Title: Loss
A/N: I really liked reading dreaming of sunshine so I felt inspired to write my own story. Tell me if you like it or have any cool ideas. I hope you enjoy.
Bio: With a kekkei genkei that can only be used to take the lives of others, a boy named Tama swears to become a ninja who can protect all life without ever using his kekkei genkai.
XxxX
Genin Exams Arc: Chapter 1
[The Land of Steam - Unknown Location]
Somewhere nestled in the forests of the Land of Steam there was a village built around an ancient shrine that looked as old as time itself.
In the middle of that shrine filled with people, a newborn baby boy cried.
It reached its meek hands out for the ceiling in search for a mother's warmth but was only met with cold air.
Two men in black robes used black ink to paint a circle around the baby while dozens upon dozens of people in similar black robes prayed. They all surrounded the baby and prayed and prayed, candle light illuminating the room dimly.
"Thou shalt not falter when Jashin asks Thou, Thou shalt kill thy neighbor. Thou shalt bear thy sins. Thou shalt be no remissions of sins. Thou shalt be only blood."
One of the two priest men in black robes said while completing the large circle the baby was in the middle of "Let us pay homage upon the Supreme Being, the great Lord Jashin. May Jashin inspire and guide us using this fresh soul as payment for his love."
The second of the two pulled out a knife and slit his hand without hesitation. Blood started pouring like a faucet but he didn't flinch as he walked up to the baby and started letting his blood fall in its face.
The baby started crying even more as blood started covering it making it harder to breathe. It coughed and choked on the red liquid as it squirmed. The man then said while his index finger started painting red symbols on the baby chest. "With black matted hair, the blood flowing down His neck, and a blackbird on His shoulder, Lord Jashin performs the blood dance. May Jashin bless us with auspiciousness." The priest then took out the same knife he used to cut himself-
-and he plunged it into the baby's heart!
There was no more crying now.
Just as the second priest killed the baby. The first one finished the symbol inside the circle. An upside down triangle.
The two priests quickly weaved hand signs as dozens of people prayed in unison, "We worship the three-eyed Lord Jashin, who nourishes and rejuvenates all beings! He who ferments our soil with blood. He who allows us to live past death. He who protects our village by killing all trespassers. May He liberate us from the cycle of life, just as a ripe soul is effortlessly separated from its vine."
?!
The circle with the upside down triangle in it started glowing a bright red!
In that moment, they had brought something into this world that wasn't supposed to be here.
All the candlelight's suddenly died out.
A crash sound reverberated throughout the building as something dark and purple started illuminating the shrine.
It could only be described as a portal. It was thin and black as purple waves of horror emanated from it.
Suddenly, a black, clawed finger the size of an adult man jammed out of the portal just above the dead baby-
-and then another!
And then another finger. It was almost like something huge was attempting to fit its whole hand through something dreadfully small. It managed to squeeze out another finger, and then its thumb. The red glow from the circle with the upside down triangle started to dim though.
"That fresh soul wasn't enough!" One of the priests shouted.
"Do as I do, followers of Jashin!" The other said, before plunging a blade into his throat.
The priest's body fell to the ground, causing the symbol representing Jashin to get back some of its glow.
All of the other villagers started taking their own lives in sequence.
Through out all this, the villagers whose turn was yet to come kept praying about blood, destruction, and death. The air got heavier and heavier with each passing second.
Slowly, but surely, the lovecraftian creature coated with viscous liquidy scales that oozed ominous purple light finally got its whole hand in through the portal.
It opened its palm up, and a disgusting eye the size of a basket ball metabolized on it. The eyes searched the shrine and honed in on the dead baby below it.
The room went quiet.
The remaining priest got on his knees, "We finally summoned you, Lord Jashin." He clasped his hands together, "Please, Lord! Give me the power I need to protect our village. The Leaf Shinobi are on their way and they are too strong for us to handle alone."
"…"
"…"
"…"
There was nothing but silence. The disgusting, scaled clawed hand just floated in the air. Its mouth started metabolizing below its single eye.
