Chapter 3 - The Price of an Echo
After several days in captivity, it was time for the girl to be moved from the hospital to a regular cell. She had become even more silent and listless after being visited - and being informed about the Kyuubi's demise - by Naruto, who was also attending her transfer.
When they loosened her restraints and helped her up, he stepped in and asked the two low-ranking ANBU members to let her stand on her own for a moment.
Unsure on her feet after barely moving for so long, she needed a few seconds to gain her balance, facing him. Her eyes looked dead, as if she expected to be executed on the spot. The Hokage was not in a habit of doing that, however.
"I can't very well let you go after you nearly killed somebody, but I'd rather have you make up for it by working instead of just locking you up. I talked with my friends and the elders about it, and we can offer you to be decommissioned and then work around the village for a while, maybe help Hibiki while she's still recovering", he suggested.
She looked slightly confused. "Decommissioned?"
"It'll neutralize you Chakra circulation system so you can't use your arts or strengthen yourself ever again, but otherwise you'll just be a very well-trained regular human."
She looked appalled, then her face locked, and she lowered her eyes. "Very well. I will accept that as my punishment."
The blonde, tall man frowned. "It's not meant to be a punishment, it's just easier for you to live in our village or on the outside if you don't have to deal with people being afraid of your powers", he said reluctantly.
It would be nice if proving yourself to people was any easier, but as much as he had worked for that to come true, some who were in the know still resented Nagato for his path's attacks on the village, Rei for being Itachi's daughter, Itachi since they didn't believe his being an agent for the village even after it was made public or even Naruto himself for various reasons.
While he was thinking, the girl had said nothing. "You don't need to decide now, but we will have to keep you here until we find a way for you to live without hurting anybody", he offered.
Her eyes looked up at him, frightened. "I… can't give up my… abilities", she said hesitantly, lowering his eyes again after only one word.
"It's your decision, but it will be difficult for you that way. You will need help, and you will have to prove that you are not a danger to people", he lectured her sternly.
After a moment, he added "I've done that myself, it's no joke, but rewarding if you go through with it", more softly.
She peeked at him, and then shook her head. "I don't know how to do that." Her voice carried a hint of despair.
"We will help you, if you are willing to do it", he said determinately.
After a moment, she shook her head once more, like from a reflex. "I don't think people can ever accept me, no matter whether I give up my heritage or not. They hunted my father and my brother down and killed them. I'm the last of the clan, and they will surely hunt for me, too." This was the most she had said since coming here, and she held eye contact while she said it, pleading for his understanding.
The former Jinchuuriki however decided to understand her plea differently. "I'm the first member of my "clan", and me and Hinata finally had a child a year and a half ago. That blonde boy you fought is my cousin Jiraya, my only other blood relative. The black-haired girl who stopped you from running is Rei, who is the last successor of her own clan", he enumerated, smiling. "You see, we have some experience with these things."
STOP
"So the Hokage sent us to get teaching materials for that mutt?", Kuroyuuki asked with an enraged voice.
"We have to do the regular exchange and some private trading with the sound village as well, so we may have been sent either way. Somebody has to get more information on her abilities if we want to let her live in the village", Yugao explained between jumps.
They were moving through the treetops at a steady pace, more for the sake of training than out of time pressure. Yuuki would have walked if it meant the Ankoku girl had to stay in prison any longer, but he also wanted to get back to his dog, who wasn't back in prime condition yet.
"Then why are we even offering that to her? They should keep that nutcase locked up forever or…", the Inuzuka complained.
"Naruto-niisan wanted to give her a chance to redeem herself, I'm sure. She may have attacked people, but in the end, we attacked her. Just locking her up wouldn't help anybody, she can't try to repair the damage she did like that", Rei chimed in, passionately.
"But…" Yuuki wanted to argue, but he couldn't very well go against the daughter of a man who never got to redeem himself on his own before he died. Even less so because seeing her wounded was the main reason he hated their opponent from back then.
"Whatever. Let me see her try", he said, ending the argument and pushing off harder to gain distance.
After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, the only Uchiha turned to her mother, at least metaphorically, since she wasn't especially keen on jumping sideways right now. "What do you think, Yugao-sensei? Is it okay to give her a chance?"
"I don't want to influence your opinion on this", she said calmly, "you have to decide this on your own. Convincing you, who fought her, to accept her is something that girl has to achieve herself."
