It begins, team seven's mission to prove they don't need the help of an unpunctual, lazy, good-for-nothing, old-man-smelling...
Kakashi: Oi, oi, who you saying smells likes an old man?
Kyugan: You, who else?
Kakashi: I'll have you know I'm only in my thirties.
Kyugan: And Itachi's only in his late teens, meaning YOU are basically defunct.
Kakashi: (huddled in corner) You're so mean...
Kyugan: S'right Bitch, Roll tape!
Solitude; the month of training!
It was early in the morning; so early that the sun hadn't even rolled out of its futon in order to torment all those who wished to have a lie in. At team seven's graduation field, where the dew was still setting on the memorial stone, three figures slowly approached one another from different directions, each with a backpack over his shoulder.
Recca nodded at the other members of the prankster trio as they arrived at the meeting point, before getting down to business. "Listen," he began, making a fist and punching out at one of the stumps, "Kakashi no yatsu can go fuck himself; we don't need his help for this exam." He pointed at the hokage crest on his lapel, smirking. "We'll train in our own way, and meet back here for the finals in one month."
Domon grunted, hefting Zabuza's Kubikiri Houcho over one shoulder and grinning. "Solitary training in the woods eh?" he comented, "Sounds like a kung fu anime."
Naruto snorted, placing his hand on the pommel of his sword. "I get the water fall." He called out, causing Recca to frown at his Outoto, before grinning and holding up a fist.
"Shall we?"
Domon cracked his knuckles, grinning maniacally. "Let's do this!"
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After a rousing game of Janken, the trio spilt up to their respective areas.
Domon was headed for the woods just outside Konoha, a camping bag over one arm and Zabuza's Zanbato over the other. Naruto moved towards the waterfall they had discovered at least a day's walk from the village, whilst Recca was determined to carry out his training in the mountains behind the Hokage monument.
Each of the three was determined to return ready for the finals, and prove to their useless sensei that they didn't need his inept teachings.
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Kakashi sneezed in the midst of watching Sasuke's progress as the teen attempted to scale a cliff with only one hand. This caused the jounin to lose his grip and fall about three feet before managing to find another handhold, though he was trembling from the effort.
'Someone's talking about me' the cycloptic jounin muttered weakly, shaken from the sudden fall, his eye half shut weakly, 'and I don't think they think too highly of me either.'
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Naruto sat in a lotus stance, meditating in front of the waterfall, facing it as the spray flew everywhere.
'Tou-san told me that the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu was originally designed to pit one against many," he recalled, "so speed is the key to mastering it.' He eyed the waterfall and scowled, watching the veritable curtain of water cascade in front of him.
'Kagero Kaa-san helped us master the water walking jutsu' he noted, smiling at the memory of the immortal kunoichi as she put them through their paces, 'this should be an adaptation of that.'
He focused chakra into his legs and charged the waterfall, attempting to run up the flowing surface as he had done with the rivers back in wave country. The blonde managed about five feet before he felt himself falling, landing carefully on the rocks with a frown on his face.
'…Harder than I thought…'
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Recca was in his mindscape, sparring with the Karyuu in their human forms. He blocked a blow from Saiha's blade with a kunai, flipping back as the weapon was cut in half, before launching a kick to Homura's stomach.
"This the best you old geezers can do?" he yelled, kicking Saiha in the jaw, "I only got one month! Let's make it count!"
He flew through the seals for Housenka and countered Nadare's assault, before leaping back as Setsuna lunged at him. "Miss me big guy?" the enjutsu-shi taunted with a wry smirk, tripping the twisted Karyuu and tossing him judo style, "Tough luck!"
Koku sat back and nodded, watching the proceedings with a teacher's air. 'Recca is certainly strong,' he admitted, 'but is a month enough time for him to advance?'
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Domon sat in a clearing, scowling at the trees he'd leveled over the past half hour or so with distaste.
'This isn't training,' the giant muttered, 'its just smashing stuff…' He scowled at his fists, as if daring them to contradict him. 'Homura said I needed to add technique, that strength wasn't the issue…' He frowned, trying to wrack his brain for clues, naturally coming up short. 'I've never really trained before though, no idea how to start…'
Shrugging resignedly, the giant decided to put off the thinking until after lunch. Reaching into his bag and pulling out a rice ball, the giant tossed it into the air, mouth wide and waiting.
