[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

Winter was in full bloom, it had come and settled itself in the nooks and crannies of Kirigakure no Sato and Mizu no Kuni. The temperate lands were ravaged by cooler temperatures, beckoning all to bundle up and stay hidden within their homes. The generator in the village was working overtime to insure that everyone remained warm, though some still chose fires over the provided electricity - old habits die hard - and those homes were marked with billowing smoke that rose from stone chimneys swirling and mixing with the natural mist of the village, giving the village a natural scent of burning wood. It was familiar and warmed the soul.

Business went on as usual, despite the cold, jobs still had to be done. Restaurants bustling, merchant streets were still loud even if their peddlers were shuddering underneath layers of itchy wool.

Shinobi business was the same, things had to be done, performed well. Genin were sent out on missions to assist in village business, some more advanced teams would leave with their leaders to check on things just outside of the village. Chunin and other forces were made to do a bit more as was their duty.

Gates inspected, training yards kept up with, the academy visited the instructors spoken to.

1/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

The Daimyo and Mizukage had a lot of work to do on a regular basis, there was little empty space in the hours. For someone so young, many would consider the burden too much to bear but the boy king had proven himself more than capable of the duty that had been heavily placed upon his shoulders.

He pushed the boulder up a mountain, and while his duty was eternal he seemed to be making some progress. The stone was higher, but now on a steeper ridge. He could see the peak, but it would require a great deal more pushing and more shinobi with which to do it with.

This also meant that he could not lag behind his own shinobi, he had to stay ahead of the curve wherever possible. That meant training in those moments where he could find peace and quiet - something that was difficult to find in the busy schedule. After all, it was one thing to be the military leader, it was another to be the leader entirely.

But Toru preferred it this way, he kept busy, not allowing his mind to wander into nothingness where there was a constant buzzing of silence like a fluorescent light threatening to burn out. A mosquito in his ear from all of the explosions and screams he heard.

2/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

No less it gave him more control over what happened in the nation, he could make sure that everything was working and moving as one, in the right direction. With everyone’s interests in mind - to the best of his ability.

Regardless, Toru had to be strong for all of it, and the next step was to learn how to hide himself and others. He had already started to move through the basics, but now it was time to really solidify his own growth.

It was hard to find someone who could properly keep track of what he was doing, or to teach him the exact ability. It was also quite unusual to try and teach the Mizukage of all people something, especially when the boy in question was quite independent and rarely asked for assistance.

Daichi insisted on helping at times, but Toru was not exactly the most forthcoming in this regard either. He and Daichi were closer than most other people that Toru knew and still Toru preferred to keep his distance and do things on his own… Where he could.

Like today.

Today he had slipped away from the world of ordeals, meetings and paperwork. He had only left a note at this desk for Daichi and Kyoko if they so felt the need to find him but Toru had wandered past the village limits to the outskirts where there were so many training areas, perfect for him to be sequestered to work on this sensory thing.

3/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

It was strange, it required both chakra control and chakra reserves. Control because one could not expand one's pool too far out, and reserves to ensure that there was a large expanse of chakra that was too much for sensor shinobi to try and track.

The young leader stopped in a field near a waterfall, the waterfall was spraying cold water in the air. So cold the water was that it lingered almost like frost in the air creating a colorful effect, a rainbow made of cold frosted water.

Toru watched it for a moment, his mind growing silent with that buzzing, before a cold whip of the wind snapped him back to reality. He inhaled loudly looking around the area briefly, his chest rising and falling.

There were a few people here, not that it mattered. He had to replicate the feeling from before and rely on it. There was no way for him to know if he was going to be doing the right thing in this training other than a previous encounter with a sensor who could tell what he was doing with his chakra.

Aware that someone could be watching him, the Mizukgae moved towards a nearby tree away from the spraying waterfall.

4/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

The young man sat down then, his legs crossed and his back pressed firmly against the trunk of the large pine tree. He felt his spine crackle in spots, aches and pains were dull but there from how long he sat in his seat, or how hard he trained when he had a chance… Sometimes late into the night after he had returned home.

Daichi insisted on his rest and Toru rarely ever took it, there was always work to be done.

Even now.

Even now where he sat stock still against the base of a pine tree, smelling the distinct fresh scent of its sap and needles. His fingers curled gently into his knees and he focused diving deep into his mind. Deeper until he was swimming in a familiar place.

The place was not a place of solace however, it had always been something that caused him trepidation. The beast that resided deep inside of Toru’s soul was one that he could not ever take for granted though he had come to know Isobu better than he had assumed most had ever come to know.

