Disclaimer: I own nothing but the general plot and OCs

This chapter is just one long conversation. Not entirely what I intended. Oh well. Kakashi and Sonaru just don't want to stick to the non existent script when they're talking to each other.

I've done no editing so sorry for mistakes.

As always English speaking isn't underlined.

Also I'm aware that this chapter is theory heavy, and that can be boring for some, but I love theory heavy chapters as long as I have a vague understanding of what's being talked about.

I especially love theories about shit that doesn't make sense (like sharingan) using pseudoscience or actual science to make it seem almost plausible.

Thank you so much for awesome reviews, as well as favs and follows! Let me know what works, or what doesn't work for you, as well as any prompts for scenes you'd like to see.

Chapter 34 - Leave Behind Your Narrow Mind You'll Never Be The Same

I sat in the usual training field, breathing carefully, and watching DFB with anticipation as his gaze raked critically over my posture, my expression and the pattern of my breaths. My mind buzzed with anticipation and I forcibly wrangled my young energy-filled body under control in order to prevent fidgeting.

"Do you know how the Uchiha clan's sharingan works, Sona?" He finally asked. My eyes sharpened at the use of my first name, and I knew he was asking me I'd learned how the dojutsū worked in my original life.

"Not exactly. It enables the wielder to perceive time at a slower rate and with greater detail, in order to react quicker to what they can see, often giving the impression that they are reacting before their opponent has even moved and thus predicting the future. In combat the detail perfectly memorised combined with the ability to see chakra means they can copy jutsu from those around them. It also allows the wielder to cast extremely powerful genjutsu. There are multiple levels of maturity. One tomoe, two tomoe, three tomoe, and... that's all I can say,"

Behind the veneer of DFB's impassive blinking, I could almost see his thoughts working at an intense rate, slotting my current knowledge of the sharingan, and all of the known sharingan owners, to guess at which of them might have been relevant and how in what I had known of the Elemental Nations before living here.

"Good, it's the perception of time that's relevant for this lesson. Almost all Uchiha who have described what it's like to fight with the sharingan have described the experience as time slowing down. This has led to the misconception that the sharingan allows Uchiha to perceive time at a slower rate. The eyes are also known, as you said, for allowing the dojutsū wielder to see in far greater detail. Seeing in greater detail is, in fact, all there is to the phenomenon."

I stared at him for about ten seconds, waiting for what he had just said to make sense to me, "what?"

"Do you understand the concept of time seeming to slow down for people during traumatic, high adrenaline, extremely busy or completely brand new situations?" He expanded.

"Yes?"

"And yet you've already told me that there is a saying in English 'time flies when you're having fun' which seems to contradict this concept of time slowing down."

"I... guess. I've never really thought of it like that."

"This is because in a traumatic or high adrenaline or busy or brand new situation our minds stop paying attention to the time passing. When you've been bored in the past, I'm sure you clock watched like any other person, and by doing so you were far more aware of time passing second by second. Our awareness of each second or minute of passing time serves to make our perception of time pass slower. The opposite also occurs, hence the time passing quicker when we don't notice time ticking onward."

"But you just said in traumatic and-"

"Time seems to slow down, yes. This is because during those situations our brains pay attention to and remember far more detail than in repetitive or boring moments. In the moment, time is passing exactly the same regardless of what is happening, but in one scenario we lose track of time making it seem to pass faster, and yet walk away with our brain having paid far more attention and remembered greater detail, whereas in the other we arduously notice the passage of time and walk away with our brain having not needed to remember much and few details noticed."

"So... I still don't think I get it."

"It is only retrospectively that time seems to have slowed down for the person, because they have an amount details and a length of memory usually associated with longer stretches of time."

"This is the same for the sharingan?"

"To an extent, yes," DFB nodded, "the sharingan eyes allow the wielder to see and memorise an extremely abnormal amount of detail, which retrospectively would make the situations the person used it in seem to pass very slowly."

"But if time only seems to pass slower in the sharingan user's perception when looking back on an event, how does it allow them to act as though time is passing slower for them in the moment?"

