Chapter 9
A/N: Welcome to Chapter Nine, where the action finally starts picking up. There will be some training and their first C-rank. It won't be the Wave Arc, I have my own plans for the Wave Arc. Well, read and enjoy!
Naruto stood up and stretched as he woke up. Running on auto-pilot he grabbed a pair of pants and a shirt out of his closet. He went through his regular morning routine and grimaced at what clothes he had picked out. "I don't know what even made me believe that an all orange outfit was a good idea." He said to himself as he tossed the orange jumpsuit into the clothes hamper. Quickly going back into his room he put on a pair of black cargo pants and a dark green short sleeved shirt. Activating the seals for his bandages and putting his gloves on, he walked out of his room and down stairs. Sachiko and Kuzuri already sat at the kitchen table and Ema was cooking in the kitchen. He sat down as she placed a plate of food in front of each person.
"You look tired Naruto." Kuzuri said after Naruto yawned. "You didn't stay up all night did you?" Naruto nodded at the man with a smirk. He held up his left arm and added enough chakra to make the seals visible.
"I had to add the same seals to this arm as my right arm." He smiled as the seals faded away. "I also added a couple more as an ace up the sleeve."
So, your first day of being a ninja. Are you guys ready?" Kuzuri asked taking a drink of his coffee.
"Yeah, we aren't doing much today but training though." Naruto replied. He took a couple bites and swallowed before continuing. "I feel like it's going to be more of the same as the academy."
"That's the wrong attitude to have there Naruto." Ema told him. "In the academy, it was just to get you prepared; now, everything you learn will be the difference between life and death." Naruto looked down and took a small bite.
"And anyways, they said we are just training so that Sairokku-sensei and Kakashi-sensei can see what missions we will be capable of." Sachiko told him with a smile. "We are starting our missions at the end of the week after all."
"I still don't like the fact that they are going to be having you all do C-ranks out of the academy." Ema said looking down. "I feel like you aren't ready for that."
"You have to remember though, we did all those D-rank missions in the last two years of the academy." Naruto replied. "Man, if I had to catch that cat Tora one more time." He trailed of as Sachiko nodded enthusiastically.
"It's best anyways, Ema." Kuzuri told her as he got up putting his plate in the sink. "I would rather them get some legitimate experience before they deal with any real ninja."
"Doesn't mean I have to like it." She said with a slight pout. Naruto finished his food and placed his dishes in the sink as well.
"Well Sachiko-chan, we should get going now. It's 7:45 now and we have to be there by 8."
"Alright, I bet you Shino is already waiting for us at the gate." She said as she followed the blonde out of the house. They met up with the last member of the team and chatted as they walked towards their training ground. Arriving right at 8, Sairokku Shunshined into the clearing.
"Glad to see that you are all on time." She said looking over the group. "Where are your equipment pouches?" She asked with a frown. Naruto smiled as he stuck a hand in a pocket and pulled out a kunai, he did so to another and pulled out a shuriken. Replaced them and pulled some tags out of a third pocket.
"These shinobi pants have a lot of pockets, with the right application of seals, they become our pouches." He replied to the woman. "This way, we also can't lose our entire supply if we were in a battle."
"Do the rest of you have the same seals as well?" Sairokku asked looking at the other two. They nodded and she seemed to accept the answer. "Alright, that's actually a very smart idea. Most enemies wouldn't expect you to be keeping your weapons in your pockets. Okay, for the next hour we are going to go over two travel formations. For future references, our attack formations will be named after the alphabet; and our defensive formations will be numbered. The two formations we will go over will be the Zeta formation and formation 6."
"How will the formations help us Sairokku-sensei?" Sachiko asked.
"They will help, because you three are going to learn to synchronize your attacks our of each one. And our defensive formations are usually going to be the ones that we travel in. So you will also be learning the proper way to shift from the defensive formation to the attack formation. Each attack formation is paired with a defensive to ensure the smoothest transition possible." She told them. "Now, formation 6 is what we will start on." The team paid close attention as Sairokku instructed them. She placed a dummy on the ground and had them take position around it. Naruto stood in front of the dummy, Sachiko was slightly ahead and to the right of the dummy, and Shino was behind and to the left of the dummy. "Now, formation 6 is one of the most basic ones there is. Naruto has point, so he will be the one who will most likely encounter trouble first. Shino, your position is to protect the rear of the group. Where you're located will allow you to quickly move from left to right of the client. Sachiko, your position is perhaps the most important, you are the back up to either Naruto or Shino. If there is an ambush from the rear, left, or right of the group; than you are to assist Shino."
"What about Naruto at the point?" Sachiko asked.
"The ambush is the first thing that needs to be taken care of. The point man will be required to hold off whatever opponents until the situation at the rear is handled." She replied. "Now, if we were to say enter an area where we knew a battle would happen and there was going to be another force waiting for us, we would shift from 6, to Zeta. Now the attack formations are based on your skill sets. To shift to Zeta, Naruto moves to Sachiko's position, Shino would move to where he was slightly ahead and to the left of the client to where he was even with Naruto; and Sachiko, you would move to the direct rear of the client and provide support. Due to your medical knowledge and long rang fire techniques, you are in the perfect position to provide support to these two as they are attacking, while also keeping you close enough to the client incase an enemy breaks off and charges."
"That seems like it would be very effective." Shino replied.
"You three, I want you to practice moving from formation to formation for the next half-hour." Sairokku told them. They did as she instructed, and by the end of the half-hour they could do it decently enough. "I'm surprised you three are catching on so fast. Your transitions aren't as smooth, and you are usually positioned in the wrong place, but that is something that will get fixed the more we practice." She positioned them back in Zeta. "Now, if you were going to face a group of enemies as a team; what would your attacks be?"
"Well, I could start off the attack with a Enmaku-dan at the group of enemies. And while the smoke has their vision obscured, Shino could send his bugs in after them. After this point they will most likely go after their own targets at this point, but with Shino's bugs draining the chakra, they will be less dangerous in battle. We could than go after a designated target and have Sachiko guard the client." Naruto explained to her. "Then, say if Shino defeated his target first, he could either assist myself or go back and guard the client with Sachiko."
