Isamu sat pensively under the night sky, moonlight shining down on him in orthodox rays that reflected off of his luminescent white hair and becoming a symphony of iridescence, with light dancing around him on the grass and the tree stump he was sitting on. The darkness around him wasn't harsh, but welcoming and comfortable, randomly mixing with the light and then splitting again, giving the illusion of a glow when it was simply the wind blowing and the grass shifting and his hair moving, refracting the light and changing the entire spectacle. All of this, just from sitting. Isamu looked down at his clenched fist. It symbolized power, something he thought he didn't have enough of. This was his chance, right now, in the calm, tranquil moments. He had an opportunity to train before the first big mission against the conspirators tomorrow. He unclenched his fist and held his open hand out toward the grass and pointed to the marshland mud nearby. The jungle-like trees let their branches droop over the marshes, like a guilty killer hiding his face. Isamu concentrated his chakra, and gathered sacred waters in his hand. This technique was a divination, used by his clan for centuries to heal the terminally ill, the morbidly wounded, and the painfully dying. It was a gift from whatever gods had given it. It was sacred. But it was not good for battle. Healing your opponents doesn't help anybody but them. Isamu suspended the droplets in midair, straining to conrol them. Maybe the could be used in battle, after all. They just needed a driving force, and some creativity. The possibilities rolled through Isamu's mind, one by one...he loved the process of creating new techniques, fostering new jutsu into powerful tools to overcome challengers with. He thought harder. The basics of ninjutsu came to him, as he had learned them in the academy, a place that seemed so long ago, so far away....

Ninjutsu functions off of shape and element. He had his element, and seeing as it was an element that formed the foundation of the jutsu, he couldn't very well change it, of course. So that left shape. A simple change of shape can alter a jutsu into an entirely different technique. Suddenly, he remembered something that always fascinated him. He looked back on a childhood book of myths and legends he had read. He specifically remembered the basilisk, a mythical reptile of sorts, that had been the proclaimed king of serpent's that could cause death just by looking at something. It had a crown shaped crest, a beak, and wings, along with the body of a serpent, or in some cases, a chicken. Isamu took this as a blueprint. He formed more kekkei genkai water, and formed it into a large, silver-blue ball in front of him. The moonlight shimmered through it, leaving a wondrous reflection on the ground below. He used his chakra to morph and shape it, slowly extending it. It become thin and long like a large snake, and wings sprouted as well as a beak and crest. He flicked his hand and it bolted forward a meter before losing control and collapsing into a puddle in the grass. Looks like it would need some hand signs to function better. Isamu tested several hand signs and saw how his chakra felt afterwards, and chose three that would fit the technique in order to maintain the shape of the basilisk. He re-used his kekkei genkai to make another ball of water, and used his chakra to shape it again. Just as the beak at the end began to shape, he made five specific hand signs: Monkey > Boar > Ox > Boar > Dragon > Ox. His chakra flowed easier, and the basilisk shaped much more quickly than before. He fine-tuned this construction, utilizing more chakra to sharpen the beak to have the stabbing power of a katana and shaping the wings to help maneuver it so it could be launched long distances. Finally, he tested it by clapping his hands together. It flew forth, and drilled into the tree in front of him, leaving a deep dent. Still not satisfied, he felt that not enough water had been used, and this time build the water in his throat whilst making the hand seals. One more try....

Monkey > Boar > Ox > Boar > Dragon > Ox.
He spit forth the basilisk, and it shot at lightning-fast speeds, hitting the tree (with was 8 meters away) in less than a second. This hole was above the last, and slightly smaller in diameter, but had pierced completely through the tree upon impact. Isamu fell to his knees, breathing hard. He'd gotten it perfect. A new jutsu that he'd manufactured himself. But it wasn't over. That was only shooting in a straight line, at 8 meters. He needed to practice hitting opponents that were farther, and maneuvering the basilisk throughout the technique. "I'm far from finished. I'm determined to master this!" he said aloud, declaring his intentions to the sky. The sky didn't reply with anything but a gust of wind, sweeping through the grass and making the swamps churn and bubble. The distant splashing of fish could be heard in this quiet place. It soothed Isamu to know that nature was there to train with him. He moved into the swamps themselves, looking for a clearing that was under the branches of trees so that moonlight couldn't rain down on him. He walked through the unstable terrain until he came upon a large space. It was a huge tree with a patch of shade underneath, with at least 30 meters of mud and water surrounding it, making the tree and its roots an island of its own. He stood on these roots, and determined his target; another tree that was at around 32 meters northeast. The problem was that there were large rocks and other trees that were blocking the light of sight directly to the targeted tree. This was Isamu's challenge. If he could get the basilisk to weave between the other trees and the rocks and hit its faraway mark and still blast completely through the bark and out to the other side, then his range and control training would be complete. If only he could test it on humans. His goal was to have the technique be fast and hit faraway enemies, stab them hard enough to cause internal damage, and then have his kekkei genkai that the technique is composed of heal over the internal wounds, causing long-lasting injuries that would require powerful medical ninjutsu or surgery to fix. It was the perfect Suiton Offensive Medical Ninjutsu. The thought of using it in real battle made Isamu's mouth water, but he shook his head and got back to his present task.

