Naruto: The Sarutobi Who Can't Spark

The following day, after classes concluded, Kaiyo went on a series of visits to address his students' recent absenteeism.

His first stop was the Aburame household, where Yuuto's parents resided. Their home was surrounded by insects' constant, subtle hum and beautiful gardens.

After a thoughtful discussion with Yuuto's parents, Kaiyo went to the Sarutobi compound to speak with Haruko, Raijin's guardian.

Unfortunately, Haruko was unavailable, prompting Kaiyo to postpone their conversation for another time. With one matter unresolved, he turned his attention to Satoru.

Kaiyo soon found himself standing before Satoru's modest apartment on the outskirts of the village. Through the thin walls, the faint clatter of cooking utensils reached his ears as he raised his hand to knock on the door.

Knock…Knock

Inside, Satoru was stirring a pot of stew when the unexpected sound made him halt.

Few people ever visited him, and fewer at this hour. Wiping his hand on the apron, he hesitated before opening the door.

Standing on the door was Kaiyo. The sight of his class teacher sent a jolt of anxiety through Satoru's body, and his heart raced. Wiping his hands nervously on his apron, he forced himself to speak. "Good evening, Kaiyo-sensei," he said, though his voice trembled slightly.

Kaiyo, standing tall and composed, nodded in greeting. "Good evening, Satoru. May I come in? I want to speak with you."

"O-okay," Satoru's grip on the door tightened. Thoughts of his recent truancy flooded his mind. Was this about skipping class? Was he about to be punished – or worse? His shoulders stiffened as he stepped aside, gesturing awkwardly for his teacher to enter.

He had heard stories—grim warnings circulated among the children in the orphanage. They said you could be expelled if you performed poorly at the Academy or if the Academy deemed you unfit for the class, and your stipend would be reduced to almost nothing. This possibility was terrifying for someone like Satoru, who has no family to fall back on.

But Kaiyo wasn't there to punish him. His responsibility as a teacher extended far beyond enforcing rules. He needed to understand and guide his students, especially those like Satoru, who lacked the traditional family support system most of their peers had.

The boy's dedication to training, while expressed through rule-breaking, was rooted in determination and ambition. These qualities, Kaiyo thought, deserved to be nurtured and directed, not stifled through scolding.

As their conversation progressed, Satoru sincerely apologized for skipping classes and acknowledged his mistake.

Kaiyo, in turn, asked if he had any problems in the class. To Kaiyo's surprise, Satoru explained that he was doing better than ever, thanks to Raijin's guidance.

Kaiyo was impressed by Satoru's rigorous training regime, designed with Raijin's help. It wasn't just physical training—it also included foundational chakra control exercises.

He even shared that he had been practicing the leaf concentration exercise for ten minutes and could now sustain it. Kaiyo's eyebrows rose in surprise at this revelation. 'Satoru has an unusual commitment for someone so young,' he thought.

They had a long conversation regarding Satoru's training and chakra learning. After 30 minutes of talking with enthusiastic Satoru, Kaiyo said, a thoughtful smile playing on his lips, "Satoru, if you ever need help with your training or understanding chakra, you can come to me. I'm here to guide you."

"U-Uh… Okay Kaiyo-sensei." Satoru lit up with excitement. He couldn't contain his excitement as he blurted out, "Will you also give me special training early in the morning?"

Kaiyo stayed silent, observing Satoru.

"I apologize again." Satoru stammered, his cheeks red.

From that day forward, Satoru began training under Kaiyo's guidance. Kaiyo focused on building Satoru's theoretical understanding of chakra, its nature, and its applications but mainly on improving his physical stature and capabilities. Kaiyo dedicated up to two days a week to training at one of the designated training grounds.

The boy's progress accelerated rapidly under structured guidance, efficiency reflected in both Satoru's practice and his confidence. Recognizing Satoru's potential, Kaiyo set aside time to mentor him personally every morning.

What began as an effort to address his truancy evolved into a mentorship that would shape Satoru's journey as a ninja.

***

His morning exercises, which had been challenging, had now become too familiar and comfortable. He considered lifting weights, but he had no permission to do so with Haruko, and she was nowhere to be found. Still, Raijin completed his morning exercises daily.

Today, Raijin tried changing his chakra form into a thin string inside his storeroom. He started this new chakra control exercise after getting fed up with continuously creating Instant-Rasengan.

"Puppeteers of Sunagakure spend years mastering this," he muttered, extending his forefinger. Chakra gathered at the tip, and with careful concentration, he began drawing it out into a thin, luminescent, glowing thread.

The chakra string stretched between his forefinger and the palm of his opposite hand. It wavered slightly but maintained its form, extending across fifteen centimeters.

Chakra strings worked on precise principles, requiring perfect containment and direction. When Raijin attempted to create multiple strings from all five fingers, the length of each one shrank to five centimeters, with each thread demanding a fraction of his concentration.

