"You bastard…"
The vein above Sasuke's brow twitched.
His jaw tightened. He could feel heat rising to his face, not from embarrassment no, definitely not embarrassment but from sheer, bubbling irritation.
"Hateful…" he growled under his breath.
Naruto stood before him grinning like a triumphant fool, hands on his hips and puffed up like a proud rooster.
Sasuke's glare sharpened. "That guy in the dream... what does it even matter? He's not you."
He turned his face away with a stubborn snort.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean it doesn't matter?! That was me in the dream!"
He crossed his arms and raised his chin, trying to look superior. "I was amazing! So it totally counts!"
Sasuke scoffed, "Tch. That 'Naruto' knew way more jutsu than you ever could. I was just caught off guard. If I'd been serious, I wouldn't have lost."
Naruto flinched.
His grin faltered, his comeback stalled on his tongue.
He froze, mid-boast, like a wind-up doll that had suddenly run out of tension.
"…Arrogant jerk," he muttered after a pause.
But even as he tried to sound annoyed, his gaze dropped to the ground, and the light in his eyes dulled.
Sasuke blinked, caught off guard by the change.
Gone was the loud, smiling Naruto. In his place stood a boy who stared at his feet, fists trembling faintly at his sides.
"…Yeah," Naruto murmured, voice barely above a whisper, "I don't know anything at all."
The tone was flat. Hollow.
Sasuke was stunned.
Something about Naruto's voice it wasn't his usual whining or complaining. It was… real.
Naruto took a deep breath, then suddenly thrust out his hand.
Thud!
His palm slapped hard against the bark of the thick tree next to him.
Chakra surged.
There was a faint crackling sound as a few small fissures splintered across the surface of the bark.
The tree trembled once… then stilled.
Only a few shallow lines remained where Naruto's palm had struck.
He pulled back his hand, looked at the pathetic damage, and gave a short, bitter laugh.
"See?" he said quietly. "That's my strength right now."
He lowered his head, voice dull.
"This is the move… the one my dad taught me. But I've only managed to figure out half of it."
He clenched his fists tighter, fingernails digging into his palms.
"In my dreams, I could do so much… but in real life…"
He trailed off.
"…I probably won't ever reach that level again."
Sasuke stood there, frozen.
He didn't know why, but something deep in his chest shifted as he watched Naruto's shoulders sag.
The usual loudmouth idiot was still in front of him but for once, all the noise had stopped.
And all that remained… was honesty.
A kind of honesty Sasuke had never expected to hear from Naruto.
And before he could stop himself… his heart trembled ever so slightly.
It was the first time Sasuke had seen Naruto look this… defeated.
That loneliness in Naruto's expression quiet, heavy, and aching lingered in the air like fog that wouldn't lift.
He suddenly understood.
The feeling of holding something precious in your hands… only to lose it again.
Sasuke had felt that way before. He'd just never thought Naruto of all people could feel the same.
He opened his mouth, hesitated, and then closed it again. The apology caught in his throat, too awkward and unfamiliar.
After a pause, he finally said, voice low, "Hey… that jutsu you were using… is it still missing the last part?"
Naruto blinked, caught off guard.
"Yeah…" he muttered, his tone dull again. "Rasengan. I only managed to figure out the second stage. No matter what I do, I just can't get past it."
He looked down at his palm.
There was still a faint trace of chakra lingering there restless, spinning loosely in the center of his hand.
But no matter how he tried, it wouldn't form a perfect sphere.
Naruto's shoulders slumped again.
He clenched his fist and muttered with quiet bitterness, "It's the technique my dad left for me. But… maybe I'll never be able to finish it on my own."
The silence weighed on all of them.
Sakura looked between the two boys, heart aching. Just as she stepped forward to offer comfort
"Teacher Kakashi!"
She spotted a familiar figure stepping out from the trees nearby and quickly raised her hand, waving.
Naruto and Sasuke turned at the same time.
Sure enough, there he was.
Messy white hair, masked face, hands tucked lazily in his pockets Hatake Kakashi, walking toward them at his usual unhurried pace.
What was unusual was that… he was actually early.
Naruto was the first to shout, "Teacher Kakashi, you're here already?! What happened? Did the sky fall?!"
Even Sasuke, surprisingly, gave a small nod. "You're… not late."
Kakashi blinked. The way the two of them said it in perfect sync made a bead of sweat roll down the side of his head.
"W-Well," he laughed nervously, scratching his cheek with a gloved finger, "the sun felt nice today, so I figured… why not?"
In truth, he had woken up earlier than usual, unsettled by the dream he'd shared with them last night.
He wasn't about to admit that, though.
"Ahem," Kakashi cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject, "Anyway, today's mission schedule is different."
"Huh?" Naruto perked up, hope sparkling in his eyes.
Kakashi smiled under his mask. "There won't be any D-rank missions today."
"Seriously?!" Naruto practically jumped into the air with joy.
"No catching cats? No picking weeds?! No helping old grannies with their groceries?!"
He was practically dancing.
"Awesome! This is the best day ever!"
He rushed up to Kakashi, eyes gleaming. "So? What kind of mission are we doing instead, huh? Is it something super cool? Like, protecting a VIP? Or tracking down a dangerous missing-nin?!"
Kakashi held up a hand.
"Calm down, Naruto. It's not quite like that."
