Author's Note: With the previous chapter, this story now reached more than ONE. MILLION. VIEWS. Thanks a lot to everybody who read this story, for making this possible! I didn't even DREAMED of writing a story that reached one million views!
Chapter 72:
Steps to Become Better
or
Naruto vs Ino-Shika-Cho
Sarutobi Estate
Dawn came over Konoha. As the still sleeping village was bathed by the first rays of sunlight, a single figure walked its empty streets.
In the past days, Naruto found himself crossing the gates of the estate belonging to the first clan who joined Konoha after its foundation. All the time accompained by his teammates, and to see their pregnant sensei. Today, however, wasn't like any other. For starters, Naruto was alone, something not that unsual if one knew the outcome of his team's latest mission. And two, while he was planning to pay his sensei a visit, it wasn't the only reason to be there.
"Kurenai Sarutobi?" a maid asked when Naruto told her about his sensei." I believe she should be in the mess hall, having breakfast with the rest of the clan."
"Oh, I see. Can you tell her I'm here to see her?" Naruto asked.
"Sure," the maid said, but before turning, she asked: "Would you like to have breakfast with them? The clan would to have you as their guest."
Naruto shook his head. "Nah, I already had breakfast. Plus I don't want to intrude. I'll wait somewhere else. Oh, and can you tell her that I also wish to speak with Asuma-sensei?"
The maid nodded, and told Naruto that could wait in one of the main living room, usually the place she and her students had their meetings. And after half an hour of waiting, Kurenai and her husband entered the living room.
"Naruto! What a nice surprise," a smiling Kurenai said, as she went to greet the blond. "What does it bring you here? While I love your visits, I didn't expect you to be here this soon."
"Not to mention that you also wanted to see me as well," Asuma pointed out. "Do you want to get to know your sensei's political family a bit better?"
"It's not that. Well, I don't mind getting to know you better, but I'm having some troubles that I think the two of you may be of help."
Kurenai and Asuma took a seat in a couch in front of the blond.
"Tell us then, and we'll see what can we do," Kurenai told Naruto.
"Well, you see... after the failure of our last mission, I decided that it's about time to get stronger. Well, no, maybe that's not the word," Naruto said, as he tried to rearrange his thoughts. "More like... more versatile? Yeah, that's about it. I think I need a more diverse skills so I can have more fighting options."
"And let me guess, since I'm the only other Wind Element user, you want me to train you, is that it?" Asuma asked.
"If it's not asking much," Naruto replied, trying not to sound imposing.
But much to the blond's relief, Asuma smiled in return. "Sure! Any student of Kurenai who wants to train under me is welcome to do so."
Kurenai, however, frowned at her husband. "So, if Naruto wasn't my student, you wouldn't help him?"
"Of course I would!" Asuma replied, sounding a little indignant. "He's the son of the Hokage after all!" Asuma laughed, but upon seeing his wife scowl, he changed his tune. "Kidding, kidding! Come on honey, you know I'd help a fellow wind user no matter what."
"Nice!" Naruto cheered. "Thanks a lot for this, Asuma-sensei!"
"Don't sweat it," Asuma said. "By the way, how is that you want to train under me now? I thought that the training Hokage-sama gave you was more than enough."
"And it has been so far," Naruto replied, as he started to rub the back of his neck. "Not to badmouth dad's training, but when it comes to Wind Release, his training only goes so far. I think I can only progress if I train under somebody who has mastered such element."
"Don't worry, Naruto, nobody will think any less of Hokage-sama just because you seek additonal help," Kurenai helpfully added.
"Well, I better get going. I need to do some stuff at the Hokage's Tower before our morning training," Asuma stood up, and walked out of the living room, but turned at the blond before leaving. "If you want to train with my team meet us at Training Ground Ten in about an hour or so."
"Will do, and thanks a lot for this!" Naruto repeated.
Asuma just nodded, and left the living room, leaving Naruto alone with Kurenai, and they fell into a somewhat awkward silence. Naruto's eyes drifted towards her pregnant belly.
"So..." Naruto began. "You must be pretty bored, right? Not being able to go on missions or train or do any fun stuff..."
"Who says I can't train?" Kurenai asked.
"You...you train? Like that?" Naruto asked, pointing at her belly.
"Not in the way you do, obviously," Kurenai replied. "But even if I can't train my body, I can still hone my skills with genjutsu. I've been reading and practicing a lot since my temporary retirement."
"Heh, can't wait to see you in action," Naruto said. "How long until the baby's born?"
Kurenai giggled a little at the question. "Oh, I see you want me back into the team as soon as possible, right? The burden of leadership is too much for somebody so young," Kurenai said, with Naruto chucking a little. "According to the medics, in about two months or so."
"Truth be told, I do want to have you back in the team," Naruto admitted. "Not just so we can be a four man squad again, but you're right about the burden of leadership. I liked to think that I did a good job leading Hinata and Haku. But the last mission... I can't help but think how it was my fault that Hinata-hime and Haku ended up as bad as they did."
"Not to sound rude, but get used to that sensation," Kurenai replied. "Many ninja are brave enough to risk their lives for a mission and the village. But when you have other people under your care, everything takes a different perspective. Suddenly the mission takes a backseat to make sure your subordinates return home safe, and balancing both things become a near impossible task."
"You tell me," Naruto dejectedly said.
"But if it's any consolation, I think you've been doing agreat work so far, Naruto," Kurenai praised, shooting the blond a reassuring smile. "From what I could heard, the Akatsuki you fought against was out of the ordinary, even among S-Class criminals."
"Still, I take pride in being one of the strongest ninja of my generation," Naruto said. "I used to think I had become stronger than most Jonin of this village. Now I see where such a train of thought lead me."
"There's nothing wrong in taking pride in one's abilities, as long as that pride doesn't blind us," Kurenai told him.
"No, you dont understand," Naruto replied, shaking his head. "You see, the reason I was so strong was because of Sage Mode. Such secret allowed me to surpass most ninjas before I even turned fourteen. But if I'm unable to enter such mode... well, I realized that I'm far more lacking than I had expected."
"But you're taking steps in rectifying such mistakes," Kurenai told him. "It's never too late to improve yourself."
Naruto was about to reply that it was if your comrades died, but decided not to pursue such gloom train of thought. He pushed all the negative thoughts aside and smiled.
