V3 ch10

Target Practice

Ryu put his hand on Daiya's head as he walked with him down the path leading to the training area in the forest. He had set up targets for them to practice with. Daiya was tense as they walked together, but he didn't shove Ryu's hand away. Ryu glanced down at the boy. He was trying to adjust Daiya carefully and gently into being touched. It was very noticeable that Daiya was not accustomed to being around others. His mood was still reserved for the most part. Ryu wanted Daiya to be able to work with him and trust him. It was normal to be hesitant at first, but some time had passed since they had been put on a team together.

Daiya looked up at Ryu shyly. He didn't know why the older boy was attempting to keep trying with him. He kind of understood that he needed to get along with everyone on his team, but Daiya couldn't stand Hire for anything in the world. He was hoping Sasuke would get rid of her, or something. "R-Ryu, why are w-we training out here," he asked. He glanced at the genin before turning his gaze away.

Ryu petted the top of Daiya's head to reassure him that it was alright to ask questions and be curious. He figured somewhere down the line Daiya had been instructed to stay away from others. He was picking up, slowly, on the way Daiya reacted to certain situations and how he approached others. "I've set up a few targets in the woods for us to practice with. It's not just going to be me and you. Takeru is coming and I think he's bringing a few others. Don't be so afraid, Daiya. We have to learn to work with others. When we get older, our teams won't be our teams anymore. Those are basically only to train us. We'll get separate missions when we come of age. Not everyone that works together is going to get along – that's to be expected, but you need to learn to work well with others. You never know who you will work with. Understand?"

Daiya nodded slowly as he forced himself to look up at Ryu. Ryu wasn't looking at him disappointedly. The guy had a lot of patience to be around him. Daiya knew he was difficult. He couldn't handle certain things and he lashed out at whoever was around him. "R-Ryu, why are you always trying to… get me out of my room…?"

Ryu smiled at him. "You don't need to be in your room. The little Lightening Bug needs to come out and explore." He watched Daiya blush at being called that. "The ones, who are trying to get your attention the most, are the ones that want you around. We don't dislike you. We want you to do for yourself. We can only do so much to help you." Ryu watched as Daiya bit his bottom lip. He tilted his head. "I'm not trying to upset you, Daiya – only prepare you."

Daiya turned on his heels faster than Ryu would have thought possible. He grabbed Ryu around the waist and buried his face in the older boy's chest. Daiya swallowed hard. He was expecting Ryu to get upset at him for grabbing him all of a sudden.

Ryu looked down at Daiya concerned. He wrapped his arms around the younger boy. Daiya was two years younger than him – the same age as a little brother. "You don't want to be alone, do you," Ryu said softly. Daiya shook his head. He moved his hand to the back of Daiya's head and pressed him closer. Daiya was trying to reach out to someone – anyone who would give him a chance. Ryu figured he was being targeted because he was older. He closed his eyes for a moment. Daiya clutched to him, afraid Ryu was going to push him off. Ryu wasn't going to do any sort of thing. "You're not alone anymore. You've got me and Takeru. We're not going to push you away, Daiya."

Daiya let go of his teammate. He stood back, his eyes averted. He was slightly embarrassed at how he had reacted. Ryu was only someone on his team, right? Daiya wanted to be friends with Ryu and Takeru. Takeru was a very sincere sort of guy. The day Takeru had said the things he did at Daiya's door, were burned in his mind. The two that were constantly after him to come out, always included him in whatever they were doing – no matter what it was. "Ryu, I… don't want you or… Takeru to l-leave me."

Ryu quirked a brow. "We have no intention on leaving you. You're completely chained to us whether you realize it or not." Daiya looked at him with a soft gaze. "We like you, Lightening Bug," he said giving Daiya the nickname Idai had chosen for him. "Sorry, but it suits you so well."

Daiya picked up a rock. He bounced it in his hand as a warning. "A black eye might fit you just as well, too." Ryu took off running. Daiya went after him. "Come back here! I hate that nickname that guy gave me! Ryu!" Ryu kept running as fast as he could to the training area.

