Disclaimer: The Naruto universe and characters are copyright of the original creator and the producing companies, I make no claim on copyrights not my own. However, the majority of the material in this story is original, and my own property, including all original characters, techniques, and events.
Author's Notes: Well, here's the next chapter, and it's a long one. I'm introducing new characters that are going to be a significant part of the story, so there's a lot of important stuff here. Also, there's some action, because I can't possibly introduce new characters without showing off some cool moves.Thanks to all reviewers!
Chapter 3 – Forming Harsh LinksThe ninja academy of Lightning had been damaged heavily in the fighting, Gosain knew that much, he had fought atop its domed roof during the coup. Electrical techniques and destructive weapons had collapsed great portions of the building as successive waves of fighting passed over it that night. The repairs had only now begun, with workmen crawling all over the building assessing what could be done. Even to Gosain's untrained eyes it did not look hopeful, it seemed that the massive building might need to be scrapped so that they could build another one from nothing. Of course, that would take time, and money, and would make it difficult to train additional students. Even the smallest problems seem to do nothing but compound our troubles, Gosain thought ruefully as he approached the building. Damn you, all you traitors who fought for the Dark Storm, he thought again for the thousandth time.
They were not yet waiting for him, the three genin, as Gosain had arrived early, having received little sleep. So he took up a comfortable position leaning against one of the still sturdy pillars and waited for these genin to arrive. If they did not arrive on time Gosain fully intended to leave anyone who was late standing there, ninja who were not punctual were certainly not ready for what was about to be forced upon them. There were three students coming for Gosain, two boys and one girl, he knew their descriptions, and expected he would be able to pick them out from among the nine students who were to become genin today. All they had to do was arrive.
"Yo!" The voice came from above Gosain's head, and it was followed by the descent of a young student from the ceiling, hanging upside down on a chord. "You the sensei?" The boy asked.
Gosain inclined his head slightly, examining the youth. He was a slender boy, with average height and grubby spiked brown hair that looked like it made a practice of disobeying the comb every morning. The face was spilt with a bright smile, beneath a sharp nose and green eyes. His body practically quivered with energy. He wore a bright blue pair of short leggings and a sleek blue coat, which made him stand out vividly, even among the blue colors favored in Lightning architecture. This rather irritating appearance certainly belonged to Mesemay Hachi, the sprightly genin who had been noted as a prankster.
Looking at this hanging image Gosain noticed something else, and took a step back. "Why don't you dispel the bushin Hachi?" Gosain directed his words back over his shoulder. "It's quite obvious that the rope's not taught enough to support your whole weight. A bag of flour perhaps?"
"Ah, you're no fun sensei," The replication said as in vanished in a puff of smoke, which did indeed drop a bag of flour onto the ground to make a great and puffy mess.
Gosain, having anticipated this, merely sidestepped the cloud of whiteness by moving behind the pillar and getting a look at the true image of the student. Hachi was exactly like his replication, though his grin in person was a little less happy and more cuttingly amused.
"Is this how you usually greet people?" Gosain asked simply.
"Sometimes," Hachi replied. "It works better when they don't get the trick."
"That wasn't much of a trick," Gosain said frankly.
"Well, yeah." Hachi replied, his smile suddenly replaced by a serious look. "You got here so early that I didn't have much time to prepare though."
"Oh," Gosain accepted. "Regardless, sit tight and don't try anything foolish until the others get here." As he said that Gosain took another long look at Hachi, trying to get a sense of the ninja. The boy was evasive, and constantly in motion, fidgeting. It was hard to get a sense of anything beneath all that nervous energy. Recalling the information he had been given Gosain tried to gather something more. Mesemay Hachi, eleven years old. Top marks in practical skills, such as ninjutsu, throwing, infiltration, and stealth, lower marks on written exams, but still solid. The only marks on his reputation were his incorrigible pranking, which had apparently harassed his teachers excessively. Strangely, Hachi apparently took more joy in pulling the prank, than the actual joke that resulted. An unusual boy, but still a child, Gosain decided. I wonder if he can fuel that energy effectively when he must.
That thought occupied Gosain until the next student arrived.