"You're right, Kurenai-sensei! This time we were lucky, but next time I'll make sure luck is not a factor in our victory."
"See? That's the spirit!" Kurenai cheered. "Now go show my husband how skilled my students are!"
"Right!" Naruto replied, now in a more energetic manner, before leaving the living room.
…
Hyuga Estate
Naruto wasn't the only one who was planning to train. After spending a few days in the hospital, both Hinata and Haku were finally discharged, albeit they were temporarily removed from active duty until they fully recovered, and were also banned from doing any strenous physical activity, which, naturally, included training.
Not that they could do much training in their current shape. Haku had an arm on a slig, while Hinata needed a crutch to walk.
Of course, Hinata's condition and her word that she wouldn't train wasn't enough, so Hikari had assigned an Hyuga Branch member, or better said, somebody who belongued to the Branch Family when the clan was still split, to watch over her. Her caretaker was a green haired woman a few years older than her named Natsu Hyuga, who used to be Hanabi's caretaker when she was little.
So Hinata now spended most days either in her bed, or sitting in a couch, and the only exercise she was allowed to do were a couple of walks around the estate during the mornings and another couple during the afternoons.
Fortunately, there were more ways to train that didn't involve physical exercise. Hinata wasn't going to spend the time doing nothing and waiting until she was healed enough to go back into active duty.
"Hinata-sama, here I brought what you asked," A woman Hinata recognized as Natsu entered the living room. She was wearing a white arpon under a black kimono, which made her look like a maid, with only her konoha headband identifying her as a ninja. She was carrying a few scrolls under her arm, and a tray with a teapot and cups. "I brought you some tea as well."
"Thanks a lot, Natsu-san," Hinata thanked her with a nod. "And please, drop the '-sama'. The Branch House is no more. I'm no longer your superior."
"I beg to differ, Hinata-sama," Natsu said, as she placed the trail in the coffee table in front of Hinata, and the scrolls besides it, albeit at a prudent distance. She started to pour some tea into the cup. "You might have abolished the clan's castes, but you're the clan head, meaning that you're still my superior, Hinata-sama."
Hinata couldn't help but smile a little. She knew this was a battle she wasn't going to win. "If you say so, Natsu-san."
Hinata raised a hand, and a scroll flew towards it. As she unrolled the scroll and started to read it, she noticed Natsu taking a seat in another couch next to her. She supressed an eye roll. While she knew that Natsu was just following Hikari's orders, she couldn't help but feel a little frustrated over having a nanny again.
"If you're going to stay here as well, you might as well serve yourself some tea," Hinata offered the older woman.
"Thank you, Hinata-sama. I think I could use some," Natsu said, as she got up and poured some tea onto another cup.
At the very least, Natsu was silent enough to let Hinata read her scrolls in peace. Hell, she couldn't even hear her sipping her tea. She wondered what kind of training did they give her in order to achieve such level of silence. Not that such skill wasn't necessary for a ninja, even if she rarely did missions out of the estate, much less the village.
Soon, the Hyuga Clan Head found herself engrossed in the scrolls she had with her. The powers that the Tenseigan hid were beyond fascinating, and Hinata was a bit miffed that she wouldn't be able to put to test the knowledge she was gaining so far. Even then, there were a few jutsu that were small enough she would be able to discreetely practice
As Hinata read, she was unaware of the time that had passed. She took a sip from her cup of tea, but she realized it was empty.
"Oh," was all what Hinata said, but that was enough for Natsu to spring into action.
"Allow me, Hinata-sama," the maid-dressed kunoichi said as she got back on her feet.
"That won't be necessary," Hinata said, raising a hand. With a motion from that very hand, her cup floated back towards the tray. The teapot elevated into the air, and refilled both Hinata and Natsu's cups. Finally, she recalled back her cup while placing Natsu's into her hands. "There, easy and fast."
"Impressive, Hinata-sama," Natsu praised, before chuckling a little. "Though I think it would have taken me less time to refill your cup the old fashioned way," she giggled.
"It's okay. Besides, it serves me as a little training," Hinata replied.
A slight frown developed on the green haired woman's face. "Hinata-sama..."
"It's not strenous, I swear!" Hinata said defensively. "Come on, there's no way I can get hurt by doing something so insignificant as moving a teapot."
"Still, it would be better if you limited yourself to reading, Hinata-sama," Natsu advised.
"If that's going to stop you from being worried..." Hinata said. She was about to continue her reading, until a thought dawned upon her. Putting the scroll down once again, she looked at the older girl. "Natsu-san, may I ask you a question?"
"Of course, Hinata-sama. You can ask me anything you please," Natsu replied, smiling widely.
"Well, it's a bit personal in nature, but I want you to answer me with honesty," Hinata added.
"I'd never answer you any other way," Natsu assured her.
"Very well then," Hinata replied, nodding. "What do you think... of the Hyuga Main House?"
Natsu was clearly taken aback by the question, as her body language betrayed her. She hesitated for a few moments, while trying to come up with the best way to word it.
"I can assure you nobody outside this room will know about your answer. And said answer won't have any repercussions on my part, whatever it is," Hinata assured. But upon seeing Natsu stammering, she added. "Though if this question makes you uncomfortable, you're not forced to answer-"
"No, no!" Natsu cut her. "I'ts just...well, it's a delicate matter, and I wanted to look for the proper words in order to express myself correctly. While I hold no contempt for either you or Hanabi-sama, I admit I felt resentment for the Main House. For making us their servants. For taking our choices away from us. For branding our bodies with this," she put extra emphasis on the last word as she removed her forehead protector, showing Hinata her Caged Bird Seal, before quickly putting it up again. "I will forever be thankful to you, Hinata-sama, for releasing us from this yokel, even if only partially. But even today, the Main House members still look at me and my fellow former Branch House members with contempt. They don't see us as equals, and hate that you made us so."
Hinata nodded. "I know. Unfortunately, change can't happen overnight. I always thought that I could close the rift that separated the clan, but I never realized that a scar would take its place."
Natsu smiled at Hinata. "Don't stress yourself over that, Hinata-sama. All in the Branch House know that you're doing your best to help us. Who knows, maybe one day in the future, once the scar is fully healed, our descendants will forget that the clan was once divided."
