Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Traitors, leaving me to the crazy woman. As soon as the door closed the world blurred again and I was set down on a stool at some type of restaurant. I really have to learn how they're doing that I mused. "Here we are,' Kushina boisterously announced, 'Ichikaru's the greatest place on the planet." I took the time to study the place. It had a homey and welcoming atmosphere of a small family owned restaurant with a counter side view of the people cooking your food. While I had taken the time to examine my new surroundings Kushina had continued her rant about the virtues of Ramen I suddenly had a thought.
"Wait isn't it breakfast time? Why is this place even open?" She looked at me as though I had just drowned a puppy in front of her.
"Ramen doesn't adhere to such silly things like time it is eternal in its glory. Besides most restaurants run a skeleton crew at night so they're always open just in case a ninja needs something to eat. They get enough money to make it worthwhile. Anyways, Teuchi your favorite customer is here and I brought a guest." Huh, I didn't know that. Guess you learn something new every day.
"Oh, Kushina welcome back and who is this then?" An older man approached us on the opposite side of the counter. "Did you kidnap some kid?" She blushes at that then wraps an arm around my shoulder pulling me close.
"This here is my new apprentice. I just picked him up from the Hokage's office today and I thought I should introduce him to the wonders of your Ramen and get to know him a bit better while we eat." He nods along to her explanation then looks back at me.
"Well if Kushina picked you as an apprentice you can't be that bad. My name's Teuchi and I own this place. Your first bowl is free since you came with my best customer." Her arm tightens around me and I can see her grinning widely at that.
"Thank you sir. My name is Shiro." The smile on his face is genuine and contagious. He just seems like a friendly person that anyone could get along with.
"Nice to meet you Shiro. Now what can I get you today." I study the menu for a bit and then shrug. "I've never had ramen before so which would you recommend?" I hear a strangled gasp next to me as I say this. I could honestly say that because I don't think packaged ramen really counts.
What followed next was a long winded rant about what a deprived child I am not to know the wonders of Ramen before now, but worry not for your suffering is at an end. Honestly I only kept half an ear on her rant and instead opted to look around more. Dull grey underground bases might be good for hiding but they don't make the best viewing material. In the end I had 4 different styles of ramen in front of me as Kushina happily demolished her third bowl.
"Don't worry about not finishing them all I'll eat whatever you don't finish." Ah, she probably hasn't been able to look over my file yet. I don't really need to eat or use the bathroom, but when I do eat I can eat more than my entire body weight in food. It's like I have a black hole for a stomach and I never feel like I'm stuffed when I do eat that much.
I clapped my hands together and began to eat and eat and eat until the fourth bowl was completely drained and I calmly stacked it with the rest of our dirty dishes. There was silence all around me and the few customers were looking at me oddly. What? Oh, right eating that much isn't normal now is it? Dang it's hard to act normal nowadays.
"Kushina are you sure he isn't your kid and not just your apprentice?" Teuchi sniped at her.
"I think I would have noticed something like that old man." She shot right back at him. "Besides he has white hair if he was anyone's kid I would think he would be part of the Hatake clan or maybe that perverted sensei of Minato." I shrugged.
"My blood work was done and it came up inconclusive for the father but my mother was a known prostitute who died shortly after I was born." Noticing the odd looks again I shrugged. "I wanted to know so they told me." The subject was dropped and we moved on to lighter topics. Mainly a get to know each other kind of thing. What do you like to do? Hobbies? Dreams? That kind of thing.
Kushina liked to study fuinjutsu, eating Ramen and dreamed of having her own kid one day. Mine were learning new things, training and for dreams well the quest for a God's eyes flashed through my mind but in the end I decided to go undecided.
After paying for our meal Kushina disappeared in a puff of smoke after telling me to meet her at training ground 3. I just stared at the swiftly dispersing smoke numbly. How? When did she replace herself with a clone and why the fuck didn't I sense it? She feels like I'm literally sitting next to a miniature sun. Stupid showoff ninjas. A wave of calm hits me. It's not important what's important is getting to the training ground.