He, trying not to overdo it, used the water that had sunk into the grass from the last technique to form the basilisk. It spun around him once before darting forward, as he held the final Ox hand sign. He tried his best to dodge the first rock in his path and successfully made a hard left, but couldn't get back and track and hit another tree to the West. He groaned, and prepared the technique again. The hand signs were made and the basilisk was reformed. He sent it over to him, and launched it forward. He moved up over the first rock, and turned right to dodge the next, and through a tree that already had a hollow in it. It was around 25 meters away when it collided with a rock, breaking itself as well as the boulder. He was running low on chakra, so he made the signs to try one more time. He shaped the wings a little differently to help aerodynamics, and sent the basilisk rocketing forward on its way. Above first rock, around second, through the tree with a hole, to the left of another tree, and the target was there. 3 meters away....2 meters....1. Impact. A loud splash and explosion of water. A light mist covered the area from the blast, and when it faded moments later, there was indeed a hole in the target tree, and the other side of the swamp could be seen through it. Training complete. He fell to his knees, breathing hard.

After catching his breath, he stood back up and looked to the moon. It almost looked as if it was smiling back at him, congratulating him on a job well done. He looked back down to his clenched fist, and started walking down the path to the village gates, back home. He knew that tomorrow was the day, and he'd have plenty of time to showcase his new abilities after a long night of rest.

Used Jutsu:

The moonlight gleaming down at the surroundings. The creatures of the swamp were as noisy as ever, never once allowing for a moment of silence, but as a piece of nature, it remained just as beautiful. Just him and the wildlife surrounding him. Covering his eyes and redirecting his gaze towards the deeper parts of the swamp, Yuudai felt something odd. Something that is not a part of the swamp, something that truly does not belong. As far as he knew, very few came this way for leisure time, or even for a private training session. Deciding with nothing better to do, other than fulfill his training that he set out to do, Yuudai chose to explore what was going on within the swamp. A few minutes to cure his curiosity could not hurt.

Delving further in to the swamp, Yuudai saw what could only seem to please him. A member of his squad, Isamu, he believed his name was, training within the swamp. While he didn't doubt their training and dedication, he was not one to believe that a member of his squad would be training at such a time. By seeing the scene in front of him, and the curiosity of the disturbance within the swamp gone, Yuudai decided to set off deeper in to the swamp, in order to do his training without disturbing Isamu. However, Yuudai decided to unmask his chakra in order to allow the member of his squad be aware of his own presence.

Mud, everywhere. While it may have been difficult for a civilian to maneuver this deep in, as a shinobi and traveling amongst the trees, it was done with relative ease. After a minute of quickly traveling, he found the location. An open clearing, with several burst of moonlight shining through the trees. As much as he would love to practice using Hyouton, Yuudai knew that he would need to learn techniques of different elements in order to be efficient in battle. To be efficient means to not be useless, one thing that Yuudai strives never to become. At least not to others, to himself, he wouldn't really care. It's the duty of shinobi to live for his village, and that is what Yuudai set out to do. The scrolls be brought earlier this morning, he already memorized. Scrolls pertaining to various Futon techniques. Techniques that could prove to be quiet deadly. After all, as a Jounin, he needed to have such an arsenal at hand. Who knew when a situation would arise where one would need to possess abilities to dismember the opposition. And given the role of squad leader, he not only had to defend himself, but also his team if the need arose.