DOOM!!!
Domon staggered, caught off guard by the noise and shaking of the earth, the onigiri landing in the dirt at his feet. He stared at it for a second, debating whether or not to follow the three second rule, before ramming it into his mouth and stamping through the undergrowth, looking livid.
"Alright!" he yelled, pushing aside the undergrowth, "Where's the moron that ruined my dinner?!"
The sound of prayer led him to another clearing not too far away, where he came across an odd sight.
A large man, stripped to the waist, revealing a back like a brick wall, sat in a circle of Buddha's, apparently chanting. The man's arms were bandaged and there was a bandana around his head, what looked like dark rings lined his eyes. He held a Chinese sword in one hand, making half a ram seal with the other, the blade's metal reflecting the faint sunlight from the canopy.
'Some sortta priest?' the giant wondered, cocking an eyebrow in confusion, before the sword came down and caused the earth to shake, the Buddha's abruptly turning to dust on the wind.
"How long do you intend to stare at my back?" the man muttered, standing slowly.
Domon winced, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry," he muttered, "you startled me back at camp with that…ground shaking thingy…I wanted to see what was going on."
The man regarded him with his black-rimmed eyes and Domon swallowed, looking decidedly nervous. The guy was bigger than he was for crying out loud!
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Naruto was once again training within his own mindscape, which had changed yet again to resemble the waterfall. The blonde jinchuuriki winced as his father informed him that ninjutsu training was out until the Gogyofuuin was removed.
"Until then," the demon explained, "I will continue your instruction in the Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu."
Naruto nodded, looking up at his father in interest. "Tou-san," he wondered, "where did you learn this style from, exactly?"
The youko blinked at the question, before smirking, shaking his head in amusement. "From an arrogant prick of a human," he recalled, "who despite his ego was as skilled as his boasts claimed."
The demon looked upwards, an odd smirk on his face, almost…wistful, if you dared to put that word to it. "He called himself Hiko Seijuro, and I learned it the hard way, when he used the techniques against me in my human form."
Naruto blinked as the demon rubbed his chest, as if tracing an old battle scar.
"It was the first time a mortal ever wounded me in either form," Kyuubi muttered, "and so I acknowledge his strength even to this day, when the style has no doubt long since been forgotten."
Naruto nodded in understanding, before moving into the drawing stance as he'd been taught. "I'm ready when you are."
Kyuubi smiled and moved into his own stance, eyeing his son carefully, before the two lunged at each other, the sound of steel clashing throughout the clearing.
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Hinata sat up in her hospital bed, rubbing her eyes. She'd been asleep since Kurenai left the day before, and was feeling a lot better than when she first came in.
The shy kunoichi blinked at the sight of a massive bouquet of violets that was sitting on her bedside table, a paper sheet with three chibified faces on it that resembled a certain blonde genin and his partners in crime standing on the mangled corpses of Neji and her father, cheering in victory.
Get well soon! From, the Prankster trio!
She giggled at the faces they were making in the picture; especially the little crosses on her father's face, before smiling at the bouquet, her heart warming up at the sight of the beautiful flowers.
At that moment a nurse came in, smiling at the girl as she saw her awake. "Are you feeling better Hinata-sa…" she trailed off, staring at the bouquet in shock. "How'd that get in here?" she wondered out loud, looking around the room in confusion, "The door was locked all night."
Hinata blinked in confusion, and then flushed as the realization hit her like a tonne of bricks. 'Naruto-kun and his friends…broke into the hospital!'
The nurse blinked as the girl's face turned red, before shaking her head in confusion as the Hyuuga heiress passed out.
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"I see…the chunin exam finals," the man muttered, looking into the fire. The two were sitting in front of a fire, the smell of roasting frogs filling the air.
Domon nodded, taking a sparing sip from his water pouch. "There's a lotta tough guys there," the giant muttered, "and I got nothing but brute strength going for me." He smirked at the man, looking embarrassed, as he scratched the back of his neck. "I thought I could develop a few techniques out here, but I forgot that I've never really trained before."
