Lightning Element Training
Inazuma sat alone, staring absent-mindedly at the ceiling in her bedroom. She lay close to the floor, sitting only 3 feet off the cold stone, her jet black cloak draped over her exposed legs. She wiggled her toes beneath it and felt the fabric shift on her body. The young shinobi had been doing more research into chakra molding and had been giving serious thought into attempting to try and access another element. From what she had gathered, it was not unusual for ninja at the chunnin level to begin their training in this area. Ina had considered approaching her mentor Namiko, though he only had mastery over water. After careful consideration she had decided she was better off taking this at her own pace, because even though her tutor was a wonderful and dedicated teacher, he did have a tendancy to be over-bearing. “No…” she thought, “Better keep this to myself.” The young shinobi continued to stare into space, eyes dodging over the crack and lines that painted to plaster above her. She closed her eyes and looked through those cracks, and the roof, and the sky and peered into the infinite abyss. As she squeezed them tighter, stars began to form, erupting in front of her as quickly as they came together. She sighed loudly with a huff, lifting her arms outwards towards the ceiling. She could feel her fingers and hands waving behind her eyelids, but could not see them behind the black. She felt the muscles tighten as they were pulled from their rest, relaxing once again as she moved her arms backwards, placing her hands behind her head. Her fingers intertwined as she slowly opened her eyes. There wasn’t much light tonight, but she squinted as the moonlight came through her window. Inazuma craned her neck towards the left and watched as the light passed through the trickling rain; the sound of the small beads of water softly thumping on the clay roof tiles. *Thud, thud, thud* Unlocking her left hand she pulled it in front of her face to examine her wound. It had begun to heal and scab over, her cells working faster due to the adrenaline released during her training. “The human body is a magnificent machine,” Ina said aloud, “Perhaps more than we even know.” As she spoke she removed her remaining hand, placing it too in front of herself. She sat up suddenly, eyes fixated on her palm, lowering her left to her side. For a moment she sat upright, transfixed on her hand, slightly wiggling her fingers as she did so. Then she shifted her weight, her dark cloak rustling over her legs. She swung them out from under their protective cover, hair standing slightly in the cool night air. As her body moved into position gravity pulled her limbs towards the cool stone floor. The pads of her feet hit the floor with a soft thud. *Thump* The ground felt damp in this temperature though it as not. Ina could care less though as her heart began to race in her chest. Closing her eyes once again she began to mold chakra into her right arm and hand. She felt the familiar tingle of warmth as the chakra enveloped her palm and fingers. Behind closed eyes she imagined the energy as a blue flame trickling from her chest up through her blood stream, pumping through her heart to the rest of her body. She could feel the heat, or so she thought, pulsating as it consumed her right arm… “This is it,” she thought, “This has to be it!”
Inazuma’s hair began to raise on her arm, starting at her wrist and extending outwards. She could feel the static cling of her skin towards the black cotton clothe that covered her upper arm. She gently pressed her index finger and thumb together. She imagined a current, much like those running throughout her entire body, and imagined if she could close the circuit. Perhaps then she could isolate the electricity and use it with her ow natural energy. As she slowly pulled apart her fingers she felt a twinge at the tip of them and as the space came between, a small spark shot from them. Losing her concentration as she did so, Ina was quick to get excited about her new development. Flabbergasted, the young shinobi peered out the window in front of her, into the dark night. As she looked into the black, she wondered what good she could do with this new ability. What techniques and abilities she could accertain with control over a second and even possibly a third element. In her research she had come across many types of shinobi, though it seemed that the most powerful techniques were those used by molding multiple natures simultaneously. As such, blending her water with an element such as lightning, she could potentially increase the effectiveness of her offense; especially considering water was such a good conductor. But that would have to wait, as before she can “run’ she must first learn to “walk.”
