Categories > Anime/Manga > Naruto > Secrets of the Otogan
Chapter Two: The Otogan is released
0 reviewsStill numbed by his touch, I nodded again. Now his fingers gripped my wrist tightly. His lips were twitching into an excited smile, and he said, “But you know not how to control it?” I laughe...
1Exciting
Author’s Note: The Crater of Death is Max’s creation and property.
“Ah, Raidon, you have arrived!” Kakashi called.
“Forgive us…Lexi kept us waiting this morning.”
I caught Sakura smirking behind Kakashi’s back, and I cast a glare in her direction. She shrank back, her eyes shameful.
“No worries, no worries. So, Midori, Zinan and Lexi? Are you three ready for a friendly battle?”
“As friendly as a battle can get.” Midori answered in his deep voice, and Kakashi laughed.
The eight of us passed through the village gates and followed our masters into a clearing just outside the village walls, often used for training.
“Now…who would like to go first?” Kakashi asked, clapping his hands together.
Us six genin hesitated, and then Sasuke stepped forward.
“I challenge Miss Haruno.” He said.
I was taken aback; normally Naruto would be the first to jump up and challenge our toughest looking cell member, namely Midori. Why had Sasuke chosen me?
“Alright, then.” I said, stepping forward with my fists clenched.
Sasuke and I were in the middle of the clearing, facing eachother, reflexes ready.
“The objective of this fight is to pin your opponent to the ground for ten seconds.” Kakashi told us.
“Ready?” Master Raidon asked.
“Yes.” We chimed.
“3…2…1…go!”
Sasuke and I ran towards each other and he grabbed hold of my shoulder, trying to throw me to the ground. I ducked out of his grasp and spun around; I was now behind him. I lunged for him, but instead my arms wood; a substitution jutsu! I dropped the log and spun around; now he was behind me. I thought quickly, and remembered the technique my father had taught me; dragon, rooster, rat.
“Earth Style- Crater of Death!” I cried; I stamped the ground hard with my right foot, and the earth around Sasuke’s feet trembled, then opened; a crater four feet wide and three feet deep. Sasuke cried out as he fell. I ran to the crater and looked down:
“You’re lucky; I was holding back.” I said with a sneer. I jumped into the crater so I could attempt to hold him down for the ten seconds required, but he was too fast; he jumped to his feet and climbed as quickly as a fox out of the crater. I followed him out; we stood on opposite sides of the hole my jutsu had created, concentrating. Sasuke was staring directly into my eyes when I heard it:
“…Sharingan mirror eye.”
The voice was Sasuke’s, but his lips were still fixed firmly in a smirk. But neither did the voice come from my own mind; it came from the sky, the air, and the wind swirling around us. Everyone watching us was completely undisturbed; they had heard nothing. But now Sasuke dropped his smirk; his mouth was now a small, surprised “o”. Then I saw an emotion cross the great, stoic Uchiha Sasuke’s face most unexpectedly; fear. His hands slipped to his sides slowly, and he hesitated.
“I…I forfeit this battle.”
Master Raidon cried out in frustration, but Master Kakashi didn’t move a muscle; he was scarcely breathing.
“I feel I may hurt her.” Sasuke spat, now back to his regular self.
“Ha!” I laughed bitterly, “I may be a girl, but I am a shinobi and I can take anything you have to throw at me.”
But Sasuke turned his head sharply and held up his right hand.
“I refuse to harm a fellow shinobi in something as silly as a training fight.”
“Aw, c’mon, Sasuke, you’re so noble, it makes me sick!” Naruto chattered, “Don’t you wanna win, huh? You don’t have to hurt her! And-”
“Quiet, idiot.” Sakura snapped, smacking Naruto upside the head.
“Sakura, Naruto!” Kakashi said sharply, and they silenced. “Sasuke, you cannot simply ‘forfeit’ a battle in real life.”
“I am aware of this.” He said, that familiar smirk twitching at the corners of his lips.
“Then let’s finish this.” I said, clasping my hands together in excitement.
But Sasuke simply raised his right hand and turned away from me. His hair cast shadows across his eyes. I watched with my mouth open in indignation as he walked off alone into the woods. My insides seethed with anger and I exhaled violently;
“Idiot!” I called.
“Lexi, calm down,” Raidon said, rolling his eyes, “Temper will get you nowhere. If it bothers you so much, follow him and speak to him of this.”