The man nodded appraisingly at the giant's admittance of his flaws. "It takes a wise man to admit his faults, even to a stranger." He recited, causing Domon to shrug.
"Anyway," the giant replied, "that was pretty cool, what you did back there." The man looked at him and the giant began to sweat, wondering if he'd insulted him in some way. "Was that some sortta monk thing?" Domon asked, trying to loosen the tension somewhat.
"I am not a monk," the man corrected, "or rather…I am no longer a monk; and what you saw was the adaptation of one of my techniques." He looked at Domon, as if studying him, before narrowing his eyes slightly. "Have you ever had an ambition?" he asked.
Domon blinked at the question, before grinning, patting one of his biceps proudly. "Sure!" the teen replied, "I wanna be the strongest!"
The man frowned, analyzing the giant carefully. "And how will you do that?" he asked.
Domon blinked, not expecting the priest to go all 'philosophical' on him, before becoming solemn, looking down at the fire between them. "There's this one guy," he muttered, "I never managed to beat him in a straight out fight, Y'know?" He smirked, staring at his fist in a bemused sort of way. "Things got hectic, we became rivals…then friends…" The genin patted his Hokage clan tattoo proudly, "Now I'm sorta his right hand man."
He gazed back at the fire, frowning into its flickering depths. "But like I said, all I got is brute strength, no technique to back it up…" Domon looked up at the man with conviction in his eyes, clenching his fists. "So I gotta make myself stronger, no matter what!"
The man gazed at him for a few moments before nodding resignedly. "I see…" he muttered, sounding almost amused, "this must be karma…"
Domon blinked in confusion, as the man held up a stone in a bandaged hand. "Listen," the massive figure explained, "to break this rock, you must apply force to it with your fist, but all objects, not just the rock, have resistance, so your force is not fully transferred to the object."
The man's eyes grew serious, catching Domon's and holding them in a grip like a steel vice. "In other words, some force is wasted," he scowled, "how does one avoid this?"
Domon looked stumped, before the man continued, tapping his secondary knuckles against it. "First, you bring your fist against the rock like this, making the first impact." He closed his fist and punched the rock; "The instant the impact meets the rock's resistance you deliver a second impact by folding your fist. The impact is transferred without meeting the resistance, destroying the rock."
The man looked at the rock, almost reverently. "That is the secret of this technique…the Futae no Kiwami." He nodded, towards the destroyed ring of Buddha statues not ten feet away. "With it, feats such as the Toate you saw me using can be performed."
Domon sweatdropped; finding the man's 'simple' explanation to be a little TOO technical for his liking, but not wanting to come off as an idiot in front of a stranger.
"Sounds simple…" he muttered, blinking as the man tossed the rock to him.
"You try it." The man urged, watching the teen like a hawk. Domon took a deep breath, raised the rock with his left hand, before punching it twice with the other, causing it to crumble.
"Huh? It didn't shatter?" the teen muttered, confused as hell, knowing for sure he'd punched the stupid thing hard enough.
"Because that was just two separate blows," the man muttered, holding up a second rock, "your blows must be faster to perform the technique, it is within a Setsuna (1/75th of a second)…" He punched the rock, reducing it to dust with apparently little difficulty. "That you must make your second strike!"
The massive man eyed the genin, before him critically. "The time it took me to master this technique was one month." He frowned, eyes deadly serious as they locked on to the genin's own. "You have the same, master it or die here."
Domon felt his eyes widen in shock as he fell off his seat; face paler than normal at the man's words. "Say what?!" he shrieked, spiking at the edges like a startled cat.
The man frowned, ignoring the teen's lack of control. "This technique was not designed to be used by just anyone," he explained, "if you fail to master it, the penalty is death." He regarded the startled young man before him with his calm eyes, before nodding. "You said you'd do whatever it takes…correct?"
Domon blinked, then smirked, laughing weakly at the memory of his own words. "You're definitely no Monk," he snickered wryly, "threatening to kill me…" The giant genin clenched a fist and grinned savagely.
"You're on!"
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Naruto fell back, cursing at the pain in his head. 'Dammit!' he cursed, tears forming at the edge of his eyes, 'That Ryutsuisen really hurts!'
