Team One: Survival

The early morning dawn was just coming over the horizon as Valen stood upon the dock, awaiting the arrival of his genin team. A boat was sitting tied off safely next to him, ready to transport himself and his team to their chosen grounds. He had called them here and given very little information on the matters that they would be doing however informed them that they would be gone from the village for a week at best. He himself was garbed in his normal attire of a black compression shirt, black shinobi pants, black boots, black gloves, and a black and crimson lined cloak with a hood and mask. Both of which were not on him now. The cloak was lined with a great number of pockets and his sword, the Blade of Ashes was tied off at his waist. His shinobi headband was tied around his arm and his red eyes scanned the area. His senses were open to his surroundings, simply observing what was occurring around him. As such he would be aware the moment one of his genin arrived for his summons. He had specified the date and time so he should expect them any time now.

Of them Blitz alone would know what was coming and he waited patiently for his team to arrive so that they could get going and get started. He fully intended to see to it that his team was prepared for anything that might occur. First though, they would have a goodly ways to row before they could really get started.

[1]

Bright and early he left his home as he was being instructed to do so from his new squad leader making his way down the quiet street the six foot shinobi moved silently in his blue and white kimono with his fathers sword upon his waist he only continued to move through the morning air. Enjoying the silence of the land as the creatures started to give off their own pattern of life waking up from their slumber around the land. His blue hair bouncing around the air as his smile to get the day started seemed to be one of full entertainment walking all the way down the path seemed familiar as an ominous feeling began to creep up on him. It felt as if he was walking through time back to the start of the day the officially met back then there was another but now the future seemed to hold the same type of test. The closer he drew the clearer the picture became. He stood in the open by his lonesome waiting for the team to arrive as a small boat floated on the water it was clear this was a triggering moment. It only brought only one thought to his attention: would he be able to control himself if things began to grow out of hand with himself. If another incident occurred as the first one would he lose himself or would he permanently gain another voice inside his head till his death. The closer he got to the man the more his smile began to widen turning into a grin he himself thought this plan to be dangerous but if it meant there was another way for him to obtain some greater level he would risk the lives of his comrades and himself.

Walking up to the man he could only look at him for a mere second before back towards the boat and soon to the water out into the nowhere just as before if the man was looking for something he had found it. Only resolve would be tested as it happened before it shall repeat once more only he hoped no one this time around would come out like he did or worse this time it was different. The people were different. He remained on a team his skills did not change the least but yet he remained confident enough to believe she chose him to rise from the dirt and grow tall and strong as a tree. It was the only confidence he had left in himself and it seemed to be the only thing that kept him together passing the squad leader he ended up walking to the edge of the platform. As he watched out into the open waters silently awaiting the other two to show up, the only thing he had to hope for was this time to not make any mistakes and grow into something that could be used for the future. In the midst of all his thinking upon his left shoulder he felt a heavy pressure gazing over it was clear to see it was an arm but not the one that belonged to the flame swordsman but his very own arm. Quickly bouncing his vision back to his right side he was greeted with his own reflection giving off a very nerve wrenching grin first smiling to his face then also looking out into the open waters. For once not even uttering a word Burittsu and the reflection of himself stood motionless both looking out in hopes of finding whatever they seeked out there in the world.

“.....”

It was early in the morning when Kizmaru received a summons from his team leader. They were to meet at some obscure location for one reason or the other. He didn't have many details on what they would be doing or where they would be going but Valen was the team's leader and teacher and so he trusted him to not do anything rash to the team he leads. Wearing his normal attire of a yellow button down shirt, navy blue pants and black ninja tabi, he also had a navy blue jacket that he would wear occasionally but today he opted not to wear today. He didn't didn't feel the need to wear it today so he left it behind. Other than that, he had his village forehead protector right where it was supposed to be, on his forehead and a weapon pouch with a few of his consumables inside of it. Now that he had finished the inventory check, it was time for him to depart. Leaving his lodgings, he would go to the destination he was instructed to be at. Arriving at his destination, he noticed his teacher, Valen and Buri had already been here at some sort of dock. Valen was standing next to a boat and he wondered if they were going to be riding in it to continue their journey elsewhere. For now, he'd just announce his presence as he intended. "Hey guys, I'm here. What's going on," a confused Kizmaru had asked.

