It was a simple task, at least in its directive. Climb the mountain. That was all. Something any D-rank can do. However, Ryuu had to do so by his own strength, and he couldn't stop anywhere. That’s what his sensei told him. He had to endure and keep moving, pulling himself by his own strength. And he had to do with wearing his normal gear. It was certainly a change.
The first part of the mountain was simple, it was a gentle increase, and most of the terrain was loose and sedimentary, so traversing it slowed him down, but he was not faced with too much of an exhausting challenge. If anything, it was comforting in the sense that he could start thinking about himself, his clan, and his village. Where his place was, and where it was expected to be.
I am a member of the Asura clan.
He got to the first real obstacle, the first large rock face that he had to get over. Ryuu took a couple of steps back into the soft gravel under him, and kicked off, running the few steps to get to the rock face, and then jumped. While his first foot slipped, both hands made their mark at the top of the rock, and he slowly pulled himself up, his arms shaking from the sudden bungee snap of both catching the weight of his body and then pulling the full weight up. He made it up to the rock and got down on a knee, breathing a little harder than expected. He then pushed himself back up and continued going, finding a small trail that led up the mountain.
I am the keeper of the six tailed beast, protector of the sky and the earth, weaver of the weather itself.
The next obstacle was ahead of him, a section of the mountain where the trees came up another couple hundreds of meters. The path shrank into the trunks of the trees, making a simple walkthrough nearly impossible. He knew what he had to... he had to get up the trees. But without walking up the trunks like he normally would (since he learned how). Ryuu pulled out a couple of kunai and stuck them in his sandals, pointed out in front of him. He then pulled out two more and clutched them in each hand. He was about to run at the tree when he stopped, and had another thought.
Ryuu reached down and grabbed the kunai at his feet, and then pulled out another 4. He sighted the tree he wanted and threw them at the tree, at off center intervals. He then jumped up the tree, using the kunai as steps. When he got his feet off the first two, he flipped himself over, using his feet to keep him up, and reached down to grab the lowest kunai. He continued until he had gotten to the first high branch, having made sure to collect all his brought, and then continued up using the branches, and straining his own body to climb.
While the rock hurt, the tree hurt more, but started to feel a little easier. He was completely out of breath as he poked his head out of the canopy and was able to look around. He was only about a 3rd of the way or so up the mountainside. And even worse, he saw where the trail continued. It continued up at the treetops, but there was quite a distance between the rock face that started the trail, and the top of the closest tree. This was proving harder than he expected.
Ryuu summed up his courage, and moved to that closest top. It was a smaller tree, meaning the section he needed to be on was thin, and swaying with the weight. Ryuu put a kunai in each hand, and then leaned back as far as the tree would allow, letting the flexible wood do its job and shoot the tree towards the trail. Ryuu weighted for the right moment and then jumped out, both kunai out and ready to dig into the mountainside.
With a sharp impact, he hit the face of the mountain, and then stopped there, his kunai stopping him from falling to the bottom. He stood there hanging by his hands for a moment to catch his breath, and then pulled himself up and over the edge to lay down on the trail end. He stared up at the sky, beads of sweat all over his face and body, and mentally cursed himself for having to do this. All this to be prepared for what might come in the mere future, but he had to do this, he had to prove himself, in order to become strong enough. He had to prove he could handle it. And so the young boy pulled himself up again, put his kunai away, and took a drink of regular water, before he looked up at the trail he was on, and continued forward, continuing to recite his pledge.
I am Ryuu of the Hidden Yuki village.
The trail started to get even more treacherous, as the flat terrain gave way to cracks and fractures, and finally the trail seemed to have fallen away to near nothing. Ryuu moved through and flattened himself against the wall, inching his way forward while the trail crumbled beneath him. He could feel the worn rock face where others scraped their way through before him. It comforted him. He was not the first, and not the last. He was one of many who came before him. As soon as he made it to where the trail widened, he moved faster through it. He was about halfway up now, and the air started to get thinner.
I am both strong and hardworking. I will give my all, including my life, to the protect my clan and villages land. I am their will, and their instrument.
Although he started bright and early in the morning, he peered out to the west, where the sun was descending, and the evening was now getting deeper. This climb, if done continuously, would take a full day, meaning that he was expected to reach the summit by early morning tomorrow. He didn't think of it then, but now he was concerned about being able to see in the dark to make it to the summit. His thoughts almost betrayed him, as the sound of rocks falling alerted him that his footing was off.
The trail ended, now it was the time to climb. He could see where the trial would have continued, but there were too many large boulders and crevices to be able to move quickly through them. The temperature dropped rapidly as the skies turned black, and the air was only getting thinner. Still he continued the best he could, climbing over rocks and dips, despite the increasing wind.
I will push myself to my limits. I will be as the weather, beneficial yet unforgiving. The wind is my resolve. The rain is my power, the lightning my wrath. I can be as gentle as a puffy cloud, or as rageful as a hurricane. I am in control of myself, always giving just what is needed.
The wind was getting too powerful, too cold, and Ryuu was chattering... finding it difficult to think or move. He could barely keep his eyes open to see ahead of him, despite the full bright moon. Reluctantly, Ryuu headed for a nearby cave to shelter from the cold and the wind, rubbing his arms to withstand the cold.
