"This is boring!" Thalia complained, slumped in her seat.
Iruka sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He didn't think it was possible to have a worse student than Naruto but Thalia was getting there. "It's been fifteen minutes, Thalia," he said.
"Feels like hours," she muttered. "Can't we do something else?"
"No, we can't. You need to learn this."
"Why?" Thalia questioned, flipping the pencil between her knuckles expertly.
"Because all the other genin will have this knowledge and be that much ahead of you. Use these few days to do your best to catch up to them."
Thalia sighed. "I went for years without school and was fine. None of this stuff will actually help me in the field. Experience will."
"Knowledge can be just as important," Iruka countered. "Knowing your enemy and what they are capable of can give you the edge. If you knew the weaknesses to all those monsters and gods back home, wouldn't you want to use that to your advantage?"
Thalia grumbled, unwilling to admit he had a point.
"Now, let's get back to it. What is this nation?"
Thalia glanced at it. "Earth."
"Wrong, it's lightning."
"Oh. That was my second guess."
"Come on Thalia," Iruka said. "This is very basic stuff."
Thalia threw up her arms. "Well I'm sorry but I have ADHD and dyslexia. It's not my fault!"
"AD-whatnow? And what's dyslexia?" Iruka asked.
"ADHD," Thalia repeated. "Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder. It's what the people back home called my disorder. It just means my mind is wired to wander around or something. I can't focus on just one thing or sit still or stuff like that. It helps me in combat though. I notice things other don't and can act more on instinct than anything else."
Iruka nodded, slightly impressed. That was a gift. But it didn't help him right now. "So you're saying this ADHD basically impedes your ability to learn."
Thalia tilted her head back and forth. "Yeah, pretty much. I had some teachers who had a few tricks that helped out but…honestly I didn't go to school that much. Can't even really remember much about what I learned."
Iruka stroked his chin, trying to think. "Maybe Naruto has-"
"Oh for sure," Thalia agreed instantly. "One conversation with him and I can tell. He's like the poster child for ADHD."
"Huh. Alright then, we're going to try something different. Look at these symbols again."
Thalia looked down at the five symbols that represented the five great nations and the elements they stood for. "Ok."
"Let's see if we can come up with a way for you to remember these. Now, this is lightning right?" Iruka asked. "So, it kind of looks like a thunderstorm, doesn't it?"
Thalia took another look and nodded a little It did sort of look like it was raining on a house, from a certain perspective. "Kinda, yeah. I guess I can make that work."
"Great. Now here, earth. Hmmm, how about…a barren tree rising from the dirt?"
Thalia found herself nodding again. She could see that too. "Ok. Now for water…let's say…"
"Water slides," Thalia finished, making her own connection. "Kind of looks like water slides shooting out of it."
Iruka didn't know what that meant but just went along with it. "If that works for you, great. Now the wind one here kind of looks like a shelter. So you could say that-"
"It's sheltering from the wind," Thalia nodded along. "Yeah, I got that. And fire…I guess two sparks shooting out from the main flame."
"Alright," Iruka smiled. "Now that's progress."
"Great, so now I can recognize the symbols of these nations. Yippee. What's next?"
They spent the rest of the day going over basic knowledge. Thalia learned about the founding of the five nations that began with the Leaf Village as well as the separate Kage. There were also a bunch of other smaller nations but Iruka decided to forgo those, choosing to prioritize.
"Now the most important thing you need to understand is chakra," he told her.
"Right, that thing the Nine-Tailed Fox gave me. How does that work?"
"Chakra is a substance that inhabits all living things here."
"Kind of sounds like the Force," Thalia murmured under her breath.
Iruka went on to explain as much as he could about chakra, about its pathway system in the body and the ways it could be manipulated. Thalia likened it to certain demigod abilities she knew. She imagined it sort of like ichor, the blood of the gods that essentially was where her powers came from. Once she made that connection, she began to understand things better.
"Now, while you are officially being allowed to become a genin, we still must test you with the jutsu all students are to master in order to graduate," Iruka informed her. "You've already proven you are capable with your own abilities. But still, all other genin can do these things on top of their own specialized jutsu."
"Specialized?" Thalia asked, confused.
"There are different clans and families in the village and the world. Many of them have a specialized jutsu that gets passed down. We call them kekkei genkai. There are other examples as well. You know Hinata Hyūga?"
"Yeah."
"Her family possesses the byakugan, a technique that allows them to see everything around them with complete accuracy, even a person's chakra system."
"Huh," Thalia nodded, thinking of Neji. That made some sense given a couple comments he made.
"There are others. That man you met, Inoichi. The one who saw your mind. That's his family's special jutsu."
"Oh, right," Thalia grimaced at that thought.
"There are too many to get into now. The point is, many of the students will have these techniques alongside the basic ones they learn here. Because of your own father, you have your special technique down. But, if you learned these basic techniques you would have the edge over them."
Thalia nodded as she followed along. "Alright, I get it. So where do we start?"
"You only just received a chakra system. But you've been using your powers…" Iruka hesitated, not sure what the answer was.
"For a while," Thalia supplied.
"Alright. So, while this is still confusing for me, we're going to test this out and see how it goes. Now, do you remember when Naruto made all those clones?"
"Kind of hard to forget," Thalia replied.
"Alright, well that's called the Shadow Clone Jutsu. What he did is an advanced form of the regular Clone Jutsu which just create illusions of oneself that can distract opponents and is actually a pretty common one that most people can use. Naruto's version exceeds most everyone else's already though as his are solid clones that can, it seems, act of their own accord. Don't tell him I said that though, his ego doesn't need a boost right now."
"Your secret's safe," Thalia replied before she realized something. "Wait, you want me to try it out?"
Iruka nodded. "Like I said, you have chakra now and making a shadow clone is one of the requirements for graduating the academy. Again, based on your own skills and combat experience, the Hokage has managed to make the exception for you. But…"
"But we want me to be on the same level as the other genin," Thalia finished. "Gotcha. Alright, how do we do this?"
"Simple. I want you to focus your chakra and then make this sign with your hands," Iruka told her, showing his crossed fingers. A second later, there was a familiar poof and a double of Iruka appeared next to him. Another second and he was gone. "See?"
