[Warai Ameko]

Training was certainly something. Ameko had known, intellectually, that the life of a ninja was utterly different to that of an academy student. Still, she had not expected  the step up to be so utterly complete. As a student, she'd not struggled with the requisite jutsu, at least when she had put her mind to it. But the growth expected of her as a genin was entirely different. Each day she was expected to push further and further toward obtaining some sort of ideal, some sort of new skill. Those lazy days of idling away and dodging responsibilities seemed so far away now, even though she knew it had been barely any time at all. Still, nostalgia for a recently passed period was still nostalgia.

The oasis at which she found herself on that cool, at least by Sunagakure standards, morning was one that she'd come to previously. Considering that her teacher for this task would be the same as the last skill she had drilled into her, it seemed only fitting that they meet in the same spot. 

This time, she had arrived first, a desire to reach the oasis before the assigned meeting time as opposed to crashing someone else's training had obviously influenced her decision. Whether that influence was conscious or not, the jury was still out. What was known was that the genin leant against a tree, once again without her bonded companions.

She sat as she leant, idly playing with a kunai knife with all the reckless abandon one would expect of a bored teenager. At times, she would speak an incomplete thought to herself, happy to allow the sentence to be finished for naught but herself within her own mind. 

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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Another day, another Suna youth that needed help training. Asahi was more than happy to help though at this point the number of genin and below he had helped in some form perhaps warranted some form of compensation from the village academy. Again, he was happy to help and the thought of running such a request past Kiyoshi sent a chill down his spine. The student in question was Ameko, one he was a little familiar with but still didn't know all too well but given how close knit Suna was it would only be a matter of time until the two were thrown together in some kind of shenanigans.

Coming up on the oasis Asahi would notice that the girl had already arrived and was idling about against one of the trees fidgeting with a kunai. "Apologies if I kept you waiting, Ameko-san." The man spoke announcing his arrival. "Sometimes it can take a bit to clear with Kiyoshi-san to step away from guard duty." Even for one of the strongest shinobi in the village who would probably be fine alone for a few hours you could never be too careful. "But enough excuses from me, we're hear to help you learn a new technique. It's not too tough a concept, mostly just making sure your chakra stays balanced."

The Kyokujitsu would motion for Ameko to stand up so he could access the tree she was sitting against. "Too little chakra and your foot won't stay attached to the surface." The man would focus a weak amount of chakra to the soles of his feet before trying to walk up the trunk, making it maybe a step and a half before sliding back down. "On the other hand, too much chakra and you'll either stick too hard to the surface or..." Once more Asahi would focus chakra to his feet but this time a strong amount and as he took a step on the trunk it splintered under the large amount of chakra.

"Balance is the name of the game. Spend a little bit getting the right feel then give it a shot when you think you've got it."

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

The arrival of the elder shinobi caused the genin to flinch in surprise, and it took her a moment to fully regain her composure. Only as she settled herself, and the special jounin motioned for her to stand up, did she finally take control of her thoughts. Ameko threw the knife against the groundand stood to attention in a singular movement. Of course, whilst the manouvre was quick, it was far from flawless, and as Asahi spoke, the kunai slowly began to settle into the ground, dislodging from its position. Sheepishly, Ameko wished that she had put a bit more force into ensuring that it stayed in place. Instead, she stood at what she assumed was a position of attention. Of course, her posture was all wrong, and she continued to bounce on her feet as she listened to the Kazekage's bodyguard speak. In turn, she would step back, maintaining her slap-dash attempt as proper attention as she witnessed the demonstration before her. The technique seemed straight forward enough, too much chakra would splinter the wood, too little and the she would be unable to get purchase. Theoretically, it all made sense. As the senior shinobi had said, balance was the name of the game. If she could adequately balance the amount of chakra she put into each step, then she need not worry about any untoward results. Therein, however, lay the problem. Her experience with chakra-manipulation was somewhat limited. She broadly just focused on throwing however much was necessary at jutsu until it worked. However, worse than that, she had always had an affinity for taijutsu. The use of chakra in itself was something she had put into the too difficult pile when she had studied how to adequately engage in combat. Rubbing the back of her head, she mumbled under her breath for a moment, before asking finally, "Okay, yeah... Makes sense... Um... How exactly do I know how much is too much? I mean, how do I gather it without release?"

