Chapter 2 - Shinri! (Truth!)

“Well, until we get the three of you permanent quarters, you might try here.” Kakashi indicated with his head. It was a tall building, a hotel of some kind. It seemed to be made of adobe or something similar, giving it a sandy look. Ekyt’s hand unconsciously felt for his eye. “Thank you.” Linda said on behalf of the group. “Not a problem. When you’re ready to start training, head to the Academy. For now, though, try to rest up. If you need a good book, might I suggest “Make-out Paradise?” Chakaro and Kayla exchanged glances. “Well, get some rest then. I think my ninja knuckleheads will be dropping by later.” Kakashi said over his shoulder. “I think this calls for some hot spring relaxation.” Linda announced, with the group readily agreeing. “You go ahead, I’m going to take a walk, maybe scout out some food.” “At least get yourself cleaned up first Ekyt-sensei. No offense, but you’ve had a rough time too.” Kayla said. Ekyt’s eye narrowed briefly, but he nodded and found his room.

Upon walking in, Ekyt found the shades to be mostly drawn, giving the room a dark tint. It suited him just fine. He had bought some clothes similar to what he was used to. It took him a moment to tie the black headband back around his face. He pulled his mask over his mouth and nose. Now wearing black gi pants (like before), same black shirt, except it now had a white collar on it. Only a few beams of sun could get in through the blinds, giving the room a dismal look, matching Ekyt’s mood. Maybe it was because he was alone, or maybe the fact that his eye wasn’t going to heal, but whatever the reason, Ekyt sank down onto the bed in the dark, gloomily letting his head drop into his hands. He had hit his lowest point ever. His eye was damaged beyond conventional repair, he had been destroyed in a fight that never should have happened, Linda was… He stopped his thought process, feeling depression stabbing him in the stomach.

“I feel so bad for him!” Sakura had a hard time forgetting the state of Ekyt’s eye. His face would heal, but the eye… He sacrificed his eye for that girl…I wonder what was between them? There’s no way that he dove in front of her just because she was his former master instructor. Now they barely talk… “He shouldn’t have written a check his butt couldn’t cash! Messing with Gaara, that’s suicide. Well, not for me, he couldn’t handle hokage material, believe it!” Naruto exclaimed. “Don’t be a moron. There’s not too many people who would willingly fight Gaara.” Sasuke pointed out. “Yeah, and besides that, he fought without using jutsus or chakra…I can’t imagine that!” Sakura said, not liking the idea of being THAT defenseless. “Yeah, what can you do? Hey, let’s go visit them! Kakashi-sensei told me where they’re staying! Maybe I’ll get to meet Linda, man she’s hot!” Naruto exclaimed. “Loser. Shouldn’t wouldn’t bat an eye for you.” Naruto fell over, the got up, yelling. “YOU SHOULD TALK! EVERY GIRL LIKES YOU, BUT LIL’ SASUKE’S TOOK BRATTY TO ANSWER THEM!”

Kayla and Linda were sitting in the hot spring. “Ahh! This is great!” Kayla exclaimed, stretching out. “It’s hard to worry about anything in here!” she said happily. Linda nodded absently. “Something on your mind?” Kayla asked. Linda looked blankly at the fence that separated the boys are from the girls. “It’s Ekyt…Kayla…at one point, he admitted something to me…something he could never tell anyone else, at least not yet.” Kayla’s eye widened and her washcloth slipped off her forehead. “What?” she asked. “Well, he said he” “Hey, Linda! Kayla!” Sakura joined them. “Oh, hi Sakura.” Linda said. “Listen, Linda, I’m really worried about your friend. And I know there’s another reason he took the sand shuriken attack for you, aside from you being an instructor. I don’t know what, but there was something else.” Linda looked around. “Okay…I’ll explain it.”

Naruto and Sasuke were hanging out in the lobby when Ekyt walked down, muttering something to the clerk. “Hey Sasuke, you know, I didn’t see his eye, did you?” “No.” They had to stop there, because Ekyt was walking toward them. “Ekyt! Hey, over here!” Naruto waved him over. “What’s going on?” Ekyt asked. “Well, we dropped by to see if you needed anything.” Naruto answered. “Now that you mention it…is there a gym around here? And a good store to get supplies?” “A gym? You just got here, and you’re going to train?! Are you crazy?!” Naruto almost shouted. “You should try training.” Sasuke muttered darkly.

