Chakra, Claws, and Chicken Blood

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A/N - Thank you, Fernando Raillanca, Emlio Zea, & keaton dragonball, for becoming Azure Awakening Patróns!

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Kaoru stood in his yard, facing the pond, the faint breeze carrying the scent of water and wet stone. His eyes stayed fixed on the small ring he held between his fingers. It was dark, almost black, its surface smooth like polished glass. It looked simple at a glance, but it felt heavier than it should have.

'I think I have a few hours before meeting Maru,' he thought, slipping the ring onto his finger without hesitation.

The moment it touched his skin, he closed his eyes, gathering his focus.

Many didn't know, but chakra actually consisted of two components: Yang and Yin Release.

Yang Release was the energy tied to life itself. The force behind strength, healing, movement, and the body's natural vitality. Yin Release was different. It wasn't about the body. It was the mind's energy. The chakra of thought, imagination, shaping things that didn't exist yet. So, while Yang Release was physical energy, Yin Release was spiritual.

Most shinobi never noticed the difference. Their chakra was always mixed together, dominated by the body without them even realizing it. Separating them required a different kind of training. A different kind of awareness and, more importantly, the right knowledge.

Kaoru already knew most of what the training method Itachi gave him explained. After witnessing Toji Senju's mastery over Yang and Yin Release, he had spent time researching ways to train them himself. But there hadn't been many sources in the Takimura library. And worst of all, the war with Kirigakure had broken out soon after, forcing him to abandon that path and focus on more immediate needs.

'If what the scroll says is true, once I master either of them... I'll be able to create techniques no one has seen before,' Kaoru thought, his fingers brushing the ring lightly. 'In theory, I could even make my water needles impossible to see if I can infuse them with illusions by using Yin energy…'

He had read the scroll the moment Itachi left last night. He was tempted to start training immediately, but he had to wake up early in the morning as he had promised to speak with Maki about the Uchiha situation first. So he had no choice but to postpone the training.

'I need to take it slow, Kaoru reminded himself. The scroll even mentioned that mastering this will take time, although I'm almost certain that the scroll was written by Itachi himself,' thought Kaoru, a faint smile tugging at his lips as the thought crossed his mind.

But as Kaoru closed his eyes and concentrated, the smile faded.

He breathed slowly, standing still as the faint mist of the waterfall drifted around him. At first, all he could feel was the familiar flow of chakra moving through his body, the cold touch of moisture against his skin, and even a droplet slowly forming on the tip of his nose. But after a while, he began to notice changes.

The ring Itachi had given him, the one he had been explicitly warned not to wear outside of training, was slowly affecting him. Kaoru could feel it draining the energy from his body, not overwhelmingly, not painfully, but enough for him to recognize that something was steadily being pulled away. It wasn't hard to guess what it was. The sensation of his body growing slightly heavier, the fading of that natural vitality.

'This feels similar to when I was exposed to Akagan's residual product,' he thought, recalling the strange experience back in the weirdly wealthy village. 'Now that I look at it, the color of the ring does look a lot like Kurogan… is that just a coincidence?'

He let the thought hang for a moment, but soon his focus shifted again as he noticed a second effect.

The ring wasn't just draining him, it was amplifying something too. Kaoru couldn't grasp exactly what it was. The connection was too faint, the boost too subtle to understand.

'This must be Yin Release,' he thought, frowning slightly. 'Since Itachi said the Uchiha use this ring for Yin training, it makes sense…'

A small trace of regret crossed his face.

'It looks like I'm not talented in Yin Release after all. There goes my dream of learning the Yamanaka clan's secret technique to read people's minds…'

He let out a soft, self-deprecating smile, brushing a hand through his hair without thinking. The ring felt cool against his skin as the mist from the waterfall continued to drift lazily around him.

But then he quickly shook off those unpleasant thoughts, forcing himself to focus on the positives.

'Even if I'm not talented in Yin Release, it doesn't mean I can never learn it. And most importantly, I can already feel the Yang energy.'

Even if the sensation was faint, Kaoru could immediately differentiate the type of energy the obsidian-colored ring was draining from him. He closed his eyes, shutting off his thoughts and focusing solely on his senses.

'Let's try sensing the same energy in my chakra. Let's take the first step…'

Beneath the steady flow of chakra running through his body, he sensed something thinner. It wasn't subtle in its nature as it was violent, energetic and restless.

Still, the sensation remained faint, not strong enough for him to fully grasp or understand.

'It's like an itch I can't scratch,' Kaoru thought irritably, opening his eyes. 

This was his least favorite kind of training. He liked seeing immediate results. He liked knowing the moment something changed. But this… this was the kind of training that demanded patience. The kind that dragged on with nothing but vague feelings until, one day, there would be a breakthrough, and from that point, everything would finally start to make sense.

'Okay, calm down. I can't be impatient,' he thought, trying to push the frustration aside.

He closed his eyes again, forcing himself to focus. Instead of chasing the feeling blindly, he decided to take a different approach.

He began visualizing the chakra flow in his body, creating a complete mental image. It wasn't difficult. Creating new chakra rotation pathways had already forced him to master this kind of visualization.

'The flow. The chakra pathways…'

He built the image piece by piece, until he could clearly see the structure in his mind.

'Now… let's try sensing the Yang energy. No, I need to focus on smaller areas. Break it down to make it easier…'

He chose his right hand, the one with the obsidian-colored ring. Focusing entirely on the faint sensation of Yang energy being drawn out, he tried to sharpen his perception.

The feeling was much clearer now. But even after training for a few hours, he still couldn't fully grasp it.

'It's fine,' Kaoru thought, refusing to be frustrated. 'I'm not sure if this speed is good or bad, but I've already exceeded my expectations.'

