Н‘¾Ð‘¯Ð‘¬Ð‘Μ Ð‘»Ð‘¯Ð‘¬ Н‘¾Ð‘°Ð‘Μ𝑫 Н‘©Ð‘³Ð‘¶Ð‘¾Ð‘º €¢Ð’Ƒ𝒙Н’Ƒ• Training

They reached Tazuna’s house and they immediately settled Kakashi in a nearby bed. He was unconscious for a while, before he woke up and the kids were allowed to see him. Sakura wondered who the boy who killed Zabuza was. Kakashi explained that the Mist Village has a special squad used for getting rid of ninja bodies, because the ninja’s body can reveal secrets of the village if it were examined. Kakashi went silent for a moment.

“What’s wrong, sensei?” Naruto asked and leaned closer. Kakashi raised his head. “Oh, about what I was talking about before…”. He trailed off, looking uneasy. “Pursuing ninja are supposed to eliminate the corpse on the spot”. Sakura, not getting what he was aiming at tilted her head. “So?” Confusing seeping into her voice. Akashi’s eyes narrow and he looks at Kakashi. “Are you aiming at what I think you’re aiming?” He asks.

“He only needed to bring the head back”. Kakashi let out a sigh, before he grabbed his chin in thought. “Also, the weapon that the boy used to kill Zabuza is questionable”. Akashi shifted on his feet. “You mean the senbon needles? Aren’t they used for medical purposes?” He read about them in books when he was looking at healing techniques. At that moment, Sasuke spoke up. “Those long needles… could it be they…?” His eyes widened. “Yeah, it’s just what you’re thinking”. Kakashi confirmed.

“What are you guys talking about?” Tazuna walked up to them. “Zabuza is alive”. Kakashi deadpanned. His words made Sakura, Naruto and Tazuna shout in surprise. “What?!” Naruto flailed around. “What does that mean?!” Sakura turned to Kakashi. “But you confirmed that he died, Kakashi-sensei”. Akashi shook his head. “Those needles can be used for specific things… they can also put a person in a near-death state”. Kakashi nodded. “Correct”. He explained that even though Zabuza was clearly heavier than the boy, he still picked him up and also the fact he used a weapon with a low fatality rate.

“From those two points, the goal of that boy was not to kill Zabuza, but to help him”. He declared. “Maybe you’re thinking too much”. Tazuna tried to calm the situation. Kakashi said that once a ninja feels like something is wrong, he needs to prepare for the possibility of it being true. Akashi turned to Naruto and saw that he was delighted at finding out Zabuza was alive.

“I’m going to make all of you go through some training”. Kakashi said. “Wait, even if we train, I don’t think it will be that helpful”. Sakura explained. Kakashi said that the four of them grew a lot, before he turned to Naruto. “Especially you, Naruto”. At his words, Naruto squinted his eyes in disbelief. “You’ve grown the most”. Kakashi smiled at him. Hearing the praise, a small smile climbed on Naruto’s face.

“You know your stuff, Kakashi-sensei, now things are about to turn more interesting”. Naruto jumped up and pointed at Kakashi. Akashi stood up and slapped the back of his head. “How many times have I told you?! Don’t point at people!” He raised his fist in the air, a tick mark on his forehead. Naruto started whining, but Akashi simply glared at him. Kakashi sweat-dropped, seeing the way Akashi was acting. It’s great to see he isn’t that hung up about what happened, but he’s acting like Kushina more and more… it’s scary.

Suddenly, a small boy appeared behind them. Naruto turned around and, again, pointed at him. “Who are you?” He yelled. Akashi clicked his tongue and clenched his fist. Naruto immediately settled down. “Inari! Where were you?” Tazuna called out as the boy ran into his embrace. “I’m home, grandpa”. The boy said while hugging him. “Inari, say hello to them. These are the ninja who escorted your grandpa”. A woman scolded the boy, but Tazuna patted his head. “It’s okay. Right, Inari?”

The boy glared at everyone in the room. “Mom they’re going to die. There’s no way a person can win against a man like Gatoh”. The boy turned to his mother. “What did you say, you brat?!” Naruto shouted at the kid. “Naruto!” Akashi yelled at him, even though the kid was also getting on his nerves. He looked at the boy and narrowed his eyes. The boy, seeing the look in his eyes looked away. Naruto then proceeded to say he was a super hero who will once become a great ninja called the Hokage.

The boy shook his head. “A hero? How stupid. There’s no such thing as a hero”. He said, scoffing. Akashi felt his patience break when he called Naruto’s dream ‘stupid’. “Listen here, you brat, that’s no way to talk to someone older than you”. He growled at the little kid, who in return, ran to his mom. “If you don’t want to die, you should go home”. He said as he turned to leave the room. “Inari, where are you going?” Tazuna asked the retreating boy. “I’ll go watch the ocean”. And with that, he opened the door and left, leaving a fuming Naruto and a disgruntled Akashi.

“I’m sorry”. Tazuna apologized for the kids behavior. All of them were then asked to leave the room, so that Kakashi can rest for a while more. “Akashi, wait”. Kakashi called out as he was about to close the door behind himself. “Yes?” He asked, already dreading what Kakashi was about to say. “Come here, we need to talk about something”. Kakashi patter the spot next to his bed. Sighing, Akashi enters the room and closes the door, before going closer and plopping on the ground next to Kakashi.

“I already know what you’re going to ask, and to answer that, I’m fine”. Kakashi raises his brows in surprise. “Are you sure? You seemed freaked out”. He continued prying. Akashi leaned back and scratched the back of his head. “Sensei… I admit, I was surprised when it happened”. He confessed, looking at the ceiling. “It was even more surprising how easy it is to take someones life away… how easy it is for someone to do the same to you”. He looked straight at Kakashi. “But in this world it’s a kill or be killed and I plan to survive, not just for my sake, but for Naruto’s”.

