Author: R. Anthony Roth
Pairing(s): Naruhina & potentially others
Language: Canadian English
"Speech"
'Thought'
"Kyuubi/Inner Sakura speech"
'Kyuubi/Inner Sakura thought'
(Clarification, fun fact or author's musing)
Anything bolded indicates emotion or extraneous content
A/N: I think somebody should give me an award for the frequency with which I update… I'm setting aside a good deal of exam studying time for this, so for the love of all things kawaii (cute), Read and Review. Oh and in case you missed it in the first chapter, all three genin are training with weights currently, something which it would be wise not to forget.
After an eventful day the team took their well deserved rest (Hinata slept in a separate form the rest, a clarification for the lecherous ones amongst you). Waking up at an early 6 am with eager thoughts of training, Naruto went downstairs to find, to his great chagrin, Lee and Gai already engaged in a heated thumb war.
"Yosh! Lee, together we shall train to beat Kakashi-san!" stated Gai enthusiastically
"Hai Gai-sensei!" replied the equally dedicated Lee
"Uhh I hope that you weren't indicating this when you mentioned training yesterday" remarked a disbelieving Naruto
"Trust in the robustness of youth Naruto! This is but supplementary training, the main content shall begin after Hinata has awoken and we consume breakfast" replied Gai, drooling at the image of the lovely Tsunami slaving over a hot stove for the benefit of his taste buds
"Ah I won Gai-sensei!" shouted a triumphant Lee
"Yosh! I will now do 500 handstand push-ups!" acquiesced Gai
"I too Gai-sensei shall undertake in this training!" replied an equally fervent Lee
"OHH LEE!"
"GAI-SENSEI!"
"Excuse while I bang my head against this wall as endurance training…" sarcastically noted Naruto
"That's the spirit Naruto!" replied an ecstatic Gai
'Why do I even try?' thought Naruto
Realizing that Hinata was not yet awake, Naruto began to go up the stairs to check on her, and potentially wake her up. Coincidentally Hinata had just woken up and gotten dressed, and just as Naruto reached the top of the stairs Hinata turned the corner and bumped into him. This resulted in Naruto taking a trip back downstairs on his ass. This was the least of his problems however, as he lay sprawled on his back Hinata had managed to fall directly on top of him. The resulting position knocked Hinata's consciousness into oblivion, and she fainted with her face having taken on the colouration of a radish.
"Gai-sensei! I think Hinata-san was knocked out! Quickly get the bandages!" shouted an anxious Naruto
"Oh my, what was that noise" inquired Tsunami as she entered the room
"I bumped into Hinata-chan and we fell down the stairs, I think she was knocked out!" replied Naruto
"I think its okay Naruto-san, she just seems to have fainted, give her some room and she will come to" continued Tsunami
"Fainted but why?" asked Gai, Lee, and Naruto in unison
'Geez these three are thick, but I suppose that's for the best for now' thought the perceptive Tsunami
"Umm… she probably just got overexcited about your training today" replied the cunning Tsunami 'that's something that these guys can understand'
"It is heartening to see all of my dear students embracing the spirit of youth!" responded the now teary-eyed Gai
After warding off a concerned Naruto, Tsunami took Hinata into the kitchen to recover. Meanwhile he was forced to wait for Gai and Lee to stop blubbering over the "power of youth" and whatnot. After the team fully "recovered" they bid Tsunami goodbye as they made their way into the forest to begin their training.
The first order of business was Gai having Naruto produce a few clones to aid Tazuna in the construction of the bridge while his real self remained for technical training. As promised before, Gai began teaching his pupils the Goken style of taijutsu. Knowing that his form was the complete opposite of Hinata's Hyuuga family Juken (Strong Fist, versus Gentle Fist), he offered her alternative training with chakra control. However she declined, noting that its important for a shinobi to be rounded in their combat techniques, and that she wished to train with the rest of her team. An announcement that was met with much crying over "the wisdom of youth".
After instructing them on the basic stances and forms, Gai assigned his team a goal to strive for the rest of their training. He constructed a wooden combat dummy, composed of wooden logs collected through the use of Kawarimi (replacement jutsu), for each of them. In order to master the first level of the Goken they were given clear instructions to destroy their respective combat dummies by the end of the training session. The principle behind this as Gai explained, was to train taijutsu capable of cracking bones in a single strike, as power is the first step to mastery of the Goken.
