![Visiting Home [Private Training] Empty](https://2img.net/i/empty.gif)
Today was going to be a bad day. The letter that Chigetsu had received was a very clear designator of that. It wasn’t often that their parents wrote to them. After having been dismissed from their clan’s training, Chigetsu had been giving their own personal apartment in the Hozuki District, along with a monthly stipend in order to support themselves. It was more or less a way for them to be shunted off and be forgotten about in an official manner. Wiping their hands clean. It hadn’t bothered Chigetsu all too much in the moment, having been an antsy teenager who was more than happy to be released from all this training nonsense and get some time away from their dumb family. It had been nice at first. No more responsibilities. More money than they had ever seen before in their life. Didn’t have to pay for rent, utilities, food, or anything else. But there were only so many days where you could come home and indulge in pleasures before it got boring and lonely. There wasn’t really much reason to leave home unless it was to buy something, and while that was something that Chigetsu did an awful lot, it wasn’t as if conversations with shopkeepers really counted as social interaction. This was the beginning of Chigetsu’s NEETdom, something which quickly became an unfortunate fact of their life.
Despite being officially a genin for a while now due to all the training that Chigetsu’s family had put them through, it was only very recently that they had actually begun taking missions. There were only D-Ranks, not exactly anything impressive, but the mere fact that Chigetsu was actually doing shinobi work was a surprise in itself. While it hadn’t been like Chigetsu’s parents were closely monitoring their activity, it hadn’t been long before they heard that Chigetsu had been chosen for a mission with the new Mizukage. Why exactly Hana Kaguya had chosen Chigetsu to go on a mission with her wasn’t something that either Chigetsu or the Hozuki Clan could guess towards, but it wasn’t exactly something that could be ignored.
The letter was sent directly to Chigetsu’s apartment, requesting a meeting with his mother. The act of receiving mail itself wasn’t something that Chigetsu was used to, given that all the bills and everything along those lines were more or less taken care of by their family. Having it delivered by hand all the way up to his penthouse apartment by one of the building’s staff was a strange experience. Even though Chigetsu had lived so long in this apartment it was rare for them to interact with the staff, other than to have meals delivered. The letter itself was… formal. There was some light fluff, stuff that Chigetsu just skipped their eyes over and didn’t bother reading. All those formalities. The important stuff was that they were calling Chigetsu to come back home for a discussion. They had apparently overheard somehow about how Chigetsu was taking missions all of the sudden (and not failing them, they had to go and mention that), and that whole thing with the Mizukage. Oh, and she mentioned the exams. The Chunin Exams. It
was in one of those passive aggressive endings, like “We should talk about your professional development, considering the oncoming Chunin Exams that are going to be held in Kirigakure.” The intent was obvious, that this was them pressuring Chigetsu to sign up for them. As soon as Chigetsu’s eyes got to that part of the letter they would let out a slight sigh. Back to normal. The moment they did one or two little D-Rank missions (that were basically just glorified chores) she was going right back to how she had been, as if the last few years hadn’t happened at all. The letter would be tossed into the garbage as soon as Chigetsu finished with it, crumpled up into a little ball and slam dunked into the poor, undeserving trash bin. It was all too frustrating. As much as Chigetesu wanted to blow this all off and just not have to think about her anymore, family was a hard thing to resist. Especially when they were paying all of the bills.
Like the defiant child that they were, Chigetsu would make sure to arrive late. Being there on time, or God forbid early, would just be showing their mother that they could still be easily controlled. Instead they arrived a cool half an hour late, like the delinquent they were. Chigetsu would be wearing a very smug smile as they arrived, although that would be quickly wiped off their face as soon as the house actually came into view. Just seeing it again made weird emotions swell around in their gut. Second-guessing themselves a bit, Chigetsu would begin to wonder if it was too late to turn around. It was all so familiar, but in an uncomfortable way. Like Chigetsu was returning back to somewhere that they didn’t belong. Standing in front of these front doors now was a profoundly awkward experience. Looking back over their shoulder, Chigetsu would consider their options.
