Strength of Heart, Training Begins!

The sound of the sea water crashing against the rocks roared loudly as the young Mist ninja looked over the ledge. Above him was a massive slope he intended to climb. With a shallow level of the sea water and many sharp rocks waiting down at the bottom, about 40 meters from the top the drop would surely kill him if he fell. The thought of how long the fall would take was quickly overshadowed by the thought of the pain that waited at the end of that very same drop. He would have to make sure to take extra care in his training today. The rocks were damp from the crashing waves that had reached the top overnight. They glistened slightly as the sun rose over the horizon, shining light on the training ground the boy had chosen for today. A small grin began to form over his lips as he turned his attention to the actually sea itself and not the watery grave that waited for him should he slipped and fell from the cliff’s ledge.

The sea seemed as if it was slightly agitated and wanted to crush the very cliff that stood in its way, but it wasn’t strong enough yet. Kankuro could easily relate to that feeling. He wanted to become strong to be able to make sure no one stood in the way of him being the strongest in all of the Hidden Mist’s history. Today was just one more step on that long journey. It was time to begin.

Putting his bag and katana down against the cold rock ground, the young ninja kneels down, and reaches in the open flap. Grasping two strips of leg weights, he pulled them out and dropped them on the ground, causing a few small cracks to appear in the rocks from the weight as they fell. He took a deep breath as he looked at them. There were four sets of weights, each weighing 50 pounds, for both his legs and arms. Knowing that the 200 pound weights would be hard to move in at first, the end results would be well worth it. Shutting the bag, he turned his body slightly and wrapped the first set of weights around his right ankle. The other set of weights were wrapped around his left ankle and he was ready to go. Standing up, he could feel the weights on each leg pull him down against the ground he stood on. There was no turning back now though. Leaning back down, he places the final two sets on his wrists. Taking a few practice punches and kicks to test the weights out he knew right away that this was going to take some getting used to, but it was now or never.

Forcing his body to take a couple of steps towards the cliff, Kankuro reaches forward with body of his hands. His fingers wrap against cold moist rock. Taking one more last breath before beginning, the wind cut against his skin while he put his right foot against a jagged rock that slightly stood out from the cliff. Pushing down on with his foot, he pulled his body up with his hands. The weight was clearly already affecting him, but he couldn’t stop just when he was just getting started. How could become the strongest if he gave up just when something seemed difficult?

A few grunts of frustration and annoyance escaped from him the further up the cliff he climbed. The thought of his possible death urged him on more than anything at this point. Only a few minutes had passed and he was already halfway through his ascension. Already his body was feeling the stress of the extra weight on his legs. Bringing his right leg up, he places his foot against what seemed like a sturdy hole in the cliff, but he was wrong. As soon as he put weight on his foot, the rock that had been supporting his foot suddenly crumbled. His leg fell, but luckily he was able to catch himself by grabbing an open crevasse with his right and left hands. His eyes looked down at the rocks that welcomed him far below. A sudden rush of fear ran through his body now. It had never even crept in his mind that something like this could happen. His body was quickly losing strength from hanging there and to make things worse, his grip on the rocks was starting to slip. If he didn’t do something soon then he would certainly fall to his death.

“Not like this…” he said to himself as his eyes came to a close. His mind races with all the goals he still had left to accomplish. “I can’t die yet!”

The fear of his death was starting to get to him, but something changed all that. The faces of his friends began to flash before his closed eyes. Their smiling faces and happiness seemed to bring a sense of peace and serenity to the ninja. Somehow, his grip grew stronger and his body began to move once again. The weights no longer seemed as heavy. Slowly, his right leg came back up and found a place to put if against the cliff. His will would not allow him to fail. In a matter of moments he was moving steadily up the cliff once again. The top of the cliff was closer than before and he so close. The sound of his friend’s voice echoed inside his mind, telling him to keep going and never give up. The soreness began to run down his arms by now, but he couldn’t quit. If he quit now then he’d never be able to see his friends again. He’d never be able to call himself the strongest in all of history!

“Not yet! I’m not going to fail yet!”

His voice changed to a loud yell of frustration as he finally reaches the top. Pulling himself up, he places his left bicep on the cliff. Heaving his body up to the top, his right foot finally plants itself against the rock as he stood up to his feet. Kankuro’s eyes shifted right away and looked down at what could have been his grave down below. Knowing how lucky he may have been, a soft laugh managed to come from him, brought on by exhaustion.

“What a warm up!”

His laughter grew louder as he stumbled backwards, away from the edge of the cliff. Quickly catching himself, the boy was able to quickly compose himself and continued his training. He’d reached the top, but now he had to go back down to the place he came from. Starting off with a few slow steps, Kankuro took off in a sprint, pushing off the rocks as he began running. The weights continued to add to the level of difficulty, along with his current level of fatigue, but still he was driven to continue. With each step his body begged him to stop and rest. His muscles were sore and his energy was running low, yet still he continued.

A few moments continued to pass and Kankuro found himself running down a slope that was half a mile away from the top of the cliff. He was able to see the ocean once again and soon he would be able to take a well-deserved break, but his training was far from over. This all was only the first round in a very long day.


{TRAINING = COMPLETED}

WORD COUNT = 1262

Jp awarded: 6
Speed awarded: 6
Strength awarded: 6

well done, excellent training ^.^