The Sanbi had been upset to be re-sealed in another child once more at first, longing to stretch its limbs, but with Toru’s own diligence the two became closer and closer.

5/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

Up to this point, where Toru swam in the familiar place with no true solace.

Not because he did not trust Isobu, but because this was the place that opened up the most when his emotions were heightened. The feeling of his emotions rising had never felt comfortable, he had learned to lock this part of himself well away a long time ago. It had made him a better jinchuuriki and a better leader when he did not allow emotions and feeling to guide his every action. Better, but stifled.

This was not a training that required stifling. It was one that would in his meditation require to unlock his chakra and let it flow out, bubbling and blistering the surface of his skin if he controlled it too heavily. Wily, unruly if he let it pour out of him like a tsunami. There was a delicate balance to uphold, he was not like other people who had large reserves. He had an ocean of chakra that was ready to spill forth and threaten others with its mass. It had to be just enough.

The young leader’s nostrils flared as he inhaled deeply, his eyes remained closed as he dug deeper into his reserves trying to feel how much he was supposed to allow out onto the metaphorical shores of his training.

6/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

He vaguely remembered the feeling that he had used with Masshiro, but to tap into that by himself. It was something he had to eventually master, and it was proving to be quite difficult. As everything in his life and really in the world, things had to come to a balance. And not only a balance but to a perfect understanding of how these abstract notions of chaka and the soul felt pouring out into the world.

Another inhale as he pushed deeper, finding where Isobu was. The beast was taking a nap at the bottom of the sealing tank, bubbles floating from where its mouth might be though Toru had never seen its mouth properly move to speak, everything about their connection seemed to come from the mind. They did not need to part their lips to speak, to articulate every feeling, desire and gesture…

As he dug deeper he thought of Daichi and their understanding of each other. It was not unlike the feeling that Toru had with Isobu. There were not a lot of words that needed to be spoken between them, though Toru felt that Daichi understood him a lot more than Toru understood Daichi. It was not by design, it was the fact that Toru felt a great difficulty in connecting with others in a way that he could understand them intrinsically.

7/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

His emotional intelligence was still developing and even then it was lagging behind the rest of his development. Some felt pity for him in this regard, but Toru never saw it as a flaw. Just something to improve as time continued to march forward.

It always did march forward.

The same way Toru marched forward into his soul and chakra pool, moving past the sleeping Isobu towards the center of his soul where all the chakra swirled around. There it was, a large abyss of blue and red - water and flame.

Toru raised his hand, at least he did in his mind and brought his palm flat against what must have been the gate to his chakra and pulled it open. At first a little bit, allowing just the blue hues to spill out along his feet. It felt cooling, and he watched it move along his feet in wisps. The familiar feeling of chakra pouring started to take over his entire body as he started to try and push it out from every direction of his body. Every single object and person in the area was a target for his chakra, like a soothing blanket covering the world all around.

8/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

Toru grimaced slightly, his brow furrowing briefly as he had to find a restraining point.

He opened the gate a bit more, and more chakra came. He opened it more and more until it was practically a flood threatening to sweep him off of his feet. But he stood rooted, he was familiar with the feeling of being overwhelmed, overwhelmed with his own chakra and the chakra of another being entirely.

Toru inhaled, fighting the feeling of drowning and being overwhelmed. It was not something he wanted to feel or experience, so he fought the sensation entirely because he had to suppress the feeling. He had to, because he had to in this flood fight for control. He could not be a ripple, a blip, or a series of large crested waves. He had to create a chakra that was still as a lake or a pond. So still that it was possible to see one’s reflection perfectly in the water itself.

He braced himself against the gate that was pouring out chakra that was pushing it out of his body in every direction, covering everything with its intensity.

A sheen of sweat appeared over his brow and he furrowed it again. It was no easy task to simply control the chakra.

9/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

There were other steps. This was what he had to do whenever he learned a technique, the control part was always what gave him the most trouble. When he was younger and less experienced too, it had proven to be an almost insurmountable task in some cases.

It was easier nowadays, but not by a great deal.

The rate of his heart beating increased, his jaw clenching slightly as he worked against the flood even with the gate being as open as it was.

Still as a pond, no ripples, no waves… Still as a pond, deep as an ocean.

All of this was for not only his own benefit but for the benefit of his fellow shinobi. Why else struggle so much against this tsunami of chakra?

But he could not hold on, not in the moment and so he shut the gate and opened his eyes with a deep inhale through his mouth as if he had woken up from a nightmare. Indeed, this was no simple task.

