Space to Breathe - [ Sakura Haruno ]

CHAPTER 38

"Again," Nanako commanded as Nuhi did as he was told, swinging the kunai down at the wooden stup yet again.

It had been a few weeks since Sakura had rescued the boy, and during that time Nanako had completely taken over the younger boy's care.

He was a ten year old, as Sakura guessed, and a particularly impressive one at that. Despite his scrawny frame, he had significantly greater stamina than others, and he was smart too.

Nanako took a liking to him when she caught him trying to practice with a shuriken Kiba had left lying around. She decided having more hands capable of holding their own in a fight could only be beneficial, and so with Sakura's blessing took to training him.

Sakura found it strange how everyone asked her permission before any significant change to their routine, but shrugged it off by reminding herself they weren't safe, they were treating life in their camp like a mission.

Although, Sakura wasn't sure she'd ever needed to construct a building on a mission.

"I mean, if we're staying here long term we may as well build something permanent," Masato had said with a shrug. "I could use an actual building to store excess materials, making storage seals is draining on my reserves."

"And somewhere to treat people," he went on. "It's unhygienic healing you all outside. I'm surprised nobody's gotten infected with all the training you've been doing."

Sakura chuckled at that and agreed, which landed her in her predicament.

"I guess if I just use Earth Release, and compact the mud really close, I should be able to make bricks?" She shrugged, before going around the foundation again.

A slab of stone brought forth with an Earth Release jutsu, four pillars of wood, carved from trees Masato had cut down, stood at each corner, with supporting pieces ensuring their stability.

"I don't really know a jutsu that makes perfectly shaped bricks of earth," she sighed. "I could probably do it with water, but..."

Then she realised, she could just change her water bricks into mud bricks using Earth Release: Metamorphosis.

"I could probably combine Water Release: Starch Syrup Capturing Field with Earth Release chakra to make something close to mortar, too."

So, she got to work.

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S

akura huffed out a heavy breath of air as she slumped to the ground. She was improving with her Metamorphosis at an impressive rate, but it drained her tremendously after building only the simple structure.

She'd yet to even add a roof to the rectangular building, but decided that using Earth style may cause problems.

She didn't know how much weight her bricks, or even the makeshift mortar, could take. She felt it better to be safe than sorry.

As such she began collecting plants to use as thatching for the roof. She had no clue how she'd get them to dry out in a relatively short amount of time, though.

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Masato was a lifesaver. Instead of having to wait forever for the plants to dry out, he simply drew up a seal that soaked moisture from them.

Sakura set to work then, layering the thatch over sticks and whatever else she thought smart. She had no clue what she was doing, but by the end of looked almost okay.