"To be…" That voice alone carried so much power that all the villagers without a powerful enough chakra level instantly passed out, the mouth on the hand continued speaking words, "…awakened for this reason…?"
The hand suddenly shot out of the portal and scooped up the dead baby with a kunai in its chest.
It tossed the dead baby into the air and gobbled it up whole.
"It's soul…" The entity whispered, its voice raspy and demonic, "has already been consumed… this'll do… nicely…"
"Are you going to help us!"The priest shouted, desperate.
The hand kept chewing its food, and chewing, before suddenly-
-BOOOOOM!
A huge hand burst through the wall out of nowhere with a huge crash. "Partial Body Expansion Jutsu: Human Bullet!"
Just as quickly as that hand smashed through the wall, an enormous spiked ball shot through it, trampling scores of villager corpses making blood splatter everywhere.
The priest from earlier backflipped out of the way just in time only to block a kunai slashing down at him moments later with a kunai of his own.
"You're too late!" The priest shouted, counter striking at his attacker with a kunai in his second hand. "It took sacrificing everyone, but we've finally summoned him!"
The attacker jumped away, revealing himself to be a man with spiky black hair in green combat armor. The most prominent article of clothing on him was his headband. It was a hidden leaf village headband at that.
"You people are sick!" Shikaku Nara shouted, his nose crinkling from the scent of death. Every step he took moved around blood under him, and if he didn't pay attention he might even trip on a body.
"Argh!" The priest shouted, "Shut up! You damn leaf shinobi are always getting in my way!"
"Tsk. It was only a matter of time before we found your hideout." Said Shikaku, cringing, "Enough chit-chat. Shadow Possession Jutsu!" Immediately after uttering those words a shadow shot out from Shikaku.
The shadow raced for the priest, who jumped away towards a wall and clung to it using chakra. The shadow quickly climbed the wall as the priest wove a few hand signs, "Curse Style: Cursed Homing Blades!"
Glowing black purple knifes materialized in the air and shot out at Shikaku, who was forced to release his Jutsu and dodge the onslaught of blades.
"Dodging won't help!" Yelled the priest in ecstasy as his glowing purple chakra reverbed mid air and shot back at Shikaku. Shikaku's head turned around in annoyance as the priest pressed his advantage and attacked with another Jutsu. "Lightning Style: Lightning Barrage!"
Throwing a kunai that acted like a lightning rod, the priest activated a lightning Jutsu, causing about a dozen bolts of lightning to shoot out towards Shikaku-
-who simply wove a handsign and turned into a thick, shadowy liquid blob.
The lightning Jutsu and homing curse blade hit nothing but air as what was once Shikaku turned into nothing and slunk into the ground as a liquid shadow.
"What the… what the heck…" The priest was confused. Since when did the Nara have a Jutsu like that? Where'd he go?!
"You're Warumei, aren't you?" A voice suddenly said from behind him.
Warumei shot back to see who said that only to realize… he couldn't move. "Damn it!" He shouted as he started to feel dizzy. "Lord Jashin… help… me…" he fell to the ground unconscious moments later.
Warumei's body stood up a second later. "Good distraction, Shikaku."
Shikaku appeared out of the shadow of a nearby wall. "Thanks, Inoichi. Looks like it's just us now. And that thing."
"Yeah." Inoichi, from inside Warumei's body, replied. All the villagers had sacrificed themselves, leaving just that priest. And now that Inoichi had mind transferred with him the only enemy left was… the strange entity.
The huge clawed hand that was chewing something in its mouth only started giggling at the state of affairs.
"You must be the leaf shinobi, eh?" It wondered.
"It can talk," Said Shikaku in surprise. "What are you, then?" The hand moved, causing Shikaku and Inoichi to tense up and get into a fighting position.
"I guess… to frame it so a mere human could understand."
When the hand said that in a bloodcurdling tone Shikaku, Inoichi, and Choza - who walked over to Shikaku's side with Inoichi's true body on his back - froze.
"What is that… thing…" Choza whispered, freaked out.