This one was likewise a young boy, a student that could barely be called a ninja. Indeed, his face was even more youthful than that of Hachi, with simple clean eyes and a lack of malice. He was unremarkable, as most young ninja are, with brown free hanging hair and soft brown eyes. His face was young and open, hiding nothing, and he wore simply an imitation of the chuunin's uniform, sized for a younger body. The only thing remarkable about him was his weapon, a short, taught bow that he carried over his shoulder. Gosain recognized this one as well, a twelve year old student, his marks high in all categories, though not at the top, but a superb archer, despite that profession's rarity among ninja. The bow was not a weapon favored by many ninja, since it was almost useless indoors, and though stealthy, most ninja found thrown weapons such as kunai far more useful. So, this is Gashao Koto, Gosain looked at this student. He is so young, he is not ready for this, what is coming will chew him up. Gosain thought these things, but masked his face to the young archer. Hopefully, as a sniper, he might survive long enough to learn what he must. Gosain hoped that, but already, he did not believe it.
"You are Gashao Koto?" Gosain asked simply.
"Yes," Koto replied. "You are our sensei? Good to meet you!" He smiled happily.
Gosain winced inwardly. "Are you familiar with Hachi? He is to be your teammate."
"Ah," Koto said sourly with a grimace. "I'm stuck with you Hachi?" He stared at the other student. "That means I'll be stuck dealing with your stupid pranks all the time."
"Heheh," Hachi smirked. "Perfect."
"Save your pranks for the enemy," Gosain said sternly. "You'd better not think I'd give you the free time for any such things against your teammates."
"Will it be that bad sensei?" Koto asked.
"Probably it will be worse," Gosain answered. "But that can wait until the last of you has arrived."
She would arrive precisely on time, something that Gosain found appropriate. While the other two had not surprised him, this one did, even though he had expected something different. Her file had given him quite a bit to think about, but when he saw her, he recognized that it had left glaring gaps. She was a small girl, substantially shorter than even Hachi, despite being three years older than he was. However, her form held a compact strength, with tight and sturdy muscles visible in her stride. She wore a tight blue jumpsuit that went down to her forearms and knees, and covered it with a small oversuit of the mesh garb many ninja wore, and a sturdy padded jacket, one designed to absorb blows. Her hair was a glossy black, though it seemed to have tinges of a deep blue, a color that reminded Gosain of the Dark Storm's servants' garb. Her eyes were a bright green-blue, the color of the ocean when it smashed into the shore, a very strange color, but one that made her heritage clear. Those eyes were piercing, even though her movements were reserved, and she did not say anything as she approached. So, Gosain thought with interest. This is Stomatoa Saki, the fourteen-year-old daughter of Stomatoa Vesu, the youngest daughter of the traitor clan. How unusual.
Saki wore the lightning forehead protector clearly atop her head, while Hachi had concealed his on his arm, and Koto wrapped his about his right leg. It was an unusual contrast, especially as Gosain knew these students had only been given those emblems this very morning. Only Saki had chosen to display hers prominently, yet she was of questionable loyalty. Had she been born twenty years ago she wore wear the forehead protector of the Mist ninja, not ours. Gosain knew that, he had reread the history of the Stomatoa clan yesterday after what had happened during the ceremony. He knew how they entire clan, under the leadership of Vesu, had left Mist during a particularly brutal war twenty-three years past, after the former Mizukage had betrayed the clan and left them to die. The remnant of the clan had come to Lightning, where they had been accepted, but always they were still regarded as traitors. They wielded strange techniques from water, and it was said they imitated sea creatures in their fighting, not the way of lightning.
This one is the daughter of the head of the clan. Her father held her back from the academy for three years, yet when she finally entered she excelled in everything, graduating with marks higher than any ninja in recent memory, they say she might be a genius ninja, or perhaps she was just schooled at home for extra time, none of her teachers knew. Pity I can't ask them, Gosain had thought the night before, since they're all dead, it might have made it easier to deal with this young woman. Having read the data on Saki, and recalling the Raikage's words, Gosain expected it was her that he was intended to turn into a real ninja, but he refused to look at it that way. I will treat them all the same, and they will succeed or fail on their own merits.
Saki approached the three standing by the academy, but said nothing.
"Stomatoa Saki?" Gosain inquired.
"Yes." She replied, in a soft and simple voice.
