[Deleted]

I WILL BE YOUR LIGHT, YOUR BEACON OF HOPE

Red loved the peace and tranquility of the woods around Bonchi no Kuni. The air was thick, and the earth remained wild. It was familiar to him, and the land seemed to brush against the lines of both calm and chaos. It was hard to describe, but it was just something he thought you had to feel.

Red's gaze turned to his hands, and three quick seals formed before a small fireball began to float in his hand. It was an exorcise he'd been working on lately, something to help him with his breathing, his concentration, and most importantly, his chakra control. He focused on the flame, drowning out the sounds of the wind through the trees, the chirping of birds, and the slight haze of the nearby rivers.

He took in slow, deep breaths, and the flame in his hand grew larger, with a long exhale, attempting to match the timing of his inhale while the flame grew smaller. Again, he'd repeat this exorcise, over, and over, and over again, keeping his attentin on the fire in the palm of his hand.

He wasn't sure how long had gone by while he remained focused on his task, but there was a sound that caught his attention, and Red quickly rose to his feet, assuming a fighting postition. As he spun, his eyes rested on a blue haired boy, roughly the same age as he was. He half expected whatever to be "sneaking up on him" to be just a beast of the forest, but Red was surprised, actually, to see a face he didn't recognize. He kept track of almost every shinobi in the village, holding a plethora of notes about who they were and what they were capable of. Even some notebooks filled with information about the ninja of other villages, like Senju Kazuto of the hidden leaf, or Okada Taki of the hidden stone.

Not feeling much of a thread in the fellows presence, Red lowered his fighting stance, though remained at the ready just in case.

"Who're you?” The genin questioned, his head cocking slightly to the side.

^{FOR I AM THE WALL AGAINST WHICH DARKNESS BREAKS}

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^{Hijikata Saga}

Temp By: Akira

[Hijikata Saga]

"fire and flames". "How can you move forward if you keep on regretting the past?" I'M A NINJA Saga had spent the early hours of the day somewhere near his hut, near the border of the village. As an unwanted nobody, he was not really allowed to hang around the village, not until he proved himself as a worthy shinobi, and the condition to that was getting approved in a Chuunin Exam. He half believed such high criteria was nothing but a way to just get rid of him, as he didn't think their leader had faith in his ability to pass such a deadly ordeal. But still, he was determined to prove them wrong and to continue to survive, so that he could become an asset to his village, and prove to everyone his own value. And since he didn't know how to really train to develop his abilities, he focused on refining what he could do. Being naturally gifted with Fire Release, the boy continued to practice his hand seals over and over again, to the point of getting his hands and fingers quite sore. Still, the habit of repeating the hand seals in a random order did certainly help the movements to feel extremely natural, and as consequence, grow much faster than usual. He still could improve, he knew that, and as such, he continued to invest in the exercise. But even he needed to rest, and after a while, he decided to take a break, and relieve himself from his breakfast in a nearby bush. Once he was done, he walked out of the bush just to find another kid there, a much taller one, but still, they looked to be similar aged. The kid asked who he was, and he scratched his cheek with his index. "Me? I'm Saga. I live over there." he pointed to a small, very rustic hut near the edge of the village. "I'm a ninja. And who are you?" he said nonchalantly. If Red paid attention, he could see a Hidden Waterfall headband tied near his belt. "There is no such a thing as a painless lesson, they just don't exist. Sacrifices are necessary; you can't gain something without losing something..." Training Saga takes a poop and then finds Shinichi [@bikutashin] [322 words]

[Deleted]

I WILL BE YOUR LIGHT, YOUR BEACON OF HOPE

Red's brow furrowed, half in disbelief about how nonchalant this "Saga" had been.

"A shinobi.” Red corrected, hoping down from the large boulder he was practicing on, and getting on even ground with the blue haired boy. "You're a shinobi of Takigakure. Calling yourself a ninja is almost derogatory of what we do.”

Perhaps Red took his title a bit too seriously, but to him, being a shinobi was to answer to a higher calling. It was to be a hero, a guardian, a protector, and upholder of peace within ones home. He was not so ignorant that he did not admit to the darker side of what the job also entailed, though. He know, too, that to many people they were simply glorified murderers, or assassins. But even still those who truly valued their way of life would not do such things lightly. There were fools of their kind who would kill for coin, of course, but to Red, they were far from Shinobi.

"Odd that I don't recognize you, Saga. While I may just be a genin, I take time to make note of those who join the shinobi forces. And I can't say I've seen you around the village much, either.” Red looked over his shoulder at the muddled hut he apparently lived in not too far in the distance. "Though I suppose that answers why...” He mumbled to himself.

"Well, Saga. Most everyone just calls me Red.” The genin started, his attention falling back to his fellow shinobi. "I didn't mean to impose on your, uh... Home... I was just trying to get out of the village for a moment to get a moment of silence to practice.”