Takeru sat on the ground with one leg out. He flipped a kunai in his hand a few times. Saori was standing next to the tree with her arms crossed and leg on the bark. She was trying to wait patiently for Ryu and Daiya. Takeru knew how she felt. They had been there for an hour waiting on the two. "Do you suppose Ryu didn't have any luck in getting him to come?"

"I don't know. Daiya is who he is. He's probably curious to why we would want him to train with us," Saori said as she waved at Yanagi and Kandai. They were walking together. "Hey, where is everybody else?"

Kandai stopped. "Masaru is coming instead of Idai. Idai had to go with his dad to help Kiba sensei with something. Areku is coming, too. He should be here shortly."

Yanagi crouched in front of Takeru. "Hi, Takeru. Where is Ryu?" She smiled at him.

"I have absolutely no idea. Yanagi, did you bring water for everyone again?" She nodded at him. "That was thoughtful of you. Oh! Did you bring me flavored water," he asked putting his hands together as he smiled. "I kind of like that stuff."

"Of course I did! Three different flavors as always! These are not the same as last time though." Yanagi opened the backpack as she set it down. "They were out of some of the flavors, so I decided to get different ones. I have green tea flavored water, berry flavor, and lemon flavored water. I know some of the combinations are weird. I tried the green tea flavored water and it wasn't so bad. They put too much flavoring in it. It needs more water," she said smiling.

Ryu came darting out of the surrounding area. He skidded on his feet, his arms out to stop himself from falling over with such a sudden stop. He panted. "I'm sorry I'm late, but Daiya is brandishing a weapon. He wishes to hit me with it." The others just stopped and stared at him.

"Hold on. I know you better than you think I do," Saori said as she held up her hand to stop him from saying anything else that was unnecessary. "What kind of weapon does Daiya have?"

Takeru stood up slowly. He was worried now. Was Daiya going to attempt and fry Ryu? What had Ryu done anyway?

"Daiya believes I would look more handsome with a nice

shiny black eye," Ryu said as he crossed his arms. "I gave him the slip for the moment, but he's quick on his feet. I've never seen someone move so fast that is that determined."

"Ryu, what kind of weapon does he have," Kandai asked his eye twitching. Ryu never seemed to get to the point quickly if there was no need to. He watched Ryu snap his fingers together as he just remembered.

"A rock," Ryu said happily. He smiled at the kids in front of him. Yanagi shook her head at him. "What? I don't wish to be hit with a rock. They hurt."

"You should have thought about that before you called me 'lightening bug'," Daiya said angrily as he dropped on top of Ryu from the branch overhead. He had been following Ryu quietly for some time. He wasn't going to get away that easily.

"Oh, cut me some slack, Daiya," Ryu said as he was being held in a sleeper's hold. "I didn't make it up. Idai did. Get him for it."

Saori walked over to Ryu as Daiya attempted to choke the older boy. Saori smiled at Daiya. "Daiya, you're supposed to have keen eyes for a ninja." He looked up at her, his arm slacking some on Ryu's throat. She jerked a thumb behind her. "There are others here who are watching you."

Daiya froze. His gray eyes went to Takeru, Yanagi, and Kandai who were watching him. His face flushed. He normally didn't let anyone see this side of himself. Daiya let Ryu go abruptly and tried to turn around to run, but Saori had him wrapped in her chakra strings. He yelped as he fell over onto his stomach. He looked back at her.

Saori shook her head. "Tsk. Tsk, Daiya. We want you to stay. No one is going to hurt you, or think any less of you if you act, normal." He looked at her surprised. She smiled at him. "It's time to play with the big kids now."

"Aren't I older than you," Daiya said narrowing his eyes at the puppet girl.

"You're not acting like it," Takeru said as he looked at the boy on the ground. "I act more mature than you and I'm only eleven." He watched Daiya look away. "Sorry, but it's the truth."

Daiya got to his feet once Saori let him go. He wanted to leave. He didn't need Takeru talking about how mature he was. Daiya shot him a mean glance and turned around. Ryu was standing in front of him.

Ryu shook his head. "No." Daiya looked up at him with his guard up. "You cannot go, Daiya. You're the reason we came out here. You have to stay. Takeru is not trying to hurt your feelings, even when he's putting his foot in his mouth." Takeru blinked. Ryu put his hand on Daiya's shoulders and turned him around. "They're not going to bite you. Say 'hello'."

