Chapter 2- Naruto's Growth
~When I think back, and remember all those individuals who have suffered like me, I realise just how similar we are. Haku, he lost everything merely because of his powers, and Gaara who was feared by his people while he in turn despised everyone around him. Remembering the days I spend alone like that still haunt me, shunned, hated, and never knowing why. That day I learned who I really am… no… what's inside me, had Iruka not saved me, I would've become like Gaara… cold, ruthless, absorbed in hatred to those around me. I shudder at the thought. It's sad that always the strong seems to be the ones that suffer, even when they didn't want it. Though my way of the ninja is supposed to mean running forwards on a path of no regrets, it's difficult sometimes, when the past holds nothing but pain…
-Uzumaki Naruto
(Location- Konoha Village)
"Keh-heh-heh!" Naruto laughed to himself as he ran down the streets of Konoha Village. It was still morning, and the streets were still empty. Because Kakashi was gone for the day, getting the data for the C-rank mission, Team 7 had the day off. But relaxing wasn't what he had in mind. "I wonder what kind of jutsus that four-eyed fake sennin can teach me!" he said excitedly, remembering the fight yesterday. "Maybe he'll show me how to do that shuriken-calling trick, or maybe that one with the huge spikes shooting out of the ground! Or better yet, I'll find out how to do that sweet taijutsu!"
The thought of learning how to fight hand to hand like that really excited Naruto. As far as strength went, Naruto simply couldn't stress enough how OVERWHELMINGLY weak Ebi was… but the moment he started channelling chakra in that weird taijutsu, Ebi's punches felt like sledgehammers smashing into him.
"If I can learn to do that, then I can match moves with the best of them and totally kick their asses!" he smirked, imagining the look on Neji, Rock Lee, and all the other taijutsu specialists out there when he beat them at their own game. Even better was the thought of totally overshadowing Sasuke… for a change, "Heh-heh-heh! This is so gonna rock… GAH!" he was so absorbed into the thought of upstaging everyone that he wasn't looking where he was going, and ran right into someone. They both exclaimed and fell over.
"Ah! G-gomen nasai! I wasn't looking where I was going… N-Naruto-kun…!" Before Naruto could say anything, he was hearing a soft, nervous voice, desperately apologising to him.
Naruto didn't even have to look at the person to figure out who he ran into. "No need to apologise Hinata. My fault" he replied, rubbing the back of his head and standing up, "Are you okay?" he reached down to help her up
"A… ano…" Hinata looked down to hide her intense blushing as Naruto grabbed her hand and helped her up, "I-I'm alright." She said nervously, twiddling her fingers. "W-where are you going in such a hurry?" She asked, looking up at him, "A-are you going to meet Ebi-san?"
"Yeah! It may be my team's day off, but I'm not resting! I'm gonna get Ebi to show me those moves a' his! Once I get my hands on those jutsus, I'll be unstoppable! Heh-heh!" Naruto laughed, "What about you? What are you doing?"
"Um… well, I…" Before Hinata could reply, she saw something strange, "Ano… Naruto-kun? What is that?" she pointed down
"Huh?" Naruto turned around, and saw what looked like a big square rock, with two eyehole, and it seemed to be moving. "Hmmm…" Naruto took a few steps away from it… "PSYCHE!" he shouted, turning around and pointing down at it, "What kind of rock is perfectly square with two eyeholes?!"
"Heh-heh-heh-heh…" some chuckling could be heard from underneath the 'rock'…
KABOOM!
"WAAA!" Naruto exclaimed, Hinata grabbed onto his shoulder and hid behind him when the box exploded.
"(cough!) We used too many explosives again!" Konohamaru, Moeji and Udon coughed as the dust cleared, but quickly straightened up, "Impressive! So you saw through the disguise! Your skills haven't diminished one bit! You truly are my rival!"
"Yeah-yeah… what do you want now?" Naruto crossed his arms
"Hey, come on bro! No need to act so cold! You never want to hang around with us anymore! What's the big deal?!" Konohamaru complained
"For one thing, I'm kinda busy at the moment and I don't got time to play. Plus, don't you kids have school?" Naruto asked
"That's not important!" exclaimed Konohamaru
"Leader? Who is the pretty girl?" asked Moeji
"You mean Hinata?" Naruto looked at Hinata
"Ah…" Hinata immediately looked down, her face blushed a deep shade of red when Naruto looked at her when she was referred to as the 'pretty girl'
"Yeah… I was also wondering that…" Konohamaru thought about it for a moment, "Ah! I get it now!" Konohamaru exclaimed, coming to a conclusion. "Hey! Where do you think you're going?!" he shouted as Naruto and Hinata walked off
"Training…" Naruto replied dully
"Oh really?" Konohamaru grinned, catching up with them, "Or are you just trying to ditch us and be alone with her? Heh-heh-heh! You can't hide it from me!" Naruto blinked, wondering what he was talking about. "I see what's going on! Heh-heh! Nice job bro, I'm proud of you! You finally came to your senses and dropped the screaming forehead girl! This one here, she's your new girlfriend, right!?" Konohamaru nudged Naruto, holding up his pinkie, "If ya only wanted to be alone with her, you shoulda said something bro!"
