Path of Hardships. (Naruto fanfic)

Old memories.

Chapter 20:

*Drip*

Water fell through the cracks in the ceiling and falling on a figure propped against a wall. The feeling of water jolted the person awake and releasing a groan. "My head" Chusei spoke softly, nursing his head after a moment he quickly scanned his surroundings. From the meager amount of light provided by the torches on the wall, stone and iron bars in front of him were the first thing he saw. Looking down, he noted the shackles attached to the wall keeping him in place. The chains were too thick and covered with chakra seals. "This gets better and better." Chusei sighed as he formed several plans to escape wherever he was. They put his thoughts on hold when the slamming of a door and footsteps echoed off the stone walls. Chusei mentally prepared himself for whoever the footsteps belong to. A few moments later a man stood in front of the cell, light from the torch obscuring his face. "Well, look who's awake," The man said smugly before lowering the torch showing his face. Chusei's eyes widened once the light moved away, "You remember me, that's good." He said with an enormous grin it was the officer they failed to capture."

"You were out for a few days, the others were a tad rough~." The man spoke in a sing-song tone as he leaned against the bars. "I'm here to offer you a deal, answer my questions and I'll see about improving your housing situation." He chuckled, shrugging off the glare Chusei was sending him. "I won't betray my friends!" He replied with no hesitation. "I have no doubts about that, but it will be fun to try~." He replied with an unnerving smile on his face. "Sadly, I lack the time for us to get acquainted, but no worries I shall return." The man said turning around and walking back down the corridor. 'I won't break Amane, Naruto wherever you two are I hope you're safe.' He thought before fatigue caught up to him and sending him to the land of dreams.

Flashback:

One could hear the laughter of a child before a small boy with brown hair no older than 5 ran down the road. Stopping at a medium-sized house and walking in, "Mom, I'm home." He cried, rushing to the living room. In it sat a fair-looking woman with long brown hair reaching past her shoulders. "There's my little water sprite. How was school?" She asked while ruffling his hair. Pouting he swatted the hand-making her laugh, "I had enjoyed it we talked about the different lands." The boy replied, earning a smile, "That's good, now Chusei go wash up and I'll get dinner started." She said ruffling his hair once more, "okay" He replied rushing off to his room. At dinner, Chusei told his mom about his adventures for the day and how school went. After helping wash the dishes, Chusei rushed back to his room to plan out what he wanted to do for the weekend. Taking a moment to look out the window, the shining stars mesmerized him. Soon his mom came up to tuck him in for the night and story of a hero who wandered the lands helping people. That night Chusei had dreams of wandering the land, helping people.

Next morning:

'Knock'

"Coming," Chusei's mom rang out as she walked down from upstairs. Opening the door, she was met with the sight of a young girl and boy. "Ah, Kurumi, Kai, how are you two doing this morning." She smiled at the two children. "We're doing good, miss Yua, is Chusei free?" Kai asked with an enormous grin. "Yes, one moment, Chusei your friends are here." She yelled up the stairs before he rushed down to greet them. "Hey, guys let's go," Chusei said attempting to rush out the door before a hand stopped him. "Now now my water sprite slow down. First, I'm going to be gone till noon so hang out at Kurumi and Kai's okay. And second, be careful~." Yua spoke with a singsong tone as she ruffled his hair, teasing him. "I'll be good, bye mom." He replied, rushing off with Ku and Kai behind him. After they left Yua sighed looking off to the left towards a picture frame by the door. In it was a young Yua and a man with brown hair and a large smile. "You would be so proud of Chusei if you were still here, dear." She said kissing the picture before locking up and leaving.

Marketplace:

The trio wadded through the crowd until they arrived at a large tent. Inside were various trinkets from around the world. "Staying out of trouble you three?" A large man with dark skin and hazel eyes chuckled. "Yes, Mr zar." the trio groaned to his amusement. "That's good, but I know you're not here to listen to me prattle. Yatzu, you have visitors!" He rang and soon a tall, muscular man with short brown hair came from the back. "Oh, what are you three doing here?" He asked to receive small glares. "You promised to train us!" Kurumi pouted, crossing her arms and earning a chuckle from Zar and Yatzu. "I guess I did." He mused, making the trio face plant and laughing at the glares they sent his way. "Okay, okay I'll go." He surrendered, making the three grin and high-five. "That's if you need nothing more, Zar?" He asked, turning to his boss who waved his hand. "You more than deserve a break, have fun you three~" He sang before walking into the back.

5 minutes later: clearing near town:

"Alright, first, let's do some stretches and a quick jog." He said putting his pack by a tree. "Can't we just get to the cool Justus stuff?" Kai groaned, not wanting to run. "Nope, ninja need to be fit and healthy, so exercise is a must. Now chop chop" Yatz replied with a chuckle. They did various stretches and did a quick run around the clearing twice before stopping to catch their breaths. "Alright now with that done next up is stances. A proper stance is key to unleashing your ninjitsu. Most people overlook this minor fact, certain Justus have a kickback to them and you want to avoid falling over makes you an easy target." He spoke with a teacherly tone and recited from memory. "Now the stances differ for each element type unless their neutral Jutsu such as the substitute Jutsu." The three kids nodded, prompting him to continue.

"Now I will teach you the common stance the nin in Kiri use." He said placing one foot in front of the other. One arm extended with the other pulled in a fist. "This is used to flow through attacks and counter easily. Now you try and don't be sad if you fail. It will take a few attempts to get it right." Yatz informed the trio before allowing them to try, Ku's arms were in the wrong position. Kai's legs were to spread apart allowing him to be knocked over easily and Chusei was too stiff in his stance messing up his balance. "You all did good for your first attempt, but you will have to work hard. If you wish to master it and perfect the stance." He said with a grin. "Now let's do it again." He said with a low chuckle when they groaned. They continued until the sun was about to set. "Alright, let's stop here for now. Remember what I've told you and we'll meet up in a week.

Chusei said his goodbye before rushing home to make it home before dark. He arrived right as his mom had finished making dinner. She cooked his favorite meatloaf with fried rice and eggs. She laughed at his pout when he explained how he and the others couldn't land a hit on Yatz in a game of tag as one exercise. Later, as he lay in his bed looking out at the stars, he wondered what the future would bring him.

Chapter end.

Been a while since I've posted and it's short but better than nothing. Been have some block and everything else has made it a fun year. So hope you all stay safe Chao!