The first futon jutsu Yuudai set out to learn would prove to be quiet lethal. Lethal, but needed. The missions, if he was ever given any of a calibre that would require such techniques, would easily be more than enough for the job. Besides, this technique wouldn't be the hardest he would ever be set out to learn, but as of now, it took the cake. The first jutsu, of the many he will probably eventually learn, was none other than the Wind Release: Great Vacuum Sphere. After remembering what he had seen on the scroll earlier this morning, Yuudai remembered it mainly focused on the breathing aspect combined with the ability to compress a large quantity of air in to a relatively large sphere. The problem would be compressing a large amount of air in to a single breath, but it is not impossible.

The reason for choosing this isolated location was fairly simple. The destructive power of the jutsu, when successful would tear apart the surroundings, and if it was not completed successfully, then who knows what kind of damage would occur. The only other area that would suffice for such a technique would be outside the walls of Kirigakure, but seeing as how leaving the village at this time would cause suspicion; the swamp fit the situation perfectly. The surrounding air, moist, yet still air. Air that can be utilized to learn this new technique. Taking in a deep breath and closing his eyes, Yuudai went in to a meditative trance, focusing mainly of his surroundings. Isamu, he felt, was apparently leaving the vicinity, but after attempting this technique a few times, the member of his squad may be curious about the going ons within the swamp. The hand signs, he remembers fairly well due to their only being two required for this technique. Tiger and dog, in that order would be necessary for the Great Vacuum Sphere technique.

The deep breathe and condensing the air within with his chakra proved to be difficult, as this was his first attempt at such a technique. Thinking about the next few steps to performing the jutsu, Yuudai came to a dead-end. Having to release the breath, expand the ball to its full potential and still maintaining the condensed form of air all would require full concentration. Attempting to release the breath with the focusing on keeping the air condensed ascertained to be quite problematic. The attempt failed as soon as the condensed breath was release. The sphere lost its form within seconds. Plopping himself down on the ground, in an attempt to rethink how to approach the situation, Yuudai chose to just relax and re-evaluate his approach. He felt his approach was entirely off, and there was a method that was efficiently better than his current tactic.

After moments of thinking and supposedly getting lost in the nature around him. The whispering wind, the croaks of frogs and rustling of bushes, Yuudai’s thought process eventually got lost attributable to the surrounding environment. Shifting focus away from the technique required to complete the jutsu to a more standardized approach, where one tunes in with nature. Thoughts of achieving and completing the jutsu made things much more complicated than they needed to be; instead a more generalized approach would be able to complete the task a broken down plan could not. Yuudai, finally, with his mind set on learning this new jutsu before the night was over, got back to his feet. The wind was beginning to pick up as well. Faster winds meant more distractions, but also would help him gather the air around himself easily. The problem would arise if Yuudai let the hitch divert his attention. Having to readjust his hair tie, due to the current of air loosening the hold, Yuudai was left with nothing else to distract himself.

“I should be able to do this in one go. Two at the most.” Talking it through to himself, before an attempt was given a stab always tended to help Yuudai in most situations. That is how he had learned all his previous techniques as well, so why should this situation prove to be any different than it already is. Less thinking, more doing. That theory would work in this instance, also attempting it at a slower pace would be much more beneficial. The speed could be improved over the flow of time, the method required to perform the technique would always take the top priority. As with difficult jutsus, the swiftness of the technique can always be improved at a later date.

Taking in a deep breath, the very first step towards completing the technique and also the easiest, was done without any disturbances. Next would be to begin compressing the air and then expelling it in a compressed form of a sphere, five meters in diameter, with the use of his chakra. While his chakra should take care of the compression aspect, Yuudai had never attempted such a jutsu before. Staring straight ahead of him, at the trees that would soon be obliterated if this jutsu was performed properly brought on a twinge of guilt. He never felt justified when nature had to be destroyed, for any particular reason, but such was the nature of life as well. Certain objects had to suffer in order for there to be an improvement in another aspect. In this case, nature would have to once again suffer for the progress of shinobi. To get stronger and be able to protect those things closest to one would include nature, for Yuudai. Kirigakure was his home and anything within those wall, or in close proximity to, was automatically deemed a part of home. 'Forgive me.' The thought wasn't directed towards a particular person, but rather to nature itself. For the destruction that may, or may not, be caused from the Great Vacuum Sphere jutsu.