"When an Uchiha initially unlocked their sharingan, much of the time it only gave them a small boost when compared to their potential with further physical training. The use of sharingan in battle relies a lot on the person's physical ability to keep up with what their eyes can see."

"So what you're saying is that if someone from my old world was given a sharingan just in time for someone to throw a knife at their head, they'd be just as dead as before, but they'd be able to see the knife coming at them in great detail. It's only a shinobi's immense physical reflexes that lets them keep up with what their eyes tell them, and the sharingan allows their eyes to see far more detail."

"Exactly," DFB nodded approvingly, and I allowed the new discovery to re-jig my precious perception of the famous dojutsū.

"Huh. I'd always thought that the sharingan was just this unexplainable bullshit mystical overpowered dojutsū. Kinda like mine own ocular haemorrhage is supposed to be," I mused, referring to my own dojutsū as vaguely as I could despite the switch in language, just in case, "you know, when I figure out how to work the bastarding thing."

"It is an unexplainable bullshit mystical overpowered dojutsū," he blandly replied, "once the sharingan changes beyond three tomoe there is no reasonable explanation for anything it's capable of," he tilted his head and then conceded, "this is probably because no legal studies have been done on the sharingan unlocked beyond three tomoe. A fully unlocked sharingan also hasn't occurred often enough for any hypothesis to be tested."

Hoo boy, there was a whole lot I could real into and pick apart with the wording of those sentences. Was DFB aware that he had unlocked the mangekyou? I couldn't remember in the anime or manga if he'd had to be told or had known all along and simply hadn't had the chakra reserves to use it until much later. I didn't know if the knowledge his character depiction had had would match up

"Right. And... how is this all relevant?"

"With the correct training, you can also train your senses to pick up far more details in a fight than is average, even for a shinobi. Obviously our eyes are no where near as advanced as a sharingan, but as Hatake we have a superior sense of hearing and smell - akin to that of an Inuzuka with a small amount of chakra focussed around certain parts of the nose and ears.

"Our vision is also above average, and although you won't be able to see it, I can teach you to sense the movement of chakra instead. All of these things combined will serve the same purpose as the sharingan in allowing you to notice minute details. The better your physical training, the quicker your reaction time, and the more opponents you will be able to beat, regardless of their flashy justus. Speed and reaction time is even more important for you than me."

"Because I'm small, and regardless of how much I grow in the future I'm likely to lack brute strength due to biology," I finished for him.

"Exactly. But that wasn't why I brought up time perception during fighting- the comparison got away from me. I told you that keeping track of the time and the awareness of its passing is what seems to slow it down in the moment."

"Except that happens when someone's bored or unengaged. I really doubt that's the case in most fights."

"Do you remember how your training started?"

"Special breathing and special standing."

DFB's visible eyelid drooped just a fraction lower at my phrasing, aware that by now I knew far more of the terminology behind breathing, but couldn't be bothered to use it.

"You know by now that with the exception of chakra, breathing is the main connection between your body and your mind, and constant control over it is of paramount importance."

I nodded once, "lose control of my breathing and I lose control of the fight."

"You also lose control of your ability to think during a fight. You've more than trained your body enough that your mind is able to maintain a level of clarity and conscious thought during rigorous exercise."

"And that's heavily connected to my control over my breathing when I'm exercising and fighting," I commented thoughtfully, having learned that lesson close to the beginning.

"The next step is connecting your control over your breathing and your mind state to your awareness of time during a fight, no matter how caught off guard you are or how intense it is. You're going to learn to be aware of every second that passes in the back of your mind, and in between every second you're going to learn how to create tactics that effectively use every technique you've learned so far."

He sounded... satisfied, as I stared incredulously at him at the secret behind why he was never truly caught off guard for more than a fraction of a second.

"Oh that's all?" I asked sarcastically.

DFB eye smiled at me and raised a single finger into the air, "...nope!"

"That's just the Hatake method of learning on the spot tactics when you're directly faced with danger, and you have to make something up. That mind frame will be useful regardless of if you find yourself in a fight you expected or not, of course, but I don't want you to be surprised by unexpected things all the time."

