Third Degree: (Big puppy eyes ) .
Irukapooka: Bah, cliffy's have their place in the world! Kept you wondering up until this update, didn't it? :P
Hoorah, my longest fic yet! (does a little dance, makes a little—ahem, well then, anyway.)
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Tracing the Clouds
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Chapter 9: Nindo
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Sakura barely suppressed a scream, clamping her eyes tightly shut against what she was sure to be a grizzly scene.
From the Nearby tree Kakashi crouched aghast, silently cursing himself for not seeing this coming. The boy was a
melee weapons master, after all, he couldn't have expected him to end the fight on Taijutsu alone, especially when that
was his most lacking field...still, the idea the boy could take the life of a comrade without a second thought hadn't even
registered with Kakashi. What were you thinking?! His mind screamed, he is a student of OROCHIMARU, this is
what he is. But as the dust cleared, so did the Jounin's fast-building anxiety. Two figures stood in the clearing- two,
not one- both panting from exertion.
Naruto's head was jerked back at a rather uncomfortable-looking angle, but it was, much to his relief, still entirely
whole. Well, mostly. His brain felt like it had leaked out his left ear on impact. Canine red eyes glanced up towards
their sharp brown adversaries, and Naruto's voice came in the form of an ungodly growl. "You really should sharpen
that sword of yours, it's making a really good hammer the way things are going." Iro rolled his eyes. "Bluntbender
Edge technique, a jutsu I developed to avoid harming anybody unnecessarily. Seems to be working just fine."
The demonic aura left the other young man, who nodded as his eyes returned to their usual deep blue. "Hit's like a
brick wall."
Iro grinned. "It's supposed to. Nice to see you trust me enough to know I have no intention of actually killing you. You
and I both know you could have dodged that, regardless of your disadvantage."
Naruto's face became stone. "No, I don't trust you. My trust used to be easy to get, but I've been betrayed more
than once...you'll have to work hard to earn it. I was just trying to prove a point." With that, Naruto's hand shot out,
catching Iro completely off guard as the anvil that was the Uzumaki nin's fist greeted his face, burying itself deep in the
Karu tattoo on the obviously startled young man's left cheek. As a dazzled Iro sailed somewhat less than gracefully
through the air, Naruto broke into a flurry of hand seals, which ended as he took a bit of blood from the new gash on
his forehead and applied it to his palm, which he then slammed into the dirt. KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!!
A loud explosion shook the tree Sakura was tied to, causing her head to bounce painfully off its rough, knotted
surface. There was the resounding thud of something fleshy connecting with something hard, and then silence. She
risked cracking an eye, fearing the worst had taken place and Naruto's shredded corpse would pop into view at any
given moment. She did not, to her relief, see any shredded corpses. What she did see, however, left her with mixed
emotions, mostly consisting of elation, confusion, and overall, pity. There, not four feet from her place of captivity, a
very frazzled looking Iro was laying prone, eyes bugging under the weight of the giant webbed foot that held him in
place.
Naruto could be seen just barely, grinning from ear to ear as he sat perched on the enormous toad's shoulders. "Gama
Banjin, Iro. Iro, Gama Banjin." The creature lifted his foot slightly, glancing dismissively at the wheezing boy before
replacing his foot, a grin on his amphibious lips as he ground down perhaps a little bit more than necessary. "puny little
critter, 'in't he?" Naruto's grin grew even wider, a feat impossible to any that were not direct descendants of the
Uzumaki line, of which he was sole proprietor. "Yes, well, he gave me this so, he can't be that bad." Commented the
smiling Leaf ninja, indicating the large gash that ran across his right temple and up into his hairline, the cut still glistening
with fresh blood.
The Toad lifted his foot once more, looking the now quite flattened Iro over. The look this time however, was one of
careful reassessment. "You gave him that nasty cut eh? I owe you a Sake for that one, boy." The toad grinned, shifting
the giant toothpick to the other side of his rather ironically toothless mouth. Naruto's grinned faded as he conked the
giant toad on the back of his head. "Watch it, buddy, or I'll tell Gama Bunta about that little fling you had with his
favorite concubine last summer." The toad's face took on the quite ridiculous-looking facade of dismay. "Alright,
alright! Looks like my work's done here. Seeya 'round, kiddo." With that, the giant creature disappeared, leaving a
suddenly serious-looking Naruto and a spluttering and quite flattened Iro alone in the clearing.
