Chapter 20
Sasuke didn't really know what he was supposed to think of Ami.
He – as he had with most of his classmates in the academy – hardly given her much thought beyond his observations of her fangirling or her bullying of other students of Sakura and the Hyuuga. The young Uchiha had somewhat filtered her out of his perception as a result of that. There was hardly any point in paying attention to someone who seemed to only want to cause others misery.
Ami was written off as an incompetent child in his mind. She would most likely fade away into the background of the village civilian population once she realized how out of her depths she actually was as a ninja.
Then… well, that night where they had gone to that ramen place Naruto's always so obsessed with.
Sasuke wasn't sure what exactly happened to her, but Ami was acting almost completely different from the way she had been up until their graduation. She had become quiet, focused, and seemed more interested in the food being served than anything regarding Sakura or even himself – the latter just glad that he wouldn't have to listen to the purple haired girl swoon over him like so many other of those former classmates. Whatever had happened to her, she seemed to have become an entirely different person, to the point where the Uchiha had considered the possibility that she might have been replaced with a spy.
Her seemingly intentional avoidance of him at least seemed to somewhat disprove that theory in his head.
Ami had done a good job pulling her weight in both fights with the Demon Brothers and with Zabuza. Her contributions – while not too extravagant – were helpful in actually stopping the advances of the two Chunnin level rogue ninja, at least until Kakashi-sensei had intervened in the fight.
And against Zabuza? Well…
Sasuke hadn't forgotten how she stopped him from putting his own kunai to his throat, and especially how she managed to calm Naruto down from whatever the hell it was that took him over against that water clone.
If nothing else, her small contributions to their mission had been helpful.
So when Sakura had opened up what seemed to be barely even scabbed social wounds, Sasuke wasn't all too happy with it. If anything, it was an annoying replay of the kinds of petty nonsense that had been going on in the academy, only now it seemed far more one sided – and not in Sakura's favor.
The pinkette had been, if not actively hostile, then at least difficult with her fellow kunoichi since practically the moment the mission had started. Between the unwanted commentary and now her outright hostile words towards their fellow ninja, Sasuke was about ready to break his usual silence and chew her out.
He could tolerate her fangirl behavior, but her behavior towards this far calmer Ami – especially given her own lack of contributions to the mission – had really gotten on his nerves. He was about to open his mouth, when the target of Sakura's anger opened her mouth and responded.
"…I'm a shitty person."
Sasuke hadn't expected that kind of reply. Actually, the last Uchiha was pretty sure none of Team 7 was expecting her to say that, given the fact that Sakura seemed to start sputtering. It was likely that she wasn't prepared for an admission of any kind, let alone one given so freely.
"B-But you- I- Why are you-"
"Why would I sugarcoat it? I already know that I've been nothing but a bitch to you and our classmates throughout our whole time at the academy." Ami continued as she adjusted her combat boots, seemingly custom made to be both durable and silent – still an unusual choice for a ninja. "Half of the time I'm pretty sure I'm at least one of the key figures as to why Hinata-san has crippling anxiety, and why Ino gets so self-conscious about her weight. I deserve to be called out on that, and to feel bad about how I used to act."
The purple haired girl adjusted her gloves, her hands still wrapped up tight underneath them. Sasuke looked closer, and saw small splotches of red where her nails had dug into her skin before they were covered by the treated leather.
"I… don't like that I was that kind of person." She muttered, her eyes glued to her hands as she continued to adjust the already properly fitted gloves. "Hell, I still wonder if I'm that kind of person now, just hiding behind a mask of professionalism or something."
Ami finally stood up from where she was putting on her gear, standing at eye level with Sakura.
"I don't want to be remembered just as someone who made other people miserable." She admitted. "So… for what little my words are worth to you… I'm sorry for treating you the way I did. Your forehead is a perfectly average size. I was just being a bitch."
There was silence for a couple of moments before it was made clear that Sakura seemed to be unable to piece together a response, to which Ami decided to continue speaking.
