water. He could feel the girl shivering in his arms as he carried her. Damn, this won't be good it looks like she might have caught a cold from being in the water for too long. And this cool breeze wasn't helping the scenario at all. Sanosuke took a look around his surroundings. There's just enough materials for them to camp out for the night. He needed to get Ame warm as soon as possible or she'll fall ill.

Sanosuke put the girl down under a tree. A scroll materialized from his pants pockets and he unraveled it to unseal his black jacket that he used to drap over the blue haired genin to keep her warm. That should suffice until he could gather firewood to create a campfire for the two of them. Walking off into the woods, Sanosuke would be gone for about 10 minutes until he was holding arms upon arms of firewood. Putting them down on the ground, Sanosuke began starting on making a fire for the two of them. It didn't take long until a fire was crafted large enough to sustain the two of them for the night. The Raikage brought the girl closer to the flames so she can get the most from the heat. With his jacket around her, and the campfire used to warm up Ame, it would be safe for him to go hunting for food. Sanosuke listened to the songs of the fores until he sensed what he needed for food. Catching a rock from the ground, Sanosuke put chakra intot he projectile and rocketed it towards the forest at speeds that imitated a bullet. Sanosuke heard a thud. It meant he definitely hit an animal and it was most likely dead.

Moving quickly and quietly not to wake up Ame, Sanosuke went to retrieve his game. Coming back to the campfire, Sanosuke came with a dead deer with a hole in her head. He started skinning the beast and put the chunks of meat over the fire. While he was out he picked up plants that he identified from his travels that could be used for spices. Sanosuke laughed to himself as it reminded himself of the time when he was a genin living off the land until he finally got himself an apartment. Sanosuke smiled at the memories fondly as he let the meat cook. The aroma filled his nose and made his mouth water at the meat before him. There will be enough for Ame when she wakes up, after all she'd be bound to wake up. Chakra exhaustion takes a toll on your body, that includes the stomach. She would definitely be starving when she awakens. Smiling at his student, Sanosuke let her sleep with her head on his lap and the man stroking her hair. This was the other student he would train, and craft into a fine shinobi. Who knows? She might even be his successor. After all he was the student of the Hachidame Raikage. Maybe it might be time to pass the torch to another genin. That is when they came of age. Sanosuke laughed softly.

"Today you're just a green horned genin. But one day soon, you'll be very strong. Who knows you might even be strong enough to surpass me." Sanosuke whispered quietly to Ame while she slept.

Ame felt herself being jostled slightly, but it wasn't enough to break her out of her exhaustion induced sleep. A feeling of warmth surrounded her, and she unconsciously snuggled down into it, goosebumps rising on her cool skin at the contact. She was completely out of it, lost somewhere in the realm of her memories. She could hear the faint sound of a crackling fire, but it was muffled as if she was underwater. A half-formed thought of 'Maybe I am' flitted through her mind. Her mind was such a jumbled mess that things like dreams never really happened to her. Instead, bits and pieces of memories would float in and out of her subconscious, giving her glimpses of things once past but never telling a full story. She had never been good at organizing things, and it had carried over to her subconscious mind. Some people had solid mind spaces, others could even explore their own minds at will, but Ame was always subject to the random pick and mix of her memories. Outwardly she could feel someone stroking her hair, and leaned into the touch, hearing the words of encouragement but not registering them. 

Snippets of her childhood played like movies, some memories warm and bathed in happiness, others cold or dark, filled with regret and heartache. She gripped the fabric she was wrapped in a little harder as a familar an entirely unwelcome memory made it's appearance. It sent a shiver down her spine, and in her mind she stared into dark blue eyes, filled with warmth and understanding. Why was she so cold then? Her heart rate picked up slightly, her eyes scrunching up instinctively to try and block it out. Ame gasped, and sat straight up. She looked around frantically, before noticing that it was evening, she was wrapped in someone else's jacket, and she was most certainly not a seven year old girl again. Once she'd realised this her breathing calmed, along with her pulse, and she turned to see her sensei. He must have moved her from where she'd collapsed near the shore and given her his jacket. "Arigato, sensei."