Inoichi and Shikaku were silent.
The hand continued in a scratchy, deep inhuman voice, "What would you do, if an ant asked you for some food?"
?!
Immediately after asking that question, the hand moved, aiming to grab Shikaku.
"Shikaku!" Inoichi, inside Warumei, yelled pushing him out the way and getting grabbed instead. The entity held Warumei up in the air. "You might just step on it!" And then the hand squeezed.
Warumei (Inoichi) started screaming, but the sound of his bones breaking inside of him overpowered it.
This had all happened so fast that Shikaku and Choza barely had time to react.
"Inoichi!" Choza and Shikaku shouted.
"Partial Body Expansion Jutsu: Open Hand Slap!"
"Shadow Paralysis Jutsu!"
A shadow shot out and held the entity in place.
At the same time, Choza threw Inoichi's real body to safety while his right arm swelled into a massive fist that opened and then shot out at the entity.
But Choza wasn't quick enough.
The hand threw Warumei's mangled corpse into the air, knocked Choza's hand away, and opened its mouth up wide, gobbling Warumei up whole, "But then what if; for hundreds of years, these damn ants kept asking for food no matter how many times you killed them? And then they even started sacrificing other ants? Hah… hahahaha…" The hand was genuinely amused at the antics being displayed before it.
Sounding dreadfully bored, the hand let out, "I guess you might just… feed them after a while…"
The hand with an eye and mouth on it closed its palm and then lowered itself to the ground, as if it were placing down something. When the hand opened its palm and let go of what it was holding, it returned back into the portal, leaving behind a confused Choza and Shikaku.
A baby's cries started ringing out.
XxxxxxX
12 Years Later - Konohagakure, Land of Fire
In a classroom, a man in a green leaf shinobi outfit taught his class. "Chakra is essential for performing jutsu." He said, "Through hand seals and other methods, ninjas manipulate chakra to achieve effects like walking on water, exhaling fire, or creating illusions. Can anyone tell me the 3 branches of Jutsu?"
"Oh, me! Me me me!" A girl with pink hair and a red kunoichi outfit yelled out.
Iruka-sensei started sweating, "Uh, does anyone else wanna answer this one?"
"I will!" Another girl with white blond hair shouted.
The two girls then locked eyes and in that moment it was almost like lightning flew across the room!
"…"
"…"
Other than the two girls growling at each other, there was silence.
"Anyone other than Sakura and Ino?" Iruka-sensei asked once more a little bit more desperate now.
"…"
"…"
"Ok then, what about you, Naruto? What are the 3 types of Jutsu?"
"Huh, me?" A blond kid wearing orange wondered in surprise. Everyone started looking at him which made him a little nervous. He gave a nervous smile in response. "That's such an easy question. Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and… uh… and… jeez what was it again?" Naruto started racking his head. He massaged his forehead, causing his goggles to mess up his hair.
Iruka-sensei felt bad. This was one of the easiest questions. I really thought he would get it. The last thing Iruka wanted to do was embarrass the kid though. He did enough of that on his own. "Want a hint, Naruto?"
"Uhm, I definitely know it, but I wouldn't mind, you know!" Said Naruto with his nervous smile.
"What a loser." Scoffed a kid in all black named Sasuke.
"Wanna say that to my face, bastard?!" Naruto yelled, standing up.
Sasuke just shrugged in annoyance. "Loser."
"Grrrrrrr!"
Some of the other ninja in training laughed and one even pulled out a bag of potato chips and started eating it among the chaos.
Meanwhile, Iruka-sensei just explained to Naruto, "Taijutsu is physical. It's the art of using your body to move around and attack. Let's just say it's using your body to fight. And then there's ninjutsu, which uses your chakra to manipulate the world around you. You've got those 2, but there's one more, one that can effect your mind and make you see things-"
"Genjutsu! Duh!" Naruto shouted out as if he knew it all along.
Iruka-sensei smiled, "Exactly. Nice one Naruto!"
Naruto started giggling with a soft smile and got back in his seat, not noticing the annoyed sighs of all his classmates.
