Chapter 8: Miraju vs Temari Training Match

Chapter Text

I look ahead of myself, and in front of me stands Temari of the Sand, the oldest child and only daughter of the Kazekage himself. I take a deep breath as I center myself, my fingers pressed over the handle of my saber. I know what this is — they are testing me, seeing where I stand, and Temari is the one who decided to assess just how skilled of a ninja I am. I have seen her fight; I witnessed her match against Tenten of Konoha. It was very one-sided and it showcased her immense power. I understand that this match isn't to the death or anything, but I know it's a chance for them to assess my capabilities. The fact that if I win my first match, I will fight Temari, is not important.

"I am ready when you are," I call out as I take my stance, my foot sliding forward over the dirt makeshift arena, my empty forward hand stretching out high as my other hand holds my saber up high in the air, the edge like a stinger of a scorpion.

"Alright then, let's see what you've got," Temari replies confidently, her voice carrying a hint of curiosity as she readies herself for the match.

I waited for her to act in any way at all as I figured I would play defensive, as I saw how she battled, I saw that she was a ranged fighter with wind elemental chakra attacks that were very powerful. I came up with a plan after seeing her fight to counter her, and it was all about the sword. I wanted to also try something new that I hadn't done. He smirked as I reach my hand out, "Try that fan out, there is a bit of experimentation that I want to do," I call out challenging Temari directly.

Temari raises an eyebrow at my challenge, intrigued by my confidence. She nods and unfurls her giant folding fan, its sharp edges glinting in the sunlight. With a flick of her wrist, she sends a gust of wind towards me, aiming to test my reflexes and agility.

I smile as I recognize the fan, knowing it was crafted by my father, a master weaponsmith. Though impressive, I am confident in my own abilities. As the gust of chakra approaches, I prepare myself for the risky maneuver I'm about to attempt. With a swift vertical slice of my sword, I cleave the gust in two, the parts harmlessly passing by me. Then, with a downward strike, I call out, "Reflection," redirecting the wind chakra back at Temari, using her own attack against her.

Temari's eyes widen in surprise as she sees her own attack redirected back at her. She quickly jumps back to avoid the wind chakra, her expression a mix of astonishment and admiration. "Not bad," she concedes, a hint of respect in her tone. "Let's see how you handle this!" With a flick of her wrist, she sends another powerful gust of wind toward me, ready to continue the battle.

I quickly slice through the incoming attack, dividing it into two parts. With the wind chakra absorbed, I utilize the Reflection technique once more, sending it back at Temari. As she's focused on dodging the reflected attack, I swiftly maneuver behind her. With a precise strike, I slam my sword against the edge of her fan, harnessing the wind chakra to propel myself past her. At point-blank range, I unleash the redirected wind chakra at her back.

Temari is caught off guard by the unexpected maneuver, unable to react in time as the redirected wind chakra hits her squarely in the back. She stumbles forward, momentarily disoriented by the unexpected attack.

I move quickly to follow up, catching Temari off guard with a punch to her back followed by a kick to her side, but I know this fight isn't won yet; it's far from over. As she rises, Temari opens up her fan fully, not to attack but to launch herself at me, followed by a third strike. This one is harder to time due to her forward movement.

I react swiftly, cutting the attack in half three times and redirecting a fraction of the blast back at her to cancel it out. However, I have to dodge quickly as she swings the fan like a bat at me, narrowly avoiding the attack by ducking. The intensity of the fight escalates rapidly as I use my sword to block her follow-up attacks, pushing them away as I continue to fight.

I can feel the strain of the battle across my body as I block her strong attacks. Using so many new tricks is straining, but I smile nonetheless; this is so much fun. I wonder if there is a natural battle lust within me or if it's just my own natural inclination. I love this feeling of fighting—the intensity, the unknown moves, the quick thinking. It's exhilarating. I move, blocking and countering, the fight speeding up as we each try to find an opening. I know she's pushing to create an opportunity to use her fan at point-blank range against me, and I can't allow it. I have to push my own body forward, letting my attacks prevent her from gaining the room she needs to launch such an attack.

I relish in this dance, this dance of death, this dance of intensity. My feet cut across the ground as I move around, blocking and countering. Our movements, mine and Temari's, are a blur of seeming randomness that is far deeper and more prepared than it appears. It's an impromptu fight where the close range creates a spectacle for anyone watching.

