sunshineverse | Grounded [Open]

Entry tags:

Grounded [Open]

Where: Somewhere in Konoha
When: March 8th
Notes: Sakura is injured and stuck in Konoha instead of getting to go out on missions or do things. It's bothersome.

She wasn't in the best of moods. In Ame, she couldn't really spend much time or focus on training, both because it would appear suspicious and because she was simply busy. When she'd returned to Konoha, once all the procedures were finished with making certain she wasn't compromised or anything like that, she'd gone to make up for the time lost training.

Maybe there wasn't a point to continue to train and push herself now that she'd made Jounin and there was nowhere further for her to go. She didn't know what else to fill her time with, though, and even if she passed the Jounin test, she still felt her abilities weren't what they could be.

She'd been experimenting with incorporating her summons into her style and jutsus, and exhausted herself more than she'd realized. Her injured leg was the result of that. It wasn't so bad that medical jutsu couldn't heal it at all...but it was enough to leave her stuck in the village unable to train properly and incapable of taking other missions for the better part of a month.

It was difficult to say whether it was a blessing that it was during her recovery that her two old teammates were assigned on a mission without her. After all, she could sulk over her injury and blame that, rather than face questions of whether she'd been split from her team completely now.

Making her a diplomat so that she could never go on missions with her old team again was far too much trouble. As much as the hokage enjoyed making her suffer, going that far out of his way was somewhat excessive when she'd done nothing personally against him to earn such ire. But if it weren't true, then it seemed just as likely she would have accompanied her teammates (where she belonged) on that mission if not for her leg.

What a bother.

She sighed and sat on a nearby bench along the road. It wasn't because she particularly wanted to enjoy the scenery or watch people move...but if she didn't take a break, she'd probably start to limp again, and that would only be more frustrating.

She wasn't really in a good mood at all this month.

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He'd noticed her between assignments, and it only took a moment to put them away and pack up, moving at an easy amble from his position under a tree to the bench beside the girl. He'd always have a special place in his heart for her class, as they were the first group he taught from start to finish.

It did mean that he was worried about the look on her face though, and knew how she could be, to an extent. "Sakura-san, it's been a while, hasn't it?"

Of course, when he heard his voice, he could have smacked himself. Right. Gai's body. Had he really gotten so thoroughly settled in? No matter, the important part was checking on a former student.

Edited 2015-03-24 05:47 (UTC)

She looked up in surprise when the sound of an unfamiliar voice broke her concentration. Ah...unfamiliar wasn't quite the proper word, actually. That voice was familiar to almost any ninja in Konoha, probably, given how loud he tended to be.

The immediate response she felt at seeing the figure, and at recognizing the voice...was panic. She was in the exact worst position to encounter the man who was known for his...enthusiasm. With an injured leg, she wouldn't be able to easily and stealthy lose him if she tried to escape, and all of her allies in the village were...out.

Her eyes widened a fraction when she glanced up at him, and she stilled all movement, silently calculating how exactly she could escape if he turned out to be ...like she'd heard. She really should have been on better guard, because her usual tactic for avoiding him was to simply redirect herself any time she saw him nearby, and ensure she never signed up for a mission he'd already been assigned to.

Which made it confusing that he would say 'a while', because she didn't really remember properly meeting him before. Perhaps it had been some time in the academy? Her memories of the jounin she met during that time were less clear than some other things. If she escaped that time without a lasting impression, though, perhaps simply being uninteresting would continue to be an adequate defense? With the exception of Nagato and the hokage, that had served her perfectly well so far, after all.

She blinked, and shook her head, summoning up an unconcerned tone. "Has it...?"

He flashed her a sheepish smile at that. Of course she wouldn't guess, but her initial confusion smoothed out the awkwardness she was practically radiating. "Mmhmm."

He was bit by the bug of his prankster side then, and the smile turned radiant. "Since you were last in the Academy. Quite a long time, that."

His radian smile already made her feel a little more tired than she was before, just by looking at it. Maybe he had a jutsu that sapped chakra and stamina from others around him to embellish his own?

Hm. That was actually a really good idea, if it could be done.

"...Not really. It's only been a few years." Which was what made becoming a Jounin already so strange. She was only barely old enough to be a Chuunin, after all.

"Some people progress faster than others, there's no shame in that." He shook his head, seeing the way she practically drooped under the smile. The poor girl had gotten more introverted, and he had no idea how she'd managed that.

Worrying, but not imminently something he would leave to itself. In due time. "But a few years is a long time to go without having a proper conversation."

She blinked owlishly up at him. Had he read her mind, or did the hokage simply discuss his plans with the man? "I never said they didn't." But if he meant by her rank and not her skill (something she felt rightfully proud of due to the effort involved in increasing it), then she wasn't that kind of person. Uchiha and Hyuuga were those kinds of people, not Haruno.

"I don't think it's strange not to have conversations with every single person in the village each year. I'm certain you've been kept very busy with duties." She'd improved her introversion since she'd graduated...but that was improvement after how much she'd crashed in on herself during that graduation.