Ame felt a sudden pang of hunger hit her, but she still felt a bit too disconcerted from her earlier nightmare to really eat anything, even if the smell coming from that fire was heavenly. Ame turned with wide eyes to stare at the makeshift spit Sanosuke had set up. He seemed to have prepared for every eventuality. "Sensei, did you catch that deer?" It looked rather apetizing, and her depleted chakra levels only made her hungrier, but she could still feel the prickles of fear along the back of her neck, and she was finding it hard to swallow. Ame gripped Sanosuke's jacket around her even tighter and rubbed her arms to try and get rid of the goosebumps. She was fairly dry now, but her 'clothing' was still damp. She sent a look Sano's way, as if wondering if he would peak if she tried to change.

"Sensei if you don't mind, may I change back into my clothing? It's cold." She knew that her dry stuff was hanging in a tree somewhere to her right. She would probably keep his jacket in any case, but only because it was already warm and big enough to cover her hands. Indeed, very comfy. She hoped that her questions would deter him from asking about her outburst. He had seen it of course, considering that she had been lying in his lap when it happened. It was something she would rather not talk about.

---

Words: 611 ~ 4068

As Ameryuu slept on his lap, Sanosuke was stroking her back and hair to coax her to sleep. Judging from how tightly she was squeezing his jacket and some part of him as well, his student was having quite the furious nightmare. Her body was shaking from the dream as well, if Sanosuke looked close enough he could actually see sweat dropping from her forehead. He didn't want to wake her up because sleep was needed to get the body adjusted to not having enough chakra. But the need to wake up the blue haired genin resolved itself as she shot herself up in fear from the dream. The silver haired man didn't do anything as he watched the young Ryuzoji try to recollect herself from the nightmare she had. She took sometime to piece together what had occurred to her while she was sleeping. Her breathing, from what he could sense,stabilized and returned to normal. That was a releif, being stressed doesn't bode well for the body at all. When the girl looked at the makeshift firepit, Sanosuke chuckled at her question of if he killed that deer. Sanosuke nodded. "Of course I did. I've learned how to hunt on my own since I was 8." Sanosuke answered. Taking a better look at the deer roasting in the flames, it looked just about done. Sanosuke got out a two senbon needles and a kunai to prepare cutting the deer and sticking the chunks on the needles.

Taking a bite out of it to taste, Sanosuke nodded and unintentionally let out a moan of delight from the taste of the venison. "Oh yeah, this takes me back in the days where I'd hunt like this all the time. Try some." Sanosuke smiled at Ameryuu and offered a stick of meat to the girl for her to try herself. Whenever she took it from him, Sanosuke would walk over towards the tree branch that held his genin's rather wet clothes from their training from earlier. They were still damp but not by much. The Raikage brought the clothes closer to the fire to warm up. "You're clothes are still damp. Eat first. By the time you're done eating, your clothes should be ready for you to wear." In case Ameryuu had already ate the stick of venison he prepared for her, Sanosuke was getting another stick of deer meet for the girl and himself to eat. The silver haired man would hand it to the girl and he would sit back down close to the fire. Sanosuke unsealed another scroll that contained a bottle of sake. Taking some swigs from it, Sanosuke finally stopped and let out a sigh before taking another bite from his meat.

"You were having quite the nightmare back there. Want to talk about it?" Sanosuke blurted out after his mouth was finally clear. He put down his bottle that was half gone, when before he started drinking it was full, and looked at the girl trying to unravel the girl's past. At the moment, she had his undivided attention should she cooperate and tell her tale.

