Training In The Forest (Private/Solo) (Training)

Takamitsu softly awoke, slowly turning over in his bed. It took several minutes for him to even sit up, and almost twenty minutes for him to even get out of his bed and to begin getting ready for the day. Takamitsu wanted a way to enhance his battling capabilities, and also have a new technique that had capabilities beyond just battling. If he had a technique that could both have utility and would be powerful enough for him to employ for years to come, then that would be what he was going to train. He began to go through all of the techniques that he could think of as he began his morning ritual. He threw open his shades to illuminate his rather small home, which consisted of a bedroom, bathroom, and a third room that housed a small living area and kitchen. The sun hadn't actually risen yet, so his hope to illuminate his home didn't actually turn out to be as successful as he had hoped. Nevertheless, he continued his morning ritual as if the home was full of light, knowing the layout by heart due to the large amount of time he had lived there. When he finally assembled his breakfast, a soup that was likely more suited to be a lunch or dinner, he finally decided on what jutsu he was going to learn. It was going to be the shadow clone jutsu, something which he thought would be both beneficial for recon and combat. It seemed like a technique that was useful for deception, in case the need arises, and it would also give the genin a chance to escape from an attack if the need seemed to arise. It was like the ultimate multitool, and since it was a B-Rank, it'd likely be easier to learn than something like Chidori. He didn't let this new idea change the pace of his morning routine, and continued to slowly eat his breakfast before fully changing and heading outside into the early morning's warm embrace. He wasn't going to head to the training field this time, as that seemed like much too far of a walk if he was going to do a jutsu that wasn't destructive or even dangerous. Instead, the genin began to head towards the village walls, hoping that he would be able to slip into the woods for a little peace and quiet that he could train in, opposed to the noise that would likely be produced by other shinobi crowding the training field in the early morning for a bit of warming up or training. In the woods, Takamitsu probably wouldn't see a soul and would be able to do almost whatever he needed and nobody would be able to distract him. It was the ideal training place, and his slow walk was going to eventually lead him straight to it. Takamitsu finally decided to pick up the pace, running towards the gate at a speed quicker than most average people could dream of moving. He employed body flicker, electricity spiraling around his body before he seemed to vanish, moving even quicker than before. When he reappeared, he was within the trees on the other side of Konoha's walls, dashing swiftly deeper into the woods. Truthfully, he didn't want anyone to see his training, hoping that his new technique would be able to be kept secret. It wasn't out of a need for something like a surprise attack, instead he just wanted to be able to keep his true knowledge of jutsu secret, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention from higher powers. It wasn't that he had any ill intention, instead he just didn't want any sort of extra responsibility put onto him, being quite lazy.

He finally arrived at the point in the forest that he had hoped that he would. Despite knowing how to use the clone jutsu, he wasn't quite sure what the first step of the shadow clone jutsu was. He knew that it was likely similar to the clone jutsu, but to just give it substance seemed like it was much easier said than done, and even then it still sounded like a nearly impossible feat. He started by just performing the standard clone technique, hoping that a little bit of a refresher would help improve his chances of using the shadow clone jutsu correctly. He began to perform the hand signs for the clone technique, summoning a mirror image of himself. Despite the chakra forming it, it was nothing more than an illusion. If he was able to use more concentrated chakra to copy his body like he did with the clone jutsu, then maybe he would be able to master the shadow clone jutsu. To start, he formed the clone hand sign, molding the chakra inside of his stomach, directing it towards his hand as he focused intensely on his own image, hoping to create a copy of himself while also giving it substance. He focused, trying to separate the chakra from himself while continuing to focus on every detail of his own body. Everything from the color of his clothes to the length of his fingernails needed to be copied for his jutsu to be perfect, so he didn't bother trying to rush the jutsu. If he did try to quickly perform a series of clones, not only would he fail, the amount of chakra wasted would likely be enough to knock him out, which certainly wouldn't help his training. Better to be slow and steady than to be quick and get himself hurt. Despite this technique being technically easier than Chidori, this certainly was giving him a run for his money. He attempted to perform the jutsu after several minutes of focusing, glancing down at the product that he had created. Although the genin didn't expect to master the jutsu on his first try, he certainly didn't expect to get nowhere close to the final product. What lied close to him was a broken, pale mess. Even the clothing was drained of color, and it seemed to be limp, as if it didn't have many bones, if any. He delivered a swift kick to the chest of the clone, hoping that it would give some sort of resistance against him. The kick landed, and the clone flew several feet before dissapearing. Despite having substance, it wasn't strong enough to be able to keep solid after a slightly hard contact. The blow wasn't fatal, but the kick still managed to destroy the clone. As long as he continued to make progress, the clone would become more solid and it would become more mobile. As long as he continued trying, he'd likely get the jutsu completed very soon.

