Tokubetsu Jonin Shibito's hands blurred through a short chain of hand seals which signalled me to move and do it fast.
I threw myself backwards and kicked out at Midori and our client for this mission, Padme Dendenrashi.
The priestess shrieked in pain at the perceived betrayal.
Hopefully, she'd understand that by kicking her, I'd gotten her out of the firing line. Somehow I doubted things were going to work out that neatly.
"Get behind cover!" I shouted at the other three.
Han, Kuroiwa, and Idate responded perfectly to my command, throwing themselves into whatever cover they could right as the Tokubetsu Jonin finished his chain of seals.
His chest inflated as he took a huge lungful of air only to exhale and spit what seemed like a quarry's worth of gravel at us.
The gravel flew through the air and hammered into the trees and rocks that we'd used as barriers. I flexed my chakra, trying to get as good a read on the situation as I could with the Mind's Eye of the Kagura Jutsu.
The barrage of gravel was so loud it reminded me of being caught in a tin shed as hail slammed into it during a storm.
Which meant I had to rely on basic hand signs that I'd taught to the kids to communicate.
Midori thankfully was staring at me from where she'd landed so I quickly fed her my orders.
'Protect client and stall out against the Chunin!' I then made an emphatic command, 'survive!'
Midori nodded, her eyes huge even as she prepared herself to move.
I gave her a final smile and signed for her to breathe, then I flexed my chakra and slammed the first three Gates wide open.
In doing so chakra exploded out of me as a wave of blue energy began to emit from my body as a chakra shroud.
Usually, I would have clamped down on it as the visible emission of chakra was actually a waste of chakra beyond a threat display. But here and now, I needed it.
Unleashing chakra like this would act as a huge signal to anyone with a lick of chakra sensitivity that something was going on right here.
Hopefully, that would mean a Kiri patrol would investigate quickly.
So until then my team and I needed to survive.
I threw myself out of cover the instant Shibito's jutsu ended, moving into an attack position as I used one hand to flick shuriken at the Iwa nin's position.
I deflected yet another trio of kunai that would have killed me if I'd solely relied on chakra sensing.
I barely noticed the small explosive tags on them as they skittered away.
A moment's notice was all I had to spot that even more kunai had been thrown where my students were holding up.
Damn it!
It was a good one-two punch they had there.
One of them unleashed a wide area of effect attack that caused the opponents to seek cover and the other followed up with precise explosions in the points of cover.
A one-two combination was good, but in a world of shinobi there had to be a guarantee, meaning another attack was coming.
The brace of kunai I threw earlier forced Shibito to lean to the side while his teammate leapt away.
I locked eyes with Shibito and closed the distance right as he opened up with another attack which I was mentally calling his "Gravel spray jutsu."
Instead of backing down this time, I threw myself headfirst into the wave of gravel, activating my Steel Body Jutsu to weather the attacks.
Small flecks of rock and stone slammed into me and I felt a noticeable drain on my chakra but my jutsu held up.
I emerged through a wave of dust, grinning as Shibito found himself suddenly in close range to me. I swept my staff around, trying to trip him up as I continued to close, kunai angling up into his throat, only for him to kick off the ground and replace himself with a rock off to the side.
I twisted and lunged, trying to get a hand on him. If I could just touch him he'd go the way of so many of my foes.
A quick, easy coma jutsu that would wrap this up neatly.
Instead of my hand closing around flesh however, an armour of rock formed up around Shibito.
He twisted, swinging a fist the size of my torso at me.
I ducked and a huge gust of wind whooshed past me.
I struck out hard and fast, landing a heavy punch right into the plate of stone where his stomach should be.
Shibito got lifted slightly off the ground at the hit but nothing more.
I had a moment to be shocked before his foot swept up and attempted to break me.
I threw myself to the side, tumbling up and around before running through my own series of hand seals.
Water Bullet Jutsu! I thought as I spat a wad of water straight at his head.
Shibito ducked his head only for another water bullet to streak in, hidden by the first that had blinded him to the threat.
He raised a fist to block the attack and his armour rocked from the attack along with gaining a few spiderweb-like cracks running through the gauntlet of the armour.
I clicked my tongue when I noticed how little damage it did.
I ran a quick assessment of my situation.
The kids had gotten out of cover and were now tangling with the other Iwa nin.
Midori had dragged Padme into a new patch of cover and left her there. That was good.
On my side of the equation, I was facing off against a Tokubetsu Jonin with armour that reminded me of medieval knights given how he'd formed up plates around his body. A narrow slit served as his viewpoint and perhaps the widest opening I could see anywhere on his body.
The joints were all tightly compressed, making it a well-done defensive jutsu. I wouldn't be able to touch him without breaking through his armour.
Armour, that even as I watched, was repairing itself from the minor damage I'd caused with the water bullet. Rather quickly at that as well.
Damn, it was regenerative?
Shibito hopped from side to side, revealing that he wasn't at all hampered in terms of speed while wearing the armour.
Damn, I'd been hoping he'd be slower.
I could sense Shibito well enough to know that it sadly also wasn't a wasteful jutsu in terms of chakra, not with his reserves.
I mentally made a note of which seals I'd felt Shibito form before he'd unleashed the jutsu. Those might be well worth pouring over later and testing out when we got home.
Shibito had made it look all too easy with how he'd gone from a replacement jutsu straight into it.
I suspected it was something of a signature jutsu for him and that pinged a memory of reading through one of the Bingo Books.
"Shibito of the Earthen Armour," I said even as I wove a genjutsu through my words in an attempt to trip him up.
Shibito's chakra fluctuated, showing that he wasn't a Tokubetsu Jonin for nothing.
"I've never heard of you," he spat back, causing a bullet of stone to launch at my head.
I started to merely lean to the side before a flutter of chakra within the bullet had me replacing myself with a desperate flex of my own chakra.
The bullet exploded and I held back my annoyance that he hadn't used hand seals for that. As good as he was at Earth Armour Jutsu, he was obviously much more experienced in Earth Bullets.
I reappeared slightly to the side and hurled kunai with explosive tags only for Shibito to bat them from the air with a contemptuous swat of his hand.
They went off, but the explosives barely did any more than the water bullets.
So, I needed to either layer them into him, or use something much stronger to get through that armour.
