Naruto: The Uchiha Chronicles Re-Version:
Arc IV: Training Renewed:
Chapter 22: Joint Training
-x-x-x-x-x-x- NTUC -x-x-x-x-x-x-
The world blurred at the edges of his vision as Naruto dashed across the worn concrete rooftops of his village. He was headed towards Training Ground 3. Sure he could take his time and walk there normally, but he always liked the feeling of going fast. The sensation of wind sweeping his hair back and buffeting his face. How every single cell in his body seemed invigorated by the Teleportation Jutsu.
It also helped to wake him up. The bright blue friendly sky, and the harsh rays of sunlight were slightly deceptive. Below the well-trodden dirt roads were still darkened and damp. No doubt later it would lead to a muggy and stifling atmosphere. The wet ground was the only indication of the storm that had raged all of last night. It had been uncharacteristically intense for this time of year, battering Naruto's window with buffets of rain and filling the air with the ominous grumble of thunder. It had been a perfect backdrop for another nightmare. Thankfully, it hadn't messed with his sleep as much as the night before.
Soon enough the buildings ran out, and he made the leap into the treetops to continue his journey. Their rough bark scraped at the bottom of his sandals. Within seconds the familiar sight of the three training weather-beaten posts in front of an angular black rock was in view. Beyond that lay the open clearing with it's fresh-cut grass, and the swollen river streaking by with a low rustle. A flash of navy blue and raven black color among the green and brown canopy of the forest caught his attention. When he took a closer look, he saw Sasuki leaning casually against an isolated pine tree. Naruto took one last leap down to the clearing.
Squelch-splash!
Wet earth squished underneath his feet. There was a fresh smell of earthy petrichor lingering in the air that was missing in the more populated areas of the village. He let out a peaceful sigh and it felt like his body was freed of any tension.
"I see you're not late today."
Naruto looked up with a smile to see Sasuki walking towards him at a sedate pace.
"Late? I'm early." He said with bemusement.
Sasuki's black eyes narrowed with disbelief. "If you're always early, and then one day you aren't, that means you're later than usual. Ergo, late, dummy."
A chuckle rumbled through his chest at her easy rebuttal. She did have a point. He was usually much earlier to things. He was just glad he wasn't quite as wiped out as the previous day. It had been hell even for him to go through that training.
"I suppose you're right." He conceded.
Naruto expected to lapse into silence. That was their usual way. Sasuki wasn't one for idle chat early in the morning like this, even if they were alone. Hence why it was surprising when he noticed her looking at him speculatively, as if judging whether to say something.
"Something wrong?" Asked Naruto.
"That's … actually what I was going to ask you. You were pretty off yesterday." She replied.
His shoulders tensed like that of a frozen deer. She'd noticed? Sasuki usually wasn't the most observant of social cues, even around him. 'Dammit, she had to pick now to gain some awareness?' He cursed.
"Uh, oh, I was just tired." He said quickly.
A thin black eyebrow rose gracefully. Sasuki crossed her arms and tilted her head, as if to say 'Uh-huh, sure.'.
"Really? Come on, give me some credit. It was pretty obvious. I just didn't say anything cause I know you. You're the kind of idiot who wants to fix everyone else's problems and ignores your own." She snarked.
Heat bloomed in his face, and he found it hard to hold Sasuki's gaze. Had he really been that obvious? His shoulders slumped in defeat. "Fine, you got me," He relented. "I had a nightmare, didn't get much sleep. I'm good now though, I swear." He said, raising his hands placatingly.
Sasuki narrowed her eyes at him, pitch-black irises boring into him. She held her stare for several moments. He tried not to shift uncomfortably under her gaze. He felt like an insect under a microscope, waiting for her to notice his dishonesty. A sudden call from the direction of the training grounds entrance broke the stare down.
"Hey you guys, good morning." Said Sakura as she jogged through the towering chain-link fence that the entryway.
Naruto almost leapt on the distraction, grasping at it desperately. "Morning Sakura. You ready for the special training?" The pink-haired girl beamed brightly as she made it to where he and Sasuki were standing. He was honestly pretty surprised she was so energetic after yesterday's physical training. Judging by how easily she was moving, it looked like she was only slightly sore from the training. She even seemed to be wearing her training weights.
"Yeah, I'm wondering what it is." She said. Her emerald eyes quickly darted to look at Sasuki. "Actually, I was wondering if you'd be up for comparing notes on training and stuff while we wait, Sasuki."
Her request caught Sasuki flat-footed. She gave an owlish blink of surprise and said, "Uh, sure." He had to stifle a laugh as his best friend seemed thoroughly nonplussed when Sakura practically dragged her off to the side and instantly started to bombard her with questions ranging from how Sasuki chose what food she ate, to the way she varied the use of chakra to enhance herself during physical training.
He watched the two interact with bemusement. It was especially weird to see Sasuki actually start to respond to Sakura's questions with fairly thorough answers. Dare he say she almost seemed … friendly? The sight of Sasuki opening up around another girl brought a joyful smile to his face. Just as he needed Shikamaru and Choji as guy friends, it was good for Sasuki to have girl friends. There were some things he just couldn't relate to as a guy.