"Very good, did you come up with that on the spot?" She asked. Naruto nodded his head sheepishly.
"Who would have thought Naruto could come up with a good plan?" Sachiko joked.
"Sachiko, say our opponents are a group of three and two branch off after Naruto and one after Shino. What should the course of action be?"
"I believe the best course of action would be for myself to assist Naruto from my position with my long range techniques. I could also use my various tools to distract one long enough for Naruto to finish one before focusing on the other."
"Good plan, I'm pleasantly surprised at you're problem solving techniques. Now Naruto, what if after using the smokescreen, you launched an offensive technique as Shino was releasing his bugs on them?"
"I thought of that, but I decided against it when a possible consequence would end up in the destruction of his bugs. That would only hinder the plan instead of help. But a viable option would be to create a shadow clone and have it use a Kama Shotto directly after I release the smokescreen. That way the two jutsu would hit at essentially the same time and Shino's bugs wouldn't be in danger."
"Thank you for your consideration Naruto, but since my mutation, my bugs were changed as well as my body. They have become considerably stronger and much harder to be destroyed." Shino spoke up. Sairokku clapped her hands a couple times.
"Very good, you all are already thinking like shinobi." She made a couple of hand seals and three clones rose up out of the dirt. "These are three Tsuchi Bunshin. I have lowered their strength to that of genin. They will attempt to 'kill' our client there in the middle." She said pointing at the dummy. "Now, they are completely autonomous and their only order is to not kill you. They will wait until you launch your first attack before they move. Protect the client is the mission. Start on my signal." She raised her hand up in the air and the three kids and clones braced themselves. "3" Naruto made the hand seal for his clone technique. "2" Shino's bugs started swarming around him out of his sleeves. "1" Sachiko pulled out a kunai and a handful of shuriken. "Go!"
Naruto created three clones and didn't waste time running through another set of seals that two of his clones mimicked exactly. "Fuuton: Kama Shotto!" Following right behind the balls of wind was a strange black ball. "Enmaku-dan!" The smoke ball travelled a little faster and hit the ground in front of the earth clones. As it was spreading the three balls of wind ripped through the smoke followed by hundreds of Shino's bugs. They heard a yelp from the smoke before two clones jumped out of the dissipating smoke. Naruto saw out of the corner of his eye the last clone falling to pieces of earth. That was the only chance he had to look before the clone was upon him.
-Naruto-
Naruto ducked a kick that was aimed for his head and drove a fist into the inner thigh of the clone. He lashed out with a kick to the clones chest pushing it backwards. He activated a seal on the top of his forearm and he pulled out a basic katana. He didn't give the clone a chance to breath before rushing it. Holding it in one hand he swung at the left side of the clone. It blocked the strike with a kunai only for Naruto to slap a tag on its shoulder. The clone jumped away as its right arm crumbled into dirt. Looking confused at where its arm should be, it never saw the sword separate its head from its body. Sairokku nodded in approval as Naruto resealed his sword and ran over to help Shino.
-Shino-
The boy jumped backwards as kunai peppered the floor where he was standing. The clone was quickly inside his comfort zone pushing the offensive. Shino checked a kick at his leg with his shin and drove his fist into the clones chin. He followed the strike by kicking its legs out and than driving an elbow into its stomach. He jumped away and took a defensive stance as the clone stood up. He frowned as the clone pulled out a kunai with an explosive tag and threw it at his feet. Throwing his jacket off his wings came to life and lifted him into the air, easily out of range of the explosion. He sent more of his bugs and they quickly latched onto the clone draining it of more chakra. Its skin started losing its color becoming the color of dirt and it started cracking. Looking up at Shino, it didn't see Naruto kick it in the back of the knees and then the middle of the back sending it into the air towards Shino. He pulled out an explosive tag and dove down at the clone. He slapped it in the middle of the clones test than grabbed it by the shirt. He spun and sent it flying even higher where the tag exploded sending a shower of dirt onto the two boys. They nodded at each other before quickly going back to Sachiko.
"Okay you two, let's get back into formation 6." Naruto told them. They quickly moved back into a defensive mode and waited for Sairokku to speak. She smiled at the team and started clapping. She stopped but the clapping continued from behind them. The team turned around and saw Kakashi standing there.
"Very impressive display for rookies." He said with his patented eye smile.
"Nice of you to join us Kakashi." Sairokku told him. "I didn't realize it was already ten."
"Time flies when you are teaching I suppose." He replied. He held up two bags. "Now, who is ready for a little bit of lunch?" The group sat together as they ate their food.
"So, what is the plan for after lunch?" Sachiko asked.
"Now, we are going to do some specialized training." Kakashi told them. He took a bite of his sandwich, confusing them as to how he did so with his mask still on. "Sachiko will go with me where we will work on learning a jutsu or two as well as adding some other useful techniques. Shino will go with me as well where we will work on learning some deception, taijutsu, and perhaps a jutsu."
"What about Naruto-kun?" She asked him.
"He will go with me." Sairokku replied. "He is going to be learning kenjutsu. And at the end of our training, we are going to take you all to the weapons shop where we will find all of you a weapon that suits you. Every day this week we will do the team training in the morning. Tomorrow we will switch who we train and keep switching throughout the week." She picked up her trash and placed it in a trash bag. "Now, I say we get to training. We will stop training at one, where we will then go sit down for a proper meal."
"Alright, well, come with me you two." Kakashi said as he walked towards the other side of the clearing. Sachiko and Shino followed him leaving Naruto alone with Sairokku.