"And for that to do so, I also need a way to remove the Caged Bird Seal," Hinata said, as she took one of the scrolls. "The Otsutsuki Clan created it, so there must be a way to remove it. Even if the Hyuga Clan erased such knowledge, there must be something here."
However, before she could resume her study, a booming noise followed by a tremor interrupted her. Then another. And another. And another .
"What's going on?" Natsu asked, as she activated her Byakugan. It took her little to find the source of the disturbance. "It seems that Hanabi-sama is sparring against Neji-san. Albeit such fight seems way too intense for a mere spar."
Hinata also expanded her sight, and saw ther little sister and cousin training. Hanabi was using the Tenseigan Chakra Cloak in its most basic level. She mostly attacked from the air, while Neji defended from her attacks and countered her when she was within hand to hand range.
"I see," Hinata said, as she telekinetically called her crutch, and walked out of the room. "I want to see them fight in person."
"Hinata-sama, no!" Natsu protested. "It's too dangerous to get so close to them like that. You can see them from here if you want."
"You worry too much, Natsu-san," Hinata dismissed Natsu's concerns with a hand wave. "Come on, let's go see my little sister and my cousin,"
Natsu let out a sigh of resignation, and followed the Clan Head.
…
Turns out, Hinata wasn't the only one interested in Hanabi and Neji's spar. Several Hyuga had gathered in the small training ground in order to witness such high level battle. Of course, they all moved aside whenever Hinata arrived, in order to make room for the Clan Head.
So far, none of the two appeared to be too exhausted. Hanabi was floating above Neji with her hands on fire, while the older boy had his eyes locked on her, his body placed in a defensive stance.
"Fire Release: Eight Trigrams Phoenix Fire!"
Hanabi thrust her arms downwards in a rapid fashion, releasing a fireball with each thrust. Neji, however, was undeterred and deflected the incoming fire bolts with precise chakra coated palm strikes, sending them to the ground. Seeing that it didn't work, Hanabi tried a different approach.
"Fire Release: Eight Trigrams: Double Burning Palm!"
Hanabi placed both palms forward, and dived at Neji from above, as her whole body was coated in fire. Neji, however, merely smirked.
"Is this the extent of your skill, Hanabi-sama?" Neji mocked, as he started to spin while streams of chakra shot from his body. "Heavenly Spin!"
However, Hanabi didn't look astonished or shocked, but much to the onlookers' surprise, she smirked. Just when she was about to crash against Neji, she managed to correct the trajectory of her dive and spin around Neji instead of diving into him. Hanabi continued to fly spins around Neji, and as she did, a tornado of fire started to form. Meanwhile, Neji's own rotation was starting to slow down.
"That was some rather quick thinking on Hanabi-sama's part," Natsu commented. "Neji is in trouble now."
"Don't count Neji-niisan out yet, Natsu-san," Hinata replied. "Hanabi-chan might beat him in raw power, but Neji is still her superior when it comes to skill and experience."
Hanabi stopped spinning as the tornado of flames fully formed, engulfing the older Hyuga within it. While the fire wouldn't hurt him much, the building heat would force him to concede.
"Of course not, Neji. See?" Hanabi cockily replied. "That's what happens when you-"
"Gate of Opening: Open!"
Everybody could see a massive burst of chakra coming from Neji's body, which managed to dispel the fire tornado in an instant, much to Hanabi's shock. A faint green aura surrounded the Hyuga prodigy's body.
"You were going to say something about underestimating the opponent, right?" Neji said, his smirk not disappearing.
"I'll never dream of underestimating you, Neji. That's why I'm going to throw at you the best I have," Hanabi replied, as her hands flew through hand seals, before clapping them together. "Truth Seeking Balls!"
Hanabi slowly separated her hands, forming two black orbs between them. Said orbs quickly placed themselves behind Hanabi.
"So it's not just Hinata-sama the one who managed to learn that jutsu," Neji observed, but his smile didn't falter. "You're very talented indeed, Hanabi-sama."
"Ha! I'm not going to let your flattery make me lower my guard!" Hanabi fired back, as he motioned an arm forward, and the two black spheres shot themselves at Neji.
The Hyuga genuis brough his palms together before motioning them forward.
"Mountain Crusher!"
Neji released a powerful wave of chakra from his palms that not only engulfed the Truth Seeking Balls, but it had enough power to reach Hanabi, violently hurling the younger Hyuga's backwards.
"Waaah!" Hanabi sputtered as she tried to regain balance.
"I might lack Six Paths Chakra, but my knowledge of advanced Gentle Fist techniques, combined with my-" Neji started to say, before he was interrupted by a pair of black orbs that smashed right into his gut, with such force it felt like Hanabi threw a building at him. "OOOF!"
Neji lost his balance, and fell on his back. During the couple seconds he took to hastily get back on his feet, he could see that Hanabi appeared behind him.
"Ha! You forgot about the Truth Seeking Ball's biggest strength: it nullifies any kind of chakra based attack!" Hanabi boasted, as she slipped into a familiar stance. "The match's over, you're within my divination range! Eight Trigrams, Sixty Four Palms!"
Neji did try to block Hanabi's strikes, but the unexpected force of the Truth Seeking Balls' impact had slowed his reflexes, and was too slow to parry them. As Hanabi completed the combo, Neji's chances of victory became smaller, until they hit zero at the same time Hanabi delivered the last set of strikes.
"...sixty four palms!" With a well placed thrust, Hanabi dealt the finishing blow, ending the match.
Those gathered there started to clap and praise the younger Tenseigan wielder for her impressive victory over the clan's resident genius. And while Hanabi reveled in all the praise, there was one person she appreciated it the most.
"Nee-chan!" Hanabi cheered, after locating Hinata among the small crowd, and rushed towards her. "Did you see that? I beat Neji!"
"Indeed you did. That was quite impressive of you, Hanabi-chan," Hinata praised.
"A truly spectacular match, Hanabi-sama," Natsu added.
Hanabi giggled at the compliments, blushing a little.
"Excuse me, but would you be so kindly to help me?" Neji said, still sprawled on the ground. "I can't barely move."
Wordlessly, Hinata walked towards Neji, crouched down, and started to heal his injuries and bruises while reopening the chakra points Hanabi had closed.
