18 Chapter 18

"Uhm…who're you?" Ino asked as she and Sakura made their way to the training ground to meet up with Naruto, as well as finding Hinata along the way.

Hinata out of the three didn't seem surprised by the newcomer's presence, in fact, she seemed excited.

The blond-haired, whisker-marked, blindfolded person turned to them, surprised at her question. Then he realised something that made him facepalm and chuckle to himself.

"Ah, apologies, Ino," He replied in an oddly familiar voice, "My situation's been sorted out so I didn't need to put on a henge anymore. It's nice to introduce myself to you with my real face this time. Hagoromo Naruto, at your service, dattebayo!"

"Eh?!" Ino yelped before rushing towards him. She went right up to him to have a proper look at his face. "You–you're blind? I'm–I'm so sorry I didn't notice! What happened to you?"

Naruto stepped back and waved his hands frantically, "I'm very much not blind, I can see perfectly fine. It's just a bloodline condition that I have that makes my eyes incredibly sensitive to sunlight."

It was once again a story that Naruto had discussed with his mother beforehand but Hinata was the only one there who knew the real reason why her blond mentor had blindfolded his eyes.

She helped test out that blindfold with Lady Kushina after all.

Ino circled around him as if she was examining a prized cow. "Umu, you look exactly like your henge. Even more handsome now. in fact, considering your exotic features. I approve."

"As if he needs your approval, Ino-pig!" Sakura spoke up. She was still unsure as to how to be around Naruto, considering that she only met him yesterday but he seemed to be a very kind and warm person during their lesson on tree-walking yesterday. A person who she hoped to spend more time getting to know.

Sakura happened to notice the headband around Naruto's neck. "Wait, that's a headband. Are you an advanced genin or something? Considering the skills you showed yesterday."

Naruto blushed a bit before he chuckled. "Mah~ I just so happen to be promoted to chuunin yesterday."

All three went silent at that.

"Really?!" Ino screeched in joy after a moment, "I didn't comment on it because I'd already expected you to be genin-level, but a chuunin at your age? That's amazing!"

"Congratulations, Naruto-kun!" Hinata praised.

Sakura only smiled at him and nodded.

Naruto's blush deepened but he beamed. "I'm not used to getting compliments but thanks! I'll try to prove my worth to Konoha from here on out. Now, let's get on with our training."

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Sakura was unsure of Naruto's training plan. He'd not warned her that she was going to walk on water of all things. Had she known, she'd have picked out a swimsuit and spared her clothes from getting soaked.

"Are you sure about this?" Sakura asked, staring at the pond.

"Don't be nervous," Naruto said, "watch."

With the ease of a skilled practitioner of the jutsu, Naruto casually set his feet upon the water and walked above it like it was nothing. For some odd reason, It was surreal for Sakura to watch as a person stands above something that strictly wasn't solid. It was just like the day before when Naruto walked horizontally on trees like gravity was but a foreign concept.

She supposed, to regular civilians, that even she was something of an abnormality just by being able to perform the two basic academy jutsu she knew.

Sakura placed her hand on the water surface and sure enough, it sank like every other time she'd done so. It was most definitely liquid and moving, yet as she gazed back at her mentor, he seemed so perfectly balanced and still.

She gulped, trying to remember the concepts of the jutsu she'd learnt yesterday. Channel your chakra to your feet, control its intensity just enough to bind it to the surface of which your feet are touching. It would allow her to stand on water and not break the surface tension.

She took a breath, then a step.

To her surprise, she stayed upright for a second.

Then, she sank into the water immediately.

"Gah!" She said as she popped back out of the surface. "C-cold!"

Naruto was there and like a baby, lifted her up by her armpits out of the water.

She'd never felt more embarrassed in her entire life.

Yet, Naruto didn't make fun of her or belittle her or tell her that she was nothing. He just laughed warmly.

"Trust me, it took me a while to get the hang of it," Naruto said, "I can't believe you were able to even stay upright for a second on your first try! That's amazing! Remember, unlike tree walking, you have to adjust your chakra output constantly to match the movement of the water."

Sakura felt her cheeks grow warm. She wasn't used to being complimented and just the words he gave her was enough to make her want to try again.