Expelling the breath, while using his own chakra to keep the air compressed and in a spherical shape, Yuudai kept his full concentration on keeping his form perfect. The sphere remained in it shape, the chakra that was used to condense the move was doing its job. It retained its shape as it began to expand to its full size of a five meter diameter. The destructive power of the technique was beginning to show, as the jutsu was performed perfectly this go around. Though the ball was grazing the ground, the land directly below the jutsu was beginning to feel the destructive power, as the shrubs and water below began to stir in the wake of the devastating force. As the sphere began to move closer to the trees, it was easier for one to see the destruction that could be caused towards an opponent. While limbs may not be flying around, the sounds of trees snapping and bark flying about could easily be replaced by parts of human beings if the case ever arose. Yuudai would feel remorse, no matter if it was a human being or nature, but this jutsu he deemed would be used if a threatening force ever arose.

Watching the last of the destruction come to a halt, Yuudai looked at the aftermath that was left on the outsides of the path of the Great Vacuum Sphere. Everything was shredded to bits. The trees that once stood were no more, and instead were just bits and pieces of wood on the ground. Wood that couldn’t even be considered wood anymore due to the petite size of the lumber. The expression of regret on Yuudai’s face couldn’t be situated mistaken for anything else. Kneeling down next to a stump of a tree that remained, Yuudai began to speak softly,“If there was any other way, I would have taken it, but as it stands, I could only find this way to learn the technique. The next time, maybe the ocean would be a better way, but I could not leave the village at this time. Maybe putting it off would have been a better idea.” Standing back on to his feet, Yuudai just stared at the stump. He knew that it could have been avoided, but then he wouldn’t have been able to determine the actual destructive power of the jutsu.

He looked up towards the night sky, the moon still shining as bright as ever with the stars twinkling in the background. Here he was, just recently the destroyer of a small part of the swamp, yet still basking in the moonlight, as if he belonged in such an environment. Though colder environments were more suitable, if basing it off personal preference. A sigh escaped him. There was no going back; the destruction he caused would eventually be restored by Mother Nature, but the feeling of regret still dwelled inside of him. Another sigh was about to escape him, there was no getting out of this internal cycle of temporary self-loathing. A droplet of water landed on his left cheek. Reaching up to wipe it away, he realized that it was going to begin to rain. That would help calm him down. The rain was always welcome to Yuudai. The pitter-patter would always cause him to relax, most likely due to the fact that it always landed on the ground in a steady pace. He turned around to head out of the forest, wondering if Isamu was still around or if he already headed back.

Jutsu Used - Chakra 275/300:

Just before leaving, Isamu caught eye of his sensei and watched him train a jutsu, just as he had just done. This jutsu, however, seemed to be a much more powerful jutsu utilizing Fuuton rather than Suiton. He stared enthralled the entire training session, and Yuudai finally turned back and headed into the forest afterwards. Isamu had witnessed his sensei in training, and now deemed him truly worthy of being sensei. He admired Yuudai more than ever, and chased after him before he could get too far, yelling

"Yuudai-sensei! Wait up, that was amazing!"

with a huge smile on his face.

He paused in his steps as Isamu called out to him. "Yuudai-sensei! Wait up, that was amazing!" He turned around to face his student of roughly the same age as himself. As amazing as his jutsu was, he was not satisfied due to the end result. The end result not of the jutsu, but rather the destruction. No. He couldn't get back in to the cycle of self-loathing. "As remarkable the technique is, it's something that I'd rather choose not to use in the future, unless circumstances force me to use it." Those were his beliefs of the technique, a jutsu that could ultimately end a life or lives.

"That's very humble of you. You're a great ninja, y'know that?"

A huge smile shone on Isamu's face, and his pale skin glowed in the moonlight. "We definitely have to train soon. I can't wait to get destroyed by you!" He suddenly remembered that he needed to be home to help Kohaku with something. "Oh crap! I gotta go, Yuudai, but I've got a proposal. We should meet back here with the rest of the squad when you're ready to train us! Until then, I'll see you around."

And with that, Isamu sprinted out through the brush, toward the towering buildings of Kiri.

[Exit]

---

OOC: Thread will be left open for future training sessions of Squad 4.

He wasn't great. He didn't even consider himself great, or even above adequate, as a shinobi. Yuudai felt and knew he was lacking a certain aspect required to be a great ninja. He'd have to work hard to fill that missing gap, until then he would continue to train in hopes of bettering himself for the protection of Kirigakure. Lost in his thoughts, he did not even notice when Isamu left, only the faint ringing of his last few words were flowing through his head. With nothing else to do, and it being as late as it is, Yuudai felt it was enough for the day and the time for sleep to take over was here.

[Exit]