"You certainly need to step up your training, Nii-san," Hinata said in a mock chastising tone. "What would people say if they find out the pride of our clan was defeated by my little sister?"
"We all know that I'm no longer the pride of the clan, Hinata-sama," Neji rebutted. "Not after both you and Hanabi-sama awakened those eyes."
"Come on, you know you're the most skilled ninja the clan has ever produced, even if you don't have Six Paths chakra," Hinata stated. "That has to count for something, right?"
As Hinata repaired his body, Neji could feel he was able to move again. He sit up, and sighed.
"The Truth Seeking Balls caught me off guard. I was unaware that they could nullify chakra," Neji commented. "Guess it was my fault for treating them as any other ninjutsu, instead of play safe and see what they could do."
"Now that you know that, maybe next time you'll be able to beat Hanabi-chan," Hinata pointed out. "It's not that such jutsu makes one invincible. If that was the case, that Akatsuki wouldn't have defeated us during my last mission."
"Still, the ability to nullify ninjutsu or other chakra based attacks is sort of impressive," Neji commented. "If used correctly, it might mean the difference between victory and defeat. Or life and death."
Hinata agreed with a nod, feeling that another self-deprecating comment wouldn't add anything to the conversation.
Still, Neji brought a good point. No matter how big a ninjutsu would be, the Truth Seeking Balls would be able to nullify it. Recalling the battle against Pain and Konan, she wondered what she could have done to take advantage of such assets. It seemed those gravity attacks couldn't be countered in any way, though they were similar to their telekinetic abilities, so maybe she could so something with that.
Then there was the Pain that looked like a puppet, whose attacks weren't chakra based, or didn't appear to be. There was also the summoner. Could Truth Seeking Balls undo sumonnings? She'd had to test that one. Thankfully her boyfriend could be of help with that.
She didn't know how to counter chakra absorbtion or being able to revive other bodies. Plus there was that last body they didn't know anything about.
And then there was Konan. She appeared to be a long ranged fighter specialized in ninjutsu using papers. She wondered if the Truth Seeking Balls could nullify those as well. Plus there was her many, many, many explosive tags. Could those be nullified? Explosive tags were fuinjutsu rather than ninjutsu. But other chakra absorbing abilities were also capable of absorbing those kind of explosions, so she there was no reason as for why fuinjutsu couldn't be nullified as well.
...fuinjutsu could be nullified...
"Hinata-sama?" Neji asked, noticing his cousing zoning out.
Suddenly, something clicked inside her mind. The solution to one of her potential problems was right before her very eyes. It has been before his very eyes for so long. She felt so stupid. But there was no time to feel stupid. She had to act.
Getting up and grabbing her crutch, Hinata headed back inside as fast as her damaged legs allowed her to.
"Hinata-sama, don't run! You're going to get hurt!" Natsu cried, as she went after her. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"
…
Training Ground Ten, An Hour Later
"Hi there, everybody!" Naruto greeted as he entered the training field.
"Just in time. Excellent," Asuma greeted Naruto back, pleased, before turning to the others. "Today Naruto will be joining us for our daily training. I hope none of you mind."
All of them nodded and muttered something to express their approval
As Asuma had said, the whole Tactical Squad was present in the designated Training Ground to start their morning routine. Well, not just the Tactical Squad, as Naruto could see he wasn't the only guest there.
"Uh, Choji?" Naruto asked the rotund body. "Who is that guy?"
Naruto pointed to a pale skinned brunnete wearing midriff baring black clothes that hung with Ino.
"Oh, that's Sai," Choji explained, as he happily munched some chips. "He's Ino's boyfriend. Ino usually brings him to our training sessions."
"But don't even dare to say that out loud when she's within earshot," Shikamaru advised, as he walked towards the duo. "Ino gets rather mad if you say that. Even if they're rather close."
"Why is that?" Naruto asked. Looking at the blonde, she seemed rather chummy with the body, who nodded and smiled at everything she said.
Shikamaru merely shrugged. "Beats me. Troublesome woman." He huffed.
While Sai looked familiar, Naruto couldn't tell if he really knew him or not. Maybe he saw him a couple times in passing, but didn't ask his name.
"Is he strong?" Naruto asked, deciding it was good to get some info on the newcomer.
"He's a long range fighter, kinda like Ino and myself," Shikamaru explained.
"He has this jutsu that can bring anything he draws to life," Choji continued.
"The living pictures aren't that though and usually go down after a single hard hit," Shikamaru said. "But if used wisely, those living pictures can be quite a pain in the ass."
"Not to mention that he can overwhelm you with numbers," Choji added.
"So, kinda like my Shadow Clones?" Naruto asked.
"Can your Shadow Clones fly? Because some of his pictures can," Shikamaru dryly asked.
Naruto's eyes opened wide upon hearing such thing. "So, another ninja besides Hinata and Fu can fly as well. I need to find a way to do that."
Asuma's claps snapped Naruto from his brief thought, as the bearded Jonin drew everybody else's attention to him.
"Alright everyone, besides Sai, who by this point has been a common sight," Asuma said, looking at Ino and Sai, the blonde smiling at her sensei. "Today Naruto will be training with us. I'd like to take this chance to make several team exercises, before we move onto individual training."
Asuma's statements were met with a chorus of "yes!" and head nods.
"The fight will be Naruto versus everybody else. Fight as if it was a real battle. Don't worry, I'll stop the fight before the worse comes to pass," Asuma said, as his students and Sai mplaced themselves in front of Naruto, and all of them adopted fighting stances.
Naruto carefully eyed his opponents.
"It's been long since I've sparred against or even saw the Tactical Squad fighting. Neither of them are higher than Chunin, so this won't be too hard," Naruto thought, as his eyes drifted towards Sai. "Other than what Shikamaru told me, I have no idea what that guy can do. I should worry about him the most."
As his eyes jumped from one side of the spar to the other, Asuma decided it was time to start. "Now...begin!"
The moment the order left Asuma's lips, everybody slipped into position and prepared to attack using their usual abilities. Naruto began the fight with his signature jutsu.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Roughly fifty Naruto clones popped into life, and without waiting for their boss to order them, they charged forward.
Far from being impressed, Shikamaru chuckled and shook his head upon seeing the orange and black tidal wave coming at them. "Typical Naruto. Choji, shall we begin ourselves?"
"You can bet on it!" the Akimichi heir said as he clapped his hands together. "Partial Multi-Size Jutsu!"
Choji jumped into the air just as his arms grew to giant size. As he fell into the mass of clones, he slammed both arms into the ground, instantly destroying the clones unfortunate enough to fell victim to the brutal assault –so brutal, it opened a crater in the ground–, while creating a shockave that send surrounding clones flying.
"Good one, Choji," Shikamaru praised, as he crouched while interlocking his hands into the Nara's most used hand seal. "My turn: Shadow Sewing Jutsu!"
Threads of shadow emerged from Shikamaru's own, launching themselves towards the clones. But unlike the Nara's usual jutsu, these threads didn't travel across the ground, but the air, meaning that they were actually solid. Its purpose was made evident when the thread impaled several charging blondes that were unable to break in time. The clones coming from behind managed to avoid them, but between Shikamaru's shadow threads and Choji's rampaging attacks, their charge was swiftly abrupted.
Naruto, however, wasn't worried in the slightest. After all, that charge of clones was a mere distraction to keep Shikamaru and Choji occupied. However, Shikamaru and Choji were countering the charge in the most aggressive way possible in order to distract Naruto. Something Naruto was aware of.
"I was wondering when you guys would show up," Naruto casually mentioned, as he started making hand seals. Looking up, he saw Ino and Sai flying above him atop one of Sai's ink birds. "Hmm, so that's Sai's jutsu. It looks quite versatile indeed."
"Damn, he spotted us!" Ino cursed.
"It's okay. Let's go with the plan as we agreed," Sai told the blonde.
Ino jumped from the bird, making a hand seal as she fell.
"Mind Control-"
"Too slow, Ino," Naruto laughed, as he prepared to unleash his own jutsu. "Wind Release: Cyclone Vortex!"
Naruto thrust both hands upwards, lining up both the descending Ino and the still ariborne Sai, and cast a huge tornado that engulfed all of them.
"You're going to need more than that to distract me, you know," Naruto cockily said.
Sai fell from his bird, the latter exploding into ink as it was destroyed. However, much to Naruto's confusion, Sai and Ino also burst into blots of ink, as they were carried away by the powerful wind jutsu.
"What?" the blond dumbly asked.
"Mind Scourge Jutsu!"
Naruto fel't as if somebody hammered his brain from the inside. Clutching his head, the sudden pain bent the jinchuriki down to his knees. But as soon as the pian come, it went away, much to Naruto's confusion.
"Liked that?" Ino's voice said from behind. Naruto turned around, and saw the Yamanka smirking at him.
"I wasn't expecting for you to be dumb enough to be fooled by an ink clone," Sai said, as he landed besides Ino. "Guess I overestimated you."
"And now, you're at our mercy!" Ino claimed, as he slipped into a fighting stance.
"Ha! You'd wish!" Naruto made a hand seal. "Shadow Clone-AAAAAHHH!"
There it was. The mental pain was back. Except this time it was ten times worse. As if somebody cut his brain with a searing knife. What did Ino do to him?
"Enjoy my Mental Scourge jutsu? As you have noticed, it triggers whenever you use ninjutsu, so unless you have an exceptionally high tolerance for mental pain, I wouldn't recommend you using that," Ino told Naruto, clearly pleased with herself. "I created it myself!"
"Let's finish this already," Sai neutrally stated, as he unfurled a blank scroll, and started to draw several animals. "Super Beast Imitating Drawing!"
"Water Release: Water Gun!"
Still clutching his head, Naruto got up and tried to get away, just as Ino fired several water bullets from her index finger, while several ink tigers emerged from Sai's scroll. Fortunately for Naruto, several of his nearby clones noticed the original's predicament, and quickly rushed to his aid. Some of them jumped in front of Ino's water jutsu, while the others wrestled and fought against the ink tigers, while another one helped Naruto to move away.
"Man, I wasn't expecting these guys to be this crafty!" Naruto thought, cursing his own overconfidence. "And now I can't even use ninjutsu? How the hell I'm going to fight them?"
"Very well, all of you! Great teamwork when executing your tactic!" Asuma's raised his voice to praise his students, while clapping slightly. "Come on Naruto, I know there's still fight in you! I refuse to believe my wife is such a lousy sensei!"
"He was expecting this. He knew that, despite not being that strong individually, the Tactical Squad becomes a monster when they fight together. Plus they have Sai as additional reinforcements," Naruto thought, as the realization dawned upon him. "He knew they'd push me against the ropes, and get ready to counter my usual tactics. Meaning that there's only one solution left... I need to improvise and make the most of what I still have!"
"Everybody, come back!" Naruto called.
His few remaining clones stopped fighting Shikamaru and Choji, and followed their boss into a cluster of trees, running away from the Tactical Squad.
"After him! Don't let him escape!" Shikamaru called, as he and the rest of his teammates converged to catch the fleeing blonds.
The clones, however, pulled several smoke bombs from their ninja tool pouches and tossed them in multiple directions, engulfing the whole zone in smoke, stopping the Tactical Squad in their tracks.
"I can still sense him! Let's go after them!" Ino called.
"Ino, watch out!" Shikamaru called out, as he pulled the blonde away.
At that moment, a chain of explosions rocked the area, hurling Shikamaru and Ino backwards. The two of them coughed a little, before helping each other stand out. They were joined soon afterwards by Sai and Ino.
"Good eye, Shikamaru. Didn't notice the explosive tags," Ino said, as she wiped some dust from her top and skirt. "Man, Naruto isn't pulling any punches, is he?"
"You pushed him into a corner with that jutsu of yours," Shikamaru pointed out. "And you know what they say about cornered animals."
"He recalled his clones," Choji pointed out.
"Because thanks to Ino's jutsu, he won't be able to create more for some time," Shikamaru told Choji. He then turned at Ino. "How long does your jutsu last?"
"It varies. Between ten and thirty minutes, depending on the target's stamina and mental fortitude," Ino explained.
"Ten minutes it is," Shikamaru said.
"Even then, it's safest to assume that the jutsu will run out sooner rather than later," Sai said. "Can you sense him?"
Ino closed her eyes and made a hand seal. After several seconds, she opened her eyes again. "Got him. He and his remaining clones, I think there are seven, are gathered at the top of a tree, hidden behind its canopy."