Sweat beading on his forehead, he realized the challenge wasn't just making the strings, "It's maintaining consistent chakra flow through multiple pathways simultaneously."

Days turned into weeks of practice, each session pushing his limits until chakra exhaustion forced him to stop. The training became an obsession, leading to frequent absences from the Academy.

After skipping classes with Satoru the other day, Raijin skipped Academy classes regularly, missing at least one session every week. Kaiyo's lectures could wait – this exercise promised better chakra control and some unique techniques.

At one point, he even skipped classes for three days straight.

It was due to another accident where he exposed his body to high-voltage electricity, sending a surge through his nervous system again. His previous resistance to electrical chakra had saved his life, but the price was steep – three days of recovery, with his body alternating between numbness and searing pain.

When Kaiyo questioned his absence, Raijin dismissed it as a minor illness. The lie tasted bitter, but admitting the truth might lead to complications he wasn't willing to deal with.

Weeks passed, and gradually, Raijin's chakra threads evolved. He could now maintain multiple eight-centimeter chakra strings from both hands, each humming with controlled lightning chakra. The achievement marked his mastery of a D-rank lightning technique – Electric Net.

Although the range remained limited to twenty centimeters, the potential applications were numerous.

"Creating chakra strings is one thing," he mused, manipulating a small training weight across his desk. "But maintaining them while exercising fine control..." The weight wobbled before dropping. "Even lifting light objects required precise chakra modulation through each string."

He could now maintain chakra threads quickly and maneuver them within a minimal range (20cm).

Raijin knew about the puppet masters of Sunagakure, who could control entire humanoid puppets with intricate networks of strings. Such mastery was far beyond his current abilities. Manipulating human movement, he knew, would be incredibly difficult and require far more time and dedication.

Creating chakra threads had proven more difficult than he anticipated. It had taken him months to create functional chakra strings that could interact with various objects, whether light or heavy. However, controlling human movement by attaching his chakra threads to them seemed impossible for now.

"Not just anyone can become a puppet master this easily," he muttered.

Maintaining chakra threads to control objects was much more complicated than simply using them as a net to render electricity. He was determined to improve but couldn't correctly control objects. If he were to ever be free in the future, this skill might become essential and evolve into something unique.

Raijin still hadn't planned to become a puppet master, but he knew learning new techniques wouldn't hurt. On a positive note, the practice of creating chakra threads had greatly improved his chakra control, which, at least, wasn't a waste of time.

One morning, during his routine physical training, Raijin was pleasantly surprised by Haruko's arrival. It felt like a joyous occasion, especially since she had been out of touch for the past few months. Raijin couldn't help but wonder if her absence had anything to do with the promise of the Shadow Clone Technique.

"Let's see how much you've progressed with a spar," Haruko announced as soon as she reached the training ground.

Raijin nodded, and as they approached the training area, he asked, "May I use Lightning Jutsu?"

"Use whatever means necessary. If you manage to dispel me today, a surprise gift will await you." She replied.

Raijin exploded into action as soon as the words left her lips. He surged forward, lightning chakra crackling around his body, enhancing his speed and power with his Taijutsu. 'A surprise gift? Complete the promises first... I won't hold back today.' He said internally.

The sudden burst of speed caught Haruko off guard. Initially, she had poised to take his attack head-on but quickly reassessed upon noticing the arcs of lightning crackling from Raijin's body.

In one smooth motion, she threw a kunai at the approaching figure.

Raijin activated Body Flicker, evading the speeding kunai, and immediately closed the distance. Now that he was up close, what should he do? Engage her in Taijutsu.

Haruko blocked and dodged his kicks and punches, but halfway through the exchange, she realized something. Shifting her stance, she began to counterattack. Still, his defense remained solid.

Heavy blows and kicks were exchanged within ten seconds.

Each point of contact with his lightning-charged body left her hands increasingly numb. Even while defending against her strikes, he maintained his constant lightning charge throughout his body.

Haruko quickly focused the chakra into her hands, easing the tingling sensation left by the electric charge. It was impressive. "Well, this is new."

Raijin's strikes were wild and unrestrained, crackling with lightning, while Haruko's movements were sharp and deliberate. Her evasion was fluid, as she went around his attacks with the grace of a dancer, her legs sweeping in low arcs to trip him or disrupt his balance.

She used her elbows and knees in Taijutsu, each strike precise and aimed at his torso, ribs, or joints, exploiting any weakness in his own Taijutsu.

Even if his own Taijutsu was brutal and efficient, each punch and kick was delivered with the intention to the vital points, and each of his movements was infused with the raw power of his lightning. His arms were like iron pillars, blocking her strikes, only to follow up with crushing blows aimed at her midsection or head. His legs were a blur of speed, launching powerful roundhouse kicks and low sweeps to destabilize her.

