Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."
Chapter 14: Training in the Wave
The following morning the genin of Team 7 were lead into the forest by Yuhi Kurenai to receive their first exercise. Naruto left several Kage Bunshin in strategic locations to look over Tazuna and his family, as well as several others he assigned to assist Tsunami in chores around the house.
When they reached their destination, a small clearing surrounded by tall trees with few branches on the lower part of their trunks that Team 8 had passed on their way there, Kurenai stopped and looked around.
"Hinata, Delta Gaze."
Hinata didn't waste anytime activating her Byakugan. After a few seconds she ended it and spoke.
"No threats within my range sensei. All clear."
Kurenai nodded before turning to face the six genin.
"Now, since Kakashi is still recovering, I shall be your instructor for the next four days. First, what has Kakashi taught you so far."
Kurenai did not like the way all three genin looked around shiftily.
"Um, sensei?" Sakura said hesitatingly. "He really hasn't taught us much more than teamwork exercises and some taijutsu sparring."
Kurenai sweat dropped.
Damn that Kakashi. You took them on what has become an A-rank mission and you haven't even been training them properly. You are so going to pay for this when we get back to Konoha.
"That's right sensei. If I hadn't been doing extra training on my own with my mom and Naruto I'd have learned nothing in the last month." Kiba said, his rowdiness returning.
Akamaru barked in agreement.
Kurenai looked at Naruto with a question in her gaze. Naruto grinned back at her, his hair practically glowing in the early morning sunlight.
"Naruto, I thought I told you to get enough rest." Kurenai said sternly.
"I know you did sensei, but I only ever need five or six hours of sleep a night, and Kiba needed an actual sparring partner so he and Akamaru could improve."
Kurenai sighed.
Naruto, what am I going to do with you? She thought, ruefully.
"Now, since your sensei has basically taught you nothing I am going to start you out on a basic chakra control exercise."
She was suddenly inundated by a flood of complaints from Sasuke and Sakura about 'useless dobe exercises' and 'teach us something we can use in a fight.'
"Enough!" Naruto's voice rang out, stopping the two genin in their tracks. Kurenai noticed that Naruto had somehow learned Iruka's 'Demon Head' technique.
"Please continue sensei." Naruto said at a normal volume, pointedly ignoring the glares Sasuke and Sakura were sending his way.
Kurenai nodded. "Thank you Naruto. Now, this exercise is to concentrate your chakra and extrude it in a controlled manner through the bottom of your feet. Your feet is the most difficult region to manipulate and control chakra in, so if you can master this technique you will greatly improve your chakra control."
"But why does this matter to us? Why don't you just teach me an attack jutsu I can use to fight that bastard Kiri-nin."
Kurenai stared at Sasuke, her lips pursed.
"Because, Uchiha, I do not believe that you have the necessary chakra control to learn anything I might teach you. But mastering this technique will make your techniques easier to perform, lower the amount of chakra they consume, and improve your physical endurace."
She returned her gaze to the rest of the genin.
"Naruto, would you like to demonstrate the tree walking technique?"
Naruto, who had been leaning against a tree since using the 'Demon Head' technique shrugged and stepped forward. He brought his hands together and performed a hand seal. His feet were suddenly surrounded by a faint blue glow.
"The first step," he began, "is to gather your chakra in your feet. You must be careful, because if you release too little you will not stick to your target."
To demonstrate this Naruto walked forward and began walking up the side of a tree as if he was walking on the ground. He turned to face them.
"Like this." Suddenly Naruto began dropping straight towards the ground, his feet sliding down the tree. His momentum stopped about a foot above the ground and he cocked his head up, grinning.
"Likewise, if you use too much."
Suddenly there was a crack and Naruto went rolling away from the tree, coming up in a standing position. There was a deep cracked dent in the tree where he had been standing.
"You damage what you are walking on and get thrown off."
Naruto grinned and walked back up the tree, stopping about thirty feet up, hanging upside down from a branch.
"Since you are just beginning to learn this technique I suggest you get a running start. Here."
Naruto pulled out three normal kunai and tossed them at the feet of the three members of Team 7.
"Use these to mark where you get to, and just keep working to surpass your previous mark."
Naruto grinned and walked around the branch until he was standing on top of it.
Down below the members of Team 8 were all silently cheering for Naruto in their own ways.
Naruto, I think you will make a great teacher someday. If you don't get killed for your pranking first. Kurenai thought, smiling faintly.