Awfully quiet, Gosain remarked. I wonder why? He noted a certain conservation of movement in Saki's motion as she walked. Perhaps she carries over that method to all forms of life. She must have an unusual fighting style to move that way though. Gosain's own fighting style was expressive and forceful, and his motions were similar to it as a result, lacking subtlety. Saki was not subtle, exactly, but Gosain thought he detected a strange choppiness to the way she moved, as if she went from one position to another as quickly as possible, spending very little time in the transition. It lent a sort of jerky unreality to the way she walked.
"Well, since you are all here, we will get moving." Gosain told his new students.
"Where are we going?" Hachi asked absently.
"To a practice field outside the village," Gosain replied readily. "We can talk as we walk." He added, and started walking.
Koto quickly jogged up beside Gosain, his shorter legs pumping quickly in an attempt to match Gosain's much longer and stronger stride. "Um, sensei?" He asked cautiously. "Who are you? They didn't tell us."
"Kabure Gosain," Came the curt reply.
"No way!" Hachi protested when he heard that, his tone incredulous. "You can't be Gosain! He doesn't look at all like you."
Gosain gave a sour smile at this, and turned his head to face Hachi. "Oh? Gosain doesn't look like me?" He laughed. "Don't stop walking Hachi," He admonished. "But tell me, what do I look like?"
"Well, Gosain's older than you right?" Hachi began. "He's a real adult, not somebody like you, and he's got scars all over his body, you've only got a few on the face. One of the genin that fought with him told me Gosain had a voice like thunder, and eyes of lightning, and well, you don't quite measure up to that." Hachi gave a sarcastic smile. "Besides, Gosain has chains, right, I mean everybody knows those are his weapons, and you haven't got any chains." He spoke as if that settled it.
"Really?" Gosain looked back at Hachi again. "I seem to have confused some people somehow." Outwardly Gosain smiled, but inside he felt a queer pit in his stomach. This sort of thing was not at all amusing to him. "Well, perhaps your friend saw me during the fighting. I might have looked older then, since I was tired, but I'm eighteen, I know that much, and I do have a few scars." Gosain fingered the long scar on right side of his face, and the shorter one on his chin for emphasis. "There are others, you just can't see them." Gosain could feel those scars, the ones on his chest, and the terrible burn scar on his right shoulder, where he had taken a brutal blast of lightning on his trek to bring back Draci Xi, and others. "Likewise, I can shout surprisingly loud if I must. However, if it's chains you wish as evidence, I'm sure you'll get your chance. I do have them with me." I wonder if you can figure that out, Hachi, Gosain wondered. Do you realize I'm wearing the chains under my shirt even now?
"I believe you're Gosain, sensei," Koto said from his other side. "It's an honor to have you teach us."
"No it isn't," Gosain said coldly and flatly, making the statement very clear.
"B-b-but..." Koto began.
"Kabure Gosain is a chuunin." Saki said from behind the three, speaking up for the first time. She said nothing more, but let the statement hang in the air.
Koto gave her a blank look, and even Hachi seemed a bit confused, so Gosain filled them in, not willing to tell these students anything but the truth.
"She's correct," He said sadly. "I'm a chuunin, not a jounin, as should be teaching you. There aren't enough jounin, so the Raikage has broken the tradition. There isn't any choice. I intend to do my best to instruct you, but my abilities are limited. I am sorry, your abilities deserve better, but we must conform to what the times allow."
"Oh." Koto said. Hachi and Saki said nothing.
The rest of the walk proceeded in silence. Gosain stared firmly ahead, trying to sort out his feelings, and the three students followed him. What do I do with them? Gosain still couldn't answer that question. Having seen the students he was still unsure of their talents. They seem to have some ability, but I can't tell. Hachi's not serious; Koto is naïve, and Saki mysterious. That won't do. I need to figure things out, and fast, there's only a week. We are going to have a mission then, and if I cannot determine what the skills of these three are then I don't think I will be able to keep any of them alive. Gosain did not kid himself; he knew that for a while at least it would be up to him to keep these genin alive on missions, they would be up against opponents they could not possibly defeat themselves. With that in mind Gosain made his decision. It won't be pleasant, but it needs to be done, besides, these are supposed to be my students, my subordinates, not my friends. I must remember that. The leader cannot become to close to those he commands.
