Author's Notes: Just a quick pointer since most of you probably know this already, but in this chapter I'll refer to something known as 'Kenjutsu' - I don't think it's ever actually said in the anime (particularly the dub) but it's the word they use to describe sword-based combat in Naruto. It's on the Naruto wiki if you wanna check it out, but since a lot of Cloud ninja in the show use swords I thought it might be best to call it by its proper name.
Chapter 2: The Ninja with no Legacy – Part II
"Alright Shoryu that gives you a total of two points to begin the third round with." Stated Zakari. He led the group back indoors before descending the spiral staircase again to a third floor training hall, already scratched and scorched across the floor and walls from the efforts of previous students over the years. The hall was large enough to double up into an assembly area whenever the Raikage and Jonin hosted an emergency meeting, meaning Shoryu had more room to do as he pleased in this stage of the exam.
"As you know, this phase involves close-range taijutsu or kenjutsu – you may pick any of your choice." Said the second Jonin; a beautiful woman by the name of Ruki Jenbo. "Staying alive as a ninja is even more important than slaying the enemy, so for today we'll be focusing on defence."
Defence? Oh great – why can't it be attack? . . It's alright; snap out of it Shoryu, your attacking might be better but you still should be able to do this.
"Alright then." Shoryu nodded, gripping the pair of swords that clung to his body. "I'll take kenjutsu if it's alright."
"You may use any and all weaponry to stop yourself being hit by your opponent, as long as you present them to me first. Also you may use any technique or form of kenjutsu you like; you may even attack if you want – a good offence is sometimes the best defence."
Shoryu took the advice on board as he withdrew the two swords he carried and handed them over to the Jonin, who with a rapid series of complex hand signs performed an imprisonment jutsu to coat the blades with an invisible barrier, turning them into non-lethal batons despite the sharp appearance.
"So, who's going to be my opponent?" Shoryu wondered aloud. He saw no other student to serve as his foe in a mock battle as he'd done in previous exams; would he be facing one of the older ninja?
"I am." Shoryu's heart sank as Zakari answered his question. "I will come at you with Genin level kenjutsu. If you can survive without being hit for thirty seconds you get one point, and if you can go for over a minute you get two points. Of course if you don't even last thirty seconds you get a zero."
And I'll bet he does everything in his power to make sure that happens. Forget Genin level, if he has his way he's going all out. Guess I just have to hope he's weak in close combat.
With Zakari's trusty sword made perfectly blunt by Ruki's Imprisonment jutsu, the pair each took a step back and squared off against the other, with Shoryu putting up a defensive stance before the test had even begun.
"When you're ready. . ." muttered the Jonin. She looked first to the steady Shoryu and then back the eager Zakari. "Begin!"
"Raikyogan!" cried Zakari.
Shoryu could only watch in dismay as the bloodline trait he'd been denied manifested itself as an electric blue surge of glowing energy washing across the eyes and hand markings of his sensei.
Every organism known to man possesses a small, invisible current of bioelectricity that flows through the muscles and nervous system, allowing for any kind of action, be it pain, pleasure or even simple movement to occur. As Shoryu stood frozen in fear he knew that the Raikyogan Kekkei Genkai of the Zawa family now allowed Zakari to channel and amplify the current within him without the use of hand signs and disperse it in short range bursts from any part of his body. In short, Zakari could now augment his fists and his conductor of a sword with the element of lightning, but that wasn't the only bad news.
Being a visual dojutsu, the Raikyogan took over the eyes as well, allowing its wielder to see the internal current of bioelectricity flowing through their opponent's body, enabling them to strike the heavily concentrated spots in the hope of overloading their foe.
Shoryu braced himself for impact as Zakari closed the gap between them in a single bound. His sword cut as a bolt of lightning through the air, swinging with malice and the serious intent to harm. As fast as his body would allow Shoryu held up his offhand blade to block the attack before Zakari's sword rebounded and struck again, this time only grazing his main weapon and missing his body by a hair's breadth.
