Chapitre 32: Capture the Flag: Failure
"Alright, spit it out," I said with a raised eyebrow.
"Spit what out?" Sakura asked with a frown.
"You've had an annoyed face for the past five minutes since the trap thing," I replied as we kept walking. "Somethings bugging you – I didn't miss any paint on your dress, did I?"
"No, it's not that," Sakura frowned. Then she sighed. "I…just don't think you're taking this all that seriously."
"Oh, I'm not," I nodded. "There's no lose condition beyond letting the other team get all the balls to the platform over there."
"But aren't you supposed to be training us?" Sakura asked, looking thunderstruck.
"This exercise is supposed to measure where you're at as students," I explained with a frown. "This is an evaluation – a test. Not a lesson. It's also a game I'm really sure we're going to win, soooo…"
"Why is that?" Sakura asked with a raised eyebrow.
…I almost told her about my 'premonitions' but I decided against it. Didn't seem appropriate to spout off that little detail to someone not even out of the academy. "Call it a hunch."
Sakura got this hopeless frown on her face. "S-senpai, I don't mean to be rude, but…. hunches don't win games."
"My hunches do," I smiled. I still can't believe I found a way around the Hokage's mission ban. I mean, I was going to abuse this, maliciously, but I was having a hard time believing my luck right now. "But we do need to pick up the pace, so…"
"Senpai, wait for me!" Sakura shouted as I took off at a…well, it was like a slow jog to me, but she was having a hard time keeping up.
"I am," I replied back.
She was too busy breathing hard to reply back.
…becoming separated would defeat the purpose of teaming up with her in the first place. So, I slowed and and…wouldn't you know. Another ball with an obvious web of traps around it. This one was more like it was the center of a wheel, with traps being strung all around it on the spokes.
Sakura put her hands on her knees, panting heavily.
I'll note that in the evaluation later.
I wonder what the clan kids are all out doing right now? Probably something a lot harder that what we're doing right now. Hmmm…what sort of rigorous training regimen could I get away with since Team 7's will to have us teach them.
Medicine Check Failure: 32:50.
It's a bad idea to hold them to my standard at the very least. I'll have to ask Nichiren and Hisako since, you know, they actually train.
"Okay," Sakura stood up. "I can…uh…"
She took in the sight of the new web with wide eyes and a jaw that hung open incredulously. "How did they have time to set this up?"
"We did give them about 15 minutes to prepare and both Naruto and Nichiren are really good at setting up traps," I shrugged. "Nichiren has jutsu to help him too, so I'm not surprised."
Sakura groaned. "Senpai…you're not diving into the traps again, are you?"
"No," I said, stretching out chakra strings from my fingers. Chakra strings, unlike most feats of chakra control, were visible by default and Sakura looked at them with wonder. I snapped them over to the ball and reeled it in like a fish. Not literally. "No point…that last one was mostly to see if I can do it and I have no illusions that this one isn't set up just like the last one."
"H-how…did you do that?" Sakura asked in wonder.
"Chakra-strings," I shrugged, palming the ball. "Literally a leaf-sticking exercise stretched out across a distance. I understand there's a whole corps of Ninja in Suna who use these to manipulate puppets."
Kakashi told me, so I was free to spout this fact as much as I liked.
Sakura looked stunned.
"It's another thing you can do with good chakra control," I replied. "I might teach you later if your control is good enough."
We were both distracted when the ball erupted into a puff of smoke, leaving another note.
Daisuke, The note read. Seriously. Charging into situations head first is a bad idea. N&N.
"Jokes on you," I smirked, handing the note to Sakura for her to read. "So, where do you think they actually hid their ball?"
"Ummm…well," Sakura looked up in thought. "If both massive webs of traps were fakes…maybe they've hid their ball somewhere without any traps?"
"In some quiet, out of the way spot?" I frowned. That would make things difficult if they tried being unfair about the location of their ball. "Well, you think we can ignore these huge webs of traps, then?"