"EI?!" Hinata exclaimed, blushing red "W-wait! I-I'm not… N-Naruto-kun isn't my…!"
Naruto let out an exasperated sigh. These kids weren't gonna go away. Them wasting his time was one thing, but now they were embarrassing Hinata… He had to take matters into his own hands "All right then! I'll show you three my newest jutsu!"
"A new jutsu? Awesome!" said Konohamaru
"Yay! A new jutsu!" cheered Moegi, "Come on leader! Let's see it!"
"Uuh… I want to see it too" said Udon
"Heh-heh-heh… okay you little brats. Pay close attention… watch closely, 'cus I'm only gonna show this once…" Naruto put his hands together, forming a seal, "(Get ready Hinata!)" he whispered at the corner of his mouth. They stood silent, not moving a muscle… "HAAAAA…" Naruto growled, "OH MY GOD! WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" he suddenly pointed, behind the three kids
"HUH!?" they exclaimed, turning around. They didn't see anything… Konohamaru then looked back, and saw Naruto was gone. "DAMMIT!"
(Location- Practice Area)
"Heh-heh-heh! What did you think of my jutsu, Hinata!?" Naruto laughed as he ran, pulling Hinata by the wrist.
"Um… i-it was… interesting…" Hinata lied, trying to be polite. The two of them slowed down as they reached a fork in the road, leading to different training areas "Ah, Naruto-kun? I-I have to go now, my team is waiting for me" she said, reluctantly letting taking back her hand
"Hm… okay" said Naruto, feeling a little disappointed, though he didn't understand why, "See you later Hinata!" he said as he ran off
"Goodbye Naruto-kun…" Hinata said softly, even though no one could hear it. She looked down at her hand, and the wrist where Naruto had been holding just now. "Naruto-kun's hands are so warm" she said, imagining herself walking side by side with Naruto instead of him pulling her from a few feet ahead, and not holding her by the wrist, but by the hands instead… "Oh!" Hinata's face blushed red, her hands came up to her cheeks when she found herself lost in her thoughts about the boy again. "I-I'm late!" she exclaimed, and ran to join the rest of her team…
"Hey Ebi! I'm here!" Naruto called as he ran into the practice area "Ebi?" he looked around, but no one was there. "Oh come on! Don't tell me he's late!" Naruto complained, "Perfect… I come here on my day off to learn from the self-proclaimed genius toothpick, and he turns out to be another Kakashi-sensei…"
"A little rude for you to be saying that." said a voice behind Naruto
"Huh?!" Naruto turned around and saw him "Ebi! When did you get here?!"
"Hello to you too" Ebi crossed his arms, "That 'toothpick' remark was really uncalled for, along with you always saying 'fake sennin!', since I am teaching you for free. The very least you could do is refer to me as Ebi-s…"
"Meh" Naruto shrugged, "Anyways, let's get started! What are we gonna do?"
"You sure are excited, aren't you?" Ebi sighed in defeat and chuckled at Naruto's enthusiasm, "Yesterday, when we were fighting, even though it was very brief, I was able to take a good look at your style and determine many things" said Ebi, "There are many factors we need to focus on, particularly weakness. Your greatest weak point is undoubtedly using your chakra sparingly. You make many useless moves and the amount of chakra directed towards damaging the enemies is significantly less than the amount being wasted. Unfortunately, learning to precisely control your chakra takes a tremendous amount of time and effort, the former one we don't have. Developing the instincts on when and when not to use your chakra and techniques comes only with experience, and that takes even longer…"
"Uh…"
"You throw big heap of chakra in the hope that some of it hits. We change it so when you throw it, it hits." Ebi said very slowly in a way Naruto understood. The gennin nodded, and Ebi continued, "You need to gain more control. Even roughly, if you learn to channel chakra in specific amounts and control where you want to send it, you can go from this…" Ebi punched one of the logs… barely a tap… "To this!"
