Naruto: Kung Fu Guardian
Chapter 3: Sword Training 101
Revised – Final Version
Disclaimer: If I own Naruto, he would be the one having fan girls instead of Sasuke. I borrowed Narutoverse from Kishimoto and two techniques from Jin Yong. Everything else, including the explanation of how those WuXia techniques work, though, is mine.
…o.0.O.0.o…
Naruto found himself knee-deep in sewer water. The walls on either side of him ran up into the darkness-engulfed oblivion above him and created a pathway in front of him, twisting and turning toward what seemed like the center of a labyrinth. Light emanated from that direction. Unsure of what to expect, Naruto nervously treaded forward.
"What is this? and where am I? Where are the old man and his family?" he asked aloud, turning his head as his eyes gathered information on his surroundings.
As Naruto continued toward the light source, he felt a pulsing aura mixture of tranquility and malice. The red glow was faint and suppressed, and the white aura provided Naruto with an inviting serenity. The closer to the center he got, the stronger the pulses and brighter his surroundings became. Gradually he was able to discern the strange markings on the walls. Those markings were glowing with a white calming aura running through their veins. Occasionally streaks of red flashes appeared within the white markings, appearing on the walls like random crackles of fireworks. Finally the boy arrived at the entrance to a big arena that was the epicenter of this mysterious energy pulse.
Behind a gigantic cage a voice sounded, "Welcome to this deplorable place that is your mind, brat!" The words were harsh, but the voice that sounded them was melodiously seductive.
Naruto saw a woman standing behind bars of a cage that seemed many times too big for her. The woman wore a maroon lacy mesh dress that was almost see-through. Her long wavy blond hair flowed down to cover just enough of her chest and privates. Her ivory silky skin could be seen on her exposed arms and hands.
The woman furrowed her brows.
Sounding seductive, cute, or inviting was not part of Kyuubi's well-thought-out plan to 'greet' her pathetically weak jailor. The demon fox had originally wanted to greet him in her terrifying bestial body, but was unable to transform back while suppressing her chakra.
'Kuso! I wanted to make him wet his pants on his first meeting with the great Kyuubi no Kitsune in her full nine story glory, but I can't risk using my chakra and sending him back to his world yet. The bearded prodigal son would be no threat, but the wrinkled prune of a Kage might do something to prevent me from communicating with the boy again.'
Accepting her temporary human form as something she could not change for now, she continued her musing, which caused her lips to tug into a smirk.
'Even though the first meeting didn't go exactly as planned, I was still able to beat the despicable Fourth and his damnable seal. I'm determined not to have a weak jailor anymore; I refuse to take this lying down.'
As Kyuubi basked in the glow of in some way defeating the Yondaime, the seal on her cage glowed slightly, showing that it was working exactly as designed.
The Fourth engineered the seal to allow Kyuubi an option to initiate communication with Naruto under non-life-threatening situations IF Kyuubi approach her jailor without any malicious intent. This helpful provision would allow Kyuubi to become Naruto's guardian in the truest sense: train him or offer sound and experienced advice on a whim, even under situations sans danger. Ironically the ingenuity of the Yondaime was the main reason that the Kitsune was successful.
Of course, the Yondaime did not factor in Kyuubi's use of Qi, or more specifically, the Yang or the positive of Qi. The tailed beasts were inherently evil because of their demonic chakra. Therefore, when the bijuu suppressed her chakra, she effectively suppressed a majority of her malicious intent. Furthermore, whatever non-chakra-related malice remained in Kyuubi was neutralized when she channeled Qi, or more specifically Yang.
Upon seeing the sight of the beauty behind bars, Naruto walked closer and called out, "Did I die? If so, are you an angel? Or are you my mother? And why are you behind bars?"
Naruto was really hoping that this woman was his mother greeting him in afterlife.
A huge tick mark appeared on Kyuubi's face. To say that she was pissed would be like saying Jiraiya was a little bit perverted or Orochimaru was a minor criminal. In other words, a huge understatement.
She was the most feared of all tailed beasts and arguably the most powerful. She wanted ... no, needed ... to put her jailor in his place. She needed him to know who she was and how she felt having been caged inside the Fourth's Shinigami seal to suffer eight years of inactivity.
