Chapter 47
Why? Why did he decide to learn the water nature chakra release? He had no business learning something new. And yet here he was, submerged under the river running through Konoha. Letting the pressure and the current smash into his body.
He had no idea how long he was here; all he knew was that he was going to be here until his lungs couldn't take it anymore. He never tested it, but he knew he could last for a long time. Hours in a desperate situation. Chakra was a wonderful thing after all.
Though all of it was because of his withdrawal symptoms, the many headaches, nausea, and agitation he experienced in the past month weren't something he wished on anyone, especially on himself. The bad dreams he couldn't remember and excessive sweating didn't help.
So here he was. Holding his breath, focusing on staying still as the water around him moved. Trying to familiarize himself with water. Its current, pressure, and even its texture as it developed around his body.
Though, so far, it was the coldness he had the hardest time getting used to. Though it didn't help that sometimes the current would hit him so hard, he almost ended up screaming in pain. The muscles and skin that were bashed away could be ignored.
He didn't really need to do this, but he had to do something. His mind just kept wandering to one thing: alcohol. So, he had to keep himself busy. And this training, which in the end probably wouldn't amount to much, was also part of it.
After a while, when he couldn't hold his breath anymore, Iruka burst out of the water. And immediately, standing on the flowing river, he controlled his chakra to create a stream of water that he spat out.
Ninjutsu was all about imagination and control of chakra. As long as he could imagine what he wanted to produce and control his chakra in a way to make it, no ninjutsu was impossible. Well, that also depended on the size of the ninjutsu and his chakra reserves.
Chakra was energy, and even though control could negate quite a bit of the consumption of that energy, without a proper amount, he couldn't create anything. Still, all of that was far away from him. Right now, he was learning from the basics.
That meant he first had to imagine what he wanted to create. Thankfully, water was something he could see, feel, and even taste. So, after getting familiar with it and how the river flowed, he could imitate it quite easily.
But that was pretty much all he could do right now. Create a small stream of water. It was going to be a slow and long process. Well, he had the time right now, so he couldn't complain. And it was better than doing nothing. It distracted him from the things his body craved.
After exhausting his chakra, it was time for physical training. Though he wouldn't say he had much energy. And it did put his body through quite a bit of exercise just to stay under the water. But that wasn't enough. Nothing was enough.
However, he would call it more physical torture than anything else at this point. Might Guy didn't know the meaning of moderation. And even though he only trained with that training madman once a week, it was enough.
Enough to make him regret it for another week as his body cried in desperation. It was supposed to be a spar to hone his taijutsu, but it always turned into twelve hours straight of repetition and being beaten up. But damn, it was effective training, and it did take his mind away from other things.
Thankfully, today wasn't the day he would be training with him. Today, he was focusing on his stamina. Well, that's the most he did, as it took everything from him to keep up with Might Guy. Though he knew it wouldn't end that simply, as his two little monsters would join him.
…
He hated training. As his body screamed in fatigue, his sweaty skin was flushed with exertion. He used the last bit of his energy to take off his weights, as he once again questioned why he was doing this.
"Master, are we done?" Sai and Shin looked down on him.
Those two little monsters were also exhausted, but they didn't know any limits. Damn prodigies, he hated how their minds just worked that way, allowing them to train like this without question. It was natural for them.
"Rest is also important," Iruka replied through heavy breathing as he felt his lungs burn. "Just leave me here for a day or two; I should find my way home by then."
Why was he so damn prideful and spiteful? He could have ended his training an hour ago, and then his legs wouldn't feel like jelly. But no, he just couldn't lose to those two kids and had to up the ante. He hated himself the most at the moment, as he didn't even try to stand up.
It was simply not possible. His muscles hadn't yet even regrown to what they used to be, and he already was pushing himself further than he ever did. Once again, an unimaginable thirst appeared inside him. It would feel good to have a drink or two at the moment. Just to relax and put his mind at ease.
Damn, he hated how his mind was so damn weak. He hated so many things about himself. But he was who he was, and all he could do was try to improve himself. Nobody was going to do that for him.
"From now on, we will focus on meditation to strengthen our minds." But there were limits to what Iruka could endure.
He had to change his training before his body completely broke. Of course, he couldn't just admit defeat, not before these two. So, he made up so much bullshit. Sitting around for a couple of hours doing nothing was better than whatever he was doing to himself right now.
Using the little chakra he had to spit a blob of water on himself, Iruka finally found some energy to stand up, though his legs protested loudly. Still, he refused to acknowledge his shaking legs as they returned home.
...
