Chronicles!

[mercy]

Chapter 1

Part I

It was the hardest thing to do—to flee when your comrades scattered across the battlefield, unmoving. It was an order—a direct one at that—to flee from the battlefield and so I, at the age of 14, ran away with my back faced to the enemies. I ran as hard as I could, sweat rolling down the sides of my raven locks, the locks themselves wet with various liquids that I dare not try to remember lest I have the audacity to relive the deaths of so many warriors. As I ran, I did not look back, and I did not stop until I reached my destination: The Land of Lightning…

PLOP!!!

I AWOKE from my nightmare as my body instinctively leaped out of the water trying to regain the oxygen it had lost during my deep slumber. Once I had gained enough to start breathing air and not water, I retreated back into the water only to float on my back. Tch, the same bad dream again! Except, it was not a dream but a daunting past that chased me down like a loved one’s ghost who refused to leave the living world. I left out a sigh, my eyes looking through my opaque black lens to see the calm motion of the skies. 

I was in Kumogakure, the land where I was born and raised. I often liked to come and swim in one of the many large lakes that surrounded the mountains. It helped me to think and clear my mind of troubles that arose. This time though, it seemed as if I could not get rid of reliving that nightmare no matter how hard I tried to eliminate it from the surfaces of my mind or bury it deep into the recesses of my past. It seemed they were right; I needed professional help to stabilize this insanity called my mind. I chuckled, closed my eyes once again to drift off… 

A distant past…

“Old man, just because I’m your grandson, doesn't mean that you need to go easy on me! But don’t worry! After this, I’ll buy you cane!” I goaded as my lips broke into a smile as I joined the laughter projected from the people that stood in a circle around my grandfather and I. My old man wanted to show his students a demonstration of three different variations. The first one was with three of his students against him demonstrating pure taijutsu techniques. The second one was with his brightest student, Jikou, demonstrating a ninjutsu battle—one that showed wonderful displays of fire, water, earth, and lightning techniques. 

[mercy]

Finally, the third was a “Free-for-all” combat among which my grandfather hand-picked nine of his best students—his disciples, he called them—as he included a tenth, one that was neither his disciple nor his student. Indeed, he picked me, his grandson, to join the fray as I stood ten feet away from him, his eyes closed with that white beard and hair gently swaying in the wind.

I did not know why he wanted me to join, but I had no say in the matter and within moments, the ten of us would dispersed into the woods supported by the ever-present amazon rain. I looked back quickly only to see my grandfather still as a statue, as if he had all the time in the world. “Old man thinks he can get us all huh?  We’ll see about that…” and so, onwards I went, into the deep green array that was the woods. 

Within moments, the entire world was silent before my ears and all the players motionless in their settlements. As soon as my feet touched the ground, I became one with it, my body stinking ever deeper and deeper. My earth became my mind and I the earth. It was my eyes, my ears, and my partner. I traveled underground, as I knew where each and every person was in the woods, including my grandfather, as the old man finally set out to find each and every one of us.

I never told you what the goal of this demonstration. It was stealth. He wanted to see how quiet and invisible we could remain in the midst of our enemies. He even went so far as to place a limitation on himself. That is, to find each one of us within the time frame of 1 hour. We were allowed to move as far as possible should we sense him near, or use whatever tricks we had up our sleeve to avert the reality of being found. Even after being found, should we find a means to escape his attack and remain hidden afterwards, we were fine. It was only when he successfully subdued us was when we were out of this little game.   

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I, however, found that limitation to his way of underestimating me. While I cared not for the other students, I always made sure that I was at the top of my game when training with my grandfather. He raised me, taught me everything I knew, and talked with the previous Raikage to admission me into their ranks to further improve my knowledge and skills. The least I could do was to show him that his efforts were worth it. Hm!?! It seems like he caught one already! It has not been five minutes yet! I have to get away quick….

My speed increased as I swam through the muddy sea underneath the Gaia. My hands came together in an attempt to turn multiple areas in the world above as well as the world below into illusionary places. Even though I knew that such genjutsus were meaningless before my grandfather’s fiery eyes that could pierce any illusion without any effort put into it, I still did it in the hopes of attracting him to the wrong places. I remained still, for now, wondering how I could optimize the situation at hand. It was clear that my old man was going to catch us all but there was a way to win this. For one thing, I could use the time-limit placed on him… that’s it! I got this.

Instantly, I went for the nearest person that was trying to get away from the master. I arose from the dirt, the ground sinking at the same time to elevate me to the living world. Immediately, I placed the girl under an illusion to stop her from letting out a noise as I spoke, “it’s me, Mokushi. Don’t worry, I am not here to give you up. I want us to work together to win this”. The girl nodded and calmed down as I then released her from her dream. I told her of my plan, and she seemed skeptical at first. This was to be expected as I had turned many of the students against me and among each other in the past. They all knew too well not to trust me as I was spontaneous and—on the surface, at least—cared only about myself in the heat of battle.

 

The fact that I had an allegiance with the cloud village, my headband that rested on my upper left arm branding me a shinobi made them even more skeptical of me than ever before. It was the combination of the simple fact that I was 1) their master’s grandson and  2) stronger than any of them should they try to strike me down that kept me alive among their presence, so to speak. They respected me, yes, but out of my heritage not who I was as a person and to be honest, I was perfectly okay with that. If my ancestors’ reputation is enough to keep my enemies at bay, I would use that opportunity whenever I could. My survival was, in utmost sense, the surmountable task that I tried achieve each and every day I walk this earth.