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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Listening to the girl's question it dawned on Asahi that he was not dealing with the typical shinobi who at least had some leaning towards ninjutsu. The quick look at Warai's file he got when the request came through had mentioned that she was all physical when it came to her fighting style which was something the man had not encountered before, knowingly at least. Granted, the basics of gathering chakra and manipulating it were taught in the academy so she had to have some practice with it but even still this was going to be a bit different.

"Hmm, ok, let's take it back a couple steps then." Asahi replied while reforming the teaching strategy he had spent a bit of time on. This wasn't the first time he had taught the walking techniques to someone and they generally took a bit of time as putting the relatively simple concept into practice was easier said than done especially for fresh genin. "To put it plainly, when you can't control what you're trying to do. Anyone can build up large amounts of chakra but if you find yourself fighting to direct the chakra you've built it's a pretty good sign that you're using too much. Granted, that amount can differ per person and only you will know for certain what your sweet spot is."

Asahi hoped that the explanation made sense but what he often found helped best was a practical application. Trial and error was the name of the game when it came to learning most techniques --or in this case molding chakra in general-- and they were in no rush so the Kyokujitsu was prepared to spend however long it took for Ameko to get it down. "Why don't you try gathering chakra around your feet so we can find that balance I mentioned earlier. I've got some sensory capabilities so I'll be able to keep note of what ends up being too much chakra or not enough." The man instructed. He was always looking for an opportunity to better himself as a shinobi as well and had done something similar with Senshi a while back, so this would be good practice for the both of them.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

Head empty, Ameko nodded. The explanation made sense, she knew that on an intellectual level, but she could not tie the loose threads of knowledge together in a way that made sense to her specifically. When she summoned chakra, she more-or-less just forced it into a certain direction until it exploded out as fire or she managed to do the minimum the instructors wanted in order to give her a passing grade. Adjusting her physical body was so much easier, trying to take control of the energy that flowed through it, that did not come naturally. Still, she didn't need to fully understand what was going on if she could just force herself to learn the basic movements. Gather the chakra around her feet? Yeah, she could manage that. Sure, she may have lacked the natural aptitude to carefully direct the flows, but she could at least harness and locate it. Her bond with her familiars was tied to her chakra, and that nudged at her constantly. Getting chakra to her feet was very doable. "Sure thing, boss," She smiled, shooting the senior shinobi a thumbs up, then closed her eyes to focus. The chakra welled in her core then moved downward in utterly haphazard ways. Her right foot filled with the energy before her left, and both were filled with far more chakra than necessary. As she focused her mind on pooling the energy, the levels between each foot fluctuated, but never to the point that they were of an equal level. Eyes closed and grimacing, Ameko fought to keep the chakra flowing, the lack of balance utterly lost on her.

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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With his decent sensory abilities Asahi was able to keep track of Ameko's progress a bit more detailed than if someone were just observing with the naked eye. He could tell that the girl was generating chakra in her core and focusing it to her legs but the levels in each extremity felt off. One side of her body seemed to have a lot while the other was lacking and the look on the genin's face indicated that she was having some trouble balancing the two sides. It hadn't taken long to pinpoint the problem but now came the challenge of finding a way to fix it, as they wouldn't be able to progress with learning the technique without a solution.