"He's probably planning how to ambush us as we speak. Let's go, I'll tell you what are we going to do to bring him down," Shikamaru said.
The other three nodded, and headed towards Naruto's position.
…
Meanwhile, a top a large tree of the training ground, Naruto and his remaining clones planned what to do next.
"Man, this is bad. I can't use ninjutsu, I can't create more clones," Naruto moaned, as he pulled out his Wind Blade, and activated it. "Head not feeling as if it's about to explode. I guess that I can still use chakra to some extent. That's good. What else do we have?"
"Kunai and shuriken," a clone said.
"Fuma Shuriken as well," another clone said.
"A few explosive tags and elemental tags," a third clone asked.
"And some smoke bombs and ninja wire," a fourth clone concluded.
"Okay, I may not be Shikamaru, but I'm smart and resourceful. I'm sure I can make the most of what little we have," Naruto said, in a effort to gather some courage for his task ahead. "Guess that this situation will be the norm when I fight Akatsuki in the future."
"Watch out! Up there!" a clone urgently whispered.
Everybody looked up, and they could see Sai and Ino, riding one of the former's ink birds, flying in circles around the area. Naruto instantly knew that he had been found –not that surprising, given that Ino was a sensor, but he was hoping for some more time to plan–.
"Is that the real Sai? Or is he an Ink Clone? I don't want to fall for that trick again," Naruto said.
"I think we should let them make the next move. We got into this mess because we rushed into things," a clone suggested.
"Good idea, me. We'll wait, see what they do, and counterattack," Naruto decided.
…
While Naruto wasn't aware of it, those flying above him in circles were the real Sai and Ino. Like Naruto, they were waiting for the blond and his clones to come out to fight them, but he knew better than that.
"It doesn't appear that he's coming out from his hiding place," Ino guessed, as she looked down.
"We'll have to force him out then," Sai decided, as he unfurled another scroll, and with practiced ease, quickly drew several birds. "Super Beast Imitating Drawing!"
The birds jumped out of the scroll, and without waiting for a verbal command, they all dived at the tree where Naruto was hiding.
"Very well then. I'll tell Shikamaru and Choji to be prepared," Ino said, before making a hand seal and closing her eyes.
…
The result of their tactic became evident. Naruto and his clones jumped out of the tree, fleeing from the flock of ink birds that were badgering them with pianful pecks and scratches.
"Aw!"
"Goddamn pests!"
"Go away!" a clone yelled, throwing a kunai at one of the ink birds.
"Shadow Sewing Jutsu!"
Once again, Naruto and his clones were assaulted by a mass of black shadowy threads, forcing the group to split in several directions, in order to force Shikamaru to choose between several targets. They could see Shikamaru not that far away from them, standing below the shadow of a large tree.
"Stop running! Attack Shikamaru!" Naruto ordered.
A trio of his clones nodded, and pulled several shuriken, which they threw at him. Shikamaru, however, created more shadow threads which he used to deflect the shuriken away.
"Quickly, now! Let's flank him! He can't attack us if we're spread wide around him!" Naruto said, as he and his clones charged towards Shikamaru in an expanding circular formation.
"That's not a half bad plan to counter my jutsu, Naruto," Shikamaru praised with a grin. "Too bad I'm not the only opponent you're against."
As if on cue, Sai and Ino dived at what they presumed was the original Naruto. The blond quickly turned around, unsealed a Fuma Shuriken from a small scroll, and tossed it at the bird. The ink construct instantly burst into several black blots, spraying them everywhere. Sai and Ino managed to jump in time , the former unsheathing the tanto strapped to his back.
"Oh, so you know how to fight in close range?" Naruto asked, as he parried the blow with his Wind Blade.
"A good ninja can fight both close and from afar. Anything less is unacceptable," Sai replied, as he struck Naruto with quick and precise blows.
"Damn, this guy is pretty good in close combat as well, I can hardly keep up," the blond distressingly thought, as Sai pushed him back with each strike.
"Boss, we're getting a bit overwhelmed here!" a Naruto clone who was trying to hold off Shikamaru's shadow threads called, before he was pierced by one of them. "OUCH!"
Naruto could feel the clone's few memories entering his mind as it was dispelled, which caused nothing but more stress to the original.
"Dammit, dammit! What do I do? I can't go down so soon, I barely did anything!" Naruto distressingly thought. "It was a good thing that I had these clones before Ino nailed me with that jutsu, but how can I use them in a way that... hey, wait a second, that's it!"
"Boss, any ideas?" a clone asked, who tried to fend off another thread.
"Yes, ninjutsu! Use it!" Naruto called. Upon sensing their hesitation, Naruto insisted. "Come on, do what I say!"
The clones obediently nodded, and started to make different sequences of hand seals.
"Naruto, what are you doing? You can't use ninjutsu, unless you want to experience the biggest headache ever!" Ino called out. While it wasn't smart to stop your enemy when he was making a mistake, the Yamanaka kunoichi was so baffled that she couldn't help but ask.
"Wind Release: Cyclone Vortex!"
"Water Release: Wild Water Wave!"
"Fire Release: Fire Bullet!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
The Tactical Squad found themselves at the wrong end of several gusts of wind, bolts of fire, and a torrent of water, forcing them to disengage Naruto and fall back. And much to their shock –Ino's in particular– none of the clones were suffering from any ill effect of Ino's jutsu.
"How...how is it possible?" a bewildered Ino asked. "Are clones immune to my jutsu?"
"Those clones were created before you used your jutsu on Naruto, therefor they're exemt from it," Shikamaru explained, coming with such realization that very moment. "Sorry, I should have realized it earlier and plan for a countermeasure in advance."
"Thank goodness we didn't show all of our cards yet," Ino replied, as she closed her eyes. "Choji, your turn now."
"On it!" Choji's voice replied in her mind.
With all the chaos surrounding him, Naruto hadn't realized that Choji wasn't among his attackers. The Akimichi heir had shrunk himself to the size of a doll, and was flying on a smaller ink bird drawn by Sai. The bird started to fly in circles around the original Naruto, surrounded by his clones, who were pelting the rest of the Tactical Squad and Sai with elemental ninjutsu.