He peered at her for a moment more, then laughed quietly. She was cute when she was attempting to cover bewilderment. "Not every person is like every other Sakura-san, and you're not forgettable, no matter what you've convinced yourself of in the last few years."

He flashed her a grin and shook his head, leaning in. "But yes, I've been very busy. Doesn't mean I don't keep an eye out for my students."

She offered a polite smile, "No less than you are...Mister...Maito..." Yeah, she wasn't sure what to call him. Figuring out what she'd address him like wasn't really something that she'd spent any time on, because her primary tactics were to avoid and escape, not engage.

They still were, actually. She just hadn't been given those opportunities yet, so her secondary plan was to simply prevent him from latching onto anything of interest from her. (Not that it wouldn't be a blessing to have someone as skilled as he to teach her taijutsu if she could somehow get his interest as she had Shisui, since her current skills were somewhat lacking except to supplement kenjutsu, but...the trade off of enduring his personality would be...a bit much.)

--Also, wait.

She crinkled her nose in confusion and instinctively leaned back when he leaned in. "...You've confused me with someone else. I was never your student." She was definitely sure of that. Even if he'd taught at the Academy, she would have avoided his class. She tended to avoid physical demonstration classes unless it was only to observe.

"You really need to give Gai-san a chance when you speak to him next. Your hesitance is telling and he really is a considerate man." He straightened up, sitting back as he shook his head. "He took our minds being switched with quite a bit of grace, actually, all things considered."

He shifted, pulling his bag forward and taking out one of the papers he was grading, turning it to show her the Academy work. "Not every rumor is true, though I admit he's a rather spirited figure, he's not as bad as you seem to think once you spend a bit more time observing him."

His eyes were laughing, amused with her alarm. "Have you figured out who I am yet Sakura-san?"

...What?

Minds switched? As soon as he began to refer to himself in the third person, she realized he had to be someone under a henge or using a genjutsu on her (the latter was unlikely, she would most likely have sensed it if it were anyone but an Uchiha's work) but...she couldn't figure out why anyone would pretend to be Maito Gai, particularly to her, before he said something about switched minds.

Ultimately, the figure was given a very suspicious (and still somewhat confused) stare.

Wait--could he be a Yamanaka? Their jutsus weren't meant to switch both bodies, but if there was some jutsu she didn't know about, or if something went wrong...which Yamanaka wouldn't have seen her since graduation, and still be holding Academy work now? Was there a Yamanaka teacher...?

She couldn't remember there being one, though.

"Will you tell me if I haven't?"

"Of course. But I've given you many many clues Sakura-san. I'll be quite sad if you don't even get close." He shook his head, putting the paper back in his bag and settling it among the others. "Keep an eye out, I'm not the only one that's been afflicted with this situation, though Hokage-sama didn't share any details with me as to who others were."

She was still not comfortable, even if it wasn't really the man. She had the sense he'd suddenly snap back to himself if she let her guard down.

And as much as he'd given her clues, they could also all be lies. She had no reason to believe they weren't, after all. "What situation is this?" More than one person affected by a Yamanaka jutsu was pretty rare, especially if it were accidental. After all, theirs were very dangerous jutsu not to learn to be precise about.

"You'll have to ask the Hokage about that if you want more details. Just know that it's not something that anyone has yet figured out how to fix."

He shook his head, giving her a look that plainly said that he knew what she was doing. "That's not guessing."

She wanted to ask the Hokage about anything even less than she wanted to find out that this was somehow still Maito Gai pretending not to be himself as a strange joke. At least there was a chance with the person she currently spoke to that he wasn't playing some complicated and cruel joke on her.

"If I made a guess, it would be based on information you've given me." She arched an eyebrow at him. "You may have been lying to me about that information. How would I know?"

"You don't, but Maito Gai is not an insincere person so the idea of me actually being him and lying to you is fairly ridiculous. And don't even try to deny it, it's written all over your face."

He turned his gaze from her with a sigh. "You have no idea who I am. I'm actually a bit hurt. It's not as though you've had a lot of people you'd call sensei."

...She'd actually been considering that the mind swap part was true, and all the other information given to her wrong. He was, after all, very calm. As much as it was possible he could be Gai, being someone else under henge or with a swapped mind seemed more likely.

She still didn't know for sure that he wasn't lying to her. However, the best way to know the truth would be to react as if he wasn't, at which point if he were, he'd be likely to reveal himself. After all, the most likely reason for lying about his identity to her would be simply to amuse himself. She really couldn't see a reason to avoid that.

She frowned slightly. "...You were a teacher at the academy?"

"You've never been unintelligent Sakura-san, you've already been shown proof of that." He sounded patient, but there was definitely a stern look in his eyes.

"I may have poked fun at you, but don't be mean in turn, please. Think it through and actually take a guess."

