❈—12:: Bloody Lessons

There are many advantages to being a ninja from a clan. Or at least one from a family with a pre-existing ninja presence.

Companionship, support, familiarity, these are all things that someone from a civilian family (like Sakura, for example) is unlikely to have.

The best thing about being from a ninja family though, is access to older, more experienced ninja who are willing, and in many cases eager, to show a younger family member a few pointers.

Obviously, I don't have that… Not anymore. But I do have the next best thing.

"Whoa," Sakura whispers in some awe as I lead them into my family's armoury.

"All of this belongs to your clan?" she asks, staring around at the racks of blades and shuriken and scrolls and other assorted materiel.

"This is my family's," I say, "not the clan's."

Like I would take them to the Uchiha armoury.

Sakura's eyes nearly bug out.

"Your family owns all of this? Wow."

I suppose she would find this impressive, seeing as this is likely the first privately owned armoury she's ever seen.

Also, not to toot my own horn—nor can I really confirm, since I've never seen them—but I'm sure an Uchiha owned armoury is significantly more impressive than most.

"Meh." Naruto makes an unimpressed sound. "I've seen bigger."

Sakura shoots the boy a stinkeye. I ignore him.

"Take what you need," I say.

Apparently, while Naruto is unimpressed by my family's arsenal, he has no qualms with using the weapons within, because, with a cry of "Awesome," he rushes straight to the section with explosive tags.

Lots and lots of explosive tags.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Sakura asks in horror as the boy begins to stock up. "Those are grade-8 explosive tags! You can't use those!"

Explosive tags range from grade one through twelve. A one is as weak as a firecracker, while a twelve can turn most modest sized houses to rubble.

Suffice to say, a grade-8 can reliably turn a human body into mincemeat.

"He said to come at him 'with intent to kill', Sakura," Naruto argues. "Besides, do you really think this stuff can kill that perverted bastard?"

Sakura hesitates for a second.

"Well, no," she admits finally. "But you would still be ruining Sasuke's home."

"Meh, I don't think Sasuke minds," Naruto says.

"What do you mean Sasuke doesn't mind? Of course Sasuke m—" the girl cuts off as she sees me taking the entire cache of grade-10 tags available.

"...Oh."

—❈—

We return to the training yard to find Kakashi's beach chair gone, and the jōnin dressed in his ninja uniform.

Even his book is gone.

Looks like he's decided to take us seriously.

The man's next words however, make me revise that conclusion.

"All geared up, huh? Good. Good. Anyway, new rule; you now have one hour to get the bell, if you don't, you fail, and I get to call you all poopfaces. Okay?"

We all stop and stare at this new development.

"What do we get if we win?" Naruto asks.

Kakashi hums thoughtfully.

"How about… a pat on the back and a 'good job'?"

"That's terrible," Naruto screams.

Kakashi giggles.

"Anyway, you have one hourandyourtimestartsnow. Bye!"

He takes off running.

It takes us several seconds to process what's going on.

"Um… is he…?" Sakura pauses, unsure how to ask the question.

"He's getting away," Naruto screams. "Hey, get back here."

The loud blonde gives chase, and Sakura and I follow.

—❈—

It may seem like a silly thing to feel the need to mention, especially considering that it should be a foregone conclusion seeing as the man's an S-rank ninja, but I feel the need to say it all the same; Kakashi's fast. Incredibly fast. And what's worse is that it is abundantly clear that he isn't trying.

He takes us running through the Uchiha Compound, then out into the village, weaving through alleys and jumping over rooftops, and no matter how much my teammates and I try to flank him, or catch up, he only ever lets us get close before slipping away again like a wriggly little worm.

It's clear that he's leading us somewhere.

I'm not sure where yet, but considering that he's been heading to the east of the village (where the most robust/dangerous training grounds are located) the entire time, I can safely assume that it's one of said training grounds.

How considerate of him to spare my family's compound.

"Stand still so I can hit you, you slippery bastard," Naruto screams as Kakashi, yet again, dodges his punch by a hair's breadth.

"No," Kakashi says, before taking off again.

Naruto lets out an inarticulate scream of rage then takes off after him.

He's taking this rather personally, isn't he? I think, watching the blonde.

Well, at least he isn't throwing around jutsu or explosive tags. But then I guess not even Naruto is stupid enough to do that in the middle of the village.

Sakura lands beside me.

"How much longer is he going to take us running around the village?" she asks, as though I would know. "People are staring."

I look around. She's right, people are staring.

Apparently, even in a hidden village, seeing ninja chasing each other around the place stands out, especially in the civilian areas like we're currently in.

Though, to be fair, several ninja have given us looks so far, all ranging from weird, to pitiful, exasperated and even amused.

"I think he's taking us to the training grounds," I say.

Sakura frowns as she runs through everything in her head. "Oh," she says in realization.

Oh, indeed.

This is only just beginning.

—❈—

We follow Kakashi into Training Ground 15 about twenty minutes after we first gave chase.

Training Ground 15 is almost ridiculously literal in its name, in that it is a 200m square plot of hard, barren ground with a chain link fence marking its boundaries and several signs with the number 15 on them.

Unlike most other training grounds, there are no targets for range practice, no ponds or mini-swamps or trees to simulate different terrains, no nothing, just hard, flat, empty ground.

This is a place for people who want to be destructive. And this is where Kakashi has been leading us.

"Well, my cute, little genin," the jōnin says, finally coming to a stop in the middle of the field. "Who wants a bell?"

Before I can say anything, Naruto flashes through a series of handsigns and two perfect copies of himself appear beside him in twin puffs of smoke.

The clones charge.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Sakura asks angrily. "We need to—"

"I have a plan, Sakura," Naruto says, cutting the girl off.

We don't find out what Naruto's plan is, because before his clones make it to Kakashi, the jōnin moves so fast he blurs.

In the span of a heartbeat, Kakashi snaps one clone's neck and sinks a kunai in that of the other, before slashing it open.

If this was the story that clone would have popped, probably the moment Kakashi's kunai broke his skin. But this isn't tsshe story. Clones are people; perfect genetic and physiological copies of their caster. They don't pop away until dispelled, or apparently, killed.

And people don't die immediately when their throats are slit. Especially not superhuman people with Naruto's ridiculous stamina.

Blood geysers out of the gaping wound on the clone's neck, and he makes a fruitless attempt to stem the flow with his hands.

His eyes are wild, his pain clear.

He tries to speak, but all that comes out is a bloody gargle.

He sinks to his knees.

His eyes find Naruto, begging, pleading for the pain to stop.

Just like they did.

"Naruto," I say, a slight tremor coming through in my voice despite my best efforts, "dispell the clone."

The clone bursts into smoke, and in seconds, when it fades, it's like he never existed.

Naruto slumps to the ground.

"Naruto," Sakura says, crouching beside the pale, shivering boy.

Right, I realize, feeling like an idiot for forgetting, the memories.

"Why would you do that?" Sakura asks, staring at Kakashi in horror and a little fear.

"The biggest weakness of the Shadow Clone Jutsu isn't the chakra restrictions," Kakashi says calmly. "It's trauma.

"It's easy to ignore when it's quick and mostly painless, but dying always leaves a mark. Shadow clones are not meat puppets to be tossed into the meat grinder; they are you. Respect that fact every second of every day."

Kakashi holds up the little golden bell again.

"Now, you have thirty-eight minutes left to get this." He jingles the trinket. "Tick tock."