After a few good hours of constant training, Gai stopped to check in on his students' progress. As he had expected none of them had destroyed their combat dummies, however they had managed to inflict considerable damage. The results of their training was reflected not just in their dummies, but also in the damage apparent on their hands and feet, both of which were bruised and worn. Still Gai was proud to note that his students hadn't given up, even the normally timid Hinata continued to beat at her wooden dummy.
'Naruto-kun will never notice me, and my father will never respect me if I don't train my hardest!' was the main thought running through her head as Hinata willed herself to continue
'If I can't break this stupid dummy how can I expect myself to be able to protect those who are dear to me, or become Hokage!' a line of thinking which helped Naruto push himself, despite his fatigue from the training and his usage of additional clones to batter the dummy
'Yosh! I will not let Gai-sensei down! I can't perform ninjutsu or genjutsu, so I must prove my mastery of taijutsu as a genius of hard work!' thought Lee, a recurring theme which had helped him graduate the Academy despite his disability
Knowing that training in excess could be damaging, Gai advised his students to stop for the day, but not before noting his satisfaction at the progress they had made.
"But Gai-sensei we didn't break our dummies like you told us was necessary before we finish training for the day" protested a confused Lee
"True, but if I gave you a goal that I knew you could achieve would you have pushed yourself as much as you have today?" responded Gai "Today's lesson was not just about taijutsu, but something that is far more important that any ninja technique, namely willpower"
"More important than techniques?" inquired Naruto
"Yes, the defining characteristic of a true shinobi is the will to succeed, some ninja have their abilities handed to them on a silver platter, call them geniuses if you will" instructed Gai, "However from what I know the three of you have worked all your lives to earn the respect of others, this willpower that you have grown will allow you to succeed where the talented fail"
"But how can willpower beat a genius sensei?" queried Hinata, who had all too much experience with defeat by a genius at the hands of her merciless sister Hanabi
"If a talented shinobi is met with somebody who they know is better than them, they may be inclined to bow their head in defeat. However a ninja who has struggled with adversity all their lives knows that their opponent is better than them, but fights to win anyways" continued Gai, "Perseverance in the face of adversity is a shinobi's most valued trait, and I am proud to note that you three have proven to me that you all possess this quality"
'This is the first time anybody has ever been proud of me…' realized Hinata
"Yosh! The spirit of youth runs strong in all three of you, but now it is time to rest, so that we may train with renewed vigour tomorrow!" recommended Gai
"Hai-sensei" was the weary yet gratified response given by the genin of Team 9
As they were walking back to Tazuna's house, Naruto suddenly faltered and fell face first into the dirt. After reassuring an extremely worried Hinata, Gai explained that his clones had just poofed out, and the exertions they experienced while constructing the bridge were now laden onto the already fatigued Naruto. Supporting his weight together, Lee and an extremely red Hinata carried him back. Waking up in time for dinner, Naruto ate like a man possessed, after which he quietly slipped out of the house to train. As night fell upon them, Hinata began to grow increasingly worried about him, and she too slipped out of the house, with the express purpose of finding her dear Naruto-kun.
Knowing Naruto as well as she did, the first place she checked was their previous training ground, where as expected she found Naruto and 2 clones battering away at the slowly splintering logs.
"Hah you weakling, tiring already? What kind of a ninja are you?" shouted one of the clones
"You want to become Hokage, but at the rate you are going Sasuke will beat you to it!" berated another clone
"Yeah we will see who becomes what! I promised myself I would break this pile of wood before this day is done, and I never go back on my word! That's my nindo (way of the ninja)! Retorted the real Naruto
'Naruto-kun… you are always trying your hardest, even though everybody seems to think you will never succeed' thought Hinata as she watched, hidden in the underbrush 'I too will strive to prove everybody wrong, I cannot give in to the disappointment of others, and I will never go back on my word, that is my nindo!'
She continued to watch him pound the dummy, until after an hour she got up to leave for their current residence. But just as she began walking away she heard a loud splintering sound coupled with a triumphant shout of "Yatta!". Turning around she saw the broken remains of the dummy, and a gratified Naruto lying on the ground seemingly unable to get up. Suddenly painfully aware of the fact that she had just been spying on her beloved for the past hour, she rushed home, internally embarrassed and blushing.
'You did it Naruto, you always do…' were her parting thoughts before leaving him to his rightfully earned rest.