Morning Training

[soul_mods]

Characters: Everyone!
Location: Training Ground, Shibusen
Rating: PG-13 for violence
Time: 6am to 9am
Description: Training takes place every morning in the park to prepare the guests of the city for the ongoing war. It's handwaved most days, but approximately once a month this gets played out in a log. This log takes place on March 29th.

Official areas:

FAQ: For people who have questions and need answers. Staffed by Maito Gai.
Breakfast: Providing food for those who come. All food-providers are given funds with which to buy the food and paid for the prep/cook time. Provided by Saya Tagaki.
Combat instruction: To learn or improve upon fighting techniques. Taught by Cloud Strife, Mickey Mouse, Auron.
Sparring: Show up, pick an opponent, and spar. Overseen by Amateresu, Spirit Albarn.
Weapon Transformation: Guiding new Weapons through the sometimes difficult process of finding a form and then re-finding their original one. Taught by Bakura Ryou, Yami Bakura, Aqua.
Soul Perception: If someone wants to find out more about their soul, what they are, and what they may potentially do. Overseen by Hades.
Partner Training: Guidance on how to work as partners. Taught by Spirit Albarn; Eve and Keroro
Weapons Handling Training: How to handle weapons and Weapons. Taught by Death the Kid with Liz and Patty.
Shooting Range: How to shoot. Taught by Naoto Shirogane, Maes Hughes.
Meister Ability Helpers: Learning what your meister ability is and how to use it. Taught by Kanji Tatsumi, Miles Edgeworth.
Finding a Partner: An area for unpartnered Weapons and Meisters to mingle in. Overseen by
Meditation: This month's novelty class is on focus and meditating. Taught by Hyuuga Neji.
Medics: A place for the medics to linger, recruit, and help anyone that's gotten hurt. Helping out are CR-S01, Rosalia Rossellini.
Watch: A place for the watch members to linger, recruit, and train. Interested observers welcome!
SEES: A place for the SEES members linger, recruit, and relax.
Hug Brigade: Offering encouragement through hugs. Staffed by Maes Hughes, Maito Gai.

Feel free to make your own threads!

Comments

[awokentospring]

[Lee has opted in to practicing meditation, since he's sure it'll help control his power and keep it from rebounding. But it's clear he's having some issues.

Sitting cross-legged on the ground, Lee has his eyes closed and is attempting to control his breathing. It's not working all that well. His eyes are screwed shut tight and his breathes are labored.

Neji! Halp!]

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji touches Lee's shoulder, crouching beside him and giving it a light shove to get his attention]

Lee! You're closer to hyperventilating than anything. Slow it down.

[awokentospring]

[Startled by the touch, Lee flinches and jumps in his seat. Then he blushes a little when he sees it's just Neji.]

R-right! This is just... more difficult than I expected.

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji expected that Lee would have difficulty, but the extent still manages to surprise him]

You're accustomed to tackling everything with energy and determination, but this is different. First and foremost, you need to relax. Take a deep breath, but don't hold it in. Let it go, and release the tension you feel along with it.

[awokentospring]

[Lee frowns, a bit disappointed in himself. It's in his nature to tackle things with all he has. Being subdued was just the opposite of Rock Lee.]

I will try again, then.

[He squeezes his eyes shut and takes a deep breath. When he releases it, it comes out a bit shaky. He's more relaxed this time, but only by a little. He breathes deep again, and again the release is shaky.]

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji presses the heel of his palm into Lee's back, rubbing in small, soothing circles, and speaks softly, encouraging]

It's just breathing, Lee. You do it on a constant basis without any conscious thought. Slow, and steady.

[awokentospring]

[Right. Just breathing. He should have this down naturally. The rubbing on his back helped and Lee focused on the comfort that came from Neji's touch. Slowly his breathing relaxed, and with that his muscles in his shoulders also began to lose their tension. Slowly... steadily...]

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji slowed the small circles on Lee's back, hoping to encourage him into subconsciously relaxing a little further, and offered a low hum instead of words- not trusting them to break the spell once Lee realized he was succeeding]

[awokentospring]

[The tension left his muscles little by little. Soon, he was slumping forward slightly and even the tightness in his hands and wrists had gone limp.

A breath like a sigh escaped Lee, and then he fell into an even deeper state of relaxation. In fact, he was so relaxed he could possibly even...

A soft snore escaped the green beast. He had dozed off without even realizing it.]

[heavenly_earth]

[It was going better than he hoped, feeling the tension in Lee's back melt away, watched the lines of frustration fade into smooth concentration. Lee had succeeded, as far as he was concerned, at least until the snore slipped through. Neji stared in mild disbelief, and his hand dropped from Lee's back. He shoved him over and stood]

The point is to still be aware of your surroundings, Lee.

[awokentospring]

[Lee woke at the sudden push, his shinobi instincts kicking in and telling him to roll with the shove. He managed to spring to his feet and prepare to attack, but Neji's voice reached him then and he found himself pouting in frustration again.]

... I fell asleep, did I not?

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji just stared him down for another minute before sighing. Lee was taking it in extremely basic steps at a time]

You were able to relax, at least. Now you need to be able to remain aware.

[awokentospring]

[Well, Lee was used to failure. It happened more often than success, but it also generally gave was to success before too long. Still, he offered a weaker smile than usual.]

I do not normally relax that much unless I am going to sleep. That may be the problem...

[He tilted his head.] Perhaps I should try the candle approach.

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji nodded, thinking along similar lines] It'll give you something physical to keep your attention on.

[He disappears for a minute to go get one and once it's lit, he sets it down on the plate and motions for Lee to sit down again]

Just keep your eyes on the flame and if your attention wanders, just return it to the candle. The rest comes naturally with time.

[awokentospring]

[Lee waited for Neji with more patience than he normally showed, somewhat subdued by the situation. When he was expected to sit he did so without complaint.

He trained his eyes on the candle flame, trying not to overly focus and return to the over-enthusiastic state he had been in at the beginning of the lesson.]

I will try again, then...

[This time he had no trouble keeping his breaths regular, though the tension in his shoulders wasn't abating all that quickly. This would definitely take some practice.]

[heavenly_earth]

[Neji watched him for a minute, then nodded to himself]

Well I'm going to get back to the others.. Take as long as you need, but don't force yourself if you begin to feel restless. Remember you can practice meditation at any time. Signal if you have need something.

[awokentospring]

Mn. Thank you... Neji.

[Lee's responding words were soft as he tried not to lose focus. As much as he wanted to be good at meditation NOW he had resigned himself to the knowledge that it would take time.

He really hated waiting.]