That's my Naruto-kun. Hinata smiled.
That's it Naruto. Show them how it's done! Ino cheered in her head.
"Hehe, that's it Naruto. Show them how it's done." She said slightly more sedately than she thought it.
Sakura turned to look at her friend.
What is wrong with Ino? I know she is in love with Sasuke like me, so why is she still cheering on that baka?
"Ok you three, you heard Naruto. I want you to start repeating this exercise. If you can all master it quickly enough I will teach you an even harder exercise that will improve your chakra control even more, and improve your chances against this Zabuza."
Sasuke grumbled, Sakura looked thoughtful, and Kiba grinned as he and Akamaru both lined up on a tree, ready to run up it.
The three genin performed the hand seal and rushed their chosen trees.
Sasuke made it up ten feet before he crushed the bark of the tree and went spinning off.
Kiba made it fifteen feet up before he did the same.
Akamaru and Sakura were no where to be seen.
"Yoohoo." "Bark!"
Everyone looked up. On two branches high in the trees Sakura and Akamaru sat looking down at the others.
Akamaru panted as he looked down at his master, while Sakura was sitting on a branch smiling, letting her legs dangle.
"Very impressive Sakura. I'd still like you to work on this exercise to improve your endurance, but I can safely say that you have the chakra control to handle the second exercise. I'll teach it to you tomorrow."
Sakura smiled from her perch.
Shannaro! We're the greatest!
"Kiba, Sasuke, just keep working on the exercise. I'll return at noon with some lunch to check on your progress."
Kurenai turned to leave, followed by her students.
"Wait. Why aren't your other students practicing this exercise with us?"
Kurenai looked back over her shoulder.
"Because I have some techniques I need to teach them." She said simply.
For any other genin that should have been enough. Not for Sasuke.
"Then teach me as well. I don't see why I should have to do this stupid exercise while they get preferential treatment."
Kurenai stopped and turned to face Sasuke. Up in her tree Sakura winced as she saw the harsh expression on Kurenai's face.
"I do not like this arrogance you have Sasuke. You may be the last loyal Uchiha, but that does not excuse your behavior. The reason my students are not doing this exercise is that they mastered it in their first week of training. They also mastered the second exercise I assigned to them. On top of that, all three of them have been working extremely hard for a month to build up their endurance. So it would be a waste to have them repeat an exercise they already know when I can better use the time helping them in mastering the techniques I gave them to learn on their own a week ago. Particularly since they should assist in the fight with Zabuza."
Sasuke didn't shrink back from the jounin, but he did have the brains to shut up. He hated being talked down to like that though.
Kurenai turned and exited the clearing, followed by Hinata and Ino, who kept shooting disapproving looks at Sasuke. Overhead, a grinning Naruto pulled out a kunai and stapped himself, vanishing in a puff of smoke
About half a mile away in a much larger clearing four hundred clones of Naruto stood in two rows. One row was covered in Kunai, preparing to throw them at their opponents. The other row all had their hands together, ready to perform hand seals.
At the end of the second row one Naruto blinked and grinned, having just received the memories from his dispelled clone.
"Ok everyone, let's do this."
All four hundred copies of Naruto grinned as half the weaponized ones charged their targets, while the other half began throwing kunai. The second row performed a set of hand seals and spoke as one.
"Fuuton: Kaze Tate.
Halfway between Naruto and Team 7 Kurenai stopped her remaining students in a small glade.
Hinata and Ino were not surprised that Naruto had disappeared. The night before he had explained that he was going to be using his Shadow Clone training method, so they both understood why he was missing. That and the technique he was practicing tended to do a number on his surroundings.
"Now, first I want you to show me how far you have come on mastering your second techniques." Kurenai said, smiling at her students. She was proud to have two such dedicated kunoichi as these to teach.
Hinata and Ino grinned, and then as if by silent agreement Ino stepped forward.
"Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu!" She cried out.
There was a fwoosh and suddenly a small dense cloud of water vapor formed around her. But it dissipated almost immediately.
Kurenai frowned.
"You've been practicing this for several days now. Do you have any idea why you can't get it to work properly?"
Ino frowned, shaking her head no.
"Every time I perform the technique I either pull too hard and get drenched, or I don't pull hard enough and the cloud dissipates. But I can't seem to make it form farther away from me than a few feet."
Kurenai frowned for a moment before having an idea.
"Ino, I'm going to teach you an even more basic jutsu. This jutsu is considered an E-rank, but is rarely taught to academy students outside of Kirigakure and Amegakure."
