I do not own Naruto, If I did some abilities would have remained unique.
Talk now – normal talk
What now – normal thoughts
Speak – biju, higher being talk
Listen – biju, higher being thoughts
Chapter 3 : Dream's End
The next few months seemed to fly for Naruto, his life followed a simple schedule that integrated his training into it, when he woke up he would do a few stretching exercises followed by washing and reading something, after that he would have breakfast with Yukimura and Sayaka were Yukimura would show him how to cook various kinds of food.
Then he would practice how to properly read and write and would exercise it every day, Sayaka had been the one to teach him these things as she claimed Yukimura's hand writing was so terrible, that it all but resembled chicken scratches and that Yukimura could probably communicate with chickens using his handwriting.
He would later play various games to help develop his mind with both Yukimura and Sayaka, he hadn't manage to win a single match but had been making steps towards not losing too badly, both Yukimura and Sayaka had encouraged him to try different strategies and analyze their matches for future reference, he had noticed that Yukimura favored more long term thinking and avoided battles unless necessary, he would set his pieces to strike at the right moment, it made every move he made seem random at first but later they would came together in a domino effect that would utterly crush him.
Sayaka appeared to be more straightforward in her strategy and would often use a vicious attack, it took him a while to realize that while he was busy keeping his eyes on the assault, Sayaka would move her pieces from behind and deliver a blow he hadn't seen coming. When he asked about this Sayaka explained that while she preferred to execute a well planned attack, she would also have other plans running in the back, the main assault while it did have a chance to defeat the enemy and it did have support for it, wasn't the only one, often it was used as a distraction to move the other pieces and prepare to strike from another side when least expected, if the first attacked succeeded then she wouldn't need to use the other plans, if it didn't or it seemed to drag on to long she would enact the other plans. This was meant to teach him that there were more ways to win a battle and often you needed to look at things from a different angle to truly see things for what they were.
Around noon they would have lunch and Yukimura would again show him how to cook different kinds of dishes, Yukimura would often keep it simple for him, so he could have an easier time to make them himself later on, desert would often consist of different fresh fruits. After lunch he would have a period of rest, both Yukimura and Sayaka had told him that he needed to rest as he was still growing and until he was older he should sleep a few hours in the afternoon.
When he awoke he would practice meditating, this to his joy, this was done in various parts of the house, in the flower garden, the forest, by the lake and even a brief return to the mountain top. Once done he would practice lying and trying to deceive them, the two then would tell him about the small mistakes he made and how to correct them, they would often show him examples amongst the two of them, on how to read body language and how to fake it as well, the fact that he was still a small child would give him an advantage as he could wear a mask of innocence to help him, small children would often lie to cover their mistakes hoping not to get caught but it was easy to tell when they were doing so, no one would ever expect to be outwitted by a small child, people's pride wouldn't allow them to accept such a possibility, often blinding them.
Towards the evening, Yukimura would teach him about gardening, both for flowers and food, later Yukimura would take him to the forest and teach him about the various fruits and plants that could be found there. Sayaka would then teach him about hunting, how to spot animal tracks, how to set traps and about pathfinding, unaware to him he was slowly developing a keen eye for details.
Later they would have dinner, again he had never dreamt of some of the foods Yukimura could make, he had recently eaten something called rendang, that to him was the most delicious, juicy, tender and tasty meat that he had ever eaten. Yukimura would ask him if he could identify the specific taste of each dish he would eat, this one had tasted like an explosion of flavors that he couldn't even begin to identify. Yukimura had later told him that it had fine pieces of beef cooked in a mixture of coconut milk, lemongrass, chilies, garlic, shallots, turmeric leaves and a few more ingredients for hours on end, but the result was just incredible and well worth it to him.
After dinner he would rest and read a bit more, the activities that followed were some of the most fun for him, Sayaka and Yukimura would take him nature walking through some of the lands around the house, other times they would play card games, do jigsaw puzzles, play board games, something he didn't even know existed, tea tasting, and stargazing, when Yukimura would tell him about the stars, and he would imagine what existed out amongst them.
Finally before he went to sleep either or Yukimura or Sayaka would read him a bedtime story, and to his annoyance, they would stop reading right when it was more exciting and ask him to think on how things would continue, the next night they would continue with the story after he told them what he thought would happen.
During all of the activities he would alternate between using only his right of left hand, whether eating, writing or playing games, the goal was to become ambidextrous, and this way he was slowly making progress. Only a few times had Naruto been left alone to use what he had learned, he didn't know that everything would change drastically soon enough.
When Naruto woke up he could feel that something was different, he didn't know what it was but he felt it in his gut, he briefly smelled something different in the house, it was faint, some sort of baked sweet? Naruto noticed that he had been left a small breakfast on his desk, two sandwiches, a glass of juice and an orange, he shrugged, it had happened before, when both Yukimura and Sayaka had left him alone because they needed to deal with something and to help him learn to live by himself for his eventual return to Konoha.
After eating he went through his usual morning routine and after finishing it left for the kitchen to see if they had left him any lunch or if had to make one himself, to his surprise the kitchen door was locked, something that brought back painful memories of his life at the orphanage, however another door was unlocked in the distance one that hadn't been before. Naruto took in a deep breath and realised that the new smell was coming from that room, he made his way there carefully unsure of what to expect, when he entered the room he got a shock at what he saw.
"Surprise!" Both Yukimura and Sayaka shouted, both of the two had small colorful cone-shaped paper hats on their heads, light green with white dots for Yukimura and yellow with white for Sayaka. A giant banner with the words Happy Birthday Naruto was hanged in the room, various colored balloons were hanged through out it as well. Naruto froze looking onward incredulously.
Sayaka slowly approached him. "Are you alright Naruto-kun?"
"I don't know what this is." He motioned to the birthday sign and decorations.
"It's a birthday party Naruto-kun." Sayaka told him with a smile on her face.
Naruto scratched his head and looked down at the floor. "I've only seen a few celebrating it at the orphanage, but I never took part in them."
Sayaka patted him on the head. "Naruto do you know how old you are?"
"Four." He looked at her puzzled.
