"Talking"
'Thinking'
Jutsu/ Bijuu/ Summons
Flashbacks, Letters, and Setting
I don't own Naruto
Chapter 20: D-Rank Missions Part 2
At Training Ground 7
"So those are D-rank missions? Ugh, they're so lame! If I see that stinkin cat one more time! Ugh!" Narumi yelled out, throwing her hands in the air.
Sasuke nodded in agreement. "So, these are the kind of missions we'll be doing as Genin. What a waste of time. I'd rather train than to be someone's errand boy."
Hinata didn't really mind. Safe, easy missions, and she got to spend time with her 2 best friends? She'd take that any day. She wasn't sure she wanted to, or was ready to, go on life-or-death missions any time soon.
"Where's onii-chan anyway? What's taking him so long? What are we supposed to do for him while we wait?" Narumi thought to herself out loud.
"I guess we could get a little training in. Maybe work on our chakra control?" Sasuke suggested.
Narumi hated chakra control exercises but knew it's what she needed to work on the most. She reluctantly agreed.
The 3 Genin each grabbed a leaf from a nearby tree, and began to float it on their palms.
A few moments later, their sensei appeared in a swirl of leaves.
"Training while you were waiting for me? Now that's a great idea. Good job guys!" Naruto was pleased at their initiative.
Sasuke smiled at the praise, as it was his idea.
"I've decided we'll be having days where we'll do missions, and other days where we train the whole day. Missions are great, but it's more important to improve your skills and teamwork." Naruto informed his Genin team.
"But, nii-, I mean, sensei! We'll be falling behind everyone in missions then!" Narumi whined.
"Don't you worry about that. They won't be saying anything to you if you're stronger than them." Her brother told her.
"Now, let's get started with your afternoon training. Looks like you guys got the right idea already. We'll be working on both refining your chakra control, as well as expanding your reserves." Naruto told his team. "The exercise we'll be doing is called the tree walking exercise."
"T-tree walking?" Hinata asked.
"We'll be walking on trees?" Narumi asked, imagining them walking from branch to branch.
"Precisely. Watch." Naruto began to walk up a tree, using chakra to attach his feet to the tree as he walked up vertically.
"Woah! That's awesome! I'll never use another set of stairs again!" Narumi exclaimed.
Naruto chuckled as he sat on a branch. "Alright everyone. Now that you've seen what the exercise is, let me explain to you how it works. Basically, you focus chakra on your feet, and use it to stick your feet onto the tree. Now the trick is to get the amount of chakra you use just right. If you use too little, you won't stick, and if you use too much, you'll be propelled off of the tree."
He threw a kunai in front of each of his Genin's feet. "Use those kunai to mark the tree when you feel like you're losing control and about to fall off, so you can mark your progress. If you get to the top of the tree, walk up and down the tree until I tell you that you can stop. Now begin!"
The Genin picked up the kunai, and began the tree walking exercise. Hinata had the best chakra control amongst the three of them, due to precise chakra control being a prerequisite for the Jyuuken style of taijutsu, and also her smaller reserves. After a couple attempts, she was able to get the feel of it, and reached the top of the tree.
"Great job, Hinata! I wasn't expecting any of you to get the hang of it so quickly! I guess your Jyuuken helped you with your chakra control. Now, keep up the good work and walk up and down the tree until the others get the hang of it as well." Hinata was encouraged by Naruto's praise, and went back to her exercise eagerly.
Narumi and Sasuke were struggling a little more, Narumi more so than Sasuke. They were spurred by the desire to get it down before the other, and went at it relentlessly.
3 hours passed, and Sasuke finally made it to the top, while Narumi was close to doing so. By now, Hinata was too tired to continue the exercise, and was sitting next to Naruto, who was watching Narumi and Sasuke's progress, as well as telling Hinata things she could be working on.
"I saw your grades for the Genin Exams, and I was impressed. You were close to being Kunoichi of the year!" Naruto told Hinata, who blushed at the praise.
"Your shuriken and kunai throwing weren't bad either, with 10/10 and 9/10 respectively. You have pretty good accuracy and some talent in throwing, which gives me an idea." Naruto began, and Hinata gave her handsome sensei all of her attention.
