The Test of Strength [Closed]

[.DEVIOUS]

OOC: This thread is for Gene only. Nobody else may post here.

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Shiju had walked until he came upon what he was looking for. In front of him stood a gargantuan statue, about fifty meters tall and ten meters wide. It was made completely of stone, and was shaped to appear quite similarly to the Great Bear Namyeol. The bear's ferocious smile was quite feral, and this statue had served as a monument to the Bear Family for a few dozens of years, when it had been crafted by Shiju himself. It had been Shiju's present towards Namyeol the Bear Sage for teaching Shiju the arts of Senjutsu.

It was a symbol of strength and accomplishment, both for the great height and width that the statue was carved and for the immaculate detail that had gone into it. Each bit of the rock was rigged, cut to appear as if a tiny tuft of fur. It was truly beautiful, and truly a masterpiece, one of a kind work.

It was the kind of thing that only one appreciative of life and the things that they had been given could understand and enjoy.

The boy's task isn't going to be an easy one, that's for sure. I almost feel bad for him...

[Messatsu!]

Shiju was insanely powerful, Masuyo had a inexplicable feeling about him as he trailed just a few meters behind his sensei who had been leading him to god knows where. But that entire time, he could not keep his eyes off of his back, feeling the gap between their powers as he sensed his imposing capacity of massive chakra. He wanted to attain that power, he hungered for it, which is why he was determined to do everything with the power he has to perfect the arts of Senjutsu to further his own combative prowess to save his dear sister from bittersweet death. Before long the two seemed to have reached their destination, approaching a gargantuan statue which heavily resembled Namyeol but didn't seem to be actually him.

"I wonder what this is all about. Looks sacred."

His head tilted up, he looked up to the statue to gaze upon its glory and refined detail, he knew whoever had carved such a thing was quite skillful in the art itself among other things. His face, confused, yet screamed with excitement as he looked back towards Shiju.

"My first time seeing this, I'm guessing its a symbol for something?"

[.DEVIOUS]

Shiju smiled. "This statue was created dozens of years ago, a carving that I did myself as thanks to Namyeol for teaching me the arts of Senjutsu. It took three years to complete." The fact that Masuyo had enough intellect to see that it was something that was important, even beyond its massive size and the detail that had gone into its creation, made Shiju think that the boy maybe did the have the potential that he needed to master Sennin Modo, even if it were buried somewhere deep in his heart.

"It is indeed immensely important - to myself, to Namyeol, and to the entire Bear Family. It shows that there are Human Beings worthy of being taught and trained by the Bears. That wasn't always perceived as the case. Namyeol has spent hundreds of years searching for the right person to train, and until he decided to pass on the arts of Senjutsu to myself, over ten people tried and failed to learn the arts of Senjutsu. Besides myself, only one other person has ever walked away with a complete version of Sennin Modo. It is a high honor, one of the highest, that a person may ever earn.

"Your goal, then, is simple. You are to utilize every ounce of your Senjutsu technique to move this statue from its current position to that spot," Shiju pointed to the west, "about ten meters from here. It must arrive in that location unharmed."

It would be a difficult challenge. Even the slightest injury to the statue would be an affront to everyone here. Well, he needed to be tested, and Namyeol would be unsatisfied with anything but the most impossible of procedures.

OOC: I realize that your character does not yet know the technique for increased strength. Therefore, this your chance to begin "learning" about the process so that you have some sort of knowledge whenever you do finally choose to master the jutsu. You must be careful, make sure to move slowly, and choose your words carefully, for the wrong move at any point and I will GM the statue breaking or being damaged somehow and you will fail the test.

Good luck!

[Messatsu!]

As they stopped, Masuyo stood shouder to shoulder to from Shiju, peering up to the very top of the statue as he went on to speak about its origin's and history. Allegedly over ten people who might've seemed worthy for Sennin Modo failed, leaving only two successors to ever perfect it. Shiju announced himself as one, which had been quite obvious given his own display of nature chakra. The other Sage, , Masuyo initially thought the second to be none other than Kouketsu Uchiha. What words that graced his ears soon caused him to look over at Shiju in shock as his next objective or training session was laid out before him.

Move the statue?! Masuyo thought Shiju to be insane, but then he stopped and thought, he himself just picked up Namyeol whose size was identical to the statue with a single hand! If Shiju, who had also been a practictioner of Senjutsu chakra was able to lift Namyeol's body, Masuyo believed he could lift this statue. Brimming with confidence, he also realized that this statue would been much heavier than Namyeol himself given its stone mass and volume. Truthfully that mattered no to Masuyo, if he were to really be eligible to become the new successor to Sennin modo he needed to surpass the current in every conceivable way. Cutting his sagely mentor a serious side glance, he spoke.

