Note: I forgot to mention last chapter that Shiore's team is the Kusagakure team murdered by Orochimaru in order to steal their faces. So they're canon, too.
There's not that much SK in this chapter but… hold on tight, because it's coming really soon. Promised!
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Chapter 8: The training begins
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Karin knew this would happen.
And by this—she means getting utterly lost.
She is more lost than she was back at the Forest of Death, and that was saying something. At the very least they had a clear route defined back then, while all she had this time were Sasuke's vague words and her intuition.
She is thankful she asked the nurses to keep her bags for her, not wanting to go to the inn only to have Ryuu asking what did she think she was doing wandering off by herself like that. It's been two hours since her search began, and considering how little progress she has made, she doubts she will be out of the woods before nighttime. She is glad her quick thinking saved her the trouble of dealing with Ryuu's and Kurotaro's questions.
Something catches her eye and she lands clearly on the tree's branch, leaning in to inspect its trunk more closely. There are carvings there, obviously made by the sharp end of a kunai; there have been markings like those in many of the trees she has ran past for the last hour, clear signals of the area being usually employed as training field by shinobi. She is quite lucky she has yet to run into anyone.
But then again, at the same time she is not.
Where could they be? Karin wonders for the umpteenth time before taking off again, her red eyes avidly looking around as she jumped from branch to branch, the wind softly ruffling her hair.
It is precisely while musing about Sasuke's whereabouts that she feels a tug; faint enough to almost go by unnoticed, but sharp enough to make her turn and frown with confusion.
Huh?
"… Sasuke?"
The girl halts again, confusion still present in her features. The sensation was gone as easily and as suddenly as it had come, and while Karin could not remember exactly how it had felt—she could barely put her finger on it as it was—Sasuke's name was still fresh inside her mind. It had left her lips without her notice, and she did not even understand why he had popped into her mind so out of the blue—but she was startlingly sure that tug she had felt had been… well, him. Somehow.
And it had come from the west.
Karin hesitates, but ends up deciding that since she did not have any leads she might as well follow what may have been her intuition.
Five minutes later, she has run out of trees. Ahead of her there is nothing but a vast field; there was grass on the area closest to the woods, but from what Karin could see, the grass would soon be replaced by nothing but sand. It was a deserted land, nothing but big chunks of earth and rock and somehow Karin finds it perfect. It was the kind of place someone would look for some training; it was secluded enough, as it was past the woods and to the outskirts of the village, but wide enough to allow the practice of jutsu and physical training.
He is around here somewhere, isn't he? Karin thinks to herself, but even unvoiced the thought sounds more like a statement rather than a question. He was near, she could feel it. She did not know how, but she could.
She tries calling out to him, timidly at first and then loudly, but to no avail. So she enters the field, builds up some chakra and speeds her run with its help, not wanting to waste more time. Karin makes sure to go west at all times, and for an agonizingly long time she thinks that maybe she was wrong.
Maybe her gut-feeling had lead her to the wrong place.
But then noises make their way to her ears and among them is an all too familiar voice.
Sasuke!
He was not near enough for Karin to make out what he was saying, but she did not quite care. She was too relieved at the prospect of having finally found him and his teacher after what must have been three straight hours of searching. The enthusiastic grin that curves her lips makes her face warm up and her pace quicken.
Just a bit more…!
A couple of meters ahead of her, a white-haired man turns to face her with an unreadable look in his only visible eye, seemingly feeling her approaching chakra signature. She gracefully lands a couple of feet away from him, causing a cloud of dust to rise between them.
Once it has settled down, she finds that the man's eye is creased with a smile. "That was fast."
However, before the jounin could get another word out another person landed right behind Karin, who turns around only to come face to face with a slightly worn-looking Sasuke.
"Karin," Sasuke says as greeting, a slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "Heh, took you long enough."
"What Sasuke there means, is: good job finding us!" Kakashi helpfully supplies, and Karin turns from one to the other and back with a grin curving her lips.
"Tch. Stop talking for me, Kakashi," complains the younger boy, but neither Kakashi nor Karin pay him any heed.
"I never thought you guys would be so far from the village!" Karin confesses, still a little breathless from the run.
"Oh, it's more convenient to train away from prying eyes, isn't it, Sasuke?" there seemed to be hidden meanings in the tone Kakashi used and secret conversations transpiring in the look the two shared. After some seconds of that, Sasuke expressed his agreement with a nonchalant grunt and Kakashi turned his gaze back to Karin's own. "But you did well, Karin."
