[ JINICHI WATARU ]
The morning air was crisp and cool as I arrived at the designated training ground early.. Despite the lingering soreness in my muscles, I felt ready to push my limits today. The silence was soon broken by the sound of approaching footsteps from the forest path. I looked up to see Aoi walking toward me with a clearly visible scowl on her face.
She stopped a few feet away, crossing her arms tightly over her chest in frustration. I could tell immediately that she was annoyed about the lack of rest after yesterday. She didn't say anything, but the way she glared at the ground spoke volumes. A few moments later, Kisuke emerged from the trees with a heavy, rhythmic trudge. He looked completely exhausted, his eyes puffy and twitching with every single blink he took.
He didn't speak to me either, simply choosing to lean against a nearby tree trunk. I felt a pang of guilt, realizing my ambition for growth was inconveniencing my team. I tried to look busy checking my kunai, hoping to avoid any direct confrontation today. We stood in an awkward, tense silence that stretched out for several long minutes. I knew that when our sensei arrived, the situation was likely to get much worse.
And so, the three of us awaited the arrival of our tardy instructor, Shohei Nara.
a few moments later.
[*POOF* ]
With a simple, lazy puff of smoke, he materialized in front of us, looking dishevelled. He rubbed his eyes, letting out a yawn that seemed to last for an eternity. His gaze drifted toward me, and he immediately let out a sharp, accusatory grunt of frustration. It was clear that he hadn't slept well and blamed me for the early training.
"I hope you're happy, Jinichi" Shohei muttered, his voice raspy from a lack of sleep.
"Drag someone out of bed on their day off, now you're stuck with a cranky sensei." Aoi and Kisuke turned their heads in unison, fixing me with icy, sharp glares.
I felt my posture shrink, and I immediately looked down at my worn-out sandals. I was essentially public enemy number one for the morning, and the atmosphere was freezing.
Shohei-sensei clapped his hands together once, trying to steer the conversation toward more productive territory. He reached into his flak jacket and pulled out a small stack of papers.
"Since we are all here and miserable, we might as well do something useful," he explained.
"We are going to test your elemental chakra affinities to see what you can actually learn." Aoi and Kisuke's eyes widened, and their annoyance vanished, replaced by genuine excitement.
Aoi stepped forward first, her excitement bubbling over as she reached for a paper. She channelled her chakra into the slip, and the reaction was immediate and surprisingly strong. The paper split into two, one part catching fire and the other turning into dirt. She giggled, looking back at us with a proud, confident grin on her face. "Fire and Earth," she announced, clearly pleased with the versatility of her elemental chakra.
"Wait, there's more," she added, noticing a small spark of static electricity at the edge. The paper suddenly crinkled, indicating that she also possessed a faint affinity for lightning. She punched the air with a fist, absolutely pumped about having three different elements. Shohei nodded lazily, giving her a thumbs up as he recorded the results. Aoi bounced on her heels, feeling like she was ready to tackle any challenge today.
Kisuke was next, stepping up with a calm, focused expression on his tired face. He took a fresh piece of paper and channelled his energy into it with precision. The paper dampened and became soaked with water, then crumbled into fine dust instantly. He looked at the results and gave a small, barely perceptible nod of satisfaction. "Water and Earth," he stated, his voice quiet but steady despite his obvious exhaustion.
I could see the pride in his eyes. He seemed relieved that his nature transformations were compatible with standard, high-level ninjutsu styles. Shohei scribbled something down in his notebook.
Kisuke stepped back to his original position, looking thoughtful as he processed the information. Now, it was finally my turn, and I felt the dread rising in my throat.
I stepped forward, my hands trembling slightly as I reached for the final paper. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart and steady my chakra. I channelled my energy into the paper, praying that the system wouldn't do something insane. The paper immediately did the opposite of what I was hoping for.
The paper ignited with fire, soaked with water, crumbled with earth, fluttered with wind, and sparked with lightning. Before I could process that, the paper then turned pitch black and pure white simultaneously.