"I'm not your mother! I'm the most powerful of all tailed demons – the fear-inspiring Kyuubi no Kitsune!" shouted the humanoid of the strongest of all tailed beast, showing her gridlocked teeth and giving it her all in this failed display of intimidating factor.
"But you were killed by the Yondaime. That means you're here to torture me in afterlife. But how did I get here? Oh no, don't tell me the old man … did he poison me? Or was it one of his servants?" rambled the whiskered boy, clearly reflecting his age as he showered Kyuubi with a barrage of non-stop questions.
Kyuubi became more impatient and furious upon hearing his annoying antics. As the demon was about to let Naruto feel the brunt of her fury, she saw his existence flickered in synch with her own temper flares. Realizing that she was leaking demonic chakra, she hurriedly reined in her chakra and channeled more Qi than was necessary.
Qi normally had a calming effect to any situation, but Kyuubi did not merely channel Qi. Applying what she read, she channeled her Yang, which when isolated from Yin was twice as effective in neutralizing malicious intent. Almost immediately a burst of light of calming purity engulfed the boy in front of the cage and pulsed throughout the mindscape in circular ripples.
The white aura made the orange-suited energizer feel and act calmly and collectedly, even if only for the duration of being in his mindscape. Naruto experienced a mental clarity he never knew was possible. He felt innocent, safe, protected, and complete. Wrapped in Yang's white aura, he felt loved for the first time in his life. Sure, he felt cared for by the Third and protected by the assigned ANBU, but he had yet to feel loved. Keeping his wits about him, he pondered.
'Why am I feeling this way? I thought she was trying to torture me? This must be a trick. Ha! Her tricks won't work against Konoha's Master of Pranks.'
Naruto did not know that his feeling this way around the femme humanoid was unintentional on Kyuubi's part.
The amount of Yang Kyuubi channeled was worthy of her nine story glory. However, that much Yang confined in a significantly smaller humanoid body caused an unwanted calming side-effect to herself that overpowered Kyuubi's innate temperaments. Unwilling to surrender to the situation that was ultimately, though indirectly, purposed by the Yondaime and his seal, Kyuubi reminded herself the real reason for this meeting.
'I'm doing this for my own selfish reasons. I'm doing this for me. The kid is an unintentional beneficiary of my efforts.'
Unbeknownst to Kyuubi, Qi had already suppressed her most evil reason for communicating with Naruto. Intoxicated in her Yang, she no longer recalled wanting to find ways to take control of Naruto and be emancipated from her prison. She had resigned to her fate as a captive.
Just as she felt a tinkling of feelings she had never felt toward a human crept toward her heart, she chanted the following thoughts like mantra: 'I'm doing this for my own selfish reasons.' Her denial soon became an impossible uphill battle.
"Come closer. We have much to discuss," called out the transformed beauty. Despite her best effort at shouting or at sounding harsh and distant, her voice flowed out melodiously toward the beauty-stricken boy who could not stop staring at her while parting his lips slightly. Looking at the boy, she sighed. She too was unable to fight against this overwhelming abundance of positive energy around her.
Pushing her unnatural and foreign feelings aside, she began by explaining to Naruto about bijuus, jinchuurikis, Yondaime's sacrificial sealing, and the reason ostracized him. Doing so was no mere feat. Often she had to repeat herself and paraphrase her statements using simpler words. She took extra care in making sure Naruto understand that he was not a demon, but a hero of Konoha.
"So now that you are brought up to speed on things, how about me getting you stronger so that you are worthy to be my vessel?" asked the woman in the pinnacle of her beauty.
"Why are you helping me?" asked Naruto this obvious question, his face expressing distrust. Knowing the beautiful woman in front of him was actually transformed from a giant ferocious demon made Naruto suspicious of whatever help she offered him.
Though Kyuubi did not want to divulge what she considered to be her weakest and most embarrassing moment in her entire unblemished existence, she realized that she had to if she wanted to gain Naruto's trust.
"I'm not the predatory bloodlust evil incarnate that stories made me out to be. Don't get me wrong, I'm evil and ruthless when I need to be, and I'm easily provoked and lack self-restraint. However, I am not an aggressor. I and many of my tailed-beast cronies prefer a hands-off approach to human affairs."
