Scarlet Justice - ep. 68
"Ever Forward"

One month has passed.

In that time, my cast has come off. My right arm is weak as expected, but definitely functional. I get to work on strengthening it, meaning that I still have to stay away from missions for a while. But training can begin again in earnest.

During that time, I decide to strengthen my connections with loved ones, and properly monitor certain responsibilities. Naruto and I talk throughout my recovery; he's learned quite a bit from Jiraiya and we sharpen up some of his basic skills on the training field together. Things like improving his chakra control, bit by bit daily. The Rasengan is an impressive thing, an A-Rank jutsu on the level of Chidori that requires intense shape transformation. There was a bit of trouble learning it, but Naruto gets around his limitations by using his clone arts to manually rotate the chakra in his hand. Very clever on his part. But...for some reason, I feel like there's something missing. It's a powerful jutsu developed by the Fourth Hokage - I still have to wrap my head around their relation, and I assume that Jiraiya has a specific reason for keeping that from Naruto, so I'll be quiet about it - but I doubt that this is its final form. For one thing, the Fourth died well before his time, saving the village. It's something to think about...the problem though is that while I want to teach Naruto, his mentor right now is Jiraiya and I don't want to undercut anything he's trying to do. They've seen some good progress in the past while. We might have to sit down and talk about it at some point - Jiraiya is almost never around when anyone needs him, an annoyance to be sure.

At least he's getting closer to Hina. They probably would have started dating already if he wasn't so dense. Everything in its own time, I suppose. Sakura is slowly moving out of the picture. Sasuke had his surgery, and it was a success. There wasn't any need to remove organs, and the previous treatments helped a lot with stabilizing him. He'll need a lot of time to recover, and when he does get cleared for training, the Hokage will be available to guide him. Sakura watched the surgery up close and didn't flinch at anything that took place, according to Ino. She may become a formidable medic yet.

The Hokage's new assistants, Imari and Tamaki, are hard at work while getting their top-level clearance. Ibiki has passed me some information about Tamaki's former employer that I mean to act on in the next while.

As for social things, Ino was surprised by the fact that I wasn't bluffing about sending her clothing to wear, but took it well enough. We've agreed to meet for dates every once in a while when we're both free, wearing those matching outfits. More than once, the idea of a little social club comes up, and I'm really thinking about establishing it. Hina and Erika can join us...it sounds like a fun little idea. I spend time with Naruto more often, anticipating that we'll be separated by business once I fully recover. Everything else continues normally.

"Arrangements?"

"Yeah. There's a bit of political maneuvering going on in the Sand, so the Hokage wants to send you over to deal with it."

Today I'm in the Jounin Commander's office, having a meeting with the man himself, Shikaku Nara. He's appreciative of my pestering of Shikamaru, noting that he's changed a bit since the invasion and the retrieval mission that we both participated in. We get down to business and I learn that the Hidden Sand has a slate of missions that they want the Leaf to take part in, what with their shortages of shinobi and resources. Shikaku notes a reconnaissance mission that looks unusual, despite being listed as low-risk.

"It might be a front for something else. Maybe a resource cache, something like that," he says.

"I assume there's a desire to claim it for ourselves?"

"From the other jounin on the council. Bad idea to twist their arms directly, though. Not only would it look bad, but it might make them panic and do something we won't like. We're allies, but they're not bound to us, and even with our help they're still in a bad way."

"Liable to do drastic things," I conclude. "If it's resource acquisition...mm. I can do some research and give them a little shove in the right direction. Perhaps bring something home for those hungry children on the council."

He chuckles. "I'll leave it to you, then. That means you're in, I'm assuming."

"Of course. I would like to see how that boy Gaara is doing, among other things. The Sand's children should be interesting to survey...I assume that they want a squad leader to take care of their genin while out in the field, and they're short of those for obvious reasons." I yawn and stretch. "Babysitting...it will be good practice for when my sibling comes along."

"Heh. Well, I'll put the paperwork in and we should get a response soon. When it comes, I'll call you back here."