Kurenai performed a quick hand seal.
"Suiton: Shuukou."
The air around them seemed to suddenly grow heavy, more humid.
Ino blinked.
"This jutsu causes the air around you to become saturated with water. While Kirigakure converts the moisture in the air or water sources near you into a mist, it is a lot harder to draw water into the air with it. By using this first you can saturate the air, making it easier to perform Kirigakure, and even easier to perform other Suiton techniques like the Teppoudama."
Ino grinned and sat down, practicing the hand seals and thinking about what Kurenai had said. Kurenai turned to face Hinata.
"Now, I noticed earlier you were causing a spark to go between your hands. That isn't typical of the Raiton: Dengeki Haaku."
Hinata nodded. "That's correct sensei. I mastered the Dengeki Haaku before I learned the Raitama."
Kurenai blinked.
"That is a very impressive feat Hinata."
Ino frowned slightly, annoyed that she couldn't master her simple D-rank water jutsu but that her partner could master two C-rank jutsus.
"I suspect it's because of the immense work on chakra control I had to have in order to use the Jyuken, sensei. Manipulating the chakra to project the energy was so similar it just sort of flowed."
"But if that's true, why were you practicing a Ration technique during our tip here? And why haven't you asked for a new technique to learn yet."
Kurenai crossed her arms. She didn't want to think her student was slacking off, but she had seen it happen to better ninjas. She instantly thought of Kakashi and his tardiness.
"Well, Raiton jutus use a lot of chakra. I've been working to find out the minimum amount I need to trigger the jutsu, and how to change my chakra flow to change the power output of the jutsu. I realized that it's a waste to unleash a full Dengeki Haaku if you are using it to do something specific, like ignite a fuse or disable a limb. So I figured if I could control the technique to the level where I can produce anything from a spark to a complete discharge, that it would make a more versatile technique."
Kurenai grinned, as did Ino as she stood.
"Hmm, I am very impressed Hinata. I don't think even Naruto thought about using the technique in that manner."
Hinata blushed, and suddenly she was embraced in a hug by Ino, who was cheering her for getting such praise from Kurenai. Hinata's blush deepened as she realized just what part of Ino's body was pressed against her though.
When Kurenai returned at noon she found all three of the genin exhausted. Sakura may have had spectacular control, but her endurance definitely needed work.
"I've got lunch for you three." She said, removing four canteens and three bentos from her pack, as well as a fourth bento with nothing but fish in it.
"After you eat we will return to Tazuna's. I'll spend the afternoon working on taijutsu with you three."
Sakura smiled, glad for a little break. Kiba grinned, hoping he'd get to train with Naruto again. Sasuke grinned, glad to finally be getting some actual training.
Six Hours Later
As the members of Teams 7 and 8 entered Tazuna's house for dinner Kakashi noticed three things. One, his team looked completely exhausted and beat up, while Kurenai's team was still grinning and still had energy. Second, Naruto's clothes looked like he had gone six rounds with a caged tiger. And third, Sasuke kept glaring at Naruto.
"How did the training go?" He asked. He was sitting in a chair, reading his new copy of Icha Icha Paradise, basking in its glory. He noticed that Kiba snorted upon seeing this. Not that the young Inuzuka was any different. Kakashi happened to know that the boy had his own collection of Icha Icha books.
"It rocked sensei. Kurenai taught us to use chakra to walk up trees, and then we spent the afternoon sparring." Kiba said, grinning despite his exhaustion. Akamaru barked happily from his seat on top of Kiba's head.
"Kakashi, can I talk to you for a second? Outide." Kurenai said sternly.
Kakashi swallowed and closed his book, following her outside.
Inside, the genin could only hear muffled shouts as Kurenai tore into Kakashi about being an irresponsible teacher.
At a skittering sound Naruto turned to find a young boy staring at him. He had been too busy setting up his sentries the night before to meet the boy, so he figured now was as good a time as ever. Crouching down he held out his hand.
"Hi, I'm Naruto. What's your name?"
"Inari." The boy said hesitatingly. "Why are you guys here?"
"Well, to put it simply we are here to defeat Gato and rescue your country from his grasp."
Inari frowned.
"You won't succeed. No one ever will. Heroes always die. Always!"
Before Naruto could respond the boy turned and ran up the stairs. Naruto heard a door slam a few seconds after he disappeared.