"I think we could take advantage of your Byakugan, and its ability to see the inner workings of the human body in extreme detail. Now, your style of taijutsu doesn't require strength, but precision instead. As such, you have good aim, but your range is a little limited, using heavier throwing weapons. How about you switch to using senbon? Usually, they're not the most lethal or dangerous, but you have good precision, and you can see the weak points of the body. If you use your Byakugan to aim your senbon at pressure points, you'll be able to incapacitate your opponents with a flick of the wrist." Naruto suggested. "It'll be similar in principle to the Jyuuken. What do you think?"
Hinata thought about her sensei's suggestion. It wasn't like the kunai were super heavy, but she would prefer something lighter, so she could have more range. If her knowledge of pressure points were correct too, it meant she could take down opponents without killing them, and if needed, have the option of killing them as well. It would work perfectly with her kekkei genkai.
'Why didn't the rest of my clan use senbon? It makes so much sense to pair it with the Byakugan.' She thought to herself. Her clan was too fixated on their powerful taijutsu, that they had stopped working on branching out into other skills.
"I-I think that's a good idea, sensei." She quietly responded.
Naruto gave her a smile, that made it hard for her to meet his gaze. "Good. The Hyuuga are currently a little too focused on the Jyuuken. You can show your clan how powerful they can be, and save them from their myopic view on the other ninja arts, by mastering them, and making a name for yourself. Don't tell your family though. I want it to be a surprise until we have the right stage to display your talents."
Hinata nodded. "I-it's not like they c-care about what I do, anyway." She said with her face downcast.
Naruto frowned. "Hinata, if you don't feel comfortable at home, you can always come stay with me and Narumi."
Hinata pictured living with her best friend and her hunky sensei. It seemed amazing, but she knew she couldn't. It would be a bad look for her clan.
"T-thank you sensei. But I'll have to d-decline. F-father would never allow it." Hinata told her sensei.
"Hmmm. I could talk to your father if you wish, but do what's most comfortable for you. Let me know if you need me to do anything for you. Feel free to come see me at my house whenever, ok? Remember, our team is our second family." He told his shy Genin kunoichi, who nodded appreciatively.
"Finally got it!" They heard a yell, and turned to see Narumi at the top of the tree.
"Good job! Now go up and down the tree like Sasuke is doing, until I tell you to stop!" Naruto yelled back at her.
"Anyway, I feel like there's a lot of things you could work on, that'll help you make the most of your kekkei genkai." Naruto told Hinata. "I'll bring some material you can study tomorrow. It'll be helpful if you know the anatomy of the human body."
Hinata nodded in agreement.
It was now close to 5pm, so Naruto told his two Genin to stop the tree climbing exercise.
"Great first day you guys! I'm happy with what I've seen today. I can see you guys are talented, motivated, and have great teamwork. I'm gonna enjoy working with you. Continue to give me your best, and I'll have you guys in tip top shape in no time!" Naruto told his team.
"I'll see you guys at the same time tomorrow! Make sure you guys eat well and get plenty of sleep!" Naruto greeted Hinata and Sasuke farewell.
"I've got some things to do, so you're gonna need to go to Tsunade ba-chan's dinner by yourself tonight." He told Narumi.
"But you didn't come last time either!" Narumi complained to Naruto.
"I'll try to make it to the next one. It's important. Tell ba-chan and Shizune-san that I'll be there next time. Anyway, got to go! I'll see you at home!" Naruto told Narumi as he shunshined away, leaving a pile of leaves behind.
"Bah, he always leaves a mess behind!" Narumi shouted out to no one in particular. "Guess I'll head over to baa-chan's."
At Tsunade's House
"Hey baa-chan! I'm here!" Narumi shouted out as she took off her shoes at the entrance.
"Oi, how many times did I tell you not to call me that!" Tsunade yelled back as she came out to greet her niece-like figure.
"Welcome Narumi-chan!" Shizune greeted, sticking her head out from the kitchen, before she stepped out wearing an apron over her clothes. "Where's Naruto-san?"
"He said he's busy. AGAIN." Narumi rolled her eyes.
"Busy with what? I thought he quit ANBU?" Tsunade thought to herself out loud.
"I don't know. Said it was important." Narumi told Tsunade.
A few moments later, they were seated around the dinner table for some donburi.