If I don't do something soon I'm done for! Shiro thought to himself. He'd blocked only two blows and even after that he felt the current of electricity from the metal edge teaming up with his anxiety to make his arms shakier than ever. He clasped tightly to the handles in order to correct himself, though within an instant of adjusting his grip another slash came in from the left. It was only after holding up both swords to block the move that Shoryu realised to his horror that Zakari had thrown only a one handed slash; he now ducked swiftly under the boy's guard, using a fiercely cackling fist to drive a lightning imbued punch straight into the kid's gut.
"Well Shoryu – looks like you get a zero." Zakari commented, though his words fell on deaf ears.
As his whole body fell into a high voltage seizure Shoryu dropped helplessly to his knees. Using the Raikyogan, Zakari had managed to briefly overload Shoryu's electrical system, leading him into a painfully numb sensation that sent daggers racing up his limbs whenever he tried to so much as twitch his muscles. He knew the science behind the Raikyogan and his mother had shown it to him twice, though no amount of preparation could prepare him for the real thing. This had been the first time he'd actually been struck by a Raikyogan-amplified attack, and he hoped right away it would be the last.
"*Ahem*" Katane Satoshi, the male Chunin, cleared his throat in declaration. "Beg your pardon Zakari, but don't you think that was a little above basic Genin level combat?" he pointed out.
"Indeed." Reizo coolly agreed.
The two remaining proctor ninja each nodded in affirmation after quietly conversing with one another.
"Come on Zakari, maybe you ought to give him another shot, and tone it down a little this time."
As his hearing slowly returned from the constant beep of his fried nervous system to a blurry, muffled key, Shoryu could've sworn he heard Zakari snarl in annoyance under his breath. He sighed and threw up his hands in apology.
"You're right – I suppose I overdid it just a little." He said with a false sincerity. "I did come at him pretty hard; I guess I just don't know my own strength sometimes. But perhaps it would be cruel to put Shoryu through another round after being hit like that."
"No." managed Shoryu, staggering painfully back to his feet and trying desperately to stop his legs shaking beneath him. Once again he saw the Jonin Reizo eye him with interest as he continued. "I told you I'm going to pass this didn't I? I'll keep going no matter what; this is nothing."
"Well look at that Zakari, the boy can still fight." said Reizo with a noticeable hint of smugness in his tone. "Looks like you'll have to give him another go."
"Yes of course." Zakari admitted, taking his place as he waited for Shoryu to at least stand up straight and for Ruki to trot back over to the pair.
"Alright, take it a little easier alright Zakari? We don't need any injuries today."
Zakari nodded, eager for the Jonin to continue.
". . When you're ready. . . Begin!"
As Zakari's launched back into his regular attack pattern Shoryu noticed that whilst it was still ferocious, he had far more freedom and time to act this time around. He deflected three oncoming slashes in a figure of eight movement, stepping back all the while to create some distance between the two of them. He parried slashes from all angles and made sure to keep his footwork in check, and the moment Zakari's Kekkei Genkai flashed back into fruition the boy threw himself backwards in a double flip.
I see his game – he's trying to go as hard as possible without pushing past what he can get away with so the others won't stop him. But I only have to survive for a minute – you can do this Shoryu!
The boy may not have been a prodigy, but he was observant enough to not make the same mistake twice; as Zakari closed in for another combination he kept his eyes on the hilt of his enemy's sword, watching for if the sensei approached with one hand on the grip or two. Fortunately the Chunin used both hands, wielding his sword in a practiced fashion and leading the boy into a high speed blitz of trading blades.
"Thirty seconds! That's one point!" called Ruki. Shoryu shifted his weight to avoid a swipe hitting him in the temple; though to his pleasant surprise the nimble move had left him in a neutral stance, whereas his opponent was completely off guard. Now was his chance - Ruki had said before that a good offence was sometimes the best defence.
Stepping forwards into an attacking position, Shoryu lashed out with four successive slashes of his two blades, and despite the each being swiftly blocked by the recovering ninja he put enough ferocity behind his blows to knock the man off guard. With the opportunity too good to miss out on Shoryu abandoned the ricocheting steel of his two swords and leapt high into a reckless attack. Using his first foot to step off Zakari's chest and through his defence, Shoryu twisted his entire body to the side and thrust his second foot forwards, landing a powerful kick to Zakari's head to drop the Chunin straight to the ground.