To the side, I felt a fluctuation of chakra as Kuroiwa tried and failed to take the Iwa Chunin from an ambush position only to replace herself with a tree branch that Midori had coated with explosive tags.
Heh, nice work, kids.
I dodged another wave of gravel and clicked my tongue in annoyance. I could go for opening another gate to boost my power and speed but I wasn't sure that would be the best solution.
More chakra meant more strain on control and if it was a straightforward taijutsu fight I might go for it, but with that armour, things were different.
It was an ace in the hole that I didn't want to play if I didn't have to.
That said, I did, theoretically, have a jutsu that would penetrate his armour.
I just needed to get in close.
And for it to not fail.
I charged, not allowing doubt to grow within my mind as my heart thundered in my chest.
The earth broke and the wind howled at my headlong sprint.
And then, for one glorious moment, everyone on the battlefield paused as a new sound emerged.
Heads turned as the sound of a swirling vortex churning in on itself hummed through the air.
I had the control, I had the power, I could make it stop.
Now came the final test.
I darted in, seeking to slam it home into Shibito's torso, only for him to bark a laugh and for his armour to slough off his left arm, shooting out at me like a grasping, extending hand.
I rolled underneath the questing hand so that my back was parallel with the ground, my Rasengan left contrails of glowing blue chakra as we twisted through the air.
"Heh," Shibito chuckled right as my chakra sense flared up, warning me far too late as a third hand shot out of Shibito's right side to slam into my shoulder and pin me down with the arm that held the Rasengan.
"Ha, got you!" Shibito moved so that he'd be able to pin my other arm down but I wasn't letting that happen.
Pinned I might be but you didn't spar with Kaguya on the regular without learning a few tricks.
I exploded off the ground with a buck of my body that saw my right arm snap like a tree branch bent too far.
I felt a sudden intense pain but ignored it. It was unimportant.
I stared right into Shibito's eyes as they widened in horror when I formed another Rasengan in my left hand—which I then slammed into his stomach.
I launched him, armour and all, into the air with me following after him, my second Rasengan screaming just as loudly as the first.
I kept on the pressure and felt the Rasengan carve through his armour before hitting something soft, only for the Rasengan to falter and destablise.
Damn it! No!
It still wasn't where I needed it to be!
This should have mulched his insides!
Shibito was still launched backwards and landed on his side heavily, his armour falling off him in hard clacks.
Shibito shot to his feet only for a kunai I hurled to meet him.
He reached for a kunai of his own to block it only for his legs to collapse under him. The drop ended up saving his life as instead of taking him in the throat, a gash was torn next to his right eye, blinding him on that side.
He hit the ground and vomited blood.
He wretched and kept squirming, throwing himself from side to side once his preservation instincts kicked in as I kept on the pressure, kunai chasing him as I sprinted to close in on him.
He got to his feet and leapt back even as I tried to cave his head in with a kick that broke a tree he landed near.
I followed up with my bo staff but my aim was off due to my floppy right arm.
I tightened the Ransotengai Jutsu and felt the pain increase as I commanded it to act as I needed it to. I stabbed out faster with my staff and this time was rewarded with a solid hit that slammed into Shibito's skull.
Blood splattered across yet another tree as his cut grew, sending the scent of blood through the air.
Rather than trying to block it, Shibito threw himself with the attack, his hands dropping smoke pellets as he did so.
"Retreat!" he yelled as he used the smokescreen to turn and leg it as fast as he could away from me.
I paused, hesitating as my chakra senses worked out that his teammate hadn't heard him and was still engaging with my team.
I clenched my teeth and turned to deal with him.
A quick inspection of the secondary battle showed that my students had done rather well holding their own.
Han and Idate were rather singed but otherwise fine. Midori had a small cut on her forehead that was weeping blood and Kuroiwa was circling, looking for a chance to end this with her sword drawn.
I was rather pleased when I saw Han complete a genjutsu that shifted the landscape slightly.
Hmmm, it seemed like he'd gotten away with it as well. A quick signal passing from Han to Midori and Kuroiwa showed me what their plan was.
Well, I could add my own thumb to the scales for this encounter by serving as a distraction.
I flicked a kunai and caught the Chunin's attention. "What?! Eh?" he demanded only to gasp when he saw my, no doubt, dirt-streaked visage staring back at him. "The kid?"
"You've been abandoned," I said, stepping forward even as I signed "Go!" to the others.
The Chunin had all of a moment to stare at me with incomprehension before Midori and Kuroiwa struck.
Kuroiwa's sword cut through his lungs, spearing out the other side while Midori's kunai slammed into his neck. Both were fatal wounds by themselves.
Kuroiwa stepped back, drawing her blade with her.
The chunin took a single faltering step, wheezed once at me in disbelief, and then died.
I took another moment to glance around, my instincts screaming at me to not relax and that I was still in the fight. I pushed the Eyes of the Kagura Jutsu, casting it as far as I dared, only to just barely catch Shibito as he fled.
"Holy shit Sensei! We won!" announced Han.
I raised a hand and signalled him to stay aware, which I regretted as a new lancing of pain ran through my arm.
Urgh… I could probably run down Shibito if I really tried… but I wasn't exactly in the best form and doing so would leave me with nothing in the tank.
It would also leave my students and our current mission exposed.
I took a few more moments to check my surroundings for any threat I could before I finally eased the chakra gates shut. The world dimmed as colours lost their vibrancy and the thrum of power that I'd been riding faded.
Urgh, it always felt like I was coming down from something when I shut the gates. Weird how quickly you could get used to such power.
"Is it safe to come out?" called Padme.
I considered saying no before my professionalism won out. "It is now, Padme," I replied even as I mentally kicked myself.
The young Shrine Maiden stepped out and took a long look at the now thoroughly churned-up battlefield. "O—oh that was… different from those bar fights," she said as her eyes darted about.
Her gaze lingered on the two downed forms of the Iwa nin along with the blood running down Midori's face.
"Was this my fault?" Padme whimpered.
A cruel part of me wanted to say yes. Then maybe she'd become a shut-in who wouldn't venture out and cause so many issues.
But that was what a villain like Gengetsu would do.
"No, these were shinobi from a foreign Village that were tricking shinobi into entering their trap," I stated firmly. "Nothing you could have caused or in any way contributed to. These were just bad people looking to do bad things."