I turn to a man that looks like a chunin and he feels like one as well but what do I know I can't even keep track of the freaking sun. Calm. "Excuse me sir. Would you happen to know where training ground 3 is?"
"Between training grounds 2 and 4?" Was the gruff reply. Urge to kill rising. Teuchi's laughter isn't helping.
"I apologize I phrased that incorrectly. Would you be kind enough to give me directions to training ground 3?"
He simply pointed his finger and said, "10 minutes of roof hopping that way."
"Thank you kind sir." I turned to a kunoichi who had conveniently just entered the building. "Excuse me miss would you be so kind as to give me directions to training ground 3?" She gave me the same instructions as the man so it's likely to be true.
"Oh, brat what gives? Do you think I'm untrustworthy or something?"
I gave him the wide eyed doe look. "Oh no sir. I simply needed to reaffirm my faith in your truthfulness. I'm ever so glad that I can rely on you to be truthful. Well I must be going. Have a good day sir." I give a half bow to the man and walk out of the restaurant before leaping onto the rooftops. Behind me I could hear the man mutter about cheeky brats.
Konoha is a beautiful village. The buildings seem almost naturally placed between trees and other growth making it almost seem like the forest grew around the village and not the other way around. That actually might be the truth in this case as the founder of the village was able to control plant life. I can even see his face carved into the mountainside along with the two other Hokages.
It never truly hit me before now but I've grown strong. Of course I have no real chance of growing an ego with all the various ninja rubbing it into my face how much stronger they are than me, but I would never be able to hop between roofs like this before I died. The feeling of wind in my face and sensation of soaring through the air is extremely relaxing. All too soon though I arrived at my destination. Kushina was standing in clearing surrounded by trees and a small stream at the edge of it.
Kushina looked up from the papers she was reading as I landed in the clearing. She signaled me to wait a moment before finishing reading whatever was on the paper and then burning it all to ash. Dusting her hands off she finally spoke. "Well I didn't expect you to get here so quickly good job."
"Thank you sensei. Was that my file?" I didn't mention her seemingly casual abandonment at the restaurant. It was probably just a test for information gathering and time to study my file anyway. Probably… I'll give her the benefit of the doubt since Sense Chakra seems to be worthless right now and she could have been next to me the whole time.
"Yep." She sent a playful smile my way. "It would seem you vastly underestimated yourself. I've never heard of someone who figured out how to create Chakra strings at 1 called adequate."
"Ah." I shrug helplessly. "You can always improve and anyone that believes themselves to be perfect has grown stagnate and will eventually be overcome by those that kept training."
She rocked back and forth on her heels after that. "That's a good mentality to have as a ninja. Don't ever let that go but don't let it consume you either. Now, it's one thing to see a report on someone's fighting potential and another to actually experience it. So let's start on taijutsu." Clapping her hands together and assuming a relaxed position she motioned me to start.
"With or without Chakra Enhancement sensei?" I asked as I assumed my own stance which was more aggressive than her own.
"Without for now I want to see you at your base performance for right now." I nod then move forward somewhere in between a charge and a rush. A few lighter jabs aimed at her upper body were swatted aside but that was fine. I wasn't going to be trying to hit her upper body that much when I was half her height to begin with. I ducked under kick that would have hit me in the head.
Kicking at her planted leg's knee proved fruitless as she somehow reversed her own kick taking me in the side and sending me sprawling. Lucky I had rolled with it but it still felt like being hit with a bat. Damn jonin are insanely strong. My stance was no less firm than before yet it had taken on a more defensive positioning. Kushina took this as a sign to advance and we clashed once more.
The sparring lesson lasted for another 30 or so minutes before she called a stop to it and made me do a short cool down for another 10 minutes or so before she motioned me to sit next to her. I noticed that there was not a hint of sweat on her brow as I sat next to her. Unfortunately I was not so gifted and I had a light sheen going on. Of course resting for a minute or so washed any tiredness I was feeling away.