Despite himself Shoryu couldn't help but grin to himself as he landed; he had enjoyed that far more than he should have. Quiet giggles of amusement from his ninja peers fuelled Zakari back to his feet. Even through the unclear, electricity filled eyes of the Raikyogan he seemed angry. He had perhaps twenty seconds to put the brat in his place; up until now he'd been holding back too much, though it seemed that he couldn't lay a finger on the boy without using up much more power than he was supposed to.
"Fifteen seconds!"
With Ruki's useful prompt to spur him on, Zakari came at Shoryu harder this time, using as much power as he dared. If he used too much then the other ninja would stop him, but with the level he increased his speed to he felt confident that the boy would cave within moments.
A single blade came at Shoryu as if it were twenty; with his slower vision the weapon flew in a blurry afterimage of blue steel as he desperately knocked away attack after attack with the seconds ticking by like hours. The pair moved in a complex exchange of swords; Shoryu took slashes from all angles and kicks from seemingly nowhere. He felt the strain of his body begin to tire, noting that if this were a solo training exercise he'd give up at around this point. But it was too late to go back now – he'd swore to himself that he'd pass this exam – if he wanted to finally become a Cloud shinobi he needed to win this, no matter the cost.
After completing a triad of ruthless swipes Zakari launched a cackling punch in the boy's direction. When that didn't work he stepped back before lunging forwards in a short, high speed burst beyond standard Genin level combat. Once he saw the lightning rod of a blade streaming towards him at swiftness he couldn't match, Shoryu pushed off the ground instinctively as hard as he could. He managed to leap up and over the brutally slashing sensei, though by the time he landed Zakari had whirled around and was upon him again in Shoryu's brief moment of vulnerability. Synchronised slashes knocked the twin blades effortlessly from Shoryu's hands before he could even comprehend what had happened, and once he'd regained focus another hacking motion of his enemy's sword forced the boy to hurl himself out of the way.
He dived aimlessly through the air and landed hard on the stone floor of the academy training room, unarmed and completely at his sensei's mercy, but any time he could pull out was time enough – anything to prolong this match would do. As Zakari made a dash for him with the lethal looking sword Shoryu closed his eyes in fright; this was it - no getting out of this one.
"Minute's up!" Ruki's cry stopped the blunt, yet pain inducing instrument a mere inch away from Shoryu's chest. The boy grinned back up at the angered expression upon the Chunin's face as the man eventually conceded, withdrawing his sword before its blocked edge could jolt him again with the incredible power of the Zawa's Kekkei Genkai.
"So I'm on four points now right?" he checked. "Just two more points and I'm through then." Shoryu savoured the expression of revulsion briefly shown by his disapproving sensei before the man smiled again, trying to appear calm despite his clear unhappiness about the situation.
"Yes of course. But don't get overconfident there Shoryu – there's still two more tests to go."
With no hint of a help offering from the Chunin, Shoryu climbed back to his feet. He knew that if he had been treated fairly he'd have passed by now, but the basic ninjutsu test still remained – he wasn't worried in the slightest. "Then what are we doing still standing here?"
Reizo smiled to himself and allowed the ever more annoyed looking Zakari to show them out and proceed back down the spiral staircase towards the second level of the academy. If anything Reizo admired the boy's spirit; despite being hit with the full force of a Raikyogan augmented attack and being chased around the arena he'd come out smiling; he was so determined to pass this test and prove his sensei wrong that he'd endure anything, if the other three proctor ninja were paying their full attention they'd notice it in a heartbeat – he had more passion than any of the students that had come before him. Reizo could see now that the angered sensei was at the end of his rope; if he'd read the man correctly then he'd pull out all the stops in this next stage to stop the boy from passing the exam – it made for an entertaining watch to say the least.
Again the male Chunin Katane instructed him on the details of the next test as they descended.
"As you know, this next part of the exam tests your ninjutsu, but new to this term it also tests how well you cope under pressure. See, some people can pull off all the jutsu they please with excellent control and chakra flow, but it means nothing if they freeze up and can't access it in a tight spot. To test this we'll simulate a hostile environment to surround you. You won't be in any real danger, but it'll help us see how well you cope under pressure."