"Hmm. You've got the hang of focusing chakra to your legs but it's uneven. Visualize yourself trying to remain balanced. You wouldn't throw punches or kicks off balance would you? Same thing with focusing chakra, the distribution need to be even." Asahi spoke to the girl hoping that an example from the field she was more familiar with would help her understanding. Focusing chakra to the legs --and by extension feet-- was easily the most challenging part of learning the walking techniques and oftentimes making those incremental changes to find the right balance was what took genin the longest to learn, but once they got that down it would prove a vital foundation to every other jutsu.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

Ameko kept her eyes forced fiercely shut as she listened to the advice from the more experienced shinobi. What he said made sense, but it required merging two strains of thought that she'd never quite considered as intermingled. Her knowledge of chakra, her ability to channel it, was deeply tied to having grown up with a chakra-bond with her familiars. Where a constant presence of foreign chakra was at reach, it became almost natural to understand the flow of chakra in one's own body. Of course, such an understanding was entirely instinctual, not intellectual. Ameko did not comprehend chakra, she doubted she ever would, she simply focused it into locations and let it go bang. Taijutsu was something she worked at, deliberate movements to which she practiced and drilled incessantly. The advice was sound, hell, it was probably the only way she would grasp the technique. But her base was weak. She tried to think of her physical weight, tried to focus on her balance when throwing blows, and found her control over her chakra almost entirely disappeared. The energy threatened to dissipate, escaping from her tenuous control. "Shit, dammit, shit," She muttered, trying to regain control. The panic only served to see her control get lost further, and her control failed. Where once she had been channeling energy into her legs, the chakra retreated to its natural channels. Falling to the ground in frustration, the genin let out an animalistic growl. "Dammit!" She howled, hitting the ground with her first. The outburst was as quick to come as it was to go, and she jumped to her feet within seconds of her fist colliding with the ground. "Let me try that again," She hastily begged, closing her eyes before even waiting for approval from her tutor. Focus on balance. Focus on balance first. Like throwing a punch. Chakra is just like weight, just like mass, balance in energy is no different to balance in physicality. With that grounding at the forefront of her mind, she turned her attention again to channeling the chakra to her legs. The result was mixed. Hesitation and worry plagued her, and whilst she succeeded in keeping a more balanced flow, the flow itself was as a trickle. Thoughts swam around her mind, keeping her conscious mind distracted as she clung to the thought of balance.

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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Asahi would look on to see how Ameko would incorporate his advice into her next attempt. He had tried to tailor it to something the girl was familiar with, a visual of sorts, instead of a random foreign concept. He could feel the chakra level of the genin fluctuating as she worked at it but it was rough and all over the scale, made evident by the unpleasant words she was spouting. Asahi couldn't blame her, this was a tough thing to master let alone learn for the first time so frustration was inevitable and expected.

He would not chastise Ameko but instead let the girl work through her emotions and she seemed raring to give things another go. Her next try was better, middling, but better none the less. The chakra in Ameko's legs was balanced even though there wasn't much of it. "This is good, but the amount of chakra isn't going to allow you to do much of anything. Remember this feeling and work to add more chakra to your feet, then try to take a couple steps ont he tree; you'll know how to adjust further from there." Asahi spoke. With Ameko seemingly getting the basics down it was time to put things into practice. Balancing chakra was but the first step and now it was time for making adjustments to ensure that she would both be able to stick to the surface without being stuck to it.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

It was with great relief that she released the chakra from her legs, allowing her concentration to lapse and her mind to return to the present. She felt almost exhausted, not even from the exertion of the chakra, but from the constant need to focus on what she was doing. If this kept up, then she'd have a headache in no time at all. "Right, right," She answered, pursing her lips in thought as Asahi spoke again. All she had to do was maintain balance while funneling enough chakra into her feet to stick to the surface. Easy enough, no? She grimaced. Focusing her attention back to her feet, she once again funneled the chakra through her limbs, allowing it to pool in her soles. She started with little energy, forcing herself to maintain balance, as if she were keeping her feet steady when preparing to practice a blow. Then she exhaled, and with it, pushed more and more chakra into the limbs. The levels fluctuated somewhat, but not to any great degree. Another breath in, then out. Ameko opened her eyes. Stared at the tree ahead of her and took a step. Her left foot touched the trunk, and stuck to it rather nicely. Grinning with delight, she forced herself to come to a point of calm. Using the leverage of her connected foot, she raised her right leg and touched her other foot to the trunk. The sensation of leaving the ground disoriented her, and instinctively she tried to compensate her balance. Chakra flooded her right foot and she overcorrected. Her foot touched the trunk without any kind of purchase, and the sensation lapsed her judgement. She fell, both feet coming undone. "Oh, dammit!" She slammed her fist against the ground again, "This is such camel shit. Chakra's such a load."

