Welcome to Gaia! ::

(Hidden in Clouds)
Kyeth sat on a bench that looked out over the mountain range his village was situated in.
"Damnit." He groaned as he studied the many small scabs and scrapes that covered his arms and knees. He'd gotten them the day before when in his rush to be on time to class he'd tripped and fallen. He'd gotten most of the pebbles and grit out from the smal wounds, but he was no medic student by a long shot. After a moment of contemplative thought Kyeth stood up and started to head for the little opening he'd used to train in since he first started at the academy.
Late the night before he'd finally mastered the basic jutsu for walking on walls. Today he was working on a new jutsu this one was a little more complicated. He hoped that if he could perform it right it would increase the damage he could do with his blood power. So upon reaching his training ground he searched around looking for a nice enough looking rock to attempt his training on.
After about ten minutes of looking through the clearing, picking through all the other rocks that he'd cracked on previous days when training his blood power, Kyeth found a usable rock. After dragging it back to the center of his clearing he stood back and closed his eyes focusing his chakra out through his body. Then after a moment he opened his eyes feeling he was ready he made the necessary hand movements for his buff jutsu, and also the hand movements for his blood power. Once he'd finished he let out a loud barbaric yalp as he slammed his fist into the rock.
After his fist impacted with the rock Kyeth grinned and laughed wildly. On the other times when he'd only used his blood power on a rock all he'd managed to do was crack it, but with this new jutsu to buff his strength Kyeth had done much more than that. Now instead of a large rock in the middle of his clearing there was a small pile of rubble in the center of a small crater. Satisfied with his accomplishment Kyeth fell back to sit on the ground and looked up at the sky.
Slowly he reclined until he was lying on his back. Maybe he'd sleep out here tonight he though to himself. I had been a long time since he'd gotten a good night's sleep, and he knew very well that he needed one his leg was evidence to that. Shurgging his shoulders he began to nod off. His training was going exceptionally well now that he had learned his new jutsu. He'd thought at best that he'd learn it in two or three days; never once did he think that he'd succeed in his first try.
"Yea I earned it," he sas up to the sky smiling as he starts to nod off, "good night Mom." He wishes up to the sky before he falls asleep on the ground. He spent the night there lying on the ground in his clearing. His dreams were vivid and cheerful. He dreamed ofhis mother and how pleased with him she would be when he finally avenged her death, and he also dreamed about the day he would graduate from the academy and be able to go on missions. Images like these carried him all the way until morning when the first rays of light stole over the cliff wall of his clearing causing him to stir.
Waking slowly Kyeth stretched out for a long time before sitting up. When he did he looked around a little disoriented before he remembered where he had fallen asleep at.
"Ohhh yea." He says to himself as he starts to stand his aches and pains from the past two days where almost distant memories. Looking to the sky he was happy to see it was still early enough that he could enjoy a walk to the academy today instead of hurrying like he usually did. So after packing up his usualy things again he started off at a relaxed pace towards te academy.

-Lightning-

Sora woke up to the sound of thunder cracking loudly against his window. Outside the clouds blocked out the sun casting a shade over the village. Sora sat up and yawned while scratching his head. He took a moment to regain his thoughts. As his eyes began to clear he slowly remembered his surroundings. This cramp little din in a very small apartment located in the lower sections of the village. Sora rolled out of bed and shuffled his way over to the kitchen where he pulled out a cup and poured hot water into it. Reaching to the stove he quickly tossed the cup over the flame and allowed it to heat up before placing it on the table and cracking open a glass bottle, mixing it with a spoon, then emptying it into the cup. He lifted the concoction to his nose and shirked back. "Maa!" He yelled, turning around and heading to the living room where his mother lay resting on the sofa in a ghetto rigged bed made of random sheets and a lumpy pillow. "Drink up, I gotta get going." He said handing her the warm glass. He stood and watched her, making sure she actually drank it all. He crouched down next to her and placed his hand over her forehead, "At least your fever is coming down, I think this medicine is actually working. Im gonna have to make sure to get you more of it." He said giving her a false smile, not wanting her to know that although this new medicine was working and for that he was grateful, it was also the most expensive. He was not sure if he could keep this up. One bottle a day was costing him more than the entire apartment did. If he did not get his first mission soon he was afraid that they would loose the apartment, or worse the medicine. Sora sighed and closed his midnight blue eyes trying to think. What was wrong with his mother? Normally the bugs would have figured it out by now, but they had nothing. Sora stood up and walked towards the door, reaching up to its seal and placing his hand by a small crack, in which thousands of small black bugs crawled through and crept their way into his sleeves. "Im gone" He said walking out the door and heading for the academy.