“Don’t tell anyone, but at one point, we were almost boyfriend/girlfriend.” A shocked silence hit the hot spring. “He told me he loved me, and then kissed me. That’s huge for him, he’s such a nervous guy. And he didn’t hold the rejection against me. But the reason he took that attack was that he would have taken it for anyone. That’s the way he is.” “Insane?” said a new voice. Sakura’s eyes narrowed. “What’s up billboard brow?” Ino, a pretty, but airy, blond girl taunted. “Get out before you dye the water, you peroxide blond.” Sakura replied. “Hey, are all of you decent?” another voice came, this time a male’s. “Yeah Chakaro.” Linda answered. “Who’s Chakaro?” Ino asked. Sakura snapped at the chance. “My God, he’s only the hottest thing this side of Sasuke Uchiha! But he’s after me, sorry!” She said, sticking her tongue out and making an “L” shape on her forehead with her fingers. “We’ll see about that! He hasn’t met me yet Captain Forehead!”

“So, if I’m getting this, you were an instructor, but not a black belt? How does that work?” Naruto asked. “Experience. I was more or less a vigilante for nearly two years. All I did was train. I want to protect people. And now…When I’m ready, Gaara’s going to get a visit from me.” “Gaara isn’t easy, but I can see why you’d want to go after him.” Sasuke said. “Any idea who’s going to instruct you?” he continued. “Kakashi-sensei, Asuma Sarutobi, and Might Guy.” Ekyt said, trying to remember the names. “All of them? What cell are you going to be in?” Naruto asked. “No idea. I just know I’m supposed to get diverse training. I don’t know why, but I’m not going to question it. I studied four, five martial arts before I came here. If I’m doing this, I want to be good at it.” Sasuke seemed mildly impressed. “You’ve gotta meet a few people then! They’re not cool, like me, (they’re more like Sasuke, if ya know what I mean) but it’s good know ‘em. Hey, there’s Shikamaru!”

Chakaro walked in cautiously. He found Kayla, Linda, Sakura, and some girl he didn’t know staring at him. “Sorry to interrupt. But there’s a problem here, with Ekyt-Sensei, er, Ekyt. Linda, there’s more reason than” “We know. Join us Chakaro, I’ll spill my guts…again.” Chakaro sat down gingerly. He had never been around this many good-looking girls, especially ones only somewhat clothed. “Hey there, I’m Ino!” the blond girl zipped up to him. “Oh, look at you! You’re adorable! That makes us a perfect match!” Sakura looked away, stifling her laughter at Chakaro’s look of…either confusion or amusement, she couldn’t tell which. “Well, like I just said, Ekyt admitted he loved me, and kissed me. That was big for him. But I guess I wasn’t ready to have a boyfriend, so I said no. He never held the rejection against me.” Ino had her head on Chakaro’s shoulder. He either didn’t notice or didn’t mind. “I knew there was something there…he told me once…” He stopped. “Go on.” Ino urged him. “He told me once that he threw himself into his training because that’s who he is, and that I’m lucky I’ll have something real to fall back on besides training. It sounded like he had just given up on something. Now I think I know what. It was the night after he took those three knives for you, Linda. When he was walking with the crutch. He mentioned that something had happened between you two, but that he wouldn’t blame you, because you were honest with him. And he then he said that honesty was such a rare trait, he admired you.”

After meeting Shikamaru, Ekyt got in some training time. For two hours, he punched, kick, elbowed, kneed, did squats, pushups, situps, everything, while talking with Naruto and Sasuke. “You really want this, don’t you?” Sasuke asked suddenly. “I haven’t seen anyone train that hard, ever, without some evidence of chakra.” Ekyt stopped. “That’s my biggest question. I know WHAT chakra is, but I don’t know HOW to unlock it. What do I need to do? I’m at a huge disadvantage as it is with my eye…I don’t need another handicap.”

“He admires me for turning him down?” Linda couldn’t believe her ears. “I guess and…who the hell is this?” Chakaro said, finally acknowledging Ino’s presence. “I’m your dream come true!” she pepilly replied. “When did I dream about hell?” Chakaro asked. Sakura laughed out loud at that. “Ino, you really fell for that? Come on, I’ve only known this guy for one day!” Ino suddenly realized she was the butt of the joke. “Hmpph! You got lucky Sakura!” Ino stormed out of the hot spring, kicking the fence in rage. “Serves her right.” Sakura murmured. “Linda, if you don’t mind my asking…how do you think of him now?” Linda uttered the words every guy dreads hearing from a love interest: “He’s just a friend.”

