Clone Alone [solo/p]

Another day and not surprising it was another packed house for Takatoshi's Teppanyaki, but nothing the restaurant wasn't equipped to handle this time. Following Satomi's graduation from the Academy to become a genin, his father finally had to admit that the restaurant could use a bit more help and hired on additional staff to manage the popular eatery. This didn't mean much would change for Satomi as his role just shifted to helping his father run the kitchen, the pair almost a circus act as they circled and danced by each other as they prepared the delicious fare the restaurant had come to be known for.

Despite it being a completely free day for him, Satomi hadn't the time to be bummed out about having to spend it helping his father out. That big gap-toothed smile he was personally known for was stretched ear to ear as he hummed away cheerfully while filling one other after the next, all his ninja training worked equally well to allow him to work longer and harder in the kitchen too. Fortunately Satomi's father wasn't a sadist. While he enjoyed spending time with his son at and away from the restaurant, he also recognized that this was a day that Satomi should be able to use for himself.

“A'yo! Sato!” Takatoshi's voice boomed above all the racket as he reached out to snatch the back of the boy's collar to stop him in mid-sprint through the kitchen, nearly pulling him right off his feet! “I can't 'ave ya around 'ere all day! It's 'er day off! Scrub up an' get out of 'ere!”

After recovering from a brief panic attack from his forced abrupt stop, the color and smile returned to his face as he quickly turned to throw his arms around his father. “Are you going to be okay here by yourself~?”

“Ah ya know me, I'll be fine.” Takatoshi beaming his own goofy smile as he gave his son's hair a thorough mussing. Satomi knew that it was a bit of a white lie, but gave a thankful hug anyway before being sent off with by an encouraging nudge from his father.

Satomi would exit the restaurant a short bit later, but not without sneaking away with a small treat for himself. The little bean paste filled cake was always a favorite of Satomi's as he savored every nibble as he leaned back against the front of the building, he only moderately regretted taking it knowing that someone else would be missing out on its deliciousness.

”CAAAW!” The cry would go unnoticed as Satomi fell into deep thought about what he would do for the rest of the day. He had been putting off training since his first mission, perhaps he should put some effort into that. He felt pretty confident in his ability with his current jutsu, perhaps it was time from him to spread his wings and try to learn something more difficult.

“C-CAW!” Again the harsh trill went unrequited, its hopeful originator pecking the ground around Satomi's feet as the boy nibbled away in thought at his snack. “CAW!” Three times was plenty to get the point across, allowing another moment to pass before a beak found Satomi's big toe.

“Yoww!” Satomi shrieked, hobbling on one foot as he lifted the assaulted one to inspect it. Satisfied that his toe wasn't actually injured his eyes panned to the side to stare past his foot to find the culprit, his nose wrinkling as he stared into the beady black gaze of his assaulter.

“Caaww...”

“A crow? Go away.” Satomi scoffed as he wagged his raised foot in an attempt to case off the avian pest. It was quite ineffective as the black menace only avoided the flailing limb with a few effortless hops back, keeping himself out of the boy's range.

“Caw.” The crow seemed unimpressed, but Satomi could see something else as well. It became increasingly obvious what the feather brain wanted as he watched its dark orbs fixate on his bean cake.

“Hungry are you?”

“CAW!”

“Right. So you'll leave me alone if I share?”

“CAAAAWW!”

Satomi sighed, was he really going to negotiate with a bird? The answer was yes as he broke a piece of the fin of the fish-shaped cake and knelt down to offer it to the bird which would greedily snatched it from his fingers and dash out without even a thanks. “Silly bird...” The boy chuckled softly to himself as he straightened up and headed for the training ground. Before he was rudely interrupted Satomi was in the middle of remembering the training he had done with Miyamoto in preparation for the genin exams, the young chuunin had been attempting to learn a jutsu of his own at the time. The Shadow Clone Technique: they were just like Satomi's normal clones, but tangible and could actually be interacted and interact with the world autonomously or at least semi-autonomously at the very least. It was decided that this would be his next goal! The strategies he could employ if he had an army that thought exactly like him, the things he could accomplished. The more he thought about it, the more excited he got about it.

Once he finally reached the training ground he could barely contained himself as he skipped across the grounds to find a perfect place to start practicing. Finding a nice secluded areas among a few trees, the shade providing a comforting barrier from the glaring sun. “Perrrfect!” Satomi purred as he stretched out under the shadows, his neck popping as he rolled his head from one shoulder to the other. He spent a moment limbering up his body before he squared up, standing tall as he attempted to mimic what he remembered from casually observing Miyamoto working on his technique during his own training.