"Focus my chakra?" Thalia asked. "I don't even know what I'm reaching for."
"The Hokage said that your DNA and your new chakra fused together. I think that now, when you reach for your power, your chakra is part of it as well. So try that. Reach for your, uh, godly power but not for the lightning part. Reach for…the energy of it I suppose. Does that make sense?"
"Sort of," Thalia nodded. "Alright, I'll try."
She made the same hand sign Iruka was making and then focused. For a second, nothing happened. Then, she felt a surge in her gut and her fingers lit up with electricity, sparking wildly and taking her by surprise so much that she jumped back with a yelp.
"A good effort," Iruka nodded. "But not what we want."
"Sorry."
"No, don't worry. While it would be great for you to get it on the first try, that does seem unlikely even for someone as proficient as you. So just keep at it."
Thalia did, focusing her power through her hand sign to try and make a clone of herself. But she'd never done something like that before. All her powers were weather related. So while she understood that she should be able to do it, she just couldn't picture it. Even if Iruka showed her, she understood that it worked for him, not her. All she managed to do was make her fingers spark with bolts of electricity.
"Really imagine it," Iruka coaxed after her twentieth failure.
"I'm trying!" Thalia snapped. "It's just not working! I don't think I'm cut out for this kind of chakra…thing. It just doesn't feel right to me."
Iruka stroked his chin again, thinking this over. Maybe she was right. Maybe they weren't thinking this clearly. Shadow clones were the easiest to create for most shinobi. But not all. There were plenty of other shinobi who used other types of elements for their clones. Like water or mud or substances like that. Thalia was used to a certain type of power so she couldn't really bring it out in a way she wasn't used to. That was probably the problem.
"Let's try one more time. This time, don't think of it as a shadow clone," Iruka advised.
"Huh?" Thalia questioned. "What do you mean?"
"Tell me something. You said your father was God of the Sky right? Does that mean you control all the elements of the sky? Like winds and clouds and stuff like that?"
Thalia thought about it. "I've never really tried. Lightning was kind of the most powerful attack so I just focused on that. But I think I should be able to."
Iruka nodded. "Alright, then that's what we'll be focusing on now. Forget about clones, I want you to create a fogbank in the class."
"A fogbank?" Thalia asked, eyebrows raised. "Alright, if you say so."
Like she'd said, she'd never done something like this before. Her default had always been lightning. But clouds and wind and all that were part of her father's domain which meant they were also a part of her domain as well.
She thought about one particular foggy day when the air was so thick it felt like you sink your teeth into it. She'd been on the run from some particularly nasty doglike monsters and had managed to lose them in the fog. She hadn't really thought about it before but, thinking back, she had been able to move through the fog much easier. Maybe she was remembering wrong but she could almost swear she had been able to tell where everything was. It was how she had led those monsters off a cliff.
"Thalia?"
Thalia opened her eyes and almost gasped, seeing the classroom filled with fog. "Whoa," she murmured. "I guess it worked."
"You guess?" Iruka chuckled. "You are full of surprises, you know that? But this gives me room to work in."
"Huh? How so?"
Before he could react, the door suddenly opened and someone on the other side let out a startled yelp. "What happened? Why is there a cloud in here?"
"It's fog," Iruka replied. "We're trying to understand Thalia's powers better."
"Well, I'd say it was a success," Inoichi Yamanaka said, parting through the fog as he reached them. "What can't you do?"
"Make shadow clones, evidently," Thalia sighed, folding her arms over her chest.
"Actually, that may not be true," Iruka corrected.
"Huh? But you saw all my attempts. All I did was make sparks from my fingers."
"Because we've been doing this the wrong way. Your power comes from your father, but now it also comes from chakra as the two have fused. Meaning there should be some leeway, if my theory is right."
"Leeway?" Thalia asked, frowning as she tried to follow what he was saying.
"Not everyone knows all the jutsu or can even perform them," Iruka told her. "Actually, Inoichi here is a good example of that. Because of his clan, he is a master at the mind transfer jutsu and other similar types of mental jutsu. But he isn't as good at the shadow clone jutsu."
"I'm not bad either," Inoichi defended. "But yes, in most cases I resort to what I'm better at which would be mind transfer and the like."
"Ok…" Thalia said hesitantly, still not following.
"With you, your powers are sky-based because of your father. So we just need to play to that," Iruka told her
"What does that have to do with shadow clones?" she asked.
"Shadow clones are only one type of clone. Depending on a person's personalized jutsu style, they can adapt their clones to fit that. Such as water clones or mud clones…or cloud clones," Iruka said with extra emphasis.
"Oh," Thalia replied, eyes wide as she understood. Now that she thought about it, maybe. Clouds were a part of her domain even if clones weren't. And she had chakra now so that should power whatever kept the clones together. It was worth a try.
She made the hand sign again and took a breath, focusing. She reached again for her powers inside but this time imagined it differently. She pictured the fog in front of her coalescing into her form and her chakra making it into an exact duplicate. Once she had that image in mind, she poured her power out and cried, "Cloud Clone Jutsu!"
There was no poof. Instead, there was a whoosh as the fog in front of her came together in an instant in an outline of her body. The next second, there was a perfect replica of her standing right there.
"Whoa," Thalia murmured, blinking in surprise.
"Yo," the other Thalia said.
"Nice work," Iruka grinned.
"Very impressive," Inoichi commented.
"It looks just-" Thalia took a step before she suddenly felt a wave of fatigue and only just managed to stop herself from falling. A second later, the clone vanished and the fog began to dissipate.
"Whoa, you alright Thalia?" Iruka asked with concern.
"Yeah, just…really tired," she replied, repressing a yawn. "That took a lot out of me."
"Well, you are still getting used to your chakra system," Iruka reminded her. "Soon enough, this should come easily to you. And I think we're good with learning jutsu for now."
"We are?"
"Yes. It seems in order for you to do it, you need to make some connection between that jutsu and your own abilities. Otherwise, it won't work for you. And other jutsu we learned here include the substitution jutsu where you replace your body with an object to fool enemies. And…"
"Yeah, I don't see myself being able to do that," Thalia said honestly. It sounded cool but it didn't really have something to do the sky.
"Then let's stop here."
"I guess I came at the perfect time then," Inoichi said.