To Sakura's surprise, she didn't feel cold anymore. It wasn't that she was miraculously dry or that the water temperature wasn't as bad as she thought, but it was because she was being held by what felt like a human radiator. Naruto was warm, comfortably so.

"Stand on my feet, Sakura-chan," He said gently. Naruto had forgotten to stop addressing her with a 'chan' suffix and it came so naturally to him that he didn't notice.

"E-eh?" Sakura ungracefully replied, blushing but not minding the familiarity at all. She'd been so distracted by the sensation of his…presence that she lost herself for a moment. "Did you just tell me to stand on you?"

Naruto chuckled. "My feet, You can stand on my feet and use me as a ledge for you to practise. The only reason why I let you fall in the first place was because I wanted you to know that failing in the exercise is completely harmless…considering that you know how to swim."

Sakura gulped but heeded to his instruction, gently placing just her tippy toes on his, just to check that he was alright with her weight. When he didn't react, she slowly placed more of her weight on him.

Naruto shook his head at her tentativeness. "You're as light as a feather, Sakura-chan don't worry about hurting me."

Sakura blushed at the unintentional praise on her weight. She used to care a lot about her diet and still did–enough to keep her figure but not as much as she did when she was obsessing over Sasuke. Now…now she didn't know what to feel about the subject anymore…well, she didn't know how to feel about anything in her life, really. She'd lost her way somewhere in the past few years…

…but there was someone who was incredibly kind in front of her, telling her that she wasn't useless and teaching her how to walk on water. A person who encouraged her and didn't make her feel terrible for once. A person who was guiding her to walk on the right track again.

She let her full weight rest upon the top of his shoes. It was then that Sakura realised that by doing so, she'd placed herself within very close proximity to her blond-haired mentor, and it almost made her wish that she could go back to being held onto like a baby.

This close to him, it was that warmth again that filled her, even more intense this time but not scorchingly so. He felt like the loving comfort of being wrapped in multiple blankets in winter. Then there was his steady presence, his solid frame, like a tree whose roots dug so deep that no force on earth could possibly move it.

"There we go," He said. His voice, so close to her ear, made her hair stand on end and sent chills down her spine.

She wanted to jump in the water again, if but to hide herself from the gaze of the person she was very much not starting to really like. She'd only met him yesterday!

"Alright," Naruto said, "Take a step back and do as you did before."

Sakura gave a shaky nod and did just that. Her foot hit something solid–or what felt solid but was actually not. It was like she was stepping on the soft mattress of her bed.

"Incredible," Naruto murmured, having no idea how much the compliment meant to her. "You're a natural."

With that confidence instilled in her, Sakura put all of her weight down on that one foot.

She fell.

…or she thought she did.

Before gravity could put her back under the surface, she felt an arm wrap around her waist, holding her in place.

Naruto chuckled. "Easy, Sakura-chan, you can take your time, there's no need to rush just to prove yourself. I'm not going anywhere."

Sakura's heart skipped a beat at those last four words. She was sure her face was being sauteed at that instant. "S-s-s-sorry."

Naruto raised his eyebrows in concern. "You're awfully red, is the sun getting to you?"

Sakura shook her head frantically. "N-no, it's just, I'm nervous. That's all."

Naruto smiled. "There's nothing to be nervous about. You'll get this, I know you will."

Sakura was honestly holding her composure much better than she thought she would…because she felt like she was about to cry at those words. "Th–thank you."

She stepped back again, on shaky legs.

She fell.

She was caught.

"Better," He said, and she was instilled with courage once more. "Again. Get familiar with the flow of the water and the ripples on its surface."

She stepped back again.

She stood for 5 seconds.

She fell.

She was caught.

Naruto only gave her a smile this time yet it made her feel like she could go to war against Iwa by herself and come out on top.

She stepped back again.

And again.

And again.

Each time the sensation of his arms grabbing her did not make her feel any less surprised, any less warm, any less eager to do it all over again just so she could feel the way his solid muscular arms felt around her waist.

She was being dramatic.

…was she?

She tried again.

To her shock and elation, she was able to stay on the water for an entire ten seconds!

