Roku, still donning his masked persona, had finally clawed his way towards the Kazekage's tower. Since waking from his coma he had desired to make it to this area, but he was told of its destruction from the beginning and decided there was no point to head to that area. After learning that Sousuke was out of the village, it seemed even less important to come to this desolate area, however, there was something inside of Roku that told him to head this way. Deep down, regardless of Sousuke being out of the village, he believed that there was something within the tower that could assist him. His goal was to scour the ruins for any sort of hint.
There has to be something here. He is a meticulous man, he had to have some sort of documentation from finding me.
His frame paused for a moment, staring into the pile of ruin that laid before him. It was a sight, the carnage that was unleashed and the wreckage that remained. Approaching the rubble, his right foot would swing forward, connecting with a large chunk of what use to be tower and sending it flying off into the distance. His strength was a personal point of pride. The ability to kick a hulking mass of stone off several meters away was nothing out of the ordinary for him. His whole life was spent either taking a beating or giving a beating. To get to that point he had trained his muscles to great extremes. It never donned on him that his limits, the extent he could push his body, was far greater than those of his age and even some of those older. His loner mindset and only being around his brother, who also shared his unnatural strength, caused him to overlook his physical ability.
"Now where would it be... where would it be..."
Probably under all this crap, right?
He would nod to himself as he slowly began to remove the cape that accompanied his vigilante attire. Without further hesitation his hands would dart downward, jutting each hand squarely upon different piece of rubble, and would begin tossing the remains aside. It was like a child digging through his toys or laundry, except this child was just out of his teens, extremely tall and chucking around boulder sized pieces of stone. His tempo started out slow but would quickly increase to a near frantic pace. The muscles in his arms, shoulders, back, chest and leg began to enlarge. With each toss of the loose rubble, his muscles would become more swollen. This was something he always had a knack for, in fact engrossing his muscle mass to monstrous levels was something he did to punk down potential bar fight victims. It, like so much of his physical make up, was lost on him just what ability his body had in comparison to those that surrounded him. His strength was like that of a bull, but if that bull was a monster as well... it was like Bull/Monstrous Strength was an ability he possessed. His strength was extraordinary, even in a world where people could shoot fire from their mouths on command. Sweat poured from his face but because of his mask the humidity from his pooling moisture would not have a good outlet and would begin to collect within the mask, increasing the heat his head and face would feel. Was this a moment when it mattered to keep his identity concealed?
No.... it doesn't matter... I must do this...
His thoughts were clear; the mask had to go. His left hand would release its grip from a piece of stone and snap up to his face and rip the white mask off of himself and send it flying. With that obstruction gone he would continue to deconstruct the remaining obstructions before him. The dust would continue to pick up as this progressively bulkier gopher would continue to submerge himself into the debris, or digging his own foolish grave. Either way, his figure could no longer be seen by those that happened upon the destroyed tower. Everything was going smoothly until...
"ARGH!!!!"
Was that a cartoonish noise to be making--the bewildered moan came from the little blonde haired diglet as he noticed that his body had received a new piece of decoration; a metal bar piercing through the lower left side of his abdomen. During his frantic removal, he failed to release that his thoughtless jerking might stir up some of the debris in a negative manner. A piece of the rebar that was once part of the fortification of the wall had loosened from the explosion and was merely biding its time to come flying out in the off chance that some jackass came along and started tossing piece of said wall around. Now, because of his tunnel vision, he found himself injured. His hands would release the pieces of stone they held and his attention would be focused on the current situation.
"Well if that ain't just fan....tas...tic..."
He wanted to be frustrated but instead he found himself feeling drained. His body would come crashing down upon his knees as the blonde male hunched over. There was no further moans or grunts of pain, just a look of a confusion. Did this little chunk of metal really cause this much damage to his body? The correct answer would be 'no'. In fact, the damage from the bar would have merely been a minor flesh wound for the youthful lad on a normal day, but he currently wasn't having a normal day. He was sleeping a couple of hours a night, he had been in countless fights, he had recently awoken from a coma, he had recently been poisoned, he had recently found out he died on thirteen different occasions before waking from that coma mentioned earlier, and he had recently went through a process of slaughtering countless people that he deemed lost causes. There was physical, mental and emotional wear-and-tear that he had been subjugated to ever since waking. His body's natural resilience had afforded him the ability to push past all the accumulated damage and baggage his body had collected over the time of this occupied village, but it seemed today would be the last day. The last day came a rotten time as he was now at least six feet deep in the rubble of the tower and the walls that surrounded him were loosely piled broken pieces that had no structure, foundation or reason to stick together. He was now exhausted, sitting in a hole he dug that could collapse at any moment.