"And how do you know that?" Sayaka asked.
"One of the caretakers would just tell me that another year passed and that I'm older now."
"I see" she said through gritted teeth, "Well Naruto-kun a birthday is a day that comes once a year when a person celebrates the anniversary of their birth, sometimes a person's birthday is celebrated by a party where a specially made cake is presented."
Yukimura made hand signs towards a cake on the table.
"But I get older even if I don't have a party right?" he asked with a puzzled look on his face.
"Well yes."
"So why is it important?" the puzzled look never left his face.
Sayaka looked troubled unsure of how to answer. "Well you just celebrate the anniversary of your birth, it means that you are happy to be alive, friends and acquaintances usually give you gifts. For us, we usually celebrated it with a few friends, we don't expect any presents, myself and Yukimura just enjoyed going out and having a nice meal together or with friends, nothing really different than what we did at other times during the year."
"Well some of those parties ended up being a bit more wild." Yukimura pointed out.
Naruto still looked puzzled. "Why should I get gifts?"
"That is just the birthday tradition. People give gifts because they are happy that a person is born. It is a way of showing appreciation for someone."
Naruto scratched his chin in a thoughtful manner. "So if someone doesn't give me a gift they don't appreciation me?"
Sayaka waved her hands at him. "No, sometimes a person can't afford to get you a gift, but it doesn't mean that they don't appreciation or care about you."
"So why give gifts then?"
Yukimura could all but hear Sayaka frustration. Kids are curious at that age, heck he usually asks questions about everything this shouldn't be too surprising.
Sayaka cleared her throat. "We give gifts to people to show that we care and appreciate them, often it's more about how expensive that item is, that somehow. However you don't need to give people expensive gifts rather give them meaningful ones. It can be something hand made, a great home-cooked meal, a meal at a nice restaurant, walking somewhere without a plan or giving someone your full attention and time. It would be much better to give someone an experience rather than another material item. If we give people experiences, it will lead to stronger relationships and a more meaningful life. Do you understand Naruto-kun?"
Naruto nodded. "I think so, but when should I give them?"
"The best time to give a gift is anytime; give it for absolutely no reason at all. The worst time to give a gift is on someone's birthday or on some holiday, there is an expectation to give gifts at these times, and it's a hard expectation to live up to it. The best real reason to give a gift is to say, "I care about you" or "I love you" or "You are important to me" or "Thank you for being in my life." Our actions need to be in agreement with our feelings, and giving a gift today shows that every day is a special occasion, it shows that the people in your life are just as important to you today as they are on any holiday. We wanted for you to have at least one birthday party to show that we care."
"Thank you." A teary eyed Naruto told them looking down to conceal his tears.
"There's no need for that Naruto-kun." Sayaka knelt down and hugged him.
Yukimura chucked a bit. "Heck Naruto when you get older and have a girlfriend you may get a very special surprise for your birthday, that's not material and is a mind blowing experience" Yukimura's smirked "for good and bad."
"What do you mean?" Naruto asked while he wiped his tears.
"Just some grown up thoughts that someone should have kept to himself." Sayaka placed her hands on Naruto's ears. "I remember you rather enjoyed a certain birthday."
Yukimura looked at her with a deadpan expression. "It ended with hip dislocation and back problems for quite a while."
"And yet you had a shit eating grin on your face for months on end."
Yukimura began to giggle. "Heh, heh, yeah." His face took a dreamy look. "That was great, injuries be damned."
Sayaka took her hands off Naruto's ears and took his hand. "How about we eat some cake Naruto-kun?"
"Yes!" Naruto followed Sayaka who aided him on getting on a chair near the table, the cake as Naruto could see was round with white whip cream and used chocolate whip cream to write a small dedication to him writing happy birthday Naruto, the sides of the cake had a floral arrangement and on top between the letters it was studded with five lit candles, each of a different color. "So what do I do now?"
"Well first." Sayaka made a hand sign and Naruto could hear music playing, Sayaka went next to Yukimura and both began to sing happy birthday to you for several minutes. After they finished Sayaka went next to Naruto and took a seat near him. "Usually the person being honored is given the first piece of cake. But first the celebrated person will usually make a silent wish and attempt to blow out the candles in one breath; if successful, a tradition holds that the wish will be granted but the wish must be kept secret or it won't come true."
Naruto breathed in then closing his eyes and making his wish and then blew as hard as he could, when he opened his eyes he saw that he was able to blow out all the candles.
"Congratulations!" They both told him with smiles on their faces.
"Now onto the eating!" Yukimura cut the cake and gave the first slice to Naruto, then one for Sayaka and finally for himself.
Naruto used his spoon and stopped for a moment reminding himself to use manners before he used his spoon to eat his slice of cake, as soon as his tongue touched the cake his toungue he was assaulted with new tastes, the cake had an elastic texture and was soaked with flavored syrup or some sort of liqueur, had butter cream frosting, and he could taste a fruit mixed in as well, apricot!, he realized, he liked the fruit and was sad when he found out that it wasn't native to the Elemental Nations and that once he returned to Konoha he wouldn't be able to eat it anymore. "Can I have another slice?"
Sayaka gave him a small look. "How do you say it?"
"Can I please have another slice of cake?"
Sayaka nodded and continued in a harsher tone of voice. "Good, yes you may, but just one more, you can't be too full for what we have planned for later."
Naruto pouted before asking. "Will it be like sleading?"
Sayaka had a thoughtful look on her face for a moment. "It will definitely be something new Naruto-kun."
"I can't wait!" Naruto stated in an enthusiastic tone of voice. Sayaka gently ruffled his hair and he began to eat with new gusto to finish quickly.
"Naruto-kun don't rush and chew your food properly." Sayaka reprimanded him.
"Yes."
Neither of the two noticed the slight look of sadness that crossed Yukimura's face. The sun was shining and its rays entered through the kitchen windows catching both Sayaka and Naruto, it seemed to accentuate her pale skin and give it a porcelain look, her scarlet hair seemed to be on fire, both her and Naruto were eating and smiling. I can almost see this happening back home, perhaps, perhaps if I had remained in my world after she returned we could have had something like this, a few little knuckleheads of our own and a house. I hope she had something like this with someone. A smile began to spread on Yukimura's face at that thought.