"On your feet, Naruto!" Kyuubi called out, "You don't have time to waste, lying around here!"
Naruto growled and pulled himself up, lunging forwards to perform another assault on his father. "Hiten Mitsurugi-ryu: Doryusen!" he yelled, slamming the blade into the ground and causing a hail of earth to launch at the Youkai, who blurred out of the way, appearing beside his bewildered son.
"Hiten Mitsurugi-Ryu: Ryukansen!"
Naruto yelped as he felt the back of his father's sword collide with his head, sending him pitching forwards into the ground.
"Not bad, that was pretty well executed." Kyuubi conceded, watching as his son pulled himself to his feet with a delicate frown on his noble features, "But you leave yourself open to attack…"
"Ryutsuisen Zan!"
Kyuubi blinked, before blocking the blow that would have stabbed him in the head and smirked.
"That's more like it!"
The father and son duo had been battling non-stop for the mental equivalent of three days, between Naruto's physical attempts at training and break periods. As a result, the blonde was not only training during the daytime, but while he slept as well.
After another three hours Kyuubi lowered his sword as he watched his son pant for breath. "Let's rest," he called out, "you look like you need it."
Naruto gasped and nodded, looking at his katana, not for the first time. "Tou-san…" he gasped, "when can I take part in the ceremony?"
Kyuubi blinked at the question, smiling in that distinctive vulpine way his race was famous for and shaking his head. "When you actually land a blow on me." He teased, smirk widening as he sidestepped a pebble that was aimed at his head. "See?" he mocked, "You're a long way from being able to do that yet."
The blonde jinchuuriki swore lightly, before gazing at the blade, as of trying to fathom it's secrets from just a glance.
'It LOOKS like nothing other than a simple katana,' Naruto muttered, 'though obviously a high quality one.' He frowned, running a critical eye over it. 'But in order to properly wield it, you have to learn it's name…and apparently it changes names on the fly.' His frown deepened, as he eyed the blade carefully, half expecting it to glare back.
'This definitely isn't a regular sword.'
"That's enough, stand up." Kyuubi muttered, "We need to put some effort into these if you hope to surpass the byakugan's perceptive ability."
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Neji stood, panting, in the midst of a field of deflected weapons, an exhausted looking Tenten looking at him. "You want to keep going?" she asked, earning a nod from her stoic teammate.
"I must perfect this…" Neji gasped, standing up shakily, "at all costs."
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Domon roared as he punched a fist into the rock, cursing as it broke, rather than shattering as he intended. "Dammit!" the giant complained, "This ain't as easy as it looks!"
"You mustn't strain yourself." The 'monk' muttered, walking forwards, "This isn't something that can be mastered in a short space of time, you have a whole month."
Domon grunted, casting the giant a mocking glance. "Sorry, but there's more I gotta do," he explained, glaring stubbornly at the rocks, "so I HAVE to master this quickly!" He sat down, catching his breath on the central boulder. "Even if my bones break," the giant gasped, "I gotta get this wrapped up and my act together."
The man sighed, shaking his head in mild disgust. "Prayers in an ass's ear." he muttered, almost nostalgically.
Domon twitched, running a beady eye over his apparent tutor accusingly. "Oi," the teen growled, "who you callin an ass?"
"An gorilla then." The man amended, walking off as the giant twitched, "Very well, go at your own pace, but if you fail to master the technique within a month…" He pulverized a boulder and glared over his shoulder at the teen. "You WILL die."
Domon shivered, grinning ferally as he gave the man the finger.
"You're on!"
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Recca sighed as he took a breather, resting between sparring sessions.
"You've come a long way, Recca." Koku muttered, "You should feel pleased with yourself."
Recca growled, eyeing the ancient Karyuu carefully. "I've wanted to ask you something…Oyaji." He held up an arm, staring at the dragon tattoos one the bare skin. "Why do I have to call on the Karyuu to use their powers?" he asked with a frown, "it kind of gives the game away."
Koku smirked, seeing this as a sign of maturity in his host. "It helps focus your energies, and makes it easier for you to envision the attack." He waved a hand dismissively, smiling cryptically to entice the young enjutsu-shi. "If you perfected your discipline, you could probably do without the symbols, or the name calling, eventually."