It seemed farfetched for the jounin to not know her name, considering he had been there in the prelims and had been the one to invite her to come to the trainings. But still Karin finds her eyes widening a notch, which in turn makes Kakashi blink. "Oh, that's right. We haven't been properly introduced yet, have we? I'm Hatake Kakashi, Sasuke's—"
"—Teacher." Karin finishes for him, grin back in place and mentally smacking her forehead at her own surprise.
"Correct! Hmm, could it be that Sasuke talked about me?"
"Actually…." Karin trails off, remembering all too clearly that the sole mention Sasuke had ever made of the man had been accompanied by a thinly veiled insult. Thankfully for the redhead the boy's snarky tongue was already working its way around the matter.
"Tch. In your dreams, Kakashi."
Kakashi heaves in a dramatic sigh and Karin can't help but giggle, entirely too amused by the out-of-the-norm student-teacher dynamic the two males shared. "I have such a rude student… Why don't you go back to training, Sasuke? You were starting to slow down and that won't do."
Sasuke frowns. "But—"
"No buts." A pause, and then the man adds, his voice lighter: "Don't worry about Karin, she is in good hands."
The Uchiha lets out a tsk and gives Kakashi a how-many-times-do-I-have-to-tell-you-I'm-NOT-worried patented glare, but remains silent otherwise. He did not seem to feel reassured at all by the man's words. If anything, he seemed even more hesitant to leave. His gaze slides from him to Karin who meets his eyes and nods her head.
"Fine," Sasuke agrees, holding back a sigh. "But don't go telling her any weird stuff, Kakashi. I'm serious."
And with one last warning, Sasuke took off. Karin watched him for a moment longer—not without wondering just what had that been about—before turning back towards the jounin, who seemed to have a permanently-relaxed expression.
"Sasuke is currently training his speed," Kakashi explains, acutely reading the curiosity present in Karin's eyes. "Since he isn't completely recovered yet, I figured it would be best to begin with the basics before focusing on the real training. But don't tell him I told you that," another eye-smile again, "It took me a while to convince him that starting by his speed was only the most natural thing to do."
Karin chuckles and nods, finding nothing short of amusing how even his teacher had to find a way to get around Sasuke's stubborn nature. Once her giggles die down, she looks up at Kakashi with a sincere smile, playful demeanor gone and replaced by modesty.
"Thank you for helping me back during the prelims," she says. "My teammate told me about it. I'm really thankful to you and Sasuke!"
Kakashi raises one hand to calmly dismiss her gratitude. "There's no need to thank me. And…" he tilts his head to the side, regarding her with a somewhat curious look. "There's something else you want to say, isn't there?"
Karin nods an affirmation, somehow not surprised by the man's keenness. "I was wondering… why did you offer to train me?"
A look that Karin is unable to read passes by Kakashi's only visible eye for a second, but then the eye closes again as he is back to smiling. "Why, I wonder. I think you may have some… aptitudes, which may be worth exploring."
Aptitudes? What does he mean by that?
Karin parts her lips to inquire just that, but Kakashi cuts her short before she can get a single word out. "Plus, you and Sasuke seem to get along very well. And, well… let's just say that is not an everyday occurrence when it comes to him."
The change of subject is swift, too swift to not be deliberate; a part of Karin catches onto that, but most of her is too busy being taken aback and feeling flustered over the man's words. It is that part of her that which makes her look around for Sasuke out of reflex, and when her eyes land on him her embarrassment gives way to surprise and she can't hold back a faint gasp.
It had been only a glimpse, but she was sure—his eyes had not been their usual black, but red. Crimson red at that.
"Oh, that's right. You had never seen Sasuke's Sharingan before, had you?" Kakashi wonders as he comes to stand by her side. Karin shakes her head, still miffed, her gaze trying to follow Sasuke's fast movements in order to get a clear look at his eyes.
"Sharingan?"
"Yeah. The Sharingan is a dōjutsu which allows the user to copy any genjutsu, taijutsu or ninjutsu the wielders sees. It also allows him to see the flow of chakra, among other things."
"Wow!" Karin can't help but to exclaim, her mind whirling at all the possibilities such a skill allowed. "I had never seen anything like it before…!"
"Heh, that would be because it is a kekkei genkai that only appears in some members of the Uchiha clan… Sasuke himself awakened his only recently."
Karin turns back towards the Uchiha, inwardly marveled. She had read about bloodline limits, but she had never thought Sasuke had one. And least of all, one as special as the Sharingan seemed to be. From what Kakashi was telling her, it seemed almost… invincible. Unbeatable. Like any fight would be over and done with as soon as Sasuke's eyes turned red.
Her own red eyes widen at the thought. Why didn't Sasuke use it against Kurotaro-san?
