From the author - hello! It's Amy! Sorry for the late upload. I tried to upload it on the proper date but my wifi wasn't working properly.
Thank you for reading! Honestly, thank you!
The forest was quiet for once, time too close to lunch for other kids to loiter in the academy training grounds. Naruto had passed out under a nearby tree and she was calmly flowing through the clan dance.
Under her clothes, a bare thin layer of water was attached to her chest, scarcely protecting anything. She needed to keep the water calm, flat and only bending to fit around her torso movement.
Against her wishes, sweat clung to her skull, dampening her hair and sliding ever so slowly down her temples.
Shift leg forward, exaggerate your breath. Waves echo through your legs to spin out of control in your arms. Wait for five counts, because this wasn't her group's solo yet, but think ahead think ahead don't forget the water it begins with a run, a group leap upwards with a ribbon of water leaping towards the heavens -
If she wasn't so focused, then maybe she could've heard the rush of something fast-approaching. Leaves and branches ripped from their tranquil places as something heavy tore by. The crash and crunch as something - someone - was closing in -
"DYNAMIC ENTRY!"
She tripped in the middle of her leap, her hold on her water unforgivingly broken. Her landing was safe though, nothing twisted or anything, but the tree Naruto was lounging under gave a loud keen. Several metres above Naruto's paralysed body, a web of impact has appeared and was still smoking.
"What the FUCK-" Naruto screamed, scrambling away from the damaged tree. Oniyuri ran over, clutching Naruto's bare arms. What was going on?
"You're looking youthful today!" A voice boomed from behind them. When they turned, a beast awaited them.
Green Spandex, paired with horrid acidic orange woollen leg warmers, and a bowl cut so shinily and uniform she could see the faint halo of sunlight. Even if the smoking tree behind them didn't occur, then the overwhelming amount of thick winter clothes confirmed that this man was an icon.
"I am Maito Gai!" It took her a second to realise that he was posing. Legs spread out a little wider than the shoulders, one hand on his hip, the other arm stretched out to give them a thumbs up. And to bring it all together, he grinned. "I don't suppose you have seen another jounin come by?"
"What?" Naruto automatically answered, but Oniyuri was already connecting the dots. Kakashi sent Gai instead. She doesn't know if she should be pissed at Kakashi for giving them the slip or be happy that Gai was sent. Naruto squirmed beside her, and hands gingerly touching where her hands gripped his arm. Softly apologising, she let go. "Why did you have to appear so - so - so WEIRDLY?"
"Ah," Gai breaks his Pose to rest his aloft arm on to the free hip. His footing did not change. "Is that not the charm of Dynamic Entry?"
Oniyuri blinked. He did have a good point -
"Hmm. Maybe this will help. Henge!"
Much like yesterday, the man before them vanished behind a plume of white smoke. Yet when it cleared, which it did fast for such heavy and opaque smoke, Kakashi stood there. But it wasn't - because the hair was off, more grey than silver, and almost as tall as her torso. Kakashi carried a neon orange book, so large and obvious that her eyes were naturally drawn to it. And, he was still in the Gai Pose.
"This is my friend Kakashi!" Kakashi cocked his head and jabbed his thumb at himself. "He has requested my presence here!" The smoke appeared again, and Gai returned to the same spot, sporting the same posture.
"Oh, well, about Kakashi," she began, walking closer so it didn't quite feel like an Encounter in the Academy Training Fields and more like a friendly conversation. She explained her deal with Kakashi quickly.
Naruto stamped his foot. "But he isn't here yet!"
A range of emotions crossed Gai's face. It was a delightfully expressive facial journey, but she wasn't that familiar with Gai to truly dissect the full range.
"I see!" Gai harumphs. "this is the challenge Kakashi requested! It's teaching you two! Perfect! Let's get started!"
"What?"
"Nice to meet you Gai-sensei. I'm Oniyuri and this is Naruto."
"Why are we following this creep's suggestions?" Naruto muttered angrily but nevertheless followed Oniyuri until she was standing closer to the green beast. "Nice t' meet ya Gai-sensei."
"First thing," Gai moved over to the tree line, sitting by the damaged tree. She followed, Naruto reluctantly complying. "What do you know of taijutsu?"
