Pain pushes those who accept the lift

Ikari was done with his training of the body's physical capabilities. He had been working out in the quarry for weeks so his body looked to be chiseled from granite, but he still had not trained his elemental and ninjutsu prowess nearly enough. If he was to get into a real fight then he would be screwed and there was no doubt about it. He had been told that meditation was a great tool needed to get used to your chakra and understand how to control it. While he was never one to sit still for any period of time, he figured he would give it a shot. 

Walking up to the edge of the quarry, a piece that overlooked a cliff that seemed to fall forever, he knelt down and he tried to relax his mind, doing his best to clear all that was built up within. He closed his eyes and attempted to breath slowly and picture his chakra, but he could not clear his mind when he heard just how hard his heart was pounding. His body basically pleading for another workout and for some harder training. "Damn it!" Ikari had spent a whole twenty five seconds trying to meditate and it wasn't working. He stood to his feat and he used the giant rock behind him as a punching stone. 

He would shoot out a left right combo, then a right, left, uppercut combo. He would keep this up for a few minutes, watching the stone begin to shake and sheer off slivers of the stone off of the edges from where he was punching. His training for his chakra wouldn't go anywhere if he was unable to focus on his chakra in the first place, but he had never been able to focus on anything for longer than a few moments, being able to actually sit still in one spot for a prolonged period of time was something completely out of his wheelhouse for sure. The rock finally had enough and it cracked straight through the middle. His frustration building and swelling within him finally reached his max and his chakra began to emanate out of his body. The crimson chakra swirled around his body, his hair flowing like a fire in the forest, and his eyes blazing like an inferno within his skull. The last punch was shot and the rock cracked in half, with one of the halves sliding down to the ground. 

Ikari was still breathing heavy, his anger knowing no bounds. He picked the stone up over his shoulders and he began performing military presses with the stone over his head until his shoulders got tired, or until someone stopped him from continuing.

WC:452

Max would stumble along, his movement sluggish compared to normal. He was still growing accustomed to this new existence, his breathing shallow and ragged. What a pitiful sight he must be to anyone watching. He wasn't sure how many people knew of his condition, but he almost didn't want to show his face to the people. While he might have been beloved as a leader, he had failed them in their time of need. Kiri broke him, and now he no longer held any real authority in Kumo. What was he now? Was he a Chuunin, his rank before ascent? Or was he an enemy of this new regime? No. He would never have lived if he was seen as an enemy. So many questions ran wild in his imagination, his mind unable to figure everything out. Lost in thought, Max would soon find himself in a quarry and with company nonetheless. 

Approaching casually with his chakra suppressed, Max would simply watch. It was second nature to keep his chakra hidden, as he was in fact a shinobi and supposed to practice stealth. He would allow his sensory to feel out the chakra presence of this unknown Kumo shinobi. 

Max would look to be dressed in his usual garb, a long white cloak loosely fit.  It was a remnant of his lost status, but it was not a memory clung to. No, it was simply what he was wearing at the time of his "death", and therefore what this mind was most easily able to recall. His headband hung like a necklace at his throat. The Lich made no effort to surprise the youth, though he was unsure how keen this ones senses were. Not to mention his apparent rage filling his mind and likely clouding it. Max would see just how long it took him to notice. If too much time passed he would simply speak up to announce his presence. 

The small boy would cough, trying to muster up speech, "You seem... upset." Max would slowly lift his arm and point at the rock the older boy manages to split it with a strike. His breaths were still rough, "What brings... this fury?" Max would ask, wondering just what could drive one to endanger crippling their own hands. Max would assume that this man was a focused practitioner of taijutsu based on his physique and rock crushing strength.

Ikari was always listening for anyone towards him, his paranoia that he developed while living in the orphanage always ensured that he never got to relax. As each punch would land on the rock, you would begin to see small flickers of his chakra begin to flow out of his body. Fury swelling within him, causing his chakra to grow more and more concentrated and visible. The memories of the beatings, the all nighters full of screaming and yelling, fighting, the fires that were set, the alcohol and drug use. So many memories flowed through his mind, so the punches kept firing off into the hard stone. 

His chakra at this point began to pour out of his body, exploding off of him, raging like an inferno in the midst of a wind storm. His crimson eyes and ears would glow with an ominous aura as his rage could feel no respite, his fury continuing to grow and swell. Each punch landing harder than the last, blood would begin flying off of his knuckles began to bleed. Despite the pain, however, he would not cease. Continuing to strike the stone until the sickening split could be heard from all over the training grounds. Ikari didn't realize just how much of his focus he was putting into his 'excercise' that when the stone split, he heard a voice calling to him from behind. 

