1 Village hidden in the grass 1

(Kaz Taberu)

A three-year-old boy sat on the ground beneath a massive leafy green tree in the cool shade, looking as though he was simply watching the wide open fields of the village, but that wasn't quite true. For as long as he could remember, Kaz could see a small gray diamond icon in the top right corner of his field of view, but it didn't seem to do anything.

Despite telling his mother several times that he could see something in the air around him, she would simply laugh and wave him away as though he were joking. Like he did most days, Kaz swiped at the air and glared at the grayed out icon.

A few people thought he was crazy, but this wasn't just a figment of his imagination. The symbol was unlike anything he had ever seen before, and despite his attempts to try and get away from it, it was always in the same spot in his field of view. When he closed his eyes, he could make it disappear, but that was only if he wanted it too.

He could imagine it in that same spot when his eyes were closed, and sure enough, it would appear as though it never left, but it didn't do anything. Eventually growing bored, he pushed the gray icon from his mind. His eyes were drawn to a thin woman with bright blue hair working in the fields, tilling the earth and tossing ripe tubers into a weaved basket.

Seeing his mother, Kaz couldn't help the smile that adorned his face. No matter what people said about him, she was always there for him, telling them that he just had a wild imagination, and that if he said he was seeing something, to not let anyone tell him otherwise.

Like her, he too had a unique head of blue hair, though his was quite a bit darker than hers, though they both had the same set of emerald green eyes. She always made a point to tell him that he got his eyes from her, and that with them he would never be alone, as they were a part of her she had given to him.

It always helped him sleep better at night knowing she was there to lookout for him, though it was still a bit weird when he thought about it, but he wasn't about to question his mother. As he watched her work, he noticed how she suddenly looked up to her right side, looking off into the forest.

Following her gaze and looking off in the distance, next to the mountain overlooking the small town, a plume of smoke billowed into the air, followed by a distinct, muffled explosion. As he watched the smoke rise ever higher, a loud explosion sounded out in its direction, breaking the noonday silence, only this time it was much closer, and the explosion much louder.

"RUN, KAZ!!" He heard his mother shout, bringing his attention back to her, and it was only then he saw the horror on her face. Figures shot from the trees, punctuated by high-pitched rings of metal on metal.

The air sparked, as kunai clashed in the air deflecting all over the field. His mother rushed across the field, spilling the gathered vegetables to the dirt in her rush. Kaz had no idea what was going on, but he was too scared to run back towards the village.

The best he could do in his situation was run behind the tree for cover, then look towards where all the noises were coming from to see what was going on. From his vantage point, Kaz watched something small fly through the air and stick in the soft dirt a few feet in front of his mother.

It was a knife that had a small red paper dangling from the pommel that was burning. In a flash and a deafening boom, she disappeared. Mud, grass, and rocks flew through the air around him, with little bits of something else, but he didn't know what they were.

Thankfully, the trunk of the tree shielded him from most everything, as he was left completely unharmed. It wasn't until the debris from the explosion had all settled that Kaz dared look back to the field where his mother should have been. Only when he looked, there was just a small crater.

He couldn't see inside the hole from his position, but he was sure his mother must be inside of it. Just when he was going to run to where he thought she was, a group of five figures appeared in the wide open field.

From their attire and headbands, it was obvious that they were ninja, but the symbol was unlike the ones from the village, and he had heard the grown-ups tell stories about ninjas that weren't from the Land of Fire.

He still didn't know what village they were from, but with the explosions and everything going on, even he realized that they weren't here for a friendly visit. Despite not knowing the village name, Kaz engraved the symbols in his mind so he could tell the village ninja's about them later.

He must have not been hiding very well, as it only took a few seconds for them to notice him hiding by the tree. With weapons drawn, the five figures approached Kaz. When they got to the crater in the ground, they stopped and looked inside of it, then looked back to him.

One of them reached down to the side of the hole, and tossed something out towards him. Looking at what it was, Kaz's eyes went wide as tears poured freely, as though a dam had burst. She was missing the left side of her torso, and her clothes were ripped and torn, but it was his mother.