"Right," Thalia said, girding herself. "Do we need to go somewhere special or…"
"Yes, that would be best. I have a machine at my home that will do what you want. And right now my wife and daughter are busy at the family flower store, so…"
"Alright," Thalia nodded, getting the hint. She turned to Iruka. "We're for today, right?"
"Yes, that should be fine," Iruka nodded. "Tomorrow we'll do some more basic knowledge as well as test out your combat training. I've seen a little of what you can do but I want to get a better sense."
"Sounds fun," Thalia smiled. She was always down to improve her combat abilities. It helped keep her alive after all.
"You'll need a training partner though," Iruka said thoughtfully. "And it would have to be someone in the know or close to it…hmm…I'll need to thi-"
"Ask Hinata," Thalia suggested.
"Hinata?" Iruka asked in surprise before remembering she had helped bring Thalia back to the Hokage's office. "Right, yes she could do. I'll go to the Hyūga compound and ask myself."
"See if she wants to join us for ramen too," Thalia suggested, thinking of what the girl had said about her family. "I think she could use some time away from her home."
Iruka nodded, all too familiar with the Hyūga situation. "Sounds good. Alright, I'll see you later then. And you know the way?"
Thalia shrugged. "Naruto said he'd pick me up here at the end of the day, so I'll just come right back once we're done."
"Alright, see you later."
With that, she followed Inoichi out the door and then out of the academy. It was a bit of a walk to the Yamanaka compound. Thalia noticed a few curious stares here and there but nothing major. It was surreal for her, being able to walk down the street without having to worry about monster attacks or foster services rolling up on her. She could actually breathe easily.
Wish Luke and Annabeth could experience this, she thought wistfully.
They arrived at the main house, a short squat building that didn't look all too different from all the others. Before she could walk in, Inoichi asked her to take off her shoes, an apparent custom here. Then they made their way through the house to a specific locked room that Inoichi opened up.
"This is my main office," he said, gesturing to the desk and several machines around the room. There were also plenty of papers and documents as well as a lot of pictures. "I mostly use the device for capturing important memories on paper and logging them as evidence for specific missions. But, sometimes for other stuff."
Thalia noted several pictures on the wall displaying a smiling brown-haired woman as well as a young blonde at different points in time from a baby to a teenager, obviously his daughter. Thalia felt a slight squeeze inside. Her mother would never do anything like that.
"You ready?" Inoichi asked.
"Yeah," she replied, nodding firmly. Ever since she learned of Inoichi's powers, she'd thought of this. She honestly didn't know it was possible but it evidently was. It was one of the conditions she'd set for the Hokage.
The process didn't take long. The machine was placed over her head and then Inoichi just asked which memories she wanted. Or, more accurately, which people. A few minutes later, the machine was done and she had three pictures in hand. Luke with his familiar smile and not the brooding look he'd carried the final stretch of their journey, Annabeth and her big grin that lit up her whole face, and Jason, his own smile showing off that scar on his lip. Thalia had never managed to save a picture of Jason when she ran away. She'd almost forgotten what he looked like. But there he was. She almost felt like she could reach into the picture and touch him.
"Thank you," she said earnestly.
"Of course," Inoichi replied. "I know this has been said already but, uh, welcome to the village. I think we're very lucky to have you."
"Thalia!"
Thalia couldn't help but smile as the familiar orange jumpsuit-wearing kid appeared in her line of sight, waving his arm frantically in the air as he charged her with a wild grin. She couldn't think of anyone who had ever said her name with such enthusiasm before. Even Annabeth had preferred Luke (given that he'd been the one to give her the knife). The last time…well, it had been Jason. And seeing that wild blonde hair and mischievous grin…it tugged at her heartstrings.
"Hey Naruto," she greeted.
"Thalia!" he cried again. "I'm so glad you're going to be a ninja too! This is going to be awesome! I hope we're on the same team! Ooh, you, me, and Sakura! That would be the best!"
"Who's Sakura?"
"Only the prettiest girl in the whole world!"
"Ah," Thalia nodded. "I see. Well, being on a team with you would be cool Naruto. Guess we'll just have to wait and see. Now, where's this ramen place you raved about so much?"
"Oh yeah, ramen! It's right this way! I can't wait to introduce you!"
Thalia shook her head. They may be about the same age but his energy levels felt like they could power a city block. She followed him along as they moved through the village, the sights already becoming familiar to her. However, this time as she made her way through, she noticed a few other things. How people gave them a wide berth, or Naruto to be more accurate. And how they shot him dirty looks every now and then.
Must be the whole demon fox thing, she thought. This must be what he meant about wanting the whole village to stop disrespecting him and start looking up to him. Had they been doing this to him since he was just a baby?
The looks they gave…they reminded Thalia of her mom.
She was tempted to do something about it but Naruto either didn't notice or didn't care, just forging on ahead regardless, so Thalia followed his lead until they reached a small shop, more like a food truck based on its size, that had some white banners hanging down with red words on it that Thalia didn't recognize. Not that her dyslexia would have helped much if she did.
"There it is!" Naruto said proudly. "Ichiraku's Ramen! Best ramen shop in the whole world!"
"So you say," Thalia said, though she'd never had ramen before so wouldn't be able to compare.
"Hey Naruto," the owner, an older man with balding hair and a bit of a gut, said as they walked in. He blinked as he noticed Thalia as well. "Who's your friend there?"
"Oh, this is Thalia," Naruto grinned, clapping her on the back and nearly doubling her over from the blow. "She's the friend I was telling you about. She just got out of the hospital and is now training to be a ninja like me!"
"Is she now?" The man gave Thalia a new look along with a warm smile. "Well, any friend of Naruto's is welcome here."
"Thanks. I'm Thalia," she said, taking a seat.
"Teuchi," he replied. "And this is my daughter, Ayame," he said, gesturing to the young woman who just walked in.
"Nice to meet you."
"Same."
"So what will you be having?" Teuchi asked.
"Uh…I'm not sure," Thalia said, looking at the menu. Again, she had no idea what was written there. From the markings, it might possibly be Japanese or something but words and letters were never her thing given they always floated around. Right now, the way her mind tried to process it, it was like a chicken doing tic-tac-toe. "I guess I'll just have whatever you have," she told Naruto.