Ikari quickly whipped around to see just who was sneaking up on him, expecting a fight to commence. When he turned around, he saw but a small child asking him why he was so furious. Ikari didn't recognize the child when he first looked at him, or after a second glance. "My fury? It's nothing. I just like to fight, and that's it." Ikari would speak to the child, his head still feeling as though it was about to burst with the memories of his time in the orphanage. "Anyways. What did you need?" As he usually would try to do with smaller kids, he changed his demeanor and tone to try and sound like a big brother to those younger than him. While waiting for the answer from the small one, he would wait patiently for the child's answer.

The chakra pouring off of the boy standing in front of him seemed to be flickering intensely and randomly. Max could feel that the chakra radiating from Ikari was not very intense, likely meaning that the boy was still working on developing it. 

He would raise a hand to his mouth, coughing lightly before speaking again, "You release... too much of... your chakra... randomly" His words coming out is small spurts. He would glance about the area, surveying the landscape and seeing if they were alone. After a quick glance, Max hadn't seen of felt anyone else in the vicinity, and so if he wanted to help train this shinobi he was going to have to do it himself. "If you want... to grow stronger... focus and draw... it in..." Max would add, motioning with his hands to show an expanded length shortening to a condensed one. "One must not..." He would begin a coughing fit, rapidly and pointlessly gasping for air in with these new rotten lungs. "Not waste energy... and chakra..." 

So the boy simply enjoyed fighting, to the point of self destructive tendencies? His bleeding hands would showcase this. Recklessness was not a desirable trait, but perhaps Max could show him a better path... or at least figure out how to best utilizing the older boys natural tendencies. 

"Let me... heal your hands..." Max would say, forming the seals for Mystical Palm and reaching for the Senju. "Don't worry... I am... a friend..." He would say, pointing with his eyes down to the Kumo headband.

Ikari had been so involved with his memories swirling through his mind, causing his anger to swell within him, he didn't even realize that his hands looked like a mangled mess. Blood pouring off of his hands and two of his knuckles had been broken in by the trauma from the stone. He began to try to stop the bleeding on his left hand with his right when the fellow Kumo child began to speak. The voice was gruff for him being so young and his cough sounded as if he had only one lung and it was clogged. 

"You don't sound so good, you alright?" He would ask as his knuckles were bleeding onto the ground. Something that Ikari had not expected was the child to begin to give him advice on how to get stronger than he was. He would tell Ikari that he needed to focus on actually drawing in the power, instead of constantly letting it loose, as he often did. Ikari was confused as to why someone so young would think to give others advice. Was this child some sort of prodigy? Maybe he wasn't really a child and was using a transformation technique to hide his true appearance? It was an odd thing especially when he offered to heal his hands.

Ikari allowed the child to heal his hands to test and see just how skilled this ninja was with his medical ninjutsu, being sure that someone of his 'apparent' age would not be that skilled with such high leveled techniques. As the child performed a few hand seals, he placed his hands over Ikari's and the entirety of his hand would begin to shift and heal to completion. This was far too advanced for a mere child to perform so Ikari was convinced that he was not who he said he was. 

Ikari looked with confusion to the helpful child before speaking. "I thank you for healing my hands. But I must ask you a question. Who are you? A child of your age generally don't have such skill with that level of techniques." Ikari would wonder what the answer to his question would be and he waited anxiously to see what this conversation would turn into.

WC:374

With a quick nod, he would answer the youth standing before him. He seemed worse than he was, mostly because of his own failures. He needed to stop breathing when he spoke, otherwise the fits of coughing wouldn't end. 

With Ikari's hands healed, Max would smile as his mind trailed off. How the times have changed is such a short window... It only goes to show that time and progress wait on nobody, no matter who the are. Max would look up at the teen, his eyes showing a bit of surprise. 

"I am... Maximillian Yamaguchi..." His title lost, he was now simply another shinobi of the village. "I am a Chuunin of Kumo." His rank was something he was unsure of, but he would simply state this to answer without bringing in any more confusion. He was also now consciously avoiding breathing while talking, allowing him to speak more quickly without gasping for air or fits of coughing. It was true that he was quite capable as a shinobi at a very young age, but he simply contributed it to him having every desire to see his homeland flourish and not because of some sort of inborn talent. Whether or not others saw it this way was another thing, though. 


