Is today the day that all my doubts and fears end? Can I finally gain enough strength to help those I care about? I have enough scars on my body and heart, I do not know how much more i could take., he thought while stuffing his pockets into his pants. Zetsume was on his way to find his master that was going to teach him the art of Black Raiton. Many years has Zetsume wanted to be nominated for such an amazing honor. The power of Kumogakure was still there, and this is how he was going to bring honor to his village. When people from across the land witness the might of Black Raiton, they will undoubtedly have to once again truly respect the might of Kumogakure.

Then again the lands have been rather peaceful. I wonder if it is like that in other villages.

Zetsume had many thoughts running through his mind while he was walking through the village rather slowly. Most people would probably be running to get to their new sensei for such an honor, though not him. Zetsume was told what time to meet him and just left early. That way he would never be in a rush, and could enjoy his walk through the village.

Many people were hustling around, trying to accomplish their work. Some were just normal citizens who basically were the backbone of his village. While others were ninjas, respected ones. People would often greet Zetsume to thank him for his work. Unfortunately it has became apparent that his deeds are starting to become famous. He never wished for this, nor did he just accomplish those missions for fame. Zetsume would rather the people kept about their lives smiling as ever while he took care of the heavy lifting. The whole talking to people was not his strong suit.  Though like always he would put on a mask of happiness and attempt to be social. Then it would turn into multiple girls surrounding him asking for his autograph or to tell of his tales. It was rather embarrassing, but the attention was nice. Zetsume would treat even the most beautiful of women like he would as if they were anyone else. It was not because he was not attracted to them, but rather he knew that if he did not become stronger then people like her will die. That is the very reason he wanted to obtain Black Raiton. Zetsume will protect his village, even if it costs him his life. After a short walk and talk with the girls Zetsume walked a bit faster to obtain his strength.

Thinking back on when he left he should have brought Repede. The dog was old enough to fend for himself, though when he left he only grabbed his gear and told Repede that he would be back later. Usually the dog would have followed him, but he could tell that Zetsume wanted him to stay. Not knowing what kind of training awaited Zetsume, he could not allow Repede to get hit in the cross fire. He only had a few things in this world left that he loves, last thing he would want is all of it taken away from him in a blink of an eye. Upon walking up to where the meeting spot was, it seemed that his teacher had not arrived yet. Leaving early did have this slight drawback and without Repede it would probably get rather boring. Walking over to a wall, Zetsume propped up with his arms crossed against his chest and began to think while he waited for this teacher.

It was impossible to never think about his past. The many scars that covered his heart would remain there, just as the one on his face would. It took almost half an hour before footsteps were heard in the distance. Zetsume opened up his eyes to see who it was. Walking in his direction was a man of roughly six foot seven. The man looked like a giant. Wearing no shirt to let his muscles show. It was clear that this man had muscles that had muscles though the whole ego of showing it off as he did annoyed Zetsume. His shorts and shoes were nothing impressive to mention.

He probably has one of those deep voices that tries to demand too much respect before giving it. Last thing I would have wanted was an over macho sensei. Oh well, I guess it is better than nothing., he thought while getting off of the wall to greet the man.

"Hello, you must be Gallus. Glad you have agreed to train me sir, I wish to make this great village proud.", he said while slightly nodding his head in respect towards the man.

"Yes, we should start this training as soon as possible. Skip the bullshit greetings and follow me", the man named Gallus spoke. Zetsume was right about the man though. He was the over macho type. Standing above Zetsume he would even flex as if to appear more dominate. Not knowing the extent of his power, it would be wise to not attempt to be rude to this man. He already looked like he was on steroids. Zetsume and Gallus traveled quickly out of the village and into the wilderness of Kumogakure. During their journey he never spoke a word. Even though it did not take long, it would have been nice to at least explain it a bit more during the travel. Gallus pointed towards the ground, and they descended from the trees. Unable to wait any longer Zetsume had to speak up.

"Yes sir, I have been waiting on you to explain it. Sir."

Not being able to resist making the occasionally rude remarks. Zetsume waited to see how his sensei would react. The man did not really seem fazed though and only began to explain a little about Black Raiton.

This seal that is on my left arm is a mark of the Black Raiton. It is a powerful and deadly type of element that could hurt the user."

He pointed towards the tattoo on his left shoulder. Indeed it was the mark he saw in textbooks. The man held out his hand and in it his hand became engulfed in black raiton. He held it out towards Zetsume and had a small smirk.