"Great! Two large miso char siu ramen please!"
"You got it Naruto!"
Thalia had to admit, the smells and sounds coming from the kitchen did make her mouth water and she found her stomach grumbling already. She had to admit, this shop may be small but it definitely had a kind of homey feel to it.
"Hey there!"
They turned just as Iruka walked in, a familiar figure right behind him. "Oh hey Iruka-sensei!" Naruto greeted.
"Hey Iruka. And Hinata, good to see you," Thalia smiled warmly at the girl who smiled back kindly.
"It is good to see you as well, Thalia."
When Hinata had been told Iruka was outside waiting for her, she hadn't really known what to make of it. But then she was asked to come by the academy and help out Thalia with some combat training. Hinata had to admit she wasn't the best when it came to combat as she preferred not to fight. However, she also remembered the way Thalia had stood up for her, her confidence facing down Neji. Hinata wanted to be more like that. So she had agreed readily.
Then came the second surprise where Thalia had invited her out to eat. Hinata had never had that happen before and had paused in complete surprise before agreeing instantly. She'd never really had a friend before either and so had been excited.
But now came the third and biggest surprise as she realized who was next to Thalia, the sight of the blonde boy making her heart beat faster and causing her face to flush red. She was actually about to eat dinner…with Naruto. The thought alone almost made her pass out.
"Oh, hey Hinata!" Naruto greeted, seeing her for the first time. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, I…um…well, I…" the girl stammered, trying to reclaim her scattered thoughts.
"I invited her," Thalia replied. "I take it you agreed to help me train tomorrow?"
"Uh, yes, that's right. I will be glad to help in any way I can!" Hinata said, nodding her head vigorously.
"Train?" Naruto questioned as Iruka put in his order. "Train for what?"
"In order to actually be placed on a genin team, Naruto, we need to assess Thalia's capabilities for ourselves," Iruka told him. "One of those is her combat prowess and Hinata agreed to help her out."
"Why not ask me?" Naruto said, sounding slightly insulted. "I'm a great fighter!"
Iruka hesitated and Thalia got the feeling Naruto might have been boasting a little. "You are, Naruto," Iruka said quickly. "But it's just that Thalia's skills…are more in line with Hinata's so that's why we decided to match them."
"Oh," Naruto said, mulling that over. "I guess that makes sense."
Thalia looked Hinata over. It was hard to see this girl as any sort of fighter. Honestly, when she'd chosen her, Thalia had been more thinking of her helping Hinata out instead of the other way around. Though if it turned out this girl had some secret techniques to dish out, Thalia would welcome them.
"But why wasn't I allowed to come over to help today?" Naruto complained. "I could have helped."
"Naruto, we were learning about the other nations as well as a few other concepts that you always claim are too 'dull and boring' for you," Iruka told him.
"That's cause they are! Thalia shouldn't waste her time on stuff like that when there's more important stuff to do!"
Iruka sighed. "You know, you should be preparing as well Naruto."
"Huh?" Naruto questioned. "But why?"
"You may have just passed the graduation exam but your sensei will have their own personal test to see if you can stay a ninja."
"But that's not fair!" Naruto complained. "I passed the graduation fair and square!"
"Fairness doesn't work here. So you'd better train hard if you want to impress your sensei. Why do you think I'm putting Thalia through so much. We may have let her pass the graduation test but her sensei will also decide if she stays or not."
Thalia blinked, not having realized that. "That would have been nice to know sooner," she grumbled.
"Oh, sorry. Guess I should have mentioned it. But don't worry, most genin pass."
"But some d-don't?" Hinata asked, getting more and more nervous now.
Iruka winced, realizing he might have made a mistake mentioning this as they all looked concerned now. "You have all proven yourselves to be exceptional students," he said quickly, hoping to ease their fears. "I'm sure you'll have nothing to be concerned about as long as you keep training hard."
That seemed to make Naruto relax. It also helped as the ramen was ready, Teuchi placing a steaming bowl in front of him which he immediately dug into. Thalia wasn't too concerned either to be honest. If the guy failed her well, she always had plan B of striking out on her own. Hinata however was still feeling a little daunted with the knowledge of the test. She had done very well in the graduation exam but this was different and she couldn't help but wonder if she was up for it.
No, I won't give up, no matter what, she thought as fiercely as she could.
As Thalia's ramen bowl was placed in front of her, her stomach let out another growl. She had to admit, it looked delicious. The noodles and meat, even the vegetables floating around, all of it smelled heavenly. The problem was she didn't have a fork or a spoon, just a pair of chopsticks. She'd never used them before and at first tried to hold them like a fork but it soon became apparent that wouldn't work. And lifting up the food wouldn't work either. Maybe for the meat and vegetables but the noodles kept slipping off. She was about to give up and ask for another utensil when she saw Naruto lift up the whole bowl, stuffing the food in his mouth that way, and she smirked.
Well, if he's doing it, she thought, grabbing her own bowl and copying him as she shoveled a bunch of noodles and meat into her mouth. Oh yeah, she internally groaned as the food hit her taste buds. That's the stuff.
Iruka just sighed, watching the two go at it, calmly eating his own ramen.
"S-so N-naruto," Hinata stuttered, trying to keep her composure as she talked to her crush. "Y-you graduated after all then?"
"Huh?" Naruto looked up and grinned, touching his headband. "Oh yeah. I was able to produce a whole bunch of shadow clones the other night, so Iruka let me pass after all!"
"Good. I'm glad," she said, relieved for him and a little for herself.
"Thanks Hinata!" Naruto then flashed her his ten-million watt smile that had her face turning all new shades of red. But before she could explode, Naruto suddenly turned to Thalia. "Hey, where's your headband?"
"My headband?" Thalia questioned as she lowered her bowl. She realized all the shinobi she'd met so far had been wearing the same headband with that symbol on it. She guessed it must be the insignia for the Leaf Village or something.
"Oh, don't worry, she'll get one," Iruka promised. "I'll have one ready and waiting for you tomorrow morning. Speaking of which, Thalia, the Hokage was able to procure you a small apartment. I'll show it to you once we finish up here."
