Naruto: The Sarutobi Who Can't Spark

Haruko spoke again, "You skipped classes?" It wasn't an accusation – her tone carried mere curiosity, perhaps even understanding.

Raijin turned to meet her gaze before responding, "The academy offers little value at this point." He stated matter-of-factly.

They both knew it would be more beneficial for Raijin to focus on his personal growth rather than attending the Academy.

Attending the Academy wasn't a total waste, as he would learn many things, but at a very slow pace.

Haruko remained silent, not pressing further. A moment of quiet stretched between them.

Rising to sit cross-legged, Raijin squared his shoulders. Finally, he ventured, "Clan Elder, may I make a request?"

"I'm listening." Her expression remained neutral, but her eyes held a glint of interest.

"I was thinking of learning Kenjutsu," Raijin said, his voice steady, "I would like to request a sword." Raijin had wanted to wield a sword long before he had even learned of his natural affinity.

When Haruko had asked for a birthday gift once, he had indeed mentioned Kenjutsu, but she had casually dismissed it. Today, instead of asking to teach kenjutsu, he asked for a sword.

Shooting a shot—miss or hit—he made a quick request.

Haruko's silence stretched for a long moment before she spoke. "Kid, you always have a request ready when I visit, don't you? Tell me, what other requests are you thinking of?" There was genuine amusement in her voice.

"Kenjutsu, Fūinjutsu, and Medical Ninjutsu," Raijin responded without hesitation, his face serious.

Haruko studied him for a long moment, then sighed – not in frustration, but in what seemed like resigned acceptance of Raijin's drive. "I can only arrange some wooden swords for now. You'll have to learn Kenjutsu on your own. And as for a real sword, that will be your reward when you become a Genin."

***

After years of conflict, Kumogakure and Konohagakure finally reached a peace agreement.

The signing of the diplomatic treaty brought the Head Ninja of Kumogakure to Konoha, seemingly marking a new era of cooperation between the two powerful villages. The air was filled, however, with cautious optimism. Beneath this façade of peace, Kumogakure harbored ulterior motives.

Their true objective was not alliance but acquisition, specifically of the secrets of the Byakugan, the powerful dōjutsu of the Hyuga clan. Raikage had carefully selected the head ninja of Kumogakure for this mission, and his diplomatic status provided the perfect cover for Kumogakure's real intentions.

Under the cover of darkness, on the very night of the treaty signing, the Kumogakure Ninja made his move. His target was young Hinata Hyuga, the three-year-old daughter of Hiashi Hyuga and heir to the clan's main branch.

The timing was calculated—the village's guard would be lowered after the peace treaty, and who would suspect an honored diplomatic guest of such treachery?

However, Hiashi Hyuga, Hinata's father and one of the powerful ninjas, intercepts and kills the Kumo ninja to protect his daughter. Despite his skill, the Kumo ninja found himself outmatched against one of the most powerful members of the Hyuga clan.

What should have been a clear case of justified defense quickly spiraled into a diplomatic crisis—Kumogakure, rather than acknowledging their duplicity, seized upon their ninja's death as a political weapon.

They denounced Hiashi's actions as murder, claiming their ninja had been killed without provocation while conducting his normal diplomatic duties.

Their demand was as calculated as their original plan. They demanded Konoha turn over the body of Hiashi Hyuga as compensation for their loss of one of the elite ninjas.

This demand served a dual purpose—if it was met, it would give them access to the Byakugan, and if it was refused, it would give them cause for war.

The solution to this crisis to Konoha came from within the Hyuga clan itself.

Hizashi Hyuga, Hiashi's twin brother and branch family member, proposed an alternative that would satisfy Kumo's demands while protecting the clan's secrets.

As a branch family member, his forehead bore the curse mark seal that would destroy his Byakugan upon death, preventing any attempt to steal its secrets.

The brothers, identical in appearance but separated by the clan's rigid hierarchy, met one final time before the exchange. Their conversation was heavy with unspoken emotions – Hizashi's acceptance of his fate, Hiashi's guilt at his brother's sacrifice, and their shared understanding of what must be done to protect both the clan and the village.

The exchange proceeded as planned. Kumogakure, unable to distinguish between the identical twins, accepted Hizashi's body.

The curse mark fulfilled its purpose, ensuring the Byakugan's secrets remained protected even in death. Peace was maintained at a terrible cost to the Hyuga clan and Konoha. And particularly to Hizashi's son, Neji Hyuga.

The incident left deep scars on all involved. For Hiashi, it was the burden of living with his brother's sacrifice. For Neji, it became a source of deep resentment that would take years to resolve, believing his father had been sacrificed merely to protect the main branch.

***

Morning came, and Raijin was getting ready for Academy. Before heading out, he formed his first shadow clone of the day. This practice had become his daily ritual, part of the training regimen he'd developed to push the boundaries with the technique.

The Clone needed no instructions. It simply nodded at Raijin and began cleaning the dishes from last night's late meal because of electric resistance training. Raijin watched his Clone for a moment before shouldering his pack, "I'll head to the Academy," His Clone merely nodded at him and continued focusing on the dishes.

This was an experiment in chakra sustainability.

Each day, Raijin monitored to what extent his one Clone could remain in its form before dispelling itself. It was to estimate the duration of a shadow clone with half of Raijin's chakra.

The Academy offered the perfect place to complement his experiments. While he sat through Kaiyo's lectures, his clones pursued different practical education. Sometimes, he would send a clone to study in the clan library, devouring the history, strategies, and art of war.