"Are you alright?" Sayaka asked giving him a concerned look.
"Yes, I am, don't worry." He responded in a normal tone, his face now with a more serene expression.
"But you haven't eaten your cake!" Naruto told him pointing at his plate.
Yukimura laughed and scratched the back of his head. "My mistake, I just got lost in my own thoughts, now it's time to finish this though so we can head out to our destination."
"Are you sure you're fine?" Naruto asked.
"My, my, doesn't someone have a keen eye?" he laughed gently. "Yes don't worry about it, finish up eating then go and put on a pair of short pants, you woun't need any shoes, oh and get another pair of short pants and a T-shirt for back up."
Naruto gave him a puzzled look. "Alright." As soon as Naruto finished he took his plate to the sink inteding on washing it until Sayaka stopped him.
"Don't worry about that today Naruto-kun, go get your cloths."
"Yes."
"So what was that about?" She asked looking at Yukimura.
"Nothing, don't worry about it, I just remembered that some things are worth sacrificing for."
Sayaka raised an eyebrow. "Oh and what brought this on, do tell."
"It's ... oh look at the time Naruto's ready to go." In an instant, Yukimura dissapeared from the kitchen leaving Sayaka alone in it.
"Cute, but I know where you live." A moment later Sayaka disapeared from the kitchen as well.
As soon as Naruto got to his room he changed his pants for a pair of orange short pants, took out a dark green colored pair and a grey T-shirt, he waited for a moment before he realised that neither had told him wheter to return to the kitchen or not, he shrugged and made his way towards the door.
When Naruto opened the door light seemed to have assaulted him, before his eyes became accustomed to the light, he blinked and looked on to the sight in front of him. The door now lead to a beach, a bit in the distance he could see both Yukimura and Sayaka under neath a beach umbrella.
Naruto took a deep breath and stepped through the door, his feet soon touched the sand and he could feel it under his bare feet, he wiggled his fingers a bit in the sand feeling it's texture, at first it felt like sugar to him, he touched it with his fingers it felt soft and cool, the sun ray's softly caressed his cheeks, he could hear the waves crashing onto the shore and could smell the salt from the ocean.
He walked over to where Yukimura and Sayaka were waiting for him under a beach umbrealla. When he got closer he saw that Sayaka was wearing a two piece black bikini and Yakamura wore a pair of dark blue short pants with white lines making cubes on them and a part of their sides white as well. A picnic basket and a few towels were under the umbrella as well.
"What do you think Naruto?" Yukimura asked both hands where on his own sides.
"Is this really the beach?" Naruto asked looking at the ocean waves.
"It's as real as it can be here." Yukimura responded looking at the ocean.
"It looks awesome!" Naruto yelled pumping his fist in the air.
"Heh" Yukimura ruffled his hair. "That it does."
Naruto placed his clothes next to the towels and then ran towards the water but as soon as he placed a foot in the water he stopped when he saw something coming out of the water. The small creature was grey, had several small legs, it was covered with a thick exoskeleton and had a single pair of claws, one larger than the other. Naruto brought a finger towards it and the creature snapped its large claw at him. In the blink of an eye Naruto ran away from the water and hid behind Sayaka's legs, both Sayaka and Yukimura laughed, Naruto poked his head out from behind them and asked. "What is that thing?"
"That is a crab, the good kind, not like some of the other kind you can get. Ugh" Yukimura felt the air leaving his lungs as Sayaka elbowed him in the stomach.
"There are bad crabs?" Naruto asked curiously.
"He" Sayaka pointed at Yukimura "he will explain it later when you are older Naruto-kun."
"Yeah" Yukimura struggled for breath, "there are, don't worry we'll talk about it when I give you the talk, about the birds and the bees and the blow up dolls. Ughh" Yukimura felt the air leaving his lungs again and fell down as Sayaka elbowed him in the stomach once more.
"Let's go into the water Naruto-kun, Sayaka began with a warm smile on her face that usually spelt trouble for someone."Yukimura want's to think a bit about talking of certain inappropriate subjects. Don't you?"
Yukimura managed a small "Yeah." between breaths.
Naruto never imagined the water ocean could feel as warm and amazing as it did, he spent the next few hours playing in the water, Sayaka and Yukimura taught him how to swim, Sayaka would go out in the distance and ask him to swim towards her while Yukimura stayed behind him to help him in case he had trouble. After that the three of them built sand castles together and when Yukimura fell asleep he and Sayaka buried him in the sand.
Something that Naruto would never forget was when Sayaka took him surfing, words could not describe the euphoria that surfing provided to him, it made him feel alive, and yet words still couldn't describe the full absolutely magical and romantic feeling of riding the wave, it was a breathless experience, going up and down on the surface of the water and feelinglike he was right in the middle of nature, feeling the air, hearing the break of the wave as water sprayed around him, just an unlimited power under his feet and to be in harmony with the ocean; it was the most beautiful thing he ever did, he doubted we would ever forget his first wave ride.
He had tried to learn to surf by himself but hadn't managed to succeed at it and after a few failed attempts Yukimura took him out of the water and taught him how to fly a kite so he could rest and get his mind of his failed attempts. Naruto and Yukimura sitting near the water watching Sayaka ride a wave and waving them. "She's really good at it."
"Yes, she is, I think it's something about basic sense of balance and the core strength of someone familiar with planks." Yukimura had a smile on his face.
Naruto nodded. "It's still awesome."
"Yep" Yukimura ruffled Naruto's hair. "Listen I know I told you this before but it's worth repeating," Naruto looked at him, "whatever you do, enjoy it to the fullest, that's the secret of life."
"Hai!"
Yukimura smiled and ruffled Naruto's hair again. "I'll go prepare the food, just relax alright."
Naruto nodded and stood listening to the gentle sound of the waves, he found them soothing, he didn't know when he fell asleep, Sayaka would later wake him up when it was time to eat. That night after he and Sayaka went for a trip around the beach when they returned Yukimura had prepared a bonfire and the two took turns telling stories, Yukimura told him old tales about the stars while showing him the constellations on the night sky. Naruto was sitting near Yukimura with a blanket wrapped around him.