Keita was currently excited as he was finishing up something he had been tinkering on in his little workshop he had turned one of the larger rooms into. His team leader had sent them a notice that they were to meet up again. This was after the whole Emporium fiasco, and so he was wondering if they were finally going to get to actually start being a team, since their first meeting was so rudely interrupted by what Keita could only describe as brigands. Keita was given a certain time and place in the letter, and noticing that it was pretty close to that time, he immediately simply stopped what he was doing and started to head out. He felt that getting to know his team better and showing as much respect to his new sensei as possible was more important to him right now that his tinkering, so he didn’t even bother cleaning anything up as he headed towards what could only be called a small pier. As he got closer, he saw that everyone else was already there, but he had checked the time before he got there, and he was definitely still a couple of minutes early from the allotted time, so he sighed in relief while heading over there. “Keita Tetsujin, reporting for duty sensei.” He would state as he met up with them, with a stern but slightly exaggerated bow towards the man Valen. It was at this point that Keita noticed that there was a boat hitched next to his sensei and the other two, obviously meaning that they were going to head somewhere else. He knew vaguely of the area around here, but he had no idea where they were going, so he simply kept his guesses to himself and awaited further instructions.

His team would arrive in short order, the last of them, Keita, arriving with still a few minutes to spare before the requested arrival time. Blitz himself would remain silent and when Kizmaru arrived Valen would nod toward the genin in greeting. Although he would ignore the question for the moment. Valen did not generally like having to repeat things so he would wait for the third member before speaking at all. Once Keita had arrived and reported in the swordsman would give the young man a nod in acknowledgement before turning toward Kizmaru. "What's going on, is a survival exercise. Everyone into the boat, you four row." He would say, climbing in and moving toward the front of the vessel. The boat was large enough for all of them and had four oars. Having each of his genin row would help with their combined sense of timing to a degree and allow them to get into a sort of rhythm before the exercise truly began. Assuming each of them got into their positions within the boat he would point to the northwest. The direction of their location. "That way, I'll guide, don't lose track of where I point." He would say, making the rowing exercise a little more difficult on them. Which was fine, out here if they got a little lost they could easily rectify it. It was harmless enough to let them practice keeping their eyes on their surroundings and him while also keeping aware of what their teammates were doing.

Assuming they got underway Valen would lean his back against the front of the boat, facing his genin as he began to speak. The morning mist over the lake was starting to burn off from the sun so Valen would have some easy landmarks to navigate by. Thus, he was not worried about them getting them all lost regardless. "We're going to an island. It's isolated, uninhabited except for the occasional pirate crew and bear, rather sizeable, and it gets rather cold and damp at night. We're going to be staying out there for a week. You'll have to hunt, forage, secure clean water, gain shelter, and other such necessities. I will be working to sabotage you and make things more difficult. You will of course need to attempt to keep me from doing so. You may use any means in your possession to do so, including lethal force. Oh, and finally, you won't be allowed to sleep. Should any of you do so you will all go through a punishment that depending on circumstances could be harsher and more dangerous. Passing out counts as sleep for the record. Blitz and I went through this before, and I'll be working to ensure it's as brutal as possible. Although I'll also not be actively trying to kill you. Or at least I won't throw anything lethal at you that you have no way to defend against. Any questions?" He would ask his eyebrow raised.

[2]

OOC Note: 25 Exp a post for everyone, 20 due to numbers, 5 more due to sensei bonus.