This was it... he stopped and took a rest. That meant he failed the test. If anyone saw him here.... but he couldn't help it. He couldn't continue on. He looked around the cave, and there in the moonlight he saw a stack of sticks, some already burnt, and a protected pile of straw and grass that stood still in the wind. Ryuu pulled the piles close to the middle of the cave, and used his kunai to produce the spark to start a fire.
Ryuu stood by the fire, warming himself, as the growing light filled the cave. As they came into focus, Ryuu saw different marks into the walls, each one a name and a date, some with small messages. Ryuu went to the wall, looking at each one.
"DONT GIVE UP
KEEP MOVING
I FAILED, BUT YOU HAVEN'T
EVEN THE MOUNTAINS CAN SHIFT THE STORM"
One message in particular took Ryuu's attention, and he moved to the middle spot in the back, where a relatively recent carving came through.
You might think yourself a failure, but you only have to make it a little further. The mountain betrays your senses, you are almost there. When we started, as braved the wind and moved slowly, until we mastered the wind. We are strong, but most of all we need to hold onto our faith. Remember that. -Masaki
Ryuu smiled, taking a step back. Masaki Tekiatsu, was the most powerful user of the Kumonikutai. Not only did he also have to retreat into the cave on his test, but his words were not of failure, but of encouragement. He saw something others did not. He saw the trick of the mountain, the true test. The true purpose.
Ryuu took another step forward and raised his kunai, carving his own name into the wall near Masaki's. He would leave his own message, one that he hoped generations beyond him would see. Maybe even as the head of the family itself.
"The wind outside is relentless. But so must we be relentless right back. We are intelligent. We are powerful. - Ryuu" he said, carving it in.
The young man went back to the fire and sat for a good hour in the light of the flames. If he were close to the top; that would mean that he was in the final quarter of the mountain. He felt stronger, more rejuvenated. That little hour of rest gave him more energy than he thought he had left, inspired by the words of his elder. Ryuu waited for the wind to shift, blowing out the fire for him, and he used a little water to cool it down for him to move around. After resetting everything they way he found it, Ryuu pulled his clothes tighter around him, and pushed out into the wind.
It was tough, and it was treacherous, and it completely dark, but the Ryuu struggled through, slipping twice, but keeping himself up. As he reached the next cliff ridge, he reached out again, and despite the burn in his arms and shoulders, he pulled himself up and over. There, he was treated to a relief. The wind died down, though looking down he could see it still blowing strong beneath him. This is just another obstacle. Now that he was above the wind stream, he wouldn't be assaulted with the numbing cold he had.
Ryuu's final climb to the top was treated with a clear night, with the stars and the moon shining out. There was ice and frost all around him, but it felt warmer than lower down the mountain. He trudged through the final climb, finally making it to the top of the summit itself. It was a small, simple set up. A worn, smoothed stone sat to the north, with an inscription. To the south, was a frozen pool, and to the east and west stood two banners. One for the Yuki Village, and one for the Asura clan.
The north stone held an inscription that simply read "Look to the pool in the south for rest and reflection, do not read forward until you have." And yet underneath it held nothing but blank stone. Ryuu sat confused, but instead turned and went to the frozen block of ice that was supposed to be a pool. He peered down at it, and in the moonlight, there was writing.
You have come far, young ninja, and here you may rest. Strengthen your will and your strength, and for seeing this, know that you have truly passed the test.
Ryuu smiled, and read the further instruction carved under the ice, to prove that he saw them. Ryuu took his kunai and shot them at the northern stone, impacting it in three places underneath the inscription. He then sat in the middle of the small pool, and stared up at the moon and stars, reflecting on what he's done so far.
He had to build up his strength to climb the mountain, and build up his endurance in order to keep moving. His spirit was needed for his resolve, and finally, his understanding of his chakra led him to succeed. Ryuu closed his eyes to meditate for a few minutes to unlock his full chakra, feeling the ice underneath him get soft. He felt himself getting strong. He lost the cold feeling his head, feeling warm by the lack of need for circulation, and insulation of being frozen.
When the light from the east finally began to light up the sky. Ryuu had broke out of meditation, feeling the cold chill hit him once more, and stood up, leaving a distinct depression in the ice. He walked over to the stone and knelt there as life below him began to move around. Finally as the light became strong enough to warm the top of the mountain, he heard a voice behind him. Old man Masaki was behind him, having come up. He smiled at Ryuu and gestured to the pool, where the ice was now a steaming liquid pool. Ryuu almost jumped into the warmth that surrounded him, feeling his strength and stamina grow, as well as his chakra usage. He had finished the test.
The trip down the mountain was much easier, mostly because Ryuu was able to jump from rock to rock to tree and so on, as well as being able to use his own ninja arts. What took a full day to reach the summit took only a few hours to reach the bottom. Soon enough, Ryuu was at the base, and dashing for his home.
When he got there, he was welcomed by his sensei, and the rest of the clan, as he went to old man Masaki and knelt before him. The old man questioned him, and explained that he was watching the boy the entire time. With completion of this test, he was finally finished, he felt strengthen and more prepared for the future. he had to learn much more to become fully prepared. Which is exactly what he planned to do.
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