Red Blade

The familiar sounds of bird chirping early in the morning woken up the young boy from his slumber. Rin opened his eyes as darkness was all he could see in this small room. His mind and body was so sleepy and sore. The boy even thought about sleeping an extra few minutes or maybe even an hour. Rin didn’t have anything planned for today since there was no training session with Tsuyo, no errands to run for Hitsuro, and as far as he is aware nothing his clan wants from him. At this point Rin had forsaken any training sessions with the other Uchiha and even refuses to train with his brethren except for his mother.

Rin rolled over on his other side and faced another wooden wall in the darkness. His dark locks was in a mess as he had just woken up. The boy was only dressed in a pair of shorts as it reveals the scar tissue on his chest and even on his arms. Some were inflicted by himself during training, others were results from the Uchiha’s form of training. Rin ends up closing his green flaked eyes as his mind tunes everything out.

Just when Rin reached the end to slumber, he is roughly woken up by something cold, hard, and sharp lightly jabbing him at his lower back. Rin is quickly woken up with memories of trauma streaming through the surface of his mind as instinct kicks in. The boy suddenly flung his blanket up as he quickly pushed himself up with an added twist. Where he hurls a fist to strike the blanket and whatever was behind it. A low whistle could be heard as Rin only felt the blanket wrapping around his arm. Before he knew it a strong tug downward was enough to flip the boy off his feet and slam his back against the wall.

“Seems like i’ve got a fiesty one over here. A bit rough if i don’t mind saying so myself, but an understanding reaction when being jabbed with something sharp.” A male voice that he doesn’t recognized as Rin is more or less permitted to fall towards the ground. A thud can be heard when doing so as the kid grunts before the blanket falls onto his face in particular. “Are you sure that you can handle him?” Now that voice Rin recognizes, and that voice belongs to his mother Maiori Uchiha. The male voice scoffs at the question. “Miss, this sort of thing is common with anyone. He may not be able to do our normal ninjutsu, and his hand to hand technique needs some work. However, you mentioned that he seems to behave differently when using blades correct?”

There was no verbal confirmation as Rin moved the blanket to uncover his face. A dim ray of light streams into the room that reveals the bedroll on the floor that is honestly just bundles of blankets. The only thing that is present in his room is the small dresser that simply has some armor pieces on top with a sheathed katana. Standing over him was a man that only has one eye, as the other is covered with a patch. He doesn’t have the normal shinobi gear as he seems to be wearing a green yamaka. In his hand is a rather wicked looking katana for the edge seems to be nicked and bitten into with some greater metal. Yet even in this light Rin can still see the edge has a keen to it.

“Come on kid. It’s about time you get taught some real swordsmanship.” Was this man a barbarian or does he simply not care that he indirectly called their form of swordsmanship fake? Well Rin will admit that most Uchiha actually don’t specifically used swords, and even fewer were heard of in the Konoha itself. Rin was confused and still a bit groggy from being woken up of his slumber. Regardless Rin dons his clothing not minding that his mother and this man was standing in his room. He made sure to equip the steel arm guards over his bare skin and leather shin guards over his slacks. Then he reached for his katana until Maiori spoke up.

“Don’t you think it is a bit too early for him to use metal swords? Couldn’t you start with wooden ones?” The man shrugged his shoulders as he held that confident-borderline-arrogance air about him. “Are you telling me to train a kid into a kid or training a kid into a young man? Wooden swords are usually weak against other blades to begin with, and your boy seems to already own his piece. So there’s no point to restrict him.” Rin didn’t move a muscle as those eyes look at the corner of his vision at his mother. She was reluctant, but Maiori gave a nod and it was only then that Rin wrapped his fingers around the scabbard.

---

With Maiori’s recommendation, Rin and this man who now sheathed his weapon traveled from the estate into the biggest training grounds the village has to offer. The woman also followed behind them as she wanted to make sure that Rin doesn’t get hurt too badly. It was early in the morning as the sun was barely over the horizon. Rin was completely waking up as the bitter cold air wraps around him that brings the bumps along his skin. To be honest the genin didn’t know what was really happening other than it is possible he just got himself a new teacher on top of the other ones.