There was one kid in the class though who didn't sigh. He sat in the far back and looked out of the window. The preteen had black hair with a streak of white in it, and similarly black eyes. His defining feature was the symbol just below his right eye. It was a circle with an upside down triangle in it. The boy's name was Tama Jinsei and he wore blue khaki jeans with a brown blazer. Under his brown blazer was a white T-shirt with a picture of the great stone faces on them.
He looked out the window at the actual ones and whispered under his breath, "I can't wait until I'm a Ninja."
XxxxX
Later that day - [Land of Fire, Konohagakure]
Class was still in session, but now it was time for the practicals.
Part 1 of the practicals were pretty easy. All you had to do was throw a kunai at your target. You had 8 tries and you had to get at least 50 points. Bullseyes were worth 15 points and the further you were away from it the less points you'd score.
Everyone passed (some with flying colors) except for… Naruto.
Next was Taijutsu.
There wasn't exactly a scoring system for this part. Students were grouped into pairs of two and made to fight. Teachers would watch over these fights and decide who passed based on their performance. One didn't necessarily have to win in order to pass, just show an aptitude the teachers were looking for.
First up was Hinata and Shikamaru.
"Damn, what a drag." Shikamaru let out. "And no Ninjutsu, right?"
"Correct." Said Mizuki.
Iruka tacked on, "Just do your best."
A bead of sweat rollled down Shikamaru's cheek. "Yeah… I guess."
The ensuing battle went just as what one would've expected. Tama watched closely, but he knew Hinata was from the Hyuga clan. Even if she didn't use gentle fist (an ability allowing one to hit chakra points thus disabling the flow of chakra in victims) Shikamaru stood little chance of beating her.
He put up one hell of a fight though, managing to keep his distance away for a whole minute. The second he tried to counter attack he had his right arm pinned behind his back.
"Damn, Hinata. I give up, I give up." He let out in pain.
"Sorry Shikamaru." Said Hinata, releasing him and giving a bow. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
Shikamaru laughed, "You were supposed to, haha."
The two bumped fists, Mizuki and Iruka told the two they passed and then the next pair was up.
Naruto and Sasuke.
The two squared up with similarly looking grimaces on their faces. The teachers said to go and the two went each other.
"Everyone thinks your some hotshot but I'm gonna prove you're not right here and now, believe it!"
"We'll see." Sasuke replied coolly.
"And there you go tryna act all cool!" Naruto threw his right fist forward, which Sasuke easily evaded by letting it go right past his face.
One shoulder check later and Naruto found himself on his back staring at the sky. He quickly hopped to his feet despite not having that much air in his lungs.
"That was me being nice, Naruto." Sasuke said, loading his fists up and hopping two steps back, "Now I'm gonna get serious."
Naruto smiled, "Oh yeah! Let's go then!"
Just like last time, Naruto launched forward with his right fist. Sasuke slid past it by evading to the left with ease but Naruto wasn't an idiot and expected that. He pivoted on his left foot and threw his left elbow right into Sasuke's path, landing a clean blow!
Well, it would've been clean had Sasuke not caught it and countered with a roundhouse kick at Naruto's gut.
Naruto flew 4 feet back with the air knocked out of him again but he grit his teeth as he landed and rolled back onto his feet making use of the backward force the hit gave him.
Before Sasuke could even let out a remark Naruto was already back on him, letting out punch's and kicks which Sasuke easily deflected, blocked, or dodged.
He barely has any training at all. He's just throwing whatever the hell he can think of at me. Thought Sasuke, analyzing. Naruto threw a left hook that Sasuke blocked with his elbow, but- a feint?!
Sasuke saw it at the last second, but he didn't see it quick enough! A fist landed on his right shoulder just where his collarbone was and it actually… hurt like hell!