The younger flame wielder grinned and got to his feet, looking ready to rumble. "Then what are we waiting for?" he yelled, "There's training to do!"
Koku sweatdropped, remembering that being cryptic with Recca meant you'd be standing there all day...and possibly all night. "Discipline means strengthening your mental resolve," He muttered, shaking his head exasperatedly, "you can't increase that with physical labor."
"Then what am I supposed to do?" Recca growled, only for the surrounding landscape to warp into his mindscape, the wind causing the sand to rise slightly.
"Simple…" Koku muttered, walking a few steps away from the teen, "meditation and other mental exercises."
The old man sat on the sand and, to the youth's shock, caught fire.
"Releasing one's inner flame to embrace your body is a dangerous technique reserved for the training of the most advanced flame users…" Koku muttered, eyeing Recca through the flames, "Not even Ouka managed to get this far in his training, though he was well on the way." He eyed Recca solemnly through his sunglasses, "For this exercise, you must allow your flames to engulf you, without consuming you."
The eldest dragon frowned and stood up, the flames dissipating as he pointed at Recca. "None of your dragon's will assist you if you get hurt, this must be carried out alone." He walked off, waving over his shoulder at the startled teen. "If you can remain within there for one week, you will have passed."
Recca winced and stared as the old man walked away, vanishing into the desert in a gust of flame. 'Damn…this isn't gonna be easy…' he muttered, staring at his tekko for a few minutes before setting his resolve, the image of Kurei hovering before him almost mockingly. 'But I can't let something like this scare me!'
He sat down and took a breath to calm himself, unfastening his tekko as he went. "Gomen…Kaa-san," he called out, feeling the surge of heat that shot up his arm, "this one's gonna be rough…"
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Six days had passed, and the absence of the three genin had been noted by a number of people in Konoha.
Ichiraku was lamenting the loss of his precious ramen loving trio, wondering if they had gotten themselves into trouble during the exams and actually marched to the Hokage office to demand an answer from the startled Elder, who assured the Ramen stand owner that they had come out of the exam unharmed.
Shikamaru, surprisingly, was wondering where they had gotten off to between training with his dad and feeble attempts to bolster Ino's shattered confidence. Ever since her defeat at Domon's hands, the girl had been an absolute wreck; it took all they had just to get her to join them for team practice.
Naturally, all it took to get her raring again was for him to mention Sasuke's name, casually wondering what the Uchiha would think of her moping around. Of course, if Ino got TOO rowdy, he could just as easily mention how much stronger Domon could be after the month, which would cast the Yamanaka back into a gloomy pit of despair.
'I gotta buy that guy a bowl of ramen sometime.' The lazy genin muttered, staring down at the girl as she huddled in a shadowy corner, 'I've never been able to get Ino to forget about shopping so easily before.'
Around the same time Shikamaru was enjoying his freedom from 'Luggage-duty', Hinata had been released from the hospital, and spent most of her time away from home to avoid her father, sister and cousin, preferring to spend the day with her teammates.
Kiba was still nursing a cracked skull and so had to sit out during training, but he and Akamaru loudly encouraged Shino to kick ass at the finals. The stoic teen in question accepted the encouragement with a little more gratitude than he used to display, which Kurenai and Hinata believed to be a knock-on effect of Naruto's actions at the tower.
Kurenai held her female charge back after one such session, pushing a note into her confused hands with a smile. "This is the address Kagero-san gave me at the last meeting," the jounin explained, "She's Recca and Naruto's mother, so if you want to pay him a visit…"
Hinata blushed as her sensei teetered off suggestively, especially at the smile on the older woman's face.
"A-arigatou…Kurenai-sensei…"
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Reiran was hanging out laundry in the yard when she sensed someone coming up the path. The marionette looked around the sheets and smiled at the blue haired girl pleasantly.
"Can I help you?"
Hinata blushed at the sight of the woman, never expecting to see someone like this. 'She's so beautiful…' the girl marveled, before shaking her head to clear it, looking up at the woman cautiously. "Ano…Hanabishi-san?" she asked, glad she hadn't stuttered, until Reiran shook her head, smiling kindly.