"Practically nothing."
"Know? All I have to do is punch!" Naruto helpfully sucker-punched the air before him with a war cry. Amazingly, Gai's face did not change, even though the words they spoke revealed them to be absolute noobs.
"Originally, taijutsu was throwing fists and kicking at will, yes!" Aw, he was a good teacher, how kind of Kakashi! Gai didn't insult Naruto and instead built on his words. "As the years went by, people began to either favour certain strikes or build new ones to defend against or strike. This is the origin of taijutsu; certain moves to attack and certain moves to block. Taijutsu isn't only for ninjas. I have gone toe to toe against the greatest taijutsu civilian specialists - without chakra of course - and struggled because their taijutsu style and fighting knowledge is toe to toe with mine.
"There are a lot of styles in taijutsu, but what you need to remember is that there is no golden style that defeats all other styles, yes! A taijutsu's effectiveness relies on several factors: suitability of the user, the user's battle knowledge, the user's reflexes, the traits of the style, the traits of the opposing style, how much the user can disassemble the opposing style.
"But you don't have to know much to be a good taijutsu user! Many ninjas grow an unconscious ability to detect when their taijutsu style doesn't match their opponent's style. Why my friend, Kakashi doesn't even know he's adjusting his style mid-battle for max effectiveness!"
It was interesting to hear him speak. Here was a man who not only loved taijutsu but went out of his way to learn the mechanics of it.
"What are 'traits'?" She asked.
"Hm, those are more for upper-level ninjas who wish to pursue a taijutsu speciality. But, it is important to understand a little when choosing a style. For example, you'd want to find a style that is flowing, because they're often based on dancing and you've got the body for that. Especially if you continue to practice dancing.
"Naruto, your youthful body would be best suited for a strength/attack type, because you have the energy for it!" Gai laughed, referring to Naruto's bouncing leg. Now that Oniyuri was looking at her friend, he looked extremely lost.
"I don't think talking about taijutsu will help Naruto. He learns by method, yeah?" She nudged him in the side and smiling at his sheepish squirm.
"Fantastic! I too find myself learning faster in the heat of the battle! First, let us begin with the academy style!"
Naruto and Oniyuri agreed earlier to pretend that Oniyuri was in the academy. She'd quickly gone through the katas with Naruto, making sure to create her own mistakes and copy others. It was probably very obvious that she wasn't enrolled - or at least had very few lessons - but with Naruto there, an actual student with similar mistakes, Kakashi/Gai could've tricked themselves into thinking that both of them had awful teachers/grades.
As it was, Gai didn't make any comments. He corrected their movements, and at Oniyuri's prompting, explained the reasoning.
"You have a curious mind, Oniyuri! It will take you far."
She simply rubbed the back of her head shyly. "Just the way I learn I guess."
The academy style was simplistic. Hold your arms here to block; keep your legs spread for balance; here's how to kick; here's how to throw a punch.
"And now," Gai boomed, once he was satisfied with their katas "we begin the actual training!"
Naruto's eyes lit up. "What cool style you gonna teach us?!"
"Not quite, I'm afraid Naruto." He chuckled, giving Naruto a thump on the back. Judging by the horrid wheezing noise, his breath was knocked out from his body. "You two need to grow comfortable with the style! And to practice with another opponent."
"Oh. Practice." Naruto grumbled.
"Exactly! First, you two battle. However! Do it slowly." Gai demonstrated the speed; not quite snail speed, but not too fast that an inexperienced civilian couldn't react to.
I.e. Oniyuri.
Hmm, maybe their act wasn't that good after all.
They faced each other, falling into the waiting stance. Naruto moved first; she could see him shifting his weight to his forward foot, opposite hand cocking back to unleash the fury.
All she needed to do was sidestep. But she could do more, couldn't she? A step to the side wasn't the beginning to any other attack, but she could make it so. She could aim a blow to the same side of the outreached arm or the stomach. Stomach seemed like a better idea, but because of his other hand tucked against his body it would be best she stepped to the left.
Going at this speed was interesting. Naruto saw her attack immediately and had to restrain himself from reacting at his normal speed. He too sidestepped, skittering away to her right.