"Alright Naruto, the only thing I'm going to teach you today is the basic kata to a style known as the Dance of the Leopard; it's a style that I think will fit you. It relies on fast, consecutive attacks with there being two katas that focus on overpowering the foe." Sairokku said as she unsealed a katana from a storage scroll and took a stance. "Copy my movements exactly." Naruto took up his katana and copied her stance. "You will hold each stance and I will correct you." Naruto nodded as Sairokku walked up to him and fixed his stance. She had him keep entering the stance and continued fixing it until he got the stance down. She than taught him the next stance and followed the same process. Keeping it up until she went through every individual stance. "Alright, now that you have each one down, we are going to work on going through them together. Start from the first stance and I'll stop you when you make a mistake." Naruto did so and she quickly stopped him on the second one. "Your feet are too far apart and your left shoulder is to forward. Now start from the beginning again." They continued this process and Naruto could do the first quarter of the kata only making one of two mistakes by the time it was one. "Alright Naruto, that's enough for today." Naruto put his sword down and wiped some sweat off of his brow. "When we train together again on Thursday, we will pick up where you left off." Naruto nodded and sealed his sword away as Kakashi led two tired looking teens back to them.
"Learning jutsu was that tough on you guys?" Naruto asked with a tired smirk.
"Please, we were doing chakra control exercises pretty much the whole time." Sachiko replied. "Kakashi-sensei finally started us on a jutsu the last hour or so."
"So what jutsu are you learning?"
"I'm learning the Katon: Hono no Shawa." Sachiko said. "But I found out that I'm a fire and lightning user."
"I have two chakras as well; water and earth." Shino told him. "As such, Kakashi-sensei has started me on an earth jutsu, the Doton: Kyoretsuna Ken."
"Yes, but you two are far from completing them." Kakashi said causing Sachiko to frown and Shino to slump his shoulders slightly. "On a positive not though, we can all go get some lunch now." Kakashi gave the group his eye smile.
"We could do that." Sairokku said. "But, we have one place to stop before we get lunch. Let's go team." The two jounin chatted as they led the group out of the clearing and into the village. The three genin stopped talking as they arrived at a weapons shop, the Omoi Hanma. "Alright you three, this weapons shop is regarded as one of the best in the world. The man inside will help find the weapon that best suits you three." They walked into the shop and a gruff man looked up from behind the counter.
"Ah Sairokku-san, Kakashi-san; how may I assist you?" He asked. Kakashi gave the man his eye smile and patted Naruto on the shoulder.
"We are here to get our cute, little genin squad some….special weapons." Kakashi replied. The man smiled at them and pulled a small box out from a drawer. He opened it and pulled out three small cards and handed one to each genin.
"Alright you three, this concept is pretty easy. Just like chakra paper, you add chakra to the card. The only difference is that instead of crumbling or burning, a number will appear in the middle. That number corresponds with the same number on my specialty items."
"How will that pick out the weapon that's best for us?" Sachiko asked. "Chakra only tells us our elemental nature."
"That's where your incorrect miss." He replied. "Your chakra is the only thing that knows your body better than yourself. It knows how you move, your muscle strength, everything." He gleefully explained. "Follow me." The group followed the man through a curtain into a back room and the teenagers jaws dropped. The room they walked into had hundreds of different weapons. There were the traditional weapons such as katanas, daggers, sai, and kusarigama; there were more interesting weapons like warhammers, axes, gauntlets, and crossbows. Those barely scratched the surface of what was in the room. "Now, Aburame-san, please go first." Shino did as told and a large 463 appeared in the middle. The man quickly moved around the room before he found the weapon. "Ah, you got yourself a nice pair of weapons here." He came back with a three foot long box. He opened it up and there were two blades as long as the box. Each blade sat in a metal bracing with leather straps on it. "These metal brackets clamp around your forearms, and with the slight addition of chakra they retract into the bracket. There is a seal in there that stores the blade in it." Shino attached the brackets and repeated the motion of retracting and releasing the blade.
"Strange, a close range weapon was not what someone from my clan would normally select." Shino said as he moved his arms around. "And yet, this feels right."
"My cards know what's best boy-o." The shop keeper said with a grin. He looked at Sachiko and gestured towards her. "Your turn." Sachiko's number was 38. "I remember 38!" He said giddily. He opened up a chest and pulled out a two foot long piece of metal with a six inch spike at each end."This is one hell of a weapon. I was wondering when someone would pull this one." He flashed his chakra and an eighteen inch long rod shot from both ends. Hook like barbs sprouted from each rod creating a menacing looking staff. "I call this the hook-spear for clear reasons. You can use your chakra to activate only one side if you wish." He said with a chuckle. Flashing his chakra again the rods retracted forming the smaller tube again. Sachiko took it from the man gingerly before activating it a couple times. "A good mid-range weapon with the same kind of seals that your friends weapon has. There is also a seal that allows you to use chakra to propel it at blinding speeds as a projectile weapon."
"Perfect for a support ninja, don't you think?" Sairokku chimed in.
"Of course." Kakashi added. "Our little Sachiko-chan will be a menace with that weapon."
"Yes, but now for the last one." Sairokku replied as they looked at Naruto. He took a deep breath and pushed chakra into the card. A second later a 1 appeared on it.
"I think I remember what this one is." He said as he opened a large cabinet. He pulled a long, bundled object out of it. "This is the first weapon I crafted using my special techniques." He handed it to Naruto who carefully started to unwrap it. His jaw dropped as he gripped the unveiled weapon by the handle. It was a sword that had a forty-two inch long blade and a twelve inch handle. The blade was three inches wide at the base and pure black on a grey and red handle. Looking closely at the blade, Naruto could see all kinds of designs carved into it before it finally dawned on him.
"These are all seals aren't they?" Naruto asked the man.
The man clapped his hands together. "You would be correct in that assumption. Most are just basic strengthening, sharpening, and chakra channeling seals; but they are a couple in there that I will leave a surprise. I'm glad that you three found weapons, but we have another thing to take care of. That would be the financial aspect of it."
"Sairokku and myself will be splitting the cost." Kakashi said as he pulled out his wallet.
"Okay, let's go to the front and ring this up." He replied.
"Surely this equipment is very expensive. I can't let you pay for this." Shino said as they followed the man into the area of the store.