"the Sun recalls Earth and her clever and foolish men and kind and magical women, and then it returns to us. Or perhaps it is only — as some say — that it remembers the taste of the bait."
"Well, that was an interesting story." Sayaka commented as she through another log into the fire.
"I try." Both noticed how Naruto had already fallen asleep. "You know it would have been a more interesting day if we showed him some of the things that lurked in the ocean."
"Oh?" Sayaka asked curiously. "You still think it would have been a good idea to go with that?"
Yukimura nodded. "Well yeah, I can still picture it, in the distance whales jumping out of the ocean, then dolphins a bit closer to the shore, then both jumping out and sharks jumping in between them, add some crabs with monocles, top hats and canes dancing near the shore." Yukimura's face took a dreamy look. "It would have been legendary."
Sayaka simply looked at him with a what did you smoke expression on her face, she gently rubbed her forehead. "And you think that wouldn't have terrified him?"
Yukimura scoffed. "No of course not if I wanted to terrify him I would have shown him a sharktopus, those things are messed up."
Sayaka sighed. "Perhaps another time you could do so, and give him nightmare fuel for years to come. Now though we should take him back home."
"Yeah." Yukimura gently took Naruto into his arms and lifted him up, they both stopped after walking a few feet from the fire, their eyes took on a small barely discernable yellow glow that faded quickly. "It appears some of our projects are showing results."
Sayaka nodded. "Indeed, will you devote your full attention to it?"
"Yes." Yukimura handed Naruto to Sayaka and disapeared the next instant.
Sayaka walked a few more steps before a door appeared, she opened it and stepped through arriving in Naruto's room, where she placed him on the bed and tucked him in. When she was about to leave she heard Naruto whisper in a sleepy tone of voice. "I wish I never leave this place."
Sayka made her way to Naruot and kissed him on the forehead. I'm sorry Naruto-kun but some things must end. When Sayaka stepped out of the room in the blue dimmed hallway she saw Yukimura waiting for her with a strange look on his face. "Did you learn anything interesting?"
Yukimura nodded and raised his hands towards her. "It was just a brief glimpse but, have a look."
Sayaka touched his arms her eyes flashed yellow for a moment, her face took a worried look "I see, this is most concerning."
"True, one thing appears certain" his voice took a serious tone "war is coming to the Elemental Nations. We will need to increase his training, I know we planned on starting on the physical a bit later but with this new development it's best we start now."
Sayaka's face now looked made of steel. "I take it we will not interfere too much with the war then?"
"No" Yukimura shook his head "with this we have a baseline to work with, and war presents its own" Yukimura looked for the appropriate words "interesting oppourtunities."
Sayaka scowled "I remember a time when such a notion would have horrified you."
Yukimura furrowed his eyebrows. "And I remember a time when I didn't kill heroes to have their nations join me."
"You know what I meant." Sayaka replied.
"I know it's..." Yukimura's shoulders sagged.
Sayaka began in a conciliatory tone and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Your power is not what it once was, and you are afraid that if you interfere too much things will spiral out of control."
Yukimura didn't say anything.
"You know you can lean on me." Sayaka told him in a warm tone looking him in the eye.
Yukimura smiled. "Isn't that like leaning on myself?"
"Semantics." Sayaka waved one of her hands in front of him.
Yukimura laughed a bit. "I needed that, thank you."
Sayaka gave a warm smile. "Any time, now I take it we will greatly accelerate things on the other fronts as well."
"Yes, we should discuss that and go over his training one more time."
"Agreed."
Both disappeared in from the hallway.
The next day at breakfast Naruto noticed how things seemed tense for some reason, he hoped it was just a test for him to pick up on things and not something serious. "Ano can I ask something?"
"Of course, Naruto-kun."
"Have I been here a long time? I can't don't even know the month I came here."
Yukimura had a small thoughtful look on his face as if calculating something. "Not long, your birthday was near when you came here. Roughly two weeks will have passed outside when you leave this place."
"Do I have to leave this place?" Naruto asked sadly.
"Yes, we said it before but staying too long in a god's realm can be harmful to you if you're still alive."
"So if I'm not alive I could stay?" he asked in a slightly optimistic tone.
"Don't you dare think of such a thing!" Sayaka yelled and slammed her hands on the table.
"Naruto even if you die, your soul would go to a different place, I don't have an afterlife nor do I plan on creating one. With that seal on you there are chances that you would end up in a afterlife of the shinigami's choosing or if you're lucky you'd go to the great unknown."
"It's just... this place is much better that the place where I came from."
Sayaka shook Naruto once before she hugged him tightly and looked him directly in the eyes. "Listen to me it doesn't matter how shit things may look you just have to keep on living and keep on fighting eventually things will change! Promise me you woun't think about such things in the future!"
"I promise." Naruto said through tears. Sayaka hugged him once more and the two stayed that way for several minutes, Naruto felt Yukimura's hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently. After a few minutes the two broke the hug but Sayaka kept him close to her and began to wipe his tears, afterwards he asked. "What's the great unknown?"
Yukimura who had taken a seat at the table answered. "That's what the original afterlife is called and both humans and gods ended up there and still do if they don't belong to one of the religions whos god is still alive and that have their own afterlifes."
"What's it like?" he asked rubbing his eyes.
Yukimura shrugged his shoulder. "No one knows, people haven't returned from there, we call it the great unknown because of that."
"Oh."
"Now onto less depressing things, we've decided to teach a few more things, some are the cool kind you wanted."
"Really?" He asked in a hopeful tone.
"Yes" Yukimura nodded "now go change into some more flexible clothes and then head over to the dojo, it's the eighth door on your left after you leave your room."
"Allright!" Naruto quickly left the room.
The room was quiet for a few moments before Yukimura spoke. "That was more depressing than I expected."
"He has a better life here what did you expect?" Sayaka countered.
Yukimura sighed. "Yes I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised" his face took a dark look "I remember the Tower and having similar thoughts at one point."