"Okay from what I've seen so far your taijutsu has a pretty good foundation and you have a decent grasp on Chakra enhancement when I told you to start using it. Excellent stamina and recovery but you already knew that. Decent tactics against a stronger opponent and you went for vulnerabilities when presented the opportunity. That's the good part now for the bad. The lack of reach is impeding you from gaining the most out of your fighting style. Nothing we can really do about that until you grow up some more. Second, your entire fight was too textbook and simple to read if you knew the leaf taijutsu that is taught in the academy. Don't worry we'll see about mixing up your repertoire so it isn't so basic. Other than that it is great for where you're at right now."
"Now if you feel up for it could you demonstrate what you know?" I have no problem with that so I nod. I show her everything from using basic ninja tools, to chakra exercises, basic ninja skills(stealth, survival, code breaking), to active chakra techniques. She remained mostly impassive for the display except for when twenty objects began to float around me from my Chakra strings.
"That's awesome, dattebane." Face turning red at her outburst she never the less plowed onward. "Can you move while using this?"
"Not really. If I move anything faster than a walk I lose my concentration and I can't keep it going at least not with this many strings going."
"Still that's amazing." She paused as though to gather her thoughts. "Okay I've seen your skills and where you are right now but I need a few days to fully hash out your full training schedule." Another pause. "I'll also have to work around the fact that you'll also be receiving training at night from your first sensei since you lack the need for sleep." A grumble, "Which is total bullshit."
I don't think I was meant to hear that. "So the lessons might overlap which if they do speak up and I'll quiz you on the topic instead of lecturing you. I don't really have anything else for you today because this was kind of sprung on me but maybe we can start you on water manipulation."
Reaching over she picked up two leaves and gave one to me. "Now watch closely this is the basic water training exercise. Take a leaf and drain the moisture from it like so." The green leaf became shriveled and brittle as all the moisture left it. "Now you try. Don't worry about getting it on your first try its quite a bit harder than it looks."
Looking down at the leaf in my hand I reached out and surrounded it with my Chakra. I could feel every part of the leaf now but what to do next. I spent what must have been a minute or two trying to replicate the feel of Kushina's chakra as she drained the leaf when suddenly it clicked.
Ding!
Learned Water Manipulation (Passive) LVL 1 – 0%
Allows for easier transitions between neutral chakra and water chakra as well as the manipulation of water.
Decreases cost of all water techniques by 0.25%
Increases control of water by 1%
Increases total chakra capacity by 0.1%
*Learned Water Leaf exercise (Active 10(8.75)/min) LVL 1 – 0%
Decreases time spent changing from neutral to water chakra and back again by 5%.
It took another 5 minutes before my leaf was a brittle and dry as Kushina's. I presented it back to her and she was frozen. I waved my hand in front of her face as she just continued to stare at my crumbling leaf. Not even a full day and I've broken my new sensei. Actually I think this happened with Saiko as well. Oh, right that's when she called me a monster. Good times.
"Holy shit." Broken out of my thoughts I looked at Kushina who was vigorously rubbing her forehead as though she had a headache. "Reading about it one thing but you just learned something that takes weeks to fully learn in a minute." So deadpan I'm hurt. Nah, not really.
"I would have learned it faster if you had written down how to do the technique. My bloodline would have 'eaten' the knowledge and I would have been able to do it instantly."
"What?" She nearly shouted. "You have a bloodline like that?" Instantly I tensed up. That should have been in my file. She realized it as well by the widening of her eyes and a blur of speed as her hands moved. I was already moving trying to avoid whatever technique was coming my way, even knowing it was pointless, before a clone appeared next to Kushina.
The clone disappeared and she let out a snort at my actions before patting the ground next to her. "Sit back down brat if I wanted to kidnap you I would have down it by now."
I felt sheepish at my actions now but better safe than dead and it did seem like she was a spy that thought the gig was up. "Just to be sure. I don't know if you can duplicate Chakra signatures but what was the thing I said to you when you found out I was a Sensor."
She rolled her eyes at that but said, "Paranoia is a good thing to have but don't take it too far. The thing you said was that I felt like the sun with an abyss of fury and maliciousness. Now sit back down you're hurting your poor sensei's feelings being so suspicious of her." I made my way back over to her and sat down.