"Well maybe," Sakura said. "They had to start building these somewhere, so maybe…we should treat these more like a trail?"
"Good point," I nodded. "Alright, let's move."
"So what about Sasuke and Hisako's ball?" Sakura asked with a frown.
"Eh, I'm sure Naruto and Nichiren have both already gone for it," I shrugged. "I mean, I think we did pass Hisako and Sasuke on the way here so they were on their way to find ours, which meant that they decided to not mess with these things."
"Probably left it for you," Sakura replied with a frown. Then she seized up. "S-Senpai, I-I mean…"
"It's fine," I shrugged. "You're probably right, I do tend to charge at things head first."
"Why?" Sakura blinked.
"Killing me is difficult, putting it mildly," I replied with a frown. "The first thing I found that actually could kill me was the behemoth and I had a large group of elite Ninja to bail me out."
"Behemoth?" Sakura's tongue slowly sounded out the unfamiliar word.
"The giant fish-man in the bottom of the sewers," I clarified. I need to be careful which words I start using…I've been pretty good about the first dozen years of my new life; I don't need to screw it up now. "Just a name I gave him."
Charisma Check Success: 4/3.
Holy cow. I actually expected a fail for some arbitrary reason!
"Alright," Sakura said. "It's an odd name, though."
"I'm an odd person," I replied flatly. "Now, are we going to follow the trail of traps, or…"
"Yeah, let's go," Sakura nodded and we started moving again. Slower, this time, so she could actually keep up.
The trail of traps actually lead to the very edge of training ground three, were a fence of barbed wire separated it from the rest of the forest. It was a token effort, no Shinobi worth their salt would ever get stopped by it. But it did serve to give people an idea of where they were on the map.
The last trap was like a square, wires and paint canons strung up in the trees which formed the points of a square. The orb was actually suspended in wires high in the canopy, assuring that if I pulled it out, the paint cannons aimed up would go off.
So, I sent a set of strings right up to the ball and started to lift it out of it's net. Only for the next to lift and the paint cannons were set off. Sakura and I watched the maelstrom of paint erupt like a giant, white volcano without getting a drop of paint on us.
I still had my strings on the ball, so I just brought it down to us and shook the paint off. "Well, that was a waste of good paint."
Then the ball went in smoke, leaving yet another note.
Daisuke, this note read. If you're covered in a fresh coat of paint and really mad, then our traps are working. This isn't the ball you're looking for. N&N.
Great. Juuuust great.
I handed the note to Sakura. "Well, the balls got to be around here somewhere right?"
Sakura was gritting her teeth. "Yeah. Somewhere."
I looked around, taking care not to step in the paint. But I couldn't see anything, any trace of a yellow ball. I breathed out and…and…saw, past the wire fence, just a hint of yellow.
Perception Check Success: 8/7.
I laughed and hopped over the fence.
"Senpai?" Sakura called.
"They hid their ball outside the training ground," I called with a laugh, snagging it with chakra strings. I shook it, banged it against the trunk of a tree and…nothing. It was the real ball.
"Is that allowed?" Sakura asked as I hopped back into the training ground.
"There's no rule against it so…yeah, I guess," I shrugged. "Now, off to Sasuke and Hisako's part of the forest, or do you think we should check on our ball first?"
"I think we should check on our ball," Sakura said. "If one of the other teams grabbed it, it could turn into a fight, later"
"I want it to turn into a fight," I replied with a frown. "I win those."
"O-okay Senpai," Sakura said respectfully.
I mentally sighed. "But, as we've established, I'm quite terrible at strategy, so we'll go check on our ball. To be safe or at least to know whose got it, in any case."
"Okay Senpai," Sakura replied, sounding somewhat relieved.
We made our way back to the hiding spot and…I heard a hushed conversation.
"Look, we can all agree that we don't want to be here when Daisuke gets back," Nichiren said.
Agility Check Success: 7/7.
