2 Damsel in Distress

Forces, they're simple if you think about them. If you want a push, you need a force to move another object away. It sounds so much simpler in words. Shifting under my covers, I touch my pinecone again. Adhesion is easy, just fixate the position of the pinecone relative to your hand. The larger each singular contact point is, the larger the surface area you can use. With more surface area, you can get by with weaker adhesive force. On the other hand, the number of contact points can also lessen the work needed by chakra at each point. The only problem is that splitting your chakra complicates the process.

Huffing under my breath, I feel the pinecone lift up with the tips of my fingers and thumb. Adhesion works just fine, so why doesn't 'pushing force' work? One way of visualizing adhesion is imagining that they are connected at that point. Pushing is just adding a force between both mediums. Silently grunting, I push what chakra I can muster out of my hand and towards the pinecone. Except for losing contact for a moment, the pinecone doesn't even move.

Cringing as a shiver runs up my back, I stare into the darkness of my cover. What am I doing wrong? What am I doing differently? When I attach, I'm not really pulling so I can't directly compare that to pushing. So what's the difference? Rolling the pinecone between my hands, I quietly visualize what I'm doing. Adhesion is fixating me and the pinecone together, so what am I doing to push? Let's see, I expel as much chakra as I can steadily out of my hand while touching the pinecone.

Licking my lips, I continue to think until I lose the pinecone. Instead of finding it again, I stare into the darkness. I just did it again. I missed, just without chakra. What did I do? I was pushing it back and forth and then I missed. The force I was exerting on the pinecone missed. So is the chakra 'push' not making contact? Getting a handle on my chakra, I grin. One last try for tonight.

So how do I create interaction with the pinecone? Correction, how does my chakra interact with the pinecone? Chakra is intangible unless in dense amounts. No mechanical energy output whatsoever, yet jutsu influence the world regularly. How? Reaching for the missing pinecone, I flinch as I grab it harder than intended. Why a pinecone? Simple, Leaves are trash and are not allowed in the building. Pinecones can be decorated and therefore are allowed inside. I could bring leaves inside, but ninja aren't stupid. Civilians were never stupid and civilians that work for ninja are even less likely to be incompetent. Just why would a ninja hire a suboptimal civilian? I know I didn't when I worked in a hiring department in my past life.

Nursing my hand, I continue to think about my problem. Justu are chakra constructs. Some are shaped by seals, hand or otherwise, while others are simple enough to just manifest at will. The key should be chakra constructs. The constructs create a physical manifestation, so I need the pinecone to 'appear' for my chakra. How? Either I go for broke and focus on brute force or I make the pinecone an object that my chakra can act on. Basic physics, how many years has it been? two decades? more? I already can't remember how intermolecular forces work. Will I just forget everything by the time I grow up in this backward world? It's not like I need it anyway. I just need to do as the Romans do. Throw chakra at it. Throw chakra... That's it! Coating the pinecone lightly with chakra on one side, I then try pushing again. Instantly, the pinecone rolls away.

Giggling silently, I bring it back. Doing it a few more times, I notice the intensity varies depending on how I push chakra. Feeling the creeping fatigue, I slide it a bit farther away. Can't have it scratching me up while I sleep right? Closing my eyes, I wait. Just seconds later I open them, I'm just not sleepy. I guess my excitement hasn't worn off.

Quietly staring into oblivion, I go into a daze. Several minutes pass before, I hear something directly above me. "She's asleep, her breathing is even. It's not her" someone whispers. Without changing my breathing, I grip my shirt tighter. This is what I was scared of. This is why I can't have nice things yet. This is why I can't practice outside yet. This is why I still hide.

Several shuffling sounds later, I glare at the inside of my ratty navy blue blanket. They're checking the orphans' breaths. Twiddling my fingers, I wait until I hear a grunt. "This one huh? Too bad. Let's go report now" someone whispers. "What about him? We can take him with us. It's not like anyone will care if we take him" the other replies. The voice is definitely feminine, but who knows with these freaks. Brainwashed or not, it doesn't help that now they're all mindless slaves.

"There, no memory of us. We can't take him, he's one of the last Namikaze. The Hokage's got tabs on him and a few others. The rest are just cannon fodder, they wouldn't survive the training anyway."

Doing my best to make no noise, I smirk. I'm cannon fodder. That's right. "But what about that girl? she was doing something with her chakra" she asks, draining the color from my face. No. Please, I don't have cheat codes. I don't want to go through brainwashing. I'm going to die in that cesspool of depression.

Hearing a few grunts, I nervously wait. Please mysterious brain dead zombie, save me! "Leave her, I saw her with my eyes. She couldn't even stick a pinecone to her hand. She's worthless" he mutters. Relief clashes with terror and my face starts breaking down silently. Feeling the tears flow across my face, I make a promise. I'll find this man. I'll find him and I'll free him one day. For securing my freedom, I'll work harder and secure his. I take it all back. He's a brainwashed damsel in distress. My damsel in distress and all I have is his voice.