“Ok…” she said aloud, “Let’s do this.” Inazuma adjusted her weight, shifting the bed covers as she did. The young ninja glanced over at her cloak, its crimson inlay standing bold against the onyx exterior. The blood red clouds seemed to shake with the thunder that echoed from outside. As she sat looking on with admiration, Ina wondered if she would ever be able to truly carry on their legacy. Shaking herself from such thoughts, the young shinobi resumed her meditation. As the energy once again began to circulate through her extremity she tried to concentrate the chakra towards her fingertips. “If I’m going to improve, I may want to start with two or more points of contact rather than expect to generate a current from nothing.” With that she scrunched, twisted, and ultimately adjusted her fingertrips together. She once again imagined the electricity already within her, flowing to those connected tips. Inazuma attempted to blend her chakra with the electricity maintained with her arms, being sure to add on minute amounts of chakra at a time. After several seconds of this she slowly, carefully separated her fingers. A chain of electricity sat between them, glowing with enough energy to help light up the room. It sparked and clicked there for roughly 10 seconds before dissipating. Releasing her focus, Ina smirked. She lowered her arm to her side, replacing it on the bed. Her left hand scratched at her head as she continued to peer into the night. Her reflection stared back at her wearing the same smug smile which she hastily wiped from her face, replacing it with a small frown and furrowed brow. “I have nothing to be proud of… yet.” She said aloud. Her feet shifted on the cold ground, leaving the warm refuge their prolonged exposure had created. The young ninja threw her legs back onto her bed. She replaced the cloak over her now chilly legs, shivering slightly as it too had lost warmth. The fabric pulled gently at the small hairs on her leg as it moved across her body. Once she was situated, Ina settled back into her bed, arching her back near her stomach so as to stretch. The bones cracked and tisted, colliding with the cartilage stored between. Ina relaxed, her body returning don to the bed, molding to it. The cracks in he ceiling, forever watching, seemed to make tiny, crooked smiles. They stared at the young woman seemingly in recognition of her achievement. The young girl closed her eyes thinking to herself… “Time to rest,” she thought, “We will pick this up again tomorrow.”
Inazuma awoke with a startle. She sat upright in bed, released like a switchblade. The fabric around her shifted and re-formed around her. *Rustle, rustle* Looking out the window she could make out the light from the sun. It looked green behind the fog that enveloped Kirigakure no Sato. The rain had stopped but honestly the young shinobi didn’t know whether the stagnant water that hung in the air was worse or better than the constant bombardment of the rain. As Ina sat upright in her slightly stuffy apartment, she extended her arms forward, arching her back. She felt her muscles pull as she stretched them. Inhaling deeply she felt the thick air rushing through her lungs. It sat suspended in the air making each breathe slightly more difficult. It was almost as if she could feel her her lungs slowly filling with water. Inazuma did not care though… “Today was the day,” she thought. “Today I will master the use of the lightning element. Well, maybe not master, but learn to use it yes.” She clarified this to herself, not wanting to possibly convince herself that she was anything but a normal, hard-working ninja. The young shinobi ran her long fingers through her cornflower hair, removing the tangles her shifting sleep had created. She bunched the ends of her hair together and formed a pony tail, which she tied up with a small piece of twine. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it did the trick. Her hand reached towards a small table sitting to the left of her bed. On it lay her ninja headband, crumpled beneath the weight of the metal plank that emblazoned it. The reflected surface gleened in the soft light as her fingers touched the soft fabric of the grey band. She lifted it towards her, a hand on either side, wrapping the fabric around her head. The weight slightly pulled against her neck as it settled down onto her brow.She stood from her bed, stretching the rest of her body back as she did so. Bending down, Ina reached for a lump of fabric that lay on the floor. As she gripped its surface she lifted herself half way upright, still bent at the waist. Doing so had revealed the cloth to be her pants and she carefully stepped one leg at a time inside them. She pulled them up around her waist, under her shirt and fastened the small toggle in the front. From the bed she took cloak, throwing it around herself as she picked it up. “Alrighty then, let’s get this started.
An half hour passed as Inazuma went about her daily tasks. She sat down for a quick breakfast of eggs and sausage, and had tidied up her room. With these completed she left her apartment to start the day. The young shinobi walked through town for several minutes coming to the edge of town, where her favorite forest to train began. She stopped momentarily to stretch once again, shoulders cracking as she did so. “Here would work fine…” she thought to herself as she dropped her arms. With that, Ina removed her coat and tossed it into a heap aside from her, proceeding to then push her long sleeves up. They bunched at her elbows as she bent her arm up slightly, fingertips still pointed towards the ground. The blood vessels began to rise as she squeezed her fist tightly. The young girl then proceeded to mold her chakra once more, into her right arm. This time the transition came easier, and much like water forming in her mouth, her natural energy blended somewhat seamlessly with the natural electricity of her body, forming the lightning elemental release. She strained harder, the vessels now practically bursting with the combined blood and adrenaline coursing through them.
And then it happens, suddenly her arm was aglow. Small sparks arose and chained between her hairs, bouncing light around the young shinobi’s body. As she unclenched her fist she saw the glow before she could make out the energy. As she continued the lightning formed over her palm, between her fingers, and around her wrist. She lifted the hand closer to her face, illuminating its soft features and bright eyes. They widen, despite the light, in astonishment at her accomplishment. “HAHAHA!!” she laughed widly. “I can’t believe it!” The young girl waved her hand back and forth in front of her face for a minute, though it seemed like forever to the wide-eyed shinobi. Slowly, the chakra began to recede as she lost control of the blending. She knew it was far from perfect, but it was a great start. Undoubtedly she would need to train more, but this opened so many more possibilities. Once again, a smirk painted the face of Inazuma; she was pleased with herself though rightfully so.