"So, you're finally a Genin! How was your first day?" Shizune asked Narumi.
"Hold on, before that, how's your team?" Tsunade asked.
"Right, who's on your team? Are you happy with who you got on your team? Who's your sensei? Did you get Asuma?" Shizune asked.
"Woah, slow down there with the questions!" Narumi told the two older women as she finished chewing and swallowing the food that was in her mouth.
"My team is awesome! I got exactly who I wanted on my team! I got Sasuke AND Hinata on my team!" Narumi told the two women enthusiastically.
"That's great! You were so worried about ending up with people you don't like." Shizune commented.
"Yup! Also, I didn't get Asuma as a sensei, but it's alright, since onii-chan decided to be our sensei instead." Narumi mentioned to Shizune and Tsunade.
Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "The brat decided to be a Jonin sensei? That's why he quit the ANBU?" She asked Narumi.
"Yup! He's pretty strong, I think, so he's a good sensei, I would say. We're all used to training with him at least a couple times, so there wasn't any of that awkwardness you might have with meeting new people." Narumi stated.
Tsunade snorted. "Pffft. That brat as a sensei? Now there's an image I've never thought of before. You guys are gonna suffer."
"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune scolded Tsunade. "I'm sure he'll be a great sensei. He can be kind when he wants to. And he's strong. Very strong." Shizune recalled the fight Naruto had in the forest against the Iwa-nin 5 years ago, and him saving her. It had been the beginning of her changing her view of him.
"Fine. Anyway, so how was your first day? Did you do any missions?" Tsunade asked with a smirk on her face. Ahh, D-rank missions. She was glad to be done with that nonsense.
"The training part was tough, but still, it was nice. But the missions? Ugh. Baa-chan, they made us catch this demon cat they call Tora, and it was the worst thing ever. Apparently, all of the D-rank missions are sucky like that." Narumi complained.
"That cat is still alive?" Shizune wondered out loud. "They had us catching him when I was a Genin. How have they still not figured out how to prevent him from escaping?"
Tsunade laughed. "Heh, I remember when you had to catch that stupid cat. Ah, good times. Well, have fun with your D-rank missions, brat." She laughed at Narumi's groan.
"Thanks baa-chan." Narumi stated sarcastically in a flat tone.
At the ANBU HQ
"Taichou! You're back! Have you decided to rejoin?" Yugao asked hopefully, when she saw her former captain back at the base.
"Ah, Yugao. Good to see you again." Naruto greeted her. "No, I'm not back in the ANBU. I'm here to find Kakashi."
Yugao was disappointed. She missed her captain. "Well, that's too bad. You can always come back when you want. We can always use you here. Anyway, Kakashi Taichou is probably reading his smut in the lounge."
"Thank you Yugao. Maybe when I have time later, we can have a spar or something. You can bring your boyfriend too." Naruto told Yugao as he headed to the ANBU lounge.
He paused before he left. "Actually, I think I could use some help from you too."
That got Yugao's attention. She had always wanted to be noticed or be more useful for her former taichou, who had done a lot for her when she first joined the ANBU.
She nodded her head to let him know he would get what he asked for. "Sure thing taichou! What do you need?" she asked, and Naruto responded with a grin.
At the ANBU Lounge
"Ah. There you are. Just where I left you a week ago. Reading the same book in the same couch. If I didn't know better, I'd think it was the same day." Naruto greeted his former captain as he entered the lounge.
Kakashi didn't look up from his book, but greeted him with a lazy wave. "Why go anywhere else when I can reach enlightenment from this spot? This is a good scene too. Art deserves to be appreciated multiple times."
Naruto scoffed. "As if that smut written by that useless pervert is good for anything. You really need to get your nose out of that book and get a girlfriend, Kakashi senpai."
"And where's yours?" Kakashi asked back.
"Ah. Touché." Naruto had nothing to say to that. "Anyway, I didn't come here to talk to you about finding a girlfriend. I need a favor."
Kakashi kept his eyes on the book. "A favor?"
"Yes. A favor. My Genin have lightning affinities, but I can't train them in that, so I'm gonna need you to come help them train their affinities."
Kakashi peeked over his book. "Did you say Genin? Naruto, why are a bunch of Genin getting trained in their elemental affinity anyway? Usually they wait until they're Chunin before getting into that."