Naruto left the girls to their discussion, instead opting to sidle over to one of the few dry spots underneath the towering pine Sasuki had been leaning on. Above him it stood like a silent sentinel, it's cool shadows protected him from the slowly intensifying blaze of the sun. He figured he might as well take the opportunity the wait presented to practice forming the Rasengan better. With a content sigh, he rested his back against the hard bumpy trunk of the pine. He slid down onto the dusty ground, crossing his legs tightly and taking a deep breath.
'Rotation, power, containment. An endless mass of rotating chakra streams contained in a thin shell.' He mentally chanted. The refrain repeated over and over like a metronome, even as he extended his sensing abilities. He'd taken his grandfather's teachings to heart, and always sought to master techniques and skills until they were second nature.
If he could learn to maintain the technique even while distracted by sensing chakra, it would go a long way towards that goal. Closing his eyes, Naruto allowed his chakra sensing to wash over him. Immediately the signatures of his teammates stood out. Sasuki's gave him the feel of electricity bouncing back and forth and a smoldering ember. Sakura, meanwhile, had the feeling of earth. Solid and slow, with just a hint of coolness. Beyond that he could feel the smaller signatures of smaller animals scattered about darting through the forest. In the distance, several kilometers away was a mass of signatures all clumped together and moving around like a nest of ants. There were a few that darted about within the other training grounds on either side of them.
With the connection established, Naruto cautiously cracked his eyes open and diverted some of his focus to the orb of blue chakra streams hovering above his palm. It seemed fairly stable. Now he just had to maintain it.
His task wasn't an easy one. Every once in a while a slightly larger animal would skirt around the training ground and briefly divert his focus. The Rasengan would wobble and distort before he managed to reign in control.
The thing that finally broke his concentration were three familiar chakra signatures approaching fairly quickly. One had a buzzing sensation, while the other had a similar feel to Sasuki's but in reverse (along with something he couldn't quite put his finger on). It was the middle one that had his attention. It had a solid feel, with a particularly wild and savage edge. There was a much smaller but similar signature right alongside it. Naruto's mind became clouded with confusion. The distraction was enough to cause the Rasengan to destabilize and unleash a fierce gale of air and compressed chakra that made his clothes and hair whip about.
Even as he felt the light sting of his clothes snapping against his skin, Naruto let out a frustrated growl, "What the heck are they doing here?"
"What are who doing here?" Sasuki asked as she and Sakura came over. Having been drawn by the noise of his failed Rasengan, the two girls were giving him inquisitive looks.
Naruto's face tightened into a scowl. He looked in the direction he'd felt the signatures.
"Them." He said simply.
Barely two seconds later three people pushed through the fenced off entrance. The door swung shut with the high ring of metal on metal as it latched shut behind them. Naruto's eyes instantly locked on the brown-haired boy at the head of the trio. Even at this distance his red face markings were clear as day. What was Team 8 doing here? There was a matching scowl on Kiba's face as he and his teammates approached them. Shino stood stoically on his left, while Hinata seemed to be trying to disappear into her cream-colored hoodie on his right.
"Oi, what are you doing here?" Kiba asked harshly. His slit-pupiled eyes never left Naruto's.
"That's our line. This is Team 7's training ground. What are you three doing here?" Naruto growled. His eyes bored into Kiba. It was hard to describe just how annoyed he was. There was a tension in his chest. Like a coiled serpent waiting to strike. He really wasn't in the mood to deal with the nuisance that was interacting with Kiba.
Kiba returned his glare with one of his own. "We'll go wherever we want, pretty boy." He growled harshly.
To the side, Sasuki scoffed. "Tch, just answer the question kibble breath."
That was perhaps a mistake on her part because it quickly drew Kiba's attention towards her. His head snapped in her direction. "Oh, hey Sasuki. I was so distracted by seeing the pretty boy I hadn't noticed you. You're looking as good as ever. How're things going?" He asked with a confident smirk. Naruto felt his annoyance increase all the more at Kiba's usual schtick.
Sasuki's face remained stone cold. "I asked what you were doing here kibble breath." She replied.
The smirk on Kiba's face faded ever so slightly at her blunt dismissal.
"Cold as ever I see. Mark my words, one of these days I'm gonna get you to agree to a date," Kiba declared, regaining some of his bluster. "Anyways, ta answer your question, Kurenai-Sensei told us to come here for some sort of special training. No idea what." He said with a dismissive shrug.
Special training? Naruto quickly locked eyes with Sasuki. He could tell her attention had been caught by those words as well. A pit of worry settled heavily in his stomach. Surely it couldn't be a coincidence that their sensei had used the same term? 'God, I hope I'm wrong,'
'Heh, seems like your pathetic teacher is making you train with the mutt's team. This should be amusing.'The Nine-Tails chimed in.
It was Sakura that gave voice to his and Sasuki's thoughts.
"Huh, weird, that's what our teacher told us we were doing too." She said.
Surprisingly, it was Hinata that made the connection for her team. She spoke up, her voice light and wavering like a whispering breeze "D-do you think i-it's connected? A-a joint training e-exercise?"
From far above them, Kakashi's lazy voice rang out. It echoed down and surrounded them "I see you've all made it. Good."