Takamitsu took a deep breath, once again forming the clone sign. The sign felt foreign in his hands, it was something he rarely had formed before this point, and he never had used it to influence his chakra, as the regular clone technique was a series of hand signs that were unrelated to something like shadow clone jutsu's sign. A large part of Takamitsu had wished that he had a teacher that was able to guide him to the right place in this technique, but he also knew that this was likely the more rewarding technique, teaching him more about chakra control and further refining his blossoming skills. Takamitsu focused as he tried to mold his chakra into a clone, expelling it from his body into a form next to him. A puff of smoke obscured the form he created, the body was finally revealed. It was once again a pale form, except now it was kneeling down over the ground instead of lying limp. The genin looked down towards his clone, which slowly glanced back. It opened its mouth to speak, but Takamtisu delivered a quick kick to its face, sending it flying to the side. It traveled until it hit a tree and vanished into a puff of smoke. It was obviously progress, despite it not being as powerful as it probably should have been. He let out a small laugh as he took a seat, wiping a small amount of sweat off of his brow. Streaks of light began to reveal themselves through the trees, shining down into the forest. He wasn't quite sure how long he was out here so far, but a decent amount of time likely had passed due to the sun now being above the trees. He didn't want to waste much more time, so he would try to make his break as brief as he could. Although he was usually lazy, his work ethic was much more intense while he trained, which helped him push ahead when it seemed that he was beginning to fall behind his peers. This technique was going to be able to help him out immensely, so it was top priority to finish this before he moved onto something like the Chakra Absorbing technique or Chidori Katana. The boy wasn't blessed with a latent improved chakra potency or incredible strength, but he had a fantastic level of persistance, which was enough most of the time. He slowly began to stand up, finishing off his break. Takamitsu didn't waste any time in attempting to form the seal and mold his chakra, hoping to get all of the training done before it reached noon. Judging by the current pace that was set, he hoped that he would be able to accelerate his training by skipping any further breaks or he wouldn't be able to finish until the day was over. As much as he wanted to pick up the pace a little, the immense chakra that was taken to produce each clone was staggering to him, and due to their imperfected nature, he wasn't getting much of any chakra back in return after their destruction. He needed to balance the power, amount, and form of his chakra in order to correctly use the jutsu, which was something that was beginning to appear more complicated with each passing moment. Even though he didn't need to deal with a change in chakra nature or something of that sort, he still had a lot of trouble with the specifics of the jutsu, something which a little bit of guidance wouldn't really be able to help, like the instructions from his old instructor with Hell Stab was able to push him over the edge.

He closed his eyes as he began to think of every little detail of his body. This was, of course, the first step of his plan. If he was able to produce a decent clone, all he would need to do afterwards is do the rest of the jutsu while keeping the mental image in his mind as he continued through the process. Next, he began to try to imagine his chakra giving that clone substance, as if the extra chakra was almost hardening into flesh and blood to recreate himself. He was going to give this clone a lot of chakra, so he was hoping that with the extra effort put into every single detail of the jutsu that he would get a more desirable result than the poor excuses for clones he was getting before. In a way, it felt that he was worse off than he was originally in the academy. At least then he was able to produce some sort of mirror image of himself, but now it seemed like with the extra steps that the jutsu had become immensely harder. When he hears about kids younger than him mastering jutsu tougher than this, it makes him wonder just how much training they must have endured at such a young age in order to reach that level. Of course, there were some people that were just naturally more gifted than Takamitsu, those like the Uchiha or Senju who were able to possess incredible battling capabilities from birth, the likes of which it would take others years of training to reach. Of course, the Uzumaki wasn't too worse off, he had access to chakra chains and an incredible vitality, but when he was compared to his peers, it seemed like he was vastly undertrained exclusively because of latent ability. Legendary shinobi had arisen from worse, however, as some were known to only use something like Taijutsu, something which Takamitsu would have trouble even imagining in his current state. His only resolution was that he needed to work extra hard in order to make up for the difference in skill that existed between him and his friends, and the only way to do this was to spend more and more time training and improving himself while the others were unable. He'd need to practice with and without them, and learn things that other people would only dream of learning, not because of some sort of ability he obtained at birth, but instead through nothing but sheer willpower and study. His goals weren't the most unrealistic, as he could hope for something like the far off feat of being a master shinobi or even a Kage, distant dreams obscured by years of hardship and work that Takamitsu just wouldn't be up to try. Despite his laziness and desire to be ordinary and uninteresting to others, he couldn't help but dream in the early hours of the morning that maybe he could become a legendary shinobi, surpassing Kanshi and Tatsurama in order to reach a higher power.