Before her mind could even attempt to muster a reply Kakashi is talking again. "But that's enough about Sasuke. You must be wondering about your training, right?" To be perfectly honest, Karin had almost forgotten all about it. Kakashi's reminder is good enough to make her muscles tense again however, her features setting with anxiety. "Heh, don't worry. I'm not going to make you pull what Sasuke is doing."
Karin releases the relieved sigh she had not even known she had been holding.
"From what I've heard, Kusagakure teaches you mostly theory, correct?—I thought as much. We'll be starting from the basics, then—though not quite.
"Karin… for the next three days you'll be relearning all you were taught, but you will learn the advantages of employing your chakra. Building up the appropriate amount of chakra, plus controlling and consuming it correctly can enhance even the most basic of techniques. I think getting a hang of that should be a good start for you." Something sharp flutters through Kakashi's unveiled eye as he adds: "You'll be able to do more than just scratch your opponent then, I assure you."
Karin is not sure if he meant to encourage her with those words, but he does get the adrenaline to flow faster through her veins. Regardless, her mind remains set on a different piece of information.
"For the next three days….?" would her training really be that short, or…?
"Yes," Kakashi confirms, and yet again there is a look Karin cannot name flashing through his only visible eye. "That should be enough for the basics, I believe. I have faith in your abilities… and something tells me you are a fast learner."
Karin was one, but she does not understand how Kakashi's senses could be so keen as to pick up on such a thing.
"Once you have mastered the basics, we'll move onto chakra controlling… and we'll also work on your speed. When a shinobi is outranked, his speed becomes his best ally."
Karin signals her understanding with a nod of her head. But the way Kakashi was looking at her—he was not done yet, was he? "And then…?"
"Then…" he seems to seize her up for the briefest of moments, but then his only visible eye is yet again creasing with a smile. "You'll know once we get there. Are you ready to start, Karin?"
Was she ready? If the way her heart was galloping inside her chest was any indication, then no she was not. On the other hand… if she were to go with the way her fingers were beginning to itch and flex with anticipation, and how her veins seemed to be burning with adrenaline then… yeah, she was. At least as ready as she would ever be.
Karin decides to forsake her nervousness, ignore her insecurities, and clutch onto her adrenaline and her desire to learn and improve herself.
"Yes."
"Good girl," Kakashi approves. "You have fifteen minutes to warm up."
"Alright!" her voice comes out a little groggy. If he wanted her to warm up for that long, then it only meant she had a heck of a lot of physical activity coming her merry way.
"Oh, and Karin—" Kakashi calls as Karin is turning around, ready to go look for a good place to stretch. "I'd advise you to do a lot of stretching. You've been in the Hospital for a while, and you may pull a muscle."
…Pull a muscle?
Karin gulps down her trepidation, not trusting her voice enough to give Kakashi a reply and nodding instead. The man was serious, wasn't he? He really intended to make her go all the way. Would stretching even be enough to protect the muscles of someone who has never done serious training in her life?
As she begins to do some stretching for the side of her left-shoulder and back of her upper arm, Karin wonders how she should go about warming up. Maybe it would be best to work every muscle and joint just to play safe, right?
"Focus, Sasuke," Kakashi says, his sudden call successfully breaking through Karin's thoughts. "I'll be looking over your prowess while Karin finishes over there."
Blinking, Karin turns only to find Sasuke observing her from atop one of the rock-peaks surrounding them. Their eyes meet, and for a moment Karin was hit by a strong wave of déjà vu—but then obsidian fades into red and he jumps away from her dazed view.
"Ok, we're done for today."
Kakashi announces after what to Karin felt like an eternity full of nothing but pain and aching—but that in reality had not been longer than 6 hours or so—and the redhead unceremoniously falls flat on her butt, completely and utterly exhausted; so much so that her body does not even register the sharp pain from the fall.
She was out of breath and gasping loudly, trying to get some air back in her lungs. Her head was hung low, so her glasses slid down from the sweaty bridge of her nose and into the ground with a soft thud and the world went blurry again. Karin was too tired to do anything about it though, and would have stayed like that had it not been because drops of salty sweat were beginning to slip into her unguarded eyes; it stung, and so Karin shakes her head roughly, her red hair feeling heavy and wet as it flied around her, lightly hitting her cheeks.
Once her eyes stop stinging she leans back, propping herself up with her palms. Her heart still felt like it would burst at any given moment, but she could at least breath more easily now. That was a start, wasn't it? Hopefully her muscles would follow suit. Ugly, painful cramps kept working their way through sections of her petite body; mostly her calves, thighs and arms. But aching aside nothing hurt too badly, so at least she had not sprained anything.
Sasuke comes to sit by her then, coolly taking sips from his water bottle, and where Karin had been clumsy the Uchiha was careful and nimble. He was also breathing a somewhat heavily and looking a little disheveled, but he was fine otherwise.
