The Matsuri Clan

-2479 words-

{Genesis Arc}

[Year 38, Sunagakure]

In the Land of Wind, in a hospital stationed in Sunagakure. A birthing process is currently taking place.

"That's it dear, just a little more push." Said a middle aged woman to another woman who was screaming in pain as she gave birth.

"I can see the head!" encouraged her.

"Hah hah hah…" The woman gave deep breaths as the baby came out. The midwife immediately took the baby and cleaned him before handing him to his mother.

"He's a healthy baby boy Sayuri." Said the middle aged woman.

The mother, whose name was Sayuri, smiled a teary face at her baby. The birthing process took a toll on her body and she knows she won't last much longer.

"His name will be Souei. Souei Matsuri."

— Marionette of Suna —

It was a sunny day, and a small child could be seen under the covers of his own bed. He woke up as sunlight started peeking from his window.

The child was about 5 years old, with blue hair and eyes. He gave a big yawn as he got up from his bed.

He quickly got ready for the day before going downstairs to have breakfast.

"Morning Aunt Chiyo." Said the boy with a smile directed at an elderly lady sitting on a chair by the dinner table.

Souei Matsuri is a member of the Matsuri clan and the nephew of renowned Suna Kunoichi Chiyo Matsuri. Souei's dad, Azuma Matsuri, was Chiyo and Ebizu's little brother who, like them, was also a shinobi. He unfortunately died in the field and left his pregnant wife alone with his siblings.

Souei's mom, Sayuri Matsuri, died in childbirth. So Chiyo took him in and raised him as her own.

"Are you excited for today? It's the first day of the academy after all." Chiyo asked Souei with warm eyes.

"Yeah, I can't wait. You promised to teach me about puppets when I entered the academy after all!" Souei replied with visible excitement.

Ever since he found out about puppets, Souei has become very interested in the art. Puppetry is something he's had his eye on ever since he saw his aunt use it for the first time. Since then, Souei has only one thing he's ever been curious about.

'Is it possible to control a human being with puppet ninjutsu?', he asked his aunt this question once.

"It's not possible, Souei. To control someone with an active chakra system, especially if they're a powerful shinobi, is impossible. The way us puppeteers control puppets is by using chakra strings. People with an active chakra system could easily disrupt our control so breaking these strings would be easy. That is why we use inanimate objects like puppets because there's no risk to them."

Although it made sense, Souei refused to believe that achieving this was impossible. This conversation with his aunt was what unlocked his drive and ambition to become the greatest puppeteer in history.

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However, before that he needs to quickly finish breakfast if he doesn't want to be late for his first day.

A few minutes later, Souei found himself in the Suna Academy.

'This place is crowded.' thought Souei as he surveyed the class he's in. As a member of a prominent clan, he's also part of the advanced class in the academy.

The class is considered to be the one that is filled with students with a lot of potential. The ones that will seemingly lead the next generation of Suna Shinobi.

All around him he could see fellow students talking to one another, looking excited for their first day. He could recognize some of them, from political meetings he's had when he followed his aunt around the village, but he could definitely say with confidence he isn't friends with anyone. 'Oh well, It ain't the end of the world.'

Even with his nonchalant attitude, it was easy for him to pick up attention. Being a relative of one of Suna's most famous shinobi would do that to anyone. The fact that his hair is as bright as a neon covered headlight doesn't help things either.

With nothing else to do, Souei decided to use this chance to learn a little about his fellow students. He began looking around and listening in on whatever conversations everyone had. However, he found their topic of discussion rather childish and plain. He knows his uncle and aunt have been calling him a genius. And he realizes it himself from the way he understands things. He picks up information much faster than the regular person and he understands certain topics a lot deeper than people actually think. But to think that he would be that much different than a regular child is quite surprising.

He does notice one person who seems different than the rest. He had auburn hair, dark eyes, and a pretty stern look on his face. 'Definitely someone to look out for.'