"So noted."

"Thank you for your time, Miss Kobayashi." We stand up and shake hands. "No rush on your recovery, though. Mission will take place a few weeks from today."

"Lovely. I will see you later, Shikaku."

He nods and goes back to his work as I leave. I flex my right arm and frown. Doesn't feel right yet...but I'm getting there. Things will be fine soon.

"There is a place north of the village, if I recall. I think I should take some extra time out for myself and do some more solo training..."

"Hey, it's been a while."

I turn my head to see Ruki approaching. She's as lovely as ever, from what I can gather.

"It has been. Absence does make the heart grow fonder, as they say."

"It does!" she says with a smile. Today's look is a wool sweater and a slimming pair of jeans. Very nice. "So, have I fallen out of favour yet?"

"I would never say such a thing."

"Just wondering. Your usual appraisal is on the quiet side today, you know."

"Mm. I don't want to cause too much trouble for you in public. You know how people get. How are things with our man lately?"

She shrugs. "Not bad. He's been nice enough to me."

"Is that all?"

"Hm...well. I think I'm getting a little closer to him. At least, I hope so. We're not doing anything date-like just yet. Mostly hanging out around town, having a drink here and there with mutual friends...you know. It's fine."

"You're bothered by something," I say.

"Not really."

"You want him to open up, but he's making it difficult."

Ruki says nothing and lets out a breath, looking into the sky.

"There's still time, you know."

"I really think I like him."

"I know."

"Should I ask? Should I just wait for him to say something?"

"What do you want to do?" I ask.

"I...want to know. I want to ask about them. About her, especially."

"Rin Nohara."

"Yeah."

"Then do as your heart tells you. Ask him honestly. You're worried about losing everything, about ruining what you have now. Worrying that it might be too soon."

"You shouldn't know this much at your age," Ruki says.

"Is it embarrassing?"

"No, nothing like that. Just...a little too humbling for a woman like me. But then again, I did accept you as an equal, a woman in your own right. It's how you got away with being so saucy in the hospital," she says as she smiles at me again.

"Really. I thought you were simply overwhelmed by my charm."

"Only thing I'd call overwhelming was that posing of yours during our examinations."

"I hoped you would notice. Hopefully you saw my good side. But all of my sides are good, as you can see here."

"You really are too much, Lili." She sighs. "Thanks. I'll have a go at it one of these days, maybe over lunch or something like that. Maybe just talking will be enough."

"You don't want to try and fix him, of course."

"No. People aren't that easy. Believe me, I know. Men are eager...fragile in a lot of ways, too. That's what makes them so compelling sometimes. Kakashi is an interesting fellow. Just as sweet as I imagined, but also...very insightful. Hm. Well, I'm gonna go get my shopping done. Come visit the shrine again soon."

"I'll be sure to stop by. Take care, Ruki."

"You do the same." She waves as she heads off.

She and Kakashi together...it might very well happen at this point. I'll be praying for her success.

The weeks slowly move forward. There is something to be said about training in the forests and hills. It's a refreshing feeling that seems to boost my spirits. It's...not something I'm imagining, either. I can really feel the energy flowing through me. Maybe it's a sign.

My right arm is restored to its true strength.

The training also increases my speed substantially. I get much faster than I would have guessed. My ceiling really is this high after all, which is surprising. The chakra mode improves further and I can enter the second stage of the chakra mode now from a standstill. As for the third stage, I've added an emergency mode to it that hopefully won't see much use, called the 'Trans-Am System'. Good in a pinch and I can use 'those' techniques while in that state for a short while. But these are things one can't exactly practice extensively.

What I can, and have been working on, is that heavenly power from when I fought Sasuke. I've managed to grasp some of it with Hina's help. When I used the chakra mode's fourth stage again during a practice session, the wings failed to appear. So I can enter the chakra mode normally, but...I wonder if there's something that I'm missing? It's not just a fifth stage, it's something completely different. Something on another level entirely. Maybe an unconscious activation of Sage Arts? Is that possible? I have time to figure it out, but...in any case, I've acquired a new skill, which should come in handy for future battles. More opponents like Kimimaro will appear, and this means I will be ready for them.