"Yeah, yeah. Enough with that "usually" crap. You know I don't always do things the "usual" way. So, are you gonna help me train them or what?" Naruto asked his senpai.
"Man, that sounds like a drag. Not interested." Kakashi replied back as he went back to his book.
Naruto chuckled. "I didn't know you were related to the Nara." He went over and pulled the book down slightly to make eye contact with the masked ninja.
"Must I remind you, that you owe me? Owe me many favors? Do you want me to remind you why?" Naruto told Kakashi.
Kakashi sighed and put a bookmark into his book as he closed it. "Fine. I'll help. You just need me to teach them training exercises to help them master their element, correct?"
Naruto grinned. "For now."
Kakashi already could sense this was just the beginning. He sighed. "Fine. When do you need me to help?"
"I'll see you at Taining Gound 7 at 8. Oh, and if you're late, I'm gonna put all your books in Yugao's underwear drawer. I'm sure she'll enjoy your signed copies." Naruto threatened Kakashi as he vanished in a Shunshin.
Kakashi stared at the pile of leaves left behind. Damn it. Now he needed to wake up early to train some Genin brats. If he wanted to do that, he would have become a Jonin sensei.
At the Namikaze-Uzumaki House
"So how was dinner?" Naruto asked as he stepped through the door, finding Narumi eating some instant ramen. "You did eat dinner with them, right?"
"Of course, Nii-chan! This is just a snack." Narumi answered with a mouthful of noodles. "Dinner was great! Shizune nee-chan cooked up some really good donburi! It was almost like Ramen, but with rice instead of noodles, and less broth."
Naruto laughed. "Doesn't sound anything like Ramen to me. Anyway, I'm glad you enjoyed it." He told Narumi, as he went to the fridge to get himself something to drink. "I heard you loved your D-rank mission." He told Narumi, as he collapsed into a couch with his drink.
"Eh? Where did you hear that? D-ranks suck nii-chan! When can we get a C-rank one?" Narumi asked as she brought the bowl of instant noodles to her mouth to slurp some of the broth.
"Tsunade baa-chan told me when I dropped by." Naruto answered her.
"Eh? When did you drop by? I was there until an hour ago?" Narumi asked her brother.
"Well, I stopped by to borrow this book on human anatomy and pressure points from baa-chan before I came home. Anyway, we won't be getting a C-rank mission anytime soon. Got more D-ranks to do before we're allowed to take any C-ranks. Exciting huh?" Naruto asked Narumi sarcastically as he sipped on his drink.
"Lame! Ugh, how many more of these chores do we have to do before we're allowed?" Narumi asked.
Naruto smirked. "Until I say you're ready for a C-rank."
The Next Day, At Training Ground 7
Naruto and Narumi arrived at Training Ground 7 first, and began to stretch. A few minutes later, they were joined by Sasuke and Hinata.
"Alright senpai, you can come out now." Naruto called out to seemingly nowhere, and the Genin looked at him strangely. They were surprised when they saw a ninja with tall, spiky silvery-white hair with a mask seemingly appear out of nowhere.
"Yo." Kakashi greeted Team 7 with a lazy wave.
"Kakashi nii? This is your senpai, onii-chan?" Narumi asked her sensei.
"Yup. He's one of the strongest ninjas in Konoha, who happens to have a lightning affinity. He'll help you master lightning manipulation." Naruto introduced Kakashi to his team. "So, wanna get started with the training, Kakashi sensei?" He asked with a smirk.
Kakashi shivered at the title. He was definitely not used to being called that, and it brought up too many memories of scenes from his favorite book series.
"I guess now is as good as any time to start. Alright, as you've just heard, I'm Hatake Kakashi. I'm your sensei's senpai. Anyway, now that you know who I am, let's get started with the training." Kakashi stated as he walked over to grab some leaves from a tree.
"They've got multiple ways of training lightning affinities, but in Konoha, this is how we do it. Take this leaf, and channel a small amount of chakra into the leaf until it begins to vibrate. If it burns up or tears up, you've put too much. Once you can get the leaf to vibrate pretty consistently for 5 minutes straight, you're ready for the next step. In case you manage to get it down at home, or I'm not here, I'll let you know what's next. You channel your chakra into a lightbulb, until it's as bright as the bulbs lighting your rooms. If it bursts, you've put too much." Kakashi told Team 7, as he demonstrated by making the leaf he was holding vibrate with lightning chakra.