"Alright then, here we go!" Choji said, as he jumped from the bird, and started to fall towards Naruto. "Reverse Multi Size Jutsu: Cancel!"
Bringing his palms together, Choji undid the jutsu, and instantly returned to normal size. Naruto saw a shadow falling over him, and looked up, but it was too late.
"What the-?"
"Got you!"
Choji slammed against Naruto, painfully pinning the blond to the ground. And if such brutal attack wasn't enough, the Akimichi wrapped his arms around the jinchuriki's body, pinning Naruto's arms against his body, leaving him completely immobilized.
"ACK!" Naruto could barely scream.
The clones noticed what happened, and turned around.
"Boss!" several clones said in unison, as they tried to help the original.
This proved to be a fatal mistake, as it gave Shikamaru, Ino and Sai ample chance to destroy all of them with their ninjutsu, or with tanto slashes in the case of the former.
"Can't...move..." Naruto breathed out, as he futilely struggled to break free from Choji's bear hug.
At that moment, Asuma landed besides them, watching everybody with analitical eyes.
"Alright then, I think I saw enough. Good job, guys," Asuma praised his students and Sai, before looking at Choji. "You can release him now."
Wordlessly, Choji released Naruto, before standing on his feet. He then offered Naruto a hand to stand up, a hand Naruto gratefully accepted.
"Thanks," Naruto told the Akimichi. "Good match. You guys are a force to be reckoned with."
"Of course! That's the Ino-Shika-Cho for you!" Ino proudly said, before moving closer to Sai. "With some little assitance!"
"It's amazing how well you guys can coordinate. I barely heard you exchaning words!" Naruto exclaimed.
"That's thanks to Ino's Mind Fragmentation jutsu," Choji told him.
"Huh?"
"It's another jutsu I created," Ino explained, beaming with pride. "It allows to split my mind into tiny pieces and temporarily transfer them to my teammates. That way, not only our minds are connected, but I can see and heard everything they see and hear. You could say our minds become one!"
"Wow, that jutsu is really impressive!" Naruto praised.
Even if it wasn't some flashy or destructive ninjutsu, Naruto could see how useful such an ability was. That was the kind of new skills he seeked to develop. Something that allowed him to become a more versatile ninja.
"Before we start the training, I want you to reflect on the spar, Naruto," Asuma began, as he walked towards him. "You'll agree with me that the moment things started to go south for you was when Ino hit you with her Mind Scourge Jutsu, right?"
"Yeah. Not being able to use ninjutsu was a real bummer," Naruto replied, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"And why did you allow Ino to sneak close enough to use her jutsu on you?" Asuma asked.
"Sai fooled me with a bunch of clones," was Naruto's reply.
"And you didn't had the possibility in mind? Weren't you on guard from a potential attack from behind?" Asuma sternly asked, as he crossed his arms.
"Boy, this is embarrasing..." Naruto chuckled, as he ran a hand through his hair. "Usually, I have Sage Mode, which gives me sensorial abilities. Or if that fails, I usually rely on Hinata-hime for such things."
Asuma nodded. "Guess this is why you wanted additional training, right? You were starting to become complacent, and that attitude started to erode your skills. I mean, you didn't even notice that Choji wasn't there during the second fight."
"This was a real eye opener. If you guys were Akatsuki..." Naruto uneasily said.
"That's what these spars are for," Asuma said, sounding now a little more friendly. "Not only we will help you with your initial concerns, we'll make sure you're a great ninja no matter the situation. There's a reason as for why my team it's called the Tactical Squad."
Naruto enthusiastically nodded, and smiled widely, his inner fire returning. "Alright then, let's begin!"
…
Gekko Residence
"You know, it's kind of weird seeing you in the house so often," Yugao said, as she entered the living room.
There she saw her adopted soon reading a book.
"Given that I'm not fit for any physical training," Haku motioned his arm on a sling for added emphasis. "There's not much I can do. Though if I'm being a bother, I can go outside. It's a nice day, even if it's a bit cloudy."
"Of course not, Haku," Yugao reassured, as she sat besides him. "I love to have you here more often."
"Well, given that I can't be of much help here with house chores nor taking care of Seiichi-kun..." Haku said, leaving the sentence hanging.
"Again, don't worry. You should focus on getting yourself better," Yugao insisted, before taking a look at the book he was reading. "What is that?"
"Advanced Genjutsu Theory," Haku explained. "I may not be able to traing in taijutsu nor ninjutsu, but at the very least I can do this. That's what Kurenai-sensei was doing during her pregnancy."
"That's very diligent of you, Haku," Yugao nodded, as she smiled at him.
"That's what's so good about genjutsu. You can practice it even if you can't be physically active," Haku stated. "Just like now, for example. You think you're taling to the real Haku, but this is just a genjutsu."
Yugao shot the Ice Ninja a look. Haku returned the stare, and smiled at her. Yugao conceded, and made a hand seal, releasing a burst of chakra through her body. Haku was still there. The boy giggled.
"I can believe I tricked you like that," he said, chuckling softly. "Some ANBU you are."
Yugao scolwed playfully, before lightly punching Haku in the arm –thankfully the one that wasn't on a sling–.
"Once you get back to normal, I'm going to make you pay for that in a sparring match," Yugao promised him.
"Good. It will be a nice way to get back into shape after all these weeks of inactivity," Haku earnestly replied, smiling at her.
Yugao sighed. "I can't just win with you, can I?"
"Besides you and Hayate-san, and I was also trained by Zabuza-sama. And of course, I was able to tell which training method was the most brutal," Haku explained. "I doubt there's anything you can do to me worse than anything Zabuza-sama put me through."
Yugao was about to answer something when somebody knocked the door. Wordlessly, the purplette got up and left the living room. A minute later, she returned accompanied by somebody else.
"Hey, Haku-kun, look who came to see you," Yugao told him with a wide smile.
Haku returned the smile. "Tenten!"
"I think I'll leave you alone," the ANBU said before leaving.
Tenten thanked her, before sitting besides her boyfriend.
"Hey there," Tenten said.. "My team and I came from a mission earlier than we thought, so I decided that maybe I could spend some time with you."
"I'm really glad to hear it," Haku replied. "I could use some company other than Hayate-san and Yugao-san."