“I will.” I said elegantly, holding my nose in the air and stalking off in the direction Sasuke had just left.
“Such a character…” Kakashi murmured, “Well, who’s next?”
“I challenge Midori!” Naruto cried, “I’m gonna kick your ass, man, believe it!”
The voices grew fainter and fainter the deeper into the forest I walked, until I found Sasuke standing with his back to me beside a tall oak tree. Twigs and dry leaves crunched beneath my feet, and he turned his head.
“Hi,” I said nervously.
Alone in this forest, Sasuke seemed so much more intimidating; he was much taller than I was, and his eyes burned into me. He nodded in recognition. The two of us stood in silence, Sasuke’s back to me. We watched as a rabbit ran through the brush in front of us, and I shifted nervously. The leaves made a rustling noise, and Sasuke bowed his head. I heard him inhale deeply, and then he spoke.
“Your eyes…they flickered electric blue.” breathed Sasuke.
I sucked in my breath sharply; was this why he had forfeit the battle?
“They…did?”
Sasuke nodded, and he turned to face me.
“Tell me…what kekkai genkai do you possess?”
His words hit me like a gust of strong wind, and I stumbled backwards against a tree.
“How…how could you…”
“I possess the Sharingan eye-”
“I am aware of that.”
“-so I should know a kekkai genkai when I see one.”
My eyes were burning into his, but he did not flinch.
“You can trust me.” He said softly yet firmly.
I concentrated harder on his eyes, and remembered my mother’s words;
“Look past the eyes, and into the mind.”
For the second time that day, Sasuke’s voice filled the air around us;
“…elitist bloodline…”
Sasuke twitched forward slightly with excitement;
“You did it again.”
He seemed so sure I would tell him. Once again, my mother’s voice echoed through my mind.
“…only share with your most trustworthy companions…when the enemy knows, it will prove useless, even dangerous…”
Sasuke advanced towards me, and placed his left hand gently over my own.
“Tell me, Lexi-chan.” He whispered.
His voice sent chills up my spine, and I found myself murmuring,
“The Otogan.”
His eyes froze on mine, and he drew a shaky, shallow breath.
“The sound eye?”
I nodded.
“You can hear the thoughts of others!”
Still numbed by his touch, I nodded again. Now his fingers gripped my wrist tightly. His lips were twitching into an excited smile, and he said,
“But you know not how to control it?”
I laughed softly.
“Control it? I can hardly even activate it! My mother had just begun training me to use it when…”
“…when she died.” Sasuke mumbled.
“Yes. Now, I may never unlock it’s secrets.”
“Don’t say that! I will help you. We can train together.”
Sasuke’s body was so close to my own, and I shivered.
“Sasuke…you must not share this with anyone. The Otogan is very useful…but if your opponent knows of it…they can prevent their thoughts from being read.”
“Oh, but I’ve heard a simple glimpse of one’s eyes can reveal their thoughts!” Sasuke exclaimed; he was much too excited.
“Yes. My mother had achieved this; but it takes years of practice. Today was the first time I have ever managed to penetrate a mind…”
“I see. But…is this not similar to my Sharingan eye? Could I not help you learn to…?”
“I don’t think it’s that similar…my mother could read subconscious thoughts. The mind decides what movements the body will make long before these movements are actually made…she had time to think of what to do while her opponent was just realizing what he was thinking.”
“Amazing.” Sasuke gasped; I felt his warm breath on my face.
“Sasuke…” I breathed.
“Yes?” he whispered, his eyes glittering with excitement.
“You’re…” he now had me pressed against the oak tree, and I could hardly move.
“You’re squishing me.” I smiled a little.
“Oh! Lexi, I am so sorry.” He cried, and he pulled himself back. I watched as he straightened his spine and put his hands in his pockets. He let his bangs fall in his eyes and glanced down at the leaf-strewn ground. He seemed mildly embarrassed of the way he had acted, dropping his reserved ways. We heard a voice pierce the dense gloom of the forest;
“Lexi? Sasuke? We are returning to the village!”
“So…we shall meet again some day soon to…”
“Train?”
“Yes.”
“Perhaps, Sasuke.”
He glanced down at me and frowned.
“Please, Lexi-chan? It would be a honor to train with Haruno Lexi of the Otogan.” His voice was low and sweet, and my blood felt warmed as it pulsed through my veins.
