Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ The Road to Chunin ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

Chapter 3

 

Asuma caught a bad cold within hours of his involuntary bath in the river. He sat in a chair in his apartment wrapped in a blanket with a thermometer sticking out of his mouth. His feet were in a basin which Kurenai was filling with warm water.

 

“Those rotten kids!” grumbled Asuma.

 

“More like that rotten sensei,” replied Kurenai. “It's impossible for me to sympathize after what you did. If you'd dropped ME in horse manure you'd have bigger problems to deal with than a cold.”

 

“In all fairness, they should have seen that trap from a mile away,” said Asuma. “It's not as if they were just given those Leaf headbands yesterday.”

 

“But you DID recommend Sakura for the exams, right?”

 

Asuma nodded. “Yup. Everything's signed, sealed and delivered. Now we just wait for the first of the year.”

 

“You planning on getting in as much last-minute training as possible?” asked Kurenai. “There are still twelve days left before the written exam begins.”

 

“You better believe it,” replied Asuma.

 

“Anything in particular, or is that some sort of secret?”

 

Asuma grinned. “Well since they seem to like getting people wet…”

 

---

 

“Come on, Choji,” hollered Asuma. “Pick up the pace before Ino and Sakura lap you.”

 

Asuma watched as his team swam laps as rapidly as possible at the Hidden Leaf's indoor pool at the local health club. Choji was struggling to keep up as Ino and Sakura sped through the water at a good clip.

 

“Asuma-sensei, this is killing me,” replied Choji.

 

“I don't see how,” said Asuma. “Those are barely even proper strokes that you're using. More like a doggy paddle. And you're not Kiba. So get moving and do it right!”

 

“But I'm gonna drown!” wailed Choji.

 

“He's gonna get us all in trouble if he doesn't shut up and move it,” grumbled Sakura. She and Ino finished their two miles and turned to see that Choji was a lap and a half behind them. “I knew it. Asuma Sensei will get upset.”

 

“I know how to move him along,” said Ino. “HEY CHOJI! You're too freaking fat to drown so don't worry. Lard floats.”

 

Choji's eyes went wide. He tore through the final distance like a speeding torpedo and when reached his goal he jumped out of the pool and pointed angrily at Ino.

 

“Ino, I dare you to say that again! Some people have no sensitivity at all and you've been shooting your mouth off almost as long as I've known you. How'd you like it if I called you flat-chested?!”

 

“Offhand, I'd say you have bigger boobs than me,” replied Ino coyly.

 

“Why you…”

 

“OK, enough chit chat!” hollered Asuma. “One more mile. Butterfly stroke this time. If anyone slows down or gets lapped we'll do one more.”

 

---

 

“Oh, Gai Sensei, I am so very psyched,” said Lee with a grin as he and his teammates gathered around the practice field. “I feel like I could run a marathon. On my hands. And then do five hundred pushups afterwards! In fact… Let us do that!”

 

“Where DOES that boy get his energy?” mumbled Neji with a smirk. “Must eat rocket fuel for breakfast or something.”

 

Gai chuckled to himself. “Lee, your vigor for life impresses me as always. But I do have something quite a bit different in mind.” He yanked out a scroll and in a puff of smoke, several one-hundred pound weights and two tall metal structures each looking like a giant letter T appeared. “Here's the challenge. How much weight can you hold on to using chakra only and how long can you hold onto it?”

 

Lee was stunned. This was a new one for him. “Impressive. Oh, me first, Sensei! Please!”

 

Neji looked over the equipment that had just been summoned. “I suppose we'll be holding on to the bars of those structures with our hands while trying to keep a series of weights attached to our feet using chakra only.”

 

“Almost, Neji,” he replied. “Your hands will not grip the bar. Rather, the chakra coming out of your hands will do that. Thus, this exercise is twice as difficult. Your whole body will be pushed to it's very limits. This is how the Second Hokage used to train.”

 

“I have to hand it to you, Sensei,” said Ten Ten. “You challenge the gods with this one.”

 

Gai simply smiled and gave a thumbs up. “Now Lee, for this exercise you must remove your leg weights. You'll need those muscles of yours to concentrate entirely on what they're doing.”

 

“Yes, Gai Sensei. And if I cannot outlast you all, it is five hundred jumping jacks.”

 

“Lee, we're doing that afterwards anyway.”

 

“Awesome!”

 

---

 

Baki greeted his team as they arrived at the training facility. This was a first for him. He had never actually done any conditioning coaching with Gaara or Kankuro before. Only Temari. No one knew for sure just what sort of training Gaara had been doing before his encounter with Naruto. Kankuro had worked with Yura, a private puppet coach who focused more attention on chakra control than physical fitness. Baki's role had been to lead when it was time to go on a mission. Now was his chance to have all three working out together.