"I'll move this statue and surpass you."

Masuyo spoke with a low, calm, yet ferocious voice that screamed with power and uncontested zeal. Turning his head back to the statue, his hands merged, weaving through a quick series of handseals before his body forcefully sunk into the earth almost as if it were as malleable as an ocean. 'Swimming' beneath the surface of the earth he calculated the where the center of the statues base and decided it to lift it from there. He feared were he to push it in a way where it would slide across the earth would damage its base which was ultimately part of the statue in essence.

His calculative mind hard at work, he wondered, 10 shinobi failed this portion of their training, yet the statue appeared to be in flawless condition. Perhaps they couldn't even budge it, who knows. The only way where the task seemed possible where minimal damage was even avoided, was to lift and carry it. Sifting through earthen constructs via Mole Hiding Technique of the Doton arts, he paralleled himself right beneath the center of the statue. Arms raised above his head, flat palms faced up towards the heavens above as he ascended back to the surface, channeling incredible amounts of senjutsu chakra into both arms and legs.

A loud, piercing, grunt came from beneath the Statue as it slowly began to separate from the ground as if it were levitating, only for a moment he used a single hand to balance it while he used hte former to push himself up from the ground to plant his legs & feet upon the ground which also swelled with Senjutsu chakra. Quickly he placed his other palm along the bottom side of the statue. He let it down just a few inches, namely in a way were he bent his arms inwardly to absorb a small portion of the weight. Slowly he took his first plethora of steps forward, advancing about 3 meters. The weight of the statue was ridiculous, and he could feel the primordial states of fatigue attempted to set in.

He had to move quickly.

[.DEVIOUS]

Things were moving about how Shiju had planned, at least until the boy performed a string of handseals and sunk himself into the ground. It was interesting, to say the least, to observe how one who did not yet possess mastery over Senjutsu would act when confronted with such a difficult situation, and Masuyo Kekkai was not failing to entertain. With the sound of a grunt from underneath the statue, Shiju pieced together the boy's plan -- he would move underneath the ground to the position where it would be easiest to move the statue and then try to carry it from there.

It probably would be the easiest way to go about the process if one didn't possess any other Doton or other jutsu to make the translocation process simpler. However, it was also one of the only ways that Shiju would have accepted. The goal was to teach the boy more about how to use Senjutsu chakra in the most strenuous ways. The goal was to make things nearly impossible so that the boy would fail without interfering.

Therefore, Shiju would watch as the statue lifted itself and began to slowly inch forward underneath the weight of the boy's body. Would he be able to figure out the key...?

[Messatsu!]

Step after step the weight of the massive statue. The steps were small and 'quick', the perfect strategy which allowed him to move at a much faster pace without potentially losing balance. His feet, shoulder length apart, one moved in front of the other with quick, short paces, advancing 3 meters along with an additional 2, half way there. With sheer strength alone he managed to cross the five meter threshold, but suddenly he stopped. The legs of his body nearly buckled, almost as if the statue somehow magically increased its weight exponentially, yet in reality it was nothing more than him expending massive amounts of senjutsu chakra to lift it. Having only stored up to two massive chakra storage's, his senjutsu chakra depleted rather swiftly, and if he had not gathered an additional amount, his death would be inevitable.

"Grraah! Shit this isn'g g-good!"

Grunting as he struggled to keep the statue above him, he merely stood still, keeping it afloat as best as he could. His eyes closed and mind focused, thinking about those he loved and cherished, Uchiha Faust, his sister, his parents, and even Yousaka Yune. They gave him stability and purpose. Using thoughts about the good times he's had with their company, it allowed him to relax, focus, and remain collected. Taking deep breathes he withdrew from the natures infinite energy, blending it with his own to replenish the Senjutsu within. With each ounce that returned to him, the statue seemed to grow lighter and lighter despite it being on a minuscule scale, but it made a huge difference.

His sister provided him with inner peace, the fuel to his fire. He still needed to save her from Amegakure's corrupted council and their string of life threatening experiments. What seemed to have been years of him obtaining power within Mt. Nobunaga were just mere seconds and minutes within real time. Nevertheless, within the next few years and the next few minutes of real time, combative skill as a shinobi will registered on a uncontested scale.

Finding his strength, his eyes burst open with tenacity as his steps continued, advancing another 2 meters with a slow and steady pace.

[.DEVIOUS]

Shiju watched, his face impassive, as the boy continued to walk forward, expending large amounts of natural energy to move the statue. So far, his movements had been fairly quick, with small, rapid steps propelling him forward. However, such movements were wasteful, and they used up more energy than simply taking one large step and using the balance of nature to keep himself moving forward. It was one of the things that Shiju found that he detested about the boy - Kekkai was always so interested in moving quickly, trying to obtain what he wanted by pure brute force. There was strength, honor, and integrity in these actions at times.