"What should I call you?" He would ask, hoping to build some dialogue with the young man. There was a lot that he missed while asleep in that hospital, and he had to quickly catch up on everything. Once the youth answered, or if enough time passed without answer Max would add, "Worry not, it is easy to allow passion to fuel you. It just takes the right conditions to focus that energy into results." Max would think of an analogy to help showcase his meaning. He would find a stick, which brought an explanation to mind. 

"For example, if you were to hit someone with a stick. Swinging the stick at them would allow all of that energy to strike across the length of impact." Max would demonstrate, slowly swinging the stick at the air and using his other hand to help with visuals. "It would likely hurt, but because the force is displaced and not focused, it likely won't be as effective as," Max would straighten the stick, lunging it forward in a thrust, "This. There is more force focused to a smaller area. And yet, even this can be more focused." 

He pulls out a blade and quickly shaped the end of the stick into a point. "Now that same force used with this can kill with ease. You see, concentrating all of that energy to a point is far superior to letting it out as you were." Max had no intention of trying to upset the passionate boy. No, he was aiming to help allow this Kumo shinobi to flourish. "You want to be the spear, not the stick."

The child seemed to hold his breath and do his best to speak without breathing in between his words, a somewhat interesting fact that this child needed to go to such lengths just to be able to hold a conversation. "A chuunin of the village?" Ikari would think to himself, he wanted so badly to rise through the ranks of Kumogakure that he could practically smell the jacket that were given out to those who won the honor of being called a Chuunin of the village. His eyes would widen as he was dumbfounded at just how impressed he was by this small child, but then they would soon fall to the floor as he realized that he was older than this child, and he was simply a fresh Genin that hadn't done anything of note. 

The young chuunin asked for his name, "My name is Ikari. Genin of Kumo." He would say with a slight depression in his tone. He didn't want to show it, but he did feel quite down from the knowledge that someone younger than him would have already leaped through the ranks passed him before he could get anything going for his life. 

This 'Max' would then search for a visual aid to help him explain his thought on the fury that Ikari tended to use when attacking. He would show the difference between hitting someone with a stick, then he would show an example of stabbing someone with the stick. While Ikari understood the basics of surface area and how that would impact the actual damage done, he hadn't actually put it into practice when it came to his training. He was far to busy trying to punish the stone, not actually causing the maximum damage that he could inflict upon it. 

"I think I understand what it is that you are saying to me." Ikari spoke as he walked towards another rock around the same size as the first stone that he had cracked in half, after doing the same to his own hands. He looked up at the rock and he tried to focus inwards, channeling his chakra within his mind to the best of his ability. He wasn't entirely certain if what he was feeling was correct, but he did know that he felt his hands begin to feel more power with every passing second. Instead of just unleashing all of his anger out at once, he cleared his mind. He focused on his clenched fist as he readied himself to thrust his fist directly into the middle of the stone. 

His mind wasn't completely clear, but it was far clearer than it had been in a long time. "I need to listen to every word he says. If he is younger than me and far superior, there is nothing this guy says that I would disagree with." Ikari would think to himself as his chakra would not explode out of him like he would have usually, it would instead flow around him, like a calm river as it circled a single stone within it's channels.  

Finally feeling ready to strike the stone, he forced his eyes open to stare at the stone as he would thrust his left fist into the center of the stone. He felt his strength as it coursed through his arm and into the stone, the stone that didn't vibrate, it didn't shake, it simply had a thin crack going up the middle of the stone. Ikari was confused for a moment, until he began to hear the stone begin to give in the middle. Ikari took a step back away from the stone, not being sure whether or not it was going to give or not. 

The crack then began to spread through both halves of the stone, before both ends began to fall apart, chunk by chunk. Ikari was amazed at just how much of a difference focusing on his target and drawing in his chakra would cause, rather than just constantly pouring out his chakra and anger each time he went for a strike.

Ikari looked in amazement at the powdered rock that was on the ground from his single punch. He looked over to Max and he thanked him profusely for teaching him such a valuable lesson. "Focus, drawing in chakra, it worked perfectly. I was the spear instead of the stick!" Ikari would leap in the air in excitement. "Are there any other lessons you can teach me?" Ikari would ask Max, hoping the answer would be yes. 

"If this guy was able to teach him something with such power in such a short time, imagine what he could do if he would formally train me!?" Ikari would think to himself as he waited for the answer from the man himself.  