Sneak Check Success: 64/60.
Pulling Sakura into a hiding spot wasn't the easiest thing I've ever done, but I succeeded, pulling her with me to the back of a tree. "Shhh."
She nodded and we listened in.
"Speak for yourself," That was Sasuke. "This is an evaluation and the only thing we did relating to combat is when you two jumped us before calling for truce."
"You also want to win, don't you?" Naruto asked. "Like, seriously. There's more to being a ninja than just fighting things."
"Combats the thing I care about," Sasuke snapped back.
I peered around the tree and saw that Naruto had the red ball in his hand.
"Naruto and Nichiren grabbed Sasuke and Hisako's ball already," I whispered. "It'd be pretty easy to jump in and take it from them."
"Do you have a way to disable them?" Sakura asked with a frown. "Or were you just going to charge in?"
"I was going to charge in," I replied.
"I know you're interested in combat but there's no way any of us can actually beat Daisuke in a straight fight," Hisako hissed. Heh, she was drenched from head to toe and a scroll laid discarded on the ground. "Best thing to do is lay a trap for him, when he inevitably trips it and restrains himself, we can search for his ball in peace."
My eyebrow twitched. "…I might have something that'll restrain them, yes."
"Okay," Sakura sounded relieved.
The jutsu I used was directly inspired by Kazu, the guy I murdered near the end of the Organ Trail. After making the seals, I placed the palm of my hand on the ground and twin lines of seals stretched out, tracing in front of both groups.
"Get down!" Hisako shouted, tackling Sasuke to the ground.
It was just a flashbang and while it didn't blind her, her ears were ringing horribly. Naruto and Nichiren, on the other hand, were definitely blind and deaf. Naruto dropped the red ball and I slid out of my hiding spot to pick it up. Then I used strings to pick up the scroll that held our ball, which was exactly where I left it and I released it, sticking each ball on my left forearm.
"Let's move," I said, running past Sakura so she could catch up.
I totally knew we'd win this. I mean, come on! I may be bad at tactics, but I had the smartest member of Naruto's class on my team. That was literally my biggest weakness covered with a safety net made of adamantium, like my bones are going to be made of in about a month or so.
Well, I would probably be better if I didn't keep getting separated from my team…get their input…that's technically my fault, I think. I do like to get them out of the way so they don't get hurt.
…huh. Well, I mean, this is just a training exercise and-oh, who am I kidding. I need to trust my team more. They're not helpless. Even if they are only twelve. But that's the problem! They're only twelve and…well, physically I'm only twelve.
Mentally, I'm a twisted mess, but that's neither here nor there.
A flash of heat and light hit my face as a large fireball landed on the ground in front of me, igniting all the grass and trees in the front of me ablaze.
See, that's a good use for a fireball. Don't aim at targets that dodge the fireball easily, use it to block off an opponent's escape. It also means that flashbang didn't do any permanent damage to his ears, which is a very good thing.
Perception Check Success: 8/5.
I noticed shuriken flying toward us at high speed in large numbers, each with ninja wire tied around the ring. And they were flying in a circular arc to trap us, which I ducked under as they were pulled tight. Total failure there.
Oh, he trapped Sakura.
Partial success, there.
And then Hisako and Sasuke landed in front of me and took Taijutsu stances. I slid forward on my stomach and leaped up, aiming a kick for Hisako's head which she ducked beneath. Sasuke, with his Sharingan on, I noticed, used my chakra slide to circle around and make a grab for the balls. I rewarded his ingenuity with a punch to the stomach and stuck my foot out to push him over it and send him to the dirt.
I was only a little annoyed.
I stuck my foot up to kick Hisako in the face behind me, and used my slide to rapidly turn while moving to the right to cuff her in the face with my foot. Then I zipped over to Sakura, who had fallen over in her attempts to get free and used my chakra-razor to slice the wires open.