Shoryu nodded in understanding. He'd come too far now to let a few distractions deter him from his goal.
"Also, just like the last time, you get an option of which type of ninjutsu you want to be tested on. If you choose standard chakra control then you will be given a list of twenty basic Genin level jutsu of E and D-rank in difficulty and asked to perform two of them. If you chose shape or nature transformation however, you need only display one D-rank shape transformation or elemental jutsu within your affinity."
Shoryu considered hard on the matter. On the one hand he could perform a few of the basic Genin jutsu like the Clone jutsu, the Substitution jutsu and the Transformation jutsu, though they needed work and were mediocre at best – a mediocre he knew wouldn't make the cut with Zakari around.
His preferred jutsu were the two he knew from his elemental side; the first was easy, yet basic: his Air Slash jutsu. Its low level of power as a technique wouldn't amaze any of the ninja, but it sure was a Genin level technique. Just as he figured before though, he'd need more than that to pass – he needed to excel with an undisputable show of talent to have any hope of getting two points with Zakari as the final judge. His other jutsu would probably do the trick, provided he could actually pull it off.
"I'll go with the second option – I'm not too bad at nature transformation." Shoryu decided, taking note of the fact that Zakari clucked in disapproval; not only did he defy the clan by being a wind adept, but he also seemed to flaunt it, as his primary attack jutsu were those very techniques that he should've been poor at by the very fact of his birth.
"Sure thing." Katane scribbled the details down on a handy clipboard before tearing off a sheet from the back and handing quickly handing it to him before it reacted to his fire element. "Just to check your alignment."
Shoryu grabbed the blank, plain looking slip, and the moment he realised that it was chakra paper the sheet had split in half right down the centre, showing off his elemental affinity for wind.
So it really is true. Reizo noted, observing the event out of the corner of his eye. The kid's a wind type, no doubt about it; it definitely looks odd seeing it from a Zawa family member.
"Alright, so here we are." Zakari announced.
He led the group into another hall similar to the last in size, though its layout was slightly different from the previous. Instead of being completely blank, this hall had at its centre a large X shaped marking on the floor, perhaps a square metre in length and width. For the ten paces that surrounded it upon the roof, floor and walls, tiny circular vents were dotted across each surface, serving as entrance and exit holes for what Shoryu suspected would be a swarm of shuriken.
"Stand on the cross at the centre and don't move from that spot until we instruct you on when it's safe to leave." Instructed Yoshino as she made her way to a lever on the far wall.
Shoryu nodded and swiftly made his way to the large X, stepping over the small potholes in the ground whilst being careful not to break them under his step. Once he was ready he took a balanced stance and gave the female Chunin a signalling nod.
A few excruciating moments passed after the woman jerked down the clunky lever before flying steel began to rain around the boy. Kunai knives, senbon and a whole manner of varying shapes of shuriken flew past him in every direction. From the floor, ceiling and both sides of the wall, projectiles catapulted from the vents with all the ferocity of a Jonin's throw before disappearing into the other side. Instantly Shoryu could see how effective this test was and had to admire whoever came up with such a genius idea; even despite having a strong, unwavering resolve to pass, even Shoryu felt the discomfort in being effectively right in the crossfire of thousands of sharpened steel missiles.
"Stay calm and don't move." Yoshino reminded. "If you stay on that X you're in the blind spot of the vents, but if you move about and step off it in panic you could seriously hurt yourself. We had a girl earlier who flailed about and ended up with three shuriken and a kunai in her right arm."
Great. Wondered Shoryu; he pondered over the validity of that story and whether or not it was merely there to scare him. Whichever was the case, it certainly succeeded; as the razor sharp hailed streamed by him in every direction the boy began to doubt his own abilities and froze momentarily. It's alright. He reminded himself. Just stay calm Shoryu - you can do this.
"You may begin when ready."
Casting aside all previous hesitation, the words of the Chunin led Shoryu immediately into a sequence of five basic hand signs executed in perfect precision as he recalled the array by sounding out the words in his mind, all the while building up his chakra to be as sharp and thin as he could make it.