“C’mon Sasuke, let me show him one jutsu!” Naruto urged. “Whatever. It’s your head.” Sasuke murmured, leaning against the wall to watch. Then he realized what jutsu Naruto was sure to pick. “Centerfold jutsu!” Naruto was suddenly- a girl? Ekyt looked at Naruto, then shot Sasuke a questioning look. Sasuke shrugged. Naruto popped back to himself, grinning broadly. “So, that’s a jutsu. Whaddaya think, pretty sweet huh?!” Ekyt didn’t know how to answer that. “They’re not all worthless, some are deadly.” Sasuke said in exasperation.

Sakura felt herself getting angry, but managed to keep it in check. “How does HE see all this? I mean, taking an attack like that…” she shook her head, trying to imagine Naruto or Sasuke doing that. They wouldn’t, but they wouldn’t need to. The only one she knew who would was Lee. “He was good with the whole thing, not blaming me, thanking me for my honesty. I’m just not ready for a boyfriend, I guess. It’s not that he’s a bad guy, he’s loyal, an absolute sweetheart, and, I know you haven’t seen his face without cuts and scratches, but actually pretty cute.” She said thoughtfully. “I know where to find him.” Chakaro piped up. “Going for a walk nothing. You know what he’s doing Linda, he’s done this at every town.” “Oh, that’s right! I forgot he does that! It’s a bad habit he has on the road.” Linda said, chewing on her finger. “What’s that?” “He trains obsessively. I thought his…injury…might have slowed him down. I swear, he pulls this at every town, in the woods, on the road.”

“Well, who do we have here? Sasuke, Naruto, care to introduce me to your friend?” Might Guy was standing near the group, grinning happily. Ekyt stopped beating the punching bag and turned around. “I’m Ekyt.” “Might Guy. Aren’t you one of my new students?” “I think so. I know I’ve got…Asuma Sarutobi tomorrow morning, it must be your name that’s on my afternoon schedule.” “It’s somewhat unusual for a genin like you to have multiple sensei’s. But if you can handle it, more power to you. Have you met my personal protégé?” “I don’t think so.” “Lee! Come over here!” Guy called to a…clone of himself? No, this kid was younger. “Yes Guy-Sensei?” “A new student, Lee.” Lee seemed to just take notice of Ekyt. “Greetings. My name is Rock Lee, I usually go by Lee.” Ekyt shook his hand. “I’m Ekyt.” “I overheard you say you haven’t learned about Chakra yet. Lee here can’t use his, maybe you two would be good training partners. I’m worried Lee’s gonna get soft without someone to work with.”

As Ekyt was going to answer Lee, his group found him. Linda shook her head in mock anger. “Training AGAIN? Shame on you!” she said, wagging her finger. “Linda, Chakaro, Kayla, this is Might Guy, tomorrow afternoon’s sensei. And that’s Lee.” Ekyt said, ignoring the verbal jibe. “Pleased to meet you.” Linda said on behalf of the group. “Likewise. Well, don’t let me stop you from going about your business.” “Pardon me a minute.” Ekyt was talking with Lee. For a few moments. Then, without warning, the two broke back from each other, with loud “Kia’s!” of effort.

At no point during the match did things become hostile. At one point, Lee walked on his hands while kicking at Ekyt. Ekyt’s best shot came when he blocked the “Konoha Hurricane” kick and swept Lee’s legs. Lee’s counter was the beginning of the end. He ducked Ekyt’s cresecent kick, and returned with a kick of his own, to Ekyt’s chest. It sent Ekyt into the air, letting Lee get in position for the “Forward Lotus” technique. Guy stopped the fight there, reminding Lee that technique was forbidden. Lee understood that, and said he never meant to actually do it. Ekyt and Lee didn’t have a long fight, but long enough to leave both winded and with some fresh bruises popping up. Lee had been incredibly quick, and Ekyt couldn’t keep up. But Ekyt could read his strategy, up until checkmate, when Lee had him trapped in position for his “Forward Lotus” (Can someone confirm the name?) attack. After quick bows to each other, they parted ways. “Very impressive.” Guy said. “You’ve got potential.” Ekyt thanked him, walking back to his group. “Everywhere we go.” Linda said. “Pardon me. I haven’t formally met you yet. I am Rock Lee…” Sakura had to smile; she liked Lee as a friend, though he was infatuated with her. Now he had a Sakura look-alike to talk to. Sakura could read Ekyt’s mood, and she found a depression in him that started when Linda agreed to go get a drink with Lee. Kind of like when Sasuke won’t go out with me…Poor guy…If someone lost their eye for me, I’d definitely see them as something more than a friend.