-Lightning

Sora walked through the village, keeping himself under the several tints and shades hanging over the many random shops and inns. He knew that the rain was coming, it always did, every day. Sometimes he wondered if the only reason they were called the lightning country was because rain was already taken. All it ever did here was storm, it was because of this that it almost seemed unessicary to wear anything that was of high value as it would surely not be water resistant. Sora continued down the street for a few moments before reaching the gates of the academy. He entered the compound, this was not his first time here but it would be his first time here as a student. He had come here a few times before just to watch, to see what it was that the students learned to do in hopes of gauging his ability to do the same. It was after watching for about two weeks that he determined that the life of a Shinboi was the fastest way for a generally uneducated and under-qualified boy to make a living enough to satisfy the needs of his home. Sora entered the class room and found a seat in the back row in a stray corner. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at the board, there were various markings and diagrams everywhere. "Lets just get this over with"

Mitsuki sat on the ground in one of the training fields, listening to her instructor. She had been asked to stay after class as a penalty for being late the past several days, which had been purely accidental anyways. She couldn't help the fact that she had overslept, and it was typically Kuro's job to wake her up, so she placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of her dog. The extra training and lecture didn't bother her though, her grandfather would have just made her study or train upon her arrival home anyways. He was under the impression that she wasn't yet up to parr, despite her good performance in class.
"Mitsuki." Her instructor said, snapping his fingers to gain her attention, looking down at her sternly. "Listen to me. You've been late to at least 6 of the past 9 classes, and, correct me if I'm wrong, but one of those days you failed to show up at all."
Mitsuki nodded, avoiding his eyes. "Yes, sensei." She said quietly. She didn't bother explaining her tardiness, knowing that oversleeping made for a poor excuse, although the absense had been a legitimate one spent taking care of her grandmother when she had the flu. "I'll be on time from now on, I promise. And I'll work extra hard today."
Her teacher sighed. "Look, you have talent. You're excelling in most areas, but truthfully? If you don't keep working, you won't ever make it past chunin. I think you have a lot of potential, but if you start missing classes too much it's going to set you back. As it is you have good work ethic, and I know you train on your own frequently, but I want to make sure you don't start making too many stupid mistakes like skipping class."
Mitsuki cringed, but nodded again, looking up at him to make sure he saw her sincerity as she spoke. "I'm fine, really. It was just an accident. Training is my life, and I'm not going to start slipping now."
He studied her for a moment before smiling and crossing his arms. "All right, I believe you. I just wanted to make things clear. If someone hadn't done that for me while I was an academy student, I would never have passed even the chunin exam. Now then, let's start." He said, gesturing at a long row of 40 crudely fashioned wooden targets positioned about 10 feet in front of them. Each target appeared to consist only of a few logs stacked atop eachother, with a chalk 'x' marking the center of their 'bodies.'
"Alright, let's begin with a few quick drills. Now, first; I want you to dispatch each of the targets as quickly as possible, in one fluid motion. No use of any ninjutsu or weapons, just your own body. Now, get in position."
Suppressing a groan, Mitsuki nodded, rising to her feet slowly and cinching her headband so that it was tighter to her neck. She bounced up and down lightly, making sure she was loose, before sinking into a half-crouched ready position, weight positioned on the fronts of her feet in preparation. Seeing that she was prepared her sensei stepped back, keeping one eye on her as he glanced at the targets. "Go!" He yelled.
Her ears pricked at his command, and she thrust forward, moving lightning quick to the furthest left of the targets. She began her string of attacks, chaining a kick that toppled the first target to a bone-cracking punch to the next. Keeping everything one fluid motion as instructed, she continued to take out each target as quickly as possible, heart thumping in her chest with the effort. Finally making her way to the last one, she leapt into the air gracefully, driving an elbow into its top with gritted teeth and landing with a skid a few feet away.
As she finished she could practically hear her own pulse, and sweat beaded along her skin. Slowly, she looked up at her sensei for approval, still panting. He nodded his head, walked towards her.
"Good job," he said looking first at her and then at the long row of cracked and fallen targets. "Still not what I would expect. While your speed and agility are higher than most of your classmates, the power you put behind your blows is not. You start off well in the beginning but your strikes seem to lose momentum. I've noticed that as far as brute strength goes, you seem to be lacking."
Mitsuki ran her fingers through her hair, still trying to slow her rate of breathing. "I know I'm not as strong as the others, but what I lack in power I make up for in speed and ninjutsu. And my accuracy with weapons like kunai and shuriken is the best in the class."
He pursed his lips, crossing his arms. "That doesn't matter. Yes, you're one of the best in a few areas. But you need to strive to improve yourself in all areas, not just those you specialize in. I want to see you training up your strength and endurance, alright? I know those things are tough for you, but that just means you have to work harder."
She sighed, closing her eyes tightly. It had always been tough for her. She had always been weak in those ways, ever since birth. Hell, it had taken years of training to even attain her current level of averageness. She opened her eyes finally, looking up at him.
"I am training though. I know that I'm a weakling, but... Well, that's why I have Kuro." She said, nodding over at the large dog waiting for her at the edge of the field. At the mention of his name his head raised from his paws and tilted at her inquisitively, and a massive tail gave a tired flop. "He'll protect me." Seeing that he wasn't wanted at the moment, Kuro let his head fall back to the ground, watching half-heartedly as a butterfly drifted by.
Her teacher glanced at the dog before glaring back at her sternly, hands on his hips. "I know that he helps you, but you can't rely on Kuro forever. If Kuro is ever not around, what will you do? You need to be able to operate independantly in case a situation ever calls for it, and that means that you need to be strong in every area."
Mitsuki lowered her eyes again, feeling a pang of shame, both for arguing with her sensei and for expecting to always depend on her dog. Just because her clan specialized in the use of dogs in battle didn't mean that she should rely on it solely.
"Yes sir. I'm sorry. I'll do my best to improve, I swear. I know you're right... I can't depend on Kuro, and I won't anymore. I'm going to become a great ninja, and that means I have to strive to be the best in everything I do. Just because I'm handicapped in that area doesn't give me the right to pretend I don't have to improve it."
"Good. Just remember that, and you'll be fine." He said in response, smiling and nodding his head. "Now then... Set all 40 of the targets back up. Time to run this drill again, and I want you to drop 4 seconds minimum."
Mitsuki straightened herself, rubbing at her head and mustering a smile. "Yes sensei."