"Cool," Thalia nodded. It would be weird to be living in an actual apartment. She hadn't really lived anywhere since she ran away. She wasn't even sure what she'd put in it. She didn't own anything.
"So, where are you from Thalia?" Teuchi asked curiously, listening in on their conversation. Based on what he'd heard, he could tell she wasn't from around here. And yet, she was being made genin. The whole thing made him curious.
"Oh, nowhere in particular," Thalia replied. "I wandered around a lot but I got into some trouble and found myself here where Naruto and Iruka helped me out. Then I met the Hokage and…he decided to make me a genin."
"Huh? Just like that?" Teuchi asked, confused.
"There's more to it. Thalia's situation is complicated," Iruka tried to explain. "But she has proven herself more than many others and honestly it worked out for everyone in the end. So yes, the Hokage decided she should become a genin."
Teuchi blinked but then shrugged. "Well congratulations. You know Naruto hasn't stopped talking about you since he met you. He was so concerned when you were in the hospital."
"Really?" Thalia asked, giving Naruto a look. Next to her, Hinata felt a stab in her chest.
"Well yeah, you're the only real friend I've ever had so of course I'd be worried, heheh," he said sheepishly.
Thalia was taken aback by that. The only real friend? she thought. Things must have been worse than she thought. "Well thanks," she told him. "You're a good friend too, even if I did only meet you the other day." She then turned towards Hinata. "You too Hinata. You're a good person."
"Oh, uh, th-thanks," Hinata replied, shrinking a little from the praise.
As she sat there, eating ramen and talking with the others, Thalia had to admit, this was starting to feel like home to her. She still felt pangs in her chest when she thought about Luke and Annabeth, wanting them by her side. But they were safe now, and that was all that mattered. For now, she was stuck in this world. And with these people, it really wasn't that bad a place to be.
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
"Not too bad," Iruka told her, eyeing the target. Of the five shuriken Thalia had thrown, three had hit the tall pole set up as a target. The other two had flown past into the fence beyond. Iruka was just glad she wasn't like Naruto whose shots always went all over, one nearly striking Iruka in the head.
"Throwing things isn't my style," Thalia replied. "Plus those things are too small and light. I can't put much power into them."
"Hmmm, that is the case for some shinobi. Try it with kunai instead."
"Kunai?" Thalia questioned before seeing him pull out those daggers she'd noticed. Iruka handed her a set.
"Try hitting the target with these."
Thalia gripped the kunai, testing its weight, before looking back at the target and aiming carefully. When she threw, the kunai struck the target dead on.
"Yeah, that's better," she nodded. "I still prefer close combat but this isn't too bad now."
Iruka nodded. Shuriken were lighter to carry and easier to disguise which was why they were a favored weapon. But it was sometimes hard to put enough power into them, leaving many shinobi to prefer the kunai over them.
Thalia threw the other four, only one of them missing the target and this time by a hair. "Keep practicing," he told her. "Whenever you can really. You may not prefer this method, or even the shuriken, but it's always good to have as many skills as possible in combat."
Thalia nodded, seeing the wisdom in that. She continued training for most of the morning. She'd always had a good eye, even if she never used projectile weaponry before, so she quickly got the hang of it. Then, once Iruka was satisfied enough, they moved onto the next combat training which was where Hinata came in.
"Hi Thalia," the girl greeted.
"Hey Hinata. You ready for this?"
"Y-yes."
The last few days had been a bit of a whirlwind for the girl ever since she met Thalia. The other girl was a complete mystery. She'd shown up, claiming to be a wandered, and then been chased by shinobi and asked to be led to the Hokage himself. Hinata had managed to learn she had something to do with the jōnin Mizuki who'd gone rogue and that the Hokage had given her special treatment to become a ninja of the Leaf Village. Hinata didn't really understand why but she was glad about it. Thalia had been one of the first people since Naruto who was kind to her and she was the first person to ever say she believed in her. The way she had stood up to Neji and then those shinobi was inspiring and Hinata couldn't help but look up to the girl even if she'd only met her the other day. It was another reason why she had agreed to this sparring session so readily. From what little she'd gathered, she could already tell Thalia was a great fighter. And if Hinata wanted to be as great as she could be, she felt like this was a good way to start.
"Alright, take your positions and make the Unison Sign."
Thalia paused at Iruka's words. "Make the whatnow?"
"Oh, right," Iruka said, shaking his head. "Sorry, I forgot. Here, make this sign with your hand." He showed her, crossing his thumb over his ring and pinky fingers and leaving his middle and index finger pointing outwards. Thalia copied the movement, a little confused. "It's part of the village's tradition before two opponents spar," Iruka explained to her. "It's a sign of recognition and honor for the combatants."
"If you say so," Thalia said, shrugging. She held up the strange sign she'd made to Hinata who proceeded to make the same sign with her hand before crossed her outward fingers over Thalia's. They waited maybe a second or two before Thalia pulled away.
"And…start!"
The second Iruka gave the word, Thalia lunged forward. She wasn't sure what Hinata would do and was pleasantly surprised when the girl responded fast, blocking the fist Thalia threw at her. No, not blocking, but deflecting it so she could launch her own attack with her free hand. Still, she was too slow, Thalia's eyes catching the flicker of movement.
She ducked aside, avoiding the blow, and grinned. "Not bad," she said.
"Th-thank you," Hinata replied.
"Let's keep it up."
Thalia had been worried about Hinata but it was clear the girl both knew how to fight and was prepared to do it as well as they sparred. Thalia threw punch after punch but Hinata was able to deflect them or dodge them all, throwing her own attacks back. This went on for about thirty seconds, both opponents unable to land a blow on the other.
However, Thalia began to notice a few things. Hinata was good but it did seem like she was giving it her all in each move and Thalia really wasn't. She always did in a real fight but in those kinds of circumstances, she was against monsters and it was kill or be killed. That didn't really work for a sparring match. Even so, Luke was better than this girl and Thalia was starting to see why.
Because she was ADHD, Thalia had the ability to see and focus on random details that came to her in an instant. It was something that was annoying in daily life but had saved her life in combat as she was able to see the random movements of her opponents and react to their attacks before they made them. Right now, she could see Hinata's arms twitch or stiffen before she made a move and was thus able to counter any attack. It wasn't even just that. While Hinata was giving this fight her all, Thalia still saw slight hesitation here and there, the girl clearly wary of combat. And in a real fight, that would get her killed.