Masaru had showed up the time Daiya had risen to his feet. Him and Areku were wondering what was going on. "Oh, I might bite him," he said lowly. He hadn't forgotten about Daiya causing Idai to fall like he did. He wanted Daiya to apologize for it.

Areku yawned some. "I'd rather lay down for a little while, but I'm already here." He leaned against the tree watching the others.

"Areku, why are you so tired," Yanagi asked. She offered everyone water. They were going to be training for a little while. She gave Ryu a lemon flavored water. Her hand half way stopped when she glanced at Daiya. Her heart felt funny. Yanagi smiled at Daiya, but he moved back lowering his head. He was defiantly not accustomed to others. She shook the water bottle at him. He took it quickly then kind of hid behind Ryu, watching her. Yanagi thought he was handsome, despite his rough nature.

"My parents are expecting my mom's relatives to be in. I only got out of helping around the house because Gai sensei was coming over to help my dad move things around. Idai was nice enough to replace me. I owe him one, though," Areku said rubbing his eyes. "I stayed up late last night taking orders from my mom. She's worse than Saori's mom on a rampage."

Saori blinked. She started laughing. "Poor Areku." She went to her friend and hugged him to her, petting his head.

Ryu pushed Daiya towards the others. "Stop being scared of everyone. You have to learn to get along with everyone, regardless." He stopped Daiya in front of Masaru. Ryu noticed earlier that Masaru didn't particularly like Daiya. He had been watching the reactions of the blond haired boy when they trained together. "You two need to get more acquainted."

Masaru stared at Daiya. Daiya was staring back at him. He wondered what was going through the other boy's mind. "I don't work well with others who can't apologize," he said plainly.

Ryu lifted a brow. "Apologize for what?" He watched Daiya tense. Ryu noticed the boy's hair spiking out. Oh, that's not good. He's angry.

"I told you I didn't mean for that to happen," Daiya shouted in defiance at Masaru. "I don't care whose son you are! I don't owe you anything!" Daiya's fist went straight for Masaru's face.

Takeru grabbed Masaru around the waist to move him away from Daiya. Daiya was fuming about what Masaru had said. Ryu had Daiya by the waist, too, and was pinning his arms down. "What is wrong with you two? Why are the both of you mad at the other? I didn't think you two knew each other."

Masaru gritted his teeth. "I don't know him! He caused Idai to fall and hit his head in the training ring! Idai had a concussion and I had to take him to a medic-nin before I went to Kandai and Eiyu's! He never apologized! He doesn't show any concern for anyone but himself!"

Ryu put his hand over Daiya's mouth. The boy was attempting to spit back his own choice of words. It was taking all the strength he had to hold Daiya in place. All they needed right now was a fight. "Hold on, Daiya. What did you see, Masaru?"

"Idai was trying to get his attention and was running backwards to keep up with him as a joke. That's what Idai does when he wants to surprise you. Instead of warning Idai that the training ring was coming up behind him, Daiya stopped dead and skidded on his feet. I saw Idai go over the railing. He slid hard on his back and hit his head so hard he couldn't get up for a moment. Daiya didn't even apologize! All he did was turn around and run off!"

Takeru looked at Daiya. Daiya was hopping around trying to get free of Ryu. Ryu wasn't easing up either. Takeru noticed Daiya's eyes were closed. "You didn't apologize, did you? Masaru is friends with Idai. And… I'm friends with Masaru. The way you're acting, Daiya, is a dead give away that you didn't own up to what you did. Why didn't you apologize to Idai? He could have gotten hurt worse than you think if someone had been in the training ring. But you didn't think of that."

Daiya looked at Takeru. Takeru was mad. His face was barely showing it, but his eyes told him everything. He gasped at the anger everyone was giving him. He felt really out of place. Saori was disappointed in him. Areku was giving him a blank expression. Kandai was surprised. Yanagi was looking at him sadly. Daiya looked up at Ryu. Ryu had the look on his face that showed he didn't understand why he had chosen to run like he did.

Daiya closed his eyes. Ryu took his hand off of his mouth.