Pondering, the purple-haired woman's daughter continued her jumps. They were looking at Yuuki's back now, mostly covered by a large scroll full of copies from old records and training manuals they were going to trade for information from the Sonogakure archives.
"He will probably mellow once Kinmaru and everybody from the other team are healed up. Carrying a grudge was never something he's good at, because he'd need to be serious for longer. We've seen how "serious" he was about Kinmaru's training", the young Takamichi commented with a slight barb against his years-long friend.
"Ken, don't say that while he's around, you know he loves his dog", Rei reprimanded him with a slight shock.
"Yes, but because he loves him, he also cares about him, and he spoils him. Yuuki trains himself so hard that his dog doesn't have to fight, or you, or me. He's silly like that", the more balanced gray-hair explained.
"I know, and we need to respect his feelings, but we'll still support him. That girl told me she couldn't trust me when I said I'd help her, and nobody should have to feel like that. Least of all Yuuki", she said decidedly.
"Are you finally warming up to him?", Ken joked.
Rei nearly missed a jump. "D… don't talk about that in front of my mother!", she sputtered.
"Something I should know?", the older woman teased.
"Nothing! Nothing!", the young lady vehemently denied.
"Oh, Yuuki will be sad when he hears that.", teased the shorter boy on the team.
"Gah! Stop it already! I thought we talked about that!", she said, panicking.
"Now you're making me curious", Yugao remarked pointedly.
"Not you too!", her daughter yelled.
"Why? I am you mother, so I have a right to know", the woman stated.
"But… but you're also my teacher! We're on a mission! Don't do that!", the young girl desperately defended.
Her mother pouted, which was lost in between the jumps they somehow still managed to make. "Point taken. We will talk about this matter when we're back at home, dear", she declared, not missing her daughter's loss of color. "Now I'll go rein in my other student before he runs off on me. You two behave while I'm out of earshot", she said, emphasizing the last three words, then pushing off hard.
Rei watched her catch up to the black-haired boy in less than a handful of bounds. She had a long, long way to go before she could even seriously play tag with her mother.
"Sorry for teasing you, but Yuuki is still waiting", Ken said soberly.
She nearly yelled at him again, before her memory delivered. Out of earshot, right. "I'm not sure what to tell him. We're still so young, and I don't feel ready for any kind of romance", the Uchiha heir conveyed sadly.
"We're only a year younger than my brother when he started a relationship with the girl who's my sister-in-law now, and she was his second girlfriend", he noted.
She remained silent, pondering.
"Besides, just look at Yuuki. He's not looking for romance, he's crushing on you and trying to get closer", the Takamichi assessed with wisdom beyond his years.
"Don't just say it like that!", the girl rebuked him.
He chuckled. "That's how it is, and I know because I'm even less of a romantic than him. You're helping nobody by stalling."
Again, she was silent for a while. "Maybe", she finally admitted.
STOP
They spent the remainder of the day travelling with only some Smalltalk to ward off the boredom, finally stopping near the steep mountainous area surrounding Sonogakure. Since it was August and the surface path to the village could be traversed, they hadn't bothered to request a guide through the labyrinthine tunnel the Sound Ninja normally used.
Though it was quite possible to arrive in the village while it was still the same day, they weren't especially keen to push on after nightfall, though Rei would have liked a bed even at that cost. Since camping was also training, or so their teacher claimed with a smile, they found themselves a good spot while the sun hadn't set yet and started to get ready for the night.
"I'll go back to find that waterfall again", Rei said after they had eaten a rabbit Yuuki had brought when he returned from collecting firewood. The sun was already partway under the horizon, the few clouds in the sky were tinged in dark orange.
"Of course, take care", her mother answered.
"Do you want to come?", the girl added.
The purple-haired woman only looked at the two boys, ostensibly busy stacking up wood so the fire could last for the night, and shook her head. "No", she mouthed.
"Okay. I'll describe you the way after I'm back", she promised, smiling as she set off into the dusk.
She had a good memory and night sight even without calling up her dojutsu, so it wasn't a difficult task to find her way in the growing darkness. However, their camp was far from to the lake, and the sun had set completely when she arrived.