"Normally the jutsu that I am using would currently harm my hand, since I am so adept in the Raiton, it no longer affects me. I know it is just a weak B-rank jutsu but it can overwhelm other types of jutsus. Though it is weaker against fuuton, it still makes for one hell of a lightning attack."

Gallus steadied himself and shot a beam of black raiton out of his palm. The blast traveled through many trees before ending. In a nice lines tree after tree fell before his eyes. Zetsume was slightly amazed and was eager to learn more about it.

Training- 1167:

"Alright I am going to need you to stand over there for me and use a strong jutsu at me. I am now going to demonstrate the effects.", Gallus said in a demanding tone. While holding one of his massive arms in the air and pointing off in the distance which was directly across from him.

Zetsume did not like how this man acted but he sure did know what he was talking about.. or at least Zetsume hoped he did. Doing what Gallus asked of him, he walked over and faced Gallus. From where Zetsume was standing he was face to face with Gallus, with him being fifty meters away. Calming himself Zetsume grabbed his bow with his left hand and started to form Chakra Arrows. From the mold Zetsume pulled back an arrow, letting it fly. The man already had his jutsu still in his hand and shot the black raiton out from which it instantly engulfed his weak jutsu and came flying towards Zetsume. Dropping low to the ground, he managed to dodge it. While the trees in the back suffered the damage, Zetsume remained unscathed.

Yelling at Zetsume he demanded a stronger jutsu. Though Zetsume was tired of this little game. It could have been the fact that the man almost killed him, or maybe now he is just barking orders. Though slowly but surely Zetsume began to dislike this teacher.

Removing the dirt from his pants with a few strokes, Zetsume held up his hand and spoke to Gallus.

"No offense but I think I get where you are going with this. Could we get onto the more important facts. I am starting to get annoyed by your childish actions, and using jutsus just to demonstrate something that is easy to comprehend is counter productive. Now please can we move on from this little game."

The man crossed his arms in defense towards his words. Zetsume could tell he struck a nerve and wanted to hit him, though he would be at fault. Unwilling to poke the bear any further Zetsume gave him an odd smile in hopes that it would get the training progressing.

It did not really work as he planned the man just grunted and walked over towards Zetsume. Without saying a word the man placed his hand on Zetsume's right shoulder. Within the time of placing Zetsume could feel a small burning feeling on it. After Gallus removed his hand, he noticed that he placed the same mark on Zetsume's right shoulder as he did his left.

"Since you are mister big shot know it all, I want you to try and use Black Raiton. I will come back tomorrow to see if you have been able to complete it."

Wait what?, Zetsume thought, though before he could finish the thought out, Gallus had vanished. It seems he did not like Zetsume either, and his training could have been helpful. Now Zetsume was standing alone and looking at the tattoo wondering how he was going to do this. Sitting on the ground and crossing his legs, Zetsume held out his hand in front of him and began to attempt. Within his hand flickers of Raiton would should, but nothing black.

Seems this is not going to be as easy as it looks., he thought while attempting over and over again. If he had not pissed his teacher off he could have been done by now. Cursing his words that he spoke to him, Zetsume just had to keep on trying and prove his worth.

A couple of hours had passed and Zetsume had shown no progress. Maybe he should have said those things after Gallus taught him exactly how to use it. Zetsume could already see the sun setting and his stomach growling. He had been training on this one thing for quite some time. It began to annoy him that something like this could take up so much time. Punching the ground before him, Zetsume got up.

Maybe I just need a good meal to feel better, he thought while stuffing his hands and walked towards the village. He needed something quick to snack on so he could return to his training. Zetsume would be damned if he could not pull this off.

It was dark when Zetsume had finally made it to his place of desired food. His mouth was salivating and his stomach was kicking around for food. Smiling towards the pretty woman before him, he ordered a few tacos. It did not take long, as expected, until the food was brought out. Zetsume only smiled and tipped handsomely before diving in. One by one the tacos fell before his hunger. Cleaning his mouth with a napkin, and throwing away his trash, Zetsume knew it was time it get back at it. Even if he doesnt get it today, hopefully Gallus would tell him the rest tomorrow, well if he can make amends.

