What About You?

Thud—!

The Sword Box hit the ground. Sora Uchiha drew the Kusanagi Sword from within, his sleeves sweeping up the shuriken and kunai. He stood facing his instructor in a thunderous stance.

"Teacher, please go easy on me." He pressed his lips together. The gentleness in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by the calm focus of battle.

"Now you're getting into it." The instructor gave a slight nod, pleased by how seriously Sora was taking this.

They faced off without making a move, each waiting for the other to slip up.

The wind was still. The water, calm.

The weather was beautiful. Along the lakeshore, besides the willow tree, grew plants Sora didn't recognize. Their leaves were so thick that the space beneath them was pitch-black.

Rustle—

The wind picked up, stirring the willow branches and the unfamiliar plants,

and Sora's attack with them!

Sora darted around at high speed. He knew he still had some way to go before matching a Jonin, so taking the initiative was the only way to give himself a chance at victory.

His instructor, meanwhile, stood right where he was, a smile on his face as he let Sora circle him.

Clang—

The crisp ring of metal rang out. Sora's thrown shuriken had been knocked aside by his instructor's kunai.

Sora's expression didn't change. He'd already closed the distance the moment he released the shuriken. As his instructor blocked it with his kunai, Sora suddenly burst into action.

The flash of his blade was nearly upon his opponent, then its arc cut through empty air.

Sora knew that dragging this out would only put him at a disadvantage. He had to end this quickly.

Even if you're a Jonin, one hit from my Kusanagi Sword will put you on your butt!

A look of approval flashed in the instructor's eyes. Without moving his feet, he leaned to the side, letting the blade skim past his flak jacket. Then, bending back to an almost impossible degree, he whipped out a kick. A faint sonic boom seemed to ring through the air.

Sora grunted and raised his sword to shield his chest. In the next instant, a waterspout surged up around him, completely enveloping him.

Secret Scroll: Water Colliding Wave.

But even with the force of the kick dispersed by both his sword and the waterspout, he was still sent flying.

In midair, the Water Wave dispersed, and a towering fireball burst from within it.

He raised his left hand and formed Hand Seals with his right.

Fire Release: Flame Bullet!

A Flame Bullet burst from the instructor's mouth, slamming straight into the Great Fireball.

Sora felt the heat on his face. Ordinary ninjutsu was too weak for him, so he wasn't surprised in the least when his Great Fireball was pushed back by the Flame Bullet.

In an instant, the Flame Bullet and his Great Fireball swallowed him whole!

"Sora!" Kurenai Yuhi cried out.

"What are you worried about? He hasn't even used his Summoning Technique yet." Asuma pursed his lips and crossed his arms, though his gaze never left the blaze.

Sure enough, the next moment a colossal figure burst out of the fire, black and white—Sora's summoned Panda!

Sora stood atop the Panda's head, bearing down like a mountain! At the same time, a Lightning Strike descended from the sky, briefly paralyzing his instructor.

With gravity and his own strength behind him, he plunged down in an unstoppable charge, accelerating until he became a force of nature.

Thud—crack!

The ground shook, and clouds of dust billowed up. First came the heavy thump of the impact, then the chilling crack of bone smashing against the ground! Right after that—

Rumble—!!

A thunderous boom, deeper than a clap of thunder, exploded! The whole lake seemed to have been struck by a giant fist, its surface trembling violently! Waves surged up, and soon, a small rainbow appeared above the water.

Kurenai shielded herself from the spray with her clothes, then hurriedly looked toward the center of the fight.

As the dust cleared, the scene came into view. Two figures gradually appeared.

Sora had both hands raised in surrender, while the sharp edge of a Kusanagi Sword rested against his neck. His instructor was smiling.

And in front of them stood a giant Panda.

"I give up, I give up. I lost." Sora held up his hands, looking utterly resigned.

He had indeed lost. His plan had been to paralyze his instructor with Lightning Strike, then have the Panda slam him into the ground and knock him out.

But at the moment of impact, he realized that his entire combo had hit a Shadow Clone!

By the time he figured it out, his instructor had already emerged from the ground and turned Sora's own Kusanagi Sword against him.

"That was sneaky. You actually used a Shadow Clone during the Fire Release clash," he grumbled.

"Heh. You're still too green, Sora." The instructor released him and handed the Kusanagi Sword back.

He seemed calm on the surface, but inside, a storm was raging. If he hadn't been experienced enough to release a Shadow Clone in advance, Sora's little combo would have beaten him.

That meant if Sora became a little more seasoned and gained more experience, he'd already be at Jonin level.

A twelve-year-old Jonin. Good grief, they were incredibly rare throughout history.

"Sora! You scared me to death!" Kurenai ran over and immediately lifted the hem of his shirt.

Sora, who'd been putting away his Kusanagi Sword, was startled.

"Whoa, you pervert!"

He quickly pulled her hand away. Come on, there were so many people around. If word got out, his reputation would be ruined.

Kurenai blushed and muttered, "I'm not a pervert. I was worried you might be hurt."

"Yeah, right. I know you. You're just lusting after my body."

"Sora!!!"

Asuma had also been about to come over and check on them, but when he saw the two of them flirting, he quietly walked away without a word.

Lightning Release watched them, then glanced at the dejected Asuma and covered his mouth in shock, as if he'd uncovered some unbelievable gossip.

The instructor looked at his students, smiled, and slipped away, planning to come back later.

Kurenai and Sora playfully bickered for a while. Before long, they were sitting by the lake. Kurenai took off her shoes and socks, revealing her fair feet with their pink soles, and gently swirled them in the water.

If Kurenai were eighteen, Sora would have rated her legs as edible. But she was only thirteen, still three years shy of adulthood, and he wasn't interested.

Kurenai rested her chin in her hands. A faint worry showed in her eyes as she suddenly spoke.

"Sora, tomorrow I'm going on a mission with our teacher. I heard the fighting at the front is really bad. Lots of people die every day..."

Sora noticed that the ripples on the lake had stopped as Kurenai spoke. He turned his head and saw the girl's eyes flickering.

He knew she was afraid. She'd never experienced the meat grinder of war, and perhaps she hadn't killed anyone yet in the year since graduating.

"Don't worry. Newly promoted Chunin won't be sent on missions that are too dangerous. Without a Jonin instructor leading the team, the most you'll get is a B-Rank Mission. Even with a Jonin instructor, it'll only be an A-Rank Mission. You won't be sent on the missions with high death rates." Sora comforted her.

Kurenai understood that, too. They were the newly promoted shinobi of their generation, so they naturally wouldn't be sent on missions that were too dangerous.

She gave a soft hum. "What about you?"

"What?" Sora didn't quite understand.

"You joined the Anbu. We won't be sent on dangerous missions, but what about you?" Kurenai's voice was as gentle as a cloud in the sky.

Her red eyes gazed straight at Sora. Today, red was a lucky color.