Chapter 13: Fundamentals of Water

Waking up, Hayato quickly took care of his daily necessities before going to the largest stream in the Village, with it being relatively private due to the small forest that surrounded it.

"Are you ready to begin, kid?" Kuruk asks as he looks at Hayato, with the boy sitting shirtless across from him in his trunks.

Hayato simply nodded, with even he being slightly excited to bend the element of water, the element that many in his past world viewed as the catalyst for life.

"Water is the element of Change.

The first Waterbender according to some legends was the Moon itself, with it being prophesized that that was where the first of our people learned to push and pull. Other legends state that it was the Godlike entities known as the Lion Turtles that gave the blessing of bending to the Benders, with us simply learning how to use said Bending skills from the Ocean Spirit and the Moon Spirit.

Like the moon controlling the tides, Waterbenders move water using their chi to mimic gravitational pull by choosing how to direct their energy utilizing two jings, which in turn work to push and pull the water that is being controlled. Because of this lunar sympathy, a Waterbender's power is stronger at night, at its absolute zenith during a full moon, and lost during a lunar eclipse.

A Waterbender's power is also enhanced during the rain, for obvious reasons. Furthermore, a Waterbender's power is strongest when they are situated in colder climates, during the winter or near a polar region.

Legend further elaborates that Tui, meaning "push", the Moon Spirit, and its symbiotic partner La, meaning "pull", the Ocean Spirit, gave up their immortality to be a part of the mortal world. In fact, these spirits exist in the physical forms of two koi fish eternally circling one another in a pond, in the highly spiritual oasis, in the capital city of the Northern Water Tribe.

I'm not entirely sure how much of our rules would flow into your world, but I'm quite confident that you should follow a similar system in terms of how Waterbending will function.

The fighting style of Waterbending is mostly fluid and graceful, acting in concert with the environment. Waterbenders deal with the flow of energy; they let their defense become their offense, turning their opponents' own forces against them. Even when Waterbenders do take an attack stance, their moves always appear to flow from one to the other, mimicking the flow of the water they bend.

There are four known styles of Waterbending, with those being the Northern Style, the Southern Style, the Froggy Swamp Style, and the style created during Korra's era, the Pro Bending Style. I'll be teaching you the first three while Korra will be in charge of teaching you the last." Kuruk finished his explanation, with him then moving a hand towards the nearby stream, with it no longer moving and just remaining in place.

Kuruk then moved his hand in a circular motion, with the entire stream freezing, before suddenly returning to normal not a moment later.

"The power of a Waterbender is usually determined by the skill that they possess, with some able to reach the stage where they can perform advanced applications of it, such as Healing, Bloodbending, and the recently created, Spirit Bending." Kuruk said, with his face growing slightly grim when he stated the last type of bending.

Hayato could feel sympathy for the man, as if he possessed something like that during his era, he would not have been forced to deal with the negative aftereffects of dealing with the Dark Spirits.

However, his mind then moved towards the thought of just how powerful Waterbending could be, as the ability to just change the water into hot steam or ice could be akin to possessing two new Kekkei Genkai in the Shinobi World.

And if he is able to master Waterbending to its highest degree, then Bloodbending would make him nearly unbeatable in the Shinobi World to anyone who was not an Alien God.

"I can see that you are already having your delusions of grandeur, but I think you should tone it down until you can at least decently manipulate the elements rather than dream of it." Kuruk said with a smug smile on his face, his expression showing just how easily he had read Hayato.

"Tch." Hayato clicked his teeth before closing his eyes, with him hoping to gain a feel for the water beside him.

"Feel for the water, but don't force it. Instead, pull it and push it for yourself, direct it without forcing it, as if you are gently nudging the water rather than forcing it." Kuruk directed him, and at that moment, the water began moving in his direction

'Good. Looks like he's a talented one. If he really has to fight beings comparable to the Old Ones, then it's a necessity that he at least be this talented.' Kuruk thought to himself.