Time to change things up, Thalia thought.
With a swift movement, she dropped to the ground and threw her leg out, catching Hinata's legs and sweeping them out from under her. The girl gave a cry as she fell, landing with an "umph" before Thalia was on top of her, holding her down.
"And that's it," Iruka said. "Nice work Thalia. You too Hinata, but as Thalia just proved, you need to be ready for anything."
"R-right," Hinata nodded.
"You also need to work on your reaction time," Thalia told her, helping the girl back up. "There were a few moments there where you paused before reacting to my attacks or even when I was open. You can't do that in combat. You have to act on instinct."
"Ok," Hinata nodded firmly.
"Right. Want to go again?"
"Um, yes. Yes I do!"
"Great."
They went a couple more rounds, Hinata improving just slightly each time. She still had a hard time reacting to Thalia's impromptu moves like when she bull-rushed her or even did a spinning kick. Thalia knew she could do tons more stuff but then she would probably hurt the girl and she didn't feel this was the right type of training session for that.
After their fourth round, Hinata on the ground again, Iruka finally called it quits. Hinata was panting pretty heavily but Thalia was still breathing easily, her body used to this kind of exertion. She felt like she could still go a few more rounds.
"Wow, that was awesome!"
Hinata's face took on a brand new shade of red at the voice as Naruto hopped down from the nearby fence to join them. "N-n-naruto!" she gasped. "H-how long were you there?"
"Just that last round," he replied.
"You didn't notice, Hinata?" Thalia asked. "With that outfit he's got, it's practically impossible not to see him."
"Hey, my outfit is cool!"
Thalia shrugged. "If you say so. But it's also colorful and loud."
Naruto frowned. "Loud?" He looked down at it and then ruffled it, trying to see how much noise it made. "It's not that loud."
"That's not…oh never mind, just forget it," Thalia sighed. Honestly, she didn't know why the term 'loud' was used that way either.
"Anyway, those moves were so cool Thalia!" Naruto gushed. "You too Hinata! I didn't know you could move like that!"
"O-oh," she mumbled, embarrassed. "W-well…"
"The way you just threw that and did that and then did that," Naruto said, mimicking their moves as he threw his own punches out.
Thalia shrugged. "I've been fighting for most of my life. But those were some good moves Hinata. Where did you learn them?"
All the praise she was receiving from Naruto was making her blood rush to her head so she tried to focus on Thalia instead. "I-it's my clan's t-techniques," she explained. "I-I've been taught them s-since I was young."
"Oh, cool," Thalia nodded. "That must be nice. Actually, now that I think about it, Neji had a similar move, didn't he?"
Hinata nodded. "He used the Gentle Fist on you. It's one of my clan's special techniques that attacks your chakra points."
Thalia frowned. "Chakra points?"
"They're certain spots over the body that correlate with a person's chakra pathway system and can be used to channel and release chakra," Iruka explained, stepping forward. "Most people only use their hands but others can use them from all over their body."
Hinata nodded. "The Gentle Fist can seal away those points and then seal away your chakra."
"Wow," Naruto murmured. "I don't get it."
Iruka sighed. "Of course you don't."
"I think I do," Thalia said, mulling it over. "When Neji hit me, he-"
"Wait, when who hit you?"
"Not now Naruto!" Iruka chastised.
"But sensei!"
"It's been handled, let it go."
"When Neji hit me," Thalia continued, ignoring the blonde, "it felt like he was hitting inside me too. But…I didn't feel anything get sealed away."
Hinata remembered that as well as the shock at that moment. She didn't know anyone who could stand up to Neji like that, much less take a Gentle Fist attack like that and walk away from it so easily.
Iruka, who was aware of these techniques, already had an idea of why it didn't work. Given Thalia's unique chakra nature and system, he felt like it would take a lot to be able to seal away her chakra.
"So were you using Gentle Fist on me just now?" Thalia asked jokingly.
Hinata instantly panicked. "N-n-no, I wouldn't d-do that! Those were just normal punches. They c-can become G-gentle Fists if I pour my chakra into them, but I swear I-"
"Relax, Hinata, I know," Thalia told her. "Though maybe next time we should spar with your Gentle Fists. I want to see what kind of power they pack."
Hinata blinked, not expecting that response. But then a slow smile crossed her face. "Y-yeah, maybe."
Iruka watched the kids chat, mulling things over. He had thought Thalia would win no problem so that wasn't a surprise. But her skills really were stronger than the other students he had right now, maybe even more than Sasuke's in some ways. He would have liked to see a sparring session between those two but given they would be on the same team soon, he thought that would come anyway.
Still, he wanted to get a better understanding of her skills to relay to the Hokage. He'd been hopeful but clearly these matches with Hinata weren't cutting it. If that was the case, there was only really one other thing to do.
"Alright Thalia, your next opponent will be me."
Both Naruto and Hinata gasped in surprise at that but Thalia just grinned. "Cool," she said. "Can I use my weapons?"
Iruka thought about that. He did have a good idea of her power levels in unarmed combat now and if he saw firsthand her skills with her preferred weapons, he really would get a sense for her battle prowess. "Sure," he said. "But I think not the shield, just the spear. And no lightning or powers, got it?"
"Sure," Thalia replied. She was a little disappointed not to use Aegis but she kind of understood why. At least she got to use her spear. She grabbed hold of the mace can she'd left on the nearby table, flipping it open. Instantly, her spear sprang out and she grinned at its familiar feel in her hands.
"Whoa!" Naruto gasped. "How did you do that?"
"Hmm?" Thalia looked over at him and then back at her spear, shrugging. "It's just the spear's ma- uh, well, I don't know," she said, stumbling over the word 'magic.' Judging from Iruka's expression, he'd caught it but Naruto and Hinata were both thankfully still oblivious, just looking at the weapon in awe. "It's a kind of, uh, jutsu on the weapon, I think."
"That is so sweet!" Naruto gaped, Hinata nodding beside him. "Can I have one?"
"Sorry, this one's mind," Thalia replied, shrugging. "You'll have to get your own. Oh, and the shield can do it too. Here," she held up her bracelet.