It did not take that long to arrive at the field. The area was one of many usually used by academy students for practice, a cleared area with various targets and courses arranged throughout. The area was a bit ratty though, the grass having grown up tall in the weeks since the fighting, since there was no one to perform maintenance anymore. The trees were now fleshed out with the growth of spring, where they had been bare not long before. It was a sight familiar to every ninja, as students and genin they spent countless hours in fields like these, training until exhausted, and sometimes pushed further.
Gosain walked out to the center of the field. He turned swiftly to face his students, making sure his limbs were lose and ready as he did. Calculatedly Gosain spun the long pole he carried in his right hand, loosening the muscles there and getting ready for action. His three students looked at him. Koto's stare was expectant, Hachi's mischievous, and Saki simply looked at the area in front of her, ready.
"So sensei," Hachi began. "What are we going to do? Run through an obstacle course?"
"No," Gosain replied plainly. "Something rather more straightforward. Normally you would have been tested by your jounin sensei when you graduated from the academy, to see if you understood what it takes to be a ninja properly or if you needed further instruction. That is not going to happen today, since you have been made to graduate early. The Raikage has made the assumption that you are ready to be ninja, and if you are not, well, then we'll all find out in the most unfortunate way possible. Still, I need to know more about your skills, to see what I can possibly try to teach you."
"You mean what sort of jutsu we need to learn?" Koto asked.
"No," Gosain replied quickly and sternly. "I doubt I can teach any of you jutsu, you will have to find others to learn new techniques from." He gave each student in turn a cold, dark glance. "What I can teach you is what life has taught me, what you need to know of being a ninja. It won't be pleasant to learn, but these lessons will be far more important than learning jutsu. Techniques are only the tools of a ninja, like weapons or clothing, what is truly important is who you are. That, I can try and force you to discover."
"How?" Saki whispered, her eyes betraying a cautious interest.
"The hard way," Gosain cut out the words. "Through pain and pushing you past your limits." Gosain paused, and then spoke clear words, speaking his mind honestly. "You may know something of my reputation, my history, how almost everyone who has ever worked with me has suffered or been slain. That is the truth, it is who I am, a cursed ninja. I have been through pain and trials, but that has made me into a ninja, and I m not afraid to keep fighting. That much, I will try to teach you. Do you understand?"
Slowly, and not without hesitation from each of them, the three genin nodded.
"Well then," Gosain continued more easily, the grimness gone for now, though not far away. "It's time I saw what you three can do. So, this won't be complicated. I just want you to try to beat me."
"Beat you?" Koto mumbled.
"Was that not clear?" Gosain raised an eyebrow. "It's a simple exercise. You three treat me as an enemy and attempt to defeat me."
"Yeah sure sensei," Hachi laughed. "Like the three of us can beat you. We're just students."
"Maybe," Gosain growled. "You never know, it wasn't long ago that I saw an awful lot of genin defeat chuunin when they had numbers on their side." He recalled those fights vividly, bloody battles on the rooftops of Hidden Cloud against the Dark Storm's servants. "I'm only a chuunin after all, but that hardly matters. The point is that you fight with all your strength, so that both you see, and I see, what you're able to do. Got it?"
"Okay," Hachi grinned evilly. "This could be fun. The academy teachers never let us do anything like this. When do we start?"
Gosain reached back into his shuriken pouch with his left hand. "Right now." He said, and pulled out three shuriken, letting them fly, one at each student.
The reactions were mixed. Hachi tumbled out of the way with that same evil glimmer in his eyes, and then broke and ran for cover. Koto's eyes went wide and he barely managed to hit the dirt in time, as the shuriken clipped by his leg. Saki simply ducked and let the throwing star pass over her head easily.
Gosain was not about to let them get off that simply. "I suggest you scatter," he called out as he took his steel pole in both hands and advanced swiftly. Both students responded by jumping back. Koto continued leaping rearward until he reached the cover of several propped up stumps. Once there Gosain watched as he appeared to consider what to do. Saki was more cautious, she simply stepped back as Gosain advanced, not drawing a weapon, but not openly retreating either.
Giving the girl a cautious look, Gosain circled to the right, moving out of Koto's line of fire. "You don't expect to fight me alone do you?" He asked Saki, curious.
