Chapter 37 - Arc V: Broken- Chapter 3

Shikamaru glanced over at Asuma as they navigated through the trees. Asuma hadn’t had a cigarette in nearly four hours- since he had gotten the message to come to the Fire Daimyo’s temple. That was the most evident clue that Asuma didn’t feel the calm he was portraying.

“Asuma-sensei, you were one of the Guardian Twelve, right?” Sakura asked, calling from the middle of the pack.

“Yeah, I was,” Asuma answered.

“Then that means…you must know some of the people who got killed.”

“No. I only know the one who was left alive,” Asuma replied. “Shinmaru was the Fire Daimyo’s chief protector, even during my time. He’s the one who sent the message. The other eleven I only knew on my way out, save for two or three. I wasn’t close with any of them, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Sakura stopped her questioning for the moment, determining Asuma was still sane and rational.

“It’s good you’re thinking like a medic, Sakura. But believe me, this is one mission where I’ll be perfectly sane. Just prone to violence.”

With that, Asuma kicked up the speed just a little bit, and everyone adjusted to match.

“I wonder how Ryouko’s doing,” Sakura said aloud, looking to Naruto. Naruto’s glance, however, was almost hostile.

“I’m sure he’s just fine,” he said shortly, clearing not wanting any more to do with this subject of conversation.

What was that about? Sakura wondered. The last thing we need is trouble between those two when we meet up with Ryouko again.
--

“So, this jutsu is broken down into three steps. First: Loosening the earth. Water Style: Flowing River Jutsu!”

Ryouko used a Third Hokage jutsu he adapted to loosen the sand below his feet, creating just a trickle of water that he had borrowed from the nearby pond. He hadn’t gotten to the Third’s level of water mastery yet, and this was closer to a water style jutsu than an earth style. But it served it’s purposes. By all indications, Shoki would have a much easier time.

“Step two: digging in with your chakra. This is where you focus your chakra to your feet, take a deep stance, then shift your feet in. Like this:”

Ryouko sunk his weight down, focused his chakra, then turned his feet inward. The chakra and mud made for a solid base.

“Now, step three comes when the attack is initiated. Azami, go ahead.”

Azami whipped up a good windstorm, directing it at Ryouko. He turned his body slightly, so his left shoulder was forward, and his chin was tucked into his shoulder. His arms were in a guard position, so the forearm and shoulder took the brunt of the wind. The grains of sand carried on the wind cut a little bit, but it was nothing to worry about.

“You’re going to get cut sometimes. You just need to control where, and your reaction. For now, the outside of your arms is probably safest. Nothing life-threatening there that can be hit very easily. Now, you try.”

Shoki was wearing a long, over-sized white kung-fu top, with sleeves that covered his hands, black pants that fell to his ankles, where they were tied off, and black sandals that were standard-issue for shinobi. With his overlong hair and small frame, he didn’t even look his twelve years- more like eight, maybe. But his mastery was incredible. He was, by no means, a golden boy or anything of the sort, but it only took being instructed once for him to pick the basics up. After that, he would progress rapidly.

“Stance looks good…Okay, Azami go ahead. Half-power this time.”

“Right. Wind Style: Raging Typhoon!”

The wind hit Shoki hard, but his slight form bent but didn’t break. He stood his ground and weathered the attack.

“Great job! You nailed it!” Azami cheered, smiling at the boy.

“Your stance was perfect. You’re a quick study, Shoki. Now, how about some lunch while you watch Azami help me out?”

Shoki nodded shyly, sitting down just outside the sand garden. He wasn’t very hungry, but he was curious to see what his new teachers were capable of.

“Mind if I join you, Shoki?”

Uzume sat down next to the boy, watching Azami and Ryouko warm up. They had both stripped off their heavy tops, and were both down to their undershirts. Ryouko’s was a white t-shirt; Azami’s a blank tank top. They nodded to each other, then began a high-speed sparring match.

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Uzume commented, smiling at Shoki’s shocked face. “It must be their lifestyle. Or perhaps their determination. It’s amazing to me that such opposites could be such good friends.”

“Opposites? How? Because he’s a boy and she’s a girl?”

Uzume had to giggle at the youthful innocence behind that statement.
“Well, yes, that’s part of it. But it’s more their pasts. You see, the boy, Ryouko, is a shinobi of the Leaf village. He’s loyal, very brave, and compassionate. He tries to hide all his emotions, but, well, he has trouble in that area when it comes to girls.”

“Why?”

“Why indeed,” Uzume giggled. “Now, the girl. She was a fierce criminal once, because her past made her that way. She was cold, and very intimidating. But then she met Ryouko. They share a special bond.”

“What kind of bond?”

“A bond between people who have sworn to do something. Ryouko has sworn to protect two people…well, really, anyone who needs his help, but two people in particular. And the girl…she’s learned from that boy, even though she’s doing the teaching now. She’s come to understand that, no matter what your past, if you really are a good person at heart, it WILL show through.”

Shoki watched silently as Azami got the better of Ryouko. She had him down in the stand, her foot poised for a killing blow to his neck. But she stopped short and offered him a hand up. Ryouko nodded his thanks, then took up his guard again.

