Hard Work and Endurance [Private] [Training]

[Cabin Boy Aaron]

The wind blew in from the east, sweeping along the sea and then across the land, carrying with it the refreshing scent of the salt-water that made up the ocean and cooling the thin film of sweat that had settled upon the skin of the young, marine employed choreboy, Aaron Gerrard. It was a hot day, easily one of the hottest that Enies Lobby had ever seen, and, as such, it's inhabitants had dressed accordingly, including Aaron. Wearing a pair of simplistic red shorts that reached down to where they hung just below his kneecaps, Aaron allowed his lower body to breath, thus making moving about in the heat, as he was doing and was planning on escalating, less of a challenge. To cover his upper body, instead of his usual, rather formal combination of a dress shirt and a tie, Aaron was wearing a sleeveless black tunic made of a fabric he had a particular liking for; it breathed well, thus meaning that it was perfect for the current weather. Overall, Aaron looked like he was about to go out for a bit of exercise, which was exactly what he was aiming to do as he made his way towards Enies Lobby's numerous locations for training, in this case, the courtyard near the southern end of the island, which didn't get many visitors, but was perfect for what Aaron was planning to do.


As he reached the area, Aaron couldn't hold back his grin, a childish, from ear to ear grin that said exactly what he was feeling "Anxious with more than just a bit of excitement". As he walked into the long since beaten out twenty radius circle that made up the training area, with it's two wooden training dummies and two, thick, tree trunks that still bore the scars of other swordsmen having come to the area and trained on them, Aaron felt inspired. "Let's start this off with a bang!" he whispered to himself, his excitement actually causing his voice to crack a bit. Allowing his hands to drift towards each side of his hip, Aaron tugged free the Katana he kept on his person at all times and the Wakizashi that he only carried with him if it was deemed not inconvenient, drawing seemed a practiced motion for the boy, which was the truth. Twirling the blades so that the fashion that he was holding them was more conventional and thus, more comfortable, Aaron spread his legs out beneath him until his weight was balanced almost purely upon his thighs. It was the infamous "Horse Stance", though a variation of it considering that Aaron was holding his swords at pectoral height instead of fists at hip level. The stance allowed for excellent weight distribution and demanded that the user either develop or already possess balance, a trait Aaron knew would come in handy.


"And so it begins" he muttered to himself, referencing the fact that he was intent on holding the stance and developing the muscular memory and strength to hold it in almost any situation and for any logical amount of time. He could already feel a slight strain in his thighs and his triceps, as they worked to stay perfectly still.

Learning: Nigiri

[Cabin Boy Aaron]

Sweat trailed it's path, agonizingly slowly down Aaron's brow, past the corner of his right eye before continuing on the path it's predecessor's had followed and disappearing past the open collar of his black tunic to flow down his torso. The combination of enduring the agony of holding the stance and the heat had caused Aaron to fall into a state of near unconsciousness, where his only thought focused upon not falling over or preventing his own failure to uphold the stance that was aptly named "Nigiri". The burning he felt in his triceps and thighs was an agony that was actually bringing tears to his eyes, not that Aaron took any notice beyond the mist of exhaustion that had settled upon his mind. Suddenly, Aaron was self-aware again and the trembling began a new, it had started after he had hit the ten minute mark, and had continued until roughly fifteen minute mark, where Aaron was only semi-conscious of what he was doing, now it had returned, and this time, it was accompanied by the burning, which it seemed to be exaggerating. "Gotta...be able to take at least this much" Aaron whispered to himself, his desperation in attempting to improve himself evident in both his tone and his words.


Though his body ached with a desire to quit, to simply allow his arms to relax, as they had been doing only twenty-five minutes ago, his desire for improvement refused to allow him to give up. Suddenly, Aaron's right leg began to tremble with an increased intensity, the shaking becoming completely visible to the naked eye, and Aaron forced his head from it's position in which he could stare into the lifeless eyes of one of the training dummies and he took in the image of his leg shaking. "The muscle for keeping this posture smooth and simplistic is completely and utterly beyond it's limit" Aaron thought to himself as his other leg began to tremble just as hard, the effect being that Aaron was no longer steady and was swaying like a flag in the breeze. Then his legs completely collapsed under him and Aaron fell, backwards, legs not even strong enough to extend enough so that he would fall on his bottom, instead, he fell flat onto his back and felt the rear of his head hit the dirt with a dull and rather painless impact. Now staring up at the blue sky as the white clouds drifted along, body splayed out in a five star position, Aaron knew that getting back to his room in Enies Lobby was going to be difficult, and his next training session was going to be an even bigger challenge. "But this is the price to pay" Aaron muttered to himself between gasps for air, the long minutes spent doing nothing but pretty much stand still having worn down his usually short patience to the point where talking to himself was a viable option "I wanna be the best, so I gotta train like I'm the best" he concluded with a determined, if grim grin.


Learning: Nigiri