There were still traces of sunlight in the sky, and it was still a few days before new moon, so the surface of the lake beneath the waterfall was rippled with silver. After a short survey, Rei started to shed her garments, but suddenly the torrent of water exploded.
Reflexively, her iris shifted to the red and black of the Sharingan, providing her with a clear picture of the situation. A young man, only wearing trousers, had jumped up through the waterfall with great force, splitting it lengthwise, and maintained a grip on the slick stones at its top, braving the full force of the stream for a few heartbeats before he jumped off, landing on the lake with little impact, as he held himself afloat with chakra, the same way he had held on to the top of the waterfall for any length of time.
His body was toned, but wiry rather than brawny, and the movement of his muscles distracted the adolescent girl for long enough to see him perform a ninjutsu which her kekkei genkai promptly filed away, while she still took a moment to realize he had noticed her.
"Who is there?", he asked with a surprisingly mature voice, even though he looked no older than sixteen.
Blushing, Rei scrambled to retrieve her jacket and trousers as to not be seen in her underwear.
"Show yourself!", he called out in her direction, more aggressive this time, and taking a step forward.
"Wait!", she yelled in return, fumbling with the hooks that fastened her jacket, then giving up and tying the sash that formed part of her coat instead, to have at least a short makeshift dress to cover herself.
"Who are you?", the man asked again, guarded but less aggressive now.
"Er… Rei Uchiha from the Leaf Village, we're here for the information exchange", she identified herself while trying to slip into her trousers despite their tenacious resistance.
"Why are you in the bushes, then?", he inquired, some puzzlement creeping into his voice.
"I… well… I was trying to take a bath, and I didn't notice you at first.", she confessed, her ears hot from embarrassment.
"Oh. I have to apologize for interrupting you, then", he said, relaxing his posture and turning away from her.
This respite allowed her to finally defeat the trousers' resistance and render herself presentable. Still blushed, with her eyes back to normal, she left the cover of darkness. "You, er… can look now.", she said sheepishly.
He looked, which made her cringe slightly at the intent examination. "You're younger than the ones they usually send", he stated cordially, moving off of the water to face her on even ground.
"Yes, I… we're here with our teacher", she muttered, struggling to banish the embarrassment as to not misrepresent her village.
"Ah. Who is your teacher, if I may ask?", he said in a level voice, some intrigue creeping in. Still, his calm demeanor was impeccable.
"Yugao Hatake, a Jonin", she revealed. The young man seemed thoughtful. "Er… You haven't said your name yet."
He lost his cool façade for a moment and looked startled. "Um… right. I apologize. My name is Karesu Murasao, I'm a Genin of Sonogakure", he explained.
Now it was Rei's turn to be startled. "You're also a Genin? I thought you were much older than me", she declared, amazed.
"Well, I… am still a Genin, yes. And I'm fifteen, but I have been told I appear older", he struggled to return to his more reserved behavior from before.
"Then you're only a year older than me", she voiced with a smile, calmer now. "I'm sorry I interrupted your training." She bowed to underline her apology, and then turned to leave.
"You don't need to leave, I was nearly done", he waved her apology off.
She turned back, with a slight blush since he still only wore trousers. "Do you want to come to our camp, then? We've already eaten, but we can offer you some rations. It's pretty late to return to the village", she offered, more out of courtesy than any other reason. Still, she was surprised to get it out in one piece.
He made a declining gesture. "No, I need to head back to the barracks. Thank you for the offer, though. We will probably meet again if you are taking the mountain path tomorrow", he said.
"We are planning to. Until tomorrow, then."
He nodded. "Until tomorrow."
She saw him retrieve his shirt from a rock closer to the waterfall before he left. Afterwards, she watched out for a while to check if he really was away, before she undressed herself again.
When Rei settled into the pleasantly cold water, her heart finally slowed down after beating painfully fast for minutes.
STOP
The next day, they travelled the last stretch of forest before trekking up the mountain at a more relaxed pace. They weren't particularly high up, but still high enough to get a bit lightheaded. Yugao said something about them needing to do mountain training soon.
Rei hadn't told her teammates about the chance encounter last night, only her mother, who had not reacted besides giving her an appraising look.
It took three hours to cross the mountain at their speed, and just before what their teacher said was the last ridge they needed to cross, they found a guard post about halfway up the slope. It was only a wooden hut with a booth in front, but it seemed well-maintained.