"How's it feel to be back?" Kurenai asks me. Today, it's routine drills with shuriken for the most part. We're at the twenty-third training field, one of our homes away from home.

"It feels nice. I was moving about during my injury, but this freedom definitely feels different. We can get back to proper missions and taking care of business whenever the need arises."

"Heh. Just don't push too hard, okay? Hasn't been that long since you got a clean bill of health."

"I'll keep that in mind, Kurenai. I'm assuming the missions will be lower intensity for a while, then?"

"Yeah, but not on account of you this time. Couple of long and slow ones coming up, just turned out to be that kind of season as far as mission spread went. I looked into a few, and they should be good for keeping us in shape. Uncomplicated...we travel and just wait around a bit, depending on what it is. Hopefully they don't rope you into something before then."

"I have a scheduled mission to the Sand coming up. Shikaku will be giving me the details as soon as he hears back. It's in a few weeks." I casually throw a shuriken and redirect it twice on the way to its target, making an S shape in the air. It lands just a little bit away from the center ring. "Hm. Little bit of wind."

"Pushed on the second one after you threw it," Kurenai points out.

"It's about a kilometer or so out that certain forces act upon ballistic trajectories, you know."

"Really, now."

"Yes. About...two to three inches to the right. That's how much I miss by if I don't adjust for it. I've been thinking about it a lot while preparing for missions. There are some outstanding bounties that could be cleaned up easily with a good shot. I think I could take on those."

"You seem to know enough about it. I take it you went out and practiced to get those results?"

"Well, I read about it first and then tested it in the field. Old textbooks from the west and whatnot." I throw a kunai before sending it tumbling through the air, end over end with the help of a senbon. It hits the target dead center, right beside the shuriken from earlier. "Good. There's also a vertical component to consider. This is in addition to other things like wind and temperature...more for me than for the shot itself, since we're using chakra. A solid projectile would require more and more calculations."

"I dunno. You really think nailing a guy in the head from a kilometer away would work for missions?"

"You have a point. It would depend on the type of contract, but I can always safely make the kill and then get rid of the body covertly." I shrug. "Questions that can be answered with mission data."

"Makes sense. Wanna wrap up? Shino and Hinata said they had stuff to show us."

"I did remember, yes." I put away the rest of my weapons and shake out my hair.

"I usually end up in close, and you want to be in that range so you can confirm the kill and better survey your options afterwards. You can always opt for a couple of senbon, maybe a kunai to the chest or throat from distance. Reliable enough. But if I had access to the techniques you had, I'd think about picking them off from another block too. Lots of possibilities, honestly."

"Mm-hm."

We meet up with Hina and Shino, who have finished up on their ends.

"So. You had something to show us?" I say to them.

"It's more for you than Kurenai," Hina says. "She's already seen some of it, and thought you would enjoy a demonstration or two. Shino can go first."

"Alright." Shino holds out one arm in front of him, and I can hear the slight movement of insects beneath his coat. They cover one part of his arm, making it look like a piece of black metal in the light. Oh, is this...?

"Okay, Boss. I want you to strike my arm with a sharp weapon."

I nod and pull out a kunai, then quickly slash at my target. There's a loud sound as the weapon bounces off, but I control it and come back in the other direction, which makes it bounce away once more.

"So this is armor then," I conclude as I put my weapon away.

"I did some research on defensive techniques, including Gaara's use of sand in the recent exams. There's speculation that it may be related to the Magnet Release bloodline limit. With some effort, I was able to breed insects that were compatible with the native colony, containing much of the same properties except for one thing. That would be a slightly increased hardness. This hardness can be amplified with chakra, meaning that my Parasitic Insects can become a solid wall when activated. Of course, that's just the beginning."

"Oh? Go on, please."