Sometimes, the memories would crash into him mid-lesson, causing him to jolt in his seat. Once, during a particularly dry lecture on village history, he suddenly experienced his Clone's encounter with a massive black bear. The rush of adrenaline, the thunder of his heart, and the sharp pine scent of the forest felt accurate enough to make him gasp aloud, earning curious looks from his classmates. Another time, a clone's abrupt dispelling by a venomous snake bite left him sweating and shaking in the middle of shuriken practice.

Through the experiments, he uncovered that only the memories returned when the Clone was forcibly dispelled – whether by a strong hit or external force. At the same time, the chakra dissipated into the air. If his own will dispelled it, then both chakra and memories flowed back to him with a headache that varied in intensity based on the Clone's activities.

Each evening, when his Clone finally dispelled after a full day's work, their accumulated experiences crash into Raijin's consciousness and hit him with a mild headache. The first time the Clone dispelled after a full day of numerous different activities, the mental backlash sent him staggering. The flood of memories – theoretical knowledge from the library, muscle memory from physical training, chakra control insights from jutsu practice – overwhelmed his neural pathways.

But these experiences, however jarring, were invaluable. In just four months, Raijin's clones had mapped and explored one-fifth of the surrounding forest, more than most ninjas covered in a year. Each dispelled Clone added to his mental map of hidden springs, defensible caves, and treacherous terrain – knowledge that could mean survival in that dense forest.

His most important experiments, however, took place in the privacy of his house storeroom. There, surrounded by dusty training equipment and electrical devices, Raijin pushed the boundaries of his lightning resistance training. Shadow clones were perfect partners for this dangerous work – they could precisely control voltage levels, allowing him to build his tolerance to electricity systematically.

"Increase by five percent," he would command, gritting his teeth as his Clone channeled another lightning release technique. The controlled exposure was gradually changing him; he could feel it in the way static electricity now danced harmlessly across his skin.

His lightning release techniques became sharper and more refined as he incorporated the accumulated experiences of countless practice sessions. His theoretical knowledge expanded rapidly, and his tactical thinking became more nuanced as he later processed multiple perspectives and scenarios.

At precisely 5 PM, in the backyard of his house, Kaiyo began Satoru's training. "The foundation of taijutsu," he began, his voice carrying experience, "begins with stance and footwork." His own posture exemplified the stance he was about to teach.

"A proper fighting stance maintains weight distribution of 6:4 between back and front, knees slightly bent for quick movement, feet positioned shoulder-width apart, one hand (lead hand) raised for defense, another (rear) hand chambered for power strikes, and lastly body turned slightly sideways to present a smaller target." Kaiyo's hands guided Satoru's body into the position as he spoke, making minor adjustments until the stance was perfect.

"Remember this stance and abide by it."

Satoru nodded thoughtfully, taking mental note of the stance and minor detail that his body now held.

"As for the footwork, let's keep it simple as movement flows from this stance in … eight directions:" Kaiyo demonstrated each movement with fluid grace.

"Forward Step, Back Step, Side Step – right and left, Forward diagonal – right and left, and Backward diagonal – left and right." Each direction was precisely demonstrated, Kaiyo's feet barely disturbing the packed earth beneath them. Satoru's eyes followed every movement, committing each step to memory.

Satoru had been training at Kaiyo's place since he was caught skipping classes. Under Kaiyo's guidance, he had already mastered proper weight distribution in his body, learned the intricacies of hip rotation for power generation, developed his breath control, and maintained balance in various positions. Today's lesson on footwork was meant to help him smooth out his transitions between movements and combinations.

The memory of his recent fight with Raijin lingered in his mind, influencing his movements as he tried to replicate the efficiency he had witnessed: minimal motion for maximum effect. The image of Raijin's effortless movements and lethal attacks, executed with no wasted energy, had left a deep impression on him.

"You are getting stiff," Kaiyo pointed out, delivering a small smack to Satoru's thigh with his training tool – a thin, slender tree branch he used to correct stance and footwork. The light taps provided immediate feedback, helping Satoru identify and correct his mistakes.

For three hours, they worked through the movements. The sun tracked across the sky until 8 PM, and Kaiyo lowered his branch. "Join me for a meal," he offered. The house behind them stood quiet – Kaiyo had lived alone since losing his parents during the Nine-tailed attack and remained unmarried.

Satoru hesitated before accepting, his reluctance evident but polite. As they settled at the table, Kaiyo observed his student's thoughtful expression. "What is in your mind?"

"Huh?" Satoru glanced at Kaiyo with confusion.

"I meant, what were you thinking during today's training?" Kaiyo clarified, overseeing his student.

A bitter smile crossed Satoru's face as he replied, "Guess I can't hide my emotions..." He met Kaiyo's gaze. "I was just trying to replicate Raijin... He uses small movements to create lots of damage. I thought learning to do fewer movements would make me like Raijin."

Kaiyo's expression softened as he listened to his student's impatient desire to match one of his peers. "That's because Raijin must have done training so much that he could bring out the damage through small movements. You can also do it if you practice the footwork enough to change its flow during a fight."

"Really?" Satoru's eyes lit up at the encouragement.

After a moment's consideration, Satoru ventured another question. "Do you know Kaiyo-sensei? Raijin can even perform Jutsus."

Kaiyo's chopsticks froze halfway to his mouth, food temporarily forgotten. "Sfay Afghain!" he stammered around his mouthful.

"…"