For the first time now, Sasuke smiled. Sure, Sasuke could've ended the fight sooner if he wanted to but, he was actually having a bit of fun. Every time he knocked Naruto down the kid just got back up even stronger and blabbered about how he was going to get better than him and become the hokage. Naruto reminded Sasuke of himself a lot actually, of when he and Itachi used to-
-the smile left Sasuke's face immediately. He easily jumped up over a kick Naruto aimed for his legs and spun in the air, landing a much harder kick right at Naruto's face.
Naruto careened into the ground and even bounced a few times before coming to a stop. The blond kid tried to get back up once again but Sasuke didn't let him. He stepped on his back and held him to the ground.
It was clear who the victor was in that moment.
"Sasuke wins." Iruka-Sensei called out.
"But that was honestly a great performance from the both of you, so you both pass the Taijutsu portion of the test." Mizuki said happily.
Sasuke stepped off of Naruto and sighed. I can't let myself get distracted. I'm doing all of this for an explicit reason.
Meanwhile, on the ground, Naruto thought, Damn it damn it damn it! "Next time for sure I'll get you you smug bastard!"
"Meh, you can definitely try."
A few other pairs of students went to fight each other and they were all close battles. Especially Ino's and Sakura's. Now it was Tama's and Kiba's turn though.
They both stood 8 feet apart, and all Tama could think to say was, "Oh, c'mon man. Seriously?"
Currently, Kiba was on all fours.
"What," Replied Kiba, "This is how I fight!"
A few of the kids in class started laughing.
"That wasn't a joke. This is how I fight. For real!" Kiba defended himself.
"Oh? Am I supposed to get on all fours too?" Tama deadpanned, bending down so that his hands and feet were touching the ground too.
Even more people started laughing and Kiba shouted in annoyance, "Whatever! Just fight me already!"
Tama quit joking around and launched to his two feet, "Sir yes sir." He obliged, just in time to roll to the right and narrowly avoid a dog-like pounce.
Kiba didn't give Tama much time to recover his stance though as he was already back on him.
Tama saw Kiba jump into the air straight for his face and let himself fall to his back. Quickly, he placed both feet onto Kiba's stomach and launched the dog trainer!
Kiba flew into Hinata's direction, forcing her and a few other students spectating to move out the way.
Kiba landed graciously though. "Not bad," he said, wiping some of the sweat off his brow. His stomach hurt a little from the double kick but he didn't let his pain show. "You're always pretty quiet, Tama. Glad to know you're not a push over too. Take this!"
"Thanks, I guess." Stepping back, Tama got ready for the next animal onslaught. Just like earlier Kiba sprinted at Tama on all fours.
He's definitely gonna change it up now. There's no way he'll pounce like he did earlier. Tama was sweating a bit, but a soft smile was on his face as Kiba came up on him.
Instead of just waiting for Kiba though and reacting, Tama threw himself forward too!
Kiba pounced, but Tama did too! Instead of throwing a punch though, Tama just tanked Kiba's scratches, tackled him, and grabbed him in midair.
"I've got you now!" Tama yelled, holding Kiba in a chokehold on the ground.
"Oh yeah!" Kiba yelled, baring his fangs.
The scream that Tama let out next would be remember by everyone who heard it for weeks.
XxxxxX
An hour Later [Konohagakure, Land of Fire]
Tama massaged his sore cheeks unhappily as his fellow students started performing the transformation Jutsu. The last part of the practicals.
Shino passed.
Sasuke passed.
Ino passed.
Everyone was passing. Given how easy the Jutsu was one would have to try to NOT pass.
As Tama waited his turn he had a flashback to his fight with Kiba. He bit me! And he wouldn't stop biting me too! That shit friggin' hurt I'm never gonna fight that guy again! Unless I'm coated in poison or something.
After the initial bite, Tama was so surprised that he froze. It was literally the last thing he expected from a human being. But then the bites kept coming and coming and the situation went from Tama having Kiba in a chokehold to Kiba being on top of Tama and punching him in the face over and over again.
Shuddering from fear, Tama let out a single tear of sadness. Next time for sure he'd show that rampant mutt who's boss!
Before Tama knew it though, it was his turn to perform the transformation Jutsu.
Mizuki and Iruka watched as he declared, "Transformation Jutsu!"