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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It was finally time for Ameko to attempt the jutsu now that she had seemed to understand the concept of balancing chakra to her legs. Learning the theory behind jutsu and actually putting them into practice were two different things and Asahi was sure there would be a couple things that would work against the genin's favor once she got walking including, but not limited to, the sensation of no longer being vertical along with having to use a different center of gravity when it came to getting the rest of her body to elevate. Of course, chakra was the hand wavy explanation for how some of that stuff worked but even though the girl wouldn't have to worry about the inner workings the sensations she was about to experience would surely throw her for a loop.

Looking on as the genin took her first couple steps Asahi was surprised to see that she had stuck to the trunk of the tree with relative ease; no sliding, no splintering of the bark just... standing. However, after a few moments the Kyokujitsu could feel a harsh fluctuation coming from Ameko's chakra levels and surely enough the chakra holding her in place would dissipate sending the girl crashing to the ground. New swear term aside, the girl's frustration was normal and expected.

"For your first try that was really good, but one thing you can never prepare for is the sensation of being horizontal, it's definitely disorienting at first. But you'll get used to it in no time. Relax your thoughts and give it another go when you're ready." Asahi would speak as he offered Ameko a hand to help her up.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

"Yeah, really good, sure," Ameko muttered under her breath. She appreciated the attempt of the older ninja to give her support, but she didn't quite believe a word of what he said. Surely others got this quicker than her. She'd managed a singular step before failing the second she properly left the ground. What kind of ninja was she? Chakra was just too damn difficult to regulate! She could make it into fire, but it mostly served as a constant distraction. Punching made more sense. Kicking made more sense than this stupid tree nonsense. But she had asked for help, and she was getting it. It wouldn't be appropriate for her to throw away the opportunity that had been presented. "Ok, don't think about going vertical," She mused aloud, before shooting a grin to Asahi, "I can do that." She centred herself, closed her eyes, breathed in, and attempted something that she was certain was very intelligent. It wasn't. She summoned the chakra to her feet, and ran at the tree. Where she had managed to at least stick to the tree the first time, the sheer excess of chakra she summoned splintered the bark and part of the wood beneath. Ameko's foot collided with the tree, and rather than climb, she found herself thrown backward, ass over end. The genin hit the ground with a thud, sending dirt and sand up around her in a humiliating cloud. Fortunately, unbeknownst to her, at least the amount in each leg had been balanced.

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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While the walking techniques were classified as basic jutsu that every genin needed to know and generally the first things they learned after becoming shinobi, it did not mean they were simple. A lot of what was learned in the academy dealt with singular expulsions of chakra to get the desired effect whether it be making a clone appear or loosening bindings and once the jutsu had been cast that was pretty much it. These jutsu, however, required constant concentration to ensure that the proper amount of chakra was being supplied to the feet and said amount could change at a moments notice which made things tricky. With that said, Ameko had shown improvement with each passing moment and it was normal for young ones to leave with a sore back when learning these techniques.

The Kyokujitsu would once more watch as the genin tried to make her way up the tree with new instruction to only focus on standing on the tree instead of scaling it. She'd focus chakra to her feet once more and it didn't take sensory skills to notice that it was a lot but it was balanced. Unfortunately, the large amount of chakra was too much for the tree to handle as it splintered under her step before sending the girl flying back; and Asahi was once again thankful that there was a softer landing surface for Ameko to hit.

