I added descriptions of Naruto terms within this chapter and will continue to do so when need be. I don't want to confuse people XD That is all!

RockyVRWolf

It only felt like an hour ago that I had fallen asleep. The first thing I noticed was that I was literally sore. My hip, elbow, temple, and legs were hurting. Luckily, I was used to intense pain, so it came as a dull ache. I slowly sat up and rubbed my head. I thought it had been the pain that woke me up, but it turned out to be something else.

"Th-The pain… I…I c-can't make it s-stop."

Looking over at the bed, I saw Robin clenching his arm tightly as he sat in bed. He was sweaty terribly, like he had been outside in the blazing hot sun. He gritted his teeth and clenched his masked eyes shut tight. Rubbing my eye, I pushed myself to my feet.

"Blockhead didn't set your arm," I said, feeling the Boy Wonder's forehead; he was burning up. "We should get out of here and find Slade."

Robin growled.

"I don't want help from him!"

"I wouldn't want help from him either, but with something like this, I'd make an exception," I said, gripping Robin's good arm. "Come on, get up."

Robin, reluctantly, got to his feet. He cradled his broken arm to his chest, growling in pain. We walked to the door, but it remained shut. Keeping Robin behind me, I held my hand in front of the door. I concentrated my Chakra to form at the tips of my fingers. Placing them gently against the smooth metal surface, I allowed the Chakra to spread throughout every molecule. I soon heard a satisfying click as the lock came undone. The door slid open, revealing dark hallways beyond.

"Wh-How did y-you do that?" Robin asked.

"It's called Chakra," I said. I started down the hall, Robin coming behind me. "Chakra is a mix of spiritual and physical energies; mix a certain amount together to create Chakra." I tried a few doors, but they wouldn't open. "With Chakra, you can perform Ninjutsu and Genjutsu; nature attacks. There are five natures of Chakra: fire, wind, water, lightning and earth. Certain Jutsus are made of these natures. Like with the Fire Ball Jutsu, I can concentrate on fire Chakra to create a fireball that comes from my mouth. You can make up your own special Jutsus too. Like mine is called-"

Stopping, I suddenly felt alone. I turned around and saw Robin near a door; his body was slumped to the floor against the wall. Realizing he probably fainted from the pain and fever, I hurried over and crouched beside him. I was about to call his name when I heard muffled voices. Looking at the door beside us, I stepped over and placed my ear to it. The voices were too muffled to make out. I formed Chakra around my ear and listened closely.

"We need it done now, Wintergreen." My eyes widened slightly; that was Slade's voice. "How much longer until they're finished?"

"Two days sir; that's the earliest."

I heard Slade slam his fist on something hard. My eyes narrowed.

"The boy's training starts tomorrow, Wintergreen," he said angrily. "If his powers get out of control, he and everyone in here will be killed."

Now what was this; a boy with powers that needed to be in control? This seemed too weird for Robin and me. Was Slade going to kidnap another kid? I growled at the possibility. Standing up straight, I formed Chakra at my fingertips again and reached out to the door. I quickly pulled it back when it slid open on its own accord. I stepped back when I saw Slade and Wintergreen in the doorway. The villain's eye narrowed slightly.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked. "Your door was locked."

I snorted.

"That doesn't matter right now," I said, motioning to Robin. "He needs his arm set and in a cast, since you failed to do it once he got here."

Slade stared silently at me momentarily before addressing his butler.

"Wintergreen, make sure Robin's arm is taken care of while I escort Rocky back to his room; I will be there shortly."

"Yes sir."

Wintergreen easily picked Robin up into his arms. Slade and I watched as the old man carried him away.

"H-Hey!"

Slade had grabbed my arm roughly and was practically dragging me down the hall. We soon arrived at my room, but the door remained closed. Slade stood behind me. My eyes were narrowed.

"I will break Robin's other arm if you don't tell me why you were eavesdropping," Slade said dangerously.

My hands curled into fists at my side. Growling lightly, I swung my right arm around, aiming it for the man's head. Before I knew it or could pull away, Slade slammed my arm up against the door, holding tightly to my wrist. I glared at him and growled.

"First off, I wasn't eavesdropping," I said angrily. "Second, you forgot to set his arm in the first place, therefore he woke up with a fever, waking me up along with him." Slade's grip tightened slightly. "We decided to come looking for you so that you could set his arm since you broke it in the fucking first place."

I yelped in pain when Slade slammed my arm against the door again. My eyes were clenched tightly shut, my teeth clenched.

"I am not very fond of your attitude right now, apprentice."

I opened my eyes to glare at him.

"Well I'm not very fond of your one-track mind about 'killing my friends because they slow me down', bullshit!"

Again, before I knew it, my arm was wrenched behind my back painfully and my face smashed against the door. I growled.

"You are drying my patience, boy," Slade said menacingly. "Sooner rather than later, you will see things my way and you will break your Nindo. Until that time, if you or Robin act up, the Titans and their precious Tower will be destroyed."

My arm was really starting to hurt.

"Yes, okay, I get it; I won't act up. Now will you please let go of my arm?"

After a few seconds of silence, Slade slowly released my arm. I pulled it around and cradled it to my chest.

"I still expect you during training at six."

I turned around to reply, but the door slid open and Slade kicked me back inside. The door slid shut after I crashed into the floor. I pushed myself up while grasping the edge of the bed.

"Asshole," I muttered.

Deciding that I was really tired, and I honestly didn't expect Robin to return tonight, I got into bed and instantly fell asleep.


It was 5:59 in the fucking morning and I was dead tired. Robin was standing beside me as we waited against the wall for Slade to show up. He had a cast on his arm. I glanced at him.

