Diamond in the Ruff (Training)

The past two nights, the jungle was alive with the sounds of revelry. And Asura was smack in the center of. After having mastered his Nature Training, it appeared that the other tigers had truly welcomed him as one of their tribe. He didn't understand why they would, or how Ravana was counted among them-- but it felt good to be cared about, welcomed and admired by them.

Admired might of not of been the best word, as many would jest and say they had high expectations of him. All to which Vidav told Asura to relax and just enjoy the party.

The only thing missing for him were some women for him to hang out with. Shame the only women there were female felines. Not the same thing...

Now Asura laid out on the cool grass. The wind grazed his skin as he felt his limbs ache a bit. He had done some physical training, and meditation earlier, to keep the sensation of nature energy fresh in his mind... but he still had questions in his mind.

"Last night tire you out?" a voice asked.

Asura slowly opened his eyes and looked up to find Vidav. On the edge of the mountain cliff, Vidav looked down from a nearby stone slab, which he hop off and to the ground below in an easy pounce.

Asura got up and approached the robed white tiger elder. "A little bit. Honestly, its a bit overwhelming to know what happened."

"Masterying Nature Energy is no easy feat-- even for us animals," Vidav explained with a humble bow of his head and held his arms behind him. " And the other tigers were thrilled to welcome such a promising human among us-- let alone one who completed the training. You should feel proud."

"I know... I'm sorry, Lord Vidav. I just got a bit on my mind," he said and stretched his limbs. "I am very grateful for all your tutorage and hospitality. Its more than I deserve... and so not in character with your tribe's mercenary image."

Vidav smiled. "Haha... well rumors aside, they kept us safe for quite some time. But you are far from an outsider now, Asura. Besides, I personally enjoy the company of humans now and again... they make great snacks."

Asura was about to talk, but stopped at the last comment. A nervous smirk appeared on him. "Uh, cooking or eating...?" Asura asked, taking the smirking tiger's words seriously.

"Hahaha... you're too easy, Asura," Vidav laughed.

As the white tiger bellowed, Asura smiled, and felt a familiar sensation as he talked with the tiger. His gaze softened as he looked at him and smiled.

"Hm? Something wrong?" Vidav asked, seeing the distant look on Asura's face.

"Huh? Oh sorry... just, you remind me a lot of my old master." Asura said. "I think you and him would of gotten along."

Vidav's tiger ears perked up at the compliment. "Oh? Was he a nice mentor to you? What was he like?" he asked.

Asura smiled, the memory of Roku sentimental and miss Iwa a bit. "He was the best. His name was Roku. He was a respected hero from my village and was called 'Roku the Red Sage.'. " Asura took a moment and looked to the sky. "Thinking back on it, i always assumed the name was a title only. But i wonder if Roku actually pulled off learning the same training."

Vidav paused. He was no fool... Ravana told Boss Byakko-- who told Vidav Asura's predicament. It was half of the reason how he was even able to live among the Blood Vale Tigers. Still, Vidav was sympathetic. "Your master was a great man, I'm sure. Students reflect after their masters... He raised you well."

"He was more than my master. He was family too...." Asura said, but shook his head. He didn't want to be sad, so he pushed the memory away for the moment. "Anyway, any chance we can go over more training? You told me there were techniques I could learn that use this Nature Energy."

Vidav paused and cleared his throat. "Yes. Now that you can use Nature Energy, you will be able to now use Sage jutsu chakra. By combining the chakra with the nature energy you gather, they will create powerful techniques that outclass ninjutsu you know.

Thinking back, Asura remembered the fight of the 4th ninja war that the 7th Hokage used a Sage Art himself-- and it was strong enough to damage Mantan despite his powered up shield. The shield that just ate every jutsu Asura threw at him.

"What kind of techniques?" Asura asked.

Vidav looked up to Asura with a tilt from his hood. "Well that depends on you and the jutsu you create. There are many kinds. Sadly i don't know of any techniques to teach you... but," Vidav slowly looked around the surroundings. "Well, lets start with what skills you do have. You clearly are skilled in nature transformation jutsu. What kind of chakra natures do you use?"

"Um... Fire and Blaze release-- naturally--, Earth, Lava Release... oh and Yang release of late. "Asura explained.

Vidav rubbed his chin with his paw in thought. His gaze slowly came to the ground and the rocks of the cliff that overlooked them. "Well, actually its a good thing you can use Earth Style. I might know something that can help."

Slowly, Vidav moved to the cliffside and lightly began to kick the rocks there by his feet. He gently moved them about as he talked. "Asura, nature energy comes from the land itself. Chakra Nature training involves you using your own chakra to become a part of the environment around it. Nature energy is different. However, to use the two together will yield powerful results. Anyway, among all the elements, earth is probably the most rich in nature energy."

"So I should try to use Nature Energy with my Earth Style jutsu?" Asura asked.

"Yes, and No. There is no real limit to what Nature Energy can be applied to," Vidav said, but turned to smirk at Asura. "I am told you are a very creative individual. I am sure you can come up with something. But for now there is more to earth than meets the eye, don't you agree?"

Asura nodded as he followed Vidav. "Yes. Originally, i picked up Earth Style so I could cover for my weakness to water. Earth is superior to water, which is superior to fire. Lava style was also a factor I liked as well." he explained. "But the more I learned how to use it, the more versatile I learned it was."

"Yes, I see. Earth is indeed an element with great potential," Vidav said. "I, myself, can use Earth Release. However, there is much more Earth is capable of." He took another step and stopped. He knelt down and picked up a rock near his foot. He tapped it with a hairy knuckle and held it in his paw. "Earth is an element of nurture. It creates, gives life and emboldens what it produces to thrive. "

He turned with a smile and showed the stone before Asura. "On the surface, its grimy. Rough around the edges. Hard-headed at times. Sound familiar?" Vidav joked with a glance at Asura. As the boy frowned a bit at him, the tiger continued. "However, appearances can be deceiving. For within..."

Vidav took a sturdy grip of the stone with both his paws. With either the aid of chakra, or perhaps stronger than how he looked like-- he gripped the stone hard, and ripped it in half as if it was an apple. Asura blinked at the display of strengh... but soon saw what Vidav had intended to show.

"... a trove of untapped potential awaits." The tiger revealed the stone was hollow-- with glistening quartz crystals inside.

Asura's eyes widened as he saw the gemstones. He had seen them used in many wares in the past. "Um, that's impressive, but what does this have to do with Sage Jutsu?"

"Asura, you wield the power of earth. Through proper training, you can use the power of earth to nurture your Earth Release jutsu into something more potent and sturdy. Like a diamond, or other hard substance. More importantly, if you throw sage jutsu chakra into the mix, the powers they can have will expand exponentially. " With that, he handed the crystal rock over to Asura. The crystals were shiny and glistened in the sunlight as he looked at it.

"A crystal release huh?"

"This is just one example of how Nature energy can be applied. We will go over other examples tomorrow. In the meantime, take this moment to train in this new art, and learn about it." With that, Vidav turned and left to walk through the jungle.

With him gone, Asura got to work and began to mold chakra to try and create his new jutsu...

End Thread.

1500 words exp.

Dice Roll. 2 Rolls for Crystal Release Training. 3rd roll for Str.

The member 'Enjin' has done the following action : Dice

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'Exercise Dice' : 6, 2, 2

Totals with Quick Learner ability.

+12% Crystal Release. 4 to Strength.