Uzume had learned from a young age to never let her emotions betray her. Most of the time, that was no problem. She really did feel a sort of peace. But now that she felt certain her death was approaching, she found it difficult to accept. Yes, death was as natural as birth, and shouldn’t be a bother to someone who leads a solitary life, but she had since found that she wanted to see the progression of Shoki; the growth of Ryouko; the change in Azami; and many other things. Her fate intertwining with that of these people had been a blessing to her. Now, when preparing to face her darkest hour, it seemed a curse.
--

Azami shrugged her shoulders, loosening them up as she prepared for Ryouko‘s more intense training. “O-kay. Well, let’s get to your training, then. If they’ll be here in another day, that means you’ve got until 5:00 tomorrow night to get this down.”

“I’ve got my guard shift then,” Ryouko replied, counting the hours. “I’ll be in with Shinmaru. Asuma and his group will be resting; you’ll be with Uzume and Shoki. I can practice with Shinmaru. I’ve been wanting to spar him again, anyway.”

“And it gives you more time before you have to see the ‘royal couple’ again,” Azami pointed out sarcastically. “I THOUGHT you were pretty eager to get that particular duty slot.”

Ryouko attempted a half-hearted smile, but it was just embarrassing for him to even pretend to shrug this off. “I’m just…not ready.”

“If it’s what Jiraiya said-”

“What he said was right, even if he said it the wrong way!” Ryouko snapped. Azami had her mouth open, but had stopped there.
“…Sorry. I’m just frustrated.”
Azami gave Ryouko a pat on the back. “It’s fine. I understand. Hang in there.”

Ryouko gave a numb nod, ready to pick up where he left off.

“Good. Now, you know how to make fire. And you know how to release chakra in a burst. But so far, you can only exhale that fire, right?”

Ryouko nodded again. “That’s right.”

“Okay. So what we’ll do is make it so you don’t have to just exhale. You’ll be able to manipulate fire as easily as chakra. And eventually, you can apply the same technique to earth, and always have weapons easily accessible.”
--

With one more day left, Shoki received most of the attention. He had learned top walk on water. He had learned to climb trees using chakra. And he was having fun with weapons training. He seemed to favor a chain that Ryouko had lying around. He twirled it and pitched it with amazing accuracy. And it lent itself well to his small size. Weapons like that didn’t need much external force. Centrifugal force was an added bonus.

“You’re coming along great, Shoki,” Ryouko commented, grinning. “Now, how about we work on those eyes again? I’ve only learned a few things,. Can you tell me about the circumstances of your birth?”

Shoki thought for a moment. It wasn’t a regular thing you were asked, so it took a minute to recall what his parents had said to him.
“I was born at dawn…and my parents put two coins in front of me. One of them said ‘left’; the other had ‘right’ written on it. I guess I grabbed the left coin. So I lost my left eye, and I got the special eye in my right eye. After that, I got to choose my eye color. What I chose determined what kind of effects my eye would have.”

“There are other effects? Do you know them?”

Shoki shrugged. “My uncle could do amazing things with his eye. He could trap an image, like I can, but the person would also be frozen in that position as long as he didn’t blink.”
Shokie stopped, looking as though he’d had enough questioning. “I can’t remember the rest. All I know is my eye can do special things. For some reason, that orange haired guy wants me to die.”

“Yes. Your eye can disrupt his eye. I don’t know much about him, or his goals. I just know that if he’s trying to eliminate any threat to him, he’s either paranoid or a bad person. And since he came here and attacked a temple, I’m going with ‘bad person’.”

“Then I’ll help,” Shoki told Ryouko, still toneless. “I want to stop him. I’m not the only person he wants to kill, am I?”

“…No. You’re not even his real target. You’re a potential weapon we can use against him. But I don’t want to do that.”

“Why?”

“People aren’t weapons. We USE weapons. No person should use another like that.”

“…Not even if a lot of lives could be saved?”

“…” Ryouko looked up at the sky, not quite sure how to answer that. “I’d never forgive myself for using you that way. I’d hate myself more if something happened to you. But there may not be a choice. All I can do is prepare you for the possible battle.”

Shoki hugged Ryouko. “You’re a good person. You and Azami, and Uzume and Asuna. I’m only twelve, but if I CAN help, I WANT to.”

It was such a pure sentiment that Ryouko couldn’t help but be impressed. The hug, though, made him think. What about being this child’s father, at least until he turned fifteen? Why did he have to be JUST an instructor? But then again, that wasn’t fair. He needed a mother; more so than a father. That, Ryouko could not do. And he had already been cautioned he could not adopt Shoki. So all he could do was prepare the boy for the worst, and protect him from the rest.
Feeling the gentle hug, that made Ryouko feel as if he was cheating the boy. The boy was starved for a real family. For once, Ryouko did not have the supplies nor the expertise on hand to provide that. All he could do was hug back and promise not to get too attached to the boy, or let Shoki get too attached to him.

You are not authorized to comment here. Your must be registered and logged in to comment