BSWS CH-18 Aftermath, Preparations and Training Part-1

Kakashi frowned and swiftly moved back towards Sakura and the rest. He watched as a teenage kid in Hidden Mist's ANBU outfit emerged right above Zabuza. Picking up Zabuza's body he moved to retreat.

"Hey wait, Who are you?" Naruto asked.

"Thank you for your effort for defeating this Demon from here we will take over." the one in the ANBU outfit said directly to Kakashi while ignoring Naruto he didn't stop to chat further and immediately disappeared with the body.

Recognizing Haku, Sakura immediately left a trace of her chakra on Haku before he and Zabuza disappeared. Kakashi wanted to follow them, but despite his brief rest the Sharingan had been strained too much. He fell down on one knee, supporting himself up with his hands.

They all rushed to support him. Kakashi mumbled about getting Tazuna to safety before passing out. Naruto and Sasuke supported Kakashi up while Sakura and Tazuna started leading the way towards Tazuna's home. Since their most experienced Ninja was currently out cold, they had to be extra careful on their way.

-x-x-x-x-

Since Kakashi's unconscious state slowed their speed, it took a few hours to reach Tazuna's home. Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami, greeted them and helped them take care of Kakashi. With Tsunami's help, Sakura did basic first aid for Kakashi and helped him rest comfortably on the upper floor of Tazuna's house.

After making sure that Tsunami will keep an eye on him, Sakura went downstairs to discuss their next plan with others. When she came down, she saw Naruto and Sasuke in an argument.

"Hah, like it or not Duck Butt hair, I was more useful than you!!" Naruto said with a smirk.

"All you did was send a bunch of clones to their death. I don't know what is so great about that." Sasuke said with an annoyed expression.

As she saw this situation escalating, Sakura decided to step in. She sent a bunch of chakra threads that wrapped around their upper body and mouth, shutting them up immediately.

"Honestly, can I not leave you two alone for a single minute?" Sakura said with a sigh and massaged her head.

"Now listen here Naruto. Sasuke is a part of the team too. Just because the situation favored your abilities slightly doesn't mean that Sasuke's contribution was any less, he kept watch on Tazuna the whole time and was ready to pitch in the moment he could. That counts as team work and you should not dismiss it like that." Sakura chided him.

"And you too Sasuke. Naruto maybe have been arrogant about his contribution, but that doesn't mean you can dismiss them out of petty jealousy. If you feel bad that you could not contribute enough then do something about it. Train and become stronger so that the next time we fight Zabuza you will be of more help." Sakura said.

"Wait a second!! Fight Zabuza again? Isn't he dead?" Tazuna interrupted suddenly from the sidelines. Naruto and Sasuke were intrigued too as they looked to Sakura for explanation.

"It might have looked like Zabuza is dead, but honestly I am not so sure. I think that the ANBU who came to take away Zabuza was a fake one. The way he took away Zabuza's body instead of directly destroying it makes it suspicious." Sakura said.

After seeing that they were paying attention, Sakura continued, "I have read a bit about these kind of special forces too. They never do this kind of stuff and instead immediately destroy all kind of evidence and remains of the ninja they are hunting instead. I think Kakashi sensei suspected this too that was why he wanted to go after that ANBU. But unfortunately he fell unconscious due to his Sharingan's drain on him."

"So what do we do then? Will he come to attack us at any time?" Sasuke asked.

"I don't think so. If my theory is correct and he is alive, then he will believe us to be ignorant of his survival. Hence he will most probably recover himself to his peak before attacking. In the mean time, we have to train too so that we can stand a chance against him. Because this time he will come with full force instead of underestimating us." Sakura said grimly.

"Well said Sakura," A weak voice called out to them. They looked back and saw that it was Kakashi, walking down with support of the wall. They all gathered around him and supported him so that he could come down and sit on a chair.

"Sakura is right," Kakashi confirmed to others "I think that ANBU was fake and instead was in league with Zabuza. He saved Zabuza by pretending to kill him and making us put down our guards. That I why he used Senbons, as it is easier to hit pressure points with them and put one in a state of False Death."

Kakashi looked at the anxious faces of those listening to him and decided to reassure them "Don't worry, Sakura's reasoning is right and even I don't think he will be coming for us right at this minute. We have some time to prepare and we will use that time for training you up for facing him."

"Really?!! Finally we are going to get some training!! Whoo Hoo!! Believe it!!" Naruto shouted excitedly. Even Sasuke cracked a half smile at the prospect of getting stronger.

-x-x-x-x-

Kakashi then took them to the forest and instructed them on chakra basics and chakra control. When he started instructing them on the tree climbing exercise, the result surprised him.

"Since how long have you all been able to do that?" Kakashi asked on seeing the trio stand upside down from the branch of the tree he was using to demonstrate. They had done it on their first try, making him astonished.

"Umm, Actually it is all thanks to Sakura, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto said with a wide grin.

"What do you mean?" Kakashi asked.

"Sakura has been holding special classes for us ever since we all got sorted into teams." Sasuke said "We re-learnt chakra basics, chakra control and few of the essential Ninjutsus."

"Yeah! I can do this now!!" Naruto said as he use Body Flicker to flit around Kakashi for a few times. Kakashi looked at this with surprise.

"Where did you learn the Body Flicker jutsu?" Kakashi asked Sakura.

"You taught me." Sakura said.

"Me? When?" Kakashi was puzzled.

"First day when you made us introduce ourselves. You used that Jutsu to leave. I have also been able to sense stuff like that in an instant. Its somewhat like your Sharingan. However I have to practice to use it perfectly." Sakura said.

Kakashi looked at her in amazement. If Sakura could really do what she claimed, then Leaf elders would be clamoring to have her protected. So far this kind of ability has been limited to Sharingan. Yet it seems like Sakura has a Chakra Sensing version of similar effect. No matter if its a Kekkei Genkai or an ability acquired through talent, it makes her a valuable asset to the Leaf.

'I will train them carefully, especially Sakura.' Kakashi thought before saying out loud "Alright then, since you have all already got used to this we will move on to the next stage. Lets see if you can complete my training faster than I have thought this time too."