Shinobi Isekai: Round Three

Runs in the Family

Beni pushed her hair up and out of her face, the sweat soaked curls now just long enough to be a nuisance. More than two years after she'd cut her hair using chakra borrowed from Choumei, gravity finally asserting itself on the golden coils. She was a little disappointed about that, since she liked the way her reflection in the turtle pool looked sort of like a Catholic fresco, her hair a glowing halo around an indistinct face. She still wasn't quite sure what she looked like, but she found she was surprisingly ok with that. After a lifetime scrutinizing her face and finding it lacking in the most gut wrenching of ways, the years she'd spent without a reflective surface had really helped her self-esteem.

"You're very good with that," Roshi said with a smile, gesturing to the Nyoi Bo in her hands with a jerk of his chin. "Where'd you learn?"

She twirled the heavy staff absently, smiling despite the ache in her arms. "A monkey taught me."

His expression went blank for a second before realization dawned across his face. She laughed, using the magic stick to support her weight as she sank to the ground, her limbs twitching from exertion. Today marked the third time Roshi had joined her for her morning practice, the older jinchuriki coaching her through a spar. In her past life, she was never more active than the public school curriculum demanded, her gym class the only time she exercised, ever. She wasn't in bad shape, but she wasn't particularly fit, either. Now, though, she was buff. A weird term to describe a child, but it was true. She liked looking at the way her biceps moved as she used her staff, liked being able to carry heavy things without help, liked waking up early to work out.

Ewwww~.

"Are you serious? He taught you?"

She nodded, smirking up at him as he continued to stand there, gobsmacked. She knew from Choumei that he hadn't yet managed to have a proper conversation with Son Goku, though he had tried. Both man and beast had rather...abrasive personalities, on the surface, anyway. The similarities between their bristly exteriors and warm, possessive interiors had Beni wondering just how much a bijuu influenced a jinchuriki's personality. How much had Choumei affected her in their two years together?

Not much.

Uh-huh. Right. Because she could totally trust the one doing the affecting.

Hey! If you ask me, all the changes have been for the better.

Oh, so there were changes?

Hmph.

Roshi looked like he wanted to ask questions, but Sakumo was sitting on the wall, watching them with dark eyes. She was fine with that, since it wasn't like she had any secret techniques for him to steal, but it did make talking to Roshi harder than necessary. There were a lot of things left unsaid between them after she woke up to find two out of three Konoha shinobi gone and the beetle shaped beans spilled. She was glad that Sakumo didn't know. Konoha was already trying to use her, it would only get worse if they thought they could get their hands on another jinchuriki without having to steal it. Still, she wanted to talk to Roshi about it.

"Having fun up there?"

Roshi had also turned his attention to their audience, his words and expression unfriendly.

Sakumo had a surprisingly thick skin. Maybe it was because she knew how he was supposed to die, but she expected him to be more sensitive. Roshi called him all sorts of names, sometimes bordering on cruel, but he never reacted. With a sad sigh, she realized the words of a stranger from an enemy nation wouldn't hurt nearly as much as friends from his own village.

"Certainly," the White Fang said with false cheer. "It's always fun watching someone else work up a sweat."

Heh. He was right about that.