Another chapter down for the count. I am hoping to get more and more done here soon but I'm not going to get my hopes up. So far I have gotten a positive response on my story although I wish it was more detailed. Maybe I will go back and add a little here and there later on. Anyways, enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Chapter V
"1…2…3…" Lilith counted low and slow as the vein on the side of her head throbbed visibly. Seriously it had been over six months of this constant training, Kakashi making her look like a fool and Guy's insistent nagging about physical conditioning. Honestly, did these two have a life?
"Now, how do you suppose you ended up like this?" Kakashi mused as he hung upside down from the tree face to face with Lilith. She opened her eyes slowly and suppressed the urge to let him know her true feeling on her current situation.
With cold silver eyes, she stared at the man who had once again proven that her training was far from over. However, she did technically ask for this and she wouldn't expect anything less. Being pinned to a tree by multiple kunai was not how she wanted to start this particular days training but here she was.
"4…5…6…" she continued purposely ignoring his question. Her eyes closed as she fought to contain the rage that was building up inside of her and for once she was very proud of herself. She did not lash out like she had so many times before which only resulted in her being tossed and pinned to the ground for running her loud mouth.
"Hmm?" Kakashi looked at her with general curiosity. Usually the woman was ready to tear his head off at this point and considering that he had successfully pinned her to a tree with little effort would usually break the dam for the insults that rolled so easily off her tongue.
With a deep, calming breath Lilith opened her eyes and looked at Kakashi. "I let my guard down, again." She replied evenly.
"Yes," he urged her to continue with a nod of his head.
"I let my anger get to me and lost focus, I got sloppy." She continued.
"And?"
"I suck." She said flatly.
Kakashi chuckled as he reached for one of the many kunai that had pierced her clothing and imbedded itself into the rough bark of the tree. He pulled it out and spun it around on his index finger with a wry smile. His eye closed in that all too familiar way as his smile grew wider.
"You are improving." His tone not of mockery but of complete truth. Lilith looked at him with widened eyes and shook her head slowly.
"I'm not sure what your idea of improvement is but this," she nodded her head down, "I don't see this as improvement."
"You were able to dodge and deflect the ones that were aimed for lethal points on the body. The ones holding you to the tree now were merely there as a distraction so the real threat could reach you. Though you were pinned to the tree, you were able to keep your life and pinpoint the ones that were meant to do actual harm." He said holding up a finger and poking her in the forehead.
Lilith gave him a stunned look before her face turned completely red, "You were actually trying to kill me?!" she shrieked.
"Well that calm moment didn't last long." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Oh, when I get off this tree I am going to shove my foot so far up your-" Lilith was flailing and fighting against the hold the kunai had on her clothing. She kicked her feet out dislodging the ones holding her legs and aimed a kick for Kakashi's head. Of course she missed but that didn't stop her. She placed her now free legs on the tree and with as much force as she could muster she pushed herself free, ripping the clothing in some places but she didn't care.
Training with Guy for a month had helped her tremendously, and what Kakashi didn't know was that she also trained with him on their off days. With every ounce of energy she could spare she was training. At some point she had become very serious about all the training, not knowing exactly when but she was going full force. Within the first few weeks of training she had tapped into her chakra on accident and sent a chakra laced kick towards Guy. He was fully expecting it but not the extra force that was laced into it which sent him flying passed a very surprised Kakashi and into a nearby tree, er, trees. Lilith was mortified that she had done that to him but all was soon forgotten when Guy emerged from the rubble and shouted "NOW THAT'S MORE LIKE IT!" A gleam of triumph in his eyes as he raced back to Lilith, a large smile spread across his face. Honestly the man was not human.
Even more so to the additional training, she was visiting the library and reading up on chakra control every chance she got. She even went to visit Akemi at the hospital to further her knowledge on controlling it. She had learned that the shinobi that specialized in healing had excellent chakra control due to the very delicate tasks they performed on the human body. One slip up of too little or not enough chakra placed in an injury could be disastrous, even a minor one. It was very tedious work and Akemi was the perfect person to help Lilith with her problem.