Naruto blinked and turned to see Hinata and Ino looking at him.
"You should go after him, Naruto." Ino said. Hinata nodded her agreement.
Naruto nodded and started heading up the stairs. Behind him he could here an argument begin as Sasuke asked his teammates what the deal was with the 'dobe.'
Naruto walked down the hallway and found the door with Inari cared into it. He was about to knock when he heard crying from the other side. He paused and listened for a few seconds. Finally he heard the crying again, punctuated with a sad voice saying "Daddy!"
After a few more seconds Naruto lowered his hand and turned, walking back towards the stairs.
Three Days and Counting…
The next morning Kurenai lead the six genin again out to a grove of trees. This time she lead them to a grove that sat next to a small lake. As they walked Naruto mulled over what he had learned the night before from Tazuna and Tsunami.
Inari's father figure, a man who had stood up to Gato early during his oppression, had been publicly executed as an example of what Gato did to 'heroes.' Naruto vowed to make the man pay for the way he treated these people. He vowed to prove to Inari that being a hero wasn't useless.
As Kurenai had Kiba and Sasuke continue working on the tree exercise she lead Sakura over to the lake.
"This exercise is similar to the tree climbing one Sakura, but is much more difficult. This is because water is always flowing and fluctuating, and as it is not a solid substance you must constantly adapt the flow of chakra from your feet in order to keep your footing."
Kurenai performed a single hand seal and stepped out over the water, demonstrating this.
"This will be much more difficult for you, but I'm sure you'll master this quickly just like the tree climbing exercise. Since we are facing Kiri-nin this will come in handy, as it can be used to improve your traction on wet surfaces as well."
Sakura nodded and took a deep breath before stepping out onto the water. She remained upright for about three seconds before a small wave flowed under her feet and she lost her balance, dropping into the shallow water. Sakura was thankful that Ino wasn't laughing at her.
Wait, why isn't Ino-pig laughing at me?
Sakura stood and shook herself off and turned to see a smiling Ino standing beside Kurenai.
Ah, because she's waiting til sensei isn't around.
"Don't worry about it Sakura," Ino said, "You are doing much better than I did the first time I tried this exercise."
Sakura blinked in confusion as Ino turned and walked further down the bank, taking a seat and bringing her hands together to make an O and beginning to focus on molding chakra.
"She is correct Sakura, that was quite impressive for your first attempt. Just keep practicing, and take a break if you start feeling exhausted."
Kurenai smiled at the pink-haired kunoichi before turning and walking over to where Hinata was standing beside a tree, her hand glowing with yellow sparks. Next to her stood Naruto, and they were controlling the electricity, controlling the flow back and forth between their two hands.
"Hinata, Naruto, what are you two working on?"
The two genin responded, but didn't take their eyes off of each other.
"Hinata had an idea sensei, and we are just experimenting. She thinks if we power the Dengeki Haaku up properly we can develop a new tag team jutsu."
Kurenai sweat dropped. Hard working students was one thing, but it seemed all her students were intent on making names for themselves before they even became chunin.
Half a mile away a grinning Naruto performed a few hand seals.
"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."
The clearing was filled with four hundred Kage Bunshin.
"Ok men, lets get to work." Naruto said, grinning.
Two hundred Kage Bunshin lied up opposite one another, preparing to work on the Kaze Tate again. On the other end of the clearing the other two hundred lined up close together in pairs. As one they began sparring, both hands glowing with yellow sparks.
That afternoon Naruto again sparred with his sensei as she had the other five genin alternating partners. Naruto ignored the glares from Sasuke as he saw Naruto keeping up with Kurenai.
She must be going easy on him. There is no way the dobe is that good. Sasuke thought to himself. The Uchiha clan always was a bit delusional.
Two Days and Counting…
The next day Sasuke and Kiba finally mastered the tree climbing exercise, after they had asked Sakura for advice that is. Kurenai taught them the water walking and set them to it. Kiba just grinned when Naruto taunted him about smelling like a wet dog, but Sasuke glared when Naruto laughed the first time he fell in. He kept glaring at him as he walked off towards where his other two teammates were practicing. Ino had finally managed to form Kirigakure no Jutsu over a large area and now was working on thickening the mists. Hinata was waiting for Naruto so that they could continue working on the jutsu idea she had had. Scorch marks and cuts on numerous trees bore testament to their limited success the day before.
Half a mile a way multiple clusters of Naruto's were attempting to combine the Kaze Tate with another of his jutus. But so far, they were having no luck.