THUD!
"WHOA!" Naruto exclaimed when Ebi punched the log again, but this time, his punch was so much stronger, the thing vibrated and cracks were left in the wood.
"By sending chakra to my arm, I was able to strengthen my muscles and reinforce my bones many times over, allowing me to hit far beyond my physical capacity and withstand heavy blows that would normally cripple me." Ebi explained, "It's simple in concept but difficult in practice, especially in the stress of battle. The chakra movement must be done instantly; if you stop to charge up even for a second, you will most likely get killed. Also the chakra demands are quite heavy… there's a reason few would use this style." said Ebi, "Before I go any further, I'll have to see what you're capable of. You get the idea, right?"
"Yeah!" Naruto said confidently, and held out his fist. "So I call it out, hold it there, and hit, right?" Ebi nodded, "Hmm…" he concentrated, gathering chakra through his arm… "Damn!" he exclaimed when it suddenly slipped away
"It's alright. It's not easy" Ebi said reassuringly, "Try again!"
"Hai!" Naruto nodded, and tried again. "Hmm…" he could feel the chakra in his body slowly moving through his arm, inches away from his fist… "ARGH!" he exclaimed when he lost control, and the chakra, "Dammit! Again!" he kept gathering chakra into his hand, trying to hold it, and it kept slipping away
"Um, Naruto? Do you need any help?" asked Ebi
"No! I'm fine! I can do it, watch me!" Naruto shouted, doing it over and over
"Okay Naruto, your choice." Said Ebi, "Take your time, after all we got plenty!"
(Four hours later)
"Urgh…" Ebi groaned, "Naruto? For the last time… are you sure you don't want help?"
"I don't need it!" answered Naruto, growling as chakra gathered in his hand. He was trying to hold it together, keeping it from escaping… "AW DAMMIT!" he shouted when the chakra escaped his hand again. There hasn't been any improvement. "Hey Ebi, I just noticed something" said Naruto, "This doesn't seem to be working"
"YA THINK?!" Ebi shouted, finally losing his temper. For the past few hours, they had been standing there, unmoving while Naruto kept unsuccessfully trying to gather chakra in his arm and hold it long enough to deliver a punch.
"I dunno, I'm just saying" Naruto shrugged, "Maybe there's something wrong with the way you're teaching me"
"Something wrong with MY way of teaching?! You're the one refusing my help, so don't blame your ineptitude on me!" Ebi said angrily
"Hey, and just what is that supposed to mean?!" Naruto shouted
"You tell me! You had four hours to think about it, you freaking idiot!" said Ebi
"Idiot?!" Naruto growled, "Oh yeah?! Well, try saying that again with blood gushing outta your nose!" he put his hands together, "SEXY NO JUTSU!"
"SEXY NO JUTSU COUNTER!" At the same time Naruto transformed, Ebi also performed a technique of his own… changing into a mirror
"GAH…!" Naruto's jaw dropped at what he saw, "G… GLUAAAAAAAARGH!" the transformation broke as blood shot out of his nose, sending him flying into the air
"Nice try, but I've been warned about that one and made the preparations." Ebi changed reverted, "For the love of… can't you go one day without fainting of blood loss?!"
WHAM!
"AGH!" Naruto yelped when Ebi kicked him
"You listening now?" Ebi sighed, and calmed down. "Naruto, sorry for losing my temper like that, I'm just not patient enough."
"Uh, yeah… and I guess I should be sorry too" Naruto rubbed his head
"Still though, that 'Sexy no Jutsu' of yours… you have to admit that it's pretty stupid, and if I'm gonna be seen in your company, at least try and have some dignity." Ebi crossed his arms, "Jutsus are among the most secret and sophisticated arts you'll find in this world, so don't just make up any stupid trick and call it a jutsu. I should also mention that 'LOOK BEHIND YOU!' thing on those kids… yes, I was watching." he said, "Honestly, what kind of a ninja would fall for THAT?"
(Meanwhile)
"HEY!" Iruka exclaimed, grabbing Konohamaru in the hallways of the ninja academy, "Where do you think you're going?!"
"Uh… bathroom?" Konohamaru answered nervously
"You were sneaking out of class again, weren't you?!" Iruka said angrily, "I don't know where you get these ideas, but I'm putting a stop to this right now! What makes you think you could get away from a highly-trained and experienced nin…"
"AH! LOOK BEHIND YOU!" Konohamaru shouted
"HUH!?" Iruka turned around… but saw nothing... he turned back to Konohamaru… he was gone, "DAMMIT!"
(Back to Naruto)
"Anyways, you said something about helping me learn this?" said Naruto
"Right!" Ebi nodded, "First, hold still" He stepped to Naruto's side and inspected his arm.
"Uh, okay…" Naruto shrugged and did as he was told…
"Okay now… it should be right about here…" Ebi tapped on Naruto's arm and shoulder several times, as if he were feeling for something. "Ok, this might hurt a little, (Why am I saying might… or little?)" Ebi held up his hands, gathering chakra into his fingers, "HAAA!"
"GAH…!" Naruto's eyes opened wide when Ebi poked him several times on the left shoulder and arm, "OWWW!" he screamed, rolling on the ground and clutching his left shoulder, "WHAT D'HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" he screamed
"Calm down!" said Ebi, "Now try again! Gather chakra into your fist!"
"Grrr… ow…" Naruto grumbled, standing up and gathering chakra. The flow felt a little different, and for some reason… there was more chakra pouring into his arm, "Whoa…" Naruto said in awe, clutching his right fist. The power… he could feel it!
"You feel that?" Ebi smirked, "Now, hit this thing" he tapped the second log
"Okay…" Naruto nodded, "HAAAA!"
CRACK!
"WHOA!" Naruto exclaimed when the log was cracked by his fist. "Hey Ebi…" Naruto spoke up, "What the hell did you do to me?!" he exclaimed excitedly
"Try performing a jutsu and you'll see." he replied
"Okay…" said Naruto, putting his hands together, "KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" Nothing happened. "What the…?!" He'd done the jutsu like he always did, but nothing happened!
"I injected chakra into some of the key tenketsu on your left arm, closing them and blocking the flow. That will ease the flow of chakra directly into your right" explained Ebi
"But don't you need the byakugan to see the tenketsu?!"
"Just because you can't see the tenketsus doesn't mean they aren't still there. They're tricky to find, but anyone with a good enough knowledge of human anatomy can find them if they're given enough time." Ebi smirked proudly, "Of course, unless your eyes are white and are your name is Hyuga, don't expect to ever do it on a moving person."
"Hey Ebi… is this safe…?" asked Naruto nervously, not liking the feeling in his left arm
"Ah, don't worry. Your tenketsus will open up after a while. All you needed was to get the feel of it the chakra being moved through your arm. Now, see how well you hold onto it…" Naruto nodded and called the chakra into his right arm. It brimmed with power, but he could feel it weakening. "Don't let the energy escape!" Ebi called out. Naruto gritted his teeth and struggled his hardest, as the amount of leaking energy decreased. "Just a little bit more… that's it!" He exclaimed when he fully retained the chakra.
"Finally…!" Naruto grinned, sweating from the effort. It was taking some serious focus to hold on without releasing, but he could feel the strength in his arm…
"What you have there is the foundation behind the entire technique." Ebi explained. "Don't rush it. Any chakra that escapes your grasp will be lost and completely wasted, so take it slow for now and get it right. Repetition is key…"
The hours went by, and Ebi continued to closely observe and correct Naruto every time he made a mistake. As time went by, Naruto kept repeating the process, he was channelling chakra faster while less and less escaped…
"(He's better than I'd thought)" Ebi thought to himself, watching Naruto's successes increase. The speed of his progress was astounding… mainly due to the fact he could last this long. "(Most shinobi only have enough chakra to last a couple minutes. Progress is hampered by the fact that they have so little time to train and get it right.)" Ebi himself had the necessary control, but he didn't have the capacity for sustained duration. He always used his in short bursts. "(For him to keep it up this long, it's like he's been sprinting nonstop almost the entire day. Is this his own natural chakra, or is it the result of…?)"
"Hey, if I can pack this into my fist… maybe I can…" Naruto didn't wait for Ebi and tried to do the same thing in his leg. "HAA!" Naruto shouted as he delivered a mighty swing kick.
"NGH!" Ebi gasped and braced himself at the huge blast of air resulting from Naruto's kick. Birds suddenly took flight as the branches violently shook. "S… sonna… (No way…)!"
"Agh, crap!" Naruto yelped as he spun out of control, lost his balance and fell over on the ground. He had put way too much strength into that kick and lost his footing. "Should've strengthened the other leg too, damn it…!" he snapped his finger realizing his mistake
"(This kid…!)" Ebi was shocked. Naruto may have fallen over, but he had succeeded in retaining all the chakra in his leg. The kick was so strong, Ebi suspected it could've taken his head clean off if he had been only a few feet closer. "Naruto-kun! You can stop now!"
"Whew… already?" Naruto got up and dusted himself off. He wasn't even remotely tired.
Ebi looked at Naruto. This kid has used tremendous amounts of chakra, but he wanted to see how far he's gotten. "Your tenketsus have opened up by this point. Now it's back to step one, gather chakra into your hand and punch this log" Ebi tapped the third log, observing Naruto closely and mentally timing him.
"All right!" Naruto nodded. "HMMM…" he held up his right hand, gripping his wrist with the left. He begun to focus hard, remembering the feeling of chakra running through his arms. It gathered into his right, he could feel it flowing through his muscles and around his bones... and not one bit of it had escaped! "RAAAAH!"
CRASH!
Naruto's jaw dropped when the log shattered to pieces, practically exploding under the power of his punch. "whoa…" that was all Naruto could say.
"Incredible…" Ebi said in awe. What Naruto did just now… where most people would only be able to practice a couple minutes a day and would take a minimum of a year to reach that point, Naruto was able to sustain such a heavy, prolonged use of chakra and reach that level in a day! "(Even though it's still rough, and he needs to be able to perform it faster than that… he's grasped the concept on day one!)" Ebi thought to himself.
"Hey Ebi! Look what I can do!" Naruto exclaimed
"Huh?" Ebi turned around, "GAH!" he exclaimed, when he saw the swirling chakra of a perfect rasengan in Naruto hands!
"Heh…! Awesome, huh?! Looks like that chakra control's good for something!" Naruto said happily. He had formed the rasengan himself using both hands. "I didn't even have to make a clone to help me this time! I'll bet this'll save me a bunch on chakra, right? Though it looks like one handed rasengan is still beyond me…"
"H… He knows that jutsu?!" Ebi's jaw dropped. Quickly he turned around, "(T-this is insane! How does he know that technique?! What's more... after gaining some chakra control, he's able to do it so easily?!)" he turned back to Naruto… "AH…!" and gasped at what he saw next
"WOO! No more tadpoles!" Naruto said as he was next to a huge summoned toad the size of an elephant, "Hey, I wonder how many more I can summon!" he quickly bit his thumb while forming the seals, "KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!" he shouted, and an even bigger one appeared right in front of him, "Not bad… but let's see if I can get the boss frog!"
"A… AWAH… GAH…" Ebi's eye was twitching at this point. He was already freaking out with the rasengan, but the sight of the giant frogs made him snap. "QUIT IT NARUTO! YOU'RE GONNA DRIVE ME INSANE!" he screamed, clutching his skull
"Aw, fine…" Naruto sighed, snapping his fingers, all the giant frogs disappear in a large burst of smoke.
"Guh… I don't think I can take anymore…" Ebi sighed and turned around. "(Clones helping him with Rasengans… summoning tadpoles… you mean to tell me he's had access to all these high level secret jutsu all this time, but just lacked the control to get it right?!)"
"Hey Ebi! I still got one more thing to show you!" Naruto called
Ebi took a deep breath, and turned around, "What is it now, Naru-GAH!"
"Tee-hee… aw… I'm so sorry I messed up your head…" said the beautiful, naked female form of Naruto, transformed by the Sexy no Jutsu "But I have a way to make it up to you… and trust me, I know you'll REALLY like it…" Naruto winked seductively
"AH… GWAH…" Ebi's eye twitched. "GLUAAAAARGH!" he screamed, blood violently shot out of his nostrils, sending him flying into the air and hitting the ground. His eye was twitching, and there were the sounds of circuits sparking and cracking, along with smoke coming out of his ear. The severe mental damage in combination with the Sexy no Jutsu was too much for the guy to handle
"Whoa… I think I destroyed his mind." Naruto stared at Ebi as he broke his transformation. He remained silent for a minute. "AWESOME!" he cheered, and ran off "YEAH! TAKE THAT EBI! STILL THINK SEXY NO JUTSU'S A STUPID TECHNIQUE?! NO ONE CAN STAND UP TO IT! WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!" He ran off cackling.
"G… guh…" Ebi twitched, "F… forget the fox…" he groaned, "I think I just created a REAL monster! Ungh…" he blacked out
After a day of training, Naruto's control over his chakra has developed greatly, and the power he had all along has been revealed. Even without the power of the Kyuubi, Naruto's strength is truly amazing, yet he still has to improve. How much can he grow, until the day of the mission begins? Find out next time, on Naruto: Way of the Ninja!
(To Be Continued)