"My name is Katashiro Reiran, the caretaker;" the marionette explained, "Kagero-san is in the house." She smiled invitingly at the shy Hyuuga, tilting her head in a friendly manner. "Would you care to come in?"
Hinata was about to decline when the woman took her hand and led the stuttering kunoichi inside, startling her with the strength of the woman's grip.
Kagero looked up from her tea and smiled at Ganko's friend/mother as she entered, the Hyuuga heiress in tow. "A guest?" the immortal kunoichi questioned, tilting her face to smile at the kunoichi in Reiran's grip.
Hinata swallowed and bowed shyly, Kagero being even more elegant than Reiran, making her feel outclassed. "Ano, watashi-wa Hyuuga Hinata-desu…" She blushed in embarrassment, and lowered her head to hide her face with her bangs, "H-Hajime mashta!"
Kagero smiled in a motherly manner and looked up at the animated marionette standing behind the girl. "Reiran, bring some dango from the kitchen would you?" she then gestured to the spot on the patio beside her and smiled at Hinata, "Come sit next to me, the Koi look lively today."
Hinata flushed, but managed to sit down next to the woman without embarrassing herself and tapped her fingers together. "Ano…gomen," she stuttered, "but…I was wondering if…Naruto-kun was home?"
Kagero blinked, then smiled in that knowing way mothers have as she ran her eyes over the shy Hyuuga. 'Naruto, you little heart breaker.' She laughed softly, 'For someone so naive, you certainly do have a gift for attracting the cute ones.'
"My sons and Domon-kun are off training for the finals." She explained, smiling apologetically at the girl, "I'm sorry to say they'll be gone for a whole month."
Hinata sagged, having worked up so much courage just to come here, only for the object of her affections to have effectively done a runner. She blinked and looked up as Kagero placed a hand on her own, smiling warmly. "So tell me," the immortal Kunoichi asked, "how long have you had feelings for Naruto-kun?"
Hinata fainted dead away, causing Kagero to blink, and then giggle at the sight.
"So kawaii!"
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Domon sat on his knees, gasping for breath. His fists were bloody from punching rocks all day and his arms felt like they'd turned to lead. His enigmatic teacher had told him to take the weights off from the beginning, but the giant had been stubborn and now he was regretting it.
It had been six days since he'd started, and so far all he'd managed to do was break boulders into smaller rocks, and the sun had set hours ago.
Domon glared at the pebbles, as if somehow trying to shift the blame for his predicament to them. 'Dammit,' the giant muttered, noticing the distinct lack of good-sized rocks, 'better grab some more…'
He moved to get up, only for his legs to fail, causing him to fall face first to the ground, the weight actually making the smaller pebbles jump. 'Dammit…of all the times for my legs to give out…' he growled, pushing himself up off the ground, 'Can't let it…end like this!'
"Pitiful."
Domon looked up in shock, to reveal a familiar face looking down at him, one he'd last seen covered in blood and bullet-holes on Tazuna's bridge.
"Zabu…za?" he uttered, blinking stupidly at the sight, "Is this a dream? Am I seeing things?" He blinked again, staring down at the missing Nin's legs, before shrieking and backpedaling, arms waving in the air like a deranged squid. "YAAAAH!!!! NO FEET!!!!"
Zabuza snorted, arms crossed, a look of disgust on his features as he glared at the teen before him. "Pathetic," he repeated, "and you have the nerve to call yourself an Oni." He scowled at the giant, face hidden, as always behind his bandages. "Was I wrong to entrust my sword to you?" he demanded, "Eh, Gaki?!"
Domon blinked in shock as the ghostly figure loomed over him, looking annoyed.
"You call yourself a demon, yet you easily complain whenever things get tough!" Zabuza growled, pointing at the giant, "You still have strength! Get up!"
Domon blinked, then smirked, chuckling bitterly. "Look who's talking," the giant grumbled, "you're a freaking ghost, and your sassing me?" He rose to his feet, getting right in the former swordsman's face with a snarl.
"Oni no Domon doesn't take sass from nobody!" The giant roared, giving the spectral swordsman the finger, and grinning. "Go back to heaven and keep my seat warm for me!"