Karin, meanwhile, looked as if a stampede had run over her a couple of times and felt even worse. It was a mystery to her how Sasuke could look so good after working three or maybe four times as hard as she had.
The guy was inhuman. He definitely was.
Said inhuman boy choses that particular moment to wordlessly extend his water-bottle to her, and Karin absentmindedly takes it after giving him a grateful look. The water is fresh and it feels as if pure life-force were working its way through her throat and down her body as she drinks, so she takes long and generous gulps of it.
"Don't drink so fast, Karin. You will get stomach-cramps." Sasuke warns, and Karin slows down to a stop. The bottle feels weightless in her hands, and she gives it back to Sasuke with an apologetic look.
"Sorry, there isn't much left."
"It's fine," the Uchiha says, putting it away. "You were thirstier than I was."
Something catches Karin's peripheral vision. She turns only to find Kakashi handing her a very familiar pair of glasses. Karin wonders when had the man grabbed them in the first place and how had she been distracted enough not to notice it, before finally taking them and putting them on. The lenses were spotless clean.
As the world comes into focus again, Karin gives Kakashi a bright and thankful smile.
"You're welcome," Kakashi says with an amused look before stepping away and addressing the both of them. "You two have done a good job. Tomorrow we'll work a little harder, so be prepared…. Karin, you can come at the same time you did today… or you can arrive at the same time as Sasuke, if you wish."
"Yes, Kakashi-san!" Karin breathes out, her heart still galloping against her ribcage. Kakashi perks up.
"Why, Sasuke! You and Naruto should learn a thing or two from Karin. It wouldn't kill you to be more polite to your superiors. Later!"
Sasuke grunts with frustration—same old Kakashi, leaving without even giving Sasuke the chance to retort—and then sighs, precisely for the same reasons. No point in getting annoyed over his perverted teacher; that was all the man wanted in the first place.
"… What time did you two meet, anyway?"
"6am."
"W-what?"
The Uchiha turns and gives Karin a quizzical look from underneath his bangs. The girl returns an incredulous look of her own, one that seemed to scream you were training for 12 hours? and that Sasuke replies to by blinking What about it?
"…Never mind," Karin heaves a sigh and looks away, resigned. "I… will be here tomorrow at 6 too, then."
Sasuke takes the chance to observe the girl more closely. It seemed like it would still be a few more minutes before she was truly done catching her breath. He had been too busy over his own training to closely monitor the girl, but from what he had gotten to see, Kakashi had not made her do much more than what Team 7 usually did. But to compare Karin, who almost was a normal civilian, to any of them was almost improper. Looking at things from that perspective, it now occurred to Sasuke that Kakashi had been kind of ruthless.
"…How was it?" he inquires, curiously. "Training, I mean."
Karin seems to weight the question in her mind before replying.
"Okay, I guess. I… didn't know there were so many ways to deflect an attack. And so many uses for chakra, too! Ugh, I wish I had known all this stuff sooner."
There's a remorseful and frustrated tint to her words, so Sasuke snorts. "Better late than never, right?"
"Yeah," Karin agrees after a moment of silent contemplation, a grin slowly working its way to her lips. Said grin melts into a more reserved one however as the redhead looks down at her unruly clothing and bruised hands. "I'm a mess, though… Physical activities really aren't my thing…."
"You weren't that bad."
Karin blinks with surprise but Sasuke is no longer looking at her. He is standing up and dusting his pants off instead, and then he is offering her a helping hand.
"It's getting late. Let's go, Karin."
The redhead does not take his hand right away. Rather, she simply looks up at him; and while his face is missing the smile, the Sasuke she sees then is entirely too reminiscent of the Sasuke she first met almost two weeks ago in that deadly forest.
It's true she did not know much about him. She had not known anything about his Sharingan or about his clan, and she still did not quite understand what had happened to Sasuke to make him be so out of his game during the preliminaries and remain hospitalized for so long.
But as she seizes his fingers with her own and he helps her to her feet, Karin thinks that maybe it did not really matter.
Sasuke was the kindest and strongest boy her age she had ever met, and Karin admired him for it. He made her want to work harder, made her want to grow as confident and as resourceful as he was.
It was a wonderful feeling. One that felt almost as warm as his hand did.
And that was enough for Karin.
It was all she needed to know.
—
End of the 8th chapter
Sorry for the slow and bland chapter, but it was necessary build-up for what is coming next (plus, Kishi does tend to go out of his way to make characters explain their upcoming training in quite a thorough fashion, so I wanted to stay true to that lol)
We're finally entering a mini-arc; and it will contain what is probably going to be the most important point of the story.
So, up next: Chapter 9 – The wrong thing to say.