"No." She answered. With a sharp snapping motion she reached down and drew two shuriken, and then threw them.
Not bothering to dodge, Gosain simply spun the pole in his hands and knocked the throwing stars away. As he did so he noted the velocity behind them, and the force of the impact by the sound. Those were thrown hard, he saw, a bit impressed. She's a lot stronger than you'd think for someone that size. Those were good marks, but that attack didn't have much purpose.
As she'd attacked Saki had fallen back to cover as well, heading for the trees as Hachi had. Gosain watched her go, and he saw that she was circling wide, and it would be a while before either she or Hachi were back in the fight. That left only Koto nearby. The genin had some distance, so Gosain was cautious, as that bow could be dangerous. Come on boy. Make a move. He waited at the ready, pole in both hands.
Koto made his move.
It was a simple move, but well executed. Having seen Gosain deflect the shuriken Saki threw, he didn't try anything so simple. Instead, he leapt straight upward, bow draw and an arrow notched. He peaked above Gosain's head at the moment he released his shot. "Lightning arrow no jutsu!"
It was an old technique, simple and predictable, but still effective. Using chakra to create a static charge in the bowstring and then passing that onto the arrow as it was fired, allowing the weapon to go much faster and to carry a massive charge of shocking power, so that anyone struck would not only be wounded, by stunned for a while. This also provided the projectile with a key advantage, even if Gosain blocked the weapon with his pole, he'd still get seriously shocked.
Easy enough to dodge, but then he'll just shoot again. Gosain recognized. I don't want to use my chains on these three, so I'll have to do something else. He had only a split second to think about it.
He grabbed a kunai from his holster with his left hand, and then tossed it into the air, snagging it onto the hook on his pole an instant later. As the arrow came in Gosain dashed it aside with the kunai, flicking his pole at the moment of impact so that it knocked free, preventing him from being shocked.
Koto had a second shot ready, but his position was off, having waited for Gosain to dodge. Instead, he had to jump backwards, as Gosain swept his pole through the position where he would have landed. Koto dodged another two strikes, but he was off balance as Gosain pressed him, wielding the pole in a fashion that was different than a sword, confusing the young student. Hindered by his bow, Koto was unable to block, and Gosain swiped him firmly in the side with the third strike.
The metal pole connected with a viscous crack, but Koto managed to roll with the blow, letting it carry him away, attempting to buy some breathing space.
With a swift surety Gosain moved to finish Koto, not because he wanted to end the fight yet, but to force the other two students to do something.
Smoke exploded everywhere.
"Hehe," Hachi's voice called over the din of smoke bombs exploding. "Seems Koto got you just close enough."
Gosain didn't listen to the youth's boasting, he was already leaping back and away, and he heard shuriken pass through the space he had just occupied. Smoke clouded his vision, and he expected a strike as he landed. I won't fall into so simple a trap though, Hachi. Gosain back-flipped, but held his pole in both hands, so that it slammed into the ground first. The instant it struck with force he launched himself away from the weapon, landing several feet away.
"Got you!" Hachi called, and a flurry of kunai passed through the point where Gosain had landed. "What?" The genin shrieked. "You got away?"
A lack of discipline there, Hachi, you shouldn't have said anything. Gosain grimaced, easily tracking the other ninja from the position of his voice, insuring that it was indeed Hachi, and not Saki, who threw the kunai.
"At least I got your weapon." Hachi remarked, landing in front of Gosain as the smoke cleared.
"Did you?" Gosain flicked his left hand. His pole lurched out of the ground and with another jerk flew back to his reach. A glimmer of sunlight revealed the thin wire that Gosain had attached to the hook. "A trick I learned from Shiren." He shrugged. "Now you've exposed yourself."
"Eh, well, that's true." Hachi giggled. "Hey Koto? You up?" He called.
"Yeah." The other genin replied, stepping clear of the residual smoke, his bow in hand.
"Looks like Saki's here as well," Hachi pointed, drawing a flicker of Gosain's gaze to the girl, standing far behind him on the right, shuriken in hand. "So, we've surrounded you."