A plume of smoke shot into the air!
Inside the smoke was Kiba on all fours. "Woof woof woof!" Kiba barked. And everyone started laughing.
"Not cool!" Yelled Kiba.
One of the only people here who didn't laugh was Naruto, though. In order to become a genin ninja had to pass at least 2 of the practicals and then partake in a group genin exam with everyone else.
Unfortunately, Naruto failed the kunai throwing practical, and somehow passed the Taijutsu one even though he never knocked Sasuke down once.
Out of the corner of his eye, Sasuke watched Naruto clenching his fists so hard that his nails dug into his palms. No one but Sasuke noticed this.
Whatever happens, I don't really care. Sasuke told himself.
"Last but not least, Naruto." Announced Iruka.
Naruto nervously walked up to the middle of the classroom.
All I have to do is a transformation jutsu. That's super easy. I'll do it no sweat. He told himself, I know what Iruka-sensei looks like pretty well. I'll just transform into him, believe it. I just have to believe it!
"Transformation Jutsu!" Shouted Naruto, believing in himself.
"…"
"…"
"…"
When the smoke cleared Iruka-sensei was standing in the middle. Well, at least it was supposed to be Iruka-sensei. "Iruka-sensei" was at least 2 times as big as Choji was - not that he was fat or anything - and a little shorter then he should've been too.
The real Iruka-sensei's mouth was hanging so wide open you could see his tonsils. I'm flattered, but… "You can try again, Naruto." He said. It was against the rules but who cared.
"Transformation Jutsu!"
This time "Iruka-sensei" was way too tall and skinny.
"Try again, Naruto."
"Transformation Jutsu!"
This time "Iruka-sensei" had an extra arm.
"Ok, one more time."
"Transformation Jutsu!"
Now "Iruka-sensei" had no legs.
"One last time."
"Transformation Jutsu!"
Unfortunately, "Iruka-sensei" had no arms.
"One last last time."
"Transformation Jutsu!"
Comically, "Iruka-sensei" had no arms and no legs.
XxxxxX
School had ended for the day and the list for who got to go in the Genin exams were made. The name "Naruto" was missing.
Like always, Sasuke disappeared as soon as class let out.
Some kids went home together like Shikamaru and Choji, for a few others, their parents came to pick their kids up.
Tama didn't have any parents though so he elected to walk home by himself, Rents due in a week. He thought to himself. When I'm a ninja I won't have to worry about it, but for now, I gotta go to work in a little bit.
When Tama was a kid, a very special person took care of him… but for… personal reasons… that person and him don't talk to each other anymore.
Ever since, Tama has been alone. When money was low he'd go to the forest to get food, but times like that were rare now because he had two jobs. One was a dish washer and the other was a server. Both jobs went late into the night and they were in downtown too so he didn't have to worry about his classmates finding out.
"But when I'm a ninja." Tama whispered to himself, "I'll make a whole bunch of money!"
Sure, it was a pretty selfish reason, but who didn't want to lead a good, carefree life?
Brrrrrrrrrrrrr….
Tama's stomach started to rumble. He blushed and then realized he just passed Ichiraku Ramen. Does it fit into the budget? Tama asked inwardly. He tried to pull out his wallet but, "Oh crap."
He didn't have it. If he didn't have it though, then where the hell was it?!
?!
He must've lost it when he fought stupid dog boy! As quick as he could, he started running back to the Ninja school!
XxxxxxX
5 minutes Earlier – [Konohagakure, Land of Fire]
Naruto swinged himself on the playground swing as he watched all of the other kids slowly disappear, one after the other.
He wasn't waiting on anyone or anything. He just, didn't feel like going home yet. No, not yet. Not to that lonely place.
On the outside, Naruto may seem like a loud, brazen boy, but when he was all alone he was… quiet. Withdrawn. Introspective.
People watching was something he quite enjoyed. Watching everyone else go about their life. Sasuke was the first to go, probably to go train. Maybe that's how Sasuke was so cool.
