The Fourth Ring: Just Beyond The Hot Springs!
After running from the labyrinth, & after a short walk where Tsachi regaled the team with his side of the story, they look over & see a town in the distance. After traveling through miles of meadow & mountains, going through all kinds of obstacles they finally reached a town. The others were excited, but Tsachi knew all too well that this wasn't a time to drop his guard. This was Joukigaiku, & while it was known for having the most luxurious hot spring in the world, it was also home to the Land of Lightning's most prominent Sealer: Youma Kirinonai. It was said that his skills rivaled that of Orochimaru, but it hasn't been tested.
Everyone else though runs in without a care in the world, except possibly Kurenai who could just be running to keep track of them...& that's a big no. She runs straight to The White Lotus, the famous hot spring, & immediately Tsachi gets a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He sighs & says to himself, "Well, let's just hope they stay out of trouble. Maybe then we can leave without any either.".
"We've got to go to The White Lotus with Kurenai-sensei!", Ino declares full of excitement. Sakura sighs as she walks beside Ino, Shikamaru, Naruto & Sasuke behind them. "It's probably really expensive, plus you probably need more rest than all of us, except Tsachi. Let's not waste the money.". Ino looks behind her & smiles, Shikamaru sees this & instantly walks away. "Well...since you're worried about money...let's bring along 1 of the guys. We can, you know, get them to 'help'.", her smiles grows wider as she glances over at Sakura. "I don't know....it doesn't seem, you know, honorable. Besides, I don't know if even Naruto is that thick-headed.". Ino rolls her eyes & responds, "Are you serious? Face it Sakura, the guy loves you. He doesn't just like you, or just care about you, he loves you. He'd probably jump off a cliff to get you some umeboshi if you asked him. I'm sure it'd be a cinch to get him to come along.". Ino whispers something in Sakura's ear & keeps walking, hoping she follows through.
Sakura stops walking, & lets Naruto & Sasuke catch up to her. "Is something wrong?", Naruto asks with a look of concern. Sakura smiles softly & shakes her head before saying, "No, but Naruto I was wondering if I could talk to you for a moment...alone?". Both Sasuke & Naruto's jaws drop, & Naruto gets his wits together enough to push Sasuke away, all the while Sakura laughs quietly & thinks to herself, "I can't believe Ino was right! This is gonna be easier than chakra concentration practice!". Naruto walks back over, a small smile on his face. Sakura smiles back & says, "Ino & I, well we were talking & we wanted to go to The White Lotus. The thing is though, she can be a bit of a bitch, & if that happens I really don't want to go through that alone. Can you come along & help me out Naruto, please?", Sakura's smile gets a bit wider as does Naruto when only 1 thought comes to mind, "JACKPOT! 2 sexy girls & me! It's my lucky day!". Naruto nods quickly & they go to The White Lotus together. Sakura looks over at Naruto, who looks like he's on top of the world, & on the way there she can't help but smile. After all, she's about to get a free spa day.
Shikamaru & Sasuke are walking around together through the town. "Do you think those girls are up to something?", Sasuke asks. Shikamaru takes his hands out of his pockets & casually puts his hands behind his head before responding, "I'm sure of it. Ino smiling is never good.". They both chuckle softly & Sasuke motions at a sign next to a library they're walking by, "Hey, a shogi tournament. You should enter.", Shikamaru shakes his head & replies, "Nah, tournaments are a drag. Besides, it takes all the fun out of it.". Sasuke grabs Shikamaru's arm & tosses him inside, deciding that they'll both enter. They see a bunch of old men, a few kids younger than them & a pair of middle aged adults. "Come on, 1 of us is bound to win the prize money.", Sasuke presses until finally Shikamaru enters & Sasuke follows right behind him.
It turns out that the hot spring wasn't Naruto's lucky day. In fact, he spent most of the day by himself with the exception of the portly male masseuse that Ino just happened to pick for him. Finally though, when he sits in the hot spring, he hears Sakura & Ino giggling. He thinks this is finally his chance. "We should go now, before Naruto wants to leave.", Sakura says in a worried tone. Ino rolls her eyes, but then as she thinks about it Ino starts to nod. "Yeah, I guess you're right. We can't leave him the tab if he's not here. Let's go, now.". Naruto stops, & just sits in the water with a shocked, heartbroken look on his face. He can't believe it, it was all a trick, & Sakura did it to him.