Tori, Inu, Uma, Tatsu, Tori. He recalled, baring the signs of the bird, the dog, the horse, the dragon, and then back to the bird to finish off.
"Wind Style: Ga-"
Despite being in complete control Shoryu suddenly let out a yelp of pain as a stray senbon from the avalanche of projectiles around him streamed from his surroundings and struck him in the leg, ruining his concentration and forcing him to lose control of the chakra he'd built.
"Galeforce Jutsu!" He managed. He could've stopped and done the array again, though Shoryu knew that if he did so Zakari would take points off him for stalling and so opted to launch the jutsu even despite his loss of focus. A small tornado erupted from the hand sign of the bird, kicking up a whole manner of metallic projectiles and trapping them within its vortex. It was just about a C-rank technique; a formidable jutsu when executed correctly, but therein laid the problem.
In his pain and hesitation Shoryu's Jutsu veered off uncontrollably to the side from a lack of chakra control. It wobbled constantly from the stem of the tornado for just a few seconds before disappearing completely, and whilst those few seconds had shown off the power of the technique it was far from long enough to be effective in combat.
Yoshino jerked up the wall-mounted lever on the wall as Shoryu dropped to one knee. The buzzing static electricity that still shook his body coupled with the pain of the senbon digging into his leg made it inevitable. He jerked it out with a grimace of pain and a splatter of blood as the older ninja rushed over. Shoryu willed himself to stand, though with the fussy, mother-like attitude of the medical Jonin Ruki he was forced to sit again as she tended carefully to the deep puncture.
"That X was supposed to be a blind spot." Said Katane. "One of the senbon must've ricocheted off something else and hit him."
"Indeed." Zakari whispered. "It's unfortunate though it can't be helped. You jutsu was present but not fully formed Shoryu – I'm afraid that's only one point."
Shoryu growled in frustration, though as he looked over the other ninja and saw Reizo eyeing the sensei with a glare of apprehension he realised in horror something that he should've seen from the start. The smugness of his expression, the fact that he carried senbon daily and the convenience of Shoryu being hit right at the moment of his execution – it all added up to tell the boy beyond any shadow of a doubt something that Reizo had clearly seen happen with his own eyes; Zakari had thrown the senbon.
So that's how far he's willing to go to stop me from becoming a fully fledged ninja is it? He'd actually attack one of his own students to deliberately sabotage my attempts. There was always some part of me that figured his resentment for me could just be my imagination running wild; that I was being paranoid. Well at least now I know for sure. That man hates me with every fibre of his being. And you- Shoryu turned his gaze to the Zawa clan Jonin, the man named Reizo. – you saw it didn't you? Why don't you say anything? It's not like I can accuse him is it?
"Don't you think you're being a little harsh Zakari?" said Ruki, standing up after she'd finished sealing Shoryu's wounds. "I mean the kid got hit with a senbon and he still managed to pull off the jutsu; some Genin might cave in at that point."
Zakari sighed and shrugged. "I know Ruki – I wish I could give him more points but it's just not in the rules. It states that any jutsu that is incomplete or flawed must be given a one. It's just bad luck I'm afraid; these things do happen from time to time. Remember he still has one more phase of the exam left and he only needs one more point left to pass."
But it's genjutsu resistance; I missed the class on that and my chakra control needs work! Shoryu calculated. I might be able to pull off a basic release and get a single point, but with the way it's been going so far I'm not sure even that would work – he just keeps making it harder and harder!
"We can begin the first test whenever you're ready since it doesn't require any kind of specialised training room – genjutsu takes place in your mind." Zakari continued. "All you have to do is pull off a successful release within two minutes, if you can do this then you pass the test."
Shoryu nodded; there was no point in worrying about it now, he just had to take whatever Zakari could throw at him and hope he could pull off a successful release in time. "Bring it on!"
"Alright then, but I warn you, we can't be held liable for any trauma you may find within genjutsu." The sensei then made an unconventional hand sign Shoryu had never seen before, and from the look of stunted surprise on Reizo's face he doubted it was on the regular syllabus.
"Ninja Art: House of Devil's Truth!"