"Of course," I replied dryly, "so I'm assuming learning on the spot tactics was one of those 'ridiculously universal' things you mentioned, that our clan has clearly taken to the next level. This is the other one then?"

DFB gave an affirmative noise and said, "visualisation."

I tilted my head, "like... visualising something? Isn't that just imagination?"

I expected him to correct me, since I was largely joking, but he didn't.

"Yup, it's just using your imagination," he sounded far too pleased.

I paused, expecting him to add something else but it became quickly apparent that nothing further would be forthcoming without prompting.

"Visualisation under what circumstances?" I asked.

He shrugged lazily, "any circumstances in which you have the time."

Another pause.

"C'mon DFB, stop fucking around just tell me." (I did not whine)

"Maa fine, I'll get on with it," he waved a placating hand at me and smiled, "do you know why the Hatake clan is often compared to the Nara clan?"

"Tou-san!" (I definitely did not whine)

"Patience Subaru, the history of our clan is important. You need to learn not just what we do and why we do it, but how it came to be this way."

Right - that was why he went off on a tangent about the fucking sharingan. I'd thought it was because he found the experience of having one to be an adequate comparison, rather than a couple of training methods potentially inspired by the dojutsū that a Hatake probably invented generations ago.

I deflated and pouted in a mild sulk, but was unable to prevent the curiosity over our family history from shining through - any history that someone was willing to share with me really. Still, I was unwilling to let the asshole win entirely; reaching into my leg pouch I pulled out a limp piece of material and plastic. Under DFB's confused watch, I blew into my blow up cushion and then sat on it, wriggling around on it slightly in order for maximum squish.

Finally settled, I turned back to him and was met with a deadpan expression.

"What?" I defended myself, "if you're going to be telling story time, then I want to be comfortable."

"Which is another thing we'll be minimising your reliance on at some point. Being a shinobi is not about being comfortable. Outside physical exertion and sparring you're unaccustomed to being comfortable with discomfort."

I shrugged, "well I guess I'll treasure every second of squishy comfort until that time comes."

I was pretty sure he muttered something about hedonistic tendencies -which hey, not untrue- but dropped the subject to continue with the history lesson.

"No individual Hatake so far has ever been able to beat a Nara of the same shinobi caliber in a fight purely reliant on intelligence and wit. I doubt a Hatake ever will do so either. And yet, Hatakes are known especially for their ability to fight smart. So why is it, that if I went toe to toe multiple times against Nara Shikaku, the only Nara currently on par with my abilities, that a majority of the wins would go to me?"

"You're just naturally that badass?" Was that a blush? How cute! DFB was acting all humble and modest!

"That's- ah- no. Not quite. Generally a Nara has one of two strengths; strategy or tactics. Tactics is, as you know, the specific actions to take in order to achieve the plan; the plan being to avoid getting caught up in whatever traps Nara Shikaku would be deploying and at the same time outmanoeuvre him in this theoretical battle. Strategy is the plan to achieve the longer term goal; in this case it is the goal to win the battle with minimal injuries or chakra depletion.

"One is more short term, the other is generally long term. Nara Shikaku's strengths play toward longer term strategy, which is part of the reason why he makes such a formidable team with Yamanaka Inoichi and Akamichi Chōji; Inoichi is far better at tactics, and Chōji is excellent at implementing what both of his teammates came up with.

"Or at least this used to be the case. Now whatever shortcomings Shikaku once had with tactics compared to Inoichi has been overcome and the same vice versa with strategy. Nevertheless, Shikaku will always be better and more comfortable with strategy than tactics. It would be a very arrogant mistake to make, of course, to assume that if a Nara's strength lay in one they would be bad at the other - they are not only good in or the other, just better.

"A Hatake on the other hand, strives to be equally strong at both. Nara Shikaku may outclass me in strategy, but I'm not too far behind him, and I'm equally as skilled in tactics as I am in strategy. That is why I would beat him most of the time."

Christ, how did he sound so cool when he lectured me about fighting techniques? As I watched and listened I found myself unable to stop the almost proud grin from stretching across my face underneath my mask. I could hear the palpable difference between his far more tentative and hesitant attempts to teach me earlier in the year and his current hands on epicness.

