Towards the Sun

[Vitamin]

The sunlight slowly creeped through the blinds, gently brushing up against Hinoiri’s cheek. She was never much of a morning person, to put it lightly, but she woke up with a particularly strong fervor for life today. Perhaps it was because… no, it was definitely because today, for the first time in her life, she was a ninja. Not a ninja-in-training, or ninja-to-be, or a coulda-woulda-aren’t all Hyuuga supposed to be-ninja, but a true to the name ninja.

She rushed through her morning routine, lazily brushing her hair and quickly throwing on her usual shinobi attire. She knew she wasn’t going to need her shinobi weapons today, but she decided he’d strap them to herself anyway. It was best to get used to the weight now. Train like you fight. she thought to herself. Finally she was ready… or so she thought, until she caught a glimpse of something shiny out of the corner of her eye.

Where am I going to wear my headband? she thought to herself, as she snatched it from her nightstand. She darted over to the front of her mirror, wrapping it around her forehead in traditional shinobi fashion. She looked at herself for a brief second, analyzing the look in a variety of different poses. Classic, timeless, traditional… not me.

She unwrapped it from her head, moving it down to her waistband and tying it like a belt, the headband stretching to it’s very limits to fit around her narrow waist. She nodded to herself in approval, trying out a few action poses.

KICK! PUNCH! JUMP! ROLL!

On her final strike, the headband pulled tight, snapping off and falling to the ground with a slight thud. She picked it up, slightly disappointed, while formulating where else on her body the headband would be the perfect blend of functional and fashionable.

”HINOIRI?”

A voice called out to her, followed by a few slight taps on the door. It slid open ever so slightly, as the mans head slowly crept through the opening. ”What are you doing?” he asked, blinking his eyes inquisitively.

”Oh, uh… nothing.” she said, slowly sliding her hand behind her back so as not to reveal the headband.

They stared at each other for a few more seconds, Hinoiri doing her best to keep a straight face.

”O-kay, whatever you say. Get dressed and go downstairs. I made you breakfast. I also have a present for you.”

She nodded in affirmation, her father’s head retreating through the crevice, her door sliding closed.

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The aroma from the freshly cooked bacon and ham quickly filled Hinoiri’s nostrils as she entered the dining room and took her seat. Everything was already set up to her liking, much to her surprise. Boiled eggs, freshly baked muffins, a ham steak and, of course, a massive mound of crispy bacon ready to be desired.

”What’s the occasion?

Her father finished preparing his plate, walking over to the table and taking the seat across from her. ”Well…” he said as he took a bite of his muffin. ”Today is your first day as a bonafide ninja.”

Hinoiri grabbed a piece of bacon and began nibbling at it. She raised an eyebrow inquisitively at her father.

”That means it’s time for us to start taking your development seriously.”

Hinoiri kept her eyebrow raised, surprised at her father’s comments. We have been taking it seriously she thought. In the last 6 months or so, her skill had grown considerably, allowing her to close the gap on many of her peers. She had the best chakra control out of her graduating class by a considerable margin, and her knowledge of Ninjutsu and Taijutsu was excellent. She had already mastered a few of her clan’s techniques, despite the minimal exposure.

”I’ll be totally candid with you.” he told her, stuffing the remainder of the muffin in his mouth. ”Everything you learned so far looked great in the classroom, and will serve you well in the future, I’m sure. But being able to perform in the classroom, and being able to execute out in the field are 2 very different things. As it stands, I can’t see you being much more than a hindrance to your future teammates.”

Hinoiri winced as the words came out of his mouth. Sure, she wasn’t the fastest or the strongest, but for her to be considered a hindrance? That seemed a little extreme.

“You’re not very strong, and you’re not very fast. A lot of that is my fault. I let my own resentment and personal grudges get in the way of your development. You also overthink things far too much. You need to get out of your own head more, take things for what they are.”

Hinoiri continued to say nothing. Her father’s brutal honesty wasn’t anything new to her, but it hurt her feelings none the less. In her heart of hearts, she knew he was right, but it still hurt to hear it in such an unfiltered manner.

Her father reached down into a box that was placed next his chair, pulling out a very old, tattered brown vest, tossing it onto the dinner table. It crashed with a loud thud, the impact of the weight knocking off some of the bacon off the table and shaking the plates.

”A weight vest?”

”Not just a weight vest.”

One by one, four more sleeves of the same brown, faded material landed on the table. Hinoiri reached over with one hand and tried grabbing ones of the sleeves, only to find out it didn’t budge. She managed to drag it across the table towards herself with quite a bit of effort.

Weight vests and sleeves… that seems sol… archaic,

”I know weight vests and sleeves seem really archaic, but the results you see can’t be argued against. These things are the very same ones I wore when I was a genin, not much older than you. It wasn’t long until it was nothing more than a gentle breeze to me.”

Hinoiri inched her face slowly towards the equipment in front of her. Suddenly, her nose caught the faintest trace of a smell. Smells like…

Hinoiri jumped back, knocking her chair over, coughing and gagging the whole while. She could see through very watery eyes her Dad was clutching his torso laughing, tears running down his cheeks.

