The Hebinomura (Sasuke x OC)

The Forest of Chakra

"Alright, training starts now."

"Right!"

"First we'll review chakra, the ninja's basic source of power. Understanding chakra is essential" Kakashi said.

"We know that already" Sasuke said.

"He's right, a long time ago we learned about, uh, catchra" Naruto nodded.

"Chakra, Naruto, chakra" Mashi repeated.

"Alright, Naruto, I'll explain so even you can understand" Sakura said.

"Chakra is the elemental life energy a ninja uses in jutsu. It's the source of all his power. Now there are two types. Physical energy which exists in every cell in the entire body, all working together and spiritual energy, the primal source of power which is intensified through training and experience. These two types of chakra must be brought out together to form jutsu. Finally, hand signs focus and unleash the chakra."

"Right in all points. Iruka Sensei really did have some excellent students" Kakashi complimented.

Sakura looked pleased at that.

"What's the big deal? All we have to do is learn the jutsu" Naruto grumbled.

"Naruto's right for once. We're already using chakra in our jutsu's" Sasuke agreed.

"But that's jutsu, we're focusing on chakra right now" Mashi shook her head.

"What's the difference?" Naruto asked.

"Jutsu uses chakra. It requires different proportions of physical and spiritual energy to create a tangible attack. Your Clone Jutsu isn't necessarily perfected, for example. You guess at the proportions and waste plenty of chakra, but if you train the bare essence of Jutsu, you can learn to balance and control it" Mashi explained.

"She's right. Even if you produce a lot of chakra, unless you can balance and control it, it's all worthless. The jutsu won't work at all or it will just be a joke. You waste so much energy that way, then you're out of chakra and you can't fight at all. You're just a target" Kakashi nodded.

"So how do we change that?" Naruto asked.

"Train so hard that controlling your chakra becomes second nature, but to achieve this goal, you must be prepared to put your life on the line" Kakashi responded.

"What...do we have to do?" Sakura gulped.

"Climb a tree."

"Climb a tree?" They chorused back. "With no hands" Kakashi waved his palms.

"You're kidding, aren't you?" Sakura asked.

"Am I? Let's see" their mentor responded.

He crutched over to a nearby tree and put his foot on it. The students were shocked to see Kakashi continuing to crutch up the tree trunk nonchalantly.

"Well, you get the idea. Focus the chakra towards the soles of your feet and use it to connect to the tree. This is one way to apply the power of chakra" he advised the children.

"Wait a minute! That's a nice trick, but how does that help us fight Zabuza?!" Sakura yelled.

"It's the only way to fight him, Sakura, that's the goal of this training. First, you'll learn to draw a precise amount of chakra to a precise point in your body. This is difficult even for advanced ninja. This type of climbing requires a subtle mix of spiritual and physical energy and the bottoms of the feet are the most difficult place to focus chakra. Are you getting the picture? If you're able to master this, you'll be able to master any jutsu...well, theoretically."

"The second point is to learn to maintain your chakra level. When a ninja is focused in battle, it's even harder to focus and maintain his chakra level, a deadly mistake. To avoid this, maintain chakra must become second nature. Effortless. Well, I can talk about this all day, but that won't advance your skills, would it? You need to apply the power of chakra through training."

Kakashi threw four kunai, each sticking to the ground in front of the four children.

"Use the kunai knifes to mark the highest point on the tree you can reach without using your hands. Then, try and get higher than the previous mark. At first, you'll need to run at the tree to use the momentum to get as high as possible, until you get used to it. Ready?" Kakashi asked.

"I'm always ready! No sweat! Believe it!" Naruto held the kunai out.

Mashi picked it up and set her sights on the closest tree.

She concentrated and felt it. Chakra poured into her feet and almost immediately, it felt as if a thin layer of cushioning formed between the soles of her feet and the ground.

Mashi ran towards the tree and Kakashi watched as she ran further and further up the tree trunk, leaping towards a limb and marking the spot, sitting down.

"So you are familiar with chakra" Kakashi said as Naruto barely made it two steps before falling, his head hitting the ground.

Sasuke made it further up the trunk, but soon, his chakra became too much, cracking the trunk. He hurriedly swiped a spot before pushing off, twisting and landing on his feet.

"We learn chakra before we enter our shinobi program. Our parents teach us around the age of five or six, but only enough chakra control to stay in the trees" Mashi said, leaping down as Sakura marked a spot, though she was definitely close to already reaching the tree limb.

"Edagakure, the Village Hidden in the Branches" he commented and she nodded, coming to stand beside him and watching the others.

"The Land of Rainforests hold some extremely dangerous creatures and our ancestors decided to build our homes in the trees because of it. Lookouts were located on the bottom, residential homes and marketplaces in the middle, and the Hebikage's building, hospital, and our academy was located near the top. Everything was connected by bridges, but we learned how to climb trees very early" Mashi explained.

"Oh. She made it."

Kakashi followed Mashi's line of sight and found Sakura giggling, waving to them, already sitting upon the tree branches.

"Hey, this is fun!" Sakura called, sitting on the branch and Mashi waved back.

"Good job, Sakura."

"Well, well, well, the two females of the squad have the most advanced chakra control. Well done, Mashi. Well done, Sakura" Kakashi complimented.

"Way to go, Mashi and Sakura! I always knew you two were awesome! Believe it!" Naruto encouraged from down below, a bump on his head from where he had fallen.

"Whatever..." Sasuke muttered.

"Well, Sakura understands chakra and can utilize it very well. Mashi hasn't been in your academy for a full day and is still better at her chakra control than you are. It seems these two have the better chances of becoming Hokage someday. And maybe the Uchiha clan isn't so great after all" Kakashi said, bating the boys.

"Shut up, Sensei! You talk too much!" Sakura pointed.

"Are you jealous, Sasuke? Naruto?" Mashi teased, finding it amusing that they looked at one another with disbelief.

They got outdone by the new girl. Well, she wasn't so new anymore, but they still got outdone by her.

Mashi picked up the kunai again and this time, ran past the first branch, the second branch, the third branch, and so on. She raced above the tree line and stood upon a branch, marking her spot, but gazing out at the sun, which had begun to reach evening, the sky beginning to turn paler with several new hues of orange and purple.

"Edagakure..." she murmured before her hand tightened on the handle of the kunai.

Dokuga moved from her deep pocket of her robes to rest upon her shoulder, holding steady by the use of Mashi's neck.

The girl looked over at the snake and reached up, stroking the underside of Dokuga's jaw, looking back to the sunset. The snake flicked its tongue, a quiet hiss sounding from it and Mashi nodded. 

"One day...one day we'll go back and see the sunset there again."