The Wolf Inside - A Naruto Fanfic - Watty Award Winner 2013

Chapter 76

Before you begin reading, I just wanted to mention this. I do apologise for the time skipping in these chapters, I just figure we don't need to see every single second of Ashley's training. I think it'd be pretty boring to read, so I'm giving snippets of it instead.

Ashley's POV

I close one eye and turn my head, leaping to the side, as another explosion rips through the ground, right where I had just been standing. As per usual though, I ignore the detonating bomb and focus chakra into my right foot as soon as it hits the ground, before bending my knee and immediately jumping backwards.

I let out a short breath as I narrowly manage to avoid another exploding bomb, the ground crumbling away as flames and debris fly straight up into the air in front of me. I land with both feet on the ground this time, hurriedly focusing chakra into both feet, before I manage to dodge to the side, managing to evade yet another explosion.

From a short distance away, I see Kyoku watching me carefully, her half-lidded eyes mostly focusing on my feet.

Since I had managed to complete the training on the lake about three weeks earlier, Kyoku had me switch over to this training instead. I had initially been thrilled to not have to train with her bombs anymore, but apparently Kyoku had other ideas.

Instead of now just focusing my chakra properly, Kyoku also wanted me to learn to focus it fast. For this training, Kyoku would bury bombs just beneath the surface of the ground. Any amount of pressure would set them off, and so I guess Kyoku figured having me stand on them and try to avoid the blast would soon get me to learn how to quickly focus my chakra into my feet.

She had explained that if I wanted to be able to move fast whilst in combat, I'd not only need to learn to use my chakra intricately, yet sparingly, but I'd also need to learn how to do those things under pressure.

In theory, it all sounded great, but in reality.......I'd already had four hospital trips because of this training. It seems as though Kyoku has used bombs that aren't strong enough to kill me or even blow my limbs off, but from experience, I can be assured, they hurt.

My legs tremble as leap around the training grounds, my heart in my throat with every explosion that I barely manage to evade. The soles of my feet burn, whether from chakra or from fire, I'm not sure. Blood and sweat drip down my legs, the skin red raw in some areas.

"You're getting better at this" I hear a voice say, directly behind me. My neck wrenches around at the unexpected sound of the voice, before I am viciously jabbed in the back.

A sharp choking sound escapes my mouth, as I am thrown forwards from the hit, crashing into the ground and rolling onto my side. Before I can even climb to my feet however, the bombs below me detonate, a thunderous boom sounding right in my ear, before I find myself being blasted up into the air.

I grit my teeth and suck in a pained breath, my eyes squeezing closed. The side of my face stings, as if someone has poured acid on it, while my shoulder and ribs throb excruciatingly. Knowing that Kyoku will not show me any mercy despite my suffering, I somehow manage to right myself in mid air and land back on the ground in a crouched position.

Having landed outside of the marked boundary, I stay crouched down, finding myself swaying backwards and forwards, my ears still ringing from the explosion so close to my head.

Raising one hand to rub at my ear, I look up as Kyoku approaches me, breathing heavily.

"Why did you attack me?" I ask, somewhat accusingly. "I was doing what you asked me to."