The world didn't make a sound when she moved.
Naori was a flicker—silent, sharp, and swift. Her sandals barely touched the earth as she launched forward, the long hem of her haori trailing behind like a wraith's whisper. She didn't scream. She didn't roar. She couldn't afford to. All the noise was inside.
Kakashi's eyes tracked her without hesitation. No surprise. No fear. Just... acceptance. He met her halfway.
Their first clash was sudden—no chakra flares, no jutsu. Just the hard, clean smack of wrist against wrist, the dull thunk of Naori's knee deflected by Kakashi's palm, and the scrape of his sandal twisting on stone as he stepped into her guard. He moved like water—measured and fluid.
She twisted sharply, slipping under his elbow, redirecting the force. Her hand darted up to strike his neck—but he blocked it with the flat of his forearm, gritting his teeth slightly at the sting of it.
His body was a wall. Controlled. Predictable in its perfection.
Hers was a blade—unpredictable, dangerous, and fraying at the edge.
Naori dropped low suddenly, trying to hook her leg behind his ankle and sweep. Kakashi leapt—not high, just enough to avoid it—and brought his knee down toward her exposed back.
She rolled away before it landed, shoulder slamming into stone, and came up again in a crouch.
'Not bad,' Kakashi thought, exhaling slowly through his nose. 'Her speed's gotten better. Cleaner. Less wasted motion. But—'
He moved before he finished the thought, sliding forward with a flicker of movement, foot kicking up a spray of petals. His strike came low, then high, then low again—a rhythm designed to trip, to disorient.
Naori absorbed the first hit to her thigh, let the second glance past her shoulder, and parried the third with her elbow, dancing just outside the arc of his arm. She wasn't trying to overpower him. She knew she couldn't. This was about redirection. Disruption. Balance.
But she could feel it already—the faint tremor in her left hand when she blocked. The way her depth perception faltered for a half-second when he feinted left and struck from the right.
'Focus.' She blinked hard. 'You can still do this.'
Her body surged forward, faster now, pushing him. Not reckless. Just persistent. She threw two sharp jabs toward his sternum, aimed at pressure points—clean, efficient, not designed to kill.
Kakashi tilted his body just enough for both to miss. His counterstrike was a palm heel to her chin—she ducked, felt the wind of it against her scalp, and retaliated with a quick upward elbow that scraped the edge of his flak jacket .
A glancing hit—but a hit.
Their eyes met for a second in the space between that motion.
Kakashi's eye narrowed—not in anger, but something closer to grief.
"You're holding back," she muttered.
Kakashi didn't answer.
Because she was right.
Naori launched herself again, this time with more ferocity. A kick aimed at his ribs, followed by a spinning feint that turned into a reverse punch when he moved to intercept. She connected with his shoulder—barely—but it was enough to make him step back.
'There's the opening.' Her foot hit stone, pivoted.
She drove her knee forward.
Kakashi caught it with both hands, feet skidding a little on the path.
YOU ARE READING
Uchiha Naruto: The Strongest
ActionUchiha Madara had one goal in his life: peace. He was unfortunately unable to accomplish his goal, due to the struggles of his best friend, the death of his younger brother, and his own humanity. But Madara didn't give up hope. He had a child, and h...
