Baenlin's Jutsu mastery training I

"The training field is busier than usual today," Baenlin thought to himself as he returned from his morning run. Today it had taken him out of the village and completely around the mountain at the same altitude. He was pleased with himself, with his continued progress. He had completed two jutsu of his own, and sensei Ganki had taught him another. Baenlin felt that he was truly starting to become a shinobi. He did not let that feeling inflate his ego however. There plenty of examples right in front of him of how much he could improve. There were several more experience shinobi training today. Some of them were sparring, some beating on dummies, others manipulating the natural forces through ninjutsu. All were impressive. Baenlin knew he had a long journey ahead if he was going to be the best of them. With that in mind, Baenlin looked around and found a clear area with lightning rod drove deeply into the training ground floor, meant specifically for training lightning jutsu. He had developed two new functioning jutsu, but he felt that they both could be improved beyond what they presently were. He planned to see how much so with one of them today.


Baenlin stood in front of the target, breathed in deep and exhaled, centering himself before starting his training today. He stood only 3 meters from his target, which somewhat limited the use of his jutsu. It was planned to by used at range, but it would his purpose for now. Baenlin spread his feet about, settling his weight. Then he performed the ram hand seal, it being almost always associated with lightning jutsu. Right after that he made the dragon seal. He had not originally understood the purpose of the seal in this jutsu, but after seeing what kind of ferocity a single bolt of it had, he began to understand why it fit. Lastly came the bird seal, which was easy to understand, seeing as the end of the bolt itself manifested in the shape of an eagle. Baenlin felt his chakra rise as quickly as the lightning it was imbued with. He felt it jet from his core, run along it’s path, leaving a slight burning sensation as it passed. When it came level with his skin, it felt as though lightning might strike out of his pores. With his other jutsu he might have pushed that, but now he took control, and steered the lightning to his hands. As the current of charka made his hands light up, he thrust both out towards the lightning rod. From the diamond shaped space between his hands flew out the lightning eagle that the jutsu produced. It arced high and to the right. Baenlin could feel this arc happening, and took steps to correct it and guide it back towards the lightning rod. It struck true; the eagle came down right on the tip of the lightning, which drew it into the ground to insure that there was no chance of anyone getting injured.


The jutsu had worked as it had been intended, but it took a great deal out of Baenlin. He was still trying to get use to the feeling of being linked with chakra outside of his body. Baenlin started his breathing exercises again to calm himself after the experience. He would try again soon, and he would keep trying until he could control the jutsu as if he had been born knowing it. It took some time, but he eventually felt ready to go again. He performed the same hand signs again, this time only pushing himself to complete them a little faster than before, without contemplating their meaning. Again he felt the surge of power burst from his core, he felt it fight as he attempted to steer it. Baenlin won out again however and the chakra lit up his hands. He thrust them out again, and again the eagle soared out towards his target just as it should have. This time it tried to arc hard into the ground, but Baenlin pulled it back up hard. He manage to guide the jutsu to his target, but it hit far lower on the lightning rod than he had intended.

"This is not good enough," he chastised himself as he steadied himself from using the jutsu again." This is you move, your jutsu. This will make you who you want to be. Now get it right!" With that last internal yell he had accidentally activated his other jutsu, the full body current. It required no hand seals nor very much control to use, just simply letting the lightning chakra go out in all directions at once and concentrating it just pas his flesh. He had not intended to use it, but his aggravation at himself had brought it out.

"Well," Baenlin thought, watching the lightning jump across from his right palm to the center of his chest, "I might as well use it while I have it."


Baenlin settled himself in again to perform the jutsu. He did all the same movements, but the lightning chakra was less difficult to control with his use of the full body current. It seemed almost to WANT to go to his hands, to be shaped and molded. Again Baenlin thrust his hands forward, but this time the eagle flew straight and true at the golden rod, and arcs of lightning jumped from his shoulders to mix with the jutsu, empowering it, driving it on. He had not gotten to use them both in combination like this, but he was please with the results. Both jutsu had performed just as they should have. True, the flight of screeching eagles was no flight yet and he felt that it still took far too much out of him, but he was also confident that if the golden rod had been a person that there was little chance they could have avoided it and stayed alive.


While Baenlin took another break to settle himself, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that a few of the other people on the training field had started watching him. He realized that the combination of these two jutsu might come off as flashy, but he did not think that it would draw attention so badly. He would have to come up with some other jutsu later that were more subtle for missions that required stealth if the reaction he noted was anything to judge by. He did his best to push the existence of the other shinobi on the field out of his mind as he prepared to try again. The full body current would only give one more charge out and Baenlin didn’t want to waste it. He went through all the motions again, and again the jutsu seemed almost to form itself while the full body jutsu was active. Baenlin had never had such an easy time of controlling his chakra and he was now glad of the many hours he had invested in the creation of the jutsu. It made the push to go just a little faster that much easier, and when the eagle screeched it’s way across to the lightning rod, Baenlin felt again the pride of making progress. He had to rest with his hands on his knees again after the jutsu was done, but he felt less impacted than he had after his previous attempt.


However, as Baenlin breathed to center himself again after the jutsu’s last use, the fully body current faded away. He knew it would be as difficult as it was before he had accidentally brought forth the full body current jutsu, but he was determined to master the flight of screeching eagles jutsu, with or without the extra aid. Baenlin again prepared himself and started the ram, dragon and bird hand seals. As expected, his lightning began to fight Baenlin again, and it seemed to sear his insides as it moved through him, but he wrestled it into path and shape by sheer will, and his hands began to glow and little more quickly than his attempts before the full body current. Again the eagle shrieked it’s way to the lightning rod, again it struck home, with far less fighting than before. Baenlin had to rest again, but he was winning this fight with his nature he felt. He kept pushing, kept wrestling with himself, and he was slowly forcing his nature to submit to his will’s rule.


Baenlin continued his cycle of using the flight of screeching eagles and then rest to gather himself for hours. The feeling of control external chakra was quickly becoming less alien to him, and he began to experiment with what he could make the eagle do in it’s short flight. Again and again he hammered the lightning rod with his jutsu. How many volts the thing had absorbed from his training alone became an object of curiosity in the back of Baenlin’s mind, something he began to contemplate while his instinct took over during his training. It was becoming almost reflexive after a while. Eventually, Baenlin noticed that most of the others that had been training had left the practice field had left. It was dusk, and there were only two other left out there with him and they were off to one side of the field sparring with one another. Baenlin had not realized he had been at his training all day, and decided to take a break to get a bite to eat.


Baenlin took his time walking down to Miss Shikimura’s. It had been some time since he had been there, not since before he had started at the academy. He did not intend not to go see her, he had just been busy since his training had started. He was almost reluctant to receive the tongue lashing he knew he would get when arrived, but Baenlin knew she meant well. She had always made sure he had a way to earn food, as he had insisted on.


Sure enough, Baenlin had to endure at least five minutes of a tongue lashing when he got there. She did not stop until Baenlin showed that he had money to eat with this time. He knew this would make the woman happy, even if she did her best to act grumpy with him. Baenlin had heard her speaking of him to other people as if he was his grandson. She was truly happy that he was doing better for himself. Baenlin kept his meal here short, for he felt like the food revitalized him and he could get more done now. He scarfed down his food, cleared the table before Miss Shikimura could stop him, and cleaned the dishes he had used while some customers distracted her. On his way out he kissed her on the forehead, thanked her (in his mind for everything she had done for him) and ran out of the restraunt all the way back to the training grounds. He didn’t stop until he got to the far side of the training grounds, opposite of the lightning rod he had been using earlier. Baenlin pushed himself even harder, forcing himself to perform the jutsu faster each time. Each time the toll from it was even less. He got better after every use of the full body current, making him even more proud his success so far. From the range he had on the lightning rod, he had more time to tweak the flight of the jutsu, allowing him to become familiar with the feeling of controlling it faster. He continued his exercise until, as he brought the chakra in focus in his hands again, he felt that he could do more with the chakra he had available. As he thrust his hands out this time, two bolts came out, spiraling around each other in flight before striking the lightning rod. Baenlin was so surprised by this that it took him a moment to realize that he hardly felt drained at all from it’s use any more. He was also aware, however, that it was getting exceedingly late, and he had accomplished everything he had intended to with this jutsu. Baenlin had hardly stretched himself out before passing out, a smile still upon his face.

2067 words

(mastery of Lighning Release: Flight of Screeching Eagles , 10 stats, and 20 jp)

Approved!