"What's that expression for?" He asked bemused, having caught my face moving underneath the mask and the crinkles of my eyes.

I shrugged casually, "just... you know. I'm really glad you're my family. I don't think I'd ever known such a BAMF before you, and the fact that I'm related to you and being taught the Way of the BAMF is pretty awesome."

Was that another mild modest blush that was making its way on DFB's face? Too cute!

"Maa that's kind of you to say Su-chan," he eye smiled and then rubbed the back of his neck in what I knew to be an attempt at brushing off the awkwardness he felt at being complimented.

Taking pity on him, I clapped my hands once, "So! Visualisation you said?"

"Aa, that's right. Most shinobi are taught this at the most rudimentary level and aren't encouraged to develop this further to mentally prepare them for all the various situations they might face in battle. Nara, as you know, are deep thinkers, it's what most of them spend the majority of their time doing. Did you know that many in the clan also have a tendency toward depression and anxiety?"

I shook my head, unable to reconcile anxiousness with the laid back clan of sloths.

"The Nara who are better at strategy- at thinking and imagining all of the possible variations of problems that might occur in their future and how to be ready for them - are more prone to these issues. Can you imagine being as smart as them, able to consider so many horrific possibilities, and feel the need to find solutions to every single one before they've got chances of becoming reality?

"Many of them find it easier just to not think, and indulge in board games, or other distractions, rather than get lost down that mental tunnel."

"So a lot of Nara... overthink themselves into anxiety and depression?" I asked.

"Sound familiar?" DFB raised his eyebrow at me, and I scowled faintly but didn't deny.

"The visualisation to mentally prepare you will be an invaluable resource, and I suspect it will come to you far easier than immediate tactical planning, but it's something you need to be careful with. If you become too invested in what you visualise, in either a negative or a positive manner, there can be consequences for your mind. Don't get lost in trying to constantly predict what might happen, or you could find yourself back to where you were over a year ago," he warned, not unkindly.

I chewed the inside of my lip in consternation. It was one thing to promise that now, but there was probably a real shit storm on its way in the years to come, and as someone DFB had correctly stated was prone to overthinking things in an attempt to predict the future more accurately, there was a solid chance I might find myself going down that road unintentionally.

"How do I stop myself from doing it too much? How do I even know when it's too much?" I sounded faintly troubled, but quickly relaxed under the subtly reassuring look DFB sent me.

"Naras might be prone toward the same issue, but they've also got some of the best coping methods out of all the shinobi clans. In fact, of all the clans in Konoha, they have the best record for continued mental stability in their veteran shinobi."

"What about Inuzuka? Wouldn't that pack mentality help? Plus they basically have their own therapy dogs."

"Almost all of them have serious anger management issues. That's not even mentioning the fact that the clan is full of shinobi with some form of Impulse Control Disorder; substance related, behaviour addiction, hyperactivity and the list goes on."

"The Akimichi are pretty laid back."

"It's a careful balancing act with their kekkei genkai, but a lot of them have body dysmorphia or some form of eating disorder."

"Huh... even though it makes sense I never would have guessed. Fine, what about the Yamanaka clan? Half of them are shinobi therapists. Surely they've got their shit sorted?"

"Half of them are also mental torture and interrogation specialists. Funnily enough, the ability to mentally break people down with efficiency and the occasional help of a kekkei genkai does not encourage stability."

"Aburame? Wait, never mind, they're probably a tangle of emotional suppression. I bet a lot of them get confused between between excising or denying the existence of their emotions and not making decisions based on irrational emotional logic."

"They're not bad, they're just not as good as the Nara clan. The Aburame clan generally raise their children to be aware of the difference between repressing their feelings and making logical decisions in the face of them. But you're correct in that they can get it wrong. Unfortunately when an Aburame is imbalanced they'll get depressed, deny, and continue to deny until it's severe. There is also the struggle with deep shame for some of them for those who repress their feelings and emotional thoughts, which inevitably end up haunting them. A lot of the time it also results in a distortion of their logic, which leads to mistakes in the field or alienation of comrades."

