Another Take (A Naruto Fanfiction) (Complete)

Ch. 27: Break Me Down

"Your protegee?" I questioned in bewilderment. Then I sighed, and rolled my eyes. "That's the meaning of the words Lord Third told me to tell you."

"Yes," Ryuuko nodded. "So you're going to learn how to be a spy. I'm not called the Illusionist for nothing."

I grinned. "Well, that's unique, and sounds very interesting. Count me in!"

"You never had a choice, but I'm glad you're interested."

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I'd been training under Ryuuko for four days, and was currently exhausted. See, he hadn't actually taught me any skills, and instead was focusing on conditioning my body. Very tiring, but I know how much it helps.

"Take a break," Ryuuko said gruffly as I finished another set of fifty sit-ups. "You're panting like a dog. Oh, excuse me, wolf."

"Shut... Up..." I panted, laying flat on my back on the rocky ground. That was the fourth set I've done this morning, which equaled a grand total of two hundred sit-ups. My body was yelling at me for what I was making it do, and Ryuuko had explicitly told me that I couldn't use Yasei to make it easier.

"Here," The old man said, handing me a canteen. I grabbed it eagerly, and downed a mouthful of cold water.

"If you're done..." Ryuuko said, watching me drink in amusement. "I think it's about time we get training. For real, this time."

I jumped to my feet, exhaustion all but forgotten. "Awesome. What's first?"

"To fight a Steel user, you must first know the metal's weaknesses. What do you think those are?"

I thought about it. "... Water will rust it, given time. Fire can melt it, but it's gotta be hot enough. And steel kind of conducts electricity."

"Good. Meaning which chakra elements will be effective?"

I sighed. Didn't I just say this? "Water, Fire, and Lightning."

"Two of which are your chakra elements," Ryuuko said. "So I will teach you some attacks with those elements. Which do you already know?"

"For Lightning, Electromagnetic Murder, Depth Charge, and Spider Web. And for Water, Wild Water Wave," I replied briskly.

Ryuuko nodded, deep in thought. "Okay... So it seems you prefer Lightning Style over Water Style. So I will mostly focus on Water, with little time for Lightning. You need to be able to use both with relative ease."

I shrugged, not really caring. I just wanted the ability to at least give Kaizen a good fight. "That's fine. Let's get started."

"Alright. First up- This move." Ryuuko formed four hand seals at a rate that I wasn't able to follow. "Water Style: Water Beast."

Water rose from the nearby stream, and formed into a graceful snake-like creature. The snake slithered along the ground, coming to a stop at Ryuuko's feet. The orange-haired man reached down and placed his hand atop the snake's head, then released the jutsu. The snake dissipated into a puddle of water.

Ryuuko turned to look at me "Like that. Think you can try?"

I shook my head. "I'd love to, but I couldn't see the hand seals you used."

"Ah," Ryuuko nodded. "That was my mistake. The order is Dog, Horse, Monkey, Ram."

I nodded, and practiced doing the seals. "Got it. Also, does it have to be a snake? They aren't my favorite creatures in the world."

Ryuuko chuckled, a strange sound that was a bit raspy. "Afraid of them?"

I shook my head. "No, I just dislike them. So I'd much rather use a different animal."