Dug my own grave... classic.
Gasping, wincing and convulsing were all Roku could do right now. Staring down at the bar, his eyes were trying to muster a plan but his body did not feel the urge to work. It's not like it would require much to rid him of this problem; pull out the damn bar. This simple plan, this easy fixer, this solution that would cause a normal person to probably go into shock and pass out or die from blood loss, would not come to fruition at this time. Instead the blood, the exhaustion and the mental instability that had been created over the course of this new journey would cause his eyes to grow heavy. His kneeling frame would begin to waiver, fighting the urge to collapse and losing the urge to remain upright. During his wafting, his eyes would vaguely catch something that would set off a sensation in his mind. Looking down, focusing with all of his might he would read what had caught his attention as clearly as he could at this moment; ROKU, OKAYAMA.
This... is this... this my file?
Reaching outwards, Roku would collapse upon the pile of debris under him, causing the unstable walls around him to quake slightly, as his hands grasped the folder and tugged at it slightly trying to free it. The folder looked to be half submerged under some metal, stone and various shattered pieces of wood. The more he tried to free it the more it would refuse to budge. His strength felt sapped, like some super-man being affected by a green rock, his kryptonite if you will. Instead of resigning to the fact he could not get the folder out of the pile, he would instead do the next best thing his sometimes simple mind could think of; rip the folder to expose some of its content. Roku had a good head on his shoulder but no one ever accused him of being a genius.
With the first rip, Roku would start to read. The beginning appeared to be some metrics that were evaluated from his time in the academy, basic measurements from his latest checkups and prior Chuunin Exam, and his mission log. He was only able to read about 3/4ths of the pages thanks to the entrapment of the folder but it was still enough, he hoped, to learn something to help piece together his accident, well his other accident. He continued to read seeing information on his family, his father's dishonorable past, his mother's dishonorable future and lastly a brief about his brother, Saemon. Saemon was reported as M.I.A. This information caused a feeling of rage and frustration to swell up inside of him.
******FLASHBACK******
Ten years ago...
"Come on Roku! Is that all you can do?!"
Saemon barked backwards as his continued at a brisk jogging pace. Behind him was his younger brother with a red face and a look of strain. The young child had a series of straps around his shirtless body as he struggled to catch up to his older brother. Behind him the straps were connected to a series of six boulders that were double the six of the young child and each one tripled his own weight.
"When I was you age I could have drug eight of them at nearly a running pace. I guess you are the perfect runt to complete the family’s failures; dead dad, drunk mother and a wimpy little baby!"
The expression on the elder brother was playful, as was his tone. Deep down he knew his little brother could handle the playful teasing, and he knew it would also piss him off at the same time.
"You...shut.... up..."
His anger began to burst forth from his tiny body as every muscle, something quite terrifying to see on a ten year old, began to expand to a point of definition that made him look like a very short adult body builder.
"I... am..."
There was a loud pop that caused Saemon to pause and his expression to sullen. The right leg of Roku had snapped under the strain of his current training.
"Roku! Shit, shit, shit!"
Saemon began to turn back for his baby brother and find him some medical treatment.
"DON'T!"
The decibel level of the scream was immense and Saemon came to a sudden stop, but not because of the scream. What caused Saemon to stop on a dime was what his brother's body was doing. A wave of chakra, nearly looking like electricity, began to appear around the body of the child. His eyes suddenly turned white as his blonde hair shot up into the air. What happened next was something Saemon never told anyone.
"I AM NOT A BABY!"
With that outburst there was a miniature explosion of chakra as the leg of Roku seemed to snap back together. The veins on his body began to bulge out as his skinned seemed to darken slightly. A faint glow began to emit from where his heart was, followed by other parts of his upper body to give off a glowing orb like image. With all the force he could muster the tiny frame of Roku shot forth like a kunai slung by the Kazekage himself. His leg muscles expanded and then quickly tightened, looking like a sausage about to burst, and tore up the ground beneath them as they rocketed forward. The tiny blur, followed by the boulders, zoomed past Saemon a few meters before the chakra dispersed and the ominous feeling Saemon had passed. Approaching his brother, he would notice the little Roku was out cold, the strain from the constant chakra aura had wasted all his stamina.
"Just what the hell..."
When Roku awoke he would not remember the events that had just taken place nor the fact he broke his leg, and since the leg seemed to be completely healed there was nothing Saemon would be able to say to convince him. Instead, Saemon chose to keep this information to himself until he could do some further digging.