Naruto's head whipped around, and his gaze fixed on his sensei. Kakashi stood on one of the rigid branches. Next to him was a Raven haired woman with startling red eyes in an odd bandage-like dress with a single crimson sleeve on her right arm. On her brow, a black clothed forehead protector rested. He recognized her from the first day of team selection it was team 8's sensei Kurenai Yuhi.
Together, the two jonin leapt down into the clearing. Kakashi, being his typical self, landed on the ground nonchalantly, his face buried in a new book with a bright orange cover and that same canceled mark. Though, frankly, Naruto was too distracted by Team 8's sensei to pay much attention to his own. She landed in a graceful crouch that caused the hem of her dress to retreat up her long legs. Lithe muscles rippled under her skin as she stood up to face them.
Unbidden Naruto felt a hot flush rise to his cheeks and his heartbeat quickened. Without a doubt, Kurenai had to be the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. It was hard not to get distracted. 'Come on, pull yourself together. It's time to train, not gawk at women!' He chastised himself. It didn't help that he could hear the Nine-Tails deep chuckle rumbling in the back of his mind. Clearly the beast got some amusement from his embarrassment. Naruto closed his eyes and took a quick breath.
He was thankful to see that it didn't seem anyone had noticed his distraction. Though, one positive is it'd cooled his temper and allowed him to think more clearly about the situation.
"Well, I suppose there's no point beating around the bush," Said Kakashi, stowing his book in his equipment pouch and regarding them with a single lazy eye. "You're probably all wondering why Kurenai, and I had all of you meet here."
Kiba scoffed at Kakashi's words and folded his arms behind his head nonchalantly. "Yeah, you could say that. Is what Hinata said true, this is a joint training exercise?" He asked.
Even though he had guessed as much himself, Naruto was nonetheless disappointed when Kakashi and Kurenai nodded. Great. A joint training session with Kiba. He could practically already feel the headache coming on. Before he could get too deep into his thoughts, Kurenai-sensei stepped in. Her voice was melodic and soft, but somehow carried an iron-clad note of authority.
"Kakashi suggested that we should have you spar each other to determine how well your training is going and discover any things that could do with improving. Sparring with other people should help diversify your abilities." She explained. Despite her words, it was obvious Kiba wasn't anymore enthused about it than Naruto. The brown-haired boy looked like he wanted to object, but Kurenai pinned him with a hard stare. "I expect you all to be on your best behavior."
After a not so subtle nudge from Kurenai, Kakashi spoke up as well. "You three as well, I suppose." He sighed.
The way Kurenai looked at his sensei it seemed she'd like to set him on fire with her gaze alone. His mind tuned out the hissed whispers between the two. Naruto could feel his adrenaline flood his body at the idea of a spar. Perhaps this wouldn't be so boring after all. His eyes instantly locked on Kiba. It had been a while since he'd gotten to spar with Kiba. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to a chance to shut Kiba up for a bit. Kiba seemed similarly pumped, pounding his fist into his palm. The harsh –SMACK!–of skin on skin accompanied his action.
Sasuki, though more subdued, looked eager as well. He could see the corners of her mouth twitching, barely holding back a grin. Kiba's teammates didn't seem quite as thrilled as Sasuki and Kiba. Hinata almost seemed frightened at the prospect of fighting, while Shino showed little reaction at all. Though, to be fair, that was normal for the boy and his high-collar coat and dark glasses made it hard to tell what he was feeling.
Perhaps the most surprising was Sakura, who had an excited gleam in her eyes.
"Now, we've already decided who you'll be fighting. First up, Sakura vs. Shino." Kakashi told them. "Everyone else, come with us to the edge of the clearing. We'll observe from there."
At Kakashi's orders, the rest of them quickly retreated back to the weather beaten training posts on the periphery of the open ground. Naruto stared intently at his teammate standing across from the stoic Aburame. A light breeze swept through her long pink hair. Sasuki stood at his side, her eyes fixed on the fighters as well.
"Begin!" Said Kurenai.
Despite the go ahead, neither Sakura or Shino made a move. There was an unspoken tenseness in the air. Like a bubble waiting to burst. It felt like any second things would descend into chaos. From the side, Naruto heard a harsh scoff that put an ice-cube to the tension. "This shouldn't take too long. Shino's gonna make quick work of her. I bet she won't even make it five minutes." Kiba said, his voice dripping with derision.
Naruto scowled at the harsh dismissal of his teammate. He felt a surge of hot anger on her behalf. Knowing how much Sakura worried about her skills, it pissed him off to hear Kiba dismissing them. He squeezed his closed hand so hard all the joints let out dull pops.
"I bet you'll be surprised by her." He shot back instantly.
Kiba glanced his direction. The smug smirk on his face made Naruto's blood boil in his veins. How many times had he used that over the years while provoking him?
"Sure she will. I'll believe it when I see it. Speaking of which, I hope you're ready to see my new moves. I'm gonna beat you easy!" Kiba said.
"If you're trash talking, I think they're about to start." Kakashi cut in. His words were like a sharp knife, cutting through their distraction and bringing them back to the spar. Even though it wasn't said in a harsh way, all three of them instantly turned back to the pair facing off.