With that, he trudged past the figure, still grinning as he tilted his head to the side slightly. "Haku-chan's doing fine by the way," he added, smiling at the ghost over his shoulder, "she's really happy…you don't need to worry."
Zabuza lowered his head as the giant walked past, smirking behind the wrappings as he shook his head.
"…Arigatou…gaki."
Then he vanished, as if he'd never been there at all, the wind picking up scant seconds later to knock the dew from the leaves.
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When dawn broke, it was to reveal the limp form of Domon lying on a boulder, a rock clenched in his hand.
"He died from exhaustion," the monk muttered, turning on his heel, "A shame to lose him..." A pebble bounced off the back of his head, causing him to spin round as a voice growled at him.
"I ain't dead yet dammit!" Domon growled, looking annoyed as he sat up, "Just resting for a bit". He snorted, eyeing the priest causally, as he wiped the drool from his jaw, which the man had missed before. "What, you weren't even gonna offer a prayer?" the giant asked, pretending to look hurt.
"I left my beads by the fire." The man muttered, before noticing the other rock in the giant's hands, "I see you failed to master the technique, keep at it, we have all-Hn?"
Domon tossed the rock into the air, distracting the man, before punching out at the boulder he was sitting on.
DOOM!
The priest stared, shock lining his visage as a massive chunk of the rock became no more than dust.
"Mastered it last night." Domon muttered, catching the rock and smirking at the priest, "So what was that you were saying again?"
The priest blinked, staring at the teen in wonder. "You have…some potential." He admitted numbly, causing Domon to snort, obviously miffed.
"Oi, I almost died here ya damn priest!" The teen countered, smirking to show he meant no disrespect, "Don't make light of that!"
The man blinked, then smirked and held out his hand, for the giant genin to shake. "My apologies," he said warmly, "you are a remarkable young man."
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As Domon caught forty winks, the man sat gazing at him in thought.
'He completed the training in a mere week," he wondered, "something that I have only seen once before…' He eyed the sleeping teen, carefully, a plan formulating behind his charcoaled eyes. 'With such potential, he could fully master the Futae no Kiwami and Toate in the remaining weeks…possibly even more.'
He nodded; resolve setting, as he looked up at the stars.
'Tomorrow, I will ask if he will continue the training…unlike a certain other fool I know.'
Far away in a prison cell in Kyoto, a former fight merchant sneezed, catching the attention of a former Shinsengumi captain as he passed the cell, resulting in a row that destroyed the cell.
Domon, unaware of his enigmatic teachers thoughts, snorted and rolled over in his sleep, dreaming about sending opponents flying with the Futae no Kiwami, Fuko hanging off his arm, purring seductively
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Fuko sneezed and shivered, holding her arms to herself, eyeing the surroundings cautiously. 'A breeze just passed through here,' she muttered ominously, 'probably a perverted mind at work.'
"Fuko-san, please pay attention." Kukai called out, slamming a fist down and forcing the girl to dodge quickly as his strength leveled the tree behind her.
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How will Domon's training under his mysterious tutor proceed? Will Recca survive being roasted by his own flame? And will Naruto ever get that damn gogyofuuin off his stomach?
Naruto: Hmm, what's that weird noise?
Ominous voice: HEE-HEE! the girls in konoha are so pretty!
Kakashi: (suitcase in hand) Screw you, I'm leaving.
Kyugan: Tell you what, if you can take one step forward, you can go, but if you take one step back, you have to play with Cerberus again.
Kakashi: DEAL! (Goes to step forward)
Dio: ZA WARUDO! (time stopping noise, The World moves Kakashi back one step.) Soshite Toki wa Ugokidasu.
Kakashi: Eh? Wha? (looks down) WHAT?!
Kyugan: You know where the gravy is kept, (hands kakashi the steak costume) don't let me keep you.
Kakashi: (Being dragged off by security) How'd you do that?!
Kyugan: Trade secret, (turns to Dio) Here, as agreed, Evangeline's Phone number.
Dio: WRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!
Kyugan: Yeah...drop the posing will ya? And don't touch Negi, or she'll bite IT off.
Kakashi: (From a distance) OH DEAR GOD NOT THE CUTLERY! (SOUND OF FLYING CUTLERY) SPLEEN!