Chương 326: CH_9.11 (326)

The first week of the training period was busy as everyone underwent tests for things they were sure they would pass. Everyone passed physical testing, weapon handling, field strategy, battle tactics, logical reasoning, data interpretation, arithmetics, verbal ability, reading comprehension, and other basics expected from a shinobi who had passed ANBU recruitment.

ANBU even tested their chakra control and jutsu comprehension by having them demonstrate ninjutsu and complete a written test quizzing them on chakra theory.

"You failed?" Takuma was flabbergasted. Three out of six recruits—Etomi, Fourteen; Utamatsu, Sixteen; and Yazo, Ten— had failed the written test. The test was difficult and demanded a minimum of 80% score to pass, but Takuma didn't think anyone would fail the test.

"I never really paid attention to the theory," said Yazo with a frown. His hand disappeared into his afro as he scratched his head.

"Did they teach all of this in the academy? I don't remember learning half of this stuff. I'm more of a do-it-to-learn-it type of guy."

"It has been a long time since I paid attention to theory. With kids and the job, I was lucky to learn some new jutsu, but reading the literature has not been a consideration for a few years now," sighed Utamatsu, the oldest of the group and the only one married with kids. Etomi clicked her tongue.

"There's definitely stuff beyond the academy level. I'll have to do a refresher about a couple of topics, and I should be fine in the next test... But, shit, come on..." Amami patted Etomi's shoulder because the latter had scored 79% on her test and had only failed by 1%.

"So, you're not taking the class?" Utamatsu asked Etomi.

"Nope, and you shouldn't as well. Do some self-study and give the second attempt; if you pass, all good—but if you fail, you take the classes—no reason to commit to a class before that."

"I'm taking the class. I don't think giving a second attempt will do me any good," said Yazo, quickly evaluating his position and making an appropriate decision.

"But this is bullshit. I did everything correctly during my demonstration. Who cares about nerd shit when I have the skills pat down!" Takuma then realised that not everyone read the literature on the back of the jutsu scroll and slogged through academic papers. He started reading technical stuff because he just sucked at ninjutsu; learning theory helped him make sense of things he didn't understand. The habit stuck, and he continued to read.

But Yazo wasn't wrong in his claim that theory didn't matter if one could perform a jutsu as well as him. Amami said, "Learning theory can be helpful but will yield diminishing returns past a point. I say attend the class and try to pass the recommended level, but if you can't, try for a lower difficulty level—as you said, if you can use your jutsu well, no one will care." Takuma nodded.

"There's more than one way to learn ninjutsu, but this is ANBU; they demand a higher standard. Don't make excuses before putting in effort and take the easy way out," said Kojuro Hyuuga.

"My approach is not an excuse," said Amami, her eyes narrowing. Kojuro shrugged. Utamatsu quickly changed the subject to the next week's testing portion. As they talked, Takuma gazed at the criteria document he had read over and over again for the past week. He wondered if completing the training as soon as possible was the right move for him. He wanted to use his three months properly to not only push himself forward but also to prepare himself for the job.

He thought about why they wanted them to hurry, and one reason was that ANBU wanted them to learn on the job. It was an effective way to encourage people to learn quickly, and the learnings were completely practical without any bloat that could creep into a classroom. He had learned most of his leading, managing, and organisational skills on the job during the Narcotics Taskforce, and while he made mistakes, he had learned an awful lot very quickly.

Or perhaps ANBU just wanted them to get working as soon as possible because they were on their payroll.

"So much to do, so little time," Takuma commented absentmindedly. He needed more information but didn't have the right person to ask it from. However, Takuma soon found the person who would solve his problem. ———. Later that evening, Takuma was leaving the training facility when he saw a brunette woman sitting on a bench near the entrance. She was dressed in casual clothes and wore a cap. He assumed she was someone from ANBU who had come to train there, but as he passed her, she looked up at him and smiled.

Takuma froze when he saw someone he hadn't seen in a very long time and wasn't expecting to reunite with at the ANBU training facility. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

"Sango?!" Takuma was left speechless for a moment. They had met in the Ring, where she served as his iryo-nin, a relationship which developed into her becoming his personal doctor and they had grown close enough that she was willing to manipulate his medical records to omit any mention of the scars on his body. The last time he had seen her was just before the assassination attempt.

She did not visit him in the hospital or pick up the phone when he wanted to tell her that he was getting deployed, nor did she reply to his invitation to his promotion ceremony. It was like she had vanished from the face of the earth.

"Yo, I knew you would end up here one day," said Sango with a grin.

"Fuck you showing up like this after all this time," Takuma spat. He felt embarrassed that he was the only person who gave importance to their friendship enough that he went to her house only to find out that she had moved away while he was away at war with no way to contact her. He also didn't want to contact her former teacher, Enomoto, the Shady Guy, because of his history with him.

"Oh, come on, don't be like that," Sango stood up and wrapped her arm over his shoulders. She smiled when he didn't push her away.

"I was busy. These guys are taskmasters, their innate dislike bubbles up when they see free people. And well, a chunin iryo-nin would be sought after everywhere regardless."

"You got promoted?"

"Of course, they gave me a promotion just like you," she smirked, her fox-like eyes narrowing.

"I'm still mad."

"What can I do to make it up to you? I now know how to do cosmetic reconstructions now. I can get rid of the scars for you if you like." Takuma paused for a moment before shaking his head.

"No, I don't want that. But you can help me with some other things," he said as he looked at his ANBU senior as thoughts began to pop into his head. They moved to a restaurant to continue their reunion and conversation.

"You sure picked a fancy place," Sango clicked her tongue as Takuma brought them to a high-end restaurant and even asked for a private room. She sighed, "Well, I don't have the free time to spend money, so whatever, let big sis spoil you a little." Takuma didn't beat around the bush and brought up the topic concerning him the most.

"You want to spend all three months in training?" Sango hummed and gazed up at the ceiling of the private room for a moment.

"Well... I wouldn't recommend it because there's a lot of work to be done, especially right now."

"Right now?"

"ANBU has been stressed and stretched thin since Shimura Danzo and ROOT absconded. Not only do we have to catch ROOT, but we also pick up the slack they left behind. Everyone's workload around the board has shot up," Sango's sigh sounded beyond tired.

"We need new people, but training them takes time, which takes away from chipping away at the workload—and I'm not talking about the training you are doing now—it's the on-job practical stuff like knowing how your unit operates, what's your leader's management style, the idiosyncrasies of your teammates, and all that real day-to-day, detailed stuff that you can't teach without actually working with your team.

"We also can't up our hiring more than we have right now because that would mean lowering the standards, which is a no-go. We're somehow managing by outsourcing non-essential, lower-priority matters to other entities and former ANBU-nin, but it's not enough. We need more people, so spending three months when your unit expects you within one and a half—but actually needs you there in one—is not ideal." The timing was not right.

ANBU needed the manpower to cover the hole left by ROOT before foreign powers took advantage and damaged the nation. They landed small victories as ANBU ran around, putting out more fires than they could handle.

"So, right now, they need someone who can pull his weight immediately?" said Takuma.

"Exactly," said Sango as she picked up her large pitcher of highball. If spending all three months wasn't possible, he needed to focus on the next best thing. How could he increase his value in the eyes of his team and make a good impression? Upon joining, they would probably treat him like a rookie and try to guide him through his responsibilities. He had gone through the same thing with Kano when he joined the Police Force. The workload was lighter, and everything was double-checked for pointers and errors.

All of that took time away from Kano's regular duties. Eventually, he got used to it, and she stopped babysitting him, but that took some time. The best way to create a good impression was to reduce that initial babysitting time and prove that he could handle a regular amount of work on his own. But for that to happen, he needed a few things to accomplish his goal.

"About paying me back..."

"Oh, did you decide on what you want?"

"I want some help with a couple of things." ———. By the time Takuma returned home from his meeting with Sango, Maruboshi had already finished his dinner and retired to his room for the day. Takuma took a bath, cleaned the bathroom, and did some prep work for breakfast as part of his duties as a housemate before also turning in for the day. As he lay on his bed in his room, he gazed at the ceiling with a thought that he had pushed aside before..

He slipped his hand underneath his shirt and traced the scars with a hand. There were two types of scarring on his body. The rough scars, caused by sharp weapons that cut him during spars and fights, were evidence of mistakes he made during combat. He did not want to get rid of them, as they served as reminders to avoid making those same mistakes. The surgical scars that were present from before the day he found himself in the body. They were methodical, uniform, and were present all over his body.

What kind of person was the boy to go through so many operations and medical procedures? It would've made sense if it was someone only in one part of the body—but scars were everywhere. No one that sick would be able to have a body strong enough to be a shinobi. Takuma closed his eyes as a faint pain assaulted his head from thinking about the scars.

It used to be torturous, but ever since that miserable day when Rikku had died in Yu, the pain had become much more manageable after he had visions during his fight against Kon. Those were not visions. They were repressed memories. They were vague and blurry, but Takuma had seen them in his dreams; they had kept him awake at night. If they were memories, they were the boy's memories.

He managed to piece together the fact that the boy was involved in some form of experimentation, and the fact he saw a younger Kon in those memories meant it was all connected to the ROOT somehow. Nothing of it had to do with him, and yet, because he now possessed the body, he had inherited everything from the boy. Something from deep within his being wanted him to find what had happened to get some semblance of a closure. And so, he had another reason to go after ROOT.

Unlike avenging Rikku, this didn't feel like his own desire, but it compelled him the same. Perhaps it was a remnant of the boy influencing him. It made him uncomfortable to think he was being influenced by something he did not know, yet it made no difference. He wanted to know the truth, and getting to it meant capturing the person he hated the most in his life. Until he got closure, he would not erase the scars on his body.

Takuma already wanted to kill Kon; now he had an excuse to torture the bastard until he fessed up everything he knew.