Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or any related works, characters included.

Rating: T

Hope you all enjoy.


When they got back to training, it took awhile as Naruto thought it would... this was the first true challenge of power, to start fighting for real against his/Kurama's full power.

Even from a distance, he saw what Hinata's trying to do in mid-air; shape her Truth-Seeking Balls into a circle, from which she would then release a tornado-like vortex. Toneri's version hadn't utilized any nature styles to do so, but then again the orbs were made of all five basic natures, so it probably wasn't necessary- all she had to do was maintain the change-in-chakra-form, in this case the rotation factor.

"Once she grasps the chakra needed, the rest should be easier, if not easy in general" Kurama noted, his Tailed Beast Mode form standing upon the ground, Naruto encased in his head. "Hinata's entire 'Gentle Fist' style involves a circular style of attack, as does that Palm Rotation."

"Yeah, I know" Naruto breathed, hoping she gets it... though admittedly even if she got it now, he still wondered what her idea for the 'Golden' one was.

Ahead of them, Hinata didn't say anything but they sensed her charka at work; a sorta-ring of light appeared from the combination of her Truth-Seeking Balls, and then there was a rushing sound. Wind tore at them, mostly visible only as occasional streaks but not enough to really count as a tornado... and moreover while the strength was enough to push them, Kurama merely needed to dig his claws to hold himself in place.

"Either Hinata's still holding back her strength, or she's having difficulty maintaining a jutsu of that complexity. Possibly both."

Understandable; even with Hinata's skill, that kind of thing usually took awhile to learn - the Tenseigan's helping her out, similar to his Six Paths chakra, but that wasn't gonna instantly grant full mastery over it. Overall the next two tries went about the same; they semi-worked, but clearly not to the level that's good enough to use in combat yet.

And from the look of things, Hinata just seemed to be pausing at the moment.

"Be right back" Naruto breathed, flying out of Kurama's head- behind him, the fox snorted with a small grin, but he made sure to get to Hinata fast. She noticed him, but mostly her gaze was on her raised hands, even as the Truth-Seeking Balls floated behind her back now... probably thinking something over. "Hinata?"

She smiled a little, nodding. "I'm okay" she whispered, not seeming down at all. "Now this is a little more like it's supposed to be, like how it was in the past. I'm still making progress, being able to do it at all on the first tries, but that progress just now was small... I think this one might even take a few days to fully master, at the least."

He rubbed his head, thinking that's not so bad- without the Tenseigan's learning curve though, that probably would've been months or something. "And the other one?" he asked, curious.

Hinata looked up, giggling a little. "I'm still thinking, but after I'm done working this one for today, I'll try it out" she promised.

Nodding, Naruto just gave a 'good luck' smile, which she returned- and in fact he gave her a quick kiss, both of them enjoying that. Then he quickly moved away, rejoining the still-amused Kurama inside his construct's head, even as they prepared for more attempts from Hinata... maybe it was weaker in chakra levels now, but she's upping it in small stages, so one thing at a time.

The next one was about the same, but this time Kurama actually picked up what she said, before the rushing sounds washed over them:

"Here we go... *little breath* Silver Wheel Typhoon!"

Naruto soon smiled even as Kurama chuckled; well that's easier/faster to say than 'Silver Wheel Rebirth Explosion'... plus the gravity abilities had different names for convenience too, taken from the Rinnegan's version rather than whatever Toneri/Otsutsuki clan might call his variants; why not this too?

...

A dozen attempts later, and still can't say she's made much progress... but that's okay, truly. Hinata welcomed the struggle while it lasted, knowing that's how it's supposed to be, even if the Tenseigan sped up her learning.

"The problem doesn't seem to be the rotation itself" she thought to herself, "It's trying to do so with all nine orbs simultaneously, continuously keeping them rotating. I can control them relatively well on their own, somehow, and I'm skilled enough to handle one or two shooting Rank D-level jutsu thus far, but this is a major step up. By comparison, the other one... that should merely involve basic change-in-chakra-form, and then I control the single 'weapon' as I would a orb more-or-less. Perhaps not easy, but achievable."

So it seems that she could probably do the 'Golden' jutsu without much more effort than before, while the 'Silver' one would take repeated practice- hmm.

"Well, guess we'll see."

Hinata half-opened her eyes, seeing Kurama's form about a hundred feet away - he along with Naruto were still waiting for her next attempt. Closing them again, she turned her senses inward, trying to get some kind of impression from Hamura's chakra- after all, if he's wielded similar weapons in battle like Toneri, then maybe she could get some help.

About a minute passed... there was something, more subconscious than anything...

She took in a breath then, one Truth-Seeking Ball moving in front of her, hands raised-

-"Golden Blade Rebirth!"

In an instant the orb was infused with golden energy, which radiated outward until it formed a building-sized blade, vaguely resembling a traditional sword- Hinata struggled a bit, but despite this her creation held together - as she'd thought; simple change-in-chakra-form but hefty cost, even if it's size didn't compare to the one Toneri used (maybe that needed more chakra than she'd used?). She didn't try to grasp it - with this form's strength, maybe it wouldn't be too heavy, but that wasn't what she had in mind - and instead just looked for a moment before her gaze went to Kurama. From here she couldn't see Naruto's reaction, but Kurama showed a curious interest as well as some wariness - they both knew she had no experience with swords, and Naruto had even noted it's not her style, so he/they expected her to come up with something. She smiled a little, knowing her idea probably wasn't gonna be considered unique, but it might catch them off-guard- and in time/with training could probably be done while simultaneously attacking.

After all it's true; she can't wield a sword with any appreciable skill, and even the Tenseigan can't make up for that. Any opponent who could take a hit from this jutsu would see that, and her lack of experience might prove her undoing, so this application was necessary.

Hinata moved her hand a bit; the building-sized sword moved at her command - it required a bunch more effort than a rock, but it still moved as if it were the orb (which of course it was). Moving her hands a bit, the sword began to spin in an arc from both ends... slow at first, but with increasing speed as she got more sure of her control...

Just across from her, Kurama's mouth soon set in a grin. "This should be interesting" he said, clearly eager.

She knew that reasoning; if she could master her powers, facing off in a serious-ish level battle would really be worth his while, especially if training let multiple such battles happen. But regardless, Hinata concentrated on what she's doing... soon the sword began to spin so fast it became a blur, almost to the level that it looked like a disk...

For several seconds, she prepared herself on what would undoubtedly be the hard part.

Then she pushed her hands outward-

-the rotating golden sword shot forward, with enough speed to cause gale-force winds.

By instinct alone Kurama was ready for it, as was Naruto - the wind struck first, enough to jolt them but the impact was stronger. Hitting just off-center, her sword 'collided' with Kurama's arm, the force managing to crack the ground beneath before her creation veered away, still spinning. Hinata reached out before it got too far, turning it's momentum back toward Kurama even faster than before (adding to the difficulty)- this time he tail-slapped it away. It took quite an effort to stop it's momentum flat, turning the sharp end toward Kurama, then flying at him at the same speed... were he an enemy and her jutsu going much faster, she'd probably have speared his torso...

As it was, Kurama caught the jutsu with both hands- his claws briefly shook from the effort to contain it's momentum, but then he grinned at her. "Even for training level, Hinata, you pack a serious punch; I actually felt that a little."

Still struggling considerably, she managed a nod from where she floated, but was panting- and moreover, her control over the change-in-chakra-form was slipping. Rather than hold on, Hinata ended the attempt, knowing the Tenseigan would slowly-but-surely make it easier for her with experience... for now though she could use a break.

"So soon" she thought, slowly slipping out of her chakra mode. "I've only made about fifteen attempts in an hour, at least total between the two jutsu, and already I'm this drained."

She guessed that the mental difficulty's because her body's not used to this much power, along with it's increased drain from molding so much chakra. Her skill had made it bearable, but after a certain point it caught up... she'll keep going though after resting up, as she knew Naruto would do in any training, which made her smile.

At the same time, having seen her evident difficulty, Naruto flew out of Kurama's form- almost in an instant he was by her side. Kurama wasn't as concerned - he knew she's overall fine - but his expression eased even as Naruto's Tailed Beast Mode faded away, both of them floating down to the ground.

"I'll be okay, Naruto" Hinata whispered, sitting down carefully- she rubbed along her temple, trying to ease the tension. "I'm just not used to this level of power."

"Mmh" he breathed, still a bit worried, but he squeezed her other hand firmly. "And it'll take time to adjust" Naruto breathed faintly, managing a small smile for her sake. "I know that feeling well, but it doesn't make it easier to see you suffer through it."

Gently, she kissed his cheek. "I'm not suffering, not truly" she assured, knowing/loving that he worried about her, that if he could take on her effort he would. "Believe it, Naruto."

His mouth twitched, sheepish and a bit warm at her using his old phrase. "Hehe" Naruto breathed, leaning closer; they hugged, whereupon she soon kissed his cheek again. "Even still, Hinata. No matter how long it takes you, me and Kurama will make sure you get all the training you need, ya know. And if possible, show Sasuke just how much you've improved when he and Sakura get back."

"We don't have to."

"I know, but it'd be cool and all."

Hinata just hummed, enjoying his warmth. "Speaking of Sakura, I hope she's doing well right now traveling with Sasuke" she whispered, before shifting. "Perhaps even getting somewhere with him, now that they're truly alone with each other."

Naruto didn't speak for a little, though his fingers fingers moved over her shoulders. "I hope so too" he whispered, only half at her, "I can't imagine it, but if Sakura can get Sasuke to actually try, I believe he'll come around."

/

Hours later

"Mmh, my head..."

Naruto glanced backward, making sure the portal had closed behind them, helping Hinata lean against him. "Hey, don't be worried; you did great. Besides, we gotta make sure you rest, Hinata" he said, trying to reassure her - inwardly though, he was kicking for not noticing the signs; if they'd stopped sooner, maybe it wouldn't be this bad.

Then again, maybe Hinata had been too good at hiding it; she didn't want to worry him after all. Which is fine and all, but this is a bit much... heh but that's also something he'd probably do, just to keep going...

"If this keeps up, we might have to stop training for awhile, again" Hinata whispered to him- her expression was flickering, but happy to feel his support.

"It might not even be that bad, Hinata" Naruto assured, gentle. "Instead you might just focus on growing trees again, or maybe simpler training with the others. Let's just get you home first to rest, then we'll see."

"All right" she breathed, very soft. "As long as you can tend to me, Naruto."

He had to admit that made his cheeks heat a little, but in the happy way.

About a minute passed...

"Finally! I found you, big sis!"

Surprised, they both turned, seeing Hanabi bound up to them- she stopped before them with a big grin. "I was starting to think I'd never find you. Been taking care of my sister, brother?"

Naruto rubbed his head, grinning sheepishly - sure, he may technically be Hanabi's brother-in-law now, but her playful spin on the word always made him feel odd. Hinata saved him from answering that: "Hanabi" she breathed, clearly a little exasperated, as well as wanting to make sure he wasn't bothered. "Please don't say it like that."

As expected though, it made little impression- she merely winked. "Anyway, I found you big sis" Hanabi said easily. "Father would like to talk to you two, if you're available."

A little surprised, they looked at each other. "What about?" Naruto asked.

Hanabi smirked slightly. "Partly to make things are going smoothly, since you're family now" she teased, before grinning. "But he's also curious about your new strength, as am I."

He glanced at Hinata. "You think it'd be okay? I mean, you should rest that headache."

She shook her head though. "I'm not having difficulty; it's just annoying" Hinata breathed gently, rubbing at her temple for a bit. "I can talk for awhile, and besides, the Hyuga clan has been wanting an update for awhile - I'm the first human on Earth to develop the Tenseigan after all, and it's a great honor for them."

Naruto glanced at Hanabi, who was teasingly-nodding the entire time, and then smiled at his wife. "Well okay" he said more easily. "But if you start showing signs of pain-"

"I'll be fine" Hinata quickly assured, smiling back.

Hanabi was soon pulling on her sister's sleeve, and by extension pulling him along too. "She sure will" his sister-in-law called, "Now come on! Father's waiting for me!"

...

It wasn't too long before they arrived, and Hiashi was found outside at a table, enjoying a cup of tea. He'd just taken a sip even as Hanabi called over, soon registering the three of them- he smiled slightly, while Hanabi's was bigger.

"Father" Hinata breathed, doing a short bow, which Naruto mimicked. "It's great to see you again."

"There's no need to be formal, Hinata" he merely said, gesturing to the table. "Please, sit."

Even as they did, Hiashi had more tea served to them; Hanabi held hers properly as expected, but otherwise briefly made a face as she 'merely' sipped it. Hinata soon pointed this out to Naruto, whispering what it meant, which soon got him sheepishly smiling- she quite liked that sight.

Of course though, her family soon noticed the subtle signs: "Hinata, are you well?" Hiashi asked right away.

"Yes, Father - just a little headache."

Naruto continued for her. "She's been training really hard" he said, taking her hand, which made her feel better. "Even with some difficulty on the advanced jutsu, she just kept trying, obviously trying to follow my example."

Hanabi soon playfully smirked. "Big sis would" she said, a little mild yet mostly serious. "Still, if you've struggling on advanced, the basics must be easy-peasy now. Could we watch?"

"Hanabi, you know arranging that wouldn't be so simple" Hinata patiently breathed, though her sister secretly stuck her tongue out. "Father is often quite busy, and you're still in training yourself."

Hiashi himself closed his eyes, arms crossed, but somewhat amused. "Yes, quite" he merely said, "So instead of waiting for schedules, I think another way is more available to us. If it is alright with Naruto as well as Kurama, he would be able to pull our consciousness' inside him, where we could view the memories of your training, Hinata."

"Oh, really?" Naruto asked, surprised but thinking. "Hmm, that seems like it'd work. Hinata?"

She smiled a little, rubbing at his head. "It sounds perfect."

"Same here" Hanabi said easily, idly spinning a thread of her hair. "It'd be faster too."

Naruto looked around at them, then nodded, before he placed his hand near the center of the little table. "Okay, but everyone's gonna need to touch me before I can do it" he said, all of them nodding; Hinata went first, soon followed by Hanabi, then finally Hiashi.

Things changed- they were no longer sitting at the table, but suddenly standing in this more drab construct... faced by the currently laying-down form of Kurama, who seemed to be napping. Clearly he wasn't though: "You disturb my nap for this, Naruto?" Kurama spoke to Naruto, who slowly chuckled a little.

"Hey, I'm sure you'd like to show them" he replied easily. "A chance to brag and all that, ya know."

"Hmph, whatever."

Hinata turned to her family, though admittedly she was still interested; so this is where Kurama resided inside Naruto's mind. "They apparently do this a lot" she explained with a little smile. "They're actually the best of friends."

"Sounds like the two of us" Hanabi teased, even as Hiashi quirked a similar little smile. When Hinata turned back though, she found Kurama's visible red eye half-open, looking at her with some fake irritation- no doubt about her comment, but she was prepared if he was about to deny it.

"Anyway" Kurama 'groused'. "I'll start with the basics."

Just as he said that, images began to appear in the surrounding area, almost as if moving pictures on an invisible screen. First it showed how they'd talked with Toneri, and how she initially had her Tenseigan appear, though it soon went into the surprising events of maturation- no one had expected them to disappear at first. The progression continued in a systemic fashion this way, regarding her learning all five nature styles, the basics of flying and other such things. Hinata watched for a little, staying close to Naruto, but mostly she watched the reactions of her family - Hanabi of course was quite interested, still grinning, while Hiashi's interest was more subtle, but a little pride was present too.

"And to think, most of that happened in a week" Naruto breathed, referring to the 'basics' still playing- he sheepishly smiled. "Crazy, right?"

"It sure is" Hanabi teased. "Father and I heard you were learning fast, big sis, but this is just gravy."

Hiashi said nothing, just watching, but it was clear what he thought.

"It gets better" Kurama spoke, even as the scenes played at her practicing Yin-Yang Style, both on trees and some attempts at healing human injuries. "Even as she practiced at the Training Grounds for the basics-"

The scenes changed to reflect this, including her training with Sakura/Temari/Karui, the fox pausing on his words to let the images sink in.

"-she of course pitted herself against Sasuke, Naruto, and myself for the more powerful chakra she now wields."

Her family became even more intent now, focused almost entirely on the images- they were starting to show her in the cyan-colored shroud, beginning with her taking the weakened Rasengan/Chidori combo unharmed, followed by a Mini-Tailed Beast Bomb, among other things. This continued on her speed improvements, using the Truth-Seeking Balls, that 'opposite' Planetary Devastation - still working on a name - and her usage of Toneri's jutsu against Kurama.

"These are more recent; Hinata is still working to fully control these powers."

"Even still" Hiashi spoke, doing a short bow. "Thank you for showing us this, Kurama.

Kurama barely reacted, but he seemed to be hiding a slight smile- Hinata giggled a little.

"Don't be offended, sir" Naruto said to her father, a little mild. "As Hinata said, he does this a lot (visibly-but-not-audibly, Kurama shifted in response to this), but he means well and all that."

"I was hardly offended, Naruto, but I understand."

Hanabi soon came up to her. "So big sis, any chance I could still watch in person?" she asked, but soon laughing as Hinata sighed a little - "Ah, even if you did say yes, I'd probably be too busy to accept. Being the heiress in the family is a lot of work."

Hiashi touched her shoulders. "You mustn't let up now, Hanabi" he said, Hanabi looking up at him. "You're getting further prepared, but it takes a lot of work."

"Yeah, I get that, Father; I do."

Hinata made a sound, knowing that even now it is a lot of work; Hiashi had drilled such into her head from a young age, she originally having been expected to do so, and he was stricter back then. But while he certainly hadn't minded her sweet, gentle persona - it reminded him well of mom - the demands of the ninja world hadn't agreed with her, and when Hanabi was more willing to fight her while she wasn't, it'd disappointed him. As a result, the expectations were taken off her and given to Hanabi, while she was effectively just... 'there'. Part of her tried to prove herself, but it was difficult, and she knew now that her father's attempts to change her gentle personality had only eroded her self-confidence, worsening the problem he saw.

But it's okay now; she's regained that confidence and more, and even now she has the respect of her family, her clan. But most importantly, she has the respect and love of Naruto, her husband - maybe it'd taken awhile before he realized exactly what her feelings were, but she's glad for everything that happened.

"Hanabi will do great as our clan's heiress, Father" Hinata breathed, smiling when they looked at her. "I know she will. And I'll continue to get stronger myself, including with the Tenseigan."

Hiashi gained an approving smile, even as Hanabi did. "I expect nothing less, Hinata."

Naruto put an arm around her shoulder, also approvingly-happy. "I'll do my best to help out too" he said easily, grinning, which made her warmer. "Of course I was gonna."

"Hehe."

Across from them yet unnoticed as-of-yet, Kurama half-opened an eye. "Would it kill them to have this family talk outside Naruto's head?" he privately groused. "I can't nap with this going on. Hmph."


As 'hinted' by the last chapter, Hinata has made her own versions of Toneri's jutsu - not quite as easily yet, but she's getting there. And because they're more of 'weaker' variants, even if only thus far, are under a modified version of the names since the Otsutsuki ones... are frankly a slight mouthful to say every time :P