******END******
Unbeknownst to Roku, the frustration and anger he was feeling was bordering on the same he had felt that day. Since he had no recollection of that moment he would fail to realize that at this moment. Instead he would continue flipping through the folder until finally finding something that would cause him to lose his frustration and anger, something that would cause his mind to suddenly go blank.
Okayama Roku had been found collapsed in the Diamond Maelstrom. His body was badly scarred and his muscle tissue seemed to be shattered from within. The damage caused from him could be attributed to the harsh storm above, but upon further examination it would seem that his body was mainly destroyed from within. His chakra gates were still pulsating within internal energy. It is unknown what might have caused such a thing to naturally occur within Chuunin Roku, but it is clear whatever it was done has placed him in a near death state. Further tests will be performed.
He continued to read the portions he could see, and while he did not have the full picture some terms continued to pop up; "chakra gates", "inhuman", "forbidden", "excessive strain on the human body", "unnatural healing properties". Whatever it was that Roku was looking for in his attempt to venture out of the village seemed to bring with it great misfortune.
"What... what... was I... doing..."
His voice was weak. His brain, one of the few things still functioning half way decently at this point, began to churn, trying to remember why he left the village. While he struggled to remember the thoughts of his brother began to resurface. Was Saemon associated with his departure? It was at that time something within his mind began to click. Images started to flood into clarity from his scrambled memory...
******SIX MONTHS AGO******
It was at this time that I received a letter from Saemon. I had just spent an awkward afternoon convincing Sousuke's father to grant me a passport so I could go out from the village in order to follow up Saemon's words; "Brother, I have left the village and there is something I need to talk to you about... about what I've held hidden from you for years. In order to achieve this you will need to leave the village and survive the Diamond Maelstrom, so don't attempt this until you reach Chuunin. Ya damned brat!"
Those words agitated me, which was fairly common reaction to a message from Saemon, but also caused concern. He had been associated with some shinobi he had recently let out of the village, the type that gave off a bad feeling. Were they the reason I felt so uncomfortable about this message or was it more so the words? I never understood why but ever since I was younger the expression Saemon gave me had begun to change. Each year our bonding training, the training he had put himself through, lessened, until he was no longer even inviting me. I just assumed it had to do with growing as an individual, but the more I asked him to take me on a training trip the more his expression changed. He was worried. Why?
With some trouble brewing in my heart I went towards the gate and slowly was raised to the surface. During that moment I didn't know what to expect. I had always heard about the storm, yet had never ventured upwards to see it for myself. What I saw was nothing like what my imagination could prepare me for; the air before me looked like wavy sand paper. It was dense, I had no idea how someone was expected to walk through such a mess. It never occurred to me that this was the reason I had been warned about coming top side, but I didn't care. I had to meet with Saemon.
Further and further I ventured out into the storm. More and more of my protective attire was eaten by the cutting diamond wind. Every so often I would come across a rock formation or a slight indention in the surface so I could get some rest from the continual beating that had been occurring. It was on one such stop that I found a jacket that had belonged to my brother. Within the jacket was another note; "Roku, If you have made it that far then you still have the promise I always saw in you... however, you will not make it to where I am unless you are able to break your limits and reach the potential locked inside. From this point onward I will make sure to crush any form of coverage that you could use. You will either unleash your full potential or turn back to the village. See ya, brother."
I remember being torn by the note. Just what the hell was the point and what all could he possibly be meaning? How was I supposed to pass my limits? Hadn't I already proven my worth during the Chuunin exams for him? Maybe there is something else to it, my mind just couldn't process it at the time. So instead of immediately acting I chose to wait, choosing to tackle this issue conservatively for change.
The more I reflected on my idiot brother's idiot comments, the more the first statement began to bug me. The mention of a "promise" he saw inside, does that mean I had done something in the past to prove to him that I had the ability inside me to brave the storm with little to no protection? It was at this time I began to rethink over everything I had done training-wise with Saemon from our past. From one finger pushups to hanging sit ups, with the added challenge of jabbing my toes into the stone ceiling to hold myself within the air. I benched rocks found within the crevasse and I dug holes within the ground with downward heel kicks, which also conveniently gave me a nice letting bedding spot.
I wasn't sure if it was hours or days that had passed, all I could hear or see was the whirling madness of the storm when I ventured out of my little haven. Within the confines of my shelter I would periodically utilize my chakra to create a flame to illuminate the dark. The more I reflected on my childhood the further it seemed I was getting from what the message was trying to hint to me. It wasn't until the point that I reached complete exhaustion and frustration that I resigned to just collapsing on the ground and staring helplessly up into the ceiling of the cave. I don't know what caused me to discharge a current of electrical chakra into the air, it had been something I was toying around with so it just felt right, but when I did I noticed something I had not before; there were markings on the ceiling. Utilizing my chakra in the form of fire once more I illuminated the cave brighter than I had ever done prior and before my eyes was a simple, crude drawing of two stick figures, one larger and the other smaller but with several circles behind it.
At first I assumed it was just some dumb drawing Saemon had done to pass the time but before I could dismiss it the memories of being that little stick figure seemed to flood back into my mind. The feelings, the frustration and the strain all came back to me vividly, and then in a transcended state, may have been due to the exhaustion, lack of knowing what time it was and lack of a proper meal in days, I seemed to remember the moment I had forgot. The snapping of my leg, the explosion of energy and the healing of my leg, it was all there. But why lie to me about it? Before I could linger on that thought new memories continued to flood into my mind from my training exercises with Saemon and at the end of each I would collapse. Was this why Saemon shied away from these trainings as things progressed? How long did I black out after each time I exploded with chakra? I assumed this was what he wanted to talk to me about.
With the the idea in place, there was nothing left for me to do aside from foolishly go out into the storm and bravely trek to the end of it. This was my brother's last training exercise, at least that it how I felt. So removing the extra baggage, I went out into the whirling, slicing winds. The initial burst caught me off guard but I continued to push, I continued to march onward. My muscles started to quake, my legs felt heavy, and my clothing was getting minced to shreds, but I continued onward. I finally reached the point that forty percent of my body was exposed to the winds without protection, I could feel myself being torn to shreds, but I pushed onward with the only thought in my mind being Saemon.
Then I finally reached the tipping point. I stumble and fell to a knee as the winds pushed against my violently. I had to fight in order to hold myself in place, to keep from losing my ground that I had gained, yet I knew it was fruitless. However, I could only imagine my smug brother's face watching me in such a helpless state. It drove me mad, it gave my muscles one more push, even though I knew they could not handle anymore. My body had to go forward. I let out the most guttural, primal howl I could muster, it was almost like an out of body experience, and suddenly my body was engulfed in light. It was like something snapped within my body, like a miniature dam had been released, and a rush of energy surged through me. I could feel myself sprinting through the winds. I had conquered the unconquerable maelstrom. I was god. And just like, I was blacked out.
*****BACK TO NOW*****
Roku's eyes were fixated on the paper before him. The memory, like a movie, played within his mind as his hands released the paper. After searching and searching his missing memories finally seemed to restore themselves. From this added information it was safe to assume he had blacked out from exhaustion within the maelstrom andthat would explain his devastated body.
While these revelations were occurring, the walling that surrounded him continued to shake and give way as more and more chunks came sliding out of their loose fitting place. Soon it would truly be his grave if he did not act, unless his body was still unable to act.
There is something, something within me. Something that allows me to pass the physical limits I possess. Something that allows me to break free from the constraints of humanity. If I can learn to harness that power I can keep from blacking out and venture to where Saemon is, I can finally find out what my brother knows about me that he could never say.
Deep down he understood that there was very little more his brother could offer him about what he had already realized about the power within, he just needed to justify it to himself. Back on the forefront of his mind, his attention turned to the collapsing hole he had dug himself into. Piece after piece began to fall and land around him. It wouldn't take long before he was completely buried.
"No... no... I survived the hellish training."
His body began to tremble as the youth started to push himself up from the ground.
"I survived the damned maelstrom..."
His muscles began to flex, expand and tighten once more as his right hand grabbed the bar that had pierced him and drew it out of his own flesh.
"Heck... I ran through the storm like it was a gentle breeze..."
He could feel the chakra engulfing his body as eight separate points began to highlight upon his body, starting from his heart.
"I cannot... I will not be done in by some pile of crap..."
The glowing areas of his body would turn to a full aura of chakra that shrouded his body. With the shroud came a sensation of invincibility. He felt like he could do anything.
"I AM OKAYAMA ROKU!"
The aura around him erupted into an explosion as his figure started to dart upwards and out of the hole. Accompanying his quick move was a thundering boom, like a cannonball being fired. His body landed upon the ground, still glowing with the outpouring chakra as he marveled at himself. Looking around his eyes seemed to see the world differently, more clearly. His body seemed to have already completely healed from the injuries sustained not just from his brief moment in the debris, but from all his battles thus far. He no longer felt the pain, aches or exhaustion. He was superhuman.
"Chakra gates... maybe I should have paid closer attention in the academy..."