 

Gaara had never even seen the inside of this facility before. The sights, the sounds, and even the smells (particularly the smell of chlorine from the pool nearby) were all strange to him. “Will we be using those?” he asked, pointing at a set of weightlifting equipment nearby.

 

“A little later,” replied Baki. “I have to teach you proper lifting techniques. But first everyone take those items off of your backs.” Temari set down her fan, Gaara his gourd, and Kankuro his puppets. “Now, Temari, I bet you can guess what's coming up now.”

 

“I'd say… Usagi,” she replied. “You're rather predictable with that thing.”

 

“Correct.”

 

Kankuro looked confused. “Usagi? What on earth kind of name for a training exercise is that?”

 

In reply, Baki opened a bag he was carrying and to Kankuro and Gaara's surprise, pulled out a mechanical rabbit.

 

“This is Usagi,” he said. “It moves like a real rabbit but with more speed and unlimited endurance. While one of you chases it, the other two will be running on a pair of treadmills. Believe me, this will not be easy if you aren't used to it. The results of this training are phenomenal. Your endurance, speed, and agility will become greater than ever before. I once had a sensei who used to leave us in the wilderness with no food. You wanted to eat, you had to catch a jackrabbit. This one doesn't tire out, though, so it's an improvement. This will be quite an adjustment for you boys who are used to rather stationary fighting. Temari, you go first, the two guys, on the treadmills.”

 

While the boys jogged at a brisk pace, Baki set the rabbit down. Temari was indeed used to chasing it but it was never an easy task and she hated it. “Here, bunny, bunny, bunny,” she called out as she chased it. “I don't want to eat you, I just want to end this humiliating experience as soon as possible.” The rabbit paid no heed as it shot off in all directions at a large rate of speed. It's greatest advantage was that it could stop and change directions on a dime much like the real thing and could accelerate from a dead stop way faster than a human. Time after time, Temari would nearly fall over as the rabbit came to a dead stop and then tore off in another direction. The rules of this exercise were to use muscles only without using any extra chakra to aid speed. After ten agonizing minutes, she finally cornered it and its efforts to jump over her and escape were too little, too late.

 

“Nobody stop! Temari, get on the treadmill, Kankuro, your turn with the rabbit.”

 

Temari felt as though she would drop dead and wanted to rest very badly but she ran over to the treadmill and began jogging. Kankuro took up his position and made a move at the rabbit. Immediately it dashed between his open legs and when he made a mad dash to grab it, he fell on his face. The rabbit turned around and actually ran over his fallen form and dashed off.

 

Temari couldn't help but snicker. Just then she noticed that Gaara had laughed a little too. She looked over at him jogging with a slight grin on face. It had been a long time since he'd been content enough to do that. Temari remembered what a cute little boy he'd been as a toddler and her attempts to play with him when her father wasn't looking. He had always wanted everyone to keep their distance from Gaara, whom he had already grown to hate. He wanted his other two children to feel the same way about him. Only Yashamaru was allowed to show him any consideration or affection so that he wouldn't grow too warped or simply stop eating. Temari hadn't shed so much as a tear when her father died. She'd felt guilty at first, but seeing Gaara like this now reminded her of how bad things could have been and the good that never would have happened had he lived.

 

---

 

“Well, I'd say your attire is finally appropriate,” said Kurenai. “I never in all my life saw three people all wear parkas in the summer but now that it's turned cold, I suppose it's more sensible now.”

 

“Um… Kurenai Sensei, is Asuma Sensei over his cold yet?” asked Hinata.

 

“Cold?” she replied. “Didn't realize he had one. That's too bad.”

 

Hinata looked confused. “Kiba, I thought you said she was taking care of him over at…”

 

“Shhh…” he interrupted nervously. “Um, she's just kidding, Sensei. So, what's the plan? Running? Weight lifting? Obstacle course?”

 

“Class D mission, actually. But it's one perfect for conditioning. The Hokage wants us to shovel snow off the rooftops of a series of buildings. Too much weight from snow can cave in a roof.”

 

“Humph,” grumbled Shino. “Over a hundred fire style users in town and they want us to do this the old-fashioned way.”

 

“Why Shino, since when are you afraid of a little hard work?” asked Kurenai. “Melting the snow would risk roof leaks.”

 

“I'm not bothered by hard work at all,” he replied.

 

“I see. You wouldn't by any chance be afraid of heights, would you?” asked Kurenai. Shino tensed up a little at that. “Ha, I thought so.”