One guard was sitting on a chair in front of the booth, taking in the sun, two others played cards on the veranda. The relaxing guard stood up when they approached. "Leaf Village… ah, you must be the ones they sent for the trade. We didn't expect you this early."
Rei felt a tinge of surprise.
"My students here needed some endurance training, so we ran. I'm Yugao Hatake, those are Rei, Ken and Kuroyuuki. Do you need to search us?", the Jonin asked in a friendly tone.
The man with the sound headband shook his head. "No, I've seen you before, Hatake-san, and I'm pretty sure you're not an impostor. Thank you for helping free our village from Orochimaru's shadow back then", he said, bowing earnestly.
"Thank you. But he and Kabuto were our renegades, so we were glad to have a go at either of them", she smiled. That mission had given her the opportunity to work with her old team again, and to finally sort out their past grievances. She really was thankful for that.
"Take care in the village, then. I'll send notice that you're coming", the man said, going back to the booth for his radio. Team Yugao started moving past him, but Rei trailed back a little.
"Do you know a Genin named Karesu Murasao?", she asked when her team had gotten ahead.
The man turned back to her, grinning. "Prince Failure? Did he turn your head or something?"
"Er… no, he just said he'd be here today. Could you tell him I said hello?", she requested in a low voice.
"Sure, girl. You're Rei, right?", the guard checked.
"Yes, Rei Uchiha", she confirmed.
"Oh, Uchiha? Please don't go in the training dojos without asking first, then. It's not such a big issue, but it would make a bad impression if we basically taught you our skills for free", he explained without hostility.
With a pang of guilt, she nodded. "I will make sure not to do that. We're going straight to the archives, either way", she promised earnestly.
"No problem, then. Have a nice stay", he said, waving her through and fishing for his radio inside the booth.
"What were you doing?", Yuuki pried with a frown.
"Just asking about something", Rei explained noncommittally.
The tall, tan boy shrugged. "Either way, let's move on. I've been smelling lunch for minutes now."
His motion was seconded unanimously.
Sometime after the two shinobi and two kunoichi had left, a young man with short, bluish-black hair and dark blue eyes slid down the sheer mountainside. He had finally put his shirt back on.
Noticing the movement, the sunbathing guard lifted his head again. "Some girl was here for you. She said to give you her regards", he relayed, then got back to lazing around.
"'Some girl?' What was the lady's name?", Karesu inquired.
"Rei Uchiha from Konohagakure. You know, from the clan with the Sharingan", he muttered without as much as turning towards the youth.
"I thought them extinct, except for that one eye of Kakashi Hatake", the genin wondered.
"Nah, she's the last one. Told her to keep out of the dojos", he said.
"She… What? Where did she go?", he urged, sounding disheveled.
"To the archives. What, you got a crush on her, too?", the guard teased, finally turning his head. But the boy had run off already. "Eh. No patience", he remarked to himself, stretching a bit before settling down again.
STOP
"They have quite a few trees here", Kuroyuuki remarked when they entered the village, or rather the forest that served as a backing for the tree houses and huts the villagers had built.
"No more than on my last visit, but deeper in there are some clearings with stone buildings. They don't have many people besides the ninja, so they don't have to accommodate for civilians as much", Yugao explained while pointing to a large house taking up two treetops, but with only a rope ladder to climb up. And the trees themselves, as one Ninja walking up them with a basket of fruit demonstrated.
"Still, isn't it impractical? Why go through the trouble of expending chakra if you could easily build a house on the ground?", Ken asked.
"I'm not in the know; you can just ask them if you want. Maybe they just like the trees", the teacher joked.
"Doesn't every ninja village have a particular architecture? It could be they're still trying to find theirs", Rei said, trying to make sense of it herself.
"That could be", her mother admitted, "But I really don't know. The people at the archives should be able to tell you, if you're this interested."
Rei shook her head cheerfully. "No, I was just wondering. This is the first time I'm visiting another village, after all." She resumed marveling at the inhabited forest in childish wonder.
"Well, I would've taken you along sometime if Kakashi had let me, and you could have seen another village if you'd taken the Chuunin exams already. It won't be our turn again for one and a half years", she mused, chiding her daughter slightly for the delay.
"I'm sorry I held you back all this time", Yuuki apologized gloomily.