"Then why did you attack Konoha?" asked the lonely boy. "If you hadn't, then I wouldn't have been ostracized by the village. Maybe someone would have adopted me into a loving family and I wouldn't have to grow up all alone."
'Actually, your parents would have been alive and doting you with love,' thought the humanoid female. Then she shook her head furiously to shake off 'doting' and 'lovy' thoughts from her mind. It couldn't be helped. Despite her resistance, Qi was slowly corrupting her evil persona.
Kyuubi chose to keep secret his parentage for now. Her reasons were the same as the Third's and wanted to protect the still defenseless boy against the potential enemies that such knowledge would bring.
"I was summoned to the human realm from my slumber and tricked into attacking Konoha. The man who did it was an Uchiha with an advance Sharingan … Uchiha Madara … someone with eyes more sinister than my own. I would explain more, but we don't have time for that. Just know that I'm helping you for two reasons. First I want you to be strong and reflect well of me as the vessel to the most powerful of all tailed beasts. Second though I want to kill the Uchiha myself, if I can't get out of this seal, I want someone I trained to do it for me."
"Don't worry. I've got plenty of reasons to get him myself for causing the death of so many innocent people and for all the pain and suffering in my life," fumed Naruto. Under normally circumstances, Naruto would have been an emotional wreck trying to get over the shock of learning what he learned tonight. But this strange white aura pulsing all around was quickly calming him.
"Well you have more reason to than anyone." Reeling the conversation back to training, she continued, "There are two techniques I'm going to teach you. By the time I'm done with you, you'll truly become a vessel worthy of the great and feared Kyuubi no Kitsune. The first technique we'll start with involves sword training," came Kyuubi's response.
"Cool!" exclaimed an exciting voice that soon became deflated, "but I don't have a sword."
"You don't need one yet," explained the beauty. "This technique is called, 'Nine Lonesome Sword Stances.' For you to gain mastery over this technique, you must understand the theory of sword art behind it."
"Ha! Nine stances? Don't sound like much to me? I bet Asuma knows more stances than that!" mocked Naruto.
"Shut it brat! Just listen…"
Naruto listened intensely as the mesmerizing female elaborated on the names of those stances and enumerated the hundreds upon hundreds of variations each stance contained. She then recounted the story of the Hermit of the Nine Lonesome Sword Stances.
"An undefeatable hermit? A sword art without match?" Naruto was awe-inspired by how powerful the Nine Stances were and shouted, "Okay, I'll do it!"
"I don't know if you can," teased the grinning transformed Kitsune. "It'll require years if not decades of hard work to master. The training alone will be so intense that you might even die. From what I've seen in your eight years of pathetic existence, you are too weak to survive this type of training."
Hook. Line. Sinker.
"Oh yeah? I'll prove you wrong! I won't fail because I'm going to be the Hokage one day and get the village to respect me just like they do the old man," announced Naruto with a fierce determined stare.
"Fine. I'll let you try," said the caged beauty with a feigned nonchalance. She opened the manuscript and began to teach him the Nine Lonesome Sword Stances.
Kyuubi did not just lecture Naruto. That would have accomplished little more than seeing if Naruto could recall facts like a tape recorder. Kyuubi did not want a tape recorder for a vessel. The strongest of all tailed beasts wanted a strong ninja, formidable in both physical and mental prowess.
Besides, the Nine Stances could not be mastered by merely memorizing sword theories, movements, positions and stances. To exercise Nine Stances to their fullest power, their user must be able to apply the theories described in the manuscript to read the subtle hints of movements in his opponent and improvise from the variations within each of the Nine Stances.
With an intelligence befitting of a Kitsune with countless years of existence, she taught Naruto by asking questions that led Naruto to the right answers. So Kyuubi did not end up with a tape recorder as her vessel. She ended up with a free thinking strategist.
"Wow! That actually makes sense," remarked Naruto after having learned the Swordsman's Four Decrees, the cornerstone principles of mastering the Nine Stances.
"Well, it has to for you to master the Nine Stances. Maybe you're not such a baka after all. Remember: Impromptu unpredictability and skilled ingenuity are what makes the Nine Stances so formidable," added the regal beauty.
"Don't worry, I got unpredictability covered!" proclaimed the young prank master.