Sasuke and Hinata were having trouble making their leaves vibrate, while Narumi kept on having to get new leaves, as they kept on burning up or exploding in her hands.
"Now I just want to let you know, this first step will take most Chunin at least a month, usually taking around 3. The second step is usually another 3 months to really get down consistently." Kakashi told the 3 Genin.
He stayed around in the morning, giving them tips and pointers, until Naruto told him he could go around lunch time. He left as soon as he was dismissed. He had some morning reading to catch up on.
The team headed out to get a bite for lunch after their morning training.
At a small restaurant at the Uchiha compound
"So, what did you guys think of elemental manipulation exercises? Fun stuff huh?" Naruto asked, a little sarcastically.
"Nii-chan, that was so frustrating! Ugh! That stinkin leaf kept exploding in my hands!" Narumi complained as she dug into her yaki soba.
"I-it was a little difficult. I think I'll need more t-time before I understand how to d-do the exercise." Hinata said quietly.
Sasuke scowled. "Why is it so hard?!" he yelled as he slammed a fist on the table. "I can't get that stupid leaf to vibrate!"
"Now, now, I told you this is some very advanced stuff. I don't expect you to get it down until a few months later. Don't be too frustrated. I started you guys way earlier than what's usual, so I'm not expecting quick progress." Naruto said in order to calm his team down a little.
"You actually don't need to master elemental manipulation to learn elemental jutsu, just like Sasuke didn't master his fire manipulation before learning the Goukakyuu no Jutsu (Grand Fireball Technique). It's just that once you master it, you can learn elemental jutsu much faster, and it'll be much stronger too." Naruto informed his team.
The 3 Genin reluctantly accepted the situation, and vowed to get it down as quickly as they could.
In the afternoon, At Training Ground 7
"We're not taking any missions today." Naruto told his team. "I've decided I'm going to focus on one of you and have tutors sharpen some of your other skills. We'll rotate until I've got to spend time with each of you, which is 3 days, then we'll do teamwork exercises and formation drills on the 4th day. On the 5th day we'll take a mission, and then you can have the weekends off."
Shizune and Yugao showed up to the training ground as he finished his speech.
"Ah! There they are! Welcome to Training Ground 7! Team, say hello to Shizune, one of the best medics in this village, and possibly the world, and Yugao, one of my kouhai from the ANBU. She's a kenjutsu expert."
The Genin's eyes were sparkling, as they saw the tutors Naruto brought for them. They were impressed with his connections. They wondered if all the other Genin were getting such quality training.
"Alright, Shizune-san, will you please work with Hinata on her knowledge of the human body and its pressure points? Maybe some basic medical knowledge would be nice too, so she can help out with first aid if any of us get hurt." Naruto asked Shizune, and she nodded to show her agreement.
"Very good. Now Yugao, do you mind testing my sister's skill with the blade, and maybe show her a few tricks?" Naruto asked Yugao.
"Hai, Naruto-taichou." Yugao replied, as she saluted her former captain.
"Hey, hey. Come on now, you don't need to do all that. You're embarrassing me." Naruto told his former subordinate.
Meanwhile, his students hadn't really seen him at work before, so they thought it was super cool to see how much respect he commanded in the elite force of shinobi known as the ANBU. Their already high respect for Naruto went up even more.
"How about me, sensei?" Sasuke asked Naruto.
Naruto gave him a grin. "You'll be working with me first."
The 3 Genin went to their respective tutors to work on their skills all afternoon.
Naruto taught the hand seals required for the Ryuuka no Jutsu (Dragon Flame technique) to Sasuke, a technique which could be used in conjunction with his ninja wires.
Shizune instructed Hinata on pressure points and nerve clusters, and Hinata showed an interest in paralysis. Shizune had a smile on her face when she saw how determined she was.
Yugao sparred with Narumi, and was thoroughly impressed. Sure, she beat Narumi every time, but Narumi's skill with the blade exceeded any Genin she ever knew, and was even better than most Chunin. It raised her respect for her former captain, knowing that he had trained Narumi in kenjutsu.