As Ame asked her question Sanosuke chuckled, revealing that yes he did catch the deer himself. She had assumed as much of course, considering that there were survival skill classes when one was in the ninja academy. She had not done terribly in that portion of work, but it hadn't been as thorough a class as it probably should have been. After all, survival was most shinobi's prime goal, or at least a motivation. Sanosuke got up beside her, got out a kunai and some senbon and began cutting the venison up. As he took a bite of the meat he let out a soft groan, probably at the flavour. He offered her a senbon needle, a chunk of very yummy looking meat stuck through on it. Ame accepted it tentatively and nibbled a bit, happy to find that it tasted really good. As she ate her sensei moved towards where her clothes were hanging, picking them up and laying them out in front of the fire. She nodded as he explained they were still damp. She was fine in his jacket for now, just pulled it around her a little tighter for extra warmth. As she finished her portion of meat he handed her another.

"This is really good. Thanks." Ame continued to enjoy her meal, knowing that she needed fuel to replenish her body's chakra supply. That and sleep, but she felt like she wasn't going to get much of the latter that evening. Not if her first attempt was anything to go by (well it technically hadn't been an attempt anymore than she had simply passed out). Her sensei pulled out a scroll from somewhere and unsealed a bottle of sake. She felt slightly thirsty, but she despised the taste of sake on a good day so she didn't bother asking. Her sensei's next words made her freeze. She turned the idea of telling him over in her head. Would he understand? It was debatable. He had been dealing with the Ryuzoji family for a while. He knew the politics. But there was always the lingering doubt that no one would understand. He could end up shunning her, berating her. She didn't think she could handle being pushed away right now. She wouldn't blame him for doing so, not at all, but she didn't want him to. 

"I- It's nothing important, sensei." Ame tried to smile, but it came out more like a grimace. She turned away from him a little, angling herself so that she was closer to the fire but further from him. It was always easier to shut people out. So, so much easier than letting them in. 

---

Words: 455 ~ 4523

Letting out a sigh, Sanosuke took another swig from his sake when she answered his question regarding if she wanted to talk about her dream or not. When she finished, Sanosuke noticed the grimacing smile she was trying to pass off of it not being such a big deal after all. Sanosuke slammed the sake bottle on the ground, hard enough for the sound to echo in the woods but not strong enough to shatter the bottle. It most likely would've frightened the young Ryuzoji but that was besides the point. "Dreams have a tendency of revealing certain truths about ourselves." Sanosuke finally said while turning his head to the skies while he spoke. It was quite the starry night, it illuminated the night sky quite well considering how dark and cloudy the village hidden in the clouds would get sometimes. "I never cared for the shinobi rules taught at the academy of killing off your emotions. To those rules, I'd say fuck that to anyone who believes in those rules. Our emotions are demons, and bottling them up only gives them time to grow. When they're too big, they'll unleash and swallow you whole until you're just a former shell of yourself." He was speaking towards Ameryuu the entire time, and by some extension reminding himself.

"The longer you remain a shinobi, the larger these demons called "emotions" will threaten to harm you for keeping them captive." Turning his head back over to his genin, Sanosuke looked at her with insightful eyes. To her it would seem as though he's seen everything and knew everything about her past, but at the same time he knew nothing about it. "I'm going to ask you again: what happened back there. Look at me when you are talking to me girl." The last part of his sentence was sharper than the rest of his speech. It was more like a crack of the whip that lingered in the air as Sanosuke starred at his student until she would finally answer his question. The fire crackled before them as a breeze came by and lowered the temperature shortly before readjusting to the heat of the campfire. His silver hair swished with the breeze, but Sanosuke's eyes never left his student.

Ame heard Sano sigh, followed by the unmistakable sound of someone taking a swig from a bottle. A loud near-smash echoed through the forest, making a few birds flee from their perches up in the trees behind her. Ame jumped slightly, startled at the noise. He began speaking about dreams, eyes turned skyward. Ame wrapped her arms around her legs as he continued talking, moving on to his distaste for the emotional suppression training that was mandatory for all academy graduates. Ame herself had gone through that training at home more than at school. She knew the problems of reigning in one's emotions all too well. He turned back to her and she looked away instinctively as he asked his question once again. At his sharp words her eyes snapped back to his. A cool wind swept through their makeshift campsite, making the flames of the campfire flicker for a moment before settling again. Ame could practically hear her heart beating in her chest.


