Training Separately

At Tazuna's house, Kakashi struggled to open his eyes. "Where am I? I remember coming to Tazuna's house."

Just then, Tazuna's daughter Tsunami said, "Kakashi-sensei, are you all right?"

Kakashi looked at Tsunami. "Uh, I might be unable to move for a few days."

The others entered the room. Sakura asked, "Kakashi-sensei, how are you? Are you all right?"

Kakashi gave a wry smile. "Uh, I overused my Sharingan. I might be unable to move for a week."

Sakura complained, "Honestly, the Sharingan is powerful, but its side effects are pretty severe too."

Naruto said, "Hehe, that's because Kakashi-sensei isn't from the Uchiha Clan. Using the Sharingan takes more out of him than it does from an Uchiha, both in chakra and physically."

Sakura asked curiously, "Is that how it works?"

Naruto replied, "What did you think?"

Sakura looked puzzled. "But you have a Sharingan too, Naruto. How come you don't end up like Kakashi-sensei?"

Naruto said proudly, "That's because I'm from the Uzumaki Clan. Our bloodline gives us strong bodies. And my Sharingan is a much better match for me than Kakashi-sensei's is for him."

Sakura asked curiously, "How are they different? They're both Sharingan, aren't they?"

Naruto smiled. "Because mine is my own eye, while Kakashi-sensei's was given to him by someone else."

Sakura looked at Kakashi. "Is that true, sensei?"

Kakashi nodded. "Yes. My Sharingan was given to me by my most important comrade."

Sakura replied with dawning understanding, "I see."

Tazuna, who was standing nearby, said, "But I suppose it was worth it if you managed to deal with such a powerful ninja."

Kakashi reminisced with a sigh. "Momochi Zabuza, huh? He might not be dead."

Sakura exclaimed, "What? Kakashi-sensei, you're saying Momochi Zabuza is still alive?"

Sasuke said in surprise, "How is that possible? We clearly confirmed that he had no pulse or breath."

Kakashi recalled, "The boy who took Zabuza away was indeed wearing a Mist Village Anbu mask. But when Anbu retrieve a corpse, they only need to bring back the head. He took the entire body, so I'm sure Zabuza is still alive. That Anbu was Zabuza's ally."

Sakura asked worriedly, "Then what should we do, Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi smiled. "Don't worry, Sakura. Even if Zabuza survived, I'm sure he was badly injured. While I recover, I'll train you all and help you get stronger."

Naruto and Sasuke grew excited at Kakashi's words. Just then, a child came in, and everyone turned to look at him.

But the child said, "Mom, they're going to die. Everyone who opposes Gato will die."

Tsunami scolded him. "Inari, don't be so rude. They're the ninjas protecting your grandfather. Thanks to them, he made it home safely."

Tazuna apologized. "I'm sorry. He's just a child and doesn't know any better."

Naruto and the others didn't take Inari's words to heart. They followed Kakashi into the woods.

Kakashi had originally planned to teach the three of them chakra control by having them climb trees, but after Naruto and Sasuke climbed to the top and walked on water, he was at a loss.

Feeling thoroughly discouraged, he said, "Sigh. Is there anything you'd like to learn?"

Naruto remembered Sasuke's Lightning Release and Sakura's monstrous strength. "Kakashi-sensei, do you know any powerful Lightning Release Ninjutsu?"

Kakashi replied, "I do know one powerful Lightning Release technique, but I've seen your records, Naruto. You seem to have an affinity for Wind Release. Why do you want to learn it?"

Naruto smiled. "It's true that I have an affinity for Wind Release, but Sasuke has an affinity for Lightning Release. You could teach him. And Sasuke's Sharingan is much more developed than mine. You could pass on what you've learned about using it."

Sasuke was touched, but his pride wouldn't let him accept Naruto's kindness. "Don't stick your nose in my business, you idiot."

Naruto smiled. "Sasuke, I'm not saying this for your sake. I'm saying it for our team. The stronger you get, the more likely we are to complete our missions."

Sasuke was about to say something, but Naruto cut him off. "Besides, I haven't even developed my Rasengan yet. So don't feel awkward about it. That settles it. Kakashi-sensei, I'll leave Sasuke to you."

Kakashi replied, "That's no problem. All right, we'll do as Naruto suggested."

Naruto turned to Sakura. "As for you, Sakura, you have such excellent control. Why not try concentrating chakra in your fists? I think that would make your punches even stronger. Pervy Sage told me about it when I was training with him. He said one of his teammates could focus chakra precisely into her fists and unleash incredible strength."

Kakashi asked in surprise, "Naruto, are you talking about Lady Tsunade, one of the Sannin?"

Naruto replied, "Yes. Pervy Sage is Jiraiya, one of the Sannin."

Kakashi understood. "Then, Sakura, train the way Naruto suggested."

Sakura said excitedly, "I understand, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi looked at Naruto. "Then what are you going to train in?"

Naruto thought for a moment. "I'm not sure, actually. I was thinking of training to change my chakra nature, but I feel it's still too early. So I'm going to work on developing my White Eye and Sharingan. I'm really bad at using them."