When it was 5pm, Naruto gathered his team and dismissed the tutors after he thanked them.
"So, what did you think of your tutors and their lessons today?" He asked.
"That was fun! Yugao nee-chan is super strong! She kicked my butt all afternoon, but I think I picked up a couple of tricks. Can't wait to spar with her again!" Narumi replied with a huge smile on her face.
Hinata loved Shizune. She was very nurturing and kind. She was the kind older woman figure she needed in her life. Hinata was thriving under her patient instruction and encouragement. "I-I like Shizune sensei. She's very kind, and she teaches very methodically." Hinata commented.
There was nothing more for Sasuke to say. He had a blast getting one-on-one training from his sensei, and he was learning another fire jutsu! It reminded him of all the good times he spent training with Itachi and Shisui, before everything happened.
Sasuke just summarized how he felt into very simple words. "I like this system. It's good training."
Naruto smiled as he heard the stellar reception to his training regiment. "Good to hear it!" He exclaimed.
He dismissed the team for the day, and Sasuke headed home for dinner. Naruto stopped Hinata before she left to hand her a book.
Hinata looked at the book cover and realized it was on human anatomy and pressure points. She looked back up to her sensei from her book.
"I want you to go home and study this book whenever you have the time. Alright?" Naruto asked, and Hinata replied with an eager nod of the head, before she turned around to go home.
The Next Day
The next day was similar, with Kakashi training the 3 Genin in lightning manipulation all morning. Only, he stayed for the afternoon session as well, to give more attention on Sasuke's lightning manipulation, as well as helping him with the Ryuuka no Jutsu, as Kakashi was familiar with the technique.
Narumi once again sparred with Yugao, doing even better than the day before, though she still failed to beat Yugao even once. Yugao didn't want to make Narumi arrogant, so she didn't tell her, but she realized Narumi was a natural with the sword. She was good with the whirlpool style of kenjutsu, but mixed it up with her unpredictable moves every once in a while, which gave Yugao a challenge she hadn't had in a while.
Meanwhile, Naruto focused on Hinata. He introduced her to senbon, and began to train her in how to throw it. It took a moment to get used to it, but her experience with kunai and shuriken helped her understand the mechanics and make quick progress with the new weapon.
The 3rd Day
The Genin continued to train and work with their respective tutors.
Hinata went back to Shizune, while Sasuke continued to work with Kakashi.
It was Narumi's turn to have a training day with Naruto.
"What will you be teaching me, nii-chan?" Narumi asked her brother and sensei.
Naruto gave her a smile that promised a lot of hard work. "It's time for you to get started on you water manipulation."
Narumi's shoulder sagged a little. Great, she was struggling with lightning, and now she was about to throw in a whole other element to make it more difficult.
Naruto noticed and laughed. "Well, we'll start by trying to draw the water out of this leaf." He told her as he handed her a leaf.
She sighed and took the leaf. She tried to channel her water chakra but all it did was go between shaking violently in her hand and sweating out the occasional drop of water.
"Hmmm… why don't we get started on a water jutsu, so you get the feel for what it's like to use water chakra. I guess a little confusion was bound to happen, since we're training multiple elemental affinities simultaneously." Naruto told Narumi who perked up.
She preferred learning jutsu over sharpening base skills which seemed vague to her, as she didn't fully understand how it really applied to her other skills.
Naruto began to teach her the hand seals for Mizurappa (Water Trumpet). Narumi copied down the seals he was doing, and went over the hand seals a few times without chakra, to try to get used to the signs.
Finally, she headed over to a training dummy which was a bit further away from everyone, in order prevent any accidents should the jutsu go wrong.
She went through the hand seals, and shouted out the jutsu. "Suiton: Mizurappa (Water Release: Water Trumpet)!"
A spray of water imbued with lightning spewed out of the redhead kunoichi's mouth.
Naruto stood there speechless. When people who had multiple affinities trained their affinities simultaneously, they would sometimes get the nature of the chakra wrong, and the jutsu wouldn't work. However, the jutsu would never combine the nature of both chakras, unless they had a-
"Kekkei genkai…" Naruto whispered to himself. He decided not to tell Narumi until they were back home tonight.