Then Sasuke stood up and threw a Kunai at me. I responded with chakra threads pulling him into a punch to his face before I rapidly turned him around and stuck the palm of my hand to his back and whirled him around as a human shield against Hisako and he took a blow from Hisako to his stomach.
Strength Check Success: 7/6.
Agility Check Success: 7/7.
Taijutsu Check Success: 82/45.
Then I ejected the last Uchiha from my palm, sending him barreling into my teammates and turned to Sakura.
"Let's move," I said and we booked it back in the direction.
…So that's what it's like when I start using actual strategy. Huh. I need to do that more often. This is actually turning out to be fun!
I turned around, sliding backwards and slammed my palm on the ground for an instant, sending another line of flash-bangs down behind me and turned back around.
The platform was in sight. We had the balls. I can already taste that beautiful, beautiful EXP. Only 5095 until I reach level 17 and then however much it takes to level 18 and I get to ability to use Water Chakra. Then I work on creating the most nutritious drink I possible can so I restore upwards of 500 HP per gulp and…hah, no more almost dying.
Because, actually? As much as I don't care about getting hurt…getting hurt still sucks. Staying hurt is even worse.
Perception Check Failed: 8/9.
Agility Check Success: 7/7.
Of course, they trapped the area around the platform. I hit a trip wire but thankfully dodged the paint glob of paint that was soaring towards me. It missed Sakura completely. Whatever, it's an easy thing to just jump over all the…ah, no.
A fence popped out of the ground, surrounding the platform and even gained a roof.
Okay, how? Nichiren's good, but…he made a fence? Out of what looked like metal staffs and ninja wire. With a lid! I…alright, time to obliterate all his hard work.
Mjolnir.
The ball of lightning impacted the cage, knocking it down and into several pieces that were warped and charred black, still cackling with the lightning used to destroy it.
Then ninja-wire wrapped themselves around my ankles and yanked me down. Sadly, I didn't have enough chakra to stick to the ground since I just lightning balled it and the balls on my arm came off.
This was Nichiren's work. I turned on my back and saw that the wires were actually leading underground. I bent forward and with my newly regenerated chakra sliced the wires off and…saw that Naruto had…gathered the balls already…and was standing on the platform with a happy look on his face.
….what…
But…
Quest Failed: Training Exercise: Capture the Flag.
I…you…but…wha?
"We win!" Naruto shouted, throwing his hands in the air, letting the balls drop to the ground. "That was awesome! We need to do that again!"
Butbutbutbut…
My eye was twitching as I processed the fact that I got no EXP. Nothing. No…anything.
But…I…
I sat down, blinking rapidly as I tried to process this latest development.
This...I…buh…
"…Daisuke, are you okay?" Nichiren asked, having emerged from the ground.
How did this go wrong?
Sakura and I grabbed the Yellow ball, went back to check on ours…found the other two teams arguing…Naruto and Nichiren had already grabbed the Red ball…so we just took that and ran. Then Sasuke and Hisako caught up to us, we dealt with them…Nichiren and Naruto had apparently run ahead of us since they were waiting for us here and…
"I think I've just lost a competition for the first time in my life," I said with a frown. "I…don't…give me a minute."
"You guys won?" Hisako looked surprised. "Congratulations."
"Thank you, Hisako-chan!" Naruto beamed brightly.
Sasuke just gave a quiet nod of acknowledgement.
"Okay," I stood up and said with a hollow acknowledgement. "Naruto and Nichiren are the winners. Now, we evaluate each other based on how each of us did in our eyes…talk about our strengths first, then our weaknesses."
"I'll start," I took a breath. The 'compliment first, then the criticism' was something I had learned from my previous life and it's stuck with me very strongly even to now. "Sakura, you are clearly a highly intelligent girl. You're really good at thinking on your feet and you have a great deal of common sense. Your chakra control is excellent and your ability to learn is similarly up there."
"Th-thank you, Senpai," Sakura said, looking flattered.