The door would swing open before they had finished thinking. Chigetsu hadn’t even knocked. Standing in the doorway would be their mother, an unreadable expression on her face. As soon as she would see her son in the doorway though that all would twist into something of a shark-smile, maybe at seeing Chigetsu’s somewhat shocked demeanour. She was a tall woman, as tall as the average man, and with her pale complexion and long white hair she almost had the appearance of a banshee. Or maybe a shark, given the sharp pointed teeth that she had.
“Come on. Don’t just stand there. We have a lot to talk about.”
She was sickening sweet. They way that she had smiled always reminded Chigetsu of a shark. The things that she said though, all the little pleasantries and idle commentary, none of it bothered Chigetsu as much as the things that she didn’t say. No comments about Chigetsu’s clothing, or their hair, or anything like that. After so many years of it, having her say nothing felt… strange. Like there were these snide comments she was holding in, but choosing not to say. Just rumbling and roiling under the surface, like a covered pot of boiling tea. It left Chigetsu with this itching anxiety, like they would have to run for cover at any given moment, but couldn’t be the first to break social etiquette. All those nice little pleasantries were things that they had to force themselves to respond. Freezing up like this and being so easily controlled again by felt disgusting, but at the same time there was no way out. If things had broken out into a simple conflict it would have been so much easier. Luckily, all that fake small talk and blah blah blah didn’t last long. She led Chigetsu into the garden, where a small gazebo would overlook a large artificial pond. Laid out would be two sets of plates containing a small assortment of pastries, along with cups of tea. Just two. As usual, it didn’t seem that Chigetsu’s father was involved with this. Following her lead, Chigetsu would take a seat across from the pond, looking past their mother to stare into the water. Chigetsu’s mother would help herself to some tea in the meanwhile, taking her sweet time in getting to the point.
“So… Uh.” Chigetsu would clear their throat, coughing a bit in hopes to provoke their mother into speaking. It didn’t seem to have much luck, with the woman simply taking her time to enjoy the tea and pastries that had been laid out. The tea was cold at this point too, so there was no way that she was enjoying it anyway. It was just an exercise in annoying Chigetsu. Still, there was nothing they could do but wait until she finished.
“When did you plan on telling me about your progress?” Finally, after what felt like forever, she would start to get to the point. All while licking a bit of the icing off the wrapper of a cupcake. “You’ve been taking missions lately. Engaging in shinobi work. Enough to get noticed.”
Chigetsu’s expression would sour. Even though they knew this was going to be the topic of discussion the entire time, it didn’t mean that they had to enjoy it. It was like being dragged into a car crash kicking and screaming, although without all that kicking and screaming on Chigetsu’s behalf. “I just wanted a little extra money. It’s not like…”
“Lower ranking missions are an important part of every shinobi’s beginning.”
“I’m not…” As much as Chigetsu wanted to say ‘I’m not a shinobi’, it just wasn’t true. It wasn’t something that they wanted to be, but there was no denying it now.
“The new Mizukage took notice of you. Requested you for a mission.” It was a statement rather than a question. There wasn’t any need to confirm it.
“Yes, but…” Chigetsu was pretty sure that had just been random chance. The mission itself was just physical labor too. Nothing special or anything like that.
“How have your ninjutsu abilities improved? Your kenjutsu? You have been keeping up on your training?”
This wasn’t something that Chigetsu really had a good answer to. Training? No. Kenjutsu? No. Ninjutsu? Well… Maybe? “I, Uh…”
“You’re going to need to keep up with these things if you want to have any chance of doing well at the Chunin Exams.”
“I don’t really know if I want to enter the Chunin Exams…”
Two scrolls would be passed over to Chigetsu over the patio table. They would stare at it for a moment. Curiosity got the better of them, and after a moment Chigetsu would open them. Contained within one was a list of Hozuki Clan techniques, which upon seeing was almost a little bit insulting. Half of them Chigetsu already knew how to do pretty well, and the other half were super advanced. Too advanced for Chigetsu to learn. The other scroll contained what looked like just a mixed assortment of Suiton ninjutsu. Most of them pretty advanced as well. What were they supposed to do with this?
“What?”
“You’re going to learn everything in those scrolls. At the very least you’re going to be proficient in our clan’s techniques before going off into the Chunin Exams.”