"Come on, I didn't feel ready either. We can just take the next one", Rei tried cheering him up.
"Yeah. I still need to learn controlling my chakra better, but I feel about ready", he said with new resolve.
"The exams are held in the Land of Lightning next, you still have more than five months to prepare. I think your father wanted in on the training, too", the purple-haired Jonin remembered
Rei made a terrified sound.
"Oh no, Hell Teacher Kakashi will train us!?" Yuuki was struck with horror.
"How are you calling my husband?", the loving wife complained.
"Yeah, shouldn't you be beyond your trauma from the Academy by now?", Ken prodded.
"Er… um… Sorry, Hatake-Sensei. This is what we called him back then, because he… well…", he grew ever more quiet, and barely whispered the last part, "… a throusand years of pain", quaking with fear.
"Yes, I've hear his teaching style is quite popular with the kids", the purple-haired lady remarked with a grain of salt.
"Well… are you sure he has to train us? I mean, Rei may be his daughter, but…", the Inuzuka boy squirmed.
"Rei Uchiha, I challenge you to a duel!", a voice yelled at full volume from behind them.
"Wait, what?", Yuuki quipped, turning around like the rest of the team.
There stood a handsome-looking guy with sweaty black hair, panting loudly. He was downright disgustingly pretty.
"Karesu-kun?", the challengee asked in confusion.
"-kun?", Yuuki asked, likewise confused.
STOP
"I grant you a free choice of weapons, however ninjutsu and genjutsu are forbidden, except for Kekkei Genkai and strengthening arts. We shall fight until either of us is struck unconscious or takes an injury that impairs the fighting ability. Your teacher may be the judge, I trust she is impartial", the young Murasao declared after he had urged them into a clearing with an earth arena marked by several logs, a ways off the road.
"I'm also her mother, so I can't serve as the judge. What is the meaning of this?", the purple-haired woman inquired with a rare anger in her voice.
"Uchiha-san has observed me in my training last night, I have to assume she also saw the taijutsu I was practicing. I cannot let this go unnoticed", he raged on.
"Is this true, Rei?", Yugao turned her ire at her own daughter.
Said girl flinched at a look she hadn't seen at her mother's face since she had taken her sword for practice without asking, years ago in her academy time. Ashamed, she nodded. "Yes, I did. I didn't mean to, but I saw him sign for a jutsu, as well", she confessed.
The furious boy shot her a glance that could kill, which didn't exactly feel better about it.
"I will get somebody from the offices, then. Wait here, all of you", she ordered in a harsh voice before jumping into the treetops.
"Why this duel, Karesu-kun? If it bothers you that I saw one of your techniques, we can just include it in our trade", Rei pleaded. She really didn't want to fight him, especially for such a constructed reason.
"I was taught this art on good confidence, and I swore to keep it a secret from outsiders. It is not mine to give, and my teacher has not released it to the archives", the enraged Sound Ninja shouted.
"But…", the girl began, but couldn't find words to convince him. She felt helpless.
"Where did you see this jerk train, anyway? In his dreams?", Yuuki growled from the sidelines.
The memory made her even more dejected. "No. It was yesterday, when I went bathing. He was at the waterfall", she recounted.
"What!", Yuuki exploded, "He saw you… Let me at him! Hey, you there! You gotta go through me before you can get to Rei!" Finally his anger gave way, until now contained by Yugao's order. Ken struggled to keep him here.
"Yuuki, please don't. I already accepted the challenge, and even if I don't want to fight him over this, I am the guilty party", the young kunoichi requested. She had to keep at least one fight from happening.
Still growling, Yuuki settled down and stepped out of the arena, Ken trailing behind him. The gray-haired boy cast a reassuring glance at the girl. "If you put even one scratch on her, you are dead", the tan boy spat out once he was outside the ring.
"I do not wish to win this duel by wounding her", Karesu replied icily.
"Then why are you dueling me at all!? If you ask me to do anything else to make up for it, I'd do it gladly", the young Uchiha offered in desperation.
Yuuki looked at her in sudden shock.
"No. My honor and my nindo demand this, and if you truly did not intend to observe me, this is to restore your honor, as well", Karesu stated, somewhat calmer now.
"Can't I do anything?", the girl urged again, half to herself.
"This must be done", the Sound Genin uttered gravely.