"That said, I did notice your physical conditioning is lacking. You were out of breath several times as we ran around looking for the balls and your chakra reserves are similarly lacking. From that, I can deduce that your Taijutsu is similarly sub-par. I'd work hard on remedying that," I continued, keeping my expression neutral. "Fixing those flaws should be your main priority. Once you do, in combination with your smarts and excellent chakra control, you'll be ready to be a Shinobi."
"Yes, Senpai," She gave a respectful bow. "Thank you."
"Alright…Naruto," I turned to him. "You have anything you have to add?"
"I…me?" Naruto blinked.
"Yes, you," I replied. "This is a study group, we're all supposed to help each other learn."
"Oh, uh…" Naruto started. "Well, you don't have any paint on you, so you were smart enough to avoid the traps and convinced Daisuke, right?"
"No, Daisuke-senpai fell for one," Sakura's eye twitched just a bit. "We just didn't go into any of the others."
"Oh," Naruto said. "Well, you still helped keep Daisuke's tunnel vision in check. That's something."
He seemed hesitant to say anything else.
"Anything she could do to improve?" I pressed.
"Well, I noticed she didn't really try to do much of the actual fighting," Naruto shrugged but looking nervous. "Maybe it's because her Taijutsu isn't that good, but she should still at least try."
"Thank you, Naruto-kun," Sakura said respectfully.
"Sasuke? Anything?" I asked, not really hoping for anything much.
The Uchiha simply shrugged. "There isn't anything that hasn't already been said. She's smart but she's got no real ability in combat herself. Fix that, and she'll be a serviceable ninja."
"Thank you, Sasuke-kun," Sakura smiled a bowed deeply.
Sasuke's only response was too grunt in…was that annoyance? I think that was annoyance.
"Alright, uh…Nichiren, how would you say Naruto did?" I asked.
"I was surprised, actually," Nichiren said with a smile. "Naruto, you actually have a great head for traps and had some great ideas. Honestly, you were a joy to work with. The only thing I'd really suggest is that you learn the tree-walking jutsu so you can save time on set up instead of climbing up the old-fashioned way. But…yeah. I had no complaints."
Naruto was smiling wide. "You too, Nichiren-senpai!"
Naruto was using the Senpai-honorific. What have I done?
"Sakura, anything to add?" I asked her.
"I guess this goes for both of you, but your traps were really involved and very well constructed," Sakura replied, looking up in thought. "The use of decoys was actually really smart and I thought that trapping the central area was an amazing idea…it's why we lost, actually…I don't really have anything negative to say, actually."
"Sasuke?" I asked.
He shrugged. "Good use of traps. Still overly loud."
Naruto frowned and crossed his arms, but he let it go without so much as a grunt.
"Alright, Hisako? How'd Sasuke do?" I kept the ball rolling.
"Well…he's definitely a prodigy. Great Taijutsu and Ninjutsu…you know that Fireball he throws around is a C-rank jutsu? He's pretty good. Also, he's a very practical student, very straightforward, which I appreciate," Hisako nodded with a frown. "Buuuut…he's difficult to work with. I got the sense he resents being put on teams, which is a good way to get himself, and the people around him, killed. Get over that little hurdle, and you'll be perfectly fine."
Sasuke blinked and took a breath. "I…see. Thank you, Senpai."
I gestured to Naruto.
"He…" Naruto struggled to find something to say. Then he sighed. "He's…about as good at everything you can be. But he's definitely hard to work with!"
"Sakura, anything to add?" I asked before she could jump on Naruto.
See, I'm learning!
"He's the best shinobi in our class and that was on full display today," Sakura gushed. I rolled my eyes. "His Taijutsu was great, his jutsu was great and he was just incredible!"
"So, what could he do to improve?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Uhhhh…." Sakura was brought to a halt. "Well…he, uh…could work on his Ninja-wire. I mean, he got me so it's not like he needs to improve that much but he missed you by a mile so…"
I sighed. "Alright, good enough. Okay, here's part two. Sasuke? How did Hisako do as a partner?"