The class finally quieted down as the two senseis entered the classroom with an air of authority. After taking the stage in front of the class, they immediately started with attendance

After a few names and a chorus of 'Here' 'Present sensei!', Souei finally noticed something interesting.

"Rasa!"

"Here."

'So his name is Rasa huh?'

"Souei Matsuri."

"Present."

"Looks like that's everyone. Anyway my name is Murata and my assistant here is Sora." The teacher said while pointing at his assistant who gave a wave to the class.

"Your days in the academy will be spent on learning to be a shinobi. That means not only will you learn basic ninja techniques, we will also be doing physical enhancement classes in the morning. Not too much that will hinder your growth, but enough to prepare you for the future."

"We will also learn about the history of how our village came to be and the geography of the elemental nations as well as basic survival training as these are all necessary knowledge for a ninja."

After the brief explanation, the class continued as normal. He noticed quite quickly that most of the lectures given by the teacher are boring. He could already see the few non-academic students dozing off in the back of the class. He forced himself to pay attention because he believes there's always something new to learn

The day went on quite uneventfully, with the only interesting bit being when the teacher threw his eraser at the sleeping students in the back. It was quite amusing to see the teacher get mad on the first day of class. Not a lot of people bothered with him on the few breaks that they were given. He talked to some people here and there, and left quickly when he met his quota for socializing for the day.

It was at the end of the day however, when the teachers informed them they would be holding a physical exam. The teacher gave a reassurance after a few protests came out that this was merely to find out the exact level of the current batch of students so they could prepare them accordingly.

Souei grew excited at this. As this was the perfect time for him to show off. He was confident because he received quite a bit of training already from his aunt and uncle. This was also a chance for him to see the capability of his fellow peers.

"Everyone line up, please!" Murata called out to the anxious students. Souei found out that he was at the end of the pack so his turn wouldn't be for quite a while.

He has to be honest, the training course they had to take was far from impressive for ninja standards. It was a sort of training field filled with obstacles, such as rope climbing and long jumps. Sure, they were just 5 year olds, but still. The least they could do is make it a challenge.

All the students had to do it in pairs, and surprisingly, he found his partner to be the auburn-haired boy from before. They both just glanced at each other before looking ahead in determination.

"Ready… set… go!" Their teacher shouted as they both dashed off in an impressive display of speed.

The first obstacle was easy. It was wall climbing where they have to scale the wall properly before jumping over it to get to the other side. The both of them quickly climbed up the walls with no issue and vaulted to the other side at the same time.

The next obstacle was simple, where they had to jump from log to log. Yet again, the both of them found this to be a no-issue as they practically skipped past it with relative ease.

It didn't take long for them to finish the whole thing. By the time they both reached the finish line, Rasa and Souei were out of breath. They had tried to get ahead multiple times in the entire obstacle race only to find themselves evenly matched.

Throughout the entire exam, the sensei could only gape in surprise as seemingly fresh minted academy students were capable of doing something like this.He just shook his head in good nature before recording their time. 'Kids these days are getting crazier and crazier.'

"Impressive work, Souei, Rasa. The both of you set a new academy record, 39 seconds for the entire run, beating the previous record by 14 seconds. Well done."

Souei grinned as he heard his score, while Rasa just gave a nod.

"Alright kids, that'll be all for today." The teacher announced. "Start packing up, and make sure you get here by 6 AM sharp tomorrow. I won't tolerate any tardiness." With that, the teacher walked away.

Souei didn't waste any time as he walked back to class, packed up his belongings, and left the academy.

He soon arrived back at his home, spotting his aunt lounging in the sofa.

"Hey Aunt Chiyo!" He greeted as he approached her.

"Welcome home, Souei." She greeted warmly. "How was the academy?"

"Honestly, pretty boring. The only interesting thing that happened was the physical exam at the end, but it was pretty bland."

"Is that so?" She asked as she chuckled at my response.

"So, when are we going to learn about puppet jutsu? You promised after all."

"Hoo, eager are you…" Chiyo started before nodding. "Very well then, meet at the backyard. I'll join you soon."

"FINALLY!" Souei exclaimed in excitement as he dashed to the training yard. As a prominent clan, the mansion they live in has a decently sized yard they could use for training.

"Hmm, you already know about the basics of puppetry in theory. So how about we learn how to create chakra strings for today?" Chiyo stated.

"Chakra strings is a technique mainly used by puppeteers to control and manipulate puppets in battle." Chiyo explained as she demonstrated the technique by lifting her fingers and creating blue strings that extend from her fingers. "These strings are created by pure chakra. Therefore, they are visible to the naked eye." Souei's nod is the only sign that he's listening as his focus is currently transfixed on the floating blue string that Chiyo is currently waving around.

"You create them by focusing your chakra on your fingers. And then project them outwards and extend them. Creating thread-like constructs." She finished her demonstration as she dissipated the chakra from her fingers.

"Now you try."

Souei immediately nodded and showed a determined face. He focused chakra into his fingers and tried to do as Chiyo instructed. It kept going until a few minutes later when nothing happened.

Souei frowned.

"Don't get discouraged. This technique requires delicate control. It isn't that surprising that you didn't manage it ye-"

Chiyo's words died in her throat as a string, barely a few centimeters long, appeared from Souei's outstretched finger.

What made her very surprised however, is that instead of the energy-like blue construct she expected, the string he created was a solid white.

"I-incredible!"

"Aunt Chiyo?" Souei looked to Chiyo in confusion.

"Souei! What did you do? How did you achieve this?" She asked in bewilderment.

"I just did what you said. Focus my chakra on my fingers, project it outwards and extend it."

Chiyo just looked at Souei in shock at that and after a few moments, visibly calmed down. She gave him a smile as she explained it to him.

— Marionette of Suna —

Apparently what surprised Aunt Chiyo so much, was that he had awakened the long lost Kekkei Genkai of the Matsuri Clan.

The Thread Release.

The ability to create solid strings that are much more powerful and durable than the regular chakra strings.

According to her, the last known user was a ninja who fought in the Warring Clans, who unfortunately died quite an early death. Because of this, there's not much on records about the abilities and subsequent advantages the Thread Release could do. So no one alive really knows its full potential.

Souei didn't really care though.

Because for a budding puppeteer like him, this Kekkei Genkai was PERFECT. He could already imagine the chaos he could bring. The havoc he could ensue in a battlefield using these strings he has in his possession.

A grin suddenly grew in his face, and he started laughing like a certain mad flamingo.

"Huhuhu heh heh heh heh heh!"

Right now, he is sitting on his bed, resting after the small training session where he discovered his bloodline. He didn't want to turn in yet though, as his mind is still much too active to get a proper shuteye.

And so he began experimenting.

Currently, he still could only extend his strings for a few centimeters, and he could only do it with two fingers.

So he walked up to the table in his room and put his hands close to a small pen he had on his table, and tried to connect it with a string.

Once he pulled his hand back, the pen itself was also pulled off the table and dangled on the string still connected to his finger.

'I can definitely work with this…'

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Hey readers!

Here's the first chapter of Marionette of Suna!

I definitely have plans for this fanfic and hope you enjoy reading it as I did writing it.

So to clarify, Souei belongs to a founding clan of Suna I call the Matsuri Clan. He's the nephew of Chiyo and Ebizu, with him being around a decade younger than Sasori's parents.

Also, this is an OC born in the world of Naruto. NOT a reincarnated character.

For advanced chapters, Head on to my pat_reon page! Depending on the tier, you could get between 4 or 10 chapters ahead along with a few other benefits.

Pat_reon.com/TeemVizzle

That's all from me!

Cheers!

Trivia: How underrated are puppeteers in Naruto?