Shoryu steeled himself for a world of pain upon Zakari's initiation of the jutsu, but at first he felt nothing. Slowly however, he felt his whole body begin to tip backwards as he fell in a nauseous, suffocating haze through the floor and into a sea of murky brown fluid. On the outside, he knew his exterior form was still standing, but the feeling of falling; of drowning to the bottom of an endless sea overwhelmed him, and so he shut his eyes to shield them from the tainted liquid.
When the boy opened his eyes however the dark ocean had disappeared as he found himself standing in the middle of a room suspended in shadow; a single room of many amidst a gothic estate reminiscent of a haunted house.
"What is this place?" he wondered aloud, looking around in both terror and wonder. Despite knowing that genjutsu was at work, the ninja's curiosity had begun override his every other instinct, begging him to take a look around before he left. But he didn't have to explore - footsteps down a darkened hallway to his left attracted his gaze before the shadowy figure of his own mother materialised from nowhere at the entrance to the door.
"Shoryu, dearest." She spoke sweetly, captivating Shoryu's complete attention with her charming glow of radiance and sincere display of maternal affection before her face suddenly twisted and malformed into an expression of disgust he previously thought her incapable of. "What a shame you were such a disappointment." She spat.
Shoryu's eyes widened in fear as his mother's heartbreaking and out of character revelation struck daggers into his heart. "W-What?" he gasped.
"Didn't even inherit the Raikyogan – the first since any can remember. . . You're a disgrace to me. The shame I feel every time I see my father or sister; how weak I must've been to sire such an unholy offspring as you."
"D-Don't say that mom. . ." whispered the distraught Shoryu. As the genjutsu took complete control over his mind the boy was left helpless against the inevitable current of tears flooding to his eyes. He dropped to his knees, feeling more vulnerable than he'd been in his entire existence – realising that he didn't possess the Raikyogan two years ago was nothing compared to the trauma of hearing the only important person in his life say such hurtful things.
"If only you were more like your father." She hissed.
"No. . . Mom! Stop! Please! I'm sorry!" Shoryu insisted fearfully.
"Zakari! Have you lost your mind? We don't use Genjutsu of that level on the students!"
The distinctive sound of Katane's protesting echoing faintly through the mansion brought Shoryu's completely indulged mind just a little back into reality.
Wait. . . Was that Katane? What's he doing here? . . Wondered the mystified teen.
"It's nothing that'll kill him Katane; as a Genin a shinobi has to be wary of all kinds of attacks from enemy ninja."
Of course. . . This is a genjutsu. . . I can get out of here!
Shoryu's brief moment of clarity was cut off suddenly by another group of ninja appearing to his right out of nowhere. Among them stood Zakari, Reizo, The two kids in his class and perhaps thirty other ninja of the Zawa bloodline, fixing him with that look of judgemental apprehension that he loathed about them. They uttered words of hurt that in his state of panic he thought would stick with him forever: disgrace, shameful, dishonouring and weak; the phrases spread infectiously around the mob before Zakari stepped forwards.
"You? A ninja? Don't make me laugh kid!" he pointed to the headband of the Village Hidden in the Clouds that the group all wore with pride. "You don't have what it takes to get one of these! You're nothing! You're just a failure; a worthless stain on the honourable bloodline of the great Zawa clan!"
"No! Stop it!" cried Shoryu. He clawed pathetically at his bandanna-concealed head in an attempt to cease the traumatic onslaught, feeling like every word was a shuriken to his defenceless mind and that if he endured it any longer he'd die from the pain right there on the spot.
"We don't even send Genin on missions against enemy ninja! That's far too extreme a jutsu - can't you see what it's doing it him?"
Shoryu shook his head violently in an attempt to wake himself from his dream-state after Katane's words reminded him of the situation once again. It's a genjutsu Shoryu! I might not have been to the classes but I at least know the science behind a release.
Under the intense pressure of his family's spiteful words boring daggers into his mind Shoryu tried desperately to slow the flow of his chakra to a complete stop. It was difficult, but in time he managed to slow it to a steady pace, and with the ever approaching ghosts making him act hastily he deemed it would be enough. With a shakily executed hand sign Shoryu transferred his chakra with a rushing motion to one burst of energy.
"Release!"