No, he's not cool! Naruto yelled at himself. But deep down even he liked Sasuke too (though he'd never admit it, ever!). Everyone acknowledged Sasuke. He was popular with the girls, and he was good at Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, and… that one other jutsu, whatever it was called again-
-a boy entered Naruto's field of view.
He fought Kiba earlier. Why's Tama here? Naruto watched as Tama went over the field behind the school and started looking around for something. Whatever it was must've been pretty important because he was looking for it for like… 20 minutes or something.
Eventually, Naruto started to feel bad for him so he got up from his swing and went over to him to ask, "Whatcha looking for?"
Tama jumped in surprise from where he was in a patch of grass, "Oh, uh, Naruto?" The question 'what are you still doing here?' Lingered on Tama's tongue but he never said it, "I think I lost my wallet during my scuffle with Kiba earlier."
"You mean when he bit you?" Naruto wondered with a giggle.
"I still can't believe he'd just bite me like that! I hate Kiba!" Tama yelled in annoyance. "Someone oughta potty train that damn rodent!"
"Haha you'd think he was raised by wolves or something."
"I wouldn't even be surprised!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Hah, hahaha!"
They both shared a hearty laugh before Tama suddenly said a little seriously, "By the way…I'm sorry for what happened earlier today Naruto."
Naruto's laughter and smile disappeared.
"Ahhh it's nothing. I'll just try again next year." He said, putting on a fake smile and giving Tama a thumbs up, "Believe it! Just like how you better believe we'll find your wallet!"
"Oh, you don't have to," Tama tried to placate, but Naruto had already begun looking through the grass at breakneck speeds. "Screw it, thanks Naruto!"
"It's nothing!"
Tama smiled, relieved that Naruto hadn't given up on becoming a ninja. The two never talked much in school, in fact this was the most they ever spoke to each other, but they never had a bad interaction even once.
It took some time, but Naruto ended up being the one who finally found it. Tama thanked him once again profusely and then realized he had some time before his part time job started at 9.
Since Naruto failed ninja academy, he probably wouldn't see him again for a whole year because Naruto would have to stay behind at the Academy for another year.
"Hey, Naruto, do you wanna… uhm… train for a bit?" Tama asked that question shyly with one of his hands scratching the back of his head. He didn't have any friends so he was just going to go home and train by himself until it was time to start his part time job… but… he didn't want to say goodbye just yet…
"Uhm…" Naruto made a sound of confusion. He was about to speak but Tama quickly cut him off-
-"It's okay if you don't want to."
"I'll teach you how to fight and you can teach me the transformation Jutsu!" Naruto beamed with a huge smile on his face.
"Deal!" Tama shot back, holding out his hand for Naruto to shake, but then added suspiciously, "Wait, you know how to fight?"
"Of course I do! Better believe it, Tama." Naruto shook Tama's hand happily.
Tama doubted the validity of Naruto's statement, but secretly both boys were happy they made a friend.
XxxxxxX
They both fought each other over and over again. Tama's fighting style was pretty crafty and thought out, but Naruto's was all over the place.
That actually worked in Naruto's favor though. His moves were insanely hard for Tama to predict and that led to a lot of Tama's plans coming undone right after he thought he was catching on to a pattern.
Not only that, but it was almost like Naruto never got tired or ran out of energy. If Tama didn't end the fight quick Naruto would just straight up out last him and then pin Tama to the ground when he started getting out of breath.
Their personal rule was that whoever hit the ground first lost.
But as much as Naruto beat Tama, the ladder won just as much. While it wasn't always easy to predict Naruto's moves, Tama's plans would account for them.
Tama was no strategist, but he had pretty good intuition and could easily guess an opponents move before they even made them. There were many times where Naruto threw a punch only for Tama to dodge it before the punch was even thrown and knock Naruto to the ground.
Soon enough, Tama's fighting was starting to get more wild like Naruto's, and Naruto's fighting style was getting more thought out and full of strategy. They were taking on all the best aspects of each other.
Before long though, the two boys laid on the ground, bruised and battered and exhausted, but smiling from ear to ear.
