Lessons of Survival

[The Legend Excalibur]

A record of the lessons and values that Akari Vale has gained from training.

[The Legend Excalibur]

Genjutsu: Part 1

The walk to the archives was boring and uneventful, most of the people on walking the streets simply going about their lives, day to day, their minds mostly occupied by mundane things, such as what they'd make for dinner that evening, or if the one they loved had the same feelings for them. Vale, on the other hand, his mind was focused on other things. In the young Akari's quest to become a stronger and more reliable shinobi, he'd been going over his own skills, his strengths, his weaknesses. He wasn't a weakling, he wasn't utter crap at fighting; in fact, those were attributes he actually were proud of. He was quick, both physically and mentally, and his talent with ninjutsu was decent. His chakra control wasn't as good as he'd had hoped, but that was training for another day. No, what his goal was today, the topic he needed from the archives, concerned genjutsu.

It was his worse skill, the one thing he utterly lacked talent in. Early on in the Academy, he realized he'd possessed nearly zero potential in the art, and so fell back on his Taijutsu and Ninjutsu to perform well in classes. When times came for him to be tested and evaluated on all three, he'd barely make the mark for it. Upon graduation, he'd not thought much about it, figuring that if he lacked in one area, he could more than make up for it in others. But in the back of his mind, he always felt worry that if he encountered an enemy who was proficient in it... how would he escape it? His teachers had thought the ways to recognize a genjutsu, and of the methods of escape, one of them being pain. Pain of varying levels, stretching from a pinch, to deep impalement, to injuries bordering death. None sounding too pleasant.

His first interaction with Kotaru nearly a year ago had flared his worries about it. He could meet the other boy's barbs well enough, but if he actually carried out his threats with genjutsu, Vale would just be a plaything in his hands, suffering until he either grew tired of the torture or he died from shock. No, he needed to at the very least be able to get himself out of the illusion, or recognize it, at higher levels. He wasn't naive enough to think he'd ever match the prodigy's skill in the art, nor that learning more about it would be an easy task. But every path began with a first step. And this was his.

After getting the necessary material, them being just a few books and scrolls with the most bare basics regarding genjutsu, it was rather easy for him to find a secluded and quiet spot to start reading. The initial chapters were things that he already knew; Genjutsu being the one of the three primary arts that every shinobi needed at least some knowledge in, with the others being Taijutsu and Ninjutsu. Like nearly all jutsu, one needed the correct hand seals to mold the chakra necessary to initiate them. But unlike other jutsu, molding the chakra necessary was only half of the requirements needed. The user also needed a form to initiate the illusion.

All the text explained, and as well as he understood it, genjutsu worked by the user channeling their chakra into another person's chakra pathway, directly interfering with the brain of the target to create the wished for illusion. Their were six different forms of initiation, five targeting the basic senses that every person possesses; sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell, while the sixth targeted towards sensors, ninja that are capable of detecting others through their use of chakra. Sight and Sound were the most common kind of initiators, due to the ease of simply clapping loud enough for someone to hear, or letting someone see one point. If he wanted actually learn any genjutsu in the future, beyond just what was in the archives for reference, they'd be the best starting point. Smell was the next most common, scents being simple to produce and use on those unprepared for it.

Even though it was said that Touch was rare, in Vale's mind he'd think it would be one of the most common place. Maybe it was because his style of combat mainly composed of taijutsu, with physical contact being a major part of it. He thought of it being an easy thing, performing the necessary seals, and punching someone else. Even if their instinct would be to dodge and not block, they'd have to get hit eventually. Eventually. Taste was described as something used especially in espionage, a specialty that his mother was especially talented in. For a shinobi skilled in entering and exiting without trouble, introducing a certain flavor into someone's food to make them hallucinate, or to tell of some forbidden truth, wold be a simple task. It really didn't suit him though, but having the knowledge that it existed was useful in itself

Finally, was sensory initiation. Being a sensor was a rare enough talent that few shinobi displayed, so it seemed a natural side-effect that this form of initiation was among the rarest, having very specific circumstances that it could be used in, and even then, in a limited form. As far as he knew, the only way to know someone was a sensor was by personal knowledge, obvious acts that led to the conclusion on their abilities, or the user themselves being a sensor. To him, this was potentially the hardest type of initiation to use, even if the text said otherwise.

As a conclusion to the section, the text reminded of the dangers of using genjutsu. Some of the initiators, such as sound and smell, needed caution in application, as comrades could easily fall victim to the illusions without proper warning. It was also recommended to not perform illusions of grand or obvious effect, such as a dragon appearing from thin air, or someone growing to triple their normal size. These would make it easy for targets with the necessary skill to easily kai, and disrupt the illusion to break free. Genjutsu, as said, was an art of subtlety.

Vale closed the text and rubbed his eyes, the unknown amount of time he'd spent reading having strained his eyesight. Putting his head down, he figured he'd earned a little rest, for now.

1,070 Words: +1 Gen