Everyday Life

Sasuke's Chidori was fast and powerful! But instead of blocking it with Azure Water Release, I turned and dodged the attack, looking a little awkward!

Slap!

Kakashi appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Sasuke's left hand in a vice grip!

"I don't remember... teaching you to use Chidori against your own teammates!" Kakashi said angrily.

"Tch!" Sasuke looked displeased as he dispersed his Chidori. "She has that Water Release. She could have blocked it!"

"So that's why you used that technique on Sakura?" Kakashi paid no attention to Sasuke's excuse. "If Chidori had collided with that Water Release, given how powerful both techniques are, the most likely result would have been your arm breaking on the spot!"

"That's why Sakura didn't use that Water Release just now!"

"Uh... Hmph!" Sasuke gritted his teeth and said nothing! The smug smile he'd worn moments ago had vanished too.

I hurried to smooth things over. "Aha... Kakashi-sensei, we were just messing around! Sasuke wasn't even aiming at me on purpose!" I put an arm around Sasuke's shoulders and said affectionately, "Right, Sasuke?"

"All right, Kakashi-sensei, the three of us still have a get-together to celebrate Sasuke's recovery and my promotion to Chunin, so don't worry about us. Go on and take care of your business!"

Kakashi gave me a helpless look. "All right... I won't disturb you, then!"

Yeah, I'd only found out about my promotion to Chunin after I got back this morning. Apparently, during the last Chunin Ninja Exams, when I'd led Shikamaru and Naruto in pursuit of Sasuke, my good leadership and my decision to stay behind alone to cover their retreat had earned me recognition as fit for promotion. Shikamaru had been promoted to Chunin too, while the others who'd shown considerable fighting ability in the exams hadn't been promoted. This also showed indirectly that the Chunin Ninja Exams tested more than a ninja's fighting ability.

"We're off, Kakashi-sensei! See you!" Before Sasuke could speak, I dragged him along with my arm around him, pulled Naruto with Azure Water Release, and hurriedly jumped down from the platform!

"All right! Let go of me!" Once we were out of Kakashi's sight, Sasuke impatiently pulled my hand away. "That's enough. I'm not interested in a get-together! Let's leave it at that. I'm out of here!"

According to the plot, Orochimaru should have already sent the Sound Four to infiltrate Konoha and try to abduct Sasuke around this time, so I had to keep an eye on him. No matter what happened after Sasuke was lured to Orochimaru in the original story, Orochimaru had always harbored ill intentions toward him. I didn't want Sasuke walking into the tiger's den!

So the best way was to keep a close eye on him during this period, even if it meant losing more of my integrity!

"Don't think you're getting away, Sasuke!" I held on to his hand. "You've been way too cold lately! Besides, ever since the second round of the Chunin Ninja Exams, it's been ages since we trained or ate together!"

"That's right!" Naruto chimed in. "We're teammates in the same squad! You're too cold, Sasuke!"

"I don't have time to play ninja games with you! I need to train!" Sasuke wasn't moved in the slightest.

"We can train together! Having someone to spar with helps you improve faster, doesn't it?" I leaned on Sasuke's shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Besides, we didn't finish our match just now, did we? Once we finish, I'll tell you how I got so strong!"

"Tsk! Hey, don't talk so close to me!" Sasuke's face reddened slightly as he pushed me away. "Your breath is hitting my face!"

Just look at Sasuke. He really was a textbook tsundere!

"Sakura, Sasuke, what are you two whispering about? I want to hear too!"

"Stay out of it, Naruto!" Ignoring Naruto's clamor, I continued trying to persuade Sasuke. "So? Come with us!"

"You're such a pain! Fine, I'll come with you! But we're not going to Ichiraku Ramen again!"

"What?! You bastard, Sasuke, is Ichiraku Ramen really that bad?" Naruto started arguing with Sasuke again.

"Only an idiot could eat ramen without getting sick of it!"

"All right, all right, you two...!"

The usual place, Training Ground Seven.

I ducked under Sasuke's roundhouse kick and grabbed his right leg with my left hand before he could pull it back. Throwing him off balance, I followed up with a straight punch!

Slap!

His crimson Sharingan saw through my movements, and Sasuke caught my fist firmly in his left hand! Even after losing his balance, he used his core strength to pull himself up and kicked hard at my waist with his left leg!

Bang! I couldn't block it in time and was sent flying by the kick.

"Huff, huff! I'm done, Sasuke!" I said, bracing my hands on my knees as I gasped for breath.

"Huff... Sakura, without Water Release, you still can't beat me!" Sasuke said, breathing lightly as well. "And it feels like your Taijutsu has gotten weaker!"

"Idiot, that's because your Sharingan has gotten stronger!" I rolled my eyes at him. "Last time in the Land of Waves, you had a Single Tomoe in one eye and a Futatsudomoe in the other, right? Now both your eyes have become Futatsudomoe. Your ocular power has grown stronger, so you can already see through ordinary Taijutsu moves easily!"

Still, to be honest, in all the time since the Chunin Ninja Exams, my progress in Taijutsu really had been nothing to write home about. Compared to the leaps and bounds I'd made in Ninjutsu, my Taijutsu really was a bit pathetic. I wasn't content to be a ninja who relied solely on Ninjutsu. Only a well-rounded ninja could reach the peak; if you neglected one area too badly, it was easy for someone to exploit that weakness!

That was why I'd sparred with Sasuke using only Taijutsu, without any Water Release at all, and ended up losing to him after fighting to exhaustion.

The reason I'd managed to hold out against Sasuke's Futatsudomoe until my stamina gave out was that I'd encountered so many powerful opponents since graduating. From Zabuza to Orochimaru and Kisame, fighting them had greatly broadened my horizons and taught me how to control the pace of a battle. The fight with Orochimaru in particular had benefited me immensely. Although this improvement in my battle instincts wasn't visible on the surface, it had indeed made me more comfortable and adaptable in combat.

But although Naruto and Sasuke had gone through the same battles, the improvement in their combat awareness wasn't as obvious as mine. I'd also noticed that after transmigrating, I learned things much faster than ordinary people. That was probably another benefit of my exceptionally high mental strength!

Seeing that I'd sat down to rest, Naruto immediately jumped into the clearing. "All right! Now it's my turn to face Sasuke! Sasuke, I've already seen your Chidori! Now let me show you the ultimate move I just learned!"

"Idiot! Let Sasuke rest a little!" I gave Naruto a sharp rap on the head with Water Release, then sat down. "Sasuke, come sit over here. Let's discuss what we've learned from training!"

"If there's something you want to ask, just ask!"

"Yeah... I want to know why you always manage to get so strong without anyone noticing," Sasuke asked, sitting down across from me.

"Hehe... Do you think it doesn't make sense that I've gotten so strong when I hardly ever seem to train?" I smiled. "That's where you're wrong. My training never stops, not even for a moment!"

"You mean..." Sasuke's eyes flickered slightly.

"That's right. To train my Chakra control, I use Nintaijutsu to assist my every movement in everyday life. It takes extremely refined Chakra control to pull that off!"

I stretched out my foot and nudged Sasuke. "For example, do you know why I don't wear shoes? I have a layer of water beneath my feet. When I move, it's not just my feet providing the force. The water under them also propels me forward under my Chakra control, making me faster and more explosive!"

"This kind of training can be refined endlessly. There's no limit to it! My talent lies in Chakra control, but reaching my current level took years of nonstop training!"

"That's why training in Ninjutsu is so easy for me! Compared to my usual training, the Chakra control needed to practice Ninjutsu is very simple!"

"I see..." Sasuke frowned in thought.

"Sakura, that's too complicated! Just tell us how we should train!" Naruto said with a pained look.

"All right, I'll break it down for you... Simply put, my idea is to play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses."

"Take me, for example. My talent is Chakra control, so I constantly train that ability and try to learn and use techniques that require refined Chakra control, such as the Water Gun Technique and Nintaijutsu. Of course, I also have a good theoretical foundation, so I'm very capable of developing Ninjutsu."

"As for Naruto, his greatest talents are his abundant Chakra and stamina, and he also has good mental endurance. So he's suited to high-consumption Ninjutsu that require few Hand Seals, such as the Rasengan and its later variants."

"As for you, Sasuke..."

I paused deliberately and smiled at him. Seeing that I'd stopped talking, Sasuke grew impatient, just as I'd intended. "What about me? Tell me!"

"Your problem, Sasuke, is that you're too talented!"

"Huh?" Sasuke froze.

"Your Chakra control is good, and you have plenty of Chakra too. You also have the strongest Dōjutsu in the Shinobi World—the Sharingan. Your Taijutsu definitely won't be weak, and your Genjutsu will improve as your Sharingan develops. The Uchiha Clan's Fire Style is naturally strong, and you're highly talented in Lightning Release too. In all three areas-Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu—you're more than a cut above everyone else! Your talent really is enviable!"

"But-!" Sasuke interrupted me. "But why am I so weak right now?!"

"Your talent is great, but have you found the right direction for yourself?" I stared seriously at Sasuke. "You're so talented, yet you're always comparing yourself to Naruto and me! When you train, do you try to learn my Chakra control and Naruto's incredible stamina at the same time? You're putting in twice the effort for half the result!"

"Time is limited. You don't need to learn everything; that would only slow your growth. You should focus on one or two things. I think your main focus right now should be learning from Kakashi how to use your Sharingan properly. Bring its power to the utmost, and your Taijutsu and Genjutsu will become strong without requiring too much work. Then master either Fire Style or Lightning Release, and your combat ability will be formidable!"

"Just look at your special training with Kakashi-sensei this time. In only a month, you've practically become a new person!"

I had my own selfish reasons for saying all this. I couldn't help feeling that even if Sasuke defected to learn from Orochimaru, he wouldn't necessarily become stronger than he would by staying in Konoha. Did Orochimaru know how to use the Sharingan? Was Orochimaru skilled in Lightning Release and Fire Style?

Granted, as one of the Sannin who had studied Ninjutsu most deeply, Orochimaru was more than qualified to teach Sasuke. But I felt that Sasuke's development wouldn't be held back if he stayed in Konoha either! I didn't know what Orochimaru would ultimately teach Sasuke in the later plot, but Sasuke was the person whose body he intended to seize. Would Orochimaru really devote himself to teaching him? Sasuke could become strong by staying in Konoha too! If Sasuke truly took my words to heart, he would think for himself about whether defecting to Orochimaru would actually benefit him!

Even if that didn't work, he still had me. With my help, couldn't we come up with something like a railgun?

Sasuke was silent.

After a while, he finally spoke. "Yeah... Let me go back and think about it first... Let's have that meal another time!"

With Sasuke absent, Team 7's get-together had to be canceled. Naruto did clamor for us to go eat ramen together, but I flatly refused. What a joke! Every time I ate with Naruto, it was ramen. I was sick of it! In my previous life, I was from a province famous for its food. What delicacies hadn't I seen? I'd chatted and laughed with foodies! Ichiraku Ramen was just a little more famous, that was all. Its taste was only average!

After sending Naruto away, I invited the other girls out-Hinata and Ino, who'd graduated in the same class as me, and Haku, who had just become a Konoha Chunin.

We met at a dessert shop in Konoha that the girls often visited.

"Let's introduce ourselves. This is big sister Yuki Haku, an Ice Release ninja who just registered as a Chunin in Konoha. She's especially good at Water Release and Wind Release, so you can ask her if you have any questions about Ninjutsu! She's staying at my house right now." I pointed to Haku as I spoke to Hinata and Ino.

Haku smiled gently. "Hello! I've only just arrived in Konoha, and there's a lot I don't know yet. Please take care of me!"

