The Tranquil Gardens [T]

[Kade;;]

Now Training: Rock Creation "C" Rank 0/30

Kade sat peacefully in the gardens of the place that he had taken as his home. It had once belonged to his parents, now deceased, but with their passing the home had, of course, passed onto him. Trees blew gently, the soft chill of autumn only beginning to touch the boy whose daily meditations often left him alone in this place for hours. To any passerby, he might appear to be lazy, but appearances could be deceiving... for while his eyes were closed and his breathing was slow, there was a level of alertness and concentration within him that few could ever hope to achieve.

Within his body, his chakra circulatory system was burning like an azure wildfire. It coursed throughout his body, and it was through today's practice and training sessions that Kade planned to bring that energy to bear. He began by recalling the steps of the technique that he already had the very basic understanding of -- Rock Creation. It was the sort of technique that was critical to the success of a Doton-using shinobi, and Kade knew that the more that he used the jutsu, the more proficient at it he would be become.

His fingers, therefore, began a very careful dance. Each movement was delicate and precise, with no wasted movements, yet without the slightest hint of hesitation. As his digits traced their way through the symbols of the evening sky, Kade could feel the energy that he had spent his evening building up beginning to bristle. Chakra, once brought forth, desired to be used. Kade would be more than happy to oblige.

With the final seal completed, Kade channeled his energy through his hands and gently placed them on the ground before him. The azure light, visible to no soul without the gift of chakra sight, would flow from the palms of his hands into the earth that made up the young man's surroundings. With his eyes closed, Kade was not distracted by the sea of activity that existed in his surroundings. He could not see or hear the bugs that chirped and moved through the leaves.

He could not see the grass around him begin to stiffen. He could not see it, but he could feel it. Slowly, oh so excruciatingly slowly, the grass that once gently floated in the breeze began to harden, its cellular structure, the very building blocks of its existence, was being modified by the energy that blazed through the palms of the shinobi's hands. Kade continued to focus, letting the chakra flow out of him and into the grass around him for another minute strong before slowing and finally halting the energy transfer.

[Kade;;]

Now Training: Rock Creation "C" Rank 0/30 (Post 2)

Opening his eyes slowly, the first thing that Kade did upon allowing his eyes to adjust to the reintroduction of sunlight was to observe his surroundings. The grass around him that he had been channeling his chakra into was certainly different. Gone were the carefree structures that found freedom in the motion of the wind. In their place were solid structures, rigid with a sense of eternity, and Kade found such an appearance peaceful. While the grass was certainly not solid stone, its coloring had been bleached of the emerald that it had once been, and now a granite aura loomed over each effected stalk.

Slowly raking his fingers through the grass, the young man attempted to grab at the pieces. In their previous form, the grass itself would have crunched easily, its mass conforming with little struggle to the shape of his clenching hand. However, the semi-fluid nature of the grass was now gone. Instead of simply melding into his hand, the grass gave resistance. It was now a struggle, a battle for life and death itself... one that Kade intended to win. With a little more focus, the grass in his palm snapped in half, the stalk dissolving into a sea of granite crumbs.

The Ikebana nodded slowly to himself. He was certainly producing the type of effect that he was looking for, but it wasn't as pronounced as he desired. What he needed; nay, what he demanded; was an instantaneous response, an immediate shift from animate to inanimate. He knew that this would require more work, but work was certainly something that he was willing to put in. He dropped the stone crumbs back onto the ground and allowed a smile to fill his face. It was time to begin again.

Taking a deep breath, Kade once more closed his eyes. Digging deep into his spiritual reserves, the boy brought forth the azure blaze within him once more and allowed it to consume him. As warmth spread throughout his entire body, his hands once more began the familiar motions, the corresponding signs of the zodiac coming and going like the seasons. With the final motion complete, Kade once more extended his hands towards the ground and pushed his energy into the grass.

As the chakra pulsated into the ground, Kade could feel a much more rapid response. The addition of a greater amount of chakra seemed to fix his desire for a more rapid response, at least. Keeping the flow going for just a few moments, Kade finally brought his hands away from the earth once more and canceled the flow of energy from his hands into the grass. Opening his eyes, the Doton aspirer prepared to observe his handiwork. Had he been more successful this time?

[Kade;;]

Now Training: Rock Creation "C" Rank 0/30 (Post 3)

Of course he had. The smile that had been on his face earlier was nothing compared to the grin that now documented his features. All around him stood a sea of granite blades of grass. The area was only perhaps a meter in radius, but the release of his chakra had almost immediately changed all of this in but a few moments. He was becoming more apt with the jutsu, that much was certain.

Running his hand over the grass, though, caused his smile to falter. While the coloring was correct for true stone, the texture of the grass was not. It was certainly less malleable than the grass that blew in the breeze around it, but this grass was still not solid rock. That simply... would not do. A straight line of determination replaced the upward-pointed corners of his mouth, and Kade motioned to begin the completion of his task.

Extending both arms forward, the motion pushed his kimono sleeves back towards his elbows, freeing his arms and hands from distraction. In another fluid action, the young man brought together the symbols of the zodiac once more, creating the handseals that melded the chakra with which the boy was prepared to use to do battle with. His chakra blazing once more, Kade placed his hands upon the ground and sent a rapid pulse of chakra through the ground.

The chakra's motion was different than he had released it earlier. Where before he had attempted to coerce the grass to change, this time he simply sent out a singular wave of Doton-affinity chakra and forced it into the grass that surrounded him. With his eyes open, Kade witnessed the change first hand, and what he saw caused such a shock that the boy simply lost the ability to meld his chakra for a moment. The technique ground to a halt.

However, that singular pulse was all that he needed. The Doton shockwave had caused all of the grass to immediately change itself. Gone was any semblance of life. In its place was a veritable fortress of grass stalks that would ne'er be able to return to their existence previous. The circular dome about him, about five meters in distance, was completely changed. Each bit of grass was know a granite knife waiting to be used. And then Kade knew, he truly understood, why this technique was so important to a Doton-inspired shinobi.

[N A T S U M I]

+28; 28|30

[Kade;;]

28/30 (Daaang, 28/30 seems to mean T_T;

Kade, however, was not satisfied with his work. He needed to ensure that this performance was something that was repeatable and with only a singular action. Formulating his hand seals once more, Kade gathered his chakra and began to focus it into his hands once more. When the final seal was complete, Kade felt his energy burn without his palms once more as he slammed them into the ground.

The chakra pulsed from his hand and into the dirt, running with quick intent along the ground around Kade. The grass, once thought to be solid granite, modified once more ever so slightly, hardening completely into stone. The wind which blew could not phase this new stone-grass, and Kade felt immensely satisfied. Feeling as though his work was complete, the young man would stand from his sitting position and look out around the garden. He knew that he would need to be more careful in the future with this training... he didn't want his whole garden turned into stone, now!

[|Ayame Unbound|]

Learned!