 

“No, it's not that,” he said nervously. “It's not heights that bother me. It's heights that are covered in slippery ice.”

 

Kurenai had to laugh a little at that. It was not often that anything made Shino uneasy. “You should be able to prevent slipping by applying chakra to your soles. Or would you prefer I lend you some spiked cleats?” Shino blushed. “Alright. I'll quit teasing. Now this is about three hours worth of work. Given the fact that we're training, I want it done in one hour. Kiba, you'd better let me hold on to Akamaru. I'd be a bit more concerned about him falling off a roof than Shino. He can't grip with Chakra.”

 

“He can so,” retorted Kiba. “Show her, Akamaru.” He set Akamaru down in the snow and pointed at a wall for him to climb. But the dog ignored Kiba entirely and tried to gnaw off the leather dog boots that Kiba's mom had put on his feet. “Hey, cut it out! Those were expensive! Mom will kill me if you wreck those!”

 

“I think I'll hold on to him just to be on the safe side,” said Kurenai.

 

---

 

Tsunade sat in her office, staring out her window. From her high perch, she could see a lot of the village. She could see people engaged in commerce, an academy instructor teaching an outdoor genjutsu class, Genin all over town hard at work, and Shino falling off a roof and landing upside down in a garbage can.

 

“Penny for your thoughts?”

 

She turned around to see who had spoken. It was Kakashi. “Looks like someone forgot how to knock on a door before entering an office.”

 

“It was open,” he replied.

 

“So what brings you here?” she asked.

 

“Got any missions?”

 

“Hmm…” Tsuande looked through her records. “Nope, sorry. Just C and D rank stuff. I doubt you want to cut down dead trees or fill in for a vacationing sheriff a few miles away.”

 

“Not particularly,” said Kakashi. “Guess I'll do what everyone else is doing these days and get some training in.” He sounded disappointed.

 

“Miss having your team?” asked Tsuande.

 

Kakashi nodded. “Odd thing is, when I was assigned to be sensei for Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto, I hated the idea. It seemed like an inconvenience. I didn't think they'd even make it simply because I hadn't passed any team before them. Now as the exams are coming up again, I'm kind of lonely and I really wish I was preparing them for it again. If Naruto and Sasuke were here I just know they'd make Chunin this time. Everyone was chiding me last year for missing Naruto and Neji's match. Said it was one of the best in the history of the exam. And if Sakura's been training under you, I bet she'll make it too.”

 

“I believe so,” replied Tsunade. “Actually, it's a good thing you're here. I was going to fetch you anyway.”

 

“You were? Whatever for?”

 

“Tonbo won't be available for the exams,” she replied. “He's helping Genma on his mission. As you can tell, we're none too prepared. All of this was thrown together somewhat last minute. It was only recently that we decided not to hold this in the Hidden Rain Village. Tonbo is by far the best sentinel we have in the written exam. He sees with his mind, rather than his eyes. Without him, that Sharingan of yours is our best bet.”

 

“You do realize that with this thing, it will be literally impossible for anyone to pass the exam,” said Kakashi. “There's not a single act of cheating in the entire room that I'll miss, no matter how well concealed.”

 

“Kakashi, I'm going to let you in on a little secret. The Genin are given a little slack. Not much, but a little. They get written up for things that we can reasonably assume an actual enemy would notice. Other attempts often do get noticed by the sentinels, but are overlooked because they would suffice to fool an enemy. These are also written down as part of the official report but no points are deducted.”

 

Kakashi laughed. “That must be how Obito got away with cheating when my team took it. He kept scratching his head but the fingers were moving in morse code. Index finger for dot, middle for dash. It was very subtle, though.”

 

Tsunade laughed too. “In my time, we used my slugs to take messages back and forth between myself, Orochimaru, and Jiraya.” She sat up straight and grew serious. “Kakashi, Ebisu will be a sentinel as well. I have another reason for wanting you and he to be there. Aside from Naruto, you two are the best shadow clone users in the village.”

 

Kakashi looked confused. “Why would we need that jutsu?”

 

“To break up fights. Quite a few Sand Genin are registered for this thing. There ARE still some leftover resentments from last time. The fact that Gaara and his team helped us with the Sasuke situation has helped a little, but not completely.”

 

Kakashi thought a moment. “We didn't invite the Sound, did we?”

 

“Of course not!” answered Tsunade. “I was surprised when Sarutobi didn't simply expel them all from the village when Orochimaru told you that the Sound Village was his. I certainly would have.”