Haruko knew about Raijin's Taijutsu even more than him. She had helped him tailor it in earlier days.

Despite the pain and the mounting fatigue caused by constant lightning discharge throughout his body, Raijin focused on the fight. He feinted a low punch, only to shift his weight and pivot into a spinning kick aimed at her head. Haruko barely dodged, but the force of the near miss sent him stumbling forward for a moment with a slight push from Haruko.

Quickly Raijin balanced himself. He gritted his teeth. The pain and fatigue were now hitting him. They continued, exchanging blows with a vicious rhythm, and Haruko still didn't have a single sweat on her forehead.

Creating some distance, Raijin stopped his lightning-charged body and unleashed his Electric Wave.

Massive bolts of lightning descended on Haruko from multiple directions. Haruko, however, chose to wait for the attack to fully launch at her. She wasn't completely focused on Raijin, but rather on his technique, a lapse Raijin noticed immediately. Seizing the brief advantage, he launched the electric wave non-stop, trapping her in a cage of lightning from nearly every direction, covering 270 degrees.

The overwhelming assault forced Haruko to retreat. Though she managed to avoid the direct impact, a stray spark caught her leg, sending a brief sharp burn through her muscles. Her momentary pause to analyze Raijin's technique had cost her the chance for a perfect evasion.

"Eat this", Raijin sneered, his voice carrying the thrill. He wasn't giving her a moment to recover. With a clap, he summoned a second wave. This time, the bolts came down from behind Haruko covering the rest 90 degrees, cutting her possible escape.

Now Haruko had no escape route as she was caged in the electric wave incoming.

"She'll evade this" Raijin muttered concentrating his hand with chakra.

Haruko jumped.

She leaped higher into the air, evading the barrage by mere inches. Mid-air, she threw two kunai successively aiming it at Raijin with deadly precision.

Raijin dodged, his new Jutsu getting stopped effortlessly. But he wasn't done yet. Channeling chakra into his palm, he prepared his next move.

Haruko landed gracefully behind the electric wave, breathing steady while Raijin panted, clearly winded.

The electric wave hadn't fully dispersed, and the air was thick with dust and debris, obscuring their vision. Still, Haruko could sense Raijin's position even through the haze.

Raijin wasted no time, he charged at her with a Rasengan–a concentrated sphere of chakra aimed directly at her face. He powered through the electric wave he'd just created, unaffected, thanks to his lightning resistance.

Timing it perfectly, Haruko executed the Substitution Jutsu. In an instant, only a lightning-scorched log from Raijin's collection remained where she had been standing.

She felt the high concentration of chakra in his hand, but she didn't have time to analyze it before she had to dodge it entirely.

The Rasengan slammed into the scorched log where she had just stood, shattering it into pieces where Haruko had just stood, leaving visible destruction.

Raijin, frustrated by Haruko's effortless evasion, immediately launched multiple kunai imbued with a high amount of lightning chakra. The enhanced speed and penetration power of the Jutsu made them even more dangerous – Lightning Balls, he called them.

Haruko had seen Raijin imbuing his kunai with chakra to increase its speed, but this technique—throwing kunai with an overflowing surge of lightning chakra—was his growth.

She couldn't help but be impressed by his development. She analyzed all the Jutsus he used throughout this spar. The lightning-charged body with his Taijutsu was outstanding but she also found herself wondering about the technique he was using, particularly the massive concentration of chakra in his hand.

The sparring exchange continued for another hour till Raijin's chakra was utterly exhausted.

The burning sensation spread throughout his body, and the lingering tingling would remain with him for the rest of the day.

"You've grown tremendously," Haruko remarked, a genuine smile on her face as she watched Raijin catch his unsteady breath. Raijin lay exhausted on the training ground, his chest heaving as he stared at the vast sky. The promised Shadow Clone Jutsu question burned in his mind, but he held his tongue.

Haruko cleared her throat, drawing his attention. "About that shadow clone Jutsu Elder Sohei promised you..." She couldn't suppress a smile as Raijin's eyes lit up with sudden intensity. "I'll teach it to you now."

Raijin sprang to his feet, exhaustion forgotten.

Haruko demonstrated the hand seals with deliberate slowness, explaining the crucial differences between the basic Clone and Shadow Clone techniques. "The Shadow Clone Jutsu requires precise chakra distribution," she explained. "Too little, and the clone lacks substance. Too much, and you'll exhaust yourself needlessly."

After several attempts and careful chakra adjustments, a perfect copy of Raijin appeared beside him in a swirl of smoke. He studied his clone with fascination, noting how it possess a proper shadow and exerts mass—unlike the fleeting illusions of the basic clone technique.

As the clone dispersed, its brief experience flooded back to Raijin.

"You skipped classes?"