“But…”
The look that Chigetsu’s mother gave them cause Chigetsu to immediately turn down, looking down again at the scrolls rather than make eye contact. The list was… Since Chigetsu already knew half of these, it would be a bit easier, but still, that left a bunch…
While looking down, Chigetsu hadn’t noticed the actions of their mother. Raising a finger to point at her child, she would fire a water bullet directly at their head. Chigetsu would naturally liquify in response to it, but the bullet would still be enough to scatter their liquified head all over the patio in a splattering mess. It would take a few moments for their head to reform, with a rather shocked expression now scrawled over Chigetsu’s face.
“The Water Bullet Technique. One of the Hozuki Clan’s most famous techniques. You’re going to learn it.”
With the blank stare that Chigetsu gave her, it quickly became clear that more direction was needed.
“Form your hand into the shape of a gun. Your index finger sticking out and your thumb up. Then, redistribute the liquid in your body and compress it in your finger. If you compress it and then create a slow flow inside your finger, that all can be shot like a tiny cannonball if you stop the flow. It’s not difficult.”
Having it spelled at like that actually helped a lot, although the condescending tone made Chigetsu a bit frustrated. Normally, they would just blow this all off and not even bother trying, putting just the bare minimum amount of effort into it so that this all could be ended as quickly as possible. But meeting people like Calis and Kitsuki, and Hana now…
Chigetsu did as they were told. Their finger was extended, thumb up. Redistribution of water and compression were pretty basis in principal, even if they were more difficult to pull off. It wouldn’t be long until they were able to create a facsimile of what their mother had described. The moment they let go, Chigetsu’s entire finger would explode, although a bullet would noticeably careen off into the pond behind their mother and create a big splash. Not a bad start.
“That’s a good enough start.” Chigetsu’s finger exploding like that was a pain, but this was the first time that they had ever tried to do something like this before. Practice would probably let them do the entire bullet thing without the finger exploding. “Let’s move on to the pond.”
Against their will, Chigetsu would be swept up into their mother’s plans again. With a stunning inability to display any sort of resistance, they would be together then with the woman in the pond, each of them sitting atop the water. Basic usage of chakra like this was easy for Chigetesu, and similarly their mother as well. Chigetsu’s chakra would be swarming into the liquid beneath them, stretch out in an attempt to swell into the lake entirely. How exhausting it was would be evident by the rivulets of sweat dripping down their face and their already tense breathing.
“Tate Eboshi. Even someone like you should be able to achieve some results in a small pond like this. Stretch your chakra out as far as you can. Reach into every drop of water.”
It was easier said than done. This was the basis of every Suiton technique anyway. How could something so basic help Chigetsu?
“You’ve already done well with turning your chakra into water, although that’s something basic enough that even a toddler could do it…” She would be talking more or less to herself, crossing off a few techniques from the scroll list. Exploding Water Colliding Wave, Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, and the Water Severing Wave. The Water Formation Wall Technique too, after a bit of thought. All of these were much simpler for a Hozuki to use as they were uniquely skilled in transforming their chakra into liquids. Producing large quantities like that was rather simple then. Chigetsu was good enough at performing each, at least in theory, that it satisfied her.
“Can’t we move onto something else?” Chigetsu whimpered, groaning a bit. It felt like they were being ripped apart trying even to take control of a shallow little pond like this. It was one thing to use your chakra to form water into projectiles or something.
“Suiton Ninjutsu is all you can do. If you’re not exceptionally skilled in it, you won’t stand any chance. Mastering Tate Eboshi will give you a trump card that will help you on your way to the top.” She had an iron resolve when it came to this. Already Chigetsu’s complaining had earned him three more water bullets, each of them blowing apart another part of Chigetsu’s body. Not that it hurt or left any lasting damage, but it was annoying and a little bit humiliating.
“But I can…” Recalling their chakra, Chigetsu would form a quick series of hand seals. From the liquid a giant dragon would rise up, looping quickly into the air before crashing back down into the pond. The Water Dragon Bullet. The waves from the impact caused the surface of the pond to shake, creating a wobbly experience for both Chigetsu and their mother. “I can do this? I’m pretty good at using this sort of ninjutsu anyway. Plus, I doubt I’ll even be able to use Tate Eboshi in the Chunin Exams anyway, there won’t be…”
Chigetsu would be cut off by their mother’s glare. Shrinking down a bit, they would get back to work. This would probably take a while.