"Wait, that's your shield? Cool!"
"Yeah, watch." Thalia tapped her bracelet and it instantly spiraled out into Aegis, depicting Medusa's horrifying image for them all to see though Thalia actually turned it aside so they didn't have to get a good look at her.
"So cool!" Naruto gushed. "Though that image is kind of freaky. Especially those eyes. Ugh!"
"That's Medusa," Thalia told him. "She's a monster with, uh, a special kind of…jutsu," she said carefully, still not used to this new terminology. "She has the power to turn you to stone with one look from her eyes."
"Ah!" Naruto cried, instantly covering his eyes. "But I already looked! Am I going to turn to stone now?"
"No, you're fine!" Thalia told him, shaking her head. "I'm talking about the real monster. This is just a picture. Looking at this one's eyes just creates fear and disrupts your attacks."
"Oh," Naruto said, looking embarrassed. He took another look at the shield and winced, really feeling those eyes gazing back at him and making him uncomfortable.
Iruka nodded at the girl's explanation. That shield was truly formidable. If anyone looked at it, they wouldn't be able to hold their concentration and were susceptible to making mistakes which he already knew Thalia was more than capable of exploiting.
Hinata watched as well, thinking of Thalia and Neji's fight and how her cousin had reacted to the shield. If such a thing could work even on Neji…
"Alright," Iruka said, clapping his hands. "Thalia, put the shield away. Like I said, right now I just want to see how well you use that spear."
"Right," Thalia nodded, tapping Aegis and returning it to a bracelet.
"Where'd you even get that stuff?" Naruto asked eagerly.
"Uh, the shield is sort of a gift from…" She wasn't sure what to say here seeing as she was led to Aegis by the magical goat Amaltheia. "My dad," she finished awkwardly. It was technically true seeing as the goat was sacred to Zeus. "And the spear, well I sort of just stumbled across it."
"Wow. I want a cool weapon too. One worthy of a future Hokage. Iruka, do we have any weapons like that?"
"How would I know?" Iruka asked him, frowning. "Lord Hokage would know best."
"Right, I'll ask him then!"
Iruka just sighed before facing off against Thalia, holding out his hand to make the Unison Sign. Thalia made the gesture as before, shaking once, before stepping back and readying herself.
"Begin."
Iruka wasn't surprised that Thalia made the first move, jabbing her spear forward. She slowed it just enough so that he'd be able to dodge but he knew she could go faster. He stepped aside and prepared to grab it but she yanked it back just as fast before jabbing it forward again, this time forcing Iruka to step back. Once he did, she took a step forward and kept on going, constantly keeping him going backwards.
"Not bad," he said before lunging forward himself, bringing his kunai up to deflect the spear as it came again and stepping through her defenses. He thought he might have her but she suddenly threw her spear back, catching it closer to the tip and bringing it up to him to stop him from getting close.
He blinked, not anticipating that move. He would have figured Thalia prefer to keep enemies at a distance given her choice of weapon was a spear but clearly she was capable of matching them with her weapon even at close range. She proved it again as she grabbed the bottom end of the spear with her left hand to prevent it from flying around, now holding her weapon steady.
Alright, let's see what you've got, he thought and came at her harder. His kunai struck the spearhead, backed off, and then struck it again as Iruka attacked, her weapon always blocking his. Iruka knew he wasn't cut out to be a fighter which was why he focused his skills on teaching which was where his passion lay. Still, he had been trained and still kept up with his training in case of any attack on the village. Which was why he knew that in a real fight, he wasn't so sure he could beat her. Even if he used his jutsu skills, her powers exceeded his.
He guessed that's what came from the life she'd led. Iruka may have learned in a school but she learned through actual life-or-death combat and the different was telling.
"Wow," Naruto muttered. "She's amazing."
"Um, yeah," Hinata said, feeling a twinge inside. Still, she agreed with Naruto. Thalia was clearly leading the fight despite Iruka being their sensei. It was something she didn't expect to see.
"Hey, Hinata?" Naruto suddenly asked. "Do you think she could beat Sasuke too?"
Hinata thought about it. "Maybe," she answered honestly. It was hard to tell. Sasuke was the best in the class and far outshone anyone else so it was difficult to gauge his fighting ability since his matches ended so quickly. But she would say that Thalia would give him a good fight at least.
"I hope so! Someone needs to take that arrogant prick down a peg!"
Hinata stifled a giggle. She really never understood why all the other girls liked Sasuke so much. She could maybe see his attractive features but those were overshadowed by his cold, dark attitude and his derision against everyone else. It was a far cry from Naruto's abundant amount of energy and while Sasuke may look down on everyone, Naruto always treated everyone fairly and at least tried to get along with them. That was one of the many reasons she liked him.
"You truly are talented Thalia," Iruka said, just panting a little as he continued to trade blows with the girl.
"Yeah, tell me something I don't know," Thalia replied, blocking another attack with her spear. She smirked and then, as his kunai came at her again, caught it and pushed it aside, leaving him open for just a second. That was all she needed to bring her foot up, kicking him in the side.
Iruka gasped, a sharp pain flooding his body from that blow but he didn't have time to recover as Thalia swiftly brought her leg down and then crouched down, sweeping her leg and swiping Iruka's out from under him, making him fall hard. He landed in the dirt with a grunt and barely blinked before a spear tip appeared in front of his face.
"So, do I win?" Thalia said, a smile on her face.
Iruka couldn't help but chuckle. "Yeah, you win."
"Awesome!" Naruto cheered while Hinata clapped beside him. "Damn Thalia, that was so freaking cool!"
"Thanks Naruto," Thalia replied.
"You really can use that thing, huh?" Iruka said, getting back on his feet. "Those were some impressive moves."
Thalia shrugged. "Kids like me, we have a knack for combat. That spear was one of the first real weapons I found so I just made my own style with it. Had to if I wanted to survive."
Iruka nodded, figuring as much. "Well now, why don't we try again. Though perhaps with kunai," he suggested, holding the knife up. "This is the preferred weapon of the shinobi. And if you ever lose your spear, mastering fighting with this may save your life."