Padme relaxed at that but the kids took it in with serious expressions.
Han shifted. "Sensei, how did you know they weren't legit?"
I snorted. "We only just finished a war, Han. There is no plausible way that they'd be allowed to simply flounce around our nation like they were. I also sensed them fighting with someone earlier."
That caused the four Mudanin to stiffen. "And we didn't do anything?"
"It wasn't our mission and I only just caught the end of the fight," I replied. "I was going to let things sit quietly and hopefully pass it along to the next patrol I sensed. They caught wind of us, however."
"Heh! Didn't work out so well for them!" Han crowed. Idate also nodded, a smug expression taking hold.
Kuroiwa shuffled up to the chunin's corpse. "What do we do with his money pouch?" She was already pocketing the ryo bills contained within before I could tell her.
I sighed and shook my head, glancing at Midori who hadn't said anything and was staring at where her kunai was embedded in the chunin's throat.
I put my hand on her shoulder, jostling her lightly. "Hey, good job protecting the client and getting in the fight."
I stepped in closer and squeezed her shoulder to let her know I was there for her. "You did the right thing. If you want to talk about it at all, feel free to ask at any time," I stated seriously.
The other trio watched on with Idate scoffing. "We're shinobi, Midori! We're supposed to kill people!"
"It's just that it is my first kill, alright!" Midori barked back.
Kuroiwa twitched in a manner that let me know it was probably hers as well and she hadn't really thought about it till it was pointed out. She suddenly was much more aware of her sword and the blood running along its length.
Padme chose that moment to step forward and speak up. "You did the right thing! And you're not just about killing people! You also protect! Like you did for me just now even if it put you at greater risk," she said, glancing towards me in a shy manner.
Oh dear, was she reading too deeply into how I'd doubled back to get her out of harm's way? I'd kicked her for heaven's sake! Focus on that! Not that I'd saved you!
"Matsu said it best. These were bad people looking to do bad things and you stopped them. That makes you good!" Padme declared firmly.
The rather simplistic argument seemed to help and I decided to move things along. "Right, Han, secure the body. Midori, secure the kunoichi. Idate and Kuroiwa? I need you with your eyes facing out looking for any more trouble headed our way," I ordered.
I then reluctantly gestured for Padme to stand next to me.
Han looked at the body. "Uhmmm Sensei… I don't really know what to do? Maybe you could show me?"
I huffed at his attempt to get out of doing any work, even if it was technically correct.
"Give me a second to fix my arm," I replied.
"Fix your—" was as far as Han got before I let the puppet strings holding my arm mostly in place falter. My arm flopped unnaturally and everyone alive and conscious stared at my arm.
Huh, I'd locked it into a slightly rotated position at the end there, it was amazing I had been able to hold onto my staff at all. No wonder it hurt so much.
I hummed and twisted it into the correct position with a wet squelch that accompanied a white-hot lance of pain that reminded me of the time I'd had my nose broken.
I began to fix it up with the healing palm before looking up at the group. "Hey! I gave orders!" I barked and this time everyone jumped to it.
Heh, demonstrating that you could endure great amounts of pain really did help solidify their willingness to follow my orders.
Except for Padme who looked horrified but also, very interested in what I'd just done.
"Argh! Sensei! This bitch is alive!" screamed Midori as she frisked the kunoichi I'd used the coma jutsu on.
"She'll wish she wasn't soon I imagine," I muttered darkly, knowing that the next patrol was going to happily cart her off to Torture and Interrogation. I didn't hold any sympathies for her, though.
After all, she'd come here looking to kill people.
Midori flapped her hands. "What is going to happen to her? Oh Kami! Why is she still alive? Am I supposed to kill her?"
I sighed and shook my head. My students had come a long way since I'd first gotten them, but moments like this really highlighted just how young they really were.
"In reverse order!" I shouted back. "You are not supposed to kill her! She's alive because she's got valuable intelligence and I had the chance to knock her out! And finally…"
I stared at Midori for a long moment which seemed to help her calm down.
I wasn't sure she would like the actual answer of what was going to happen to her. "She'll be handed off to the next patrol for processing," I said, deciding to leave it at just that.
"Now tie her up like you've practised," I ordered as I flexed my hand, testing my arm for pain before working through what would be its normal range of motion.
I wasn't about to drop and do any push-ups on it but I felt like it would hold for the moment.
Another glance around showed that my orders had been followed so I clapped to regather my team with the addition of our captive. I pulled out a storage scroll, grumbling as I unsealed items from it to make room for the chunin's corpse to be sealed away.
"Right, we'll mark this site down on the map and continue our mission," I reported, hefting the kunoichi over my shoulder and grunting at her weight.
Oh well, more strength training for me it seemed.
My students all stared at me, still unsure what to make of my nonchalance at the recent fight to the death we'd engaged in. I just smiled. "These things happen gang! It's part and parcel for being shinobi! We'll talk more when we get to a secured location," I stated as I began to lead our group to the final city in Padme's tour.
Everyone was quiet for the rest of the day's trip, which was a blessing in some ways but also a sign of how rattled they'd all been from this encounter. I decided to give them space to process what had happened.
The city didn't take long to reach and soon enough we were walking through the streets, receiving odd looks for how I had a woman trussed up over my shoulder. My headband pronouncing me as a shinobi of Kiri allowed us to continue unmolested until we reached Padme's family's residence.
At the entryway we were challenged by some guards but I just waved Padme on, glad to be done with her mission.
Padme stepped forward but instead of continuing to walk she turned back to me. "I'm sorry," she said, dropping into a bow. "I realise that this mission was more than you expected and you did marvelously to protect me like you did… even when I wasn't making it easy for you."
I nodded. "Ah, thank you for your kind words," I replied carefully.
While her father expected her behaviour I doubted it would be good form to mention how much of a brat she was, especially after her apology.
Padme straightened. "I shall be sure to always request you when I have need of a guard! You are an excellent shinobi, Matsu!" she declared.
"Ah, you don't need to do that," I waved off her words quickly. "There are better shinobi than me within Kiri. Maybe share the love and request some of them?" I suggested hopefully.
Padme threw back her head and laughed. It was a nice laugh, the sort that reminded you of glass tinkling or birds singing.
It was sadly the last thing I wanted her to do.
Padme flapped her hand at me. "Oh you jest! You're just so funny sometimes."
I stared at her with a flat expression. I hadn't been joking. I didn't want to run missions for her.
Padme shook her head. "You're too humble for your own good! That's your problem, Matsu!"
She put a hand to her chin and tilted her head cutely. "It's something I admire about you." With that said she turned and marched into her family compound, leaving me to stare after her with a sense of impending doom.
Han chose that moment to step up. "Wow, you're lucky, Sensei! She's really beautiful!"
Idate clicked his tongue. "Some people have all the luck."
I sighed, deciding here wasn't a good place to have them not be swayed by a single positive impression. I highly doubted Padme was the sort to change her spots. I didn't care how beautiful she became. She was trouble.
"Let's get moving, we should have encountered a Kiri Patrol by now. The fact we haven't is concerning. We'll head to a safe house in the city and see who's there," I ordered.
I just had to hope that this kill team of Iwa nin hadn't taken out all of the patrol groups locally.
Hopefully they'd only gotten one group with their little ambush gambit.
Yet, somehow I doubted that would be the case.
I sighed, Gengetsu was going to need to know about this.
I could only hope he wasn't pissed off beyond belief at how badly some other shinobi had dropped the ball on this.
"I'm ecstatic that you survived!" Gengetsu crowed from behind his desk.
He beamed a smile at us that made me feel like a favoured dog that had just killed a rat plaguing the household. "Even better, you killed some Iwa nin! Those scummy rock humpers didn't know what was coming when they ran into you!"
We'd been able to find another team of shinobi which led to an ANBU team taking over custody of the kunoichi. By the time we'd gotten back to Kiri, an aide from the Mizukage had been waiting for us.
And now here we were, standing in front of the Mizukage.
While my students' stood taller at his praise I held myself still, knowing how mercurial Gengetsu could be.
Gengetsu sat, but behind me another ghosted near my students with a kunai in his hands, twirling it ominously.
When Gengetsu made it clear he was expecting a reply, I spoke up first, not trusting my eager but all too idiotic students not to say the wrong thing.
Especially Idate.
If he tried to throw this in Gengetsu's face he was going to get strung up by his skin in a dungeon if Gengetsu was feeling merciful.
"Thank you, Lord Mizukage. I was pleased with the performance of my team. They have done well since I have taken them on. Might I make a suggestion?" I asked.
"A suggestion?" parroted Gengetsu from behind his desk. Behind me the illusion of Gengetsu walked up and stood over me, kunai twirling as he observed me.
"I'll entertain it," he said with a smile that seemed all too vulpine.
"My team has achieved something with the recent defeat of an Iwa nin kill team." I announced.
"They worked together to bring down their foe while securing the client so that we could achieve multiple objectives without losing sight of our primary purpose. Could they be promoted to Genin?"
My students sucked in a surprised breath. They obviously hadn't considered what it might mean to have defeated an Iwa strike team.
"Ho?" Gengetsu tilted his head as behind us his second stalked back and forth, inspecting each of my students. "The first successful transition from Mudanin to Genin? I'll have to consider this for a moment. Is the slaying of a single Iwa nin worthy of such recognition?" he pondered aloud.
I held my tongue while mentally willing each of my students to do the same. Thankfully they proved they had gained some awareness of when to shut up since the first beating I'd used to establish their skills and mental hang-ups.
They held their tongues but leaned in, eyes watching Gengetsu's every move. Completely oblivious to the Gengetsu behind them.
Gengetsu tapped his lips. "You did protect the client while also taking out a chunin… I think that should be worthy of some recognition certainly."
Gengetsu straightened up and drew out a formal-looking scroll that he wrote on with a quick flourish. "I hereby declare that Team Uzumaki—" he said, making sure to add a certain weight to the last name he'd ordered me to take on.
I knew it to be just another method of waving a red flag in front of the bulls that were other Kiri shinobi, so I hadn't made an ass of myself by adding it to anything or taken up wearing any clan insignia that others might have.
"—to be elevated from the position of Mudanin to that of Genin and granted all rights and privileges of such a rise in rank," Gengetsu announced grandly, finishing the document with a flourish of his brush.
I had to hand it to him, he almost made it sound like he was giving them keys to some ancient vault with how he'd mentioned the right to privileges with the promotion.
The clans might grant their respective kids more access to normal training tools and aids but I doubted the stain of being a Mudanin, indeed, the first Mudanin, was going to wash off anytime soon.
I'd need to make sure the kids couched their expectations.
Gengetsu finished his declaration and produced four proper headbands for the kids. "Well done, Genin," he said with a tone that made him almost seem like a kindly father figure.
The kids all gushed at his gift and began to vibrate. Gengetsu nodded magnanimously and waved for us to depart. "I shall continue to observe your careers with great interest," he said formally.
The illusion behind me leaned in to whisper. "Remember our bargain. Time's ticking, Matsu. Don't get cocky now."
I turned and marched out of the room, trying to ignore the way something felt like it was toying with my hair despite there being nothing there.
We exited and my students shouted in triumph as they held up their headbands for all to see. "We did it! We're Genin now!" Han bellowed.
A passing shinobi gave them a disparaging look but otherwise didn't say anything. I merely nodded at the kids' exuberance and ushered them towards a training field where we could talk, or more specifically where they could be loud.
"Well done, team. We had a golden opportunity presented to us and I'm proud to announce that you all grasped it with both hands. As Genin things will be a bit easier for you," I said, making sure to sandwich the bad news as much as I could.
I let them enjoy this for a moment before turning so my body was pointed more towards the clan kids. "Now, this next bit of advice is going to be more for you than Han as his family will merely be happy with the promotion as it guarantees better pay with access to more missions. I might not have to baby you as much going forward, and yes it means no D-ranks for the team," I stated.
The trio of clan kids shot me looks of confusion except for Midori who bit her lip and worried at it. "Are things going to get worse for us?"
I shook my head. "Not worse, but I just want to warn that the stigma of being announced Mudanin isn't going to fade for a while. The clans aren't going to forgive and forget so easily I fear."
I pointed at each of them. "To the clans, you have been a blemish. Now that you're Genin that blemish isn't washed away, merely faded. I would expect that they are not going to give you the same rights that a freshly graduated Genin is given. They might even try to keep holding this shame over your heads."
