Chapter 15

It was three weeks before he actually started feeling the first of the effects.

He should have expected this really. It was one of the most significant benefits of using nature chakra in the first place.

You could detect everybody.

It'd be weird if he didn't remember what it was to feel the full effect of nature chakra coursing through his veins. I mean, in his perfected sage mode he could practically feel the fly that landed on the leaf a hundred yards away. He was in tune with nature, and that really didn't have a limit.

Here and now he could feel some of the chakra signatures around the village. Just a handful for now, the strongest were the ones that stood out the most. Tsunade he recognized immediately, Saru-jiji he had to wait till the old man had gotten to his office and stayed there for a while.

He found his Anbu too. She seemed somewhat familiar so he probably had sensed her somewhere specific during the war but his memory just wasn't being jogged. Maybe she'd guarded him back in his original time or something.

As he made his way to the academy he kept on trying to make use of this new little development, sensing the different people here and there and trying to recognize them. Later, with some practice, he'd make a point of pegging the chakra signatures of all the ones that were important to him. That way he could find them no matter what.

It was as he was thinking this, that he felt his Anbu escort with the familiar signature, suddenly fall back, and start turning away. It was a mystery as to why that was when his senses found another signature, this one suppressed, but quickly becoming more apparent to his new found sixth sense as it edged closer.

It made him smile

At least one of his old sensei were ok.

-0-

"Alright everyone settle down!" Zae raised her voice as the students all but stampeded out of the academy building into the adjacent training grounds. Nothing, not even she, could ever keep a class of academy students excitement completely suppressed when it came time for Taijutsu matches.

It was a practice reserved for the 4th year students about to graduate, the 4th year of course, being the most physically demanding of the curriculum. The other three years were devoted to the more mental aspects of the Shinobi profession. The only physical things done in the first two years was physical conditioning, exercises, tree jumping, handseal practice, etc. etc.

Actual Taijutsu, weapon and ninjutsu practice didn't see practical application until the third year, mainly it was practiced on the academy instructors.

It was in the fourth year when students were finally allowed in any official capacity to face off against each-other, that way the instructors could get a clear picture on who stood where in order to properly assign them to teams. The practice was done, normally three times a week, with the schedule randomized so the student's minds and bodies would get used to the prospect of fighting whenever it was asked of them.

Of course most kids performed to expectations, the notable Taijutsu powerhouse was, surprisingly not a clan kid, but an orphan. To be fair though most of the clans were missing from this year. No Aburame, Hyuuga, Yamanaka or Nara. The best ninjutsu kid was an Uchiha though, as far as Naruto could tell and the best kunai and shuriken flinger was, surprisingly, one of the two Akimichi of the group.

"Alright children." The diminutive teacher said taking her place at the side of the practice ring. "Lets all try to beat eachother with civility; Yes?" She drily quipped as she looked through the randomized lineup for today. "Gokyu Adou and Shizuka Moroi, please come on up so we can begin the learning."

"So who you gonna get paired up with this time?" Shizune asked, plopping down next to him to wait with everyone else.

"Dunno." That was mostly true. But while the roster was mostly randomized, he'd noticed that his opponents were getting tougher and tougher. His first fight had been against Naotora, the class dead last. She was brash and loud like him. But she'd underestimated him, as did 90% of the class, and he'd used that to catch her completely off guard. And since she was the "dead last" his next opponent didn't think much of the win.

And so on and so on.

Now they were catching on so that element was out.

But more than that he noticed that each of his partners was just that much more dedicated, that much faster, stronger or smarter.

Apparently, Zae was trying to climb him up the ladder to see where exactly he should fit when it came to team placements.

So no, he didn't know per-se who his next enemy would be, but he could guess that it would be one of the class mid-lings most likely.

Though she was starting to run out of time if that was really her game and it wasn't just random chance as they said. They only had a handful of days left.

"I know you don't know but come on take a guess or something Naru-chan." She ruffled his hair then he heard the sharp inhale from her on one side and footsteps to his other.

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