While he was extremely disappointed with his aptitude for Yin Release, Yang Release was a different story.

'Maybe the Takime clan has an aptitude for Yang Release,' he concluded after a moment's consideration. 'Maki's Predators Pact aside, the fact that our clan has so many medical ninjas should mean that we're naturally good at Yang Release.'

Satisfied with the progress he had made, Kaoru decided to stop for now. His mind was still sharp, his chakra reserves more than healthy, but he had too many other things to do.

'First, I'll meet Maru. I need to confirm if he helped Yko create those summoning seals. Then I'll…' 

He was halfway through planning his day when he heard faint footsteps approaching from behind.

"Sorry Kaoru, the door was open, and I'm leaving soon," Itachi said, smiling apologetically as he stepped into view.

"Oh, not a problem. I didn't know you were leaving today," Kaoru said, waving a hand dismissively as he walked toward him.

"Yeah. Now that the deal has been made, we're leaving," Itachi said, and his smile widened slightly into a smirk. "Thank you, Kaoru! Your sister demanded that we first establish a new, independent village and if we do, then there'll be an alliance between us."

Itachi's voice carried a rare note of open relief. Kaoru could tell how much it meant to him that, instead of being rejected outright as Itachi suggested, Maki had offered a new, different path forward.

"You keep helping me whenever I need it the most. First, you saved my life, and now you've saved my clan from doing…" He trailed off, unwilling to say more about the rebellion.

"Itachi, don't worry about it," Kaoru said calmly. "I didn't do anything special. I just suggested a deal that benefits my village and a clan along the way."

He didn't think he had done anything particularly grand, but he still felt pleased seeing how much it meant to Itachi. Having Itachi indebted was not just emotionally satisfying. It would be a powerful card to have in the future.

"If the day ever comes when you need me, I'll repay you," Itachi said, the smile fading from his face.

The seriousness in his voice made Kaoru certain he had gained something even rarer than a strong ally, he had gained someone reliable.

"I have to leave now. Good luck with your training and don't forget to remove that ring when you're done," Itachi added, pointing lightly at Kaoru's hand before disappearing with a flicker.

…

"Maru, did you help Yko make the summoning seals?" Kaoru asked as he arrived at the waterfall where the giant eagle was resting.

"Is that the name of that red-haired, annoying brat?" Maru shouted, clacking his beak sharply. "First he kept asking a mountain of questions while I was helping him, and then he literally knelt and begged me for more of my blood so he could experiment more! What does he think I am? A chicken he can drain?"

Kaoru could see that Maru was genuinely angry, but he still couldn't help laughing.

"I'm sorry, Maru. I'm laughing about a joke Itachi told me today, not about your situation with Yko. I'll scold him later when I see him," Kaoru said, trying to control himself.

Normally, Maru's gullibility and simple way of thinking made these situations easy to handle.

But not this time.

"What was the joke?" Maru asked, lowering his massive head until his sharp golden eyes locked onto Kaoru's.

Kaoru froze, feeling trapped, desperately trying to find a way out without making it worse.

"Maru, if you're done working with Yko, should we leave tomorrow?" he said quickly, trying to change the subject.

There was a pause, a long one, and Kaoru could feel Maru staring right through him.

Finally, Maru huffed through his beak, straightened, and gave a loud clack.

"We can," he said simply, clearly letting Kaoru off the hook, at least for now.

"Did you tell your friend that if they use that seal again - one drawn without my blood and chakra infused into it - the effects will be completely different?" Maru asked, a hint of concern slipping into his voice.

"I did. I warned not only Yko but also my friends who are going to use the seal," Kaoru nodded quickly, confirming that he had followed Maru's instructions.

"By the way, I thought you needed to meet my friends personally to decide what kind of creature would be best suited for them," Kaoru asked, frowning slightly, confused that Maru still hadn't met Akane and Mizuki.

"Tell that to that redheaded brat again," Maru scoffed, flapping his wings once in irritation. "I know humans like him. They rush into stupid things without thinking!"

It was clear Maru didn't hold Yko in very high regard.

"I didn't want to meet your friends face-to-face," he continued. "So I flew over the village and checked them from afar. One's a redhead just like that brat, and the other girl... she's your mate with the white hair, right?"

Maru straightened suddenly, distracted for a second by a distant sound.

"What are you talking about? What mate? She's just my friend," Kaoru retorted instantly.

"Is having a mate something humans feel ashamed of?" Maru asked, genuinely confused. He lowered his head again, locking his piercing golden eyes on Kaoru.

"Kid, before I forget, don't call us creatures. That's disrespectful. I'm a Great Eagle from Tenkyozan. And the one you're about to meet is..." Maru paused, straightening, as if considering his next words carefully. "Well, I don't want to spoil the surprise. You'll see soon enough."

Then he turned his head toward the trees, shaking his head slightly.

"Your sister's here, by the way," he added, staring toward the edge of the forest.

A moment later, Maki jumped out from between the trees, landing lightly near the pond.

"Oh, you sensed me, Maru, huh?" she chuckled awkwardly, brushing a few leaves off her sleeve.

**

A/N - 

My fever's finally settling down and I'm feeling much better! ^^ Fortunately, that means I'll be in much better shape just in time for Kaoru's next journey to properly kick off. His meeting with the "mysterious creature" is finally starting…

Character Notes:

Maru – Grumpy Donor – "First I get blood-drained like a prize chicken, now I'm being spied on. Where's my retirement package?"

Yko – Bloodthirsty Ink Goblin – "Who knew summoning seals worked differently with blood? Definitely not planning a forbidden art, nope."

Reminder - Break Tomorrow

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The link is also in the synopsis