 

---

 

As Kurenai's team was jogging around the Academy track, they'd stop after each lap to do a muscle-building exercise, such as pushups. After having done this for a while, Kurenai stopped them. “Alright,” she said. “We'll finish with a wall sit. Everyone up against that wall over there. Fold your arms across your chest, push your backs against the wall, and squat down until your knees are bent in a ninety degree angle. At that point, hold that position until I tell you to stop.”

 

She sat back and waited. Soon, the strain became obvious. Holding that position is difficult to say the least.

 

“Thirty more seconds!”

 

Everyone did their best to hold on for dear life.

 

Kurenai grinned. “Before I let you stop… Oh Shino…” Shino groaned. “Now Shino, my boy, why didn't you take my advice and grip that rooftop with your chakra when you started sliding?”

 

“It happened to fast to react,” he replied.

 

“Ah, I see,” she said. “Good thing it wasn't an enemy doing something too fast for you to react to. OK, everyone down.” Everyone collapsed. “I didn't say LIE down. You can sit, but I'll have no team of mine lying around on the ground.”

 

Kiba sat up. “Uh, Kurenai Sensei, if we're done, I need to go put Akamaru through some conditioning of his own.” Akamaru heard this and moaned. “Oh, knock it off, you big baby! If I can handle this, you can. No TV until your exercises are done.”

 

“There is something I want to discuss with all of you before you go,” she said. “I want to talk to you about what it means to be a classy shinobi. Hinata, what do the Hidden Cloud, Hidden Rock, and Hidden Mist all have in common?”

 

“Um, there aren't invited to the Exams?”

 

“Correct,” replied Kurenai. “And why not? We aren't at war with any of them at the moment.” No one could answer. “This is important for you guys to know. These three Villages won't hesitate to do anything for the right price. Ethical considerations never come into play. You never see us have all of you fight each other to the death in order to become Genin, do you? You never see us kidnap or assassinate innocent people do you? A lot of shinobi with a conscience have trouble making it as ninja simply because deep down they see what we do as inherently wrong. We go after targets that are causing trouble for good people; good people who have no other means of defending themselves other than hiring us. We are NOT some pack of hired thugs. We provide an essential service to combat injustice. Other nations cannot make the same claim. Every ninja village has made its fair share of mistakes in this regard over the years. But the ones we deal with have a better track record. I'm telling you this because after this exam is over you may not be working under me any more if you are all promoted. You won't have my guidance and you'll have to make some important decisions out there. You must not cross a certain line in your actions, and that line is clear. You must not harm a combatant or noncombatant who poses no risk to a good person or to you. You must exercise restraint and use good moral judgment at all times. And sometimes, you must do something that neither you nor the village will be compensated for in any way if it prevents an injustice. This is the way of a shinobi with an ounce of class. You are dismissed.”

 

Everyone stood up and went home. Everyone that is, except Hinata. It took Kurenai a moment to notice that she had not left. “Was there something you wanted, dear?”

 

Hinata looked more uneasy than usual. “Um sensei… I… Uh… nevermind.”

 

“Hinata, it's OK, whatever it is. Even if it's about Asuma.”

 

Hinata blushed. “No! Of course not! It's… Um… have you… killed a lot of people?”

 

Kurenai paused for a second. “If you consider 28 to be a lot, yes. Why do you ask?”

 

“I'm not sure I could do that,” replied Hinata.

 

“I disagree,” answered Kurenai. “If a friend were in trouble, I bet you could find the strength to do what is necessary. Even if it was only you in danger, you still could. You proved that to me by facing up to Neji. If I thought you were incapable of doing whatever it takes to defend life, up to and including killing, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now because I would have taken that headband away and sent you back to your father.”

 

“I just hate the thought of doing it. I mean… I've hurt enemies before on missions. But I've never had to… you know…”

 

Kurenai was quiet for a moment. “I was your age my first time. I cried all night when I got back home. No one should ever enjoy that element of the job. Your job satisfaction should come from the end result; the people who have been aided. I think Naruto's first combat mission was an outstanding example of everything I've been talking about today. The aggressors were killed, Naruto felt lousy about it but the land was defended against unspeakable evil. That's why this business of ethical decision making is so important. If you take on an unethical mission, you MUST take satisfaction in the act of killing in order to stand it because you have created injustice rather than prevented it. It warps you as a person. This is why the other villages will not be included.”

 

“Oh. I see.” Hinata looked very down in the mouth.

 

Kurenai put her arm around Hinata's shoulders. “Come on, I'll walk you home. By the way, I'm glad you discussed this with me rather than with your father. In the future, I hope you'll always come to me with this sort of thing.”

 

End Chapter 3

 

© 2009 Joseph Kerner

 

Disclaimer: Naruto is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto