[Eitama Sora]

SORA

❴ down came the rain ❵

These two were certainly something. They couldn't stand each other but were actively using one another as measuring sticks for their own progress. Natsuo was occupied with closing the gap between himself and Takame to the point where he was pushing himself just a bit further than he probably should have, while Takame's focus was no doubt at least partly due to wanting to remain a step or two ahead of his teammate. The foundation for their training had been set and at this point the two would learn more from their failures and each other than whatever else Sora could tell them; it was the natural progression of the learning process and the man was glad to see that both genin were now taking it upon themselves to adjust in real time.

Still, the Mayonaka couldn't have called himself a sensei if he just sat back and watched and observation was still key. Takame naturally ramping up to a sprint was impressive. The boy was smart enough to know that jumping into a full sprint wasn't the best idea and worked himself up from a paced walk to quick movement, though the end result still left something to be desired. Molding and focusing chakra at that rate was its own animal, but doing so while also having to worry about the choppiness of the water was another beast. "Your form is good, Takame, but you overcompensated how much chakra you thought you needed for how fast you were going. It's all about finding that balance." Sora would speak before shifting his focus to the one who was causing all that havoc on the waters surface.

Natsuo had picked up on the gradual increase lesson pretty quickly and had even gotten himself to a circular jog, but it was no sprint. "You gonna just play ring around the rosie all day, Natsuo? Down and back, just like Takame." Perhaps the kid wasn't quite ready for it but he was going to make himself sick running in circles all day and this would be a good litmus test for the two genin to see where they truly stacked up with each other.

❴ Notes go here! ❵
❴ Natsuo Jokyū Kyuumu Takame ❵

❤

[Natsuo Jokyū]

It got easier jogging around Natsuo's little circle as time went on, just as he felt he was ready for the sprinting part, his sensei seemed to sense it and suggested he stop playing ring around the rosies. The boy smirked; it seemed his sensei shared his opinion. He stopped for a moment, breathing in and out as he watched Takame's attempt to sprint. It was smart to lead up into a sprint, but he seemed to rush the leading up part. It was no surprise that the boy had gotten splashed rather quickly by the water. He did do well in adapting, from what Natsuo could see. Natsuo walked over to his teammate, trying to give him some encouragement, which the boy wasn't very good at. "You got this, Takame!" He tried to smile, but the boy was still a little irritating. It was much easier to act as rivals with him.

Natsuo started with a light jog, slowly increasing speed as he got closer to his destination. At about halfway he broke into a full-on sprint. It was choppy, but manageable and slowly improving. Just when he thought he had it down, he had to turn to head back. His lack of attention to the distance left was at fault for him dipping knee deep into the water as he turned, stopping to catch his breath. It wasn't bad, after all he hadn't turned while doing the jutsu yet. So, his less than desired outcome was to be expected. At least, that's what the boy told himself.

[Kyuumu Takame]

Frustration was easily recognizable on Takame's face from the failure of trying to run. Even more displeasure was evident on his face when he got some cheering from Natsuo. Mostly because he never saw encouragement from others he didn't consider himself close with as genuine, but rather snide or trying to rile him up. He wouldn't let this silver-haired dunce push his buttons though. He would master this jutsu and he would master it before him if he could. Determination is his key motivator as he wouldn't be surpassed by this outsider. Natsuo would of course recover and begin his sprinting first though he would eventually sink a bit on the turn. This made Takame realize there might be a bit of a technique when it came to turning. "Interesting," He would mutter to himself as he also began his jog from earlier following in Natsuo's path. When he got to the point of his turn he decided to make it a bit sharp. Instead of fully planting his foot he would instead turn his foot to the side and putting a bit too much chakra into that foot he would use the resulting water splash to push him forward. This would cause him to go into a sprint which was an issue since he was prepared for the sudden speed boost and while for a few steps he was able to regain control ultimately Takame wouldn't find his full balance and simply fall face first into the water. Getting his head above the water he would grumpily say, "Well that didn't work as planned." [attr="class","wpknotes"]word count ✖ @tag ✖ notes if you want

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[Eitama Sora]

SORA

❴ down came the rain ❵

A brow raised in quiet contemplation as Sora watched the young Jokyu make his way over to Takame. Was the urge to pick a fight with each other stronger than the will to learn a new technique? He was preparing himself to separate the two either through words or other means but was surprised to hear words of encouragement come from Natsuo. Thankfully Sora was not a betting man otherwise he would have lost a lot of money on the outcome of that interaction. Takame's face showed displeasure in the gesture but he had not let it break his focus.

With that out of the way Natsuo would give sprinting a go for the first time and while he looked a bit wobbly on the way down he had managed to stay upright until the turn and took a knee length dip in the river. Takame, seemingly learning from watching his teammate, shifted the chakra on his foot while he turned and though it did keep him balanced the resulting boost in speed was too much for the genin to handle ending in him taking a face first dip into the river. Both had given an admirable attempt yet they had the same problem, one that had become very apparent in this latest round of practice.

"Not bad, either of you, however I see what the issue is. When you're performing the turn you're expecting the water to not give way as if you're running on solid ground, and that isn't the case. The layer of chakra underneath your foot will create a solid surface, yes, but everything around that is still very much free flowing. Your chakra needs to flow out enough to create firm footing for wherever you're stepping no matter the angle. But aside from that you've both just about got it down. Show me a good down and back with no dips in the water and we'll call it a day."

Both genin had picked up the technique quicker than Sora expected, with the usual hiccups, and would probably leave the training grounds less waterlogged than any of them could have anticipated.

❴ Notes go here! ❵
❴ Natsuo Jokyū Kyuumu Takame ❵

❤