'…of course. Just great! What's next?!you're going to make me look like I was hand crafted in the sage of six paths image?!'
It was a complete, impossible manifestation of all five elements, plus Yin and Yang. The silence in the training ground was heavy, and suffocatingly awkward. I stared at the ruined mess in my hands, feeling my soul trying to leave.
Aoi and Kisuke had their jaws dropped, their eyes wide with shock. A sweat drop formed on Shohei's temple as he stared at me. Deep down, I think they had all been expecting something unusual from me eventually.
The silence stretched until I couldn't handle the tension anymore, so I cleared my throat. I looked at the group, and a massive, shit-eating grin slowly spread across my face.
'We're not going to get other things done If they're just going to stay awestruck.'
I decided to lean into the absurdity, letting my pride take the wheel completely.
"Well," I said, trying to sound as casual and arrogant as I possibly could. I looked directly at Aoi, whose jaw was still hanging open in complete disbelief.
"I guess I'm just built differently than the rest of you common Genin, aren't I?" I flaunted the paper, enjoying the look of pure, unadulterated frustration on her face.
I continued to gloat, pacing back and forth with a strut I didn't actually possess.
"Don't feel too bad, Aoi, it's not everyone's destiny to be a master of everything." I laughed, enjoying the rare moment of being ahead of the pack for once. Shohei sighed, rubbing his temples as if he was developing a sudden, violent headache. He clearly hadn't signed up for a team of talented, bickering, and wildly unbalanced children.
"Enough with the gloating, Jinichi, before I decide to bench you for the day" he warned. The threat was idle, but it effectively wiped the smirk right off my smug face.
"Before I get you any jutsu's to practice, you need to improve chakra control," he instructed. He pointed toward a line of tall, sturdy trees surrounding the perimeter of our clearing.
"We are going to start with tree walking, which is the absolute foundation of your training."
He walked over to a tree, effortlessly walking up the bark until he was vertical. He stood there, arms crossed, looking down at us with a bored, lazy expression.
"Your goal is to stick to the wood using only your chakra," he explained calmly. "If you fall, you climb back up, and you do not stop until you succeed." Aoi and I looked at each other, sensing a long and painful day ahead.
Kisuke didn't hesitate, walking over to a tree and attempting the task immediately. He focused his chakra into his feet, his brow furrowed in deep, intense concentration. To everyone's surprise, he stuck to the bark on his very first attempt. He walked up a few steps, paused, and then looked back at us confidently. Shohei nodded in acknowledgment, visibly impressed by Kisuke's quick understanding of the technique.
"Good job, Kisuke, keep practicing that until you can reach the top," Shohei ordered. Kisuke gave a short nod and continued his ascent, his movements getting smoother each time. I turned my attention to my own tree, feeling the pressure to perform mounting quickly. I channelled my chakra, feeling the system interface assist me in regulating the flow. It was much harder than it looked, requiring a delicate, precise balance of energy.
Aoi was already struggling with her own tree, slipping and falling back to the ground. She cursed under her breath, dusting herself off and glaring at the rough bark. I laughed at her frustration, which was a massive mistake on my part. She spun around, pointing a finger directly at my chest with a fiery gaze.
"You think you're so smart with all your elements, let's see you do it then!" she challenged.
I ignored her, turned back to my tree, and focused on my own footing. I managed to get two steps up before my chakra fluctuated and I face-planted. Aoi cackled loudly, clutching her stomach as she watched me tumble into the grass. I stood up, wiping the dirt off my face, and glared back at her.
"At least I don't laugh like a confused monkey!" I retorted.
Kisuke chuckled at the insult. Aoi's face turned red from anger.
The air was being filled with petty insults and competitive energy. We were both frustrated, tired, and desperate to prove that we were the better Genin. Shohei watched us from the high branch, looking like he wanted to be anywhere else. It was going to be a very, very long and exhausting day of training.