"Oops. Sorry bout that nii-chan. Looks like I accidentally used my lightning chakra too." Narumi apologized.
Naruto laughed, both because he found her expression to be funny, but also to shift the attention away.
"Looks like you did. It means you're not doing it quite right. Let's work on your water manipulation a bit more. Create 10 of your shadow clones, and have them practice water manipulation with the leaves, while we work with you on this jutsu." Naruto told his sister.
The 4th Day
"Alright, I'm seeing a lot of good progress from your individual tutoring. However, if you guys don't work on teamwork as well, all of your new jutsu that your teammates are unfamiliar with might become a hindrance and get in your way. That's why we'll be spending the whole day on teamwork exercises and work on your team combos and formations." The blonde sensei instructed his students.
They spent most of the morning learning different formations their team might use, ranging from different formations while traveling, protecting a client, or setting ambushes.
In the afternoon, they used their new knowledge on formations in a 3-on-1 spar against their sensei, who they tried to take down in different scenarios with their combo attacks.
At the end of the day, Naruto looked over at his 3 Genin who had worn themselves exhausted. He was proud of their work ethic, as well as their cooperation with each other. True, they had failed in landing any hits on him, but Naruto could see the improvement with each attempt.
He was sure they would soon be ready for a C-rank.
The 5th Day
On Friday, Naruto trained his students in the morning as usual, but in the afternoon, they took a D-rank mission.
The team hated them. Training for being ambushed by enemy shinobi during an escort mission, and working on deadly team combinations, only to go to paint a fence as a mission? It was so dull, they imagined even Shikamaru finding this boring.
The Next Month
The team trained around this schedule for 4 weeks, resting on the weekends. It had now almost been a month, and they had gotten 5 D-rank missions completed.
The 3 Genin on Team 7 had gotten close to mastering the first stage of their lightning affinity, with Hinata showing the highest mastery. She was ready for the next stage, while the other 2 were close as well.
Their individual skills had grown impressively under their tutors.
Sasuke was now able to perform the Ryuuka no Jutsu (Dragon Flame Technique), though still with various amounts of success.
Narumi's swordplay had gotten even more unpredictable, while still sharpening her katas and moves of her style. She was now able to spar with Yugao, taking half the amount of hits she had taken before, though she was still unable to beat her once. She still struggled with her suiton, but she could still perform the jutsu occasionally.
Hinata's constant study of the human anatomy with Shizune and also at home helped her improve her knowledge of pressure points and other weak spots, which not helped her become more deadly with both her Jyuuken and senbon, but also helped her take a role as the unofficial medic of the team if Naruto was unavailable.
While they were definitely growing in skill and teamwork, their frustration was also growing, as they hated D-rank missions.
It all came to a head when they ran across Team 8.
"Hey, isn't that Shino? It's been forever! We should go and say hi!" Narumi told her 2 teammates, who she dragged along as she ran towards her bug using friend.
"Hey! Shino! It's been forever! How are ya? How's your team?" Narumi asked.
"It is good to see you again, Narumi-san, Hinata-san, Sasuke-san. I am doing quite well. Our team works together surprisingly well." Shino told his friends.
"Really? Aren't Kiba and Sakura annoying?" Narumi asked in surprise.
"They've changed since we became a team. Kurenai sensei must have influenced them positively." The montone Aburame replied.
The rest of Team 8 walked around the corner to see Team 7's Genin.
"Sup losers, taking any missions yet? I saw the charts, and it looks like you guys have done 5 D-ranks." Kiba told the team he saw as his rival.
Team 7 just gave Shino a look. This was the change he was talking about?
"Sheesh, what's with that? You guys are barely doing 1 mission a week. You guys sure are lazy. We've already done like 30. Sometimes we take 2 missions in a single day. I think we're almost ready for a C-rank!" Kiba bragged.
Sakura smacked Kiba on the top of his head. "Cut that out! This isn't a competition to see who can complete more missions the fastest! We're all comrades!" She chastised him for his foolish behavior, and surprisingly apologized to Team 7 before leaving. Of course, she couldn't leave without saying hi to Sasuke, and stealing a few glances as she left.
"… was that Sakura?" Narumi asked in surprise. She hadn't insulted her once, and even apologized for her team's childish behavior.
"L-looks like that was the change Shino-kun was talking about." Hinata commented.
"Well that's a pleasant change. Maybe she'll take being a shinobi a little more seriously now." Sasuke added. If Sakura had heard, she'd melt into a puddle as she blushed.
"Still, can't say what dog boy said didn't annoy me though." Sasuke told his 2 friends, who agreed.
Team 7's Genin they knew they were stronger, but they were being left behind in missions. They were frustrated with the situation.
They arrived at their meeting spot near the Hokage Tower after lunch and found their sensei waiting for them.
"Hey team! Ready for another mission?" Naruto asked cheerfully, as he led them towards the mission board.
His sister replied snappishly at his cheerful tone. "Ugh. Another D-rank! I'm sick of these stupid D-rank missions, and now it looks like Team 8 might get a C-rank mission soon! We're so behind nii-chan! What's the point of training so hard if all we do are errands and chores?"
Naruto pulled a couple missions off of the board as he listened to his sister's rant.
"So, you guys are telling me you don't want to go grocery shopping for Takeshi-san?" the Genin shook their heads at their sensei's question
"How about catching Tora? You guys did pretty well that last time."
The three Genin responded desperately in unison. "NO!"
Naruto chuckled. "Fine. Follow me." He told his team as he placed the missions back on the board.
The Hokage's Office
Hiruzen was going over mission assignments with Iruka, when his assistant called for him.
"Hokage-sama, Naruto-san is here to see you."
"Send him in." the Hokage responded, wondering what this was all about.
The door opened, and Naruto strolled in, followed by his 3 Genin.
"Hello, Naruto-kun. What can I do for you?" the old Hokage asked.
Naruto gave the old man a smirk. "I'm here for that C-rank mission."
His team's eyes widened. A C-rank!? They were getting a C-rank? They were beyond excited. They'd be the first in their class!
"A C-rank? Hokage-sama you can't be serious! They were in my class just a month ago! They're not ready!" Iruka protested.
"A lot can happen in a month, Iruka-san. In any case, they're not your students anymore so it's not for you to say. Nobody asked for your input." Naruto told the man coldly.
Iruka stood up angrily, and glared at Naruto. Naruto didn't pay him any attention.
Hiruzen stopped the one-sided stareoff. "It's alright Iruka-kun. I did tell him he could take a C-rank mission for his team once he felt they were ready."
The team was bubbling with excitement, as Hiruzen told his assistant to bring the client into the room.
The door opened, and a short old man with a bottle of saké and the smell of alcohol entered the room.
"I asked for ninja protection, and you give me a bunch of kids?" the old man complained.
Hiruzen chuckled. "Team 7, this is your client. Tazuna, the bridge builder of Nami no Kuni (Wave Country). You will be escorting him back home tomorrow."
Naruto looked at his team with a smirk. "So, you kids ready for your first C-rank?"
*Author's Note*
Back with another chapter of the Jinchuuriki's Brother!
So the Wave Arc is finally starting! Lol I gotta decide quick if Haku is gonna be a male or a female.
Also, I recently learned that I was not doing the honorifics thing completely right, so starting next chapter, I'm gonna switch it up. It's not a huge change, and I'm too lazy to change it, so I'm going to leave the first 20 chapters as it is. Maybe I'll change it in the future. For now I'll be making changes like adding the hyphen between titles like Naruto-sensei, instead of doing Naruto sensei as I have been doing, or going from nii-chan to niichan. Not huge deals, but going through 100k words to find and fix it is too troublesome.
Anyway, here are the points for the pairing votes!
Naruto's pairing
Shizune 179
Samui 134
Izumi 93
Mei 99
Anko 94
Pakura 28
I think the pairing is more or less chosen now, unless people jump ship and support another character.
Narumi's pairing
Sasuke 28
Shino 8
Shikamaru 30
Gaara 29
Haku 33
Kiba 1
Yeah, let me just jump the gun and say I don't see Kiba winning this poll lol. The top 4 are actually very close though.
Please feel free to let me know what you think, ask me any questions you have, or make any suggestions! I welcome any interaction I can have with you guys!
Anyway, thanks for reading the latest chapter! I hope you enjoyed it!
Until next time!