The chakra shroud would subside as he summoned his ANBU mask once more. Placing it upon his face he would begin to leave the area. It was now time to better understand what was lying within his body, what he could do and then utilize his natural gift to find the answers he wanted.
Kinjutsu App: Hachimon - 4345 words
There has to be something here. He is a meticulous man, he had to have some sort of documentation from finding me.
His frame paused for a moment, staring into the pile of ruin that laid before him. It was a sight, the carnage that was unleashed and the wreckage that remained. Approaching the rubble, his right foot would swing forward, connecting with a large chunk of what use to be tower and sending it flying off into the distance. His strength was a personal point of pride. The ability to kick a hulking mass of stone off several meters away was nothing out of the ordinary for him. His whole life was spent either taking a beating or giving a beating. To get to that point he had trained his muscles to great extremes. It never donned on him that his limits, the extent he could push his body, was far greater than those of his age and even some of those older. His loner mindset and only being around his brother, who also shared his unnatural strength, caused him to overlook his physical ability.
"Now where would it be... where would it be..."
Probably under all this crap, right?
He would nod to himself as he slowly began to remove the cape that accompanied his vigilante attire. Without further hesitation his hands would dart downward, jutting each hand squarely upon different piece of rubble, and would begin tossing the remains aside. It was like a child digging through his toys or laundry, except this child was just out of his teens, extremely tall and chucking around boulder sized pieces of stone. His tempo started out slow but would quickly increase to a near frantic pace. The muscles in his arms, shoulders, back, chest and leg began to enlarge. With each toss of the loose rubble, his muscles would become more swollen. This was something he always had a knack for, in fact engrossing his muscle mass to monstrous levels was something he did to punk down potential bar fight victims. It, like so much of his physical make up, was lost on him just what ability his body had in comparison to those that surrounded him. His strength was like that of a bull, but if that bull was a monster as well... it was like Bull/Monstrous Strength was an ability he possessed. His strength was extraordinary, even in a world where people could shoot fire from their mouths on command. Sweat poured from his face but because of his mask the humidity from his pooling moisture would not have a good outlet and would begin to collect within the mask, increasing the heat his head and face would feel. Was this a moment when it mattered to keep his identity concealed?
No.... it doesn't matter... I must do this...
His thoughts were clear; the mask had to go. His left hand would release its grip from a piece of stone and snap up to his face and rip the white mask off of himself and send it flying. With that obstruction gone he would continue to deconstruct the remaining obstructions before him. The dust would continue to pick up as this progressively bulkier gopher would continue to submerge himself into the debris, or digging his own foolish grave. Either way, his figure could no longer be seen by those that happened upon the destroyed tower. Everything was going smoothly until...
"ARGH!!!!"
Was that a cartoonish noise to be making--the bewildered moan came from the little blonde haired diglet as he noticed that his body had received a new piece of decoration; a metal bar piercing through the lower left side of his abdomen. During his frantic removal, he failed to release that his thoughtless jerking might stir up some of the debris in a negative manner. A piece of the rebar that was once part of the fortification of the wall had loosened from the explosion and was merely biding its time to come flying out in the off chance that some jackass came along and started tossing piece of said wall around. Now, because of his tunnel vision, he found himself injured. His hands would release the pieces of stone they held and his attention would be focused on the current situation.
"Well if that ain't just fan....tas...tic..."
He wanted to be frustrated but instead he found himself feeling drained. His body would come crashing down upon his knees as the blonde male hunched over. There was no further moans or grunts of pain, just a look of a confusion. Did this little chunk of metal really cause this much damage to his body? The correct answer would be 'no'. In fact, the damage from the bar would have merely been a minor flesh wound for the youthful lad on a normal day, but he currently wasn't having a normal day. He was sleeping a couple of hours a night, he had been in countless fights, he had recently awoken from a coma, he had recently been poisoned, he had recently found out he died on thirteen different occasions before waking from that coma mentioned earlier, and he had recently went through a process of slaughtering countless people that he deemed lost causes. There was physical, mental and emotional wear-and-tear that he had been subjugated to ever since waking. His body's natural resilience had afforded him the ability to push past all the accumulated damage and baggage his body had collected over the time of this occupied village, but it seemed today would be the last day. The last day came a rotten time as he was now at least six feet deep in the rubble of the tower and the walls that surrounded him were loosely piled broken pieces that had no structure, foundation or reason to stick together. He was now exhausted, sitting in a hole he dug that could collapse at any moment.
Dug my own grave... classic.