This boy… Kakashi thought in wonder. I continue to compare him to Kushina, but it seems there’s a bit of Minato too. “Naruto’s a bit of an airhead, but he’s my brother and I will do anything for him…”. He paused, a serious flashing across his face. Kakashi’s visible eye widened, but he quickly composed himself. “Even if it means burning the world to the ground”. He darkly murmured. He continues to surprise me… he’s like Kushina and Minato… and yet so different at the same time.

“As long as you can continue the mission”. Kakashi told him. Akashi nodded and proceeded to stand up. “Tell everyone to meet me outside in an hour, we have training”. Kakashi said as Akashi was exiting the room. “Will do”. He answered and closed the door.

_

An hour later, the five of them were in a forest. “We will now begin training”. Kakashi said as he looked at the four Genin. “Roger!” Naruto exclaimed. Kakashi then told Sakura to explain what Chakra is. She started explaining that Chakra is an energy used to utilize techniques. That it’s the energy that comes from the body energy that is collected from every cell in the body and the spirit energy that comes from training and experience. Naruto then argued that even if they don’t know the hard stuff, they can learn it with their bodies.

Surprisingly, Sasuke agreed with him. “Exactly what Naruto said. We can use techniques anyway”. Kakashi disagreed with them. “No, you guys can’t use your Chakra completely”. He told them. He said that if you can’t control your Chakra, some techniques won’t come out right and if you use too much, you will be weakened and won’t be able to fight for a while. “So what do we do?” Akashi asked just before Naruto could open his mouth. “You’re going to learn how to control it with your body”. Kakashi said.

“You must go through rigorous training where you put your life on the line”. He grimly said. “So what are we going to do?” Sakura asked, her voice trembling. Kakashi raised a finger. “Climb a tree”. He deadpanned. “Climb a tree?!” Naruto yelled. Akashi slapped the back of his head. “Stop yelling!” He yelled back at him. “But you just yelled at me!” Naruto grabbed the back of his head in pain and pointed an accusing finger at Akashi. Akashi glared at him with his fist in the air. “That’s different!” Naruto let out a cry of outrage. “How is that different?!” He argued.

Kakashi sighed and clapped his hands. “Now, now, settle down”. Once the brothers calmed down, he continued. “That’s right, but it’s not ordinary tree climbing”. He said. “You’re going to climb without using your hands”. He explained, raising his palms. “How do we do that?” Not believing what he was saying, Sakura asked. “Just watch”. Saying that, Kakashi went to a nearby tree with his crutches and started walking up the side. He then stopped upside down on a branch. “This is how”.

He told them they should gather their Chakra at the bottom of their feet and make it attach on the tree trunk. He explained that they will get stronger by being able to use the right amount of Chakra at the needed body part. He threw four Kunai at their feet and told them to mark the place when they run up the tree.

The four of them start concentrating in collecting the Chakra at the soles of their feet. Naruto ran up the tree and took two steps, before he fell down, hitting the back of his head. Sasuke ran up and managed to take a decent amount of steps, before the bark was broken and he was blown away. He marked the spot to which he got. “This is easier than I thought”. Sakura said from atop a tree. Everyone’s heads whipped her way. “Tell me about it”. Akashi’s voice rang out from a tree next to hers.

“Wow, Sakura, Akashi!” Naruto excitedly said from below them. “Sakura’s knowledge was splendid, but it seems her control and stamina are good as well, Akashi is not too far behind”. Kakashi said and looked at Akashi’s tree. There was broken wood at the bottom of the tree, but then it seemed to disappear. His eyes widened. It seems he somehow managed to pinpoint the needed amount of Chakra while he was climbing… that would explain the broken bark at the beginning.

“Maybe Sakura is the one closest to becoming the Hokage, right now”. Kakashi taunted. “The Uchiha clan isn’t as great as I thought, as well”. He said as he looked at the two boys on the ground. I see what you did there, sensei. Akashi thought as he looked at the pissed off boys. These three boys have an incredible amount of Chakra hidden within, one which Sakura can’t match. If Sasuke and Naruto manage to control it, it will become a treasure for them. He looked at Akashi. He already found his treasure, it seems.

_

A while passed and Sakura was leaning on a tree, tired from all the Chakra using. Meanwhile, Sasuke and Naruto were still training and trying to get past each other. Naruto went over to Sakura to ask her for help, since he couldn’t ask Akashi who was high up in the tree. Sasuke looked at Naruto and Sakura and clicked his tongue. “What’s wrong?” He heard from above. He looked up the tree which he was profusely trying to climb for the past two hours, but with no improvement. There he was, Akashi, looking down at him from the highest branch.

He looked to the side, ignoring the boy. A moment later, he heard thuds. He looked up again, and saw Akashi climbing down. The boy landed next to him, unscathed, even though he jumped from so high. “How did you do that?” He found himself asking. Akashi raised his head and sent him a smile. “Want some help?” He asked, already knowing that he would get denied. The Uchiha furrowed his brows and looked like he was contemplating the offer. He muttered something.

“Can you repeat that?” Akashi asked, not hearing what the boy said at first. The Uchiha looked torn between running away and attacking him. “Yes”. He quietly said, looking to the side. Akashi’s eyes widen, not expecting for him to say yes. He walked closer, until he was standing beside him. “Okay… shall we begin?” He smiled at Sasuke, who’s eyes widen in return. He quickly looked away and crossed his arms.

Akashi pretended like he didn’t see the embarrassed look on the Uchiha’s face.