Iruka said "Begin" and I realized I had no idea what I was doing.
Like, seriously. I'd spent six years training chakra control, expanding my pathways, learning jutsu in theory. But actual fighting? Throwing hands? I'd never punched anyone in two lifetimes. The closest I'd come was throwing a block at a kid who stole my toy in the orphanage when I was four, and that was less a fight and more me being a little shit.
Sasuke dropped into his stance. Front foot forward, back foot planted, hands up. Intercepting Fist. The kid had been training since he could walk.
I just stood there. Arms loose. Knees bent. Trying to look like I knew what I was doing.
JARVIS. Please tell me we have a plan.
«Analyzing opponent's center of gravity. Loading combat heuristics based on your memories of MMA, Muay Thai, and… Street Fighter V.»
Street Fighter doesn't count!
«your moveset is surprisingly applicable. Directing chakra to your calf muscles for explosive reactivity. Brace yourself.»
I didn't have time to ask what that meant.
Sasuke blurred.
He was fast. Way faster than a six-year-old should be. He closed the gap in two strides, his lead hand snapping out in a jab aimed right at my face.
«Lean 4.2 degrees to the left. Now.»
My body moved. I jerked sideways, and his fist whistled past my ear. Felt like getting hit by a car door I didn't even touch.
He didn't stop. The jab was just a setup. He spun into a low roundhouse kick, aiming for my knee.
«Lift right leg. Pivot on the ball of the foot.»
I hopped. Looked less like a ninja and more like a startled cat trying to avoid a vacuum cleaner. His shin slammed into my calf instead of my knee.
It hurt. A lot. I bit down on a yelp.
"Whoa! Ryū's actually dodging!" Naruto screamed from the sideline. Loud enough that half the class probably lost hearing, Still not as loud as Sakura.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed. He was pissed. I could see it in the way his jaw tightened. He wanted this over in two hits. Probably wanted to show off for his brother or whatever.
He stepped up the pace.
A punch to the chest. I ducked. A kick to the ribs. I twisted. A hook to the jaw. I barely got my arm up in time to block, and my forearm screamed.
JARVIS, I'm gonna hit a wall! I can't keep up with these instructions!
«Switching to thought acceleration. Warning: This will cause significant muscle fatigue. Your body is six years old. It was not designed for this.»
The world slowed down.
Not like the movies. Not slow-motion with dramatic music. It was like my brain was suddenly running on overclocked hardware while my body was stuck on dial-up. I could see Sasuke's muscles tensing before he moved. See his eyes flick to my left side. See the exact arc of his incoming high kick.
Step in. Under the arc. Elbow.
I moved. My body fought me the whole way, muscles screaming, but I moved. I stepped into his kick, ducked under his leg, and slammed my elbow into his solar plexus.
"Oof!"
The air left his lungs in a rush. His eyes went wide. No one had ever hit him clean in the Academy. I could see the shock on his face like I'd just told his brother hated him.
«Counter-attack initiated. Target: Left Jaw. Estimate: 69% success rate.»
I lunged.
It wasn't a ninja strike. It was a desperate, over-extended right hook that would've made any real fighter cringe. Sasuke, even winded, saw it coming from a mile away. He ducked, grabbed my arm, and used my own momentum to trip me.
I hit the dirt hard. Dust in my mouth. Stars in my vision.
"Ryū!" Naruto yelled.
Sasuke dropped his knee toward my chest, trying to pin me. If he got me down, it was over.
«Chakra burst: Right Palm. Release now.»
I slammed my hand against the ground. The same trick I used for wall climbing. A small explosion of chakra shot me sideways, spinning on my back like a breakdancer who'd had too much to drink. My heel caught Sasuke's ankle and swept his support leg.
He went down.
We were both on the ground now. Scrambling like feral cats. Elbows, knees, dirt. It was ugly. Really ugly. But I was still in it.
We stood up at the same time. Covered in dust. Sasuke's lip was bleeding. My shoulder felt like someone had hit it with a hammer.
Sasuke looked at me. Then he charged.
All or nothing. His whole body behind one punch. He pulled his arm back and I could see it, he was over-committing. Too much weight forward. Too much anger.
«Final calculation: He is over-committing. Use 'The Trip.'»
I dropped low as he swung. My foot went behind his heel. My hand pushed his shoulder. Just a little.
Physics was a bitch.
His punch hit empty air. His weight kept going. His heel caught on my foot. And Sasuke Uchiha, prodigy of the Uchiha clan, went face-first into the dirt like a sack of potatoes.
THUD.
Silence.
I stood there gasping, legs shaking so bad I thought I'd collapse. My lungs were on fire. My arms felt like noodles. Every part of me hurt.
"Winner… Ryū," Iruka said. He sounded confused. Like he was watching a cat win a fight with a dog and wasn't sure how to process it.
Iruka stepped between us. "Seal of reconciliation."
Sasuke pushed himself up. Dirt on his face, his lip was bleeding, He held out his hand. I took it.
"Good fight," I said.
He didn't say anything. Just stared at me for a second, then turned and walked back to his seat.
The class exploded.
"HE DID IT! RYŪ BEAT THE UCHIHA!"
Naruto vaulted over the fence, I didn't even know there was a fence, and tackled me in a hug that nearly finished what Sasuke started. I stumbled, barely staying upright.
"THAT WAS AWESOME! YOU WERE ALL LIKE WHOOSH AND HE WAS LIKE AHH! AND THEN YOU WENT BAM AND HE WENT OOF!"
"Naruto. Can't. Breathe."
He let go. Jumped up and down instead. "How'd you do that? You were all dodging and stuff! I thought you were gonna lose for sure!"
"Thanks for the confidence."
"I mean, I believed in you! I just didn't think you'd actually win! You know, because he's an Uchiha and stuff!"
I laughed. It hurt. Everything hurt.
I looked over Naruto's shoulder. Sasuke was sitting in his seat, staring at his hands. Not angry. Just confused. Like he was trying to figure out what just happened.
JARVIS. I think I'm gonna throw up.
«Muscle fatigue at 89%. Lactic acid buildup extreme. Recommendation: Do not move for the next four hours.»
I have to walk home.
«Then I recommend crawling.»
Shut up.
---
What I didn't know was that we had an audience.
The Third Hokage sat in his office, pipe in his mouth, watching the whole thing through his crystal ball. Hiruzen Sarutobi had seen a lot of talented kids in his time. Orochimaru. Tsunade. Jiraiya. Minato. Kakashi.
This one was different, with the sole exception of Sato... I mean Minato namikaze.
No clan. No special bloodline. Just a kid from the orphanage who moved like he'd been fighting for years. Who used chakra in ways that didn't make sense for a six-year-old. Who beat an Uchiha in hand-to-hand combat without throwing a single proper punch.
He took a long drag from his pipe.
"Interesting," he said to the empty room.
---
The rest of the day was a blur.
Iruka spent the rest of class trying to get everyone to calm down. It didn't work. Every time I moved, people stared. Naruto kept whispering to me from the next seat, replaying the fight in his own words, which got more exaggerated every time.
"And then you flipped over him"
"I didn't flip."
"and kicked him in the face"
"I swept his leg."
"and then he went crying to his mom..."
"He doesn't... I guess he has one" I stopped. "Just… stop adding stuff."
"I'm not adding stuff! That's how it happened!"
"It's really not."
By the time the bell rang, I was exhausted. Physically, mentally, emotionally. I just wanted to lie down and not move for a year.
Naruto walked with me to the gate. "Same time tomorrow?"
"Yeah."
He beamed. Ran off down the street, yelling something about ramen.
I watched him go, then started the walk home.
---
The orphanage was quiet when I got back. Nonō was in the kitchen, cleaning up from dinner. I slipped past her, mumbled something about being tired, and collapsed on my futon.
Stared at the ceiling.
I'd actually won. But instead of feeling good about it, all I could think about was how close I came to losing. How slow I was. How weak...
If Sasuke had been a little faster, a little smarter, he would've wrecked me. And Sasuke was six. In a year, he'd have his Sharingan. In a few years, he'd be a monster.
I needed to catch up.
JARVIS. I'm weak.
«You won.»
I barely won. Against a six-year-old. If I didn't have you, I would've been on the ground in the first three seconds.
«That is true.»
You're not supposed to agree with me.
«You asked for honesty.»
I sighed. Rolled onto my back. Looked at the water stain on the ceiling that I'd been staring at for six years.
I need to fix this. My physical stats are garbage. All my training has been chakra and technique. I've got the engine but the frame's falling apart.
«Acknowledged. I will develop a physical conditioning protocol.»
How bad is it gonna be?
«You will not enjoy it.»
That's not an answer.
«You will wake at 4:00 AM. You will train for two hours before the Academy. You will not use chakra to enhance your performance during this training. Your body must develop naturally.»
No chakra?
«If you use chakra to augment your physical abilities, you will not build baseline strength. You will simply mask the weakness. The goal is to eliminate the weakness, not hide it.»
I thought about that. About waking up at 4 AM. About training without the crutch of chakra. About how much it was going to suck.
Do it.
«I will produce a schedule. You will need to leave the orphanage without detection.»
Training Ground 3. It's close. I can be back before Nonō wakes up.
«Training Ground 3. The location of the bell test. Fitting.»
Shut up.
I closed my eyes. Already dreading tomorrow.
«I have prepared the schedule. Would you like to hear it?»
Not really.
«It begins with 5000 push-ups.»
JARVIS, I can't do 5000 push-ups, I'm not Rock lee.
«Not yet. You will work up to it. The initial target is 50.»
That's still a lot.
«You wished to eliminate weakness. Weakness does not go quietly.»
I groaned. Rolled over. Pulled the blanket over my head.
Just… let me sleep first.
«Acknowledged. I will wake you at 3:45 AM.»
I hate you.
«You are welcome.»
---
END CHAPTER 7
---
A/N: Creation is hard, Leave a power stone.
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