Indeed, Kakashi was right. Almost at once, both Sakura and Shino leapt backwards. Sakura quickly armed herself with a kunai and tossed it at the spot she'd just vacated. Naruto was just able to spot a flash of white and red on the handle. A second later a fierce percussion slammed into his eardrums. It felt like they were about to burst.
Boooom!
There was a brief flash of hot light, then a cloud of choking dust rose into the air. Bits and pieces of wet dirt showered down and clung to his skin. He could hear an annoying ringing in his ears. Naruto shook his head to try and get rid of it. At the same time, he was confused about the decision. Why go for such an obstructing move so early? The reason quickly became clear when he noticed dozens of shiny black beetles fleeing from the ruined crater and scurrying back towards Shino.
"Impressive, you noticed them even though they traveled beneath the surface of the dirt." Shino remarked.
Ah, that explained it. 'With her training in earth chakra control, Sakura's getting used to noticing shifts in the earth.' Naruto noted.
Sakura rocketed out of the fading dust cloud and made a beeline for Shino. Though, Naruto quickly noticed something off. She slipped across the ground like a silent ghost. There was no shadow underneath her, no crunch of earth under her heels. A clone?
His suspicion was confirmed when a pair of slender hands shot out of the ground and clamped onto Shino's ankles. In an instant, the trench coat wearing boy was yanked into the ground. The easrth seemed to suck him in, burying him up to his neck in quickly proved to be a mistake as bugs began to angrily swarm the area. Sakura only barely escaped by launching herself out of the ground and taking several flipping leaps backwards.
Cool as ever, Shino pulled himself out of the loosened ground and dusted himself off. He didn't seem to have any reaction to being buried alive. Honestly, it was a bit unnerving how calm he was.
"Looks like it won't be very easy to get to you." Sakura commented. There was an intensity in her eyes he wasn't used to seeing.
"Indeed. I was going to say the same. We're both ambush fighters. This could take a while." Shino agreed.
It was the truth. With two fighters that depended on trying to catch an opponent off guard, inevitably a fight would be drawn out. Each combatant would want to stall and wait for an opportunity. Though, there was just one problem. Shino had an undeniable advantage. From what Naruto knew about the Aburame Clan they used chakra syphoning beetles. With her still rather low reserves it would only take one mistake for Sakura to lose. One instant when Shino could get ahold of her.
That was something Sakura apparently knew as well. She did her best to avoid Shino's bugs at every turn. Whenever she dove underground she didn't stay there long. He didn't know why at first. Then he started to notice that a few beetles would scurry out of the ground after she emerged. 'Shino's sending them to travel after her. The tunnels she digs allow them to chase after her in the instant before they close' He thought. Every once in a while, Shino would send a larger swarm of beetles after Sakura and almost catch her. She'd always escape by the skin of her teeth.
Sakura gave as good as she got, though. She would take the occasional pot-shot with kunai at Shino. It would force him to sidestep and even jump away. Their fight continued like this for several minutes.
As it continued, Naruto noted something strange. He'd been expecting Sakura to be the one who got tired as the spar wore on. Yet, he could tell Shino was getting sluggish far faster than Sakura. It was a curious thing.
"…You've poisoned me." Shino said lowly.
Naruto's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Poison? Come to think of it, Sakura had been practicing using herbs with Haku in Wave. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility she'd learned how to make basic poisons. But when had it happened?
"She did it when she used the Headhunter Jutsu, clever." Kakashi commented from behind them.
Sakura and Shino paid little attention to the people on the sidelines. They focused on each other. The pink-haired girl was mostly just dancing away from Shino's bugs and seemed to be waiting for her poison to take full effect. Naruto frowned, though. Despite the fact it looked like she was keeping away easily, Sakura was slowing down. Every time she went underground it took a little of her chakra and physical strength. It was as much a drawback as it was a strategy for winning. At this point, it would probably be foolish of her to go underground again. That left her with no other option than to stay on the surface where Shino had a much better chance of catching her.
Ultimately, the fight came to a rather anticlimactic end. Sakura finally stopped moving and rose a shaky hand in the air. "I … I give. You win Shino." She conceded between panting gasps.
Even though she'd just admitted defeat, you wouldn't know it from the proud smile on Sakura's face. Even with her hair lank from sweat and clothes littered with dirt stains, she stood tall. It was quite the difference to how she'd looked just a few weeks earlier after the Battle at the Bridge. 'Who would have thought she'd rebound so quickly. She just seems to gain more and more confidence.' Naruto thought to himself.
"Very well, the winner is Shino." Kakashi called. "Why don't you two come take a break, and we'll start the next fight in a couple minutes. That good with you Kurenai?" He looked to the other sensei with a raised eyebrow.
The raven-haired woman shrugged, her bandage dress rustling from the movment. "Sounds good. We can give them our assessments later after we go our separate ways." She agreed.
Naruto noticed Sakura hand Shino a small vile, which the tall boy quickly downed. He assumed it was the antidote given the grateful nod he gave. He smiled at Sakura as she walked over to he and Sasuki. She was sipping on a bottle of water she'd unsealed, and her breathing had calmed somewhat.