"For your information Chakra signatures can't be faked. They can be suppressed or hidden but not changed. To do that you would need to fundamentally change who you are suddenly and completely. Now isn't this the best way to start a relationship. First day that I met you and you've given me a massive headache and together we uncovered a mole with the ability to steal A-rank secrets from the Hokage's office." I think she might be bipolar with how quickly she can switch from being serious to happy.
"Shouldn't we be doing something?" I ask, shifting from side to side.
"I am doing something. Right now I'm approaching the Hokage with a priority message and he's going to quietly lockdown the city. From there it'll be a mole hunt. TI and the Yamanaka Clan will be working overtime for the duration of the hunt." My head tilts to the side at the clan name. Where have I heard that before?
"Yamanaka Clan?"
She waves her hand dismissively. "A clan of mind readers. Oh, a bit of warning for you that you might not have gotten from not going to the Academy. If you recreate a jutsu that a specific clan uses you'll have to pay a fine and disciplinary action based on what it is. If you're caught trying to recreate the Yamanaka Clan's jutsu it's the immediate death penalty and you're declared a traitor." Wow that's harsh yet at the same time a bunch of mind readers in a world where information is the difference between life and death I can see why that would be the case.
I suddenly felt four Chakra signatures flare up at the edge of my range then flicker in some sort of code. Kushina flickered back and I stared at her with a quizzical expression. "It's code for all clear, incoming friendlies and I just acknowledged it. Chunin and above are taught it." I nodded and made a mental note to get Saiko to teach me it. Speaking of Saiko I felt her Chakra land in the clearing with us.
"Hello sensei." Her response was a flick on the forehead.
"Brat I stayed up all night just so I could change my sleep schedule for you and not an hour after I go to bed I get woken up and told you uncovered a mole with the ability to take A-rank secrets." A long put upon sigh. "On your first day as an official shinobi as well."
"Ah, as a super awesome kunoichi you don't need things like beauty sleep and that totally wasn't my fault."
"Beauty sleep?" I can feel the raised eyebrow and my man senses start tingling. I guess that expression isn't known here. Quick backpedal.
"Yeah you know 8-10 hours of sleep so you feel ready to go and prettier. You don't need it though because you're always pretty and you're super strong as well." Kushina is starting to chuckle behind me.
"What? Where did that come from? Uzumaki what have you been teaching Shiro? It's only been 2 hours since you've had him and he's already this cheeky."
"I didn't teach him anything but the leaf water exercise, which he got down in a minute, everything else is all him. My, he'll be such a hit with the ladies when he's older if he keeps this up." She said with a coyish grin.
"It's true though."
"Brat, you've seen my face once."
"And it was beautiful." Throwing her hands to the sky as though beseeching for help she quickly changed the subject while Kushina was openly laughing now.
"Here catch," A metallic glint sped through the air and I snagged it before it could impact my face. Unwrapping the clothe revealed a metallic forehead protector with the symbol of the leaf on it. "Uzumaki left before the Hokage could give this to you. I'll be back at 9 to pick you up for your training. You'll get it then brat." With an evil chuckle Saiko and the other three vanished leaving Kushina and I alone in the clearing. I didn't mind I'd felt her Chakra and for all that she seemed to be trying to brush it off it made her happy.
I stared down at the simple piece of metal and clothe after they left with one burning question that I had to ask. "Why is this thing so shiny? Are they trying to get genin killed?" A hand ruffled my hair as Kushina came down from her giggling fit.
"It's a test that 90% of genin fail and their sensei doesn't let them go out into the field without dimming the metal. They all see proof of their becoming ninja and not the impracticality of their new toy. So congratulations you passed the test with flying colors." She ruffled my hair again and I ineffectively tried to stop it.
"We'll do that soon enough but for now let's go meet one of my friends Mikoto Uchiha and her son Itachi. He's the same age as you are and I think having a friend or a rival would help you. Now tie that headband on and follow me."