Gasping, wincing and convulsing were all Roku could do right now. Staring down at the bar, his eyes were trying to muster a plan but his body did not feel the urge to work. It's not like it would require much to rid him of this problem; pull out the damn bar. This simple plan, this easy fixer, this solution that would cause a normal person to probably go into shock and pass out or die from blood loss, would not come to fruition at this time. Instead the blood, the exhaustion and the mental instability that had been created over the course of this new journey would cause his eyes to grow heavy. His kneeling frame would begin to waiver, fighting the urge to collapse and losing the urge to remain upright. During his wafting, his eyes would vaguely catch something that would set off a sensation in his mind. Looking down, focusing with all of his might he would read what had caught his attention as clearly as he could at this moment; ROKU, OKAYAMA.
This... is this... this my file?
Reaching outwards, Roku would collapse upon the pile of debris under him, causing the unstable walls around him to quake slightly, as his hands grasped the folder and tugged at it slightly trying to free it. The folder looked to be half submerged under some metal, stone and various shattered pieces of wood. The more he tried to free it the more it would refuse to budge. His strength felt sapped, like some super-man being affected by a green rock, his kryptonite if you will. Instead of resigning to the fact he could not get the folder out of the pile, he would instead do the next best thing his sometimes simple mind could think of; rip the folder to expose some of its content. Roku had a good head on his shoulder but no one ever accused him of being a genius.
With the first rip, Roku would start to read. The beginning appeared to be some metrics that were evaluated from his time in the academy, basic measurements from his latest checkups and prior Chuunin Exam, and his mission log. He was only able to read about 3/4ths of the pages thanks to the entrapment of the folder but it was still enough, he hoped, to learn something to help piece together his accident, well his other accident. He continued to read seeing information on his family, his father's dishonorable past, his mother's dishonorable future and lastly a brief about his brother, Saemon. Saemon was reported as M.I.A. This information caused a feeling of rage and frustration to swell up inside of him.
******FLASHBACK******
Ten years ago...
"Come on Roku! Is that all you can do?!"
Saemon barked backwards as his continued at a brisk jogging pace. Behind him was his younger brother with a red face and a look of strain. The young child had a series of straps around his shirtless body as he struggled to catch up to his older brother. Behind him the straps were connected to a series of six boulders that were double the six of the young child and each one tripled his own weight.
"When I was you age I could have drug eight of them at nearly a running pace. I guess you are the perfect runt to complete the family’s failures; dead dad, drunk mother and a wimpy little baby!"
The expression on the elder brother was playful, as was his tone. Deep down he knew his little brother could handle the playful teasing, and he knew it would also piss him off at the same time.
"You...shut.... up..."
His anger began to burst forth from his tiny body as every muscle, something quite terrifying to see on a ten year old, began to expand to a point of definition that made him look like a very short adult body builder.
"I... am..."
There was a loud pop that caused Saemon to pause and his expression to sullen. The right leg of Roku had snapped under the strain of his current training.
"Roku! Shit, shit, shit!"
Saemon began to turn back for his baby brother and find him some medical treatment.
"DON'T!"
The decibel level of the scream was immense and Saemon came to a sudden stop, but not because of the scream. What caused Saemon to stop on a dime was what his brother's body was doing. A wave of chakra, nearly looking like electricity, began to appear around the body of the child. His eyes suddenly turned white as his blonde hair shot up into the air. What happened next was something Saemon never told anyone.
"I AM NOT A BABY!"
With that outburst there was a miniature explosion of chakra as the leg of Roku seemed to snap back together. The veins on his body began to bulge out as his skinned seemed to darken slightly. A faint glow began to emit from where his heart was, followed by other parts of his upper body to give off a glowing orb like image. With all the force he could muster the tiny frame of Roku shot forth like a kunai slung by the Kazekage himself. His leg muscles expanded and then quickly tightened, looking like a sausage about to burst, and tore up the ground beneath them as they rocketed forward. The tiny blur, followed by the boulders, zoomed past Saemon a few meters before the chakra dispersed and the ominous feeling Saemon had passed. Approaching his brother, he would notice the little Roku was out cold, the strain from the constant chakra aura had wasted all his stamina.
"Just what the hell..."
When Roku awoke he would not remember the events that had just taken place nor the fact he broke his leg, and since the leg seemed to be completely healed there was nothing Saemon would be able to say to convince him. Instead, Saemon chose to keep this information to himself until he could do some further digging.
******END******
Unbeknownst to Roku, the frustration and anger he was feeling was bordering on the same he had felt that day. Since he had no recollection of that moment he would fail to realize that at this moment. Instead he would continue flipping through the folder until finally finding something that would cause him to lose his frustration and anger, something that would cause his mind to suddenly go blank.