His mind was wandering, so when he finally snapped back to reality and tried to execute his jutsu, he was greeted with a puff of smoke and a discolored version of himself. Takamitsu laughed slightly as he delivered a hard punch towards the stomach of the clone, which managed to take it and continue to stand. It was durable, at least, so his chakra was beginning to take the correct form. His clone seemed to almost shoot him a sad gaze through his malformed face, and he dismissed it to try and regain most of the chakra that he had previously given to the clone. Although he did feel a bit of the energy return to him, he wasn't quite all the way there yet, which was to be expected. As much as Takamitsu wanted to believe that he would be able to master this jutsu today, with every passing moment it began to seem less and less likely. It was time to kick it in to overdrive, he decided, and he once again threw together the sign for the shadow clone jutsu. Because of his enhanced vitality, he did gain one thing over many other shinobi, he was able to do jutsu hours on end and still find a way to pull out one after another. He once again focused a large amount of his chakra into his hands as he began to focus on every detail of his body. He closed his eyes as he once again attempted the jutsu, producing another failed clone. No matter, he decided, he would just destroy it and try again. Takamitsu once again threw together the signs as he once again closed his eyes... He was going to be here for a while, that's for sure.

The boy was almost at his knees after nearly an hour of constantly attempting to use the ninjutsu and then once again failing his attempts. Although they were slowly gaining color, density, and a better posture, he still was what seemed like a long way away from completing his jutsu. Takamitsu slowly pulled himself up using the stump of a tree, his eyes intensely gazing at his hands as he formed the hand sign for the clone technique. It was time, he decided, this was going to be the attempt that was successful. When he finally reopened his eyes to look at his clone, a mirror image of himself. "...I must use my predictive powers for good." His clone, despite knowing exactly where the thought had came from and why he had said it, still gave the genin a odd look just to spite him. Now Kanshi got to deal with two assholes during his training sessions, obviously what any leader of a shinobi team could hope for. Takamitsu weakly smiled towards his clone, "You really took a while to make, you know that?"
"Maybe you should have just been better."
"You're just insulting yourself..."
"Yeah, now I get to use all of the emo insults that I've been dying to use for the past year."
"...Is this what I do to other people?"
"Don't get all introspective on me now, I didn't even start the insults."
Takamitsu was too distracted in his self revelations to acknowledge the shadow clone that was rapidly throwing a string of insults in his direction. When he finally did look at the clone, it was out of the realization that he had finally completed the technique. He gave the clone a small grin before reaching into his bag and grabbing a kunai knife.
"What are you going to do with that knife? Are you gonna-"
Takamitsu drove the knife through the stomach of his clone, whose mouth went agape as he fell limply backwards before fading into a puff of smoke. The technique definitely needed some work, judging by the way the clone was behaving independently, but that refinement was going to come with time and practice, and wasn't something that the boy needed to worry about currently. He turned back towards the path he took to get to his training spot, and began to slowly walk to the village, hoping to get a small meal before he prepared to learn some more jutsu. His life was becoming more and more hectic with the stronger he got, but the relatively lazy boy was beginning to think that maybe it wasn't a very bad thing. He gave himself a small smile before he walked into the walls of the village, a new jutsu under his belt.
-Exit Thread-

WC: 3005
+15 Skill Points
+Shadow Clone Jutsu