Arc 4 - The Trident

Water Walking Technique.

The second chakra control exercise shown in the anime.

The user has to be emitting a constant stream of chakra from the bottom of their feet and using the repellent force to walk across the water's surface

It is more complicated than Tree Climbing because the amount of chakra needed changes constantly.

Ikarus started practicing this exercise a couple of weeks ago, when he was still living on the farm.

After being ambushed he trained more offensive jusus and skills.

He didn't think this jutsu would be of much use to him in fighting a hundred bandits.

But to cross Westeros as quickly as possible this jutsu is very useful.

He also has to take into account the possibility of having to chase the slavers ship across the sea. If by some twist of fate he arrives too late in Dorne he will have to go to Essos.

Waiting for a ship to leave for the other continent will take too long, plus medieval ships are pretty slow. The chances of him catching the slavers while sailing on another ship are pretty low. The best option is to run after them.

In order to do so, the shinobi must master this technique.

Every night and every morning he water walks and during the day he runs south.

Days and nights mix with each other, time runs and runs without stopping for a moment.

On the fifth day of travel he arrived at The Trident.

The Trident is the largest river in the Riverlands and one of the biggest in the Seven Kingdoms. It is made of numerous smaller tributaries, and is a confluence of three main branches: the Red Fork, the Green Fork, and the Blue Fork.

The point where the three big rivers meet the river is so wide that it could be considered a lake. It is at least a hundred kilometers wide at its widest point.

Ikarus can barely see the other end from the shore. And he is enhancing his eyesight with chakra. He is surprised but not that much, he remembers that in South America there is a river with a maximum width of 210 kilometers. The Trident is impressive but nothing to write home about.

"This river is bright blue, it reflects the color of the sky perfectly." The shinobi kneels on the shore and sticks a hand in the water. He scoops out a handful of water and watches as it spills through his fingers.

Riverlands is the battlefield of the Seven Kingdoms. Every war fought in the last few centuries had its battles fought here. Torrhen Stark knelt before Aegon Targaryen in these waters. The Dance of Dragons had their bloodiest battles here. Robert's Rebellion had its decisive battles on this river.

And in another world in the near future another Rebellion would wage its battles in these waters.

This river saw more blood spilled than water in its flow.

"There isn't even a hint of red." He mutters, staring off into the distance. "Just one year ago more than ten thousand men lost their lives in these waters." He gets up and steps into the water.

His chakra control is good enough that he doesn't sink. He takes another step. And another. He walks on water as if it were solid ground. After walking a dozen meters he stops and crouches down. He looks at the bottom of the river.

It's too dark, a couple of meters deep the water gets too dark to see the bottom.

"I don't see any bodies. Has the current washed them out to sea? Or are they still at the bottom of the river, their bodies dissolving into nothing?" His voice is soft and low, barely a whisper. "And what about you Silver Prince? Is your body also lost in these waters? Or perhaps your killers had enough mercy to give you the funeral rites?" He shakes his head and keeps walking.

In truth, Ikarus doesn't remember what happened to Rhaegar's corpse.

"I highly doubt it. If Baratheon was heartless enough to spit on the corpses of two innocent infants…" he clenches his fists in anger.

Robert Baratheon.

That man disgusts him.

What kind of person rejoices at the brutal murder of two children?

What kind of human being does not feel even the slightest pity or remorse in the face of such cruelty?

"Another monster in human flesh. It seems that this world is full of them."

He starts running through the water.

After advancing a few kilometers his control begins to fluctuate, one foot does not take traction and he sinks a little in the water and after a few seconds Ikarus sinks completely in the river.

He stands still for a few seconds, letting the current carry him away. He has his eyes closed, feels the water around him, and then opens his eyes.

He channels chakra into his muscles and begins to swim to the surface.

"Ugh" he takes a deep breath.

He looks to the north and sees the distance he traveled before he lost control of his chakra.

"At least ten kilometers. It's not bad but I won't be able to cross the sea at this level. I have to improve" he starts swimming towards the other side of the river.

He moves fast like a fish.

He vaguely remembers a story about a man who trained for months to be able to swim across the English Channel. He remembers that it took that man more than 14 hours to cross the channel.

The channel is about 60 kilometers long, Ikarus is swimming almost double the distance and will do it in much less time, such is the power of a shinobi.

***

The shinobi gets out of the water and brings a hand to his head, running his hand through his hair removing excess water.

He takes off his clothes and wrings them out.

He puts them back on and starts running.

He wants to get to Harrenhall before nightfall.

There he plans to replenish his supplies, having used up all his food that very morning.

He is curious about the Isle of Faces but his mission has more urgency.

"I will return with Aemon here one day. We will explore the island together"

His plans don't go as he expected, the sun is setting and he hasn't arrived at Harrenhall yet.

Fatigue slows him down but he keeps running. The last few days he has barely slept three or four hours a night. Sooner or later his body will reach its limits if he doesn't take care of himself.

A shinobi's body is powerful but without proper nutrition and rest sooner or later he will collapse.

He is still human after all.