"Right." He adjusts his glasses. "The final form of this technique involves rapid reproduction of colonies using the Insect Cocoon technique, combined with additional chakra to reinforce the insect shells as I use the colony to cover my body. Thus, the technique called Parasitic Insect Dark Shield evolves into the art called Dreadnought."

"Dreadnought...a formidable name. Solid and robust. Very good. It takes a lot of upkeep, yes?" I brush my hand over the layer of insects. A strange sensation...they're very much alive and active, but the structure is rigid and cool to the touch. Fascinating, to say the least.

"It takes a substantial amount of chakra to maintain, yes. This is normal from my research, as Gaara's so-called absolute defense required much in the way of chakra and a fighting style that required much less movement, all so that he could maintain his stamina. In most cases, the Dark Shield can be deployed quickly and strategically since it will only occupy so much of the body at once."

"Hm..." I think about the possibilities of this sort of technique. Not something I would need for myself, and I wouldn't be able to make the best use of it either way. Aoko is also at my call, and her defense with the Chaotic Bulwark is just about unrivaled in all the lands, as far as I'm concerned. Shino was already invaluable to me, but this is definitely a welcome development. I meant it when I said I was proud of him.

"What do you think, Boss?"

"Impressed doesn't begin to describe it. You should have been chuunin a long time ago. Well done, my friend."

"Thanks, Boss. I hoped you would like it."

"I do. And I'm looking forward to what you might come up with in the future." I turn to face Hina. "Alright, Miss Hyuuga. Let's see what you have."

"Of course. The other day, Hanabi got the idea to check for my elemental affinity. I didn't think I was ready for it, but she insisted. So...over the past month or so, I've been training a certain technique."

"And which elements are you tuned to?" I ask.

"Fire...and Lightning. It's the second that I've grasped the fastest, and incorporated into a simple technique." Hina steps away from us and into an open part of the field. "Just so you know, you're responsible for this."

"Am I, now."

"Yes. You've done more for me than you could realize." She takes a breath in and activates her Byakugan.

"You're gonna like this one," Kurenai says.

"I'm sure that I will." So Hina's learned of her elements already...she really is coming along splendidly. What kind of technique has she come up with?

She takes a step forward before jumping into the air. It's a graceful sort of jump, the kind that marries finesse and athleticism, and that makes one look like they're floating through the air instead of just rising and falling like a stone. Her hands shift into that familiar position, left palm out in front of her with the right close to her side. Her movement freezes for a moment as lightning chakra surges through her body.

And then, in the next moment, she shoots diagonally towards the ground, a streak of electric blue following her closely. Her right arm extends, two fingers pointed forward and crackling with energy to drive into the invisible enemy at the end of her route.

"Encore!"

Without a wasted movement, she spins and rushes back in the direction she came from, another streak of light following her as she thrusts forward again at and even faster rate.

"Finale!"

And now, she's even faster than before, accelerating and sending chakra rippling through the air as she finishes by thrusting both arms forward, slamming into the unseen target and finishing it off. Hina breaks her stance and lets out a heavy breath before relaxing.

"That was...really cool," I say with awe. "Maybe calling it cool isn't enough. I don't know...that was...wow."

"Knew you'd like it," Kurenai says with a laugh. "Our girl's come a long way, hasn't she?"

"Say that twice. Hina...seriously. That was beyond impressive."

"You really think so?"

"Yes. Yes, I really think that. I really mean it," I say with happiness. "That...you came up with that by yourself?"

"I had some help with refining it...Hanabi and Neji were there to watch over me as I practiced, and while I didn't tell Naruto exactly what I was doing, he gave me ideas as well. But I...came up with the main idea myself. I guess I had your performances in mind, and I just wanted to try one of them, those techniques, for myself. I figured that maybe I could combine a new technique with the Gentle Fist, and...this is what I came up with."

"I'm really proud of you, Hina. I..." I place a hand over my chest. "You're amazing. You were so graceful, and everything about your technique was beautifully precise. Incredibly well done."