“Okay. Hands like this... I think.”

“Now for the chakra.”

He had all the ingredients for the recipe, only he didn't know the proper measurements to apply them in to get the correct result and it showed as his initial attempts resulted in little more than wasted chakra. More experimentation was needed to find the right blend of the spiritual and physical aspects of his chakra, it seemed like a monumental task for a new genin let alone one attempting to do it on their own. His next batch of clone attempts showed little improvement over the original, just Satomi standing alone under the trees looking like dork as he stood in the same pose with his fingers crossed in front of him in that of the clone seal. “Oookay~” The boy huffed, a bit of irritation creeping into his voice.

It was much more of the same as the afternoon slogged on. It's often said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result and while Satomi did experiment with different blends of his chakra, he still felt like he was on the fast track to insanity as each result continued to only burn through his reserves. It was beginning to take its toll on the young boy as well, his body had grown noticeably heavy as he stood there under the day's withering light. “I-- Argh! What is it going to take to make a clone!” Satomi stopped, it wasn't very becoming of the typically chipper child. “Just... One. Lousy. Clone.” His face grew as long as the shadows as the sun settled behind the horizon, the pouting game was strong with the young ninja as he was forced to admit defeat. Satomi hated the taste of sour things and the taste of defeat was about as sour as it came, he could only hope his father could whip together something for him in the kitchen to help get rid of the taste.

As the night rolled and the feeling of failure was laid to rest by a nice hot meal and some comforting words from his father, Satomi helped his father close up the restaurant for the night before the pair would return home for the night. “Sato. No matter how many times you fall, get back up and try again. The only true failure is in giving up.” His father's tone was uncharacteristic in that it lacked the usual whimsical quality to it as he comforted the boy. “As long as you give it your all I... an-and your mother will be proud of you.” A half smile found itself on Satomi's otherwise tired expression as the pair exchanged a comforting hug before expressing their good nights and retiring to their rooms for the night.

The next day brought more of the same at the restaurant, a rambunctious crowd hungry for Takatoshi's grilled delights. Fortunately the crowd was thinner today, but no one would notice judging from the ruckus. Satomi even had time for a proper lunch as he sat on a small  bench and table behind the restaurant enjoying a small grilled feast of his own, but it seems he wasn't destined to dine alone as a familiar call scraped his brain. CAW!” His immediately snapped up, his eyes falling upon another black feathered fiend like the one from yesterday as it sat on the opposite end of the table. “Caw.” Satomi narrowed his eyes as he inspected the critter, staring at its tiny beady eyes as it hopped towards him. “CAA!”

“It's yooou.” Satomi stared accusingly at the bird as he slammed his arms on the table to form a protective barrier around his lunch. “Shoo! Go bother someone else!” The crow was as just as stubborn as Satomi and maybe even more so as it fearlessly hopped closer. A frown and furrowed brow find the boy's face as he picked apart a piece of bread he was previously enjoying with his meal, tossing a small piece towards the bird which quickly devoured the offering. It would take more than one measly piece to satisfy the little annoyance this time before the greedy little creature would make another thankless exit. Satomi scanned for any additional threats to his lunch before quickly piling it in his stomach, he'd need all the extra energy he could get if he was going to get this newest jutsu down.

After lunch Satomi would help out around the kitchen for a while longer before heading back to the training ground, but not without packing away something to nibble on later. Returning to his spot from yesterday he'd remove his satchel and set it under a tree before taking up a recognizable posture, his chakra already swirling in anticipation. Unfortunately there was only more disappointment ahead for the genin as each attempt he made resulted in the same outcome as the day prior, just wasted chakra. He refused to give into the feeling, the words of his father fresh in his ears for the previous night. “Never give up, Satomi.” He relaxed with a whisper, it may take a lot of sweat and a lot of chakra, but dammit he was going to do it!

Just it might not be any time soon as seemed evident by another series of failed attempts. There was one moment he thought he had created a clone, but it turned out to be another young shinobi who had come by to check on him, curious as to why someone would be standing alone in one place for hours. He really needed a break.

Sitting under the tree with his things, Satomi leaned back with an frustrated groan. “Aww man, this is just eating away all of my chakra. How did Miyamoto do it!?” He was eager, his chakra was eager, but the jutsu just wouldn't come to him. He let his head fall back against the tree with another groan as he watched the clouds float across the orange and amber sky overhead, the day had grown late again. Lifting his hands, Satomi performed a series of hand signs, Ram → Snake → Tiger, a clone of himself joined him under the tree. “It's so easy now! So why can't I perform the Shadow Clone Jutsu!? Ugh!” He gave the back of his head a few repeated taps on the tree behind him with an adamant sigh, he'd accomplish nothing if he just sat there and continued to complain. With a theatrical puff of smoke his plain old boring clone disappeared from existence, it was now just one Satomi with a burning determination and a willing, but diminished pool chakra. With a furrowed brow and sweaty palms, he again held up the proper hand seal. His chakra swirling, filling his body as he again adjusted it in an attempt to suit his desired outcome. “Shadow Clone... please?”