"Good news is that you had the same amount of chakra in both feet, but I assume you know what the bad news is. Lower the amount of chakra you're putting out and you'll be good." The man spoke. It would do neither of them any good to harp on where Ameko had went wrong in her attempt but that didn't mean he wouldn't acknowledge it. The genin very nearly had the hang of it and with a few tweaks she'd be seeing the world from a new vantage point.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

"Right,” Ameko gritted her teeth, doing her best to take the advice in her stead. Of course, she did not refrain from once again burning her first in the dirt. Frustration was beginning to overtake her. She rose to her feet, taking a look at her tutor, then sighed. He’d done all he could to explain what to do, to explain where she was going wrong. She’d need to rely on herself for these things. Too much power, not enough power, poor balance. Each of her earlier failures rushed through her head. She inhaled deeply, forcing the rage down, at least temporarily. Logic would need to dictate the path forward. She focused on her mind on her legs, on what she had done previously. She’d maintained balance? She just needed to do the same again. Ameko let chakra rush through her legs, once again overfilling them with power. But she had funnelled too much previously. As if thinking of her power source as a faucet, she gradually syphoned it off, reducing the flow of chakra to her limbs. It was a strange sensation, and she found herself panting with exertion and effort. It did not come easily. It did not come naturally. But she focused. For what felt like an eternity she stood still, focusing on the chakra in her legs. Then she walked forward. Her steps were filled with trepidation, nerves fraying, but she forced herself to breathe, forced herself to maintain some degree of calm as she stepped toward the tree… and then stepped on to it. Ameko’s foot touched wood, and did not slip, her weight being held by the mix of her leg’s strength and the chakra that flowed through it. A second step and it held. Then a third. Exhaling rapidly, excitement poured out of the kunoichi. "Yeah!” She exclaimed.

Kyokujitsu Asahi

[Kyokujitsu Asahi]

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The frustration was evident and palpable but Ameko was doing her best to continue pushing onward. Training new jutsu no matter how basic was always an endeavor and anyone who said otherwise was lying right to your face. Sure, some were easier to pick up than others but they all required time, effort and most importantly patience. Asahi would make note of the determination that the genin was showing today and it would no doubt take her quite a ways during her time as a shinobi, however, getting these first steps down were paramount to Ameko achieving success down the line.

He would monitor the girl's progress both visually and with his sensory abilities as she began another attempt. Where there had before been an deluge of chakra flooding her legs there was now a calmer, balanced, stream. Asahi would not rush Ameko as she took her time focusing chakra, she needed to get it right and they were in no rush. In time the genin would begin moving towards the tree and took her first steps... sticking! Both feet were firmly planted onto the trunk of the tree and it showed no signs of splintering apart like before. She had done it.

"Excellent work. Make your way to the top and grab a couple of coconuts then come back down." The Kyokujitsu instructed. A few steps was good but it would not become second nature to Ameko until she got used to the sensation of both walking as normal and being able to split her attention on other tasks.

Warai Ameko

MADE BY VEL OF GS

[Warai Ameko]

"Uh, yeah... yeah, ok,” Ameko answered, her voice shaky and haltering. Just climb to the top, how hard could it be? It wasn’t as if she was pouring every ounce of her focus and being into maintaining what little control over the jutsu that she had and the mere act of replying threatened to dislodge her from the tree. No, not at all. Piece of piss. She closed her eyes again, centred herself, and focused on the climb. One more step, then another. A few near misses, a few times she was almost certain that her feet would dislodge and she would be sent back to the earth with nothing but a bruised ego and an even more bruised body. But each step was more sure than the last, her hesitation halting as she fell into the rhythm of walking. It wasn’t too dissimilar to practising a form. Repetition. Drilling. It all made sense. Her progress was painfully slow, at least by her standards, but each tentative step brought her closer to the top. Before finally, she was there. A few moments ago, she’d have thought it impossible. But she’d managed it. Not in the least due to the patience of her teacher. With shaking hands, she reached out, and retrieved two coconuts, one in each palm. With a deep breath, she paused for a moment longer, then released the jutsu. Her fall to earth was far more graceful than her climb, her landing almost catlike. The tentative hesitation and worry that had plagued her was gone. Her performance may not have been great, but it was clear that her arrogance was. She’d done it. Proudly she presented the fruits to Asahi, "Done!”

Kyokujitsu Asahi