Even if she was too mangled to recognize, the bits of unburned blue hair were a dead give-away. Continuing towards him, the ninja stepped over the unmoving corpse of his mother and approached the little village.

Still distraught and froze with fear, Kaz raised his tiny hands, noticing how they were shaking horribly. Just when they were only a few yards away from him, from a tree to his right, something bright yellow flashed.

One of the five figures collapsed, clutching at his chest and screaming in pain. Within the blink of an eye, a figure appeared next to the downed ninja grasping the hilt of the three-pronged Kunai and disappearing in a flash. The four remaining figures scattered, running around the empty field in all different directions.

One weaved several hand signs and a stream of water shot out towards the village, which was behind Kaz, putting him in the line of fire. Before it reached him, however, a wall of earth rose up and halted it in its tracks, sending a jolt of panic through Kaz.

Spinning around and running for cover behind a different tree, Kaz couldn't help the exhilaration that was pumping the blood in his body faster, the thought of dying clearing his head, and all other thoughts, including his mom, totally forgotten for the moment.

A figure dropped from the tree Kaz was hiding behind, startling him and making him fall back on his ass. He wore a green jacket with blue pants almost as blue as his mother's hair. Most distracting of all was the man's brilliant yellow hair, a trait that stood out more than his own unique colored hair. The figure turned, his impassive expression undaunted, his intelligent blue eyes eying Kaz cooly.

"It appears I made them angry." The man said casually. Kaz could only stare as the man glanced back at him and then at the four ninjas in the field. Two of the men weaved hand signs in unison while facing right at Kaz and the yellow-haired man.

"Watch and learn, kid." The yellow-haired man said, then tossed a three-pronged kunai in the ground by where Kaz was standing, then disappeared into thin air. Grabbing the oddly shaped kunai, Kaz held it up in front of him to defend himself, but it was too big for his little hands.

It was then he felt something, and with a quick glance he noticed the odd scripts written on the handle. Kaz only glanced at the weird script for a second before his attention was drawn back to the field, or more precisely, to the yellow-haired man who kept appearing all around the four ninjas.

" Water style, colliding waves!" Two ninjas on the right shouted, followed by a large burst of water shooting from their hands. "Lightning style, electromagnetic release!" The other two shouted, both of them touching the burst of water, causing arcs of lightning to start dancing and crackling through it.

Kaz gaped as the man with the yellow hair stood unfazed in front of him as the wave swept across the field, sparking ominously. Kaz squeezed his eyes shut in terror just before the deadly wave hit him.

There was a disturbing sucking sound, and he peeked through his eyelids. A black script scrawled across the ground, pulling the crackling wave into nothingness. The man with the yellow hair gestured and the same wave appeared from the kunai in the field, plowing into the four ninjas.

The ninja disappeared under the massive wave, screaming as it struck them. Two of the ninja lay unmoving, while the other two slowly rose to their feet, glaring at the yellow-haired man. Their clothing dripped, and they crackled with electricity, both grimacing in pain.

One moment, the yellow-haired man was standing across the field from them, and the next he simply disappeared. He reappeared behind the ninja on the right, a swirling sphere of chakra in one hand and a pronged kunai in the other.

Almost too fast to see, the man on the right was slammed into the ground, mud and rock flying up into the air as the sphere of chakra dug a hole in the field. "Mud wall!" The last ninja shouted, his voice drowned out by the deafening attack.

A wall of dirt rose, protecting the last ninja from the spray of rock, but a knife flew from the dust cloud, its angle just high enough to carry the knife over the wall. With perfect timing, the yellow-haired man appeared in the air, grasping the knife just as it passed over the last ninja's head.

With the flick of his wrist, the Kunai dug into the back of the last ninja's neck and the enemy ninja collapsed, blood gushing from the wound. Kaz stood by his tree, staring towards the battle with an almost blank stupid look on his face.