"So you have," Gosain noted. Well, their tactical sense isn't half bad. He decided. I suspect its not all that well planned though. Still, Koto's in the rear, that's his proper position as a sniper. I wonder why Hachi's the one to face me though? I suspect Saki has greater skills. Gosain decided to see what would happen, even as he made his own plans to counter their actions. "What good does it do you to surround me though?"
"It makes it easier for me to distract you to give Koto a shot." Hachi giggled.
"Distract?"
"Like this!" Hachi's hands flashed through a series of seals. "Rai Bushin no Jutsu!"
Lightning clones! Gosain dashed to the left, shocked. Who taught him that? It was a far more skilled jutsu than the ordinary replication technique, to create clones infused with powerful electrical charge. It was also, as Gosain grasped immediately, the perfect sort of technique for a trickster like Hachi.
Ten clones, an impressive number given how much chakra a genin had available, but Gosain understood that Hachi was going for broke with this move. Ten clones will restrict movement severely, Gosain recognized. I have to get rid of some fast, before they close in, but I have to watch for Koto and Saki at the same time. Pity my throwing skills aren't a little better.
Swiftly Gosain flipped left, away from Saki, who he still considered the most dangerous, and putting Hachi's clones between him and Koto. That really didn't matter, since if Koto understood the nature of the technique properly he could just fire through the clones to good effect, but Gosain suspected he didn't. Genin really weren't supposed to know that jutsu. Coming up with his pole at his feet, Gosain launched shuriken at as many clones as he thought he could hit, two at each, targeting four in all.
Then he hit the dirt.
"Ah! You know!" Hachi moaned.
The clones attempted to dodge, but Gosain's throws were accurate, if not artistic. One of the weapons hit each one.
Metal struck a fabrication of chakra and electricity, and the clones exploded.
Sparks of lightning flew everywhere as the brilliant charges within the lightning clones were released, creating massive discharges that swept leaves from trees dozens of yards away, and buffeted Koto and Saki enough that they could do nothing while the clones blasted apart. The explosions also caught two additional clones, which had been too close to the others, and they to blasted apart.
Before the dust had cleared Gosain was standing. He kicked his pole into his hands and charged forward, jumping over the four remaining clones that stood there stunned for a second as their original tried to get his act together. Hachi scrambled to move out of Gosain's way, but he was too late. He threw up a block that intercepted the blow from the pole, but Gosain's left hand snaked out and grabbed his right arm. The genin screamed in astonishment as he was picked up and tossed back at his remaining clones.
As the clones leapt away to avoid colliding with and detonating upon their original, Gosain smacked each one with another shuriken.
"Lightning arrow no jutsu!" Koto launched the shot clean at Gosain's exposed body.
The genin's aim was true, and wind could not deflect that charged missile. Gosain had planned for this though, and the arrow was in the air at the moment the last four clones exploded.
Electrical charge split the air, and it pulled at the charge on the missile, pulling it off its path so that it sailed harmlessly toward the woods. Gosain had planned this, having used the same trick of charge affecting charge in several fights before. Usually he used his chains as the vehicle, but Hachi's explosive clones had worked just as well.
The attacks of two of the genin had thus been deflected, but Gosain had not forgotten the third, indeed, he spun around to face her, predicting the charge as it came. So Saki, what's your move? Gosain wondered. The other two had shown their capabilities, but Saki had so far made no significant moves, and Gosain intended to measure this attack carefully.
The girl's attack stance was not one he recognized, not a normal taijutsu stance, or even the Jinnen fighting stance that characterized the ultra-fast fighting style many Lightning ninja used, but something unusual. She held her left arm in front of her body, across her chest, with the elbow bent ninety degrees so that she held her hand in front of her face. The stance obviously meant for some sort of backhand attack, but Gosain couldn't see what the purpose of it was. That stance allows only for a quick, weaker strike, what is she attempting? He raised his pole to meet the attack.
Saki's feet moved with extreme rapidity, and at the last moment she seemed to leave the ground slightly. Her eyes held to Gosain's the whole way, but he felt almost as if she were looking past him to something very distant, and there was a look on that face that seemed wholly inhuman.
The blow will come...
Gosain predicted it, but he was wrong.