Hisako looked surprised.
Sasuke actually blinked. "Senpai?"
"This is a study group, not a class room," I explained with a frown. "No one's exempt from evaluation here. How did Hisako do?"
"She…did pretty well," Sasuke said, seeming unsure. "Senpai's Genjutsu was fascinating to watch when placed on Nichiren and Naruto and she's very skilled at Taijutsu. The only criticism I would raise…is that she didn't expect you to completely negate her Genjutsu during the exercise. But from what I saw…that's not much of a complaint."
I nodded. "Nichiren?"
"Her Genjutsu is as good as ever," Nichiren nodded. "If I didn't know to expect it, I would've been caught. Easily. Her Taijutsu is still great. The only critique I'd have is that I think she should start using her senbon and shuriken more. They're good tools to use."
"Thanks, Nichiren," Hisako nodded.
"You've improved in your Taijutsu," I said to her and she gave me her full attention, placing a hand on her hip. "You're still as dedicated to improving yourself as ever and I think you've made good use of Genjutsu this time…even if I negated it."
She hummed to herself. "…thank you, Daisuke."
"So, Naruto," I turned to one of my best friends in the whole world. "How'd Nichiren do?"
"He's awesome!" Naruto gushed, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "I don't think I've learned so much about traps before in my life! I got so many ideas now! Seriously, I was mad when we got put together, but now I couldn't be happier!"
I smirked on the inside. "Anything he could do to improve…"
"Well…" Naruto looked reluctant now. "He…could try to let me do more. I know it was because I don't know the tree-walking jutsu, but…it felt like he did a lot of the work."
"I could work on that," Nichiren nodded to himself. "Thanks."
"Hisako?" I motioned.
"I hate your traps," Hisako shook her head in disgust, causing Nichiren to start laughing. "Utterly despise them. I mean, I didn't fall into any of the big ones…those were meant for Daisuke, weren't they?"
"Yup," Nichiren nodded with a cheeky grin.
I could've slapped him. I mean, I didn't, but I could've.
"But the small ones seemed to be everywhere," Hisako breathed. "So…yeah. Great work. I'll have to work on spotting them before next time. I don't have any criticism."
"Same note on your traps," I said. "And yeah, I couldn't resist the first big one to see if I could do it, but…come on, my tunnel vision isn't that bad."
"Yes it is," Nichiren, Hisako, Naruto and Sakura all said at the same time.
"Fine," I grumbled. "Also, I thought that hiding your ball outside the training ground to be ingenious."
"He hid his ball outside the training ground?" Sasuke asked, blinking.
"There's no rule to say we couldn't," Nichiren replied with a sing-song voice, and Naruto grinned hugely again.
I inhaled sharply. Here it comes… "So, uh…no criticism so…Sakura. How'd I do?"
"Well," Sakura took a breath. "Your Taijutsu is nothing short of incredible and the lightning jutsu you threw at the end was awesome. Oh, and the chakra strings were amazing. The way you could just snatch the decoy balls out of the traps like it was nothing was cool to watch."
"You used chakra strings to get the decoys out of their spots," Nichiren said flatly. "Right. I forgot you could use those."
"What are chakra-strings?" Naruto asked.
I demonstrated, pulling the yellow ball right to my hand.
"What," Naruto's mouth was agape.
"Yeah," I nodded. "Anyway, Sakura…continue."
"But…you needed me to tell you to use decoys for your storage scrolls idea," Sakura said with a frown. "You went into a nest of traps for no other reason than because you wanted too when you really didn't need too and…didn't take this as seriously as I think maybe you should've. I…found myself questioning your intelligence several times during this exercise."
Ouch. I have 10 Intelligence, yet I made someone question it? What am I, a filthy casual?
…well, I was always a filthy casual, so there.
"Alright," I nodded slowly. "I can work on how seriously I take things…and my general approach to strategy…and using my head in general."
