Path of Hardships Chapter 22- Responsibilities
Half a month has passed since the failed ambush. Kiri had captured both Chusei and Amane with no info on their whereabouts. It was their first loss of the war and it stung.
Once Naruto realized they were missing, he barged into Mei's tent. He pleaded with her to allow a rescue party. She denied his request due to a lack of info. While reminding him they were fighting on multiple fronts. They had little to no forces to spare.
Naruto sat in his tent after that. Guilt eating away at him. He had a bad feeling since the start. If only he'd spoken up and made them listen. Then maybe things would have been different and they would still be here.
He stayed in his tent for a week, lamenting only leaving for food and other utilities. The group had low morale and with their last officer in the dumps. It didn't look good for them.
On the eighth day, Kurama had enough and set the blonde ninja straight. The fox berated him. Informing him he was neither omniscient nor all-powerful. That he should stop sulking like a child and accept the situation like a man.
Naruto snapped from his funk after the tongue lashing. Thanking Kurama for helping. To which Kurama blew it off, saying it wouldn't befit him to have a weak vessel.
He doubted that and snickered at how to use this for blackmail later. Laughing even louder once he heard the loud snarl from inside the cage.
"This is a mess," Naruto sighed, sitting at a table dealing with paperwork. With both Chusei and Amane gone, that meant all the work went right to him. "I'll never know how Jiji didn't go insane" he chuckled, leaning back in the chair. "I wonder what you'd say if you saw me now" Naru mumbled.
Grabbing a paper from his desk, he held it in front of him and read slowly. 'Because of your services and accomplishments. We deem to promote you from the first lieutenant to captain. May you hold and lead the men under your command to victory.'
"The promotion is nice. Though I can't help but feel Mei did it to stop me from running off," he sighed in annoyance. "Now I just need to rework the group. With all the new members, we're a platoon now with little hierarchy. I've got to find others to help," he mumbled while getting up from the chair and pacing about.
While pacing, he heard some commotion outside. Stepping out, he saw a man being chased by a Kunoichi, something about a prank. "Brings back memories," Naru said, lost in old memories. "We really drove Iruka sensei up the wall. At least we got some exercise from it all, improving our stamina and awareness," Naru said before his eyes widened. "That's it" he semi shouted.
Walking back to the desk, he sat down and pulled some fresh paper, and began jotting down his plan. It took two hours of planning before being complete. He took a moment to re-read it for any errors.
The first point was training the new recruits and since the war was cooling off and at a standstill. It would be beneficial to run drills and other things with them. Also, being on the back lines gave them this opportunity.
Secondly was he needed to improve his view of tactics and find others to help lessen the burden. Advice he could get from Aoi. While gruff, the man was a bit of a softy at heart. The camp should also help with scoping out talent.
Third and last was to improve the teamwork and morale of the group. Since the others being captured, morale took a hit. They still trusted and respected him, but still, it was a substantial loss.
After triple checking, he went to discuss his plan with Mei and Aoi to get their opinions. Aoi looked it over and gave a few suggestions on what to do. Mei eventually gave her blessing. While reminding them that while the war was on pause, she could give him two weeks at most. More than enough time.
Next Morning:
Awakening at four-thirty, he set off to the supply depot to put in his request for gear. After that, he went to the others and had them take an early breakfast. Before meeting up at the depot.
Once there, they saw Naru meditating, while unbeknownst to them he was conversing with Kurama. Once the hour mark passed, he opened his eyes and scanned the group in front of him.
"Good, everyone seems to be here. If you blew me off, you would have likely found an itch bomb in one of your trunks." He chuckled at their dry looks sent his way.
"Ahem, now as for why you are here. Inside traveling, packs are waiting. You are to grab one and meet me out here." Naru informed them before waving them off.
After everyone grabbed a bag and checked it, they walked over to the main gate.
"Alright, we're going on a little hiking trip so stick close and don't wander off." With that said, he spun back around and walked out of the camp with the others trailing behind.
They hiked four miles before coming to stop in a nearby clearing and taking a quick break. This area was clear and far from the camp and away from any passing foe. He had several clones on the lookout in case.
"Alright, that's enough resting time to start our training. Naruto said with an enormous grin and his blood pumping. To start off, let's do some stretches." Said the blonde as everyone dropped their stuff.
"How about we start with a sprint? I want you guys to lap the clearing for times." Naru said,
Setting up a starting point and watching them as they ran. Once everyone did their rounds, he gathered them up again.
"Okay, for this last part we'll do sit-ups, push-ups, and lastly crunches." Once again they got to work. A couple of minutes passed before calling the session done and letting them fall to the grass.
Walking to another side of the clearing, he went over the mental notes he made. Overall, their stamina was average. As for the basic strength he had them do with push-ups, it was a half and half. Some struggled, others didn't, mostly those being the original group, or those who worked as fisher or farmhands.
Still, the first day was looking to be a success while nothing special was a good start. He'd just have to hammer out the flaws as his sensei did for him and the others. For now, it was time to set camp and forage for food.
Day two:
Naruto had them do the same exercises from yesterday before moving on to the next part.