"So there is nothing you want to say, is there? I didn't think it would be that difficult for us to train, but we need to settle this," Ryu said. "You need to own up to what you did. It doesn't help matters. Idai is not here though. Masaru, it doesn't do any good to hold a grudge on someone that had nothing to do with you. If Idai has not sought him out, then Idai is past it. You need to get past it, too. However, I want Daiya to learn from his mistakes. " Daiya tensed. "You will remain here and train. That is an order."

"Ryu, you can't force him to stay here. He doesn't want to. It's pretty clear that there is a nasty air of hostility," Yanagi said. She watched Ryu glance at her. His red eyes were watching her.

"He has to. I'm the leader for our team. My job was given to me for all missions and training purposes, Yanagi. Daiya has to do what I say and when I say it. I was hoping it wouldn't have to lead to this, but there is no other way," Ryu said. "He has to learn to stand up for himself when he is being judged unfairly. Daiya also needs to make things right when he has made a mistake. We will still be here and will work together like we are supposed to."

Takeru shook his head. He was kind of mad at Daiya. "Well, it's obvious he's not going to make things right, so me and Masaru will go train together." Takeru tugged Masaru to follow him. "I didn't think he would act like that, either," he said as Daiya caught his glare.

Daiya sulked. He couldn't disobey Ryu like he wanted. If he chose to, he'd just in a huge amount of trouble with Sasuke. Sasuke could surely train him worse than Ryu ever would. His trainer didn't take defiance very well. He stood still, his head lowered. He was ashamed.

Saori tried to lighten the mood by grabbing Kandai and Yanagi. "We can go train together. I bet I can throw more kunai than Kandai can." She picked at the boy with long brown hair.

"No, you can't. I know how to push it with my chakra," Kandai said smiling at her. "Maybe I can teach you guys to do it." He tugged Yanagi along. She was staring at Daiya hard. When the pink haired girl caught up to them, Kandai looked at her. "Why were you staring so hard at him? Ryu knows how to defuse a situation."

"Kind of amazing since Ryu normally causes those types of situations," Saori said shaking her head. "He would have to know how to defuse them. He gets in a lot of trouble with Sasuke sensei. I don't even get in that much trouble at home."

Yanagi blushed. "I think Daiya's handsome," she said smiling as Saori and Kandai just stared at her bluntness. "I can't help it that he and Masaru are having a disagreement, but hopefully, things will get better. "

"Yanagi Lee, you watchful little mouse," Saori said pointing at her friend. "You have feelings for Daiya Eimino." Yanagi's eyes went wide. She looked away quickly. "You do! That's so sweet, Yanagi!"

Kandai smiled embarrassed at the two girls. "Why do you like Daiya? He doesn't let anyone get to know him, Yanagi. He's rather difficult, isn't he?"

Yanagi nodded as she threw a kunai at a target that was hooked low to a tree. She looked around at all of the targets. They were everywhere. Boy, Ryu sure knows how to make us sweat in a short amount of time. "He is, but I don't think he chooses to be that way. We each choose what happens in the futures that we can control. I believe Daiya is afraid and hurt. That's why he lashes out like he does. He's loud and noisy because it makes him seem more threatening than he is."

"I will never understand your reasoning," Saori said as she did a handstand and threw a kunai at a target that was high above them hanging. The kunai sunk into it with a thunk. "I know you generally get along with everyone, but Daiya isn't able to associate very well with others at the moment. I hope you're patient."

Yanagi smiled as she watched Kandai run up the side of a tree and throw two kunai on both of his sides. "Good job, Kandai. Shikamaru sensei will be proud that you're trying more. Yeah, I know. I'm pretty patient. It doesn't matter how long a journey takes, as long as, you enjoy the journey."

Kandai grabbed Yanagi around the waist and lifted her up off of the ground. "Let's see if I can carry more weight when I'm running up the side of the tree." Yanagi didn't seem to like that idea very much. "I promise I won't drop you!" Yanagi freaked out as Kandai started to run up the side of the tree carrying her.

"She's supposed to be on your back like she's injured, Kandai," Saori shouted. Yanagi did not like that idea at all. "If he drops her, she's going to hit him, for sure."