Alright, to attack. Naruto's feet were too close together, habit not yet killed by Gai; his balance would be out of whack. Confronting him on the front wouldn't make the mistake clear, so she would have to attack from the side.
But Naruto would face her at any angle she would approach from, so she had to confuse him. Maybe a sidekick?
Her yukata hindered her a lot. Lifting her leg required her to minutely shift the fabric beforehand, but luckily Naruto didn't notice. Outfit changes would have to be dealt with later though.
Naruto saw her attack but thought his arms could block her kick. She tried her best to put a little oomph behind it, but at the speed they were going at it, was a little hard and she was only three years old, versing a six-year-old.
Naruto teetered to the side, then corrected.
"Stop!" Gai called, halting Naruto as he reached for Oniyuri. "Unfortunately, because of the size difference, Oniyuri's fantastic point couldn't be made obvious." He patted her hair lightly, grin beaming.
"Huh?" Naruto questioned. "What do you mean?"
"Your legs were too close together, so Oniyuri extrapolated on that! She attacked from the side to topple you over. However, seeing as she is much younger, and hasn't had any training, you didn't notice."
Naruto looked down at his feet at Gai's words. Flushing, he shifted his legs wider. "Oops, sorry…"
"No need to apologise, Naruto! Everyone makes mistakes!" He suddenly moved into the Gai Pose. "that's the Beauty of Life!"
She grinned and returned the thumbs up.
"I can't believe you like this weirdo!" Naruto grumbled lowly to her.
"Oh, he's definitely weird, but I find it charming." She shook out her yukata. "Come on, let's go again."
They were going through the katas again, Naruto shouting and grunting not far from her when she approached their teacher.
"Gai sensei, can I ask a little more about taijutsu traits?"
He beamed at her in reply. "Of course! While this information is usually taught at the chunin level, I think it would benefit you now!"
"First of all, remember that these traits are simple classifications, and are not the end all be all. Each taijutsu specialist has their own set of traits. A master's legacy can be these classifications. Now, there are many traits and some of them are so particular that only a select few styles apply. Here are the ones that I only really use when I am identifying traits."
"The first example is block vs redirect. Does this style block attacks, or does it dodge or redirect attacks? Another one is tallest vs equal vs shortest, are you taller, shorter or the same height as your opponent. The second one is only utilised by specialists, but these two are traits.
The traits Gai gave her were these, written roughly in the dirt:
Strength vs Flexibility
Style needs muscle/style needs flexibility
Block vs Redirect
Style takes attacks directly/style dodges or redirects blows
Flow vs Harsh
Style is almost a dance/Style's every move is forceful
Tallest vs Equal vs Shortest
How tall are you compared to the enemy?
Defending vs Attacking
Are you defending or attacking?
Active chakra vs Passive chakra
Style uses chakra/chakra is only used to booster the body
Group vs Single
Enemy is several people/enemy is one person
Brutal vs (-)
Style is brutal on the body and requires special training/style only needs basic body conditioning
Mental capability vs (-)
Style requires fast thinking, tactics and mental capability/style doesn't require this
Mobile vs Stationery
Move around a lot/generally stay in one place
Where are the moves focused?
I.e. punches, kicks, weaponry
She gave it a thought.
"Can't these be blended? I mean, the chakra one is basically a yes-or-no question, but the other traits are pretty ambiguous."
Gai beamed at her.
"Magnificent deduction, Oniyuri! You have an eye for taijutsu!" Oniyuri blushed but mentally declined the compliment. Her mind was just a little older than Gai knew. "Yes. The more complicated the taijutsu style, the more traits to features. Those with several blended traits are highly valued and ranked."
"Ah ok then. You used the word 'vs,' so does that mean using the opposite side of the trait will help you defeat the opponent?" She frowned, re-thinking her words. "But that doesn't make sense."
"Yes and no! You're thinking in terms of pure taijutsu fights. Unfortunately, ninja battles are seldom won through taijutsu. Taijutsu is the basis; exhaust your opponent through hand to hand combat until they slip up, then finish him with either ninjutsu or weaponry. In these kinds of fights, a taijutsu user needs a huge amount of endurance and stamina because they will match their style to their opponents to equal the fight."
