Haru's Rememberance and Moving Forward

[Das Kirb]

The fire's light danced across the far walls of the small wooden shack that Haru called his home. A simple single room building with a fireplace, a bed roll, and a small table and chair with various pieces of parchment and ink wells scattered across. The last notable piece of furniture in the room was a book shelf barely populated with various texts. Most were simple tombs concerning the history of the village, the locations of the shrines and their stories, and old training scrolls from an age he had long since thought behind him. A single book lay with it's spine pristine though, untouched by dust and kept in perfect condition from disuse. It's golden leather back read "Kyoukan, Akino; The Brilliant Star in the Mountain's Peak". He knew everything that lay within, and reading it now would just prove himself right.

Upon the pile of papers and scrolls on the table was a particular open scroll that bore the seal of the Raikage. He'd poured over the scroll at least a dozen times now and each reading it proved more and more frustrating. After years, he was being summoned out of his hovel and, it felt like, pressed back into service. With a grunt he sat at the table again and read it once more, disbelieving of the contents within. No matter how many times he read, it always held the same words. And no matter how much he wanted, he had to answer. It seemed improper to answer though. That chair was held by his own brother, a man that he'd spent his life protecting and watching and always being there to pick up. But that chair had been emptied, and now was filled by someone else. It was going to be a test just to look upon the highest towers once more, and another to willingly return to them.

However, he had to admit to himself, that he'd allowed sorrow to let him stagnate. His form was still strong but his flesh a bit flabby. If Haru was to be pressed into service once more he'd need to get back in form, as much as he didn't want too. First of this requirement was getting his physicality back in shape. The bedroll was put away for the first time in years and the center of the room cleared out of all it's small amounts of clutter. The fire was stoked once more and he lowered his bulk to the ground on his back. And for the first time in years, the man did a sit up. Then another, and another. His gut demanded that he stop, but he continued. One more, then one more, then just one more, then another ten. After the next ten he'd stop, but then it was another ten. He'd set his mind to it, and now his body moved despite itself. As Haru got into the rhythm of the motions his mind wandered back to a brighter time. He allowed it.

"You may want to see this, Haru."

Haruno and Akino had been climbing one of the steeper of the mountain's peaks. Fresh white snow had been falling for the weeks prior and made the trip slow and uncomfortable, causing Haru to fall behind his brother. With each step the elder would take, the younger would need two to keep pace. However, the trip was not impossible and it had promised a view of the valley below that neither of them had actually seen. As Haru crested another steep incline, he knew why it was spoken of with such awe. The fresh powder looked like tiny crystals as it caught the light with glints of color coming off. The sun washed across the spire's peak with such brilliance as to be literally breathtaking, and no other creature had spoiled such magnificent beauty. The sheer cliff overlooked miles upon miles of grassy fields below the mountain's steppe. The wind roiled through the lush green to create an ocean's wave of magnificent emerald wonder. Far in the distance one could see the shoreline and the small fishing town that nestled there, embracing the coast like a child would its mother. The sight was truly one of beauty and Haru had to take a moment to catch his breath.

"I'm certain elsewhere in the world there are such sights, brother. I'm beyond proud to be allowed to see this one alone."

"Seeing such things makes one wish we were born with wings. Be able to see such a thing without needing to climb a mountain."

"Can't argue with you there. I keep looking over the texts and you'd think there would be a hundred ways to fly readily available. Especially in a land of mountains and valleys that likes to build on the peaks. But I can't find a single one. I know its possible, just not in the books."

"Hey, could just jump and see how far the wind takes you. Granted the landing might hurt a bit."

"I could throw you instead and you'll probably get more distance than me jumping. You may even land in the ocean."

Haru cracked a grin at his brother and cocked an eyebrow.

"If you try I'm taking you with me and using your head to break my fall. It's probably hard enough it'll break the mountain."

"Got me there too. Either way, did you bring the ink and scroll."

Haru produced a small scroll tube filled with vellum and several small vials of ink and pens. He brushed a small area clean of snow for the both of them and haned some supplies to his brother as the two sat down to draw the landscape before them.

As Haru came up from another sit up he stopped and looked at the drawings on the wall. Resting in a simple wooden frame was two drawings, one slightly better than the other. The one on the left, the worse of the two, had been Akino's handiwork. It depicted the landscape as it rolled with gentle lines that brushed against the mountain's side and rolled effortlessly into the ocean's beyond the fields. The sun was depicted high in the right corner as the light shone brilliantly with the dancing basin of farms and hovels. The image on the right was Haruno's attempt at the drawing and he thought the better of the two. His rich shaded detail captured how each blade of grass created the verdant fields, allowing the shadows to dance upon and through them all. The sun had been low, casting the darkening lines ever longer and creating a brilliant contrast. He also depicted the fishing village a good distance away, attempting to catch the people milling about, including the pair on the docks by a shit bearing a black flag. His rendering was far darker, but much more rich in detail.

The large man felt his core about to cramp up and decided to switch up the workout he was doing. This time he flipped onto his stomach and pushed himself up. The sensation caused his gut to go rigid again and for the pain of forgetting how many he had already done to rear its ugly head. However, he pushed through. Down, then up again and the sweat was already dripping from his brow onto the hard wood below. Another fall then rise and his shoulders popped in complaint to the forgotten sensation. Fall then rise followed by another fall then rise. He'd begun to work himself into a rhythm and once again had begun to allow his mind to wonder into happier times.

The bright lit walls of the training room entrapped himself, his brother, and twenty-eight other young men and women. They had made it through their genin years and now stood within a building just outside the village of Konohagakure no Sato ready to take the Chuunin exams. The written test had been easy for Akino, but Haru had to struggle to apply his head to the task. Sitting in a room surrounded by dozens of people attempting their best to find the right answers had been annoying to the Kumo genin who had figured out the best way to get the right answers to begin with, study. It made it more annoying when one individual, thinking themselves clever, attempted to swap his sheet with theirs, filled with wrong answers. Simply barking "try harder" in a stout voice had told said not quite clever individual that not only was he known, but also disqualified.

"This is the stock that actually passed? A paltry thirty of you? Fucking hell they're not producing y'all like they used too."