"How the hell are you so… damn strong Naruto?"
"What do you mean strong, I barely hit what I throw anyway."
"But when they do hit they hit like a truck, a truck full of dynamite!"
"I am pretty explosive, aren't I?!"
They both started laughing after that.
If Naruto can't be a Ninja, and he's this awesome, why the hell are they letting me be one? It makes no damn sense! Tama sat up soon though, "How'd you mess up the Transformation Jutsu so many times? It's so easy."
Scoffing, Naruto sat up, shrugged and looked away in frustration, "Easy for you, maybe."
"But why not for you too?"
"How am I supposed to know?"
Tama didn't know how to answer that question. He just stood and wove a hand sign, imagining his chakras flowing through his heart, bellybutton, and then skin. "Transformation Jutsu!"
A puff of smoke shot into the air, and then instead of Tama, there was Sakura.
Sakura did a sexy pose which made Naruto turn beet red and scream, "I should've never told you I liked her!"
"Oh Naruto," Sakura said seductively, "That Sasuke guy is such a loser. I wanna kiss you instead, handsome."
Naruto got even redder and started holding his nose. "Change back. Right now before it's too late." He really didn't feel like getting a nose bleed.
Sakura started laughing before she released the transformation, and then Tama said, "Now you try. I'm gonna watch very close."
"Ok. I'll get it this time, Tama, believe it." Naruto took a deep breath, wove the hand signs, and then shouted, "Transformation Jutsu!"
Watching closely, Tama closed his eyes. Though it may have seemed counterintuitive it actually helped him. The same way how closing your eyes can help you hear better, closing his eyes can help him sense chakra better. He didn't know why but ever since he was a kid he was very good at sensing Chakra. His abilities were nothing like the Uchiha or the Hyuga but they were good enough that he was conscious of his own chakra and the chakra within others if they were close enough to him.
He could sense the will of fire within Naruto. Naruto tried to sculpt his Chakra so that it would transform the look of his skin but-
-he was using way too much chakra for such a simple jutsu!
But to him he probably doesn't think he's using that much! Why does he have so much Chakra?! Tama wondered, amazed.
To clarify in layman's terms exactly what happened just now, think of the transformation jutsu like a straw. In order to do it, you had to use a spoon to poor water down the straw without letting any water fall out.
Naruto had so much water though that it was the equivalent of using a bowl to channel water through a small straw. Naruto definitely had the ability to do it, but not the means.
Another plume of smoke later and Tama was suddenly standing in front of Tama. However one of them was bald.
"Yes! I did it! Told you I'd do it!"
Tama facepalmed. "Touch your head."
"Ahhhhh! Why am I bald!?"
XxxxxX
In only an hour, Naruto made amazing progress. His transformation jutsu wasn't perfect by any means, but after Tama told him what he was doing wrong he started improving by leaps and bounds. Naruto started using WAY less chakra and it started to bear fruit!
"Transformation Jutsu!"
Naruto transformed into Tama perfectly, except…
"You're two inches too short, but hell yeah!" Tama screamed happily, reaching out his fist.
Naruto released the transformation and fist bumped his friend.
"Told you I'd nail it sooner or later! Believe it!"
"You should show Iruka-sensei when you get the chance." Urged Tama before he started shaking, "Oh crap! I'm gonna be late for work! Catch you later, Naruto!"
"W-work? You have a job?"
"Yeah." Replied Tama as he broke into a mad dash, "I serve in downtown at the Grand Fruit Hotel. You should bring Sakura sometime! I'll hook you guys up!"
Naruto got red and shouted, "I regret ever telling you!"
Tama just started laughing as he vanished from sight.
Laughing a little himself too, Naruto whispered, "See you tomorrow… Tama."
The blond haired kid wearing orange started walking the other direction to his own home too, a huge smile on his face, but he never saw the man with white hair who was watching him closely from a nearby tree.
Under his breath, Mizuki laughed, "I think I know just how I'll get that forbidden scroll. Hahahahaha."