Takeru and Masaru ran at the targets from two different sides. They were attempting to pass each other and flip throwing the kunai. It had been Takeru's new idea for a two-way attack. Just as Masaru came from the other side, he flipped over onto his hand and threw a kunai straight at a dummy to his left. Masaru flipped two times in the air at the same time, barely missing the kunai. He threw a kunai to his left at another dummy behind Takeru. Both of the boys skidded on the dirt. They looked at their

handiwork and smiled at each other.

"What other moves should we come up with," Masaru asked as he plucked the kunai out of the dummy. He liked training with Takeru. It had been a while since the two of them had gotten together. "Hey, Takeru, I met your friend, Onari. She's a pretty girl."

Takeru turned around as he held onto his kunai. "You met Onari? When? She trains with Mr. Hyuga all day while we train on our teams. She's not ready to be put on a team yet."

"Kandai and Eiyu invited me, Areku, Gin, Saori, and Yanagi over to get associated with her. Do you remember the game 'Telephone' that we used to play when we were at the Academy? We played that. It was funny, too! Saori had chosen the sentence 'A pink duck dances in the rain'. The moment she told Kandai, it got screwed up." Takeru laughed. "Onari talks funny. Why is that?"

Takeru walked over to Masaru. "She talks like that because she doesn't understand Japanese yet. Onari is learning language, slowly. My mom tries to teach her to read, but it's a bit of a trail. She doesn't understand that the caricatures are sounds yet."

Masaru looked at Takeru a bit perplexed. "Takeru, I'm sorry I kind of jumped at your friend. He had me madder than I've ever been. I normally don't act like that."

"I know. Daiya is not an easy person to get along with. I don't know what happened. I wasn't there, so I understand that you've taken Idai in as your friend. That's good, I guess. Ryu and I have been trying to work with Daiya. He defies us in the end, though," Takeru said as he sighed.

Masaru smiled at Takeru. "I don't see why. Ryu is generally patient when I see him instructing everyone. And you're not so hard to get along with, Takeru. You're more accepting out of anyone I've ever met." He did a back-flip to throw a kunai at a target that was overhead. It lodged into the wooden target. "I'm getting better. Too bad I'm not as fast I want to be."

"You'll get there. Just keep training. How do you like having Kiba sensei for a trainer?" Takeru wondered what the other trainers were like. His team trained with Shikamaru's team on occasion.

Masaru plopped onto his rear. He sipped some on the water Yanagi had given him. "He's a pretty decent guy. Kiba makes us work hard, but it's worth it in the end. He's really good at figuring out ways to help us with weaknesses he had. Yanagi has been struggling with a move that she's been attempting. It's some kind of punch that she does in the air and comes down onto the ground. It's meant to hit an enemy right at the legs. If she hits hard enough, she can break a bone, but unfortunately, Yanagi can't break a twig yet. Kiba's been helping her break those to insinuate a person's leg."

"That would be the best point of direction," Takeru said. "I don't think I would want Yanagi punching at my legs for real in a training session. She'll probably get stronger like her mom and have speed like her dad. She trains enough, I know that."

"She does. Every day after training with us, she trains with her dad. Her dad is enough to drive me crazy sometimes. Lee sensei is awfully happy and ecstatic. I don't mind him though. I'd rather have a positive trainer than one who didn't care," Takeru said. Masaru laughed at him for that.

Ryu stood stiffly with his arms crossed. He was forcing Daiya to participate. He didn't like to approach things this way, but Daiya was leaving him no other choice. Areku was participating only because Ryu had asked him to. He was afraid his temper was going to show with the boy from the lightening country. Areku ran up the side of a tree and pushed his legs off of it to throw a kunai from both of his sides at two targets. He flipped back onto his hands and skidded onto the ground. "Good job. Now it's your turn," he said his eyes serious and demanding as he looked at Daiya.

Daiya knew he was in trouble with Ryu. He didn't like to be, first off. Ryu had a different side to him than being the normal patient, laid-back guy that Daiya knew him for. When the others had walked off, Ryu had given him a piece of his mind. It was embarrassing to be chewed out in front of someone he didn't know. Areku hadn't watched though. He had turned his head and plugged his fingers in his ears. Daiya didn't use kunai like the rest of the kids on the teams. He couldn't. The kunai were metal. He had to use his metal rods to issue forth his lightening jutsu.