Home. This house had become his home. It was weird. Every month, he still expected that damn landlord of his to come demand the rent. That damn old man got a lot of money from the insurance he had on the apartment Iruka blew up, making Iruka even more irritated.
But now he had his own place. In this economy, it wasn't something he expected to have so soon. And with those two monsters, it was never lonely or quiet. He even set up his workshop in the basement, something he had always wished to do.
He created so many poisons, both new and his own creations, and from old recipes half a century old. What he didn't expect the most was that he was happy here. Every time he returned here, he felt warm and relaxed.
So, he was quick to notice when something wasn't right with the place. Even a speck of dust not in its place told Iruka everything he needed to know: he had a guest. And not one he had invited. He really wished that people just didn't come to his home as they pleased.
"Even if you are the Hyuga clan head, I won't be entertaining you, Hiashi." Iruka turned his eyes to the shadow from which a man walked out. "What brings you here? It isn't something you usually do, breaking in, or am I mistaken?"
"I thought it would be better if our meeting wasn't known to others, so I walked in by myself. I apologize for the intrusion."
"Let me guess, it is about Neji." Iruka could guess it, as there wasn't really anything else the Hyuga would want from him. "It is your right to stop me from training him. And so far I have just taught theory to him, so I hope I did no harm, and you won't try to complain about it, right?"
Even though Iruka said so, he couldn't give any less of a shit about what the Hyuga wanted. If he wanted to train Neji and thought he could teach him well, Iruka would do it even if the Hokage himself told him not to. He would only have to do it in a more secretive way.
"No, Hizashi might have a different opinion, as he is worried about too many things, but I have something else in mind." Hiashi took out a scroll from his sleeve and handed it to Iruka. "This technique is forbidden to be taught to the branch family. But there isn't a rule that they can't learn it by themselves or be taught by people outside the clan."
"Are you not worried about your daughter's position?" Iruka asked, quite surprised by Hiashi's actions.
"I have to be cold. I have to think of the clan first before my own family," Hiashi replied. "But she is just a girl who lost her mother too soon. A girl who doesn't have any friends. If she can live a normal life, even for a moment, I wouldn't mind it. And I have no intention of passing my position to anyone else. For I know what one can and will lose taking it."
"Eight Trigrams Palm Rotation." Iruka looked at the scroll after Hiashi started rambling on. "Passing around something like this can be dangerous. For you and me both."
"I have never been here, and I have no idea how you got your hands on it." Hiashi only smiled at Iruka's concern. "No, I don't even know that you have it."
"Sure." Iruka had no reason to refuse it.
"Oh, don't be too hard on Hinata, or I will kill you."
Yeah, the Hyuga clan was crazy. Especially those two twins. Well, it had nothing to do with him. He was just a teacher, and he was just going to do his job. Though he had to admit it, he didn't want to mess with Hiashi. Iruka still remembered what he got for stopping him from killing that Kumo shinobi.
Looking at the technique on the scroll, Iruka couldn't help but lick his lips. Absolute defense. It was a taijutsu that people would kill to get their hands on. Iruka wasn't any different. But he knew he would never be able to master it, and without mastering it, it wasn't anything special.
But just reading through the technique and what it could do gave Iruka a lot of ideas. Well, he would have to learn it to some extent to teach it to Neji. So, he had better get to work. Neji was getting impatient with reading through the textbooks he prepared for him.
Well, it was time to up the ante. But not only for Neji. There was plenty of time, and yet not enough. Never enough. His students were progressing well; somehow, even without him pushing them, they were doing better than he expected.
And even though his worry was still there, he now fully believed that when the time came, they would be prepared. But there were a few things they still needed to learn from him. Something that they wouldn't be able to do by themselves.
And there were things he should do by himself first. Something that he feared. But now, he believed it to be possible. Because he had two little monsters by his side, and another who soon would become even more of a prodigy. Something that a label wouldn't be able to explain.
For Sasuke's good and for himself, Iruka would kill Orochimaru. Not just out of revenge and pure hatred, but because now he realized that he would never be able to confront those dreams if he didn't face the reason for them.
Danzo was dead; the Root was gone. Now, it was time to focus on something else. And Orochimaru would get his full focus. Knowing what would come next, and not being able to tell anyone, had eaten him from the inside. But that now changed.
Iruka no longer needed to tell anyone about it to do something about it. Getting down to his workshop, Iruka started working. As much as he wanted to drink, he found himself being able to focus more on his work when he tried to ignore his cravings.
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to seven chapters in advance, you can support me on . com \ ironwolf852.