The kept in silence, one furious, one wary, one despairing, one determined. After a minute, Yugao returned with an elderly, one-armed Sound Ninja in tow. "This is Shingen, he will be your judge", the woman pointed out. "They said they will also fetch that one's teacher and Shin Busata-san, to make sure this doesn't turn into a headache. Shingen-san is trained as a medical-nin as well, so he will also treat any injuries", she continued before giving Shingen the stage.
"Are you sure you want to go through with this, boy?", he asked the honor-crazed young man confidentially, after stepping up to him.
"I won't back down now. Unless I challenge her right to know the technique, I won't be able to face Master once he arrives", Karesu justified himself. He felt he did, anyway.
With a sigh, Shingen backed down. "You have to know it yourself. Don't hurt her, don't get hurt", he said in a low voice, before leaving the arena. "Are both of you armed?", he asked in a formal tone.
"Yes!", the boy exclaimed, brandishing a set of claws he had recalled from a scroll.
"Er… no. I only have Kunai with me", Rei said. She hadn't even thought about that, only how to get him to back down.
"I'll give her my sword", Yugao stated.
Rei looked at her confused. "But…"
"You need a weapon, and you have trained with swords", she pressed on, unsheathing her well-maintained Katana and presenting it to the girl, "I won't let my daughter go into a duel, no matter how senseless it is, without a weapon", she said seriously. "Just don't break it", she added with a wink, "and try to hold out until that guy's teacher or Busata-san are here to talk him down", she continued more soberly.
Rei nodded, happy about the confidence put into her, but still unwilling to fight. However, she would have to defend herself, at least, so she took a stance.
"Are you both ready?", Shingen began again, lifting his only hand.
"Yes", they exclaimed in unison.
"Then begin." He slashed down with his hand, signaling the start of the duel.
Rei called up her Sharingan, readying for a counter. She didn't want to make the first strike, but she was confident in her defensive skills.
Karesu simply signed the short sequence needed for his technique, which the Uchiha finally saw in full. She stepped aside before he was finished, but despite her preparation and early reaction, he still caught her off guard.
From a standing position he jumped, extremely fast and powerfully, the claws in front of him. Rei tried to divert the wrist-mounted blades so she could push him out of position, but his weapon met hers with so much force that she was pushed aside, stumbling and nearly falling.
Fast, faster than her he launched into his next strike, slashing with one claw while keeping guard with the other, and only the length of her sword allowed her to keep him at bay, though she was pushed back and struggled to stay on her feet while absorbing the heavy swings.
Her fast and technically flawless reactions did nothing against the pure force of the assault, and he did not even overstretch when she managed to deflect his weapon for once, but instead remained glued to the ground. That was part of his technique, he was reinforcing his muscles and reflexes while coating himself in chakra to maintain his footing on any ground, under any circumstances.
They had only traded one or two dozen blows, but her arms already felt like rubber. Then he launched into a kick, just as overwhelming as his strikes, that threw her across half of the arena. She landed on her feet, thanks to her training, but she honestly contemplated giving up. Instantly, he was upon her again, striking down with the claws so she had to angle her blade, allowing her a kick at his knee, which only made him wince.
He wouldn't let her surrender, she knew that, but this was hopeless. She would lose, and lose badly. They traded another set of blows, this time stabbing-ripping motions to take the sword from her with the hooks at the claw's tip, but she narrowly avoided the lighter attacks targeting her weapon first and foremost. Physical combat wasn't her strong suit in the first place.
With another kick, she landed in the dirt again, rolling off and ending up in a crouch. His jutsu still continued, even though it seemed like something that took a lot of chakra. If only… wait. She clasped both of her hands in one place of the hilt, instead of distributing them as for the regular grip.
His assault came again, and she seemed to weaken, her technique faltering against the onslaught. In desperation, she slashed down with her sword, failing to pierce his guard, but forcing him to use both claws to block properly. Still, she smiled. "Boar!", she exclaimed, suddenly pushing him back.
"You…!", he shouted, redoubling his assault, attacking with less predictable strikes and mixing more kicks in, but she forced his claws aside and countered the kicks with slight changes in her stance, absorbing much of the impact. She even powered through his guard, forcing him to take a step back, the shape of his weapons limiting the power he could use, while her sword gave her excellent transmission and control.