"Hey, good spar. You certainly gave Shino a run for his money. That's impressive since he's probably about the worst possible opponent for you." He congratulated her. Beside him, Sasuki gave a nod of agreement.
"For once, the dummy makes a good point." She said. He scowled playfully at the raven-haired girl and tried to give her a half-hearted cuff around the head. She dodged it rather easily and gave him a challenging smirk.
Sakura beamed under their praise, a wide smile stretched across her lips. "Thanks. Next time, I'll get him! If I had that Chakra Scalpel down I'd have won no problem. Oh, and thanks for showing us those storage seals Naruto. They're super useful."
Their friendly moment was shattered by a scoff from behind them. Naruto turned with a scowl on his face, not at all surprised to see it was Kiba.
"Heh, I'll admit Sakura was more impressive than I expected. But there's no way Shino would lose to her again." He declared. His slit eyes quickly narrowed in on Naruto. "And you, pretty boy, I hope we get paired up. I've gotten a lot stronger since we graduated. I'm gonna wipe the floor with you!" He growled.
Though he could feel his temperature rising at Kiba's challenge, Naruto tried to keep a cool head. He knew that was the best way to get under Kiba's skin.
"Well, you're welcome to take your best shot kibble breath." He shot back. Naruto took a step forward, ready to start fighting Kiba. His action was mirrored by the wild boy.
Their fight was halted before it could begin. The soft voice of Kurenai-sensei cut through the air sharply. "That's enough you two! We're about to have the next spar." She ordered.
In spite of the order, Naruto's gaze lingered on Kiba's for several seconds. Finally he tore his eyes away from the annoyance and focused on Kurenai-sensei who was looking at them rather sternly. The dark haired woman rose an eyebrow, as if to ask if they were paying attention now. A glance showed it wasn't just him and Kiba whose attention she'd caught. Shino, Sasuki, Sakura, and even Hinata stared at Kurenai.
"The next pair is Hinata and Sasuki." She said.
Hinata let out mousey squeak at her name being called. She seemed to shrink in on herself. Sasuki, meanwhile, had a decidedly different reaction. She didn't waste any time in walking to the center of the clearing and taking her place. For the most part she looked her usual stoic self, but Naruto could tell by the excited gleam in her eyes she couldn't wait to test herself.
Her opponent wasn't so eager. Hinata was slow to follow Sasuki. She shrunk in on herself more and more as she walked. He was halfway convinced she was trying to disappear into her jacket by the time she was across from Sasuki. Hinata's eyes darted to between Sasuki and the surroundings. She even glanced at the other people watching. Finally, her gaze settled on him briefly. Oddly enough he could swear her cheeks got pinker every time she looked at him. More importantly, her eyes seemed to get calmer. Hinata turned back to look at Sasuki with a slightly firmer gaze.
'Weird. Wonder what that's about.' He mused.
"Alright you two, Begin!" Kakashi called.
This fight started out markedly different from the last. The instant Kakashi gave the go ahead, a web of veins bulged around Hinata's blank silvery eyes. It gave her a much fiercer look than normal. Like some bird of prey about to strike. Opposite from her, Sasuki's eyes bled a familiar crimson as she activated her sharingan. As one the two launched at each other to meet hand-to-hand. The two girls engaged in a flurry of blows. Hinata met Sasuki's fists and kicks with what looked like jabs with her fingers. The air filled with the slap of skin on skin as blows were deflected.
Naruto couldn't help but stare at Hinata. His eyes tracked her every move. 'So that's the Byakugan and the gentle fist. It's cool getting to see it in action.'
"Hey, what's up with Hinata's eyes?" Sakura whispered in his ear. Her breath tickled the shell of his ear.
"That's the Byakugan. The Hyuuga bloodline limit. It's another dojutsu our village is known for. It gives incredible perception and x-ray vision." He answered quietly.
His eyes never left the action. After the initial exchange, Sasuki had started avoiding meeting Hinata's blows directly. More than likely, she'd picked up on the effect Hinata's blows were having. When he'd first learned of the Hyuuga's ability to perceive and disrupt the chakra network, Naruto had found it hard to believe. The idea there was a dojutsu with a greater perception than the Sharingan made him extremely weary.
Idly, he was aware of Kurenai chiming in and explaining to Sakura what the Byakugan did more fully. Truthfully he was only half listening. His attention was on the fight between the two kunoichi. Sasuki was being much more conservative than the initial exchange. Every time Hinata tried to strike her with her palm or fingers, Sasuki would redirect it with a strike to her wrist. No doubt the Sharingan helped in that regard. With her speed, Sasuki took advantage of the openings that caused to start to place kicks on Hinata's thighs and shoulders. They connected with sickening thumps of bone on flesh. He could feel his thigh muscles clench at the thought of how that must have felt.
Still, something … didn't quite fit. Naruto couldn't really put his finger on it. Something about the way the exchanges went bugged him. It was like a fly in the back of his mind. He could almost put his finger on it, but not quite. It was the Sasuki's reactions. First her eyes started to narrow but following a particular exchange where she came out of one block and quickly deflected another aimed at her upper arm, she started to openly scowl at Hinata.