Midori shifted. "Why would they do that?"
"Because for some of them? It grants them a modicum of power over you," I replied.
"Modicum?" asked Han.
Without missing a beat I stated, "A small quantity of a particular thing. In this case, the ability to influence you by shaming or leading you by the nose."
I pointed again at the trio before me. "The clans by all rights, in a perfect world, would take you into the fold but they're going to be letting their pride do the talking and it's going to see them continue to make pariahs of you."
Han squirmed and this time Kuroiwa spoke up. "Pariahs are outcasts," she stated succinctly.
I nodded and made a gesture that swept around to take in the entire group. "Now, Lord Mizukage has decided that there is potential within each of you. I now have the task of taking you all the way to the Chunin Exams that will be run in a few months' time. If we do that you'll not be the shame of the clans but serious contributors."
That got them all perking up in interest. I smiled widely. "So, we get you to chunin and from there? Well, the world will be your oyster," I remarked.
"Heck yeah! I'm going to be a Chunin before the end of the year!" Han shouted, his fist pumping into the air.
While the others didn't join in they nevertheless looked interested with Midori beaming. "You really think we can make Chunin?" she asked carefully.
I snorted and adopted an affronted look. "Please? As my students I expect you to become Legends in your own right, if not I will have considered this a lacklustre undertaking and it to be a failing on your part."
I put a hand to my chest and smiled in a flashy manner. "Obviously, everything I did was amazing!"
Midori giggled at my antics.
Idate decided to open his mouth and remind me of why it was harder to like him, "Says the guy whose opponent escaped!" he crowed smugly.
"Hmmm what's that? Genin wants to run laps for training tomorrow and not learn the next step in my personal jutsu?" I said, spinning up my Rasengan. "The very same jutsu that made a Tokubetsu Jonin flee?"
Idate suddenly had two hands latched onto the back of his neck and he was dragged into a bow with the others. "Please teach us, Sensei!" chirped my much cuter students in Kuroiwa and Midori.
I nodded magnanimously before chuckling. "Alright all of you, congratulations on your promotion. Training is on tomorrow and from there we'll arrange some serious missions if we're up for it," I informed them.
"Yosh!" Han cried. "No more D-ranks for this guy!"
I held back a smirk. I wasn't going to remind him that it was currently one of the easiest ways to earn money in the village. Even if it was seen as a punishment assignment.
Midori stayed as the others walked away. "Yes Midori?" I asked, causing the others to linger in case I dropped some knowledge for whatever Midori had a question about.
"Sensei… what is going to happen to that kunoichi we captured?"
"That sensei captured, you mean," muttered Kuroiwa. "I certainly didn't get any cash for that."
I ignored her but made another mental note to work out if I could make use of her money-grubbing ways or find a way to change her values. At the moment I was leaning to just teach her to be lawful evil with capitalism as her basis.
Just needed the incentive…
While I was thinking this I continued to stare at Midori. "Do you really not know?" I prompted.
Midori slumped. "I was hoping you'd tell me a nice lie or something," she murmured.
Idate snorted. "Still weak," he muttered. "Even after your first kill."
Midori twitched but growled at Idate. "I'm not weak!" she snapped.
I clapped my hands and projected the noise so it sounded louder and closer to each of them.
"That's enough, everyone. You all need to be a little more understanding with each other. If a teammate is struggling with a concept, whose duty is it to help them?" I prompted.
"The team's" chorused my students.
I nodded sagely. "Very good, see you all tomorrow," I said, turning my own attention to where Jonin Akiko was lurking.
It was time for my own training and, if anything, I needed to work the final kink out of my Rasengan. While it had gotten me back home I should have damn near pulped Shibito with my jutsu. Having him escape bothered me.
'Cause there was no way he was holding back if we encountered each other again.
Midori skipped as she made her way to the training grounds. On her head, her brand new headband sat proudly.
She'd noticed that while the gap between her and her cousins was still there, there was also a hesitance to them now.
She'd done it after all, she'd shown that she was now their equal.
She hadn't pushed it, though. With Sensei's warning fresh in her mind she'd kept her distance.
She also had to admit that part of her… didn't really want to close the gap between her and them. They'd shown exactly who they were and now she didn't want them in her life.
What had sensei said? Once stung twice shy?
She'd gotten to celebrate with her mother who, as the only person that had supported her in her family as a Mudanin, made it all the more meaningful.
Mother had also given Midori a mission for today!
Get Sensei to have dinner with them! She planned to complete this mission straight away!
As she arrived at the training field Midori discovered that she wasn't the first to arrive but this was normal. Sensei was typically always there already, usually running drills of some sort himself.
Sometimes Han would beat her but usually, it was either her or Sensei who arrived first.
So it was odd that Idate was there and sitting down against a training post while Sensei knelt next to him.
"—remember me talking about pride yesterday? Well, it can be a give-and-take relationship. You can be just as susceptible," Sensei said to Idate.
Idate had an ugly scowl on his face. "Yeah yeah! You told me so! I get it! I wasn't expecting them to just beat on me in the name of training!" Idate snapped.
Midori got closer and saw the telltale sign of a green glow around Sensei's hand as he directed it around Idate's body. It only took a few seconds for Idate's posture to relax.
"They call it giving pointers?" Sensei asked. When Idate just nodded Sensei hummed. "Yeah, figures."
Sensei stood and held out a hand to Idate. "Come on, stand up and walk it off. If your clan won't teach you their secret water jutsu, we'll just find another way for you to show how amazing you can be."
Idate's lips twitched upwards and Midori felt like rolling her eyes. He was such a brat, as shown by the way his lips shifted into a scowl when he realised Midori had seen him getting healed by sensei.
Midori ignored him though and smiled at Sensei. "Sensei! Mother wants us to have dinner together tonight!"
Matsu's red eyes swept over to hers and he took a moment to brush his red hair out of his eyes, tying it into a small ponytail that he wove into his headband's sash. "Sounds good but maybe think about how you offer such an invitation in the future. Others might not be so relaxed," he said, causing Midori to cough.
Training went as normal from there with sensei running them into the ground but when it came time for them to start a D-rank mission he waved for them to follow him.
"Got a group of people you should meet if you're going to take the Chunin Exams," he informed us. "It's on the roof," he said when they reached a trio of large concrete buildings.
Before they could reach the roof they passed a group of shinobi sitting around at the base of the building.
Matsu nodded. "Storming fields," he said only for someone else to say something back. It took Midori a moment to realise that this wasn't just any building but one that had a passphrase for entry.
Why would they have that set up?
Han perked up. "Oh! I heard rumours about this! Is this where…" he trailed off as he caught sight of a few kids that were from their cohort at the Academy sitting around on the roof.
The kids glanced back and nodded at their group warily but otherwise didn't shun them like Clan kids would have.
Matsu nodded. "This is where the civilian shinobi meet up once they've graduated. I haven't been allowed to bring you here while you were Mudanin. Now that you are all Genin I can do so."
Midori shifted, unsure how to feel about this.
It was almost like how the Terumi Clan ran morning training sessions but they didn't have the training grounds nor the set focus. Multiple people were doing different things with there being a few that were reading scrolls, some were practising taijutsu forms. Another looked to be working on walking up the wall while throwing kunai at a target dummy. There was also a stack of papers just sitting off to the side for some reason.
A whole cluster of people were simply sitting around and talking.
"This is how civilians train?" sneered Idate.
Matsu shrugged. "It's self-guided which means that you can learn as quickly or as slowly as you might like. Not everyone wants to push themselves," he said without inflection.
Midori glanced at her sensei. There was no outward sign of it, but Midori swore that he didn't approve. Perhaps it was just how she knew he never seemed to stop training. He was always pushing them all, himself included, to be stronger, smarter, or wiser.
Matsu gestured to a kunoichi who was sitting in front of a desk. "From now on, unless you need to run a D-rank for some pay, there will be some free time in our schedules where you can seek out your own training. This can be taken away from you," he stated, giving them each a firm look.
Midori nodded, her eyes still flitting around and trying to take everything in.
Matsu turned to the girl behind the desk. "Hey Sayuki, got some new friends for us. Idate here needs a look at any water jutsu we've worked out." Matsu clapped a hand to Idate's shoulder and Idate buckled a little but looked like Matsu had just slapped him with a fish.
Sayuki took a long moment to look over their group. "You think it's a good idea to include them?" She pointedly looked at Kuroiwa, Idate, and Midori as she said "them."
Matsu sighed. "We were always going to have to expand and make friends. My students are the best place to start and they need the help. Also, they'll probably be able to pay us back in big ways," Matsu replied easily.
He then produced a scroll. "Speaking of which, here's two jutsu I worked out from a recent encounter."
Sayuki sighed but accepted the scroll and opened it to read through the two jutsu. "I think this is a mistake," she said even as she reached into a drawer of the table and drew out another scroll. She tossed it to Idate who caught the object.
When he opened it, his eyes bulged. "These are!" he exclaimed in shock.
Midori leaned over his shoulder and blinked at the brief descriptions that were revealed, showing three water jutsu.
"Water Bullet, Water Whip, and Water Prison Jutsu? Wow!" she gushed. "Are we learning these, Sensei?" Midori exclaimed.
"I'd suggest the Water Bullet at least but can we also get the Water Wall Jutsu for a defensive jutsu?" Matsu asked, looking to Sayuki who was reading the scroll Matsu had given her.
"Here," growled the girl as she grabbed another scroll with the requested jutsu on it, eyes not leaving the scroll in front of her. Curious, Midori leaned forward and caught the words Earth Armour Jutsu, and Gravel Spray Jutsu written in large print.
Midori suddenly found a scroll being thrust in her face as Sayuki used the second scroll to ward Midori away from reading any more.
She almost fumbled the catch but clung onto it before it could drop to the ground.
Matsu bobbed his head in thanks. "Alright team, those jutsu are going to be your homework for now. I'll leave you to work on them. However if there is something else that catches your fancy, see Sayuki here. Oh, and keep your eyes open. You never know when someone is going to try and practise stealth training on you," he announced loudly.
"Tch!" said a trio of voices from behind them.
Midori spun and found a handful of kids from their cohort had snuck up on them.
Each of them had a paper tag that they were in the process of attaching to her team's backs. A quick glance at Han showed two tags were already stuck there and the same was true for Kuroiwa.
Midori almost laughed but she caught Han smirking at her. Midori felt around on her back and found no less than four tags.
"More training?" Han whined.
Matsu grinned back at them and winked only for his hand to blur and catch Sayuki as the girl attempted to tag Matsu. "It's the fun kind here, though. Try your own hand at sneaking up on some people when you get bored." He pointed to where a stack of tags sat innocently off to the side of the entrance.
The rest of the day passed quickly.
Sadly no less than eight people "tagged" Midori by the end of the day and she suspected that was only due to them taking it easy on her. She had to admit it certainly made her watch her surroundings more.
When the sun began to set she was about to head for home only for Matsu to clear his throat pointedly. "Did you forget about tonight?"
Midori blinked. "Oh! Right! Come on, Sensei. We have to meet my mother at the place!" she said, starting to run. Matsu just rolled his eyes and followed her at a casual jog.
The "place" ended up being a small restaurant that served some of the best eel around. It was nondescript and tucked away though so not a lot of people knew about it.
When they arrived Midori could see that her mother had already claimed a space for them on the counter.
"Mother! Hi! Sorry we're late. I got distracted learning some cool new jutsu!" announced Midori.
Mother turned and gave Midori a smile that made her feel like everything was right in the world.
When her mother looked up the smile shifted slightly, but then her mother stood.
Before Miori could question it, Mother was bowing to Sensei from the waist. "Thank you for looking after my daughter," she said formally.
"It was my pleasure as well as my duty as her sensei," Matsu replied easily.
"So polite," replied mother as she reclaimed her seat. "I am not sure you can understand a mother's gratitude fully, though. I am Azure Terumi, I was once a Chunin but I have rather let my skills wane since raising Midori."
"I see, forgive me for asking, but Midori's father…" Matsu left the question hanging and Midori, despite herself, glanced at her Mother to take in her reaction. Most people didn't ask.
Her Mother's face shifted into a slightly mournful look. "Kiiroi was a good Chunin but he sadly fell victim to a poisoned blade when Midori was very young."
Matsu blinked. "Kiiroi… I see. Well it's a shame that he didn't get his chance to see Midori become the wonderful person she is."
"She is. I think she'll become a wonderful woman, and quite the beauty as well!" proclaimed Mother.
Midori blushed and made to order some food to distract herself from her sensei and mother talking about her.
It felt nice for them to praise her like they were but also very weird.
Matsu merely chuckled. "How did she go last night? She hasn't appeared to have any issues since our mission with Padme," probed Matsu.
Mother shook her head, showing that Midori was fine. She'd bounced back perfectly well after her first kill, despite what Idate had implied.
She wasn't a wimp that woke up screaming!
Although it had helped to wake up and find that Kuroiwa had shifted so they were holding hands during the night.
When they'd woken in the morning neither had mentioned it but there was almost an understanding now between them where before they'd just inhabited the space near each other.
Now they were truly teammates.
"Matsu… that is… Sensei," her mother said in a breathy tone that made Midori glance up from her eel. "What are your plans for my daughter?"
Instead of answering right away like he had been for most of the evening, Matsu considered mother and then Midori for a long moment.
"Midori has potential that has gone untapped. Midori might take a while to understand something but once she does she locks it into place in her mind, making her rock solid when it comes to tasks she's performed before. If she wants to, she could easily make it to Jonin but that will be up to her. I am looking to push her to at least chunin in the next few months."
"You think she can reach chunin in a few months?" Mother said.
"I do."
Midori's eyes bounced from her sensei to her mother as they exchanged words.
"I think you're being a bit too ambitious, there are lots of skills she needs to develop before that is possible." Mother shot Midori an apologetic look but Midori couldn't stop the hurt flashing through her.
"I know you're pushing your students with your training but that won't be enough, not on the international stage that the exams would require. Why are you so adamant that she becomes a chunin in a few months?"
Matsu set his chopsticks down and turned to face Mother. "Because Kiri needs to be shown a better path forward," he stated seriously.
"Your daughter?" Matsu stated, pointing at Midori. "If I can get her to reach the level of a chunin and have it be recognised internationally? No one will look down on her. No one will be able to decry the new system terrible though it is of Mudanin."
"You don't like the Mudanin system Lord Gengetsu created?" Mother probed.
"I like that it's better than what we had but it could be improved. Drastically. I'm not sure how many that were made Mudanin have survived but we need to stop wasting so much potential. Kiri needs to take this step to improve and your daughter is part of that."
"You ask much," Mother said, worrying at her lip. "If you are going to ask that of her, I'd ask that you not hold anything back from her and train her to the best of your abilities."
Matsu took a long moment to respond. "My best?" he replied.
"Your best." Mother's gaze was firm.
Midori found herself speechless, she'd never seen her mother like this before but it was nevertheless impressive.
Matsu nodded slowly and his gaze cut to Midori. "How about it, Midori? If I do my best, think you can do yours?"
Midori straightened, feeling the weight of not just her mother and Matsu's gazes on her but also that of the servers who'd been listening with half an ear.
They all knew something big was happening right here and now.
"I can try?" she said, unsure how things had become this way.
Perhaps she should have paid more attention to the conversation her mother and Matsu were having instead of her food. She licked her lips nervously.
"Hmmmmm try," Matsu spoke the word with distaste. "There will be no try if we want the best," he said. He held up a hand to forestall Mother from talking, his gaze still locked on Midori.
"Tonight," he said, making the word echo through Midori and fill the room, "I want you to think on what you want going forwards. I want you to contemplate what the future that you desire will look like, taste like, feel like?" Matsu's hands shifted as though grasping at the very future he was talking about, only for him to pull it into reality.
"What parts make it up? Who is going to be with you? Is it simple or are there lots of parts to it? Think about that and also think about my words right now." Matsu pointed so that his finger was locked right onto Midori's forehead where her new headband stood.
"Are you afraid that you are weak? Or are you instead afraid of trying to be great?"
Midori blinked. "What?" What did that mean? Her head felt like it was spinning with how tonight had gone.
Matsu patted her on the shoulder. "Think about it at your own pace. If you need to take tomorrow off that's fine. Just, think." Matsu said in a kindly manner. He rose then and paid for their meal, leaving Midori reeling.
Mother watched and just before Matsu left she spoke up. "I feel I should ask before you leave, what does the future you desire look like?"
Midori and indeed everyone in the restaurant stared at Matsu's back and if anything Midori felt like he became taller, broader, and stronger in that moment.
When Matsu spoke, everyone listened as his words filled the air and hung there. "I desire a better Kiri, where people can walk tall and healthy. I desire a land where my friends and family are safe from all those that might hurt them."
Midori found herself liking the sound of that part, but Matsu wasn't done.
"I desire a bright future and for that? Well? I suppose I will have to become Mizukage," he announced.
Around the restaurant people hissed in surprise and Midori found herself shocked. That was ambitious! Was he crazy? Who just said things like that?
Matsu turned back then and looked at Midori. "And part of that starts now, by making sure your daughter succeeds. but I need her to want that as well."
He nodded at the mother-daughter pair. "I'll see you when I see you Midori, take your time."
And just like that he left.
Leaving Midori to think.
"Mother?" she asked, her voice but a whisper. "Do you think I could be what sensei said? Powerful… if I tried?"
"I think that if you want that… your sensei could show you the way," Mother replied, still looking at where Matsu had vanished.
Midori nodded and for the rest of the night and into the morning she didn't say a word.
Instead she simply thought, her mind slowly trudging through what had been said and done and what had been asked of her.
She ended up being late to training for the first time since Matsu had taken over as their sensei. Idate tried to mock her but his words died in the face of her determination as she strode up to Sensei.
"Sensei! I don't want to be afraid," she announced. "I want a future where I too can protect my friends and family, no matter how big they become!" she declared.
Matsu smiled in a way Midori knew she'd only seen a few times before. Something about it seemed more genuine.
"Well I'll help you reach that future," he replied and in her own mind Midori knew that she'd do anything to help Matsu reach his dream.
She wanted the better Kiri that he spoke of.
She wanted to be there when he was made Mizukage.
The rest of the day went as it normally did, except it didn't.
Matsu pushed her more, occasionally asking if that was all she had when she felt she couldn't run any further or try any harder.
Each little comment saw her responding and at first Idate had been derisive but that slowly turned into a scowl as he watched on with Han and Kuroiwa.
During a small break Idate leaned in. "What's got you acting so goody-goody?"
Midori glanced at him. "I just decided I want to be stronger, as strong as I can be."
"Tch!" muttered Idate dismissively. Midori glanced over and caught Matsu watching Idate and her talk with a thoughtful appearance. Idate didn't even notice.
Han did though and for the next session he threw himself into the training alongside her. They began to push not just themselves but each other. Matsu watched them for a long moment before nodding proudly.
When the morning was done they headed to the civilian training area where Sensei spoke with Sayuki for a while. Whatever he said to Sayuki seemed to take her aback as she and the others formed a circle around Matsu.
Midori noted that there were a number of older shinobi here today.
Matsu smiled at them all. "I have been taking steps to teach my students a specific jutsu that I devised but I realised that in doing so, I have been neglecting those of you who have been with me the longest."
He splayed his hand out and swept it about the group. "Our way has always been about sharing our strength and I plan to not hold back on those who want to be stronger. We have always been stronger together. It's how we gathered our library of jutsu. It's how we have survived so many missions that would have seen us dead!"
This got a small cheer from the crowd and Midori glanced around as understanding splashed over her like a bucket of warm water.
All of these people were Matsu's friends, weren't they? When he spoke about a brighter future for them this was what he was talking about. There had to be almost fifty people here… and it was going to grow with each year that civilians continued to form their own group at the academy.
"Sharing our strength has been something that I've let falter since graduating but I wish to return to! We are at peace, but that won't always be the case. Now is the best time to gather our strength!"
He produced a scroll which he unsealed to reveal a huge pile of water balloons.
"Urgh is this about your weird chakra control exercise?" muttered a thin, weaselly looking shinobi. A few people laughed at this but otherwise watched on, curious as to what Matsu was getting at.
Matsu gave the other boy an amused look. "It is actually, Shoto, but the water balloons are just step one of three. An incomplete version of this jutsu made a Tokubetsu Jonin with rock armour on flee rather than keep fighting me!"
That got everyone to sit up and pay attention. Most of the people here were nothing but Genin with the odd Chunin sprinkled in. To hear of a jutsu capable of making a Tokubetsu Jonin flee?
Matsu had everyone's attention.
He stepped to the side where a training dummy was and swung his hand around only for a spiralling sphere to appear in his hand and scream through the air right before Matsu slammed the jutsu into it.
The torso of the dummy exploded as parts of it were sent scattering about the training field.
Everyone stared. That had barely been a slap, and yet Matsu had destroyed that target. Midori swallowed, if he'd hit that Iwa Shinobi with this jutsu as it was now…
A white-haired girl stood up.
"How long have you been able to do that?" growled the girl and Midori blinked.
She hadn't noticed the Kaguya girl sitting in their midst? Wait? Why were people sitting so close to her?
Usually you could spot the Kaguya thanks to the space they were given whenever they were anywhere!
"Properly? I finished it up a few days ago," Matsu replied, causing the Kaguya girl to go silent and sit down. Midori amused herself with the thought that the Kaguya girl was probably annoyed Matsu hadn't used it on her in a fight yet.
Heh, as if.
Matsu went about showing everyone the first step of the jutsu. Which really was the same as what he'd been teaching her, Idate, Kuroiwa, and Han.
People swept in and began picking up water balloons by the dozen to start training.
Matsu merely smiled and stepped to the side. Midori watched as Idate, Han, and Kuroiwa along with others got caught up in the training.
None of their group had been able to break the balloon as yet but seeing the finished product made them want to advance it.
Midori kept her eyes on Matsu who'd started talking with Sayuki and the Shoto kid.
Sayuki was talking with him. "—worried about sharing jutsu like this? People are going to talk and spill the beans."
"I'm sharing it so that it isn't something all that special for us. We will all know it, it's not that grand, trust me. It's also not that easy to learn."
Sayuki sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Most of your jutsu are insanely hard to train, you know? I'm not sure if you realise how much of a freak you are at picking up jutsu, Matsu."
Matsu shrugged. "Well this jutsu will help out a little but most of it is about determination."
At Sayuki's confused look he smiled and elaborated, "Only those who shed blood, sweat and tears can master the Rasengan," replied Matsu.
"Anyway, with this gesture we will hopefully spark more people to keep their eyes out for more jutsu. We need to keep expanding our Jutsu library. It's what now? Thirty-five jutsu with the two I added? We need more fire and wind jutsu," Matsu suggested.
Sayuki began rubbing her temples. "Urgh fine! I see what you're trying to do! You're enticing people with a jutsu you don't care about and they can't actually use!"
Matsu shrugged. "You might see it that way."
Midori coughed, deciding to speak up regarding what she'd thought about the other day. "It uhm, might be a bad idea to store the jutsu scrolls in that desk going forward?"
Matsu, Sayuki, and Shoto all glanced at her.
Shoto snickered. "Kid, the scrolls aren't stored there. That's just misdirection. People investigate the desk only to find it's a trap. We keep the actual goods safe, trust us," he shot Matsu a look. "Got a bit to learn about being sneaky, doesn't she?" As he said this Shoto reached around Midori's back to pluck a pair of tags from behind her.
"Midori is rather linear in her approach but that doesn't mean it wasn't a good suggestion, just made without a full understanding," Matsu replied.
Midori ducked her head and shut her mouth, deciding to just listen for a while.
Matsu hummed. "Hey, Shoto, Sayuki? Doing anything after this?" he asked casually.
Both shared a look.
"Nothing important, what's up?" asked Shoto.
"Got a place I want to show you," Matsu replied, his eyes flicking to Midori to let her know she was also included in that invitation before he sought out Han.
And that was how Midori found herself laying back in a small pool of water with Matsu's hands on her temples as he guided her through something he called Chakra Node cleansing.
She had never heard of this before but by the time their session was done she felt like she'd just woken up from a nap.
Each session thereafter had her feeling stronger and more in tune with her body.
The same was obviously true for Han, Shoto, and Sayuki who had their own sessions.
Midori was still going to bed tired, but she also knew that each day saw her growing stronger in ways she'd never even imagined at the academy.
If anything, it helped her reaffirm that doing her best for Matsu had been the right call.
He really was doing his best in response and for that, she knew he'd make an amazing Mizukage.