"I am trying to be better." She said quietly, almost begging. "So… please."
She turned around, only turning her head over her shoulder to look Sakura in the eyes.
"Do not make me let you down."
The purple haired girl started to walk away, but paused.
"Oh, but… before I go." She addressed the only other girl in the area again. "I'm pretty sure you have a natural talent for chakra control, so you'll likely find the balance needed before either of your teammates. When you're done with that, the next step would probably be endurance. Try to push how long you can stay on the tree without exhausting yourself."
With that last piece of advice said, Ami left – her absence seeming to leave a weird atmosphere for the rest of the Genin.
Sakura huffed and scowled in the former bully's direction for a couple of seconds, before walking over to a tree and beginning to practice the exercise that Kakashi-sensei and the Genin Corps member had shown them.
Sasuke, for his part, just shook his head. Of all the things that had been going on in the academy, the petty squabbling and grudges were one of the things he had disliked the most.
At least this time it hadn't devolved into some sort of shouting match. It was already bad enough to see it with academy students, but he was pretty sure that he would have just lost his cool completely if he had to hear something like that from fully fledged ninja.
If nothing else, he silently thanked Ami for being professional, even when his teammate wasn't.
This… might be something he would need to confront her about this after today's training. Stuff like this would be bad for unit cohesion, which is bad if Kakashi-sensei's emphasis on teamwork was anything to go off of.
Maybe he should have Naruto back him up on it too?
I was being truthful when I admitted to Sakura that I was a shitty person – a fucking bitch, even. It had taken every bit of willpower in me to not snark or yell at her when she had opened up that conversation like she had. That ingrained instinct of lashing out verbally when she had struck first was seriously close to getting me, but I somehow managed to keep my composure.
Still, I felt like I was on the losing end of that whole conversation, retreating with my tail between my legs and not having anyone willing to back me up. For a moment it made me miss having those other girls that were a part of the academy mean girls… until I remembered the kinds of people we were and felt even worse about myself.
My mind was pretty much replaying every insult or "joke" I had made at the expense of others, making me feel like I just wanted to punch a wall until either it or my hands broke.
A growling sigh escaped my lips as I got close to the bridge builder's house, and I could already see the old drunk getting ready to head out for another day of work.
"Ah, you're… Ami, right?" He asked, thankfully being more sober than he had been when we had been on our journey here. Most likely didn't want to get himself hurt by being drunk on the job. "Where's your friends? Would have thought you'd all be protecting me together or something."
"Kakashi-san decided that they needed to do some extra training to prepare for whoever the next of Gato's hires get sent after you." I told him simply, adjusting my belt of scrolls. Each one mentally catalogued to make sure I knew which one contained which. "I already knew what they were being taught, so it was decided that I'd be the one acting as your main guard for now. And I have one thing to request of you while that's the case."
Tazuna raised an eyebrow.
"As long as I'm the only one guarding you, you stay sober." I expressed. "We're already well out of our depths with this mission's difficulty, so don't go making it harder for me to protect you when you're too buzzed on cheap shit water to properly run when I tell you to."
"What?! Even when I'm not working?!"
"Do you want to increase your chances of dying because you got drunk?" I raised an eyebrow at him, trying to emphasize the risks involved with that kind of choice.
"…No, I guess I don't." he admitted sheepishly.
It was at least an hour long walk to get back to the bridge, maybe longer but without a watch or phone that was a bit more difficult to tell. The sun was being blocked out by a dark overcast, so going off of its position was a complete crapshoot. The silence only seemed to make it feel like it was lasting longer than it should have.
"You know, Inari seemed really bothered by you talking back at him like that." The man stated as he rolled his shoulder, which let out a series of crackles and pops. "The boy needs space, so being forced to confront all that stuff so suddenly won't help."
"Tch, the last thing that he needs is space." I rebuked him, clenching my hands tightly enough to risk drawing blood again. "There's a hole in his life where his pops used to be, and it needs to be filled by the other people in his life. If you don't try to be there and emotionally available for him, it'll just become a festering wound that will make him start lashing out harder."
