AN: Note that I do not own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, or any of the characters from either Anime. This work is a fanfiction written out of my love for the series and not in any attempt to make a profit.
Proofread by: Author
Originally, I wanted to refer to the manga concerning chakra colors, something that comes up in this chapter. I was aware that healing chakra is green in the anime, which it isn't in the manga, or so I've been told, but another source has told me that the signature blue of chakra everyone uses in the anime is actually not faithful to the manga, where everyone has a unique color to their chakra. As such, for simplicity's sake, as well as for following the trend of referring to the Anime, rather than the manga, I will be sticking to those points, meaning healing chakra is green.
Chapter 103: Unexpected reunion
While the two sibling hares had their reunion, Heikō looked down at her thumb and focused chakra into it, seeing the chakra flicker around the wound for a bit as she tried to match it to the feeling they knew better than they wished from Kabuto. After a few moments, the blue glow around the thumb changed into green, and with her success, Heikō carefully directed the chakra into the wound, managing to close it up. Although, the chakra soon flickered out, leaving the wound in place, although without the bleeding.
"If we keep practicing, we could likely become a Medical-nin." Sakura pointed out.
"Right, but do we want to become one?" Heikō asked rhetorically, knowing full well that that wasn't their style. Perhaps, had they decided on such a path back when they first became Genin, when they were considered a Genjutsu type, it would have been something to strive for. Now, however, that simply wasn't their style. Their Kekkei Genkai encouraged them to master Sage-mode, which in turn encouraged Taijutsu and Ninjutsu, even if they had originally been predisposed towards Genjutsu.
"You know, we could still do it. If we do it properly, we could become a Generalist or a Specialist that mastered all aspects. We're two people in one, we could learn and master more things than anyone else, and we were already above amazing before our Kekkei Genkai flourished!" Heikō pointed out, smiling widely as she considered it.
"That's true. There's no reason not to learn Genjutsu if we're the type for it. We'll corner Kakashi about it when we get back." Sakura decided, and Heikō agreed with a nod, before clapping her hands to get the two hares' attention.
"Alright, listen up you two, I'm heading into the nearest settlement. You can come with us if you wish, although I'd love it if at least one of you can go back and let everyone know I'm alright. I'm sure Fezā could figure out a way to get a message to Jiraiya at least." Heikō reasoned, and the blue-eyed Gochi nodded rapidly, while the orange-eyed one took the time to get away from her sister before responding.
"I'll go back. I was close to Fezā's home when you summoned me." She admitted.
"Oh, so that's where you were hiding! I was looking everywhere for you for our training!" The blue-eyed Gochi complained.
"Training," the orange-eyed one scoffed. "It's nothing but a glorified game of tag with you. Any real training would be what we do here, with our summoners." She argued, before ending the conversation as she disappeared in a puff of smoke, having dispelled the summoning technique.
"Is she always like this?" Heikō asked, looking at the remaining, blue-eyed Gochi who was currently pouting.
"Yeah," She answered in a resigned tone, before perking up. "But don't worry, she's better once you get to know her." She promised.
Heikō smiled and nodded. "Sure, it's always like that. I like her already regardless." Heikō informed Gochi, before turning towards the direction of the small town they had spotted from above. "We're heading in that direction. You mind scouting ahead?" She asked, looking back at Gochi.
"Sure, I can do that," Gochi confirmed, before saluting and setting off on all fours, showing just how fast she was.
"Now, back to our discussion." Heikō decided.
"Wait, what else is there to discuss?" Sakura asked, confused, as she had assumed the topic to be tabled for now.
"Well, I had a thought. We're able to use medical chakra now, and that's without training. It's supposed to be really hard, even with excellent chakra control, and I don't think Kabuto's torture is to praise, at least not entirely. We might actually have a talent for it, or our chakra control is just that insanely good. We haven't actually compared or measured it yet, but I had an amusing thought concerning it." Heikō explained with a grin.
"What?" Sakura asked, curious.
"Well, we've been told plenty of times by Kakashi that we have near-perfect chakra control. How about we put in the effort and make it absolutely perfect?" Heikō suggested, amused at Sakura's stunned silence.
"Is that even possible?" Sakura questioned.
"Of course it is. I bet it's damn hard, but not impossible. All we need to do is master all the forms of chakra, and I'd say we're a good part of the way there already. We can mold chakra outside of our own body after all. Sure, it's not as fast or efficient, but we're already better at it than when we were before, and unlike the chakra inside our body, we don't have a limited storing capacity there. If we could just figure out a way to increase our Physical and Mental energies, we'd be able to continuously store chakra without worrying about our inner reserves." Heikō pointed out, although Sakura seemed to be doubting her.
"This is all conjecture. Even if we do master this technique, there's no guarantee we find a way to boost our Physical and Mental energies, just like that. We'd need something else." Sakura mused.
"Then what about Natural energy?" Heikō suggested. Sakura was about to point out that you couldn't just substitute one energy for another, only for a sudden realization to hit her.
"Is it possible to convert Natural energy into Physical or Mental energy?" She asked Heikō, who stopped walking and paused to consider the possibility.
"We only use part of the Natural energy around us, ignoring the blend of wild Natural energy in favor of Human Natural energy except for when we use pure Natural energy as an attack. If it is possible to change one type of energy into another, then we possibly have a source of near-limitless chakra." Heikō realized in astonishment.
"And we could possibly change wild Natural energy into Human Natural energy as well, increasing all of the components we use for Senjutsu chakra." Sakura pointed out, leaving them both to consider the possibilities.