"Th-thank you, Senpai," Sakura said. "I'm not…trying to be disrespectful but…you did ask."
"I did," I nodded. "So, Nichiren…thoughts?"
"So you clearly learned your lesson to some degree," Nichiren nodded. "You only went into one trap instead of every one you could find. That's fantastic. I'll be really happy though, if we could end up spending the whole mission together as a team instead of getting split up. I know it's not always entirely your fault, but it feels like you don't try as hard as you can to stick with us."
Well yes. You're twelve and I don't want you getting mauled. That doesn't mean you aren't trained though and I need to respect that…even if it goes against all of my internal sensibilities. "Alright. I will try harder to keep the team together on our next mission that goes horrifically wrong."
"That's about all I can ask for, I guess," Nichiren shrugged.
"So…your Genjutsu defense," Hisako started. "Amazing work, by the way, but…how does it work?"
"It's a seal that absorbs foreign chakra into my own network," I explained flatly. "It's always on, to boot."
"Alright," Hisako nodded. "Yeah, I wasn't expecting it because…well, your tunnel vision. You don't seem to understand when you need to change something and I was actually pretty happy when I found out you learned something important. So…keep learning."
"I'll do my best," I said with a small smile. I really will. "…I think that's it…when do we want to meet up again?"
I was desperately trying to avoid punching something. I just lost exp and now that I finished the business at hand, I was going insane.
I JUST LOST PRECIOUS EXPERIENCE POINTS AND THERE'LL BE-
"Can we meet tomorrow?" Sakura asked. "I'd really like help in getting better at Taijutsu as fast as possible."
"Does that work for everyone?" I asked, flexing and unflexing my toes to remove tension. There were nods around the training ground. "Sweet. Anyway, I gotta go. There's someone, with something and…see yah."
Shunshin!
I made it back to my apartment and slammed the door behind me.
Why? How did I…no, I know how I lost. Nichiren and Naruto were cleverer than I was. That…gah! It's freaking unfair! We're ninja, unfair's our default setting. I don't care! It's doesn't matter. Yes it does! I lost EXP and I don't know how the 'Training Exercises as Radiant' quests work, so I might've screwed the pooch on it and it'll be a while before our next one-
-I just left another hole in the wall-
-and then the Hokage's 'mission-ban' will have run-out and the main point of sticking it to the Hokage will have been for not! Seriously, screw that old man!
I…grrrrr…
I leaped out of the window and started walking. Some fresh air might clear my head.
I freaking swear, if I don't get another quest before I can do missions again, I'll never be able to look at the Hokage's smug face ever again, I thought, hands in my pockets as I wandered the streets. Who cares if they think I'm self-destructive? And even if they're right, which they're not, I would only be that way because my charisma's low and all my attempts to fix it keep getting blocked by upper management and my own stupidity!
My wanderings took me to a store. I looked around and…oh, it's a music store. Huh.
You know, in my old life, I was entirely unable to function without the dulcet tones of Kamelot or Breaking Benjamin in my ears…. some of my more musically intelligent peers scoffed at my choice of music as low quality, but eh. I like what I like.
You know, I could really use some music right now. I'll get a guitar, pass an Intelligence check and an Agility check and fill my apartment with the sound of music. So, I bought a guitar with the obscene amount of money I had, a manual to actually learn how to play just in case and dashed off to my apartment.
Reading the manual was simple enough. Cords, finger position, etc. Then I got ready to play aaaand…I strummed the strings…and…nothing.
No check? No agility check for finger placement? No Int check to automatically know how to play?
I…really?
Buuuut…the cypher…well, we had a rudimentary education in decoding things in the academy so I already had an idea of what I was doing.
Well, this sucks. I actually have to know how to play a guitar on a meta level, apparently.
I placed the guitar on the floor and stood up, wandering to the ceiling.
This day is just full of disappointments.
Whatever. Not being able to play the guitar doesn't bother me.
It doesn't bother me.
It doesn't bother me.
It bothers me.
It bothers me a lot.
I begrudgingly went back to the guitar and started…the long…arduous task of learning an instrument.
"Well, the good news is that he isn't suicidal," Inoichi told the Hokage and Kakashi, with a psyche report compiled by Daisuke's minders. "The bad news is he's self-destructive because he has no concept of negative consequences from his behavior."
Kakashi breathed a sigh of relieve.
"Thank you, Inoichi-san," The Hokage puffed his pipe. "This is one issue where I'm happy I was wrong."
"Honestly, if you want to ensure he develops some common sense," Inoichi continued. "I would attach some negative consequences to his mistakes like you have done, Hokage-sama. Just make sure you don't overdo it and give him some positive reinforcement soon afterwards so he understands that you aren't the enemy."
"I see," The Hokage replied. "Is there anything else?"
"No, Hokage-sama," Inoichi replied.
"Dismissed," The Hokage said and the Yamanaka Patriarch left.
"Hokage-sama, about the amulet," Kakashi said, gesturing to the trinket placed on the Hokage's desk.
"Curious thing…you say his appearance improved immediately?" The Hokage asked with a frown.
"Yes, he said he applied a seal to it," Kakashi glared at it. "He…lied."
"That he did," The Hokage sighed heavily. "I'm afraid this might be something his bloodline does that he was less than truthful to make it easier to swallow…something I wish he would stop doing."
"So if it's something to do with his bloodline, should we allow him to wear the amulet then?" Kakashi asked with a frown. "It's not an artificial enhancement like we were led to believe."
"I'm inclined to say no simply to penalize his dishonesty," The Hokage replied. "But, let me ask you. What do the clans see in Daisuke?"
"They see a potentially powerful ally," Kakashi replied.
"Now…with any powerful ally comes things…you wine them and dine them. You give them favors, make deals in secret and try to use them to increase your own influence," The Hokage explained. "You know this, of course. But, see, it hasn't happened with Daisuke. The clans haven't done anything of the sort, save the Akimichi, who invited everyone to their celebration, including Daisuke. That's hardly a move to 'claim influence'. Do you know why this is?"
"He's socially dead," Kakashi replied.
"Exactly," Hiruzen replied. "The clans are at a stalemate. They all want him as an ally, but they also understand that subtlety is wasted on him. If they try anything to overt, the other clans could rally against them…best case scenario, they all start acting like bratty children that need the Hokage's switch. Absolute worst case, it destroys Konoha in civil war."
"So…having him socially dead is…good for Konoha?" Kakashi blinked.
"It would seem that way," The Hokage nodded. "Terrible for him and his mental health, but a socially conscious Daisuke with no sense of consequence from bad behavior could wreak havoc on Konoha. So…Kakashi, he is your student, what do you think we should do?"
Kakashi internally sighed. "I…I don't know. I do know that he's going to fix his social issue eventually with a power spike. Apparently, it's huge…both from how he described it and that he almost looks giddy with anticipation whenever he talks about it. But he also has no concept of negative consequences, like you have said…so, I would say we use the time between now and that power spike to drill in that sense 'don't do this' into his head."
"Completing missions brings him closer to those power spikes," The Hokage puffed his pipe. "By denying him missions, we not only punish his poor behavior, but we give ourselves more time to drill it out of him. This…this is a good plan. Do we know how close he is to the big one?"
"No, Hokage-sama," Kakashi replied.
"Hmmmm…once his furlough is over, I'll summon him to my office and we can discuss it in greater detail," The Hokage replied, putting more herbs in his pipe before lighting it again. "I think we should be there when it happens."
L’AVIS DES CRÉATEURS 
Leylin_Farlier
Leylin_Farlier The Previous was a Fanbased Work of Fiction, written by Fulcon. Naruto is owned by Shueisha, Viz Entertainment and Masashi Kishimoto. Please support the Official Release.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone