Who ever stole my father’s book, they didn’t make their move for another two months. And thus six months turned into four months left to master wood technique, and I must say I was beginning to believe that I could master it by the time the year ends. Team seven were sent to missions regularly, escorting, guarding, investigating, we did a lot. I traveled from one place to another almost everyday, no matter where I was, wood mastery was important. Sage Moriko taught me three other jutsus, and said that I could create my own jutsus if I’d like.
I can turn any terrain into a forest, with the Nativity of a sea of tree jutsu. A forest grows to my will, the thickness and height of the trees, are all in my power, once I mastered this jutsu. I can take control of what ever fight with changing the terrain. Since only Yamato and I can slip through trees, I’ll have the upper hand. I learned many defensive technique, one that can even withstand an attack from a tailed beast. Its the Hobi technique, and well that was harder to master, its still not perfect. But one of my favorite is Advent of a world of flowering trees, that is a powerful technique, it dispersers pollen to the area I want it to, and renders the opponents unconscious in seconds. Though that jutsu takes quite a bit of chakra, and need much more chakra control to create the breeding ground for the pollen flowers. And I have many other jutsus to learn in the incoming four months.
I arrived to Shikkotsu Forest like any other day, but today Sage Moriko was going to teach me one of her personal favorite wood jutsu. She called it the Hotei Technique. Sage Moriko awaits me in a very large open field, she must have cleared it for today’s lesson. She smiles as she sees me, something we’ve both been doing much more of. We weren’t at each other’s necks anymore.
“Great to see you bright and early,” She greets me. I bow.
“So what is this your favorite? I’m dying to learn another technique,” I start.
“I told you yesterday a little about it. It is called the Hotei Technique, and it can even defend against a tailed beast attack. It can also restrain a tailed beast, something that will be a great help when mastering beast mode. The key point to this jutsu is that you must create the hands a fast as possible, because you are defenseless if you do not create a defensive wall before hand. You must clap your hands together, and use your chakra to grow massive hands from the earth right below us. Is just like creating any other wood technique, this one is on a large scale that is all, so concentrate,” Sage Moriko, claps her hand in front of her, and I can feel the flow of chakra go through the ground.
The ground rumbles, and soon I see massive hands come out of the ground. The were huge, maybe big enough to knock home tree down.
“You can move it to your will, it is your chakra that is creating it after all. A fist, and open palm, use it like extra limbs,” She says. The gigantic hands swing through the air, as if the air resistance was nothing. This jutsus could do a lot of harm.
“Now you try it Kiyoko. Take your time and visualize it,” She releases her jutsus, letting the wooden arms fall to the ground. As they hit the ground, I am lifted into the air by the impact, and land roughly on my feet.
I relax, feeling my chakra be the life for the wood that I will make. I clap my hands together, doing as she did. I feel the earth under me move just like Sage Moriko’s, and I see the gigantic wooden hands begin to protrude. I can feel them connect to my body, they are like a humongous extended arm that is linked to my body like my four limbs.
“You can control how many you want. And even the size of the wood hands,” Sage Moriko tells me. She clapped her hands, and smaller wooden hands wrapped around the air. They could easily pin me down if they got their hands on me.
“This technique is offensive, defensive, and supplementary. Great for mid and long ranges. You lacked long range jutsus, and this one covers your weak spot. Fight your opponents with extra limbs. You can defend yourself from all angles, as long as the wooden arms are under your control there is nothing that I know that can destroy chakra enforces wood, not even a beast’s attack. To restrain your enemy you just manage to get your opponents in your hands. Its a simple jutsu with many uses, that it why it is one of my favorites,” She pats my back.
“Is there any way that these extension of myself can also make jutsus like I do. Can the wooden arms make a tearing torrent or a water whip?” I ask. Wouldn’t that be amazing, I can see it now gigantic tearing torrents, and water whip. With this jutsu I can protect the Leaf, I can protect the world.
“I do not know. Well certainly not the way your are now, perhaps once you master sage art, you may be able to convert your wood chakra that travels through the arms and make it into water or earth chakra, but you do know just how difficult that is. I have tried to do what you want to, and I am unable to do it. But you’re a different story, you may have more chakra than an old friend of mine, Hagoromo. Hmm, well maybe not more, but about the same amount. Yes you two do resemble to one another,” Sage Moriko says with a tender look in her eye. I can tell that this friend was precious to her, and that he is no longer living in this world. Even Sage Moriko had a warm side.