^{FOR I AM THE WALL AGAINST WHICH DARKNESS BREAKS}

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^{Hijikata Saga}

Temp By: Akira

[Hijikata Saga]

"fire and flames". "How can you move forward if you keep on regretting the past?" ANALOGY Saga seemed slightly confused regarding being corrected by the boy before him because he called himself a ninja. It seemed like that was derogatory somehow, and that made the young sage apprentice arch one of his brows. "Derogatory? Like, same way fancy people don't like when I say crap and prefer I say... What was it called... Freces... Feezies... No! Feces! Yeah! Like... You mean it that way?" he asked, and his tone didn't have any hint of sarcasm, it was as if the kid was actually being serious in the comparison, and suddenly, he laughed. "I just took a crap, so I guess that's how I got the idea! Nailed it, uh?!" he said, now with a tone filled with an almost silly pride. Regardless of where that subject went, the boy would then go ahead and say it was odd he didn't recognize him, revealing himself as a Genin who took the time to memorize everyone's likeness. "Ryu-sama doesn't want me in the village until I can prove myself... That's why I'm not in a team, and stuff... I need to pass a Chuunin Exam to prove I'm worthy, after my fuck up." he admitted, gazing away and scratching his temple, feeling slightly embarrassed to admit to that. However, being honest was always the best route, right? "Red? Like the colour? Hahaha... That's funny! But sure, I will call ya that. And it is all good, it is where I live, but it doesn't mean people can't be around. I was training as well! So if you want to train together, I think that would be cool." as much as he tried to hide it, Saga was always eager to make new friends, and if he could train with this boy, maybe they would be buddies in the future, like it happened with Kaida. "There is no such a thing as a painless lesson, they just don't exist. Sacrifices are necessary; you can't gain something without losing something..." Training Poop analogies [@bikutashin] [291 words]

[Deleted]

I WILL BE YOUR LIGHT, YOUR BEACON OF HOPE

Red's brow narrowed as he looked at the blue haired kid and he did all he could to resist his jaw from going slack.

'What a weird kid.' The genin thought to himself as he grew a slight grimmace over his face. "You know,” he started, trying to keep himself from looking completely disgusted. "I might also recommend not disclosing your bowel movements to a complete stranger next time.”

Red would give Saga the courtesy of his continued attention, despite how strange he seemed. His attention perked up at the mention of Ryu, though, finding it quite curious he mentioned to Lord by name and not title, though this time he reframed from correcting him the way he had done before. He'd tuck away that last bit of what he said as well, curious as to what exactly Saga meant by his "fuck up," but figured his fellow genin would tell him if he wanted him to know. Red wasn't the type to pry anyway.

He let out a small hum of satisfaction when Saga said they could train together, his expression growing a small smirk before he spoke.

"Alright then,” he started. "Most of what I've been working on is chakra control. I usually find myself leaning more towards physical training rather than spiritual training. I was never very good at molding chakra, though its about time I improve if I'm going to be entering the Chuunin exams myself, soon.”

Red began taking a few steps, assuming Saga would follow him a short ways to start their training.

"You, uhh...” Red raised a finger, pausing in his stride as he turned to face Saga. "You washed your hands, right?”

^{FOR I AM THE WALL AGAINST WHICH DARKNESS BREAKS}

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^{Hijikata Saga}

Temp By: Akira

[Hijikata Saga]

"fire and flames". "How can you move forward if you keep on regretting the past?" WASH HANDS? Shinichi warned him about not disclosing his bowel movements to other people, especially strangers and that made Saga think about it for a while, rubbing his chin. "I see... They can catch my smell, and find where my territory is. Like an animal! Gotcha! Thanks for the tip, tall boy!" he said, giving him an enthusiastic thumbs-up. After his brief explanation of why he was living there, the boy seemed to welcome the idea of training together, and then mentioned they were working on chakra control. Saga laughed at that. "HAHAHA! I never tried to control my chakra! Ya know... I have tons and tons of it! So it doesn't really matter to me!" he said, cracking a very proud smirk on his feature. "But I guess people with tiny pools need to compensate for that... I guess the solution is to just use techniques and adjust? I'm pretty good at using Ninjutsu. But I want to be able to waive my hand seals faster, so I can attack before my opponents can do anything. It will be helpful if I get far in the chuunin exams." he added, with a firm nod. Saga followed Red to the training ground nearby, and when he asked if he washed his hands, he raised one of his eyebrows. "How could I? There was no running water near that bush... But I did rub my hand in the dirt. That should be good enough, right?" he shrugged. "There is no such a thing as a painless lesson, they just don't exist. Sacrifices are necessary; you can't gain something without losing something..." Training Didn't wash hands [@bikutashin] [231 words]