Taijutsu practice that afternoon was pretty much the same as it had been the past two days. Except Kiba got a good hit in on Sasuke while they were sparring and knocked him unconscious for a good five minutes. The Uchiha heir was not pleased when he woke up, grumbling as he refused to take a break and instead through himself back into sparring.
One Day and Counting…
It was the morning of their last day of training, and everyone at the lake was pushing their hardest. Kurenai had gotten them up early, hours before sunrise, and lead them to the lake. She felt that since it was the final day of their training that they needed to push themselves.
Hinata and Naruto had succeeded in maintaining the lightning arc between their hands at a distance of six feet, and were able to pass a tree between them without the jutsu collapsing. However, they seemed to be stuck at this six foot limit when it came to how far away from one another they could be.
Kurenai sighed, watching them. Even if they were technically failing to succeed in what they originally sought to do, it was still impressive that they could develop the beginnings of a modified jutsu this far in just a matter of days.
I don't care what Hiashi thinks, his daughter must be a true genius. She thought, smiling to herself. She turned her attention back to the two genin standing in the middle of the lake, watching as they continued to maintain their balance.
If only we had one more day of training time, I could teach them to truly fight on water.
Half a mile away a pair of Naruto's stood back to back grinning as they were surrounded by nearly four hundred Kage Bunshin.
Both Naruto's began performing different sets of hand seals as the Kage Bunshin charged towards them. As one they shouted just before the bunshins reached them.
"Fuuton: Kaze Tate!" "Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"
A spinning vortex of flame roared up around the two Naruto's, annihilating the attacking kage bunshins.
When the vortex dissipated, the Naruto who had performed the Katon jutsu grinned and vanished. The lone remaining Naruto collapsed backwards on the ground, staring up at the clouds as the first rays of dawn came over the horizon.
Naruto came to about an hour later to find a young effeminate man sitting nearby, with a basket of herbs in her lap. She smiled at him.
"You know, you really shouldn't fall asleep out here. You could get sick from the cold." The young man said softly.
Naruto chuckled as he sat up.
"I doubt it. I've never been sick a day in my life. Besides, I've only been laying here for about an hour probably. The sun isn't very high in the sky and dawn was just starting when I laid down."
"What were you doing out here anyways?" the young man asked.
Naruto cocked his head and grinned.
"I was bored, so while I was training I decided to try something new. I ended up burning myself out so I took a nap."
Haku nodded.
"So does that mean you are a ninja then?"
Naruto grinned again. "Yup."
Haku smiled faintly. "It's rare to see ninja here in Wave. We have no hidden village of our own afterall."
Naruto nodded.
"Yeah, my sensei told me that. So what are you doing here."
The young man seemed sad for a moment.
"My…precious person was injured. So I'm gathering herbs to make a tea to help him heal."
Naruto nodded.
"Yeah, I can understand. One of my precious people was injured too. He was fighting this really tough ninja named Zabuza. He won, but now he's had to spend the week recovering from chakra depletion."
The young man did not let any surprise show on his face. The two spent the next hour talking. They talked about the meaning of life, precious people, and having a reason to exist. But nothing truly interesting happened until Naruto stood to leave.
"You know, I've truly enjoyed our chat. I really wish things could just continue as they are right now. It's so peaceful."
Haku nodded. "I agree. But life is not always so."
Naruto smiled sadly. "Yes, that is true. And Haku?"
Haku turned to look at Naruto. "Yes?"
"Whatever the future holds, I really hope you and I don't meet on the battlefield. I would hate to have to harm someone I call friend."
Haku blanched. He knew. He knew Haku was with Zabuza, or at least suspected it. But he KNEW that Haku was a ninja.
Naruto held his gaze for a few moments before Haku smiled sadly. Naruto smiled back before turning to leave, disappearing into the upper canopy of the forest as he headed off to meet his team.
"You're back late." Zabuza said as Haku entered the room. Zabuza was staring out at the sunlight streaming through the window.
"I met someone interesting. My apologies Zabuza-sama."
Haku set his basket down and bowed in contrition. Zabuza waved him to stand upright.
"It is nothing to worry about Haku. I trust you with my life, I trust you not to betray me. You are, and always will be, my most trusted tool."
To an outsider this would have sounded weird, but to Haku, this was the closest thing to familial love he had known in a long time. He bowed again and then set about finishing the tea to help his master recover.