“Well once I master sage art, I’ll give it a try.”
I clap my hands once again, trying different sizes, and directions. By the third hour of practicing this jutsu, I thought my palms were going to stick to one another. The terrain has changed, holes of all sizes were decorating the ground. Wooden arms littered the open field.
“Kiyoko, why don't you pay a visit to Yuudai, I can clean up here. Once you’re done talking to him, Tomoko will send you home. I’ll see you tomorrow morning for training,” Sage Moriko hands me a small towel to wipe the sweat off of my face. I gladly take it and walk with Tomoko to Yuudai.
“The year is almost over, next thing is sage art, and then mastering the beast. You have a lot going on. Make sure you take care of yourself,” Tomoko says as she sits on my shoulder.
I nod, letting her know that I eat everyday, and rest at night. There is no need to worry. All I feel is the fatigue, but that is to be expected from training and going on missions. Plus if I do arrive home late, Kakashi usually had dinner made. He was there supporting me in his own way.
After a short walk I smell Yuudai’s signature smell, before I see him. He was still looking disgusting as ever, but it didn’t surprise me anymore. The smell just fades away once you smell it for a couple minutes.
“I see that you’ve learned another jutsu,” Yuudai says as he sees me.
“Yes I have, but its far from mastered,” I reply. I sit in my regular spot, while Tomoko flies over to one of his branches.
“Wood release sure is powerful. Do you know why it is so powerful and difficult to control?” He asks. I nod.
“Wood can take over a person if they do not have the strong mind and body to control it,” I tell him.
“Yes that is true, but you do know why it is so powerful, the most difficult to destroy kekkei genkai out there.”
I shake my head. I should have known why it was just so powerful, I mean it sucks the life away if I used it right, and now that I remember my fight with my half sister Asami, I couldn’t punch my way through. No matter how hard I tried.
“What is chakra?” He asks. A smile on his trunk face.
“It is energy that supports life,” I tell him. His branches nod to confirm my answer. Hey, I got this one right.
“Wood is grown with your very own chakra, your life force is stronger than anyone I have ever encountered which makes your wood jutsus much more powerful than your friend Yamato. If it is made by chakra then how can more chakra destroy it? Lets say that someone hurls a ball of chakra to one of your wood jutsus, what do you think will happen to your jutsu?”
“Well if I did my jutsu correctly then nothing should happen to it,”
“That is true, but chakra is energy isn’t it. Energy is life, so your wood style can not be destroyed with even more life. That is why wood style is so powerful. Jutsus are just energy that comes from your very own body, its just that some energies are much more stronger than others. Wood sure is a great thing, now do you understand why I love being one with this tree?” He laughs.
“No, I understand the whole wood thing and life, but my mind can’t wrap around the idea of becoming one with a tree,” I softly laugh.
“Its still a mystery how your half sister could use wood release isn’t it,” Yuudai says, which silences me. Just how did he know that.
“Oh don’t worry, I am a lonely man and Sage Moriko and I get bored sometimes. I admit we do talk about you, but its not like we are gossipping about you,” He adds. It sure does sound like they gossip about me on their free time, and I feel like it happens often.
“There is a way,” I tell myself. The Library of Life, they have the life on Asami, maybe they will tell me more about my father and about her time learning wood style,” I say and get up to my feet. Yuudai asks me what I just said, something about his old age is affecting his hearing, and then Tomoko says its not just his hearing that is failing. I don’t stay to explain, this might just clear up a bit of my mystery.
There is just one problem, Sage Moriko can’t catch me, I promised to not gather knowledge more than I should, but this is important. I’m sure if she catches me she will understand. I get to home tree quickly, jumping over roots like second nature. I’ve grown accustom to this place. I slow my pace when I get inside, I check in every direction, there was no sign of her. I quickly walk to the door of the library, no house keeping critters were in either, I sigh in relief.
Asami Tsukino, that is what she should be under, that is if she takes my father’s last name. I walk over to when my father’s book was supposed to go if it was still here. My index finger helps me run my eyes down the spine of books in search for her name. But there was no Asami Tsukino, there was no Tsukino to begin with, three were under that name, but we were no longer here. I checked again, my grandfathers and grandmothers should have Tsukino as their last names. Its a family name, but there aren’t any. How could in millions of people on this earth there is no other Tsukino.
Things were not adding up. Okay, I just need to keep calm, getting frustrated will not help at all. Maybe my family tree takes the last name of the bride. Just like Naruto takes his mother’s last name rather than his father’s.