WC:800

It was good that his words didn’t spark any conflict between them. He wanted to help his village, and there were few better ways to do so than to ensure the young shinobi of the next generation were well on their way to developing into strong assets. Max would nod and watch, seeing how the youth would apply the knowledge and more importantly would it be effective? Focusing ones chakra isn’t an easy feat for everybody. It takes a great deal of chakra control to focus it to a pinpoint location and utilize it for anything. Max would then see the young man calm, his chakra no longer raging like a wildfire. Then with a swift motion, a stone would be struck, the cracking sound clear as a ringing bell as the pieces began to give way. It was a success.
 
“Very good work, Ikari.” Max would have a smile on his face, happy that his words were able to help another down the path of bettering themselves and by extension Kumo. Upon hearing the question about further teachings, Max would take a moment to ponder. “I could teach you various things, though without more knowledge of what you are capable of I may find it difficult to teach you much beyond the basics.” Max would walk over, approaching Ikari’s new position. “Do you specialize in Taijutsu?” Max would as. He figured that this man would be considering his strength and physique. “I must admit, I never was particularly skilled at Taijutsu but I may be able to teach you a few things.” If he was going to have to practice and showcase hand to hand combat techniques, Max would consider limbering up with a quick warm up, but then he recalls that this body doesn’t really benefit much from such things.
 
“Are there any particular things you would like me to go over?” He would add, unsure of what the young man was aiming to get out of the training. “I know various skills and techniques that could prove incredibly beneficial in and out of combat situations.” Max considered teaching him how to utilize Chakra Sensory and Suppression while they were already in the mindset of focusing chakra, but he would allow Ikari to direct the lessons. Teaching him the things that he wants to know about will help keep him engaged to the lessons. Max would surely have time to sprinkle in some of the other stuff as well once the youth was fully on board and learning.

Ikari looked over his hands to see if there was any damage dealt due to the blow to the stone that once lay in whole in front of him. His knuckles were all still intact, all of his fingers were still operational and he felt no pain in his hands. Who knew that his chakra was such a powerful asset for someone to use, even when not using any ninjutsu, but only physical attacks. 

He would turn to Max, brushing off the rock dust off of his clothing when Max would talk about Ikari's specialty. "I hadn't actually thought about what I should specialize in. I have just always fought and worked out this way. I know that my clan, the Senju, have a powerful Kekkei Genkai being wood release. So I have been trying to grow a higher level of control of my chakra lately. I know the Chuunin Exams are coming up and I am wanting to compete, so being able to use Wood Release would likely give me at least a slight edge to have access to such an ability during the exams." 

When Max brought up his having a few skills that he would be able to teach Ikari, skills that would be useful both in and out of combat, Ikari jumped at the chance to train with someone that was far higher than he was in regards to skill, experience, and techniques due to Ikari still being green in his journey of becoming a more powerful asset to his beloved village.

"I would love to learn anything you would be able to teach me. I am a pretty empty book except for knowing how to fight hand to hand. So if you have anything you would be willing to teach me, I would take it in a heartbeat." Ikari would step away from the stone and he would step up to Max, showing that he was completely ready to take in whatever information that he was about to give out to the green Genin with nothing more than the dream to be the Kage's enforcer.

WC:350

So this young man sought to prove himself? Why else would one choose to enter into the grueling chuunin exams? For someone as new to shinobi training and skills as he had been, Ikari had a great deal of drive. It may be a bit reckless to step into the exams with little more than hand to hand combat training, but Max enjoyed his enthusiasm. "I see. So you are of the legendary Senju lineage? Max would give a nod of his head, a sign of respect to the man. "From my understanding, the Senju are quite adept at anything they put their minds to. I hope that you have inherited this trait as well." Max would give a light smile, his eyes showing a certain kindness while in this state. 

"Are you familiar with the skillset of masking and sensing chakra?" He would ask, his hands coming in to hold an invisible, imaginary sphere in front of his gut. "If you cannot cloak your chakra, you will likely be an easy target for those able to detect chakra. The skills go hand in hand and make avoiding detection possible, key to stealth missions and gathering intelligence covertly." Max would then begin to explain how to go about doing it. "You must focus your chakra to a point, much like you had done with the rock. I visualize it all flowing to my center like this." He would offer as a suggestion, his posture showing exactly what he meant. "Once it is there, continue to focus until it is at a tiny point, almost invisible to the eye." 

He would simply watch, wondering how the youth would do. It wasn't an easy concept to wrap ones head around for Max, but perhaps Ikari would find himself more attuned and naturally skilled in the shinobi arts.