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The pressure he felt was unbelievable, but if anything, things got easier from here. Not because the task itself became easier, but because of the amount of adrenaline surging through him upon seeing how close he was. Forcing himself upward, Axcel could feel his hand push past the water, where it was free from its clutches. Though he wasn’t necessarily above the cliff quite yet, any onlookers would see his hand shoot up and reach for the nearest edge. That was it--all he had to do now was pull himself over the cliff’s edge, and he he’d complete the training.

Then a booming sound nearly shattered his eardrums. It was loud as hell, and to make things worse, the ground started rumbling viciously. It didn’t matter at that point though, Axcel’s fingers had dug into the damn ground, the boy being much too stubborn to fall down cause of an outside interference. His grip on on the rock loosened slightly and he almost lost his footing, but he wasn’t about to fall. In fact, moments after shaking ceased, Axcel pushed himself over the ledge and onto the surface of the cliff he had been climbing, away from the waterfall. Finally!

He was damn tired, but it looked like he wouldn’t be getting any rest just yet. He was on all fours, pushing himself up and onto his feet. It was then that his gaze would meet with the crocodile’s, the wild beast staring Axcel down just before being sent backwards by Rin. Though he was certain this was not part of his training, the lad decided to make it part of his training menu. Despite it not being planned, it was the perfect way to put him to the test. Even though his body felt like it was battered, the aches and pains were something he could overcome now that he wasn’t under constant pressure. He felt as light as a feather now that he was out of the waterfall.

“Stay back Rin!” Axcel called out as he removed the top part of his gi and threw it on the ground. He rolled up each of his pant legs so they were just below his knee, something he did in order to avoid having the soaking wet pants to hinder him. Stretching his limbs slightly and cracking his joints, Axcel had, at this point, recovered his breathe. Though tired, his stamina hadn’t died on him at least. He still bleeding a little bit from his head, palms, and the soles of his feet, but it was nothing too serious.

“Now. . .come!” Axcel spoke to the alligator, challenging it as if it were a person. He assumed a fighting stance, the same one Rin had when they sparred not too long ago. They would see if he had become strong enough to defeat the beast using only Tenjouken.

It was only eight meters, and from another person’s perspective, it didn’t seem like much more for Axcel. Unfortunately, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Even though he was a mere eight meters away from the top, the pressure that pushed against him from the waterfall grew in strength. It was a lot more powerful there, and would only get worse as he moved up, than where he had begun. Not only was it harder to advance, but as he progressed upward and came closer and closer to the top, it would only get exponentially worse.

Still--Axcel wasn’t about to fall here. No, he wasn’t quite ready to do that just yet. He needed to climb higher! To the top! Though his body weakened, his spirit did not falter. As the water poured on him, Axcel let out a short groan as he forced himself to move upwards. Now that he begun, he knew he couldn’t stop. If he stopped now, especially in his weakened state, then the waterfall would consume him and force him downward.

Though his muscles ache, he continued onward through sheer force of will. He needed to keep moving forward--needed to always be on the offense! Just like a Tenjouken user. He knew the answer he had concluded to earlier was the one that would carry him to the top--and from the looks of it, that’s exactly what was going to happen. The lad had advanced another four meters, putting him four meters away from the top. He was getting close, but the water was getting even stronger. It flowed constantly, and the damn thing wasn’t letting up at all.

Teeth grinding amongst one another, Axcel did what he could to ignore the fatigue and aches that his body felt and continued. His body was beginning to give up on him, and it felt like if he didn’t hurry up it would become unresponsive. Roaring as he practically punched upwards in an effort to grab the next rock, Axcel moved up even higher. At this point, he was literally a meter away from the top.

Now that he had came to the answer that would allow him to progress upward, he needed to actually move his damn body. It was easier said than done, and despite knowing that he couldn’t remain still if he expected to succeed, he was still having a hard time doing so. His hands were beginning to tire of holding onto the rocks, their grip having to be tightened beyond normal amounts just to hold onto the slippery stones. Despite being wet, the rocks were still rough, and his the skin on his palms were beginning to tear from holding on for so long while being pushed downward due to the water pressure from above.

Just as he was about to begin his ascension, Rin called out to him. This time he made sure not to turn, adjust his posture, or move his person at all when responding to the girl. He didn’t want to fall again, especially after how difficult it was just to get back to where he had been before. Rin said something about asking if he was okay. She asked, though it seemed like she was suggesting, that Axcel could stop the training and treat whatever wounds he had.

“Stop? Like hell I’ll stop!” Axcel cried out, gritting his teeth as he pushed himself upwards. Just as he was about to cave in to the pressure, Axcel released his hold over one of the rocks and reached up to grab onto another. Stopping wasn’t an option anymore. He had already thrown himself into the training, and he had already gave himself to the art of Tenjouken. Giving up now would be, in his book, failing the discipline--something he didn’t intend on doing.

With his resolve growing stronger, Axcel continued his upward climb. It started off slow, but he was beginning to pick up his pace. At first he would be at a standstill in whatever position he found himself in for several moments before attempting to move up again. Now, however, he was moving up at a consistent pace. He wouldn’t stop but for a moment before reaching for another rock. The lad was moving at a steady rate, and was climbing up surprisingly fast too. He had advanced at least twelve meters up.

With another eight meters remaining, would Axcel have it in him to make the home stretch? It was anyone’s guess at this point. The boy, however, was determined in his endeavour and believed he was going to succeed no matter what.