Hand Signs [A Deaf Naruto Fanfiction]

Chapter 8: Wave

This arc is going to be split between 2 or 3 chapters (no more than 4) and then we enter into the Chunin Exam arc... It's 13 episodes long so I think that's okay. I'm going to condense the Chunin Exams arc a lot too (I'm not writing like 30 chapters of just that. No. It'll be, like, 5 or 6 at most...probably).

Also!Do you guys want the twist? Because I've had this idea for a while but I haven't been sure if I should do it. It's not tagged and it likely won't be tagged but you guys have until the end of this arc to decide.

Twist or No Twist, the choice is yours. Comment below. All I can say is that it involves Gaara.

So here we begin the Wave Mission arc, packed full of all kinds of changes and challenges that I didn't consider before starting this story. 

And I accidentally gave Naruto anxiety, oops. Guess who's projecting! He'll get better though, I just figured it would fit with the version of him I've created (I imagine that being deaf and having a deadly career would be nerve wracking when you first start).

Anyway...

Onto the chapter!

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Chapter Eight: Wave

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The first D-rank they ever took was apparently supposed to be some kind of prank or initiation into Ninja-hood. Naruto was good at derailing things without even meaning to so unfortunately for Kakashi-sensei, who'd been looking forward to it, he didn't get much from the whole ordeal.

He could blame Kurama, could say that having the beast sealed within him was why he was the way he was but even if the fox did influence him in that way, it wasn't why. Months around the Nara deer and a natural affinity for animals (something Kiba was jealous of when they were young, Akamaru liked him a lot and the Inuzuka couldn't stand it) proved useful in this particular instance.

It sounded innocent enough at first. They had to capture a cat. Easy enough, or so they thought until hearing the cat they were assigned to catch was known as the Demon Cat. Being good with deer and dogs was not the same as being good with cats, and while Kurama could be remarkably like a cat, he wasn't one and would probably be greatly offending for even making the comparison. It also didn't mean he was good with all animals. Sakura and Sasuke didn't seem too worried about dealing with Tora the Demon Cat but their indifference for the nickname didn't last for long.

It was chaos. The plan was originally going to be using walkie-talkies but this wouldn't work for a number of reasons, the first being that Naruto couldn't hear. Sound coming through walkie-talkies was hard for him to understand and the volume and static would no doubt alert the cat to their positions anyway. They ended up needing to be in close range to each other, where they could see, and communicate with Sign Language. Naruto enjoyed it a lot, it was always entertaining to see two people who considered themselves so much better than him struggle with something he found so easy.

Sakura struck first. Apparently her femininity and gentleness (one of the best Jokes the blond ever heard) were better suited for getting the cat than Naruto's recklessness. Sasuke was simply too good to waste his talents getting a cat if the pinkette was to be believed. Naruto was unamused and Sasuke didn't seem to care much.

Her attempt to get the cat was laughable. It was more than clear that she'd never even held a cat, much less actually interacted with one. She got frustrated too quickly and as soon as her anger got the better of her the cat bolted, but no before leaving some lovely scratches behind in Sakura's pale skin. Naruto kept to himself, during her outraged cries and tears of pain, just what he thought about her reaction to scratches from a cat when she'd inevitably have to face shinobi far stronger than her. Kunai, shuriken and not to mention jutsu would hurt far worse. At least the cat wasn't deadly so much as it was annoying.