[2751/2500: Training Water Gun Technique, Water Gun: Two Guns, Tate Eboshi, Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death, Water Release: Water Colliding Wave, Water Dragon Bullet, Water Formation Wall, Water Fang Bullet, Marine Battle Formation Technique, Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, and Water Severing Wave]
Despite being officially a genin for a while now due to all the training that Chigetsu’s family had put them through, it was only very recently that they had actually begun taking missions. There were only D-Ranks, not exactly anything impressive, but the mere fact that Chigetsu was actually doing shinobi work was a surprise in itself. While it hadn’t been like Chigetsu’s parents were closely monitoring their activity, it hadn’t been long before they heard that Chigetsu had been chosen for a mission with the new Mizukage. Why exactly Hana Kaguya had chosen Chigetsu to go on a mission with her wasn’t something that either Chigetsu or the Hozuki Clan could guess towards, but it wasn’t exactly something that could be ignored.
The letter was sent directly to Chigetsu’s apartment, requesting a meeting with his mother. The act of receiving mail itself wasn’t something that Chigetsu was used to, given that all the bills and everything along those lines were more or less taken care of by their family. Having it delivered by hand all the way up to his penthouse apartment by one of the building’s staff was a strange experience. Even though Chigetsu had lived so long in this apartment it was rare for them to interact with the staff, other than to have meals delivered. The letter itself was… formal. There was some light fluff, stuff that Chigetsu just skipped their eyes over and didn’t bother reading. All those formalities. The important stuff was that they were calling Chigetsu to come back home for a discussion. They had apparently overheard somehow about how Chigetsu was taking missions all of the sudden (and not failing them, they had to go and mention that), and that whole thing with the Mizukage. Oh, and she mentioned the exams. The Chunin Exams. It
was in one of those passive aggressive endings, like “We should talk about your professional development, considering the oncoming Chunin Exams that are going to be held in Kirigakure.” The intent was obvious, that this was them pressuring Chigetsu to sign up for them. As soon as Chigetsu’s eyes got to that part of the letter they would let out a slight sigh. Back to normal. The moment they did one or two little D-Rank missions (that were basically just glorified chores) she was going right back to how she had been, as if the last few years hadn’t happened at all. The letter would be tossed into the garbage as soon as Chigetsu finished with it, crumpled up into a little ball and slam dunked into the poor, undeserving trash bin. It was all too frustrating. As much as Chigetesu wanted to blow this all off and just not have to think about her anymore, family was a hard thing to resist. Especially when they were paying all of the bills.
Like the defiant child that they were, Chigetsu would make sure to arrive late. Being there on time, or God forbid early, would just be showing their mother that they could still be easily controlled. Instead they arrived a cool half an hour late, like the delinquent they were. Chigetsu would be wearing a very smug smile as they arrived, although that would be quickly wiped off their face as soon as the house actually came into view. Just seeing it again made weird emotions swell around in their gut. Second-guessing themselves a bit, Chigetsu would begin to wonder if it was too late to turn around. It was all so familiar, but in an uncomfortable way. Like Chigetsu was returning back to somewhere that they didn’t belong. Standing in front of these front doors now was a profoundly awkward experience. Looking back over their shoulder, Chigetsu would consider their options.
The door would swing open before they had finished thinking. Chigetsu hadn’t even knocked. Standing in the doorway would be their mother, an unreadable expression on her face. As soon as she would see her son in the doorway though that all would twist into something of a shark-smile, maybe at seeing Chigetsu’s somewhat shocked demeanour. She was a tall woman, as tall as the average man, and with her pale complexion and long white hair she almost had the appearance of a banshee. Or maybe a shark, given the sharp pointed teeth that she had.
“Come on. Don’t just stand there. We have a lot to talk about.”
She was sickening sweet. They way that she had smiled always reminded Chigetsu of a shark. The things that she said though, all the little pleasantries and idle commentary, none of it bothered Chigetsu as much as the things that she didn’t say. No comments about Chigetsu’s clothing, or their hair, or anything like that. After so many years of it, having her say nothing felt… strange. Like there were these snide comments she was holding in, but choosing not to say. Just rumbling and roiling under the surface, like a covered pot of boiling tea. It left Chigetsu with this itching anxiety, like they would have to run for cover at any given moment, but couldn’t be the first to break social etiquette. All those nice little pleasantries were things that they had to force themselves to respond. Freezing up like this and being so easily controlled again by felt disgusting, but at the same time there was no way out. If things had broken out into a simple conflict it would have been so much easier. Luckily, all that fake small talk and blah blah blah didn’t last long. She led Chigetsu into the garden, where a small gazebo would overlook a large artificial pond. Laid out would be two sets of plates containing a small assortment of pastries, along with cups of tea. Just two. As usual, it didn’t seem that Chigetsu’s father was involved with this. Following her lead, Chigetsu would take a seat across from the pond, looking past their mother to stare into the water. Chigetsu’s mother would help herself to some tea in the meanwhile, taking her sweet time in getting to the point.
“So… Uh.” Chigetsu would clear their throat, coughing a bit in hopes to provoke their mother into speaking. It didn’t seem to have much luck, with the woman simply taking her time to enjoy the tea and pastries that had been laid out. The tea was cold at this point too, so there was no way that she was enjoying it anyway. It was just an exercise in annoying Chigetsu. Still, there was nothing they could do but wait until she finished.
“When did you plan on telling me about your progress?” Finally, after what felt like forever, she would start to get to the point. All while licking a bit of the icing off the wrapper of a cupcake. “You’ve been taking missions lately. Engaging in shinobi work. Enough to get noticed.”
Chigetsu’s expression would sour. Even though they knew this was going to be the topic of discussion the entire time, it didn’t mean that they had to enjoy it. It was like being dragged into a car crash kicking and screaming, although without all that kicking and screaming on Chigetsu’s behalf. “I just wanted a little extra money. It’s not like…”
“Lower ranking missions are an important part of every shinobi’s beginning.”
“I’m not…” As much as Chigetsu wanted to say ‘I’m not a shinobi’, it just wasn’t true. It wasn’t something that they wanted to be, but there was no denying it now.
“The new Mizukage took notice of you. Requested you for a mission.” It was a statement rather than a question. There wasn’t any need to confirm it.
“Yes, but…” Chigetsu was pretty sure that had just been random chance. The mission itself was just physical labor too. Nothing special or anything like that.
“How have your ninjutsu abilities improved? Your kenjutsu? You have been keeping up on your training?”
This wasn’t something that Chigetsu really had a good answer to. Training? No. Kenjutsu? No. Ninjutsu? Well… Maybe? “I, Uh…”
“You’re going to need to keep up with these things if you want to have any chance of doing well at the Chunin Exams.”
“I don’t really know if I want to enter the Chunin Exams…”
Two scrolls would be passed over to Chigetsu over the patio table. They would stare at it for a moment. Curiosity got the better of them, and after a moment Chigetsu would open them. Contained within one was a list of Hozuki Clan techniques, which upon seeing was almost a little bit insulting. Half of them Chigetsu already knew how to do pretty well, and the other half were super advanced. Too advanced for Chigetsu to learn. The other scroll contained what looked like just a mixed assortment of Suiton ninjutsu. Most of them pretty advanced as well. What were they supposed to do with this?
“What?”
“You’re going to learn everything in those scrolls. At the very least you’re going to be proficient in our clan’s techniques before going off into the Chunin Exams.”
“But…”
The look that Chigetsu’s mother gave them cause Chigetsu to immediately turn down, looking down again at the scrolls rather than make eye contact. The list was… Since Chigetsu already knew half of these, it would be a bit easier, but still, that left a bunch…
While looking down, Chigetsu hadn’t noticed the actions of their mother. Raising a finger to point at her child, she would fire a water bullet directly at their head. Chigetsu would naturally liquify in response to it, but the bullet would still be enough to scatter their liquified head all over the patio in a splattering mess. It would take a few moments for their head to reform, with a rather shocked expression now scrawled over Chigetsu’s face.