Chakaro and Kayla stood next to Ekyt, proud of him despite the loss. “I’ve never seen anyone move so quick.” Chakaro pointed out. “Really! And it looks like Ekyt-Sensei is moving quick too.” Kayla said, glancing at Ekyt. “What are you talking about?” Ekyt asked, seemingly perplexed. “Don’t look now, but you’ve got that girl’s attention.” Kayla jabbed him in the ribs. “Who? Sakura? C’mon, she’s outta my league.” Ekyt said. “All of you are doing great, it seems.” Kayla said, mockingly pouting. “Sakura’s after Ekyt (Ekyt shot her a nasty look with his good eye), That blond cheerleader (Ino) is chasing Chakaro (Chakaro looked at the ceiling, rolling his eyes, cheeks turning red), and Master Linda is dating bush-brow (Both nod).” Shikamaru walked by, vaguely saying hi to Ekyt. Kayla raised her eyebrows and started after Shikamaru.

Shikamaru looked behind him, seeing the new girl following him. Another girl? How bothersome. She hasn’t yelled at me yet, so she’s not totally like Ino. Whatever…

(Picture huge anime sweatdrops here) Ekyt, Naruto, Sasuke, and Chakaro watched the whole thing. “Doesn’t she know how Shikamaru is?” Naruto asked Ekyt. Ekyt shook his head. “Nope. I’d tell her, but it seems she’d rather take digs at my personality.” They all got a chuckle out of that. “Hey, I’m hungry!” Naruto exclaimed suddenly. “Which one? Oriental flavored ramen or teriyaki chicken ramen? Oooh, maybe Wasabi steak! Yeah!” Sasuke looked away, arms crossed. “Oh, the bottomless ramen pit is hungry? What a surprise.”

“Sasuke! I’ve gotta ask you something!” Sakura ran to catch up to Sasuke. “The answer is no.” he said flatly. “Huh?” Sakura uttered in surprise. “You want to go out with me, right? The answer is no.” Sakura reddened. “That wasn’t my question! I wanted to ask you about the scroll that Kakashi-sensei lent us. Do you still have it?” Sasuke pulled the scroll out of his pocket. “Thanks, I want to work on my transformation jutu. See you later!”

Naruto popped out from behind a fence, landing next to Sasuke. “Whoa, weird, she wants to work on her jutsu? She’s, like, a master of her chakra, how better does she need to be? And what’s up with her not asking you to go out with her? It’s not like her to ignore the “Great and powerful Sasuke Uchiha!” It’s like her mind was somewhere else…” “It was on her jutsus. The things YOU should be practicing. Unless you want to be a moron your whole life.” Sasuke said with the smallest of sneers. “Laugh all you want Sasuke, go ahead! But I think you’re threatened by these new guys!”

“Don’t be Stupid.”


NEXT ISSUE: Our newest ninja’s start training, and the schedule is tough! Asuma in the morning, Guy in the afternoon, and at night, there first lesson with Kakashi! Not to mention the pressing question: How are things going on the love front for our intrepid heroes?

And now…my char’s bios!


Name: Chakaro Tamaki
Age: 13
Gender: Male
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black shoulder length
Height: 5’6
Build: Skinny/Athletic
Skin: Caucasian/non-Asian

Bio: Chakaro Tamaki is something of a martial-arts protégé. After his parents died by their own stupidity (He’s never revealed the cause of their death, except for “I had nothing to do with it, those two idiots are to blame), he turned to martial arts. He has forsaken his American name (Charles Wright), instead going by his adopted name. He feels martial arts is the only thing he can count on always being there. He has no close friends, save for Ekyt, his instructor, who he thinks of as a mentor. His anti-social tendencies never get in the way of teamwork, and it’s the guess of Ekyt that Chakaro is shy and self-conscious by nature.