"Good. Because Gai-sensei and Lee have been particularly obnoxious with their self imposed challenges, and I need to vent some steam," Tenten grinned, as she placed both arms around the Ice Ninja's neck.
"As long as you're careful, I'm all yours," he said with an eager smile.
…
Training Ground Ten
After the fight against Asuma's students and Sai, Asuma had created a clone to train with Naruto, while the real one went to train the rest.
Naruto felt the training with Asuma was fruitful, even if truth be told they haven't done much in the way of training, more like trading ideas for new, innovative wind jutsu. He felt that this would be the set up for something big.
"I wonder why we never had a talk like this before, given that we're the only two wind element users in the entire village," Asuma had said with a laugh.
After that, Asuma had told everybody to take a short break to catch their breath and stretch their muscles. Shikamaru used such opportunity to lie down and watch the clouds, Choji to eat another bag of chips, while Ino was filing her nails. And lastly, Sai was resting against a tree, drawing something on his sketchbook.
Naruto didn't know much about the weird, pale looking boy, so he thought it would be a good chance to meet him.
"Hey there!" Naruto greeted as he walked to him. "I don't think we've been introduced. My name's Naruto."
"I know who you are. I don't think anybody in this village doesn't know about the elder of the Hokage's children," Sai replied in a confusingly polite tone, while he continued working on his picture. "And I think you know who I am, since Ino and the others told you about me."
"Well, yeah, but even with that, we never spoke to each other before, so I think introductions were in order," Naruto tried to justify.
Sai stopped drawing, and smiled at him. It was a smile that unnerved the blond. "Of course. A social convention. Ino told me of those. I try to follow them as much as I can, but most of them don't make much sense to me."
"They don't have to, just go with the flow," Naruto said with a shrug. He had the feeling that trying to get to know this guy better was going to be an uphill battle. He wondered what the hell did Ino see in him in order to become so close.
"I heard about your last mission," Sai bluntly stated, taking Naruto aback a little. "It's a pity that it ended in such failure."
Naruto sadly nodded. "That's why I'm here. I want to get all the training I can so the next one has a different outcome."
"I hope you do. Konoha could certainly benefit from having a third jinchuriki among its ranks," Sai stated.
Naruto frowned, and crossed his arms. He didn't like where this conversation was going. "Hey, it's not a matter of collecting jinchuriki, but saving lives, and making sure Akatsuki doesn't get their dirty hands on the Tailed Beasts."
Sai's smile didn't falter, and nodded. "Of course, such things are important too. But wouldn't Konoha be able to face its enemies, such as this Akatsuki, if we had powerful ninja like jinchuriki among our ranks?"
Naruto wanted to rebutt that question, but found himself unable to. "...I guess you have a point there. But like I said before, that's not the main goal of the jinchuriki rescue."
"It seems you care about them on a personal level," Sai noted. "Even if you never met them. Why is that?"
"Because we're the same," Naruto replied.
"That doesn't make sense," Sai said, shaking his head. "Do you feel such a strong bond with every blond haired person on earth? With everybody who has blue eyes? With everybody who has a penis?"
"What the...? No!" Naruto angrily snapped. "Being a jinchuriki goes beyond something so shallow! A jinchuriki bears a huge burden. Not only carrying a Tailed Beast is a constant source of danger for us, but people tend to fear and avoid us, due said danger. And what's worse, none of us chose to be jinchuriki. It was the villages that forced such burden upon us."
Sai had stopped smiling, and stared at Naruto intently with his black eyes, as if he was slowly reflecting Naruto's words.
"I see," he said, averting his gaze. "And do you hate the people who sealed the Nine Tails within you?"
"No, I don't," Naruto replied, his anger subsiding. "I know the circumstances behind the sealing. Only a member of the Uzumaki Clan can hold the Nine Tails, and back then, I was the only one available. There weren't other options. So in the end I had to accept this and move on."
"Of course. Sometimes sacrifices need to be made for a greater good," Sai said, nodding, as he went back to his drawing. "In the end, the two of us aren't that different."
"Huh? What does that mean?" Naruto asked, as he scratched the side of his head in confusion.
"It's nothing," Sai waved off. "Shall we resume the training?"
…
Land of Earth
Trekking through a forest near the base of a mountain, there was an old man. He sported a red beard, a blue mark that crossed his face in an horizontal manner, and wore an Iwakagure forehead protector. A voice resonated within the man's head.
"You know, we're pretty close to your former home, Roshi. Have you ever thought about going back?"
"You should know already that I'm not going back. At least, not yet, Four Tails," Roshi replied.
The Tailed Beast growled upon being called such a thing, but kept the furstration to himself. This was more important.
"I've felt another one disappear. This time, it was Saiken," the Tailed Beast replied. "Something is happening, Roshi. Somebody is hunting us. I think we might be in danger."
"Of course. The villages, major and minor, always went after us. You're not telling me anything I don't know, monkey," Roshi rebutted.
"This is not like the other times! I can't sense my siblings anymore! This serious! Will you listen to me just for once in your life, you stubborn old man?" the Four Tails roared.
"Are you afraid that somebody might have find a way to take you out permanently?" Roshi asked, enjoying the fear the normally proud and haughty monkey was feeling.
"That's not possible. There's only one reason my siblings would disappear like this," the monkey warned. "And that doesn't spell anything good for your kind."
Author's Note: So yeah, another chapter dedicated to both training, and setting up future plots. I often fear thatreaders might find these chapters boring, but it's not rare to see them getting more and better reception than the action-packed chapters. So I'll be hoping for a warm reception for this one as well.
I hope you enjoyed Naruto's fight against the Ino-Shika-Cho trio (plus Sai), and you're not too miffed over the fact that he lost. Not only it was four versus one, but I also wanted to showcase the deficiencies Naruto had developed over relying so much on Sage Mode (such as not being attentive to his surroundings since Sage Mode gives him powerful sensorial abilities).
Thanks to Ookami88 for betareading this chapter.
And as the last scene showed, this chapter was the introduction to the Roshi Arc! This arc will also introduce Naruto's new team for the mission, which, as said in a previous chapter, it will be bigger than the usual four man squad. With this new team, will Naruto be able to save Roshi, or will he also fall prey to the Akatsuki? In the meantime, leave a review with your thoughts on this chapter! Reviews make me really, really, really happy!