“The name is Koyasu Shinsaku kid, and i hear that you’re having some trouble finding what you’re good at.” One-eyed guy introduced himself and practically nailed it on a hammer so to speak. Rin didn’t really respond verbally nor give off much recognition in that aspect. Koyasu glances over at Maiori with a concerned look, but it doesn’t appear that Maiori knows what is up with Rin. By now they had come upon the center of the training grounds. In which case Koyasu cleared his throat as he attempts this again.

“I’ll be teaching you the most basic use of the sword and work on your footwork. Eventually once you get comfortable we’ll get to actual fighting.” Rin gave a nod in agreement as Maiori stood roughly twenty meters away. “Rin Uchiha.” The boy was brief, but at least he said something and that was enough for Koyasu. Both drew out their blades and what Koyasu said was true. The stance that Koyasu altered Rin into was simple and efficient. How to swing the sword in a variety of ways and how to defend against attacks. It didn’t take Rin long before he figured out that it was more speed and coordination oriented than anything else.

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1142/150
Learned Red Tiger Style (D Custom)

Glorious, bright warm light illuminates the training grounds from the eastern horizon. Sweat coats the smooth skin of Rin’s as he brings down the katana to a stop at waist level. Simply swinging the sword around has proven to Rin that it was not as effective as controlling where he moves it. Every time he moves to swing, the sword is like an extension of his arm so to speak. Once Rin came to that understanding he became faster each time he moves with the sword. Even Koyasu noticed that his movements are better and smoother than when he woke up, but the guy assumed that the boy was only half asleep.

“Alright kiddo, since you seem to have gotten the hang of this we’re going over a simple defensive technique that is mainly designed to protect yourself from an attack above the head. I’ll go a little slow at first and throw in a downward strike at you every now and then. It is your job to protect yourself.” Koyasu told the boy and he was quicker to respond with a nod in acknowledgement. So far Rin has not spoken much of a word, but that spark youth often possess is back into the boy’s hazel eyes. Koyasu stood only a meter away to give them a gap before the man lunge at Rin while holding his sword at waist level with blade facing behind him. Rin immediately knew what he was going to do, and angled his katana while holding it diagonally against the arc. So when the wicked katana came up Rin had moved to the right as his blade basically slid the back of Koyasu’s katana. With a flick of his wrist, Rin guided the slash away from him before proceeding to bash Koyasu with his shoulder.

The force of Rin’s shoulder bash was enough to stagger Koyasu. Following up with a diagonal slash from Rin’s blade, Koyasu quickly recovered and moved his blade in time to block Rin’s attack with a solid clang of metal. The man was grinning as he easily shoved Rin back enough to gain some small distance outside of the sword’s reach without moving forward. “I knew it…” Koyasu stated as he took a step forward as he moved to slash downward, and note that nobody told Rin what the technique was as he quickly with greater speed than before swung an upperslash. It counters Koyasu’s attack as Rin had not only blocked the attack, but he also scratched Koyasu’s bicep of his sword arm too.

“This speed… Tell me kid, are you sure nobody taught you this style? Or any form of swordsmanship at all?” Koyasu asked a question to the boy and Rin simply shook his head. The boy’s silent response simply made Koyasu chuckle that gradually changed into a burst of laughter like a mad man. “Now i can see why Maiori came to ask for my assistance! Ho boy, i thought your kind went extinct, but turns out i was wrong!” Rin was confused at first as his brow raised before Koyasu disengaged the lock to attempt another slash at the boy. This time Koyasu was moving rather fast and it was aimed low horizontal to get the boy’s legs. Rin simply jumped back to get out of the sword’s reach as Koyasu’s katana whistled past him.