When Naruto, the real Naruto, dropped out of the trees by the lake two hours early Kurenai at first thought something was wrong. But when he walked over and dispelled the clone that had been working with Hinata she realized that he must have just completed what he had been working on. He had been very secretive, and all he had told her was that he wanted to experiment with combining jutsus.
Slowly she stood and walked over to her two students as Naruto chatted excitedly with Hinata. As she got closer she could finally hear what he was saying.
"I'm sure it will work Hinata. I had a bunch of clones practicing it the other day, and this morning we had a breakthrough. I just need to see if you can do it as well." Naruto said, speaking fast and excitedly.
"And just what is this that you want to see if she can do, Naruto?" Kurenai asked, standing behind him with her arms crossed.
As much as she appreciated her charges enthusiam, they clearly did not understand the dangers inherent in pushing themselves too far.
Naruto turned and grinned up at his sensei.
"I figured out how to solve the distance problem with arcing the Dengeki Haaku between two people. Its because we are only using a one way arc. There isn't enough power or control to maintain the link for more than six feet. But if you use two." And Naruto stepped back and summoned a clone. Both rapidly formed Dengeki Haaku on both hands and stepped twenty feet away from one another.
"Raiton: Dengeki Enko!" The two Naruto's cried out, thrusting their hands out.
Kurenai watched as a stream of lightning leapt from the right palms of both Naruto's, connecting to the left palm of the other. Without skipping a beat the two Naruto's turned and ran past a tree.
Where the lightning crossed the tree the sap inside superheated and literally exploded. A two foot high section of trunk literally exploded outward and the tree toppled over, sliced through by the lightning. Grinning, the two Naruto's brought their hands together and performed a few hand seals. The arcs of lightning vanished and their hands glowed yellow. They both reached down and discharged the energy into the ground. The clone dispelled itself after standing upright and grinning, and the real Naruto walked back towards his partner and embraced her in a hug.
"It was thanks to you Hinata. When you said the other day you didn't think a single Dengeki Haaku had the power to last over a distance, so I had my clones attempt it with two. It took a while, but eventually they figured out a way that worked. We just need to turn it into a circuit, like in our radios."
Hinata didn't hear a word he said, as she had fainted as soon as her crush hugged her.
That afternoon's taijutsu practice went differently than planned, and was not something any of them would soon forget.
As everyone paired off, Naruto paired up with Kiba, wanting to challenge himself by fighting two opponents at once. Of course, before either of them could throw a punch, Sasuke stepped up behind Naruto.
"Fight me." Two words, but they carried so much meaning.
Naruto let his stance drop and turned to regard the Uchiha.
"If you'd like to join Kiba and give me a third opponent to deal with that would be fine." He said after a moment.
Sasuke shook his head.
"No, not a taijutsu spar. I want a real fight with you."
Naruto snorted.
"Now why would I do that, Uchiha?" Naruto said, a little disdain in his voice at Sasuke's arrogance. "Even if I would agree to a full on fight with you, we are on a mission. It would be a dereliction of duty to have such a fight with you, particularly since we could be attacked any day now."
Sasuke glared at Naruto, clenching and unclenching his fists. Suddenly a voice spoke from behind him.
"Naruto, do you remember what the Hokage and I spoke to you about two years ago? After that incident?" Kakashi said, leaning against a nearby tree.
Naruto nodded. The incident Kakashi was referring to had been when a chunin had attempted to infiltrate the Namikaze Compound in an attempt to kill him. Unlike most others though he had taken the tactic of challenging Naruto to a fight, hoping that the fight would give him the opening to kill Naruto without the interference of his guardians. That was the last mistake that Chunin had ever made.
"Good. I want you to keep that in mind as you fight Sasuke. Namikaze Naruto, Order Delta Seven is hereby rescinded for the next ten minutes. Have fun."
With that Kakashi shunshined away. Everyone had gathered now, and they all stared at Naruto in confusion, all but Kurenai, who was frowning.
"Naruto, what the hell is this Order Delta Seven Kakashi was talking about?!" Kiba asked loudly, more than a tad bit annoyed that Sasuke had interfered with his spar.
Naruto sighed and then slipped off his jacket handing it to Hinata. As he began divesting himself of most of his equipment he sent Kurenai a look, pleading with her to explain.
Sighing, Kurenai spoke up. "Order Delta Seven is the seventh in a set of special directives with regards to Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto. It is designed to protect other Konoha shinobi from the possibility of death while fighting Naruto."