Eventually he gets out, his skin burnt to a bright red. After Naruto puts on his clothes, he walks up to the front desk & empties his wallet before walking out. As he walks the streets, he drags his feet, feeling miserable which makes him hungry as well. Shikamaru & Sasuke walk up to him, Shikamaru carrying a big briefcase. "What's that?", Naruto asks in melancholy tone as he points to the briefcase. Shikamaru opens it to reveal a boatload of money, "I won a shogi tournament, it was fun I guess.". Sakura & Ino walk up, Naruto just walks away.
That night, Naruto & Tsachi are sharing a room, since Naruto couldn't get his own. "I saved you some barbeque, here.", Tsachi hands him a container & watches with a smile while Naruto eats hungrily. He would mention what happened, but Tsachi knows that won't do any good. Instead he just goes to sleep & soon Naruto follows suit. Tsachi just hopes that leaving will be easy.
The next morning, everyone wakes up, has breakfast & leaves the hotel. They walk through the town, seeing the various hot springs scattered throughout until finally they leave the town. Tsachi breathes a sigh of a relief & they keep going. "Tsachi, what's that?", Sasuke asks while pointing off into the distance. The moment he sees what Sasuke is pointing at, he pushes everyone back & rushes forward on his own. "It's what I was afraid of. Arashi got to him, the sealer is the guardian of the fourth ring.".
As Tsachi gets closer, the seals forming the fourth ring became much more prevalent. He stops short & seemingly out of nowhere, the ninja known as Youma Kirinonai appeared. He was much younger looking than he actually was, & the tan skin that was common among the people of the Land, with him there were white scars all over his chest & shoulders. "I knew you would be trouble, from the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew. Arashi is a fool, but he's not stupid enough to forget about you either Tsachi.", Youma says as he walks toward Tsachi.
The others run up to their comrade & Kurenai inquires, "How do you know the Fourth Hokage's jutsu?!". They all look at her in shock, then back at Youma who claps slowly before stopping & responding, "Very good. Actually, I shouldn't say that seeing as how Minato Namikaze was from your village. In fact, I can feel his handiwork is nearby.", he looks at the people standing just a few feet away from him when his eyes stop at Naruto, "Of course, you're the....", Kurenai charges forward toward Youma before he can finish. She bolts past Tsachi & into the seals, however, at that moment all Youma could do is smirk. Tsachi catches it & quickly runs after her before it's too late.
Soul Binding Barrier!
Dark flames erupt all around them, following the path of the seals that have been marked on the ground all around them. In a moment, both Tsachi & Kurenai were trapped a barrier, & just by the name of the jutsu, it doesn't sound like that's a good thing.
Welcome readers, you know what time it is! It's time for more Naruto Trivia!
Today is all about jutsu, so....In the Naruto Universe, which isn't a type of Jutsu?
A. Kekkai Genkai
B. Juinjutsu
C. Konjutsu
D. Fuinjutsu
You thought I was gonna make it easy on ya?
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Nah, & remember, if you cheat Sai will be right!
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About what?
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Naruto being dickless!
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Oh no, his ting-ting is gonna fall off! DON'T CHEAT!
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The answer is.......
*drumroll*
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The answer is C. Konjutsu!
Kekkai Genkai was probably the easiest, as it's used in most versions of the show & manga. Juinjutsu is known as "Cursed Seal Jutsus"; mainly the curse marks used by Orochimaru, although there are other examples of Juinjutsu, like the mark on Neji's forehead. Fuinjutsu are also known as "Sealing Jutsus", the difference being that Cursed Seals usually are placed on people & can cause great harm, or even death. Sealing Jutsu can be used for a variety of things, like Naruto's seals on his stomach to Four Flames Barrier used by the Sound Four during the battle between Orochimaru & Sarutobi. By the way, Konjutsu, if it was real, would be translated into "Soul Jutsu". Just FYI, in case you were curious.
Did you know that? Well, didya? No? Well if you did, good for you! *insert thumbs up here* If not, it's alright. There's always hope for next time on Naruto Trivia!