Kakashi asked with concern, "Would you like me to help?"

Naruto smiled. "No, Kakashi-sensei. You should focus on teaching Sasuke. I can manage on my own."

Kakashi didn't press him. "All right. If there's anything you don't understand, come ask me."

Kakashi nodded, then turned to Sasuke. "Come with me, Sasuke."

Sasuke didn't say anything. He just nodded and followed Kakashi.

After Kakashi and Sasuke left, Naruto said to Sakura, "Well, I'm heading out too, Sakura. Be careful on your own."

Sakura nodded. "Okay." Naruto used the Body Flicker Technique and left.

After Naruto was gone, Sakura formed Hand Seals and tried to concentrate chakra in her fist. But once the chakra gathered there, it quickly dissipated.

Sakura frowned. "Looks like this won't be easy. I'll need even better chakra control."

Sakura smiled and continued trying to focus chakra in her fist. "Just you wait, Sasuke and Naruto. I won't keep holding you back."

After Sasuke and Kakashi reached a mountain, Kakashi said, "Sasuke, what I'm going to teach you first is how to increase your speed by five or six times.

"I developed this technique myself using the Sharingan's insight and the speed granted by Lightning Release chakra. So your body needs to be able to withstand the Lightning Release's violent power."

Sasuke asked calmly, "How do I do that?"

Kakashi replied, "First, use Lightning Release chakra to stimulate your body and make it absorb the chakra. That will increase your speed."

Kakashi taught Sasuke the Hand Seals and method for infusing his body with Lightning Release chakra. He thought it would take at least three days for Sasuke to barely get the hang of it.

But Sasuke learned it in no time, leaving Kakashi shocked and incredulous.

Kakashi asked in confusion, "Sasuke, how did you do that? It usually takes four or five days to learn Earth Walk. Even a genius needs three days just to get the hang of it. How did you master it so quickly?"

At Kakashi's words, Sasuke thought of Naruto. He remembered how Naruto had told him and Hinata not to try using Natural Chakra in battle when teaching them how to absorb it. Natural Chakra was dangerous; one small mistake could turn them to stone.

Naruto had said he would teach them once he'd learned how to use Natural Chakra freely. Although they couldn't use it yet, they could use it to temper their bodies. That would make it much easier to learn any future Ninjutsu, prevent them from suffering its backlash, and, most importantly, grant them longevity and help heal wounds.

Thinking of this, Sasuke said to Kakashi, "Maybe it's because Naruto, Hinata, and I have been using Natural Chakra to temper our bodies since we were little."

This time, Kakashi was genuinely stunned. He swallowed. "You're saying you've been tempering your bodies with Natural Chakra since you were little?"

Sasuke nodded. "Uh, yes."

Kakashi said in shock, "Do you realize how dangerous that is? You could have died!"

Sasuke nodded again. "I know. Naruto told us about the risks, but we succeeded, didn't we?"

Kakashi was at a loss for words.

All he could say was, "Sigh. I don't know if you kids are geniuses or lunatics. All right, since that's the case, I'll teach you Chidori now. It's a technique I developed, an A-rank Ninjutsu on the same level as Naruto's Rasengan. I hope you'll continue to develop it. Its ultimate form is an S-rank Ninjutsu."

When Sasuke heard that the technique's ultimate form was S-rank, he was thrilled. He resolved to master it, thinking, Naruto, I won't let your kindness go to waste, but I won't lose to you either.

After leaving Sakura, Naruto headed deeper into the woods.

Naruto muttered to himself, "It's time to develop my Sharingan. Developing the White Eye is much harder. Developing the Sharingan's abilities now will help me grow stronger more quickly in a short time. And now I'm only missing my father's soul. It's time."

Just then, the Nine-Tails inside Naruto said, "Naruto, are you going to develop the power of the Sharingan?"

Naruto knew Kurama had heard him muttering to himself. He smiled. "That's right, Kurama. Do you have any suggestions?"

The Nine-Tails said, "Well, I hate the Sharingan, but that's exactly why I understand it so well. To increase its power, you need powerful negative emotions to spur its evolution."

Naruto lowered his head and thought for a moment. "Emotions, huh? I know what to do."

The Nine-Tails asked curiously, "What are you planning to do?"

Naruto smiled. "I'll open the Sealing on my heart and let those two out. Only when they're out will my emotions be complete, and I'll be able to evolve into the Rinnegan more quickly."

The Nine-Tails exclaimed in surprise, "You mean you're going to let your other two personalities out? Do you know how dangerous that is? You could become a demon."

Naruto said confidently, "I know. I might lose control of myself, but I'll have you to help me, won't I?"

Touched by Naruto's words, the Nine-Tails laughed loudly. "Hahaha! All right, I'll take that risk with you. After all, we're partners. Hahaha!"

Naruto said, moved, "Thank you, Kurama. It's an honor to know you."

The Nine-Tails replied, "Naruto, I should thank you too. It's an honor to know you."