"You speaking from personal experience or something?"
A memory replayed in my mind, of tears and begging and wailing…
"Stop crying Ami, it won't do anyone any good."
I took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly.
"Yes." I growled. "And I did exactly what I said will happen. So unless you want Inari to grow up bitter and not knowing how to comfort or be comforted… give the fucking kid a hug the next time you see him."
It's one thing to see a little brat in an anime, memories of being someone else in your head as you call them out for their hypocrisy to your friends… and it's entirely another to basically see a younger version of yourself going through the same pains for the first time, when you yourself haven't fully escaped that pit of despair.
I must look so pathetic. No friends, with a father who seems to avoid me at every turn. Well, I do think of Naruto as a friend – if a still new one – but I wasn't sure if he reciprocated that idea.
Maybe I should finally finish that mental clone technique. Something in my gut tells me that I'm getting close to finishing that either way.
It'll be a good distraction at the very least.
"Yosh, made it to the ocean!" Maito Gai announced to the world as he landed on the morning sand. "If I run across the water I would be there in a couple of hours… but if I do that then I might end up using up all of my youthful stamina and chakra. That would leave me a sitting duck just like my rival. I can't let myself be unprepared when I land…"
He put a hand to his chin, thinking for a moment.
"I've got just the thing!" He proclaimed as he bit his thumb, forming a couple of hand seals before slamming his hand onto the sands. "Summoning Jutsu!"
In a puff of smoke, his trusty partner was on the scene.
"Ningame! It's good to see you my friend!" He calls out to his summon. "I have need of your abilities."
"Hm?" The tortoise looks around. "It's been months since the last time you've summoned me, and I don't see any kind of combat like the last time. What did you even need me for?"
"I need you to youthfully swim me across the waters, so I can reach the Land of Waves!" Gai stated.
"WHAT?! I CAN'T DO THAT!" The summon yelled. "I'M A TORTOISE NOT A TURTLE! I'LL DROWN!"
"You're not just a tortoise." Gai said before going into a yell. "YOU'RE A YOUTHFUL NINJA TORTOISE! AND NOW YOU CAN SHOW THE WORLD YOUR INCREDIBLE NINJA ARTS OF TORTOISE SWIMMING!"
"GAAAAAAAAAAAIIIII!!!!!"
A/N: Had the extra motivation, so here you guys go with another chapter! Hope you enjoy it, and have a good day!
Unrelated but I really like Gai's summon, he's a funny little thing.Last edited: 27/4/2025 Award Quote ReplyReport1180Brain Power27/4/2025Reader modeNewAdd bookmark Threadmarks darelle100027/4/2025Add bookmark#1,827Everytime guy appears he brightens my day Award Quote ReplyReport182Silver_Winds27/4/2025Add bookmark#1,828Brain Power said:"WHAT?! I CAN'T DO THAT!" The summon yelled. "I'M A TORTOISE NOT A TURTLE! I'LL DROWN!"
"You're not just a tortoise." Gai said before going into a yell. "YOU'RE A YOUTHFUL NINJA TORTOISE! AND NOW YOU CAN SHOW THE WORLD YOUR INCREDIBLE NINJA ARTS OF TORTOISE SWIMMING!"
"GAAAAAAAAAAAIIIII!!!!!"Click to expand...That poor Tortoise. Gai only ever summons him either for Aura farming, or for something ridiculous.
Also wtf? Tortoise are not exactly known for speed Gai, EVEN if it's a Ninja Tortoise that can probably water walk.
Chapter 21
I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I first showed up for the first day of guarding Tazuna's workplace, but I really should have expected that it would basically be a bunch of similarly aged men working together to put this mess of a project together. Graying or balding – many of them with both at the same time – and with a level of doneness that states that they've been there, done that, and have the commemorative shirt to prove it.
Put simply, a lot of them had the energy of men who're just done with life's shit and refuse to let themselves be used any longer. Why wouldn't they risk their lives to help others when they already have one foot in the grave?