When everything settled, all that remained was five corpses of deceased ninja. 'Wait, where did the yellow-haired man go?!' Kaz shouted mentally, clutching the pronged Kunai as tightly as he could as he glanced around himself in a desperate search for the man.

His heart raced wildly in his chest as the silence became overwhelming. Kaz nearly pissed himself as the yellow-haired man simply appeared from thin air right in front of him. Startled, Kaz held up his kunai defensively to ward the man off.

"Woah there!! I am not going to hurt you." The yellow-haired man said, holding up both hands in a placating manner. "You're not?" Kaz asked, his voice shaking with fear and disbelief. "Nope, I'm here to save your little village." The strange man said, causing Kaz to lower the weapon.

"Who are you?" Kaz asked after a second of silence, wondering just who this guy was. It was understandable, as not just any ninja could take on five others and come out unscathed. "Oh, sorry I forgot to introduce myself." the man chuckled, scratching the back of his head, pulling Kaz's eyes to his headband, and it was only then he noticed the symbol for the Hidden Leaf Village, one he was quite familiar with, despite him not being from there.

"I am Minato Namikaze, a jonin from the Hidden Leaf Village."Minato said, smiling, his bright blue eyes flashing with amusement. "How did you do that? It was so cool!!" Kaz asked, his heart still racing from almost dying. "First, what's your name?" asked Minato, crouching down a few feet away from Kaz.

"Oh, I'm Kaz Taberu." Kaz answered, feeling extremely grateful to this man. "Nice to meet you, Kaz. Now, where are your parents?" Minato asked, drowning the excited air around Kaz in an ocean of reality.

"Mom is...?" Kaz said, looking towards where his mother lay in the dirt. Minato followed his gaze, causing him to lose his smile almost instantly. Ignoring his savior for the moment, Kaz walked over to the still form of his mother, falling to his knees next to her torn body.

Unsure what to do, Kaz rested a hand on her shoulder. Smoke, dust and the scent of burning meat filled his nose as Kaz shook his mother to wake her. "Mom? Mom?!" Kaz shouted, a feeling of dread coming across him when she didn't answer.

There was so much blood. His eyes blurred, and he felt a tightness in his chest. No matter what he did, she wouldn't get up. After what felt like an eternity, a heavy hand rested on his shoulder. Minato knelt beside him, his eyes looking to his mother, then back to him.

"I'm sorry Kaz, she's gone." He said softly, making Kaz drop his hands to his side. For a minute neither of them said anything, Kaz sniffling as he let the tears fall, Minato not saying anything as he sat with him. "Why did they do this?" Kaz finally asked, wiping his face with his dirt caked sleeve.

"They were criminals, looking to raid your village for money and test subjects." Minato said, his expression plain as he answered the question. "They wanted to kill us?" Kaz asked, his body shaking as he forced back tears. "Yes. They thought your village was weak, so they came to take slaves." Minato answered honestly, sounding as though it was just a common everyday occurrence.

"How do I stop them?" Kaz asked, finally looking away from his mother and up towards the towering form of Minato. "Train to be a ninja." Minato answered simply, sounding like it was as simple as could be.

"No! How do I become strong like you?" Kaz asked, almost shouting now. "They were ninjas, but you beat them!! I want to become strong...." Kaz added, clenching his fists as tears fell from his eyes. Minato paused in thought, his yellow hair falling around his face.

"I can't take you with me to teach you right now. But I will tell you what. If you learn all the sealing Jutsu you can, and come to the Leaf Village as a genin, I will train you." Minato said calmly, looking down at Kaz.

"Sealing jutsu?" Kaz asked, his confusion evident. "It is a requirement for learning my technique." Minato answered, not bothering to explain further. This was a little test of his own. If Kaz didn't learn anything about Sealing, he wouldn't teach him.

But if he did, it would show that he was at least serious about becoming strong. "So I can be as strong as you if I learn Sealing Jutsu?" Kaz asked again, taking on a determined look, despite the tears still falling from his eyes.