"I was dreaming of my father." Her voice was flat. Almost lifeless. Her gaze was level with his and blank, despite how her pulse was running a million miles a minute. "It was the night-" She almost choked on her words, "-he died. I was dreaming about his eyes." She could almost feel the cold metal in her hands. She knew her sensei wouldn't allow her to go without explaining the connotations of that 'nightmare'. She steeled herself and let out a shaky breath. "Do you promise not to judge me? I- I don't think I could stand it if you thought badly of me." Her restraint was gone, her voice tiny and childlike in her throat. She felt extremely vulnerable sitting there, next to a warm open fire about to spill her biggest secret.

---

Words: 303 ~ 4826

With some truth finally coming out of Ameryuu's mouth, Sanosuke let his gaze soften on the girl to show her support. It took a lot of courage and trust in order to get one's secrets out in the open. Especially one was previously trying to shut people out. Sanosuke commended and respected his student for having so much trust in him. When she mentioned her father, Sanosuke looked at his student interested in what she had to say. What could have happened to her father? He could hear how fast Ameryuu's heart was beating from where she was. She was scared, like a deer starstruck before a train coming right at it. When Ameryuu asked if she wouldn't judge her for what she was about to say, Sanosuke took another swig from his sake bottle. Hopefully this death was accidental with her father, if not then he would need more than this bottle to get himself to calm down. "Aye girl. You have my word." Sanosuke nodded as he would listen to Ameryuu's tale of what conspired that night. He was listening to her, not as the leader of her village, but as a concerned adult figure in her life worried about her well being. The chuunin exams were taking place soon, and there would be shinobi skilled in genjutsu that would gladly use Ameryuu's past against her. She had to be used to being confronted with the past eventually.

Ame took a deep breath to steady herself. She couldn't predict her sensei's reaction, but she could hope for the best, even as she expected the worst. She explained the circumstances first. "You know how the Ryuzoji clan has never been very friendly towards traitors, to the point where any rebel faction is, extinguished, by the main family?" Ame felt the edges of the memory brush against her consciousness. "I was seven years old when it started. My father he-" She inhaled again, "He had never liked the main house. He hated the shinobi lifestyle as well. Often tried to convince my mother to keep me out of the academy. One night I was walking back from meditation when I heard someone speaking in a dark room. I was stupid, too curious for my own good. I heard his voice, and what they talked about scared me. Things about getting rid of Clan Head Leyatsu. I ran away, and I never said anything about it." Ame felt her head swim.

"One night later I walked out of my room to take my laundry down and someone told me I was being summoned by Leyatsu-sama himself. I had already forgotten about the night before. I was taken to a part of the compound I'd never been in before and shoved into a dark room. My father was kneeling in front of me, restrained. I didn't know what was happening. I think I fell backwards." Her memory was fuzzy about that part, but she knew there was pain involved. "A few other clansmen appeared from somewhere and started interrogating him. Everything he said, it was exactly as I'd heard the night before. He'd betrayed the clan. He and some other clan members, they had planned to kill Leyatsu-sama. Free everyone from the subjugation." Ame's hands shook. The next part played out startilingly clear in her head.

"They gave me a kunai." Her words were almost non-existent. "They gave me a kunai and said that either I kill him or face exile. I was so, so scared." Ame felt the tell-tale prickles of tears behind her eyes but refused to let them spill over. "He just looked at me. He was smiling, and he looked happy, and he said 'I love you' and-" Ame felt a tear drip down her chin. "And I killed him. And it hurts so much and I hate myself so much and-" She choked on a sob and dropped her head into her hands and cried. She hated herself, hated herself so, so much. She was so weak, so utterly, completely useless. "I'll understand," she wiped her eyes on Sanosuke's jacket sleeve, "If you hate me. I'll understand." Ame sniffled softly and kept her head down. Too scared to meet her sensei's eyes.