A soft breeze pushed through the area as it carried over the waters and soon over the lands of some far unknown place yet to be discovered for himself but it was what it seemed to be another trip. Being the tallest didn’t mean he enjoyed tight trips with people he barely met but hopefully this plan the new team leader had came up with would only improve him and hopefully he wouldn’t have to reveal the other side of himself if it came to it. Last time he lost his mind on an island to this day he still thinks he’s losing his mind with a problem such as this dancing around his head. It was clear either he was losing his mind or this was simply he was having another voice inside of him caring the same goal but with a burning passion. A light that was fierce but one he could never master, a light that burned big and bright for him to see but so far out of his range it made him desire to grow stronger his own way even more. The being inside of himself acted differently, more upfront with how it felt about him entering battle or even training on certain things like they didn’t matter. As if he could see what truly needed to be looked at and what could wait for another day. The very thought of such a thing having a brain to go with a mindset such as that is too much of a real thing as if another being is living inside of him. During this time Burittsu was oblivious to others arriving or even the words being spoken by the leader himself he simply gazed over towards the boat and began to make his way towards it. Lightly stepping off the dock onto one of the benches of the he folded his arms and gazed off towards the empty waters it was clear he did not want a repeat of what occurred last time but if his gut was correct he did fear the fact another version of himself could be more than a myth.

“..... Interesting..”

Gazing over the bench was empty but in time it would be full. The whole boat was actually going to be filled with the people he now had to adjust to and learn it seemed best to keep them at arm's length at all times. They need not know he was truly and never needed too unless he saw it important regardless only one of them needed to know who he was and neither of them seemed to be coming. He could only chuckle to himself a little thinking he was doing this in hopes of protecting himself from them but even he knew that was a lie it was better to protect them from who he truly was or whatever this thing wanted him to be. The idea of power didn’t seem too bad , especially if it came from someone you could always keep tabs on the matter of how much would be gained and how much would be lost. Lost in a state of thought, Burittsu remained motionless till the boat was filled and the order to take out was given to only one who seemed to get on moments later it seemed the captain himself would follow through and make his own appearance. The flame and ice one who rose to the top and the other who fell to the bottom was the proper way of saying polar opposites attract.

“.....”

Kizmaru hadn't gotten his question answered right away so he figured either his teacher didn't hear the question or was waiting to answer for some reason or the other. In all likelihood, he would explain himself one way or the other. Waiting a few minutes, Keita had shown up to the meeting site, making all of the current team members present for the time being. That was when their teacher had begun to speak to them, mainly addressing Kizmaru's question. So he did hear him. Well, Kizmaru felt that was a bit rude just keeping silent instead of telling him to wait for the last member but he wasn't hung up over it. Listening to the explanation, Kizmaru had been told they were going on a survival exercise and that they were to get into the boat. Giving a shrug, Kizmaru didn't think much of it and just got into the boat as his teacher instructed. The three of them were to row while Valen would be there to guide the them to their destination. Kizmaru was very confident in swimming due to his, "family traits". He's never rowed a boat however and wondered if they would all be coordinated when doing so.

Having little choice, he got into the boat and attempted to row with the help of his teammates, attempting to match their strokes when it came time to eventually take off. After a bit of complications, Kizmaru had found his rhythm when it came to rowing the boat. As soon as they were en-route to whatever destination Valen had planned for the three of them. On their way there, it seems he went further into detail on what they would be doing. Kizmaru listened intently but there was something that stuck out for him. It was the idea of going an entire week without getting a lick of sleep. The hunting, foraging and the like he had no problems with but being expected to go without sleep for a week is rather, challenging. Kizmaru would focus on rowing the boat before speaking his mind.

[2]

After Keita came up to the group and reported to his sensei, he was the last one that was supposed to be there, and their team leader Valen immediately started speaking about what they were going to do. He had told them to get into the boat, and Keita swiftly nodded before climbing into the boat with surprising grace for a person who looked to be bogged down with a bunch of random crap in his outfit. With him he had a satchel that was at his side, and in there contained a small box of Kunai that he had made, as well as four pairs of bracers that he had made. He believed that the group would be a bit more diverse than this, and it seemed that only one of the other people, Kizmaru, was the only one that seemed to need some sort of armor.