"It's nothing major." Sairokku replied. "You can pay us back by becoming some of the best shinobi to ever guard the village."
"And more chuunin coming from you three and not the other teams." Kakashi muttered.
"What was that Kakashi-sensei?" Sachiko asked. Sairokku elbowed the man in the side roughly.
"Ah nothing, I was simply agreeing with what my teaching partner here had said." The two teachers paid for the weapons and the teenagers sealed them away into scrolls while Shino just retracted his blades.
-(The Next Day, Training)-
"Alright Naruto, tell me what jutsu you know?" Kakashi asked the teenager sitting across from him.
"Well, I know all the academy jutsu, the Kage Bunshin, and the Fuuton: Hasai-ken." He replied. Kakashi just shook his head at the boy.
"I know about your special ability Naruto." Kakashi said pointing at Naruto's bandages. "Now I'll restate my question, what jutsu do you know?" Now understanding what his teacher meant Naruto took a breath.
"I didn't learn much from him, he was seriously lacking as a Chuunin even with the Hokage's new standards. But the few I learnt are all C-rank. I learned the Fūton: Daitoppa, Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu, and the Kori Shinchū no Jutsu. The only others ones he knew were the ones that I learned in the academy."
"What would you say your comfort level with those three techniques are?" Was Kakashi's next question.
"It would be probably at a four out of ten." Naruto replied. "My dad wouldn't let me practice any of them until I got put onto a genin squad. The only reason the comfort level is at a four and not lower is because of what I understand from Mizuki's memories." Kakashi stood up and brushed some dirt off of his pants.
"Alright, today we will work on those techniques than." Naruto stood up also. "I will hold off on teaching you anything until I deem your skill level with them is adequate. We will start with the Fūton: Daitoppa." Kakashi created an earth clone and had it stand in front of Naruto. Naruto quickly went through hand seals.
" Fūton: Daitoppa!" He swung his arms forward and a gust of wind shot out. It hit the clone but only managed to ruffle its clothes. "Man, I was expecting that to do more."
"Well, there were a couple things I noticed. You didn't have a smooth transition between the dog and rabbit seals. You also didn't use enough chakra or control." Kakashi put his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "So while you maintain a basic concept of how to do the technique, you still need practice in order to master it. Kind of like a watered down Sharingan effect."
"What does all that mean?"
"Ah sorry, it just means that even if you learn how to do a technique through your power, you will still need to practice with it to be able to use it the way it's meant." Kakashi told the boy. "So we will keep working on the Fūton technique before moving on. This time when you do it, go slowly with the hand seals." Naruto nodded before getting to work. By the time one o clock rolled around Kakashi came to a realization, "You suck at genjutsu." Naruto panted and wiped some sweat from his brow. He quickly got a hang of the first two jutsu with Kakashi telling him that the only way for him to get better is use them in action, but the last one he has been working on for the last hour and a half with no progress. Kakashi even made his clone easily susceptible to the effects of genjutsu. "I guess you will get better with practice. At least I know what we will be working on next time we train together." Kakashi said with his eye smile. "Let's go meet up with the others for some lunch." As the duo arrived where the others were a ragged Sachiko smirked at the tired Naruto.
"Learning jutsu was that tough on you?" She asked. Her response was a prompt middle finger that was answered with a smack to the back of the head from Kakashi.
"Manners Naruto." The group chuckled at the expense of the blonde as he rubbed the back of his head.
-(Two Weeks Later)-
The groups training progressed along the same path as the first two days with the occasional D-rank mixed in there just for a little income. After the first two weeks were over Naruto was deemed a lost cause with genjutsu; so Kakashi started teaching him other jutsu. He know knew the Fūton: Reppūshō and the Iwa Bunshin no Jutsu. Kakashi and Sairokku appeared in the clearing at the same time and the three genin quickly stood at attention. "Alright you three, after careful consideration in regards to your training and the level we think you are at now, Kakashi and myself have decided that it is time for your first C-rank mission." The three teenagers started congratulating each other. "I myself have been issues a B-rank mission and will be gone for two weeks time. Kakashi will take over fulltime duties in my absence." Sairokku told them.
"Right, my turn to talk." Kakashi said as he pulled out a scroll and opened it up. "Two merchants arrived in the village early yesterday morning. They brought unfortunate news of being attacked by a group of bandits when they were a two days walk from the village. They were able to slip away due to the bandits being distracted with murdering their associates and stealing their wares. Our team has been tasked with locating the bandit encampment and evaluating the group of thieves. If in our evaluation it is decided we are capable of dispatching them and recovering the merchants wares, we are to proceed along that course of action. If not, we return to the village with our report and the appropriate team will be then dispatched in our stead." Kakashi rolled up the scroll and put it in a pocket. "Man, I still can't get over how boring those mission reports sound." He looked over the group. "Alright everyone, go back to your homes and gather up supplies for a four days absence from the village. Meet me at the north gate in an hour." With his message conveyed, Kakashi disappeared from the clearing leaving Sairokku alone with the genin.
"Well you three, I'm a little sad I don't get to attend your first C-rank mission with you." She told them.
"Don't you worry Sairokku-sensei; we are going to finish his mission and make you proud." Naruto said to his teacher.
"I have no doubt about that Naruto." Sairokku turned around to leave the area. "You better hurry up and get ready. I know Ema is going to throw a fit about you leaving on a mission. Don't forget anything kids." With that said Sairokku disappeared from the area along with the three genin. Naruto and Sachiko arrived back at their house a couple minutes later and walked quickly inside. Ema walked out of the kitchen and looked at the two confused.
"What is going on you two? Don't you have training today?" She asked them. Sachiko kept walking upstairs and left Naruto to talk.
"We got our first C-rank today." He replied. Ema frowned. "It's nothing serious mom. We are just going to scout out a group of bandits that attacked some merchants."
"I don't think that you're ready Naruto." She told him. "You have only been a registered shinobi for about a month now. You need more time to get stronger." Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Mom, I have been training non-stop since I was twelve, the academy extended their graduation age to sixteen, and I have been trained by two of the top jounin in the village for the past month. Those things, plus the bastard sealed inside of me, will be more than enough for a couple of bandits." Naruto slowly started going up the stairs. "I have to go get my stuff ready now. I can't be late." Tears appeared in Ema's eyes as Naruto disappeared at the top of the stairs. Kuzuri walked in through the back door and stopped when he saw her.
"What's wrong?" He asked with a frown.
"I'm not ready for him to go on a C-rank mission." She said throwing her arms around the man. "It seems like just yesterday he came into the hospital with those horrific injuries." Kuzuri hugged the woman and rubbed her back gently.
"It will be okay Ema. Naruto is a strong boy and has had some of the best training in the world." Naruto and Sachiko came down the stairs putting scrolls in their pockets. "So you two are off on your first big mission?" The excited teenagers nodded their heads. "You all be careful now. You both are very important to Ema and myself; make sure to keep your eyes open. And always remember, no mission is worth completing at the expense of your squad mates." The two nodded and went to walk out the door but were stopped as Ema hugged the both of them. "Come on babe, you're acting like you will never see them again." Kuzuri said pulling the woman back. "We will see you two in a couple days."
"Bye Ema-san, Kuzuri-san." Sachiko said as she jogged out the open front door.
"I will see you in a couple days." Naruto said with a smile. "Love you both." With that said Naruto followed after his friend.
"Like I said, he is a tough kid." Kuzuri told Ema as they stood on the front porch watching the two leave. "He has Kakashi on his squad, what's the worst that can happen?"
-(Three Days Later)-
Naruto groaned as he hung upside down from a rope in a tree. He opened his eyes and saw a group of twenty men sitting around various campfires. "Well that didn't work out quite how I had planned." He said to himself. He looked himself over and saw his sleeves were still intact and the seals in his pockets hadn't been damaged. "Alright, still fully armed here." He then looked up and took in the entire clearing he was in. The men were sitting in groups of four to five surrounded by the same number of tents. There was about three meters between each group and they were in a rough square around a larger tent. He closed his eyes and checked for chakra signatures to see if there were any hidden enemies around. There were four people stationed ten meters out from the camp and three more in the center tent with one being larger than the others.
"Arbiter to Jester, Arbiter to Jester, you copy?" Came a masculine voice in his ear.
"This is Jester, I copy." Naruto whispered. "How these guys didn't find the ear piece is beyond me; they must have bought the story I gave them about being out on a camping trip. What's the status on Ghost and Angel?"
"Ghost is on the sentry to the north and Angel is on the one to the south. What's the status on the camp?"
"Twenty-two civilian class chakra signatures and one that is stronger, not quite at a shinobi level." Naruto whispered back. "North group contains four men, west has five, south has six, and east has five; the tent in the center contains two more plus the larger one."
"Copy that Jester. On your word Ghost and Angel will take out the sentries quickly and quietly. Any recommendations?"
"Ten-four Arbiter, relay to Ghost and Angel to place a grade three explosive tag at each of the sentries positions. Once all four have been placed proceed to detonation. I will cut myself down in the confusion and head for south camp." He replied. "Rules of engagement?"
"Use your judgment Jester." Arbiter said. "Fatalities will result in zero repercussions. All enemies must be accounted for at the end of battle."
"Relay message to Ghost and Angel to proceed. I'm ready to rock and roll." Naruto heard silence but knew the plan was moving based on the sentry chakra signatures dimming. When the last two went down Naruto slid his hand into a pocket and unsealed a kunai. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the group located directly to his left. Thirty seconds passed before the forest erupted in flames. As the bandits started scrambling Naruto quickly sliced himself free of the ropes. His feet barely hit the ground as he started moving. While heading to his group he saw two figures shoot through the forest into a group of confused men. The first man Naruto met stood no chance as a knee slammed into his nose at full speed. As the bandit fell to the ground unconscious Naruto whipped his hand forward and flung the kunai into the forehead of a crossbow wielding bandit. Naruto landed into a roll and swept out a third bandits legs out from under him. He drove an elbow into the man's temple sending him into a dreamless sleep before he needed to block a punch aimed for his own head. He shoved the man's hand away and landed a punch to his sternum. The bandit's pained gasps for air were silence when Naruto chopped his neck. Turning to face the final three bandits he saw that they were no longer confused and were rushing him with weapons drawn. Acting quickly, Naruto drew a handful of kunai out and threw them following up with handseals. "Fūton: Reppūshō!" He sent a gust of wind that propelled the kunai at blinding speed. Two bandits had enough sense to dive out of the way; the third wasn't so lucky with each kunai sinking into his body down to the ring. A spear wielding bandits rise was halted by a chakra enhanced uppercut that shattered his jaw. The final bandit looked at Naruto fearfully holding a sword. With a yell he dropped the sword and turned to run only to be clotheslined by a silver haired figure.
"Good work Jester, move to take the leader in the center tent. The north group has already been dispatched by myself." Naruto's response died in his throat as a giant pillar of fire shot into the sky from the west. No words were spoken as the two Shunshined away from the area.
-(Minutes Prior, Shino)-
"Ghost to Arbiter, second tag has been placed." Shino said as he retracted a bloody wrist blade.
"Copy that. Confirmation from Angel, initiate detonation for thirty seconds and get out of blast range." Shino lit the chakra fuse and quickly moved away. Thirty seconds slowly went by before the tags detonated. Chunks of wood went shooting into the air with the explosion and Shino was moving through the debris and unleashing his wrist blades and Kikaichū. He leapt over a tent and landed on a bandits shoulders sinking his blades through his back. There were shouts of confusion through the group as the Kikaichū latched onto two of the other bandits. He swung his arm to the right and watched as a bandits head flew through the air. He heard two thumps from behind him and felt his Kikaichū return to his body. The last bandit gripped a large sword and scowled at the boy.