---

Words: 480 ~ 5306

As Sanosuke listened to the girl's tale, he was caught off guard. She was like him. His own student had a tragic past, just like he had. Sanosuke didn't expect this sort of thing from Ameryuu. She was so innocent and kind, so pure.  The more she spoke, Sanosuke felt his vision fade into his own past. He would hear the words of his student as she stumbles them out to get some recollection of what had transpired. But to his eyes, Sanosuke was no longer looking into the eyes of his student. All he could see was flames. Fire burning and the smell of burnt flesh. Screams as well. And finally a voice he knew too well. They were all rooted to his past and what had happened to himself nearly 20 years ago with his village. So him and Ameryuu were the same. What happened to him still haunts him to this very day, but never would he have dreamed of meeting a student who's past closely mimicked his own. Fate was a sick son of a bitch for bringing this child to him to torment his own ongoing pain.

When she stopped speaking, Sanosuke forced the visions away. The only fire that was seen in Sanosuke's eyes was the campfire he started with his own two hands. That fire illuminated the sobbing form of Ameryuu Ryuzoji. Her face were in her hands as she wept controllabley. She was begging for forgiveness, from him? Why was this? Tragedy driven tears...when he shed those kinds of tears it was the day after the incident. For 4 months he cried, day in and day out; until finally he never spoke as a child, it took therapists after therapists to coax him out of his seculsion and even then it took until he was 7 for him to speak. Looking at her he could see a 5 year old Sanosuke Flynt crying for his parents holding a rope in his tiny bloody hands of his own blood. Seeing her like this, Sanosuke clenched his fist. He was glad that Ameryuu wasn't looking towards him or she would have seen his face grimace with pain of his memories.

No...not now. She needs me. Sanosuke wanted to run and calm himself down from the memories of that night. But what then of Ameryuu? He was her teacher and Sanosuke had these thoughts? It made him sick to his stomach. She needed him and he was thinking about running away. Sanosuke would rather be left a vegetable from his visions than have walked another step away from Ameryuu's pain. Walking over to her, Sanosuke willed himself over to his student. She was so delicate too. Fate was cruel to show no mercy not even to a girl like Ameryuu. When he was close, Sanosuke would take his hand and wave at her to make her look up at him. As soon as she did, Sanosuke would flick her forehead to send her head backwards. There would be a red mark in the middle of her head. Before she would have a chance to shout her displeasure of being flicked like that, Sanosuke would envelope the girl in his arms. His hand brought over to the back of her head to bring her closer to him. The other hand gently stroking her back.

"You're an idiot you know. I'm your sensei. No matter what happens, my love for you girls will never change. There is nothing I wouldn't do for the 3 of you." Sanosuke said to Ameryuu's ear as he stroked her hair gently. For a while he would hold the genin like this in case she would break down. Sanosuke would hold her for long as she cried until she lessened her tears. Pulling himself off while holding onto both of her arms, Sanosuke smiled at her. "Now if you ever think of believing I would hate you, I'll have you run around the entire Thunder Country with only your left hand. Do you understand me?" Sanosuke smiled at her. Even though the girl was inexperienced with masking her emotions, Sanosuke was very skilled at doing so. His past was still disturbing him. The smell of burning was faint in the air as he held Ameryuu...

Ame kept her head down, fiercely trying to stop herself from crying. She hated showing weakness like this. Crying made her feel helpless. She took Sanosuke's silence for disdain, internally repeating 'I knew it' over and over again. She wanted to hit herself. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. You are not a child. Ame took a few deep breaths to try and halt the tears when a hand waved in front of her face. She looked up automatically and felt Sano flick her forehead hard. Her head jerked backwards from the force, and before she had time to choke out a remark he had wrapped his arms around her, cradling her to his chest. Ame melted, feeling all the weariness she'd been holding back for years make her bones become mush. It had been so long since she had been comforted like this. She hadn't realised how much she'd missed it. She pressed her forehead to his chest even as it throbbed from his impromptu flick.

He stroked her hair softly and rubbed her back as her tears dried on her cheeks. His words were warm and soothing and Ame felt her pulse slow down to a more clam and collected pace. Once she had stopped crying he pulled back and pseudo-threatened her, making a soft laugh escape her throat. Running around the whole of Kaminari no Kuni on one hand sounded like something she'd like to avoid. Ame once again brushed away her her dry tears with the sleeves of his jacket. She smiled bravely, steeling herself a little. She shuffled forwards a bit and wrapped her arms around her sensei, hugging him now. "Thank you, Sanosuke." She didn't know if she was overstepping boundaries by leaving off a suffix, but she felt the need to thank him in some way. She felt odd now that she had told someone else about that night. He was right when he had said that bottling up one's feelings wasn't good for them. 

---

Words: 340 ~ 5646

As the girl wept in his arms, Sanosuke was coaxing her. Her body seemed to have melted in his arms as she continously sobbed. His skin tight black shirt that he was wearing he could feel it being soaked with warm tears from his student. Even though she was tall for her age, hell she was close to his own height, Sanosuke remembered that she was still a child despite her height. For her to go through so much strife, Sanosuke admired her. The Ryuzoji clan affairs were a jumbled mess, and he's surprised that his representative fort he clan hasn't gone insane from all the affairs that occurred from the family. What happened to Ameryuu was a mess that Sanosuke would do everything in his power as Raikage to cease from occuring once more. Another tragedy like the one he was told about will not be repeated again; not as long as he's breathing. When Ameryuu was finally able to calm herself down, Sanosuke lightened up the atmosphere with his words. Her laughter made Sanosuke smile at the girl, her mood much more improved. What he didn't expect was the hug from the blue haired girl from his words. He didn't really know what he was saying when trying to comfort Ameryuu. Hell he thought that he had made things worse for her. Instead, they revitalized her resolve to leave the past behind.

Placing his hand on the girl's head, Sanosuke ruffled her hair affectionately. Once she would let go, Sanosuke would remove his hand from her hair and bring up his bottle of sake to drink. Sanosuke would continue eating his share while drinking his sake. He then had a sudden thought of the Ameryuu had nothing to drink as well while she ate. "Oi Ameryuu, come take a sip of this sake. It goes well with the food. Come now, don't be stingy it's just a little taste. It'll help you sleep." Sanosuke offered to the girl while dismissing her excuses for her to not drink in case she made any. Placing the jug before Ameryuu, Sanosuke smiled at the girl to encourage her to drink. Little did the genin know that it was a bottle of sake where the flavor was tantalizing but fruity with more alcohol content then the average sake. Having one sip of it from a light weight would have them giggling none stop for the rest of the night. But that would be short lived as the high alcohol content in the sake will shortly render the girl sleeping like a log before long. Sanosuke would play with the drunken girl until she finally slept. That way he would be left alone with his thoughts for the rest of the night. He'd watch over the girl the entire night without getting sleep himself. The smell of burning flesh and hateful screams were still consistently present to his senses. Only the flames of the campfire and the sleeping form of Ameryuu was what kept him sane the entire night.

Ame felt Sanosuke's hand ruffling her hair, something he had seemed to take a liking to doing. She smiled at his familiar tick and pulled back, happy that he had not made mention of her use of his name sans-honorific. He continued to merrily drink her sake and Ame went back to eating her venison that she had yet to finish. It still tasted very good, and she silently complimeted her sensei's cooking once again. His next words concerning his offer of sake made her smile ruefully. Ame got herself geared up to protest. She went with the legality issue first. "I'm not of age yet sensei." Then guilt. "Surely as my sensei you're obligated to keep me away from alcohol?" But her protests didn't make him budge on the issue at all. "But, hangovers?" He remained adamant. Ame had never liked the taste of sake. It burnt her throat on it's way down and made her head blurry. She supposed that one sip couldn't be that bad, in the end, and tentatively took a sip. It tasted strangely pleasant, and her eyes widened. She'd never had sake that had tasted that good. It certainly went down better than the very few times she'd had the stuff before. 