It had been no simpler task with Masshiro only starting out but having a guide along the road always made things a little easier. With a sensor he had a better idea of what the outside felt like and doing this by himself he had to rely purely on what he knew it felt like, and the instinct to believe he was doing it right.

10/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

Toru had a great deal of instinct, but perhaps it was almost foolish to try and do this by himself? He rarely doubted himself like this, but sitting here he could not help but have the feeling of hesitance stir in his stomach the same way that the chakra was stirring now. Would a touch of Isobu’s chakra help all of this? Or would it only serve to confuse the project, the project that felt like an insurmountable mountain.

Perhaps it was just the junction of where he was at now. The intensity of his training had gone up exponentially in the past several years. He had trained hard as a genin, but nowadays he seems to train even harder. Well, at least he felt like he did. Whether it was true or not was hard to discern for those that worked around him in the office.

No one but Daichi really saw the many sleepless nights when Toru returned home and trained until he fell asleep in the fields of the Kaguya compound and woke up for breakfast to return back to the office.

Days off were extremely rare and he almost never delegated them to himself. Sometimes he was forced to take them, on account that he would never take them willingly.

11/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

It was this effortful diligence that made certain that the village and nation flourished… All on the shoulders of the weary Toru, and the expense of his own mental and physical health. Though he was young, the physical part had yet to show itself in any great detail.

Determined to try again he closed his eyes and started to work on the ocean inside of himself, allowing it to swell with each breath that he took. His breathing was expansive. This time audible, purposefully as he worked on the fire and water that was stirring inside of him. If he could just get that familiar feeling back, and push it to its limits. That was his goal here and so he worked hard to do so - focusing on every little drop of chakra that he possessed, it felt like every muscle he had was working to do so. Even though he was not moving physically, it was that special muscle. The one that belonged to the spirit, that enveloped the rest of the body in a painful heat when one worked on it particularly hard.

The bubble kept expanding and Toru kept on focusing on it more than he had before, allowing it to open his soul up to the world.

12/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

Then very suddenly he had gone too far, either beyond his own limitations or the limitations of what such a thing could do, the bubble popped. It was a violent burst and he felt his entire physical and spiritual body shake, as if Raiton had grabbed onto him and aggressively shocked him. Toru’s nostrils flared at the sudden pain that filtered into his body, his eyes opened and he let out an exhale.

Seldom did the boy king show pain in this very raw way, but the bubble bursting had been like a very large rubber band, a whip hitting him across his abdomen. The shock of it going straight into his soul.

He stifled any desire to show his pain too audibly and instead curled in on himself for a moment as he let the waves of pain wash over him, until they passed by and were gone. Then and only then did he relax.

Stretching his tightened muscles he stood and moved himself in different directions until he felt himself flexible enough to try again. So he sat down once more and started to focus, foolishly back to the bubble. But this time he was trying to make sure that he did not burst it like he had a moment ago.

13/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

He did not want to pop it, he needed to keep it steady, expand it to the absolute limits without allowing it to hurt him and perhaps those around him if he were not careful in the future.

Well there was no real proof that he could hurt those around him with the burst of a chakra bubble, but he did not wish to test the limits of that either. So there he sat, working on the bubble as before feeling his fingers tightly clutch over the rounds of his knees as he focused on that feeling all over again. He worked to not be hesitant about it, but similarly did not try to push his luck.

This continued on and on, until Toru felt the limits of his ability, the bubble wavering as he focused harder to insure that it did not pop. A sheen of sweat was brightly visible along his forehead, and down his temple. This was just as difficult as any other kind of exercise, if not more difficult for he was having to do something well outside of not only his comfort zone, but also outside of his line of knowledge in general, which felt unusual.

14/16

OWL

[Kaguya Toru]

I would know him in death At the end of the world @--

In time, Toru felt himself grow steady in the feeling and his heart rate returned to normal. He just needed to make sure it felt natural. That was the most important part, this was the kind of thing that he was supposed to be able to do passively. It had to feel natural at the end of the day, and if it did not he might as well have failed.

Toru did not like to fail, he hated it in fact. It was perhaps one of the worst feelings in the world. It felt like he was failing the world, his world. It was not a personal failure like it had once had been - though he felt frustrated then too - but now it felt much bigger. Like he was carrying the responsibility to succeed on his shoulders for the entire nation. It was not just for himself, it was for everyone.

Failure was simply not an option. So he focused harder, maintaining it for as long as he could, occasionally allowing it to recede, but only on occasion so that he might take a quick break and then he would do it again. If he was not exhausted by the end of this training, then what had he really, truly accomplished?

15/16

OWL