"Good. Now I want you to reach one arm into my cell," said the Kyuubi. Once her student did so, she placed a manuscript into his hand. "This manuscript contains the legacy of the Lonesome Hermit. Inside you'll find detailed explanations written in poetic poses, comprehensive illustrations on sword attack patterns, the human anatomy, and a map of all existing pressure points. I want you to turn to section on human anatomy and pressure points. You'll need to learn those first so you'll know where the vital points are in your opponents. I want you to turn to the first illustration and focus your mind on it."
Once an enlarged image of a human body manifested on the wall, Kyuubi diligently pointed out every body part and its functions to her protégé. Every limb, every digit, every organ, every bone, and every muscle. There were some awkward and embarrassing moments when certain body parts were explained and when gender differences were questioned and elaborated on. When they were finished with human anatomy and pressure points, they returned to the illustrations on sword attack patterns.
"Now imagine a sword," commanded his teacher.
"Whoa!" reacted Naruto when a sword materialized in his right hand.
"Remember this is your mindscape. Anything you say here goes. Well, almost anything. Training in your mindscape has its benefits. For one, time moves very slowly here. One hour in the real world feels like five days in your mindscape. Since you don't have a fleshly body in here, you do not need to eat or sleep and can make the most of your time training."
"Great! That means I'll master the Nine Stances by the time I return to the real world!" proclaimed the blond.
"Hate to burst your bubbles kit! But you'll only gain head knowledge with whatever you learned here. That is the biggest disadvantage of training in your mindscape: You can't retain muscle memory, speed, or strength because you are not training with a real body," explained the beautiful humanoid.
"Oh well," shrugged Naruto, "that means I'll have to train hard in the real world so my body can catch up."
"That's the spirit kid," commended the faux femme. "Now project the illustrations in the book to the wall and imitate the sword thrusts of the stick figures. I'll correct your posture."
…o.0.O.0.o…
In a spared bedroom at the sleeping quarters in the Sarutobi compound, Naruto's body remained motionless. The aged Kage and the bearded Jounin sat next to the small whiskered blond. Both donned on their favorite tobacco smoke as they engaged in a lively discussion….
"So you are telling me that this energy that some Guardian Monks used is more powerful than chakra?" exclaimed the older man with quirked eyebrows, his right hand holding his pipe. This evening kept getting more surprising for the aged Professor.
"I'm not sure if that's the best way to differentiate Qi from chakra," stated Asuma with a shrug. He went on to explain Qi and chakra using the verbal imageries borrowed from the monks of the Senior Orders who had explained it to him.
"If Qi exists in all of us, then why haven't you learned how to channel it? For that matter, why can't I?" inquired the Sandaime.
"To gain mastery over it, you must become one with yourself and your surroundings. And while you are learning it, you must rid yourself of any impure thoughts. At the time, I couldn't keep my mind out of the gutter regarding a certain teammate of mine," answered the bearded Jounin while wiping a slight nosebleed.
"Oh yeah, how could I forget that 'accident' you had when you were peeking at Kurenai in the bath house?" whispered the older man with a spaced-out stare and a drooling grin.
The bearded chain smoker's eyes twitched uncontrollably as he looked at his father.
"Though the steam was thick, through my crystal ball, I was able to make out the outlining of her heavenly curves," continued the older pervert whose hands traced a contour of his imagination. His face returned frozen in that same perverted expression.
"DAAAD!"
Snapping out of his stupor, the Sandaime's mischevious eyes widen slightly. He asked, "So son, you are really serious about this girl huh?"
"I admit that she's been on my mind, but I can't say if the feeling is mutual. Hell, I don't even know if she remembers me after my two-year absence. Anyway, it's too early to say if anything will come out of this, but one thing I know for sure… I want to settle down and have a family of my own," confessed the bearded Jounin.
"You have my blessing my son. You'll make a good husband and a good father. Just remember that life is short, especially for us ninja. We never know when we'll be called upon to sacrifice our lives for the sake of the mission or the village. Treasure every moment of happiness and don't leave missed opportunities so when your time comes, you'll have lived life with no regrets," imparted the aged sage. Trying to keep a face of innocence, Hizuren jested, "You know, as the Hokage, I can set up missions for you and Kurenai so you'll get to spend some time with her."
"DAD! I'm not going to give you open invitations to peek on us through your crystal ball. If I go out with her or anyone else, it will be at an undisclosed time and location."
The older Sarutobi made no response as his perverted grin returned and remained plastered on his face.
"DAAAD!"
…o.0.O.0.o…
(Monastery of the Ancient Manuscripts)
Sitting in the lotus position inside the Meditation Room, the Grand Master Abbot finally made a movement after so many days of leaving his body comatose while his mind traversed through realms of meditation. Opening his eyes, he saw a room with walls and doors covered with the talisman markings of the Eight Guards. These markings were everywhere in the room – walls, floor, and ceiling – making it nearly impossible to enter or exit. The only way to defeat the talisman markings was from the inside, and only with a great deal of force.
Gathering Qi while making two wide circles with his rotating arms, he reigned in his arms, rotated his wrists to form two palms perfect for striking, and thrust his palms toward the doors in front of him. The energy around him quickly entered into his body and was channeled into his palm strike. Even though he sat too far from the doors for his palms to actually make contact with them, the Qi from the strike traveled the difference and slammed into the doors. The first wave of Qi enveloped the doors to strengthen them from shattering under the overwhelming power of the palm strike. The last wave of Qi carried the weight of two full-grown elephants and forced the doors open.
There was a reason why the palm strike was called Elephant Palm.
Outside the Meditation Room sat the three Junior Abbots, their shock clearly visible on their faces. They had sensed the incredible amount of Qi being gathered, and they had channeled Qi themselves to form a protective dome around them to shield them from the possible flying wood splinters from the sure-to-be-shattered doors. Yet, they found themselves gaping at the perfectly intact doors while being pushed back several yards by the Qi of the Elephant Palm.
"Sorry my dear apprentices," said the man existing from the Meditation Room. "I guess I don't know my own strength." The Grand Master Abbot was a man nearing his seventy, yet, save the long white beard, he looked and acted as if he was still in the youthful vigor of his prime.
"Master Wong, we regretfully inform you that we have…" commenced his first apprentice.
"No need Feng," interrupted Wong, holding up his hand to silence the younger man. "I'm already aware of the theft of the two ancient manuscripts. After all, it was a curse our monastery had to bear. Don't worry Liu; I'm not going to fault you for losing the manuscript. Under the circumstances, the result would have been no different were it your two apprentice brothers guarding them."
The youngest of the three junior abbots breathed a sigh of relief, while the middle apprentice looked shocked at how their master had pardoned so easily such an egregious mistake of unleashing two of the most powerful Kung Fu techniques into the hands of power-hungry thieves.
"Zhu, don't be so hard on Liu," continued Wong.
"Master," said Zhu. Realizing his own faults, he bowed before his teacher and continued, "I'm sorry my immaturity worried you."
"Master, what are we to do?" asked Feng.
"Do not worry my apprentices, I have sensed that the manuscripts have found their rightful guardian, though he doesn't know about his destiny yet," reassured the Grand Master Abbot. He decided against informing them that it was yet unknown as to how the new guardian would fulfill the prophecy – for good or evil.
"Master, did I hear correctly?" Zhu asked in surprise. "Did you just say 'guardian' as in one person?"
"Yes, he is the prophesied Guardian of the Two Nines," answered Wong. "It is written, 'Every ten-thousand moons rises one guardian over two nines. Behind him bowed Nine Qis and Nine Swords. Before him bowed fate and destiny.'"
"Master, what about the curse of the two hundred years of suffering?" asked Liu.
"Liu, that curse refers to what could happen once the manuscripts got stolen by this Monastery. If the Guardian Prophecy is accurate, then only the Dual Guardian could break that curse."
"Master, what does this Guardian Prophecy mean?" asked Feng.
"Only time will tell," said Wong. "Meanwhile, as the current Guardian of the Nine Yangs of Qi, I must discuss this with the Guardian of the Nine Lonesome Sword Stances, Master Wu of Mount WuDang."
Looking at his youngest apprentice, he commanded, "Liu, send our fastest pigeon with a note to Master Wu, saying, 'Master Wong of the Monastery of Ancient Manuscripts would like your audience concerning the prophecy of the Guardian of the Two Nines.' Hurry!"
…o.0.O.0.o…
(Naruto's Mindscape)
"Now that you've learned the postures on all the variations of all Nine Stances, you are going to practice those stances until they become automatic," stated Kyuubi. She couldn't wait for Naruto to master them so she could test their claim to invincibility.
"Hold on!" interjected the whiskered blond. "It seems like it's been forever in here. Geez! I haven't eaten or slept for how long now? Shouldn't I be allowed to rest, or at least return to the real world?"
"It's been a little over a month in mindscape world, but in the real world, you've been sleeping for a little over seven hours," answered Kyuubi.
"You know I don't think I'm strong enough to hold a sword even. You sure you want me to practice these stances?" asked the eight-year-old.
"You're as dumb as they come! How many times do I have to tell you? THIS. IS. YOUR. MINDSCAPE. Anything your puny brain imagines is possible," Kyuubi explained for the umpteenth time, letting her impatience felt.
"Sorry," Naruto said, scratching the back of his head, "so what do you want me to do, again?"
"I'm going to go easy on you at first and gradually increase my attacks," reassured the humanoid beauty. "The trick to mastering the Nine Stances is to use it against a superior opponent. The better your opponent is, the more of the Nine Stances' power you unleash."
Suddenly a live-size image of a younger version of the mesmerizing beauty appeared next to Naruto. Chibi Kyuubi was few years older and half-a-head taller than Naruto. The woman inside the cage explained, "I can only project an image in your mindscape. To give it a solid feel, you must trick your mind into believing the hologram next to you is every bit as real as you are."
As soon as Naruto nodded his head with eagerness, Chibi Kyuubi attacked.
She started with slow attacks to let Naruto get acclimated in the sword stances. Naruto was barely getting by in the beginning, and that was only because Chibi Kyuubi did not press on his weaknesses and attack when he was clearly open. The purpose of the sparring was not for Kyuubi to humiliate an eight-year old's lack of skill and experience. The purpose of the sparring was to teach, and Kyuubi knew effective training methods that teach without afflicting injury, unlike the crude humans and their terming a beating "training."
At first Chibi Kyuubi only used basic sword stances. But once Naruto got used to the idea of fighting with a sword, she soon found herself using more complex sword dances. The skilled sword girl seamlessly switched her attacks to varying stances Kyuubi encountered during her vast existence. Without using any of the Nine Stances, Kyuubi continued to use other advance sword arts through her materialized projection to gage Naruto's progress and the prowess of the legacy of the Lonesome Hermit.
Naruto could not be happier. The Nine Stances proved to be more awesome than he thought possible. The studies in human anatomy, pressure points, and the attack patterns proved to be most helpful. He was able to aptly read his opponent's intent of attack and provide counters before her attacks could be successfully completed, thus effectively thwarting her advancement and forcing her into defending his better placed sword movements.
Each variation of the Nine Stances changed fluidly into another. The stab toward her solar plexus changed fluidly into a swing across her throat, and then it changed again into a slicing toward her advancing sword arm. Every time the girl tried to go for an offensive move, the Nine Stances' quicker and deadlier offensive counters would force her into a defensive stance. Guided by Naruto's ingenuity and prankster nature, the Nine Stances bloomed to their full beauty. Once Naruto grasped the mechanics of the Nine Stances, Chibi Kyuubi was never successful in executing any offense against Naruto.
The exchanges between the two sword masters were graceful and thrilling to watch. Behind her cage, the humanoid beauty watched with a floored jaw. The fighters fell into a zone long ago, completely threw themselves into reading the moves of their opponent and adapting their stances accordingly. For the past hundred exchanges, their swords were moving at a neck-breaking speed and had yet to make contact.
"I didn't think this is possible," whispered the Kyuubi with disbelief. Finally seeing her chibi self losing, she added another hologram, this time one of her adult self, and double-teamed Naruto.
"Hey! Not fair!"
"Stop your whining," commanded the melodious voice behind bars. "In your mindscape, you are not bound by physical limitations. You can move as fast as your prankster mind can react. Use your vivid imagination. Now show me you've got what it takes to be Hokage one day."
Kyuubi continued upping her antics as she watched her charge became more apt in using the Nine Stances. Gradually her holograms started to add other weapons and attacks in to the challenge. She watched Naruto learned to fluidly transition between different stances.