Okayama Roku had been found collapsed in the Diamond Maelstrom. His body was badly scarred and his muscle tissue seemed to be shattered from within. The damage caused from him could be attributed to the harsh storm above, but upon further examination it would seem that his body was mainly destroyed from within. His chakra gates were still pulsating within internal energy. It is unknown what might have caused such a thing to naturally occur within Chuunin Roku, but it is clear whatever it was done has placed him in a near death state. Further tests will be performed.
He continued to read the portions he could see, and while he did not have the full picture some terms continued to pop up; "chakra gates", "inhuman", "forbidden", "excessive strain on the human body", "unnatural healing properties". Whatever it was that Roku was looking for in his attempt to venture out of the village seemed to bring with it great misfortune.
"What... what... was I... doing..."
His voice was weak. His brain, one of the few things still functioning half way decently at this point, began to churn, trying to remember why he left the village. While he struggled to remember the thoughts of his brother began to resurface. Was Saemon associated with his departure? It was at that time something within his mind began to click. Images started to flood into clarity from his scrambled memory...
******SIX MONTHS AGO******
It was at this time that I received a letter from Saemon. I had just spent an awkward afternoon convincing Sousuke's father to grant me a passport so I could go out from the village in order to follow up Saemon's words; "Brother, I have left the village and there is something I need to talk to you about... about what I've held hidden from you for years. In order to achieve this you will need to leave the village and survive the Diamond Maelstrom, so don't attempt this until you reach Chuunin. Ya damned brat!"
Those words agitated me, which was fairly common reaction to a message from Saemon, but also caused concern. He had been associated with some shinobi he had recently let out of the village, the type that gave off a bad feeling. Were they the reason I felt so uncomfortable about this message or was it more so the words? I never understood why but ever since I was younger the expression Saemon gave me had begun to change. Each year our bonding training, the training he had put himself through, lessened, until he was no longer even inviting me. I just assumed it had to do with growing as an individual, but the more I asked him to take me on a training trip the more his expression changed. He was worried. Why?
With some trouble brewing in my heart I went towards the gate and slowly was raised to the surface. During that moment I didn't know what to expect. I had always heard about the storm, yet had never ventured upwards to see it for myself. What I saw was nothing like what my imagination could prepare me for; the air before me looked like wavy sand paper. It was dense, I had no idea how someone was expected to walk through such a mess. It never occurred to me that this was the reason I had been warned about coming top side, but I didn't care. I had to meet with Saemon.
Further and further I ventured out into the storm. More and more of my protective attire was eaten by the cutting diamond wind. Every so often I would come across a rock formation or a slight indention in the surface so I could get some rest from the continual beating that had been occurring. It was on one such stop that I found a jacket that had belonged to my brother. Within the jacket was another note; "Roku, If you have made it that far then you still have the promise I always saw in you... however, you will not make it to where I am unless you are able to break your limits and reach the potential locked inside. From this point onward I will make sure to crush any form of coverage that you could use. You will either unleash your full potential or turn back to the village. See ya, brother."
I remember being torn by the note. Just what the hell was the point and what all could he possibly be meaning? How was I supposed to pass my limits? Hadn't I already proven my worth during the Chuunin exams for him? Maybe there is something else to it, my mind just couldn't process it at the time. So instead of immediately acting I chose to wait, choosing to tackle this issue conservatively for change.
The more I reflected on my idiot brother's idiot comments, the more the first statement began to bug me. The mention of a "promise" he saw inside, does that mean I had done something in the past to prove to him that I had the ability inside me to brave the storm with little to no protection? It was at this time I began to rethink over everything I had done training-wise with Saemon from our past. From one finger pushups to hanging sit ups, with the added challenge of jabbing my toes into the stone ceiling to hold myself within the air. I benched rocks found within the crevasse and I dug holes within the ground with downward heel kicks, which also conveniently gave me a nice letting bedding spot.
I wasn't sure if it was hours or days that had passed, all I could hear or see was the whirling madness of the storm when I ventured out of my little haven. Within the confines of my shelter I would periodically utilize my chakra to create a flame to illuminate the dark. The more I reflected on my childhood the further it seemed I was getting from what the message was trying to hint to me. It wasn't until the point that I reached complete exhaustion and frustration that I resigned to just collapsing on the ground and staring helplessly up into the ceiling of the cave. I don't know what caused me to discharge a current of electrical chakra into the air, it had been something I was toying around with so it just felt right, but when I did I noticed something I had not before; there were markings on the ceiling. Utilizing my chakra in the form of fire once more I illuminated the cave brighter than I had ever done prior and before my eyes was a simple, crude drawing of two stick figures, one larger and the other smaller but with several circles behind it.