As they were in the boat, their leader then started to explain that their objective was a complete training mission, and they were being sent there to survive. There would be no rest, and constant sabotage when they were trying to get the necessities for survival. There also lay the possibility of pirates in the area, which Keita worried a bit about. He really thought that he should start making more things to defend himself from all of these hostilities, if he could. Keita would simply nod along, but he was very attentive towards what was being said, and would remember the exact words, in case it was important like some sort of djinni. He would try his best to row, and it would seem as if he was putting too much effort into it, but that was only because his body was weak physically. He was an inventor after all.
[2]

His team would climb into the boat and set off. His three genin rowing along. The fire swordsman noted Keita was putting in extra effort but only getting minimal results and noted the physical weakness. It wasn't a detriment to the team as a whole simply because Valen knew that strength wasn't all that mattered. To be perfectly honest their sensei was half tempted to utilize a fire jutsu to help them along with propelling the boat however he needed to learn to keep himself apart to a degree. Rowing was their requirement at the moment and working up a good sweat wouldn't be bad for Keita overall. Idly Valen would point toward a passage, communicating where the three should begin to steer the boat. It was a bit to the right of their current heading and that meant they would need to row a bit harder on the left in order to turn the boat toward it. The water was calm and still for the most part. Which meant it gave little difficulty for them, a boon for this travel.

Given that no one seemed to have any questions Valen would begin a slow and meticulous check of his own supplies. He checked the various pockets of his cloak for all of his bombs and tags. Making a list under his breath, just loud enough for his team to hear if they paid attention. "100 explosive tags, 100 chili pepper bombs, 100 flash bangs, 1,000 caltrops, Hai no Ha, my old sword." The last two were tied off at the waist, one settled snugly against the other. He had taken to carrying both swords since using his prized weapon against his genin would be ludicrously overkill no matter what the justification. The simple and sturdy katana he had requisitioned from the armory would suitable to the task at hand. The list of the various explosives and caltrops however was intended as somewhat of a warning for his team. It would give them idea of what to expect from him in the coming days. Of course that didn't even include his own personal jutsu list. Although they had already seen that he could create a dense mist that obscured sight and move around with absolutely silence. Overall he intended this week to be rough on them. It would be interesting to see how they fared.

When they eventually reached the channel it would become easier for the trio to row. The current of the water would guide them and all they would really need to do was guide the boat. It would allow for them to consider what all he had said in full and ask questions if they wished. Of course whether or not he would answer those question remained to be seen.

[3]

Finally it seemed everyone was on board. It took time but they were ready to move out and on into the unknown. He could only assume that the training would be another pain in hopes of nothing dramatic happening but it was ironic. Yet again in his squad he had one not prepared for actual combat he wondered if the same fate would fall on him like the other but it didn’t matter they were dragged out. It was just another opportunity for him to grow for himself and become better than the rest but despite such a wish. He continued to lack it for only a moment in his life but this roadblock did hinder him when it came to progression. Each shinobi he had met were growing into their own person but unlike the rest of them it seemed he wasn’t able to pick up his own traction and take off. The team made their way throughout the water while the leader began to talk to himself. It appeared as if he was checking his gear but none of it mattered. If this time he was able to become a bit better from whatever he was at this moment he would enjoy this new life a little better. His arms kept on moving but his mind was everywhere. It only kept on thinking of his training and how he had to push himself simply and without worry his team on the other hand was able to defend themselves. It only reminded him of what he asked of them before when he first made contact with them gazing out into the distance he could only do his best to keep the vessel in the right direction.

“I wonder if you both have ever made the choice.. Of the team leader..”

He sighed as he kept on rowing with nothing else but his thoughts he wondered if this island will be the end of him but such thoughts were best for later when it was time to cross the bridge. Countless rowing and time later it seemed it was only a few minutes that they'd been crossing the water but soon the time would come for them to step onto the land would they be met immediately with resistance or would they have to wait like always. Cracking his neck he remained silent for the rest of the trip. It didn't matter if they replied or stayed silent, he just wanted to know if they even thought about it at the very least due to the fact he did not feel he was worthy enough to take charge in such a condition.