Perhaps some divine force was listening for meek pleas today or perhaps and even more probable it was that practice and perseverance paid off. Whatever the reason, much to the astonishment of the boy there came a familiar puff of smoke and from it a clone! “Oh no...” The look of pride on the genin's face quickly became one of disappointment and, well, pity as he rubbed the back of his neck. It was definitely him staring back at him. Only he looked sickly, the clone much more pale than the legitimate article, its almost exhausted-looking gaze stared apathetically back at him.

“What're you looking at?” The clones words surprised Satomi, causing him to jump back in shock. He knew they were tangible, but he didn't know they could act autonomously as well!

“I, uh, well--” Satomi trailed off with a nervous chuckled, what did one even say to that?

“Good attempt, but try a little harder next time.” With a sarcastic snap the clone revealed his own version of Satomi's patented gap-toothed smile much to the horror of the boy before it vanished in a wisp of smoke in much the same fashion it had been summoned. Satomi couldn't help but to have a giggle at his own expense, the experience leaving  him with renewed vigor. He brushed a few fallen threads of gold from his face, posturing for another attempt. It wasn't a pretty sight, literally, as Satomi slowly amassed a small tea party for himself... of himself. Each of the three clones lined up according to when they were created with each having their own snarky comment in regard to which was the better clone. Regardless of their opinion Satomi could see a gradual progression towards his quest for perfection while also feeling the burden it was placing on his chakra as the clones spontaneously erupted into their own little puff of smoke in the same order they were summoned as Satomi could barely hold himself up let alone propping up three partially decrepit clones as well. He was so close, he could feel it. Exhaustion be damned.

Poof! Another clone! “Hey.”

And another one. “Hello.”

And another one. “Hi there!” Another three clones appeared with Satomi standing as a pillar between them, the set didn't look entirely like toddlers artistic interpretation of the original this time as they stood more poised and lively. They still weren't identical by any means however, obvious differences still plaguing Satomi's desire for perfection.

“We know~you can do it!” The clone's brighter voices sung their collective support for their originator before they too vanished. Despite the bode of confidence the length of time Satomi could hold each new clone was rapidly dwindling directly proportionate to the amount of his remaining chakra.

The only reason Satomi could even still stand was out of sheer determination to make the perfect shadow clone, and because frankly it felt like more effort to sit down. His knees were locked tight as his body weaved slightly, his eyes drooping. A roaring yawn rushed from the young boy, it had been nearly an hour since the Sun disappeared and the stars came out over the village. He had to see this through, he was going to see this through. The corner of his lips struggled to form a smile, formed partly from the joy of the chase for completing a new jutsu, but mostly just a minor delusional state brought on by being so exhausted.

The wobble only grew more pronounced as he fought with his body to draw the chakra he needed, his eyes fallen completely closed as he suppressed an urge for another yawn. “I... can--” Satomi voice trailed off into a wreck of nonsensical incoherent words as his hand dipped slightly catching himself to reapply his hand seal. Everything was a struggle now, even his eye lids felt like they weighed as if though they had infinite mass or approximately much as a cat refusing to be picked up. Exercising more of the same stubbornness that brought him to this point in the first place he managed to defy his boy to open his eyes and stare across the dark landscape, dredging and scraping for the last bit of chakra his body would allow him to have as his vision blurred and swayed. The young boy, no longer able to ward off the fatigue, finally crumpled under his own weight.

Satomi's fall was softened however, caught admits his backwards decent towards the night-chilled earth he was delicately laid under the nearby tree. Only able to muster the strength to open a single eye as his head lay on his satchel, it was enough to see a familiar form staring back at him. The figure looking every bit as worse for wear as he felt as they too slowly slid along their back against the tree's trunk until they were sitting next to Satomi, a weary but proud smile on their face. A gap-toothed smile every bit as perfect as his own. Satomi had finally done it, he had his perfect shadow clone.

The clone reached over, his fingers brushing Satomi's hair away from his face. “I knew you could do it.” His words but a whisper before the clone disappeared in a puff of smoke just an exhausted little genin could be heard snoring loudly under the stars.

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