There! In a single instant the answer came to him. Sasuki blocked a finger-strike and swept Hinata's arm wide. The counter left her in an awkward position, arms spread wide and unable to recover quick enough. He saw Hinata's pale eyes dart to Sasuki's right shoulder. Naruto was sure she was about to go for it with her next jab. Indeed, her right hand lashed out like a striking snake. It was headed for Sasuki's shoulder. Or at least, that's what he thought. The blue-haired girl stopped her strike just short, stabbing Sasuki in the bicep with her fingers. In a single moment, it was like the veil had been lifted. He started to see the fight with fresh eyes.
Despite the advantage the Sharingan gave her, the conservative way Sasuki had to block left openings. Yet every time an opening to a more vital part like her knees or shoulder came up–things that would severely handicap Sasuki–Hinata would pass them over to go for a less important spot like her calf or upper arm. That wasn't even mentioning the openings to target Sasuki's vital organs with her Gentle Fist. It was like she was afraid to hurt her opponent.
'Hinata's holding back. She's purposefully avoiding going for anything that could actually hurt Sasuki. Sure she doesn't have to go after the organs, but at least she could be aiming to debilitate her.' He thought. Come to think of it, Hinata had always been like that. He'd just dismissed it in the academy because he assumed it had to do with not using her Byakugan. The more he pondered the situation, Naruto himself started to get upset. Though he didn't know why. His face tightened, and he could feel his blood start to pump harder. 'Does she think she can win without going all out? That could get someone hurt in the field.'
A deep chuckle rumbled in his head. 'Pretty rich coming from you. Aren't you the one that keeps intentionally avoiding using those disgusting eyes to fight?'The Nine-Tails remarked snidely.
The accusation made Naruto freeze momentarily. 'I-it's not the same.' He argued back. That only got a scoff in response, though thankfully the Nine-Tails didn't push harder.
Despite what he said, the words had rattled him. He wasn't being hypocritical. That's what he tried to tell himself. Though he had been considering it a mistake to reveal his Sharingan. 'They're completely different situations. If that man finds out I have the sharingan, he could hurt people I care about to get at me. It's not like that for her.' Yes, that was right. He had an actual reason for holding back. Hinata didn't.
The more he thought about it the surer he was. He also started to get more and more annoyed at Hinata and the entire situation as he started to feel justified in his annoyance. Every time he saw her refuse to capitalize like he grit his teeth harder and harder. They started to groan under the pressure.
Finally, Sasuki seemingly had enough of the hesitation from Hinata. In a more aggressive move than she'd made all match, she stepped into Hinata's guard and landed a heavy kick to her midsection that sent the blue-haired girl stumbling backwards. She landed on the ground with a pained gasp. Sasuki didn't pay it much mind.
"Tch, that's it, this is over. If you can't be bothered to try I don't want to waste my time." She said with a sneer.
"What does she mean not try?" Kiba asked. Naruto glanced over to see the boys brow furrowed in confusion. Behind him, Kurenai had a somewhat grim look on her face. Clearly she understood what Kiba had missed.
He felt like rolling his eyes at the boy's cluelessness. "It's pretty simple. Your teammate is refusing to capitalize on openings. I honestly can't imagine what she's trying to accomplish holding back like that in a spar." His words came out a bit harsher than he meant to, but it didn't change the truth. They clearly got to Kiba, who made to step towards him. The only thing that prevented it was his sensei's hand on his shoulder.
"Enough Kiba, what he said is true." Kurenai said. Even though she was agreeing, the reluctance was clear in his voice, and her eyes bored into Naruto harshly.
Suddenly, a soft voice carried across the clearing. "W-wait! Let's continue. I'll t-try harder!"
Naruto's eyebrows shot up when he turned to see Hinata standing up and looking at Sasuki. There was something … different in her gaze. It was firmer. Slowly, Sasuki turned to face her opponent with a raised eyebrow. The skepticism was clear on her face.
"You sure?" She asked dully.
For just a moment, Hinata's eyes flicked over to the spectators. Naruto met her gaze for a single second. In that instant, her cheeks seemed to gain a rosy tinge again. Though her gaze hardened even more.
"Yes." She said resolutely.
There was no signal this time. Seemingly as one, the two girls sprinted towards each other. He could tell in an instant there was a clear difference. There was a subtle tension in the air. It was like some switch had been flipped. All of a sudden Hinata was far more aggressive. She went for every opening she could. Fists and jabs were exchanged in a blur of motion. It was hard to separate the sound of one blow striking from another. Unlike before, Sasuki decided to stay in close.
At first it was mostly Sasuki peppering Hinata with blows, even one that caught the shy girl in the cheek with a harsh crack. The flesh turned a violent red and start swelling immediately. Eventually Hinata started to land blows of her own. At first they were the usual jabs to the arms and forearms. But finally she got a good opening. A fierce cry left her lips as she rapidly tagged Sasuki in her shoulder and upper thigh. Almost immediately his friends arm went slack and she almost lost her footing.
Sasuki quickly retreated far out of range for her opponent. Despite the way she clutched her somewhat limp shoulder and how she stepped gingerly with her left leg, the raven-haired girl had a grin on her lips now. Her eyes danced with a fire and excitement he rarely saw outside of training.
