Aiza was wandering the streets, thinking of things to do. He could probably go out to eat, but he was far too lazy for that, at least for now he was. It was September 14th, his 30th birthday, so he felt he should do something special. The thought of training came to mind; what better way to celebrate another year than to become stronger for the years to come? He'd already trained Ninjutsu earlier that day, though, so he wracked his brain trying to figure out what exactly to train. He could always learn a new elemental release...the thought of doing so set in his mind and he smiled with excitement. But who would teach him?

The Special Jounin came into a clearing and found himself at the edge of town, near the west gate. A mass of trees and forestry was just outside, as were multiple civilians and leaf ninja, and of course, the gate guards. One of the ninja caught his eye; a girl with green hair and a soft face, quite pretty from what he could tell. She was petite and walked with casual grace. He recognized her, maybe not directly, but he'd heard of someone with her description...that was right! Mitsuo-sensei had talked about a woman like her, named Ukiyo. She and Mitsuo were close friends, and most important of all, she was a Senju. Senju used Suiton and Doton to create Mokuton, so she could teach him Doton!

Pushing the red bangs from his eyes, he jogged over to her until he was just behind her. "Excuse me, are you, by any chance, Senju, Ukiyo? I'm Itohane, Aiza, a student of Mitsuo's."

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Learning Doton
Word Count: 284/1,500

Ukiyo strolled around along the edge of the forest, along the border where the dirt from the road meets grass. She breathed in deeply, savoring the pollen-filled air compliments of beautiful, random flowers who's seeds have found there way to the grass. It was a beautiful summer day, and Ukiyo frequently changed her direction to face towards/away from the sun. She now looked up at the sun, giggling as her eyes squinted and fought the urge to close. She had already smelt most of the flowers in the area, and was about to move on. It was getting too crowded there for her taste, anyway. She had been making her way around the parameter of the woods since sunrise, and this was probably the most active spot. Ukiyo wasn't one to mingle, with people anyway, so she was a little upset that so many had shown up. Just as she turned around, facing towards the forest and about to take off, she heard footsteps approaching her quickly from behind. A deep voice spoke up, and Ukiyo could tell how close he was. Her two hands in front of her made the seals Hare-Monkey, her instincts having done so on their own, though she realized it was unnecessary when she heard him speak.

"Excuse me, are you, by any chance, Senju, Ukiyo? I'm Itohane, Aiza, a student of Mitsuo's." Ukiyo turned around to see an over-dressed man standing before her. His red hair seemed awfully bright in the glow of the sun, and his face was somewhat stern. Ukiyo smiled pleasantly at the sound of Mitsuo's name, and closed her eyes to greet him. She extended her hand to him as she spoke, "Just Ukiyo please." She had always hated the fact that she was stuck with the Senju name, and as such didn't let people call her by it. As such, she often refereed to people exclusively by their given name, ignoring any mention of family name. "Aiza, eh? I can't say Mitsuo's told me about you." She kept her eyes closed as she spoke, a sign of trust among animals that Ukiyo assumed was true with humans as well.

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Chakra: 290/300:

Ukiyo looked calm, keeping her eyes closed and holding out a hand to shake. "Just Ukiyo, please. Aiza, eh? I can't say Mitsuo's told me about you." That wasn't much of a surprise, Mitsuo probably didn't notice Aiza as much as he'd wished. Aiza held onto every little thing Mitsuo said, though, and that was why he knew Ukiyo upon sight. He was just naturally a great listener and the fact that he looked up to Mitsuo so much made things concerning the man set in his mind like concrete. He returned the handshake softly, before putting both hands in his pockets as he always did. "I didn't expect him to, I've only been his student for about a week or two. It's nice to meet you, though." Now, training wasn't something that he usually did with others; he preferred to train alone. That made asking her to train him in Doton a difficult task, as he didn't like to rely on people and he'd rather train by himself anyhow...he moved his head to the left, flipping the hair out of the way and letting the sun glint into his blue eyes.

"So, I know we just met and this will seem a bit sudden and straightforward, but I need to learn Doton, and as a Mokuton-user, I can think of no better candidate as my sensei in doing so than you. Would you mind teaching me the basics of it?" There, it had been said. Aiza was honest and direct, and even if she did say no, he'd have his dignity and he'd simply find another teacher. He kept his eyes set on hers, awaiting an answer that he hoped to be yes. This woman, Ukiyo, seemed kind. Even if she said no, he was sure she would be justified in doing so either because she was busy or some other valid reason, and she wouldn't say no just because she didn't want to. He could see why Mitsuo-sensei thought so highly of her.

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Learning Doton
Word Count: 637/1,500

Aiza's grip was gentle, which Ukiyo appreciated due to her hands being relatively frail. She opened her eyes as he let go, seeing Aiza's hands slip into his pockets and feeling comfortable with the peaceful gesture. Ukiyo took physical ques somewhat differently than normal people. She learned her body language from animals, and as such interprets things that usually mean nothing. Aiza putting his hands away was a sign of trust to her; seeing it as him willingly restraining a vital means for his survival. He spoke with a bit of a sped up pace, though still firm,

"So, I know we just met and this will seem a bit sudden and straightforward, but I need to learn Doton, and as a Mokuton-user, I can think of no better candidate as my sensei in doing so than you. Would you mind teaching me the basics of it?" Ukiyo blinked with somewhat of a shocked look on her face. Doton? All I know is that one technique... She smiled widely, showing off her teeth and rustling the hair on the back of her head. She was somewhat embarrassed, knowing how skilled she was with Earth chakra yet having forgotten to craft techniques around it. I've been so obsessed with my plants... She let out an embarrassed laugh before speaking,

Well, I guess so. I don't have many techniques for it, but I can show you how to mold your chakra. Ukiyo's expression turned a little more serious (now grinning) as she brought her hands together in front of her, forming a Snake seal. Her chakra was calm at first, then suddenly began flowing up from her feet and pooling in her stomach. You want your feet firmly planted, and your entire body as solid as possible. One way of thinking about it is to turn your body into stone. Don't move a micrometer. Not a blink, nor twitch, nor shake. Don't sway, nothing. Your breathing should be very slow and deep, and every muscle in your body should be tense. Ukiyo stopped talking and closed her eyes. She felt her body do as she said: become perfectly still and utterly solid. She held the pose while breathing in extremely slowly, almost not at all. The chakra in her lungs fluttered from the intake of air and aroused the pool in her stomach. You'll use this form to pull in chakra from your base. Gather it in your stomach and settle it there, keeping it as still as possible once gathered. Breathing slowly is important, for even that is enough to disturb the chakra and excite it. Ukiyo continued to breathe deeply with her eyes closed, showing Aiza the pose her parents once taught her.

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Ukiyo's reception to the proposal was a look of surprise. Aiza wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing just yet, so he didn't say anything, instead waiting for her to put her response into words. She eventually broke into a smile that revealed pearly white teeth, and messed with her hair a bit. She was acting nervous, or at least that's the closest thing it could be described as. She let out a chuckle and said, "Well, I guess so. I don't have many techniques for it, but I can show you how to mold your chakra." Aiza sighed with relief. Lack of techniques wasn't really a problem at all, because all he needed was a foundation to build knowledge on; molding chakra would act just fine as a foundation. He nodded to her, pulled his hands out of his pockets and cracking his knuckles. "That's perfect. I'll try to keep up." Ukiyo's expression shifted to a stern grin, reminiscent of a determined opponent. She stood in place and created a snake hand seal.

"You want your feet firmly planted, and your entire body as solid as possible." The Special Jounin nodded in response to her advice, sliding his feet to an equal distance apart. They were set firmly in place, and he stiffened the rest of his body, mimicking both her hand seal and her stance. It was a start. He heard Ukiyo's commands, but his eyes were closed to help him focus. She told him to become a "stone", to regulate his breathing to an absolute minimum, and not to move at all lest he wish to lose concentration. He could feel his chakra slowing...compared to how it was usually so fluid and active, it was now in a stagnant standstill. He felt immovable, like a monolith of sorts. A monolith in a suit...how humorous. Silence ruled over them; all of the other people, aside from the village gate guards, had cleared out, and only the two were left, concentrating their chakra beneath the tree canopies. Their breathing was quieter than a mouse's. "You'll use this form to pull in chakra from your base. Gather it in your stomach and settle it there, keeping it as still as possible once gathered. Breathing slowly is important, for even that is enough to disturb the chakra and excite it."

Excite it. Ukiyo's choice of words was oddly accurate. Chakra seemed to stir within upon any little action, be it a jutsu or not. It was easily excitable, and concentration and meditation to take away its energy would help form it into a docile elemental release like Doton was. It all made perfect sense to Aiza, and grasping the concept brought a smile to his face. His eyes were still closed, and his form was steadfast and unwavering. He parted his lips ever so softly and spoke quietly, as not to disturb the chakra resting in him. "...I can feel the chakra slowing to a stop. How can I form it into earth from here?" This training was far more entriguing than his usual methods of fulfilling potential, stepping away from the monotonous battles to become stronger, but focusing more on a meditation and mentally progressive aspect of it.

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Learning Doton
Word Count: 1,195/1,500

"...I can feel the chakra slowing to a stop. How can I form it into earth from here?" Ukiyo wriggled her fingers slightly between themselves, getting them comfortable. Her breathing sped up slightly, and even her toes re-pointed themselves. All of the minute movements were poor practice, and Ukiyo was well aware of this, but she had far more than enough experience to keep her chakra calm. She was preparing to give Aiza what he wanted, but couldn't help getting excited. The next part always was a rush. Ukiyo eyes peeked open a crack as she responded,

"Good, good. However, this isn't where you will be molding your chakra. The act of bringing your chakra to a stop is merely a preliminary, and in fact isn't even necessary once you've mastered Doton. See, by doing this step, you are fully aware of the location of your chakra. You slow down enough so that it isn't loose and difficult to place. The reason for doing this is because the next step is to split your pool of chakra in two; right down the middle. This is the first step. Then, you're going to press your palms together, which will cause a tension across your arms into your chest. At the same time, breathe in deeply and fast. This will pull the chakra up into your chest, where each half should pass through the respective lung and flow into your arms. As you breath out, it should push the chakra away from your chest and you will force it into your palms with as much force as you can. Doton is special for this reason. Of all the chakra natures, it is the most dense form, and therefore needs an incredible amount of force to materialize. By channeling chakra into your seal, the clash between the two will build enough force to mold it into Earth. The reason you need to make your chakra still is because, until you master Doton, it is very difficult to get the proportions right. Each half must be equal. Too much or too little will cause the flow to overpower its opposite, and you won't have strong enough of a collision for the Earth to form. Once the chakra has been meld, however, it should feel as if its coating your palms. And with that, you can redirect it anywhere you wish, like so."

Ukiyo breathed in rapidly and tensed her arms. She then quickly expelled her breath and shot the chakra through her arms. It was an absolute rush. Normally Ukiyo divides her chakra bit by bit as she molds Suiton to fuse with it; she hasn't taken this much preparation for Doton in years. As the chakra clashed between her hands, Ukiyo's entire body released its tension, and her legs pulled out from under her. She threw forward her right hand as the two unclasped, and as soon as her palm touched the ground, the earth around it began shifting out of the way. Pebbles, then rocks erupted around her hand as it formed a hole through earth as if it were made of water. Her entire body fell on top of this hand, following it into the ground as the earth enveloped the rest of Ukiyo. Soon, she was gone, leaving behind only a hole and some debris. After a few seconds, Ukiyo popped her head up from the hole and climbed out. She placed her hands down on the ledge and lifted her body effortlessly. She then bent her arms in order to get leverage to push her bottom in the air, which helped bring up her legs. As she extended her body while continuing to lift with her arms, Ukiyo brought herself up to a handstand on the edge of the hole. She tilted back, catching herself with her feet on the other side of the hole as she fell. Ukiyo stood up straight and smiled,

"Oy!"

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Movement could be heard, and Aiza opened his eyes to see Ukiyo shifted and moving slightly with a grin. She began to explain how that was only the preliminary step in learning Doton, and that the technique would come now. She changed stances as she said to split the chakra in half, and continued to explicate while she demonstrated. The end result; she pressed her palms to the ground and seemed to be pulled in by the earth, only to resurface a few feet away playfully. Simple, it was the Double Suicide Decapitation technique, a jutsu used to move short distances underground and occasionally pull others under with you. Aiza chuckled as he noticed her silly demeanor before focusing on himself again. The chakra hadn't stirred from its place, and he was still as solid as a stone. He broke concentration, unleashing Doton chakra into his palms and pressing them to the ground as Ukiyo had.

Upon contact with the dirt, he could feel the earth itself, and how lively it seemed to be. It tugged on him, softly at first, but then forcefully pulling his entire body in until he was underground. It was dar and he could not see, but he could still sense the ground around him and what was above him to some degree. The moment he tried to move, however, he realized that he hadn't gotten the technique down quite as well as it seemed, because he was stuck. He bore through the surface with his left arm and pulled himself out of the dirt with all of his strength, rising to his feet and brushing himself off. "Whew, what a rush! I didn't get it quite right, but I did something, so I've learned the basics." he said with a cheerful tone. How nice it was to learn and experience new things. He pulled a worm from his pocket and threw it before shoving his hand back in. He hoped that when he did master it, he wouldn't get so dirty...

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Learning Doton
Word Count: 1,500/1,500 -Complete-