Sacrificial Lambs

10 advanced chapters on my Patreon: Fiction Haven

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Whizz!

I kept my feet rooted to the ground, ignoring the staff ruffling my clothes. That staff was as hard as a diamond, so getting hit by it was as pleasant as having your bones turned to dust. I watched my opponent keenly. Every movement he made was information to me, allowing me to predict his next move.

"You are no fun, Naruto-kun. You calculate too much."

"I would rather not get hit by your staff, Sensei. I can never get used to its blunt force."

The wizened bastard laughed cheerfully. Training with him was very fruitful, but I sometimes wondered if he just wanted to beat me up. He didn't hold back, at all. However, thanks to his beating, my reaction time and endurance had dramatically improved. He lived up to his namesake, the God of Shinobi.

I kicked the ground after channeling my Chakra into my feet. I had Raijin no Ken in my right hand and a well-crafted tantō from the Land of Steel in my left hand. With an expert use of Shunshin, I appeared before Sarutobi in an instant. He casually tilted his staff to block my tantō. The force of the impact created an air blast. The ground under us cratered.

Crack!

The lightning produced by Raijin no Ken expanded and enveloped both of us. Sarutobi's hands trembled, but that was it. His skills in Nature Transformation allowed him to control some amount of the lightning. Of course, it didn't last long. My Raijin no Ken was better than the one the Nidaime had wielded all those years ago, after all.

Sarutobi quickly disengaged and retreated. I planted Raijin no Ken to the ground and sent earth pillars to him. None of them hit him, but it didn't matter. I channeled the lightning produced by Raijin no Ken into the earth pillars, causing them to explode. Sarutobi didn't expect that as it managed to catch him off guard.

Picking up Raijin no Ken, I used Shunshin and came to his side. I delivered a devastating kick to his side, but he blocked it with his staff. The impact was enough to throw him away, though. I used the magnetic field produced by Raijin no Ken to pick up the weapons scattered below and then sent them to him.

Sarutobi expertly blocked them. Unfortunately for him, one of them was my disguised shadow clone. Using Kawarimi no Jutsu to trade places with my shadow clone, I appeared behind him and slashed his back with Raijin no Ken. He grunted before turning into a plume of smoke. As expected of The Professor, he was ready.

"Congratulations, Naruto-kun. It has only been two weeks, but you already managed to destroy my shadow clone," Sarutobi exclaimed from a distance on my right.

Turning to him, I quirked an eyebrow, "Are you insulting me?"

"It is a compliment. None of my students learn as fast as you do. It took them 6 years to defeat my clone, but even then, they had to work together to do that."

"Well, thanks, I guess. But I can't feel happy about it."

Sarutobi was way past his prime. No matter how skillful his shadow clone was, it was limited by the amount of Chakra it was allowed to use. Although I improved faster than his three students, the shadow clone I fought was way weaker than the one Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru had defeated. Sarutobi was an absolute beast around that time.

"Now, Naruto-kun, why don't we finally get serious?"

Sarutobi walked to me with a serious expression, causing me to quirk an eyebrow. The old man sometimes confused me with his cryptical words.

"Do you think I was messing around, Sensei?"

"No, but I know you are holding back." I was about to ask him what he meant when he continued, "I know you can use Kyūbi's Chakra. Kurenai and Kakashi could feel it when you trained using it in the Land of Waves."

I stared at Sarutobi silently. I didn't deliberately hide the fact that I had trained using Kurama's Chakra in the Land of Waves. I had used Kurama's Chakra as much as I could control. I didn't tell anyone about it because no one had mentioned it. It was why I had been disappointed by Kakashi and Kurenai's senses

However, I seemed to be wrong. They had deliberately not said anything about it to me. It was quite strange, in my opinion. They knew the horror of Kurama's power. Even a hint of Kurama's power should be enough to alarm them. Did they believe in me? I wondered. It seemed a bit farfetched to think that was the case since I couldn't see them risking everyone's safety for trust.

"They had seen Kushina use Kyūbi's Chakra once. They can tell when it is under control and when it is running amok," Sarutobi answered my unasked question.

"Can't believe they trust me that much," I commented noncommittally.

"You are Kushina's son, after all."

"Anyway, are you thinking about doing what I am thinking?"

Sarutobi nodded firmly with a solemn expression. I shrugged and then stored my tantō and Raijin no Ken. Sarutobi took a few steps back in anticipation. Cracking my neck, I drew Kurama's Chakra using the Chakra Control Seal. A red Chakra shroud covered me from head to toe. My body turned significantly hotter and my impulsive thoughts became more prominent.

"I can use up to seven tails, but I won't use that much power against you," I stated. "I am not underestimating you, but I can guarantee you will be dead once I lose control."

"I know that," Sarutobi accepted solemnly.

Drawing more Chakra from Kurama, I created four tails behind my back. Sarutobi assumed his stance, gesturing for me to come. I complied. In the blink of an eye, I appeared before Sarutobi. He widened his eyes in surprise. He quickly realized that he couldn't block my attack, so he submerged himself in the ground. That was a bad choice.

Crack!

I smashed the ground, creating a massive crater. I could kill the Hokage by doing that, but I didn't care. My impulsive tendency was partly to blame, but I knew Sarutobi was more capable than that. He emerged from the ground a distance away. Immediately creating two shadow clones, he sent a three-elemental Jutsu combo to me.

Getting out of the Jutsu's trajectory, I dashed to him at a bullet speed. His shadow clones immediately helped him in fighting me. Their staff elongated and rushed to me. I swiftly dodged them, allowing them to destroy the ground they hit. The staff promptly shortened as I was a few meters from Sarutobi and his shadow clones. They used their staffs to block each of my punches and kicks.

"Rasengan!"

"Shit!"

Sarutobi cursed for the first time. He must not have expected I could use Rasengan in this form. He slammed his staff to the ground and dispelled his shadow clones. The staff grew ten times its size, shielding him from my Rasengan. When my Rasengan hit the staff, the air exploded. The staff was unharmed, but it immediately turned into a puff of smoke.

"Damn it, Hiruzen! That hurt a little."

A human-sized monkey with white hair appeared on the training ground with a light scowl on his face.

"I know you are tougher than that, Enma."

The Monkey King Enma. It was Sarutobi's personal summon, the true identity of his staff. Even though I already knew it, it was still quite an experience to see him directly. Enma turned to me and observed me silently. He didn't seem to like that I was using Kurama's Chakra that much.

"Do I have to turn it off?" I asked.

"No. I am just wondering how you can stay so sane with that much corrupting Chakra in you," Enma answered. "You are an interesting kid."

"I heard that a lot."

Turning his attention away from me, he said goodbye to Sarutobi and then turned into a plume of smoke. Sarutobi looked at me tiredly and told me it was the end of the session. I retracted Kurama's Chakra, allowing the Chakra shroud to disappear. My body temperature went down and the familiar feeling of peace returned.

"I think we can train your use of Bijū Shroud from now on, Naruto-kun," Sarutobi said while rubbing his waist.

"You are going to need a stronger waist for that, old man," I said, gesturing at his state.

"I can still dance, Naruto-kun," he chuckled. "Will I be a bother if I join you and Tsunade for dinner?"

"I don't know about Tsunade, but I don't mind."

"It is settled, then. See you at dinner, Naruto-kun."

Having said his piece, Sarutobi disappeared in a puff of smoke. I stretched and twisted my body to work out the kinks. When I was satisfied with my state, I left the training ground. It was a bit far from the Senju Compound since it was a secret training ground that only the Hokage and a few selected knew. It took me a while to reach the Senju Compound—two minutes.

Upon arriving there, I was almost hit by a human bullet. I glanced at Jiraiya sprawled lifelessly on the ground in disinterest before walking to the house.

"Oy, brat! Are you just going to ignore your godfather?"

I stopped in my tracks.

"Do you need help?"

"Of course!"

I nodded my head and then walked to him. He raised his arm for me to grab, but I stepped on his face instead. He shouted in anger, telling me to stop. I didn't. He must have tried to peep on either Tsunade or Shizune. I abhorred sexual harassment.

"Ah, welcome home, Naruto," Tsunade greeted me, coming out of the house. "I see you are doing society a service."

"Oy, what do you think I am!?" Jiraiya shouted in fury.

"A pervert," Tsunade and I calmly stated.

Removing my foot from the perverted sage, I walked into the house with Tsunade. Jiraiya asked us to wait for him, but Tsunade slammed the door on his face.