Naruto froze in place, still mid-celebration.
"…Huh?"
Kakashi tilted his head, his single visible eye curving into a mysterious crescent.
"I've decided… we'll be doing a special training today."
"Special training?" Sakura repeated, eyes lighting up.
Even Sasuke's ears perked up slightly.
Kakashi nodded. "That's right. I've seen how you've all been improving lately… especially in unexpected ways."
He glanced subtly at Naruto and Sasuke.
"…So it's time to push a little further. Get ready."
Naruto, though slightly disappointed it wasn't a flashy mission, immediately straightened up.
"If it's training to make me stronger bring it on!"
Kakashi chuckled, amused by the fire in his voice.
"Good," he said, and his tone shifted into something more serious. "Because this time, I won't go easy on any of you."
Sakura blinked at Kakashi in surprise, clearly just as uninterested in another round of boring D-rank chores.
But Kakashi's gaze sharpened a little, and he said with a mysterious smile, "There's no mission today. But… I do plan to teach you something."
"Teach us something?" Naruto repeated, his tone suddenly full of life.
He tilted his head, confused for a moment, before realization hit him and his eyes lit up with joy.
"Wait! You mean… you're finally going to train us? Like, personally?!"
His fists clenched with excitement, and his whole face beamed. "Alright! I knew today felt special! Quick, quick teach me some awesome jutsu!"
Sasuke's interest was also piqued.
He didn't react as loudly as Naruto, but his posture straightened slightly, and his dark eyes gleamed with focus.
As far as he was concerned, anything that made him stronger whether it was flashy or not was worth doing.
He stepped forward silently, watching Kakashi with a look of measured anticipation.
But what Kakashi said next made both Naruto and Sakura freeze mid-breath.
"…Today, I'm going to teach you how to climb trees."
"…Huh?"
Naruto and Sakura exclaimed in perfect unison.
Naruto's mouth hung open.
"…Climb trees? Are you serious?"
His face deflated instantly, and he looked as if someone had popped his balloon of enthusiasm with a kunai.
"I thought you were going to teach me some crazy cool technique, and you're telling me… to climb a tree?! Even kids can do that!"
Sakura tilted her head, equally confused. "Does something like that really count as proper training?"
But Kakashi remained unbothered, a smile tugging at the corner of his mask.
"It's not ordinary tree climbing," he said calmly. "Watch closely."
He took a few casual steps backward until he stood in front of a wide, sturdy tree trunk.
Then, without another word, Kakashi raised one foot and lightly placed it against the bark
And stayed there.
To Naruto's shock, Kakashi's foot stuck firmly to the tree, like it was glued in place.
The next second, Kakashi lifted his other foot both now resting on the vertical trunk and began walking up the tree.
One slow step after another, completely hands-free, like he was strolling across the ground.
"WHOA!" Naruto gasped.
He stared, wide-eyed, as Kakashi strolled casually up the vertical trunk, hands still stuffed in his pockets.
Kakashi didn't stop until he reached a thick branch nearly ten meters above the ground. He paused there, balanced perfectly, and looked down at them as if he were just out for a morning walk.
Sakura, stunned, covered her mouth with both hands.
"This… this is really possible?" she whispered.
Even Sasuke's expression shifted slightly.
This wasn't normal tree climbing. It was something else entirely.
"So that's how it works… using chakra to stick to the tree trunk?" Sasuke muttered, his eyes glinting.
He wasn't as visibly surprised as Naruto or Sakura, but he gave a slight nod of approval.
Kakashi, still balanced on the high branch, looked down and raised his voice to make sure they all heard clearly. "By doing this, you're training your chakra control. If you can master the precise amount of chakra needed to climb, then the accuracy and power of your ninjutsu will also improve dramatically."
"Ohhh! That's what it's for!" Sakura clapped her hands together in realization, nodding with sudden enthusiasm.
Sasuke's eyes sharpened.
That explanation hit directly at his core weakness he'd always relied on raw power, but refining his chakra control was exactly what he needed now.
Without hesitation, he prepared himself for practice.
Kakashi dropped lightly from the tree, landing in front of them again with ease.
Before he could even tell them to start, Sakura eagerly darted toward the tree. "Kakashi-sensei, can I try first?!"
She didn't wait for a reply. Lifting her foot carefully, she stepped toward the bark with cautious precision.
At the same time, Sasuke took position in front of another tree. Silent and composed, he focused all his attention.
In contrast, Naruto stood off to the side with a bored expression, arms loosely folded.
Compared to the exciting techniques he had used in his dream, this kind of basic practice seemed beneath him.
He scowled.
Climbing trees? Seriously?
His mind wandered back to the incredible jutsu he had performed the night before waves of wind release, shadow clone shuriken, even the Rasengan…
Now that was training.
Kakashi caught Naruto's far-off look and the slight pout on his face. He smirked under his mask.
Instead of scolding him, Kakashi waved lazily.
"Oi, Naruto. Come here for a second."
"Huh?" Naruto dragged his feet over reluctantly. "What is it now…"
But Kakashi said nothing. He simply raised his right hand in front of Naruto's eyes and said with a mysterious smile:
"Watch carefully."
In the next instant, swirling blue chakra gathered in Kakashi's palm, spinning faster and faster into a compact, focused sphere.
A Rasengan.