Starring:
Loki, Ayumu
Date: March 5, 2014
Summary:
Ayumu finally tries to perform the Shadow Clone jutsu…. only to see just how much chakra it takes.
"Shadow Clone 3: Ayumu"
North Shiren Caverns
The temperatures warm (by Suna standards) with the coming of Spring, and light rain showers down, coaxing the many plants back to life scattered across the Land of Wind in Oasis. But Ayumu resided in no such places. Still, He could sense the change in weather well enough from within the depths of Shiren Caverns. The sound of rain echoed across the walls here and there, disrupting his ability to focus, if only a little. He intended to make his way into a chamber that would amplyfy the noise. A foolish choice when one intends to delve into the forbidden, but necessary in his eyes if intended to truly learn anything from the scroll the scroll in his pocket.
The cavern has the sounds you would normally expect for such a place echoing throughout it. Rodents and insects make natural noises, seemingly carrying on in their daily routines. Here is desert survival turned into a living, breathing, presence. Nothing human seems to be here at the moment however, and the big cats are probably lazing about somewhere further in.
"This. Should. Do. Nicely~"
Ayumu just couldn't resist the impulse upon reaching the chamber he desired, though he regretted the act mere moments later when the echoes returned back. He covered his ears but even that is not enough to block out the noise. "Yep.. perfect.." He murmurs to himself. After awhile the ringing in his ears finally dims enough to stop cringing and start planning his next move. The first move is scanning for predators; in particular, those that might've not taken kindly to his making a ruckus. Presumeably if the coast was clear (relatively speaking) Ayumu would take to the roof of the cave, adhereing himself through chakra, then cautiously open it up and start reading through the eye in his mouth.
Nothing seems to come for him, though the sounds of insects and rodents continue to echo for a brief moment before dying down into a much quieter level than before. Most big cats don't really care for far-away noises, and the small creatures tend to avoid humans. Thus, Ayumu should have no problems with adhering himself to the roof. As he opens the scroll to start "reading" it, one thing becomes very clear. This jutsu is very much in the mindset of Shinobi. It may /look/ simple, but in reality its far from…
With all the blow gradually making its way to his head Ayumu was able to break down more than the norm… or so it felt like anyways. The seals were simple and the exchanges likewise, but still, the description left far too much room for interpetation and the like… or so Ayumu saw things as. A dreary sigh escapes his lips. "Well, nothing like a dry run to test these things." He says sarcastically, and then he drops down from the cieling, slipping the scroll back into his pocket once more along the way. The seal(s) are made, chakra gathered, and then…
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
There's a few puffs of smoke, but not much else on the sealing. No clones appear, and in fact the smoke is very thin in itself. Furthermore, there's no distinctive pop and very little chakra flow out of Ayumu's core. All in all, this attempt got only a very thin smoke screen, and not much else. In fact, the only sounds made are of some insects on the ceiling that scurry away from the smoke…
For a few moments, Ayumu is completely and utterly silent to better absorb what just happened. Nothing truly stands out by the end of his examination; barring the fact that he may have used to little or mis-interpeted how the chakra was meant to flow out from his being. After taking a brief moment to guage rather or not a second attempt is even possible, Ayumu tries for the second time. The correct seals are formed more slowly with a more excessive amount of chakra poured into the technique. If he could at least get the distinctive pop and a sickly clone of himself then it'd be a start if nothing else. If not…
Well, Ayumu does get the pop this time, though it's more of a loud "BANG!" that sends all nearby vermin scurrying away. As the smoke clears there's a rather mis-shapen form of Ayumu standing on the roof, with a foot in his ear. The "clone," for lack of a better word, soon pops away, leaving Ayumu to stand there wondering just what happened. Not only that, but a substantial amount of chakra rushed out of him during that attempt, leaving him feeling slightly off.
It takes a great deal of willpower to focus after that last failure, but even then, Ayumu still needs a few moments to gather himself. Hope lights up his heart upon sensing the clones heart beat. That hope dies rather quickly unfortunately upon noting the flaws in its structure he pin-pointed. Another failure. "Again.." He murmurs, however, in straightening out to try and do just that, Ayumu nearly collapses on the spot. The Iga manages to catch himself in time, if only just. He tries again, though slowly this time, ensuring that he had his land legs again.
"Too little and its a wisp, too much and that happens. Anymore and I could've been a goner… gonna have to take that down for later I think." He admits, grinning like a fox. "But still, that form said a lot… hmm…. Ah, perhaps that then." Ayumu forms a seal and builds up chakra again. Unlike the time before the results would be perfect. Several eyes are spat out and directed to surround the Iga on all sides from ten meters. Then… he tries again, toning down his chakra out put while using the sensors to help keep a firm image of 'what' he was just trying to accomplish; creating another Ayumu.
And there's smoke, the pop, and… something. His sensor abilities pick up something forming, and when the smoke clears he can tell it's /supposed/ to be him… if something that looks like it's lost all its bones and is inches away from becoming a puddle of goo could be defined as him. It barely lasts about three seconds before it collapses and disappears. The drain is starting to get bad though, as he definitely feels it. What he can tell is focusing on the frame caused him to lose focus of the moulding, which in turn caused… that.
His vision starts to blur and even dim during the technique, but Ayumu keeps pressing on until the clone is created. What was desired appeared as only a hollow shell of itself that lasts for all of three seconds. The image would horrify or disturb a lesser being. And yet, all Ayumu saw was progress finally being made. Granted, even the jubiliation and years of padding his stamina proves not enough to hold off the after-effects of attempting the jutsu twice now. Panting, sweating, and even swaying however does not sway him from attempting the technique again.
He drops down into an indian staance and focuses once more. Too much and it exploded. Too little and all that'll be produced is a wisp of smoke. And if he focused too much on framing the outside and he lose sight on molding its inside properly. He would try again, focusing on the middle ground of all…
And… one puff of smoke, and one single pop, and a perfect clone of Ayumu appears… for all of two seconds. It pops, just like the last one, and with it goes the last of Ayumu's chakra and stamina. As darkness closes around him the orbs register someone entering the cave. Ayumu can barely see a piece of paper being placed on the floor before he looses consciousness completely, unaware that someone catches him as he falls. A few hours later he awakens to the sound of rats approaching, but he is still groggy from passing out…. the paper lies just under his right hand, which has been outstretched to cover it and pin it to the floor.