"... The Nara clan though? Seriously? They're Konoha's example of positive mental health?"

"I've noticed you didn't suggest the Hyūga clan," DFB dryly remarked, and I couldn't help but snort at the completely inappropriate joke.

"That's just low, DFB. You can't make a suggestive comment about the emotional and mental stability of what is essentially a clan that is filled with slaves and slavers... well you can, but you're an asshole for it."

"Slaves and slavers? A bit irreverent for one of Konoha's most prestigious clans," he half joked.

"Ugh, don't get me started on them. There's a reason I carefully don't think about that clan, and it's because I've never been face to face with slavery before. I'm not sure me, you or any of the Hyūga would be prepared for the fall out of me ruminating too deeply on that fucking shit stain of an issue," I grumbled, with real venom in my tone.

"Noted," DFB cautiously commented, "... to make this perfectly clear, if in the future you do intend on doing something potentially upsetting and/or illegal to either Hyūga branch, or their entire family structure as it stands, I'd like to be informed as early in the planning as possible."

"Pinky promise," I grinned, "anyway, how'd you know so much about the emotional and mental states of the shinobi clans? No offence or anything DFB, but you've never exactly been a poster child for social intelligence."

"I had to start from somewhere beyond books, Gai and one doctor, when I was trying to learn how to deal with a zombie baby," he blandly replied.

"Oi! I may have been a zombie baby, but make no mistake I was the one who learned how to deal with you, Hatake 'I've never burped my kid in my life' Kakashi. You're bloody lucky I never got gas, that shit hurts you know," I squawked in outrage.

"I once sat you down, and you didn't move or open your eyes for five hours. I kept having to check to make sure you weren't dead," came the pointed drone.

"Fucking count your blessings I was a quiet one, you wouldn't last an hour with a real baby. They're noisy, smelly, messy, snotty, pukey, demanding little shits. How many times did you gave to change a messy diaper? Once. Luck. Luck."

"Aa, luck. It had nothing to do with the fact that you have a phobia of faeces."

"Exactly. I'm glad you agree with me," I sniffed, hiding the twitch at the corner of my mouth.

"Admit you made a terrible baby, Su-chan," DFB demanded after making a vaguely amused noise.

"You admit you made a terrible new parent, Tou-san- aw crap."

"Something wrong?"

"My pouch is broken."

"You should stop twisting it around like that, this is the second pouch you've broken. Come here, it doesn't look too bad, I'll fix it," DFB gestured, and I skipped toward him as he got on one knee with a needle and thick thread.

"Thanks. Can we get cake afterward?"

"If you can manage to sit still for long enough to get through my explanation of visualisation."

"Okay! You know I'm glad enough time has passed that we can joke about that first year," I smiled, pleased.

"Hmm," he absently confirmed, not removing his eyes from his task.

"And maybe," I blithely continued, "soon we'll be able to laugh about the fact that I tried to k-"

Without looking up, DFB's hand covered my masked mouth, "shh, I'm concentrating." When I attempted to muffle the sentence against his palm, I found my nose pinched shut as well.

"I think you were onto something with counting my blessings and you being quiet."

After that I was too busy -trying to bite his palm through the cloth and slap his arm away so I could breathe -to talk. Asshole.

I'm aware Kakashi is probably way too knowledgeable on the emotions and psychology of the clans when he's supposed to be a bit shit at it, but 1, I got carried away on that bit of the chapter when it wasn't really supposed to be in there at all. 2, he's the most likely candidate to tell Sonaru that stuff in the first place 3, let's pretend his explanation suffices, and also that intellectual knowledge of the labels the clans have attached to them as mental problems does not equal understanding.

Also that teasing each other at the end wasn't supposed to be in there either but when have any of my chapters actually gone to plan.

Sorry if Kakashi and Sonaru's character voices ended up sort of blurring together and sounding the same during bits, I wrote this in three chunks and had difficulty attaching them together in terms of their conversation flow.

Was this a boring set up? Would you prefer Sonaru summarising what Kakashi teaches her instead of an up front example? Or more of this style in the future when she's introduced to something new? Did the content of the lesson make sense to you or were you lost?