"Wow," she looked back up to her teacher, amazed. "That's insane. What example of styles do you have?"
"Well, Oniyuri, I'd be pleased to show you! First, try the academy style."
"I think a little flexibility because it's only used by kids so strength isn't something they can handle. Redirect with a little block, because some parents would complain if their child came home black and blue. Passive chakra, because the style is used for taijutsu-only matches, single enemy, standard to none body training, no mental requirements, and you stay in one spot." Gai nodded with every point she made.
"Yes, that's the basics. See how it had no blended styles and very little true traits?" He paused. "The only blend it has is the attacking and defending trait, which is the easiest blend to do. You can find styles that are purely defence or offence, and it's stronger if it has one true trait of those two, but nearly every style is a blend of defending and attacking."
He dropped down into a ready stance, legs wider than the academy style. "This is a style from Kumo." First, he jabbed the air, then his body tightened as he blocked an imaginary kick from the side, crossing his arms to the left.
"Now, from a small Suna clan." This time, his ready stance required him to coil into a tube, like a snake preparing to attack. The first kata had him dropping to the floor with a wide sweep, smoothly flowing into the next kata, a bastardised handstand that kicked out towards the imaginary enemy. "What can you tell me about them?"
"The Kumo one is definitely harsh and maybe block? The Suna style was flow, with a focus on leg attacks?"
Gai gave her a thumbs up, teeth glinting. "Well done! You catch on quick!"
"It's just interesting…" at her words, Gai's smile grew wider.
"Still, you pursue knowledge! Your soul blooms brightly, Oniyuri, I cannot wait to see you become a ninja."
"Thank you Gai-sensei." She bowed deeply, allowing herself, just this once, to accept the compliment.
"Oi!" A shout broke the conversation, bringing their attention over to Naruto. "Why does Oniyuri get to take a break?"
"Sorry Naruto," she called back "just asking Gai-sensei some questions about taijutsu." Naruto made a face and waved them off.
"Ya can continue, I'm fine."
Oniyuri laughed. "Speaking of, Gai-sensei, I have some more questions about taijutsu specialists. You said they need endurance, how do they build that? Also, regarding the brutal trait, do you know any styles that have that? What did you have to do? Furthermore-"
Gai's bark of laughter was louder than her own, rolling through the forest like a festival parade of taiko drums.
"Fear not Oniyuri! I will answer all of your burning questions before I need to go!"
She smiled. Maybe Kakashi did give them the slip, but Gai was perfect for the job.
"Waaa…" Naruto groaned arms stretched to the sky. Despite the gruelling taijutsu lesson, he still carried that bounce in his step that had been there since day one. "Thanks, Oniyuri. I didn't realise taijutsu could be so fun!"
Once Oniyuri was satisfied with her inquiries about taijutsu, Gai set the two of them to duke it out again. Oniyuri didn't really know how Gai did it, but he helped Naruto learn how to see the holes in someone's defence and pierce through it, through some game. Nevertheless, with that in place, it was increasingly difficult for Oniyuri to easily defend herself. Naruto struggled to fix his own mistakes though, so by the end, they were both a sweaty mess.
When it was time for Gai to leave, they both thanked him profoundly.
"You're the best teacher ever!" Naruto declared. "Even though you're weird! Really weird!"
"Yeah, Gai-sensei, you're amazing. Do you have any experience with teaching?"
"Not quite! I am currently studying for my jounin exam, as I am only a special jounin. One of the parts of being a jounin is teaching young genin, so I have devoted time to learning how to teach!" There was the Gai Pose. "Thank you for offering this amazing chance!"
"Gai-sensei, I think you'll smash the exam!" Naruto yelled, Oniyuri agreeing, although less loudly. Gai's Pose faltered for a moment, and he wiped away a year.
"Thank you for your kind and empowering words! Your souls burn brightly! Farewell, you two!" And then he jumped away, soaring over the trees and vanishing. They were still waving at nothing for ten more seconds. Then Naruto turned to her and complained that he was hungry, so here they were, in the Centre Square of Konoha once more.
The whole morning still felt like a mythical chance encounter.
"Yeah, Gai-sensei was amazing. Taijutsu too!" She leaned against the fountain that was in the middle of the square. The centre focus was a tree, of course, because this was the village hidden in the leaves, but the tree wasn't made of marble. It was a living tree, grown by the First Hokage himself, and it was so huge it's thick canopy covering nearly all of the Square. The water surrounding it was made by the Second Hokage, showing his new and quick to become legendary Water Dragon jutsu.
She peered over the edge of the water, and almost slapped herself when she remembered. She's forgotten to keep the water on her! It was too late to reabsorb it from her sweat-soaked yukata and she hadn't learnt how to filter water yet so she wasn't going to take it from the Centre Sq. Water. Naruto scuffed his foot, bringing her attention back to him.
"Hey, Naruto, is your house near? Can I grab a quick drink and use the bathroom?"
Naruto suddenly froze, looking away from Oniyuri.
"I'm sorry! I lied! I don't actually have a home!"
What?
They ended up returning to Oniyuri's hotel room.
She filled two cups with water, but as the water ran from the tap all she could think was he's homeless he's homeless he's homeless he's-
The click of the ceramic cup as it touched the table brought her back. Naruto, once again on the opposite side, shyly took the cup and drowned it. When he was finished, she slid her untouched cup across to him.
"I'm sorry to force it out of you." She began. Naruto let out an awkward chuckle. It fell flat.
"I was gonna tell you…" he admitted, taking a small sip of water. How long was it since he had fresh clean water? "I lived in the orphanage, but they kicked me out when I turned five. I tried to find somewhere to live but I'm too young." Oniyuri bet that it was more like they just plain didn't like him.
"If you want to tell me anything, I'm not going anywhere."
"The ladies at the red light district are really nice," he started, voice casual. "I don't hang out with them often but they like talking to me.
"The ramen stand is run by a really nice old man and his niece! They don't mind me buying from there and they call me their best customer!
"Ya know how the river splits near the West gate? Between the river is the really poor section. I have the funds from Jiji so I've never lived there but I have a lot of friends who do.
"What sucks is that a lot of people are alright when I'm clean, but as soon as I'm dirty they shout at me!
"Sometimes other people in my class, they don't mind playing with me, but then other times they say they're too busy.
Naruto struggled to weave a coherent story. He jumped from one person to the next, from one problem to another pitfall.
As ancient as she was, Oniyuri could easily feel the storm raging in her chest. Naruto was - a child. And although he might have plot armour later in his life, the world had taken its chance to throw the biggest pile of shit at Naruto. Sweet Naruto, who was only six years old.
He'd lived it up in the orphanage, so it wasn't like he'd been left on the streets with no record of his birth. Why was he so mercilessly thrown out on the streets?
Oniyuri clenched her teeth. She knew exactly why; it was why she continued to meet up with him, to play a fellow child friend and follow his simple games. Why she'd pushed for Naruto to fix his taijutsu and studying so quickly.
She shuffled around the table and carefully held out her arms. Naruto didn't do anything, so she closed in slowly, embracing the child with a loose and warm hug. His arms awkwardly sat around her hips and tailbone, unsure what to do.
"I'm so sorry Naruto," she said, bowing his head until his forehead touched her shoulder. "You shouldn't have to go through this."
"But - Auntie Matsuo said only bad kids,"
"I don't know who this Matsuo is, but I can assure you she was lying."
"Oh,"
A sniffle.
Oniyuri studiously ignored the quiet noises coming from Naruto. It wasn't a good time to comment - he'd locked up so much of his emotional well-being, and he needed to cry. There just wasn't a thing called privacy on the streets.
"There are a lot of people in this world, Naruto, who fail to take their own time to judge things fairly. But you shouldn't be angry at the world, because not everyone has the time to learn everything. People are always going to be shortsighted or prejudiced - that's a natural fact. That's why we leave things to people who dedicate their jobs towards important things."
"But this? Homelessness? That's a byproduct of too many people not doing their job. The orphanage caretakers, for one, shouldn't have kicked you out. The police should've found you easily enough. Your teachers shouldn't be purposely failing you. People failed you.