After that one sip she declined anymore, firm in her resolve, but she was a complete and utter lightweight and soon her head was spinning. Ame wasn't sure why it had taken affect so quickly or why it was affecting her this strongly at all. It was only one small sip, right? She was blinking more than usual, and a little bit giggly, but mostly calm. She wasn't the type of crazy drunk one often heard about being kicked out of bars, or the sulky, clingy ones who were never in a solid relationship. She was a calm drunk, completely out of it yes, but at least not yelling at people left right and center. Ame covered her mouth and yawned as her eyes drooped, before curling up and becoming completely unconscious, muttering an only half said "G'night sensei," before drifting off. She was so out of it that even dreams escaped her, and her muddled memories left her completely unaffected. She shifted softly in her sleep to stay comfortable, but did little less than that. She would eventually wake up as the sun pried at her eyelids, a pounding headache almost ensured, but for now she was at peace as her body went to work replenishing her chakra coils. 

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Words: 431 ~ 6077

"I'm not of age yet sensei."

"Nobody ever waits to drink until they're of age."

"Surely as my sensei you're obligated to keep me away from alcohol?"

"Surely as your sensei, I'm obligated to have you experience everything life has to offer. And for this case it's drinking with your sensei."

"But, hangovers?"

"You have to learn to deal with them at some point, so why not today. Don't put off until tomorrow what can be done today!" And just like that Sanosuke was finally able to persuade his underage student to drink with him. Albeit it was only a sip she took, but that would be all she needed to experience what it was like to be drunk. Sanosuke had fun talking to this more, giggly version of his student. So she was that kind of drunk huh? Someone that would remain calm but will literally giggle from anything that is even remotely funny. Case in point, while they were up Sanosuke decided to play rock, paper scissors with Ameryuu. The blue haired girl couldn't keep a straight face when they kept on getting ties with one another. This went on for about 20 minutes before the young kage decided to tie her sleeves together into knots so she couldn't get access to her hands. Ameryuu begged him for a while to undo the knots, when he finally did so she went to sleep. Sanosuke sighed as he stroked her forehead before letting her sleep.

His thoughts were  getting darker from his past as listening to Ameryuu's story before they started drinking. He had to meditate or else he might go insane. Sitting cross legged, Sanosuke found his spiritual center and focused his being on the virtue of patience and tranquility to guide him through the night. Early light rays from the sun hit his skin as Sanosuke was still meditating throughout the night. As he peeled open his close eyelids, Sanosuke realized that he was levitating while meditating once more. It was something he accidentally got himself into the habit of doing after long term meditation sessions. Canceling out the chakra from his body, Sanosuke dropped to the ground and stretched his body from any sluggishness he was feeling. A yawn escaped his lips, it was to be expected for not sleeping an entire night. Whenever he had thoughts like those at night, sleep was out of the question. It was best for him to stay up.

His stomach rumbled as he looked at the smoldering fire pit that he made. The deer was all gone from how much him and Ameryuu ate the night before. Meaning it would soon be time for him to get breakfast. Walking over to the waterfall, Sanosuke sent a tiny chakra pulse into the basin. It was a chakra signature technique that would allow him to sense any wildlife in it that could have been sensed out. That's when he felt it. Sanosuke did a few hand seals before warping his fingers in smooth wavelike motions. As he did so, the water was willing itself out of the basin in the shape of a ballon of water. In this container was 2 rather large fishes that would be perfect for breakfast. Sanosuke let them drop and soon got to work on preparing them for himself and his student while she slept. The fire was started once more and the fishes were cooking. Sanosuke would return to meditation and have a note beside her leg that wrote:


The exercise would be good to shake off any forms of hangovers before she resumed her training learning more about suiton chakra from her sensei.