No what was her last name? I think I heard it when I was taken as a prisoner back to the Moon. The guards called her Lady Miwa, but what is her last name. I let out a sigh, how can I find their books if I don’t know their last names. I mean do you realize how many Miwas and Asamis must be on this planet. I don’t have the time to spend and look at every single book, three years would have gone by before I find their names.
“What are you doing? You aren’t looking for information are you?” I hear Sage Moriko say from behind me. I turn to see her standing in the middle of the library. How the hell did she get there? I didn’t even sense her chakra.
“Nothing, I was just cleaning, since dust collects so easily,” I smile, patting the book closest to me.
“Right, well as long as you’re here, I’ll send you off for today. You’ve lost a lot of chakra today, make sure you get some food in you and get some rest. Tomorrow we’ll keep practicing the hotei technique,” She says. I can’t tell if she bought my excuse or if she is letting me off the hook.
I let her get me home. I was glad that she sent me home early today, I’ll be able to make dinner. With all I’ve been doing it feels like I haven’t really had time to enjoy my rest time. Kakashi wasn’t home either, but I’m not home too much either. I realize now I miss him. I haven’t cooked in a while so I think to make it up I’ll cook fish tonight, but I’ll fry some chicken for me. I was beginning to skin the fish and steam the rice when Kakashi arrives. I peek into the living room to see him leaning on the wall. He held his left arm, I see the blood run down his arm.
“Kakashi what happened?” I get over to him, the towel in hand.
“I had a misshapen during training. Its not too deep. I’m fine,” He says. He shows me his wound.
“How could you get injured. You out of everyone,” I wrap it around his arm. He doesn’t heal the way I do.
“I’m not the perfect ninja.”
“I know you aren’t. Lets get that wound dressed,” I pull him to the bathroom. He sat on the toilet while I grabbed the swabs and bandages. The training story wasn’t convincing me, not unless he was training with someone else. I wrapped his arm, wishing that he had the healing abilities like mine. He looked tired, he must have been doing a lot of things recently.
“I got it. You can go finish dinner, I’ll be there in a minute,” Kakashi says. I nod, and go back to skinning the fish. Maybe something else happened to him, I can sense that he isn’t telling me everything. I was frying the fish when Kakashi joins me. He grabs the apron from the corner and begins to cut the carrots in slivers.
“Are you sure you’re okay. You seem a bit tired, I can cook dinner by myself you can get some rest before dinner,” I tell him.
“No, I don’t want to rest when I could spend the time with you. We haven’t had time to do things together recently. I miss eating dinner together,” He finishes the carrots and grabs the cabbage from the counter. I miss doing things with him as well.
“I’ll come back early tomorrow, I think I can convince Sage Moriko to let me off early. I’ve been doing great with wood style. I just need a bit more practicing,” I tell him.
“Good, you shouldn’t work yourself too much either. With missions and training I’m always thinking you’re going to fall from the weight of it all,” he says.
“Are you falling? Is my weight too heavy?” I ask him. Maybe my burden is too great for him afterall.
“No of course it isn’t. I have the easy part. We’re by each other’s side so we can get through anything as tiring as these couple months.”
We prepare dinner together. We talk about his day while we eat. He said that Guy challenged him to another battle today, but he wasn’t up to it. He was too busy, and Lady Tsunade has been grinding him with researching about the Akatsuki and Orochimaru. Lady Tsunade got word from Master Jiraiya today, Naruto and him are doing great, and there hasn’t been any incidents. Naruto has progressed quickly, he said. Thats great, he must be working harder than I am. In three years he will be a greater ninja than me, that is what I predict.
“I’ll clean up. You can shower first Kakashi,” I say after we finish our dinner. He doesn’t argue and gets himself to the bathroom.
That night after everything was washed and I bathed I felt it. I felt that twinge in my body, and I didn’t know what it was. But I had a feeling, it was coming. I don’t know what it is or who is coming, but the roots in the ground and my chakra felt it miles away. I laid in bed like any other night, Kakashi was right next to me. He fell asleep quickly, he was tired and his wound must still bother him. I knew I wasn’t getting any sleep tonight.
[Reviews - 130]Chapter or Story
Table of Contents
- Text Size +
Chapter notes: Here is another chapter. I'm sorry for the wait, but I am a busy gal. I hope you enjoy it, a surprise is on its way. ;)
Chapter end notes: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you guys think about today's chapter.
Until next chapter.