Kushina set a brutal, for me, pace out of the clearing and back into the city. As we entered the city we came to a stop and started walking through the streets instead of roof hopping. She must have known my next question because she started talking. "Rooftops are off limits when the village goes on lockdown unless you have urgent business or you're an ANBU. It's too much of a hassle to get questioned if we do take the rooftops so we're walking."
"We have urgent business?"
"Of course we're going to go see my friend." She exclaimed. I felt the need to face plant but continued walking with only a slight twitch. That's not what I would call urgent business but whatever.
The walk took another 30 minutes or so before we arrived at a large walled off area with a gate that was manned by two guards. "Heyo." Kushina let out a large cheer at the sight of them. I swear I saw them both flinch.
"Ah, Uzumaki. Not going to skip the check in and just jump over the wall this time?" Wow I didn't know such pomp could exist in a tone.
"Nope. I have a cute little apprentice now so I'm showing him the stupid slow way into the compound and not the fast and easy way." The guard's gazes flickered to me and I was regarded as one might regard a particularly poison snake suddenly appearing next to them.
"You have an apprentice." The one on the left tested each word as they left his mouth as though he never thought such a sentence could be formed. The one on the right just started to blankly stare at the sky.
Kushina continued on as though unaware of the state they were in. "Yep. Now Shiro the first thing you need to know about the Uchiha is that almost all of them have a log jammed up their asses that is so big people have been known to use the replacement jutsu with it. So in order to help these poor, poor people we prank them to try to dislodge that log and make them smile."
I played along nodding eagerly with wide attentive eyes. I was having fun freaking out the guards. "I don't have much experience with pranking people but I'll do my best sensei." The one on the right pulled out a flask of some sort and started drinking. Snatching it out of his hands the left most one gave him a glare and started drinking as well.
"Please just go." The right most one said as he tried to grab his flask back. We went on through as it devolved into a fight. We actually made it out of hearing range before Kushina just started laughing hysterically. "Hahaha, did you see their faces. Hehe, snort, we got them to start drinking on duty. Good job Shiro." She continued laughing all the way to our destination and I even cracked a small smile. The Uchiha took one look at the laughing Kushina and gave us a wide berth with wary glances continually sent our way.
When we arrived at what I assumed was our destination a long dark haired woman with black eyes and a purple blouse standing in the doorway of a rather large house. A smile was gracing her lips as she spoke. "Kushina what's got you in such a good mood?"
"Heya Mikoto. My apprentice and I just played a prank on the guards to the compound. It was great they started drinking before we even left." An eyebrow was raised.
"Yep." She pulled me close. "This little brat is Shiro and he's my apprentice. Only a shinobi for 2 hours and we uncovered a mole stealing A-rank secrets." The second eyebrow joined the first.
"I see." Was her reply as she focused on me. "Well it is a pleasure to meet you Shiro. My name is Mikoto Uchiha. Please refer to me as Mikoto."
I think I missed something in that exchange but I never figured out woman even before I died and I'm not even going to attempt it for a kunoichi. "It is a pleasure Mikoto." I said with a half bow.
"Oh such a polite young man. How old are you?" She turned to Kushina. "And I also should have known you would be at the center of a village lock down Kushina."
She sputtered out denials as I answered. "Three ma'am."
"My so young. The same age as Itachi and already a shinobi. I suppose you brought him here so they could meet."
Kushina nods. "I thought it would be good for him to meet someone his own age and maybe they could start a friendship or even a rivalry."
She looks thoughtful before motioning us into the house. "Of course. Itachi is in the back garden practicing his shuriken. Please come in." We entered and removed our sandals for the guest ones that were provided. The house itself was spotless and had a very comforting feel to it. Sliding open the screen door we were greeted with the sight of a very orderly garden with a small pool in one corner along with a section that seemed set up for exercising.
An approximately 1 meter tall boy was standing up range of the wooden targets and flicking shurikens downrange. I could see he had the technique down now all he had to do was work on his accuracy. "Itachi there is someone here to see you." He threw one last shuriken then turned to look at us. His dark onyx eyes met my emerald ones as we studied each other. The moment passed and he quickly made his way over to our group.