"I can't believe I'm–" before she could finish, she felt woozy, like all the energy was sucked out of her.

Naruto grabbed her one final time before lifting her into a princess carry. Then he leaped back towards the bank of the pond and then to the base of a tree.

"You're suffering from chakra exhaustion," Naruto said apologetically, "I should have realised sooner. Sorry about that."

Sakura let out a self deprecating smile. "It's fine. You're surprised at how bad my chakra capacity is, aren't you?"

Naruto shook his head at her. "You make it sound like it's something we can't fix."

Sakura sighed. "I know. I've read about it from the textbooks I scoured…but it all said that it'll take a very long time to build up, to even reach the level that others were born with and since I have abnormally small chakra capacity, it just feels so…hopeless."

Naruto smiled sympathetically. "That's not the way to think of it, Sakura-chan. This may be a surprise to you, but you actually have a gift."

Sakura's eyes widened at this.

Naruto continued. "By having your chakra capacity start as low as yours, your control of it becomes prodigiously extreme, and when your capacity rises as you grow, your fine control of it will remain the same. You will be able to literally do more with less. So what if you don't become a chakra monster when one day you'll have enough skill over its intricacies to rival even that of Senju Tsunade. By then, no one will be able to stop you."

Sakura lips trembled and before she could help it, she felt tears running down her eyes. "Wh-why do you believe so much in me?"

Naruto smiled. "Because I see you for who you really are, and believe in what you can be."

Sakura…sakura really needed to hear those words. She really needed a person in her corner to tell her to believe in herself. "Th–thank you."

Naruto grinned, and as if catching onto a stray thought, he stared at his palm. He…looked like he was experimenting with something as he stuck out his tongue in concentration. He looked…cute, even with the blindfold on to hide a part of his expression.

Then, to both of their astonishment, a black rod of metal grew from his palm before stopping and detaching itself after it reached about the length between one's elbow and the tip of their fingers.

They both blinked at it, wide-eyed.

"What did you just do?" Sakura asked.

Naruto shrugged. "Something that I thought could work…but didn't expect it to…Here, hold to it."

Sakura looked at it sceptically. "...that just came out of your arm…"

Naruto rolled his eyes and with a shunshin, he disappeared and reappeared a moment later. "There, I cleaned it up at the lake. There wasn't anything on it in the first place…"

Sakura smiled sheepishly and did as she was told. She trusts her…sensei. A bit too much perhaps after only knowing him for two days.

The black metal felt cool in her palms as she gripped it. Then, feeling something rush into her, she gasped. It was chakra, she realised, pure and unadulterated, the source of which she suspected came from the person that was holding the other end of the rod. To compare the amount of chakra she had to his was like comparing a drop of water to the ocean.

…Just who exactly was the person in front of her? What right did he have to be this strong and still care about someone like her?

Naruto looked surprised before he gently gestured for her to release the rod. "Huh, that worked better than I thought it would. Are you feeling better now?"

Sakura shakily nodded. "L-like I woke up this morning. Refreshed."

He smirked at her and she wanted to…to…to do something to it. That smirk was no good. Too dangerous.

"Then are you ready to go again?" He asked.

She gave him her most grateful smile, trying to convey just how much this meant to her. "Hai."

…It seemed that he didn't notice her appreciation.

Sakura realised something.

"Wait, I should have done this before but let me take my top off. That way, the only thing that'll get wet again is my sports bra," she said. She took off her thin but modest hoodie, and she didn't miss the way Naruto's eyes flickered from her exposed midsection and travelled all the way up to her bra-covered bosom before quickly turning away with a blush on his ears.

That alone made her feel like she was the queen of this world. She admittedly didn't think too much of herself. Her boobs were on the small side and her forehead was a bit…large as Ino always liked to remind her, but making Naruto blush like this…made her think that perhaps she wasn't too terrible–looking after all.

"I'm ready," She said resolutely.

"O-oh, of course," Naruto complied, scratching the back of his head.

Ah…did he become flustered because of her?

She stepped towards him suddenly, holding her hands behind her and puffing out her small assets, testing to see how he'd react.

She loved the fact that he flinched and looked away.