However, there was no honor in burning yourself out before your time. There was no honor in doing things too quickly. It was true that Kekkai was certainly learning to harness the power of Sennin Modo much more quickly than anyone that Shiju had ever seen. It was also true that though he learned more quickly, he seemed to be missing out on the most important of the lessons that a Sage should know: patience.

With the power of divinity comes responsibility, and the desire to act before the time was right was one of the things that would obliterate Kekkai's chances of surviving if he continued down this path. It was because of this that Shiju made a decision.

With his own body filled to the brim with bristling Senjutsu chakra, the old Sennin would walk over towards the other side of the statue, placing himself in between Kekkai's position and where he needed to go. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, he'd release his own Senjutsu chakra and would push against the statue with exactly enough force to prevent him from moving.

There the two would remain, locked in place and channeling large amounts of chakra, until Shiju was certain that the student was ready to move forward.

[Messatsu!]

Masuyo's face slightly cringed as he struggled to close the gap to his desired destination. Head diagonally down, he carefully watched his feet more one after the other while concurrently being mindful of anything that could impede his movements along the ground itself. His breathing remained calm and controlled, using it as a medium for concentration. The weight of the statue seemed to increase once more as he felt the storage's of Senjutsu chakra expel from his circulatory system. But something strange occurred, Shiju, the man behind the entire experiment stepped in front of Masuyo, namely 5 meters away. He stood at the finish line which marked the completion of this trial which only confused Masuyo.

"Tch! Whats he up to now!?"

Teeth gritted, he looked out to his front as it felt like he hit a brick wall. The sudden halt in movement coupled with the decline of his senjutsu chakra brought him down to a single knee, one leg not bend at 90^o to prevent a total loss of balance. From that moment he cut Shiju a vengeful glare, knowing he was the cause of it. It annoyed Masuyo that Shiju always dished out task and objects but throw in little catches just to mix things up. One eye closed as he could feel the weight increase and his arms feeling like they were jelly. He needed to focus, he needed to stop and reevaluate his plan.

"Tch! F-fine. I'll play it y--your way. Grrnh!"

Carefully, he moved his bent leg down and placed himself upon both knees while leaning his bottom back against his calves. Outwardly like half circles his legs swung out, twisted, and folded themselves Indian style. Both hands still raised in the air holding up the statue, he meditated. He meditated not to replenish his senjutsu chakra, but also increase his storage's for longer duration. He decided to sacrifice a few seconds and maybe minutes of pain within his arms for the sake of being patient to gather enough strength to press forward, and once he had - victory would be his.

[.DEVIOUS]

The boy was, as always, quick to pick things up. He understood immediately what was wanted. Simply lifting the statue wasn't enough -- Shiju wanted him to work his way through every obstacle, face every challenge, before he would allow Kekkai any sort of victory. Shiju felt the energy of the world passing through the other's body, and he smiled, feeling a growing surge of physical strength within Masuyo. Would it be enough?

Shiju did not increase his own pressure or force. That was something that would come later. For now, the Sennin simply desired to see Kekkai persevere and overcome. He would wait.

After all, patience was his strong suit.

[Messatsu!]

Seconds ascended into minutes, which then turned into a single hour. He spent that hour holding up up the statue while doubling his body's capacity for Senjutsu chakra. As the final seconds ended with Masuyo obtaining what he contentedly desired over the past hour, he began to think. "Maybe being patient isn't so bad. Its hard to do so given my circumstances, but I guess its far from impossible.", He thought to himself as his eyes burst open with his nose returning to its natural human state. His eyes, wide, brimmed with tenacity as bear-like slits faded into his eyes along with a perfect oval layer of ink around the perimeter of his eyes. Legs still curled Indian style, he unfolded them quickly, namely in the same fashion he did to fold them to begin with. Using his back power he managed to uplift his torso whilst placing his calves beneath his bottom.

From here it had been nothing more than mere lower body effort; his feet dug into the ground as he channeled massive amounts of senjutsu chakra to his legs to raise his entire body upon both feet. Feet flat and standing erect, the young lad stepped forward with an increased pace. He realized that doubling his capacity to hold more senjutsu chakra, he was able to control his augmented strength to an even greater degree. Advancing about 3 meters forward he noticed he still had more than enough power left to reach the 'finish-line', however, that goal left his mind long ago. Hurriedly his mind sorted through hundreds if not thousands of possible methods where actually setting the statue down upon the ground without harm was possible.

After advancing another meter, the method came to him in a quick second stroke of genius!