"That is only if you reach a high enough level in sealing. It will take more than just the basics." Minato answered, smiling down at Kaz, though it was clear he was trying to lighten the mood.

Minato explained that there were books in the library in most villages, but it took a special someone to be able to make sense of the weird script. After a brief rundown on what he would need to do, Minato rose to his feet and looked towards the village behind them, causing Kaz to do the same, and it was only then that Kaz noticed a group of village folk approaching.

One stood out, walking in the lead. He was tall, wearing a Hidden Grass headband to tie back his dark black hair. The man's gray pupil-less eyes stared unflinchingly at Minato.

"You must be Zosui?" Minato asked, though it was more of a statement than a question. "That's me." The man answered, standing eye to eye with Minato. "Are there any more Cloud ninja in the area?" Minato asked, his gaze searching the surrounding area.

'So they were Cloud ninja!' Kaz thought, making a note of that little bit of information as he listened to the two older ninjas. "Nope, that was all of them. I killed the other three on the north side of the village." said Zosui, his expression cold and emotionless.

Minato nodded. "Alright, that completes the mission. I need to go and report this back to Lord Hokage. Please take care of Kaz here. I would like to meet him again in the future when he becomes a great ninja." Minato said, giving Kaz a warm smile.

Kaz was about to smile back up to the strange man, but he blinked and then Minato was gone. Zosui placed his meaty hands on his hips and scowled down at Kaz. "Well, get up, boy!! Help clean up the village. We don't give free rides here!" Zosui ordered, his expression cold and unforgiving.

Kaz turned, wiping tears from his eyes. There were several others that were bleeding from gashes, and one guy was missing an arm. He stood up taller and glanced down at the weird looking kunai that was still in his hands. His mom was weak and so she died.

If he didn't want to die, he would need to become a ninja and get stronger. Giving one last look at the body of his mother, Kaz vowed that he would get strong enough that no one would ever be able to take someone he cared about away from him again, and if he got to kill some Cloud ninja along the way, that would be fine with him.

And who knows, maybe one day he could see Minato again if he ever learned Sealing, and then he too could be strong. With the three-pronged kunai in hand, Kaz got to work.

..................

(2 Years Later)

(MC: 5 years old)

A short boy with bright blue hair stood in front of a rushing river, focusing intently. The thundering waterfall and mist washed over him. Kaz and two others stood, watching silently as Zosui gestured, weaving the hand signs slowly. Tiger → Hare → Boar → Dog and Ram → Dog → Ox → Snake. Kaz followed, sweating profusely in the scorching summer sun.

"Earth style, mud wall!" Zosui shouted loudly, followed by a wall of earth rising from the ground, blocking Zosui from sight. Zosui lept up onto the wall and smiled down at them before saying, "This is a simple B-ranked jutsu." Pausing to look up at the sun, Zosui said, "Lunch is in three hours. If you don't have this mastered by then, you don't get food."

Kaz swallowed hard, then got to work, weaving the signs and focusing on his chakra. He focused for hours, doing his best to make the mud wall form, but despite all of his effort, three hours was just not enough time.

A stick struck a stone as Zosui paced behind him. Every tap of the stick sent a chill up his spine. "All three of you are pathetic!! At this rate, you won't be getting dinner either!" Zosui shouted, his ever present tone of anger promising that they would be in for punishment as well later on.

"Kaz, your chakra pool is too small! Jack, your signs are sloppy! Kent, focus on your chakra!" Zosui stated, pointing out their flaws, but that just confused Kaz. "How do I get more chakra?!" Kaz asked, a little exasperated that he was only learning about this now.

"TRAIN HARDER, MAGGOT!!" Zosui shouted, punching Kaz in the gut, causing him to double over. "You don't speak unless I give you permission!" Zosui added, leaving them where they were until they got the Jutsu down.

.............

{Five years later}

(MC: 10 years old)

His face burned in pain as Zosui struck him hard. Kaz staggered, too slow, to dodge the blow. His mentor/ torturer gestured and Kaz shook himself, his body still reeling from the thousand laps around the village. His chest throbbed as he took in deep, gasping breaths.