"I'm not a pushover like the rest of these punks." He said. He lunged forward at Shino swinging the giant sword around. Shino smirked under his high collar as he let the sword connect with his side where it harmlessly bounced aside. "Wha-" The man's words were cut off as Shino slammed a haymaker to the left side of his jaw sending him stumbling in that direction. "So, you use knuckle dusters in battle?" He asked glancing at Shino's balled up first and noting the hard brown material.
"Something like that." Shino replied. The bandit looked at his sword and scowled as he saw there was a chip in the blade. He rushed the boy again and swung his sword multiple times, each one bounced off Shino's midsection with the ones aimed for his head being dodged. With a frustrated yell the man tried stabbing Shino through the chest only for the battered blade to shatter upon impact. Shino frowned as the coat he was wearing was completely ruined from the blade and removed it. The bandit looked confused at the handle that remained in his hand before he looked at Shino and his eyes widened in fear. "Something bugging you?" Shino asked allowing buzzing to enter his voice. The man staggered backwards as Shino moved his exposed wings a couple times.
"What the hell are you?" The bandit hurried and picked up his fallen comrades spear and waved it at him. "Stay away from me! You're not human." He shouted. Shino's wings started beating at a blinding speed and he rose from the ground.
"That's where you're wrong, I'm simply the next stage." Shino bolted towards the man. The bandit thrust forward with the spear only for the shaft to shatter into splinters on contact with the hardened substance covering Shino's body. His screams of fear died in his throat as Shino extended a wrist blade and drove it through the mans chin into his brain at an upward angle. His lifeless body fell to the ground as Shino withdrew the blade. Shino's eyes snapped to the center tent as a pillar of fire shot into the sky.
"Arbiter to Ghost, report to center point to rendezvous with squad and support."
"Copy that Arbiter." With that said, Shino rose into the air and flew off towards the area.
-(Minutes Prior, Sachiko)-
Sachiko struck like a snake after the explosion. The closest bandit had his back to her and his payment was getting the tendons in his knees cut out from behind. He collapsed to the ground screaming only to be silence by a swift heel kick to the temple. Swiftly running through hand seals the next bandit wasn't given a chance. "Katon: Kasai Sutoraiku!" His eyes widened as a fist covered in fire slammed into his eye. Sachiko cringed a little as she heard a crunching noise; ignoring this she kicked the burning body in the chest away from her. A hand forcibly grabbed her arm and yanked her backwards. She twisted into the air and wrapped her legs around the neck of the hands owner. She followed that up by raining elbows down onto the man's head and face causing him to quickly submit to unconsciousness. She twisted around to the man's back and kicked off of it into the air. She pulled a handful of kunai from her pocket and let them loose towards the remaining two bandits causing them to run from each other.
"Bitch!" A voice to her left shouted as she landed. Leaping up from a crouch using chakra she drove her knee into the mans chin before spinning in the air and landing a roundhouse kick to his neck breaking it in the process. Unsealing her staff she extended each point stabbing the last bandit in the thigh sending him down onto a knee. Ripping the point out she stabbed him through the hand pinning it to the ground. The man screamed out in pain as she pulled out pole and cracked him across the skull with it. Sachiko was about to seal her weapon away when she felt three fluctuations of chakra. Turning around and facing the tent she saw three people standing there, two men and one woman, with their arms crossed.
"So, you and your friends thought that you could just walk right into our camp and get rid of us?" The one in the middle, and also the largest, said. He stood at around six foot-five inches and was a mound of muscle. He had a katana resting on his shoulder. "What should we do about these guys Kabal?" The man next to him, wearing a strange mask, put a hand under his chin.
"I say we just eliminate them Jang." He scratched the back of his neck with a menacing hook sword he pulled from his long trench coat. "I say we let Yaku take this one." The woman next to them was halfway through handseals before he finished the sentence.
"Way ahead of you Kabal." She finished and separated her hands showing a ball of fire sitting in between them. " Katon: Honō no hashira!" She thrust her hands forward and the ball turned into a giant beam of fire that came shooting at Sachiko. The girl dove to the side out of the way of the beam only for it to twist around and come back at her. Sachiko looked in fear as the flames got closer and never noticed her eyes changing. They turned solid black with two red tomoe in each eye. She instinctively put her hands out in front of her and the beam stopped inches away from her. She threw her hand up and the beam followed, rising up high above everyone and exploding once it reached a fair distance in the air. "What the hell was that? I have never seen fire manipulation strong enough to control another persons attack." Before she could start hand seals on another attack Naruto and Kakashi appeared next to Sachiko and Shino landed next to them.
"Well look what we have here, more cockroaches." Jang said as he placed the tip of his sword in the dirt. Naruto helped Sachiko up and his jaw dropped.
"Sachiko-chan, you're eyes, they have change." He told her. "Is that the Sharingan?" Was his next question.
"It appears to be a variation of it." Kakashi replied. He looked at the three ninja in front of the team. "We will talk about it later. Right now, we have to deal with these three." Sachiko shook her head and stood up straight.
"Let us handle them sensei." Shino said.
"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked.
"Yeah we got this handled." Naruto replied taking up position across from Jang and unsealing his own sword. "Of course, you can feel free to bail us out if things look bad." He looked his sensei in the eye as Sachiko and Shino set up across from Yaku and Kabal respectively. "We need this to test how well your training has paid off."
"I'm gonna kick this bitchs ass." Sachiko growled out from next to Naruto. "I feel….so much stronger."
"I to wish to test myself against a fellow ninja." Shino told the man. Kakashi smiled under his mask.
"Alright, don't mangle the bodies to much; we need the heads to turn in bounties if they are missing-nin." He replied taking a step back.
"You should be more worried about your dear students bodies getting mangled." Jang growled out. "I don't appreciate being underestimated." Kabal and Yaku nodded their heads in agreement.
"Oh we aren't underestimating you three." Naruto told the man. "We fully respect your skill; ours is just better." Naruto blurred out of view and sent the man flying backwards with a front kick to the chest. "I'll handle the boss." With that said Naruto disappeared after the man leaving the other four in the area. Shino rose into the air and flew away from the other three.