Sora folded his hands under his chin and watched as the clown entered the class room, drawing so much attention to himself and generally making an a** out of himself in front of the entire class. Sora kept his eyes low, he despised carefree people like that. People who literally had nothing in this world to worry about, no responsibility, those who moved in and out of reality all willy nilly without thinking about the consequences of their actions. Such a person was more than he could handle. As the loud mouth conveniently found himself all the way across the class to the far corner and sat next to himself he could not help but grow even more aggravated. "All the seats in this class, why'd he have to bother coming over here?" He questioned to himself. Sora closed his eyes and sighed as the class began. The teacher was speaking on some basic stuff, chakra concentration as well as the proper use of hand signs. This much he was already aware of, in fact all of the book and technical know how was already learned during his free time. All he lacked at the moment was physical conditioning, which he expected to get started with before the day was out or he would soon be leaving this place.

Now this is what I'm talking about! Some mother ******** appreciation. Got the brand spanking new Raikage here to see me personally and train, damn right. Grinning from ear to ear, Jin quickly rose out of his seat and jabbed his thumb to his chest. "I'm Jin Taega! And if you didn't already know, I plan to be the best shinobi that's ever lived. One day when your old and corroded, I'll forever be looking over this village as the Ultimate Shinobi!" Jin shouted proudly. Grinning he watched all the other students in the class and roughly patted his chest in defiance to them and pride for himself.

Spiritual, Mental, Physical. What type of styles are those? I'm ********! Gotta do better then that. "Um, Mr.Raikage, don't you think we should actually go outside of the classroom to finish our 'class'? I would think that we're sorta disrupting everyone else's mediocre lesson with out kage to Jin lesson." Jin said with a proud smirk as he glared at the rest of the class. They were all watching the Raikage and himself, and thats what he wanted. But he didn't want them to benefit from his lesson either. The spotlight would shine again on him, but later in due to time.