Ryu waited difficultly as he watched Daiya open the casing on his back. He wanted the training to be over for the day. He was sick to his teeth of arguing with everyone around him. He thought he was going to get into it with Takeru about Daiya, but Takeru had shuffled off with Masaru –which was good. Ryu would have chewed him out.

Areku put his kunai in the holster by his leg. He was wearing out. They had been training for a little while, but his lack of sleep was getting to him. He leaned against the tree as he watched Daiya. "Why doesn't he use kunai and shuriken like everybody else? Those are proper ninja tools."

"He's a lightening user. You might want to cover your ears, Areku. It's going to get very noisy," Ryu said as he reached up to plug his own.

Daiya started to direct his chakra, increasing it. His body started to flow with the electrical currents, emitting them outside of his arms and legs. The ground around him began to pop violently with the electrical surges. He had to control it, or risk going down in the end. It was rather difficult for him to learn to harness his abilities by himself.

Sasuke had been trying to get him to learn to control it as much as he could. The bad thing about him being a lightening user was his kekkegenkai was part of it. The electrical currents flowed around every vital organ in his body mixed with his chakra. If he got out of control he could hurt others around him, as well as, end his own life.

Daiya gritted his teeth as he felt his heart start to pump harder. His breathing was quickening with it. The electrical flow he emitted was a heavy power that he dealt with. It put his body under a lot of stress whenever he attempted to use it. He was still in training. Daiya took off running. The electrical currents he emitted, trailed behind his form popping the ground as he ran. He jumped into the air, aiming his right hook at a target in front of him. Daiya air punched. The lightening was sent off of his arm and at the target. The target was hit so hard, it cracked.

Ryu watched as Daiya took his anger out on the targets. It was better for it to be that way. He didn't want the boy to gain hatred at anyone on the teams. Daiya was in the air now, turned upside down. He watched as the foreign boy threw a rod at a target that was far away. The lightening Daiya emitted was attracted to the rod and flowed down the rod. The target smoked and became black from coming in contact with Daiya's lightening jutsu.

Areku winced at the loud popping noises that were emitting from Daiya's jutsu attacks. He flinched a few times as the targets became black and sizzled under the force of the electrical surges. That guy is stronger than anyone ever thought. I don't think it would be wise for anyone to get on his nerves. He could fry them alive with one hit of those attacks of his. I wonder how much voltage he's able to harness.

Ryu watched as Daiya landed back on his feet. The boy was breathing hard. It had taken a lot out of him to be able to focus his chakra like he had. "That's enough, Daiya. I don't want you to overstress yourself." Daiya didn't look at him. He simply walked away. Ryu sighed. I expect him to be mad at us. He doesn't understand why we're making him do what is necessary.

Areku watched Daiya walk off. "I take it he holds a grudge," he said as he looked at Ryu. Ryu supposed he was. "It can't be helped. He'll get over it, in time. I'm going to go ahead and go home now. I'm too tired to try anything else today. Thanks for the invite, Ryu."

"You're welcome to train with us again, Areku. I just hope the situation is a little better. I didn't know about Masaru and Daiya having a quarrel, or I wouldn't have tried to team them together," Ryu said disappointedly. "People need to honestly keep in touch with me about those sorts of things," he said as he scratched his head. It had been a fairly decent day. They had all made progress in their training and that was what he wanted. Now whether or not Daiya understood the purpose of everyone getting together was a different matter.

Daiya gritted his teeth. He had to leave the others behind because he could feel his body surging more than normal. The electrical flows inside of his body erupted a little. He winced in pain. It hurt for him not to be able to control it physically. The lightening popped a few times around him. His body was majorily stressed out. Daiya panted once it had ended. He didn't want to harm anyone around him.

The surges happened again, sooner than he had expected. Daiya's eyes went wide as the currents flowed down his arms and legs. His arms and legs tensed as he tried to remain still. The lightening popped onto the ground again, but ended. It felt like his body was giving him a warning. Was he fixing to lose control of it? If he did, he hoped no one was around when it happened.

Daiya Eimino slumped to the ground. He hoped for everyone's sake, that if his kekkegenkai claimed him, that no one would witness it.