”What in the- I can’t… those things…. They smell like mold! Sweat! Moldy sweat, that got moldy… it’s rotten!”

Her father’s laughter slowly came to a stop, with a few chuckles escaping his lips here and there. ”Yeah I can’t remember the last time I washed these things, and I haven’t worn them since… since before you were born.”

Hinoiri could say nothing, still tasting the rot of the vests in the back of her throat. She scowled at her father, who gave her a shy, apologetic chuckle.

”I’ll give them a good scrub. Then, we’ll head up the mountain!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hinoiri couldn’t help but sneak a glance at the awful mud-brown vests and sleeves that were now covering her body. Sure, they didn’t smell like decades-old mold anymore, instead smelling like decades-old mold that had been masked with perfume. To make matters worse, they weren’t even fully dry, making her clothes just damp enough for them to not drip, but still stick to her skin.

”So here’s the deal. You see this hill?”.

Hinoiri looked up at what she thought was a mountain. Upon further observation, she deduced that it was a hill indeed. The only catch was that this hill had an incline at an almost perfect ninety-degree, making it more of a climb than a hike.

”All you have to do is get to the top. Take as long as you need, but remember, the faster you go, the sooner you get it over with.”

”I’m guessing you don’t want me to just use my chakra to walk up the mountain, right?”

”Right.”

Hinoiri pondered this for a few seconds. This was more than a test of how fast she could run or how strong she was. She would have to find the perfect blend of speed and strength in order to preserve her stamina.

”Okay… we’ll start in… Now! Go, go go!”

With deep inhale, and a slow exhale, Hinoiri leapt onto the hill, planting both her feet and her hands into the dirt. This was going to be more of a crawl then a run, considering the extra hundred pounds she was now carrying across her body.

The initial climb up the “hill” did have a noticeable slope, allowing Hinoiri to start her trot at a brisk and steady pace. It wasn’t long before she had to steady her pace, taking an extra few seconds to find good footing before she could take another lunge forward.

She took a second to look downward, wondering how much progress she had made. She could see the finer details in her Dad’s face, without the special abilities of her eyes, calculating that she must’ve been maybe 30 meters above the ground. Looking upwards again, she surmised that she had probably about another 100 meters to go.

She continued her climb upwards, sweat dripping from her forehead and down into the grounds below the mountain. She could feel the burden of the extra weight all over here body, but with every lunge forward, she could especially feel the strain in her shoulders. With every step, the lactic acid build-up in her quads grew and grew, making her legs feel heavier and heavier.

Now about halfway up the mountain, her forearms started shaking. She was having to stop more and more. Looking down, she could no longer see her Dad, although she wasn’t sure whether he was just out of her line of sight or he had just gone somewhere else.

Figuring she was also out of her fathers line of sight, she figured now it was a good a time as any to just start walking up the walls. It wasn’t really cheating after all. This was ninja training, and she would just be using her ninja skills to help her get up the mountain.
Even with the extra help, she could feel the strain of the extra weight on her body. She had to focus more chakra to her feet, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to sprint up the mountain like she normally would. Step by step, she made her way up the mountain.

As she as walking up the mountain, she heard a whizzing sound. Faint at first, it grew quickly. At the very last moment, she saw the kunai that was flying down at her. In a panic, she tried side-stepping, completely forgoing the chakra that she was focusing to her feet.

Hinoiri flew down the mountain, frantically reaching out trying to grab onto any sort of protrusion on the mountain side, hoping to grab onto a rock or break her fall. She focused the chakra again to her feet, trying to plant one on the side of the mountain. Her effort was futile, as the momentum didn’t allow her anywhere near the time she needed to form any sort of cohesion with the cliffside.

She swung her body around, now staring at the ground that was fast approaching. Seconds seemed exponentially longer now, Hinoiri closing her eyes as she waited for the inevitable impact. Luckily for her, it never came.

Her eyes opened, finding herself in the safe clutches of her father’s arms. She was still trembling from fear, but she could feel her heartbeat slowing. She stared at him in awe for a few moments, before averting her eyes in shame.

He set her down on the ground, crossing his arms and giving her a very stern look.

”I already know what you’re going to say. Save it.”

”No, I’m not going to save it. You’ve got to be pretty stupid to think that I wasn’t going to see you.”

She stared at the ground, angry and embarrassed. Tears trickled slowly down her cheeks, a whimper trying to escape out through her clutched teeth. Her father was a fairly laid back individual, but if there was one thing that really grinded his gears, it was ninja who didn’t take their titles seriously. Nothing could fit that category better than somebody who was trying to take a shortcut through a training session that was to their own benefit.

”You’re weak. Mentally weak, and physically weak, and I’m not even sure which way you’re weaker.”

Hinoiri clenched her fists, trembling with rage. The trickle of tears turned into steady streams, a few faint whimpers escaping her lips. It took all of the self-control she had to stop herself from heaving and hollering.

”I’m… I’m s-s-sorry.” she said while sniffling.

Her father placed his hand on her shoulder.

”Don’t be sorry. Be better.”

He picked up his kunai and placed it back in his holster. He dusted off his shoulders, turning his head back to Hinoiri. ”Take a second to catch your breath. Then, you’re going again. No bullshit this time.”[/color]

She looked up at him, wiping the tires from her cheeks, and nodded. She raised a clenched fist at him to show him just how determined he was. Her father nodded ever so slightly, returning her gesture with a thumbs up of his own.

She looked up at the cliffside once more, although this time, it looked much less daunting. It seemed like less of a mountain and more of an obstacle that she had to overcome on her way to the peak. Just a minor nuisance, one that she wouldn’t let conquer herself again.

Walking over to the bottom of the mountainside again, she crouched ever so slightly, gathering up the power she needed to leap onto the cliffside. Her quads felt tender, and so did her shoulders, but her forearms felt as if they were burning from the inside out. She tried clenching her fist, but could barely muster up the energy to do so. She’d be sore for a week after this, at least.

With a deep exhale, she jumped onto the cliffside once more. Her grip on the rocks was much weaker than before, forcing her to really dig her heels into the dirt. She’d have to be a lot smarter with her selection of handholds and footholds this time around.

She began her slow crawl up the mountain, getting into a much slower, but steadier rhythm. Left hand, right foot, right hand, left foot, left hand, right foot, right hand, left foot. The sweat on her forehead became muddied with the dust coming from the mountainside. She could taste the salt and dirt mixture as it seeped into her mouth, not letting it distract her from her goal.

Once again, she found herself about halfway up the mountainside. She no longer had the strength to get a firm grip on the rocks, having to use her elbows to essentially entrench herself in the dirt, dragging her forearms in a sluggish manner. Her breaks became more and more frequent, although she was very careful to force herself to continue forward whenever she began to think about just how tired she was.

The sun was at a highpoint now, and she could feel the increased heat as it slowly seared the back of her neck. Taking a second to catch her breath, she also decided it was time to lose the jacket. She quickly slid her arms out of the sleeves, letting it slide off her torso and down into the abyss below.

Left hand, right foot, right hand, left foot.

Now about three-quarters of the way up the mountain, she could no longer control the trembling in her legs. Quitting now would mean a very painful fall down the cliff, although she knew her father would be there to save her. Even if he wasn’t, the shame from quitting now would hurt Hinoiri worse than any fall could.

The more pain you feel in training, the less pain you’ll feel in battle. she thought to herself. Her sensei in the academy had preached it time and time again, so much that it always popped into her head at times like these. Perhaps one day she’d find out how right he was.

Left hand, right foot, right hand, left foot.

Her arms were shaking tremendously now. She could no longer hold her hands steady, barely being able to make a fist. Her legs felt as if they’d been filled with cement. She wasn’t exactly sure when the cliffside lost it’s slope, but it was essentially vertical now. Her crawl had turned into a climb, which in turn had turned into Hinoiri worming her way up the mountain.

Her forearms were covered in scratches now, the sweat causing a slight sting. The pain only helped to strengthen her resolve however, refusing to let all of her blood, sweat and tears go to waste. Besides, at this height, it’s not like if quitting was really a viable option anymore.

Left hand, right foot, right hand, left foot.

Through foggy, sweat-filled eyes, she could see that the peek of the mountain was only about 10 meters away. Her entire body was trembling now, allowing her to have moved maybe a measly 5 yards in about the last 30 minutes. Staying on the mountain required a gargantuan effort, let alone continuing the climb.

She closed her eyes, trying to gather her focus. ”Okay Hinori… it’s time to risk it. It’s time to jump. No more time to climb. We have to give it every last bit that we have.”

Doing her best to try and quell the violet shaking, Hinoiri mustered whatever energy she had left in her legs, leaping upwards, stretching her arms out as far as she could to try and grab the cliffside.

She sailed through the air, time once again seeming to move exponentially slower than it normally did. Inch by inch, her hand got closer to the peak, before finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she grasped the top.

Hinori quickly reached up with her other hand, grabbing the top of the hill, dragging herself up the remainder of the mountainside. She crawled about one yard away from the edge of the mountain, rolling over onto her back, huffing and puffing from exhaustion.

”You made it! In just over 2 hours too, impressive.”

Hinoiri, still breathing heavily, turned her head towards her father. He sat there perched on top of a checkered blanket, picnic basket to his side with an assortment of snacks, meats and cheeses laid out before him.

”Dust yourself off, and come eat. You deserve it. That was exactly the effort I wanted to see.”

Hinoiri turned away, looking up at the clouds. Her breaths finally slowed, enough for her to give a weak laugh and give her father a thumbs up. She rose to her knees, unbuckling the vest and arm sleeves, letting them plop onto the ground. She was elated, and the drop and weight with the rush of endorphins seemed to give her a second breath.

”Same time tomorrow?”

Her fathers eyebrows perked up in surprise, and soon after, he found himself giggling. The slight giggle turned into a hearty laugh, finding himself to be both very amused and very proud of his daughter’s determination. He gave Hinoiri a thumbs up.

”Same time tomorrow.”