Everyone looked at Kurenai in confusion. Sasuke snorted.
"What do you mean the possibility of death while fighting him? I'm going to beat the dobe down so hard he wont walk for a month."
If looks could kill, the looks Hinata and Ino were sending Sasuke would have obliterated him.
"I was only informed of these directives when Naruto was assigned to my squad. Order Delta Seven states that unless the order is otherwise rescinded by one of those given the authorization to do so, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto is forbidden to have anything more than a standard taijutsu spar with any Konoha-nin of below Chunin rank."
Sasuke glared at Naruto.
"So does that mean since Kakashi rescinded it that I can fight him?" He asked, growing impatient. Kakashi had said it was only for ten minutes.
"Yes, that is precisely what it means." Naruto's voice was a low growl as he handed his sunglasses to Ino and turned around.
Naruto had divested himself of almost all his equipment. He no stood before Sasuke wearing a white shirt and black pants, his hitai-ate firmly tied over his head wrap, his boots, and his fingerless gloves. He held two of his tri-pronged kunai in his hands, and had another four attached to his hip.
"No holds barred, if your opponent yields or loses consciousness you cease attacking immediately, and Kurenai sensei can step in and end the fight at any time. Agreed?" Naruto asked his opponent as he took a fighting stance.
Sasuke grinned arrogantly as he took his own stance. "The terms are acceptable."
Naruto grinned. Those watching noticed that his eyes had suddenly become a darker shade, a deep purple, and they had elongated slightly.
"Kurenai-sensei, announce the start, if you would."
Kurenai sighed.
Please show some control Naruto. I'll be the one who has to patch the idiot Uchiha up if you break him. Kurenai thought to herself.
"Ready…Fight."
Naruto's combat stance became a crouch as he suddenly began radiating a purplish chakra from his hands and feet. Crouched as he was he was able to use both his hands and feet for propulsion. Sasuke leapt backwards, tossing kunai at him, but he frowned as Naruto appeared to vanish just before the kunai hit him.
"Ten."
Sasuke heard Naruto's deep growling voice from behind his head before a punch slammed into his pack, sending him flying towards the ground.
"Nine."
Naruto appeared in front of Sasuke. Sasuke attempted to block the punch but Naruto was too fast for him, and his open palm strike threw Sasuke backwards.
"Eight." "Seven." "Six."
Sasuke heard Naruto's voice come from three different directions as three Kage Bunshin kicked him, slamming him into the air.
Gah! When did he have the chance to make those? Sasuke thought as he flew into the air.
"Five." And Sasuke took a blow to the side, causing him to spin.
"Four." And Sasuke took a second blow to the same spot.
"Three." Sasuke took a blow to the legs, flipping him over and so his body horizontal to the ground.
"Two." Sasuke received a kick to the chest, redirecting his momentum downward.
"One." Naruto watched from beside his two teammates as his final clone added one last kick to Sasuke's side, accelerating the spin before he hit the ground. But rather than hit the ground Sasuke was caught by a squad of Kage Bunshin.
Naruto looked towards Kurenai and nodded. She sighed.
The Uchiha was given every chance to back out. I just hope he learns from this little incident.
"The fight is over. Uzumaki Naruto is the winner."
An enraged Sasuke tried to fight his way out of the group of clones surrounding him.
"What do you mean he's the winner!? I'm not beaten yet!" He yelled as he walked towards Kurenai.
"Yes, Uchiha, you are. Naruto understands that we have a mission to perform, so he went easy on you, and caught you rather than allowing the final blow to be dealt. He knew that if he incapacitated you for the fight tomorrow that I would personally select his punishment, and I've learned from the best."
Thank you Anko.
Kurenai saw Naruto, whose eyes had returned to their normal blue color, swallow at her covert reference to Anko's punishment methods.
Sasuke turned to glare at Naruto, but was surprised to find Naruto standing before him holding his hand out towards him.
"Despite what you might think Sasuke, I have no quarrel with you. It's just that I, like those Uchiha who awaken the Sharingan, was born with something that gives me an unfair advantage. But you, like myself, are the last of your clan, and quite strong from what Kakashi nii-san tells me. I'd certainly like a chance to train with you once we get back to Konoha. Perhaps I can teach you some of my taijutsu, and my techniques for improving endurance. And maybe you can help me improve my use of Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu. Kakashi nii-san tells me you are an expert with it."
Uchiha Sasuke blinked.
