AN :
if we get to 150 power stones in the next 24h I will release another chapter.
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At the Training Field
"How nice of you two to show up." Orochimaru disapprovingly says. "Do not keep me waiting again or the consequences will be sever."
"Yes Orochimaru-sama." Tayuya bows her head in submission.
"Blame her." I throw her to the wolves. "She only told me to come here three minutes ago."
Orochimaru stares down his nose at the still bowing Tayuya. "We will discuss your actions later, you've wasted enough of my time." Orochimaru turns to me now. "Come Alvarcus, we will start your training now." I follow Orochimaru to the far end of the large room. Tayuya goes and stands by the door.
"So, what are we doing?" I ask him. I really hope he isn't going to test me himself like he said he might earlier. There is no way I can possibly stand up to him, not yet.
A kunai flies towards my head from Orochimaru. I reflexively redirect it back at him with my trusty chakra strings. He casually catches it.
"Today, we're working on your speed, situational awareness and reaction time." He throws the kunai back at me faster this time. I send it back again.
"I'm going to adjust the speed and quantity of thrown projectiles at you while you run around the field." We exchange the kunai once again, this time at a very high speed. I almost missed it with my chakra string.
"Your goal is to cross the field without being hit."
"Sounds simple enough. I've done things like this before." It isn't any different from back when Sasuke and Sakura threw obscene amounts of stones at me.
Thud
A kunai embeds itself into my left shoulder.
"Oh? I thought you said this was simple." Orochimaru taunts. "Better start running."
I yank the kunai out of my shoulder and throw it back at his smug face. The Jiongu stitches me closed. "I just got this shirt! You've put a hole in it already!"
Thud
A kunai is in my right leg this time. "Fine, ruin all my new clothes why don't you." I rip this kunai out and throw it back to him again. I take off across the room, if he wants to play, I'll play.
We spend hours in the training field. Not once did I make it across without a kunai hitting me. I can't help but feel like he's trying to make a point to me. Even if I run away, he is more than capable of killing me with something as basic as a kunai. If I was anyone else I would have passed out from pain and blood loss a long time ago.
"Enough." Orochimaru's voice echos in the large room. "We are done for today."
I launch out a chakra string to catch the kunai he just threw at me. I send it straight at his face with as much speed as I can muster. He tilts his head out of the way.
I smirk in victory. "I finally got you back." Sure enough, some of Orochimaru's long hair is slowly floating down to the ground.
"So you did. How many times did I get you?" Orochimaru asks with a serious face. "I counted well over two hundred."
"One to two hundred is better than zero to two hundred." I inform him. "Has Sasuke gotten a hit in on you yet?" I eagerly ask.
"No." Orochimaru says with pride. "You are first. He has come very close, but not connected." He sounds genuinely happy that I'm the first one to hit him. "Go clean up and get new clothes. Those are barely better than rags now."
As he walks out of the field I call after him, "I blame you for that! They were perfectly fine before training!" He doesn't respond, he keeps on walking.
Tayuya approaches me. "One of these days he's going to snap and seriously hurt you for talking to him like that." She sounds deadly serious.
"Nah, if he didn't like it he would have stopped me by now." I walk out of the training field with Tayuya following me. We head towards my room, I do need to get new clothes. The ones I am wearing are very drafty from all the holes. "I think he likes the change, everyone here treats him formally all the time. I break up the monotony, add some color to this dreary place. Sure, I might treat him in a more relaxed manner, but as long as I respect him I should keep my head."
Tayuya laughs, "I can't deny that. Ever since you and the Uchiha showed up things have been more lively."
"Was it really that bad?" I have always wondered what Sound is like and Tayuya has been a loyal kunoichi for years.
"The best form of entertainment we had was to bet on who survived when people fought over things." She blandly says. "It was a tie between that or reading. Exciting, isn't it?"
I look at her in pity. "That sounds dreadful. So things really are earned by strength here?"
"Yep. Take the mission board for example. All of the missions we get are posted there, it is a first come first serve. Say someone gets a good mission, one that someone else has been waiting to take. They'll fight to see who gets it. Winner goes and the loser has to find another mission. Eventually everyone will know who to not attack and who is easy pickings. Us Sound Four have the pick of any mission we want, no one opposes us anymore."
"Interesting. That does sound like it could be fun."
We arrive at my room and I walk inside. Tayuya follows me and plops down on my bed.
"Uh... Tayuya? Why are you here?" I nervously ask her. She can't possibly be this out of touch with social etiquette.
"Because I'm your escort for the day, duh. What are you an idiot?" She huffs in annoyance.
"No, I understand that." I assure her. "I meant why are you here in my room when I need to change clothes. I'm not giving you a free show."
Her face flushes red in embarrassment. She leaps off the bed and runs out the room and slams the door shut behind her without saying anything.
"Well that was odd." I mumble to myself. I rummage around in my closet and dresser and pull out a new set of clothes. I'm sticking with the green top and back bottom theme today, I grabbed an exact match of what I was wearing earlier. I discard the ruined set in a corner, never to be used again.
I open my door and poke my head out. "All done." She noticeably stiffens at my words. She's still red in the cheeks. "So... now what?"
"I don't know." Tayuya says without looking at me.
I sigh, she's closing herself off due to her embarrassment. "How about we go to that lounge we were at yesterday. You know, the one where you rudely woke me up from a wonderful nap."
"Good times. I only wish I had my water bucket then." She walks down the hall. I follow after her.
"Next time you do that, I'm siccing Shirokumo on you." I threaten her with summons as we make our way to the lounge.
"You mean Mister Spider?" I nod. "He and I still need to talk business. I want those clothes." She has a far away look in her eyes. "Mmmm..."
"I'm just going to ignore whatever the hell that was." We've arrived at the lounge. We are the only two here, everyone else must be doing something.
I take a running leap onto a bed. "Oh how I have missed you. You are way better than the one in my room!"
Tayuya plops herself down in a chair with a scroll to read. "You have an obsession with beds."
"And you have an obsession with clothes." I accuse her. I swear she was salivating at the prospect of getting clothes not even five minutes ago.
We fall into a companionable silence. I drift off to sleep to the pleasant sound of Tayuya humming.
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If you enjoy the story, could you please throw some power stones, to climb the ranking.
I need your support and it would mean the world to me.
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if you want to read ahead of the public release you can join my p atreon :
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