"Is your arm feeling better now?"

"Yeah," Robin said quietly.

I snorted and folded my arms over my chest.

"You don't sound very convincing," I said.

Robin took a moment to respond.

"Yeah, it hurts a bit," he said. "Wintergreen set the bones back and Slade put on the cast. Then he asked me why we had been outside the door I had collapsed next to. I told him I had fainted from the unbearable pain and fever, but he didn't believe me."

"He doesn't believe anyone," I said.

"Yes, I know all too well," Robin said.

I glanced wearily at him.

"Last night, Slade mentioned a boy with powers that needed to be controlled. I guess he's making something for this kid. Would Slade kidnap a third kid maybe?"

Robin shrugged his good shoulder.

"Your guess is as good as mine."

Looking at the floor, I sighed. I looked around, hoping to see Slade, but he wasn't here yet. It was now 6:01.

"Well, I am glad to see that someone knows how to make it on time."

I looked over towards the door. Slade walked up to stand in front of me. I stepped away from the wall and lightly glared at him.

"For someone who believes in being on time, you sure do a bad job of it." Robin cleared his throat. I got the hint. It was six in the morning; I didn't know Slade's crankiness level. "So, what are we doing? Sparring?"

"It will be much simpler than that," Slade said.

Robin snorted.

"Since when have your training sessions been simple, Slade?" he asked.

It was my turn to clear my throat.

"Yeah, so, simple as in what?" I asked.

Slade looked over at Robin.

"You need to return to your room, Robin," he said. "You cannot fight with that arm." I glanced at Robin out of the corner of my eye. The hero gripped his arm by the elbow and walked past me. The door slid shut behind him as he left the giant training room with its many rotating gears. I turned my attention back to Slade. "First, a warm-up." Lifting his arm, Slade pushed a button. Thirty robots quickly surrounded me. I instantly went into a fighting stance. "You have a minute to destroy them all; begin."

Two robots instantly went in for an attack. Stepping back, I quickly formed a few hand signs and then ended in a lowercase T.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Four clones appeared around me. They quickly attacked robots around them. Running forward, I jumped into the air and front flipped over two of them. I punched the one behind them with a Chakra punch. Its head came flying off, knocking into another one. That robot knocked the head to the floor and then aimed a punch at me. I jumped backwards to dodge and then sent a leg sweep at its ankles. It fell over backwards. Spinning around in a roundhouse kick, I kicked another one in the chest, causing it to fly into three that were about to tag team two of my clones. Soon only four were left.

Making my clones vanish, I attacked the final four with ease. They fell around me, their body parts crackling with electricity. Out of nowhere, a booted foot kicked me in the side. I flew back and crashed into the floor. Rolling over backwards, I got to my feet. I saw Slade standing where I had been before. I growled.

"Shit man; what is your deal?!"

Slade folded his arms over his chest.

"While I congratulate you on your technique, using clones was not an option," he explained.

I glared at him.

"How was I supposed to know?" I asked haughtily.

"Seeing as I shouldn't have to tell you should be the obvious answer, apprentice."

I snorted.

"Next you're going to tell me I should know what we're doing today," I said.

"Exactly." I snorted but said nothing. "Now then, this next exercise will last the rest of the day. To steal successfully and without detection, you must master the art of stealth. You can maneuver undetected in an open battlefield, but within enemy walls, you may run into trouble. Therefore, you will try to avoid me until six tonight."

"What's the catch?" I asked.

"Let's just say you'll be trapped like a caged animal."

Slade raised his arm and pushed yet another button. All of a sudden, the floor started to violently shake. Within seconds, metal walls rose high into the air and surrounded us. They were at least forty feet high.

"A maze?" I asked.

"Correct," Slade said. "You have no weapons and you may not use Jutsus. The only exception is using Chakra if you desperately need it. There are no exits; only I have the key to get out of here. Once you avoid me until six, for one hour you will try to take the key from me. If you succeed in both tasks, you will have half a training day tomorrow. Do you understand the rules?"

I replayed everything Slade told me in my head.

"Can I use clones for decoys if need be?" I asked.

"I will grant you that much, but you may only use up to ten clones. Once the final clone has been produced, you may no longer use them."

I nodded.

"Limit of ten clones and no weapons; got it."

"I will give you a head start."

I chuckled despite the current position I was in.

"How kind of you…"

Stepping to the side, Slade revealed the start of the maze. I ran past him without a word. So no Jutsus except for the Shadow Clone technique and my limit was ten. For twelve hours I had to avoid Slade at all costs while avoiding dead ends in the process. I would only use my clones if I desperately had to.

Ten minutes went by without a trace or sound from Slade. I slowed to a walk. I eventually turned the wrong corner and found myself at a dead end. I turned around and was about to try a different direction, but Slade was standing against the wall lazily. I stepped back when he pushed away from it. Soon my foot hit the wall behind me.

"An hour hasn't even gone by, apprentice," he said mockingly as he advanced, "and already I have you backed into a corner; how very disappointing."

I snorted.

"Its obvious you know this maze like the back of your hand," I said. "And besides-"

"That's a clone." The Rocky at the dead end vanished in a puff of smoke. Slade turned halfway around. I stared expressionlessly at him as I leaned against the wall behind me. "Well I guess it would be kind of hard to figure that out when you don't have an eye like the Sharingan or Byakugan. And who knows, I might be a clone. Can you guess?"

Slade closed his eye and snorted in amusement.

"You are the real one," he said. He opened his eye. "You wouldn't waste clones."

I smirked.

"Yeah; I wouldn't."

I used the Substitution technique and vanished from the spot. Sighing, I continued to travel through the maze in silence.