"Big sister Haku, these are my **, my first wife Ino and my second wife Hinata!"

"W-when did I become your **?! Since when did you have **, Sakura?!" Ino shouted in exasperation! Hinata was too embarrassed to speak.

"Haha, Haku, I'm kidding...! These two were my classmates at the Ninja Academy. We're new Genin from the same graduating class, and they're the girls I'm closest to! Haku, Hinata's a ninja from the famous Hyuga Clan! As for Ino, she's the Ino in Konoha's famous Ino-Shika-Cho trio!"

"It's nice to meet you. Please take care of me!" Hinata bowed to Haku.

"Sakura, I get the feeling you're making fun of me again!" Ino said, looking displeased.

"Hehe." Haku laughed. A pretty girl's smile really was a lovely sight. "Sakura does like to joke around!"

"Ahem, all right. The point of today is for you to get to know each other, so go ahead and ask whatever you like!"

"Big sister Haku is skilled in Ice Release, so you must not be from the Land of Fire, right?" Hinata was the first to ask, unable to wait. This outwardly shy girl was quite observant, and she wasn't all that introverted when Naruto wasn't around!

"I'll answer that one! Big sister Haku is the child of a bloodline ninja from Kirigakure. The Mist Ninja purged the bloodline ninja, so she had to flee the Land of Water and come to Konoha to work as a ninja! Yeah, let's not dig too deeply into the details!" I rushed to answer, afraid of stirring up Haku's sad memories.

"Big sister Haku, you're so pretty. Do you have a boyfriend?" I didn't even need to look to know Ino had asked such a nosy question. Romance really was more important to girls this age!

"I've only just arrived in Konoha, so I haven't had time to think about that... Besides, I don't want to think about it for now." Haku looked a little down as he spoke. He was probably thinking of Zabuza, wasn't he?

This wasn't good. Haku had a whole bunch of sad things in his past, so it was better not to let them keep asking! But I was curious too. What kind of feelings did Haku have for Zabuza? Was it the longing one felt for a lover, or the dependence one felt toward family?

Forget it. I'd ask another time if I got the chance...

"All right, it's Haku's turn to ask questions!" I hurried to cut the two of them off. "Well, Haku doesn't know you very well, so I'll ask for him!"

"What?! Sakura, you're obviously the one who wants to ask!"

"Then I'll ask Ino first!" I looked at Ino, rubbing my chin. "Ino, tell the truth! Do you like Sasuke?!"

"Huh?" Ino stared at me, her expression apparently genuine. "I like Sasuke? No, I don't!"

"You really don't?" Strange. I'd always thought Ino liked Sasuke... Had the plot quietly changed?

"Of course not. More than half the girls in our class used to like Sasuke, but I thought he was too full of himself!"

Well, I was the one who'd put that idea in Ino's head...

"Then is there a boy you like?"

"No, not one. I think boys our age are all too childish," Ino said calmly.

Faced with an Ino who wouldn't budge, I had no choice but to turn the conversation to Hinata.

"All right, since Ino doesn't like any boys, what about you, Hinata?"

"Huh? Why is it my turn? I-I don't like anyone..." Hinata's face turned completely red.

"Everyone knows you've always liked Naruto, Hinata. So, have you told him how you feel yet?"

"Ah... um..." The blush on Hinata's face had spread to her neck. She was so rosy and cute!

"Hinata, Naruto and I are teammates. Want me to drop him a hint? He doesn't seem to know there's a girl who likes him! I'll just tell him you like him!" I said with a wicked grin.

"..." Hinata was so embarrassed that she fainted on the spot!

"...Hinata! Hinata!" We all scrambled to wake her up. This girl became unbelievably shy at the mere mention of Naruto...

"All right, Sakura, stop teasing Hinata," Haku said, glaring at me. "I'll ask a question too!"

"This question is for Sakura..." Haku looked at me meaningfully. "Sakura... which boy do you like?"

"Naruto or Sasuke?"

How had the fire of battle spread to me?!

The three girls stared at me with burning gazes!