“The Water Bullet Technique. One of the Hozuki Clan’s most famous techniques. You’re going to learn it.”
With the blank stare that Chigetsu gave her, it quickly became clear that more direction was needed.
“Form your hand into the shape of a gun. Your index finger sticking out and your thumb up. Then, redistribute the liquid in your body and compress it in your finger. If you compress it and then create a slow flow inside your finger, that all can be shot like a tiny cannonball if you stop the flow. It’s not difficult.”
Having it spelled at like that actually helped a lot, although the condescending tone made Chigetsu a bit frustrated. Normally, they would just blow this all off and not even bother trying, putting just the bare minimum amount of effort into it so that this all could be ended as quickly as possible. But meeting people like Calis and Kitsuki, and Hana now…
Chigetsu did as they were told. Their finger was extended, thumb up. Redistribution of water and compression were pretty basis in principal, even if they were more difficult to pull off. It wouldn’t be long until they were able to create a facsimile of what their mother had described. The moment they let go, Chigetsu’s entire finger would explode, although a bullet would noticeably careen off into the pond behind their mother and create a big splash. Not a bad start.
“That’s a good enough start.” Chigetsu’s finger exploding like that was a pain, but this was the first time that they had ever tried to do something like this before. Practice would probably let them do the entire bullet thing without the finger exploding. “Let’s move on to the pond.”
Against their will, Chigetsu would be swept up into their mother’s plans again. With a stunning inability to display any sort of resistance, they would be together then with the woman in the pond, each of them sitting atop the water. Basic usage of chakra like this was easy for Chigetesu, and similarly their mother as well. Chigetsu’s chakra would be swarming into the liquid beneath them, stretch out in an attempt to swell into the lake entirely. How exhausting it was would be evident by the rivulets of sweat dripping down their face and their already tense breathing.
“Tate Eboshi. Even someone like you should be able to achieve some results in a small pond like this. Stretch your chakra out as far as you can. Reach into every drop of water.”
It was easier said than done. This was the basis of every Suiton technique anyway. How could something so basic help Chigetsu?
“You’ve already done well with turning your chakra into water, although that’s something basic enough that even a toddler could do it…” She would be talking more or less to herself, crossing off a few techniques from the scroll list. Exploding Water Colliding Wave, Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, and the Water Severing Wave. The Water Formation Wall Technique too, after a bit of thought. All of these were much simpler for a Hozuki to use as they were uniquely skilled in transforming their chakra into liquids. Producing large quantities like that was rather simple then. Chigetsu was good enough at performing each, at least in theory, that it satisfied her.
“Can’t we move onto something else?” Chigetsu whimpered, groaning a bit. It felt like they were being ripped apart trying even to take control of a shallow little pond like this. It was one thing to use your chakra to form water into projectiles or something.
“Suiton Ninjutsu is all you can do. If you’re not exceptionally skilled in it, you won’t stand any chance. Mastering Tate Eboshi will give you a trump card that will help you on your way to the top.” She had an iron resolve when it came to this. Already Chigetsu’s complaining had earned him three more water bullets, each of them blowing apart another part of Chigetsu’s body. Not that it hurt or left any lasting damage, but it was annoying and a little bit humiliating.
“But I can…” Recalling their chakra, Chigetsu would form a quick series of hand seals. From the liquid a giant dragon would rise up, looping quickly into the air before crashing back down into the pond. The Water Dragon Bullet. The waves from the impact caused the surface of the pond to shake, creating a wobbly experience for both Chigetsu and their mother. “I can do this? I’m pretty good at using this sort of ninjutsu anyway. Plus, I doubt I’ll even be able to use Tate Eboshi in the Chunin Exams anyway, there won’t be…”
Chigetsu would be cut off by their mother’s glare. Shrinking down a bit, they would get back to work. This would probably take a while.
[2751/2500: Training Water Gun Technique, Water Gun: Two Guns, Tate Eboshi, Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death, Water Release: Water Colliding Wave, Water Dragon Bullet, Water Formation Wall, Water Fang Bullet, Marine Battle Formation Technique, Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave, and Water Severing Wave]