Sayaka scowled "Somethings are better left buried in the past, now we should go as well."
The wooden dojo Naruto found himself in he had a number of unusual design features, including glass-doored walls on two sides that opened onto gardens, deep skylights and a specially sprung wooden floor, the lustrous wood used in the dojo was fragrant and darkly. Naruto sat cross-legged on the floor with Sayaka and Yukimura in front of him wearing white karate gi with black belts.
"Now Naruto what we will begin to teach you here are both martial arts and sword fighting"
"Can I use two swords?" Naruto asked hurriedly.
Both Yukimura and Sayaka raised an eyebrow. Yukimura asked. "That seems oddly specific, any reason?"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head and shrugged his shoulders. "Um no, it would just be cool, and useful, wouldn't two swords be better than one?"
Sayaka rubbed her chin. "Actually that can work, we already planned to teach you how to handle two swords as well, but if you're sure want to learn to use two swords full time you must know that it will be a long and hard road."
"I'm sure of it." Naruto told them in a firm tone.
Sayaka nodded and had a proud smile on her face. "Well then a small history lesson then", she cleared her throat "since bladed weapons were invented, people have tried to use more than just one in combat. Simple math made this innovation for them. If one sword was good, two must be better."
Naruto nodded and smiled. "Unfortunately, this is not always the case." Naruto's face dropped. "Very often, a sword is not easy to use in tandem with another. Many require more concentration, dexterity, or strength to use two swords." Naruto's face fell some more.
"Worse yet, the fighting forms often do not support the use of ambidextrous fighting; the idea has been scoffed at as inefficient or wasteful considering the small percentage of the population capable of using both hands equally."
Naruto's face fell even more, before he saw Sayaka wink at him and smile. "So rose Jar'Kai, to fill the needs of those people who wished to use two swords at the same time effectively." Naruto slowly began to smile as well and Sayaka continued. "Jar'Kai translates into 'Two Swords', but the more recent iterations of the form make's use of more than just swords. Specialists and masters of the form will often make strides to modify the techniques to accommodate other tools of violence. Known Jar'Kai techniques and maneuvers include the "Rising Whirlwind", which consisted of a duelist swinging his blades about his body, creating a "whirlwind" of deadly attacks" Naruto had an awed look on his face "and the "Twin Strike", in which both blades were swung in an arc towards the opponent in a deadly power attack." Now Naruto was just giddy.
"A third trait worthy of note is that Jar'Kai practitioners were often overly reliant on their weapons and bladework, leaving their abilities in other areas undeveloped." His smile dropped a bit "However, this weakness was hardly absolute, as some duelists possessed the physical strength to block power attacks with only one arm." And then the smile returned in full force. "Despite the advantages offered, Jar'Kai is not without its drawbacks. Naruto furrowed his eyebrows, he had an idea of what could follow "Firstly, as both hands held individual swords, two-handed blows were impossible, and the duelist was unable to put all his or her weight behind blocks, weakening the defensive capabilities. Thusly, an enemy with a single hilt could simply assault a Jar'Kai practitioner's defense with brute force, battering away until the dual-blade duelist's guard gave way."
Naruto continued to furrow his eyebrows in thoughtful manner before he spoke. "So it has its ups and downs, just like everything else and will require serious work, maybe a bit more than a regular one handed sword. But I've already started training to become ambidextrous so I've already take the first step on the path."
Sayaka nodded gave him a proud smile. "Yes, exactly, however we do have a small something that will aid you."
Naruto perked up and smiled. "Is it a sword? Or two? Are they cool?"
Sayaka laughed a bit and waved a hand, it's good that he still has this innocence "no, nothing like that" Naruto pouted "in many ways it's even better."
"Really what is it?"
"It's a fighting style"
Naruto thought about her words for a moment "It is tied to fighting with two swords"
Sayaka gave him another small smile and head node "The Niman Form, also known as The Moderation Form, and the diplomat's form. This fighting style is a hybrid martial art created by effectively combining elements of different sword forms into a single, generalized form. Niman balances out between the various specializations of other forms, covering many of the basic moves, but focusing on overall moderation. This resulted in a fighting style that lacks a significant advantage" Naruto furrowed his eyebrows at hearing this relaxed when he heard the next part, deciding to listen until she finished her explanation "but also lacking any serious drawbacks, and thereby not leaving adherents as exposed as some of the more aggressive or specialized forms. Overall, Niman has a fairly relaxed focus on blade work, designed as a simple, easily mastered fighting form for fighters who preferred to devote most of their time to study and diplomacy. Despite this, it can be absolutely deadly in the hands of a skilled practitioner, also as Niman is developed from two pre-existing martial arts fighting forms that both emphasized the use of dual-blades, it provided a firm foundation for duelists looking to study into such practices. Ultimately, Niman's success in combat is dependent on a practitioner's intuition and creativity in combat, rather than the rote responses common to other forms."
Naruto thought about she said for a moment longer before he burst out "It sounds great! You want me to learn this form because it could also allow me to learn other things as well seeing as how it's not as intensive."
Both Sayaka and Yukimura looked surprised but pleased and Yukimura answered him. "That….is correct, oh my, hasn't someone has gotten a bit wiser." Naruto rubbed the back of his head and smiled sheepishly.
Sayaka continued. "We will also be adding Sokan to the mix for maximum efficiency."
"What is that?" Naruto asked looking at her.
Sayaka began in a teacher like manner. "Sokan is a principle of sword fighting, rather than a true form, the teaching revolves around using the environment itself to gain a tactical advantage in combat. Sokan involves maneuvering so that swift strokes of the sword can be aimed towards the opponent's vital areas, using quick tumbles, jumps, and movements. Combatants make use of large amounts of terrain, trying to maneuver their opponents into vulnerable areas during the course of battles that involve Sokan techniques. This technique allows for great speed and mobility and leaves no openings in one's defense."
"It sounds awesome!"
"Indeed, tiying those two together will greatly aid you with your sword skill."
Yukimura stepped took a step forward. "Now for the close unarmed martial arts, you'll have two primary styles mixed with a few others."
"Two? Really?"