"Looks like I can't just win on taijutsu here."
In an instant Sasuki used her good arm to whip out several kunai and send them hurtling to her opponent. They screamed through the air at a breakneck speed. Hinata danced between the blades gracefully.
Thunk–thunk–thunk
One landed at Hinata's feet, the other two landed somewhere behind her. "Distance w-won't help. I-I can see everything coming." She said.
It made Naruto raise an eyebrow. 'Hinata, speaking competitively … that's super out of character.'
Sasuki didn't let Hinata's words phase her. "This has been fun. But I'm gonna end it." She declared. The Uchiha girl darted forward towards her opponent. At first it seemed like a simple charge. For an instant he felt a jolt of panic stab his heart and radiate down his arms. He almost sagged in relief when he noticed her speeding through hand signs. Hinata's eyes widened, and she moved to try and intercept Sasuki. It was already too late. Just as Hinata lunged forward, Sasuki finished the dragon seal. Blue arcs of electricity danced along her fingertips as she touched the kunai that landed in front of Hinata. "Lightning Style: Lightning Bind!"
The clearing filled with the smell of hot plastic in an instant. Three transparent blue walls crackled to life between the thrown kunai. With her momentum, it was too late for Hinata to stop. She bounced into the barrier and instantly got zapped with stinging arcs of electricity that flung her backwards onto the ground.
"That's all. Since Hinata has been captured, Sasuki Wins!" Kurenai called reluctantly.
Naruto didn't know why he felt slightly numb as Sasuki released her jutsu and retrieved her kunai. He expected to feel satisfied at his friend getting a win. Yet he couldn't. His mind was focused on one thing. It was incredibly odd. Somehow Hinata had fought back and overcome whatever hang up she had. Why did he feel annoyed? He could feel the hot rush of it across his skin. It made no sense. Normally he'd be happy to see one of his classmates succeed.
'Hehehe, that cowardly little girl has more balls than you. She actually went all out against that damned friend of yours. How does it feel to be more pathetic than a little girl?' The Nine-Tails taunted him.
It was hard not to scowl at the blatant taunt. What the hell was its problem today? 'Put a sock in it Nine.' He shot back. Despite the harsh rebuttal, in the back of his mind he couldn't help but wonder, was the fox right?
With the kunai retrieved, Sasuki and Hinata returned to the group. Hinata was greeted by her sensei with a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You did well Hinata. We'll discuss what you can do to improve after the last fight." She said with a smile.
Naruto gave Sasuki a slight nod as she took her place next to Sakura and him. "Good match. Hopefully we can get this over with quickly now." He said shortly.
Had he been paying more attention, he might have noticed the odd look Sasuki gave him. As it was he was still busy trying to tamp down his annoyance at the nine-tails' words. His body was filled with tension. It was like a giant hand was squeezing his chest, making it hard to breath. He wasn't even looking forward to getting a chance to beat Kiba and shut him up now. Naruto just wanted it to be over. Hence why he didn't hesitate to stride forward and take his place in the center of the clearing, where he waited for Kiba to walk out and join him. Unfortunately, it seemed like the universe was determined to mess with him.
Just as Kiba started to walk out, Kakashi called out to him from the side. "Ah yes, Naruto, remember to make sure to tamp down the lethality of that sword of yours. Just the sand should do."
He nearly groaned at that. 'Tch, that's right. Can't use Senbonzakura how I usually do. I'll have to rely on the metal sand. Note to self, practice more with that.' Naruto thought to himself.
'Tch, now you can't even use those fancy fridge magnet abilities. You really are pretty pathetic.' TheNine-Tails cackled.
Naruto tried to steadfastly ignore the potshot by the Nine-Tails. It didn't work very well. Yet another thing that added onto his mounting frustration with the day and put a scowl on his face. The scowl only grew when Kiba took his spot across from him. That stupid smug smirk made him want to wipe it off his face. He could feel the blood pumping in his veins, hear it in his ears. There was an almost physical pressure mounting pressure in his skull as confusing thoughts flooded his mind. Naruto felt like a volcano waiting to explode.
His hand clutched Senbonzakura with a vice-grip, his knuckles the color of bleached bones. Even the cooling psychic presence of his sword did nothing to quell the pressure. The way he saw it, there was only one way to relieve the pressure.
"Start!" Kakashi called.
His sensei had barely finished his call when Naruto exploded into motion. He moved like a coiled spring suddenly let loose.
In an instant whipped Senbonzakura out. It unleashed with a fierce metallic ring. His chakra flooded into its seals making them gleam with a bright white light. All that was visible was a brief silver flash. The next instant twin billowing clouds of pink-tinted metal sand erupted forwards and snatched Kiba and Akamaru off the ground like a couple of toys. The tendrils slammed the two into a pair of trees and tightly bound them to the trunks with a satisfying booom that shook the air.
The two were pinned solidly in place Not one to take chances, Naruto willed the sand to bind them tightly so they couldn't move. A wooden groan filled the air as the metal cinched down.
"Hey, what the hell is this?" Kiba cried as he struggled to break free. Next to him, Akamaru gave several startled yelps. His nose wrinkled as an acrid smell reached him. A second later noticed and oddly colored liquid trickle from underneath Akamaru's bindings.
Kakashi blinked dumbly for several seconds. "Um, I guess that's the end."
All told, it was over in a few seconds. While he didn't feel bad for Kiba, there was a slight twinge of regret for the way he'd startled Akamaru. He felt bad for frightening the puppy so bad he peed himself. Though that was completely secondary to the frustration he still felt. It was like lava bubbling just underneath his skin. He was almost disappointed it was almost over. There was a ringing in his ears, and his lungs heaved for breath. A voice in the back of his head egged him on. It was tempting him to continue.
Suddenly he felt an insistent nudge against his mind. It was firm but comforting, like a warm hug. Slowly his angst sapped away. In a single instant his heart rate and adrenaline plummeted. Like the plug being removed from a bathtub, the frustration drained away and left him feeling somewhat tired. A gust of wind swept across his skin and made him shiver. That was the first time he realized he'd broken into a sweat. It had the effect of clearing his head and making him realize the feeling was coming from his sword. Naruto glanced down at Senbonzakura. 'Thanks, I needed that.' Naruto shook his head of the distraction and quickly willed the metal sand to release Kiba and Akamaru.
The shimmering cloud eased the two down to the ground. It rustled and whispered as he willed the billowing hoard to return to him. Thousands upon thousands of tiny silver grains retreated back towards him. The seals along his blade glowed white again and began to swallow the sand up.
In seconds the cloud was gone, leaving only a single gleaming silver blade. The metal rang sharply as he sheathed the blade with a firm–click–when the guard met the sheath.
Without a backwards glance, Naruto turned and began to stroll back to his teammates sedately. The two girls were conversing in hushed whispers. He didn't think much of it until Sakura glanced his way and her eyes widened. She cut off abruptly, soon followed by Sasuki. His stomach did a somersault. Had they been talking about him? Sakura shifted a little under his gaze, but Sasuki greeted him with a hand on her hip and a raised eyebrow. She was giving him a look that clearly shouted 'what was that?'.
Naruto found it hard to meet his best friends eyes. What could he say? He didn't have an answer to the silent question. Why had he been so frustrated by what happened with Hinata? Now that he'd calmed down that question haunted him.
It was times like this he missed his grandfather. This was exactly the type of thing he'd be able to help with. Sure he could try Gramps, but for what ever reason he was extra busy recently. It was already hard enough to visit with him before Naruto had graduated. Now with his own schedule, it was near impossible to get anything more than a short conversation with Gramps.
At the same time all of this was going on in Naruto's head, Kakashi called them over to where he and Team 8 were gathered around the gleaming black memorial stone. He tried hard to act like he was paying attention, even though he honestly barely heard Kakashi's debriefing. 'I guess I'll just have to figure the nightmares and all this mess out on my own.' He resolved to himself. Naruto smiled as a soothing warmth radiated up through his hand resting on Senbonzakura. It filled his chest, and drove away they heavy feeling of embarrassment that was like a cannon ball in his stomach. Yes, there was no emergency. He had time to figure things out.
'Besides, first things first I better take care of you. Man, it's gonna be a pain cleaning dog pee off the steel sand.' He thought with a small smile.
-x-x-x-x-x-x- NTUC -x-x-x-x-x-x-
Well, there's chapter 22. This took a bit for me to get out. I'm not sure I'm entirely satisfied with it, but I think it accomplished what I wanted. I went back and forth on what would be best, whether to have Naruto be the one to face Hinata or Kiba (which would be better for character development). Ultimately I felt it was best just from a logic standpoint to have him go against Kiba. Realistically speaking he's the only one that even remotely has a shot of beating him Naruto on Team 8, so the only option was this or have him being restricted from using Senbonzakura all-together which sort of defeats the alleged purpose of the exercise. And I am aware that Naruto came off like a bit of a hypocritical douche this chapter. That was very intentional. He's not perfect (and a teenager at that) so some angst is a given. I don't really have an interest in writing perfectly amazing characters without flaws, someone who's just amazingly strong and does no wrongs while being viewed as a badass. I think everyone's had enough with edgelord try-hards in fanfiction, so I really hope that's not how Naruto is coming off.
Another thing I feel people might take exception with is the way Kurama is egging him on. I guess from a certain perspective it might seem like his typical cannon self, trying to make Naruto mad so he loses control. I don't really want to say much to avoid spoilers, but just keep in mind this is not cannon Naruto and likewise it isn't cannon Kurama, so don't necessarily let that color the lens through which you view it with.
Ah yes, one other thing occurred to me while editing. Don't read too much into him having a bit of a crush/attraction to Kurenai. He's a teenage boy. It's no different than any other kid that has a crush on a teacher. Romance isn't a major focus for the story in Part I despite them being a couple years older than cannon.
Hope you enjoyed. This chapter was the last in the training arc so next chapter we start my original arc. I'm really looking forwards to that. It's an idea I've had in my files since the very first version of this story was being planned seven years ago.
Well, that's all for now.
Until next time,
RinneTaicho, Signing Off!