The blond under pressure used the Sword-Conquering Stance to defeat attacks made with long slicing weapons such as swords and katanas, the Knife-Conquering Stance to defeat attacks made with short slicing weapons such as stabbing knives and tantos, the Spear-Conquering Stance to defeat attacks made with long straight weapons such as yaris and spears, the Whip-Conquering Stance to defeat slithering weapons such as whips and ninchakus, the Kick-Conquering Stance to defeat all types of leg Kung Fu, the Palm-Conquering Stance to defeat all types of bear-hand Kung Fu, and the Missile-Conquering Stance to defeat attacks made by arrows and other throwing weapons.
The last of the Nine Stances was the Energy-Conquering Stance and was not something Naruto could master in the mindscape. The Lonesome Hermit originally designed it to defeat opponents with highly cultivated Qi. The principle behind this stance could be modified to conquer opponents with large chakra reserves. Kyuubi would later nickname this stance as the Madara Killer. Kyuubi only taught Naruto the principle and formula of how to practice it. Even so, Naruto still would not be able to train in it until he was taught how to channel Qi and mold chakra.
Once Naruto successfully held off and simultaneously defeated all five materialized fighters, Kyuubi called off all the holograms. Any more than five fighters teamed against Naruto would be pointless in an environment where one could not tire out. In the real world, sheer numbers could outlast one's opponent due to his being overcome by fatigue. However, in mindscape, numbers only increase the frequency of attacks and the number of different attack angles. Any number beyond five fighters would only get in the way of themselves.
The humanoid beauty reluctantly uttered her parting commendation, "You've mentally mastered the Nine Stances. But, in reality, you are far from its complete mastery. You'll need to return to the real world to complete your training."
Their training session had lasted two months mindscape time, or twelve hours real world time.
Overall the teacher and student could not have been better paired. Kyuubi was eager to teach, motivated by her budding maternal feelings toward her protégé and deeply-entrenched desire to strengthen her vessel to maintain her reputation and eventually to execute her revenge. Naruto was willing to learn, overjoyed to be bathing in the copious amount of attention showered by a beautiful woman. Both did not want this to end so soon.
Trying to hold back his tears, Naruto mumbled, "Will we meet again?"
"We will," reassured the motherly beauty, "I've got one more technique to teach you. I'll contact you again, but remember to train hard. You still need years of physical training for your body to move as fast as your mind thinks."
"Don't worry! I'll be Hokage one day. I won't fail!" returned a rejuvenated hyperactive shout.
"Before I let you go, I need you to reach you hand back into my cage and return the manuscript for the Nine Stances. Until you are strong enough, I'll remain its guardian." Once Kyuubi laid her hands on the manuscript, she unsuppressed her chakra and stopped channeling her Qi.
The first thing Naruto heard in the real world as he slowly regained consciousness was Asuma's question.
…o.0.O.0.o…
The father and son team had stayed up all night watching Naruto and catching up on two years of separation. As the sun rose, the aged Kage's attention was back on Naruto and the guilt lingering in the back of his mind whether he could possibly do more for him.
Seizing the opportunity on Asuma's desire to start a family, the aged ninja pounced, "You know, if you want to start a family, you could start small by practicing."
"Dad, that's disgusting! I know Jiraiya and his books are perverted, but I didn't think he would stoop so low as to …"
"Urgh! Don't you dare finish that sentence!" shouted an irate Kage. Then he calmly stated with a dead certainty, "Neither I nor my student ever stooped to the level of Orochimaru and his perversions. Every woman in the Icha Icha series is of the legal age."
"Then what do you mean by…." He did not need to finish asking the question for he already discovered his answer. Seeing his father glancing from him to the boy resting on the bed, he answered his own unfinished question with another:
"You want me to adopt Naruto?"
…o.0.O.0.o…
A/N: Readers and reviewers, thank you for your continued encouragement! Your taking the time to review means a world to me and makes me more eager to update. I also like to thank those who responded to my plea for advice. Your responses were duly noted and greatly appreciated. Please give them freely if I should reach out again.
I hope you like the Sarutobi interactions and the sword fight.
Thanks! And I reply to ALL reviews!
Next… Chapter 4: Sword Training 102