"You…you want to be friends with me? Wait, how do you know the Goukakyu? I knew it, you are just trying to make me look bad!" Sasuke yelled. Sakura seconded this opinion. Thankfully for all involved it was Ino who stepped in to intervene.
"For your information, Uchiha, our sensei gave Naruto a scroll with it to learn since one of his subtypes is fire. Naruto didn't even know that you knew the technique until we told him."
Sasuke blinked and stepped back. He had recognized Ino as one of the girls who had used to hang all over him at the Academy, but since she showed up with Team 8 she hadn't once tried to get his attention. In fact, quite the opposite. Ino had actually flat out ignored the Uchiha heir when he subtly tried to invite her to eat lunch with him, as she was one of the most skilled kunoichi to come out of his year, and Sasuke had come to realize that true vengeance on his brother would be to make the clan he had destroyed strong again and surpass his brother that way.
"Oh." That was all Sasuke said.
After a moment Sasuke's smirk returned and he stepped forward, clasping Naruto's hand in his own.
"Maybe you aren't so useless after all, 'dobe.'" Even though he was still calling Naruto that, Sasuke had an honest grin on his face.
"And maybe you aren't so arrogant after all, 'teme.'" Naruto's grin was just as big as Sasuke's was.
Uchiha Sasuke had become the second member of the 'I Had Some Sense Beat Into Me By Naruto Club."
Gato's Mansion
Zabuza stood in front of the window as he watched the sun set. He had removed the bandages from his wounds and the newly healed scars stood out against the rest of his skin.
"Tomorrow, Sharingan Kakashi." He said quietly. "Tomorrow."
In the corner of the room Haku prepared some senbon, and said a little prayer for his new friend.
Naruto. May Kami guide you to see another day.
Zero Days…
AN: Ok folks, as promised, Chapter 14 is up before Friday. Well before Frday. This is officially the fastest chapter I have written for this story, and at around seven thousand words it is a doozy. For those who missed the announcement, I am also working on a second Naruto fic called Konoha's Golden Viper. Neither fic will be ignored in favor of the other. Instead, I will attempt to alternate writing chapters for one or the other, though if inspiration hits I won't ignore it.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it. The next chapter will hopefully be up sometime before the end of the weekend, and I also can't wait to write that one, but I must write another chapter or two for Golden Viper first. Needless to say, next chapter I finally get to showcase Team 8 as they deserve to be shown. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 15: Conflict in the Wave.
Techniques: Enjoy the list. there was one other technique briefly displayed, but you'll have to wait to find out all the details.
Jyuu ni Ichi no Rendan--Ten to One Barrage/ While not technically a jutsu, this technique requires the use of Kage Bunshin or an equivalent in order to perform. Ten hits, with the final plowing the opponent into the ground while they are spinning, this technique deals intense physical damage. Based largely on the goken strikes used by Rock Lee and Might Guy, with a little bit of Naruto's personal Kitsune-style thrown in, it is a dangerous combo for an opponent to get caught by. (High C-Class Taijutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)
Raiton: Dengeki Enko--Lightning Release: Shocking Arc/ This jutsu requires two users to perform. Both users first perform Raiton: Dengeki Haaku on both of their hands before as preparation. They then face one another and perform the half hand seals for release and receiving of this jutsu. This causes lightning to arc from the right palm of the user to the left palm of the receiver. When complete, this forms a circuit that can be maintained up to twenty feet in distance. The strength of the lightning is strong enough that it continues to pass through solid obstacles, so the two users can run with targets between them and cut them in half. The jutsu is easy to dodge, and requires a lot of chakra, but if the enemy can be surprised by it it makes an effective weapon. (Very High C-Class to Low B-Class)
Suiton: Shuukou--Water Release: Condense/ This jutsu allows the wielder to saturate the air with moisture. It is often used a precursor for more powerful Suiton jutsus. Unlike Kirigakure, the focus is on humidity not the formation of clouds, and it is much less noticeable when used. (E-Class Ninjutsu)
Review Responses
landoffire - I hope you enjoyed the fight scene. Sorry it was so short, but I needed to get across to both the readers and the Uchiha just how strong Naruto really is. Don't worry, there is a fight (or two) coming next chapter, and I am going to be spending a while getting them just right.
Kakuzu's.Emo.Ninja.Fangirl - At least one member will. There are other events that are about to occur as well.
Jack512 - Haha, well, I'm glad you are enjoying my story. and here you are, an update two days ahead of schedule.