With energetic steps, I approached Neji and my father. 'My little sister will be born in 8 months, hehe…I have to behave like a good older sister. I won't let anyone touch her. I will teach her everything. She is mine…'
"Why are you smiling like that?" Neji's voice snapped me out of my vivid imagination.
"I am very excited about my weapon," gazing at my father, I asked, "Let me see"
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Putting his hand in his pocket, he pulled out two scrolls. "Here it is, princess." With a puff of smoke, he opened the scroll, and the weapon I asked for was already in front of me.
Grabbing it, I felt the quality of the chakra metal. "It's good," I commented.
It was like a staff that could split into three parts. Within another scroll, I grabbed its head, which was like a short blade. With a locking sound, the staff turned into a Naginata.
Swinging the naginata into a semicircle, I cleaved the dummy neatly.
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"The sharpness is top-notch," my father commented, to which I nodded.
Pressing the button, which was just an inch above my grip, the entire naginata was dismantled. Its head fell to the ground, and the staff expanded slightly due to the springs used inside it, gaining a slightly arched shape like a bow.
Circling my finger on its edge, I tied a thick chakra string that was visible to the naked eye. Raising the bow slightly, I tied the chakra string to another edge of the bow, completing it.
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"Wow... it's amazing…" Neji exclaimed.
"Let's test its power." In the scroll, there were at least a hundred arrows neatly placed. Grabbing one of them, I set it on the string. A slightly blue chakra circled around the arrow, wind chakra that I manipulated skillfully. I pulled the string to its limit.
Activating my Byakugan, I aimed at a stone behind some trees.
*swish*
With a tang sound, I released the arrow. With my Byakugan, I could see the air rippling around it. The arrow pierced through at least five trees before embedding itself in the stone.
"How was it, Dad?" I asked, like a child seeking praise from his parents for doing something good.
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And I could see the pride in his eyes. He ruffled my hair with a smile, "You're very good, princess. Be sure to practice daily and improve every day," he said.
"Yes, Dad," I nodded happily. After shooting some more arrows and swinging the staff, I got the hang of it. My father went to the house, leaving Neji and me alone in the training ground.
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A smile started to appear on my face as I looked at my brother. He subconsciously took some steps back, "You're being creepy again, little sister."
"Be a good brother, stand there, and put this apple on your head. I am going to shoot it, and be careful. I don't want you to get injured...hehe," I chuckled while tossing an apple to him.
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"You're going to be the death of me someday," he grumbled and stood 100 meters away from me.
'I won't let you die, brother. I am training you; I don't want you to be defeated by some of Orochimaru's failed experiments or be killed by random arrows.'
"Now, hear me, brother. Expel the chakra from all of your tenketsu points and maintain it like a circular dome around you. When my arrow enters the dome, react accordingly with your Byakugan," I gave him instructions on what to do. He would have found out this technique many years later, but I am teaching him now and training his blind spot.[AN~like this]
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"And limit your Byakugan vision to 10 meters; it will increase your reaction time."
'You could only improve in the face of death,' I thought while setting an arrow.
"I will do as you say," he said.
*swish*
My arrow pierced the apple that was placed on his head, and I could see his heart beating faster.
Again, I shot the arrow, which passed an inch away from his cheek, and sweat drops appeared on his face. This was sure; I was not kidding.
"Are you really trying to kill me?"
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"The next one will be aimed at your heart, brother," I said and released another arrow.
The speed was relatively slower than the previous one, but it was fast enough for him to barely escape from it. We haven't learned the 'Rotation' yet, but this training will make it easier for him to learn.
With my Byakugan, I could see a very thin membrane of chakra around him. His vision was only around 10 meters, and when the arrow entered and pierced the chakra membrane, he was barely able to deflect the arrow using the Gentle Fist.
This thin membrane was to train his blind spot. Even if he could not see at that specific point, he could feel it and react accordingly.
"This is not funny anymore," he muttered.
"Did I say it would be funny?" I replied from a different position.
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*swish*
Another arrow was aimed at his leg, which he barely dodged by jumping to the side.
*swish*
Another arrow was shot at his back. Quickly turning around and raising his chakra-coated fingers, he slightly deflected it.
"Very good, brother," I praised him.
"Hehe… bring it on, sister," he said with nervousness and excitement at the same time. This was new, chilling, and thrilling for him. And every arrow could kill him.
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"You are starting the academy in the next ten days, so I want my brother to be the best," I said and launched another arrow, slightly increasing its speed.
He slightly jumped and caught the arrow with both of his hands that was aimed at his chest. He propelled back slightly due to the momentum of the arrow, tossed it to the side, and landed on the ground.
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"Of course, I will be the best in my class," he spoke back while maintaining vigilance.
Neji was strong, very strong, but the problem was that I was his opponent. He could thrash any Chunin-level ninja with ease. He himself didn't know how strong he was, and the kids in his class couldn't even hold a candle against him.
"That's my brother. Now dodge this…" I shot another arrow at him aimed for his stomach. With every arrow, my aim was becoming more precise and accurate.
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After shooting at least 75 arrows, this time I aimed the arrow at his blind spot. Even after the arrow appeared in his field of vision, he wasn't able to see it. But when It pierced the thin membrane, he slightly panicked.
After a slight shake of his head, the arrow appeared in his vision again. At the last moment, he moved his head narrowly, avoiding the arrow that could literally blow his mind.
With a slight shake of his head, the blind spot also moved. That was the reason he was able to dodge the arrow in time. If I really wanted to hit him, I had to move my arrows according to his blind spot, and that's the tricky part – the blind spot moves with every second as he shakes his head.
'And my archery is not at that level, but with time, we both will improve.'
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But then again, due to the thin chakra dome, he would be able to sense the arrow even if my arrow followed his blind spot. That's why Hyuga's have 360-degree vision.
*swish*
Another arrow breached his defenses, entering his blind spot. But this was dodged by him at the last moment.
I was not careless in shooting the arrows randomly; every time a chakra string was attached to it. If things went south, I could change the direction of the arrow.
This practice was really testing all my skills: my focus, chakra control, external vision, archery skills, reaction time, and presence of mind.
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If any of them faltered even slightly, my brother might die.
That's why I said, 'You will improve in the face of death.' And this was true for both of us.
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Setting another arrow to the string, I shot at his blind spot.
"Now I really believe that you want to kill me," he joked as he deflected another arrow.
"I don't want my brother to die," I said, shooting another arrow at his blind spot from another direction.
The training ground was filled with arrows, and I didn't have any arrows left to shoot.
"Let's collect the arrows so we can continue," I said, and Neji deactivated his Byakugan, returning to his normal vision.
"So how was it?" I asked.
"I could literally feel my blood pumping excitedly," he said, still thrilled. I just laughed at his excitement.
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After collecting all the arrows, I spoke, "Let's continue. We couldn't let anyone surpass us, could we?"
"Nope," he said and activated his Byakugan for another round. And just like this, we continued until we both were completely exhausted. My fingers were bleeding from the continuous shooting, and Neji had some scratches here and there.
'I guess nobody practiced as hard as we do,' I mused.
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This archery would come in really handy when the Uchiha massacre started.
I have to pay a visit to the graveyard. I hope I will find you, Isomu Uchiha.
I let out a chuckle. "Why are you laughing?" Neji curiously asked.
"I felt like it."
"You behave weird sometimes, sis," he said before sleeping down on the ground.
Picking him up on my back, I walked towards home.
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Training session... how was it, for me, it was refreshing to write, I didn't have do some nasty schemes in this chapter... so tell me your thoughts