In that moment Rin moved with this incredible speed, that Maiori is quickly noticing, to close in the gap and proceed to deliver a quick smack on Koyasu’s shoulder. The smack was the result of Rin using the blunt edge so it did nothing lethal to the man. If the man felt it, Koyasu neglected to show it as he slammed his elbow on the side of Rin’s face and it possessed enough strength to knock the kid off his feet. Rin lightly landed on his feet only a meter apart from Koyasu and didn’t remain that way as he lunged at Koyasu. The grinning man reacts by slashing horizontally at Rin’s chest level, but due to the motion Koyasu didn’t notice the buckle in the boy’s knees. So Rin dropped into a sliding crouch as the wicked katana flew just inches over his head. Allowing Rin to proceed with his initial form of attack as the boy slammed his shoulder into Koyasu’s abdomen that actually made him gasp and nearly double over. Instead of doubling over the slamming force of Rin’s shoulder forced Koyasu to be knocked off his feet till he ends up tumbling backwards for two meters.

760/150

Techniques Learned:
Slashing Sky (D Custom)

Reason for increased speed:

Koyasu still chuckled as he seems to brush off whatever damage Rin dealt. “Well enough of this farce. You realize how bright the sun can get right?” Rin appeared to understand the question, but doesn’t seem to comprehend what Koyasu was hinting at. The big man lets out a sigh before he twists the sword arm. Just enough to where a blinding light can be seen from the blade directed at Rin’s eyes which made the boy flinch. Not only did he close his eyes, but Rin also shielded them with his left hand.

It was a moment, but when Rin lowered his hand Koyasu had already closed the gap and held his wicked katana literal 2 inches from the boy’s neck. “Sometimes a moment of weakness is all the opponent needs to slip his blade into your throat. If your opponent is a tough one, try directing the sun’s light at their eyes by twisting it just right. You gotta be quick though, because if you fiddle too long especially after that second has passed the opponent maybe quick to catch on.” He explained as the man held a serious tone in his voice. Sweat trailed down Rin’s cheek as his eyes shifted a glance at the blade so close to him.

That’s when Rin realized that Koyasu has been holding back for the sake of Rin having a chance to learn. To be honest Rin felt like he shouldn’t be surprised, for Koyasu’s movements were simple to read hence is why Rin was able to react as he had been. Koyasu smirked as he pulled his blade away from the boy’s neck. “Did you honestly think you were at my level?” Rin’s face flushed with heat due to shame. Regardless Koyasu stepped to the side with a light chuckle. “Well either way don’t beat yourself over it kid. I mean this maybe the most basic style any swordsman can possess, but you’ve picked this up along with one other technique in a single day.”

A light tap of cold metal was felt on the back of Rin’s thigh as it was Koyasu’s silent way of saying to correct his stance. So Rin got back into the red tiger stance with his blade held in front of him. The next thirty minutes had been passed as Koyasu showed the precise and easy method of directing a dazzling light is twisting the katana to a 45 degree angle facing diagonally. In a sword-clash it’ll help Rin get an advantage over his opponent as Koyasu pointed out. Eventually Rin can comfortably perform the technique that’s a form of evasion and counter while blinding the target for a moment.

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447/150

Learned Sunlight (D ranked Custom)

Palms were sweaty as Rin’s muscles were feeling the burn. In particular his hands, forearm, and even his torso. His back was getting there, but thankfully the last technique was actually easy on the muscles. Koyasu has been patient with Rin and as time progresses one could say they bonded as a tutor and student. Swordplay seemed to be fitting for young Rin, and to think that there are other styles to learn energizes the boy.

“Alright so not only did you learn a simple defensive technique, but you've also gotten the hang of directing light with your sword. From what i see you have good form. Normally it takes days for average people to get this far. Then again it is the most basic form of the sword.” Koyasu paused for a moment as he lets out a shallow sigh. “Very well, but consider this as the last technique you're gonna learn today. However this technique is all about timing and anticipation. Consider this as a counter evasion mix.” Rin would readjust his grip on his sword as Koyasu motioned with his hand. The boy took it as a sign of attacking, and so Rin purposely swung a basic slow slash at the shoulder.

However the man literally spun as he shifted his weight to his rear foot and side stepped out of the way. Before Rin knew it Koyasu had dropped into a crouch as he was coming to a full circle. Where he'll stop his katana inches from biting in the back of Rin’s left thigh. “As you probably guess, this counter requires your opponent to attack first. Patience is a godsend when it comes to this technique. If you execute it too early the opponent can see where you're going and change their plan of attack. Try it too late well…” Koyasu let Rin toy a few thoughts before continuing. “You better hope they're not using a blade or something that can easily kill you.”

Koyasu stood back up and made Rin do a few practice attempts. Frequently Rin will feel a tap of metal on his body where Koyasu tells him to correct. Then Koyasu will use himself as a target and will start slow on striking. With Rin evading in similar speed and not putting much intent behind his blade. Then after each attempt both of them would get faster until it borderlines that Rin can perform it properly. Each time seemed to be a bit different as sometimes Rin will drop into a crouch other times he'll stand up and aim for Koyasu’s torso. Of course Rin would halt his attack from cutting flesh.

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441/150

Learned Red Crescent (D Ranked Custom)

It was early evening by the time Rin and Koyasu began to wrap up their training session. Rin’s breathing was heavy as sweat drenched his clothes. The boy could finally get a break, but then again he didn’t realize how much time had passed as he almost trained all day. Maiori even went somewhere and came back with a bento box filled with seasoned meats, rice, and cooked vegetables. Which she hands Rin that box with a cup of refreshing water.

“Well you certainly have talent kid, but i’m afraid that’s all i have time for. Plus whether you realize it or not you’ve learned a good chunk of the beginner techniques. Practice using them and i’ll come back to teach you advanced techniques.” Koyasu states with a smile on his face. He had sheathed his weapon and being personally paid by Maiori herself the warrior departed from them. Leaving Rin enough time to sit down next to a tree and starts eating his food. After he had thanked his mother of course for both the meal and getting him a kenjutsu teacher.

“To be honest i half expected you to quit the moment he almost cut you the first time.” Maiori admitted as Rin split the chopsticks before he rose a brow. “Have some faith in me.” Rin replied as it held multiple meanings that it swam in their heads. Maiori actually looked a bit perplexed about it, but she waved it off in silence. The lady would sit next to Rin before she looks up at the scarlet dyed sky. “It is not that i don’t have faith in you. I’m worried about you Rin. People expect great things from you and you need to be prepared for the future.”

Rin sat there as he grabbed a piece of chicken with his chopsticks and puts it in his mouth. He understands for the most part that Maiori was only looking out for his own personal health and career. The boy waited to swallow the meat before he spoke again. “Is it because of the Uchiha name?” Maiori didn’t speak, at least not right away as she was trying to find the right words to say. To be honest she wanted to say that he needs to survive as a person and be able to live out the rest of his life.

“Yes. You are part of the Uchiha, and don’t let anyone else make you think otherwise. We maybe emotional people, but i promise we’re not all bad. Take the Hokage for example.” Maiori reached up and ruffle the boy’s hair a bit. Rin scooped up a bit of rice by using the chopsticks like a spoon. “What about my father? Was he bad enough to the point you don’t bring him up?” Rin asked the critical question that made Maiori’s brow twitched at the thought. “No it wasn’t that… In fact your father was a good man, and he never went back on his word either.”

Memories seem to drive Maiori into a deep thought, and with it came guilt in her eyes. The hand on Rin’s head brushed past his face and next thing Rin knows his mother half hugs him. “To be honest i think you’re a late bloomer. You don’t have talents as far as anyone can see, but perhaps that’s where you will surprise them the most.” Rin is not sure if that was really an encouragement or if he should feel insulted from the truth. Either way the boy dismissed the confusion. “Though if i find out you got a girlfriend before you even turn 13 you are going to be in deep trouble young man.”

Rin’s face flustered as he turned his gaze away from his mother. “Like that would ever happen.” The boy responded while toying with the thought. However in truth he finds it a waste of time and that a shinobi shouldn’t be held down by such things. Still Maiori had to change the subject for it was leading to something she doesn’t want to say yet. The truth of Rin’s lineage that is. Regardless Rin ate the dinner before the Uchiha mother and son trek their way back to the estate. Where Rin will rest for the night and wake up in the morning.

[exit]