A flash of white light suddenly escaped from Shoryu's body, filling most of the room in its holy glare. As powerful as the outburst was though, the bloom didn't quite manage to engulf the entirety of the room, and subsided into darkness after its short burst.
"Release!" he cried again. This time the solar flash was even weaker, as with the lack of control and manipulation he wasted his chakra quickly under the slowly approaching ninja of his family. He knew that if he could somehow manage to make the light shroud the room completely he'd be free from the genjutsu, but for all his efforts he lacked the steady composure and chakra control he needed to pull it off.
I have to get out of here! There has to be another way to escape this genjutsu!
Out of the corner of his eye another figure suddenly presented itself to Shoryu, shrouded in a shadow concealing the person's identity. He didn't need to see the person's face to know who it was though – despite never knowing the man, Shoryu knew right away that the silhouetted figure meandering through the final doorway was his father. He abandoned all logic in a heartbeat and dedicated everything into finding a way out, determined to escape now that this man had appeared. He no longer cared about passing the exam – it meant nothing to him in his condition, he just needed to get the hell out of this nightmare that had consumed him.
"Release! Release! Release damn it!" he wailed in desperation. The flashes of light from his body only grew weaker and weaker as the figure loomed ever closer, appearing to him as a reaper closing in on its unworthy prey.
"You think a great ninja like me could be proud of someone like you?" the man's muffled words struck hammer blows at Shoryu that made the previous insults from his mother and clan feel like nothing with the suffering he now endured. "You're nothing."
As his mind raced to the last vestiges of his memory Shoryu recalled a second method to escape the clutches of a genjutsu – a far more difficult and punishing technique to say the least, though in Shoryu's view anything would've been better than dying here, insignificant and worthless in the shadow of his greatest fears.
He drew the small shoto blade strapped to his belt on his right side before plunging it without hesitation into his left leg. Again the flash of white shined; brighter even than before, but under the powerful hold of Zakari's jutsu it still didn't quite fill the room entirely.
"Zakari stop! He's gonna kill himself! Release the genjutsu!"
"Just five more seconds Katane." Zakari sneered.
Ignoring the pain from his left quadriceps screaming for him to stop, Shoryu withdrew the blade and stabbed down again an inch or two lower, and when that didn't work he stabbed a third time in terror-fuelled madness. Blood cascaded like a jet powered shower from three deep wounds in his leg as the same liquid splattered as crimson paint over his sword and onto his clothing, but he'd stopped caring long ago – he had to get out – he had to get free.
Shoryu was only moments away from taking the blade to his neck when a flash of white not of his doing filled the room and he found himself once again kneeling down at the centre of the academy hall, unsure of which parts had been real. As he looked down to his mess of a left leg he realised that every physical action he'd taken in the illusion had been real. He'd carved three horrendously painful wounds into his leg and his supposed teacher had allowed it all in his resolve to fail the boy.
He breathed laboriously and dropped to all fours in fatigue, dripping wet from a literal concoction of blood, sweat and tears. Now that he'd gotten back into his usual frame of mind he dreaded the next words; as Ruki the medical Jonin raced over him he hung his head in misery, sparing himself the grinning expression of his cheerful sensei.
"Sorry to have inflicted such damage Shoryu, but the fact remains that you failed to release the genjutsu and fell right into its trap. As such you score zero for this phase of the test, putting your final score at five and meaning you fail the exam."
.
Author's Notes: Well that's that. Hope you enjoyed the first installments. If you can spare the time feel free to give me any and all feedback - I'm completely open to criticism so don't be shy.
Just like with DBAF, chapters should usually come about once every two weeks. It's not an absolute measure since I often have a lot of university exams, presentations and assignments to do on top of a part time job and working on my own novel, but I try and stick to it as closely as possible.
I'll draw up and post a picture of Shoryu and the other characters whenever I get the time if only to emphasise that I tried to make him as little a Mary-Sue as possible - the guy looks and acts almost nothing like me or anyone I know, but I haven't completely fleshed out his character yet so I'll try and put some nods to his outlook and attitudes in the following chapters. I wanted him to have smarts and be dependable but also impulsive and free-spirited if that makes sense.