At least that's how I was seeing it. It could be that all these guys were being paid in booze and food and I'm seeing valor where there's only debauchery.
"Huh?" One of the workers noticed me as I stood nearby and watched the bridge builder get ready to start his work day. "What's with the kid Tazuna? Don't tell me you took on a charity case or something. We shouldn't be getting kids get put in Gato's crosshairs."
The old man just scoffed with a small smirk.
"Nah, it ain't anything like that." He pointed a thumb at me like I wasn't watching the whole interaction unfolding. "The girl's one of the ninja I managed to get hired from Konoha to protect me from Gato. Coincidentally, she's also the reason why I can't go out drinking for the next while."
"Really? You're gonna let the kid tell you whether or not you can drink?" Another worker asked as he carried some equipment to another part of the site.
"Considering she can throw knives with enough speed to go several inches into solid wood? I don't think I wanna test my luck."
"…Okay, that's fair."
"Oi, if anyone sees something even slightly suspicious then give me a holler." I called out to Tazuna while walking over to an already completed part of the bridge and getting into a meditative position. "Best if everyone is keeping a watch out for an attack just in case. I may be a ninja, but I can't see everything you know."
That was more of a Hyuuga thing, anyways.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm my mind, before exhaling slowly. Memories and thoughts coming up, the various techniques I had observed or learned in my mind. The basic clones and the Shadow Clones I had seen from Naruto – the former I had used myself many times now – as well as numerous Genjutsu abilities that could be cast on others.
This was an idea built on the concept of multiple principles that have already been learned; I just needed to find the right way to put all the pieces together and I'd be golden.
So far I've attempted this technique about ten or twelve… or at least eighty-six separate times at this point. Each one was a failure, but after around the thirtieth attempt I felt like I was starting to find the proper shape of this ability, and with every tweak and subsequent attempt I felt it getting closer to being completed.
Just a couple more times.
I began shaping my chakra, letting it flow throughout my body. It was like I was somehow commanding the flow of a river, though it also still had its predetermined paths while it was still within my body. Rushing through what felt like aqueducts in my bones, cables in my blood. Slowly and carefully, I began to stitch it into a carefully discovered sequence of my technique.
The yin energy that I had been taught to use for the Clone Jutsu and for my various Genjutsu was slowly forged, focusing far more than on the yang energies that would give the illusions structure. A ratio of around five yin to one yang seemed to be ideal for this technique.
From there, the chakra would need to change directions. Almost all Jutsus were cast on other people, the environment, or sometimes even on your physical body. However, it was another thing entirely to cast a Genjutsu or similar type of technique on your own mind. It's far more difficult, especially since you know the way that the illusion is going to be.
That's what the yang energy was for, to give the illusion more body and filler. Genjutsu actually usually had even less yang in its ratio than five to one, with my Whispered Words technique only having around one bit of yang energy for every thirty bits of yin.
Ratios of Genjutsu and other yin based abilities really just fluctuated by what illusion you were trying to make, and what or who it was cast on.
I felt the energy continue to climb as more and more chakra flowed into my brain. Every neuron felt like it was being put under some sort of scanner, memories and personality being copied down and readied for the final part of the ability.
The scanning feeling became a splitting headache, literally. It felt like an axe was being taken to my skull, my brain trying to figure out what it was supposed to be doing as it was being made to try thinking twice at the same time. Trying to force itself to become two people instead of simply one, a mental clone.
However, at that last cusp that seemed to be just about ready for the technique to be completed, I realized that I had gotten so focused on forcing the technique that I had stopped breathing. My body relaxed as I took in a deep breath, all of my progress being undone as I felt my body be soaked in sweat, and my head still feeling like it had been taken to with a jackhammer.
I dropped my head into my hands, letting out a small groan of pain.
"Alright, note to self." I made my jaw relax as I muttered. "Trying to force it will only make things hurt. Probably should have predicted that one already, but at least I know that now instead of if I tried to use it in the actual field."
