Chapter 3.4 - The Hardest Teacher

5:00 am in the morning.

An alarm sounds out in Naruto's apartment. He reaches out of bed, turns it
off, and sits up. He is quite sleepily since he spent a restless night trying
to sleep while thinking about everyone else. Casting that out of his mind, he
gets dressed, eats, freshens up, and gets his gear on. He remembers that he
needs to head for practice field 1, a normally fenced off area where the ANBU
specifically train (think the Chunnin Exam Practice Area, just without the
other teams). He leaves his flat and starts to make his way to the practice
field. As he starts to walk down the street, he gets the weird feeling that
he is being watched. It is dark everywhere and no one is around, yet he gets
the feeling of being watched more. He starts to run. As he turns a corner, he
nearly runs into Hinata and has to direct himself to crash into an adjacent
building to avoid her. She stumbles after nearly hitting him and they both
end up on the ground. She looks at him and immediately apologizes; saying
that she thinks someone is watching and following her. Naruto immediately
looks at her (his face is slightly squashed from hitting the wall) and asks
that she feels the same thing. She looks at him surprised and agrees. He says
that he had the same weird feeling since he left his house. He thinks, then
looks at her with a determined look and then decides they should stay together
and hurry to the practice field since that area is open land surrounded by
trees, and with her Byakugan, they can check all directions for trouble. She
agrees with a slight smile and asks if she is in the front or back. Naruto
says he'll take front since the Shadow Clones can cause a diversion if need
be. They take off from there, but no sooner had they gone one block than they
almost hit Choji. He asks panically what they are doing. Naruto and Hinata
look at him funny, and then Hinata asks if he thinks someone is watching and
following him. Choji stops, lowers his head, and shamefully admits it. At
that point, Naruto tells him that the same has happened to them and he should
join them since they are heading for the practice field. Choji asks why they
need him. Naruto smiles and brightly answers that if they meet any big,
strong guys, they will need him to deal the final blow. Choji smiles and asks
where to go. They agree on him in the center to look above, Naruto take the
front, and Hinata watch their back, all of them with weapons ready. They take
off again in this weird formation. They are out of the village when a black
figure moves behind them and vanishes as Hinata cries out the alarm. They
then see the figure bound ahead of them and vanish over a hill. They run to
the top of the hill and look down on Practice Field One. The figure is nowhere to be seen, so the trio heads to the logs that are standing in the
middle of the practice field. No sooner than they reach there then knives fly
at them from nowhere. They split and go for the source of the knives. All at
once the man in black appears and splits into three. Each goes after a genin.
Choji is having a strength contest with one, Hinata a hand-to-hand combat
fight. Naruto splits into clones and goes after the man, only to fall back
with just him left. He then concentrates at this point his entire body, and
time around him is perceived quicker. He charges at the black man, while
everyone around him seems to be in slow motion. Right before he reaches the
man, he is knocked when the man suddenly speeds up. For an instant before he
is knocked out, Naruto swears the man used the same technique.

Naruto wakes up. His entire body stings from using his new technique and his
head hurts from where the stranger hit him. He looks around. Choji is out on
the ground looking slightly burnt, and Hinata is tied down to a log. The man
in black leers over them. All of the sudden, he takes off his black cloak to
reveal an ANBU captain in armor. He laughs and says he hadn't had such a team
to train for a while. The others at this point wake up. He points to Hinata
and says that she has little faith in herself and didn't try to the fullest.
With that said he releases her by throwing a knife at the ropes. Hinata
thinks that she lost faith when she saw Naruto-kun fall. The man then looks
at Choji and says he has no stamina to go with. Choji sighs in despair. BUT!!
the man says looking at Naruto, even though you have some surprises, your
fighting style is predictable and you don't use moves to the fullest. You are
the most hopeless of all. Naruto is shocked at the criticism. He then yells
at the man, asking him who the heck he is. The man throws his head back and
laughs sadistically, saying that he can't give his real name, so call him
Capt. Soonaga. He then looks down on them and says welcome to hell for a
week, 'cause I am going to make you all into fine ANBU. From now on, he says,
don't assume you are safe, because I may randomly attack you during the day.
Your bathrooms are off limits for me he says with a laugh and leaving
everyone else with a disgusted look on their faces, but watch out at
night, 'cause I might try to break in. Be alert!! He says that for the next
week he will work with each of their weakness and make then strong. For now,
Follow Me! We are going on a 20-mile run! And if you don't keep up you will
do drills he says with a laugh. With that he takes off with the exasperated
Genins following him.

That is all!! Stay tune to 3.5 where the three ANBU trainees discuss the
future of this and Naruto confronts the Captain.