Enraged, he tried to catch the slender blade and break it between the three prongs on each of his hands, but she used the contact to pull his arms down, opening him up for another kick to the knee. Unlike the first attempt, this one produced a fleshy rupturing sound, forcing him into an unarticulated scream.
Rei looked at him horrified, even while near-automatically freeing her blade from his slacking grip and taking up a stance again. "Stop! The match is decided, this injury impairs his fighting ability", the judge, Shingen, called out. Karesu had fallen to the ground, staring at her, but after the decision was called he let his head drop down. He had lost to his own technique.
"I didn't… sorry, I misjudged how much power I gained. I forfeit this match", the girl stated, pale with shock. She had killed people when she had to, but she had never injured somebody this gravely by accident.
The boy, however, shook his head weakly, while Shingen examined the broken knee with skilled movements. "You won. I have to allow you to use this technique now that you beat… Argh", he flinched when Shingen made a rough movement, panting in pain for a moment.
"Sorry, boy. Can't do this so well with only one hand", the old man apologized while he righted the knee so he could begin with the healing.
"You have defeated me, so I have to face my punishment for showing this technique to an outsider", he voiced weakly, but with a strange pride.
"I don't have a reason to punish you, though", a voice said from above. The sunbathing guard from the mountain pass stood there.
The boy grimaced, now dejected. "Ah, teacher. I failed you", he admitted.
"Nah, I think you got me wrong somewhere", the older man said, waving his student off.
"That man is your… teacher?", Rei asked incredulously.
"That's right. I'm Tatsuo Chichuuya, leader of the Mountain Division. A Jonin, too", the laid-back man claimed.
"What? Are you the Sound Village's Kakashi Hatake or something?" Yuuki, who had come to gloat over the defeated, butted in.
The unconventional Jonin laughed. "I wish. I'm not so great. I only developed this technique with some help from your previous Hokage and her student, that Haruno girl. Actually, I wanted to give you the scroll for it anyway, but this guy just ran after you without saying what he was up to", he explained good-naturedly.
"W… what!?", Karesu burst out.
"Well, hate to say it, but you broke your knee for nothing. I wanted to step in, but I only saw the last exchange. You've gotten pretty good, though", he asserted, then looking at Rei who just stood there big-eyed, "Though you're better, girl. You still a Genin?"
"Y… yes", she answered after needing a moment to process the question.
"Go do the next exams. You'll pass with flying colors. Maybe you'll meet your crush here again", he went on.
"B… he… I don't have a crush on him!", she screamed in outrage.
"Eh, just pulling your leg", he said, the telling his student "Sorry", when the boy cringed at the mention. Or at the fact Shingen was still treating his leg, maybe.
Next to her, Yuuki felt like he got a weight off his chest.
"So, what about the exchange? I'm stoked to get the next Icha-Icha book ahead of time", Chichuuya then said.
Yugao, having calmed down somewhat in the meantime, returned to her wrathful expression. "We have nothing like that in our library", she growled.
"Really? A shame…", the Sound Jonin replied dejectedly.
Meanwhile, the three junior Leaf Ninja thought "He really is like Kakashi" in unison. Though Rei knew this wasn't quite right. Her father surely wasn't as indifferent as this man.
STOP
Preview
Yuuki [determined]: This time I'll do it right!
Rei [cheering]: Go, Yuuki!
[Impression of Konohagakure in the morning, slowly getting ready for the day]
Yuuki [hurried]: Afteralongjourney, wefinallyreturntoourhomes. Whilewearegiventimeforashortrest, newtrialsmakethemselvesknown.
[Team Yugao relaxing in the Uchiha estate, eating boxed lunch]
Yuuki [panting]: *huff, huff*
[View of the red-haired girl gazing at a flame hovering above her hand]
Rei [worried]: Er… Yuuki?
[Naruto staring at a messenger in dismay]
Yuuki [nervous]: Is it time? [announcer voice] Next time on "A Love Forever" Chapter 4 – A day under the Leaves
Yuuki [dispirited]: I screwed up again, didn't I?
Rei [comforting]: No, you… just rushed a bit too much. I'm sure you will do it perfectly next time.
Yuuki [collapsing in tears]: No! It is never enough! Never!
Rei [confused]: Are you… seriously… beating yourself up like that over a preview?
Yuuki [yelling]: Neveeeeer!