Edited 2015-03-24 08:06 (UTC)

In truth, she actually didn't remember most of her teachers' names very well. Other than the primary Academy sensei, the others tended to change more often and spend less time actually teaching in the classes she attended.

Thus, while it was no guarantee she would be right, she could only make one guess. At least if she offended an old teacher by incorrectly guessing it wouldn't be a political incident. That was a relief of a sort. "...Umino-sensei, perhaps?"

He let out a smothered laugh. "Since when do any of my students call me that? Don't make it awkward Sakura-san. Iruka-sensei, not Umino-sensei."

At least she hadn't raked through a half dozen names first. He would have been horribly offended to be last pick if she'd done that and he knew it.

Edited 2015-03-24 08:37 (UTC)

She wouldn't shatter his illusion by telling him the truth that she didn't have any other names to go through. She knew well enough not to do something like that.

Nor would she point out she couldn't remember which she called him. At least her forced diplomatic mission gave her some practice in interacting with village mates that she was...less familiar with. "It isn't already awkward to talk through someone else's mouth?"

"You have no idea how jittery Gai's body is. Very over energetic." If she'd forgotten the teacher she'd had for years, that was very poor indeed. He'd never been an inattentive sensei, after all, and he'd had to keep a particularly careful eye out for Sakura especially given the early bullying which the other teachers would allow.

"It really does explain some things about his habits." He shook his head with a faint laugh. "So, all games aside now. What has you so upset?"

Oh, she certainly didn't forget Iruka. But whether she used to refer to him by his first or last name, and whether her reasoning for that was sufficient to continue doing so was lost to her. It hadn't been particularly important to her at the time. The her of the past had...some different views on things than she did now.

She considered briefly whether his behavior might actually be explained by a strange energetic bloodline. Wouldn't Konoha have a history of ninja with behavior like his, though...? Maybe it could be researched.

But--she turned her attention from that quickly enough once he spoke. Was she obviously troubled? She...was failing somewhat as a ninja to display her emotions openly, even when she had no reason to believe she was being watched. Especially if she did so to such an extent that she had drawn an old teacher's concern.

She considered briefly what to say, under those circumstances. "...It's a disappointment to be injured and unable to take on missions for the rest of the month. Time moves slowly when there's little to do."

"There's always something to do Sakura-san, even if it's not physical training." He paused a moment, thoughtful as he examined her, how discouraged she seemed to him. "When is the last time you went to the library and learned a new skill?"

She arched an eyebrow at the...not-body of her old sensei. "An entirely new skill?" Most of her studies involved physical activities...

Well, she could study more about combining earth and fire attributes to jutsu, but how much would Konoha's libraries have about that specifically?

"Mmhmm. I haven't seen you with a book in your hands for a very long time. You used to really enjoy studying and reading. Don't you anymore?"

He was just watching her now, wondering when that part of her had stalled.

"...Iruka-sensei, I still study." It was just generally only hands on training, not book-knowledge. She'd purposefully avoided all of the physical demonstrations in the academy and made up for it in her book knowledge. Now...she had to catch up to everyone who had left her behind when she did that.

And she'd proven herself twice over this month how much she'd yet to do that.

"Training and studying aren't the same thing." His expression was soft, and he shook his head. "Don't stop doing the parts you love just to catch up on the rest. You're a brilliant girl, and I expected to hear a lot more about your achievements by now you know. Your quiet surprised me."

She squinted up at him, skeptical. He was either misremembering her or attempting to flatter her to make her feel better. There wasn't anything about her performance in the Academy that should have made him surprised not to hear anything of her after graduation.

It was a nice sentiment of his, though. "I apologize for disappointing you. There were many things I had to catch up on after graduating."

"I don't doubt you've caught up to them. You look healthier, and I heard about your recent promotion." He tilted his head a little, examining her thoughtfully. "I can see you work hard. Have you created anything interesting recently? I know you used to be rather creative in class projects."

It was probably part of being a teacher that he focused on the positive of her creativity in class, and not on the part that she mostly utilized it to make up for avoiding physical demonstrations and being the center of attention. Which wasn't to say it hadn't come in handy to have that habit and experience once she graduated and had to begin to make her own jutsu to fit in with Team Shirakumo.

...But her most recent notable project involved a level of genjutsu she wasn't readily willing to share with someone who might question where she'd learned such skill from.

Instead, she lifted her shoulder slightly. "I've been experimenting on picking up another chakra nature. Earth and fire don't easily combine."

He grimace at that statement. "They really don't. You have a voyage ahead of you, but at least it's not opposites."

Opposites, in Earth's case, would be...rather difficult. Trying to combine lightning and earth into jutsu would just destroy the earth portions of the jutsu.

"Choosing an easy combination wouldn't allow for very much improvement..." An easy one wouldn't require her to improve her jutsu and abilities nearly as much as this.

"Choosing an easy combination wasn't what I meant." He laughed. "But never say that basic things or easy things mean there isn't room for improvement. Most of my skills are based on low level things."

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Grounded [Open]

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