“Yes, then…Sasuke-chan.”
He flashed me a half-smile, and turned away.
“Until next time then, Lexi.”
“Ah, Raidon, you have arrived!” Kakashi called.
“Forgive us…Lexi kept us waiting this morning.”
I caught Sakura smirking behind Kakashi’s back, and I cast a glare in her direction. She shrank back, her eyes shameful.
“No worries, no worries. So, Midori, Zinan and Lexi? Are you three ready for a friendly battle?”
“As friendly as a battle can get.” Midori answered in his deep voice, and Kakashi laughed.
The eight of us passed through the village gates and followed our masters into a clearing just outside the village walls, often used for training.
“Now…who would like to go first?” Kakashi asked, clapping his hands together.
Us six genin hesitated, and then Sasuke stepped forward.
“I challenge Miss Haruno.” He said.
I was taken aback; normally Naruto would be the first to jump up and challenge our toughest looking cell member, namely Midori. Why had Sasuke chosen me?
“Alright, then.” I said, stepping forward with my fists clenched.
Sasuke and I were in the middle of the clearing, facing eachother, reflexes ready.
“The objective of this fight is to pin your opponent to the ground for ten seconds.” Kakashi told us.
“Ready?” Master Raidon asked.
“Yes.” We chimed.
“3…2…1…go!”
Sasuke and I ran towards each other and he grabbed hold of my shoulder, trying to throw me to the ground. I ducked out of his grasp and spun around; I was now behind him. I lunged for him, but instead my arms wood; a substitution jutsu! I dropped the log and spun around; now he was behind me. I thought quickly, and remembered the technique my father had taught me; dragon, rooster, rat.
“Earth Style- Crater of Death!” I cried; I stamped the ground hard with my right foot, and the earth around Sasuke’s feet trembled, then opened; a crater four feet wide and three feet deep. Sasuke cried out as he fell. I ran to the crater and looked down:
“You’re lucky; I was holding back.” I said with a sneer. I jumped into the crater so I could attempt to hold him down for the ten seconds required, but he was too fast; he jumped to his feet and climbed as quickly as a fox out of the crater. I followed him out; we stood on opposite sides of the hole my jutsu had created, concentrating. Sasuke was staring directly into my eyes when I heard it:
“…Sharingan mirror eye.”
The voice was Sasuke’s, but his lips were still fixed firmly in a smirk. But neither did the voice come from my own mind; it came from the sky, the air, and the wind swirling around us. Everyone watching us was completely undisturbed; they had heard nothing. But now Sasuke dropped his smirk; his mouth was now a small, surprised “o”. Then I saw an emotion cross the great, stoic Uchiha Sasuke’s face most unexpectedly; fear. His hands slipped to his sides slowly, and he hesitated.
“I…I forfeit this battle.”
Master Raidon cried out in frustration, but Master Kakashi didn’t move a muscle; he was scarcely breathing.
“I feel I may hurt her.” Sasuke spat, now back to his regular self.
“Ha!” I laughed bitterly, “I may be a girl, but I am a shinobi and I can take anything you have to throw at me.”
But Sasuke turned his head sharply and held up his right hand.
“I refuse to harm a fellow shinobi in something as silly as a training fight.”
“Aw, c’mon, Sasuke, you’re so noble, it makes me sick!” Naruto chattered, “Don’t you wanna win, huh? You don’t have to hurt her! And-”
“Quiet, idiot.” Sakura snapped, smacking Naruto upside the head.
“Sakura, Naruto!” Kakashi said sharply, and they silenced. “Sasuke, you cannot simply ‘forfeit’ a battle in real life.”
“I am aware of this.” He said, that familiar smirk twitching at the corners of his lips.
“Then let’s finish this.” I said, clasping my hands together in excitement.
But Sasuke simply raised his right hand and turned away from me. His hair cast shadows across his eyes. I watched with my mouth open in indignation as he walked off alone into the woods. My insides seethed with anger and I exhaled violently;
“Idiot!” I called.
“Lexi, calm down,” Raidon said, rolling his eyes, “Temper will get you nowhere. If it bothers you so much, follow him and speak to him of this.”
“I will.” I said elegantly, holding my nose in the air and stalking off in the direction Sasuke had just left.
“Such a character…” Kakashi murmured, “Well, who’s next?”