A massive crack split the training field, and Gosain felt a terrible impact on his chest. It smashed solidly into the chains he wore under his flak jacket, carrying force straight through that protective garment and knocking all the breath from his body. The pain was incredible. If I wasn't wearing chains she would have blasted my ribcage apart! Gosain realized suddenly as he flew backward through the air, tumbling to his feet again. What was that? I never saw her arm move! Saki skidded to a stop behind Gosain, her arm still in that position, her breathing ragged.
The pain Gosain felt was serious, he suspected his ribs were massively bruised, if not cracked. Time to end this game. He reached down and ripped free two kunai, sending them flying at Saki, who in her surprise to see him still moving, barely dodged.
Gosain flipped into the air, putting the speed of his chakra behind his motions, coming dashing in at the shocked Koto. The genin managed a quick shot, but Gosain simply grabbed the arrow with his bare hand, feeling it burn across his skin, and threw it back. Koto tumbled clumsily aside, only to feel a cold point at his neck.
One of the hooked ends of Gosain's pole hung there. "You're dead." The chuunin said coldly.
With practiced motions Gosain spun around to deflect several kunai with his pole. The he grabbed Koto by the collar and threw the genin back toward the other two, obscuring their vision.
A swift roll took Gosain under Koto's wide-eyed flying form, and he came up with his pole outstretched. A quick strike with tremendous force slapped aside Hachi's guard; the young genin had no way to hold back that attack. Then Gosain's hook was at his throat as well. "You're dead." Gosain said again.
He kicked out, striking Hachi in the leg, and the genin pitched downward, his body suddenly over Gosain, and forcing Saki to hold back the hard punch she was about to land. Quickly Gosain kicked Hachi off of him and scrambled the other way, coming up face to face with Saki.
The two faced each other for a moment. Saki looked at Gosain strangely, with disbelief evident on her face. Gosain came her a look that showed some grudging respect. The other two have some skills, and great potential; she has realized some of it. And what the hell did she hit me with?
"You are still standing," Saki said, the words were level, but there was an unasked question behind them.
"Care to try again?" Gosain replied. He held his pole loosely in his right hand now. Gosain was careful to mask his tormented breathing; to make sure Saki could not tell what damage she had inflicted.
In response to his question Saki drew two unusual weapons from her shuriken pouch. She strapped them over her wrists. They were odd pieces of metal, with four sharpened tines, each like a knife, extending out past the hand, two above and two below. It was clear they could both stab with sharp points, or cut brutally with the outside edge. She dropped into a fighting stance.
Gosain determined to finish the matter swiftly. Saki couldn't match him. He knew that. Aside from that one move his speed was still better than hers, if not by much, and his timing was much better. Her strength is formidable for a girl so small, and it will surprise many, especially if it grows, Gosain reasoned. But I am one of the strongest ninja in this country; it comes from carrying all this chain around constantly. He circled for a moment, then struck in.
Saki met the strike and blocked the pole with her left hand weapon, catching the pole in between two tines, but then gasped.
Gosain had brought the strike lightly, and even as Saki brought her other arm in to stab him, he applied the strength of his entire upper body with both arms down the pole, throwing the much smaller girl backwards.
Flipped in the air, Saki tried to right herself, but Gosain slapped her down to the ground with a strike blow, and then he put the hook of his pole to her throat. "You're dead." The chuunin stepped back and let Saki stand up.
The other two students came up beside Saki as Gosain stepped back to look at them. Koto and Hachi had grim expressions. Saki stood up with a similar look, but there was still that glance of puzzlement in her eyes.
"All right," Gosain spoke clearly, honestly. "That wasn't too bad for an exercise." He looked at all three in turn. "First, good, you've shown me some skills. You all have the right to be called genin, you fought fully, and as best you were able. Second, before we deal with anything else." He turned a razor sharp gaze on Saki. "What the hell did you hit me with?"
The girl looked up, and there was a dark courage present in her, a pride that made her proud of what she had done, and its capabilities, but also confusion. "Stom strike." She said.
"Ah, the details," Gosain's look softened. "I'm not familiar with the all the techniques you three are likely to use, so when I ask for an explanation, give me the whole one, okay?"