"Yes, now the first is the K'tara style, this is basically the maximization of damage to the opponent while minimizing the amount of noise created by an attack. Thus, much of the K'tara martial art is focused on short, quick motions, perfect for shinobi who are supposed to fight in the shadows. People trained in the use of the K'tara arts can disarm an opponent and render them unconscious in a few swift motions, thereby attracting as little attention as possible. The most skilled of practitioners are taught an advanced form known as the Dha'Tracyn whereby they could maximize their firing efficiency up to a staggering 120%, but considering that there are no weapons like that here we will change a few things to try and make it compatible with kunais and shurikens. The mastery of K'tara and the sub-form Dha'Tracyn can make an individual into a highly efficient assassin. Augmented with chakra there should be almost no limits to what can be achieved."
Naruto had a dreamy look on his face. "It sounds so cool."
"That it does, now the next one has a longer description so bare with it" Yukimura cleared his throat "The second one is the Echani martial art, an unarmed combat discipline developed by the Echani. The moves of the art are fluent and the practitioner focuses on using the motion and kinetic energy of the attacker and redirecting the force of the attack rather than opposing it head-on. This requires very little physical strength as the practitioner guides the attacker's momentum using entering and turning movements. The techniques of Echani Martial Art are completed with various throws or joint locks. Echani Martial Art can be categorized under the general umbrella of grappling arts."
"Tradition dictated that combatants usually make no use of armor, weapons or other techniques, as the art is focused on mastering the body itself as a weapon. Echani culture held the belief that combat was the only means to truly know someone, a pure form of expression where words were swept away, allowing for action to reveal the true nature of the people involved. Their duels were rituals, and it was important to follow etiquette, for that would allow them to read each others' stance and fight accordingly. In this manner, battle was seen as a form of communication similar to art. Exposing emotions in combat, however, made the duel a personal thing; engaging in repeated sessions was a courtship of sorts, in which one's favors were won through superior fighting prowess. Although it was not forbidden to teach Echani Martial Art to non-Echani it was almost unheard of and very frowned upon."
"It sounds interesting, I think" Naruto struggled to find his words "you want me to learn it because I'm still young and can't do more physical exercises yet."
Both Yukimura and Sayaka gave him proud smiles. "Exactly, teaching you this style is ideal as you are young and can not yet learn the more physically demanding styles, add the fact that while here your body isn't getting any activity it makes this style all the more useful."
Seeing the look on Naruto's face Yukimura asked. Is there something else you want to say?
"It's about the other parts related to the style, I'm guessing you want me to know the style's history and not just the fighting part." Naruto finished with a thoughtful look on his face.
Sayaka was the one who answered "That is correct and holds true for other styles as well, it's important to understand where your style came from, the foundation of it, the philosophy and concept of why it was developed in the first place."
Naruto gave her an understanding nod. "What were they like?" he asked curiously.
Yukimura gave him a bitter smile. "They were a great people when I left, much of their culture and history is tied to their martial arts, their mentality can be seen in their martial arts as well. Some of their values reminded me of a clan from this world." He cleared his throat. Best to move for now.
"The last two styles are something we want to mix into your first two styles, the first being the Verdanaian strikes that are by and large reactionary, they involve intercepting an opponent's strikes, the practitioner will draw the opponent in, and let the kinetic energy from their opponent's attacks 'flow through' to their own fist, effectively turning their own attack against them. As a defensive art, this art is taught to mobilize from any stance, standing or sitting."
"So I don't need to be very strong to use this one either and it can be worked into almost everything?"
"Exactly Naruto-kun, now other one is called Teräs Käsi, meaning 'Steel Hand', it is an unarmed martial art that was invented ages ago, the art is brutal, effective, and adaptive, the art is brutally efficient, teaching its students how to step inside attacks to avoid damage while delivering viciously effective strikes themselves. The flexibility and strength required of Teräs Käsi permits attacks that would otherwise be unreasonable, an example is the famed Death Weave, a series of blows that stuns, then paralyzes, incapacitates, and finally ends the target's life. Open hand, closed fist, elbow smashes, knees, kicks, head butts and body checks, Teräs Käsi uses all of the body as a weapon, even if in unorthodox ways." Naruto giggled like a school girl at hearing that. "The art relies heavily on strikes to intercept attacking weapon hands, often with open hand to help deflect weaponry from their opponent's target. Now while this martial art requires more strength than the other styles but it does have its advantages. Lastly during your training you will also learn how to fight while blind."
"They all sound awesome. But I thought that I would learn something with more punches and kicks and breaking through stuff."
Sayaka placed a finger on one of her cheeks "Well Broken Gate is an ancient martial art, the style focuses on strong upper-body strikes powered by both muscle and body movement, as well as powerful knee strikes and stomping kicks. Defense relies primarily on avoiding or withstanding attacks. Broken Gate is characterized by hard upper-body strikes and stomping kicks. The attacks are designed to penetrate an opponent's guard through the sheer level of damage inflicted; the art's name was taken from a story of the first Master, Jae Dal, who reputedly smashed open a meter-thick wooden gate with one blow of his fist. Because of the nature of the strikes, Broken Gate practitioners tend to avoid secondary blocks, and train themselves to dodge or simply absorb attacks. Lower-level students tend to dodge more, while more experienced fighters could shrug off most strikes. Masters of Broken Gate were legendary for their resilience, able to brush away even the fiercest of unarmed blows."
Naruto was all but drooling. "Yeah something like that, it sounds awesome."
"Well it does indeed sound great, it does have its drawbacks, it's mostly a double edged sword even more so with your condition."
"My condition?" Naruto asked puzzled.
Yukimura answered him. "My chakra is slowly being purified by the seal holding my chakra and then added to you."
"Can we stop the seal from doing that?" Naruto asked in a serious tone.
"Why would you ever want that?" Yukimura questioned curiously.
"Because I'm stealing from you, I don't want that." Naruto responded by crossing his arms.
Yukimura gave a smile and then ruffled his hair getting a pout from Naruto. "While I appreciate the feeling Naruto, I have plenty of chakra to spare so don't worry about it."