I parry her fan up, thinking about my remaining chakra, and then I realize that I've just used her chakra, not my own. She might have forgotten that as I move to block, infusing my own lightning-based chakra into my blade and slamming it into the metal edge of the fan. This sends a current right into Temari, stunning her momentarily. As I kick her in the gut, knocking her to the ground, I finish the attack and stand there, breathing heavily. This was the most amazing fight of my life. It made me feel so alive.

I know I've won this fight too. As I look on, I can sense the other sand ninja watching me, surprised by the outcome. It shows that I am not just some fluke who won his match by pure luck; I am actually quite skilled. This spar has proven my worth as a ninja. Now, Temari will likely think up plans to counter me in the finals, but I've made my point and proved my way of the ninja. Most importantly, I had a hell of a good time fighting against Temari as well.

"Thank you for the fight, Temari-san. I am very glad to have had this chance," I say, bowing out of respect for her. "I hope we get to fight in the final stage too," I add softly as I prepare to take my leave. "I am training with Maki-sensei, and Kin-chan is helping out a lot too," I informed her. "So to have someone else to test myself against today was very helpful."

Temari nods, acknowledging my words. "You fought well," she says, a hint of respect in her tone. "I look forward to our potential rematch in the finals. Train hard, and don't underestimate your opponents." With that, she turns to leave, her expression unreadable as she walks away.

I take my leave from the training area. I don't train in the same place as the children of the Kazekage; I am not in their class of society. I am just the son of civilians, nothing special. As I walk, I feel an extra spring in my step when I notice Kin watching the fight. I don't know that she is under orders to keep an eye on me, but I am really happy to see that she got to see my fight.

"Well, I am glad you got to watch that fight, what did you think," I ask earnestly as I want to hear her opinion. Also cause maybe I want to know her reaction to my showing off a bit too. Kin's opinion has come to mean a fair bit to me in the week or so since I met her at the start of the exam.

"Your fight was impressive," Kin responds with a small smile. "You showed great skill and strategy, especially against such a formidable opponent like Temari. It's clear you've been training hard."

I nod my head, "I know that I can't do that against Shikamaru, his style doesn't use attacks that I can cut through or deflect, his shadows are going to be challenging, I have to work at a counter measure, do you mind if later we work on that, try to find ways to deal with light and shadow, I have a few ideas, but I think they are going to be super draining on me."

"Of course, Miraju," Kin replies, her expression thoughtful. "I'd be happy to help you work on countering Shikamaru's shadow techniques. It'll be a challenge, but with some careful planning and practice, I'm sure we can come up with effective strategies together."

I smile as I think about my ideas, they were really silly ones right now, but hey maybe a silly idea might make the difference in a battle against a genius. One has to be unpredictable and must change up their game when fighting someone so smart. They were going to have to go outside to box to have any real chance of dealing with those smarts of his foe.

"Alright, how about dinner, you and me," I ask softly, blushing a bit, as I know what I am about to ask, the dark haired teenage kunoichi. "How about you and I go out for ramen, and then we can go train some more to work off the food?"

Kin smiles warmly at the invitation. "That sounds like a great idea, Miraju," she replies. "I'd love to go out for ramen with you and then train together. It'll be a nice way to unwind after today's events."

As I walk alongside Kin, I can't shake off the feeling of awkwardness. I can't recall much about my previous life, especially when it comes to interactions with females. It all feels like a distant dream that I've mostly written off as a memory lingering with me rather than something tangible or real. Walking closely with the dark-haired female, I feel my heart beating a bit faster and my hands becoming sweaty from nerves. I want to impress her, to win her over, and simply to be near her. There's something different about her that appeals to me a great deal.

I sit down at the ramen bar and help Kin find her seat. "I'll have a bowl of chashu ramen," I say, giving my order as I wait for Kin to place hers.

"I'll have a miso ramen, please," Kin orders with a smile, glancing over at me as she waits for her food.

I pay for the meal, feeling a bit awkward, as we chat about the ongoing training and how Kin was permitted to stay and assist me. She mentions getting approval from her superiors to work with me, though I'm unaware of the ulterior motives behind their decision. Naively, I'm simply happy to be spending time with someone I have feelings for. In this moment, that's all that matters to me—enjoying our days of training and time together for as long as possible.