Training - 1994:

After making it back from his delicious dinner, Zetsume was still stressed about learning this sub-element. He just could not understand how he can turn normal Raiton into Black Raiton. Sitting for hours upon hours, with nothing to show for it. It started to become something that was pissing him off. A man who was once seen as a genius in his clan, can not pull off this. The voice of his father was haunting his mind while training, with words of worthless and failure to follow them. His father was not the kind type of man that would encourage their children, yet rather degrade them in hopes that they prove you wrong. As a child it made Zetsume hate his father, he even often thought about killing the bastard though he never did. Now he was much older he could see why his father did it. Instead of spoiling him with praise he always just made him feel like shit, so he would rise above all others. Punching the dirt before him, he tried again, but it had the same result as before.... Nothing.

It was almost two a.m. before his body felt heavy. Zetsume's panting increased and his sweat dripping. He could have been sweating from anger of not being able to perform this, or maybe he was running out of chakra. Zetsume laid on the ground on his back with his hands behind his head looking up at the night sky. He could not but help to wonder if somewhere in this world someone else is looking at the same sky with the same problem as his, not being able to perform a jutsu. Zetsume sighed before closing his eyes and accidentally fell asleep on the ground. During his slumber, Repede his dog found him and actually laid with him to keep him warm. Though the nice cool air felt good on his hot skin.

The sun was just rising when he opened his eyes to see his dog laying on his chest all sprawled out. Zetsume smiled at the dog and patted his head softly, which he quickly responded by waking up and licking his face. Zetsume laughed and pushed the big dog off of him before standing up and getting the dirt off of him. It was still too early to know if his teacher would be here sooner or later. Zetsume was not really hungry however and just began to try again. Though just like the day before he would fail and curse his body for not being able to do it. Repede however just sat with his tail wagging and smiling just as happy as he always was, without a care in the world. Zetsume always enjoyed that about him, that no matter how rough his day, the dog would somehow cheer him up.

It was mid day before the man showed back up with food in hand. He seemed to have brought chicken and noodles. Zetsume's mouth was salivating at this moment at the food, as was his dog. Zetsume stopped trying to do the jutsu and greeted Gallus.

"Well boy, have you managed to figure it out with your smart ass self? Also here is some food."

Gallus said while holding out a bowl towards Zetsume. After saying thank you, Zetsume dug into it. Though he only ate half and gave the other half to Repede. The man did not really care for dogs it seems and did not even look Repede's way. It kind of annoyed Zetsume, but then again what about this guy did not annoy him. After finishing his last bite, Zetsume figured he would apologize to Gallus.

"I have not been able to perform black raiton, I have been trying for so long it seems. I am sorry about yesterday, I was just tired of being ran in circles. I really do wish to learn this sub-element. I will not question your methods again Sensei, please help a lowly ninja such as I."

Gallus seemed somewhat offended by this and spoke back in a snarly tone, "I liked you a lot more when you were confident. Please stop being so submissive, it is really disgusting to see a member of my village to be such a pussy."

His words burned in Zetsume's mind. He was only being this way to try and get him to be cooperative. It seems his plan had backfired. Zetsume however bit his tongue back and only smiled in the awkward smile he gave everyone he did not like all that much. Gallus would just stand there all defiant as Zetsume was practically begging for him to teach him the rest of the sub element for Black Raiton. After a few moments of silence, Gallus spoke again.

"Well Mr. Smartass, it seems you do not know as much as you do. Now come here, I shall speak slow for your mind to comprehend. I bet you thought it was going to be easy once you got a nice little tattoo to prove that you are learning it huh? WELL ITS NOT. When I gave you that tattoo I also gave you the ability to use Black Raiton. You can do it now, you are just not trying hard enough. Now try again, and again until you get it right. I will be here to watch."

Zetsume could not really argue with him, the last thing he needed was for his teacher to walk out on him again. Keeping his mouth shut, Zetsume tried again. Though just like before he failed, but it did not stop him from trying again and again. Gallus was not amused by his attempts and almost seemed aggravated at him. After a few tries, Gallus spoke again.

"Maybe it is motivation that you need. If you can not perform it, I shall kill this dog that you seem to care so much about"

Feeling his anger rise, Zetsume looked at the man with the evilest intent. He would never allow him to harm Repede. It was all he had left in this cold sad world. Zetsume looked at Repede who was looking back. Repede could understand humans, though he could never speak back. He looked at Zetsume with fear, because he knew that the man before him could easily kill a dog like him. Holding his hand out in front of him Zetsume yelled at Gallus in a rather rude tone.

"I WILL NOT ALLOW YOU TO HARM THIS DOG, SO HELP ME IF YOU DO I WILL DANCE IN YOUR ENTRAILS AND BATHE IN YOUR BLOOD TILL NEXT YEAR. TO HELL WITH BEING CALLED A MURDERER OF YOUR OWN PEOPLE, I WILL DO ANYTHING TO PROTECT THIS DOG"

Gallus arched an eyebrow and looked at Zetsume with a cocky smile before speaking in a sinister tone. "Well you had better get it right then soon boy, because if not this jutsu of mine will cast, and i do not think this dog is fast enough to dodge it. Which means his only hope for survival would be for you to cancel out my jutsu with your own. Now lets see if you can be motivated."

In his hand he began to charge black raiton. It crackled in the air and looked evil before Zetsume's eyes. The very thing he was hoping would bring him power was about to be the same thing that takes the last thing he has left in this world away.

Damn it come on, I NEED MORE TIME. I DO NOT WANT TO SEE MORE OF MY LOVED ONES DIE, PLEASE!!, he thought while looking at how close and for real the man was about killing Repede. His heart began to pound hard and his head began to fill with rage.

"Times up", Gallus said as he pointed his hand towards Repede.

Training 3310:

Zetsume could feel his stomach turning in knots at the thought of his best friend, hell maybe his only friend about to perish just because he wanted to learn a technique that could increase his power. Though now he is thinking it could have all been in vain. What good would this new power prove if he did not have anyone to protect anymore. His heart began to fill with rage as he could not handle this pain anymore. Zetsume had to do the only thing he could do in his situation. That is to kill whatever is about to harm his friend, even if he is a superior person from the same village as him. With rage in his mind, Zetsume used a Raiton Chakra Bow. Though something was off, when he used it the bow itself started to turn black, and before him he was holding a Black Raiton Bow. The bow crackled and buzzed in the air like a hoard of locus. It was also at this moment that an intense pain shot through his hand, which made the bow quickly evaporate in his hand. Looking down he could see a few burn marks on his hand. Looking in disbelief his teacher did not even fire his jutsu. The man had only bluffed to get Zetsume to unlock the power of the black raiton. Gallus calmly closed his hand dispelling the jutsu and walked over to Zetsume to examine his hand.

"Seems you have finally used the Black Raiton. I did not expect to see the famous Kyodara chakra bow in my lifetime, yet now I have. It was a rather marvelous sight. My intentions were not to ever really harm the dog, but I had to be convincing. Never forget the anger of losing a loved one, use that anger to fuel your Raiton, use it to become a wonderful ninja."

Zetsume was shocked to actually see the man being nice and smiling. It was a nice change from the usual alpha male asshole type he was portraying. Not speaking a word, Zetsume just slightly nodded his head. He was still unsure how he even did it, but he did.

"I..I am unsure how exactly I did that. I guess the feeling of losing another loved one could have a reason in it."

"Hahahaha, yea it might, or maybe deep down you wanted this power to protect him. The need for that power awakened the Black Raiton inside of you. I can say I am rather impressed that you could have performed it so quickly. It usually takes people months upon months of training to use it. Though here you are, only took you a day and a half to do it.", Gallus said while giving Repede a small pat on the head to show that he was still friendly. Somehow Repede was not really phased by the man saying he was going to kill him, and simply acted like that whole scene never happened. He was wagging his tail as rapid as ever, which brought Zetsume a small smile to his face.

"So what do we do now?", Zetsume said to Gallus.

"Well now we have to make sure you can use it on a whim. In battle an enemy would not have given you as much time as I did. Hell, even I thought I was going to have to kill the dog for how long it took you. Now try it again, use that anger and fear the fuel your desire for power. Use it, Embrace it.", he let out a small chuckle. Zetsume ignored the last comment.

Letting out a deep sigh, Zetsume looked at his hand. He did not know if he should try again so soon, but the man seemed to have insisted upon it. Calming his mind, Zetsume attempting to perform the action again. In his hand was not a black raiton bow, but a normal raiton one. Cursing slightly in his head he looked at his sensei, who did not look happy.

"Damnit boy, I said use that anger. Let it fuel you. Now try again."