"Really?" he asked looking up at him.
"Really, beside's it's doing more good with you now," seeing his puzzled look he continued. "It will slowly but steadily increase your chakra reserves, naturally adding to it; this will in turn give you more chakra, stamina, a longer life span and increased healing."
"That sounds good, is anyone with a lot of chakra like that."
"Not to your level no."
"So why then and what's wrong with it?"
"The key here is potency" Yukimura began rising a finger "my chakra is a lot more potent, the seal purifies it of the harmful parts but it doesn't change the potency. Now because the seal does this and adds the purified chakra to your reserves making it a part of you, some of your natural attributes will be increased, which is a good thing for the most part. Now this would make you an excellent front line fighter and well geared towards a martial art like Broken Gate. The problem is that you can still draw on my chakra at an unconciuous level, and while you are a lot more resistant to it then others my chakra will still do damage to your body and then heal it afterwards at a fast tempo, while this sounds great, the damage is never actually fully healed, at some level your body will still be injured and stay that way permanently, it will slowly break you down from the inside out. While small uses of it are possible and the purified chakra helps to make you more resistant to the other kind, it's still very dangerous to use.
"And with a fighting style that requires you to take damage rather than avoid it..." Yukimura let Naruto finish his train of thought.
"I could end up relying on it and slowly killing myself." Naruto spoke wide eyed.
"Yes. I don't know if you will ever be able to fully control nine tails of my chakra, we will train you in using it for emergency situations, but with my eventual departure."
Naruto smacked one of his fists into his own hand, like he had just had an epiphany. "You want me to be ready for that time! So after you leave I will still be able to fight without relying on it, Broken Gate could have me growing to rely on your chakra rather than my own!"
"Precissly, there's also the fact that a style like that will put a strain on your body and at old age the effects of using it will be even worse, we want you to be prepared for when we will eventually leave Naruto-kun."
"You'll still leave one day." He told them in a sad tone.
"All things must eventually come to an end Naruto, just like life begins so must it end, its what makes life so great, because it is finite, our departure is not for years but it will happen" Yukimura got down on one knee and placed a hand on Naruto's head "what we can do is cherish the time we have together and remember it fondly. We will always live on here" Yukimura placed his hand over Naruto's heart "and be by your side."
A few minutes after he calmed down Naruto asked. "What about you?"
"What about me?"
"Will you ever die, if you're a god?" Naruto asked looking at Yukimura.
Yukimura sighed. "I hope so, trust me when I say it that living so long as I have is a curse far worse than you can ever imagine."
"Is it that bad?"
"Yes, far worse, I have filled cemeteries with the friends I have buried, I lived and buried a friend's seventeenth descendent, and yet I kept living, even with everything changing around me I kept on living and stayed constant. Or at least I diluted myself into thinking such a thing, I changed slowly and become more jagged losing parts of myself, my feelings towards humans after my ascension to godhood reflected this in a perfect way."
"What was it?"
"That they were insects."
"What?" Naruto asked puzzled.
Yukimura looked at the floor. "When you notice an insect on the ground, do you stop to consider it a fool? The life of an insect is so beneath you that it would be a waste of your time to even consider judging it. I was so damn high that looking down at the humans seemed all but beneath my attention. The only reason I sent small parts of myself to other worlds was for them to learn of how the gods acted so I could know who to kill and who to let live. Often those parts of me ended up learning about the world's culture, history, their fighting styles, some ended up as important figures, all that once they returned to me I didn't bother with, it seemed trivial. One thing that I am grateful for is that with my fall I have regained some of my original personality, I am more grounded now than before."
"What will you do after you leave?"
Yukimura smiled."Visit a few old places that were dear to my heart and see a few new ones. "
"You won't try to find out what happened to you?" Naruto asked his eyebrows furrowed.
Yukimura waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "Eventually I will attempt to do so, but if that something defeated me at my old level of power going after it right away would be foolhardy. I hope to discover if whatever weakened me has hostile intentions or not, and I will make my judgement then."
"So you woun't fight other gods anymore like you did before?"
Yukimura was silent for a few moments and Naruto looked towards Sayaka who had troubled look on her face. "I don't know if I did the right thing the first time around when I went after some of the gods, a few were evil but I don't know if killing them like I did was the right thing. For a few their defeat were inevitable I just took their lives sooner than they would have lost them, perhaps it would have been better to allow the people of those worlds to sort things out. It's just something else that I see in a different light enough of this talk, let's talk a bit more of your training then start things."
"Hai."
"We'll be training you a bit in how speak to a person, this combined with your keen eye and ability to read body language will allow you to be more persuasive, better haggle with merchants and give you a small edge with diplomacy. Next is how to sneak, here is where you will learn how to have a muffled movement, pickpockets and lock pick."
Sayaka began. "We did want to teach you on how to gain political pull, lead people and govern estates, but that will have to wait a bit."
Yukimura placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "One thing we want you to think about during the last few months of your stay here Naruto is that of a goal or a purpose for yourself."
Naruto began in an unsteady tone. "I don't really know what I want."
"It's alright, just think about it."
Naruto nodded. "Alright, after I leave will I be able to return to this place?"
"Yes, only in your sleep at first, and only once in a while, not every night, with your permission I can create a connection to allow us to walk after you return, it woun't be all time, but it would allow us to talk in some cases."
Naruto's face seemed to brighten. "That would be great, why didn't you do it earlier?"
"I wanted your permission."
"Please do it, you have my permission." Naruto told him in a fierce tone of voice.
Yukimura nodded. "Very well thank you, now the other good news is that we will create a portal to my god realm in Konoha for you to come here with your physical body as well, though with similar conditions of not staying too long."
"Really?" Naruto began in a hopeful tone. "That would be awesome"
"Yeah it will be pretty kick ass, it will also help with your training a lot"
"Now the last thing is something we will work on full time"
"What?" Naruto asked curiously.
"A plan to help you live while in Konoha without us."
Naruto scowled."With all those people who don't like me."
"Yes, being able to deceive them will be critical, some may very well try to manipulate you."
"Like the Hokage?" What little he cared about the man had vanished in the past months.
Both Yukimura and Sayaka help back a scowl though their faces took a disgusted look. "Yes, you can't attract too much attention and you will need to be able to look at people words and actions and see if you can find any underline reasons that they may have. You will have to use some of the skills and things we have already taught you, the foods I showed you how to cook, gathering fruits and hunting. We will teach a few more skills to help you survive, I know this is a lot for you."
"I can do it." He told them in a fierce voice.
Yukimura smiled. "I know you can," He patted Naruto on the head "I'm proud of you."
"Really?" he asked in a hopeful tone of voice.
"Damn straight. We both are Naruto-kun." Sayaka gave him a proud smile before she ruffled his hair with both hands causing Naruto to pout.
"Now, let's begin."
The next months Naruto would later call a pleasant hell, his training greatly increased in all fields, from making food to hunting, skinning an animal and making use of its fur, to his martial arts and sword training. Sayaka had taken great care to help him when he first killed an animal and later skinned it, it wasn't something he liked doing but Sayaka had been there to explain why it need to be done and a shoulder for him to cry on, she hugged him and told him it was alright, the part with killing animals, even if they weren't real had taken him longer to comes to terms with.
Yukimura and Sayaka wanted him to learn skills that would help him survive and live a good life without them, and wanted him to learn as many skills as he could. He enjoyed it when Yukimura taught him how to make certain drinks and sweets with rather simple things that he could use and later eat or sell. There was a special exercise he did with Yukimura that he especially enjoyed.
Naruto looked down bellow at Yukimura, the tree branch he was currently on was sturdy enough to hold him, he held on tightly to the tree and bit his lip.
Yukimura had both his hands outstretched and smiled at him. "Its alright don't worry I'll catch you."
He moved to a side looking at the tree branches. "Umm….." he could feel his heart beating in his chest "I don't think."
"I'm right here."
"I don't think I want to; let's do something else instead okay?"
A serious looked crossed Yukimura's face and his tone became firm. "Look at me Naruto."
He looked towards him while holding onto the tree.
Yukimura still had a smile on his face. "It's ok to be afraid, it's ok to fail. But to say that you're not even willing to try…that's unacceptable."
He nodded. "I'll do my best."
"Are you ready?"
He let go of the tree and came closer to edge of the branch. "I'm ready."
"Good, now jump."
With one last breath he jumped, for a brief moment he was afraid that Yukimura wouldn't catch him that fear disappeared when he felt a pair of strong arms embrace him.
"See it's alright, I told you I'd be here for you."
Naruto was currently in the garden as he enjoyed the atmosphere of the place, the scent from the different flowers mixed to produce a sweet aroma, the trees provided shadows from the sun's rays, he was meditating and remembering the lessons Yukimura and Sayaka had taught him. The latest lessons came flooding back to him with memories from his training. While I play the fool my true self must be stronger, better and must only be reveled to the people I trust, mixing the two sides can be done to help slowly ease the transition for when the time comes.
"Its time"
Naruto opened his eyes, Yukimura and Sayaka were in front of him, Yukimura was wearing black pants and a tight fitting dark purple shirt with black lines, the sleeves were rolled up above his elbows and the shirt was unbuttoned at the neck, Sayaka was wearing a dark blue skirt that ended above her knees, a white shirt and black boots. Sayaka came over and kissed Naruto on the forehead and ruffled his hair, while Yukimura held out his fist and the two fist bumped. Today, he was returning to Konoha and would leave the realm that had become his home.
"We'll be able to talk a bit after your return, remember what we've taught you."
"Stay safe." Sayaka hugged him.
Naruto nodded. "I know what my goal is now."
"Oh?" Yukimura asked curiously.
Naruto smiled as he slowly disapeared from the god realm. "I want freedom, to break the chains that bind me."
Both Yukimura and Sayaka smiled and watched as Naruto disapeared.
Sayaka looked up at the sky. "It will be lonely without him."
Yukimura nodded. "He will return."
"Not quick enough."
"True, but it would have happened eventually, and we both know it is for the best." Sayaka let out a sigh and nodded turning her gaze towards the mountains in the distance. "Now then shall we focus on the other tasks?"
"Yes let us do so." In the blink of an eye they both disappeared.
Review away
Constructive criticism or pointing out possible errors/issues within the story is always welcomed.
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Check out the poll on my page and the forum where the other polls are.
New A.N:
-removed some of the martial arts descriptions
-made small changes to the grammar
-removed a large segment which contained reworked versions of the laws of power, they were just filler material to reach a word count
-feel free to point out what else could be removed/reworked
Old A.N :
I've added an extra scene to chapter 1 and 2 check them out.
I was hoping to make the dialogue between Naruto and Sayaka about birthdays a bit better.
Check out the maps for the story, the links are on my profile page.
Originally another six scenes should have been added to chapter 1 but were scrapped. The scene placement was very different at first, Tea – Water – Snow- Red Queen- Tower- After, and then changing it to something else, hopefully with some help from a beta or two, I can work out another structure.
I had roughly 2000 words written for chapter 3 before I ended up writing a chapter worth's of extra scenes, 12278 words, for chapter 1 that were scrapped. Realizing it may make chapter 1 a bit too big, though I first wanted to have those scenes there, I decided to chop things up a bit, and place one extra scene per chapter. In chapter 3 I wanted to end things with Naruto after the hallway scene between Yukimura and Sayaka and include the part with Yue for the rest of the chapter. But then when the words kept coming I decided to continue and have him return this chapter and include the Yue scene in chapter 4. Sadly towards the end the drop in quality can be seen as I was running out of inspiration and using parts from The 33 Laws of Power by Robert Green. The good news is that with another extra scene that got cut from chapter 1 and some parts from chapter 3, chapter 4 already has 9685 words and the new goal for each chapter is 12600 words, so just a bit more until then. That bad is that almost 3000 thousand are an Anbu talking her situation and that of Konoha and Fire Country. And I want to do more once Naruto returns to Konoha, which may push the extra scene back further towards chapter 5.
The sword and martial arts stuff are from wookieepedia.
If any one has time check out Year of the Cloud by Ted Thomas.