"Thank you, Lili. Hearing you praise me like this was all I wanted," she says with a bright smile. "I wanted to impress you most of all, more than anyone else."

"You've certainly done that. So that...let me gather my thoughts a moment. Yes, that technique. First of all, what did you name it?"

"That would be the first question, wouldn't it..."

"It has to be!" I say with excitement. "The very soul of a technique is conveyed through its name, you know? Some can be unique and flashy, with others technical and stoic. They can inspire the masses and strike fear into the hearts of enemies."

"I think you'll like it, Boss."

"I hope so," I say to Shino. "So, Hina. What did you name it?"

She gives me a smug smile. "Lightning Release: Valkyrie Arrow."

Wow. That's good. That's really good.

"You realize that you've become just as chuuni as me now, right?"

Hina rolls her eyes. "I'll find a way to register that as a compliment."

"You're welcome. Valkyrie Arrow...huh. I noticed something else," I say as I put a hand under my chin. "Your positioning was very clean, and done for a specific purpose. I'm right, of course."

"Then you can figure out the rest," she says as she wipes her face with a towel.

"No hints. Hmm...you took a deliberate path to each of your positions. I highly suspect from how you performed the technique that the last two strikes were additional attacks, that is to say that the first strike from the air is a complete technique in and of itself. The second attack uses the advantages of the Gentle Fist stance to build momentum, and it's the same for the third and final attack, which serves as a strong finisher."

"Hm."

"And...one more little secret," I say with a smile. "There's a reason you keep using that stance the whole way through."

"And what reason would that be, Miss Kobayashi?"

"Why, it's for the sake of your secret technique. What else? After each strike, you're in range of the opponent, and that places them within your divination. That extends to if you should miss an attack, which is why each of your phases place you within a certain three dimensional area. It means that no matter where you land, you can either recover or chain any of your attacks into something like the Sixty Four Palms."

She sighs. "I suppose I can't sneak anything past you."

"I'm sure. You expected me to figure it out, Hina."

"Not that quickly."

"Heh. It seems we've all grown much stronger in the last while. That's really good to see, it means that we can take on just about anyone who crosses our path."

"That technique isn't perfected yet," Hina points out.

"It doesn't need to be yet, especially if we're together. I'll be here for you," I say as I pull her close to me. "Just like you'll be there for me."

"As if you need help."

"Don't be like that. Teamwork is important, and it helps my confidence knowing that you and Shino and Kurenai are standing behind me. You're the reason I fight, after all."

"More than the village?"

"More than the village," I repeat honestly. She nods in understanding. "I haven't come up with anything else flashy myself, but today could be a big source of inspiration. By the way, have you seen Naruto's thing?"

"He showed it to me the other day," Hina says as we grab our equipment. "It's very impressive."

"Right? I want to hear your thoughts on it. It looks...incomplete."

"I was thinking the same thing."

"Good, good. Any ideas? I don't want to intrude on Jiraiya's space, you know. But we can make subtle suggestions here and there, you know, little training plans that he can follow."

"Should we look into his affinity, too?"

"No, let's leave that to someone else. You know how he gets when he discovers something new," I say with a lazy wave of my hand. "The boy is too eager when it comes to jutsu and the like."

"Mm-hm."

"Though I suppose you'd like him to be eager about other things."

"It never ends with you."

"Speaking of relationships...have you noticed anything new with Kakashi-sensei?" I ask as we start to leave the training field. Kurenai is treating us to lunch today, or maybe a late breakfast. Brunch? All of that sounds good.

"Mm...come to think of it...I did notice him with someone a few times this week."

"Talking about Ruki?" Kurenai asks as she catches up with Hina and I. Shino is trailing behind us reliably.

"We met up a few weeks ago," I say.

"I saw her about two days ago, Asuma and I were coming back from a job. She looked chipper."

"Did she, now? Well, you have my attention."

"Alright...you know that she and Kakashi went uptown one day, and..."