Konoha's Cherry Blossom

Chapter 2

Sakura runs through the main house all the way to the Senju clan's own library. She goes on her tippy toes as she scans through the archives and shelves filled with scrolls of all kinds, ranging from ninjutsu to fuinjutsu or water jutsus to fire jutsus, and books and other scrolls containing the history of the Senju clan.

"A-ha! Found it!" Sakura exclaimed as she stopped her search when she found a scroll that piqued her interest. It had all sorts of training exercises and methods for improving molding and manipulation of chakra. She had also grabbed another scroll that explained everything there was to know about chakra and another one that has a variety of E-rank jutsus. That'll come in handy.

Just as she was about to leave, something caught her eye. Unlike the archives, where there would be scrolls and scrolls all bundled together, there, in the corner where spider webs and dust was being collected, as if it has been untouched for decades, where a pile of scrolls. These had the Senju insignia inscribed on them, but there was something else about them that she couldn't quite decipher. So, before she left, Sakura grabbed one of those scrolls and left without looking back.

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"Hmm..." Sakura sat down in her usual spot in the main family branch's garden, under the wisteria tree which was only a few paces away from a small pond that a small family of ducks have inhabited, as she read the contents of the first scroll she got. She places a few leaves on her forehead to practice the leaf exercise while reading.

Chakra, a form of life energy that all individuals produce to some degree; those who run out of chakra die. (Well, that's concerning. I'll keep it in mind.) Produced within and manipulated by organs such as the heart, the energy circulates throughout the body in a network called the 'Chakra Pathway System'. Chakra is created when two more primal energies, known collectively as one's 'stamina', are molded together. Physical energy is collected from each of the body's cells and can be increased through training, stimulants, and exercise. (I'll need to work more on that. Maybe I can ask otou-san for some weights...) Spiritual energy is derived from the mind's consciousness and can be increased through studying, meditation, and experience. (That must be why okaa-san told me to study up more.) These two energies becoming more powerful will in turn make the created chakra more powerful. Therefore, practicing a technique repeatedly will build up experience, increasing one's spiritual energy, and thus allowing more chakra to be created. (That's why otou-san told me to keep practicing the leaf exercise even after doing it correctly the first time.) As a result, the ninja is able to do that same technique with more power. This same cycle applies for physical energy, except the ninja needs to increase their endurance instead.

Sakura closes the scroll and sets it aside as she picks up the next scroll. I already know the leaf exercise but I'll need to get a better hang of manipulating my chakra before walking on trees. Sakura thinks as she reads the scroll. Then I'll focus on water walking. But I'll have to expand my reserves as well, so I can't risk running out of chakra.

She moves on to the next scroll as she closes the one she was reading. She decided to skip the E-rank jutsus since she'll have to focus first on the training exercises. It was the scroll that had caught her eye. Once she opened it, Sakura noticed it was a scroll containing a certain jutsu she was unfamiliar with. Mokuton: Advent of a World of Flowering Trees...? She looked through the hand signs and noticed the snake hand sign was frequently used for this jutsu.

She decided to not do the entire jutsu, but only using the snake hand sign since it seemed important. Putting her hand in front of her chest while doing the snake sign, Sakura concentrates her chakra. She feels something once she uses her chakra, like a tugging in her gut as she pumps quite a lot of chakra. She somehow feels the lifeforce of the plants surrounding her, and their own unique and distinct natural energy. After a five or so minutes of concentration, Sakura lets her hand go slack in disappointment as she catches her breath.