Saki took in a breath cautiously. "Stom strike, the strike of the creature from which we take out name, the Mantis Shrimp. The blows of its arms are faster and stronger than any other creature compared by size. By imitating its form and using our chakra, our clan produces a blow that is faster than a human can see, and strong enough to break apart granite." She now fixed Gosain with a harsh gaze of her own. "I hit you, I felt it. How are you able to stand? Your ribs should be shattered."
Gosain chose to answer by demonstration. He took off his flak jacket and then pulled the top of his shirt down a ways, revealing the shining steel links of chain that were wrapped about his torso. "These took most of the blow, spreading it out widely, as opposed to hitting a single point. It still hurts quite severely though. That is a very powerful move. I'm surprised you can use it."
"My best move," Saki answered simply. "My father made me learn it."
"I see," Gosain replied quietly. He looked back at all three of them. "Well, regardless, it was not a bad start. However, you three have skills, that's true, much better skills than many genin who've been out of the academy for a long time, but that means very little!" His voice rose. "You lost today not because of your skills, after all, I didn't even use any jutsu against you, but because of inexperience and hesitation. This is not academy practice anymore, you will be on real battlefields in a weak. Hesitation cannot be allowed, confusion cannot be accepted, and you cannot give up, ever. I could have easily ended this after Saki struck me, after all, her blow hurt severely, and moving around afterwards is likely to increase my own pain quite a bit, but that is not the way. In order to survive the real, harsh, terrifying ninja world, you must always give everything, and more. You have to go further than you think possible, to break down what holds your strength back. I can't teach you techniques, but that much I can teach you. I will teach you how to push yourselves so hard that you find new strength, how to always fight with everything, how to never hold back when your life is on the line, and how to risk it all for your objectives. That way you will have a chance to survive. I can teach you those important lessons, and while we do that, we will work to increase you skills: Your stamina, you chakra formation ability, your strength, your speed, your sensitivity, and, as I learned from the dragon ninja, your chakra control. Do you understand?"
They nodded in unison.
"Good." Gosain muttered. Then he made a decision to explain one other thing. Perhaps it's not a good idea for the long run to begin this way, but if they are to live, it will be important. "I think, that I will also train you each differently."
"Why sensei?" Koto asked.
"Modern ninja have specialties, very few ninja can ever excel in all areas, and even the very best have a specialty that they favor." Gosain answered. "Usually you don't learn a specialty until you've been a ninja for longer, but these times will require that you maximize your abilities as quickly as possible. So, each of you will channel your efforts toward at least basic specialization."
"Meaning?" Hachi asked.
"Meaning you will focus primarily on one of the main areas of ninja practice." Gosain told them. "Can you tell me what they are?"
"You mean like ninjutsu and taijutsu sensei?" Koto replied.
Gosain nodded. He suspected Saki also knew the answer to his question, but that she did not speak. I am going to have to learn to read her face, he decided, she doesn't talk much.
"Ninjutsu and taijutsu, that is one way of looking at it." Gosain told his students. "Taijutsu is also close ranged specialization, and ninjutsu is usually mid-ranged specialization. My chain fighting style, however, is also mid-ranged specialization. There are long-ranged specialists as well. The final two specializations are genjutsu, and medical techniques." Gosain looked at each of them. "I would suggest Koto, long ranged specialization, being an archer you are already focused in that direction. Hachi, I think your talents are genjutsu oriented; they will work well with your ideas. Saki, I am certain that you already intend to be a taijutsu specialist."
"Yes," They all answered.
"A female taijutsu specialist is unusual, it will surprise many opponents." Gosain told Saki.
"It is our clan's way." She responded, voice emotionless.
Hmm...Gosain wondered. "Well, now that I've settled that we have a lot of drills to start."
"Huh?" Hachi interrupted.
"You did not think we were done?" Gosain looked at the three students, and gave them a serious, and grim face. "The Raikage will be giving the four of us a mission in one week, and it will be a serious c-rank mission at least. Therefore, I'm not wasting any time. I don't expect to finish today until I'm dragging you off the field. Understand?"
With that, they got started.
For the Record: Mantis Shrimp are real animals; properly called Stomatopods (source of the Stomatoa name) almost everything that Saki will say about them is biological reality. I find the creatures rather interesting, and so I've chosen to make them part of the story. Animal inspiration is sighted for a lot of fighting methods, so why not this possibility. Anyone interested in some facts about these creatures should go here: