100 Raindrops: 100 themed one-shots
By
Archerelf
Theme 77: Test
Sasu/Saku
Sakura squirmed from her spot on the ground. Sasuke heard and sighed in annoyance.
"You're supposed to be at peace with your surroundings. Part of that training is listening. You need to be able to hear every knife, every enemy attacking. If you can't concentrate on that then you will die.
She'd heard the lecture before. In a last ditch effort to spend time with him after his return, she had asked him to help her train. Sakura was even more shocked when he had said yes.
Now they were on the edge of the forest and she couldn't focus on anything he was saying.
"Yes, Sensei." She replied sarcastically.
"Now focus on the trees before you. There is a stream 1.7 miles from here to the west. There's a beetle 6 oaks down, wings moving. And you: your mind is elsewhere." His face turned downward in annoyance. "I see right now you can't concentrate on anything. Meet me back here at 8 to continue. Maybe then you'll get serious."
Sasuke got up and started to walk away.
"Sasuke!" Sakura started, but he was already walking away. Just great. Only their second session and she already failed him. It's bad enough everyone thought she was weak, but just confirmed it.
At 7:30 Sakura arrived at the same spot they'd been. Gingerly she stretched out. People had always commented that she should have been a dancer. It was true. She loved the movements of dancing.
Sakura pulled a piece of long cloth out of her pocket and pulled it over her eyes. It was to help her focus on listening; that was the main point of the training.
But might as well have a bit of fun with it right?
Sakura put her arms out in front of her in a circle and started to move. She started spinning. Her legs moved in indecipherable patterns and arms stretched forward and back. Even though she was having fun dancing, she kept with the nature of Sasuke's drill, even stepping it up a bit: listening from all sides while moving.
Step one: clear your mind. Check
Step two: imagine you can see from all sides, including in back of you. Check
Step three: Listen. Even the slightest noise could be important. Check.
The wind seemed clearer now than ever. The birds seemed louder and she swore she even heard the skittering of bugs moving.
Wait. Hold the phone.
Sakura stopped moving and formed a stance. She knew that presence. Sakura pulled off the blindfold.
"How long have you been there?"
"Long enough," called Sasuke. "If you had allowed me to sneak up on you, I would have discontinued your training. " He paused, as if searching for the right words.
"You're very flexible naturally, and that's a good asset. Now let's get to the drill. You'll need that blindfold. I'll attack at you from any side and I want you to hear it, and block."
She nodded, blushing slightly, and put the blindfold back on. Sasuke lept into the trees, going higher and higher. At the right spot Sasuke stopped and plunged downward like a hawk.
She heard the dive and threw a leg up in time to block his arm. He'd throw attacks from all sides and she'd block as best as she could, pending on how she heard the movements; the wind around him moving. Granted, he went a little easier on her but she was still blindfolded.
After about an hour he called to stop and for her to remove the blindfold.
Sakura was panting a bit. He just stood there with a small smirk on his face.
"Sasuke?" she asked, unsure of the uncharacteristic smile.
"Just call me Sensei. I'll be taking on your training from now on."
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Please Read and Review. There will be Neji/Tenten pairings too.