“I challenge Midori!” Naruto cried, “I’m gonna kick your ass, man, believe it!”
The voices grew fainter and fainter the deeper into the forest I walked, until I found Sasuke standing with his back to me beside a tall oak tree. Twigs and dry leaves crunched beneath my feet, and he turned his head.
“Hi,” I said nervously.
Alone in this forest, Sasuke seemed so much more intimidating; he was much taller than I was, and his eyes burned into me. He nodded in recognition. The two of us stood in silence, Sasuke’s back to me. We watched as a rabbit ran through the brush in front of us, and I shifted nervously. The leaves made a rustling noise, and Sasuke bowed his head. I heard him inhale deeply, and then he spoke.
“Your eyes…they flickered electric blue.” breathed Sasuke.
I sucked in my breath sharply; was this why he had forfeit the battle?
“They…did?”
Sasuke nodded, and he turned to face me.
“Tell me…what kekkai genkai do you possess?”
His words hit me like a gust of strong wind, and I stumbled backwards against a tree.
“How…how could you…”
“I possess the Sharingan eye-”
“I am aware of that.”
“-so I should know a kekkai genkai when I see one.”
My eyes were burning into his, but he did not flinch.
“You can trust me.” He said softly yet firmly.
I concentrated harder on his eyes, and remembered my mother’s words;
“Look past the eyes, and into the mind.”
For the second time that day, Sasuke’s voice filled the air around us;
“…elitist bloodline…”
Sasuke twitched forward slightly with excitement;
“You did it again.”
He seemed so sure I would tell him. Once again, my mother’s voice echoed through my mind.
“…only share with your most trustworthy companions…when the enemy knows, it will prove useless, even dangerous…”
Sasuke advanced towards me, and placed his left hand gently over my own.
“Tell me, Lexi-chan.” He whispered.
His voice sent chills up my spine, and I found myself murmuring,
“The Otogan.”
His eyes froze on mine, and he drew a shaky, shallow breath.
“The sound eye?”
I nodded.
“You can hear the thoughts of others!”
Still numbed by his touch, I nodded again. Now his fingers gripped my wrist tightly. His lips were twitching into an excited smile, and he said,
“But you know not how to control it?”
I laughed softly.
“Control it? I can hardly even activate it! My mother had just begun training me to use it when…”
“…when she died.” Sasuke mumbled.
“Yes. Now, I may never unlock it’s secrets.”
“Don’t say that! I will help you. We can train together.”
Sasuke’s body was so close to my own, and I shivered.
“Sasuke…you must not share this with anyone. The Otogan is very useful…but if your opponent knows of it…they can prevent their thoughts from being read.”
“Oh, but I’ve heard a simple glimpse of one’s eyes can reveal their thoughts!” Sasuke exclaimed; he was much too excited.
“Yes. My mother had achieved this; but it takes years of practice. Today was the first time I have ever managed to penetrate a mind…”
“I see. But…is this not similar to my Sharingan eye? Could I not help you learn to…?”
“I don’t think it’s that similar…my mother could read subconscious thoughts. The mind decides what movements the body will make long before these movements are actually made…she had time to think of what to do while her opponent was just realizing what he was thinking.”
“Amazing.” Sasuke gasped; I felt his warm breath on my face.
“Sasuke…” I breathed.
“Yes?” he whispered, his eyes glittering with excitement.
“You’re…” he now had me pressed against the oak tree, and I could hardly move.
“You’re squishing me.” I smiled a little.
“Oh! Lexi, I am so sorry.” He cried, and he pulled himself back. I watched as he straightened his spine and put his hands in his pockets. He let his bangs fall in his eyes and glanced down at the leaf-strewn ground. He seemed mildly embarrassed of the way he had acted, dropping his reserved ways. We heard a voice pierce the dense gloom of the forest;
“Lexi? Sasuke? We are returning to the village!”
“So…we shall meet again some day soon to…”
“Train?”
“Yes.”
“Perhaps, Sasuke.”
He glanced down at me and frowned.
“Please, Lexi-chan? It would be a honor to train with Haruno Lexi of the Otogan.” His voice was low and sweet, and my blood felt warmed as it pulsed through my veins.
“Yes, then…Sasuke-chan.”
He flashed me a half-smile, and turned away.
“Until next time then, Lexi.”
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