Chakaro’s personal choice of weapons are shuriken and a 30 inch, samurai-style katana. The katana was a congratulatory gift from Ekyt after he received his black belt in two arts simultaneously.

Chakaro has no hobbies other than training. His favorite food is vegetables prepared with wasabi. Typically, he can be found wearing white black gi pants, with a black gi top, which shows his dedication to the martial arts.



Name: Kayla Donalds
Age: 13
Gender: Female
Eyes: Dark Blue
Hair: Blond shoulder length
Height: 5’4
Build: female muscular
Skin: Caucasian/non-Asian

Kayla Donalds was something of a brat before her parents tricked her into trying martial arts. She fell in love with the physicality, the ability to be self-sufficient, and, some say, Chakaro Tamaki. She appears to be a cheerleader-type, but is far more dangerous. Her specialties are healing and espionage.

Kayla’s closest friend is Linda, because Linda broke her out of her (as she puts it) “Shallow, princessy, self-centered shell”. The two bonded almost instantly, thinking of each other as sisters. Kayla’s weapons of choice are tonfas and her medical pack, though she is incredibly accurate with throwing stars.

Kayla’s hobbies include reading romance novels and trying to catch Chakaro’s eye in romance-novel situations. Her favorite food is chocolate. She can usually be found wearing white gi pants, with a matching white t-shirt.



Name: Linda (Adopted family name: Mawashi)
Age: 15
Gender: Female
Eyes: Emerald green
Hair: Pink hair w/ purple highlights, bangs over her left eye, short hair into ponytail
Height: 5’4 ½
Build: Female Athletic
Skin: Caucasian/non-Asian

Linda adopted the family name “Mawashi” as a necessity when she took over Master Akira Sukuto’s dojo. Her long-time master died after a long battle with hepatitis. As the top student, she took over at his request. Her specialty is combat, any kind of it. She’s beautiful, but incredibly deadly, though she has never killed anyone.

Linda’s closest friend is Ekyt. Even though she rejected him when he got up the guts to admit he loved her, she still respects him a great deal. She rejected him because she wasn’t ready to have a boyfriend. She told him “When I AM ready, I hope it’s a boy like you.” Far from being a boy and clothes obsessed teenage girl, Linda already holds many responsibilities, and is in charge of her own life. Linda’s weapons of choice are throwing knives and a bo.

Linda’s hobbies are training and helping Ekyt. She found the young man to be troubled, and now sees him as a “project.” Her favorite food is Kung Pao chicken. She can usually be found wearing black gi shorts, a white t-shirt, and a monogrammed (red) black vest.



Name: Ekyt (real name unknown, no adopted surname/ family name)
Age: 15 (He is 19 in my other fics)
Gender: Male
Eyes: Hazel (Brown)
Hair: Dark brown, short but bushy
Height: 5’9
Build: Sinewy muscular/ skinny
Skin: Caucasian/non-Asian

Not very much is known about Ekyt. He refuses to tell anyone his real name, and seems to be depressed, but friendly at the same time, by nature. His closest friend is Linda, though the two seem to be growing apart. Ekyt’s parents are alive and well, but he refuses to put them in danger, so he doesn’t associate with them much. He disowns most of the rest of his family. Training seems to be his life, and he tends to take responsibility for any tragedy that happens near him.

Ekyt lost the use of his left eye after leaping in front of Linda as a way of intercepting a brutal, unprovoked attack by Gaara of the Sand. His face has since healed, save for his eye, though he has embraced wearing a mask for his own reasons. He has become a mentor to Chakaro Tamaki, and a close confidant of Linda. Linda’s rejection of his affections have led him to hate his emotions. Already stoic by nature, Ekyt now goes out of his way to be emotionless. Ekyt’s weapons of choice are Kris blades, a 26 ½ inch Katana (samurai katana), throwing stars, and (his primary weapon) at 6 foot tri-sectional staff.

Ekyt’s hobbies are training, reading, and occasionally playing Go or Chinese Checkers if he can find a willing opponent. His favorite food (though he only eats one meal a day) is habachi steak. His attire is currently a black headband covering his left eye (The destroyed appendage), along with a mask to cover his cuts and regulate his breathing (He has a tendency to hyperventilate), unintentionally looking like Kakashi. He also wears a black T-Shirt with a white collar, a silver dragon pendant on a chain (a gift from his parents), and black gi pants, the ends of which are tucked into his short black boots.

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