With the constant focus and training she was receiving from different people, her skills were increasing but were far from where she wanted it. She was able to use less focus when sending her chakra to her limbs for different purposes. For example, if she wanted a good burst of speed she would place a little more into her feet and there, she was able to move at such a speed that the first time she had tried it there was a not so pleasant accident. After that she worked on her stopping ability, she was sure that the vendor who's stand she destroyed would have been thoroughly grateful had she practiced that in the first place. Of course the same went for when she focused her chakra into her hands, it was fascinating to her and she couldn't help the rush of adrenaline she would get the more she learned.
The fatigue was creeping up on her but she was determined to land at least one kick or hit on Kakashi. She pushed chakra into her feet and darted forward at an almost unseen pace. Kakashi would be lying had he said that her speed didn't catch him slightly off guard. She was indeed improving and quite rapidly though there were still plenty of kinks to workout.
Distance was quickly diminishing as Lilith ran towards Kakashi and once in range she jumped. Her left leg swinging out and making contact with Kakashi's forearm. She quickly dropped her leg and swung her right fist but was once again met with a block. With one swift motion she pulled the lone kunai she had from her pouch and metal hit metal. The sound echoing across the field. Kakashi had pulled his just as fast and had easily blocked her from slicing his mask. The weapons ground together with the force applied by both and Lilith was faltering.
Before she could stop it her weapon was flying away from her and something hard connected with the back of her legs. She fell to the ground and felt the familiar pressure on her back and her arms were pulled behind her as the point of a kunai found her throat.
"What was the first thing I taught you?" he question lazily. "Never attack first."
Lilith chuckled below him and his eye widened when the familiar feeling of cold steel flowed through his mask covered neck. He looked down as the Lilith below him vanished in a puff of smoke.
"Kage Bunshin?" Kakashi spoke with mild shock through his casual tone. "Now where did you learn that one?"
"Just a little something Guy taught me," she said with a sly smile. "He thought it would be entertaining to use it on you."
"Hmm…seems I will have to keep a closer eye on your training with him." He mused with a nod.
Lilith chuckled and leaned closer, her lips just grazing Kakashi's covered ear. Her hot breath seeping through the fabric and sending a ghost of a chill over his body. With a low satisfied voice she spoke, "You let your guard down, oh great Kakashi-sensei." The amusement in her voice was thick and he could practically hear the smile in her voice.
She leaned away from him with a satisfied smirk that all but disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. The cold metal now pressing against her throat had her cursing aloud.
"Shit." She murmured. Her eyes closing and a long sigh escaping her lips. Even still she did not drop her weapon even after the clone puffed away as did hers earlier.
"So did you." He whispered with a deep voice into her ear as he leaned close pressing the sharp kunai firmly to her neck.
Lilith could feel his chest pressed against her back and she fought to keep herself from trying to elbow him in the stomach. With a weapon held at her throat it would not be a smart move and would do absolutely no damage to the man. With a defeated sigh, she let her arm drop and relaxed her tense body.
"Hmm, I think that is enough for today." He said in a light hearted tone pulling the weapon from her skin. Lilith took a step away and turned to face him.
"Damn," she said releasing a breath, "I thought I had you that time." She closed her eyes and shook her head, a small smile appearing on her face. A hard expression soon took over and she looked up to meet Kakashi's calm gaze.
"I would be lying if I said that didn't surprise me a bit." He confessed. For a moment Lilith's eyes widened before returning to normal. "What struck me as strange was your chakra." He stated placing a hand on his chin as he studied her.
"What about it?" What about her chakra had struck him as strange? Was it the fact that she actually managed to create a clone without him knowing? Or did he know and was just playing dumb?
"Even now," he stepped forward dropping his hand and looking hard at Lilith. She unconsciously took a small step back. "I can barely sense it. Even as you stand a few feet from me and yes, your level has decreased from the use but, I should be able to sense it better."
"Oh?" Lilith's eyes lit up, "I forgot, I have also been kind of training with Akemi. She has been helping with my chakra control."
Kakashi nodded, "That would explain why your control has improved. She has always been excellent with chakra control. What else have you been doing?"
"Well," she started as she counted everything off on her fingers. "Training with you obviously, training with Guy who constantly nags about proper focus when we are sparing, um, Akemi of course…oh! And I have been going to the library."
"The library?" his interest was piqued and he was amazed at how much effort she, an outsider, was putting to learning the arts.
"Yeah. There's a lot of information on proper techniques and honing your skills to better suit your specific style." She looked at the ground and bit her lip. "I was reading up on healing and what all it entails."
"Is that something that interests you?" he asked.
"No, not really." She looked at Kakashi with a confused expression. He nodded his head and she continued. "I was kind of part of that when I was in my world. I…I would love to do it here as well. The techniques are similar but the approach is different of course. But, I don't want to just sit behind the white walls of a hospital."
"There are plenty of medics that take to the field and experience the dangers of a mission." He answered her silent question.
"You probably think I am insane huh?" she chuckled.
"Hmm?"
Lilith rolled her eyes but smiled, "Me, an outsider, wanting to put my life on the line for a village that I hold no ties to and my desire to run head first towards a threat. I'm not really the self-sacrifice type, I just want to feel that rush of adrenaline, not knowing if I am going to return or not."
Kakashi blinked slowly, "That is a little insane."
Lilith punched his arm playfully, "Hey, I am like the definition of 'what the hell'. I mean I came from another dimension and all. It could have been worse, I could have been one of those with a fear of everything living or nonliving."
Kakashi hummed his agreement, "Well, we will talk more about it after your examination next month."
Lilith stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Kakashi like he had just grown another head. Her what? Examination?
"I'm sorry," she finally spoke running to his side and placing a hand on his arm to stop him. "I must have misunderstood you. I thought you said I have an examination or something next month." She chuckled nervously.
"No, you heard right." He answered.
"Wh-what?! When were you planning on telling me this? An examination for what?" she stared at him in panic.
"Huh? I didn't tell you about it?" he asked true confusion showing on his face.
"NO!" she yelled throwing her hands up.
"Hmm," he thought for a minute. "Oh, right. That was what I was going to tell you that night." He mumbled.
"What night?" she said with a heavy breath.
"Well," he scratched the back of his neck chuckling, "I was going to tell you about it the night I walked in on you, um, in the bathroom. Must have slipped my mind again."
At the mention of said night, which she had tried to forget, her face turned scarlet. She knew exactly what night he was referring to and she looked at him angrily.
"That was months ago!" she yelled.
"Well, you know now so, I suggest you prepare." He waved before walking away leaving her standing alone with all the intention of a sane person to just murder him right there.
….
Lilith stormed into her home kicking her shoes off and sending them flying across the room. Her anger was obvious but she was just as much a nervous wreck. Not only had he failed to tell her about the upcoming examination earlier but what it was for. He had explained it briefly and what little information he did give, or rather could give made Lilith pale. Apparently with the weekly reports that Kakashi was giving to the Hokage, the old man had deemed it appropriate to test her skill level in the coming months. Had she known she would have been training much harder to improve her skills. The so called simple exam, as Kakashi had put it, was meant to set her in a particular skill level.
"Damn you Kakashi." She whispered as she entered her bedroom. The lights flickered on when she hit the switch and she turned to her bed to find that she had company. A shrill scream would have left her throat had a hand not clapped over her mouth before.
"Hey Lilith!" the cheery voice caused Lilith's anger to rise again. A dark venomous glare was sent at the intruder and they giggled. "I see you are happy to see me."
When her mouth was uncovered Lilith gritted her teeth, "Madison! What are you doing here?" she asked in a harsh whisper.
Madison shrugged her shoulders, "I missed you and I wanted to check up on you. I know, I know, I said it was going to be awhile before we saw each other again but I just couldn't stay away. So how is training going?"
Lilith held the urge to strangle the girl in with all her being and let out a loud weary sigh. "Training is, well training. I have an examination next month."
"Oooh! How exciting!" Madison cooed clapping her hands together. "How far along with your training are you?"
Lilith shrugged her shoulders, "Kakashi-sensei says that I am improving."
"Sensei huh?" a sly smirk came across Madison's face and Lilith rolled her eyes. "I'm just playing but seriously, lucky girl you are. You got the oh so sexy Kakashi to be your sensei!"
"Yeah." Lilith's tone had turned emotionless. This was not a good time to throw another wrench into things as the examination was a big enough one. "Look, as nice as it is to see you, I really need to get some rest so I can continue with my training tomorrow. I still have a ways to go and I don't want to look completely helpless during this examination."
Madison pouted, "I heard that sarcasm." She murmured and let out a low sigh. "Well, do you still have the shard I left for you?"
"Um, yeah. Why?" Lilith walked over to the nightstand and retrieved said item. "What am I supposed to do with this?"
"Here let me." Madison reached out and Lilith placed the glowing shard in her hand. The moment it left Lilith's touch it stopped glowing and Madison smiled a smile Lilith had never seen before. It was a smile of pure joy and knowing, like she had just uncovered the biggest secret known to mankind. "This shard is special in its own way but even more so to the holder. Belonging to a relic long since forgotten and entrusted to a clan none remembers existed."
"The Hokage mentioned something about a clan that he thought had perished. He said it after I had explained how I had gotten here." Lilith spoke slowly.
"Well, he would be right in a sense. The clan however, is very much still in existence. Though cut thin it still remains as does the precious relic. This shard," Madison held it between her thumb and index finger. "Can help you in more ways than one Lilith."
"What can it do?" Lilith's curiosity was written all over her face now and she was enthralled with the tale.
"To the one lucky enough to be chosen it can supply power. It can amplify what the holder already has and help stabilize the holder's chakra network for maximum use." Madison explained. "In other words it can help you become a master of chakra control but you need to keep training as well. It is only as good as you are it won't make a total weakling strong. So keep up with your training and the shard will increase that."
"So, how does it work? I mean how, how do I, um use it?" Lilith looked at the shard with new found attention. Who would have thought that something that looked so insignificant could do so much? "And, is there a limit?"
"I will show you. And yes there is a limit." Madison looked at Lilith and waited for her to make eye contact. "The limit is your life."
"Meaning?" her heart stopped for a split second.
"If you die of course." The chipper tone returned to Madison's voice and it almost sounded like she was enjoying this. Lilith narrowed her eyes at the woman and focused back on the shard again. "Take off your shirt."
"What?!" Lilith jumped back and stared at Madison in horror.
"Oh stop being so melodramatic." Madison rolled her eyes. "If I wanted to do something more to you I would have done it when you were passed out in-between dimension."
"Madison!" Lilith stared at the girl with wide eyes.
Madison laughed and reached out to place a hand on Lilith's shoulder, "Look, point is I didn't right?" Lilith hesitated but nodded slowly. "I need you to take off your shirt so I can place the shard."
A look of warning passed over Lilith's' face basically saying 'any funny business and I will kill you'. She pulled the bottom of the shirt up and over her head slowly and looked back at Madison.
"Wow." Madison stared at Lilith's half naked form with astonishment. "I don't remember you looking like this before." She gestured over Lilith's body and on instinct Lilith wrapped her arms around her chest. The black bra stood out against her pale skin and her arms were causing a certain feature to stand out a bit more than necessary.
"Stop staring damnit!" she finally yelled at Madison who was gawking at Lilith's chest. "Seriously what the hell is wrong with you?"
Madison shook her head and laughed, "Hey I would be lying if I said you weren't hot." She walked close to Lilith and placed the shard on her chest directly over her heart. To Lilith's complete surprise the shard began to fuse itself with her and a slight burning sensation was felt where it was. The sensation became warm and to her disgust she could feel it moving deeper into her chest.
Her eyes met Madison's, a moment later Lilith let out a shriek of pain. It was sharp and the pain pulsed in her chest. She dropped to her knees on the floor holding her chest and closed her eyes tight. The pain was intense and she bit her lip to muffle the sounds of pain that were desperately trying to escape.
A hand was placed on her shoulder a second later, "It is almost done, just another second or two okay?" Madison's voice was warm, strange coming from the normally bubbly woman. But just like she said the pain subsided a second later and then there was nothing, like it had never happened.
Lilith could feel a warm sensation flow throughout her body and a trail of goosebumps appeared on her arms with the sensation. It tingled and continued to travel all over her body, radiating from her chest.
"The shard has fused itself with your chakra network, and your heart." Madison explained as she helped Lilith stand. "The moment your heart stops beating that will be when the shard is rendered useless."
"The warm sensation?" Lilith raised her hands up to eye level, turning them as she studied their every detail. Nothing looked any different so how did she know it was working?
"It's the shard; it is maintaining your chakra and slowly infusing its power into it. It will take some time to get use to the change." Madison explained. "Be careful at how much chakra you exert, your control seems pretty good so keep focus on it. It will take less effort than before to control it but that doesn't mean you are allowed to lose focus. Understand?"
Lilith looked at Madison and nodded her head.
"Good." Madison chirped. "Now I have to get going before someone notices me. I will try to drop by again in the near future and check up on your progress." With a wave and smile Madison was darting out the window before Lilith had a chance to say anything.
"Thanks." Lilith whispered in the empty space. A knock on the front door drew her attention and she walked out of the bedroom, glancing to the window one more time before walking down the little hallway. She opened the door slowly after peaking through the peep hole.
"Kakashi?" she questioned.
"Yo." He waved. "Was just in the neighborhood and thought you might like to join me for a drink with some friends."
"Um, well isn't that against the rules? You're technically my sensei." She pointed out with a raised eyebrow. Not that she wouldn't enjoy a night out especially after just seeing Madison and what had happened.
"True. You are also an adult, right?" he pointed out his own analysis. "Hey, just thought you could use it. You have been training really hard."
"And the fact that you left out that I have an examination in a month has nothing to do with this?" she teased placing a hand on her hip.
He chuckled, "Well…it's up to you."
Lilith thought about it for a minute glancing back towards the hallway and then back to Kakashi. "Give me a minute to get ready." There was still some light out so she wasn't too terribly worried about leaving before dark. Especially if she was going to be around Kakashi and others. Though the only other person she had met was Guy she would hope the others were decent enough. She didn't really remember many of them from the animated show but the ones she could kind of remember she liked. Hopefully she got the chance to meet some of them tonight.
A quick shower was in order to wash off the dirt and grime from training. Lilith chose to let her hair down; the weight of it in the pony tail was beginning to give her a headache. She chose to wear a dark blue tank top that ended just below her chest exposing her toned stomach. All that training was paying off in more ways than one that was for sure. She grabbed a black sleeveless half jacket of a sort and pulled on a pair of black cargo pants. The outfit was dark but it contrasted well with her light skin and light purple hair.
She pulled her shoes on and turned to Kakashi, "Ready." She let out a long breath.
The two walked in silence to a little place that she had noticed on her trips into town but the lights were always off. Made sense now since it seemed to be a small bar and most of those were not open during the daytime hours. They walked in and the smell of cigarettes hit Lilith's nose immediately. She places a hand over her nose and looked at Kakashi who didn't seem to be affected by the thick cloud.
"This way." Kakashi said grabbing her wrist and guiding them through the maze of the small bar. They went to a table set in the back away from the thick cloud of putrid smoke and sat down. There were several others sitting at the table and Lilith took notice of the ones she recognized. Guy was among them along with a man that she recognized as Asuma, a thick beard covering much of his lower jaw and a lit cigarette hanging from his lips.
Huh, I remember more than I thought. She laughed to herself. She also noticed a woman sitting beside Asuma with dark messy hair and deep red eyes. Kurenai was it? she asked herself. The woman was beautiful and her eyes held so much intelligence. She looks so happy sitting next to Asuma. Lilith's heart dropped, she knew what was going to happen in the future and she bit her lip.
"Hey you okay?" Lilith shook her head and looked at Kakashi. He was giving her a strange look and she realized with a blush that she must have had some kind of look on her face. She smiled and waved her hands nervously.
"Yeah I'm fine." She reassured.
Kakashi looked at her a moment longer before turning his attention back to those at the table. "This is Sarutobi Asuma and Yuhi Kurenai. Of course you already know Guy." He gestured to each person who in return nodded. A soft smile played on Kurenai's face and Asuma dipped his head in affirmation.
"And this is-" Kakashi began.
"The lovely Lilith-chan!" Guy bellowed from across the table sending Lilith a wink.
Lilith laughed softly and waved, "Hi."
"Nice to meet you, uh, Lilith was it?" Kurenai began. Lilith nodded her head and Kurenai smiled again, "We have certainly heard a lot about you. You have been doing exceptionally well with your training from what I was told."
"Really?" Lilith looked at her with mild shock. She then chanced a glance towards Kakashi who was leaning against the back of the chair looking somewhat bored but interested at the same time.
"Yep. Heard you are not from here and have just recently decided to become a shinobi, is that correct?" Asuma chimed in with his deeper voice.
"Um, yeah." Lilith looked between the two and smiled nervously. They weren't intimidating, well not at the present moment but she was hoping they would steer clear of any personal questions. She knew they were exceptionally good at reading body language and the last thing she needed was hostility.
Asuma chuckled, "Don't worry we won't try to kill you. No reason to and I don't feel like ruining this rare peaceful moment." He leaned back and placed an arm on the back of Kurenai's chair.
Lilith let out a slow breath and nodded with a smile, "Good to know."
Kakashi looked around the room before turning his attention back to the small group at the table. "This all that is coming tonight?"
"Pretty much." Asuma spoke up as he lit his cigarette receiving a small glare from Kurenai. "Most are off on missions right now and won't be back till the end of the week or later. Afraid it's just us for now." Asuma gave a small smirk and relaxed further into his chair.
The five decided to simply enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. It was a rarity at times and to pass up a chance to delve into it was just ignorant. Time passed by with simple conversation about any and every topic that could be thought of but nothing going over to anything of the negative variety. It was enjoyable, to spend some time with some that share the same passion and getting to know those who also put their lives on the line for others.
….
"Thanks again. I needed time to clear my head." Lilith said as she took off her shoes and placed them by the front door of her flat. They had arrived there after spending a few hours with the others and seeing them off.
"No need, " Kakashi said chuckling. "It was the least I could do after earlier."
"Huh?" Lilith had almost forgotten about what had happened. "Oh, yeah about that." Her eyes narrowed and she walked towards Kakashi. She poked him hard in his chest, "Look I know you are my sensei and all but would it kill you to make sure that I am up to date on important events such as an examination in a month?"
"It might." He joked.
"Just remember you have to deal with me at training for the next month." She waved as she walked towards her bedroom leaving Kakashi standing in the middle of the front room. "Jackass." Was the last thing he heard before her bedroom door close. He chuckled lowly.
The next month was no doubt going to be hell.
Review please. I see I have got quite a bit of views and some reviews to go along with those would be awesome. Negative or positive it's cool with me at least you're being honest.