Kaz groaned and dropped the heavy tree trunk from his shoulders with a clatter of wood on dirt. Zosui leaned in close, his steely pupil-less eyes menacing. "Do you think enemy ninjas are going to stop and let you catch your breath? You're so weak!! If you don't pick up your physical training, then you will never get a larger chakra pool!!" Zosui stated angrily, and Kaz had to wonder if this guy was trying to kill him.

"But we did double the laps of the other genin!" Kaz stated, still gasping for air as he glanced at the two new recruits. Kaz felt bad for those two. Liran and Terra were nice, but they had given up on their laps and were laying in the shade. He was almost tempted to do the same, but the punishment for failing just wasn't worth it.

"Do you want to end up like Kent and Jack? They were weak, and so they died! Do you want to die?" Zosui asked, gesturing to the two new recruits with his chin. Kaz swallowed. He knew what happened to Zosui's elite trainees when they failed too often.

The man didn't seem to care about the other genin. He would pick someone that looked promising from the group and add them to the brutal training. Most couldn't handle the training. Poor Kent, Kaz remembered finding the boy dangling softly from a tree, having taken his own life.

He shuddered. That was after Zosui shot a fireball at Jack, and the boy was too slow to make a mud wall to save himself. Lost in thought, Kaz didn't notice Zosui getting closer. A fist connected with his gut, and he vomited in the dirt, ridding himself of his lunch.

"I will not have one of my new weapons being a pathetic weakling!" Zosui stated, always picking on him more than anyone else, though Kaz had no idea why. He had less Chakra than most people, but he was pretty good everywhere else.

"You're a monster!" Kaz stated defiantly, glaring at the asshole in front of him. Zosui turned to the side and weaved several signs. "Wind style, great breach!" Kaz swallowed and his hair whipped around him. A torrent of wind knocked over several trees, cutting them into large chunks. Wood crashed to the ground, scattering everywhere in a chaotic mess.

Zosui gestured to a section of trunk. It was as wide as his chest and as long as he was tall. "Once you carry that log around the village five hundred times, you can come back for dinner!" Zosui stated, leaving no room for argument as he turned to leave.

"Are you nuts?!! I'm already half dead, and that's without a tree on my back!!" Kaz shouted to the sadistic mans back, only to regret his words the instant Zosui turned around. "I'm going to count to ten. If you haven't started the exercise, you're going to end up like Jack!!" Zosui growled darkly, already beginning the hand signs.

'Fucking ASSHOLE!!' Kaz mentally shouted as he began rushing towards the downed log like his life depended on it. Which it most certainly did. Crouching down, legs still shaking and his breath ragged he hefted one end of the large log.

His hands hurt and his back ached, but Kaz began to drag his new, much larger weight purely out of spite. One day, he would get strong enough where Zosui feared him. Then he would make that asshole pay for all the torture he put him through.

As he walked past the two other new recruits, they slowly rose and moved towards the pile of logs. Kaz shook his head. They were too slow. He wondered how long these two would last for? That sadistic monster Zosui would do anything to forge more weapons for the village, even if it meant killing people in the process.

He steeled his resolve, forcing himself onward for hours; the log creating a furrow around the village as he walked lap after lap. Night had fallen, and the stars were shining brightly by the time he finally collapsed into a sweaty heap on his back.

He took in deep breaths, his skin steaming in the night air. His stomach groaned, and he took a long draft from his waterskin. He heard a light snap of a branch and a bush rustle. Straining his senses outwards and focusing intently, Kaz smiled, despite the hell he had just gone through.

In a bush ten feet away, he detected a familiar chakra signature. "Come out Karin, I know you're there." Kaz said tiredly, with a smile, as he sat up gingerly. A moment later, a seven-year-old stood from her hiding spot, her pout lit up by the light of the star filled sky.

"How did you find me? I was hiding my chakra." Karin asked sadly as she walked towards him, her disappointed pout making him smile. "I could sense your chakra." Kaz answered, smiling at her like he knew something she didn't.

"No fair!! How are you learning faster than me?!" she asked, sounding as though she was losing her mind, when it really wasn't that big of a deal. "You're doing fine. I just train more. Besides, you can sense chakra better than me. You're just lousy at hiding your chakra," Kaz answered reassuringly.

Karin's face went from proud to angry in moments. "Maybe I could tell mom you were mean to me so she stops training you!" She said, smiling like she held all the cards.

" What do you want this time?" Kaz asked, this being a running theme with her since he met her. It was a few years ago when she and her mother came into the village, and ever since then, they were basically slaves.

Worse than slaves actually, they were items, their sole purpose to keep the ninjas healed, regardless of the toll it took on them. Well, Karin's mom. The only ones who got treated even remotely as badly were Zosui's students, which mostly involved Kaz.

Had it not been for Karin's mom healing him after training, he most certainly would have died already. It was how he got to know them a bit better, and it was also how he became friends with Karin, despite her tendency to get him in trouble.

"Teach me to walk up trees." Karin said, bouncing excitedly from one foot to another. Sighing deeply, Kaz said, "After our training in seals tonight." It was about that time that his stomach began growling, and he couldn't help but curse Zosui for the millionth time tonight.

Hearing his hungry stomach and seeing his longing for food, Karin pulled out a small box from a bag on her side, and as soon as she opened it, Kaz was greeted with a delightful aroma.

"What do you have there? It smells amazing!" Kaz said, barely containing himself from running over and snatching it out of the little girl's hands. "You can only have some if you promise to teach me to walk up trees and on water." Karin stated with a cruel smile on her face, keeping the delicious food from his reach.

Kaz scowled at her, but his aching body and growling stomach forced him to nod in agreement. Karin approached him, holding out the box to him. His bloody hands shook, but he still took the box. "Why are your hands bleeding?" Karin asked, straightening her glasses to get a better look at them.

"It's nothing." Kaz said tiredly, wincing as he pulled a rice cake from the box with a shaking, bloody hand. "I'll go get my mother, she'll heal you." Karin said, smiling before running into the village. Kaz groaned before leaning back against a particularly uncomfortable tree.

Without the Uzumaki clan members, he could never keep up the brutal torture that Zosui called training. He ate, trying not to think of all the bruises and scrapes on his body.

"There you are Kaz, are you alright? Karin said you're hurt." Karins' mother said, kneeling on the ground beside him. She looked him over, furrowing her brow in worry. Her chin length red hair framed her gray eyes, and her gray cloak covered most of her wiry body.

"Here, bite my arm." She ordered, not giving him room to argue as she put part of her arm in his mouth. Without a say on the matter, Kaz did so, feeling her chakra suffusing his body. His aches faded, and his throbbing hands stopped their shaking. Kaz let out an audible sigh of relief, finally able to relax a little.

"Thank you... I don't know what I would do without your help." Kaz said once it was all over and he was back in somewhat working condition. Karins' mother smiled down at him fondly as she said, "It's my job. I heal people for the village." Kaz Scowled at that answer as he watched her cover up her scared arm.

Her own wounds were healing less and less, and she didn't even have a say on the matter. "Why? Why do you let them treat you like a thing? I know you're strong, so why put up with it?" Kaz asked, no longer being able to hold the question back as the anger washed over him.

Her face hardened, and she stood to her full height, towering over him. "Without the protection of the village, my daughter and I would die or be captured as slaves for our healing ability. I will do whatever it takes if it means my daughter is safe." She said, her voice harsh and determined.

He wanted to shout to her that she was already a slave, and they were already being used for their healing ability. It was only a matter of time before she couldn't bear the load, and Karin would be forced to do the same as her, but he knew better by now.

Nodding his head, he let the topic fall. He rose, his corded muscles feeling much better. He shook his head, his dark blue hair dangling over his eyes to the tip of his nose. "Let's go meet Karin at the river. She is getting us more food." The older woman said before departing into the trees.

Crickets chirped and frogs croaked as they walked along a slow-moving stream. The thundering falls could be heard in the distance, growing louder with every step.

"Your chakra pool is growing." The older woman stated after a good deal of silence, surprising Kaz. "Really?" He asked excitedly, this being one of the occasional times he ever got good news.

"Yes, all of your physical exercise is definitely giving you more chakra," the red-haired woman stated, though Kaz kind of doubted it was just the training that was boosting his reserves. After all, even with the hellish training he went through on a daily basis, he still had less chakra than others his age. If training was all it took, he should be at Kage level by now.

"Do you think I have enough chakra for the adamantine sealing chains?" Kaz asked, hoping to do something he had dreamed about ever since she told him stories of some of her clan members doing it in the past. It honestly sounded overpowered, but that was something he was all for.

She burst out laughing, having to stop for a second to catch her breath. When she finally calmed down, she said, "Well, we won't know until we try!" She sounded like she highly doubted it, but she was still trying to be optimistic.

The odds weren't in his favor, considering the amount of Chakra it took to use them. It was one of the reasons why only Uzumaki could use them. Kaz ignored her look of doubt and smiled. His chakra pool was growing larger, and that was an improvement.

A little further up the stream, Kaz sensed a familiar chakra ahead, once again feeling less like the figure was trying to hide. They entered the small clearing next to the rushing river, then Kaz looked in a specific direction before shouting, "Come out Karin, we can both sense you."

Her cheeks were nearly as bright red as her hair when Karin stepped from behind a tree, scowling at him. "Come over here dear, let's practice your sealing jutsu." Her mother said calmly, though Kaz could see she was trying to bite back her laughter.

"Okay!" Karin shouted, no longer mad as she skipped over to her mother, ready to learn something new. "Both of you take a seat. Focus on your torso, mold your chakra into a chain." The older Uzumaki said, having them focus on the Chakra inside them.

Kaz closed his eyes. He could feel his chakra flowing through his body and focused on pooling it at his chest. He was taken aback. His chakra pool really had gotten bigger. He felt for Karin's mother's chakra and then scowled.

She had over one hundred times larger of a chakra pool than he did, and Karin was at about half that. Kaz felt like a failure somehow. Despite being younger, Karin had fifty times more chakra than he did.

"Keep it up once you gather the chakra at your chest. Form them into the adamantine chains." She encouraged, keeping her focus on what they were doing. "I did it!" Karin shouted triumphantly, breaking Kaz out of his focus as he opened his eyes, only to gape in shock.

A single golden chain the width of his pinkie finger, and the length of her arm, sprouted from Karin's chest. "It looks like a wet noodle." Kaz said, smiling at the sight. "At least I made it work!!" Karin stated defensively, her face flushing in embarrassment.

"It's very good dear, now try to make it move." Her mother encouraged, quite proud of what her daughter managed to accomplish.

"How do I do that?" Karin asked, not sure how to move solid Chakra outside of her body. "I don't know. I could never create the Adamantine chains. You made it further than I ever did." Her mother answered honestly, letting her know that she had accomplished something amazing.

"We've been trying to do this sealing jutsu for almost a year, and you're telling me you can't even do it?!" Kaz asked, his mind blown at this new bit of information. It now made sense why she never gave a demonstration.

"Don't give me that. My father taught me how to do it. I just never had the talent to learn it." The older woman said defensively. Kaz scowled, frustrated at the words. He glanced at the small golden chain still unmoving as it dangled from Karin's chest, then turned away and refocused.

Well, it really was possible. He now had proof that Karin's mother wasn't playing a prank on him. He focused on his Chakra, envisioning the golden chain sprouting from his chest. The visualization was much easier now that he knew what it actually looked like.

His chakra pooled to his chest, and he pushed. Something happened. He opened his eyes and glanced at his chest. His head swam, and he fell backwards, his chakra nearly drained completely. A small golden chain poked from his chest. The chain was barely the length of his pointer finger, shimmering golden in the starlight.

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