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Ino was struggling with the tree walking exercise.

Really struggling. Unlike Sakura, who had a knack for chakra control exercise, Ino's chakra capacity was firmly average. She didn't have too much where she'd have trouble with chakra control, nor did she have too little where control came easy to her.

And so she went, sprinting up the tree, relying on the soles of her feet to keep her from falling.

She failed on the fourth step.

Naruto caught her.

She was distraught between learning how to do this quickly so she could impress him or whether she just wanted to keep failing so that he could keep on catching her like this. She really liked the way his arms felt and how gentle he was with her. It made her feel like a princess.

"Nice try," Naruto said, "Though take your time. You're putting too much chakra into the soles of your feet."

"Hai, Naruto-sensei," Ino said. Although she meant it as a tease, she saw the way his eyes widened at that.

He laughed. "S-sensei?! Hah I'd be a terrible sensei. I'm barely responsible enough to keep myself away from trouble."

Ino tilted her head at him. "You're doing just fine to me…"

He fell silent at that.

She shrugged and continued the tree-walking exercise once more.

Naruto thought back to the times when he trained…well anyone really. The only times he could think of were with Konohamaru. The little fella seemed to never leave him alone, having found an older brother figure in him that defied all societal views on him. He was the Hokage's grandson and Naruto was the monster child…yet the innocence of Konohamaru cared nothing for it.

Naruto made a note to check up on how the boy is doing in this world.

In the meantime…

He caught Ino once more.

"Almost had it!" She said, shaking her fist at the tree.

Naruto chuckled. "Keep going, Ino, You'll get it in no time."

In front of such enthusiasm, Ino couldn't help but give it her all.

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Hinata struggled to land a hit on Naruto.

"Don't fall back on your teachings, be flexible, be comfortable and confident in your own style," Naruto said. "Don't let your family's scorn rule you."

Her strike became more fluid, her body moving with more grace, and her will to be better fueled her to no end.

"Good!" Naruto praised as he dodged an unexpected strike aimed at his midsection. "You're getting faster."

Hinata jumped back and took a slow breath. As Naruto instructed, she became one with it, and let it guide her actions and reactions. She blitzed in, reigning blow after blow, each getting closer and closer to hitting him. She was so close! So. Close!

Her feet were swept out from beneath her.

She stumbled and turned it into an awkward roll to stop her momentum.

Naruto smirked. "It's good you're gaining confidence in yourself. You're improving, Hinata-chan, but that doesn't mean I suddenly became an easy target, dattebayo."

Seeing how untouchable he was right then, Hinata couldn't help but ask the question that was on her mind.

"Naruto-kun, did you beat Neji?" She blurted out.

Naruto only blinked, but after ingesting her words, he nodded. "I did."

She believed him.

Naruto was just…too fast, too strong, too experienced in fighting to compare. He was a person that had been in real life and death battles, she could tell. Hinata saw it within his punches, within his kicks, within his calmness when dismantling her. It was also in his eyes.

There could be no mistake in knowing the difference between a genin, even one as prodigious as her cousin and shinobi like Naruto.

"Oi! Training's not over yet!"

He struck and immediately Hinata was on the defensive. They exchanged blows for a few seconds before Naruto's kick landed on her chin and sent her flying, making her bite her tongue in the process.

"Shit!" Naruto shouted, wincing, he was at her side in an instant and began healing her with his mystic palm. "Sorry about that, Hinata-chan, I kicked a bit harder than I thought I would."

Her pain subsided and she shook her head. Even back at home, beaten up and exhausted, at a point where she could no longer stand, she was offered no sympathy for being weak, for being different.

On the other hand, here she was, looking into the concern shown in Naruto's black ringed and purple eyes. She'd always want to get back up to this. She'd always want to fight for his praise, his encouragement, his belief in her.

"I can go again," She said. "I'll always stand back up. L-like you said, right?"

At that moment, Naruto had a flashback to a 13-year-old Hinata back in the chuunin exams facing her cousin. He was reminded of how much courage she showed, how much bravery.

He smiled. "You always continue to surprise me, Hinata-chan. Now, are you ready for more?"

He took a stance.

She smiled.

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