"Itachi this is Shiro. He's the apprentice of Kushina." He bowed slightly to Kushina first then turned to face me.
"It is a pleasure to meet you Shiro. My name is Itachi Uchiha. Please call me Itachi." He bowed again and I returned it.
"It is a pleasure my name is Shiro, no last name."
"You're both so cute when you're being all serious. Go show him your shurikenjutsu Itachi while I entertain Kushina." We both nod at that and go back over to the training posts.
"So you're a shinobi then. How old are you?"
"Three." I answer while gathering stray shuriken into a pile.
"I see. You must be talented to be a shinobi at our age." I shrug absently.
"I believe myself adequate but others seem to disagree. Would you like any help with your shurikenjutsu?" He pauses for a moment considering and then nods. "Show me how you throw them." Picking up a pile of five he pauses then throws them in rapid succession each landing with a solid thump in the wooden post. All five are grouped together but to the right of center. Precise but not accurate. "Again." Five more shuriken fly with similar results.
"Each time you threw one you held onto it too long. That's why it's landing to the right. Here watch my wrist and when I'm releasing it." I throw the first one with exaggerated slowness to let him see then let loose the other four much faster each finding their mark in the center of the post. "Now try again." I hand him the last set of five.
Taking hold of them he flings the first one and it hits slightly right of the center but not as far right as before. "Again release sooner." A nod and another thump sees a shuriken just to the left of center. "Good now find the middle." The shuriken flies and hits dead center. "Again." The last two shurikens also find their way to the center. "Excellent you found your balance. You're a quick learner."
"You're a good teacher." He says humbly as he moves to go collect the shuriken but stops when all twenty pull free from the posts and float back over to us. "How are you doing that?" I hear a choking sound and look over to see Kushina pounding Mikoto on the back, a set of tea between them. Eh, she'll be fine.
I made the twenty strings go visible. "An application of Chakra shaping called Chakra strings." He studies them for a bit.
"They seem useful."
"They are." A flick and 8 shurikens fly towards the post smacking into it and creating a smiley face.
"Is there anything else you're working on?"
"There is. I've recently learned the fire leaf exercise. It involves slowly burning a leaf but I'm having some trouble with it. It took me a few hours before it would stop bursting into flames but you took far less time to complete your leaf exercise didn't you?"
I tilt my head to the side. "How did you know?"
He carelessly shrugged. "Most people get all excited about it when I tell them. Your posture didn't change like it was no big deal."
"I apologize. I don't mean to seem arrogant or rude."
"No you weren't you just seemed unsurprised by it. So how long did yours take and what element are you?"
I hesitate for a moment before replying. "It took me a minute and water." Mikoto is choking on her tea again. You would think she would know how to drink liquids without choking by now.
"If you would,' a leaf floats in front of him, 'I might be able to help. In return I can show you the water leaf exercise as well." He nods and takes the leaf. I concentrate on it as I feel his Chakra turn to fire and start slowly burning the leaf. Suddenly he loses control of it and with a whoosh it burns to ash. I think I got it. Saiko said fire would be difficult for me but the leaf in my hand starts to smolder.
Ding!
Learned Fire Manipulation (Passive) LVL 1 – 0%
Allows for easier transitions between neutral chakra and fire chakra as well as the manipulation of fire.
Decreases cost of all fire techniques by 0.25%
Increases control of fire by 1%
Increases total chakra capacity by 0.1%
*Learned Fire Leaf exercise (Active 30(25.5)/min) LVL 1 – 0%
Decreases time spent changing from neutral to fire chakra and back again by 5%.
Hm, no reaction from the peanut gallery this time. I studied the display a bit. So a 300% increase in chakra consumption. That's not too bad but I probably won't focus on it too much for now. The leaf finishes smoldering and I nod in satisfaction. "Okay I recommend surrounding the leaf with your chakra and trying to only convert one portion of the chakra covering the leaf to fire instead of converting it all and trying maintain control at the same time. That way you're working on one issue at a time instead of two. Try it now." He did so and he managed to smolder through the whole leaf without it bursting into flames. Immediately afterwards he gave me a bow.
