Overwhelmed

"Haha, you loser! You fell for an academy student's trap!"

"Shut up! I didn't even get scratched!"

"To be fair, her trap was completely original and the spy was supposed to be a taijutsu fighter."

"Still! This idiot lost a clone to an academy student! I'm never letting this go!"

"Jiraiya, shut up before I make you."

Dusting my clothes off, I stand awkwardly between three bickering jounin. Holding my notebook, I watch the three of them casually chatting while the spy lays face down next to me. Should I say something? Probably, this is the type of attention I want. Being known by three highly skilled jounin means that I'm less likely to be kidnapped while I sleep, but I'd rather not get involved with Orochimaru. He seems like a cynical guy, but he'll turn into a psychopath eventually. Jiraiya is not a great idea since I can't be sure he's not a pedophile and Tsunade isn't a bad idea, but she's also not great at anything other than healing and punching with brute force.

Spitting a blade of grass out of my mouth, I turn towards the village and start walking. Slowly. Silently. Yea, I could get some goodies, maybe a jutsu or two and maybe a summoning scroll, but all of them have major problems and I can't reliably fix them. I can't make Orochimaru good or Jiraiya less perverted. I might be able to help Tsunade keep her brother and boyfriend alive, but it's all up in the air at this point. I probably won't be deployed near her brother and I'm even less likely to see her jounin boyfriend. I also can't say they'll die, it's an occupational hazard and if they do die, I'll end up being questioned.

Reaching the treeline, I slowly go back over my escape. First, they definitely found me. What are the odds of them all encircling me without finding me? What's the flaw? I have no idea at this point in time. Maybe I should've asked. I Can't go back anyway, none of them have something I need that they would readily give me. The second flaw was my chakra string manipulation. Frankly, it was terrible. If they didn't take action and just waited for a few seconds, they would've seen the lack of coordination instantly. The final thing I could realistically work on is sensing other chakra sources.

Sending waves of chakra can't be the most efficient way, natural-born sensors have to have a different approach. Maybe I can kidnap one. The biggest problem is hiding from them. Just another problem to fix. Gazing at the endless blue sky, I sigh. So much to do and so little time before things start picking up. I should be a solid genin, but that only labels me as decent cannon fodder.

Breaking into a jog, I quickly make it to the academy grounds. Finding a deserted area, I sit at the base of a tree and lean back. No time for rest, not until I'm part of the cockroach-like 1 percent. Closing my eyes, I circulate my chakra around my body. Simple exercises first. Pushing most of my chakra to different areas of my body, I lazily open my eyes. There's not much chakra left at this point. Back to the most recent conundrum, sensors. Some sensors are known to awaken their abilities very young. The key can't just be the amount of chakra. If the quantity is all it took, then most ninja would be ruled out and all ninjutsu specialists would be sensors.

If it's not quantity, it has to be quality. In this case, I could make a 'thinner' net, but that can't be how it's naturally done. So baby Kakashi will soon start running around killing people, that doesn't mean sensors just 'get' how chakra works. Back to the basics. Chakra is made of two 'energies', spiritual and physical. At least my chakra is. Now can I separate them? Can I feel the difference? So many questions. Too many.

Feeling my chakra fall into a rhythm, I open my notebook and resume my seal-making practice. Storage seals are next on the list of beginner seals. Honestly, storage seals can solve many problems for me. First, space becomes less of an issue since objects in a storage scroll are technically shifted towards a fourth dimension. It's not that the space is large, or infinite, but that it doesn't take up too much space in our three dimensions. Not only does it make everything more convenient, but the weight of objects is also negated as well. I'm not exactly sure why, but I'll take it.

The problem is understanding how it works. So I could use the built-in keywords or in this case intent but that leaves me with fewer ways to modify it. As far as I can tell, space, for every base unit, curls in on itself. Now that may sound simple, but how does that make any sense when each unit doesn't seem to be connected. I remember the analogy of two-dimensional sentients not being able to understand three dimensions, but I really cannot figure out how the fourth physical dimension could be connected. It's like when you start seeing multiple of someone because your eyesight is terrible or you're suffering from a bad concussion. In this case, a person would be billions of different unconnected units at once.

How you function, stay together, think, live or even move just doesn't make sense. Given that I could just assume that it works and how would I manipulate something that 'just works'? Turning around, I violently punch the tree. Feeling frustrated, I punch twice more. Huffing, I lean into one last punch before realizing I'm on my feet. I was sitting just moments before, did I start pacing? Running my hand through my hair, I sigh. I don't remember getting up and then turning to punch the tree.

Sinking down, knees on the soft grass, I hide my head in my hands. Why is there so much to do? Why is there always something to do? Honestly, how do people ever stop progressing here? There are just way too many ways to get stronger. To master more skills. To grow.

Listening to the leaves swaying with the wind, I slowly look up as someone chuckles above me. Sitting on a branch, smiling while upside down, Tsunade covers her mouth. Why do people do that? Do I cover my mouth? Raising an eyebrow, I give her an inquisitive look. Swinging around the branch, she drops down next to me, "Give me your hand. Let's get those cuts healed real quick." Glancing at my hands, I purse my lips as I see the cuts and bruises on my knuckles. How embarrassing. Stretching my hands out, she envelops my hands in hers before they start glowing green. Focusing on the feeling, I notice the chakra doing several things at once. Just how complicated is this medical jutsu?

Sighing as the tingling stops, I stare into Tsunade's eyes. There has to be a reason why she's here right? She might lie, but I doubt her eyes will too. Behavioral psychology was never a precise science, but it was a great indicator of the opponent's inner thoughts. Watching her hazelnut pupils, I watch as they lock in on mine. Unfortunately, I have next to no knowledge of body language since her eyes exude confidence. It's almost inspiring. She is someone who has her life together. She is something I'm currently striving for.

"If you were older, I'd say I have a boyfriend, but I'll let it slide for now. Did you really think you could just leave without saying anything?" she chastizes. Twiddling my thumbs, I shrug while looking down at my dark blue notebook cover. It's fascinating how cheap a notebook can look when you think about it. "Hey, your not in any trouble, but I can't let what I just saw slide. Why don't you tell me what's on your mind? If anything, I could point you in a direction" she whispers. Taking my hands she clarifies, "It may not be the right direction, but I can safely say that you probably don't have any direction at this point."

Licking my chapped lips, I murmur, "There's just too much to work on, and so much I can't figure out." Silence. Glancing up, I find her staring at me quietly. Rubbing my head with one hand, she smiles, "I'm glad you picked something easy. Just pick one goal and work towards it. It's that simple. So you may lead to roadblocks, set the condition for clearing those roadblocks as your new goal, and go back to the old one when you can. You would think that mastering something means knowing everything about it right? That's completely wrong! You eventually have to specialize in something because branching out will drown you in the possibilities. When you feel like you've gone far enough in a direction, just backtrack and go in a different direction."

Sighing at the basic solution I nod my head. I knew this, but specializing won't keep me alive. I need tools. I need answers. I need progress. I guess I can focus on one thing at a time though. Patting my head softly, she whispers, "Now why don't you ask me what's holding you up and I might be able to point you in the right direction." Feeling hope bubble up inside me, I look at her gentle features. No one would really guess that she could punt you into the next century. Clearing my throat, I ask, "Do you know how sensors feel their surroundings?"

Seeing Tsunade stall, I freeze. Is it too much? Coughing into her fist, she murmurs, "Only a sensor can answer that, why don't you ask another question?" Stopping my shoulders from dropping, I hesitate. I don't want to know medical ninjutsu right now. It's too complicated and I just have the time right now. What else could she know? Thinking for a few moments, I settle on asking about storage seals. "Um, do you know how storage seals work? Like how the fourth dimension works itself, not how to make one" I hesitantly ask. She knows seals right? At worst I embarrass her and never meet her again. She leaves after the war anyway. I just need to never need a medic when she's around.

Seeing her freeze for a second time, I drop my smile. I did it again. Just as I start waving my hands, she beams. "I have no idea, but I do know who does!" she exclaims. Beaming she says, "Go to the Uzumaki compound and look for a Mito Uzumaki, she's my grandma! Just say I sent you and I'm sure she'd be able to help. I think she's also a sensor so that might answer your other question."

Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, I bow my head and thank her. What a nice person. "Just take it as an apology for throwing a couple of trees at you." she awkwardly chuckles. Pulling me up as she rises, she pats my head one more time before turning away, "Remember to take care of yourself, and say a few good things about me when you meet grandma okay?" I nod while smiling, "Of course" I need to divert that woman's attention anyways. She's definitely the most intimidating person I've met so far. Nice, but not the kind granny next to the orphanage type of nice. Waving without looking back, she crouches slightly before disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

How convenient. Taking my notebook out, I add to the list of things I want to learn. Cool body flicker jutsu without the leaves. Glancing back at the tree, I sigh. It's time to visit Kushina's home again. She should be out with Minato so I guess I use Tsunade's name this time. Just another awkward conversation with an absurdly scary woman. What can go wrong?