"It's kind of like ninjutsu, but not at the same time," admitted Sakura. "Any other possibilities?"
flick
Naruto eagerly looked out the window as the bus pulled in through the gates.
"So, uhm, what's your, ah, talent?" asked some Japanese looking girl wearing heavy sunglasses.
"'Talent'?" asked Naruto as he reached for his duffel bag.
"Mutant ability, superpower," said a guy who was slinging his own bag into place. "Whatever you've got that lets you attend this school. It sure isn't fashion sense."
"Xavier's Academy West IS fairly exclusive," said a girl with black hair. Then she reached up and pulled off the black wig to reveal pink hair.
"Wow. Pink hair. I bet that scares the crap outta the bad guys," snickered the guy with the facial tattoos of fangs.
"Uhm, I can tell you've got a strong talent," said the Japanese-looking girl, removing the sunglasses to reveal white blind-looking eyes.
"Of course, everyone in my family has some talent with animals," said the tattoo boy. "I can talk to any canine type animal."
"Arf," responded the dog that was now sticking his head out of the duffel bag.
"I don't get why we're still sticking with the 'mutant' label," said the pink-haired girl. "I've heard of special talents running in families."
"Old definitions," quipped the dog-talker. "Hey, isn't this line going to move? What's the hold-up, fatty?"
The boy struggling with his bag blinked. Slowly he turned. "What did you just call me?"
"Well hell, I just called you 'fat' fatso," said the dog-talker. He grinned, showing enlarged canines. "Whatcha gonna do abou-"
KER-THWAM! went an enlarged arm, throwing the dog-talker out the emergency exit back door of the bus.
"No wrecking the bus!" called back the driver.
The dog-talker rolled to his feet as the dog in his bag leapt clear of both.
"Uhm," said Naruto as the large-boned boy charged out the back where the dog-talker was making a "come on" gesture.
"They're, ah, very lively," said the blind Japanese girl.
"They're idiots," said the pink-hair.
"I want to join in!" declared some girl with mint-green hair. "Looks fun!"
flik!
"What's a 'mutant'?" asked Naruto.
"In that reality, a person descended from humanity but with special abilities or adaptations that mark them as different. In that world - mutants are discriminated against for being different. Mutants are generally of two camps. One side holds that they are superior to humanity and destined to rule or supplant humanity in general. The other side holds that they are human still for all that they are mutants."
"'The child of a frog is a frog'," quoted Sakura. "What was my power?"
"Sakura Haruno. Codename: Codex. Near-perfect recall is your main talent. However, your mother was a mutant with minor super-strength and your father was a normal human. You inherited a portion of that strength, which allows twelve year old Sakura to lift about one ton under optimal conditions."
"YEAH!" said Sakura, pumping a fist. "Awesome!"
"And me?" asked Sasuke. "I wasn't with them. I was in a classroom."
"Everyone in your family has eye-powers. You have the ability to see a few seconds into the future. Sasuke Uchiha. Codename: Reflex."
"And me?!" asked Naruto.
"Naruto Uzumaki. Codename: Cyclone. Powers over wind."
Sasuke shrugged lightly, not seeing anything of interest in this setup.
"I think - no," said Sakura. "That glimpse of a future you showed us. So what was up with the girl with the horns anyway?"
"And that ugly tree?" asked Naruto.
"Ah. That. There is a species of plant native to a world right there," said Toltiir, indicating a portion of the sky. Images began flickering in mid-air. "The dominant native lifeform was a plant. When it had consumed its own homeworld, it shot seeds off into the void. Each seed landing on a habitable world drinks in the chakra and nature energy of that world. First it dominates those energies, then it drains them. It can take millions of years but eventually a tree from that world devours the life capability of the planet, killing off all native species. Then the cycle begins again with seeds launched from the dying world."
"THAT was here?" asked Sakura as the images changed to a single tree dominating the landscape over a sprawling city.
"Not in all realities, but this one - yes. Reasonably sure that Kaguya didn't know the background when she acted to take the fruit of the tree unto herself and become like a goddess. Then again, she didn't start out as a terrible goddess seeking to hoard all power to herself."
The images switched to Kaguya slaughtering towns, villages, cities - then unleashing the ten-tails for further escalation of the level of destruction.
"That level of destructive power," mumbled Sasuke.
"Yes, well, that's why the sons of Kaguya fully turned against their mother. Up to that point they'd tried to avoid direct confrontation. After seeing the peaceful village he'd been living in for forty years destroyed, even the one called the Sage decided that his mother had to be stopped. In any case, this is where the choice of a ninja world or another choice can be made. It all starts here."
"Magic instead of chakra?" asked Sakura. "Does it really require pointy sticks? Isn't that kind of silly?"
"Well, no. It's simply the way magic works there - the wand stabilizes and directs the forces involved. Same with the focuses used in that Academy setting." The Being considered them briefly with four eyes while another three darted about. "Ah. Here's one."
flick!
"Welcome," said the woman at the door. "You are all applicants for our guild - so can I see your applications?"
The small group fumbled about, pulling out the sheets and presenting them as the woman walked by. As she collected the first one she gestured behind her. "As soon as I go over your application, just go ahead into the next room. There's a small series of tests for each of you. At the end of which you'll either be accepted into our guild or we'll wish you luck in finding a guild better suited to you."
There were a few sounds of agreement as she took the first one.
"Ah. Sasuke Uchiha. Yes, I see. You do know that we're a legal Guild and don't do assassinations or similar 'dark side' missions?" asked the woman.
"This is one of the strongest guilds here, with some of the strongest mages in the Allied Nations," said Sasuke. "I can learn the most here."
"I see," said the woman, smiling brightly and handing his application back. "Just go ahead then. Next?"
One after the other went through the same process. Finally it was her turn.
"Sakura Haruno," said the woman, reading from the application. "Ah. A mage - you didn't select a specialty here?"
"No specialty," answered Sakura. "I'm interested in all forms of magic."
"It says here that your reason for wanting to join the guild is to be close to Mister Uchiha," said the woman. "What are you going to do if he goes to a different guild?"
"Follow him," said Sakura without hesitation.
"There are six others who are doing the same thing," pointed out the woman. "Are you trying for a harem arrangement?"
"WHAT?!" practically shrieked Sakura. "Why didn't you ask anyone else something like that?! And NO! I am NOT!"
The woman shrugged. "It isn't like that doesn't happen. Rare. But it does happen. Next."
He was largely bored as he waited his turn, finally having a chance to turn his application in.
"I see someone needs work on his handwriting," said the woman, squinting at the paper and frowning slightly. "Naruto Uzumaki. Can bad handwriting be genetic? Anyway - Sorcerer/Monk? That's a very odd but potentially powerful combination. Are you certain about that?"
"I was training in a monastery when I suddenly figured out how to make copies of myself," admitted Naruto. "Caught a lotta people by surprise."
"I'd imagine so," said the woman with a nod. "Your reason for applying with the Shadow Leaf guild is - I'm sorry but could you say it? I'm having trouble making out your handwriting."
"I'm gonna be the most powerful sorcerer," said Naruto. "I'm gonna make a name for myself! Believe it!"
"Oh, I thought it might have been because your mother had joined our guild and it was a family thing," said the woman, sounding disappointed.
"Well, maybe a bit of that too," admitted Naruto. "I don't really know much about her but I figure I can find out more here."
"That's good," said the woman, nodding. "Next."
Sasuke sneered at the multiple choice test. What kind of stupid questions were these anyway?
14) Your grandmother invites you over for tea, then tells you about a problem neighbor. Apparently the owner lets his dog wander over into her yard where he does his business. You get the hint and resolve the matter by:
A) set a snare or trap for the dog in her yard.
B) eliminate the dog in an untraceable manner.
C) have a talk with the dog's owner about civic and personal responsibility.
D) have a talk with the dog's owner, pointing out that in terms of personal power - you could crush them both like bugs.
E) contact another guild member who can speak with animals.
F) burn it with fire!
Sasuke shook his head. Which was the correct answer? While B had a certain personal appeal, so did F.
flick!
"What the hell?" asked Naruto.
"What do you mean?" asked Sakura, rubbing her temples.
"I got through the test but neither you or teme there were in the room at the end," complained Naruto.
"Stupid tests," said Sasuke.
"Sasuke was rejected so I went after him," noted Sakura.
"So I ended up in Shadow Leaf, and Sakura-chan didn't?" asked Naruto, clearly disappointed that he didn't end up with his crush. "Well, what then?"
"Hmmm. Let me skip ahead a bit. And - right here."
flick!
"Your taijutsu - it is pig dung!" said Sasuke, snarling down at Naruto from the top of a torii.
Naruto whipped his staff to the side. "You have betrayed the temple, betrayed your code... what the hell are you wearing?!"
Sasuke blinked at the change of subject and mood. Then glanced to the side, sighed, and shook his head. "Girls. Come out AFTER the Dramatic Declaration parts. How many times have I been over this where you wait for your cue?"
"But Sasuke! It's just Naruto," said Sakura, pointing down at the idiot-boy.
"That's right," said Karin. "We can take him down without you having to raise a hand, Sasuke-sama!"
"Let me take out the trash!" said Ino, clenching her fist. "The squad isn't necessary to deal with this loser!"
"Uhm, Sasuke? Are they ALL wearing the same uniform?" asked Naruto, looking from one to the other.
"They were all trying to one-up each other with the sexiest outfit, so I came up with a standardized uniform," retorted Sasuke. "I figured some would be discouraged by the black leather - it might have some armor value but it can't be comfortable in this heat. No such luck."
"Ah, right," said Naruto. "Six girls in black leather cheerleader uniforms. With your name on their chests. This is kinda weird."
"You have NO idea," complained Sasuke. "I'm a dark avenger who walks a path of pain and suffering. They keep upstaging my dramatic moments, undermining my efforts, and screwing up at the worst possible moments. Like now with me attempting to have my final fight with you and two of them trying to attack you from ambush. Nice dodge, by the way."
Naruto landed a few feet away. "They've done that before. Okay. Well, this time I was prepared."
Three people landed nearby.
"You've got your own squad?" asked Sasuke, hoping that some of them would kill each other off.
"Fuu, you take those three," said Naruto. "Hinata, Ino and Sakura. Tenten, you've been studying under Ezra-sensei. You know what to do."
flick
"I don't think that really works for me," noted Naruto.
"I want to object to 'Team Sasuke'," said Sasuke. "Can we not go there? I just want to kill That Man and rebuild my clan. Is that too much to ask?"
"I object to Team Sasuke," seconded Sakura. "Who are all these girls hanging around my Sasuke?"
"Not your Sasuke," growled Sasuke, noting that some of that other Sakura's attitude had leaked into THIS Sakura.
"So, if not ninjas, is there something where I can go straight to being an awesome hero?" asked Naruto.
flick!
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(Posted Sat, 10 Jan 2015 16:46)
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