"Today is different. We'll be playing tag." He stated and continued after seeing their confusion. "You will chase one of my clones, this is what you need to win." Naru said, holding up a bandana. "I will tie this to the arm of the clone, your object is to chase it down and grab it, simple." He finished with an enormous grin. The group doubted it would be easy. "First split into groups of four, then we go squad by squad. The time limit is twenty minutes." Naru said before leaning on a tree and waiting for them to group up.
Once everyone had paired up, he decided the order of who went first and so on. After selecting group one, Naru gave them three minutes of prep before sending them out.
The first group passed by the skin of their teeth. Having trouble catching the clone, but they cut him off and surrounded him. The next two groups did better with pacing themselves before running him down and securing the band. Group four failed, running out of time because of clashing egos in the group. The next group however caught his attention with the strategy they employed.
Group five:
Clone five lazed about on a branch, waiting for the group to find him. Only two minutes later, he heard footsteps. Looking down, he saw a lone figure staring up at him from across the field. The clone did a quick scan of the person in front of him.
The man had a short and thin frame with short black. While also sporting a trim mustache and goatee. What stood out the most was his lidded eyes reminding Naru of a snake.
"So it's just you. I'm sorry to say without your teammates you will lose," The clone said whilst stretching.
"Yes, unfortunately, my team and I couldn't agree," the man replied with a shrug. "So here am I all by my lonesome. First, allow me to introduce myself, I'm Kumatsu Mizuhira" he finished with a small bow.
Naru eyed him with suspicion but couldn't sense anyone else nearby. Mizuhira seemed to tell the truth but sensei always said look underneath the underneath.
"While I'm here, I would like to ask a question captain. What's your favorite food?" He curiously asked, arms folded in his sleeves.
"Umm... Ramen, of course," Naru replied like it was the only answer. "Ramen is the food of the gods. Everything else is okay but nothing can top ramen," he finished the rant with both hands on his hips.
"Oh, that trash," Mizu replied, earning a twitching eyebrow from Naruto. "Ramen is low-tier trash on the food chart. Not only is it cheaply made, it's also poor in taste," he said, ignoring the death glare from the blonde. "I think they should throw all of it in the trash and-" he interrupted and forced to dodge a few kunai.
Looking back towards the tree, he saw Naruto stiff. While his hair covered his eyes and he was letting off an aura of anger.
"You can trash talk me anytime. Call me names and make fun of how dumb I am. But I will allow no one to trash the glorious name of ramen!" Naruto yelled, launching himself from the tree and at Mizu.
Mizu easily dodged the yellow missile and ran the opposite way, chuckling to himself. They played cat and mouse for five minutes with Mizu rilling up Naruto more and more. Mizu soon found himself pinned to a tree courtesy of a few kunai.
"Now captain, there's no need to look so cross" he smiled at the irate blonde across from him.
"Unfortunately, that's where we disagree but don't worry, I'll make it quick," Naru replied clenching his fists.
When he stood in front of Mizu, he could see the man wasn't tense. In fact, he seemed at ease. As if he wasn't about to be pummeled, a small thought occurred to him. Not once had Naru seen any of his team while chasing the slimy bastard through the woods. This immediately put him on guard when he looked back at Mizu and noticed a shit-eating grin.
"Well, Captain, I have a confession to make. About me and my team being at odds, I lied." He said, opening his eyes a little.
A small hissing sound started and turned around, Naru noticed he was standing in a circle of paper bombs. Quickly jumping towards the trees, he dodged the explosion. Only to be surprised as a net dropped from above. The rest of the team appeared around him cutting off all escape.
"Looks like the plan was a success," Mizu said while the other unstuck him from the tree.
Naru gave the thumbs up before telling them they passed and dispelling to let the original know.
The original was meditating back at camp while the others were milling about. Naru stopped meditating once his clone memories transferred to him.
"Crafty using my love of ramen against me. While having the others hide in the trees while luring me to the capture zone," he mumbled to himself. "Looks like I'll be monitoring you, Mizu," Naruto said before standing to stretch and let the next group prep.
"Ah, this feels good," Naru sighed in content as he relaxed in the makeshift bath. As he sat there, he quickly went over today's events.
'A small number of the group failed. They need more training before they're ready.' He ponders thinking up ways to improve the training for them. 'Mizu though is crafty using my love for ramen against me.'
Standing up and toweling himself off, he headed back to his tent with a thought. 'One person has impressed me. I have similar hopes for the rest.'
Day three:
On the third day, he increased the morning routine. With excellent results, it seems everyone was getting used to the training.
"Alright everyone, outstanding work. Now gather around so I can discuss our next scenario," Naruto said patiently, waiting.
"This one will test you differently from the first." He spoke slowly, looking at each of them. "I will pair you unlike yesterday, but the game this time is to capture the flag. One will defend while the other shall attempt to steal the flag. Questions?" Naru asked to receive a no.
Naru paired them at random to ensure no one was too familiar with their squad. Once the first two grouped together, he gave both teams 10 minutes to plan.
'Let's see how they handle this time,' Naru thought. "Alright, times up the first two teams get to the designated points."