"Thank you for your help sensei." Oh, sensei that feels weird. It's making me all flustered.
"Ah, no problem but don't call me sensei we're the same age. I'd rather be called a friend instead." I stuck out my hand and after a moment he grasped it.
"Friends?"
"Friends."
~Interlude~ Mikoto
Watching Itachi being so serious as he trains makes my heart flutter. I just want to go over there, wrap him in a hug and snuggle with him he's so cute. A sigh escaped my lips. They just grow up so fast sometimes and Fugaku isn't helping by pushing him to succeed. I know he'll be the clan head one day but I just want my baby boy to be happy.
Suddenly I sense what seems like the whole village spring into motion. Tense muscles tighten waiting to spring into action if need be before a Chakra coded pulse hits me and I relax marginally. Internal affair nothing to be too concerned about. Spending the next bit of time hovering near Itachi just in case I felt Kushina's Chakra coming towards me. With a smile on my face I go to greet her.
She's laughing hysterically at something that happened, probably a prank, judging her and yep it was a prank. 'Really.' She's totally unrepentant as usual. Her next words startle me though. Apprenticeship? A-rank secret? He has a bloodline and the information got stolen.
I give my full attention to the boy next to her. The brightest green eyes I've ever seen stare back at me and ruffled white hair sits atop his head. I can see the Konoha headband tied around his left arm and his clothes are nondescript gray and black. He moves too fluidly for anything but a trained dancer or a shinobi and I don't see a hint of baby fat on him. He can't be much older than my Itachi if anything and his answer confirms it. Feeling a well of sadness spring up at that I welcome them inside. He seems so serious and focused. Everything a shinobi should be but nothing like a child.
I excuse myself to go make tea. They don't interact like children. They should be laughing and playing not comparing throwing techniques. Returning with the tea I start probing Kushina for information about Shiro. Oddly, for her, she's quite tight lipped about it. Taking a sip of my tea I'm just in time to see Shiro form 20 Chakra strings out of nowhere. The tea goes down wrong and I start choking while Kushina pounds my back. I give her a glare. This is why she's being so stingy with information just to get a reaction out of me. Her knowing smile is annoying.
Resolving not to react fails me almost instantly when Shiro said he figured out the water leaf exercise in a minute. Choking once again on the tea I ignore Kushina's wide grin like a polite host as I fill her cup back up. We both freeze and stare when Shiro completes the fire leaf exercise in less than 30 seconds. A hiss of pain and I unfreeze to see the cup was overflowing. Quickly I stop pouring and try to check on her but she waved it off. We finish up just in time to see them shake hands and proclaim themselves friends.
That's so cute my little Itachi made a friend.
~Interlude End~
Name: Shiro
Age: 3 year - 0 months
Title: Rookie Root Shinobi
LVL: 8 - 1% to next LVL
HP: 590/590
Chakra: 8559/8559
Elemental Affinity: Water
STR: 61(67.1)
VIT: 59
END: 63
DEX: 75
INT: 53(54.59)
WIS: 53(54.59)
LCK: 13
Points: 40
Money: 800
Water Manipulation (Passive) LVL 1 – 0%
Allows for easier transitions between neutral chakra and water chakra as well as the manipulation of water.
Decreases cost of all water techniques by 0.25%
Increases control of water by 1%
Increases total chakra capacity by 0.1%
*Water Leaf exercise (Active 10(8.75)/min) LVL 1 – 0%
Decreases time spent changing from neutral to water chakra and back again by 5%.
Fire Manipulation (Passive) LVL 1 – 0%
Allows for easier transitions between neutral chakra and fire chakra as well as the manipulation of fire.
Decreases cost of all fire techniques by 0.25%
Increases control of fire by 1%
Increases total chakra capacity by 0.1%
*Fire Leaf exercise (Active 30(25.5)/min) LVL 1 – 0%
Decreases time spent changing from neutral to fire chakra and back again by 5%.