[.DEVIOUS]

For over an hour, the two held their positions, while the other took the time to channel more and more Senjutsu chakra through his body. Feeling rather than seeing the natural energy flowing from the world into the boy, Shiju found himself smiling. Yes, he thought, this is what I want to see. By taking the time to focus when under direct pressure, the boy had managed to secure for himself a larger pool to work with. He was learning that patience would always be rewarded.

Taking a deep breath, the Sage felt when the boy decided to come, using his increased strength to propel himself forward. The Sennin allowed it, letting his body be pushed backwards. Slowly but surely, the statue would come forward, a step here and a step there, until Masuyo had managed to move one meter forward. However, it was there that Shiju would intervene. It was time to increase pressure again.

Releasing exactly enough chakra to grant the strength to halt the statue's movement again, Shiju would speak.

"Earn this right. Prove to me that you deserve it. You have the ability! you have the drive! Do you have the determination to meld these things together in a manner that will grant you the path of the Sage?!"

[Messatsu!]

"Earn this right. Prove to me that you deserve it. You have the ability! you have the drive! Do you have the determination to meld these things together in a manner that will grant you the path of the Sage?!"

Finding himself halted once more, Shiju spoke out to him with words of cold extolment. Masuyo himself only smiled at what he said, respectful but smug. Hearing those words from Shiju motivated him even further, drove him into a uncontested state of determination that couldn't be surmounted. Feeling Shiju's own senjutsu chakra push up against the statue which impeded his advancement, he knew what to do this time around. Being forced to be patient once more, not that he had a problem with it, it allowed him to give Shiju a well deserved response.

"Do I have the determination? Yes I do. I can't not have determination because if I didn't, I wouldn't have made it this far, heck I doubt I would have gotten the contract if I didn't have determination. So yeah, I've got it, and tons more!"

[.DEVIOUS]

"If you think you are worthy, then prove it. Move this statue. Push past the idea of possible and impossible, free your body of the limitations of strength, and show me your worth. I will not make this any easier for you. You must know these trials to find the pinnacle of your talent. Unleash that determination."

[Messatsu!]

One by one he heeded the words that fell from Shiju's parted lips as he demanded for Masuyo to display the determination he so claimed to have had. Before the eyes of Shiju, before the eyes of Namyeol and even the gods themselves, he would force his way to success. He couldn't oppose Shiju's senjutsu strength completely, but it had been enough to make him stop dead in his tracts as id had done previously. He figured that if Shiju could force his strength upon the statue, why couldn't he do the same to break through his oppressive power and continue with the objective. Whether or not this had been what Shiju expected, in Masuyo's mind was what needed to be done.

"Patience, take it slow, good things come with time. Thats what you were teaching me, and I thank you sincerely. You've taught me a very important thing that will help me in saving my sister. Correct me if I'm wrong, but is this what they call, 'growing up'?"

Finishing his words his knees bent ever so slightly, his right foot stretched out infront of his left. His head tilted down to conceal his face as Senjutsu chakra began to coalesce within both legs. The earth's surface submitted to both the weight and his power, shattering inwardly as he pushed off the ground leaving a upturn of dust as a testament to the strength exerted. Skillfully, he leapt up and forward in a way were the bottom of his feet just barely cleared the top of Shiju's head. With force he landed, left knee went down into the ground while his right foot remained flat along the ground and bent at a 90^o angle. Immediately after he stoped to gather senjutsu chakra if he didn't want to his grip upon the statue.

Now he only waited for a reaction from his sensei.

[.DEVIOUS]

To Shiju's surprise, the man decided to take a leap of faith -- a literal one, at that. Instead of trying to continue to push through the Sage, the student decided to go over the obstacle. An interesting choice, one that showed both the ability to overcome an obstacle and the desire to avoid it. These were ideals that could make a good Sennin. However, there was still much to do. As the Akadou leapt through the sky and landed in the desired spot and finally set it down, Shiju observed every one of his actions and made his decision.

However, it was not one that he would voice out loud. Instead, he'd simply speak to his student.

"You have many difficult paths before you. My eyes can see that much, at least, clearly. You are not the kind of person who will be able to prosper here under simple tutelage. You need to be out in the world, experiencing it first hand, not cooped within this strange land that time does not touch.

"I have decided your next challenge. It is quite simple.

Complete an impossible task." At this point, Shiju reached into his robe, pulling out a strange purple stone about the size of a French-lacquered fingernail. It hung on a thin golden chain, but there was more to this chain, and the stone, than would meet the eye. Extending the stone necklace over towards the boy, the Sage would wait until it was firmly grasped in his student's hand before continuing. Stepping back a few feet, the Sennin's hands would dance through the zodiac before coming to a halt.

"When you've completed your task, channel the small amount of Senjutsu chakra you have into the stone. It will return you here. Do not return until you've done as you've been asked."

And with that, Shiju's hands would slam upon the ground, transporting Masuyo Kekkai back to where he came from before.