Group A: moments before break call
"Anyone have a plan?" one member with a pale complexion asked in a low whisper tone.
"What was that zombie I couldn't hear you," another shouted at him.
"He asked if we had a plan... idiot" another shouted, instantly bumping head-on with the other one.
"Enough!" a large man spoke from the back, leaning on a tree. "Save the fighting for the enemy," he said, standing at his full height at seven feet.
"U-uh, of course," said one of the two that we're butting heads. "Who are you?" he asked with curiosity.
"My name is Takasai Arigi or Taka for short," he grunted out.
The other quickly took in his appearance that he was a tall man. With frizzy brown hair and brown eyes. One thing that stood out the most was a scar. That ran from under his right eye to his nose.
"As I said, I have a plan so listen" he spoke in a low tone that they could hear. Taka explained it with the men, nodding as he went along.
"Alright times up the first two teams get to the designated points," shouted Naruto.
"That's the signal now, remember to stay in formation," he grunted, earning a yes from the group.
Group B: moments before break call.
"Mam no disrespect, but are you sure?" a chunky man asked the female lazy next to him.
"Why, of course? Do you doubt Akina you make me sad," she said, shedding large crocodile tears.
"No no, I'm sorry I meant no disrespect to my lady," he said trying to calm her.
"Good, that means we can get the show on the road" she shouted, springing back to life and earning a sweet drop from the man.
The man next to her sighed mentally 'of all people it's her I got stuck with.' Looking once more at the woman, she stood out in a crowd. With light blue hair tied in a double braid. Standing at five feet five inches and green eyes. He could tell she was nothing but trouble.
"Alright times up the first two teams get to the designated points," shouted Naruto.
"You heard the man let's show them our unity" she shouted, fist raised in the air and receiving adoration from the others.
Group A:
"Charge" was the collective yell as they ran towards group A.
The men from A battled against team B testing the waters. Taka stood in the back with the three from before.
'Looks like the right side is weak. Enough force should open it up,' Taka thought, staring from his hill. "Now's the time. You three head to the left to draw attention. I'll bring the rest and crush the right" He said, earning yeses before jumping into the fray.
Group B:
"La la la la dew dew" Akina sang, sitting on a tree and looking at the clouds. "Ooh, a pretty Birdy" she squealed, seeing it in the distance.
"We're doing good, keep at it. Keep those three back." the husky man said with a sigh. Looking back, he saw Akina was still lazing. 'I swear I'll have grey hairs by a year's time,' he groaned.
"Ah. Sir, they're breaking through the side. What do we do?" a man nervously asked.
"Dam," the husky man said, turning that way and seeing a behemoth of a man tearing his way in. 'He's like a bear. How can we stop such a beast' he pondered?
"We need not worry," Akina spoke up, jumping down from her perch. "Because we have unity on our side. Akina believes you can do it," she spoke in an energetic tone. "You wouldn't want to let Akina down, would you?" she spoke in a low tone with tears falling.
"Of course not mam. We're sorry for faltering. We'll give it our all and then some," one man shouted.
"Yes, lady Akina believes in us, we can't let her down!" another shouted with the support growing more and more.
"Good, then push back the enemy in the name of unity," She replied, swapping to her cheerful attitude.
"You heard Lady Akina, everyone push them back. Charge!" they shouted fanatically, holding and slowly pushing the advance back.
"See anything is possible when everyone believes in the power of unity," she cheered. Earning shouts of yes, my lady.
The husky man sat through the whole thing with his face in his hands. 'She has them wrapped around her finger' he groaned again.
Naruto watched from up high in the trees. At first, it seemed group A would dominate the match, but group B pulled a surprising recovery. Whatever it was, they were now in a stalemate. Their minutes faded as they struggled, and soon the timer sounded.
"Alright, times up the match ends in a draw" Naruo shouted from on high. People from both groups slumped in relief and lied there. "I should make some clones and bring them some water," he mumbled before vanishing.
'Another day's over and once again I'm impressed,' Naru thought as he leaned back in his chair. 'Taka and Akina. Another two who stand out both have their strengths. This new batch is pretty good,' he thought, taking a sip of his tea.
"Sir, I did a count of our supplies and wrote it down for review. Also, would you like more tea?" a girl asked.
Turning his gaze on Tanine, Isara stood in front of him. He'd bumped into her before the test and helped calm her anxiety. She confided in him she wasn't much of a combatant and was more of a numbers person. Naruto wasn't an idiot to successfully run the group upkeep was important. With it came documenting, calculating, and distributing. It was a hassle, but when she told him her strengths, he instantly exempted her and prompted her to aid. With her help, he finished some paperwork and promoted an alternative way to keep track of things in the fourth. Ultimately, it was a wonderful decision on his part.
"Thank you, but I'm fine for now, Isara. I was about to turn in. You should as well," he replied with a smile.
"Of course captain I will return tomorrow," she said, followed by a bow before leaving.
He chuckled and shook his head. She was a little high-strung, he'd calm her down. But now was time to sleep. Falling into bed with a content sigh, he could only wonder what tomorrow would bring.
End.