I spoke, in attempts to reassure the disciple of my fidelity, “Look, how about this, I’ll be the scapegoat while you go and spread the message?” That did it. She nodded immediately and left to initiate the plan.

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“Of course, she wants me to be the bait. What a bi—” I immediately felt an aura of chakra that escaped my familiarity as agents of the unknown suddenly appeared all around me usurping my very thoughts.  They attacked, and I stood there arms wrapped in front of my chest. A smile grazed upon my lips as they stabbed me multiple times. Blood oozed out of me as I fell to the ground, unmoving. They chuckled and left the area. After they had left, my body would sink into the ground and disappear. 

From the woods, I emerged, my eyes hidden behind the black opaque lens. I looked up, and thought maybe I could this to my advantage. Still, I was ever cautious of the master but he was some miles away behind me. My body sank into the ground and I slithered my way towards the enemies that dared step foot into my old man’s humble abode…

“Mokushi!!!!!!! Wake up and get out of the water! One of these days, your body is going to be so wrinkled, it’ll look like you’re old before you’re 30!” 

I awoke to that annoying voice I knew all too well as I slowly raised my body from the waters. I shook the water off, my hand grabbing the towel that lay next to my clothes. My mind still in a daze from that hazy dream, I muttered under my breath, “…and one of those days, you are going to lose your voice, and the heavens will sing”.  To which he responded, “I heard that. You still have those bad dreams man?” I nodded as I put my clothes back on, my headband tightened to my upper left arm. I shook my head as dark raven locks released the water droplets into the air. 

“What are you going to do? It’s not healthy to be wading in the water, reliving those moments again and again.” The man before me was right. In my mind, I looked back to the illusory image that was my grandfather as he lectured me once more… “What I should have done a long time ago, Kiwa Sensei.” I then left the place with Kiwa, heading back to my house. Along the way, I explained to him what I meant by that comment. Afterwards, he made no complaints, asked if I wanted him to come with me, to which I respectfully declined and said, “No need. I’ll be fine. I’m only going to my old man’s place to see what he can do about this.”

“Alright, be careful.” Upon uttering those words, he vanished into the thin air, and I proceeded to enter my house. There were some things that I needed first heading to my old man’s place. It had indeed been some time since I had last visited him—about a year, I think, if my memory serves me well. I reached into my satchel, padding it to see what I had in there. I would need to prepare myself for this journey. To travel to the Land of the Rain from Kumogakure was sure to be tiring and I had to avoid any enemies that I might encounter on my way there. 

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I sat down on a chair and put my hands on the squared table. My head leaned back, closed eyes behind my black glasses unseen, I drifted off once more into the past—that dark glade…

Swiss, swiss! Thuck! Cling! Clang! 

Those sounds entered my ears again and again as I hid in the tall bushes. My hands were formed in a union to keep an illusion of which I had cast on the enemies that stood ahead. They were fighting illusions of clones created in my image. One after another, they attacked, but to no avail. They had indeed already noticed that this was a genjutsu, but they could not find me. I was skilled in my ability to conceal myself behind the curtains that was the trees, leaves, mud, ground—or what have you. Because I was keeping a very wary distance from them yet clear one at that, I was able to recast the genjutsu as many times as they would try at their best to dispel it. 

This would go on for some Time, and I noticed their fatigue already on their faces and their bodies as I ceased the illusion. I stepped out into the open from bushes and reached out my boxing gloves to put on my hands. “You guys sure are dumb. There are five of you. Three of you could have battled those clones while the two of you look for me—or better yet, leave this area? An illusion this weak can only expand so far.” I laughed at them, their rage becoming more and more visible as they shouted in anger. Their bodies moved at such speeds towards me as I smirked. I slipped into the ground, and slithered towards the opposite side. Not leaving the ground, I then left them to my grandfather’s devices. I knew that was within radius from my merging with the earth, and their release of such chakra and their rage was more than enough to attract the master. 

“Fools, I sure hope they aren't shinobis. Whatever village they come from, I’m sure they won’t miss those eyesores.” I ascended to the surface as I met the girl I previously spoke to. With her, were four others of my grandfather’s students and to the group I spoke, “Yo! Your timing is impeccable. I’m sure she told y’all the plan? Good. Now, we all got to get away from here. The master is right behind us but there are enemies that he is taking care of so we should be—” Crap. He’s here! 

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I motion for them to get away and initiate the plan now as I would act as the bait. If they were surprised, they did not show it but merely followed my instructions. I turned around to see my grandfather standing only twenty or so feet away. I greeted him with a smile on my face, “yo pops! How it’s going?! I thought you had company back there?” my grandfather merely grabbed his beard, shaking his head as if he was disappointed. He spoke, “my boy, did you think you could use that to get away from me? And here I thought, you would be the last I would get. This is the result of your arrogance.” With that the man moved towards me with blinding speed as I smirked, my boxer gloves positioned in front of my face, my stance in sync with his speed.

All of the sudden, a bright yellow flash shattered the battlefield upon which we stood but because of my shades, I could still see my grandfather but unfortunately for him—but only for a moment and indeed it was truly a moment that was needed—he was blinded and I plucked his chin with my right glove. I immediately sank into the ground and ran as if I was chased by ninja dog that was some funky drugs. I removed my gloves almost immediately and simultaneously with my escape. I casted a string of illusions as I hoped the others had done their part. Then, I froze, paralyzed from my legs down….

I AWOKE YET AGAIN, wondering how much time had passed since I had slipped into the past. I got up, making sure that I had everything with me and set out to the gates of Kumogakure. It was there that I would start my journey to the Land of the Rain.

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End of Part I of chapter I

--Exit!

[Etherion]

Mercy 56