"This… this is huge." Heikō pointed out, and she could feel Sakura agreeing with her. "I think we found our next big project then." She decided and began channeling Natural energy around them, reaching out with part of their own to begin experimenting while they walked.
Heikō smiled as she stepped over a hill. The town they had been moving towards was finally in view, and close enough for them to recognize. It seemed they were still within the borders of Hi no Kuni. They might not have ever been to Tanzaku-gai before, but there was no mistaking a landmark like Tanzaku-jō, the tourist attraction, and castle of the town.
Just confirming what town it was, allowed Heikō to immediately orient herself and figure out the way back to Konohagakure. Of course, simply setting off in a mad dash back home was a poor idea. After all, a warm meal, a bath, and a bed were the least they deserved after what they'd been through. They'd make more progress going back after some well-earned rest. Besides, Gochi still hadn't returned yet.
No longer afraid of running into potential enemies, assuming she was in enemy territory, Heikō knew it was safe to keep her forehead protector on and happily began dashing towards Tanzaku-gai.
Before long, she ran into Gochi who was on his way back to meet her. "Hey, Gochi. What did you find in Tanzaku-gai?" She inquired, as the hare fell into pace with her.
"Not much. There's a festival going on, and there seems that there was a fight between Shinobi in town, but no one was hurt. There was just some property damage, and it seems to have just been a small altercation, rather than a complete fight, as there were no signs of blood when I investigated." Gochi reported, and Heikō considered what it could mean, before flicking her braid over onto the right shoulder.
"Well, that's something. Hopefully, the drama is over and we can enjoy the festival before leaving." Sakura responded as she took over from Heikō, reasoning that if it was a brief scuffle, it likely wasn't Shinobi from any other country, but Konoha-nin that had some kind of disagreement. Although, causing property damage suggested that one or both of them weren't as good at their self-control as they should be, representing Konohagakure. If the Shinobi themselves didn't pay, then the bill would more than likely end up in the Hokage's office, provided someone saw a Konoha forehead protector on their head. Frowning, Sakura reached up and undid the knot on her forehead protector, putting it into her weapons pouch, just to be safe. She'd hate to be mistaken and blamed for the damage, and then have to try and explain it to the Hokage when a bill describing her came, coinciding with the report Heikō and her would have to write upon their return.
"Well then, thanks for the info Gochi. You can go back now. I promise we'll summon you and your sister once we get back so we can all train." Sakura promised and smirked as she saw the hare smile, before disappearing in a cloud of smoke, mid-leap.
"Alright, so what kind of place can we afford to stay at?" Heikō asked, making Sakura scowl as she remembered the measly amount of money they had on them. That is to say, the same amount they had with them in the hospital, also known as the amount they had with them during the last stage of the Chūnin Exam. It likely wasn't enough to spend the night at a love hotel, the last resort emergency option that Shinobi would use if short on funds and in need of proper rest.
They hadn't expected to need any money that day and had only brought some for the sake of possibly buying something on the way back home to munch on in either celebration of their victory, or as a pick-me-up in the case of their loss. Something that never happened in the end, due to the invasion known as Konoha Crush.
"Shit, what are we going to do?" Sakura asked, hoping Heikō had an answer.
"Well, there's a few options, none of them too great. One uncomfortable but affordable, one comfortable but shameful, and lastly, one risky, but both honest and comfortable." Heikō suggested.
"And they are?" Sakura inquired, intrigued, but wary.
"We could sleep out, which costs no money but is uncomfortable. We could steal and pay for a night somewhere that way, or we could take what money we have, and find a place to invest in some cards." Heikō suggested, making Sakura frown.
"Or we could be completely pathetic and beg someone to stay for the night," Sakura added with disgust, before sighing. Their options weren't great.
"Well, I guess it can't hurt too much to try and gamble. We need food and a place to sleep after all, and we can barely buy something to eat." Sakura reasoned. She didn't like gambling. It was considered an addictive and dangerous pursuit for a Shinobi. They had been taught the dangers of it in the Academy, and Sakura had taken those lessons to heart, which was a bit ironic, as the lessons had included how to play most forms of gambling, and how to both spot other's attempts to cheat while hiding your own.
Heikō chuckled in their mind at the memory, before explaining what she found so amusing to Sakura. "Remember, Naruto nearly got a perfect grade at that time, until Iruka realized he hadn't cheated once and had just been lucky to win almost every single time by chance."
With the relevant memory provided for Sakura to check herself, she joined Heikō in chuckling at Naruto's luck, while considering if she could possibly replicate the effect by imitating Naruto's play-style.
Suddenly as if reacting to her thoughts of him, Sakura realized she could actually feel Naruto's presence within her sensory range and stooped to look back into the clearing she had just passed. There, despite all the odds, she could see Naruto, sparring with a few of his clones. "Naruto?!" Sakura called out, wide-eyed, before seeing a total of fifteen Naruto's turning towards her with shocked expressions, before all attempting to glomp her.
"Sakura!" They all exclaimed cheerfully, despite Sakura dispelling most of them with shuriken to avoid being crushed beneath them. Unfortunately, the real Naruto still managed to bowl her over, trapping her in a way too tight hug.
AN: And so, a surprise meeting. I think some can guess exactly what Naruto is doing outside of Tanzaku-gai of all places.
Oh, and FYI, it seems that Tanzaku-jō still stands. I believe that implies enough for people to know what interesting changes we can see here from canon.