Attempt number eighty-six was a failure, but I'm right there, at the cusp of completing this damn technique. I swear, it's right at the next step.
Instead of trying to split my head, I should be slowly filtering it out, like I'm running water through cheese cloth or strainer.
An empty feeling in my stomach reminded me that I haven't actually had a full on meal since getting to the Land of Waves.
"Attempt eight-seven can wait until after lunch." I murmured and pulled out one of my scrolled filled with already prepared meals. More peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with the food pills spread on the inside. With how hungry I was, I felt like I could tear through all of them and maybe still have room left for dessert.
As I placed the sandwiches in front of me, I heard Tazuna hum.
"You eating those weird sandwich things, are you now kid?" The bridge builder looked around to his colleagues and called them over. "Hey guys, come watch this! Girl can really pack these things away."
What the fuck are you doing you jerk?! I'm trying to make sure I don't starve to death and you're getting all your fucking oji-san friends to watch me eat like I'm in some single-player pie eating contest!
"Tazuna, why are you telling us to watch the ninja-brat each a sandwich?"
"Just watch. She'll be done with them in like, ten minutes top."
Another worker scoffed.
"That's like, twenty sandwiches! There's no way."
"You think if she doesn't finish them, we can ask her for one?"
"Trust me, there won't be any left." Tazuna told his friends.
Well fuck you too, drunk ass bitch!
I let out a sigh and ate the first sandwich. As much as I might have been embarrassed by the whole thing back in my academy days – assuming I would have ever done this kind of thing back then – I had already grown used to the stares and commentary when I ate at places like the Akimichi barbeque place back in the village. If anything, at least hearing comments about me being destined to become fat or some other shit.
"Woah! She ate that whole thing in like two bites!"
Tazuna smirked.
"See what I meant? I've already seen her eat a whole set of those sandwiches on the trip here back from Konoha. If she hadn't packed her own food, she probably could have eaten my whole family out of house and home by now."
"Eh, I probably would have just hunted some wild animals or something." I shrugged, before eating another one of my sandwiches. "I'm a lot of things, but I'm not the kind of person who'd put someone else on the streets just because they didn't have enough to eat."
"Where does all that food even go?" One of the other workers asked as he sat down on a pallet of what seemed to be stone blocks. "Like, physically."
I shrugged.
"Something something, gets turned into the energies I use for my Jutsu."
"Your what?"
"My ninja magic." I explained it in terms the men present would at least accept, before forming a hand sign and casting a basic illusionary clone. "See what I mean? And I usually push my energy and body to their limits as a part of my training, so I need a lot of fuel to use for my techniques."
The group of workers watched on with interest as I put away another three of my sandwich stack in rapid succession.
"Ninja magic makes ninjas hungrier… honestly I should have guessed that." One of them muttered as he turned around and walked away. "Damn it, now I'm hungry. I'm taking my lunch break early!"
That sentiment seemed to spread throughout the rest of the people working on the bridge, with the vast majority of their group seeming to take the opportunity to look out on the water and have a quiet meal to themselves, or having lively conversations with the people around them.
A part of me considered striking up a conversation of my own with a few nearby workers, but I eventually decided it wouldn't be a good idea for several reasons. The most obvious of which was that there was a big level of disconnect between my own personal experiences and the ones that all of these guys most likely had. It wasn't likely that I'd be able to properly get their references or understand their own worldviews. The conversations just wouldn't go anywhere.
Not to mention… I'm still not that good at making friends anyways. Knowing how I am, I'd probably completely botch some sort of crucial social que and alienate myself from the group.
Complete and utter social ineptitude and snark for the win, I guess…
Eventually I finished off the last of my sandwiches, feeling full for the first time since arriving in the Land of Waves. It wasn't a feeling I was expecting that I'd ever have to miss; it's really the first time I've been approached with the idea that I wouldn't have enough food to feel content. It wasn't a feeling I liked, but one that I feel like I'd need to deal with for a good while.
My level of training is what all of this food and fuel is going into, and I have no intentions of slowing down any time soon.
When my storage scroll was clipped back into my belt, I returned to sitting in the meditation style. My hands clasped into the Dragon hand sign as I went back to my attempts to finally finish my new cloning technique.
All of the steps went into a similar order as before. The careful circulation of my chakra, as well as the balancing of the ratios of five to one. After that was the focusing of it into my head, the individual recording of memories and personality traits that I was quickly starting to grow used to creating a buzzing in my head.
From there is when I changed up my strategy. Instead of like before where I had tried to pull
apart the scans from my pre-existing energies, I slowly filtered it out like it was a fine mesh strainer. It was actually somehow a pleasant feeling, far better than the pain caused by my previous attempt.
Then, it was like a piece of slime finally disconnecting from the main body of sludge. Somehow there was a jiggly sensation, and I finally opened my eyes to look around.
What was this? What was this?
"Tch, my head?" I hissed and put my hand to my head, feeling like my brain was aching. It was a similar feeling to when you find yourself staring at the same spot for too long or too hard.
Did it work? Did it work?
I felt that ache again as the thoughts ramped up.
I think it did. I think it did.
But we're both synced up mentally. But we're both synced up mentally.
Gotta desync! Split up our thoughts!
There we go! Righti-o!
"…Holy shit." I whispered. "I fucking did it."
Bitch, we did it.
Nice.
I scratched the back of my head.
"Though now that means… pretty sure I need to name it." I realized.
Well with our brain power put together, I'm sure we can figure something out.
I'm already starting to wonder if I had somehow botched my own technique. I know I have a shitty sense of naming.
A/N: Hope this ability got the proper build up I was going for, really didn't want it to feel like it was coming out of nowhere. Finally having her make some progress and get a new skill, though it'll most certainly have consequences as a result. See you guys later!Last
Chapter 22
Kakashi went to go check up on the progress of his Genin students after a couple of hours of extra bed rest. The man was many things, but he knew more than most how important it was to make sure all of his kids were on the up and up, especially when they were dealing with a mission so much higher than their actual paygrade.
He was glad to see that the two boys in his squad were keeping up their competitive relationship, continually driving each other further and further up the tree. They hadn't gotten much further than a quarter so of the way up, but it was a good amount of progress considering how short a time they've been practicing it.
Sakura on the other hand, was nowhere to be seen.
At least that's what he thought for the briefest moment, but he quickly remembered that there were places above eye level that she could be. A quick look to the sky and he almost immediately spotted her walking along the side of a tree, her face soaked with sweat and breathing heavily.
Ami must have told her to train her chakra capacity some if she figured out how to do the tree walking technique, which made a decent amount of sense. Sakura had a great level of control, perfect for both Genjutsu and Medical Ninjutsu. She just needed to build up her endurance.
Sasuke was the first person to realize that the Jonin had shown up, and then immediately checked over his shoulder at Sakura, seemingly trying to tell if she also knew he was here. When it was clear that she was distracted with her training, he walked over to Naruto and muttered something under his breath.
Kakashi could read lips, but unfortunately not when the boy was cupping around his face. Bah, his one weakness! How horrible of his students.
Though given the fact that Naruto seemed to drop that glare he usually gave his brooding teammate for a look of genuine concern, that was when the Jonin realized that this might be serious. And given that it was seemingly being hidden from their third member, the pieces were starting to fall into place via his basic deduction skills.
Something had probably happened between Sakura and Ami. They seem to have an even more hostile relationship than Naruto and Sasuke at their worst, however one sided it seemed to be.
Kakashi let out a small sigh as the two Genin made their way over to him.
"Do I wanna know what happened this time?"
"I don't know, do you?"
"I probably should be in the know…" He admitted. Man, why did these guys have to remind him so much of his old team? He remembered back when Rin would have spats with the other girls from the old academy, though it wasn't ever anywhere close to this bad. "Mind telling your lovely Jonin-sensei exactly what happened?"
Naruto ended up being the one to explain the basics of what ended up occurring between Ami and Sakura, with Sasuke often pitching in to add extra context or to make corrections to Naruto's quotes. The whole while Kakashi waited and listened with a neutral expression of seriousness, mentally cataloguing into the growing mental report of both his pink haired student and the tagalong he had made of Ami.
As helpful as she had been so far, he was starting to wonder if he should have just left her back at the village.
No, no. This was a learning experience for everyone. He won't just sweep this under the rug because he didn't want to confront his student about the childish squabbles. It would be for the best if he just spoke to her now and got it over with.
"Well, thank you both for giving me the run down for all of this. I'll talk to Sakura." He rolled his shoulders slightly, having gotten sore from putting his weight on the crutches. "You two just go ahead and get back to practicing your tree walking skills."
"Hn."
"Thanks, sensei."
The Jonin watched them go back to their training, running up the sides of the trees while making marks with their kunai. After a few moments of watching the team practice with fervor, he mentally prepared himself for what was likely going to be an undesirable conversation for his kunoichi student.
Kakashi knew he couldn't just reprimand her without getting into the crux of Sakura's issues, after all…
"Oi, Sakura." Kakashi called up to the girl with a louder voice than he had used with the boys, finally getting her focus off of the endurance training she was doing at the moment. "Come down here for a moment, will you? I need to talk to you about Ami."
That seemed to both sour the girl's already less than stellar mood, as well as create a nervous energy around her. It was like she knew exactly what she was in trouble for, or at the very least that she was in for a very uncomfortable lecture.
Never in his life did Kakashi think he'd be having to do this kind of talk though. Guess that's just something that happens when you're dealing with young teenagers.
The Jonin definitely wasn't envying Iruka at this point. Chunnin as he was, he was at least good at getting Academy Students ready for most Genin level tasks. All the while having to deal with stuff like this on a seemingly daily basis.
When Sakura got down to the forest floor and stood in front of him, Kakashi felt the urge to sigh again.
"…This isn't the ninja academy, Sakura." He started, wanting to get that point across first before getting into the rest of what he wanted to say to her. "I know that you might have a dislike for Ami due to the way she used to treat you, but this is a mission for Konoha – and a dangerous one at that. When you continue to insult or backtalk her when she's tried to stay professional, it reflects badly of both your character and on the principles of Konoha itself."
He points to the forehead protector that had been used as a hairband rather than on her actual head like her teammates.
"B-But Kakashi-sensei-"
"You're perfectly within your rights to dislike or even hate Ami." He said, cutting off her attempted argument before she could actually think of a rebuttal. "But you need to remain professional. This isn't a situation where you can just allow crucial communications break down with your comrades because of your personal issues. It puts everyone in danger when you try to start arguments."
He had recalled how Obito had put himself in danger numerous times because he was trying to be contrarian to Kakashi's own decisions. And unlike him, Sakura didn't have the benefit of having a teleporter like Minato to get her out.
"Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you, Sakura?" The Jonin asked her when he had finished explaining. "…Answer me, Sakura."
She seemed to shrink slightly when he repeated her name.
"Y-Yes… Kakashi-sensei." Sakura nodded slightly.
"Good." The man yet again easily resisted the urge to sigh. "Now then, given how you've gotten your tree walking down and have done some good progress on working with your stamina, tomorrow you'll be going with Ami to protect the bridge builder."
He raised a hand to stop her from raising her voice in defiance.
"I'm not done." He specified. "She'll be the one in charge between the two of you, and you'll be putting what I just told you into practice, understood? If she tells you to jump, you'll ask her how high."
"…Yes, sensei." The pink haired girl whispered, though he could still hear her quite clearly. There was a hint of anger in her voice, but at the very least she wasn't protesting.
"Good, now get back to training. You'll be heading out with the builder and Ami tomorrow, so be careful not to overexert yourself."
Sakura nodded and walked over to her particular tree, shoulders slumped a bit more than before.
Mentally, Kakashi wondered if Gai had to deal with this kind of thing. Probably not, given all the achievements he had to boast for when it came to his "youthful" team.