"But as a little moral lesson? Don't fail them back. If you are rude to them back, they'll fail their jobs again. If you say nothing, they won't change their ways. The best thing in the world is to be kind to everyone, and sometimes that means telling people off."
"Ok?"
She laughed. "It's ok that you don't really understand now, you're only six after all. But just keep in mind - you're helping everyone if you be kind. I'm going to help you by being kind.
"It won't be for long, but you can stay with us until we leave. Hanabi won't mind." Hanabi died from starvation in the middle of winter, with only snow to accompany her. She wouldn't stand for Naruto being left homeless.
"Oniyuri, you don't have to - you're younger than me - how can you be so nice?" Naruto shook where he sat, but this time it wasn't from his abundance of energy.
"Naruto, I'm much older than you think. Yes, my body is three but mentally I'm the oldest person alive."
"Huh?"
"This is a clan secret, my bloodline limit, so you can't tell anyone. Not a soul. My clan has found a way to break through the block between this life and your last. I have memories spanning decades, and not of this world. Everyone in the clan is like this, we all know we're not crazy."
"How old are you?"
"Old enough to know that you shouldn't be homeless, and there is something that I can do about it." Naruto stares at her and bowed his head. A very muffled "Thank you Oniyuri." barely made it to her ears. She got up to refill the cups, gather enough water to cover her torso under her yukata and a piece of leftovers for smoko. When she returned, Naruto was sitting straight again.
"But what can you do?" He asked, a note of hopelessness carrying clearly through his words. "Nobody cares!" He voice failed him on the last word.
"I know." She sets the plates on the table. "That's why you'll use Henge."
One of her questions to Gai was about the jutsu that made Gai look like Kakashi. Gai called it henge and then remarked that she should've already learnt it in class. She quickly made up a lie that Gai's usage was so smooth she didn't recognise it and moved onto the next question.
Gai said that those Oniyuri's age should know it, so Naruto should too.
"Oh, where you copy someone else's appearance? I can do that." Naruto stood up and went through some hand signs. Like before, a plume of smoke obscured him, and when it passed, Oniyuri was staring back at herself. She smiled and reached over to touch her face.
"That's what I look like, huh? Glad to know."
Naruto released the ninjutsu. "It's one of the things I'm good at! Iruka-sensei complimented it once."
"Fantastic! Now you'll have to transform into someone else and then we'll go together around Konoha for an apartment." She gave it a thought. "It'll have to be someone not from Konoha, so…"
They also needed a cover. Well, Oniyuri was going to move to Konoha (there was no way she's going to go anywhere else, she'd decided that the moment she got the die), so there wouldn't be any reason why she couldn't apartment hunt now.
"Transform into Hanabi! You can appear to be an adult." Without a word from her, Naruto transformed into Hanabi, the familiar Suiei yukata appearing. "Yes, good. But what about money?"
"I've got some saved! I get a monthly allowance, so I try to save as much as I can."
"How much do you have, rough estimate?"
"Uhhh, maybe 1,000 yen?"
Oniyuri pondered on it. She had no idea what that meant in terms of real estates but she could bet it wouldn't last long.
"You'd have to live in the North West section, near the Centre Sq, where the rent is cheap. Is there a way to ask the orphan fund to cover rent expenses? I'd much prefer you to outright buy a house so you don't have to interact with the landlady, but you're also only six, so not a good idea. You need someone to check in on you, someone not biased at all. Except I don't know this village at all. God, what to do?"
"Hey, Jiji might be able to help us." Naruto piped up. "He's cool!" Oniyuri knew that. This Jiji was constantly mentioned by Naruto; whenever they passed someplace new, Naruto burst into an explanation of what it is. Those stories often featured 'Jiji.'
"Alright then. What's the best time to visit him?"
"I've only ever met him in the morning."
"Tomorrow. Well, there's nothing else that's really that demanding - wait, Naruto, do you have any other clothes?"
"Not really? But you don't have to buy me stuff."
"Well, I only have yukatas left, and they're for my size, not yours, and then there are Hanabi's clothes, you'll definitely won't fit them." Naruto nodded along with her words and relented with a groan.
"Guess I'll go clothes shopping."
"I'll come too."