Naruto's chuunin vest flapped loosely in the wind as he crouched down where Iro lay, taking hold of a silver bell and
yanking it free, warranting another pained grunt from the disabled ninja. Iro's vision cleared, walking it's way shakily
from the knees clad in faded green canvas, to the navy shirt with the red swirl on it, and finally up to the hard eyes of
his adversary, which burned holes in his head as the victor gave his speech. "The point I was trying to make," Naruto
began, doing his best to maintain the fierce gaze that felt so uncharacteristic of him, "Is not that I trust you. Rather, I
trust myself, and my abilities, and should you try anything to harm those dear to me..." With this the boy stood, offering
his hand and smiling once more. "You're gonna live just long enough to really, really regret it. That's my ninja way."
Iro filed this important information away, vowing silently to remember not to try anything funny with anybody Naruto
knew too well. Karu Iro was, however, a man of dignity, and as the mountains his clan had once called home, he did
not bend to the wind. Especially not this self-righteous blowhard. Naruto frowned slightly as the young man stood on
his own, paying no heed to the outstretched hand. Perhaps he'd pushed a bit too hard with his little speech. Going
over it in his mind, he had to admit he sounded rather like a jackass. He began to worry that perhaps in his honest
attempt to show the other ninja his sincerity he'd made an enemy of what could have potentially been a great ally. He
sighed inwardly, cursing his brashness. He really needed to work on that.
This time it was Iro's turn to present an icy glare. Looking Naruto straight in the eye, his hand found the hilt of his
katana, which had somehow manage to lodge itself in the tree trunk he'd tied Sakura to, just below her right shin.
Deftly he pulled it loose, relishing in the finality the steely ring gave to his words, he spun it gracefully about, suddenly
bringing it forcefully down in front of him. He rested his hands on the end of the handle, a six-inch portion of the deadly
blade now lodged firmly in the warm Fire Country soil. Naruto fought the urge to quail under the scruffy-haired nin's
forceful gaze, and made a feeble attempt to return it.
After a long pause, Iro spoke, his hands clenching and unclenching on the katana's hilt. "Your words are heard,
Uzumaki of the Leaf, perhaps even more so than you intended. But such is the consequence of speaking so directly
without first considering the impact you might have on others." Naruto winced. Yeah, that sounded about right.
"Now, let me explain something to you. I am Karu Iro, once of the Hidden Sound, now and forever more, Gods
willing, of the Hidden Leaf. I have sworn my allegiance to this land, and it's an oath I do not take lightly." The grass
under his feet radiated away from him, like ripples from a pebble dropped into a pond. He paused, pushing down the
urge to pull out all the stops. Regaining his composure with no small effort, he continued. "I would like to earn your
trust, yes. But mark this. I will not be threatened. Ever. I have no intentions of hurting anyone, fact is, I'd much rather
spend my days sleeping than fighting at all, but that is not how this world works, is it? You don't know me, so I'll
forgive it this once, but remember my words now, Uzumaki Naruto."
With this Iro pulled his blade free of the dirt, the eyes of all who looked on widening as not a speck of dirt could be
seen on the shimmering surface of the deadly weapon. With a single graceful swoop, the Katana was inches from
Naruto's throat, shaking ever so slightly with the pent up rage it's wielder held just barely in check.
"If you ever consider threatening me again, I will not hesitate to fight you. To. The. Death. There will be no going back
from there, understood? Win or lose, I will not have it believed I am less of a man because I backed down under
pressure. That is my Ninja way. Clear?"
Naruto nodded solemnly, a sudden understanding passing between the two young warriors. Kakashi's heart filled with
a sudden respect for his two pupils. Konoha's future was bright.
Sakura just shook her head. Men.
A buzzer rang off in the distance.
"....Aaaaannnnd TIME!"
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Hope you liked this. I especially put alotta heart into Iro's proclamation. If you're wondering why he talks so funny, he's going to explain in later chapters that he's somewhat of a poet at heart (dramatic pose!)