"Oh no you don't bug boy." Kabal shouted running after him. Sachiko help out a hand towards Yaku.
"What are you good at barbie?" She asked. She looked confused as the remaining flames from her attack rose into the air and gathered around Sachiko's hand.
"I told you, I feel stronger." Sachiko threw the fire at the girl. This time it was Yaku's turn to dive to the side and have the fire chase after her. Sachiko held another hand out and separated the fire into two different streams that grew larger as they used the air as fuel. Yaku was now dodging two large streams of fire being attacked from separate sides. She leapt backwards away from one only to have another collide with her back. As she was replaced with a log she was immediately sent running again due to the first stream attacking her again. "I can see every move you are going to make." Yaku looked in fear as she was pressed against a tree with the two flame streams staring her down. The womans screams were drowned out by the sound of the tree she was against going up in flames. Kakashi landed next to Sachiko and let out a long whistle.
"Oh boy, that's a scary combination." He said out loud.
"What do you mean?" Sachiko asked him.
"Not only do you have the Sharingan, but you have the ability to completely manipulate flames." He replied. She looked at him confused. "Congratulations! Just like Naruto and Shino, you're a mutant!" He said with his eye smile. His response was a prompt thud as Sachiko fainted. "I really need to work on my delivery of news." He picked up his unconscious student and disappeared in the direction Shino went.
-(Shino)-
Shino banked to the right dodging the kunai aimed at himself. He finally landed in a clearing and had to release his blades to block the two hook blades aimed at his face. Forced into a kneeling position Shino pushed the blades out of his way and grabbed Kabal around the waist. He flew into the air driving him through thick branches before pushing him off and kicking him into the trunk of a tree. Kabal was given no chance to regain his bearings as he was forced to dodge Shino's blade causing it to sink into the tree trunk. Shino release the clasp around his forearm as he was unable to get the blade out of the tree. Thinking he had the advantage with weapons, Kabal pressed his attack. Kabal hooked Shino's second blade and tore it from his forearm dragging the hook across Shino's arm. "Ah, so you have some kind of natural armor. It probably protects pretty good from regular attacks." Kabal's hook swords started glowing a bright blue. "Let's see how it holds up against chakra enhanced attacks. Shino leapt backwards avoiding a cross swipe but was unable to completely avoid a downward swipe. He grunted in pain as the chakra enhanced blade cut through his armor and dark green blood started seeping out. "Ah, so the creature does bleed!" Instead of wasting his time responding, Shino unleashed his hive on the man and disappeared into the trees. Kabal laughed as the bugs landed on his body and started trying to work. "I know all about you Aburames'. Too bad your pets won't work on me; these clothes prevent chakra from leaving my body unless I allow it." His only response was silence, seconds later the bugs rose from his body and started disappearing into different parts of the forest. "Smart, not having them all go straight to you. That would give your position away after all."
"Doton: Gōremu no ken!" A giant stone fist rose up from behind Kabal and sent him flying across the clearing into a tree. As Kabal impacted the ground he rolled out of the way as the hand came smashing down on the area he just occupied. It quickly backhanded him as he was standing up to send him flying again. He got up and surveyed the area and noticed the hand was gone.
"Come on, enough with the cowards tactics." Kabal shouted. He started going through handseals. "Fight me like a man! Raiton: Sonāsupāku!" Electricity shot out in a ball around him into the forest. A couple second later Kabal spoke. "Nothing? My sonar never fails…unless he is-" His question was answered as hands rose out of the dirt and pulled him down to his neck. "Fuck!" He shouted as Shino rose out of the ground in front of him.
"Shinobi use deception to win their battles." Kabal's eyes widened under his mask as he saw Shino had retrieved his wrist blades. "You should be happy I am running low on chakra, I had one other technique I wished to get practice using. Don't worry though," Shino said squatting down in front of the man placing the blades across eachother in a diagonal pattern around Kabals neck. "your death shall be quick." Kabal's response never came as Shino closed the blades cutting his head off. Kakashi arrived with Sachiko over his shoulder as Shino picked up the mans head.
"Everything went good over here?" He asked. Shino held out the head and handed it to Kakashi who held it gingerly by the hair.
"I need training to increase my chakra reserves." Was his response as Shino flew in the direction of Naruto's fight.
"Kids these days." Kakashi said as he followed the boy.
-(During Shino's fight, Naruto)-
Naruto's advance was halted as a hand grabbed his shirt collar and sent him rocketing into a tree. Naruto slowly picked himself up and saw an angry Jang holding a sword. "That wasn't a very nice greeting."
"Says the little shit that put a foot in my chest." Naruto smirked as he saw a large bruise developing in the middle of the man's chest.
"I didn't realize you would be so sensitive." Naruto gripped his sword in two hands. "Just doing my job after all." Naruto was forced to duck under Jang's sword as it passed through the area his head just was. Naruto slashed upwards with his own sword only for Jang to side step it. The two lunged at each other and their swords clashed in the middle.
"Look at you, trying to play ninja." Jang scowled at the boy. "I bet your precious little hands have never taken a life." Naruto's eyes hardened at the man and his grip tightened on his sword and seals started to glow blue on the blade as Naruto started channeling his chakra.
"These precious little hands of mine did a fine job on your group of friends." Naruto replied. He swiftly and firmly planted his foot into the side of Jang's knee sending the man stumbling away. Naruto quickly flipped away from the man and landed with his sword held behind him. He swung forward as a word clicked into his head. "Ken no sutairu: Sonikkusurasshu!" An invisible force exploded from the tip of his sword and went shooting towards Jang accompanied by a loud screeching. Jang crossed his arms in front of himself as the force hit him like a freight train sending him bouncing across the ground. His descent on the last bounce was halted as Naruto appeared next to him and kicked him across the ribs sending him into the air. He created two Kage Bunshin that grabbed his arms and threw him in the air after the man. He kept creating Kage Bunshin and used them as platforms to send him higher. He used the last clone to push up and use a Shunshine. He appeared above Jang with his sword raised above his head with the seals glowing again. "Ken no Sutairu: Sonikkusurasshu!" Jang's ascent was abruptly turned into a decent when the forced hammered into him sending up a large dust cloud when he impacted with the ground. Naruto's smile turned into panic when he started falling towards the ground. "Shit, shit, shit, shit!" He shouted as he fell. His shirt was grabbed as he passed a tree and he looked with relief as Kakashi had a hold of it. "Thanks Kakashi-sensei." The man eye smiled before letting go letting Naruto fall the last eight feet to the ground.
"Watch that language of yours." He said to the boy. Naruto slowly got up and stumbled over to the groaning mass that was Jang.
"Bastard sensei of mine." He mumbled to himself. He poked the man with his foot and elicited a loud groan from him. "Where's all that smack you were talking big man?" Naruto growled out. Kakashi appeared next to him and smack him across the back of the head.
"There's no glory in talking down to an opponent; especially one you have already defeated." He sternly told the boy. "Go stand with Shino and Sachiko." Naruto looked down and turned around quickly walking away to his friends. Kakashi squatted down and looked at the man. "Hello Jang, former shinobi of Kusagakure. Murderer of hundreds of civilians and ten genin. How have you avoided capture for so long? You yourself are only Chuunin level."
"Fuck you." The man spit out. "I'm not sayin shit. I would rather die than give up my boss." Kakashi's response was him pulling up his headband and opening his Sharingan eye.
"You're going to do both today." Kakashi said. Jang's eyes went blank and he slumped over unconscious. "Naruto, get over here." The blonde jogged over with his two friends, which included a now recovered Sachiko.
"Yes sensei?" He asked.
"We need information from this man." Naruto looked confusedly at his teacher. "Remove your right glove." Naruto now understood and frowned at the man.
"I can't do that; I'll kill him. And I don't want all his memories floating around my head or picking up anything from is personality." Naruto replied.
"The Hokage gave me a secret objective. That if there was an opportunity to interrogate a suspect for information, that you are to do it with your ability. It will be to train your ability and your control of it." Kakashi said pulling his headband down over his eye.
"I can't control this power. I can't just turn it off or on." Naruto said loudly.
"No, but you can control how much you absorb." Kakashi told him. "With Mizuki it took a minute of prolonged contact before he died. The Hokage wants you to learn how to use this power to your advantage." Naruto frowned and looked at his hand as he took the glove off and approached the unconscious man. "Once you find out who he is answering to you can stop." Naruto took a deep breath and place his hand on the mans forehead and was instantly bombarded with memories. It took Naruto a couple seconds to get a grip on what was coming into his brain. Tactics, techniques, friends and family; all merely memories. Finally he came across a memory of Jang, Kabal, and Yaku standing in front of a strange man.
"You three will take up position in the forest outside of Konoha. Recruit a group of bandits and start raiding merchants travelling to and from the village. You will be responsible for helping cripple them financially." The man wearing the strange helmet and cape. "Do you understand your mission?"
"Yes Jinki-sama." The three said in unison. The memory ended as Naruto took his hand from the mans forehead.
"You okay?" Kakashi asked as he steadied the wobbly boy. Naruto shook his head and put his glove back on. "Did you find out the information.
"Yeah I got it." Naruto replied. "They were working for a man named Jinki." Kakashi's response never came as a group of four landed in the clearing sending them into combat stance.
"Stand down Kakashi." A feminine voice. Kakashi relaxed slightly as he recognized the voice.
"Ah Kurenai-san, to what do I owe the pleasure of the company of yourself and your cute little genin?" Kakashi asked. Naruto and the others relaxed as they recognized Kiba, Sai, and the ever shy Hinata standing behind their teacher. Kurenai took a scroll out and tossed it to the man. He opened it up and red it to himself; when he was finished he put it in a pocket. "And the Hokage thinks this is a good idea?"
"He seems to think so. He wants to show that our training regiment is effective and produces exceptional soldiers." She replied.
"What's going on Kakashi-sensei?" Sachiko asked.
"Alright squad seven, return to camp immediately and pack up." Kakashi ordered.
"Are we heading back to the village." The girl voiced her second question.
"No, Sairokku sent a report to the Hokage requesting backup with her reconnaissance mission that has encountered a hiccup. We are to accompany squad eight as the backup." Kakashi looked at Kurenai. "If you follow us to our camp we can get ready faster and get moving much more quickly." Kurenai nodded at the man. Kakashi pulled out a kunai and removed the head of the unconscious Jang sealing it away with Kabal's head and the remains of Yaku. He stared moving towards their camp followed closely by his squad and the trailing squad eight.
"Sensei, where are we going? What the hell is going on?" Sachiko asked exasperated.
"Like I said, a problem has reared its head in Sairokku's mission." Kakashi looked forward grimly. "A demon has risen in Wave Country."
A/N: And there is chapter nine. Finally got some action in and their first C-rank. Next chapter is the Wave arc. Hopefully, I can provide a sort of fresh take on it. After all, there is a four year gap between my Wave arc and the cannon one. I have provided English translations of the techniques used in this chapter. If I have missed one, please let me know and I will post in the next chapter.
Techniques-
Katon: Hono no Shawa/Fire Release: Flame Shower
Katon: Kasai Sutoraiku/Fire Release: Fire Strike
Katon: Hono no Hashira/ Fire Release: Flame Pillar
Doton: Kyoretsuna Ken/ Earth Release: Shattering Fist
Doton: Goremu no Ken/ Earth Release: Golem Fist
Raiton: Sonasupaku/ Lightning Release: Spark Sonar
Futon: Daitoppa/ Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
Futon: Reppusho/ Wind Release: Gale Palm
Mizu Bunshin/ Water Clone
Iwas Bunshin/ Rock Clone
Tsuchi Bunshin/ Earth Clone
Ken no Sutairu: Sonikkusurasshu/ Sword Style: Sonic Slash