"Come on, Ningame! We're almost half way there!" Maito Gai shouted down at his summon while giving him an excited pat on the back of his shell. "Let's keep going! At this pace we'll get there by noon tomorrow!"
"YOU'RE INSANE AND I CAN'T BELIEVE I LET YOU SIGN A SUMMONING CONTRACT!" The tortoise gasped as he paddled his flat-bottomed feet through the water desperately. "I could have been a normal tortoise chewing on lettuce or something but noooooo! I just had to become a ninja tortoise!"
"Don't worry about it, Ningame. You're doing a fantastic job!" Gai gave his companion a thumbs up, seemingly unbothered by his companion's many complaints. "NOW LET US COMMENCE FORTH, WITH THE POWER OF YOUR YOUTHFUL SWIMMING!"
"GGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!"
Maybe we could call it "Great Mental Duplication Formation Delta Alt Z"?
I was regretting inventing this technique. Seriously, that doesn't even sound like a coherent name.
Well maybe you should make the name then, given the fact that you've rejected every idea I came up with.
You literally tried to steal names from other series, and what you didn't steal sounded like a bunch of buzz words stapled together.
Besides, I wouldn't do any better with it.
Maybe we should call it some sort of clone name then, given how we – or I guess you – came up with it in the first place?
Okay, now we're actually getting somewhere. Way better than calling it the Schizophrenia Jutsu like what I first came up with.
And you said my ideas were bad.
Both of us are bad at it, dipshit. We're literally the same fucking person.
Don't call me a dipshit, bitch!
This is gonna become a thing, isn't it…
I let out a sigh and relaxed, thinking more over the aftereffects of the technique while observing the continued work of Tazuna and his group of other bridge building rebels. There were a few things to note about the way that the ability worked.
The first and most important thing to note was the chakra cost… of which there was very little. Aside from the up-front cost of actually putting the mental double together, I didn't seem to actually need to continually add my own chakra to it to sustain the technique. I could still do so, but it was more like a phone battery that would eventually need a recharge rather than a Genjutsu that I would constantly need to supply chakra to.
You better give me a screen protector if that's what I am to you.
Bitch, shut up. I'm trying to at least take this somewhat seriously.
Nah, I'd get bored.
Ignoring the commentary of my continually more snarky mental passenger, I considered another detail of the technique that we discovered out of curiosity. That was the independent focus that my double had when it came to our sense.
Basically, when it came to working with senses like sight and sound, there was only so much you could really zero in on even when looking at the bigger picture. There were numerous little things that could be missed even when you know to be on the lookout for them.
With the double, she had the ability to focus on another part of my vision even when I'm following something else. There was a limit to this, as it seemed she couldn't influence my body's movement without me giving explicit permission, but at the very least it would allow me to watch my peripherals without actually having to watch my peripherals.
Driving would be so much easier now… if only cars existed outside of our last life.
Truly a tragedy.
The last thing that we uncovered about this new technique was how my chakra network was affected by the double. In a way, it was like a priority line. If the double wanted to send chakra into our feet, but I wanted it to go to my hands, the hands are where it would go. I would have to intentionally take my metaphysical hands off of the controller if the double was going to shape my chakra or direct it anywhere.
My body was a plane, and I was the one with the first spot to get on.
It's not working right now, but I'm trying to slap you in the face.
No you're not.
You're right, I'm not. But I'm still thinking it.
How about instead of complaining, you come up with an actual name for this stupid technique.
I don't know. Fucking… Mental Clone Jutsu?
It's a basic name, but I think it's at least fitting.
Hmph, I still think that Great Mental Duplication Formation Delta Alt Z is a cooler name.
And I still think you're stupid.
I know you are but what am I?
A sigh escaped my mouth as I stretched and stood from my seated position.
"Is this what it's like to listen to me talk?" I asked myself in a whisper. "Damn, I should apologize to Ino and Sakura for having to put up with me."
Didn't we already do that?
Yeah, but now I want to apologize extra hard.
Hey!