Releasing the jutsu, Zetsume tried again. Trying to think of everyone that has been hurt in his life that he could not save. Thinking of how people are dying everyday while he is just trying to get stronger. These images and thoughts would be his key to using Black Raiton. In his hand another Black Raiton bow was performed. Zetsume looked in awe at it. It looked wonderful, maybe even a little beautiful. Though a sharp shooting pain shot through his hand and he quickly released the jutsu. Looking at his hand there were small burn marks on it. They did not hurt really that bad, but they did have that annoying burning feeling. A couple of hours passed while he kept using the black raiton, trying to get used to its overwhelming power. It was then when he felt really weak, and then everything went black as his body fell to the floor like a log. Zetsume had passed out from exhaustion.

Training= 4162:

Zetsume half opened one of his eyes to notice that he was in the hospital. He had been here before on a mission, though he never has been admitted to one. Hell, he did not even like being here. It is the fact that everything was so damn bright. From the white walls to the white sheets, it all reflected the light so well. Zetsume had just woken up, unsure of how long he had been out just to get blinded by the sun. He will never understand why it is so bright. Leaning up to grab a drink on the stand next to him he noticed that he was not alone in the room. At his feet laid his loyal dog Repede, while in a chair across the room was his sensei Gallus asleep and slightly snoring. It was odd to see Gallus here, Zetsume just figured the guy did not have that much of a sentimental side. After gulping down the much needed drink, Repede and Gallus seemed to have awoken at the same time.

"About time you woke up boy, I thought you were going to sleep forever. I mean I was not worried, but if you would have died under my care then I would be in big trouble by the Raikage."

"H-how long have I been asleep?", Zetsume replied to Gallus in a raspy voice.

"Roughly a day and a half, the doctors told me that all you needed was some sleep. Do you feel any better man?"

At first Zetsume was skeptical of Gallus being concerned about his health, though it does look like he is genuinely concerned.  Zetsume only replied with a slight nod as he pet Repede who was laying at his feet still half asleep, but is happy his master is awake. Who came up to him to nudge his hand for a pet.

"Well now that I know you are okay, I think your training is complete Zetsume", Gallus said while he was making his way to the door.

"Wait what, there is nothing else you can teach me sir? It feels as though we have just started"

Gallus stopped before walking out, looking back at Zetsume to smile before speaking.

"Well actually no, I was only sent to teach you the art of Black Raiton, not teach you jutsus. As it would seem you have been able to demonstrate that you can perform Black Raiton, and as far as I am concerned, you pass. Now if you do not mind, I have a family waiting for me. Goodbye Zetsume Zix, till we meet again? With that being said, the man who was assigned to teach him Black Raiton, Gallus, left the hospital room. He never did like Gallus, he was rude, arrogant, and just plain evil feeling. All in all though, Zetsumde did respect him as he did all other Kumogakure ninjas. Zetsume sighed before rubbing his head, he still felt a little weird. Then again it could be that he is starving. It was at the moment that Zetsume got up that he noticed that he was not in his usual clothes.

Damn hospital, probably molested me in my sleep. He thought while he took off the hospital clothes to change back into his. Zetsume looked down at his hand where he would try to cast Black Raiton, the marks that were there have healed. Seems that the hospital really does know how to do their job. Smiling he tried to make a black raiton form in his hand to make sure he could still perform. To his amazement, it worked. Though he did not keep it up for long as it was a little painful. With that being said, Zetsume left with Repede to get some food at his favorite restaurant, because lord knows they were both starving.

When he arrived he was greeted by the usual female that worked there. She was a nice young girl that was simply working to help her family out. Zetsume always tipped her extra, sometimes even more than his bill. The girl was happy to see him, and asked him why he has not been here in the last few days. Zetsume told her of his new training, and how he was going to become a knight for Kumogakure. The girl laughed and said he was already her white knight. Zetsume knew what she meant, because he had saved her from an abusive customer before. Though he only smiled and said thanks before ordering enough food for an army. She looked shocked but took the order as he said.

After a couple of hours of eating, Zetsume felt satisfied as did his dog, Repede. After paying handsomely for the bill, he left to his house. He could feel the power within him growing and growing. Oh how he just wanted to protect these people, even if it costs him his life. It was the only reason for him to go through that training. Zetsume made it back to his house to immediately go to sleep. He was still tired though he had slept for awhile during his unconsciousness. Laying his head down, he could only think of what his new found power could accomplish.

Training: