The Academy's Boring

Small fingers repeatedly tapped on a wooden desk as a sigh erupted from pink lips. Green rested his head onto his desk and placed his free hand beside his ear. His focus on the teacher's lesson was slowly diminishing, leaving behind only tedium. An escape plan: this is what he needed at the moment. His eyes quickly darted around the room to search for a place where he could gain his freedom. There wasn't any. That only left Plan B. The young Akari slowly raised up his tapping hand for the teacher to notice and even waved it around a bit for emphasis. The teacher's piercing eyes could not only be seen, but felt upon his small frame. In what seemed to be an instant his sensei gave a curt nod and went back to the lesson. Green was free "use" the restroom. The student rose from his seat and went down the set of stairs towards the base level of the classroom. Hands in pockets, Green began whistling a small tone as he used his feet to push the classroom door open and walk into the hallway. Just a few more steps and I'll be home free, he thought with a small smirk.

He let his feet lead him to the end of the hallway, where the exit was present. He allowed the feeling of impatience get to him. Hands were ripped out of their pockets and used to push passed the large brown doors. Sunlight beat down onto his forehead as he took his first step outside. He gulped down a large amount of the fresh air, releasing it in a slow, deep breath. It was so much better than the atmosphere of that in the classroom. Green wasted no time in moving forward once more with a single destination in mind. Yes, he was going to head towards the training grounds. He was positive they permitted Academy Students access to the grounds, especially those who came from shinobi clans. While he walked through the streets of Konoha, he couldn't help but notice the strange looks he was receiving. It was mostly likely due to children his age supposedly being in the academy around this time of day. Well, he wasn't one of those kids, so he was out in the open and on his way to train.

Green quickly picked up his pace once spotting the open, metal gate and green grass that was beyond it. From what could be seen at his distance, which was 15 meters, there was no one currently there. It was such a coincidence...he didn't enjoy socializing with those fools anyway. The boy released a large yawn into his right palm as he made his merry way towards his destination. Though, a small thought popped into his little head. Why not begin his training now? Yes, it would help warm up his muscles once he began to actually train his jutsu. Green licked his pink lips and stopped walking, only to settle into a low crouch after doing so. One... he counted, crouching down even lower, Two... His eyes were fixated on the gate, Three... Any second now! "Go!" he whisper-yelled. The boy set off leaving clouds of dust in his wake as he rushed towards the finish line. The distance was quick in it's decrease, now at 10 meters...soon 5 meters...

Green continued to pump energy into his legs once only 3 meters remained. With a great leap, he closed the space between him and the finish, even going 5 meters farther than intended. Unfortunately, his landing didn't end too well. Once his left foot hit the surface, a rock happened to be in front of the appendage, leading to the boy to go towards the ground. He placed his hands in front of him to cushion the fall, but that didn't seem to do much. The poor child still landed on his face and created a small amount of dust upon connecting with the dirt. Green slowly pulled his face off the ground, his emerald orbs slightly widened as they darted across the area. He had almost forgotten, there was no one there to witness his slip up. A sigh of relief left his mouth as he propelled himself off the surface. This time, the boy actually managed to perform a perfect landing on his two feet. He couldn't stop here because of a tiny mistake, he had to continue with his training. Green straightened his slightly slouched posture and clasped his hands together.

Yes, it was time for his jutsu training to commence. They were only simple ones taught at the academy and while they were basic the moves were effective. In fact, they were essential to a shinobi. Today he would be practicing the Substitution Technique along with perfecting his Chakra Control. Green hastily performed the hand seals required for the first jutsu: Tiger → Boar → Ox → Dog → Snake. A puff of smoke surrounded his small frame and spread out around the area. Eventually, it dispersed, revealing...Green in the same position. "...Eh?" he mumbled, "What gives?" He was channeling his chakra correctly and he made no flaws when using the hand signs. That meant there had to be another problem he wasn't getting. The young Akari placed a hand under his chin, his face assuming the expression of a thinking one. He mind went back to previous lessons taught in the academy. Who knew it could come in handy at a time like this. "The Substitution Jutsu...'With this technique, the users replace their own body with some other object, generally with a block of wood, the moment an attack lands.' ... Oh!"

The boy had finally figured out just what he was doing incorrectly. It was a good thing that he was always quick to grasp concepts. Now, he was finally prepared to perform the basic technique. He quickly ran through the hand signs in his mind before closing his eyes and actually carrying out the actions. Tiger → Boar → Ox → Dog → Snake. The smoke had returned to envelope him into a hug once more before spreading out...once more. It felt as if he was being compressed, turning into something smaller until the sensation just...stopped. Green slowly opened his eyes and looked around the area, wanting to know if his jutsu was a success or not. He took notice of the position that he was in, next to a large pond and in front of a tree that was 15 meters high. This wasn't where he was standing previously. The child snapped his head in the direction he used to be, allowing a grin to break out on his face at what he saw. In his past location was a large log of wood that was suspended in mid air for a moment only to come down to earth a seconds later.

He had done it, he successfully managed to execute the substitution jutsu! Soft cheers could be heard originating from Green's mouth as he had his right hand in a fist. It was slightly raised into the air, symbolizing his victory. But his training still wasn't complete. The child brought himself back to reality and recoiled his fist. Next move to make...perfecting his chakra control. This had to be one of the most essential skills he could ever think of. Without chakra control, one could send too much chakra into a jutsu and exhaust themselves. Or, they could insert too little and the attack would be ineffective, simply a waste of time. He needed to get this skill down pat. Green quickly set his sights on the tree standing before him, tall and mighty. Yes, all trees were like that, weren't they? On what seemed to almost be instinct, he sent chakra to the soles of his feet and walked up to the large plant. Once he was in front of the tree he placed his left foot upon it, then used all his strength to pull up his right foot on the bark.

Unfortunately, only a seconds passed before the child fell towards the surface and onto his back, creating yet another dust cloud in the area. Green hastily sat up, shaking his head back and forth rapidly. The rough contact with the ground caused his head to slightly throb in pain, but he could deal with it. After all, the sting would keep him from sitting there and doing nothing. He brought both his hands to his face, the action making a large "smack!" sound arise. After doing so the boy pushed himself back to his feet and glared at the plant that was still not walked upon. The prospect of even performing the technique had caused him to lose focus. That was a mistake that surely wouldn't happen again. He sent chakra to the bottom of his feet one more time before leaping away by a meter. A running start would help rather that doing it one foot at a time. Green crouched down, just like he did earlier, and rushed towards the tree at full speed. He placed one foot upon the hard bark and swiftly put the other one as well. He then proceeded to go up...and up...and up...and up until he heard a light crack in the tree he was climbing.

The youth propelled himself off the tree and performed a back flip in mid air, landing on the ground in a low squat. A small drop of sweat rolled down from his forehead to the bottom of his chin, eventually making it to the ground. He was hot in his outfit, the sun beating down onto the area didn't help in the slightest either. The boy quickly stood up and practically tore the black, unbuttoned suit off his body. He let it fly through the wind and watched as it landed next to one of the training posts. He proceeded to take off his green jacket in almost the same manor, the only difference being that he tied the sleeves around his waist rather than letting it go. The words on his black T-Shirt were now open for anyone to spot. And when the boy realized this he let a small smirk arise onto his face. But he wouldn't be allowed to sit there and picture the offended look on people's faces once they saw his shirt. No, he had to continue to train with his chakra control!

Green sucked in a large amount of air into his lung before proceeding to charge ahead once more. With a a yell, he bounded up the tree, chakra still on the bottom of his feet from his last attempt. More drops of sweat rolled from his forehead while he ran upwards, even making it passed his last point on the shell of the tree. The boy didn't stop until he made it the fifth branch which was at least 12 meters above the surface. It was at this height that the chakra on Green's feet began to fade, and he was forced kick off the tree's skin and safely land right next to the pond. The boy was breathing heavily, each gasp for air was slightly larger than the last. That had eventually all stopped once he began to realize something. "I..." he gulped down more oxygen, "I did it!" Determination was shining in his eyes as he clenched his right fist again. Originally standing up straight, Green leaned forward and placed his left hand on his thigh. Salty liquid continued to roll down from the side of his head, hitting the ground he was standing on.

He let his emerald orbs drift to his right side, spotting the cold, fresh water of the pond. Yes, a little dip couldn't possibly hurt anyone. The student wasted no time in stripping down to a pair of blue boxers, placing his clothes next the tree he was climbing on. He then jogged over to a space 3 meters away from the pond, turning to face the water source and slightly bending his legs. He didn't even bother to start a count down and simply dashed towards the basin at maximum speed. Once he was a meter away, he launched himself into the air before making a ball with his body. "CANNONBALL!!" is what someone would have heard all the way back in the village. He felt his body dip into the cool substance, feeling to heat from above soon wash away. This new sensation was heaven to his skin and he didn't regret this decision one bit. The boy eventually stopped descending deeper into the water and was beginning to float upwards. A small splash was created the moment his head hit the water's surface.

Green spit out a small stream of the liquid before twisting himself so he could be floating on his back. Strands of his now soaked hair could be seen laying upon his forehead, eventually getting in his eyes. The youth raised one hand to pull said strands away from his face and sighed in content. He hadn't been able to relax like this since he was 5 years old...which was exactly 5 years ago. That's definitely way too long in his opinion. In fact, he should have a little adventure right now...Green slightly smirked at the idea and quickly let himself sink into the water, but not before taking in a large amount of air and holding his breath. He twisted his body once more so he was facing the bottom of the pond. He could see all sorts of fish and plants, making it much more beautiful than above water. He quickly began to swim downwards and towards a small group of fish. They were what seemed to be a golden color, something he had never seen before. Unfortunately, once he neared them the small created swam off to other areas of the pond. Such a shame, he really wanted to inspect them...

However, a small gleam caught Green's eyes. It was in a small crevice at the bottom pond which is where the glow was originating from. He quickly swam towards the small chasm, his eyes slightly widening at the prospect of a new discovery. While he drew closer and closer he could feel his chest practically bursting. He would need air soon so this needed to be done swiftly. Green put more power into his limbs and began to swim faster than before. When he arrived at the crevice, he immediately stuck his hand through and fished for the object. Though, once he finally felt something, the object he was touching bit him. It bit him! The boy pulled his hand back and almost let out a yelp of pain, but stopped once he saw the bubbles spewing from his mouth. His face began turning red as he covered his mouth with both hands. Air, he thought, feeling panicked. The child used his small arms and legs to rush back to the water's surface, the color of his face eventually turning from red into a light blue.

The moment this occurred Green forced himself to paddle even faster, as if he wasn't going at his max speed already. Only seconds passed by before the child managed to get his head above the water's surface, greedily sucking up precious air into his system. He then released a flurry of coughs and hacks, attempting to get any excess water out of his body. He, unconsciously, sent chakra to his palms to pull himself out of the smooth liquid. Once his upper body was free, the child sent chakra to his feet again and put his right foot on the water's top, his left came up afterwards. And so, the young Akari was on all fours, faint blue chakra at the bottom of his hands and feet, along with water streaming from his head to his chin. Green quickly stood straight up on the blue liquid and slowly made his way over to the ground. One could see the blue beneath his feet slowly receding, but that didn't make the child stop his movements. He was lucky, he managed to touch the hard dirt as soon as the chakra he was sending completely vanished.

The boy only took a single step ahead before face planting onto the earth. His eyes were halfway open, wanting to be closed all the way despite Green's protests. ...Don't quit now...dammit, he thought with furrowed eyebrows. He slowly pushed himself off the ground, his muscles practically screaming in rage at his attempts. His chakra level was low due to all the jutsu training, and the walking on water took a lot out of his reserves. He continued to press onward, mustering up any remaining strength and pulled himself to his feet. He moved to the area in which he put down his clothes, bending down to pick up his black T-Shirt. In one swift motion, the child pulled the article of clothing over his head and onto his small build. Green didn't even bother putting anything else on, just picking up the rest of his clothes and carrying them in his arms. He stole a glance at the sun's direction, slightly squinting his eyes so he wouldn't be blinded. By it's placement in the sky, he supposed it was close to 2:30, around the time the academy would have ended.

Such perfect timing! The youth released a small sigh of relief. He wouldn't need to go back to the academy today. He shifted his clothes into his right hand, using his left one to rub his tired eyes. "...Home," he mumbled to himself. Green scratched the side of his head and released a small yawn. Yes, home, that seemed to be the best place right now. He let his legs carry him to the only destination in his mind...and he decided to ignore the stares and heated glares as he walked through Konoha. Maybe he shouldn't have just decided to walk around in his boxers...
[Exit]
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WC: 3013
Gains:
+ Learned Substitution
+ Learned Tree Climbing/Surface Walking
+ 15 stats

Approved.