"Sure," Thalia replied, taking one. That made sense to her. She was used to her spear and obviously fought well with it but there had been times when she had been forced to fight without it and had to use whatever was on hand to survive. She'd never really trained with knives before except a little practice with Annabeth to help her out. Still, she had to admit, something felt right with the knife and also a little wrong, though she didn't know what.
She and Iruka made the unison sign again before once more sparring with one another. This time, Thalia found herself at the disadvantage as Iruka pressed her back. She knew he was skilled with this kunai from their first fight but now that she had the unfamiliar weapon she could see how skilled he was. She was forced to retreat now and then as Iruka came at her, their weapons clashing with soft ringing sounds, as if bells were going off.
Still, it was also clear Iruka didn't spend too much time fighting as Thalia was able to read his moves quickly. And despite not being used to it, it didn't take long for her to become accustomed to the kunai. She fought back, blocking Iruka's incoming strike and twisting it aside. She instantly closed in but his arm came up, grabbing hers and stopping it cold. At that moment, her other hand flexed and she realized what felt wrong with this style of fighting for her.
She launched another kick but Iruka was ready for it this time and backed off. Thalia huffed, feeling some sweat trickling down her skin. Iruka looked the same, breathing a little heavily.
They regarded each other for a second, waiting for the other to make the first move, but Thalia wasn't really known for her patience and rushed him. He seemed ready for it, getting into a defensive stance right as she came at him. The kunai clashed again before Thalia lunged at him. Iruka dodged out of the way, letting her move past him, but wasn't quite fast enough to completely dodge her and Thalia reached out as she passed him.
This girl really is something, Iruka thought, noting how fast she became attuned to knife-fighting. But still, it seems there is some room for improvement.
He turned in place and grabbed her knife hand, holding it at bay, while thrusting his own kunai towards her throat. "And I believe the match is mine," he said.
"You sure?" Thalia smirked.
Iruka blinked before glancing down, seeing to his shock a second kunai in Thalia's other hand now pressed up against his ribs. If thrust right, it could possibly be fatal and definitely incapacitate him. But when had she…
Her lunge, he realized. She missed on purpose, wanting to grab the second one from my belt. Very clever.
"You continue to surprise me, Thalia," he said, shaking his head and smiling.
"I think I could get used to these things," she replied, twirling the kunai in her hands. "But I prefer dual wielding with them. Feels better that way somehow."
"Fair enough," Iruka nodded and that was all he managed to say before Naruto rushed over to gush over Thalia's accomplishments again.
"She did all that?" Hiruzen asked, impressed.
"She will truly make a formidable shinobi with proper training," Iruka informed him. "Her fighting style is completely unique. I had a hard time picking up on her moves and she clearly read mine easily. And she picked up on the clone technique fairly quickly, though it's become obvious that she must somehow make a connection to her own, um, demigod abilities in order to make them work such as her need to make cloud clones instead of shadow ones."
Hiruzen nodded before turning to face the third person in the room. "What do you think?"
Kakashi pondered the question carefully. He'd been intrigued by the girl and had watched her match with both Hinata Hyūga as well as Iruka from the shadows. She was good, there was no doubt about that. Very good. Possibly the most skilled out of all the graduates. But to him, even that didn't mean much. She could be the best of the best but to him there was something that mattered much more.
"We'll see how she does in my exam," he said calmly. "That'll be what'll prove if she has what it takes to be a true shinobi."
Iruka stared at him, confused, while Hiruzen simply nodded. "Then the rest will be up to you. How have the rest of her lessons progressed?" he asked Iruka.
"W-well, she struggles with reading and writing. Apparently, as she claims, she has something called dyslexia that makes reading next to impossible for her. She would also have to learn an entirely new alphabet so we're sticking with simple stuff for right now so she can just get by. She also has as much of an attention span as Naruto, heh," he chuckled dryly. He never thought he'd meet another child with that level of attention but Thalia was continuing to surprise him in that regard as well. He had to remind her to pay attention at least once every few minutes. And she'd always ask him some random questions at random moments, claiming her mind had just wandered to it. In addition to all that, she seemed to be constantly doing something, either tapping her fingers or her foot or stretching or some kind of movement, like it was physically impossible for her to be still. Iruka was just glad he only had her for a few days. Any longer than that and he might lose his mind.
"Hmmm, well let's just see how she develops," Hiruzen said. "But I wouldn't worry. All shinobi have their strengths and weaknesses and if young Thalia's weakness happens to be reading then she should be alright."
Kakashi nodded. "Just look at Guy. He was never the best when it came to reading and writing. But he's become one of the top shinobi here and the best taijutsu master, perhaps in all the nations."
Hiruzen had to hide a smirk. He knew Kakashi would never openly praise Guy. Their rivalry didn't allow it. But it showed how far Kakashi had come to even do it in a closed room like this.
"Well anyway, now that Thalia is ready to graduate. And Kakashi will inform us after his own exam whether or not these young ninja will be able to become genin at all. And, more importantly, inform us exactly how Thalia interacts with them."
Kakashi nodded. He had to admit, he was curious himself now as to how this apparent demigod would handle his little exam. Well, he would soon find out.
Hi everybody and welcome back.
So just to address a few things. Rick Riordan never went deep into either Thalia or Jason's powers besides lightning and flight with some other weather control. But given the powers Percy has, I though fog control would be one of the ones for Thalia. And for the cloud clones, I thought about it and it really hit hard for me that Thalia's powers should stay true to her heritage i.e. sky related. So many chakra techniques others can do, she won't be able to. But since she has chakra, as long as she can make a connection to her demigod abilities, she can make it work. Thus, cloud clones. I'll be going into that more later on what she can and can't do.
For Inoichi's machine, I just thought that was a cool device that would line up with them. Cause in terms of evidence, sometimes they would need to actually show what was in people's minds to others.
I think it was obvious Thalia would beat Hinata and even Iruka because she has far more experience than Hinata, and Iruka has been teaching all this time and so his skills are at a certain level. Anyway, that was just what I figured.
As always, leave a review if you can, thanks for reading, and feel free to pm me for additional questions. Next chapter, we finally get Team 7 together.
Oh, and just a quick comment, I have no plans of romantically pairing Thalia with anyone. She didn't get involved with anyone in the original timeline, so it'll be the same here.