At first I assumed it was just some dumb drawing Saemon had done to pass the time but before I could dismiss it the memories of being that little stick figure seemed to flood back into my mind. The feelings, the frustration and the strain all came back to me vividly, and then in a transcended state, may have been due to the exhaustion, lack of knowing what time it was and lack of a proper meal in days, I seemed to remember the moment I had forgot. The snapping of my leg, the explosion of energy and the healing of my leg, it was all there. But why lie to me about it? Before I could linger on that thought new memories continued to flood into my mind from my training exercises with Saemon and at the end of each I would collapse. Was this why Saemon shied away from these trainings as things progressed? How long did I black out after each time I exploded with chakra? I assumed this was what he wanted to talk to me about.
With the the idea in place, there was nothing left for me to do aside from foolishly go out into the storm and bravely trek to the end of it. This was my brother's last training exercise, at least that it how I felt. So removing the extra baggage, I went out into the whirling, slicing winds. The initial burst caught me off guard but I continued to push, I continued to march onward. My muscles started to quake, my legs felt heavy, and my clothing was getting minced to shreds, but I continued onward. I finally reached the point that forty percent of my body was exposed to the winds without protection, I could feel myself being torn to shreds, but I pushed onward with the only thought in my mind being Saemon.
Then I finally reached the tipping point. I stumble and fell to a knee as the winds pushed against my violently. I had to fight in order to hold myself in place, to keep from losing my ground that I had gained, yet I knew it was fruitless. However, I could only imagine my smug brother's face watching me in such a helpless state. It drove me mad, it gave my muscles one more push, even though I knew they could not handle anymore. My body had to go forward. I let out the most guttural, primal howl I could muster, it was almost like an out of body experience, and suddenly my body was engulfed in light. It was like something snapped within my body, like a miniature dam had been released, and a rush of energy surged through me. I could feel myself sprinting through the winds. I had conquered the unconquerable maelstrom. I was god. And just like, I was blacked out.
*****BACK TO NOW*****
Roku's eyes were fixated on the paper before him. The memory, like a movie, played within his mind as his hands released the paper. After searching and searching his missing memories finally seemed to restore themselves. From this added information it was safe to assume he had blacked out from exhaustion within the maelstrom andthat would explain his devastated body.
While these revelations were occurring, the walling that surrounded him continued to shake and give way as more and more chunks came sliding out of their loose fitting place. Soon it would truly be his grave if he did not act, unless his body was still unable to act.
There is something, something within me. Something that allows me to pass the physical limits I possess. Something that allows me to break free from the constraints of humanity. If I can learn to harness that power I can keep from blacking out and venture to where Saemon is, I can finally find out what my brother knows about me that he could never say.
Deep down he understood that there was very little more his brother could offer him about what he had already realized about the power within, he just needed to justify it to himself. Back on the forefront of his mind, his attention turned to the collapsing hole he had dug himself into. Piece after piece began to fall and land around him. It wouldn't take long before he was completely buried.
"No... no... I survived the hellish training."
His body began to tremble as the youth started to push himself up from the ground.
"I survived the damned maelstrom..."
His muscles began to flex, expand and tighten once more as his right hand grabbed the bar that had pierced him and drew it out of his own flesh.
"Heck... I ran through the storm like it was a gentle breeze..."
He could feel the chakra engulfing his body as eight separate points began to highlight upon his body, starting from his heart.
"I cannot... I will not be done in by some pile of crap..."
The glowing areas of his body would turn to a full aura of chakra that shrouded his body. With the shroud came a sensation of invincibility. He felt like he could do anything.
"I AM OKAYAMA ROKU!"
The aura around him erupted into an explosion as his figure started to dart upwards and out of the hole. Accompanying his quick move was a thundering boom, like a cannonball being fired. His body landed upon the ground, still glowing with the outpouring chakra as he marveled at himself. Looking around his eyes seemed to see the world differently, more clearly. His body seemed to have already completely healed from the injuries sustained not just from his brief moment in the debris, but from all his battles thus far. He no longer felt the pain, aches or exhaustion. He was superhuman.
"Chakra gates... maybe I should have paid closer attention in the academy..."
The chakra shroud would subside as he summoned his ANBU mask once more. Placing it upon his face he would begin to leave the area. It was now time to better understand what was lying within his body, what he could do and then utilize his natural gift to find the answers he wanted.
Kinjutsu App: Hachimon - 4345 words